BBC News - student fees rise

Hello everyone!

The video for today was already seen as one of the "daily videos" for Avanzado 2. I have been trying to subtitle it but try as I might, there is always something wrong. Encarna had so kindly provided us with a transcript, and I don't want to waste it, so we'll do it the old way: I'll give you the link to the video, and post the transcript as a comment.

The video is in BBC News, and it's usually a pain to load. Please insist, refresh and refresh until it loads.

Some comprehension questions:

What is the cost of Theresa's university studies?

What do students have to do in Dani's class?

Why is the student community important in Maastricht?

What's the difference between local students and overseas students according to Nijls?

When they graduate, what are the advantages that the students at Maastricht will have over other British students?

Enjoy (again)!

A Bit of Fry and Laurie

A little video in which the meaning of the verb "to claim" is very clear. Let's remember what the dictionary says:

1 [transitive] to say that something is true although it has not been proved and other people may not believe it

claim (that)… He claims (that) he was not given a fair hearing.claim (somebody/something) to be/do something I don't claim to be an expert.claim something Scientists are claiming a major breakthrough in the fight against cancer.it is claimed that… It was claimed that some doctors were working 80 hours a week.

In this video,

1. What did the psychic claim?

2. What did he not claim?

So, I continue with my vindication of British humour. And a good opportunity to see Hugh Laurie outside his role of Dr.House (and a lot younger, too!)

Enjoy!

Miranda's Best Friend: Tim the Toastman

Second installment of this hilarious programme: did Miranda Hart have a friend made of toast? Try to guess if it's true or just a lie, both with and without subtitles.

There are some words you may want to look up in the dictionary on your right before watching the video:

mould

rotting (to rot)

a toaster

grounds for

committal

Enjoy!

Subtitled:

Egypt treasures saved

The video we have for today is an overview of the looting in Cairo's Egyptian Museum. After watching the video, pay attention to the vocabulary in bold in the sentences taken from the text: can you explain their meaning, provide a synonym, or give a translation of them?

…signs of the recent turmoil when the area was engulfed in violence and looters tried to get hold of Egypt’s most valuable treasures…
… curators at the museum are now busy restoring them…
… The rioting and street battles in central Cairo happened right next to the Egyptian Museum…
… and so the museum’s real treasures, like the priceless mask of King Tut, survived, unscathed…
… when the uprising here began, there was a lot of fear that looters could get in here …
…after a short rampage through the museum, the sole looter was caught…
… more looters actually made it on to the premises, but they didn’t go into the museum …
…The Egyptian Army has taken over security for the museum. Soldiers kept an eye on us as we got our tour, and tanks are in place outside after a close call for some of the world’s most famous ancient treasures…

Enjoy!

Frankenstein exhibition and play

The video for today explores the creation of the novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, which is back in the news thanks to a theatre play on show at the National Theatre.

Try to find the following information, and feel free to post your answers as a comment, including any evidence from the video. Something that you might want to be careful about is the name Shelley, which can refer both to the author of the novel (Mary) and to her husband, the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. Mind the context to know which of the two they're talking about at each point.

Enjoy!

1. Why is the presenter at the Bodleian Library in Oxford?

2. Date of the Shelleys’ trip to Geneva:

3. Expression to tell us that they are getting on well with their host:

4. Why did they have to spend most of the time indoors?

5. Who suggested that they all write a ghost story?

6. Where did Mary get the idea for Frankenstein from?

7. Number of novels she had written up to that moment:

8. What’s happened to Mary Shelley’s notebook?

9. Who wrote on the margins of the pages? Why?

10. What happens in the passage that they have in from of them?

11. Shelley tried to persuade her to _____________ to her great history inheritance.

12. Mary Wollstonecraft (author of A Vindication of the Rights of Women) was her __________

13. Full date of first publication:

14. Where did Walter Scott publish his guess that the novel might be by Shelley?

Smoking ban: in England it's even worse!

If you don't believe me, just look at this clip from the hilarious The IT Crowd. It is easy enough to be watched without subtitles, but I made a version with subtitles in case you want to check later. Enjoy!

Without subtitles




Subtitled

BBC News - Egypt

Hi,

Some comprehension questions on this video from BBC News. After doing the activity, write a comment with the corresponding evidence from the video so we can see the rewriting and synomyms in each gap.

1. In his decision to step back in September, Mubarak's opponents think that he is trying to give his government ___________________________________

2. As a result of the electoral process, the US government demand that they lift ___________ and that they make ________________________

3. Foreigners are accused of instigating protests by ______________________

4. The protests don't seem to peter out, after running for ______________________

5. The Egyptian government insists that they are moving towards __________________