The 4 Ways Sound Affects Us

Julian Treasure    Video Activity TED - 5.40 minutes

 

A fascinating TED lecture about sound and its effects. The speaker Julian Treasure, is a sound expert, author of the book Sound Business, and chairman of The Sound Agency.

Part 1. VOCABULARY Warm up: Match the terms and definitions.

1.soundscape	A. respiration, inhaling and exhaling.
2. brainwaves	B. ability to perceive.
3.physiology	C. a natural or artificial acoustic environment.
4.breathing	D. functions and activity of the body.
5.consciousness	E. electrical impulse originating in brain tissue.

Part 2. Watch the TED lecture clip and say whether the following statements are TRUE or FALSE.

A) Most of the sound around us is unpleasant, much of it is accidental. (B) Our relationship with sound is not  conscious. (C) Sounds sometimes affect hormone secretions, breathing, heart rate and your brainwaves. (D) Music is the most powerful form of sound that we know that affects our physiological activity. (E) With practice, you can learn to understand two people talking at once. (F) People who can't get away from noise find their health damaged. (G) At present science is used in the design of soundscapes. (H) Music is the often used inappropriately in commercial sound. (I) Even if you're listening consciously, you cannot take control of the sound around you.

Part 3. Listen again and find the reference for these numbers as in the example.

4	e.g. “the ways sound is affecting us all the time.”
12
hundreds of thousands
1/3
28
30
1.8
86
5

Answers here!

The Music Issue - Answers

The 4 Ways Sound Affects Us

Part 1.

1.c   2.e   3.d   4.a  5.b

Part 2.

(A) F  “most of the sound around us is accidental,  much of it is unpleasant.” (B)T  (C)F it affects these “all the time”   (D)F it “affects our emotional state”   (E)F “You can't understand two people talking at once”   (F)T   (G)T  (H)T   (I)F “If you're listening consciously, you can take control of the sound around you.”

Part 3

12 = cycles per minute is roughly the frequency of the breathing of a sleeping human.

hundreds of thousands =  years we've learned that when the birds are singing, things are safe. It's when they stop you need to be worried.

1/3 = productivity of workers in open-plan offices, compared to working in quiet rooms.

28 = miles per hour, the speed at which a person listening to techno music will never drive. (Fast, loud music makes you drive faster)

30 = the percentage shops are losing business with people leaving shops due to unpleasant sound.

1.8 = billion times a day, Nokia ringtone is played

86 = percentage you reduce commercial impact when sound is incongruent or has no use.

5 = minutes a day, the lecturer recommends listening to birdsong.

The Legend of Santa Claus

A fun lesson about the Legend of Santa talks about the history of Santa Claus. This lesson is linked to a YouTube video and was made specifically for building vocabulary, improving listening skills, conversation and lots more. A great way to get students into the festive holiday mood and talking about stories of mythical people.

The Legend of Santa
Discussion
Warm Up
1. How is the weather in winter in your country?
2. What are some fun things to do in the summer? In the winter?
3. Is there any place in the world you would like to visit? Where?
4. What other traditional foods are popular in your country?

Vocabulary Check

sleigh, goddess, chimney,

grumpy, poem, publish, fur,

modern, actually, kind

Listening Comprehension Watch the YouTube video and answer the following questions. Copy and paste the following link to watch the video:


 1. Does everyone travel to be with their family at Christmas time?
2. What do some people do at Christmas time?
3. How is the weather in Australia in December?
4. What can people do in Australia at Christmas time?
5. What is a luau?
6. Where can people go for a cold, snowy Christmas?
7. What kind of animal can you see in these countries?
8. What big city is a popular place to go at Christmas time?
9. What can you do in this city?
10. What is the most popular place to be at Christmas time?


Matching
Match the words on the left with words or expressions on the right that are closest in
meaning.

