Reading Course – How to take the lessons

Welcome to the Reading Course! I'm excited to help you improve your reading
skills and vocabulary.

Here are a few tips for getting the most benefit out of the course. Remember,
your English will improve the most if you do ALL the exercises included in each
lesson.

Step 1: Read the article and learn the vocabulary

Read the lesson text. I've included definitions of the words in bold. The definitions
are in green (if you are reading the lesson online) or in the sidebar (if you are
reading the lesson PDF).

If you want to see more examples of a particular word, I recommend looking it up

on thefreedictionary.com or sentence.yourdictionary.com. (However, keep in
mind that some words have multiple definitions - so the one I give you directly in
the lesson is the one that best applies to the use of the word in the text).

Each article has five words that are NOT defined - they are in pink (if you are
reading the lesson online) or highlighted in yellow (if you are reading the lesson
PDF). Don't look these words up in the dictionary! These are words you will learn
in the "Discover New Words" quiz in the worksheet.

Step 2: Download the worksheet and do the exercises

The worksheet download link is located at the end of each article. The answers to
all these exercises are at the end of the worksheet.

The first exercise is Comprehension Questions. These test how well you
understood the text. It's OK to go back and look at the article in order to help you
answer these questions.

The second exercise is the Discover New Words Quiz. You'll see a sentence from
the article including one of the pink words (or yellow in the PDF) that was not
defined, and you need to guess the best possible definition of the word from
three options. This helps you learn to figure out new words from context. It's OK if
you don't get all the answers right... the goal is simply to practice!

Check your answers to "Discover New Words" before you continue to the next
exercise.

The third exercise is the Vocabulary Exercise. This is a chance for you to use the
vocabulary from the article by putting the words into new sentences. The more
you practice these new words, the easier it will be to remember them.

Again, you can check and correct all your answers at the end of each worksheet.

Step 3 (for some students): Writing task with feedback

This step is for you if you bought the version of the course that includes feedback
on your writing. (If you bought the version without feedback but you want to
upgrade, contact me).

The writing task provides the topic/question for you to respond. You don't need
to write a lot - two or three short paragraphs is fine! Type your writing into the
form on the lesson page, or send it to the e-mail address provided in the lesson
PDF. I will correct students' writing in the order I receive it. (Please be patient
since it might take me a couple days, depending on how much homework I have
to correct.)

Questions? Problems?
If you have a question about a lesson, or if you're having technical problems, send
me a message and I'm happy to help. I hope you enjoy the course!
8 Fascinating
Facts About Coffee
Many of us cherish our morning cup of coffee. Vocabulary
The aroma rouses us from sleep and launches
us into a more productive day. The taste is cherish = love with a lot of
affection, as if it were very
comforting and invigorating. We cradle the valuable
warm mug in our hands as though it were a
aroma = smell (this word is
treasure. But how much do we know about used for a nice smell)
coffee?
rouses = wakes up or causes
to be active
You might appreciate your coffee even more
after learning these interesting tidbits about invigorating = gives you
energy and strength
its history and benefits.
mug = a thick cup with a
1) The coffee bean is extracted from a handle
red berry tidbits = tiny pieces of
information or food
The coffee plant is a shrub or small tree
shrub = a bush, a type of
that produces edible red fruit, called
vegetation that grows low to
cherries. Each cherry contains two seeds – the ground
and it is these that become our esteemed esteemed = respected
coffee beans. The cherries are picked,
roasted = cooked with dry
dried, and peeled down to the green seed, heat (no water)
which is then roasted at a temperature of
500 degrees until it doubles in size.

2) Goats discovered caffeine

Legend has it that the stimulant effects of
caffeine were discovered by Ethiopian
Vocabulary
shepherds in the 9th century, after they
witnessed their goats’ unusual hyperactivity legend has it = according
following a binge on the coffee cherries. We to legend (unconfirmed)

can only assume that the goats later shepherds = people who
experienced a caffeine crash. take care of sheep & goats

witnessed = were present

3) It’s a hot commodity to observe

After oil, coffee is the second most traded crash = sudden loss of
energy
product in the world, beating out agriculture,
animal products, metals, precious metals, hot = (informal) currently
popular and successful
natural gas, and the combined categories of
butter, orange juice, sugar, and cocoa. beating out = performing
better than
4) Coffee could kill you…
precious metals = gold
and silver
There is a lethal dose of caffeine, and that
dose is roughly 100 cups of coffee in a day. It a lethal dose = an amount
that could kill you
is said that Voltaire, the French philosopher,
roughly = approximately
drank fifty cups per day. That’s more than
three times the amount consumed by U.S. downed = (informal)
drank
President Teddy Roosevelt, who downed a
gallon a day. a gallon = a unit of volume
equal to 3.785 liters
5) …but it will more likely help you live antioxidants = chemicals
longer that are believed to
protect the body’s cells
There are many health perks to drinking from damage
coffee, which is full of antioxidants. Studies
indicate that regular coffee drinkers are at
lower risk for conditions including
Vocabulary
Parkinson’s disease, Type II Diabetes, Heart
Disease, cirrhosis, and dementia. Coffee cirrhosis = a disease of the
does the body good. liver

dementia = loss of mental

6) Coffee assists in weight loss
ability caused by old age or
disease
Not only does caffeine stimulate an increased
metabolism for fat burning, it also triggers metabolism = the process
of the body breaking down
an adrenaline release and unbinds fatty acid
food and using it for energy
from fat tissue, both of which heighten
unbinds = disconnects
performance while exercising.
rich = when a food or drink
7) Cold weather + Americans = Irish is described as “rich,” it
means it’s very full of flavor
Coffee
cocktail = a drink where
Irish coffee, the rich cocktail of coffee, brown alcohol is mixed with other
sugar, whiskey, and cream, was created by an ingredients

Irish airline in order to help American disembarked = got off a

passengers warm up as they disembarked boat or plane

into Ireland’s chilly and damp weather. damp = slightly wet

rush = a sudden intense

8) The effects of coffee are immediate
sensation
You’ll experience a caffeine rush merely ten sip = small drink
minutes after your first sip of coffee. That
means the potential to feel restored,
energized, and ready for the day. So, what are
you waiting for? Drink up!
Comprehension Questions
True or false according to the article?

1. The coffee plant is quite tall.

2. Coffee beans come from inside a red fruit.
3. The seeds get bigger when they are roasted.
4. Caffeine was discovered thanks to animals.
5. Coffee is the world's most traded product.
6. Voltaire drank enough coffee to kill him.
7. Regular coffee drinkers have lower risks for some diseases.
8. Drinking too much coffee can lead to weight gain.
9. Irish coffee was actually invented in America.
10. Caffeine takes effect ten minutes after you start drinking coffee.
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. We cradle the warm mug in our hands as though it were a treasure.

a. hold with affection
b. pick up quickly
c. touch firmly

2. The cherries are picked, dried, and peeled down to the green seed, which is
then roasted at a temperature of 500 degrees until it doubles in size.
a. grown naturally
b. the exterior is removed
c. processed in a machine

3. Legend has it that the stimulant effects of caffeine were discovered by

Ethiopian shepherds in the 9th century, after they witnessed their goats’
unusual hyperactivity following a binge on the coffee cherries.
a. eating too much
b. getting too close
c. moving too fast

4. There are many health perks to drinking coffee, which is full of antioxidants.
a. benefits
b. ideas
c. habits

5. Not only does caffeine stimulate an increased metabolism for fat burning, it
also triggers an adrenaline release and unbinds fatty acid from fat tissue,
both of which heighten performance while exercising.
a. activates
b. decreases
c. is similar to

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

aroma cradled perks sip

beat out damp roast tidbit
binged invigorating roughly trigger
cherish peeled rush witnessed

1. After seasoning the meat, ______________________ it in the oven for 40 minutes.

2. Breathing cigarette smoke can ______________________ an asthma attack.
3. The clothes are still ______________________; we need to leave them in the dryer
longer.
4. I ______________________ this necklace because my granddaughter made it for me.
5. My friends and I ______________________ on pizza and chicken wings as we
watched the football game.
6. The ______________________ of freshly-baked bread filled the house.
7. Nobody had ______________________ the crime, so the detectives had to focus only
on the physical evidence.
8. One of the ___________________ of working from home is that I save money on gas.
9. I felt a ______________________ of anxiety when I looked around the playground
and didn't see my son.
10. The boy ______________________ the injured dog in his arms while waiting to see
the veterinarian.
11. My sister ______________________ more than a hundred other candidates to win
the scholarship.
12. The supermarket and university are both ______________________ a mile away
from my house.
13. Can I have a ______________________ of your iced tea?
Writing Task
What are 3 interesting facts about yourself? Write about some things that are
surprising or unique, or that other people might not guess about you or your
experiences. Try to write not just the fact itself, but also a little description (like in
this article). Send me your text at homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback!

Answers
Comprehension Questions

1) False
2) True
3) True
4) True
5) False
6) False
7) True
8) False
9) False
10) True

Discover New Words

1. a
2. b
3. a
4. a
5. a
Vocabulary Quiz

1) roast
2) trigger
3) damp
4) cherish
5) binged
6) aroma
7) witnessed
8) perks
9) rush
10) cradled
11) beat out
12) roughly
13) sip
9 Jobs that No Longer Exist
Due to technological advances and shifts in
societal practices, there are many jobs that, for
Vocabulary
better or worse, have either become impractical
or fallen out of fashion. Here are a few of those shifts = changes
forgotten career paths.
for better or worse = the
result might be good or
Newspaper reader: Before the era of iPods and
bad
headphones, factory owners used to employ
podium = a raised
people to stand on a podium and recite from
platform for a speaker
that day’s newspaper in order to entertain and
recite = read aloud or say
inform their workers. something memorized

Bowling alley pinsetter: Today, bowling alleys pins = the white objects
are equipped with machines to clear the lanes you try to knock down in
the sport of bowling, by
and reset the pins, but before this technology rolling the ball down the
was available, alley owners employed individuals long strip of wood called
the lane
(usually young men or teenagers) to stand at the
back of the lanes and line up the pins manually manually = by hand (not
automatic or done with
after they’d been knocked over.
machines)

Milkman: The advent of supermarkets has made extinct = no longer exists

this job extinct. But up until the 1960’s, doorstep = the area right
deliverymen dropped milk on your doorstep outside the door
every morning and returned in the evenings to vintage = old, classic items
retrieve the bottles. Today, those bottles are
considered vintage.
Lamplighter: Nowadays we can turn on the
lights with the flick of a switch, timers, or even
Vocabulary
hand clapping – but it was once accomplished
with matches, wicks, and a very long stick. Men clapping = putting your
used to patrol the roads to kindle—and later, hands together to make
noise
extinguish—each streetlamp one by one so that
pedestrians could see in the dark. wick = the “string” inside a
candle
Food Tester: We can thank the Food and Drug kindle = start a fire
Administration for sparing us from this
extinguish = put out a fire
responsibility. Before standard regulations were or light
in place, it was the job of a human tester to
royalty = kings, queens,
ensure that food was free of poison – whether princes, princesses, etc.
intentional or unintentional – so that royalty, beeping = a short,
politicians, and the rich could safely consume repetitive sound: “beep
beep beep”
their dinners.
knock = hit (usually on a
Knocker-up: Most of us now wake up to the door, wall, or window)
electronic beeping of an alarm clock – but in the
burning question = an
past, people were hired to knock on the windows important question or one
of doctors, factory workers, market traders, characterized by intensity
of desire to know the
drivers, mill workers, and other professions that
answer
required early rising. They carried long poles to
reach the windows of customers on upper floors.
But one burning question is – how did the
knocker-ups manage to wake up on time?
Lung: As you may have guessed, this job title isn’t
literal. In an age when alchemists, or old-time
Vocabulary
chemists, worked over a fire, a “lung” was a servant
hired to fan the flames to keep the blaze alive. age = era, time period

Necessary Woman: Indoor plumbing was available servant = an employee

to do some “low” form
to very few people until the second half of the 19th
of work
century. Before that time, people relieved
fan the flames = push
themselves in chamber pots, or piss pots, and air towards the fire
wealthy citizens were fortunate enough to hire
blaze = fire
necessary women to drain and clean those pots.
relieved themselves =
Switchboard Operator: Switchboard operators urinated or defecated

worked for large companies that might experience a drain = pour out liquid
high volume of calls, like hospitals, hotels, or wires = long, thin
corporations. The operators sat in a line facing a wall pieces of metal that
transmit electricity
of wires and buttons. They wore headphones and
first answered the phone call, and then flipped a automated =
automatic
switch to transfer the call to the appropriate
department. This position existed even up until the sophisticated =
complex
1980s, until being replaced by receptionists as well
demise = death or end
as automated answering services that are becoming
more and more sophisticated.

There’s no need to mourn the demise of these old-

fashioned careers, though, because new professions
are being created all the time. Nowadays, you can be
a social media consultant, app developer, or robotics
technician – and even more careers are bound to emerge in the years ahead!
Comprehension Questions
Match the name of each profession with a fact about it:

1. bowling alley pinsetter a. came to your house twice a day

2. food tester b. employed by the upper class
3. knocker-up c. had to wake up very early
4. lamplighter d. redirected telephone calls
5. lung e. responsible for entertaining workers
6. milkman f. their job risked their lives
7. necessary woman g. used a long stick to light fires
8. newspaper reader h. usually young men did this job
9. switchboard operator i. worked with scientists
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Milkman: The advent of supermarkets has made this job extinct.

a. coming or arrival of something important
b. efficiency and organization
c. great variety and number

2. Men used to patrol the roads to kindle—and later, extinguish—each

streetlamp one by one so that pedestrians could see in the dark.
a. people riding horses
b. people walking along the street
c. people who are outside at night

3. Food Tester: We can thank the Food and Drug Administration for sparing us
from this responsibility.
a. allowing someone not to experience something unpleasant
b. discouraging someone from doing something
c. making something impossible

4. There’s no need to mourn the demise of these old-fashioned careers, though,

because new professions are being created all the time.
a. be sad about a loss
b. talk too much about
c. try to prevent

5. Nowadays, you can be a social media consultant, app developer, or robotics

technician – and even more careers are bound to emerge in the years ahead!
a. are restricted from growing
b. will be surprising and unexpected
c. will probably/definitely appear

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

advent bound extinguish pedestrians sophisticated

beeping doorstep kindle servants spared
blaze extinct mourned shift wires

1. After I fell off my motorcycle, a number of _______________________ came over to

see if I was OK.
2. The entire country _______________________ the loss of the vice president in a
tragic accident.
3. If you don't deal with your problems, they're _______________________ to cause
even more trouble later on.
4. The monitor will start _______________________ if the patient's heart rate slows too
much.
5. It took the firefighters nearly an hour to put out the _______________________.
6. My grandparents were quite well-off. They had _______________________ to do all
the cooking and cleaning.
7. If you're not home, the delivery person will leave the package on the
_______________________.
8. The invaders killed all the men in the village, but they _______________________ the
women and children.
9. Dinosaurs have been _______________________ for a very long time.
10. The sticks were wet from the rain, so it was impossible to _______________________
a fire.
11. Things aren't the same as they were a decade ago; there's been a
_______________________ in public opinion.
12. This website uses a _______________________ search algorithm to find you the best
deals on flights.
Writing Task
What is one job (any job, not one of the ones in this article) that you think would be
really interesting to have? Describe it and say why it intrigues you. What is one job
you would never want to have? Give reasons for your answer. Send your text to me
at homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction.

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. h
2. f
3. c
4. g
5. i
6. a
7. b
8. e
9. d

Discover New Words

1. a
2. b
3. a
4. a
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz
1. pedestrians
2. mourned
3. bound
4. beeping
5. blaze
6. servants
7. doorstep
8. spared
9. extinct
10. kindle
11. shift
12. sophisticated
Amazing Celebrations
Around the World
Cultures around the globe share a love of
celebration. The reasons and methods for
festivals are as distinct as the people
Vocabulary
themselves, and each one contributes to
the rich heritage of human existence. Here world-renowned = widely known;
are a few celebrations that stand out. famous
soaked = made completely wet
Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil brawls = fights

This festival, which dates back to 1723, evolved = changed and developed
has become a world-renowned parades = organized processions
celebration. In its early days, rowdy of people down the street
celebrants took to the streets and soaked flood the streets = completely fill
each other with buckets of water and the streets
limes – a tradition that often led to brawls.
ornately-decorated = elaborately
In the 19th century, the festival evolved to
decorated, very fancy with lots of
include parades with masks and music. details

Nowadays, over two million people flood revelry = intense, energetic

celebration
the streets of Rio de Janeiro to participate
in the singing and dancing, with costumes, magnificent = excellent
ornately-decorated floats and general beat = rhythm
revelry.
feast your eyes on = look with
pleasure at
Samba schools from all over Brazil put on
magnificent performances, each one vibrant = bright and intense
relating a different story or theme. The
beat of the music fills the air and you can
feast your eyes on the vibrant colors and
sights.
The Chinese New Year

China commemorates the dawning of the New Vocabulary

Year on a different schedule than the Western
world, and its people don’t hold back in dawning = beginning
celebrating it. The Chinese New Year is the don’t hold back = don’t limit
largest and longest festival in the country, or restrain themselves
with festivities typically lasting two full weeks.
sizable = of significant size;
It is also celebrated in countries with sizable
large
populations of Chinese immigrants.
deities = gods
The celebration, which was traditionally a ancestors = members of your
time to honor deities and ancestors, is family who have previously
replete with fireworks, lanterns and music. died
Families perform a thorough house cleaning is replete with = is totally full
to get rid of any bad luck and make way for a of; there are a lot of
happy and prosperous year.
lanterns = lights with a
protective or decorative case
South Korea’s Boryeong
get rid of = eliminate
Mud Festival
prosperous = wealthy and
successful
This rather odd tradition is a recent invention
– it began in 1996 when a local cosmetics odd = strange, unusual
company created a line of mud-based beauty mud = a mixture of dirt and
products. While most companies would invest water; a wet brown substance
in marketing and commercials, this one
attendees = people who
instead started the mud festival as a real-life
attend something
example of the products.
word of mouth = from people
Attendees can participate in mud slides, mud telling other people about it
wrestling, and even mud skiing. The event phenomenon = incident
spread by word of mouth and became an (especially an unusual one)
international phenomenon – now millions of slather = cover completely
people come to the city in order to slather
themselves in the mineral-rich mud.
Harbin Ice and Snow Festival -
Harbin, China
Vocabulary
Each year in Harbin, China there is a truly magical
celebration that blends art and ice. Craftsmen craftsmen = someone
who practices an art or
from around the country go to Harbin to create
activity with great skill
some of the most exquisite snow and ice
sculptures found anywhere in the world. The exquisite = excellently-
exhibitions often include lasers and lights to add made, very beautiful
some special effects. Weather-permitting, the lasers = intense focused
artistic creations last for an entire month. beams of light
weather-permitting = if
St. Petersburg, Russia: White Nights the weather permits it
Festival finest = best
hence = this is the reason
The White Nights Festival is considered one of the
for
finest international arts festivals. It takes place
over the summer, the “season of the midnight sun” outstanding = excellent
in Russia – hence the name. Created in 1993 to genres = types/categories
serve as “a musical gift to the city,” it features of art, literature, or music
outstanding performers in genres ranging from
massive = extremely big
opera to popular music to classical ballet.
coincides = happens at
the same time as
The culmination of the festival, which is called
the Scarlet Sails festival, is a massive event
attended by over a million people. Many of them
are students and schoolchildren, as the event
coincides with the end of the school year.

Further reading:

• Breathtaking festivals around the world

• Top 10 celebrations
Comprehension Questions
True or false according to the article?

1. The Brazilian Carnival is over 500 years old.

2. It used to be celebrated only among the elite.

3. More than two million people attend Rio's Carnival.

4. All the samba schools base their performances on a single theme.

5. The Chinese New Year begins January 1.

6. It is also celebrated outside China.

7. Chinese people clean their houses during this time.

8. The Boryeong Mud Festival is an ancient tradition.

9. News about the event has spread naturally.

10. The ice sculptures in Harbin can last for a month if it is cold enough.

11. The White Nights Festival happens in the winter.

12. The Scarlet Sails festival celebrates the start of a new school year.
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Here are a few celebrations that stand out.

a. are recommended for visiting
b. are especially interesting or notable
c. are very rare

2. In its early days, rowdy celebrants took to the streets and soaked each other
with buckets of water and limes – a tradition that often led to brawls.
a. disorderly and uncontrolled
b. drunk with alcohol
c. excited and joyful

3. Families perform a thorough house cleaning to get rid of any bad luck and
make way for a happy and prosperous year.
a. complete
b. rushed
c. typical

4. Each year in Harbin, China there is a truly magical celebration that blends art
and ice.
a. advertises
b. mixes together
c. produces

5. The culmination of the festival, which is called the Scarlet Sails festival, is a
massive event attended by over a million people.
a. first part; beginning
b. high point; climax
c. theme

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz

Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

ancestors evolved massive slather

attendee get rid of odd soaked
blend hold back rowdy stood out
culmination magnificent sizable thorough

1. All of the projects were good, but the one that received the award really
__________________________.
2. College graduation is the __________________________ of four years of hard work.
3. Each __________________________ will get a certificate of completion at the end of
the workshop.
4. I accidentally put my bag down in a puddle, and now the bottom is
__________________________.
5. The countryside of Scotland is a __________________________ place to go hiking;
there's so much lovely scenery.
6. My dream car costs a pretty __________________________ amount of money, so I'm
starting to save up now.
7. Several dormitory windows were broken by the __________________________ party-
goers.
8. She has a __________________________ knowledge of the subject and can answer
virtually any question about it.
9. The sweet and sour flavors __________________________ nicely in this dish to create
a unique taste.
10. I don't know the names of any of my __________________________ beyond my great-
grandparents.
11. This face cream claims to __________________________ wrinkles within two weeks.
12. You shouldn't __________________________ your bread in butter - just use a little
bit!
13. There's one __________________________ flaw in your plan that's guaranteed to
make it fail.
Writing Task
Write about your favorite holiday or festival. How do you celebrate it? What are the
traditions? Describe a nice memory you have from a special holiday or event. Send
me your text at homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions

1. False
2. False
3. True
4. False
5. False
6. True
7. True
8. False
9. True
10. True
11. False
12. False

Discover New Words

1. b
2. a
3. a
4. b
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz

1. stood out
2. culmination
3. attendee
4. soaked
5. magnificent
6. sizable
7. rowdy
8. thorough
9. blend
10. ancestors
11. get rid of
12. slather
13. massive
Amelia Earhart:
America’s Pioneering
Female Pilot Vocabulary

Amelia Earhart, one of the world’s earliest trailblazer = someone who is

one of the first to do
female pilots, was a trailblazer. Her legacy
something, thus opening the
endures in the American consciousness today as path for others to follow

a symbol of perseverance and bravery. legacy = the effect she had on

society
Her aviation records were numerous; however solo = alone
she is most famous for being the first woman to coolness = staying calm and
fly across the Atlantic as a co-pilot in 1928. She acting rationally

then flew solo across the Atlantic again in 1932, tomboy = a girl who enjoys
stereotypically “masculine”
once again the first woman to do so. She had activities
strong convictions that men and women were innate = natural; she was born
with it
equal in “jobs requiring intelligence,
cobbled together = put
coordination, speed, coolness, and willpower.”
together quickly from
whatever resources are
Amelia was born in Kansas in 1897. She was a
available
tomboy and seemed to have an innate spirit of shed = small house, often used
adventure, enjoying outdoor activities such as for storing tools and supplies

climbing trees, collecting insects, and sledding. subsequent = what happened

afterwards
When she was eight years old, she cobbled bumps and bruises = minor
together a ramp on the roof of a shed, then injuries, without cuts

sledded off it into the air. Her “flight” and exhilarated = happy and
energetic
subsequent crash landing resulted in bumps
and bruises, but she was exhilarated with the
sensation of flying.
Amelia had enrolled as a pre-med student at
Colombia University, but a year later, a 10-minute
Vocabulary
plane ride at a Long Beach air show kindled her
love for aviation. She emerged from the plane with pre-med = she was
studying to be a doctor
an unwavering determination to learn how to fly.
kindled = began, caused to
Amelia went through a string of jobs, including come alive

schoolteacher, social worker, and photographer, in emerged = came out

order to scrape together $1,000 for flying lessons. unwavering = strong,

certain, not confused or
She cropped her hair short and wore leather changing her mind
jackets as she emulated pilots she respected. a string of jobs = a series
of jobs
After six months, Amelia purchased a bright yellow,
scrape together = try very
second-hand biplane. This plane, nicknamed ‘The hard and with difficulty to
Canary’, was the vehicle for Amelia’s first world save an amount of money

cropped = cut
record. In October 1922, she flew it to an altitude
second-hand = used, not
of 14,000 feet – the highest ever for a female pilot
new
at the time.
altitude = height (used
when flying or mountain
In April 1928, Amelia received an unexpected climbing)
phone call from the organizers of the first trans- on board = on a plane,
Atlantic flight. They invited her to participate, ship, or train

thinking that having a woman on board would it was deemed = it was

considered or decided
generate positive public interest. Naturally, she
confided = told in secret to
accepted the offer – but she was actually not someone trusted
allowed to fly, as it was deemed too dangerous for
a woman to do so. This was a huge disappointment
to Amelia, who later confided that she felt like she
“was just baggage, like a sack of potatoes.”
Nevertheless, being on that flight opened up
many doors for Amelia, and she received a
Vocabulary
rousing welcome upon her return to the United
States. Dubbed “Lady Lindy”, she quickly became a opened up many doors =
caused many opportunities
spokeswoman for aviation. A publicist named
to become available
George Putnam molded Amelia’s public image,
rousing = lively, causing
and they worked closely during Amelia’s emotions of excitement

appearances and promotions. One thing led to Dubbed = given the name
of
another, and the pair got married in 1931. Intent
spokeswoman = someone
on retaining her independence, Amelia referred who represents and speaks
to the marriage as a partnership with ‘dual control’ for

and made a point of keeping her own last name. molded = guided the
development of
Amelia went on to set many altitude, speed and Intent on retaining = She
was determined to keep
distance records, as well as being a key figure in
iconic = classic example
forming the Ninety Nines, a now iconic women’s
had a hand in = was
aviation club. She also had a hand in promoting
involved in
clothing and fashion that encouraged women to
befriended = became a
live a more active lifestyle. Amelia befriended friend of

First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, who shared her First Lady = the wife of the
U.S. president
passion for women’s causes.
set off = left
In 1937, Amelia set off on what was to become her down… to go = they had
final flight. She was attempting to circumnavigate completed 22,000 miles
and still needed to finish
the globe at the equator together with navigator 7,000 miles
Fred Noonan. With 22,000 miles down and 7,000
to go, one of the last legs of the journey was from
New Guinea to Howland Island – a small sliver of
land in the Pacific Ocean.
The weather was overcast that day, and a ship from
the U.S. Coast Guard was in the vicinity to help
Vocabulary
Amelia’s plane navigate. However, they were unable
to establish two-way contact because the frequency sliver = a very thin piece
of the ship’s radio system and the airplane’s radio overcast = the sky was
covered with clouds
system were mismatched. Without a bearing to
in the vicinity = in the
follow, Amelia was unable to locate Howland Island,
nearby area
and one of her last transmissions stated that her
mismatched = they were
fuel was running low. not the same

bearing = direction (used

Despite a massive search, no evidence of Amelia or in navigation)
her plane was found, leading to incessant massive = very large or
speculation about her fate. Quite recently, a piece of extensive

wreckage recovered from a nearby uninhabited fate = the final result of

her life path
island has been identified as a potential piece of the
wreckage = pieces of
plane. It is possible that Amelia and her navigator something that was
destroyed
managed to land there, but eventually died on the
uninhabited = nobody
island after their distress calls went unanswered.
lives there

Amelia Earhart’s lifelong dedication to prove that hazards = dangers

women can excel in their chosen professions is a face them head-on =

confront them directly
great inspiration. Amelia was aware of the hazards and openly
in her mission, but she chose to face them head-on.
As she put it, “Never interrupt someone doing what
you said couldn’t be done.”
Comprehension Questions
True or false?

