CIVILISATION course Past Paper PDF

[Table of Contents] {#table-of-contents.En-ttedetabledesmatires} =============================== [[Introduction] 4](#introduction) [[THE BIG USA QUIZ] 7](#the-big-usa-quiz) [[Freedom] 13](#freedom) [[Text: The Civil War 1861-1865] 13](#text-the-civil-war-1861-1865) [[The USA Today] 16](#the-usa...

[Table of Contents] {#table-of-contents.En-ttedetabledesmatires} =============================== [[Introduction] 4](#introduction) [[THE BIG USA QUIZ] 7](#the-big-usa-quiz) [[Freedom] 13](#freedom) [[Text: The Civil War 1861-1865] 13](#text-the-civil-war-1861-1865) [[The USA Today] 16](#the-usa-today) [[Text : I'm a New York City Liberal, and I Want a Gun] 16](#text-im-a-new-york-city-liberal-and-i-want-a-gun) [[Traditions and Holidays] 20](#_Toc145173592) [[Text: MLK: has his dream come true?] 20](#text-mlk-has-his-dream-come-true) [[Cities and Sights] 25](#cities-and-sights) [[Text: SAN FRANCISCO -- CITY OF IDEALS] 25](#text-san-francisco-city-of-ideals) [[Nature and the Environment] 30](#nature-and-the-environment) [[Text: 10 things you didn't know about Yosemite] 30](#text-10-things-you-didnt-know-about-yosemite) [[Daily Life] 33](#daily-life) [[Text: America's Ivy League: Myth or Reality?] 33](#text-americas-ivy-league-myth-or-reality) [[Sports] 36](#_Toc145173600) [[Text: Killian Hayes -- Five things to know about the NBA's new recruit] 36](#text-killian-hayes-five-things-to-know-about-the-nbas-new-recruit) [[Entertainment] 38](#entertainment) [[Text: Michael Jackson] 38](#text-michael-jackson) [[Looking Forward] 41](#looking-forward) I. Introduction\ The Big USA Quiz II. Freedom\ The Civil War 1861-1865 III. The USA Today\ I'm a New York City Liberal, and I want a Gun IV. Traditions and Holidays\ MLK: has his dream come true? V. Cities and Sights\ San Francisco -- City of Ideals VI. Nature and the Environment\ 10 things you didn't know about Yosemite VII. Daily Life\ America's Ivy League: Myth or Reality? VIII. Sports\ Killian Hayes IX. Entertainment\ Michael Jackson X. Looking Forward XI. Final Test Political map of USA stock vector. Illustration of globe \... Introduction ============ This course is for learners of English who want to know more about the USA. Later in your life, you'll be in situation where you'll understand every word that an American says but you'll not understand what they mean. This course aims to fill the gap so that, when you encounter Americans, you'll be in the same position as an averagely educated American. Of course, it's impossible for you to put yourself in exactly the same position as natives of the USA. Therefore, we'll also look behind the details which every American knows, so that you can get an insight into the American approach to life in general. In this course you'll find all the basic information you need about American events and everyday life. But you'll find more than that. Particular attention will be paid to the attitudes of American people. The course will be divided into ten topics. Some will give you general information about the USA. You'll be given assignments. Some will focus on current events. You should be able to remember the exercises. If you can do so, this means you\'ve caught the essentials. All the pieces of information in this course are included for one reason: they are there because they form part of an American general knowledge. This course is not an encyclopaedia but should help you expand your knowledge of the people who speak the language you're learning. I. Introduction *You should be able to answer the following questions with a full sentence by the end of the year* 1. Which city was called New Amsterdam until 1664? 2. Which language does the largest number of immigrants speak? 3. In which month do Americans celebrate Thanksgiving Day? 4. What color are the buses that take many US children to school? 5. Where is the center of US space exploration, NASA? 6. What famous sport in the US is played on ice? 7. What game is played on Super Bowl Sunday every year? 8. When does the NFL season start? 9. Who was the creator of Mickey Mouse? 10. When did the first man go to the moon? I. Introduction THE BIG USA QUIZ ---------------- NAME: DATE: CLASS: 6 75 questions to see how well you know the USA! Each one of you will receive at least three questions to answer. For each one, find a reliable source, [underline the part where you found the answer]. There should be a different source for each question. What's a 'reliable source'? Rule number one: read the entire information. Reading the title of an article or its introduction isn't enough to measure its entire content. Beware of announcement effects, which appeal to emotions such as fear for example. Rule number two: check the source of the information, the name of the website, the status of the publication (about) and the date on which it was published. Rule number three: cross-check the information. Conclusion: no wiki, no media, no ChatGPT 1. What is the capital city of the United States?\ a) New York City b) Los Angeles c) Washington, D.C. d) Chicago 2. Which state is known as the \"Sunshine State\"?\ a) California b) Florida c) Texas d) Hawaii 3. Which national park is famous for its geysers, including the Old Faithful?\ a) Yosemite National Park b) Everglades National Park c) Grand Canyon National Park d) Yellowstone National Park 4. Which monument in South Dakota features the faces of four American presidents?\ a) Statue of Liberty b) Mount Rushmore c) Lincoln Memorial d) Washington Monument 5. Which year did the United States declare its independence from Great Britain? a) 1776 b) 1789 c) 1812 d) 1865 6. What was the name of the first human to walk on the moon?\ a) Neil Armstrong b) Buzz Aldrin c) John Glenn d) Alan Shepard 7. What is the nickname for the United States flag?\ a) The Stars and Stripes b) The Old Glory c) The Star-Spangled Banner d) All of the above 8. Who is considered the founding father of the United States?\ a) Benjamin Franklin b) George Washington c) Thomas Jefferson d) All of the above 9. Which American city is known as the birthplace of jazz?\ a) New Orleans b) Chicago c) Nashville d) Memphis 10. Who is the author of the novel \"To Kill a Mockingbird\"?\ a) F. Scott Fitzgerald b) Mark Twain c) Harper Lee d) John Steinbeck 11. Which iconic American singer is known as the \"King of Rock and Roll\"?