Your taste in music can reveal a lot about you

I believe that your taste in music can reveal things about you, but it’s not always a given. There are many reasons to like or dislike a certain type of music or a specific song. For example, you might enjoy a song because it’s catchy, or because the lyrics are relatable for you.

I don’t like stereotypes, like the assumption that people who like pop music are naïve teenage girls, or that fans of heavy metal are dark and pessimistic. Humans tend to categorize, which is natural, but it’s not a good way of thinking and I personally think that it’s a thing we need to change.

If we do try to guess someone’s personality from their music taste, it’s important to understand why they like it. I enjoy discussions, especially when it’s about such a warm and personal thing like music, exploring why others feel connected to certain songs. What’s your favorite band or your favorite song? Which song makes you feel alive? Do you like it for the vocals, or do you have an emotional connection with it?

Ultimately, it’s amazing to see how music can unite people by bringing them happiness. Personally, my music taste is quite chaotic. I listen to everything, like, I can listen to basic pop and classical music to electronic, rock, heavy metal, and even soundtracks from games and movies! Each genre and song has its own story for me. For instance, I love hyperpop because it makes me feel powerful. Indie rock makes me appreciate the beauty around me, indie folk makes me to feel love for everything alive in this world, while heavy metal gives me energy and peace for some reason.

I think my music taste reflects who I am: a chaotic and emotional person who experiences feelings deeply. So, in a way, my music taste does say a lot about me!

classwork

Take a look at some of the 21st century’s most amazing adventurers! Every year, thousands of people try to climb the world’s highest mountains or walk across continents. In the past, explorers had compasses and maps, but today’s adventurers have satellite phones and GPS. They also use their travels to let the world know about climate change and help people in the countries they visit. Let’s take a look at some of the 21st century’s greatest adventurers. Amazon adventurer Ed Stafford from the UK is the first person to walk the length of the Amazon River. He started by a small stream in the Andes mountains of Peru and arrived at the river’s mouth in Brazil, two years and four months later. Snakes, crocodiles and jaguars live in the Amazon rainforest, so it’s a dangerous place. Luckily, Ed avoided the big animals, but he was bitten by ants and mosquitoes every day. On his trip, Ed had to find food each morning. Sometimes the fruit, nuts and fish he ate were hard to find and Ed often felt weak and hungry. Technology was essential for Ed. He used a radio to ask local people for food and permission to enter their land. Many of them came to meet him and guide him through the dense rainforest. As he walked, Ed wrote a blog about his daily experiences. Ed used his walk to let the world know about climate change and raise money for environmental charities in Brazil and Peru. A mountain climber Four thousand climbers, aged between 13 and 80, have been to the top of Everest. Climbing high mountains requires a lot of preparation and is very dangerous, but some of the world’s best climbers are now looking for new challenges. Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner from Austria fell in love with climbing as a teenager. When she left school, she worked as a nurse and climbed in her free time. Starting with Everest, she has been climbing all the world’s fourteen peaks over 8,000 metres. To increase the challenge, Gerlinde climbs without using oxygen tanks. Low oxygen levels can make climbers ill, so Gerlinde has to climb slowly. Gerlinde is passionate about Nepal and raises money for a charity for poor children and orphans there. More than one adventure Some of today’s adventurers go from challenge to challenge. Meagan McGrath from Canada has climbed the highest mountain on each continent, ridden a bike across Canada and run a long-distance race in the Sahara Desert. But perhaps her most incredible journey was a skiing trip to the South Pole. She pulled a tent and all her food on a sledge behind her as she skied. On the first day, she fell into a glacier and had to be rescued. Many people would have given up, but Meagan decided to carry on. Skiing through ice storms, she arrived at the South Pole forty days later. Erik Weihenmayer from the United States is another unstoppable adventurer. He’s climbed mountains, ridden a bike through the deserts of Morocco and kayaked through the Grand Canyon. Amazingly, Erik has been blind since the age of 13. Apart from his travels, he helps people with disabilities to live active lives and takes groups of young blind people on climbing expeditions.