1. Amelia Earhart has just one aviation record.

2. She was the first woman to fly alone across the Atlantic Ocean.

3. Amelia was adventurous even as a child.

4. She became afraid of flying after her accident with the sled.

5. She went to college for aviation.

6. She built her own plane.

7. Amelia didn’t take the controls during the first trans-Atlantic flight.

8. Amelia became famous as a result of that flight.

9. She married another pilot.

10. Her plane disappeared towards the end of her round-the-world flight.

11. She had to change her flight plan because of bad weather.

12. A piece of her plane was found at the bottom of the ocean.
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.
1. She had strong convictions that men and women were equal in “jobs
requiring intelligence, coordination, speed, coolness, and willpower.”
a. early education
b. firm beliefs
c. speeches

2. She cropped her hair short and wore leather jackets as she emulated pilots
she respected.
a. imitated
b. interacted with
c. encouraged

3. Intent on retaining her independence, Amelia referred to the marriage as a

partnership with ‘dual control’ and made a point of keeping her own last
name.
a. did consciously and deliberately
b. had no choice in a situation
c. talked often about

4. Despite a massive search, no evidence of Amelia or her plane was found,

leading to incessant speculation about her fate.
a. continuing without interruption
b. internationally discussed
c. strongly negative

5. Amelia Earhart’s lifelong dedication to prove that women can excel in their
chosen professions is a great inspiration.
a. find personal fulfilment
b. make decisions with independence
c. perform very well and be one of the best
Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

bumps and bruises emulate incessant second-hand

confided excel made a point of subsequent
deemed faced head-on overcast unwavering
emerged hazard scrape together vicinity

1. After many hours of surgery, the doctor finally ____________________ from the
operating room and said it had been a success.
2. Be careful - if you use bad language around your kids, they'll begin to
____________________ you.
3. Fortunately, they were wearing their seatbelts, so they walked away from the
accident with only ____________________.
4. He ____________________ mentioning his credentials several times in order to
impress the client.
5. I had no emergency savings, so it took me a few months to ____________________
enough money to repair my car.
6. She ____________________ to me that she was no longer in love with her long-time
boyfriend.
7. If you mail the letter just before a holiday, the person will receive it on the
____________________ business day.
8. It's not such a great day for sunbathing - it's ____________________.
9. Merit scholarships to that engineering school are awarded to students who
____________________ at math and science.
10. One scene of the movie was ____________________ too controversial, and ended up
being cut from the final film.
 11. I couldn't concentrate due to the ____________________ noise from the pool party
next door, which lasted all afternoon.
12. You can get some really good deals on clothes if you buy them
____________________.
13. I love our new neighborhood - there are all sorts of interesting shops and
restaurants in the ____________________.

Writing Task
Amelia Earhart challenged society’s expectations about what a woman could do.
What are some common beliefs or behaviors in your country/culture that you
disagree with and wish would change? On the other hand, what are some common
beliefs or behaviors in your country/culture that you think are good? Describe both
the good and the bad with examples.

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. False
2. True
3. True
4. False
5. False
6. False
7. True
8. True
9. False
10. True
11. False
12. False

Discover New Words

1. b
2. a
3. a
4. a
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz
1. emerged
2. emulate
3. bumps and bruises
4. made a point of
5. scrape together
6. confided
7. subsequent
8. overcast
9. excel
10. deemed
11. incessant
12. second-hand
13. vicinity
It’s the Best Time
to Be Alive Vocabulary

The news is chock-full of disasters – chock-full = very full

shootings, terrorism, rape – and it seems like rape = forcing sexual
every time you tune in, things are getting relations with someone
worse. The constant stream of bad news who doesn’t want to
often makes it seem like the future is bleak – stream = large amount
or even that the self-destruction of society is moving continuously
imminent.
imminent = will happen
But is this really the case? soon

The media fixates on the most horrifying eat it up = (informal)

news because people eat it up. Of course, this completely enjoy it
results in big paydays for the networks and paydays = (informal)
advertisers. But when we step back and profits
consider the broader historical context, the
step back = pause to look
truth is that today is the best time to be alive.
at something from a wider
If you’re not convinced, read on… perspective
life expectancy = how long
We Live Longer the average person lives
Nowadays, the average life expectancy past our prime = past the
worldwide is just over 70 years. That's more most useful or productive
than double what it was a hundred years ago. period
In those days, people were lucky to make it to boost = increase
their early 30s. Most of us would already be
drastic = strong, dramatic
past our prime!
war-torn areas = areas
Part of the reason for the boost in life
that are devastated by
expectancy is a drastic reduction in infant violent conflict
mortality rates. In the early 1900s, 1 in 5
babies would die before their first birthday.
These days, it's only 1 in 25. Still not perfect,
but keep in mind that's the average for the
entire world, which includes even the poorest
and most war-torn areas.
There’s Less Poverty
Since 1990, the percentage of people around the Vocabulary
world who live in extreme poverty has dropped
by over 25%. If you go all the way back to 1900, whopping = (slang) a
the decrease approaches a whopping 60%. large number or amount

Per capita income has grown fivefold in the past fivefold = by a factor of
century – from $2,000 to $10,000. Although five
there is still work to be done, we have made substantial = significant
substantial progress towards eliminating
take for granted = not
extreme poverty.
appreciate the
Improvements in Education importance of, because
we are accustomed to it
Knowing how to read and write is something we illiterate = not able to
might take for granted nowadays – but a read or write
century ago, more than half of the Earth's
climbing = going up
population was illiterate. These days, literacy
levels are at a historic high of 84% and at our fingertips = very
climbing. easily accessible

Education is now more accessible than ever, empowering = gives you

especially as the internet puts unlimited power and confidence
amounts of information at our fingertips. The secluded = isolated
ability to learn online is very empowering, and without much contact
if governments prioritize connectivity for all with others
their citizens, it will go a long way towards pinnacle = highest point
leveling the playing field economically.
In addition, the internet helps us interact with
people from different cultures and viewpoints,
so we can gain a global perspective instead of
remaining secluded in our local communities.

Violence is Decreasing
No, we haven’t reached the pinnacle of world
peace just yet. But we’re the closest we’ve been
in the past 50 years.
Although the headlines and social media might
give the impression that the world is a powder
keg… the statistics don’t lie. The number of Vocabulary
wars (including civil wars and other armed
conflicts) is going down, and the number of headlines = titles of
casualties is at its lowest point in decades. newspaper/magazine
articles and reports
In addition, the homicide rate has been
declining worldwide, and violence against a powder keg =
women and children - including physical and something that is at risk
sexual abuse, has also fallen since 1990. of exploding any minute
Although the reduction is unevenly distributed casualties = deaths from
across geographic regions, there are grounds a war or accident
for optimism. homicide = murder,
people killing other
Doomsday Is Not Upon Us people
On average, the world is much safer and more unevenly = unequally
prosperous than it was even one or two
prosperous = rich
generations ago. So why this sense of
impending doom? hard-wired =
programmed by design;
One reason is that, thanks to the world’s not easily changed
interconnectedness, we are far more cognizant
instinctually = by natural
of disasters nowadays – regardless of where
inclination, natural
they are happening. Another factor is that the
tendency
human brain is hard-wired by evolution to
retain information about danger instinctually. worrisome = describes
something that is cause
But when we look at the facts, we realize that for worry/concern
life is better than it's ever been.
metric = statistic
There is just one worrisome metric, and it has creeping steadily
to do with the environment. Carbon dioxide upwards = continually
levels in the atmosphere and global increasing little by little
temperature have been creeping steadily
clean energy = electricity
upwards over the past century. This could
from resources that don’t
cause major disruption to the global climate pollute the environment
unless we reduce our carbon output and
transition to clean energy.
Comprehension Questions
1. The reason given for the media's coverage of bad news is because...
a. advertisers demand this type of content
b. most people are pessimistic
c. people like watching it
2. A century ago, life expectancy was...
a. 30% shorter than today
b. half as long as today
c. 70% shorter than today
3. One reason mentioned for the increased life expectancy is...
a. more babies are surviving
b. people can now afford medicine
c. there are fewer wars
4. There has been a 25% drop in poverty since...
a. 1900
b. 1990
c. 2000
5. The article suggests that governments should...
a. build more schools
b. help people get internet access
c. make the curriculum more diverse
6. In addition to the number of wars going down, there has also been a
decrease in the number of...
a. murders
b. thefts
c. weapons
7. One reason we have a negative impression of the world is…
a. we have a natural tendency to remember bad things
b. depression and anxiety are on the rise
c. our parents teach us that the world is dangerous
8. One problem that has been getting worse is...
a. decreasing availability of carbon-based fuels
b. global warming and climate change
c. pollution of environmentally-protected areas
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. The constant stream of bad news often makes it seem like the future is
bleak – or even that the self-destruction of society is imminent.
a. depressing
b. not under control
c. unavoidable

2. The media fixates on the most horrifying news because people eat it up.
a. changes or modifies
b. focuses obsessively
c. presents in a frightening way

3. The ability to learn online is very empowering, and if governments

prioritize connectivity for all their citizens, it will go a long way towards
leveling the playing field economically.
a. encouraging collaboration
b. increasing productivity
c. making things more equal

4. Although the reduction is unevenly distributed across geographic regions,

there are grounds for optimism.
a. advantages
b. causes/reasons
c. goals/objectives

5. One reason is that, thanks to the world’s interconnectedness, we are far

more cognizant of disasters nowadays – regardless of where they are
happening.
a. aware
b. involved
c. worried

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

fingertips chock-full empowered grounds past its prime

bleak climbing fixated imminent secluded
casualties eating it up for granted instinctually whopping

1. After spending a months in the hospital with pneumonia, I'll never take my
health _______________________ again.
2. The mother _______________________ moved to protect her children from the
angry dog.
3. Before starting to cook, I like to have all the ingredients at my
_______________________.
4. Her suitcases are all packed in preparation for her _______________________
departure.
5. I bought this phone five years ago and it's definitely _______________________; it
doesn't work so well anymore.
6. It's difficult for the residents of the _______________________ little village to get
access to advanced medical care.
7. Lying on your resume is _______________________ for dismissal from your job, if
it's discovered.
8. The clown made funny faces at the kids, who were _______________________.
9. An old building collapsed in the city center, but fortunately there were no
_______________________.
10. This report is _______________________ of errors. There's no way we can
publish it.
11. Why are you so _______________________ on a detail that really doesn't matter?
Just relax and let it go.
12. The costs of a college education are _______________________ so fast that many
middle-class families can no longer afford it.
Writing Task
Write about a couple pieces of good news you have heard recently. They can be
things you saw in the media, or things in your personal/professional life. Send
your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions

1. c
2. b
3. a
4. b
5. b
6. a
7. a
8. b

Discover New Words

1. a
2. b
3. c
4. b
5. a
Vocabulary Quiz

1. for granted
2. instinctually
3. fingertips
4. imminent
5. past its prime
6. secluded
7. grounds
8. eating it up
9. casualties
10. chock-full
11. fixated
12. climbing
Five of History’s Biggest
Business Blunders
No one is immune from stupidity – not even
the leadership of big companies. Sometimes
terrible decisions are made, and after the dust Vocabulary
settles the rest of the world asks, “What on
earth were they thinking?” Read on to learn immune = unable to be
about companies that blew it in the business affected
world.
after the dust settles = when
the situation has calmed
Excite Says ‘No’ to Buying Google down
blew it = made a BIG mistake
Google has become such a staple of our
internet experience that it is now a word in the fledgling = young, small, and
dictionary. But back when Google was just a inexperienced
fledgling company in Silicon Valley, it was bargain price = very low
available for sale. Excite.com (now known as price
Ask.com) had the opportunity to buy Google
turned it down = rejected
for the bargain price of $750,000 – and they the opportunity
turned it down. Today, Google is worth nearly
$365 billion, and the leaders of Excite.com are a giant = very large and very
strong compared to others
probably still kicking themselves to this day.
a small-time player =
Kodak Falls Behind the Times insignificant; not important
capitalize on = take
At one point, Kodak was a giant in the film advantage of; use something
industry – but now it is just a small-time for your benefit
player. Once a pioneer in technology, Kodak
completely failed to capitalize on the surge of
digital photography.

When the inventor of the digital camera

showed his invention to Kodak management,
they preferred to rest on their laurels
rather than investing in the future; they were
completely oblivious to the digital camera’s Vocabulary
potential to disrupt the film industry. This
pivotal moment was the beginning of a rest on their laurels = depend
decades-long slump from which the company on previous success; not take
still hasn’t recovered. action to maintain your status
or advance
Blockbuster Could Have Owned Netflix disrupt = cause disorder,
destroy
Another tale of a business decision that
pivotal moment = very
spelled doom for a company is that of important moment at which
Blockbuster, which once had nearly 8,000 there was a definite change
video-rental stores in the U.S. In the early
slump = decline; extended
2000s, a company called Netflix – which was
period of poor performance
providing DVD rentals by mail – approached
Blockbuster multiple times, hoping to be tale = story
acquired. spelled doom = resulted in
disaster / complete
At the time, Netflix was in the red and destruction
Blockbuster decided to pass on the purchase.
in the red = losing money
When Netflix later launched on-demand
streaming over the internet, Blockbuster pass on = not take the
opportunity
scrambled to play catch-up – but it was too
late. Blockbuster went under in 2013, and on-demand = can access it
Netflix is now worth nearly $20 billion. anytime, on your own
schedule
Two Tiny Zeros, Big Loss for went under = went bankrupt;
Alitalia closed down
glitches = technical problems
Price glitches on websites can be delightful or errors
for customers, but disastrous for companies.
In 2006, Alitalia Airlines’ website listed a
$3,900 business class flight for just $39 – and
2,000 passengers pounced on the
opportunity.
Vocabulary
Although the airline initially tried to cancel
the tickets sold with the erroneous fare, there pounced on = immediately
was pushback from customers and lawyers. took advantage of
They later bowed to the pressure and
pushback = resistance,
decided to honor the tickets – racking up
complaining
losses to the tune of $7.72 million.
bowed to the pressure =
agreed to do what people
Who doesn’t love a bargain? were pressuring them to do
racking up = accumulating
Sometimes an attempt to innovate is actually
(usually money or points)
a misstep – this was a painful lesson learned
by American retailer JC Penny in 2012. The to the tune of = to the sum or
new president of the company decided to extent of
overhaul the pricing strategy and do away misstep = mistake; a step in
with sales and coupons. He implemented the wrong direction
“everyday low prices” instead of artificially-
do away with = eliminate
inflated ones that could be discounted.
it turns out = the surprising
But it turns out that shoppers like to feel like fact is
they’re getting a bargain – after the pricing plunged = decreased
change, sales plunged 25% in a year. dramatically
Although JC Penny quickly backpedaled and backpedaled = go back to your
restored the previous pricing, the loss of previous position
clientele continues to dog the company to
clientele = the group of
this day.
customers
dog = follow persistently
Comprehension Questions
True or false?

1. Google is a word in the dictionary.

2. Google was started by ex-employees of Excite.com

3. Today, Google is worth $750 billion

4. Kodak knew about the invention of digital photography

5. After a long period of decline, Kodak has now recovered

6. Blockbuster used to have thousands of stores

7. Netflix was not in a good financial situation in the early 2000s

8. Netflix's advantage was its online service

9. Alitalia listed the wrong price in a newspaper ad

10. Customers who bought the mispriced tickets couldn't use them

11. JC Penny’s new strategy in 2012 was requested by customers

12. The company changed its methods after seeing the results
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Google has become such a staple of our internet experience that it is now a
word in the dictionary.
a. a basic, essential part
b. a large company
c. something easy to use

2. Today, Google is worth nearly $365 billion, and the leaders of Excite.com are
probably still kicking themselves to this day.
a. failing to grow or develop
b. strongly regretting something they did
c. trying to fix their mistake

3. … they were completely oblivious to the digital camera’s potential to disrupt

the film industry.
a. against
b. excited
c. unaware

4. When Netflix later launched on-demand streaming over the internet,

Blockbuster scrambled to play catch-up – but it was too late.
a. implemented new technology
b. moved quickly and frantically
c. took a lot of time

5. The new president of the company decided to overhaul the pricing strategy
and do away with sales and coupons.
a. ask for general feedback
b. completely revise and change
c. increase by a lot

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

backpedal clientele in the red overhauled scrambling

bargain doing away with kicking himself pivotal spelled doom
blew it glitch oblivious pouncing on tales

1. A _____________________ in the electrical system was what started the fire.

2. We got a last-minute room at a five-star hotel at a _____________________ price -
just $50/night!
3. I had the chance to be in a movie, but I _____________________ - I overslept and
missed the audition.
4. It took a while for employees to adapt after the organization completely
_____________________ its policies.
5. My brother met a beautiful girl at the club last night, and he's
_____________________ for not asking for her number.
6. He works so much that he's totally _____________________ to how unhappy his
family is.
7. Some teachers are _____________________ textbooks and using only media content
in the classroom.
8. The mayor's widely-publicized racist remark _____________________ for his hopes
of being re-elected.
9. My grandfather used to tell me tales of what life was like in the 1920s.
10. The pilot's _____________________ decision to make an emergency landing saved
the lives of everyone on board.
11. We left the project to the last minute, and now we're _____________________ to get
everything done.
12. The pizza place's _____________________ mostly consists of college students.
Writing Task
Describe a situation when you made a mistake or did something that, in retrospect,
wasn’t a good idea. What was your rationale at the time? When and how did you
realize that you’d made a mistake? Are you the type of person to “kick yourself” and
get upset about mistakes, or do you get over them and move on pretty quickly?

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. True
2. False
3. False
4. True
5. False
6. True
7. True
8. True
9. False
10. False
11. False
12. True

Discover New Words

1. a
2. b
3. c
4. b
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. glitch
2. bargain
3. blew it
4. overhauled
5. kicking himself
6. oblivious
7. doing away with
8. spelled doom
9. tales
10. pivotal
11. scrambling
12. clientele
Conspiracy Theories
That Were True
A conspiracy theory is a claim that groups of
people or organizations have joined forces to
Vocabulary
cause or cover up illegal or harmful actions.
Conspiracy theories often seem outlandish, joined forces = worked
and their proponents appear to be paranoid. together
outlandish = strange, crazy
But maybe we shouldn't dismiss these
dismiss out of hand =
claims out of hand – here are three dismiss immediately,
conspiracy theories that turned out to be true. without giving it any
thought
Government-mandated alcohol booming = large, growing,
and very active
poisoning in the U.S.
black market = illegal
Alcoholic beverages were banned in the U.S. buying and selling

from 1920 to 1933, and there was a booming crack down on = apply
strong disciplinary action
black market for alcohol produced in
to, in order to reduce
clandestine operations. Traditional efforts to
nefarious = evil
crack down on alcohol consumption weren’t
dissuade = persuade
working, so the government adopted a more someone NOT to do
nefarious strategy. something
buzz = pleasant feeling of
It ordered manufacturers of industrial alcohol being slightly intoxicated
to add deadly chemicals such as mercury, zinc,
and even gasoline, in the hopes that a dose of
poison would dissuade people from seeking
an alcohol-fueled buzz. This led to the deaths
of approximately 10,000 people as well as
countless serious illnesses.
The Nayirah Testimony

Nayirah was a 15-year old girl from Kuwait Vocabulary

whose testimony about the atrocities in the
testimony = statement in a
country helped justify the Gulf War in 1991. case of justice
She gave a sobbing statement that she had
sobbing = crying loudly and
witnessed Iraqi soldiers invading hospitals, uncontrollably
removing babies from incubators and leaving witnessed = seen
them to die. Nayirah’s words were widely invading = entering by
publicized and moved many Americans to force, without permission

support the war – but some believed her story incubators = machines that
can keep a premature baby
was fabricated. warm and alive until it
develops more
Afterwards, it was revealed that Nayirah was
fabricated = invented,
actually the daughter of the Kuwaiti imagined, made up from
ambassador to the U.S., and her testimony had nothing

been arranged by a PR firm. They had a PR firm = a public

relations company
conducted research to find the best way to
concocted = cleverly
sway public opinion in support of the war,
invented
and concocted the incubator story as part of
ballooned = grew and
the strategy. expanded
brainwash = “program” a
The CIA’s Mind Control
person’s thoughts and
Experiments emotions
amnesia = loss of memory
The CIA program MKUltra ran from 1953-
1964, ostensibly to develop biological and
chemical weapons for use in the Cold War. But
it ballooned into an effort to discover
substances that could brainwash people,
induce amnesia, and otherwise alter one’s
mental and physical state.
The CIA established partnerships with
hospitals, prisons, and universities in order to
do their experiments, many of which were not
Vocabulary
consensual – covert drug tests were consensual = all people
performed on "unwitting subjects." involved agreed to
participate
The extent of the damage caused will never covert = hidden, not done
fully be known, since most of the project's openly

records were destroyed by order of the CIA unwitting = not knowing,

not aware
director in 1973. Only a small cache of
cache = an amount of
documents, which had been miscategorized as
items stored away
financial records, survived the purge.
purge = removing or
eliminating unwanted
The conspiracies continue… things

People used to ridicule the lunatics who ridicule = mock, insult,

make jokes about
claimed the government was spying on us –
lunatics = crazy people
but as recently as 2013, the cover was blown
the cover was blown =
on the National Security Agency's illegal
something secret was
surveillance program. The NSA has been revealed
eavesdropping on American citizens for eavesdropping = listening
years in the name of national security. to someone’s conversation
without permission
It appears that no government, past or in the name of = by the
present, is immune to manipulating people authority of (national
security was the “reason”
and situations for its own purposes. The for the spying)
claims of conspiracy theories might not be so
immune = cannot be
crazy after all – so now it’s up to us to learn affected by something
to separate fact from fiction.
Comprehension Questions
1. From 1920 to 1933...
a. alcoholic drinks were prohibited
b. the punishment for selling alcohol was the death penalty
c. a large percentage of the U.S. population was alcoholics
2. The alcohol in the country...
a. was being produced for industrial purposes
b. was imported secretly from Mexico
c. was reserved for elite members of the government
3. How many people died?
a. 10,000
b. 100,000
c. Nobody knows
4. Nayirah told...
a. about how women were raped by Iraqi soldiers
b. how her family had been killed by Iraqi soldiers
c. that Iraqi soldiers were causing babies to die
5. As a result of her story...
a. many donations were made to Kuwait
b. more Americans supported U.S. involvement in the conflict
c. the Iraqi people rebelled and ended the war
6. Nayirah was actually...
a. not from Kuwait
b. the daughter of a diplomat
c. working for the Iraqis
7. The original purpose of the MKUltra program was...
a. to create weapons
b. to research genetic engineering
c. to spy on U.S. enemies
8. Some of the people involved in the experiments were...
a. mentally ill
b. illegal immigrants
c. unaware of the experiments
9. Why don't we know a lot about the project?
a. most of the documents were destroyed
b. the government keeps the records classified
c. the people involved have died
10. The most recent scandal in the article involves...
a. monitoring people's communications
b. seizing citizens' private property
c. torturing terrorism suspects
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.
1. Conspiracy theories often seem outlandish, and their proponents appear
to be paranoid.
a. describes someone who is not very well-educated
b. describes someone who might be a bad influence on others
c. describes someone with an irrational fear of being
pursued/attacked

2. Alcoholic beverages were banned in the U.S. from 1920 to 1933, and there
was a booming black market for alcohol produced in clandestine
operations.
a. cooperative
b. simple, unsophisticated
c. secret, hidden

3. Nayirah was a 15-year old girl from Kuwait whose testimony about the
atrocities in the country helped justify the Gulf War in 1991.
a. extensive corruption
b. horrible, evil acts
c. natural disasters

4. The CIA program MKUltra ran from 1953-1964, ostensibly to develop

biological and chemical weapons for use in the Cold War.
a. famously; importantly
b. quickly; without warning
c. supposedly; on the surface

5. The claims of conspiracy theories might not be so crazy after all – so now
it’s up to us to learn to separate fact from fiction.
a. it will benefit us
b. it's our responsibility
c. it's too hard for us

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

atrocities dissuade lunatic ridicule

booming fabricate ostensibly sobbing
consensual immune outlandish testimony
covert joining forces purge unwitting

1. A lot of scientific ideas that are now commonly accepted were considered
______________________ when they were first proposed.
2. The children were ______________________ after their beloved dog went
missing.
3. I tried to ______________________ my sister from dying her hair purple, but she
wouldn't listen to reason.
4. My computer is running out of space, so I'll have to ______________________ the
files I no longer need.
5. Nobody's ______________________ to a lapse in judgement, no matter how
experienced they are.
6. Parents, teachers, and community leaders are ______________________ to clean
up the neighborhood playground.
7. She's ______________________ on vacation, but she keeps checking her work e-
mail every hour.
8. Teenagers often ______________________ kids who dress or act differently.
9. I love TV shows where they play pranks on ______________________ people and
then film the reactions.
10. The military sent a few soldiers on a ______________________ mission to gather
information.
11. Two suspects in the robbery were identified thanks to the victims'
______________________.
 12. War criminals must be held accountable for their ______________________, even
if it takes years for justice to be served.
13. The country has a ______________________ tourism industry, which is
responsible for 25% of the economy.