1. variety
2. adventure
3. feast
4. reindeer
5. popular
6. suntan
7. Luau
8. celebrate
9. vacation
10. hula
A. A very large meal, usually on a special occasion like a
holiday or birthday.
B. Liked or enjoyed by many people or a group of people.
C. A traditional Hawaiian dance.
D. This is a Hawaiian party with lots of food and
entertainment.
E. To have a fun activity such as a party on a special day.
F. Many different types of something or many choices.
G. Time off from work or school to relax or travel.
H. An unusual, exciting, and sometimes dangerous activity or
experience.
I. Brown skin caused by being exposed to the sun.
J. An animal that lives in cold northern countries.

More Discussion Questions
1. Have you ever traveled to a foreign country?
2. Do you want to have an adventure?
What kind of adventure?
3. Who would you like to travel with on vacation?
4. What events do you celebrate in your country?
5. Do you know any traditional dances? What are they?

Words in Context - Fill-in-the-blanks
Use the words from the vocabulary box to complete the following
sentences. You may need to modify the tense or word form.
1. Most of my classmates like hamburgers but by far the most ___________ food is
pizza. Everybody loves pizza!
2. My soccer team won the championship game so we are going to __________ by
having a school dance this Saturday.
3. You can tell that Bob went to Hawaii on vacation. He has a beautiful _______
because he spent a lot of time at the beach!
4. At Christmas, Santa travels around the world in a sleigh pulled by eight
___________.
5. When we were in Hawaii my mom and sister learned how to _______ dance. Now
they practice at home every day!
6. Juan likes to have big _____________ when he goes on vacation. Last summer, he
went mountain climbing in Nepal!
7. Chen listens to a ___________ of music. Today he is listening to K-Pop but yesterday
he was listening to opera and rock and roll.
8. I can’t believe the ________ my grandmother made. We had turkey, roast beef, ham,
and roast duck for Christmas dinner!
9. Julia has been working twelve hours a day for the last three months to get the project
done. She really needs a _____________!
10. We enjoyed watching the singing and dancing while we ate a lot of food at the big
________ on the beach. It was fantastic!

Listening Practice
Fill-in-the-blanks
Watch the video and complete the sentences.
When you think of Santa Clause, what does he look like?
Today, almost everyone would say they think of a happy man in a red suit who gives
presents to children.
The modern image of Santa that we have today was first made popular in the poem 'The
Night Before Christmas', which was published almost 200 years ago!. In this poem, Santa
Claus was a fat, jolly man dressed in a bright red suit with fur and a hat. He drove a sleigh
pulled by flying reindeer and entered people's houses through their chimneys to give
presents to children.
However, not very long ago, people would have given many different answers to the
question, “What does Santa look like?”.
To people in Italy, Santa Claus was an old woman named Befana, who cleaned people's
houses and left cookies.
To people in the Netherlands, Santa Claus was actually called Saint Nicholas, a grumpy
but kind old man, who gave presents to good children and punished bad ones.
To the Germans, Santa Clause was sometimes a beautiful goddess, and other times was a
cute baby angel.
The Dutch brought their idea of Santa Claus to America when they built the city that
became New York city. Later, when the English took over that city, they changed the Dutch
name Sinterklass, to Santa Claus.
All of these stories came together over time. People would write about and share their
traditions with each other, and soon most people started to agree that Santa is a kind old
man, flying in the sky in December to give gifts to good children.
Funny how things change isn’t it? See you next time!

Transcripts
Hey there,
When you think of Santa Clause, what does he look like?
Today, almost everyone would say they think of a happy man in a red suit who gives
presents to children.
The modern image of Santa that we have today was first made popular in the poem 'The
Night Before Christmas', which was published almost 200 years ago!. In this poem, Santa
Claus was a fat, jolly man dressed in a bright red suit with fur and a hat. He drove a sleigh
pulled by flying reindeer and entered people's houses through their chimneys to give
presents to children.
However, not very long ago, people would have given many different answers to the
question, “What does Santa look like?”.
To people in Italy, Santa Claus was an old woman named Befana, who cleaned people's
houses and left cookies.
To people in the Netherlands, Santa Claus was actually called Saint Nicholas, a grumpy
but kind old man, who gave presents to good children and punished bad ones.
To the Germans, Santa Clause was sometimes a beautiful goddess, and other times was a
cute baby angel.
The Dutch brought their idea of Santa Claus to America when they built the city that
became New York city. Later, when the English took over that city, they changed the Dutch
name Sinterklass, to Santa Claus.
All of these stories came together over time. People would write about and share their
traditions with each other, and soon most people started to agree that Santa is a kind old
man, flying in the sky in December to give gifts to good children.
Funny how things change isn’t it? See you next time!