The new words and their definitions. the peak – the very top of a mountain, a charity- an organisation that helps people in need, blind- unable to see, a challenge – something that is difficult but stimulating to do, to rescue someone – to save someone from danger, essential – necessary or needed, preparation – getting ready for something, a stream – a small river.

Exercise 1.Circle the best option to complete these sentences. 1. Modern explorers use compasses and maps / satellite phones and GPS / local guides . 2. Ed often didn’t have enough sleep / food / oxygen .

3. Erik takes groups of blind people up mountains / along rivers / through deserts . 4. Gerlinde / Erik / Ed used technology to contact local people.

5. Gerlinde supports a charity that helps blind people / the environment / children . 6. Gerlinde / Erik / Meagan hasn’t done a long-distance bike ride. 7. Gerlinde / Ed / Meagan had to look out for wild animals. 8. Gerlinde / Ed / Meagan had to go slowly because there wasn’t much oxygen.

 Exercise 2. Complete the sentences with a word from the box. eighty; eight thousand; thirteen; forty; twenty-eight; four thousand; 1. The oldest person to climb Everest is forty years old.

2. Ed Stafford’s journey took twenty-eight months.

3. Erik Weihenmayer has been blind since he was thirteen. 4. Meagan McGrath took eighty  days to ski to the South Pole. 5. There are fourteen mountains with a height over eight thousand metres. 6. More than four thousand climbers have climbed Everest. Exercise 3. In 150-200 words or less, prepare your personal statement on the topic: “Which of these adventures would you most like to go on? And why?”

I actually like being in nature and having adventures. I mean, I was only 6 months old when I went to a camp and slept in a tent for the first time. And I love climbing to mountains as well. But I don’t think I’d want to do any activity from this text. Not a big fan of risking, honestly. But if I knew that I will survive those things, pretty sure that I’d try that. Especially the Everest one. I actually saw lots of interviews with people who had travelled that far, and it sounded so hard but interesting.
I think it would be a good experience, especially for those who love and appreciate the beauty of the nature.

homework

1. possible (pas’ ~ bl) able to be, be done, or happen; able to be true;
2. able to be done or chosen properly
3. a. Call me tomorrow evening if possible.
4. b. It is now possible for man to walk on the moon.
5. c. Considering* Melissa’s weakness in writing, it is not possible for
6. her to help you with your composition.
7. compel (k~m pel’) force; get by force
   a. It is not possible* to compel a person to love his fellow man.
   b. Heavy floods compelled us to stop.
   c. Mr. Gorlin is a teacher who does not have to compel me to behave.
8. awkward ( 6′ kw~rd) clumsy; not well-suited to use; not easily managed;
   embarrassing
   a. Sally is very awkward in speaking to the class but quite relaxed
   with her own group of friends.
   b. The handle of this bulky* suitcase has an awkward shape.
   c. Slow down because this is an awkward corner to turn.
9. venture (ven’ ch~r) a daring undertaking; an attempt to make money
   by taking business risks; to dare; to expose to risk
   a. Ulysses was a man who would not reject* any venture, no
   matter how dangerous.
   b. John Jacob Astor made his fortune by a lucky venture in animal
   furs.
   c. Medics venture their lives to save wounded soldiers.
10. awesome ( 6′ s~m) causing or showing great fear, wonder, or respect
    a. The towering mountains, covered with snow, are an awesome
    sight.
    b. Connie had such an awesome amount of work to complete before
    graduation she doubted* she would have everything ready in time.
    c. The atom bomb is an awesome achievement for mankind.
11. guide (gld) a person who shows the way; to direct; to manage
    a. Tourists often hire guides.
    b. The Indian guided the hunters through the forest.
    c. Use the suggestions in the handbook as a study guide.
12. quench (kwench) put an end to; drown or put out
    a. Foam will quench an oil fire.
    b. Only iced tea will quench my thirst on such a hot day.
    c. He reads and reads and reads to quench his thirst for knowledge.
13. betray (bitra’) give away to the enemy; be unfaithful; mislead; show
    a. Nick’s awkward* motions betrayed his nervousness.
    b. Without realizing what he was doing, the talkative soldier
    betrayed his unit’s plans.
    c. The child’s eyes betrayed his fear of the fierce* dog.
14. utter (ut’ ~r) speak; make known; express
    a. When Violet accidentally stepped on the nail, she uttered a sharp
    cry of pain.
    b. Seth was surprised when he was told that he had uttered Joan’s
    name in his sleep.
    c. When Mr. Fuller saw that his house had not been damaged in the
    fire, he uttered a sigh of relief.*
15. LESSON 26 85
16. pacify (pas’ d fi) make calm; quiet down; bring peace to
    a. This toy should pacify that screaming baby.
    b. We tried to pacify the woman who was angry at having to wait so long in line.
    c. Soldiers were sent to pacify the countryside.
17. respond ( ri spand ‘) answer; react
    a. Greg responded quickly to the question.
    b. My dog responds to every command I give him.
    c. Mrs. Cole responded to the medicine so well that she was better in two days.
18. beckon (bek’ dn) signal by a motion of the hand or head; attract
    a. Jack beckoned to me to follow him.
    b. The delicious smell of fresh bread beckoned the hungry boy.
    c. The sea beckons us to adventure.
    