Writing Task
Describe a conspiracy theory or scandal that has taken place in your country.
What was the situation, who was involved, how was it discovered, and what were
the results? Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and
correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. a
2. a
3. a
4. c
5. b
6. b
7. a
8. c
9. a
10. a

Discover New Words

1. c
2. c
3. b
4. c
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. outlandish
2. sobbing
3. dissuade
4. purge
5. immune
6. joining forces
7. ostensibly
8. ridicule
9. unwitting
10. covert
11. testimony
12. atrocities
13. booming
Cultural Perceptions of Time
Time may be a universal and inflexible law of
physics, but the way it shapes our everyday lives is
largely dependent on cultural conditioning.

Since the industrial revolution at the end of the inflexible = not

flexible, cannot be
nineteenth century, much of the Western world has
modified
treated time much as it would a commodity;
conditioning =
Western cultures organize much of everyday life behavioural training
around schedules, appointments and deadlines
commodity = a
and place great emphasis on the value of not product or service
‘wasting time.’ that can be used to
gain profit
This is quite different from how time has
deadlines = the final
traditionally been viewed in many cultures in date before which
Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and something must be
completed
Southeast Asia, where relationships, community
routines and seasonal patterns have a prominent seasonal = based on
the seasons / times or
role to play in the pace of everyday life. periods of the year

A lack of awareness about these nuances in cultural diplomacy =

international relations
perceptions of time can cause serious problems
between countries
when it comes to cross-cultural communication and
roots = origins;
coordination in diplomacy and business.
support systems;
deep causes
The field of study known as ‘chronemics’ addresses
the ways in which perceptions of time influence
behavior and interactions, as well as the cultural
roots of such perceptions.
According to the discipline, time perceptions
can broadly be divided into monochronic and Vocabulary
polychronic perspectives. The former
broadly = generally
conceives of time in terms of fixed units that
The former… the latter =
structure everyday life, while the latter has a
the one mentioned first /
more fluid conception which does not the one mentioned second
demand strict adherence to timetables.
fluid = flexible, not fixed in
place
Much of the Western world could be
considered monochronic, while many of the abide by = follow

countries in Africa, the Middle East, Latin the extent to which = how
much
America and Southeast Asia abide by a
polychronic conception of time (with the corresponding =
accompanying; having a
exception of Japan, Taiwan and South Korea in
similar relationship
Asia).
At one end of the spectrum
Another way of imagining the difference is in = at one extreme point

terms of the extent to which a culture is ruled marked = noticeable,

clearly evident
by time and the corresponding pace at which
everyday life is lived. At one end of the punctuality = being on time

spectrum is the United States, where there is materialistic = having a

a marked emphasis on organization, strong focus on possessions
and wealth
efficiency, and punctuality. It is likely that the
pursuit = trying to get or
importance placed on time management in the
achieve something
U.S. is directly linked to the materialistic
virtually = almost,
orientation of its mainstream culture, and
essentially
has its roots in the pursuit of the ‘American
Dream.’

At the other extreme, there are cultures for

which time has virtually no meaning, such as
the indigenous Pirahã tribe of Brazil, whose
language has been the source of intense debate
Vocabulary
among linguists due to its perplexing
grammatical and syntax structure. Of indigenous = describes the
particular interest is the nature of its verb people who are native to a
land
tenses (or lack thereof). The language itself
perplexing = confusing
seems to preclude anything resembling a
Western monochronic conception of time. or lack thereof = or absence
of what was previously
The aforementioned examples illustrate the mentioned (verb tenses)

degree of divergence in how time is preclude = make impossible

perceived across world cultures, and of course by taking action previously

there are many conceptions of time and resembling = similar to

lifestyles that fall between these two extremes the degree of divergence =
– and both concepts have their pros and cons. how big a difference there is

pros and cons = advantages

The monochronic view with its fast-paced,
and disadvantages
goal-oriented efficiency leads to heightened
heightened = increased
levels of production, yet this may come at the
at the expense of = when
expense of relationships and sanity. The
you get one thing, another
merits of the polychronic perspective include thing is sacrificed
stronger interpersonal ties and a more relaxed
sanity = mental health
lifestyle, but the trade-off is that progress may
merits = good qualities
be sluggish.
trade-off = an exchange of
In today’s globalized world, it remains to be one thing in return for
another
seen whether one of these perspectives will
prevail over the other or whether they will it remains to be seen = we
will see in the future
converge at some point in the future.
Sources & further reading:

• Polychronicity and Monochronicity

• Working effectively across cultural perceptions of time
• Cultural perceptions of time
• Brazil’s Piraha Tribe
• Is there time to slow down?

Comprehension Questions
True or false?

1. The modern western conception of time dates back to the industrial

revolution.
2. According to the article, in western cultures, people try to avoid
multitasking.
3. In Latin America, among other places, relationships may have a higher
priority than punctuality.
4. Chronemics studies how people act based on their perspective about time.
5. A monochronic concept of time can be described as rigid.
6. All of Asia has a polychronic perspective of time.
7. Being efficient is admired in monochronic cultures.
8. The United States' view of time comes from religious ideals about using time
wisely.
9. There's one tribe in Brazil whose language has no verb tenses.
10. Polychronic cultures tend to be less driven by goals and achievement.
11. The article argues in favor of one particular conception of time.
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. A lack of awareness about these nuances in cultural perceptions of time

can cause serious problems when it comes to cross-cultural
communication and coordination in diplomacy and business.
a. history and origins of a philosophy or worldview
b. small, subtle differences that may not be very obvious at first
c. specific schedules for activities in daily life

2. The former conceives of time in terms of fixed units that structure

everyday life, while the latter has a more fluid conception which does not
demand strict adherence to timetables.
a. early planning
b. exact following
c. great ignorance

3. It is likely that the importance placed on time management in the U.S. is

directly linked to the materialistic orientation of its mainstream culture,
and has its roots in the pursuit of the ‘American Dream.’
a. majority, dominant
b. influenced by the media
c. very old; existing for a long time

4. The merits of the polychronic perspective include stronger interpersonal

ties and a more relaxed lifestyle, but the trade-off is that progress may be
sluggish.
a. annoying
b. slow
c. unpopular

5. In today’s globalized world, it remains to be seen whether one of these

perspectives will prevail over the other or whether they will converge at
some point in the future.
a. change places
b. come together
c. disappear
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

broadly deadline mainstream nuances root

converge heightened marked pursuit sluggish
corresponding inflexible merits resembling trade-off

1. ______________________ speaking, the people in the north of the country tend to

be friendlier than those in the south.
2. There was a ______________________ improvement in student performance;
even parents commented that their kids were more excited about learning.
3. If you go to a large university, you'll meet more people - but you'll also get
less individual attention from the professors. It's a ______________________.
4. I'm sorry, but the rule is ______________________. There are no exceptions for
special circumstances.
5. Melissa has an art degree, so she knows all about the ______________________ in
different styles of painting.
6. They moved out of the city in ______________________ of some peace and quiet.
7. The internet connection at this hotel is a bit ______________________. It's taking
5 minutes just to open my e-mail.
8. His views were not very popular, as they flew in the face of
______________________ thought.
9. This presidential candidate has many ______________________ that can win the
hearts - and votes - of the population.
10. We need to hurry up and finish; the ______________________ for the article is
Monday!
11. You need to put each letter into the ______________________ envelope - make
sure not to mix them up.
12. The ______________________ of all their relationship problems is the fact that
she wants to commit, and he doesn't.
Writing Task
Every culture has different ideas about what are considered “good manners” and
“bad manners.” How do you view the topic of time – are you more of a scheduled,
punctual person, or a flexible, spontaneous person when it comes to time
management? In addition to the idea of being on time (or not), what other
behaviors are considered good/bad manners in your country?

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. True
2. False
3. True
4. True
5. True
6. False
7. True
8. False
9. True
10. True
11. False

Discover New Words

1. b
2. b
3. a
4. b
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. broadly
2. marked
3. trade-off
4. inflexible
5. nuances
6. pursuit
7. sluggish
8. mainstream
9. merits
10. deadline
11. corresponding
12. root
Cyberbullying on the Rise
If you open a newspaper or do a Google search,
you’ll find a wealth of current articles about
Vocabulary
cyberbullying and its consequences. Although
Vocabulary
some try to excuse it as normal teenage antics,
a wealth of = a lot of
cyberbullying can cause psychological trauma
indisputably = definitely; it
and even lead to suicide. It is indisputably on cannot be disputed
the rise, and one reason is because it’s so easy. torment = torture, causing
A few words on a keyboard, then a post to a mental or physical pain

social media site, and the torment begins… escalates = gets worse, more
intense
and escalates.
corner = trap someone in a
The Evolution of Bullying corner or a confined place
where they cannot escape
In the past, bullying actually used to take a bit like-minded = people who
of work. A bully would corner his or her victim think similarly

in the schoolyard, administer a beating either nurture = help or encourage

it to develop
alone or with the help of a few like-minded
go viral = spread extremely
friends. Or the bully would start a rumor,
fast over the internet
nurture it, and wait for it to spread. Bullying
humiliating = extremely
took more effort, and time. embarrassing; makes
someone feel intense shame
That’s not the case any longer. Now, videos go
viral in no time. In cyberspace, anyone can
make hateful or humiliating posts and have
them seen by countless people in the blink of
an eye.
Types of Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying typically involves slander, Vocabulary

harassment, and sometimes stalking. It’s
slander = false and
obviously not physical – no one can punch you
malicious statements
online. It does, however, often derive from, or about someone
lead to, physical bullying; and you might be harassment = purposefully
surprised at how inventive cyberbullies can be irritating or attacking
someone, often
when it comes to causing harm. persistently

In his article on Cyberbullying Tactics 2015, stalking = constantly

following a person when
Michael Nuccitelli, Psy.D., identifies 42 different the attention is
types of cyberbullying. It’s not possible to talk unwelcome or threatening

about all of them within the scope of this article, punch = hit with a fist (a
tightly closed hand)
but here are a few examples.
derive from = originate in
1. Blogobullying
inventive = creative in
Can you imagine someone creating and inventing new things

devoting a blog to the specific purpose of scope = range or extent of

information or activity
targeting one child? It happens, and it’s
targeting = focusing
one of the most vicious forms of specifically on
cyberbullying. Cyberbullies know how to vicious = cruel
draw traffic to defamatory blogs. And of
draw = attract
course we know that the Internet is forever
dog = when something
– this type of bullying can dog a child for bad continues to follow
and accompany someone
years, and could even hurt him or her
when applying for jobs or college
admission.

2. Cyber Harassment
 This goes beyond the occasional rude or
crude comments. It’s a constant, persistent
Vocabulary
barrage, sometimes involving hundreds,
or even thousands, of messages in a single crude = vulgar, offensive,
day. To the person being harassed, it is like disgusting or sexually
explicit
being confined in a room and subjected to
barrage = an
24/7 abuse. overwhelming and
continuous delivery of
3. Digital Piracy Inclusion words or attacks

With this form of attack, the victim is confined = trapped with

no way to escape
encouraged to pirate copyrighted content.
24/7 = constant, all day
The cyberbully then reports the victim to
long, all week long
the authorities. This can be very
pirate = download or copy
damaging in terms of legal ramifications. illegally, without paying
for it
4. Social Exclusion
the authorities = the
Children all want to be included in a peer police or the officials in
charge of administering
group, and being left out can be agonizing. the law
With social exclusion, the bully encourages ramifications =
others to “unfriend” the victim on social consequences

media sites. It’s a very old tactic, with a peer = people of similar
age and social status
modern twist.
agonizing = extremely
5. Impersonation painful

This is a kind of identity theft. Sometimes a modern twist = a

modern change
called “imping,” it involves impersonating
impersonating =
the victim and making offensive comments pretending to be another
under his/her name on social media sites. person
 This can lead to the person being
ostracized not just online, but in person.
Vocabulary
Often, the target is unaware of what has
happened until the damage is already
get over it = stop worrying
done. or being sad about
something that happened
How can Cyberbullying be Stopped? in the past
develop a thicker skin =
It is not enough to tell kids and teens to simply
not be so sensitive; not let
“get over it” or develop a thicker skin – other people’s words
cyberbullying goes beyond innocent teasing. affect you emotionally

Nowadays, laws are being made to deal teasing = this can mean
making fun of someone
specifically with the problem of cyberbullying – playfully, or irritating them
but legislation is far from a surefire solution to annoyingly

the problem. imperative = absolutely

necessary
Instead, it is imperative for parents and teachers
proactive = taking action
to be proactive and try to nip cyberbullying in to deal with a problem in
advance
the bud. Pay attention to what your child is doing
nip it in the bud = stop it
and experiencing online, and educate him or her
early, before it grows
on the virtues of the golden rule.
virtues = morally excellent
points
the golden rule = treat
Sources & Further Reading: others the same way you
would want to be treated
• Cyberbullying Tactics
• Advice for Parents
• Current Cyberbullying Laws
Comprehension Questions
1. The introduction says one reason cyberbullying is increasing is that...
a. it's so easy to do it
b. more people have internet access
c. kids and teens are becoming ruder to each other
2. In the past, bullying...
a. had stricter punishments
b. took more effort
c. was more common
3. What is cyberbullying's relationship to physical bullying?
a. it can be a result of physical bullying
b. it can lead to physical bullying
c. both
4. How many cyberbullying tactics did the researcher identify?
a. 42
b. 52
c. 62
5. Blogobullying involves...
a. making nasty comments on the victim's blog
b. starting a blog specifically to hurt the victim
c. writing bad things on social media
6. The worst thing about cyber harassment is...
a. how mean the messages are
b. how frequently the messages come
c. how many people see the messages
7. In digital piracy inclusion, the victim might...
a. be kicked out of school
 b. get in trouble with the law
c. lose all his/her computer data
8. One danger with "imping" mentioned by the article is that the victim
might...
a. be tempted to use violence to get revenge
b. need to change his/her name
c. not know about the bullying until it's too late
9. Which solution does the conclusion recommend?
a. for kids and teens not to be so easily offended
b. for laws against cyberbullying to be strengthened
c. for parents and teachers to help prevent cyberbullying
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Although some try to excuse it as normal teenage antics, cyberbullying can

cause psychological trauma and even lead to suicide.
a. experiences that influence a person
b. phrases or expressions that are currently popular
c. strange or silly (but relatively harmless) actions

2. In cyberspace, anyone can make hateful or humiliating posts and have them
seen by countless people in the blink of an eye.
a. clearly and obviously
b. extremely fast
c. without anybody noticing

3. Cyberbullies know how to draw traffic to defamatory blogs.

a. describes something that says bad things about someone
b. describes something that includes a lot of bad/offensive language
c. describes something that ultimately fails to succeed

4. This can lead to the person being ostracized not just online, but in person.
a. feeling bad about himself/herself
b. excluded from a social group or community
c. physically or verbally attacked

5. Nowadays, laws are being made to deal specifically with the problem of
cyberbullying – but legislation is far from a surefire solution to the problem.
a. guaranteed to work
b. logical idea
c. very extreme
Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

antics harassment in the blink of an eye ramifications

barrage humiliating nip it in the bud scope
cornered imperative peers surefire
escalated indisputably punched teasing

1. If a coworker touches you inappropriately despite being asked to stop, that's

sexual _______________________.
2. The fight was over after Billy _______________________Bob in the face and knocked
him out.
3. In the movie, the hero manages to fight her way out after being
_______________________ in a dead-end street.
4. I've always struggled with my weight; throughout my childhood the other
kids were constantly _______________________ me about being fat.
5. One of the top-ranked baseball teams suffered a _______________________ 12-0
defeat to the worst team in the league.
6. The man was convicted after DNA evidence _______________________ linked him to
the murder.
7. You have to pay careful attention when driving, because an accident can
happen _______________________.
8. This is a very important election; the result will have _______________________ for
every sector of society.
9. War broke out after hostilities between the two ethnic groups
_______________________.
10. Writing down the things you're grateful for is a _______________________ way to
increase your overall level of happiness.
 11. You're trying to cover too much in this paper; I think you need to narrow
down the _______________________.
12. The scientist's radical hypothesis was not supported by most of her
_______________________.
13. If you work in a hospital emergency room, the ability to make quick decisions
is _______________________.

Writing Task
Describe your opinion about cyberbullying:

• Is it just normal kid/teen behavior, or is it worse?

• What do you think motivates a cyberbully to do these things?
• What would an appropriate punishment be for a cyberbully – especially one
who is underage (under 18)?

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. a
2. b
3. c
4. a
5. b
6. b
7. b
8. c
9. c

Discover New Words

1. c
2. b
3. a
4. b
5. a
Vocabulary Quiz
1. harassment
2. punched
3. cornered
4. teasing
5. humiliating
6. indisputably
7. in the blink of an eye
8. ramifications
9. escalated
10. surefire
11. scope
12. peers
13. imperative
Artificial Intelligence
Over the past sixty years, the field of artificial intelligence (AI) has developed from
being nothing more than an elaborate concept
to having a central role in an increasingly
diverse array of areas of individual, social and
economic life. In its broadest sense, AI involves Vocabulary
endowing machines and computers with an
intellectual capacity to calculate and make elaborate = detailed,
informed decisions. complex

In spite of periodic lulls in funding and array = a large range or

technological advancement over the course of number
its existence as a field of research, AI has now lulls = low points in
reached a state of advancement that has activity
exceeded many of its early proponents’ own
expectations. Robots today are becoming proponents = people who
responsible for an ever-greater number of support or are in favor of
human tasks, which they carry out something
autonomously and often more efficiently than autonomously =
their human counterparts. independently, without
help
The idea of replicating the workings of the
human mind in an artificially-created being govern = administer,
existed long before mankind acquired the influence, manage
technological tools necessary to implement it.
concrete = definite,
It originates in a philosophical conception of
clearly-defined
the mind as a system of rules which govern
thought and behavior. premise = an idea from
which a logical argument
However, AI as a concrete field of study was
is developed
born in the summer of 1956 at a conference in
Dartmouth. A group of interested researchers
gathered around the premise that every aspect
of intellectual activity could theoretically be
described in such precise detail as to make it
possible to program machines and computers
to replicate these activities. With a scientific
framework for AI development set, the
ground was laid for great advancements in the
field. Vocabulary
Over the next twenty years, researchers and
framework = a basic
their students at prominent universities and
structure, upon which
companies wrote algorithms that allowed
something can be built
computers to excel in a range of activities that
had hitherto been confined to the domain of the ground was laid = the
humans, such as proving logical theorems, situation was prepared
speaking English and even beating people at
prominent = well-known
checkers.
or very noticeable
A shortfall in funding in the mid-1970’s briefly
algorithms = a set of
cast the future of the field into doubt, until the
instructions for a machine
commercial potential of AI was discovered or computer, which result
through the development of expert systems, in a predictable outcome
which simulated human knowledge and
expertise in a given specialist field. The Digital hitherto = until this time
Equipment Corporation saved an estimated unprecedented = never
$40 million a year thanks to its purchase of an before seen or
expert system, which was the first to be used experienced
for commercial purposes.
exponential = increasing
With the lucrative potential of AI thus proven, extremely fast
the area continued to expand and attract
investment into the 1990’s and early 21st proliferation = growth,
century, achieving unprecedented levels of increase, or spread
success. realm = area
The state of AI today can be characterized by a other parties = other
seemingly exponential proliferation of areas people or groups
that have come under the responsibility of
intelligent machines. In the realm of everyday
life, the personal assistant feature of most new
smartphones can do anything from managing
our busy schedules by altering appointment
details and informing other parties that you
are running late, to monitoring our health and
fitness regimes and making suggestions for
improvement based on things like calorie
intake and heart rate. Vocabulary
Meanwhile in the economic sphere,
fitness regimes = system
automation is fast becoming the general rule; at
of exercise
present there are 1.1 million working robots in
the world, and in the automobile industry 80% sphere = area of activity
of the car assembly is now completed by
robots. It is no wonder that private it is no wonder = it is not
surprising
investment in the AI sector has been expanding
at an average rate of 62 percent a year for the speculation = prediction,
past four years. imagining

These trends indicate that AI’s trajectory is one catering to = providing for;
of future expansion and advancement. There is serving someone’s needs
much speculation among scholars and
assert = state
industry experts about what this implies for
the human race. displaced = take the place
of, move from the usual
On the optimistic side, people see potential in
position
AI to make life far easier and more enjoyable by
catering to an ever greater number of human unfold = develop in a
needs. series of events or stages

On the negative side, some assert that humans

will gradually be displaced by machines in
every aspect of the job market. Given the
astonishing pace at which AI is currently
developing, neither of these scenarios seems
implausible at present.

How things unfold in the future is largely a

matter of collective human choice about the
role we would like to see AI play in our lives,
and of whether we are capable of putting this
choice into practice.
Sources & Further Reading:

Artificial intelligence: a modern approach: http://51lica.com/wp-

content/uploads/2012/05/Artificial-Intelligence-A-Modern-Approach-3rd-
Edition.pdf

The current state of artificial intelligence:

http://www.bitrebels.com/technology/the-current-state-of-artificial-
intelligence/

The three breakthroughs that have finally unleashed AI on the world:

http://www.wired.com/2014/10/future-of-artificial-intelligence/

Humans need not apply: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Pq-S557XQU

Comprehension Questions
True or False?

1. AI currently only has a narrow range of applications within science.

2. Funding and support for AI has always been strong.

3. Early AI visionaries did not foresee the state AI has reached today.

4. The concept of AI existed before the technology was created.

5. AI first began to be developed by military technicians.

6. Discovery of the economic benefits of AI was what gave new life to the

field in the 1970s.

7. The personal assistant feature of a smartphone is one example of AI.

8. There are over a billion robots working in the world.

9. Investment in AI is increasing.

10. One concern about AI is that robots might kill humans.

Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. In its broadest sense, AI involves endowing machines and computers with

an intellectual capacity to calculate and make informed decisions.
a. avoiding or ignoring
b. guessing or predicting
c. providing or supplying

2. Robots today are becoming responsible for an ever-greater number of

human tasks, which they carry out autonomously and often more
efficiently than their human counterparts.
a. creators or inventors
b. people in equivalent positions
c. people who are against something

3. A shortfall in funding in the mid-1970’s briefly cast the future of the field
into doubt, until the commercial potential of AI was discovered through
the development of expert systems, which simulated human knowledge
and expertise in a given specialist field.
a. failure to reach a particular level
b. public opposition to a cause
c. technological obstacle/problem

4. With the lucrative potential of AI thus proven, the area continued to

expand and attract investment into the 1990’s and early 21st century,
achieving unprecedented levels of success.
a. extremely expensive
b. capable of producing profit
c. very lucky, fortunate

5. Given the astonishing pace at which AI is currently developing, neither of

these scenarios seems implausible at present.
a. causing negative consequences
b. difficult to believe it is possible
c. unable to be stopped

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Two words are not used.

asserted endowing lull shortfall

caters framework proliferating speculation
counterpart implausible prominent unfolded
displaced lucrative proponents wonder

1. After 40 years practicing medicine, he is one of the most _____________________

doctors in the community.
2. There's a new gym in town that _____________________ to mothers - it provides
free on-site child care for up to two hours.
3. The cafe is busiest at breakfast time; there's a _____________________ in the late
morning, then another busy period during the lunch hour.
4. He started importing cosmetics and selling them online, but it wasn't very
_____________________ - he only made about a dollar of profit on each sale.
5. I didn't know he had a degree in fashion. It’s no _____________________ he's
always so well-dressed.
6. _____________________ of health care reform point out the many inefficiencies
and injustices of the current system.
7. As the crisis _____________________, there was a lot of media _____________________
about corruption in the highest levels of government.
8. The Canadian Minister of Trade met with her _____________________ in France
to discuss a closer relationship between the two countries.
9. At the meeting, we came up with an outline of topics that will serve as a
_____________________ for the new training program.
10. The lawyer _____________________ that her client was innocent, claiming that
the evidence linking him to the crime was _____________________.
11. Traditional point-and-shoot cameras are in the process of being
_____________________ by smartphone cameras.
12. The internet is a great source of knowledge, but it also aids in
_____________________ misinformation.
Writing Task
Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the continuing development of artificial
intelligence? Do you think we will ever be able to produce robots that are
practically indistinguishable from human beings? Imagine the world 100 years
from now – what do you think the effects of smarter and smarter
computers/machines will be on everyday life and society in general?