I heart English -- The OK Issue

I Heart English

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• The OK Issue
• Expand Your Vocabulary
• America's Greatest Word
• INGRID MICHAELSON's "Be OK"
• Oklahoma, OK!
• Words New and Old
• The OK Issue - Answers

The OK Issue Expand Your Vocabulary Synonyms & antonyms America’s Greatest Word Listening activity, National Public Radio Ingrid Michaelson’s OK Listening activity, song  Oklahoma, OK! Reading actvity Words New and Old Fill the gaps activity

Expand Your Vocabulary Vocabulary activity – Adjectives, synonyms & antonyms  Do you repeat the word “OK” too often? Do you always use the words “good” or “bad” to describe everything? Look at other possibilities to expand your vocabulary: • OK: acceptable, satisfactory, accurate, adequate, all right, approved, convenient, correct, fair, fine, good, in order, permitted, so-so, surely, tolerable. • Not OK: bad, incorrect, intolerable, unacceptable, unsatisfactory, unsuitable, wrong. TASK: Find synonyms for GOOD and BAD.   Need help? - Try a thesaurus or dictionary of words, which provides  synonyms, and their opposites, or antonyms.   Try Thesaurus.com or the Merriam Webster Thesaurus online HERE. GOOD BAD

America's Greatest Word Listening activity, National Public Radio The ABCs of OK : It is said to be the most frequently spoken (or typed) word on the planet, bigger even than an infant's ma or Coke. And it was the first word spoken on the moon. It's America's answer to Shakespeare. It's an entire philosophy expressed in two letters. It's very odd, but it's . . . OK. Click here to open a small window and listen to the radio segment Length : 6.22 minutes Listen to the radio interview and say whether the following ideas are mentioned or not. 1. OK is the world's most popular word. 2.The word appeared in a comic strip in the Boston Morning Post 3.In 1839 OK was used as part of a political campaign. 4.Other abbreviations were popular at the time. 5.Many thought that Martin van Buren was the person who invented the word. 6.President Andrew Jackson had made a spelling mistake. 7.The telegraph contributed to OK's popularity. 8.OK is at present largely used in text messages. 9.Mark Twain used it in his works. 10.The author of Little Women used it once and then changed it. 11.President Woodrow Wilson had a university education. 12.OK represents the American attitude. 13.The phrase "I'm OK, you're OK" represents American pragmatism. 14.Many people don't realize how often they say OK. 15.March 23rd 2012 is officially OK Day.Click here for the full transcript Answers here!

INGRID MICHAELSON's "Be OK"  Listening activity, song  Mini Bio  -  Ingrid Michaelson was born on December 8, 1979. She is a singer and songwriter from New York. Her music has been featured in episodes of several popular television shows, movies, as well as in advertising campaigns. Her website ishttp://www.ingridmichaelson.com Listen to the song/watch the clip and answer the questions below. 1.    The writer/singer is probably feeling... happy – sad – unsure 2.    The song is... positive – negative LYRICS I just want to be ok, be ok, be ok I just want to be ok today I just want to feel today, feel today, feel today I just want to feel something today. Open me up and you will see I'm a gallery of broken hearts I'm beyond repair, let me be and give me back my broken parts. I just want to know today, know today, know today I just want to know something today I just want to know today, know today, know today know that maybe I will be ok. Open me up and you will see... Just give me back my pieces Just give them back to me please Just give me back my pieces And let me hold my broken parts. I just want to be ok, be ok, be ok... I just want to feel today, feel today, feel today... Answers here!