\ a) Elvis Presley b) Frank Sinatra c) Michael Jackson d) Bob Dylan 12. Which city hosts the annual Super Bowl event?\ a) New York City b) Los Angeles c) Chicago d) It changes every year 13. Who is the current President of the United States as of 2023?\ a) Joe Biden b) Donald Trump c) Kamala Harris d) Barack Obama 14. Which state is home to the Grand Canyon?\ a) Arizona b) Nevada c) Colorado d) Utah 15. Who invented the telephone?\ a) Alexander Graham Bell b) Thomas Edison c) Benjamin Franklin d) Albert Einstein 16. Which American city is famous for its Golden Gate Bridge?\ a) San Francisco b) Seattle c) Miami d) Boston 17. Who is the author of \"The Great Gatsby\"?\ a) Ernest Hemingway b) F. Scott Fitzgerald c) Harper Lee d) J.D. Salinger 18. Which state is known as the \"Lone Star State\"?\ a) Texas b) California c) Florida d) New York 19. Who is the famous American inventor known for his contributions to electricity?\ a) Thomas Edison b) Alexander Graham Bell c) Nikola Tesla d) Benjamin Franklin 20. Which US city is famous for its film industry and the iconic Hollywood sign?\ a) New York City b) Los Angeles c) Miami d) Las Vegas 21. Who is considered the \"Father of the Constitution\" in the United States?\ a) George Washington b) Benjamin Franklin c) James Madison d) Abraham Lincoln 22. Which city hosted the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival?\ a) New York City b) San Francisco c) Austin d) Bethel 23. Who is the American civil rights activist known for her refusal to give up her seat on a segregated bus?\ a) Rosa Parks b) Harriet Tubman c) Maya Angelou d) Sojourner Truth 24. Which American holiday is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November?\ a) Independence Day b) Thanksgiving c) Christmas d) New Year\'s Day 25. Which state is home to the famous music festival Coachella?\ a) California b) Texas c) Tennessee d) New York 26. Who is the American founding father and author of \"Common Sense\"?\ a) Thomas Jefferson b) John Adams c) Benjamin Franklin d) Thomas Paine 27. Which state is known as the \"Garden State\"?\ a) New Jersey b) Connecticut c) Pennsylvania d) Massachusetts 28. Which American president delivered the Gettysburg Address?\ a) Abraham Lincoln b) George Washington c) Thomas Jefferson d) Franklin D. Roosevelt 29. What is the largest desert in the United States?\ a) Sahara Desert b) Mojave Desert c) Sonoran Desert d) Great Basin Desert 30. Who is the American entrepreneur and founder of Microsoft?\ a) Bill Gates b) Steve Jobs c) Jeff Bezos d) Mark Zuckerberg 31. Which American state is nicknamed the \"Land of Enchantment\"?\ a) New Mexico b) Colorado c) Oregon d) Nevada 32. Who is the American author of the novel \"Moby-Dick\"?\ a) Mark Twain b) Herman Melville c) Edgar Allan Poe d) Nathaniel Hawthorne 33. Which state is known as the \"Show-Me State\"?\ a) Missouri b) Kansas c) Nebraska d) Kentucky 34. Who is considered the primary author of the Declaration of Independence?\ a) George Washington b) Thomas Jefferson c) John Adams d) Benjamin Franklin 35. Who is the American civil rights leader known for his \"I Have a Dream\" speech? a) Rosa Parks b) Martin Luther King Jr. c) Malcolm X d) Jesse Jackson 36. Which American state is known as the \"Last Frontier\"?\ a) Alaska b) Hawaii c) Montana d) Wyoming 37. Which American actor portrayed the character of Forrest Gump in the film of the same name?\ a) Tom Hanks b) Leonardo DiCaprio c) Brad Pitt d) Robert Downey Jr. 38. What is the longest river in the United States?\ a) Mississippi River b) Colorado River c) Missouri River d) Ohio River 39. Who is the American inventor and businessman known for creating the electric light bulb?\ a) Thomas Edison b) Alexander Graham Bell c) Nikola Tesla d) Benjamin Franklin 40. Which American state is known as the \"Golden State\"?\ a) California b) New York c) Florida d) Texas 41. Who is the American author known for his works such as \"The Adventures of Tom Sawyer\" and \"Adventures of Huckleberry Finn\"?\ a) Mark Twain b) Edgar Allan Poe c) F. Scott Fitzgerald d) Ernest Hemingway 42. Which city is known as the birthplace of jazz music?\ a) New Orleans b) Chicago c) Nashville d) Memphis 43. Who is the American aviator and author known for her solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean?\ a) Amelia Earhart b) Bessie Coleman c) Sally Ride d) Katherine Johnson 44. Which American president is featured on the \$1 bill?\ a) George Washington b) Abraham Lincoln c) Thomas Jefferson d) Benjamin Franklin 45. Who is the American artist known for painting the \"Campbell\'s Soup Cans\"?\ a) Jackson Pollock b) Andy Warhol c) Georgia O\'Keeffe d) Vincent van Gogh 46. Which state is home to the famous music festival Bonnaroo?\ a) Tennessee b) Oregon c) Colorado d) New York 47. Which state is known as the \"Sunshine State\"?\ a) Florida b) California c) Texas d) Hawaii Answer: a) Florida 48. Which American state is known as the \"Land of 10,000 Lakes\"?\ a) Minnesota b) Michigan c) Wisconsin d) Ohio Answer: a) Minnesota 49. Who is the American author of the novel \"The Catcher in the Rye\"? a) Ernest Hemingway b) F. Scott Fitzgerald c) J.D. Salinger d) Harper Lee 50. Which US city is known as the \"Big Apple\"? a) Los Angeles b) Chicago c) New York City d) Miami 51. Who is the American author of the novel \"The Great Gatsby\"? a) Ernest Hemingway b) F. Scott Fitzgerald c) Harper Lee d) John Steinbeck 52. Which US city is known as the \"City of Brotherly Love\"? a) Philadelphia b) Boston c) Atlanta d) New Orleans 53. Who is the American president associated with the New Deal during the Great Depression? a) Franklin D. Roosevelt b) John F. Kennedy c) Ronald Reagan d) George Washington 54. Which state is home to the famous national park, Yosemite? a) California b) Arizona c) Colorado d) Utah 55. Who is the American civil rights activist known for her influential book, \"The Feminine Mystique\"? a) Gloria Steinem b) Betty Friedan c) Susan B. Anthony d) Rosa Parks 56. How many branches of government are there in the United States? a) Two b) Three c) Four d) Five 57. What is the term length for a member of the U.S. House of Representatives? a) 2 years b) 4 years c) 6 years d) 8 years 58. How many voting members are there