? WALK Puzzler 2.

Q: Why did the tomato blush? 
A: Because it saw the salad dressing!


Hey there!

The deadline is approaching. Send me your answers please.



WALK in English

WALK Puzzler 2.

I’m going on holiday for the weekend but I don’t want to leave without giving you something to be thinking of.

Are you new to WALK Puzzler? Click here for details.

This time you will have to build words from the given letters. Each word has to contain at least three letters.

Scores: You get 1 point if you send me at least 3 words. You get 2 points if you can figure out at least 6 words. The 12-letter word is worth one extra point.

Here are the letters.

a c e h i i n s s t t u

You can use every letter only once in each word. The singular and the plural forms of the same word are taken as one.

Send me your words in email (info(at)ewalk.hu) within 72 hours.

Have a nice weekend.

WALK Program – Haladjunk az angollal!

WALK Puzzler 1 - The answer

So which word is missing?

She is the latest in a ____________ line of controversial leaders. 

If you take the ____________ view, of course, you can regard staff training as an investment for the company.

He's paid well but he works ____________ hours.

The answer is long.

in a long line of - a series of people or things that follow each other in time

to take the long view - to think about the effects that something will have in the future instead of in the present

to work long hours - working many hours regularly

For further example sentences check the expressions in Cambridge Dictionary.

Thank you for your answers.


Let's see Puzzler 2 in the next post.

WALK in English.

Laugh a minute: Screaming in a bar

Two guys are sitting on a bar stool. One starts to insult the other one. He screams, “I slept with your mother!” The bar gets quiet as everyone listens to see what the other weasel* will do. The first again yells, “I SLEPT WITH YOUR MOTHER!” 

The other says, “Go home dad you’re drunk.” 

weasel = sneaky person

WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

A drop in the ocean: Stem cells

You hear a lot about them, but do you know what stem cells are. I have chosen the introductory part of the introduction of the American National Health Institute about this question. If you are interested, you can find a great deal of info on their website.


Stem cells have the remarkable potential to develop into many different cell types in the body during early life and growth. In addition, in many tissues they serve as a sort of internal repair system, dividing essentially without limit to replenish other cells as long as the person or animal is still alive. When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential either to remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialized function, such as a muscle cell, a red blood cell, or a brain cell.

Stem cells are distinguished from other cell types by two important characteristics. First, they are unspecialized cells capable of renewing themselves through cell division, sometimes after long periods of inactivity. Second, under certain physiologic or experimental conditions, they can be induced to become tissue- or organ-specific cells with special functions. In some organs, such as the gut and bone marrow, stem cells regularly divide to repair and replace worn out or damaged tissues. In other organs, however, such as the pancreas and the heart, stem cells only divide under special conditions.

WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

WALK Puzzler 1 - The start

I'm proud to announce the start of my new blog series called WALK Puzzler. Here you can scratch your head and test your English.

This is also the start of a competition lasting till the end of this year. Be the best WALKER and win THE DRUNKARD'S WALK: How Randomness Rules Our Lives by Leonard Mlodinow.



What do you have to do in order to participate? Only three things:

• First, like WALK Program on Facebook. This way you'll be informed about the new posts immediately. 
• Then send me as many correct answers for WALK Puzzler questions as you can in email.
  (You have 72hours to answer each question. Late answers won't be accepted.) 
• And last but not least, like those Puzzler posts on FB you've answered.

The competition is to be closed on 31 December 2011. You are the best WALKER if you have the most correct answers.
My husband is excluded from the competition.


Let's see the first puzzle.

Look at the sentences below. The same word is missing from them. What's that? (Only one word is the answer.)

She is the latest in a ____________ line of controversial leaders. 

If you take the ____________ view, of course, you can regard staff training as an investment for the company.

He's paid well but he works ____________ hours.

Send me your answer via email.


WALK in English

Laugh a minute: A case for more beer

A herd of buffalo can move only as fast as the slowest buffalo, and when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular culling of the weakest members.

In much the same way the human brain can only operate as fast as the slowest brain cells. Excessive intake of alcohol, we all know, kills off brain cells, but naturally it attacks the slowest and weakest brain cells first.

In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, constantly making the brain a faster and more efficient machine.

from www.funs.co.uk


WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

You live and learn: MIND MAP 2.

Some weeks ago I read an absorbing article on early memories and infantile amnesia. A couple of scientific theories were briefly introduced in WSJ in order to explain why children’s earliest memories are so fragile and unstable. Some recommendations are also given on how to access more episodes of our lives. Let’s click here if you’re interested.