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. False
2. False
3. True
4. True
5. False
6. True
7. True
8. False
9. True
10. False

Discover New Words

1. c
2. b
3. a
4. b
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. prominent
2. caters
3. lull
4. lucrative
5. wonder
6. proponents
7. unfolded / speculation
8. counterpart
9. framework
10. asserted / implausible
11. displaced
12. proliferating
Drowning in Debt Vocabulary
Several years after the recent recession, many
Americans have a shared handicap: massive massive = extremely big
debt. Between school loans, credit card debt, and mortgages = loans taken
mortgages, countless individuals carry financial out to buy a house
burdens which seem impossible to escape.
point fingers = blame
It’s tempting to point fingers. Was it the fault of someone for a bad thing
the lenders who issued mortgages to individuals that happened
who would be likely to default? The people who
default = declare yourself
chose to borrow more than they could repay?
unable to pay back a
Was it the colleges that charged exorbitant
mortgage
amounts for tuition… or the unreasonably high
interest rates? exorbitant = much more
expensive than customary
The debt crisis is likely a result of a combination
of these factors. But perhaps identifying the tuition = cost of school or
culprit is irrelevant – or at least, a secondary college
concern. The bigger, more urgent question is:
interest rates = percentage
How can indebted Americans improve their
of extra money that gets
situation?
added to a loan during the
The number of students who graduate college time of repayment
not just with their diploma, but also with a alarming = shocking and
sizeable amount of money to pay back, increases worrying
at an alarming rate each year. The class of 2014
carries more student debt than any class record = highest so far in
preceding it. history

A record 70% of undergraduate students in that a bachelor’s degree = a

class required the assistance of loans, with the four-year college degree
average student owing a total of $33,000 – and a six-figure tab = “six
that’s just for a bachelor’s degree. There are figures” means $100,000 or
also 15% of graduate students who leave school more; a “tab” is an amount
with a six-figure tab. of money you have to pay
Does this mean that students should not pursue
college degrees? It’s not that simple. Having a
college education still results in higher lifetime Vocabulary
earnings. According to the experts, one rule of
thumb is to avoid accepting loans that would be blindly = without thinking
higher than your future entry-level salary. For or analyzing
instance, if you’re likely to earn $25,000 in the
first year of your intended career as a social liberal arts = an education
that covers various areas
worker, do not take on more than that amount in
student debt. obscure = rare and little-
known or little-used
It’s also important for students to consider a
variety of options. Rather than blindly signing pricey = expensive
on for a liberal arts education or specializing in
household = a domestic
an obscure subject, consider less pricey options
family unit
like state schools or community colleges – and
think about the marketplace demand for people discretionary = optional
with your degree.
hinders = delays or
Student loans aren’t the only problem. In interferes with progress
addition to educational debt, there is also credit
eye-popping = causing
card debt – the average American household
astonishment
owes over $7,000 – and mortgages, for which
the average American household owes over figures = statistics
$155,000.

With debt payments encroaching on the family

budget, Americans are less likely to spend on
discretionary purchases, which then hinders
economic growth. Despite these eye-popping
figures for overall household debt, this number
is actually down from 2010, indicating a move in
the right direction.

If you’re deep in debt, here are a few

recommendations. The first step is to add up all
your financial obligations so you can understand
exactly what you are dealing with. Then make a
concrete plan for paying them off. Vocabulary
You may need to adopt a frugal lifestyle and cut
out any extraneous expenses, such as concrete = definite and
memberships, eating out at restaurants, or specific; not vague
frivolous shopping and entertainment. Consider extraneous = extra and
public transportation options or taking in a unnecessary
roommate or renter.
frivolous = silly and not
Finally, whenever possible, submit more than worthy of serious
your minimum required monthly payment – this consideration
will save you hundreds or thousands of dollars
in interest and accelerate your progress towards
becoming debt free.
Comprehension Questions
True or False?

1. The article identifies one primary reason for the debt crisis.
2. The number of students with debt from their college education is going up
year after year.
3. More than half of graduate students owe $100,000 or more.
4. Financial advisors recommend that students avoid taking out loans for at
least one year.
5. State and community colleges tend to be less expensive.
6. On average, Americans borrow more than $100,000 to buy their houses.
7. Total household debt has decreased since 2010.
8. The article recommends getting a job with a higher salary so you can pay off
your debt faster.
9. It's often necessary to make lifestyle changes in order to get rid of debt.
10. According to the final paragraph, there’s no way to save money on interest
fees.
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Between school loans, credit card debt, and mortgages, countless individuals
carry financial burdens which seem impossible to escape.
a. heavy weights
b. important contracts
c. good reasons

2. The debt crisis is likely a result of a combination of these factors. But perhaps
identifying the culprit is irrelevant – or at least, a secondary concern.
a. person with bad habits
b. prices that are higher than normal
c. who/what was responsible for a bad thing

3. According to the experts, one rule of thumb is to avoid accepting loans that
would be higher than your future entry-level salary.
a. basic standard to be followed
b. estimate of earnings from work
c. law governing financial transactions

4. With debt payments encroaching on the family budget, Americans are less
likely to spend on discretionary purchases, which then hinders economic
growth.
a. advancing; taking up more space
b. causing sadness
c. making something possible

5. You may need to adopt a frugal lifestyle and cut out any extraneous expenses,
such as memberships, eating out at restaurants, or frivolous shopping and
entertainment.
a. creative
b. less desirable
c. using money wisely

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with the correct word. Two words are not used.

alarming concrete extraneous massive

blindly culprit hindered obscure
burden exorbitant household tuition

1. The robbery was caught on camera, but it wasn’t possible to identify the
____________________ because they were wearing masks.
2. He was raised in a single-parent ____________________, so he knows how tough it
is to balance work and family.
3. I enjoyed the book, even though it had a lot of ____________________ detail that
added nothing to the story.
4. Some colleges give scholarships to good students whose families can't afford
the ____________________.
5. The lawyer won a surprising victory after she proved her client innocent
based on an ____________________ provision in the law.
6. I wouldn't travel there if I were you; an ____________________ number of tourists
have been kidnapped in that city.
7. The store is charging an ____________________ price for that dress because it was
created by a famous designer.
8. They ____________________ follow everything that religious leader says. I wish
they'd learn to think for themselves!
9. They set off in the midst of the rainy season, and bad weather
____________________ the expedition.
10. The restaurant served us a ____________________ portion of fries - we couldn't
finish it!
Writing Task
You can choose between these two topics for today’s writing task. Pick one, write
your text, and send it to me at homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback:

a. Describe how you manage your money. Are you more of a “spender” or a
“saver”? Have you ever gone into debt? What kind of beliefs did your parents
teach you about money?
b. What do you think about higher education (colleges and universities)? Should
it be free or paid? Does college prepare students for their lives and careers in
the real world? Should college students study a wide range of topics, or focus
specifically on one area?

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. False (it blames a combination of factors)
2. True
3. False (it's only 15%)
4. False (they recommend limiting the amount of the loan)
5. True
6. True
7. True
8. False
9. True
10. False (it refers to the amount of the payment, not the timing)

Discover New Words

1. a
2. c
3. a
4. a
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz
1. culprit
2. household
3. extraneous
4. tuition
5. obscure
6. alarming
7. exorbitant
8. blindly
9. hindered
10. massive
All About Esperanto
The language of Esperanto belongs to no country
or culture. It was invented for a specific purpose
Vocabulary
– to foster peace and understanding among
people of different nations and languages.
foster = promote the
Historically, the language of the dominant development of

society in an area becomes the nation’s dominant = most powerful

commonly-used language. Arabic, English, hardships = difficulties or

troubles
Mandarin, Russian and Spanish are all examples.
are fraught with = are
But what about people who can’t speak these filled with (usually
something bad)
languages, or choose not to? Many cultures resist
bias = a mental or
embracing the language of nations whose
emotional tendency or
dominance may have caused their own people to inclination towards a
endure hardships. Plus, languages themselves particular position

are fraught with cultural bias, which can lead to a level playing field = a
situation in which nobody
problems in translation and understanding. has a special advantage

Esperanto is a proposed solution to this problem; some measure of = some

amount of
a level playing field where any nation can be
equally represented in diplomatic and
administrative communication. Among hundreds
of fruitless attempts to create a man-made
language, Esperanto is the only one that has
enjoyed some measure of success.
Who created Esperanto?

The creator of Esperanto was a self-confessed Vocabulary

idealist named Ludwik Lazarus Zamenhof.
During his childhood, he had a first-hand look at self-confessed = he admits
to being
how divisive language can be – the people of his
idealist = someone whose
town (Russians, Poles, Germans and Jews) beliefs are influenced by
viewed each other with suspicion and dislike due ideals (the best way that
things should be)
to the language barriers. Zamenhof vowed to
a first-hand look = he saw
“destroy this evil” when he grew up.
it directly, with his own
eyes
Being fluent in several languages himself –
divisive = creating
including Russian, Greek, Latin, Hebrew, and
divisions between people
Polish – enabled Ludwik to have a multifaceted
barriers = obstacles
understanding of languages and their quirks. It
multifaceted = having
was his study of English and its perplexing rules many different aspects
that highlighted the necessity for Esperanto to quirks = small, strange
have a simple grammatical structure. details
perplexing = confusing
After working on the language for ten years,
highlighted = emphasized
Zamenhof published the first book of his
or made more important
“international language” in 1887 under the
pseudonym = fake name
pseudonym “Dr. Esperanto,” meaning “one who
spread like wildfire =
hopes.” Esperanto spread like wildfire in the spread very fast
first couple decades. Although it fell short of fell short = did not achieve
Zamenhof’s aspirations to make it a universal enough progress

language, it remains the most widely-spoken aspirations = goals,

ambitions
constructed language in the world.
What makes Esperanto different?

Ludwik based Esperanto’s words on the roots that Vocabulary

are common to many European languages; this
straightforward = direct,
results in Esperanto’s vocabulary being somewhat
clear, not complicated
familiar to most people who learn it. The language
word genders = this
has a straightforward structure and there are no refers to the fact that in
word genders or conjugation. Esperanto is some languages words
can be “masculine” or
phonetic, without pronunciation irregularities. It is “feminine”
possible to learn Esperanto in about a third of the reach = the number of
time needed to learn other commonly-studied people affected by it

languages. vast = very large or

widespread
Who speaks Esperanto today?
a handful of = a small
number of
Esperanto’s reach is vast; it’s estimated that
enthusiasts = people
anywhere between 1 and 2 million people speak
who are excited and
Esperanto, including a handful of native speakers passionate about
who have learned it from birth. something
annual = occurs every
Esperanto enthusiasts enjoy an international year
bond with other Esperanto speakers. They discuss
literary and political issues through magazines,
local meet-up groups, and an annual World
Congress. Traveling Esperantists can also contact
each other to receive free temporary
accommodation in 92 countries.
Conclusion

Esperanto has its criticisms. Some say that since Vocabulary

the language didn’t grow organically with a
organically = naturally
society, it lacks a culture of its own. Others
criticize the fact that Esperanto draws too heavily lacks = doesn’t have

from European languages and is therefore not as draws too heavily =

takes too much from the
inclusive as it should be. source of

However, none of these objections detract from inclusive = including

everybody
the core purpose of Esperanto – to be politically
core purpose = central,
and culturally neutral by design, and to promote
basic purpose
tolerance and harmony among people. Esperanto
neutral = not taking a
is a tool, a bridge between cultures, a pathway to particular side
understanding and collaborating. Is it perfect? No, tolerance = people
but it’s a positive step in the direction of a more accepting other people
as they are
unified planet, a true global village.
harmony = nice and
peaceful relationships
village = a very small
community. The article is
using the term “global
village” to say that even
though the world is big,
it should be close and
friendly like a small
community
Comprehension Questions
1. Esperanto was created to...
a. begin a new independent country
b. encourage world peace
c. make language learning easier
2. English, Spanish, and Mandarin are examples of languages that...
a. have a lot of irregular grammar
b. have become dominant in an area
c. have very few words in common
3. Esperanto is the only invented language...
a. created by a scientist
b. in the history of the world
c. to be somewhat successful
4. Zamenhof was influenced by...
a. government repression of his native language
b. religious writings in multiple languages
c. the multicultural town where he grew up
5. He published a book after...
a. changing his legal name
b. developing the language for ten years
c. leaving his home country
6. Zamenhof aimed to make Esperanto's grammar and vocabulary...
a. as large as possible
b. as multicultural as possible
c. as simple as possible
7. The Esperanto community...
a. is very active with publications and meetups
b. experiences discrimination in some countries
c. has 1-2 million native speakers
8. Which of these criticisms of Esperanto was not mentioned?
a. it has no culture of its own
b. it isn't diverse enough
c. it's not practical to teach it
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.
1. Many cultures resist embracing the language of nations whose dominance
may have caused their own people to endure hardships.
a. being embarrassed by
b. completely accepting with enthusiasm
c. listening very carefully

2. Among hundreds of fruitless attempts to create a man-made language,

Esperanto is the only one that has enjoyed some measure of success.
a. lacking effort
b. not creative or interesting
c. produced no results

3. Zamenhof vowed to “destroy this evil” when he grew up.

a. briefly considered
b. made a strong promise
c. thought it was impossible

4. Esperanto enthusiasts enjoy an international bond with other Esperanto

speakers.
a. firm agreement
b. monetary benefit
c. social connection

5. However, none of these objections detract from the core purpose of

Esperanto
a. are related to
b. completely eliminate
c. reduce or make less valuable

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

aspiration embraced foster highlighted tolerant

detracted fell short fruitlessly lacked vast
divisive first-hand handful quirks vowed

1. The boss has a ______________________ attitude towards lateness - just as long as

the work gets done.
2. He's been unlucky in love. He's been searching ______________________ for the
perfect woman for years.
3. I could tell she wasn't really sorry. Her apology ______________________ sincerity.
4. In the movie, after the main character's brother was killed, he
______________________ to get revenge.
5. It's a very selective school that aims to ______________________ artistic talent
among gifted children.
6. My mother loves music; her greatest ______________________ is to sing in Carnegie
Hall.
7. Out of all the contestants in the TV show, only a ______________________ made it to
the final round.
8. The doctor ______________________ the importance of focusing on preventing
diseases, not just curing them.
9. This book is a collection of ______________________ stories from veterans of World
War II.
10. We stood at the edge of the cliff and gazed at the ______________________ ocean
below.
11. When you've been best friends with someone for years, you know all their
______________________.
12. The athlete tried her best, and she ______________________ of the record by just
half a second.
Writing Task
Zamenhof described himself as an idealist – someone who focuses on the best
possible situation or outcome. The opposite of that is a realist – someone who
focuses on practical truths that exist now. Are you more of a realist, or more of an
idealist? Considering the various problems that humanity is facing now (war,
climate change, income inequality, etc.) – which ones do you think we will
eventually be able to solve? Which ones do you think are an inevitable fact of
existence? Give reasons for your opinions.

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. b
2. b
3. c
4. c
5. b
6. c
7. a
8. c

Discover New Words

1. b
2. c
3. b
4. c
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz

1. tolerant
2. fruitlessly
3. lacked
4. vowed
5. foster
6. aspiration
7. handful
8. highlighted
9. first-hand
10. vast
11. quirks
12. fell short
Finland’s Approach to Education
Finland is highly regarded across the globe for its consistently excellent results in
the Program for International Student Assessment
(PISA). Not only do Finnish students excel at subjects
like reading, science and mathematics, their high Vocabulary
school graduation rate is at an astonishing 93%, with
highly regarded =
an average of 2 out of 3 students going on to college. others have a good
opinion about
How are Finnish schools different from a global
perspective?
standardization =
making everything the
The emphasis is on learning, not same
competition.
mandatory =
The lack of standardization in Finnish schools means obligatory; you must
do it; not optional
that there are no scored tests, only one mandatory
exam for students at 17 years old. All tests before this
filed away = put away
exam are not graded or compared, but are instead into an archive
used as feedback on the learning progress of each
student.

This allows students’ education to be tailored to their

own strengths and weaknesses. Instead of ‘ticking the
box’ on a test which is then filed away, the
evaluations indicate how well the student is learning,
and the areas in which he or she needs help.
Finnish teachers are highly educated
and innovative. Vocabulary
In Finland, teaching is a prestigious career. Teachers
innovative = creative,
are respected and appreciated at the same level as inventing new ideas
and methods
doctors or lawyers. They are highly qualified, with all
teachers required to hold a Master’s Degree. There is aspire = strongly
desire; have an
only one academic program for those who aspire to ambition to do
be teachers, and this education is fully subsidized by something

the state. Even after the rigorous program, the fully subsidized =
completely paid for
selection process is so tough that only the top 10
rigorous = following
percent of graduates are then accepted into teaching
strict standards,
careers. thorough and
complete, intense
Schools have creative autonomy to autonomy =
independence; can act
ensure maximum learning efficiency. as they want

The Finns understand that each school may require a approach = method,
way of doing things
different approach depending on the needs of the
guidelines = rules or
attending students, so they allow each school to do suggestions

what serves its students best. Teachers follow state curriculum = the
collection of courses
curriculum guidelines that tell them what to teach,
embraced = welcomed,
but each teacher has the freedom to decide how to supported, adopted
teach.

The curriculum is filled with plenty of art, music and

science. Different methods of teaching are embraced
and utilized, which leads to greater creativity.
Students are given room to grow and
develop healthily. Vocabulary
Finnish people recognize the need for kids to be kids.
recesses = breaks
School is not mandatory until the age of 7, with during which the
students have free
homework rarely assigned until their teens. Longer
time to play
recesses give students time to develop socially and
decompress = relax
physically by playing outside, enabling their minds to
freshen up = get more
decompress and freshen up for the next lesson. energy
unorthodox =
Students receive individual attention to
unusual, different
help them keep up. from tradition
ratio = comparing two
In a somewhat unorthodox approach to other numbers
Western countries, a ‘no child is left behind’ approach remedial = intended
means that all classes contain pupils at different to improve skills that
are lacking
levels of learning ability. The low student to teacher
struggling = having a
ratio (approximately 1 teacher for every 15 students)
lot of difficulty
enables teachers to know each student exceptionally
stigma = a mark of
well, so that no student falls through the cracks. social disgrace
thrive = grow and be
There are no special remedial classes – instead,
successful
children who are struggling receive extra support
from one or more teachers. This helps students avoid
the stigma of being categorized as “stupid.”

Education is viewed as preparing kids for life, so

teachers do whatever it takes to ensure that their
young pupils thrive.
Social support from the state ensures
the consistent quality of schools. Vocabulary
All students in Finland receive a free education from
encompasses =
their first day of school until they complete includes
university. This financial support encompasses
school meals, textbooks, transport, and support paramount = highest
in importance
services such as medical care. The result is that any
Finnish child from any background or socioeconomic flourish = grow and
succeed (same as
status receives the same quality education
“thrive”)
throughout the country.
welfare system =
Conclusion system where the
government helps poor
Finland understands that excellent education for its people

citizens is paramount in order for the country to

maternity leave = time
flourish. Finland invests in its people, who enjoy a off from work for
range of public services such as a strong welfare women who have
recently had a baby
system, subsidized maternity leave and childcare,
and a cheap healthcare system, as well as excellent equipped = prepared,
trained
schools. The result is that Finnish people are among
the happiest in the world, and are equipped to
contribute to Finland’s economic and social
development in a positive way.
Comprehension Questions
True or false?

1. 93% of Finnish students go to college.

2. There are no mandatory exams in Finland.
3. It's expensive to get your teaching credentials in Finland.
4. Teaching jobs are hard to get, even if you are qualified.
5. Every school in Finland uses the same scientifically-proven teaching method.
6. Finnish children have little homework.
7. Teachers give special help to students who are behind.
8. The costs of textbooks and school meals are covered by the government.
9. The conclusion suggests some possible drawbacks to the Finnish approach.
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Not only do Finnish students excel at subjects like reading, science and
mathematics, their high school graduation rate is at an astonishing 93%, with
an average of 2 out of 3 students going on to college.
a. hold in high regard
b. learn a lot
c. perform extremely well

2. This allows students’ education to be tailored to their own strengths and

weaknesses.
a. accelerated
b. customized
c. reviewed

3. In Finland, teaching is a prestigious career. Teachers are respected and

appreciated at the same level as doctors or lawyers.
a. good for earning money
b. long-term
c. seen as having high social status

4. The low student to teacher ratio (approximately 1 teacher for every 15

students) enables teachers to know each student exceptionally well, so that
no student falls through the cracks.
a. is considered incapable of improvement
b. is forgotten about & then ignored
c. leaves a program of study

5. The result is that any Finnish child from any background or socioeconomic
status receives the same quality education throughout the country.
a. history and experience
b. local area
c. opinions and philosophy
Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Two words are not used.

approach excel rigorous struggled

background guidelines standardized tailored
embraced prestigious stigma thrives

1. All the procedures are _____________________, so there's not much room for
creativity.
2. She _____________________ for years with low-paying jobs before her career as an
actress finally took off.
3. Even though he's completely changed his life, there’s still a certain social
_____________________ to having a criminal record.
4. He looks at things from a purely practical point of view, whereas I have a
more emotional _____________________.
5. I suggested a solution that would benefit everybody, and it was instantly
_____________________ by everyone at the meeting.
6. It's a beachside town, so its economy _____________________ on tourism.
7. Discipline in the military is very _____________________, so you'd better be
prepared to follow orders.
8. This gym has a variety of equipment, so you can create a workout that's
_____________________ to your body.
9. We're not sure what to do; our training didn't provide any _____________________
for how to handle this type of situation.
10. She graduated from a _____________________ university, so everyone’s impressed
when they hear where she got her degree.
Writing Task
Describe the educational system in your country – what do you think its strong
points are? Where does it fall short? (fall short = is not sufficient) What would you
change about it? How about teaching methods – do you think it’s more effective to
standardize everything, or customize the curriculum?

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. False - 93% finish high school
2. False - there is only one
3. False - the government pays for it
4. True
5. False - the schools can customize it
6. True
7. True
8. True
9. False - it further praises the country

Discover New Words

1. c
2. b
3. c
4. b
5. a
Vocabulary Quiz
1. standardized
2. struggled
3. stigma
4. approach
5. embraced
6. thrives
7. rigorous
8. tailored
9. guidelines
10. prestigious
Common Health & Exercise
Myths Debunked
There is a lot of misinformation out there about
health and exercise. Someone at the gym says Vocabulary
something, and then that “fact” gets passed around
through friends and acquaintances until it ends up misinformation = false
online. or incorrect information
acquaintances = people
who you know casually,
Many people would like to eat better or get in but who are not close
shape, but end up getting bad advice that doesn't enough to be
considered friends
work – and then they become discouraged and give
get in shape = become
up. Let’s put an end to a few common myths about
physically fit and strong
health and exercise right here and now.
put an end to = an
informal phrase
Myth #1 – “Treadmills are easier on your meaning to end or stop
something intentionally
knees than asphalt” (we usually “put an end
to” bad things)
treadmill = an exercise
One of the biggest reasons people don't run is that
machine with a
they're afraid it will damage their knees. While it's backwards-moving belt
true that over-stressing your knees by running too so you can run on it and
stay in one place
much is bad for you, using a treadmill, as opposed
asphalt = the hard black
to running outside, doesn't actually change material that roads are
anything. When you run, your body weight comes made of

down on your knee at an accelerated pace. So as opposed to = in

contrast to; instead of
whether you're coming down on asphalt or rubber
doesn't make much difference.
What can protect your knees is mixing up running
with other cardio workouts; such as using an
Vocabulary
elliptical machine or a bicycle.
cardio workouts =
Myth #2 – exercise that increases
your heart rate
“Swimming is great for weight loss”
elliptical machine = a
type of exercise
Swimming is good for a lot of things, mainly machine that does not
cause impact on your
increasing lung capacity and toning muscles. It is joints
not, however, the best formula for weight loss. The toning muscles =
buoyancy of the human body means that making your muscles
firm and strong
exercising in water doesn't work the body as much
elderly people = old
as exercising outside of water. For the same reason,
people (usually over 70).
a lot of fitness classes for elderly people are done This is a more polite
term than saying “old
in swimming pools.
people”
fat-burning exercises =
That isn't to say that swimming is a bad workout, it exercises that help
just needs to be done alongside other more fat- reduce or eliminate your
body fat
burning exercises like cardio and strength
excess = extra, too
training when trying to lose weight. much

Myth #3 – “Fatty foods make you fat”

This one seems very logical – after all, “you are

what you eat,” right? However, the science behind it
doesn't quite work that way. The truth is that fat is
a necessary part of your diet. Excess body fat is the
result of the energy imbalance that occurs when
more calories are consumed than are used – Vocabulary
regardless of the source of those calories. Although
imbalance = not
overindulging in fatty foods will result in weight
balanced, not equal or
gain, a more common cause of obesity is actually even
eating excess carbohydrates such as sugar. obesity = great excess of
weight. The adjective
form is obese.
Myth #4 – “Sugar is healthier than High
risk factor = something
Fructose Corn Syrup” that can cause
dangerous effects or
results
High fructose corn syrup or HFCS is often vilified
intake = what you are
as one of the causes of poor health in the United
taking in or putting
States, and natural sugar is often identified as a inside (in this case,
“healthier” alternative. putting inside your
body)
quash that rumor = a
Unfortunately this is not true. Sugar and HFCS both rumor is an
cause a spike in blood sugar levels which, when unconfirmed piece of
information that
consumed regularly, leads to obesity and Type 2 spreads by people
diabetes. The true risk factor is not HFCS telling other people. To
quash a rumor means to
specifically, but one’s total intake of sugars of any
stop it or destroy it.
kind.