Oklahoma, OK! Reading Activity More than 50 languages are spoken in the state of Oklahoma. There are 55 distinct Indian tribes that make the state their home, and each of these tribes has its own language or dialect. The colorful history of the state includes Indians, cowboys, battles, oil discoveries, dust storms, settlements initiated by offers of free land, and forced resettlements of entire tribes. Oklahoma's Indian heritage is honored in its official state seal and flag. At the center of the seal is a star, and within each of the five arms of the star are symbols representing each of the fivetribes (the "Five Civilized Tribes") that were forcefully resettled into the territory of Oklahoma. The tribes depicted on the seal are the Creeks, the Chickasaw, the Choctaw, the Cherokee, and the Seminoles. The present Oklahoma state flag depicts an Indian war shield, stars, eagle feathers, and an Indian peace pipe, as well as a white man's symbol for peace, an olive branch. Oklahoma is a word that was made up by the native American missionary Allen Wright. He combined two Choctaw words, "ukla" meaning person and "humá" meaning red to form the word that first appears in a 1866 Choctaw treaty. Oklahoma means "red person." Oklahoma is the Sooner state. But what is a Sooner? The answer dates back to the Land Run of 1889. Back then, Oklahoma was still a territory. It was full of unclaimed land. President Cleveland signed an exciting new bill which allowed people to legally claim and settle on some of this land. Each interested person could claim 160 acres. On April 22, 1889, at 12:00 pm the hopeful settlers got their chance. Men entered with their wagons and horses. They all hoped to find the best plots available. This became known as the "Land Run of 1889." People who entered the district illegally to claim lands, before the designated entry time, were called "Sooners." Read the following sentences and answer T (true), F (false) or IDS (It doesn’t say) 1.Oklahoma is considered a land of cowboys and Indians, among other things. 2.All tribes were forced to resettle. 3.A peace pipe is shown on the official seal of the state. 4.The word Oklahoma was not an original terms. 5.The Sooners were people who officially arrived first to claim land in the run of 1889. 6.By 1889 Oklahoma was already a state of the union. 7.Women could not participate in the Land Run. 8.The competition for lands always started at noon. Answers here!

Words New and Old Fill the Gaps Activity On March 23 1839, Boston Morning Post made up the word “OK” it was a short version of “oll korrect”, an incorrectly spelled alternative of “all correct”. It was never meant to be (1) ____, but until today and for many years ahead this word has gained the title of the most used word in the world. According to Wikipedia, in English spoken countries the most popular word is “THE”, (2) ____ “OK” is the most popular word worldwide. Some of the oldest words in the English language are "I", "we", “who”, "two", "three" and “five”. (3) ____, the word “one” came some time after the word “two”. This is what researchers from Reading University in England say. They used special computer software to (4) ____ how old English words are and to track their changes. The software also predicted the words "dirty", "bad", "because", “smell” and "squeeze" might (5) ____ out completely (6) ____ the year 3000. Lead researcher Dr. Mark Page said that one day we might have a (7) ____ Stone-Age English phrasebook. He told Britain’s ‘The Times’ newspaper: “If a time traveler wanted to go back in time…we could probably (8) ____ up a little phrasebook of the modern words that are likely to have sounded similar back then.” Dr. Page said that some English words are (9) ____ at least 15,000 to 20,000 years old. He believes the sounds used back then would still be understood today. His research on the evolution of words (10) ____ at a time when English is changing rapidly. The Internet, technology and globalization are having a huge impact on our vocabulary. The (11) ____ words “blog”, “podcast”, and “gigabyte” were alien to most people at the (12) ____ of the century. Terms such as “global warming”, “credit crunch” and “global village” would not have been understood (13) ____ decades ago. It seems likely our modern methods of communication will continue to transform the English language. However, it still might be a (14) ____ before language from text messages such as CUL8R (see you later) becomes accepted English. Put the correct words to fill the gaps in the text: 1. (a) Popular (b) Famous (c) Abused (d) Ignored 2. (a) Also (b) However (c) In addition (d) On the contrary  3. (a) Strange (b) Stranger (c) Strangers (d) Strangely  4. (a) analysis (b) analyze (c) analyzed (d) analyzing  5. (a) die (b) death (c) dead (d) deceased  6. (a) for (b) on (c) by (d) at  7. (a) basilica (b) basically (c) basic (d) basics  8. (a) sketch (b) draw (c) doodle (d) paint 9. (a) probably (b) probability (c) probable (d) probables  10. (a) reaches (b) moves (c) goes (d) comes 11. (a) daytime (b) everyday (c) daily (d) daydream 12. (a) tone (b) tern (c) tune (d) turn  13. (a) few (b) couple (c) several (d) numerous  14. (a) while (b) whiling (c) whilst (d) whiled Answers here!