in the U.S. Senate? a) 50 b) 100 c) 435 d) 538 59. Who is the current Vice President of the United States? a) Kamala Harris b) Joe Biden c) Donald Trump d) Mike Pence 60. How many total electoral votes are there in the U.S. Electoral College? a) 270 b) 435 c) 538 d) 650 61. What is the minimum age requirement to be eligible to run for President of the United States? a) 35 years old b) 40 years old c) 45 years old d) 50 years old 62. What was the main focus of the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election? a) Healthcare reform b) Immigration policies c) Climate change d) COVID-19 pandemic response 63. Which amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees freedom of speech? a) First Amendment b) Second Amendment c) Fourth Amendment d) Tenth Amendment 64. Who was the first President of the United States? a) Thomas Jefferson b) Benjamin Franklin c) George Washington d) Abraham Lincoln 65. Which national park is famous for its geothermal features such as geysers and hot springs? a) Yellowstone National Park b) Grand Canyon National Park c) Yosemite National Park d) Zion National Park 66. What is the typical age range for high school students in the United States? a) 10-14 years old b) 14-18 years old c) 18-22 years old d) 22-26 years old 67. Sports: In which sport did Michael Jordan achieve legendary status? a) Baseball b) Football c) Basketball d) Tennis 68. Which annual awards show honors achievements in the American film industry? a) Grammy Awards b) Tony Awards c) Academy Awards (Oscars) d) Emmy Awards 69. What is the term used to describe the idea of self-driving cars becoming common in the future? a) Autotopia b) Techtopia c) Utopia d) Autonomy 70. What global crisis significantly impacted the U.S. economy in 2020? a) Trade war with China b) Oil price collapse c) Stock market boom d) COVID-19 pandemic 71. Which amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees the right to bear arms? a) First Amendment b) Second Amendment c) Fourth Amendment d) Eighth Amendment 72. Who is credited with discovering America in 1492? a) Christopher Columbus b) Hernán Cortés c) John Cabot d) Amerigo Vespucci 73. Which iconic American landmark is known as \"The Gateway to the West\"? a) Statue of Liberty b) Golden Gate Bridge c) St. Louis Gateway Arch d) Mount Rushmore 74. What is the term for the standardized test that is often required for college admissions in the United States? a) SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) b) ACT (American College Testing) c) GRE (Graduate Record Examination) d) LSAT (Law School Admission Test) 75. Which American athlete is often referred to as \"The Greatest\" and is known for his achievements in boxing?\ a) Michael Phelps b) LeBron James c) Tiger Woods d) Muhammad Ali  Freedom ======= [Chapter II: Freedom] Text: The Civil War 1861-1865 ----------------------------- In 1690, A Portuguese ship arrived in an English settlement in what is now the US state of Virginia. On board were about 20 Angolan captives who were sold in return for food: America's first slaves. By 1860 a further 12.5 million Africans had been taken to work on the cotton plantations of what was by now the USA. At the beginning of the Civil War, the USA had 34 states. Slavery was legal in 15 of them, almost all in the agrarian south of the country. Even if few Americans questioned the doctrine of white supremacy, the morality of slavery divided opinion and was the nation's major point of political tension. The question was an economic one: the south produced 75% of America's exports and, as such, slaves represented more capital value than all the factories of the industrial north. The per capita wealth of southerners was double that of northerners. The richest lived an aristocratic lifestyle in elegant country mansions, surrounded by slaves (who in some southern states were more numerous than the white population). America's tensions reached a crisis in 1860 when the presidential election was won by an Illinois lawyer strongly opposed to slavery: Abraham Lincoln. Fearing that the government would one day ban slavery, 11 southern states seceded from the USA to form an independent nation: the Confederate States of America. The four other slave states (Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland and Missouri) remained loyal to the Union. To Lincoln, the resulting conflict was not about ending slavery but about protecting the cohesion of the USA. The ending of slavery would become a consequence of the war. Lincoln asked General Robert E. Lee to lead the Union Army but, as a native of secessionist Virginia, Lee chose to lead the Confederate Army instead. Realistically, the Confederate cause was doomed from the start. The north had a population of 22 million. It was also industrialized and had railroads. The agrarian south had a population of just nine million, four million of whom were slaves. But with the Confederate forces fighting on their own terrain and with a passionate belief in their cause, the war was bloody beyond imagination. Around 625,000 Americans were killed over the course of 384 battles -- more than died in the First and Second World Ward, the Korean War and the Vietnam War combined. The Union confiscated Arlington, General Lee's thousand-acre estate in Virginia, and turned it into a cemetery so that if Lee ever returned home he would have to see all the death he'd caused. Today, Arlington is America's national military cemetery. The turning point of the war was a brutal three-day battle in 1863 at Gettysburg, the bloodiest in all of US history with up to 51,000 casualties. A short speech that Abraham Lincoln gave there afterwards, the 270-word long Gettysburg Address, is still celebrated as one of the finest pieces of oratory in history. On 9^th^ April 1865, finally outmaneuvered by Union forces, General Lee surrendered to the Union general, Ulysses Grant. As a mark of respect, Grant let Lee keep his sword. Just five days later, on a night out at the theatre in Washington, DC, Abraham Lincoln was shot by a Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth. He died the following day. In December of that same year, the USA passed the 13^th^ Amendment of the Constitution, which abolished slavery. Today, the Confederate flag remains a symbol of Southern independence and pride for some. But to others, it is a symbol of contemporary white supremacists. NAME: DATE: CLASS: 6 Text Chapter II: Freedom *Answer the following questions with a full sentence. **Please don't copy the exact words from the text.