Friday, August 31, 2007

Functions Of English


ACCEPTING AND REFUSING

Accepting and refusing politely may depend on what you are asked. For example

1. Would you like some cake?



  • Yes, please.

  • Sure.

  • Thanks

  • Okay. Thank you

  • No, thank youI'd better not.

  • No, but thanks for offering.

2. Would you like to go see a movie?



  • Okay. Sounds good.

  • Sure. I'd love to.

  • Yeah. Good idea

  • No, I'd rather not.

  • I'm sorry, but I can't.

  • No, but thanks for inviting me.

3. How about some more pie?



  • All right. Thanks

  • Looks good.

  • Thanks

  • Don't mind if I do.

  • No, thanks.

  • I'm really full.

  • Thanks anyway.

  • Looks delicious, but I'll have to pass.

4. How about going skiing this weekend?



  • Great. What time?

  • Sounds like fun.

  • All right. When and where?
    Sorry. I'm busy this weekend.

  • I don't think I can.

  • How about some other time?

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Sentences

SENTENCE FRAGMENTS


To be a complete sentence, a group of words must pass two tests:
1) It must have both a subject and a verb.
2) It must express a complete thought.



In a normal (declarative) sentence, the subject (usually a noun, pronoun, noun phrase, or noun clause) appears to the left of the verb (which expresses action, occurrence, or state of being).

You may have other parts to a sentence such as a direct object or object complement, but these parts are not always necessary to create a complete sentence. Normal (declarative) sentences usually fall under one of seven patterns:


  1. S-V: I talked.

  2. S-V-O: They studied the assignment .

  3. S-V-IO-DO: We gave him a coke .

  4. S-V- O-OC (N): They called him names.

  5. S-V-O-OC (Adj.): She thought the test easy.

  6. S-LV-C (N): The girl is a ninja .

  7. S-LV-C (Adj.): The girl seems acrobatic .

  8. S = Subject, V = Verb, O or DO = Direct Object, IO = Indirect Object, OC = Object






Complement, LV = Linking Verb, C = Complement, N = Noun, Adj. = Adjective.


You have two methods of testing a group of words to see if it is a complete sentence: the embedding frame and the tag question.

I. SENTENCE FRAGMENTS

Sentence fragments are incomplete sentences or part of sentences.

Study the following examples of sentence fragments and how to correct them

1. Because of some students work part-time while taking a full load of courses.
Problem:
This is a dependent clause
To correct: Because of some students work part-time while taking a full load of courses, they have very little free time.

2. For example, the increase in the cost of renting an apartment
Problem: There is no verb
To correct: For example, the increase in the cost of renting an apartment is rapid
3. Feeling lonely and failing most of his classes.
Problem:
This is a participle phrase
To correct: He felt lonely and was failing most of his classes.Feeling lonely and failing most of his classes, the student wisely decided to make an appointment with his counselor
4. Many young people who leave home at an early age
Problem: The independent clause is unfinished
To correct: Many young people leave home at an early age.Many young people who leave home at an early age do not manage their money well.

be continued

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

VU LAN FESTIVAL


VU LAN FESTIVAL


- Le Vu Lan is a Buddhist holiday, held annually on the 15th of the 7th month of the lunar calendar. The main objective of this festival is for the people to express their gratefulness and appreciation to their mother.


- English meaning: THE PRACTICE OF FILIAL PIETY FESTIVAL (OR ULLAMBANA- Tieáng Phaïn)


The Ullambana Sutra is a Mahayana sutra which consists in a brief discourse given by the Gautama Buddha principally to the monk Maudgalyāyana (Mokuren in Japanese) on the practice of filial piety. The text is considered of questionable authenticity by many.
In the Ullambana Sutra, the Buddha instructs his disciple Mahāmaudgalyāyana on how to obtain liberation for his mother, who had been reborn into a lower realm, by making food offerings to the sangha on the fifteenth day of the seventh month. This practice is the basis of the Obon ceremony in honor of one's ancestors which is still observed widely in Japan. Judging from that, it may be inferred that this sutra has had considerable influence.

VIETNAMES ARTICLE


Từ nguyên


Vu-lan (zh. 盂蘭; sa. ullambana) là từ viết tắt của Vu-lan-bồn (zh. 盂蘭盆), cũng được gọi là Ô-lam-bà-noa (zh. 烏藍婆拏), là cách phiên âm Phạn-Hán từ danh từ ullambana. Ullambana có gốc từ động từ ud-√lamb, nghĩa là "treo (ngược) lên". Thế nên các dịch giả Trung Quốc cũng dùng từ Đảo huyền (zh. 倒懸), "treo ngược lên" cho từ Vu-lan, chỉ sự khổ đau kinh khủng khi sa đoạ địa ngục.