The OK Issue - Answers America's Greatest Word 1-Y 2-N 3-N 4-Y 5-Y 6-Y 7-Y 8-N 9-N 10-Y 11-Y 12-Y 13-N 14-Y 15-N Be OK 1.sad   2.positive Oklahoma, OK! 1-T 2-F (just 5 tribes) 3-F (it appears on the flag) 4-T 5-F they entered illegally) 6-F (it was a territory) 7-IDS 8-F (there was just one land run) Words New and Old 1a / 2b / 3d/ 4b/ 5a / 6c / 7c / 8b / 9a / 10d / 11b / 12d / 13c / 14a

11 English Idioms Based on Nature

In this article we will look at 11 English idioms that you can use to spice up your sentences.

Plants and flowers, birds and bees, flora & fauna... The natural world is an almost endless source of inspiration for idioms in the English language... let's take a look at 11 examples.

Idioms based on nature

1 - As fresh as a daisy

Meaning: If you feel as fresh as a daisy, you feel energetic and healthy.
Example: "I might feel awful first thing in the morning, but after a cup of coffee and a bit of meditation I'm as fresh as a daisy."

2 - A grass roots movement

Meaning: The ordinary people in a society or political organization and not the leaders.
Example: "The feeling among the grass roots of the organization is that the leaders aren't radical enough."

3 - The grass is always greener on the other side

Meaning: Other people's lives or situations always seem better than your own.
Example: Jill - "My job is so tedious. I wish I had my own business, like Beatrice does." Jane: "Beatrice probably wishes she had the security of her old job. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence."

4 -  To hit the hay

Meaning: To go to bed.
Example: "I have to go home and hit the hay pretty soon. Let's hit the sack. We have to get an early start in the morning."

5 - To be out of the woods

Meaning: To be out of danger or difficulty.
Example: "Financially, things are looking better, but we're not out of the woods yet."

6 - To beat about the bush

Meaning: To avoid talking about what is important.
Example: "Don't beat around the bush - get to the point!"

7 - To lead someone up the garden path

Meaning: To deceive you, or give you false information that causes you to waste your time.
Example: "It seems as if we've been led up the garden path about the position of our hotel - it's miles from the beach!"

8 - To let the grass grow under your feet

Meaning: To waste time by avoiding doing something.
Example: "We can't let the grass grow under our feet - we've really got to get going with this project."

9 - To nip something in the bud

Meaning: To stop something at an early stage
Example: "Many serious illnesses can be nipped in the bud if they are detected early enough."

10 - Find a needle in a haystack

Meaning: Something extremely hard to find
Example: "It's pretty much a needle in a haystack because these fish are extremely hard to find."

11 - The cream of the crop

Meaning: The best of all
Example: "This particular car is the cream of the crop. These three students are very bright. They are the cream of the crop in their class."

Challenge

Are you feeling brave? Try this... remember one or two of the idioms that we have mentioned above and try to use them in a sentence this week, then come back here and let us know how it went!