Earlier I posted a mind map where words are grouped according to their meanings. Now the one I’ve created based on the article mentioned above, words are collected into word-category groups.

First read the article, then look for each occurrence of the words in the mind map. You will find it easy (not that difficult at least) to recall most of them while talking or writing about memory-related issues.

It’s worth a try.

Click on the picture in order to enlarge it.

WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

Spread the word: Despite

While speaking or writing, we use connecting words quite frequently. But to put your thoughts nicely, you have to apply many of them.
Today we are going through some synonyms of despite. I hope you'll find it useful.


despite sg/ in spite of sg
I still enjoyed the week despite the weather.
Greece's finances are worsening, despite the release of the latest bail-out loans.


in the face of sg
She left home in the face of strong opposition from her parents.
Optimism persists in the face of experiencing failure.


in the teeth of sg
The road was built in the teeth of fierce opposition from the public.
The demonstration has been started in the teeth of strong opposition from the ruling party.


irregardless
I don't think children should be hit, irregardless of what they've done wrong.
Some children are fools irregardless of their family circumstances and compensate with violence.


no thanks to sy
It's no thanks to you that I arrived on time.
Thankfully no one has been injured but those graces are no thanks to those who are behind this attack.




WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

Spread the word: Sandals

This week About Words blog has favoured women (and foot fetishists) with a collection of new words in relation to shoes and sandals: cage, flatforms, mandals, sandals.

For exact discriptions just click on the link above. Here you find the visual clues.

cage

nandals

flatforms

mandals

WALK in English.

A drop in the ocean: Why is the sky blue?

The sky appears blue to us on a clear day, because the atoms of nitrogen and oxygen in the atmosphere separate the sun's white light into its many colors, and scatter them throughout the atmosphere. The wavelength of the blue light scatters better than the rest, predominates over the other colors in the light spectrum, and makes the sky appear blue to us.

This phenomenon describes the way in which light physically scatters when it passes through particles in the earths atmosphere that are 1/10th in diameter of the color of the light. The light spectrum ranges in wavelength from red to violet, and, since the wavelength of the blue light passes through the particles with greater ease than the wavelengths of the other colors of light, the sky appear blue to the naked eye.

The human eye has three types of light receptors, known as cones, located in the retina. The cones are either considered to be red, or blue, or green, based upon their strong response to light at these wavelengths. As light stimulates these receptors, our vision translates the signals into the colors we see.

When gazing at the sky, the red cones respond to the small amounts of red light scattered, and even less strongly to the orange and yellow wavelengths. Although green cones respond to yellow, their response to scattered green and green-blue wavelengths is stronger. Finally, colors near the strongly scattered blue wavelengths stimulate the blue receptors.

In short, the skylight stimulates the red and green cones almost equally, while stimulating the blue cones more strongly. For these reasons, our vision naturally adjusts as clearly as possible to separate colors.


from jokesnpuzzles.com




WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

A drop in the ocean: Driverless pods

You must have heard about different kinds of automatic vehicles, but have you ever tried any?

Automatic pods have just been launched in London. For further details watch this video.

And here are some questions to help you understand the story:

1. What are the main features of the new pods?
2. This system is a hybrid of public and private transport. Explain why.
3. Why have been buses replaced by the pods?
4. What PRT stands for?
5. Why weren't PRT systems installed in the past? (What was in focus instead of what?)
6. Some decades ago, leaving gaps between trains was regarded inefficient. What solution was worked out in Paris? What happened to it?

WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

Spread the word: Changes at work

Let’s see what you can undergo while you are at work.

In the best case you get promoted but it’s also possible that your superiors are not satisfied with your results and then, unfortunately, you get sacked. Do you know any other expressions with similar meanings?

Was Steve given the promotion he wanted?

He has been elevated to deputy manager.

Last week's changes vaulted the general to the top, over the heads of several of his seniors.

My job's been downgraded to that of ordinary editor.
He has been dismissed from his job for incompetence.

To keep the company alive, half the workforce is being made redundant.
Because of falling orders, the company has been forced to lay off several hundred workers.
The company rejected a slash-and-burn type restructuring program.

If you hold a higher position, it may occur that you have to employ/ hire/ recruit new colleagues.

She has installed a couple of young academics as her advisers.

The example sentences are taken from Cambridge Online Dictionary.

WALK Program – Haladjunk az angollal!