    
    
    
    History has shown us that tyranny cannot compel the human desire for freedom.
19. The sailors used the North Star to guide them to their destination.
20. Our eyes quench to sudden light by blinking.
21. The coach beckoned to the pitcher to watch for a bunt.
22. Little Benjy was foolish enough to venture out on the thin ice.
23. If we are to vote without hearing all sides of the issue, we could make a serious awkward mistake.
24. Power in the hands of the ignorant is an awesome responsibility.
25. Benedict Arnold betrayed his country.
26. The only excuse for Barry’s failure is his utter lack of effort.
27. It was not possible to pacify the excited woman after she was fined for jaywalking.
28. The last words uttered by the dying soldier were, “We must hold the fort.”
29. Ralph found himself in an awkward situation when his blind date turned out to be a foot taller.

Raven and the First People

Raven and the First People
Read the story and answer the questions.

Raven was bored. He was walking along the beach in Haida Gwaii, looking for some new way to amuse himself. As he walked along the beach, the blue ocean in front of him and the green forest behind him didn’t seem interesting. Raven wanted to play, but there was no one to play with.

Then he heard a strange sound, unlike any sound he knew. He looked up and down the beach. Where was it coming from? As he walked he noticed a large white clamshell lying in the sand. Inside the clamshell were tiny creatures, unlike any he had seen before.

Raven bent down to get a closer look. The creatures seemed afraid of him, so he began to coax them in a gentle voice, “Come out. Come out. Don’t be afraid. I won’t hurt you.”

A few of the creatures came out of the clamshell. They were very different from Raven. They had no feathers, no wings, and no beaks. Like him, they walked on two legs, but they had arms, faces with mouths, and black hair. They spoke to each other in a language that Raven didn’t understand. These tiny creatures were the first humans.

Raven enjoyed watching these humans play and explore the world. After a while, when he was beginning to feel bored again, he noticed that these humans were only men. There were no women. Raven had an idea. He wondered if he could find some women. He searched for a long time. Then he saw some chitons. He opened one of the chitons and found some lovely, tiny women. He brought the women to the men.

Raven enjoyed watching the behaviour of the men and women. He saw them begin to pair off and have children. The human families moved to other parts of the island. Since that day, many generations of humans have grown and flourished, and Raven has never been bored.