Now if you hear someone passing along one of

these health myths, you can politely quash that
rumor with the facts.
Comprehension Questions
1. Misinformation about exercise tends to be spread by...
a. the media
b. unqualified instructors
c. word of mouth

2. According to the article, one way to minimize impact on your knees is...
a. varying your exercise routine
b. using special shoes
c. running on sand or grass

3. Which of these is swimming NOT good for?

a. strengthening your muscles
b. getting rid of fat
c. improving your respiration

4. The article implies that fats...

a. should be eliminated from your diet
b. can be eaten in moderation
c. have more calories than carbohydrates

5. People should beware of...

a. sugar that is not all-natural
b. HFCS that is produced in the U.S.
c. consuming too much sugar/HFCS in general
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. When you run, your body weight comes down on your knee at an accelerated
pace.
a. direction
b. skill
c. speed

2. The buoyancy of the human body means that exercising in water doesn't
work the body as much as exercising outside of water.
a. composition of elements
b. slowness
c. tendency to float

3. Although overindulging in fatty foods will result in weight gain, a more

common cause of obesity is actually eating excess carbohydrates such as
sugar.
a. consuming too much
b. knowing too little about
c. trying to ignore

4. High fructose corn syrup or HFCS is often vilified as one of the causes of poor
health in the United States, and natural sugar is often identified as a
“healthier” alternative.
a. identified as unique
b. regarded as evil; hated
c. studied extensively

5. Sugar and HFCS both cause a spike in blood sugar levels which, when
consumed regularly, leads to obesity and Type 2 diabetes.
a. irreversible change
b. serious damage
c. sudden and sharp increase

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Two words aren’t used.

acquaintances excess intake put an end to

as opposed to get in shape misinformation tone
elderly people imbalance overindulged vilified

1. A lot of people try to ________________________ by summertime so they can look

good in a swimsuit.
2. I met my current boyfriend at a party; he was one of my brother's
________________________.
3. Is it really any healthier to eat organic produce ________________________ regular
fruits and vegetables?
4. It's good for ________________________ to stay active so that they preserve their
physical and mental abilities.
5. The company is adopting a new zero-tolerance policy in an effort to
________________________ sexual harassment in the workplace.
6. My son ________________________ in popcorn and candy at the circus, and now he
has a stomachache.
7. She trimmed the ________________________ fat from the meat so that the dish
wouldn't be too oily.
8. Violent video games are sometimes ________________________ as the cause of bad
behavior, but I think the problem is with the parents.
9. It's unacceptable for there to be an ________________________ in pay between
people of different races performing the same job.
10. My thighs are flabby; they jiggle when I walk - so I need some exercises to
________________________ them.
Writing Task
There’s a great deal of debate in the U.S. about the causes of obesity and how it
should be handled. For example, some people believe obesity is the result of
individuals failing to control their eating, while others point to cultural factors like
excessive advertising and availability of unhealthy food. Some people think we
should celebrate all body types as beautiful even if they don’t conform to “standard”
sizes, whereas other people say being overweight is always bad and should not be
accepted or encouraged.

What is your position on these issues? Describe your point of view and send your
text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. c
2. a
3. b
4. b
5. c

Discover New Words

1. c
2. c
3. a
4. b
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz
1. get in shape
2. acquaintances
3. as opposed to
4. elderly people
5. put an end to
6. overindulged
7. excess
8. vilified
9. imbalance
10. tone
Helicopter Parents
The term “helicopter parent” refers to an overly
vigilant parent who seems to hover constantly
Vocabulary
over his or her child. Although helicopter parents
may think they are helping and protecting their
overly vigilant = too
kids, they may actually be contributing to careful, watches too much
developmental problems. hover = stay in the air
above the target
A helicopter parent is always concerned – some
obsessed = thinking too
might say obsessed – about possible harm to much about something, to
their child. A helicopter parent is always there to an unhealthy degree

protect the child from threats both real and scrape = trouble (usually
minor trouble)
imagined.
cross the line = pass the
They also try to ensure that their child limit of what is
appropriate
experiences no stress, and get the child out of
over-protectiveness =
whatever scrape they’re in – even if it’s the
protecting too much
child’s own fault!
stunt = prevent from
Every parent feels a natural and appropriate growing

concern for their child’s well-being – but

helicopter parents cross the line into over-
protectiveness.

Such behavior can stunt the child’s emotional

development and impair his or her ability to
make sensible decisions in adulthood.
 Vocabulary
What are some of the possible repercussions of
helicopter parenting? repercussions =
consequences / results
1. Your child will never learn how to be (usually negative ones)
accountable for his own behavior accountable = responsible
for your actions
You’re always there when he needs you,
bailing him out = getting
always bailing him out. When he gets in
him out of trouble
trouble at school, you march to the principal’s
let your child off the hook
office and convince him to let your child off = not punish the child for
something bad he/she did
the hook. Then you don’t deal with the issue
at home. By doing this, you’re teaching your misbehavior = bad
behavior
child that there are no consequences for
entitlement = feeling like
misbehavior; that he never has to admit that you are special and
he’s done something wrong or try to make it deserve everything
without effort
right. He’s going to carry that sense of
you can bet that = it’s
entitlement through to adulthood, and you
certain that
can bet that employers aren’t going to be
struggle = difficult effort
nearly as lenient as you are.
keep this up = continue
doing this action
2. Your child will never learn how to handle
struggle and failure persevere = continue to
try despite difficulties
You do her homework whenever it becomes reinforcing =
the least bit difficult, never letting her take on strengthening

a challenge or struggle to solve a tough

problem. If you keep this up, she’ll never
learn how to take risks or persevere. Also,
you’re reinforcing the concept that failure is
never an option – leaving her unprepared to Vocabulary
face the challenges of adult life outside your
bubble = enclosed area
protective bubble.
fragile = weak, delicate,
3. Your child will have fragile self-esteem easily broken
self-esteem = how you
Perhaps you lavish words of praise on your feel about yourself; your
child, telling him daily how special he is and confidence

how he can do anything at all that he sets his lavish = provide very
generously
mind to. And yet you constantly interfere in
sets his mind to = decides
everything he tries to do, with the goal of
firmly to do
ensuring the best possible outcome. This sets
outcome = result
the precedent that your child can’t do
sets the precedent =
anything without your help. When your child makes an initial example
grows up, he may experience a paradoxical that will be referenced or
followed later
feeling of seeing himself as special and
paradoxical = conflicting,
entitled, yet being crushed by the slightest two things that are
failure. opposite yet co-exist
spoiled = someone who
4. It will be difficult for your child to have a
other people take care of
healthy relationship too much, and give them
everything, thus leading to
If you raise a spoiled child who thinks that he the person feeling entitled
doesn’t need to pick up after himself or learn rational = logical, thinking
basic life skills – then good luck to him in clearly

finding a life partner. Most rational adults

want an equal – they don’t want to babysit.
You need to let your child spread his wings, fly
on his own, and even fall back to earth on
 occasion. If you don’t, he may end up in a
relationship with a partner who will, best case Vocabulary
scenario, continue to “take care of him” the
worst case scenario = in
way you did. Worst case scenario, he’ll end the worst possible
up with someone who controls and situation

manipulates him, and he’ll be helpless to stand bounce back = recover

from a problem or
on his own two feet. disappointment

If you’re disposed to hovering, it can be hard to

stop. But if you allow your kids to handle
challenges without your help, they’ll become self-
confident and independent. When they fail, let
them learn how to bounce back. And when your
kids misbehave, let them suffer the consequences.
They’ll end up thanking you for it.

Sources & further reading:

• http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/helico
pter-parents-affect-children-1946.html
• http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/p
arenting/wp/2014/09/02/how-
helicopter-parents-are-ruining-college-
students/
Comprehension Questions
1. According to the article, the main problem with helicopter parenting is...
a. the child will rebel as a teenager
b. the parents will be constantly stressed out
c. it will harm the child’s development

2. The first consequence of helicopter parenting is that a child...

a. will test the limits by behaving worse and worse
b. will get into trouble at school
c. won't learn the consequences of bad behavior

3. The second result is that the child...

a. will be unable to deal with difficulty
b. will call you every time he/she needs help
c. will fail frequently

4. According to the third point, children of helicopter parents will end up...
a. blaming their parents for their problems
b. feeling like they’re superior to others
c. with an unhealthy opinion of themselves

5. Children of helicopter parents might have trouble in relationships

because...
a. the parents will probably interfere in their adult child's love life
b. there may be an unequal balance of power in the relationship
c. they will try to manipulate their partner
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. A helicopter parent is always there to protect the child from threats both real
and imagined.
a. annoying people
b. emotional problems
c. possible dangers

2. Such behavior can stunt the child’s emotional development and impair his or
her ability to make sensible decisions in adulthood.
a. damage
b. delay
c. contribute to

3. He’s going to carry that sense of entitlement through to adulthood, and you
can bet that employers aren’t going to be nearly as lenient as you are.
a. appreciative of someone's work
b. forgiving, relaxed about breaking rules
c. loving and supportive

4. When your child grows up, he may experience a paradoxical feeling of seeing
himself as special and entitled, yet being crushed by the slightest failure.
a. feeling extremely sad and depressed
b. prevented from succeeding
c. wanting to give up and stop trying

5. If you’re disposed to hovering, it can be hard to stop.

a. have a tendency to
b. plan to
c. really enjoy
Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete the sentences with the vocabulary words:

accountable crushed self-esteem

bounced back lenient struggle
crossed the line obsessed threat
rational

1. He's ____________________ with success, and he'll do absolutely anything to

achieve it.
2. I was ____________________ when I found out I'd been rejected from the university
where I really wanted to go.
3. Kids who are bullied often suffer from low ____________________.
4. She ____________________ pretty quickly - she got another job within a week of
losing her old one.
5. The comedian was funny, but a few of his jokes ____________________ and were
rather offensive.
6. If you make a commitment, I'm going to hold you ____________________ for
following through.
7. The teacher is very ____________________ when it comes to attendance - she
doesn't care if you skip class, as long as you show up for the tests.
8. There's no ____________________ reason to be afraid of clowns - but they still
terrify me for some reason.
9. When you're a single mother with three kids, it's a real ____________________ to
put food on the table.
10. The pollution from the factory is a ____________________ to the local environment.
Writing Task
From the perspective of child independence vs. parental supervision, describe either

• your relationship with your parents; or

• your relationship with your kids

And give your opinion about parental involvement in children’s lives. In which
situations do you think it is appropriate for a parent to be very involved, and in
which cases should parents let their kids be more independent?

Send me your text (2-3 paragraphs) at homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback

and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions:

1. c
2. c
3. a
4. c
5. b

Discover New Words:

1. c
2. a
3. b
4. a
5. a
Vocabulary Quiz:

1. obsessed
2. crushed
3. self-esteem
4. bounced back
5. crossed the line
6. accountable
7. lenient
8. rational
9. struggle
10. threat
History’s Heroic Dogs
There’s a reason why dogs are considered “man’s
best friend.” Every owner has had a dog that he knew Vocabulary
would save his life if tragedy struck. Throughout
countless = very
history, there are countless amazing stories of dogs
many; unable to be
saving their owners from intruders, disasters, and counted
wild animals.
bodyguard = a
professional who
Although maybe not the ideal replacement for a
protects a person (like
bodyguard or a good life insurance policy, a good a celebrity/politician)
dog will do everything it can to keep you and your gone down in history
family safe. Here are a few stories of heroic dogs = been recorded /
remembered in
whose deeds have gone down in history.
history

Saint Guinefort saint = a person of

excellent character
There is one heroic dog that is actually considered a who is honored in
saint by the local community. According to legend, religion

Guinefort was a greyhound owned by a French knight = a man of

importance in
knight in the 1200s. One day, the knight left his
medieval times
young child alone with Guinefort for the day. When
slaughtered = killed in
he returned he couldn’t find his child, but saw
an especially violent
Guinefort with blood across its face. way

Fearing that his dog had just slaughtered and

possibly eaten his young boy, the knight killed
Guinefort in a rage. Moments later, the knight found
his child as well as the dead snake that Guinefort had
killed in order to protect the boy.
Wracked by grief over his mistake, the knight
buried Guinefort and built a shrine to the dog, which
Vocabulary
locals continued to pray to for quite some time.
shrine = small temple;
Barry the St. Bernard place to worship or
honor a god, ancestor,
The St. Bernard is now associated with hundreds of or spirit
stories of saving people’s lives, especially children,
monastery = place
and that’s mostly because of Barry, the heroic St. where monks (men
Bernard from Switzerland. Barry lived near a dedicated to spiritual
life) live
monastery in Switzerland from 1800-1812. Over
that time, he is credited with rescuing at least 40 he is credited = it is
believed that he did
people who had gotten lost or trapped in the snow. this

One of his most famous stories involves him climbing he was stuffed = his
a mountain to rescue a small child when the snow dead body was filled
with material to
was falling too heavily, and the monks were not able preserve it for display
to reach the boy. The child wrapped his arms around
deeds = actions;
Barry, and Barry carried him all the way down the things they have done
mountain. Barry is such a beloved piece of Swiss
serum = a type of
history that after his death he was stuffed, and he medicine made from
now has a place in the Swiss Natural History blood containing
antibodies to a disease
Museum.

Togo and Balto

Togo and Balto are famous Alaskan sled dogs that

have even had animated films created about their
heroic deeds. In the winter of 1925, the town of
Nome, Alaska was out of serum to treat diphtheria, a
potentially deadly infection. Doctors believed that the
town was on the verge of an epidemic, but the
Vocabulary
closest supply of serum was in Anchorage, which was
almost 1,000 miles away. an epidemic = wide
spread of a disease
To make matters worse, the aircraft meant to
inoperable = not
transport the materials was inoperable because its
functioning
engines were frozen. Anchorage officials decided that
stretch of the journey
their only choice was to send the serum to Nome
/ leg of the trip = both
using several teams of sled dogs. Togo’s team carried these expressions
the serum during the most difficult stretch of the refer to a part or
section of the trip
journey and traveled almost twice as far as any other
team. Balto’s team was responsible for the final leg of
the trip and delivered the serum to Nome ahead of
schedule.

Further reading:
http://brainz.org/8-most-heroic-dogs-history/
Comprehension Questions
True or False?

1. Guinefort fought alongside his owner in battle.

2. Guinefort protected a child from a dangerous animal.
3. Guinefort was killed by a snake.
4. The local community honored Guinefort after his death.
5. Barry lived in Europe.
6. Barry was famous for saving people who fell into a river.
7. Barry's body is preserved in a museum.
8. There is a movie about Togo and Balto.
9. Togo and Balto are famous for helping save their injured owner.
10. Togo and Balto performed their heroic deed in cold weather.
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Throughout history, there are countless amazing stories of dogs saving their
owners from intruders, disasters, and wild animals.
a. people who illegally enter private property
b. people who are careless and often lose things
c. people who appear to be dangerous

2. Fearing that his dog had just slaughtered and possibly eaten his young boy,
the knight killed Guinefort in a rage.
a. immediately; very quickly
b. in a moment of intense, violent anger
c. on purpose, not accidentally

3. Wracked by grief over his mistake, the knight buried Guinefort and built a
shrine to the dog, which locals continued to pray to for quite some time.
a. criticized by others
b. extremely sad
c. thinking a lot

4. Over that time, he is credited with rescuing at least 40 people who had gotten
lost or trapped in the snow.
a. not able to get out
b. seriously injured
c. very cold

5. Doctors believed that the town was on the verge of an epidemic, but the
closest supply of serum was in Anchorage, which was almost 1,000 miles
away.
a. happened a long time ago
b. is in progress
c. will probably happen very soon

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz

countless intruder slaughtered

deeds on the verge trapped
go down in history shrine wracked by grief
in a rage

1. Anyone who breaks the law deserves to be punished for their

_______________________.
2. He screamed and cursed at the other driver _______________________.
3. The scientists are _______________________ of a breakthrough - with just a few
more months of research, they may announce a major discovery.
4. Our home alarm system automatically notifies the police if an
_______________________ is detected.
5. She has set a new world record! Her performance today will
_______________________.
6. The _______________________ trees of the Amazon rain forest provide a significant
part of the world's oxygen.
7. My parents were _______________________ after my little sister passed away.
8. The firefighters rescued the family that was _______________________ in the
burning house.
9. We visited the ruins of an ancient _______________________ to the god of fertility.
10. The entire village was _______________________ by the invading army.
Writing Task
Write about someone who you consider to be a hero. This can be somebody you
know personally, or a person who is famous either today or in history. Send your
text (2-3 paragraphs) to homework@espressoenglish.net to get my feedback!

Answers
Comprehension Questions:

1. False
2. True
3. False - he was killed by his owner
4. True
5. True
6. False - he saved people who got lost in the snow
7. True
8. True
9. False - they are famous for bringing medicine to an isolated town
10. True

Discover New Words

1. a
2. b
3. b
4. a
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz:

1. deeds
2. in a rage
3. on the verge
4. intruder
5. go down in history
6. countless
7. wracked by grief
8. trapped
9. shrine
10. slaughtered
Interesting Recent Inventions
Think our modern world already has everything
you could possibly imagine? Think again.
Human creativity knows no bounds, and new Vocabulary
products and technologies are being invented all
the time. Here are a few of the notable things knows no bounds = has no
invented recently. limit

zipping = moving very fast

The Hoverboard and effortlessly

Who hasn’t dreamed of being Marty McFly from in the nick of time = exactly
Back To The Future II, zipping around Biff on his at the right time before a
deadline
flying skateboard? Given that the 1989 film
imagined the “future” in the year 2015 (our thrilling = very exciting
present and soon to be past), this product was
developed in the nick of time. conductive materials =
materials that transmit
electricity
However, the technology is not quite up to par
compared to the thrilling device in the science prototypes = initial versions
fiction movie. There are limitations – for of the product
instance, the board will only levitate over
conductive materials like copper and on the market = available
for sale
aluminum, flies just an inch off the ground, and
can only operate for fifteen minutes at a time. whopping = very large
(informal)
Also, only ten prototypes are on the market,
all at the whopping sum of $10,000—meaning take up = occupy space
only someone like Michael J. Fox himself can
afford it.

But when you consider the fact that computers

used to take up entire rooms, and now they fit
into our pockets – the possibility of a more
versatile hoverboard in the future doesn’t
seem so far-fetched. Perhaps it’s only a
matter of time before the technology is Vocabulary
refined and the hoverboard becomes a
household item. far-fetched = hard to believe or
imagine
Wireless Electricity it’s only a matter of time = it
will definitely happen at some
We are already doing away with so many point in the future
cords: telephone cords, Internet cords—
refined = made better and more
why not eliminate the need for cords
perfect by improving small
altogether? details

WiTricity, a Massachusetts company, wants doing away with = removing;

to do just that – without the use of batteries. not using anymore
They have developed a plug-in coil that
coil = a series of spirals or rings
produces a magnetic field, which can power that are gathered together
all electronic devices up to several meters
away – even through walls. So far, this looking at the big picture =
technology has been applied to Toyota considering the wider
perspective on an issue
electric cars and Intel PCs, but WiTricity is
looking at the big picture. So say goodbye tripping over = having your foot
to the days of tripping over your power get caught on something and
cords. We’ll soon be operating completely you fall
wirelessly.
successive layers = one layer
(thin covering/level) of material
3-D Printing after another

blueprint = basic design or plan

3-D printing has exploded over the past
of something to be built
few years, and it is bound to revolutionize
nearly all types of production. These
printers are able to apply successive layers
of glass, metal, plastic, and other materials
in order to build objects designed on a
digital blueprint.
This technology is incredibly valuable for a
number of engineering industries, with the
potential to streamline manufacturing processes Vocabulary
and reduce environmental impact.
time will tell = we will
Some even say we will be able to 3D print edible discover as time passes
food and even organ replacements in the future.
buried = located under a
Time will tell exactly how 3-D printing will
lot of things
transform our lives.
rummaging through =
Alert Ring searching quickly among
a number of objects

You know the feeling: your cell phone is buried a figment of your
somewhere in your purse, and because you’re imagination = something
expecting a call or an email, you periodically feel that only exists in your
imagination, and is not
buzzes from within your bag.
real

After rummaging through all your belongings, blinks = when a light

you finally locate your phone and discover the turns off and on quickly
buzz was a figment of your imagination, and repeatedly
generated by the expectation of a message.
stay on top of = stay up
to date, stay current
This new invention, a ring whose stone blinks
when the wearer receives an email, call, or text, craze = a sudden intense
will end the uncertainty and help you stay on top period of popularity
(often temporary)
of your messages.
selling like hotcakes =
The Selfie Stick selling very quickly and in
large numbers

The selfie stick is not exactly a revolutionary idea –

a photographer in 1925 even used a stick to
extend the range of his camera. However, the
modern version of the product hit the market at
the height of the selfie craze – and has been
selling like hotcakes.
Selfie sticks have become so popular that there
Vocabulary
has been a bit of a backlash – many people
view them as a nuisance, and some museums
and sports events have banned their use. a nuisance = something
annoying

banned = prohibited
Comprehension Questions
True or false according to the article?

1. The article references the portrayal of a hoverboard in a movie.

2. The hoverboard can fly up to 15 feet high.

3. The article implies that hoverboard technology will improve.

4. WiTricity's device can charge a cell phone behind a wall.

5. The central coil needs a battery to operate.

6. Wireless electricity has not yet been used in real products.

7. 3D printing only works with plastic at the moment.

8. 3D printing might be used to produce food in the future.

9. The alert ring makes a sound to inform you of incoming messages.

10. The selfie stick's success was largely due to its timing.

11. There are some places where selfie sticks are not allowed.
Discover New Words
1. However, the technology is not quite up to par compared to the thrilling
device in the science fiction movie.
a. not accessible to regular people
b. not commercially successful
c. not meeting standards or expectations

2. But when you consider the fact that computers used to take up entire rooms,
and now they fit into our pockets – the possibility of a more versatile
hoverboard in the future doesn’t seem so far-fetched.
a. able to do many things
b. commonly used
c. inexpensive

3. 3-D printing has exploded over the past few years, and it is bound to
revolutionize nearly all types of production.
a. become viewed positively
b. destroyed many things
c. increased greatly and suddenly

4. This technology is incredibly valuable for a number of engineering industries,

with the potential to streamline manufacturing processes and reduce
environmental impact.
a. completely eliminate
b. make more attractive
c. make simpler and more efficient

5. Selfie sticks have become so popular that there has been a bit of a backlash –
many people view them as a nuisance, and some museums and sports events
have banned their use.
a. laws making something illegal
b. negative reaction to a trend or event
c. problem with implementation
Vocabulary Quiz

Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

backlash do away with nuisance streamline

big picture far-fetched only a matter of time take up space
blinking in the nick of time refine tripped over
buried not up to par rummaged through

1. Every time there's a concert, it's a real _____________________ because there are
traffic jams all over the city.
2. I _____________________ the trash, looking for the document I'd accidentally
thrown out.
3. If you publish a controversial video online, you have to be prepared for the
_____________________.
4. My kids left their toys all over the floor, and I _____________________ a toy train in
the hallway.
5. The _____________________ red light on the equipment means there's been a
malfunction.
6. The food at the cafe is really _____________________. The ingredients don't seem
very fresh.
7. Do you think we'll be able to achieve world peace, or is that a
_____________________ ideal?
8. We got to the stadium _____________________, just five minutes before the game
started.
9. We need to _____________________ policies that discriminate against women and
minorities.
10. When choosing a college, you have to consider the _____________________ - like
how it will affect your future career prospects.
11. Your writing is pretty good, but I think you need an editor to
_____________________ it a bit more.
12. Those two are fighting constantly. _____________________ before they break up.
Writing Task
Imagine you could invent a new product or service (without being limited by
technology or cost). What would you invent and why? Describe your idea and talk
about how it would make the world a better place. Send your text to
homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. True
2. False
3. True
4. True
5. False
6. False
7. False
8. True
9. False
10. True
11. True

Discover New Words

1. c
2. a
3. c
4. c
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. nuisance
2. rummaged through
3. backlash
4. tripped over
5. blinking
6. not up to par
7. far-fetched
8. in the nick of time
9. do away with
10. big picture
11. refine
12. only a matter of time
The Dark Side of
International Adoption
Each year, approximately 40,000 children join
new families via international adoption. The Vocabulary
procedures and requirements vary from country
to country – some have well-established systems facilitate = make easier
to facilitate the process, while others expressly expressly = clearly,
forbid adopting across borders. without leaving any room
for interpretation/doubt
International adoption is often a lengthy and endeavor = activity or
costly endeavor, and the amount of paperwork effort

may seem onerous. However, it is all done with paperwork = processing of

forms and documents
the end goal of providing a loving and stable
enormous = extremely big
home for the child.
decline = decrease, go
Adopting a child from another country is usually down
a positive experience for both the family and unscrupulous = not caring
child – but it is not without its problems. about what is right or
honorable; having no
Trafficking and Abuse moral principles
desperate = having lost all
The demand for healthy, young children from the hope; willing to do
anything
developing world is enormous – especially as
birth rates in developed countries decline.
Critics of international adoption believe that this
demand is fueling nefarious practices in poorer
countries. With such a large “marketplace,”
unscrupulous profit-seekers can make a lot of
money from desperate Western families who
will pay astronomical fees to adopt a child.
There have even been many cases of children
Vocabulary
being kidnapped from their families and sold to
orphanages. astronomical = extremely
high
In the aftermath of wars and natural disasters,
kidnapped = when a
there is often an outpouring of adoption
person is taken against
requests from foreigners who want to help their will
orphaned children. However, special care should orphanages = centers that
be taken in these cases. It is possible that some of care for children who
don’t have parents or
the child’s relatives may have survived but are relatives
unable to find him/her in the midst of the aftermath = a period of
turmoil. time after a disastrous
event
Due to the problems in the adoption process, outpouring = a sudden
many countries have tightened their adoption and rapid production

regulations considerably. turmoil = a state of

extreme agitation and
Roadblocks to Happiness confusion
tightened = made more
Adopted children may experience a range of strict or difficult
emotional issues. Recurring feelings of rejection recurring = repeating
and abandonment are quite common. If the deceased = dead
child’s birth parents are deceased, he or she may don’t fit in = aren’t
experience even greater feelings of loss. accepted socially; are
different from other
It’s not uncommon for adopted children to feel people
like they don’t fit in, and to have a need to
understand where they came from. This is part of
any normal identity formation process, but can
be more pronounced in international adoptees
that need to discover their own personal
Vocabulary
histories and cultures.