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Laugh a minute: The blonde and the orange juice

Q: Why did the Blonde stare at the can of frozen orange juice?
A: Because it said concentrate








WALK Program - Laugh in English

Spread the word: STUMP UP SG

To stump up is a British slang phrase. Can you find out its meaning based on the sentences given below?

"On Wednesday he provided rather thin answers to questions from the Liberal Democrat's Mike Tuffrey about the financing of his Thames cable car project and the true value of the contribution by airline sponsor Emirates. Originally this venture too was to have been paid for without public money, yet £60 million has already been stumped up with no clear picture of how much of that sum might be recouped or when." from the Guardian

"The Local Lend a Hand scheme was launched earlier this year, with councils stumping up 20% of the value of a property which goes straight to the bank rather than to the house buyer." from BBC

And here is the definition from Cambridge Dictionary Online:

to pay an amount or type of money for something, especially unwillingly

The American phrase is to pony up. 

"Moody’s Investors Services thought so, and followed through Friday with its well-flagged plans to take the ratings of 12 major U.K. financial institution down a few notches, citing intentions of the government to distance itself from having to pony up the cash as lender of last resort." from The WSJ

WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

Laugh a minute: A joke with universal appeal

A couple of New Jersey hunters are out in the woods when one of them falls to the ground. He doesn't seem to be breathing, his eyes are rolled back in his head. The other guy whips out his cell phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps to the operator: "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator, in a calm soothing voice, says: "Just take it easy. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence, then a shot is heard. The guy's voice comes back on the line. He says: "OK, now what?"

To read more on this joke click here.


Let's have a WALK.

A drop in the ocean: China is winning the school race

Today I’ve found a great article about the exceptional performance of Chinese schools. First read it through then try to answer the following questions.

What has demonstrated that China’s education performance is outstanding?

The reason for their success is said to be their devotion to education. What signs of devotion are mentioned in the article?

In Hong Kong, 20 percent of the entire budget is spent on education. What improvements have been made?

Shanghai has carried out an important modification in the school system. What has been changed?

What led to the improvement in education in Hong Kong in terms of economy and recruiting teachers?

Under what circumstances can migrant children attend schools in Shanghai?

Try to summarize this paragraph with your own words:

In the last decade Hong Kong has concentrated on raising the bar and closing the gap or "lifting the floor" for all students, says a report by McKinsey management consultants.

WALKProgram – Haladjunk az angollal!

Laugh a minute: Is Microsoft a virus?

It's a good one with a very useful vocab.

Is Windows a virus?


No, Windows is not a virus. Here's what viruses do:

• They replicate quickly. Okay, Windows does that.
• Viruses use up valuable system resources, slowing down the system as they do so. Okay, Windows does that.
• Viruses will, from time to time, trash your hard disk. Okay, Windows does that, too.
• Viruses are usually carried, unknown to the user, along with valuable programs and systems. Sigh... Windows does that, too.
• Viruses will occasionally make the user suspect their system is too slow and the user will buy new hardware. Yup, that's with Windows, too.

Until now it seems Windows is a virus but there are fundamental differences:

• Viruses are well supported by their authors,
• are running on most systems,
• their program code is fast, compact and efficient and
• they tend to become more sophisticated as they mature.

So, Windows is NOT a virus.


Keep WALKing.

Spread the word: In the office

As I did with the street some weeks ago, now I've been looking around in my office.

Let's have a WALK.

Laugh a minute: GIVE ME A LIFT

"So I was getting into my car, and this bloke says to me 'Can you give me a lift?' I said "Sure, you look great, the world's your oyster, go for it."






Need some help?
to give sy a lift (2nd meaning) - to make someone happier




WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

A drop in the ocean: Food with integrity 2.

I was thinking a lot what to do with this video because it’s not a typical language teaching film, but I’ve found it interesting. It’s long, takes 8 minutes. And the speakers are changing the topic far too often. They are sharing either technical details or telling the story of the film in parts.

Finally, I’ve decided to focus on the storyline instead of technical questions. Now, I’m giving you some words, more than usual actually, to help you understand the story. Your only task is to put the parts together. It’s not that easy anyway…

revolution - a very important change in the way that people do things

cultivation - to prepare land and grow crops on it, or to grow a particular crop

epiphany - when you suddenly feel that you understand, or suddenly become conscious of, something that is very important to you

exploitation - when someone uses someone else unfairly for their own advantage

livelihood- (the way someone earns) the money people need to pay for food, a place to live, clothing, etc.

lifespan - the length of time for which a person, animal or thing exists

well-being - the state of feeling healthy and happy

to get carried away - to cause someone to become very excited and to lose control

inflated - to be made larger

factory farming - a system of farming in which a lot of animals are kept in a small closed area, in order to produce a large amount of meat, eggs or milk as cheaply as possible

(to have good) intentions - something that you want and plan to do 

based on Cambridge Dictionary Online

Could you understand the story? Has it touched you?