*** 1. When did the Civil War take place? 2. How did the arrival of a Portuguese ship in Virginia in 1690 relate to the Civil War? 3. How many African slaves were taken to the cotton plantations by 1860? 4. How many states allowed slavery at the beginning of the Civil War? 5. Why was slavery a major point of tension in the United States? 6. Why did 11 southern states secede from the USA? 7. Who won the presidential election of 1860? 8. What was the population difference between the northern and southern states during the Civil War? 9. Where did the turning point of the war occur? 10. When was the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution passed,? The USA Today ============= [Chapter III: THE USA TODAY] [From: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/30/opinion/supreme-court-guns-new-york.html] Text : I'm a New York City Liberal, and I Want a Gun ---------------------------------------------------- Une image contenant personne Description générée automatiquement I lived in New York for a decade without fearing for my personal safety. But in recent months, I have been terrified. In May, I filed for and received a temporary order of protection against a former partner. More than [[five million]](https://everytownresearch.org/report/guns-and-violence-against-women-americas-uniquely-lethal-intimate-partner-violence-problem/) American women alive today have reported being threatened with a gun, shot or shot at by an intimate partner, and more than half of the perpetrators of mass shootings in the past decade shot a family member, intimate partner or former intimate partner as part of their rampage. Every month, 70 women on average are shot and killed by an intimate partner. But states like mine make it legally cumbersome to defend yourself with a legally purchased handgun. If my life is ever in danger, I want to be able to protect myself with a gun. And now, thanks to the Supreme Court's decision in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, I am one step closer to carrying one. I grew up in the Ozarks, where many shooting ranges are run by state agencies and open to the public. I enjoyed going on early-morning hunting trips for deer, squirrel and turkey as a child, and was taught to respect the dangerous nature of guns; my stepfather works for a large outdoor sporting goods company. He buys and sells guns as part of his work. I was trained in how to properly handle and store them, and forbidden from even pointing a toy weapon at anyone. It is exhausting to live in fear of someone who knows your habits showing up at your door. My former partner refused to accept the end of our relationship. As I detailed in my petition for an order of protection, for the better part of the past year, he has sent alarming and frequent messages to me, my family and friends through a number of platforms. Even after I asked him not to contact me and my loved ones, he reached out to my family and friends and asked them to persuade me to speak with him. This sort of controlling and obsessive behavior is alarming enough on its own, but also has made me fear what else he is capable of. In April, he printed out dozens of photos of me and friends, and recorded a YouTube video of himself slowly flipping through them while reciting a poem he'd written. I broke down sobbing; it felt like there was no escape. For the next several weeks, fearful that he would show up at my home, I slept with a sheathed hiking knife under my pillow. My friends made fun of me for doing so, and with good reason: Even if my harasser had managed to enter my apartment and threaten my life, what was I going to do? Go Rambo on a man practically twice my size? I firmly believe in legislation that will prevent criminals, including those who have been convicted of any domestic violence offense, from owning guns. And I am grateful that President Biden has signed [[bipartisan legislation]](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/25/us/politics/gun-control-bill-biden.html) that will narrow the [[boyfriend loophole]](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/17/us/politics/senate-guns-boyfriend-loophole.html) that currently allows many abusers legal access to weapons, as well as enhance background checks for young gun buyers and support for red-flag laws, combat gun trafficking and fund desperately-needed community and mental health interventions. I also understand why some of my fellow liberals would like to ban guns outright. But guns are already prevalent among those who don't follow the rules: Despite strong gun laws in my state and city, illegal [[trafficking abounds]](https://targettrafficking.ag.ny.gov/#part1). The reality is that in addition to preventing abusers from owning guns, we must empower vulnerable citizens to protect themselves. For law-abiding New Yorkers, there is currently no swift and easy way to protect yourself in your own home with a handgun. Even if you have no criminal record, no history of mental illness and no desire to carry a gun outside of your home, you must apply for an expensive handgun license. On June 23, the Supreme Court struck down an additional requirement to demonstrate a heightened need, or "proper cause," if you want to carry your gun in public. An associate professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice's Department of Public Management told me that based on anecdotal evidence, generally retired police officers, people who transport large sums of money, those who have an immediate and credible death threat and celebrities are more likely to be approved for licenses to carry handguns in public. And given the high cost of the application process, gun ownership is only really available to those with means. I support background checks, waiting periods, assault weapon bans and gun control proposals that make it harder for people to obtain guns. We should strive for a world in which the only people with guns would be responsible citizens trained in firearm safety who purchased their guns legally, store them safely