Fake News

Hi everyone!

I'm not as active on the blog as I'd like, but in any case I'm glad I can take a little while from time to time to share an activity with you here.

The topic I've chosen is fake news and the impressive advancement of technology that can enable us to create false impressions. Someone once said that, if it's technology that the general public knows about, then it's probably already obsolete! Don't doubt that what we can see in a video like this one is much less advanced than what the actual cutting-edge software can do.

It's still quite shocking that we can manipulate images and sounds in real time, and even if fakes are easy to spot at the moment, the effect that it can have on public opinion is quite unpredictable-- regardless of whether it is finally disproved or not.

So let's go for a bit of sentence completion to accompany this short BBC report:

1. Green screen or __________________ can give us virtual backdrops to interact with.

2. We’re only years away from creating realistic environments: in real time, we can manipulate voices, facial expressions and __________________ .

3. Some software operates by taking take one person’s facial expressions and __________________ on to another person’s features.

4. The development of these technologies requires ethical frameworks that could __________________ the implications they may have on society.

5. A new tool to manipulate voice __________________  by Adobe, the company who invented PhotoShop.

6. To spot a fake, the resulting altered audio would be __________________ , but that wouldn’t stop it from spreading.

7. Fakes can be debunked in __________________ , but this doesn’t stop people from believing them or from becoming viral.

8. One possible consequence of the dissemination of fakes is that solid evidence could be dismissed as __________________  by those who try to deceive us.

9. If there is a high level of distrust in institutions, a term like fake news is deployed in many ways, even to describe what is __________________ and __________________ .

10. This fast-paced technological advancement means we will have to refine how we __________________  from our senses.

Share your answers and your ideas on the topic in the comments section. Key here. Enjoy!

Super recognisers

Hi there again!

This video is about a job that certainly caught my attention. Would you be able to pick a criminal's face out of a crowd? There are police officers that can, in fact, recognise criminals by trawling hours and hours of footage until they find a match. Their objective: to accuse criminals of as many offences as possible.

Why would they want to do this? The answer is in the video.

I suggest you check some vocabulary first, and that you read the news item below the video if you need further help with comprehension, or if you want to read the same information in other words.

I'm available for questions, as usual: just tell me the minute you're having difficulties with and I'll try to help.


Vocabulary:

squad
convicted (of)
to plead guilty (to)
to trawl
to spot someone
to bring someone to justice/to court
CCTV footage

Questions

1. According to MCI Mick Neville, why is it an advantage to identify the criminal's face in several crimes?
2. When was the squad created? In what sort of crimes has the squad helped identify criminals since then?


I would love to see your answers in the comments section!

Dealing with the weather in London

Hi everyone!

Finally back after this forced break. But you know there's a period of frantic activity coming... exams are just round the corner so it's time for more frequent videos.

This is a short, funny guide on how to deal with the weather, whether (see what I did there?) you visit London in sunny summer or rainy autumn.

These are some expressions you may want to check before watching the video:

the odd ... ( = not usual)
spring has sprung
alfresco dining (yay! Our favourite word in action!)
unwind
thermals
duck into (the shops)
when the weather turns
to keep (the chills) at bay

The activity is a sentence completion. Disable closed captions (CC button) to do it, and then enable them to check your answers.

Careful in sentence 7, as it contains one feature of pronunciation we have only seen in the C1 course: the intrusive "r" (an "r" sound between one final vowel and one initial vowel).

Enjoy!

1. You must be ready to adapt, because the weather in London can be a little __________________.
2. Even if spring is mainly sunny, you might see the odd __________________.
3. If you get a bit hot under the collar, the best idea is to leave the bus and tube __________________ and hire a bike.
4. Don't forget a picnic! __________________ the blanket and enjoy some alfresco dining.
5. Even though the long summer days may be __________________, autumn is still a great time to be in London.
6. London is a top shopping destination, and some of its __________________ include Carnaby Street and Covent Garden.
7. As the nights __________________, find yourself a bar or go to a show.
8. During winter, there are many places that are __________________ from the cold outside.
9.A pub, in front of a roaring fire is a wonderful way to __________________ a winter's day.