On top of the trauma of being in an unfamiliar trauma = injury to the

body or the emotions
environment, some adopted children have also
acting out = behaving
experienced emotional and physical abuse. The
badly as a result of
combination of these factors can result in the negative feelings
child acting out, and many new adoptive parents nurturing = caring and
are unprepared to cope with their child’s loving

behavioral issues. on the flip side =

considering the
other/opposite side of the
Conclusion
issue

International adoption has provided many people human traffickers =

people who illegally buy
with a nurturing home and opportunities for a
and sell other people
good life. On the flip side, some adoptees are
exacting = demanding;
still dealing with the trauma of being stolen from requiring very careful
their families and sold by human traffickers. adherence

UNICEF estimates that there are 18 million

children without parents in the world, and many
people argue that the exacting regulations are
restricting these children’s chances of finding a
loving family. Do the risks of abuse outweigh the
greater good of international adoptions?
Comprehension Questions
1. 40,000 per year is...
a. the number of families applying to adopt
b. the number of children adopted internationally
c. the number of children harmed by adoption fraud and abuse
2. Adoption rules...
a. are different in each country
b. are established by the U.N.
c. have not been updated in some time
3. The number of people wanting to adopt is...
a. large and increasing
b. small and decreasing
c. not changing much
4. Bad people take advantage of people who are willing to...
a. adopt without having met the child yet
b. send a lot of money to process the adoption
c. travel to an unstable country in hopes of adopting
5. Adoption during war and disaster is risky because...
a. false documents may be used
b. the children might not really be orphans
c. transporting the kids is dangerous
6. Internationally adopted children often feel a strong need to...
a. adopt children themselves later in life
b. know and understand their roots
c. stay close to their adoptive parents
7. The conclusion of the article...
a. condemns international adoption
b. encourages international adoption
c. raises issues and remains neutral
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.
1. International adoption is often a lengthy and costly endeavor, and the amount
of paperwork may seem onerous.
a. completely confusing
b. important to a process
c. troublesome or oppressive, like a burden

2. Critics of international adoption believe that this demand is fueling nefarious

practices in poorer countries.
a. bad, evil
b. hidden
c. illegal

3. Roadblocks to Happiness: Adopted children may experience a range of

emotional issues.
a. journeys
b. necessary elements
c. obstacles

4. This is part of any normal identity formation process, but can be more
pronounced in international adoptees that need to discover their own
personal histories and cultures.
a. more complex
b. more frequently discussed
c. stronger, more distinct

5. Do the risks of abuse outweigh the greater good of international adoptions?

a. be more common than
b. be more significant than
c. harm more people than

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

declined enormous nurturing paperwork roadblock

desperate expressly outpouring pronounced turmoil
endeavor facilitate outweigh recurring unscrupulous

1. The actor _____________________ rejected the contract; he wasn't even willing to

negotiate the terms.
2. In order to import fruit and vegetable seeds, you'll need to fill out this
_____________________ and get special approval.
3. Thanks to vaccines, the instances of these childhood diseases have
_____________________ in the past century.
4. He tried to stay calm, but his emotions were in _____________________ and he
couldn't think straight.
5. The advantages of owning a house _____________________ the disadvantages, so I
decided to go ahead with the purchase.
6. My college offers career counseling to _____________________ students' entry into
the job market.
7. Her last business _____________________ failed due to a bad partnership.
8. The proposal to turn the city park into a shopping center was met with an
_____________________ of public opposition.
9. Hordes of sick people crowded around the hospital, each one
_____________________ to see a doctor.
10. _____________________ police officers sometimes collaborate with criminals in
exchange for a payoff.
11. We saw an _____________________ waterfall in the middle of the jungle - it must
have been ten stories tall.
12. The company has received _____________________ complaints about its customer
service, yet it doesn't seem to care about improving it.
Writing Task
Imagine that you are in charge of reforming the adoption process and creating new
regulations for evaluating families and children. What methods would you use to
assess the suitability of a family to adopt? Should single parents and gay couples be
eligible to adopt a child? How would you evaluate the child’s situation? What kind of
follow-up support would you put in place post-adoption?

Be creative and write up your proposal! Send it to me at

homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction on your written
English.

Answers
Comprehension Questions

1. b
2. a
3. a
4. b
5. b
6. b
7. c

Discover New Words

1. c
2. a
3. c
4. c
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz

1. expressly
2. paperwork
3. declined
4. turmoil
5. outweigh
6. facilitate
7. endeavor
8. outpouring
9. desperate
10. unscrupulous
11. enormous
12. recurring
Meditation – Ancient and Modern
The practice known as “meditation” encompasses a diverse range of mental and
physical exercises that have been used across
cultural and religious contexts throughout history –
the common characteristic being an effort to focus Vocabulary
and regulate one’s attention.
encompasses =
Depending on the context, meditation can be includes
practiced in order to connect with the sacred or sacred = dedicated to
divine, to focus the mind and enhance religious purposes

concentration, or to alleviate and prevent a variety divine = related to

of mental and physical disorders. gods or goddesses

enhance = make
Historically, meditation has developed within better
religious practice as a means of facilitating the
disorders = problems,
worship of deities and sacred objects. However, it abnormal health
has persisted in the Western world, even as
deities = gods and
religious belief declines, due to growing popular goddesses
acceptance of its physical and psychological scholars = people who
benefits. study and research a
topic in depth
Meditation has its roots deep in human history;
played a key role =
some scholars claim that it played a key role in had an important
the final stages of our biological evolution by aiding action
the brain’s development of the capacity for focused aiding = helping
attention and working memory.
Meditation was a prominent aspect of many
ancient eastern belief systems, with the first
Vocabulary
known written references dating back to around
1500 BC. These were in the form of Hindu scriptures = holy
scriptures putting forth the concept of Dhyana, religious texts

which outlined a way to arrive at a more profound = deep and

profound awareness of the self and one’s meaningful

surroundings through concentrated introspection = thinking

about yourself and your
introspection.
own feelings and
thoughts
Similar concerns underlie Taoist concepts as well
as the Buddhist Zen technique. Judaism, underlie = is the basis
or foundation of
Christianity, and Islam also have traditions of
disciplined inner reflection undertaken with the disciplined = done with
controlled behavior
goal of bringing oneself closer to God.
undertaken = done,
In spite of the secular turn that much of the performed
Western world has steadily been taking, secular = not religious
meditation has not lost its appeal. New variants
steadily = consistently,
of spiritual practices such as the New Age not varying
movement and Yoga have incorporated incorporated = added;
meditation in their routines. Meanwhile, included
psychologists and counsellors have made use of fad = something
meditation techniques with clients. popular that will later
fall out of fashion
Skeptics may dismiss meditation as a superficial
meditation veterans =
fad, but there is an expanding body of scientific people who are
evidence demonstrating its positive effects. Long- experienced in
meditation
term meditation appears to result in structural
changes to the brain – one study showed that gray matter = brain
tissue
meditation veterans lose less gray matter as
they age. Numerous studies have proven that
meditation can sharpen memory, attention,
verbal fluency, mental function and creativity. Vocabulary

According to the Mayo Clinic, meditation may sharpen = improve, make

more powerful and
also help in managing the symptoms of
accurate
illnesses such as heart disease, cancer, anxiety
symptoms = signs and
and asthma, as well as in contributing to
effects of a disease
emotional well-being by helping to manage
asthma = a chronic
stress, focus on the present, reduce negative respiratory problem
emotions and increase self-awareness.
a core element = an
essential part
Despite being a core element of ancient
religious beliefs and customs, the practice of validity = being true or
proven; being valid
meditation has managed to embed itself
quite comfortably in the secular West thanks practitioners = people
who practice it
to its demonstrated scientific validity.
counterbalance = act as a
For many practitioners, meditation helps force against another
force
counterbalance the hectic and disorienting
nature of modern life. The practice of disorienting = makes you
confused and lost
meditation is remarkable in the degree to
which it has bridged tradition and modernity bridged = made a
connection between
as well as religion and science.
Sources & Further Reading:

• When mindfulness meets the classroom

• Did meditating make us human?
• Meditation: a simple, fast way to reduce stress
• Effective use of mindfulness meditation in reducing sleep disturbance
• Long-term meditation tied to less brain loss

Comprehension Questions
True or false according to the article?

1. Meditation comes primarily from a single culture

2. The number of religious people in the Western world is going down
3. Meditation may have helped the human brain evolve
4. The first recorded reference to meditation comes from Hindu writings
5. There is nothing similar to meditation in Jewish, Christian, or Islamic
tradition
6. The New Age movement makes use of meditation
7. There is scientific evidence supporting the effectiveness of meditation
8. Meditation can improve psychological aspects, but not physical aspects
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Depending on the context, meditation can be practiced in order to connect

with the sacred or divine, to focus the mind and enhance concentration, or
to alleviate and prevent a variety of mental and physical disorders.
a. increase or develop
b. know and understand
c. make a problem less intense

2. In spite of the secular turn that much of the Western world has steadily
been taking, meditation has not lost its appeal.
a. effectiveness
b. power to attract interest
c. religious significance

3. Skeptics may dismiss meditation as a superficial fad, but there is an

expanding body of scientific evidence demonstrating its positive effects.
a. people who are hesitant to believe something
b. people who aren't willing to improve themselves
c. people who don't practice enough

4. Despite being a core element of ancient religious beliefs and customs, the
practice of meditation has managed to embed itself quite comfortably in
the secular West thanks to its demonstrated scientific validity.
a. become established
b. change and evolve
c. make people tired

5. For many practitioners, meditation helps counterbalance the hectic and

disorienting nature of modern life.
a. crazy and chaotic
b. easy and convenient
c. sad and depressing

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

alleviate disciplined fad skeptic underlying

appeal encompasses hectic steadily undertaking
deity enhance sacred symptoms validity

1. Confessing what I'd done helped _________________________ my guilt.

2. His grades have improved _________________________ ever since he started
working with a tutor.
3. My aunt is a real _________________________. She even thinks the moon landing
was fake.
4. This course _________________________ literature from the 17th, 18th, and 19th
centuries.
5. Some athletes take supplements to _________________________ their
performance.
6. That bowl is considered a _________________________ object; it was once used in
rituals in the temple.
7. When I was a teenager, wearing baggy clothes was a _________________________.
8. The _________________________ don't appear until about a week after you've
been infected.
9. Wanting to be closer to her family was the _________________________ factor in
her decision to move.
10. My dog panicked when I took him for a walk on the _________________________
city streets.
11. Why is heavy metal music so popular? I just don't see the
_________________________.
12. The suspect said he was at home at the time of the crime, but the police
doubt the _________________________ of his story.
Writing Task
Describe some of your spiritual or religious beliefs/practices. If you’re not
religious, then you can describe your main guiding philosophies instead. Send
your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. False
2. True
3. True
4. True
5. False
6. True
7. True
8. False

Discover New Words

1. c
2. b
3. a
4. a
5. a
Vocabulary Quiz
1. alleviate
2. steadily
3. skeptic
4. encompasses
5. enhance
6. sacred
7. fad
8. symptoms
9. underlying
10. hectic
11. appeal
12. validity
How to Stay
Motivated Vocabulary

tedious = boring,
Staying motivated can be a real struggle.
monotonous (no variation
Sometimes the task at hand is too difficult or interest)
or too tedious to maintain your interest. get sidetracked = get
Sometimes you get sidetracked. distracted by something
that is not in line with your
Sometimes you feel crushed by the sheer main goal
number of your responsibilities, and it
crushed = completely
seems easier to give up or ignore them. destroyed by pressure

sheer = only, without

How can we optimize our behavior in considering anything else
(the number itself is great
order to get the job done? Here are a few
enough to make things
things that can grease the wheels. difficult, regardless of the
difficulty of the actual
responsibilities)
Create a Constructive
optimize = make
Environment something the best it can
be
If your space isn’t conducive to work,
grease the wheels = make
you’re apt to become scatter-brained. things run more smoothly
Consider the following questions when
apt to = have a natural
arranging your workspace: tendency to
• Do you have good lighting?
scatter-brained =
• Is it noisy? distracted, thinking about
many different things
• Do your surroundings remind you
of all the other things that need to
be accomplished?
 • Is it too cluttered?
• Do you have everything needed to
Vocabulary
do your work at hand?
• Are you inspired or distracted by cluttered = having too
many objects occupying a
decorations like photos,
space
motivational images or quotes,
at hand = available, close
plants, etc.? to you
Making your workspace a cocoon of
cocoon = small, enclosed
productivity will help you get down to space
business.
get down to business =
begin doing something
seriously
Change Your Routine
in a rut = stuck in the same
routine
Ask yourself: do you feel burnt out?
vary = change, do
Perhaps you’re in a rut, and that’s what is
differently
slowing you down. If this is the case, try
change of pace = a shift in
changing your habits. your normal routine

spark = cause to appear,

Maybe working at a different time of day, create
or from a different location, will be a
breath of fresh air. Other things you can
vary include your meals or background
music. A change of pace might spark
some new ideas.
Make a List

This is a time-honored trick for Vocabulary

approaching multiple tasks. A slew of
chores rattling around in your head time-honored = respected
because it has been useful
always seems less daunting and more for a long time
manageable when outlined on paper. And
slew = a large number
the best part of making a list is the
satisfaction when you can cross off an rattling around = moving
around and making lots of
item. noise

cross off = draw a line

Small Tasks through some words to
eliminate them

bite-sized = small enough

When writing your to-do list, break large
to be manageable
jobs down into small, bite-sized parts. For
instance, if your goal is to write a book,
don’t consider that a single task. That can
be intimidating – and you’ll never finish it
in a day.

Instead, tell yourself, “Today, all I need to

do is write one dialogue.” Because that
task is more achievable, you’re more likely
to dive in and finish.
Set Up a Rewards System

Everybody likes to be compensated for

Vocabulary
their work, and you can reward yourself,
compensated = receiving
too. Choose something you enjoy, and then something in exchange for
your work/effort
set a reasonable goal to reach before you
can have it. For example, “If I study for an leisure = relaxation,
entertainment, what you
hour, then I can relax with one episode of do for fun
my favorite television show.” Setting a
binge = consume too much
limit to your leisure makes you less likely
to binge on it – and you can enjoy your peak = highest point

reward guilt-free once the work is done. well-oiled = saying

something is a “well-oiled
machine” means it
Take Care of Yourself operates very well and
very efficiently

push yourself = pressure

Your body is a machine, and in order for it
yourself to accomplish
to function at its peak, you must keep it more
well oiled. How can you do this? Easy: eat acuity = ability to think
healthy food, exercise regularly, sleep and perceive clearly and
accurately
enough, and don’t push yourself too hard.
All of these factors improve your physical on top of your game =
performing at your best
self, which improves your mental acuity
and helps you feel on top of your game— supercharge = greatly
increase the power of
and this can supercharge your
productivity.
Comprehension Questions

1. The article recommends designing your workspace...

a. from a very minimalist perspective
b. in a way that helps you be productive
c. with inspirational images
2. According to the text, established routines...
a. are the best way to be consistently productive
b. make you more creative
c. might cause you to get stuck
3. When you make a list...
a. it makes the number of tasks seem greater
b. it helps the tasks seem achievable
c. it gives you a concrete reminder
4. If you want to write a book, you should...
a. ask for help in organizing the project
b. focus on getting small parts of it done
c. make it the first task you work on every day
5. One important aspect to the "reward" is that it should...
a. be something you can do with other people
b. be totally different from the task
c. have a specific limit
6. The final tip says you should NOT...
a. pressure yourself to do too much
b. eat while working
c. sleep too much
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. If your space isn’t conducive to work, you’re apt to become scatter-

brained.
a. comfortable, enjoyable
b. helping, contributing
c. reserved, protected

2. Ask yourself: do you feel burnt out? Perhaps you’re in a rut, and that’s
what is slowing you down.
a. angry or upset about your responsibilities
b. completely exhausted by too much work
c. excluded by your coworkers

3. Maybe working at a different time of day, or from a different location,

will be a breath of fresh air.
a. healthy for you, physically and mentally
b. necessary for survival
c. something new/different, and pleasant

4. A slew of chores rattling around in your head always seems less

daunting and more manageable when outlined on paper.
a. boring, completely lacking fun
b. clear, obvious to anybody
c. intimidating, causes fear or apprehension

5. Because that task is more achievable, you’re more likely to dive in and
finish.
a. perform excellently
b. start enthusiastically
c. understand easily

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

apt cluttered dive into sheer supercharged

burnt out conducive peak sidetracked tedious
change of pace daunting rut slew vary

1. The needs of our clients _____________________ - we've helped everyone

from independent artists to small businesses.
2. Before we _____________________ this project, let's make sure everyone
understands their roles.
3. Customers are having a hard time finding things in the store because
the shelves are so _____________________.
4. Hey everyone - let's try to stick to the meeting agenda and not get
_____________________.
5. I took pages and pages of notes by hand, and now I have the
_____________________ job of typing them all up.
6. There's a _____________________ of requirements you have to meet in order
to be a pilot.
7. If you criticize his work, he's _____________________ to take offense.
8. My dad quit his 25-year career in advertising, saying he needed a
_____________________.
9. She's been working two jobs for the past year, so she's feeling rather
_____________________.
10. The prospect of reading a 700-page novel might be _____________________,
but the story's actually quite interesting.
11. At its _____________________, the factory produced 100,000 pairs of shoes
per year.
12. If there are too many kids in the classroom, then the environment is
not _____________________ to learning.
Writing Task
Think about an area where you can give some tips, advice, or teach someone
“how to” do something. It can be practical (like how to build, make, or fix
something) or more philosophical (like how to improve yourself or your
relationships). Write an instructional text like this one, giving 3-4 of your best
tips. Send your writing to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback!

Answers

Comprehension Questions
1. b
2. c
3. b
4. b
5. c
6. a

Discover New Words

1. b
2. b
3. c
4. c
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. vary
2. dive into
3. cluttered
4. sidetracked
5. tedious
6. slew
7. apt
8. change of pace
9. burnt out
10. daunting
11. peak
12. conducive
Oprah Winfrey
Vocabulary
Oprah Winfrey is a self-made media mogul,
having succeeded as an entrepreneur, television self-made = achieved
talk show host, actress, publisher, producer, and success with her own
efforts
philanthropist. Today, she is one of only seven
black billionaires in the world. Although Oprah is mogul = a very rich or
powerful person
now a household name, she rose to these
philanthropist = someone
heights from very humble beginnings.
who gives to charity or
good causes
Winfrey was born to a teenage single mother in a
small farming community. The name on her birth humble beginnings =
starting very small with
certificate is actually Orpah, but people
few resources
mispronounced it until the misconception stuck.
stuck = stayed and
Her childhood was marked by hardship, became permanent
including extreme poverty (she often wore potato
hardship = difficulty or
sacks for dresses) and sexual molestation by suffering
relatives and friends of her mother. After thirteen
sacks = large bags
years of such suffering, she fled and moved in
a full ride = a scholarship
with her father in Nashville, who prioritized her paying 100% of her
education. education

rose through the ranks =

After winning an oratory contest, she was
increased in status or
awarded a full ride to Tennessee State position
University, where she studied communication.
She then rose through the ranks of radio and
television broadcasting, becoming both the
youngest news anchor and the first black female
news anchor of Nashville’s WLAC-TV. In 1978,
she expanded her repertoire, hosting
Baltimore’s local talk show People Are Talking
Vocabulary
as well as the local rendition of Dialing for
Dollars. rendition = version

In 1983, a Chicago TV station recruited Oprah recruited = hired

to host a low-rated morning talk show called charismatic = describes

AM Chicago. After the charismatic Winfrey someone who other people
easily like
joined the program, the ratings skyrocketed,
skyrocketed = went up
and the show went from last place to first place.
extremely fast and high
It wasn’t long before AM Chicago was renamed
mounting = increasing
The Oprah Winfrey Show and expanded to a full
hour timeslot. Thanks to her mounting landed a role = managed to
get a part
popularity and fame, Winfrey landed a role in
empathy = ability to
Steven Spielberg’s 1985 film The Color Purple,
understand or identify with
which earned her an Academy Award another person’s situation
nomination for Best Supporting Actress. or feelings

gossipy = talking about

The Oprah Winfrey Show was revolutionary in
other people’s lives/secrets
its curiosity, thoughtfulness, generosity of spirit,
confessional = admitting
good humor, and empathy. She bucked the
bad things or secret feelings
trend of gossipy talk shows, instead
intimate = very personal
concentrating on important issues, with special and close
emphasis on confessional therapy in an
intimate setting. The program was also famous
for its audience-wide giveaways, and it became
so wildly popular that it earned $125 million in
its first year.
Since the takeoff of her talk show, Oprah has
conquered many other avenues of media, including
Vocabulary
co-founding two television networks, authoring
five books, publishing two magazines, and a force to be reckoned
launching a radio channel. with = important and
powerful and can’t be
Today, Oprah Winfrey is a force to be reckoned ignored

with. Her powerful influence on public opinion has dubbed = called

been dubbed “The Oprah Effect,” as her
endorsements = support
endorsements have a profound impact on and promotion
politicians, musicians, charitable organizations, tackled = engaged,
and actors. She has also tackled social issues discussed, dealt with

including hormone therapy, homosexual rights, postpartum depression

spirituality, and postpartum depression – some = depression
experienced after giving
even say she has more sway over the American
birth
people than the president.
humanitarian = helping
Oprah was also the first black person to rank poor, injured, or sick
people
among the 50 most generous Americans, having
state-of-the-art = very
given away over $400 million to educational and
modern
humanitarian causes. One of her projects is a
dysfunctional = not
state-of-the-art school for girls in South Africa,
functioning properly
which is attended by 450 students.
powerhouse = one that
Despite her dysfunctional upbringing, Oprah has great force or energy

Winfrey used her talent and determination to

become an undeniable powerhouse in our
modern world, and an inspiration to many.
Comprehension Questions
According to the article, are these statements true or false?

1. Oprah is a billionaire.

2. She was born in an urban area.

3. Her father sexually abused her.

4. She started a company instead of going to college.

5. Her first jobs were in radio and television.

6. Oprah was invited to host a first-place talk show.

7. She has appeared in a movie.

8. Her talk show was successful from the beginning.

9. Oprah has expanded into other types of media.

10. She avoids potentially controversial social issues.

11. Oprah uses her wealth to help others.

12. She established a school in Guatemala.

Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Although Oprah is now a household name, she rose to these heights from
very humble beginnings.
a. someone who almost everyone has heard of
b. someone who knows a lot about home life
c. someone who has an unusual history

2. After thirteen years of such suffering, she fled and moved in with her father
in Nashville, who prioritized her education.
a. grew up
b. ran away, escaped
c. rebelled

3. In 1978, she expanded her repertoire, hosting Baltimore’s local talk show
People Are Talking as well as the local rendition of Dialing for Dollars.
a. developed her network of professional contacts
b. grew her audience and popularity
c. increased her range of skills or accomplishments

4. She bucked the trend of gossipy talk shows, instead concentrating on

important issues, with special emphasis on confessional therapy in an
intimate setting.
a. actively opposed
b. took inspiration from many other sources
c. was different from what was typical

5. … some even say she has more sway over the American people than the
president.
a. money
b. influence
c. political power

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

buck the trend mounting skyrocketed

charismatic powerhouse state-of-the-art
endorsed recruiting stuck
fled repertoire sway
hardship rose through the ranks tackling

1. After the construction of a new shopping center, the area became a very
desirable place to live and real estate prices __________________________.
2. He gave his best arguments in the presentation, but he still wasn't able to
__________________________ anybody in the group.
3. The new manager immediately got to work on __________________________ the
problems that were making the department inefficient.
4. I was amazed that the kids in the refugee camp were able to laugh and have
fun despite the __________________________.
5. She is a very versatile dancer; her __________________________ includes jazz, hip-
hop, and classical ballet.
6. The bank robber __________________________ from the cops in a stolen vehicle.
7. I'm not sure if this study is trustworthy; it hasn't been __________________________
by any reputable scientific organization.
8. He started out as an administrative assistant and __________________________ until
becoming a vice-president of the company.
9. The tech company is __________________________ promising young computer
science students from colleges across the country.
10. They didn't have health insurance, so they had to take on extra jobs to cover
their son's __________________________ medical expenses.
11. Tourism is down this season, but my parents' travel agency is managing to
__________________________, with a record number of clients.
12. The oil industry is the economic __________________________ of the country,
representing 70% of its exports.
Writing Task
Some people believe that success is due to hard work. Others believe that luck and
circumstances play a significant role. How do you view the balance between
individual action and broader environmental factors? Are people poor due to their
own fault, or is it the fault of society? Do rich and successful people owe their
position to privilege, or is it the result of their own effort?