and use them only for hunting or sport shooting, or as a last resort for personal protection. Gun owners in New York should be required to take continuing education courses in order to renew their licenses. When gun owners are improperly trained and guns are not properly stored, there is a [[tremendous risk]](https://www.thetrace.org/2020/04/gun-safety-research-coronavirus-gun-sales/) of injury to themselves and others. But the truth is that the world we live in is awash in illegal guns. [[Ghost guns]](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/14/us/ghost-guns-homemade-firearms.html), which are assembled from components bought online and are untraceable, are prevalent in coastal states with strict gun laws, and hundreds have been [[seized]](https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/nyc-mayor-eric-adams-calls-on-atf-to-yank-ghost-gun-kit-makers-license/3683147/) by the New York City Police Department in recent years. New York's onerous gun licensing requirements deter law-abiding citizens from protecting themselves. And while city officials boast that gun arrests** **are at a 28-year high and shooting incidents were down last month, murder, rape, robbery and assault were all on the [[rise]](https://www1.nyc.gov/site/nypd/news/p00050/nypd-citywide-crime-statistics-may-2022) when compared with the same time last year. The unfortunate reality is that you are more likely to be shot and killed by a relative or someone you know than by a stranger if you are a woman. While most murders in the United States involve a gun, most gun deaths in the United States are actually [[suicides]](https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/02/03/what-the-data-says-about-gun-deaths-in-the-u-s/), and preventing gun deaths is as much about investing in mental health and our communities as it is about enacting purchase restrictions. To be sure, estimates of defensive gun use, as Jennifer Mascia of The Trace recently [[put it]](https://www.thetrace.org/2022/06/defensive-gun-use-data-good-guys-with-guns/), "are so squishy that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in May removed all figures from its website." It has previously cited estimates ranging from "60,000 to 2.5 million defensive gun uses each year," but this is typically not a category tracked by law enforcement agencies, and stats presented largely depend on who is asking and the design of the study. While recently visiting a state with less restrictive gun laws, I found exactly the gun I would like to buy: a small Smith & Wesson M&P Bodyguard, light enough for me to confidently handle and safely store. It sells for about what a handgun license application in New York City costs. And as soon as I am able to legally buy and carry it without too much hassle, I look forward to sleeping soundly. *\ * *\ * NAME: DATE: CLASS: 6 *Text on chapter 3: I'm a New York City Liberal, and I Want a Gun* *Answer the following questions with a full sentence. **Please, don't copy the exact words from the text.*** 1. What's the name of the decision taken by the Supreme Court? 2. What does her father do? 3. What's the main reasons why she wants to own a gun? 4. What did legislation require if you wanted to own a gun in your own home? 5. Name two cause of dangers when owning a gun 6. How are the figures of murder, rape, robbery and assault compared to last year? 7. What are the risks for a woman? 8. How many defensive guns are used each year? 9. Which gun would she like to buy? 10. How many women have been threatened by an intimate partner? []{#_Toc145173592.anchor}Traditions and Holidays [From:] I Love English World -- October 2018 Text: MLK: has his dream come true? -----------------------------------   NAME: DATE: CLASS: 6 Text on chapter IV: Traditions and Holidays - MLK: has his dream come true? *Answer the following questions with a full sentence. **Please, don't copy the exact words from the text.*** 1. Dans quelles villes les Irlandais étaient-ils majoritaires ? 2. Quel 'guerre' a commencé après la mort de Martin Luther King ? 3. En 2014, quel était le pourcentage de risque qu'un noir Américain se fasse emprisonner par rapport à un blanc ? 4. En moyenne combien de temps restaient-ils davantage en prison par rapport aux blancs ? 5. Quel est le rapport en pourcentage en ce qui concerne les compétences de lecture et de mathématique entre blancs et noirs ? 6. Est-ce mieux que lorsque Martin Luther King a été assassiné ? 7. Entre 1970 et 1990 dans quelle proportion le nombre de médecins noirs a augmenté ? 8. Combien d'Américains noirs sont à la tête des 500 premières entreprises recensées par 'Fortune'. 9. Quel est le pourcentage de propriétaires noirs Américains ? 10. Quel pourcentage d'Américains pense que le célèbre discours de Martin Luther King est encore pertinent aujourd'hui ? Cities and Sights ================= [Chapter V: CITIES AND SIGHTS] Text: SAN FRANCISCO -- CITY OF IDEALS ------------------------------------- **The Civil Rights movement, the Summer of Love, recycling waste... San Francisco is a city that always seems to be ahead of other places. Here are just some ways the city has already changed people's lives, and will continue to do so...** **THE UTOPIAN DREAM** Today, the word "hippie" first evokes a fashion style: natural hair, loose clothes and psychedelic patterns. But in the late 1960s and early 70s, hippies were young people hoping to change the world. They were anti-capitalist and believed in communitarian ideals. They were pacifists who led the protests against the Vietnam War. They espoused free love, rejecting the traditional American values they'd grown up with. They cared about the planet and warned that we were destroying the environment. It was a big, radical movement that challenged the status quo. San Francisco was the capital of the hippie era, and the city where tens of thousands of people from all over the world congregated in 1967 for what was called the Summer of Love. It was hippie heaven with a whole area of the city. Haight-Asbury, being dominated by communes. Hippie heaven and hell Sadly, the sudden arrival of too many young people tested the dream to destruction, many finding only homelessness, drug highs and female exploitation disguised as sexual liberation. By the mid-1970s, the hippie dream