WALK around the world.

A drop in the ocean: Food with integrity 1.

This post is going to be a longer one. Actually, it's the first part of it and I will upload Part 2 tomorrow.
The inspiration came from the advertisement of Chipotle, an American chain with more than 900 fast casual restaurants, serving Food With Integrity. Do you know what fast casual restaurants are like? And have you ever met the word 'integrity'?

So, let's see this video first:

What do you think the story is about? Maybe the lyrics can help you to figure it out.

I was just guessing 

At numbers and figures
Pulling the puzzles apart

Questions of science
Science and progress
Do not speak as loud as my heart

Nobody said it was easy
Oh, it's such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be so hard

I’m going back to the start

Tomorrow you'll get the answer from the creators of this animation. And some technical details of making this film will be also revealed.

WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

A drop in the ocean: Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs, the founder and former CEO of Apple, died on October the 5th. BBC has made a short video of his life.

The following questions will help you to understand the essence:

What mentioned personality traits helped him become an industry icon?

What made iPhone and other Apple products so popular?

What new feature was introduced by Macintosh in 1984?

What did he do after being forced out from Apple?

What was Apple's economic state like when Steve Jobs returned?

Which product signalled a resurgence?

What did the launch of iPods demonstrate?

According to his speech at Standford University, what do you have to pay attention to?

Have a WALK in English.

Laugh a minute: The problem

There was an engineer, a manager and a programmer driving down a steep mountain road.
The brakes failed and the car careered down the road out of control.
Half way down the driver managed to stop the car by running it against the embankment narrowing avoiding going over a cliff.
They all got out, shaken by their narrow escape from death, but otherwise unharmed.
The manager said "To fix this problem we need to organize a committee, have meetings, and through a process of continuous improvement, develop a solution."
The engineer said "No that would take too long, and besides that method never worked before. I have my trusty pen knife here and will take apart the brake system, isolate the problem and correct it."
The programmer said "I think you're both wrong! I think we should all push the car back up the hill and see if it happens again."


from thejokes.co.uk


WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

A drop in the ocean: Coal Energy Drink

Do you feel tired? Watch this video. You can find some help below.

Help:

plain exhausted
to fuel up - to gain some energy from
It keeps me going. - It keeps me active.
fossil fuel
a short-term boost
utility companies
to put sg before sg
It gets me everytime.





You can find a short list of green satires on TreeHugger.

WALK every day.

Grammary: Present and past conditional

By this cartoon I intend to repeat the Present Conditional and to introduce the Past Conditional.

The structure of Past Conditional:
If sy HAD DONE sg, then sg WOULD HAVE HAPPENED



WALK Program - Haladjunk az angollal!

Quote of the day

It could be the banner of WALK Program as well.

"Study and practice are both very important, but they must go hand in hand. Faith without knowledge is not sufficient. Faith needs to be supported by reason. However intellectual understanding that is not applied in practice is also of little use. Whatever we learn from study we need to apply sincerely in our daily lives." Dalai Lama

WALK tall.

Laugh a minute: Obvious

Barbie Joke...
 

A man walks into a store to buy a Barbie doll for his daughter. "How much is that Barbie in the window?", he asks the shop assistant.

The assistant replies, "Which Barbie? We have Barbie Goes to the Gym for $25.95, Barbie Goes to the Ball for $25.95, Barbie Goes Shopping for $25.95, Barbie Goes to the Beach for $25.95, and Divorced Barbie for $495.00"

The guy asks, "Why is Divorced Barbie different from all the others ?

"That's obvious," the assistant says, "Divorced Barbie comes with Ken's
house, Ken's car, Ken's boat, Ken's furniture..."

Let's have a WALK.

Spread the word: Dishonest people

Have you ever noticed that there are dishonest people whom we love for the way they are?
But there are also dishonest people whom we don't like at all.
And, last but not least, there are some whom we cannot decide about.

Where does these people belong to according to you?
charmer, cheat, fibber, hypocrite, profiteer, trickster, wheeler-dealer


based on Cambridge Dictionaries Online


Can you find out what kind of dishonest characters are in the following pictures?

Let's WALK.