Truyền thuyết


Xuất phát từ truyền thuyết về Bồ tát Mục Kiền Liên đại hiếu đã cứu mẹ của mình ra khỏi kiếp ngạ quỷ. Vu Lan là ngày lễ hằng năm để tưởng nhớ công ơn cha mẹ (và tổ tiên nói chung) - cha mẹ của kiếp này và của các kiếp trước.


Theo kinh Vu Lan thì ngày xưa, Mục Kiền Liên đã tu luyện thành công nhiều phép thần thông. Mẫu thân ông là bà Thanh Đề đã qua đời, ông tưởng nhớ và muốn biết bây giờ mẹ như thế nào nên dùng mắt phép nhìn khắp trời đất để tìm. Thấy mẹ mình, vì gây nhiều nghiệp ác nên phải sanh làm ngạ quỷ, bị đói khát hành hạ khổ sở, ông đã đem cơm xuống tận cõi quỷ để dâng mẹ. Nhưng vì phải chịu hình phạt, mẹ ông không thể ăn được - vừa đưa lên tới miệng, thức ăn đã hóa thành lửa đỏ.


Mục Liên quay về tìm Phật để hỏi cách cứu mẹ, Phật dạy rằng: "dù ông thần thông quảng đại đến đâu cũng không đủ sức cứu mẹ ông đâu. Chỉ có một cách nhờ hợp lực của chư tăng khắp mười phương mới mong giải cứu được. Ngày rằm tháng bảy là ngày thích hợp để vận động chư tăng, hãy sắm sửa lễ cúng vào ngày đó".


Làm theo lời Phật, mẹ của Mục Liên đã được giải thoát. Phật cũng dạy rằng chúng sanh ai muốn báo hiếu cho cha mẹ cũng theo cách này (Vu Lan Bồn Pháp). Từ đó ngày lễ Vu Lan ra đời.


Truyền thống lễ nghi


Ngày xóa/xá tội vong nhân có lẽ cũng có nguồn gốc từ lễ Vu Lan, khi người chết được giải cứu.


Trong một số nước Á Đông, ngày lễ này thường được tổ chức vào ngày 15 tháng âm lịch, để tỏ hiếu với cha mẹ, ông bà và cũng để giúp đỡ những linh hồn đói khát. Ở Nhật Bản ngày lễ này được tổ chức vào ngày 7 tháng 7 để tỏ những ước nguyện của mình, người ta viết ước nguyện rồi treo vào cây trúc với mong ước điều ước đó sẽ trở thành hiện thực.

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Improving Your Listening Skills


TEACHER IN SPACE ANSWERS QUESTIONS FROM STUDENTS


SOUND: "Good morning, Discovery Center -- good afternoon. We're happy to be here with you. This is Al Drew, Clay Anderson, Dave Williams and I'm Barb Morgan. And we are ready for your first question. Welcome aboard the International Space Station."

Astronaut Barbara Morgan on the space shuttle EndeavourThat was teacher-turned-astronaut Barbara Morgan, speaking from more than three hundred twenty kilometers above the Earth.

CHILDREN: "Hello from Idaho!"

And those were the students she was greeting in the northwestern state of Idaho. They gathered at the Discovery Center in Boise on Tuesday to ask the astronauts questions by video link.

The astronauts already knew what the questions would be. One student asked what stars look like from space.

Basically the answer was that the space shuttle and the space station are kept brightly lit, so it is difficult to see a lot of stars.

BARBARA MORGAN: "In fact, one way to think about that when we're on the International Space Station and all the lights are on when we look outside, it's very much like trying to look at the stars when you're in Boise. You can see some, but then if you go up high in the mountains, up to McCall, and you have all the lights out, that's what it will be like once we undock from [the] station and we can turn all our shuttle lights out, and also for the station folks they can turn all their lights out."

Barbara Morgan taught elementary school in McCall, Idaho, before she trained for space. She and six other astronauts arrived Friday on the shuttle Endeavour to bring supplies and new equipment to the international station.

Barbara Morgan is fifty-five years old. She taught for many years before she became an astronaut.

QUESTION: "Hi, I'm Sarah Blum. How does being a teacher relate with being an astronaut on this mission?"

BARBARA MORGAN: "Well, astronauts and teachers actually do the same things. We explore, we discover and we share. And the great thing about being a teacher is you get to do that with students. And the great thing about being an astronaut is you get to do it in space. And those are absolutely wonderful jobs."

Barbara Morgan first prepared for a shuttle flight more than twenty years ago. She trained in case NASA needed a substitute for Christa McAuliffe, its choice to become the first teacher in space.

Then, in nineteen eighty-six, Christa McAuliffe died with the Challenger crew when the shuttle exploded shortly after launch.

After the disaster, NASA officials barred other civilians from shuttle flights. But in nineteen ninety-eight, they created a new position for teachers to become fully trained astronauts. Barbara Morgan is NASA's first "educator astronaut" launched into orbit.