* Chiton: a large sea shell
 
1. Where was Raven walking?
  a) ?    through the forest
  b) ?    along the beach
  c) ?    in the water
2. Why did Raven want to play?
  a) ?    He was bored.
  b) ?    He was excited.
  c) ?    He was hungry.
3. What was Raven’s problem?
  a) ?    His frends were all working.
  b) ?    Raven had nothing to play with.
  c) ?    His friends were too busy to play.
4. What did Raven hear?
  a) ?  A baby crying.
  b) ?    A bird singing.
  c) ?    A strange sound.
5. Where was the sound coming from?
  a) ?    The birds.
  b) ?    The sea.
  c) ?    A clamshell.
6. What did Raven see in the clamshell?
  a) ?    baby clams.
  b) ?    tiny creatures.
  c) ?    sand
7. How did Raven get the creatures to come out of the clamshell?
  a) ?    He coaxed them in a gentle voice.
  b) ?    He sang to them.
  c) ?    He grabbed them amd pulled them out.
8. What idea did Raven have?
  a) ?    He wanted to find some women for the male creatures.
  b) ?    He wanted the men and women to get married.
  c) ?    He wanted to get married.
9. Where did Raven find the female creatures?
 a)  ?    in the sand.
  b) ?    in the seaweed.
  c) ?    in a chiton.
10. Why isn’t Raven bored now?
 a)  ?    He has children of his own.
  b) ?    He can amuse himself by watching the behaviour of men and women.
  c) ?    He can create humans.

Common Problems Between Parents and Teenagers

I think that conflicts between teenagers and their parents are natural. We have a generational gap, and also the adolescent age is quite ambivalent: we are too young for one half of the things we desire and too old for the other half. However, I don’t think that it is completely impossible to understand each other!

I think that the main reason we don’t understand each other is lack of communication. We just don’t listen to each other.

Teenagers want independence, more freedom, and parents want their children to be safe and often they are scared to allow them to navigate freely. I think we need to remember about compromises and listen to each other. And sometimes we need to learn to understand each other’s values and respect them. Also, I think that parents need to remember that their children are an individuals, and they actually need to learn to be independend and they need to just protect them and care about them and their future, but not to completely control their lives. They need to know the difference between actually caring about their child and imposing your own values and controlling. And teenagers also need to know that, and also they need to remember that their parent are responsible for them and there are some boundaries that they need to keep.

In conclusion, I think that the most important thing is to listen to each other and to respect each other’s boundaries. This age is really hard for every person, and having good and understanding relationships with your family is very importat.

անգլերենի դեկտեմբերյան ֆլեշմոբ

If you could change one important thing about your country, what would you change? 

I think I would change the mindset of the people. I would make them more responsible and caring about the world around us. And I think I wcould do that by changing the educational system. It is very important to be educated, and I believe, that being educated doesn’t mean knowing everything by heart, no. It is aboutknowing about the world around us, about the society, learning the subjects you are interested in most and be actually able to use your knowlegde.
I truly believe that education is the start of everything.

Imagine that you have received some land to use as you wish. How would you use this land? 

I think I would create a green space, like a park. Because it is good for both humanity and nature: it is good for enviorment, and also good for people, because nature is good for our physical and mental health.
Also, if it would be possible, I think I would build a small cafe that would look like a cute, warm cottage. It would have some good music and it would smell like a bread all the day.

Technology has made the world a better place to live. Do you agree or disagree with this statement?

I think both. Our lives became easier, now, we have an access to have a lot of information and lern a lot of things and it is great. But from the other side, we are drowning in lots of information, we become addicted to it and we became less concentrated.

You have the opportunity to visit a foreign country for two weeks. Which country would you like to visit? Why?

Japan, I think. I’ve been studying Japanese for almost 6 years and I’m totally in love with the language and the country, people, culture. I’ve studied a lot about it, and I really think that Japan is a very unique place and I dream about visiting it. Because, finally, I’ll be able to see in real life the country I have been teaching about for so many years.

The company decided to ________ the old software and implement a new, more   advanced system. 

phase out

The speaker will ________ his ideas during the presentation to ensure clarity.

set forth

It’s crucial to ________ possibilities before making any final decisions.

rule out

The new policy aims to ________ the use of plastic in the packaging industry.

Bring about

Writing a letter on a given situation.  