was dead. But not entirely. As each of the following sections show, much of their idealism remained hard-wired into San Franciscan culture and re-emerged in other ways. Arguably, it found its ultimate expression in the internet. The engineers of [Silicon Valley] in the early years were passionate about resource-sharing, free exchange and individual expression: all fundamentally hippie ideals. Had the internet been invented anywhere else, it would no doubt have been very different... **THE SUSTAINABLE CITY** In America, around 40% of all food is wasted, and 61% of that waste occurs in the home as people buy too much food and then throw it away when it goes out of date. In Europe, the figure is 20% - it's better, but still bad. Generally, this waste ends up in landfill sites where it breaks down, releasing vast quantities of the greenhouse gas methane in the process. And most of this waste comes from cities. But not so in San Francisco. Two decades ago, when most places were only just starting basic recycling programs, the city set itself the extremely ambitious objective of achieving zero waste by the year 2020. It failed to reach that target, but today only sends 20% of its waste to landfill. For comparison, the figures for New York and Chicago are 83% and 91% respectively. Creating a virtuous cycle Back in 1996, San Francisco began its transformation by giving inhabitants three bins: one for trash that goes to landfill, one for recycling and one for organic waste. Since 2009, it has been a crime not to separate out organic matter from other rubbish -- a measure that the residents of San Francisco support almost unanimously. As a result, the city collects 500 tons of organic matter a day. It is then taken out of the city to a site where it is processed and rapidly transformed into compost thanks to bacterial decomposition. The resulting compost is then sold to farmers all over California, creating a virtuous cycle whereby San Francisco's waste helps keep the state's agricultural land fertile instead of aggravation climate change. **THE FIGHT FOR EQUAL RIGHTS** In 2004, a couple named Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon walked into the San Francisco City Hall and did something that no two women had ever done before: they got married. At the time, American law didn't allow same-sex unions but San Francisco's progressive mayor, Gavin Newsom, unilaterally ordered marriage licences to be issued to gay couples. "San Francisco is a proud city," he declared. "We do not tolerate discrimination." That day, the city began a decade-long battle for gay rights that was ultimately settled in favour of same-sex unions by the [Supreme Court] (although today's conservative Court may yet reverse that decision). That the campaign began in San Francisco is no surprise -- the city, sometimes called The Gay Capital of the World, has a long history of supporting gay rights. It was here, in 1977, that America's first openly-gay politician was elected: Harvey Milk. Not long after his election he was assassinated. Embracing difference However, according to some researchers, San Francisco's association with sexual tolerance goes back much further than the hippie era and has its origins during the [Gold Rush]. Following the discovery of gold in 1848, the city's population exploded from 800 to 35,000 and 95% of these people were young men. In such an unbalanced environment, normal social rules could no longer operate and it became acceptable for men to form couples, to cross-dress and so on. Despite later attempts to legally enforce traditional values, the city never lost its reputation as a place where difference is accepted and even celebrated. Today, San Francisco is prominent in the latest wave of social changes, including trans rights and gender issues. American society is as deeply divided over these questions, as it was by the hippies and gay rights. But history suggests that San Francisco will prove to be on the side that ultimately prevails... **Most people in sanctuary cities believe immigrants should be offered full citizenship** **THE PLACE OF SANCTUARY** Back in 1989, San Francisco became a "sanctuary city", following the example of the Berkeley neighbourhood on the bay of San Francisco where the concept originated in 1971. Since then, the idea has grown steadily with more than 560 American cities states and counties having declared themselves as "sanctuaries". But what does the concept mean? It is estimated that around 3% of the US population (10.5 million people) are illegal immigrants. Conservatives generally see this as a problem that must be addressed -- such as [Donald Trump's] promise to build a "beautiful wall" along the Mexican border to stop more arrivals. For those who are already in the US, a federal agency known by the inhospitable acronym [ICE] (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) is charged with locating and deporting undocumented individuals -- often in ways that many of us would consider inhumane given that these people have generally built productive lives and had families in the USA. We will not deport you A "sanctuary city" is a place where the authorities (local government officials, police, schools...) will do nothing to assist ICE unless the immigrant in question is a violent criminal. Which, unsurprisingly, almost none are: around two-thirds of illegal immigrants have been living and working in the USA for over the years, forming a labour resource on which many businesses and individuals depend. The sanctuary logic is that it benefits everyone if immigrants feel they can build lives, educate their children and report crime without the fear of being deported. Ultimately, most people in sanctuary cities believe that immigrants should be offered a route to full citizenship. As a port city that has always been multicultural, it's natural that San Francisco has traditionally been on the pro-immigrant side of American society. But will that attitude prevail? Nobody can say, but as US rivalry with China intensifies, some people now argue that America needs hundreds of millions of new immigrants if it is not to be eclipsed by the Asian giant. [From]: I love English World -- February 2023 NAME: DATE: CLASS: Text on chapter V: Cities and Sights San Francisco: **[City of Ideal]** **[Comprehension questions]** *Answer the following questions with a full sentence* 1. 