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback on your written

English!
Answers
Comprehension Questions

1. True
2. False
3. False
4. False
5. True
6. False
7. True
8. True
9. True
10. False
11. True
12. False

Discover New Words

1. a
2. b
3. c
4. c
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz

1. skyrocketed
2. sway
3. tackling
4. hardship
5. repertoire
6. fled
7. endorsed
8. rose through the ranks
9. recruiting
10. mounting
11. buck the trend
12. powerhouse
Parenting Styles Around the World
It’s a given that all parents want what's best for
their children. But depending on their culture,
“what’s best” could mean wildly different things. Vocabulary
Some parents try to keep their kids safe at all
costs, while others cultivate independence in a given = something
their offspring. There are parents who prioritize that is assumed to be
academic achievement, and other parents who true
just want their children to be healthy and happy, at all costs =
regardless of their levels of success. regardless of the
expense/effort
It's not just language and food that separate these
necessary; no matter
different countries. Let's take a look at how their what
parenting styles differ too.
offspring = children
Western Europe laid back = relaxed
While French parents can seem fairly laid back fretting over =
when it comes to parenting, they're actually worrying about
pretty strict. You might not see them fretting
non-negotiable =
over every little thing their child does, but respect cannot be debated or
for adults is a non-negotiable. The French also negotiated
take a hands-off approach and expect their kids
despise = hate
to be independent from an early age.
loved ones = relatives
Meanwhile, the sociable Spaniards place a huge or close friends
amount of importance on spending time with
family. Kids who despise early bedtimes would child-rearing = the
practice of raising
love Spain, where parents let their children stay
children
up late in order to be with their loved ones.
knee-jerk reaction = a
British parents take a fairly democratic approach quick, impulsive
to child-rearing. Instead of simply punishing a reaction without
troublesome child in a knee-jerk reaction, they'll thinking
first explain exactly what they did wrong. They
also hold their kids to a high standard of
politeness and manners, aiming to raise well-
adjusted children. Vocabulary
Scandinavia well-adjusted = mentally
Norwegian mothers enjoy a generous amount and emotionally stable
of maternity leave – up to a year at 80% pay. maternity leave = time a
After a child’s first birthday, he or she spends a woman can take off from
good portion of the day in daycare. The work to have a baby
daycare centers are subsidized by the state in daycare = a place where
order to encourage parents to return to the children are cared for
workforce. during the day
In both Norway and Denmark, there is an workforce = group of
obsession with getting kids as much fresh air people who are actively
as possible. Danish parents will park their working
strollers outside the stores while they shop. strollers = baby carriages
Meanwhile, Norwegian parents often have with wheels
children take their daily nap outside, even if
nap = short period of time
it's snowing. sleeping during the day

Africa nobody bats an eye =

nobody thinks it’s strange
In Kenya and the Democratic Republic of the
Congo, nobody bats an eye at the idea of sling = a piece of fabric
used to hold something
sharing breastmilk. Most moms carry their
up in a stable way
babies on their backs in a sling, and it’s
culturally acceptable to nurse anytime and nurse = feed the baby
anywhere. with breastmilk
tight-knit = having close
Tight-knit families and communities play a
relationships
major role in caring for children. Occasionally,
children will go to live with another relative or ethos = character or
even another family if their own parents are values of a culture or
overburdened. There is an ethos of shared movement
responsibility when it comes to childcare.

East Asia
China is similar in that grandparents often live
with the family and participate in a child's
upbringing. The Chinese, in general, have a
huge amount of respect for elders – more than
most Western cultures. Vocabulary
South Koreans are similar in that parents are
very involved with their children’s lives and elders = older adults, or
people older than you
push them to succeed. The parent-child
relationship is more formal in Asian countries, it’s not unheard of = not
and even adult children must defer to their unusual, not rare
parents’ needs. However, it is a kid-friendly have qualms about =
culture and many grocery stores and malls have an uneasy/upset
have free play areas for kids to pass the time as feeling about
their parents shop.
Japanese children have a high degree of
independence - it's not unheard of for
children to ride the subway by themselves
even as young as five. Parents tend to
emphasize being considerate of others and not
rocking the boat.

United States
Parents in the United States highly value self-
expression and individuality – yet many have
qualms about letting their kids out of their
sight. One common theme in the U.S. is trying
to be the child’s friend rather than an authority figure.
American parents seem to have a lot of variety and different influences in how
they raise kids. That's not surprising, considering the population's diverse
backgrounds.
Comprehension Questions
1. French parents expect their kids to...
a. dress well
b. eat healthy food
c. respect adults
2. The Spanish let their kids stay up late so that they...
a. can spend time with family
b. have more time to play
c. will sleep more soundly
3. When a British child misbehaves, the parents tend to...
a. have the child see a counselor
b. make sure the child understands what he/she did
c. punish the child in a non-physical way
4. When a Norwegian child turns one, he/she usually...
a. accompanies his/her mother to work
b. enters childcare
c. starts school
5. In some African countries, it's considered OK for mothers to...
a. feed their babies in public
b. have their children work
c. leave their children home alone during the day
6. China and South Korea are both characterized by...
a. excellent formal schooling
b. high respect for the older generation
c. low numbers of babies and children
7. Japanese parents would most likely be upset if their child...
a. did something that harmed another person
b. had no social life
c. left the house alone
8. American parents often want their kids to...
a. be friendly
b. have a diverse group of friends
c. express their unique personalities
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.
1. The French also take a hands-off approach and expect their kids to be
independent from an early age.
a. avoiding showing affection
b. little or no involvement/control
c. not using physical punishment

2. The daycare centers are subsidized by the state in order to encourage

parents to return to the workforce.
a. evaluated by
b. paid for by
c. required by

3. Occasionally, children will go to live with another relative or even another

family if their own parents are overburdened.
a. have too much work/responsibility
b. injured or killed
c. unable to provide food/necessities

4. The parent-child relationship is more formal in Asian countries, and even

adult children must defer to their parents’ needs.
a. communicate extensively with someone
b. protect someone from problems
c. submit to someone else's authority

5. Parents tend to emphasize being considerate of others and not rocking

the boat.
a. disturbing the current calm situation
b. going somewhere without preparation
c. putting yourself first

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

at all costs elders knee-jerk overburdened

defers fretted over laid back rock the boat
despise hands-off non-negotiable tight-knit
didn't bat an eye have qualms about not unheard of

1. I ______________________ cold weather. If I could, I'd move to a tropical climate.

2. My parents both had careers in the performing arts, so they
______________________ when I told them I wanted to join the circus.
3. I feel bad for swearing at the guy. It was just my ______________________
response to his insults.
4. The dress code in this company is quite ______________________. You can wear
jeans and even shorts to work if you want.
5. My manager is pretty ______________________. She gives you a project and
expects you to do it independently.
6. Everyone in the department is ______________________; we really need to hire a
few more people.
7. Sorry, but I'm not authorized to give any discounts. The price is
______________________.
8. I disagreed with the rest of the group, but I went along with it because I
didn't want to ______________________.
9. The pharmaceutical field is very lucrative. Six-figure starting salaries are
______________________.
10. We ______________________ buying an older house because we're concerned
about having to spend a lot of money on repairs.
11. I had a ______________________ group of friends in high school, and we've kept
in touch for more than 10 years since we graduated.
12. My sister always ______________________ to her boyfriend. I wish she'd stand
up for her own opinions once in a while.
Writing Task
Describe your parents (or relatives who raised you). What kind of people are
they? What are the main values they emphasized in your upbringing? Send your
text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers

Comprehension Questions
1. c
2. a
3. b
4. b
5. a
6. b
7. a
8. c

Discover New Words

1. b
2. b
3. a
4. c
5. a
Vocabulary Quiz
1. despise
2. didn't bat an eye
3. knee-jerk
4. laid back
5. hands-off
6. overburdened
7. non-negotiable
8. rock the boat
9. not unheard of
10. have qualms about
11. tight-knit
12. defers
Disastrous Dating
Pet Peeves Vocabulary

Dating can be fun and exciting, but the pet peeve = something that
especially annoys a person
foibles of the opposite sex can also drive
foibles = minor character flaws
you crazy. Let’s look at the top dating gripes or strange things about a
from both a male and a female perspective. person

gripes = complaints
Men on women a big no-no = something you
should definitely not do
1: Tweeting or Facebooking over dinner is a exasperate = make very
big no-no. If you really want to exasperate annoyed, impatient, or angry

your date, take a picture of your expensive entrée = main dish in a

restaurant
entrée, nibble at it, and then claim you can’t
nibble = eat very tiny bites
possibly eat any more because it’s full of
visibly = obviously, it’s easy to
calories! see

conceal = hide
2: If you are visibly upset about something,
bottle up = keep inside
and we ask what’s wrong, don’t just say
unleash = release (especially
“nothing” – men prefer candor to guessing
something dangerous)
games. The worst thing you can do is to
riled up = angry and upset
conceal or bottle up your emotions, only to
ex = former romantic partner
unleash them at a later time when the guy
singing his praises = saying
probably won’t even remember the incident great things about him

you’re still riled up over. trashing him = saying terrible

things about him
3: Talking about your ex – regardless of goes on and on = talks without
whether you’re singing his praises or stopping

trashing him. This is especially bad on a a red flag = a warning sign that
danger is ahead
first date – when a girl goes on and on
about her ex-boyfriend, it’s a major red flag.
4: Overdoing the makeup can also be a
turnoff. Most men actually prefer a more
natural look in which makeup is used
Vocabulary
tastefully to accent your best features. overdoing = doing too much
Don’t plaster on more makeup than turnoff = something that makes
you lose romantic/sexual interest
normal.
tastefully = appropriately
Women on men accent = call attention to,
emphasize
1: Not listening. We all know that men plaster on = apply a liquid or
sometimes space out, go on autopilot and cream in great quantity

interject with the occasional “yeah” or space out = get lost in your
thoughts or simply stop paying
“hmm.” This doesn’t fool women one bit, attention to things around you
and it’s very bad form to daydream about go on autopilot = do habitual
actions without consciously
the weekend sports games while a woman
thinking about them
is trying to get to know you. If this
daydream = letting your mind
becomes a habit, it can be a deal-breaker wander or fantasize about other
things while you are awake
in a relationship.
deal-breaker = a specific thing
2: Coming off as a ‘know-it-all’. When men that will cause an agreement or
relationship to fail
are nervous or insecure, they sometimes
know it all = someone who
try too hard to impress. This can manifest arrogantly displays their
itself in bragging or even belittling their knowledge

insecure = not self-confident

date’s experiences and opinions in order to
belittling = treat or speak of as
make themselves seem superior. Instead of
inferior
oversharing about your achievements,
snippets = tiny bits
offer little snippets of information to
yawning = opening her mouth
create a little intrigue. If your date is wide due to being tired or bored

yawning and checking her phone, it’s a

sign that you’re talking too much.
3: Ordering for your date. This is not
chivalrous, it’s just arrogant – especially
on a first date when you have little to no
Vocabulary
idea what your female companion likes or chivalrous = consideration and
courtesy of men towards women
dislikes. Your date can fend for herself,
inhibited = reserved and hesitant
and that includes ordering her own dish.
between the sheets = an indirect
4: Asking about sex too soon. Although way to say matters involving sex

nowadays we are all far less inhibited jump the gun = do something
too fast, before the appropriate
when it comes to talking about what goes time
on between the sheets, don’t jump the sleazy = vulgar or characterized
gun. Early on in a relationship – and by bad character

especially on the first encounter – it’s can of worms = complicated and

problematic situation
rather sleazy to ask whether a woman
infuriating = makes you angry
enjoys a particular sex act or not!
vague = general, not specific
Communication while dating can also be a coming on too strong = being
too aggressive
can of worms. Women often find it
know where they stand = know
infuriating how long men can take to
what their position is and what
respond to text messages and how vague another person thinks about
them and expects them to
they can be about plans. Meanwhile, men behave
can be hesitant to text or call too much for empathy = understanding and
fear of coming on too strong, especially identifying with someone else’s
situation and emotions
early in a relationship when they don’t yet
know where they stand.

It simply takes patience and empathy for

men and women to put up with each
other’s flaws and have a healthy, mutually
satisfying relationship.
Comprehension Questions
True or false according to the article?

1. Men like it when their date doesn't eat much

2. Men feel good when their date talks badly about her ex

3. The article recommends using no makeup at all

4. Men should beware of talking too much about themselves

5. Women find it chivalrous when their date orders for them

6. It's better to avoid asking about sex on the first date

7. Women wish men would be more specific with plans

8. Men are sometimes reluctant to contact a woman too often

Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.
1. If you are visibly upset about something, and we ask what’s wrong, don’t
just say “nothing” – men prefer candor to guessing games.
a. direct and honest communication
b. a positive attitude
c. a person who perceives others' emotions

2. This doesn’t fool women one bit, and it’s very bad form to daydream about
the weekend sports games while a woman is trying to get to know you.
a. annoy
b. deceive
c. ignore

3. Instead of oversharing about your achievements, offer little snippets of

information to create a little intrigue.
a. flirtatious conversation
b. interest and curiosity
c. strong image/reputation

4. Your date can fend for herself, and that includes ordering her own dish.
a. feel good about herself
b. protect herself
c. provide for her own needs

5. It simply takes patience and empathy for men and women to put up with
each other’s flaws and have a healthy, mutually satisfying relationship.
a. correct or improve
b. identify
c. tolerate
Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with an expression from the box. Three are not used.

belittle exasperated infuriating riled up trashes

can of worms fend for insecure singing his praises visibly
conceal go on and on jump the gun spaced out yawned

1. A skilled makeup artist can completely _________________ blemishes and

imperfections.
2. After a car accident, it's possible to have internal bleeding even if you're
not _________________ injured.
3. Growing up in a rough neighborhood, I learned to _________________ myself
from an early age.
4. I know you're anxious to book the flights, but let's not _________________ - I'm
not even sure I can get the time off from work yet.
5. Let's not even get into how all major religions borrowed elements from
others; that's really a _________________.
6. My parents loved the tour guide, they've been _________________ to all their
friends.
7. Okay, okay, I get your point. You don't have to _________________ about it.
8. She's nice to her neighbors to their faces, but then she _________________ them
behind their backs.
9. The delivery was 3 weeks late, and then the package contained the wrong
product! I was so _________________.
10. You've _________________ a bunch of times in the past few minutes. Do you
want me to take over the driving so you can rest?
11. My dogs got _________________ when a stray dog wandered into the yard -
they nearly attacked it.
12. I don't think people should get plastic surgery just because they're
____________________ about their looks.
Writing Task
Describe some things that you are willing to put up with in a romantic
relationship, and some things that are deal-breakers for you. Also, some people
believe that a partner should love you “just the way you are,” whereas other
people think you should help/encourage your partner to change. What do you
think? Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback!

Answers
Comprehension Questions

1. False
2. False
3. False
4. True
5. False
6. True
7. True
8. True

Discover New Words

1. a
2. b
3. b
4. c
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz

1. conceal
2. visibly
3. fend for myself
4. jump the gun
5. can of worms
6. singing his praises
7. go on and on
8. trashes
9. exasperated
10. yawned
11. riled up
12. insecure
The Challenge of Reducing Poverty
Poverty reduction is often at the forefront of
international discussion, with a plethora of
government agencies, think tanks, NGOs and
Vocabulary
international institutions laboring to achieve
this objective.
at the forefront = in a
Eradicating extreme poverty is one of the position of importance and
U.N.’s Millennium Development Goals. The attention
aim is to halve both the number of people
a plethora = a large
whose income is less than $1 a day and the
number
number of people who suffer from hunger. It
is a noble cause – but how should we go laboring = working hard
about it?
eradicating = eliminating
In spite of a practically universal consensus
halve = reduce by half
on the need for poverty reduction, there are
noticeable divergences when it comes to a noble cause = a morally
concrete proposals to this end. Some of the excellent effort
differences stem from the definitions of
go about it = proceed in
poverty itself, while others are based on
doing it
contrasting opinions about which strategies
are most effective. stem from = come from

International institutions such as the United engaged in = involved and

Nations, the World Bank and the International active in
Monetary Fund (IMF) are engaged in
albeit = although, but
defining and measuring global poverty, as
well as in overseeing programs aimed at quick fix = simple, fast
reducing it, albeit to varying degrees of solution
success. There is no quick fix to poverty,
tied to = connected to
which is tied to numerous aspects of society
and everyday life, such as government,
education, housing, healthcare and income.
Before proceeding with our analysis, it may
be useful to clarify some existing definitions
of poverty.
To start with, the distinction between absolute
poverty and relative poverty is a potentially
illuminating one. Absolute poverty measures Vocabulary
the phenomenon in purely economic terms, by
assessing whether an individual or a family has illuminating = something
sufficient financial resources to procure that will make things
staples such as food, clothing and shelter. It is clear or help you
therefore a somewhat narrow definition in that understand
it restricts the criteria to the basic necessities of
purely = only
survival, without considering factors such as
quality of life and societal inequalities. procure = get

The concept of relative poverty addresses some staples = basic, essential

of these shortcomings by broadening the items
scope of the definition to account for income
narrow = focused and
inequality within societies. It defines poverty
specific
by assessing a person’s position in society
relative to the predominant living standards in shortcomings = flaws or
that societal context. lacks

Both of these definitions of poverty have come broadening = making

under fire for placing too much emphasis on wider or bigger
economic status while overlooking factors
predominant = majority,
such as personal and community
strongest
empowerment, as well as the extent to which
people can freely exercise their civic, political overlooking = ignoring
and social rights.
Nonetheless = Still,
Nonetheless, the concepts of absolute and Despite this, or Even so
relative poverty have been vital to the
vital = essential
development of poverty-reduction strategies.
The former has typically been used to measure carries more weight = is
global poverty, and the latter carries more more important or
weight within specific national contexts. applicable

In discussing global poverty reduction, one surfaces = appears,

topic that often surfaces is the relationship comes up in the
between the developed world and the discussion
developing world – along with conflicting
opinions about the nature of this relationship.
On one hand, Zambian-born economist
Dambisa Moyo has written prolifically about
how the trillions of dollars that Western Vocabulary
countries have spent on aid have been
ineffective in reducing poverty. Instead, she prolifically = producing a
argues, this deluge of funds has served to keep lot of work
the African continent in a state of ‘aid
advocates = supports,
dependence.’ Moyo advocates free market
argues in favor of
policies such as trade and financial
liberalization as being more promising paths to chief = main, top
economic growth.
adverse = negative
On the other hand, Joseph Stiglitz, former chief
pushed upon = forced
economist at the World Bank, has highlighted
upon or strongly
the adverse effects of these same free market
encouraged
policies and the manner in which they are
aggressively pushed upon developing nations counterproductive =
by the IMF and the World Bank. He argues that contrary to the result you
opening up developing financial markets and are trying to achieve
economic sectors to international competition –
diametrically opposed =
against which they stand little chance of
completely and directly
success – would be counterproductive. For
opposite
nations whose economies lag behind others’,
free market policies could actually force them have their heart in the
further into poverty. right place = have good
intentions
These are but two examples of diametrically
opposed views that demonstrate the disparity a calculated approach =
of opinion in poverty reduction debates. It is a careful and analytical
not enough for developed nations to “have strategy
their heart in the right place” – instead, a impact = effect
calculated approach must be taken in order to
give any aid policy the best chance of success.
Extensive collaboration with political, local, and
community leaders in the receiving country is
also essential to ensure that the aid achieves
maximum impact.
Notes

• UNESCO poverty definitions

• What is poverty reduction? Centre for global development
• Dambisa Moyo: Dead Aid
• Joseph Stiglitz: Globalization and its Discontents
Comprehension Questions
1. One of the U.N.'s development goals is to...
a. produce 50% more food for the world's population
b. reduce the number of people who live on less than $1/day by 50%
c. stimulate the economies of developing countries
2. The poverty-reduction programs led by international institutions
have been...
a. enormously successful
b. sometimes successful
c. quite unsuccessful
3. The definition of absolute poverty considers...
a. only the amount of money someone has
b. the lack of both money and opportunities
c. the degree of difference between the richest and poorest people
4. Relative poverty considers...
a. how one's situation has evolved over time
b. poverty levels in multiple countries
c. social status compared to the norm
5. Both definitions of poverty fail to consider...
a. education levels
b. freedom and power
c. quality of life
6. Dambisa Moyo argues that aid from Western countries...
a. harms the free market
b. prevents Africa from developing
c. should be obligatory
7. Joseph Stiglitz claims that...
a. democracy should be aggressively implemented in the developing
world
b. developing markets have a hard time competing internationally
c. it's inevitable that some economies will be weaker than others
8. The conclusion emphasizes the need...
a. for more people in developed nations to donate voluntarily
b. for the debate to continue
c. to work together with local leaders in implementation
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. In spite of a practically universal consensus on the need for poverty

reduction, there are noticeable divergences when it comes to concrete
proposals to this end.
a. all countries cooperate
b. everyone agrees
c. the problem exists everywhere

2. International institutions such as the United Nations, the World Bank and
the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are engaged in defining and
measuring global poverty, as well as in overseeing programs aimed at
reducing it, albeit to varying degrees of success.
a. imagining
b. suggesting
c. supervising

3. Both of these definitions of poverty have come under fire for placing too
much emphasis on economic status while overlooking factors such as
personal and community empowerment, as well as the extent to which
people can freely exercise their civic, political and social rights.
a. been damaged or destroyed
b. spread to many people
c. received criticism

4. Instead, she argues, this deluge of funds has served to keep the African
continent in a state of ‘aid dependence.’
a. absence
b. great flow
c. inefficient use

5. For nations whose economies lag behind others’, free market policies
could actually force them further into poverty.
a. are dependent on
b. have fewer laws
c. move more slowly
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

advocating deluge noble cause plethora shortcomings

came under fire eradicated overlook prolific stem from
counterproductive lagging oversee purely vital

1. A ___________________ of books have already been written on the subject, so

it'll be hard to make yours stand out.
2. All his problems ___________________ his low self-esteem. Once he becomes
more confident, things will turn around.
3. Any children who are ___________________ behind the class will get extra
tutoring.
4. He's a ___________________ artist, producing around five paintings every
month.
5. I can live with an honest mistake, but I'm not willing to ___________________
deliberate deception.
6. They signed up for a $4,000 course all about how to save money. Isn't that
___________________?
7. Many diseases that once plagued humans have been nearly
___________________ thanks to vaccines.
8. My best friend is a vegetarian, and she's very involved in ___________________
for animal rights.
9. She and I don't have any romantic feelings for each other. Our relationship
is ___________________ platonic.
10. The presidential candidate ___________________ after making a dismissive
remark about women.
11. Tourism is a ___________________ part of the economy, representing about
40% of the country's income.
12. I like this backpack, but it has a few ___________________ - the straps aren't
very comfortable, and it's a bit too small for my needs.
Writing Task
Who do you agree with more – Dambisa Moyo or Joseph Stiglitz? Do you think
the best strategy for reducing poverty is charity, free market economics,
obligatory aid, or something else? Give reasons for your opinions. Send your text
to homework@espressoenglish.net for evaluation and feedback.

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. b
2. b
3. a
4. c
5. b
6. b
7. b
8. c

Discover New Words

1. b
2. c
3. c
4. b
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz
1. plethora
2. stem from
3. lagging
4. prolific
5. overlook
6. counterproductive
7. eradicated
8. advocating
9. purely
10. came under fire
11. vital
12. shortcomings
Rejection Therapy
Rejection – the word itself makes us
cringe. When we’re rejected, we often
blush, stammer, and feel like a complete Vocabulary
failure. Rejection stings, and it can be a
huge blow to our self-esteem. But is it cringe = a physical reaction of
possible to turn the tables? One young your body withdrawing or
man named Jia Jiang made this his mission. shrinking, in reaction to
something frightening or
Jia wanted to be an entrepreneur and shocking
change the world. He immigrated to the blush = when your face turns red
United States from China, graduated from from embarrassment
college, got a stable corporate job, and got stammer = speak with pauses
married. He was a textbook example of a and/or repetitions (often when
success story – but deep down, he felt like nervous or under a lot of
something was missing. pressure)
stings = hurts with a sharp pain
With his wife’s support and
encouragement, Jia quit his job to pursue a huge blow to = something that
damages
his dream of entrepreneurship just a few
days before the couple’s first baby was a textbook example = a perfect,
born. It was a leap of faith, and there was typical example
a lot at stake. deep down = secretly in his
thoughts and feelings
For four months, Jia worked on the
a leap of faith = a risk, believing
prototype of his product and began
things would somehow be
seeking funding. He wanted to succeed so successful
badly he dreamt about it five times.
However, investors ultimately said “no” to prototype = first model of a
product (before production)
his venture. There was no explanation and
no opportunity for discussion. crushed = completely sad and
depressed
Jia was crushed. He wanted to keep trying,
but the fear of experiencing another
rejection had paralyzed him. This prompted Jia
to search online for ways to overcome it – and
he came across something called “Rejection Vocabulary
Therapy.” This is the idea that experiencing
repeated rejections can help you become paralyzed = made it so that
tougher. he could not take action
prompted = motivated,
Jia decided to make 100 deliberate attempts to caused
get rejected over the course of 100 days. He
tougher = less sensitive;
posted videos and write-ups on his blog so that
able to experience great
he could be publicly accountable for pressure without breaking
completing the challenge.
deliberate = on purpose
Some of the tasks he chose seemed silly – like accountable = expected to
asking for a free “burger refill” at a fast-food do what he said he would
restaurant, or dancing in front of a security passers-by = people walking
camera. Others were bound to create awkward by in a public place
social situations, such as joining a complete
diligently = with consistent
stranger’s party or asking passers-by to rate his
effort and perseverance
looks on a scale from 1 to 10. And a few really
took guts, like his requests to feed a lion, fly a It occurred to him = he
plane with no experience, and interview realized; the idea came into
his mind
President Obama.
ponder = think deeply
As Jia diligently tried task after task, he began about
to view the concept of rejection differently. It crippled = physically or (in
occurred to him that President Obama won the this case) emotionally
election with 51% of the vote – but that 49% of unable to move or walk
the votes had been against him. Jia began to
brace himself = prepare
ponder how various people dealt with rejection mentally and physically for
without being crippled by fear. Each time Jia set pain or for an impact
out to do a new challenge, he would brace
himself for the rejection – but the results were
surprising even to him.
Amidst a sea of ‘no’s’, there were a few people
who said ‘yes’. When Jia knocked on the door
of a random stranger to ask if he could play Vocabulary
soccer in his backyard, the gentleman said
‘come on in!’ Jia asked to drive a police car as Amidst = in the middle of
if he were a cop – and the officer let him do it.
random = selected with no
specific purpose/reason
One of the most remarkable experiences was
when he went into a donut shop and made a cop = an informal word for a
police officer
special request to have donuts customized to
look like the Olympic rings. The manager, they were on the house =
Jackie, painstakingly created the set of they were free (usually used
donuts for him – and then said that they were in places serving food/drinks)
on the house. transcended = was present
throughout the entire thing
Jia began to realize that there were many
glitters = small bits of light
people who would agree even to a seemingly
preposterous request. There was a human dwelling on = focusing on,
thinking a lot about
element that transcended the experience,
providing small glitters of hope throughout superseded = overcome (the
the 100 days. Instead of dwelling on the hope was stronger than the
rejections, Jia began to revel in the ‘yes fear)
moments.’ His fear of being rejected was went viral = spread very fast
superseded by the hope of finding the next over the internet, so lots of
open-minded stranger who would say “yes.” people saw/shared it
quest = mission
After his video of the donut incident went
viral, Jia began receiving e-mails from fans jump-starting = starting
suddenly with a quick burst of
who were inspired by his courage. By sharing
power
his story, he has now become a successful
public speaker. His quest to overcome
rejection ended up jump-starting his career,
enabling him to achieve his dream of changing
the world.
Read about and watch Jia’s 100 rejection attempts:
http://fearbuster.com/100-days-of-rejection-therapy/

Listen to Jia tell his story:

http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/Surprising-Lessons-From-100-D-2

Comprehension Questions
True or false?