           The deadline for submitting your research work is the 26th of this month but you can’t do it because of a serious reason. Write a letter to the supervisor of the research work telling him/her about the serious reason and asking him/her whether it will be possible to postpone the deadline until the first days of next month.    

Hello, Mr/Ms __

I want to talk about my research work and I want to express how sorry I am that I couldn’t meet the deadline for submitting my work. I had good reasons and I want to ask if we can postpone the submission of the work, for example, for a month? I am extremely sorry that this happened, but, as I said, I had reasons, and I want to show you work of high quality. Therefore, I’m really looking forward to your answer.

Regards, Nare.

A New Year, A New Start

This year was crazy.

That’s all what I can say. I’m not exaggerating!

there were a lot of changes in the world in general and in my life, too. It is very hard to highlight an event, because every month, even week had a big impact on the world, on me.

But if we talk about personal things, it is worth to mention how much I matured and started to appreciate my life and people more. I became kinder. I became more open about myself and started to be less ashamed of some of my personality traits like shyness and tendency to overshare with people. I feel like it is easier for me to express my feelings and to take care about the world around me. Yes, I’ve lost some things, but I gained new things instead. And I feel very happy about it, I feel happy that I don’t give up no matter what.

What about resolutions for this coming year? Well, I want to keep my motivation and hope and try to use it to make the world around me better. I want to take care about others and myself too. I want to work on myself, to study, to learn something. And also I want to work on my books, I have a lot of ideas that I kept insime me for a long time.

This year was kind of rebirth for me and after all of these years of feeling not motivated, now, I feel like I know more about myself and others, and I can use that to be better.

what inspires me the most

I am kind of impressionable person in some way, I think. And I am attentive to details and it is very easy to impress me, I really like to observe everything around me and I am very curious about everything.

So, that’s why it is hard to say what exaclty inspires me.

But of course, I can name a lot of things.

I can’t describe how much nature inspires me. Honestly, I think there are no better things than being in a forest, feeling some fresh air, smelling rain… I just love it. I like to just get lost in my thoughts while just walking and seeing the nature around me. It is so various and beautiful. After that, I feel so alive and I want to do something new. So, that’s why it inspires me a lot.

Music inspires me. A good melody always cheers me up and makes me feel and even experience a lot of things. I get a lot of ideas while just listening to music, and it is very useful for my novels and poems. I like making playlists and deciding which song will fit my current situation.

People inspire me. I love watching them. I like seeing how different we all are, learning new things about them, sharing with them. Some people motivate me and teach me some important lessons I needed, and I really appreciate them.

Some stories from my trips…

I am not saying that I’ve travelled a lot out of my country, usually I travel inside my country and I really like it! But the few times when I travelled out of my country were wonderful and I learned a lot about other cultures, history, people and even myself. I realised how much I like to communicate to other people and learn new things about their culture. So, I can describe my expierence as something amazing.

But still, I had some… “adventures” there.

Well, first thing I want to tell about is when I was going to fly to Germany. My parent’s said the day I was flying and I trusted them without any doubt, I didn’t even check the tickets! So, I was just sitting, chilling on the sofa. I hadn’t pack my things, I didn’t take shower and stuff, I expected that I’ll do it tomorrow, because the fly was tomorrow at night. Then, my friend that was going to fly with texted me to do something I promised to her, because “We are not going to have any time later”. I didn’t get why she wanted me to do it now, because I had a day, but still. Then, she texted me something like “By the way, when are you arriving to the airport?”. And I realised: My parents got the date of my fly wrong. It was going to be just in hours! My family and I just started to do everything: I took the shower and started to get ready, my grandmother and mother started to pack my things. Then I started to help them. It was so stressful, I felt like I’m going to fail!
But after all, everything went good and we got there in time.

What also can I tell about? I was sleeping in the plane and my bottle with water fell off and… Dissapeared! Nobody could find it! I remember how sad I was. It was new and very, very beautiful one.