2. 1. What distorted the hippies' hopeful aspirations? 2. Where do most food waste happen? 3. What's the percentage of San Francisco waste that is sent to landfill? 4. How long has San Francisco been collecting waste for? 5. When did the city's history of supporting gay rights start? 6. What's a sanctuary? 7. What does the acronym ICE stand for in the text? 8. What's the author's view of ICE? Nature and the Environment ========================== Text: 10 things you didn't know about Yosemite ---------------------------------------------- [From:] I Love English World -- October 2020 **America's most celebrated National Park is 130 years old** 1. The beauty of Yosemite Valley inspired the concept of protecting natural landscapes by law. In 1864, the valley became the country's first state park, granted to California by the US government. In 1890, lands surrounding the valley became the Yosemite National Park. It was only in 1906 that Yosemite Valley officially became port of the larger national park. 2. The whole park covers more than 3,000 square kilometres and attracts more than 4.3 million people each year. Most visitors never leave Yosemite Valley itself, however, which is just 0.33% of the whole! 3. The granite walls of Yosemite Valley, created by 30 million years of erosion, are twice the height of the Empire State Building. Ever since the 1880s, rock climbers have been drawn to the innumerable challenges the park offers -- in particular, the iconic El Capitan rockface, 900 metres of vertical granite which climbers first scaled in 1958. 4. Yosemite is home to countless waterfalls, including America's highest -- Yosemite Falls itself. This three-stage cascade of 740 metres makes a noise loud enough to be heard 2.4 kilometres away (especially in spring as the snow melts). But be warned: the falls dry up completely in August. 5. For almost 100 years up until 1968, the owners of the Glacier Point Hotel used to create a magical spectacle each night by dropping burning embers from the top of the cliff where the hotel was situated. This created a 915-metre high "firefall" that could be seen from far away. The firefall was banned in 1968 because the huge numbers of spectators it attracted was damaging the prairies below. 6. Sometimes you can see rainbows at night! Known as "moonbows", they are visible in the mist of the waterfalls when the moon is full, and the sky is clear. Unlike daytime rainbows, these magically beautiful moonbows appear as silver arcs of light to the human eye. 7. Yosemite is located in the Sierra Nevada mountains, the only place in the world where giant sequoia trees, grow. The height of a 30-floor building, giant sequoias are among the largest living things on Earth. One of Yosemite's trees, the Grizzly Giant, is estimated to be more than 1,800 years old. 8. Originally, Yosemite National Park contained another valley that was topographically almost identical to the iconic Yosemite Valley itself. Known as Hetch Hetchy Valley, it was dammed in 1923 and transformed into a reservoir to provide water for San Francisco. 9. In March and April, Yosemite's rivers flow with "frazil ice". A rare phenomenon, frazil ice is like a frozen form of a lava flow -- a semi-liquid, semi-solid river. 10. Yosemite was a candidate to host the 1932 Winter Olympics. It wasn't chosen, but the legacy of its candidacy remains: there are ski pistes, toboggan runs, a ski jump, a massive outdoor skating rink and facilities for the forgotten sport of skijoring -- being pulled on skis by a horse!  NAME: DATE: CLASS: 6 Text on chapter VI: Nature and the Environment -- 10 things you didn't know about Yosemite *Answer the following questions with a full sentence. **Please, don't copy the exact words from the text.*** 1. Which of these can you see in Yosemite National Park?\ A. El Capitan -- a granite rock twice the height of the Empire State Building B. A "moonbow" -- a silver rainbow created by moonlight C. "frazil ice" - a flowing river of ice 2. What's America's highest waterfall? 3. How tall is it? 4. What happens to the falls in August? 5. What's the name of the mountain range where Yosemite is located? 6. What unique trees grow there? 7. How old is the Grizzly Giant? 8. What was the name of the valley almost identical to the Yosemite Valley? 9. What's "frazil ice" (not in the text) 10. What happened in 1932? Daily Life ========== Text on chapter VII: Daily Life: Text: America's Ivy League: Myth or Reality? -------------------------------------------- **Harvard, Yale and the six other universities that make up America's Ivy League are much respected. But are they the best ones? We separate the facts from the fiction.** [Ivy League universities are the best in the world] Actually, the eight private universities in the northeast of the USA -- known as the Ivy League -- aren't even the best ones in America. According to the *QS World University Rankings*, the only Ivy League university in the top ten is Harvard at n°5. There are two other US universities above it: the top-ranked Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and, in third place, California's Stanford University, the greenhouse of many a billion-dollar Silicon Valley business. Britain's Cambridge and Oxford universities also rank higher than Harvard (second and fourth respectively). As for the rest of the Ivy League, they mostly come in the second decile. And one, Dartmouth, is 205^th^ in the world! Some are the best in specific areas, however -- Harvard in law and business studies or Yale in economics and the arts. But the rise of the digital society has benefited more tech-based educational establishments. Even so, a degree from an Ivy League university is impressive on anybody's CV. [It\'s difficult to get a place at one] No doubt about this one: only 4 to 5% of candidates get places at Ivy League universities, so the competition is intense. They don't just look at your academic grades, either -- a lot of emphasis is put on your extracurricular activities. And that doesn't just mean showing you can play a musical instrument or are good at sport. They expect candidates to demonstrate exceptional qualities -- doing voluntary social work or starting some kind of