One of her first tasks was to operate Endeavour's robotic arm to inspect the shuttle for any launch-related damage. Cameras showed a small area hit by a piece of protective foam that fell off the fuel tank. NASA officials say the damage is not a safety threat but they are deciding what to do about it.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Normal English

TALEBAN RELEASED TWO SOUTH KOREAN HOSTAGES


Listen and Download 625k

Taleban leaders say the two women were both sick and have been freed as a gesture of good will.
But there is still no independent verification of the Taleban's claims. Government officials say they have not seen the two women yet but hope they have been released.
The apparent breakthrough comes as Taleban and South Korean officials complete their second day of face-to-face talks in the Afghan city of Ghazni.
Taleban insurgents kidnapped 23 South Koreans on July 19 as the group of Christian volunteers drove through the wartorn province.
Two of the South Koreans have already been executed, and insurgents have said they will kill more unless the government frees a number of pro-Taleban prisoners.
So far the government has refused to consider an exchange.
Afghan Interior Ministry Spokesman Zemarai Bashary says the government is providing security for the talks in Ghazni, but is not directly involved.
"I cannot go into too many details about the issue [but] this much I can say: Afghan representatives were not in that meeting," he said.
Provincial governor Merajuddin Pattan says the government did offer Taleban leaders safe passage to attend the negotiations and remains committed to supporting the South Korean initiative.
"We told them that we would guarantee the negotiation process and that there would be no operation against them until this dilemma is solved," he said.
Four South Korean delegates and two Taleban leaders are involved in the talks, which started Friday evening in a heavily guarded Afghan Red Crescent office.
The insurgents have said all along that they would kill the hostages, most of whom are women, unless the government frees a number of pro-Taleban prisoners.
The Afghan government has said from the start it would not exchange prisoners for hostages, and it is not clear if the South Korean negotiators can promise the release of any Taleban.
However, Afghan authorities in touch with the Taleban say the militants are also seeking a ransom payment.
In an incident earlier this year, Afghanistan released five top Taleban prisoners in exchange for an Italian journalist being held hostage.
There was widespread criticism of that agreement, by U.S. officials among others, who argued that it would only provoke more kidnappings in the future.
South Korea, however, has pleaded for greater flexibility, and has sought U.S. support for the effort to free the 21 remaining hostages.

ENGLISH IDIOMS

SMELL A RAT
  • How come the front door is open? Didn't you close it before we went shopping?
  • I'm sure I did. I can't understand it. Frankly, I smell a rat.
  • Me, too. I'm convinced that something is definitely wrong here. We'd better call the police.
GO TO THE DOGS
  • Have you seen their house lately? It's really gone to the dogs.
  • t's true that it has become run-down and in serious need of repair, but I'm sure that it can be fixed up to look like new.
  • I guess with a little carpentry work and some paint it could look pretty decent.
FISHY

When the security guard saw a light in the store after closing hours, it seemed to him that there was something fishy going on. He called the central office and explained to his superior that he thought something strange and suspicious was occurring.

Sunday, August 5, 2007

Grammar Rules

THE A- ADJECTIVES

Common a- adjectives

  • ablaze
  • afire
  • aflame
  • afloat
  • afraid
  • aghast
  • aglow
  • alert
    alike
  • alive
  • alone
  • aloof
    ashamed
  • asleep
  • awake
  • aware

These adjectives beginning with a- are only used in the predicate (after a linking verb such as be, feel, look or seem) and never before the noun:


- The baby is asleep. NOT The asleep baby....

- The man is alone. NOT The alone man....


1. Alert and aloof are used before the noun: an alert person, an aloof person
2. A few of the other a- adjectives are sometimes used before the noun if they are used with a modifier: the half-asleep man, the wide-awake child, the very ashamed student

So the basic rule is: Do not use these adjectives before a noun.

NOTE: Other adjectives beginning with a- such as abominable, assertive, attentive, etc. are used before and after the noun.

Confusing Words

Day 4

Wrong: Let's begin from page 10.
Right: Let's begin at ( on ) page 10.

Wrong: Did you attend college ?
Right: Did you go to college ?

Wrong: I wanted to go to Europe last summer, but it was too expensive so I gave up to go.
Right: I wanted to go to Europe last summer, but it was too expensive so I gave up the
idea.

Wrong: I'll go there at three.
Right: I'll be there at three.

Wrong: I am going back my home.
Right: I am going home.

Wrong: His temperature went down.
Right: His temperature came down.

Wrong: I like green color.
Right: I like green.

Wrong: Today's newspapers has his articles on Taiwan.
Right: Today's newspapers carries his articles on Taiwan.

Wrong: Give me money, if you have.
Right: Give me money, if you have any.

Wrong: You'll have a cold if you sleep with your window open.
Right: You'll catch a cold if you sleep with your window open.