Topic Video: Charity

Hello everyone!

This is a video about a very particular charity shop. A pair of shoes for 850 pounds... is that a rip-off or a bargain? Well, here, it turns out to be a bargain! The proceeds of this charity must have been really high!

I propose a gap-filling exercise to practise collocations, either related to this topic or not. You know my insistence on collocation, and my firm belief that it is the key to successful comprehension and natural expression.

Some vocabulary to check before listening (remember to use a monolingual dictionary! You have a dictionary widget on this same page):

cobbler
cast-offs
highstreet
kudos

Notice the emphatic structure at the beginning of the report (cleft sentence):

________________________ buy  Beyoncé’s dress, Shirley Bassey’s shoes or Natalie Imbruglia’s hat all under one roof.

Complete with a suitable word or phrase:

But you can at this ________________________ charity shop inside London’s department store Selfridges.

The idea came from ________________________  Annie Lennox, and Vanessa Branson, sister of ________________________  Richard, was one of several of her friends ________________________ .

Vanessa Branson highlights that:

• Everybody feels ________________________ the project.
• It’s not just about ________________________  every year.
• You know you’re making ________________________ .

So far, 30,000 pounds ________________________  by the shop.

Charity shops in general are ________________________ : profits were up by ________________________  to 100m pounds.

With more than 700 ________________________ , Oxfam is the biggest UK charity retailer.

Theresa Colonette runs a boutique selling only the creme of ________________________ cast-offs.

She thinks that charity shops can be an alternative fashion resource, offering a ________________________  for anyone.

The last dress shown doesn’t have a celebrity connection, but it is still ________________________ , something which more people are likely ________________________ in the ________________________ .

Key here. But I hope to see your comments anyway, about the activity or about the vocabulary you've learnt with it. Thanks!

The Short Transcript Challenge VI : Nicholas Culpeper

Here we are, back with the Short Transcript Challenge!

The rules for the challenge are simple: just write down a transcription of the video for us in the comments! If you don't want to attempt the whole video just let us know the minute you're transcribing so someone else can take it up from there.

I'm becoming quite a fan of BBC documentary openings. They're a genre in themselves! This one is about Nicholas Culpeper. I hope after the opening you will feel a little curious about this character!

If you need any help with any specific words, just tell me when it is said and I'll give you a hand.

This challenge will be closed on March 6th (next week). Good luck!

UPDATE:  Thank you veeeery much to Irene for her almost perfect transcription! It's very interesting to see exactly where you had difficulties: those weak words and linking can really be challenging!

You can check your versions against this key. Thanks!

Remembering all those who fought

Hello everyone! Remembrance Day is here, marking the end of hostilities in WWI "at the eleventh hour of the elenveth day  of the eleventh month".

To celebrate peace, I bring you a video about the dogs that were recruited at Battersea and the roles they took up during the war.

This video illustrates some of the accents we've been studying, and this, together with the recent practice on spelling and pronunciation we've been doing, has inspired me to introduce a different modality of activity that focuses on the "bête noire" of pronunciation: weak syllables.

When you read automatic captions, the usual thing is for them to be a little inaccurate. Guess where those mistakes tend to occur... Yes, as it happens with spelling bees, most of the inaccuracies will appear in weak sounds.

So, here's this challenging activity:

1. Watch the video once without captions.
2. Watch the video with closed captions on (CC button) and spot the inaccuracies.
3. Correct the captions.

This is going to test your listening, vocabulary, spelling and pronunciation skills at the same time, and I hope it shows you how interrelated these skills actually are when we try to understand connected speech.

A difficult one done for you:

00:22 - CC: left tenant Colonel Richardson
should read:  Lieutenant Colonel Richardson (you can check the pronunciation of "lieutenant" on the widget on the right side bar to see why it was misspelt in the captions)

The rest are not so difficult, so... all yours! I expect a lot of activity in the comments until we get it all done! I'll keep an eye to help whenever it's needed.

Enjoy!