I also can tell about a lot of moments where I mispronounced some words and made people confused there, but I don’t want to. I am too ashamed…

Well, I can tell something very unusual!
It was in Germany. A little thing really triggered me and I felt like I want to cry, so I separated from my group that was in a shop, I got outside, sat on a bench in the park and started crying. I remember how miserable I felt. Now, I wouldn’t cry because of it, but I don’t want to depreciate me and my feelings in the past. Then, some man asked what happened, but I didn’t anwser and cried just louder. That man was looking like he was hurrying, but still, he stayed. He didn’t touch me or ask me a lot of questions. He just stood there and I felt so much support just my his presence. When I stopped crying, he asked me if I was okay. Then he left.
I liked how he didn’t pressure me and just showed me that I am not alone. I think that this kind of support is one of the best.
I am still very thankful to that man.

classwork

Preparation
I. Complete the sentences with a word from the box.

lack, distracts, storage, peers, revise, process, rota, siblings, improve, efficient:

1. He distracts me by playing music when I’m studying.

2. I need to revise for my end-of-year exams.
3. I have two siblings – one sister and one brother.
4. We have a storage system for housework and it’s my turn to do the washing-up today.
5. I need to find rota space for my things while I am travelling.
6. Some plants may die when there is a lack of rain.
7. Slow down! I can’t process all the information if you speak too quickly.
8. If the weather doesn’t improve, we won’t be able to have a picnic.
9. My peers at school are quite competitive at exam time.
10. Sharing a car is a more efficient way of travelling to work every day

Study problems – help is here

Ask E-tutor

Hi! I’m E-tutor, or Emma. I’m here to help with any study-related problems, whether big or small.

– Meg

What should I say to my sister?

Hi, E-tutor. Unfortunately, I share a bedroom and a desk with my elder sister. She continually distracts me because she’s noisy and disorganised. I think she’s disrespectful. I’ve got exams in a fortnight and I desperately need to revise. I can’t concentrate when she’s studying too and the desk is always overflowing with stuff so I can’t find anything. If I try to have a dialogue with my sister, she gets annoyed. Can you help?

– E-tutor

Re: What should I say to my sister?

Hi, Meg. That’s a common complaint between siblings. Why don’t you discuss a rota system so that you use the desk at different times? Or maybe you could study at the local library, cultural centre or community centre a few days a week. Make sure you’ve got storage space for everything on your desk: folders and containers for your paper and stationery. If everything has its own place, it will be easier to keep orderly. It might even be enjoyable to do this together. If it’s easier to write instead of talking face to face, try messaging her and explain how awful you feel.

– Rudy

Against the clock

My problem is time – or lack of it! Next month I’ve got 12 exams in three weeks. How can I possibly study for all of them? It’s complicated. I think it’s impossible.

– E-tutor

Re: Against the clock

Hi, Rudy. It isn’t impossible but you DO have to get started NOW. Make a study plan and highlight periods of study time for each subject. Make a detailed plan for this week and then do the same for the weeks ahead. It’s better to study for an hour or so a day than just once a week, all day. Your brain needs time to process information.

– Hayley

Disaster

My problem is silly and a bit embarrassing. I just find it hard to study. I always stop and start and I keep getting the impression that I’m learning the wrong things. I’m a disaster. I don’t think you can really help me.

– E-tutor

Re: Disaster

Hayley, your problem isn’t silly at all! It’s very real and lots of people experience the same thing as you. Sometimes things improve if they join a study group. Set up a group and meet a couple of days a week after school to study together. Take turns to give presentations and teach other what you know. It’s called ‘peer teaching’ and is an effective and efficient practice for lots of students.

II. Circle True or False for these sentences.

1. Meg doesn’t respect her sister. False
   Meg finds it difficult to talk to her sister. True
   E-tutor thinks Meg’s problem is unusual. False
   Rudy believes he has an impossible task. True
   E-tutor thinks Rudy needs to start studying immediately. True
   Rudy needs to study a little and often. True
   Hayley is confident that her problem can be solved. False
   E-tutor recommends that Hayley studies with a teacher. False