organization while they were at school. They are looking for well-rounded individuals. When you apply, you have to prepare a statement of purpose -- in written or in video form -- in which you present yourself and explain why they should accept you as student. Our tip: forget modesty, it's all about selling yourself. [They are very expensive] On the one hand, absolutely: tuition fees at Ivy League universities are now between \$5K and \$60K a year -- up to four times the cost of most other American universities. Plus, there are the day-to-day living costs of rent and so on. But not everyone pays the tuition fees because these universities, which are private organizations, have enormous capital wealth and offer numerous scholarships. Harvard, for instance, has a \$53 billion endowment fund, which enabled it to offer students \$597 million in financial aid and scholarships in 2021. At Yale, approximately 63% of undergraduate students received financial aid in 2021. Even for those who pay the full tuition fees, there is a good financial logic for going to an Ivy League university: graduates generally earn 29% more than those who graduated from other US universities. [They are elitist] Yes and no. The reason that these universities are so rich is that they often receive charitable "gifts" of money from wealthy Americans. Those "gifts" often come on the understanding that the donor's children will have easy access to a place at the university. This perpetuates an elite class of Americans who, generation after generation, study at the same universities and remain at the top of the economic pyramid. While this practice is officially no longer legal, it still happens in subtle ways. On the other hand, rich universities can offer free tuition to many brilliant students form modest backgrounds. Perhaps the stronger form of elitism happens after you graduate from an Ivy League university. They all maintain strong alumni networks that give students access to better job opportunities than somebody form an "ordinary" university. The Ivy League, traditionally, look after their own. [From]: I Love English World -- 356 -- January 2023 Text on chapter VII: Daily Life: **[America's Ivy League: Myth or Reality?]** *Answer the following questions with a full sentence. **Please don't copy the exact words from the text.*** 1. Are Ivy League universities considered the best in the world? 2. Which universities in the United States rank higher than Harvard? 3. How do Cambridge and Oxford universities in the UK compare to Harvard? 4. How does Dartmouth, one of the Ivy League universities, rank globally? 5. What are some areas in which certain Ivy League universities excel? 6. What is the acceptance rate for Ivy League universities? 7. What factors do Ivy League universities consider in their admissions process besides academic grades? 8. Are Ivy League universities expensive to attend? 9. Do graduates from Ivy League universities typically earn more than graduates from other US universities? 10. Are Ivy League universities considered elitist? []{#_Toc145173600.anchor}Sports Chapter VIII: Sports [From]: I Love English World -- March 2021 Text: Killian Hayes -- Five things to know about the NBA's new recruit ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. He's made NBA history The 19-year-old is the 19^th^ French player to be picked for the NBA in the first round of its 2020 annual draft. Picked in seventh position by the Detroit Pistons, he's also the earliest pick ever: beating stars Joakim Noah (9^th^), Tony Parker (28^th^) and Rudy Gobert (27^th^). 2. Dad was a pro Killian was born in Florida, but grew up in France. His American father, DeRon Hayes, played college basketball before moving to France, where he was a three-time finalist in the French championship with Nancy and winner of the Coupe de France with Cholet Basket in 2009. 3. His first professional game was at age 16 Like Rudy Gobert before him, Killian was formed at Cholet, where he rapidly achieved star status with its junior team Espoirs Cholet. Indeed, he was added to the roster of the Cholet Basket senior (pro) team just three months after his 16^th^ birthday! The following season he was fully-integrated into the senior team. 4. He's a winner and MVP Killian's rise has been simply meteoric. In 2017-18, as a cadet with Espoirs Cholet, he helped his team win the *Trophée du Futur* and was named MVP (Most Valuable Player) of the LNB Espoirs League. His international successes have been many, too: U16 European Champion in 2017, U18 Vice-World Champion in 2018... Last season, he honed his skills in the German league with Ratiopharm Ulm. 5. He's got great potential Killian should feel at home in the NBA. The 1.96-metre-tall point guard plays an offensive game, and is an excellent free-shooter and a creative passer. With the Detroit Pistons, he will also learn from one of the best point guards in the game, Derrick Rose. NAME: DATE: CLASS: 6 Text on chapter VIII: Sports -- Killian Hayes *Answer the following questions with a full sentence. **Please, don't copy the exact words from the text.*** 1. *Quel âge a-t-il ?\ * 2. *Quelle équipe l'a choisi ?\ * 3. *Citez deux autres joueurs de basket mentionnés dans le texte\ * 4. *Où est-il né ?\ * 5. *A quel âge a-t-il joué son premier match chez les professionnels ?\ * 6. *Quel trophée a-t-il remporté en 2017-18 ?\ * 7. *Que signifie MVP ?\ * 8. *Quel trophée a-t-il remporté en 2017\ * 9. *Combien mesure-t-il ?\ * 10. *A quelle place joue-t-il ?\ \ * Entertainment ============= [Text on chapter IX: Entertainment] [From]: I Love English World -- September 2018 Text: Michael Jackson --------------------- [\ ]  NAME: DATE: CLASS: 6 Chapter IX. Entertainment -- Michael Jackson *Answer the following questions with a full sentence. **Please, don't copy the exact words from the text.*** 1. Quand les Jackson 5 ont-ils sorti leur quatre premiers disques ? 2. Quand Michael Jackson s'est-il séparé de la Motown ? 3. Qui a été son nouveau producteur ? 4. 'Thriller' est considéré comme un mélange de quels genres ? 5. Qu'est-ce que MTV ? 6. Comment Justin Bieber essaye-t-il d'imiter Michael Jackson ? 7. Combien a-t-il vendu d'albums ? 8. Comment s'appelle son domaine? 9. Qu'y trouve-t-on? 10. De quoi est-il mort ? Looking Forward ===============