1. Jia was born in the United States

2. Jia lost his job unexpectedly

3. Jia's wife didn't like what he planned to do

4. Jia spent four months working on his product

5. The investors didn't say why they rejected him

6. Jia found "Rejection Therapy" on the internet

7. Jia did the 100 rejections project in secret

8. Some of Jia's tasks could be dangerous

9. He was allowed to drive a police car after asking

10. Jia wanted the donuts to spell the word "Olympics"

11. He eventually managed to overcome his fear

12. Jia finally found investment for his product

Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.
1. Rejection stings, and it can be a huge blow to our self-esteem. But is it
possible to turn the tables?
a. avoid the pain
b. invert the situation
c. make alternative plans
2. It was a leap of faith, and there was a lot at stake.
a. there was strong disagreement/argument
b. there were a lot of people involved
c. there were big consequences to succeeding or failing
3. And a few really took guts, like his requests to feed a lion, fly a plane with no
experience, and interview President Obama.
a. desire
b. courage
c. intelligence
4. The manager, Jackie, painstakingly created the set of donuts for him – and
then said that they were on the house.
a. doing something unusual, out of the ordinary
b. feeling annoyance because of an inconvenience
c. with great care and attention to small details
5. Instead of dwelling on the rejections, Jia began to revel in the ‘yes moments.’
a. experience more frequently
b. greatly enjoy
c. tell others about

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

amidst brace myself dwell on on the house revel in

at stake cringed leap of faith pondering textbook example
blushing deliberately occur to prompted turned the tables

1. He's obsessed with others' opinions, and tends to ___________________ anything

that might possibly be a criticism.
2. I already booked the flights. It didn't ___________________ me that the train might
be cheaper.
3. We can all learn from this incident; it was a ___________________ of how to handle
a rowdy student.
4. My husband ___________________ when he heard that it would cost $5,000 to
repair the car.
5. Paul seemed to be losing the wrestling match, but then he ___________________
with a move his opponent didn't expect.
6. The accident ___________________ a safety inspection of all the equipment in the
factory.
7. I could tell she was embarrassed by the conversation, because she was
___________________.
8. There's a lot ___________________ in these negotiations; the outcome will affect
the jobs of 100,000 people.
9. There's no hot water in my apartment, so every morning I have to
___________________ for a freezing cold shower.
10. We're regulars at the bar on the corner, and the bartender occasionally gives
us martinis ___________________.
11. The teenage boy ___________________ left dirty dishes in the sink because he
knew it would annoy his mother.
12. I found a perfectly good leather wallet in the trash, ___________________ banana
peels and worn-out shoes.
Writing Task
Jia’s experiences helped him see rejection in a different light (see it differently;
change his views about it). Describe a situation or experience that caused you to
change your perspective or beliefs. This could be learning something from a
different culture, a person who taught you to think differently, or something you
experienced that inspired a personal revelation, for example.

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers

Comprehension Questions
1. False
2. False
3. False
4. True
5. True
6. True
7. False
8. True
9. True
10. False
11. True
12. False

Discover New Words

1. b
2. c
3. b
4. c
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. dwell on
2. occur to
3. textbook example
4. cringed
5. turned the tables
6. prompted
7. blushing
8. at stake
9. brace myself
10. on the house
11. deliberately
12. amidst
Seven Unusual Hotels
You could always go to a regular old hotel, stay in
a nice clean room, and eat generic food in their
Vocabulary
dining room… but what if you want something a
bit more memorable? memorable = remarkable
and worth remembering
There are hundreds of unique hotels in the world,
concise = short, expressed
but in the interests of keeping things concise, in few words
here are seven that caught my eye. breathtaking = amazing
(usually describes an
1. Hotel Kakslauttanen in Finland amazing sight or view)

If you’ve ever seen the northern lights, you igloo = a round building
usually constructed with
know that they’re breathtaking. Now, blocks of snow or ice
imagine seeing them from inside a
believe it or not = it might
transparent igloo. seem hard to believe, but
it’s true
The Hotel Kakslauttanen is located in
repurposed = changed and
northern Finland, and believe it or not, all adapted to serve a
the cabins are made out of ice, or glass that different purpose

looks like ice. They offer a great view, but

needless to say not a whole lot of privacy.

2. Jules’s Undersea Lodge in Florida

This was once a research laboratory, and

has been repurposed as an underwater
hotel that’s actually located on the bottom
of Florida’s Emerald Lagoon. Checking in
 could be a bit of a problem if you’re not
adventurous – you have to scuba dive six
Vocabulary
meters down to get to the hotel.
scuba dive = go deep
3. Das Park Hotel in Austria
underwater with a mask
and oxygen tank
The rooms in this hotel are built inside
concrete sewer pipes on the banks of the sewer pipes = the pipes
which are normally used
Danube River. Each pipe segment is 2.5 to transport waste water
meters long, 2 meters in diameter, and banks = the land near a
boasts comfy futons with blankets. And it river or lake

won’t cost you an arm and a leg – the segment = section, piece

guests actually determine the rates. boast = have or possess

something good
4. Dog Bark Park in Idaho comfy = comfortable

It’s referred to as the world’s largest futon = a type of mattress

beagle. This hotel is built in the shape of a beagle = a type of dog
huge dog, nine meters long. A room queen size bed = a bed big
enough for two people
contains a queen size bed along with two
twin mattresses in the loft. You’ll get dog- twin = a “twin” bed or
mattress means it has
shaped cookies, too! Everything is dog- room for one person
themed. Oddly enough, though, you can’t loft = a raised platform
bring pets without prior approval. It’s inside a building

relatively inexpensive - $98 per night for prior = previous

double occupancy. double occupancy = two

people can stay there
5. 1950s Bristol Fighter Plane in New
Zealand
 This tiny little two-room hotel is made from
one of the last planes out of Vietnam. It sleeps
four in the body of the plane, and four in the Vocabulary
cockpit. It’s not expensive, but you’d better
cockpit = area of the
book early, because space is limited!
plane where the pilots
and controls are
6. Kadir’s Tree Houses in Turkey
bungalow = a small,
On Turkey’s island of Olimpos, you can stay in a simple house or cottage
little wooden bungalow that is nestled in the nestled = set in a small
space, surrounded by
trees. Kadir’s offers over a hundred such
things
bungalows, and is known as a great party spot.
spot = place
Would you believe that you can stay there for
cave = a large opening
just $20 per night? in a mountain or rock

7. Kokopelli’s Cave Bed & Breakfast in New fully-furnished = has all

necessary furniture and
Mexico items for living

You might think that sleeping in a cave isn’t cliff = a “wall” of rock
with a sharp edge
luxurious – but you’d be wrong. At Kokopelli’s,
creature comforts =
you can stay in a fully-furnished room that’s things that make life
dug into an ancient sandstone cliff. Your room more comfortable, like
air conditioning, hot
will be carpeted and have all the creature
water, etc.
comforts you’d expect, and you can stay there
one-of-a-kind = unique,
for just $280 per night. special, there is nothing
similar
So if you’re looking for an interesting experience for
your next vacation, consider staying at these one-of-
a-kind hotels – you’ll certainly never forget your stay!

Sources / pictures: Unusual Hotels; Quirky Hotels

Comprehension Questions
Write two numbers of the sentences describing each hotel:

Hotel Kakslauttanen ____ ____ 1950s Bristol Fighter Plane ____ ____

Jules's Undersea Lodge ____ ____ Kadir's Tree Houses ____ ____

Das Park Hotel ____ ____ Kokopelli's Cave Bed & Breakfast ____ ____

Dog Bark Park ____ ____

1. a room sleeps four people

2. costs $280 per night
3. doesn't have much privacy
4. has a great view of the night sky
5. has carpeted floors
6. is great for having fun
7. is located underwater
8. is made of wood
9. is located next to a river
10. the entire hotel can only hold eight people
11. used to be a laboratory
12. you can choose your own price
13. you need to ask to bring your dog there
14. you need to make reservations well in advance
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. You could always go to a regular old hotel, stay in a nice clean room, and eat
generic food in their dining room… but what if you want something a bit
more memorable?
a. normal, not special
b. without much flavor
c. high-quality

2. There are hundreds of unique hotels in the world, but in the interests of
keeping things concise, here are seven that caught my eye.
a. appeared beautiful
b. attracted my attention
c. I've seen before

3. They offer a great view, but needless to say not a whole lot of privacy.
a. according to people's comments
b. obviously
c. unfortunately

4. And it won’t cost you an arm and a leg – the guests actually determine the
rates.
a. be physically challenging
b. be inconvenient
c. be very expensive

5. It’s not expensive, but you’d better book early, because space is limited!
a. arrive
b. do research
c. make a reservation

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three are not used.

banks cave memorable prior

believe it or not cliff needless to say repurposes
breathtaking concise nestled spot
caught my eye generic one-of-a-kind

1. After the heavy rains, all the homes located on the ________________________ of the
river were flooded.
2. ________________________, the entire world population could actually fit into the
U.S. state of Texas.
3. He made a speech at the event, but it wasn't very ________________________. I can't
recall much of what he said.
4. The boy threw his textbook out the window, knocked over a desk, and hit his
teacher. ________________________, he was punished for his outburst.
5. My cat's favorite ________________________ to sleep is on top of the piano.
6. She ________________________ old silverware and makes it into jewelry.
7. The article is good, but it's quite long - try to make it more _____________________.
8. The ________________________ owner of the house didn't take such good care of it,
so we had to spend a lot on fixing it up.
9. I'd like to go hang gliding, but I'm not sure I'm brave enough to just go and
jump off a ________________________!
10. We visited the highest waterfall in Africa - it was absolutely ____________________.
11. You'll save money if you buy the ________________________ brand of shampoo
instead of the one produced by a famous designer.
12. The title of a book on the top shelf ________________________, and I took it down to
see what it was about.
Writing Task
Write about your memories of a trip you have taken in the past. Describe where you
stayed, what you saw and did, etc. Also, talk about a trip you would like to take in the
future. Where would you like to go, and why? Send your text to
homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions

Hotel Kakslauttanen 3 4 1950s Bristol Fighter Plane 10 14

Jules's Undersea Lodge 7 11 Kadir's Tree Houses 6 8

Das Park Hotel 9 12 Kokopelli's Cave Bed & Breakfast 2 5

Dog Bark Park 1 13

Discover New Words

1. a
2. b
3. b
4. c
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz

1. banks
2. believe it or not
3. memorable
4. needless to say
5. spot
6. repurposes
7. concise
8. prior
9. cliff
10. breathtaking
11. generic
12. caught my eye
Three Fascinating Shipwrecks
There is something about a shipwreck
that captivates us. We wonder what led
to the ship’s demise, and envision Vocabulary
everything from pirates to espionage.
The United Nations estimates that there captivates = strongly interests us
are around three million shipwrecks and holds our attention
littering the ocean floors. Here are a few demise = death or termination
of the interesting stories behind them:
envision = imagine

The American Star espionage = the practice of spying

littering = scattered in various
The American Star was built in 1940 and places
was used to transport both troops and troops = soldiers
civilians for 25 years. The vessel then
civilians = non-military people
changed hands many times, eventually
falling into disrepair after years of vessel = ship
neglect. It was sold for scrapping in the changed hands = was bought/sold
1980s, but a company purchased it with or given
the intention of converting it into a five-
scrapping = being taken apart so
star hotel. that the parts and metal can be
used for other things
However, while the American Star was
towed = pulled by another vessel or
being towed, a thunderstorm caused it
vehicle
to run aground in the Canary Islands.
The strong waves pummeled the ship so pummeled = hit repeatedly and
forcefully that it broke in two, and the strongly
American Star was written off as a total written off = dropped from
loss and abandoned. Over the next consideration
fourteen years, the wreck slowly succumbed to = submitted to
succumbed to the sea and now nothing
remains but a few pieces of twisted steel.
The “Black Swan Project”
Odyssey Marine Exploration is an American
company that salvages valuable items from deep- Vocabulary
water shipwrecks. In 2007, they hit the jackpot
with the discovery of a wreck off the coast of salvages = rescues
Portugal containing gold and silver coins estimated objects from a
at $500 million. Odyssey code-named the operation destroyed area
“the Black Swan Project” and remained secretive cargo = the objects
about the exact location of the dive site. being carried and
transported by a ship,
The treasure was initially thought to be from the plane, or truck
English ship Merchant Royal, which sank in 1641 intercepted = stopped
with a heavy cargo of silver and gold. But the while in motion
Spanish government disputed this, claiming that
ensuing = what
the wreck was actually a Spanish vessel called
happened afterwards or
Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes. This ship was
as a result
bringing treasure from South America to Spain
when it was intercepted by the British and sunk lengthy = long
during the ensuing battle. hull = the exterior of a
ship
This caused a lengthy legal battle in American
lifeboats = small boats
courts, during which the coins were closely to be used in case of
examined and Odyssey was forced to disclose the emergency
location of the wreck. It was finally determined that
the shipwreck and its treasure rightfully belonged
to Spain. The coins were transported to Alicante,
where they are now on display at a museum.

Andrea Doria
Italy's Andrea Doria, launched in 1951, was hailed
as one of the safest and most beautiful vessels ever
built. It had a double hull, watertight
compartments, plenty of lifeboats, and early-
warning radar technology. It was also quite
luxurious, being adorned with over $1 million in
art and décor. Vocabulary

On July 25, 1956, the Andrea Doria was adorned = decorated

approaching New York on a foggy night. Another
décor = this word is used
ship, called the Stockholm, was departing. to describe the interior
Misinterpretation of radar signals and poor decoration of a room
visibility created a recipe for disaster, and the two
foggy = the night had a
ships collided.
lot of fog (water vapor
that makes everything
Fortunately, the Andrea Doria's safety features appear white/gray)
enabled it to stay above water long enough for
a recipe for disaster = a
1,663 people on board to be rescued (57 died as a
perfect combination of
direct result of the collision). The ship took a full 11
elements for something
hours to sink, and the world watched the whole bad to happen
situation unfold on live TV. After this disaster,
flying became the preferred method of trans- on board = being on a
ship, train, or airplane
Atlantic travel.
unfold = happen,
The shipwreck itself is known as "the Mount progress
Everest of scuba diving," since the hazardous hazardous = dangerous
conditions require immense skill and experience
immense = very great
to navigate. There are strong currents and an
invisible web of thin fishing lines that can ensnare currents = movement of
divers, sixteen of whom have lost their lives while the ocean
exploring the wreck. ensnare = catch and trap
so that you can’t get
free
Comprehension Questions
1. There are approximately three million...
a. square miles of ocean that are especially dangerous
b. people who have died from shipwrecks
c. shipwrecks in the world

2. The American Star mainly transported...

a. food
b. people
c. weapons

3. Its final owner was going to turn it into...

a. a cruise ship
b. a luxury hotel
c. a prison ship

4. It was wrecked because of...

a. an attack
b. bad weather
c. crew error

5. The treasure was discovered in a wreck near...

a. England
b. Portugal
c. the U.S.

6. Who sank the ship?

a. the British
b. the Spanish
c. the South Americans
7. The coins were...
a. kept in America
b. put in a museum
c. sold to collectors

8. The Andrea Doria was known for its...

a. safety
b. size
c. speed

9. It sank because...
a. of an explosion on board
b. it hit another ship
c. its equipment failed

10. As a result...
a. 1,663 people died
b. extra safety checks were performed on new ships
c. more people preferred to travel by air
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. The vessel then changed hands many times, eventually falling into disrepair
after years of neglect.
a. attacks
b. heavy use
c. failure to care for

2. In 2007, they hit the jackpot with the discovery of a wreck off the coast of
Portugal containing gold and silver coins estimated at $500 million.
a. had a conflict with others
b. had an incident of extremely good fortune
c. unexpectedly became very famous

3. But the Spanish government disputed this, claiming that the wreck was
actually a Spanish vessel called Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes.
a. argued against
b. did not know about
c. was offended by

4. This caused a lengthy legal battle in American courts, during which the coins
were closely examined and Odyssey was forced to disclose the location of the
wreck.
a. abandon
b. investigate thoroughly
c. reveal information

5. Italy's Andrea Doria, launched in 1951, was hailed as one of the safest and
most beautiful vessels ever built.
a. believed or imagined
b. certified or guaranteed
c. greeted or praised
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

captivating ensuing hazardous neglecting salvage

cargo envision immense pummeling scrapped
disputing hailed intercept recipe succumbed

1. The spies managed to _____________________ a top-secret message that was meant

for the President.
2. He's been _____________________ his teeth for years, and now he needs extensive
dental work.
3. This is a really _____________________ book - I stayed up until 3 AM to finish it!
4. I wish I hadn't _____________________ to the temptation to gamble... I lost $1000 in
that casino!
5. The athletes were jogging and stretching in preparation for the
_____________________ game.
6. We were only able to _____________________ a few things from our house after it
burned down.
7. There were dozens of drunk teenagers trying to drive home from the party?
Sounds like a _____________________ for disaster.
8. This invention is being _____________________ as the most significant piece of
technology in the past century.
9. We _____________________ a future where everyone has access to clean water and
healthy food.
10. I use safety equipment because the chemicals I work with are extremely
_____________________.
11. The two neighbors are _____________________ who owns the stream that divides
their properties.
12. All trucks must stop at the border for inspection of their _____________________.
Writing Task
Imagine that you work for an organization that provides humanitarian aid to
survivors of disasters. Write an article that aims to persuade people to donate to the
cause. (You can base it on a real current or past disaster, or on an imaginary one).
Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. c
2. b
3. b
4. b
5. b
6. a
7. b
8. a
9. b
10. c

Discover New Words

1. c
2. b
3. a
4. c
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz
1. intercept
2. neglecting
3. captivating
4. succumbed
5. ensuing
6. salvage
7. recipe
8. hailed
9. envision
10. hazardous
11. disputing
12. cargo
6 Songs that Changed
Vocabulary
the World
They say music is the universal language. It tapping = touching the floor
on and off and making a noise
speaks to us. It moves us. It gets our feet
tapping, it makes us dance, and it makes us cry. plight = a bad or unfortunate
situation
Occasionally a song comes along that's so
powerful that it changes the very world we live striking = describes something
that gets your attention, or is
in. Maybe it inspires social change or helps us
shocking or surprising
relate to the plight of our fellow man. One song
with a striking message can bring home a bring home a point = make
point even better than a speech or rally. the point clear and make you
truly feel its truth
Keep reading to discover six songs that have
rally = gathering of people in
packed a punch in the past century. support of a cause or to

“I Wanna Hold Your Hand” by protest something

The Beatles packed a punch = had a

significant impact
This is the song that kick-started "Beatlemania" aired = was broadcast on TV
in the United States. After it aired, there was a or radio
landslide of purchases of the hit single. The
a landslide of = a HUGE
upbeat song was a godsend to a nation that was number/amount of
still reeling from the assassination of President
upbeat = cheerful
John F. Kennedy one month prior.
a godsend = something
“Johnny B. Goode” by Chuck wanted or needed that
Berry appears unexpectedly

crown jewel = the most

Many consider Chuck Berry to be the father of valuable thing in a group
modern rock n' roll – and this is his crown
spacecraft = a vehicle that
jewel. Music today just wouldn't be the same
leaves the planet
without this one.
Magazines like “The Rolling Stone” have called it
the best guitar track ever – and NASA even sent
a recording of it in the Voyager spacecraft. The
funny thing is that the track itself is about a man
who's great at playing guitar.
Vocabulary
“A Change is Gonna Come” by
Sam Cooke discrimination = people
treating you differently
This song, released in 1964, tells a story of a man because of your race, gender,
who's convinced that things will change soon – physical ability, or another
for the better. It was inspired by Cooke's own aspect you are born with
experiences with discrimination and
segregation = actively
segregation – particularly an incident where he separating people of different
and his wife were turned away from a “whites- races
only” motel in the southern U.S.
were turned away from =
The sad yet prophetic tune resonated with were rejected from
audiences in the '60s and became the anthem for prophetic = predicting the
the American Civil Rights Movement. future

“Imagine” by John Lennon soothing = comforting,

relaxing
Lennon's most successful solo effort asks us to
struck a chord with =
picture a world without religion, borders, or connected with
violence. Both the utopic vision and the
soothing melody struck a chord with listeners, sugar-coated = made more
pleasant
and it's been considered one of the greatest
songs of all time ever since. the masses = the majority of
people
In an interview, Lennon admitted that his anti-
religious, anti-capitalistic, anti-nationalistic poignant = inspiring deep
emotion
message was contentious – but said that
because it was sugar-coated, it went over well it don’t = sometimes in songs,
with the masses. incorrect grammar is used
(instead of “it doesn’t”)
The song became especially poignant after
ode = a poem in honor of
Lennon was assassinated in 1980.
something
“Black or White” by Michael
Jackson
Michael taught us that “it don't matter if you're
black or white” with this ode to diversity. His
message of tolerance brought fans around the
world together, propelling the song to number
one in 20 different countries. Vocabulary
The music video premiered to an audience of
half a billion viewers, which ranks as the biggest propelling = giving
video debut ever. It may not have ended racism, momentum to, moving
something forward or up
but hopefully it inspires a little more compassion
in everyone that hears it and takes its message takes its message to heart =
to heart. really understands, believes
in, and implements the
“Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday message

emancipation = freeing of
Long before Sam Cooke sang “A Change is Gonna
slaves
Come”, Billie Holiday gave her own take on
racism in America. In 1939, decades after allude to = make indirect
emancipation, blacks were still the victims of reference to
hate crimes – a fact that most Americans lynching = when a large group
preferred to sweep under the carpet. of angry people administers
justice themselves (such as by
The lyrics allude to the lynching of African- attacking or killing someone
Americans – a practice that was common at the who is suspected of a crime)
time. The song hauntingly describes the
hauntingly = in a way that
“strange fruit swinging in the Southern breeze”.
affects you, stays with you
This was one of the first times a black singer had and makes you unable to
dared to sing publicly about the racial issues of forget
the period, and “Time” magazine named it their
breeze = a light wind
“song of the century” in 1999.
Comprehension Questions
1. The introduction says that songs...
a. are the most important form of art
b. can sometimes be more effective than speeches
c. should be used during rallies
2. Immediately after “I wanna hold your hand” was released…
a. a lot of people bought it
b. it played on the radio 24 hours a day
c. the president of the U.S. was assassinated
3. "Johnny B. Goode" is especially famous for its...
a. drums
b. guitar
c. lyrics
4. The singer of "A change is gonna come"...
a. couldn't be a politician because he was black
b. experienced discrimination at a motel
c. started the Civil Rights movement
5. The lyrics of "Imagine" could be shocking because...
a. they go against some strong beliefs
b. they have a secret double meaning
c. they inspired an assassination
6. Michael Jackson's "Black or White" had...
a. the biggest audience for the premiere of its video
b. fans in the greatest number of countries
c. the longest time at number one in the charts
7. The song "Strange fruit" addresses which social problem?
a. domestic abuse of women
b. poverty in the black community
c. violence against blacks
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. The upbeat song was a godsend to a nation that was still reeling from the
assassination of President John F. Kennedy one month prior.
a. feeling very shocked and unstable
b. investigating
c. talking a lot about
2. The sad yet prophetic tune resonated with audiences in the '60s and became
the anthem for the American Civil Rights Movement.
a. matched in beliefs/emotion
b. reminded of something forgotten
c. was learned or memorized
3. In an interview, Lennon admitted that his anti-religious, anti-capitalistic, anti-
nationalistic message was contentious – but said that because it was sugar-
coated, it went over well with the masses.
a. common
b. controversial
c. copied from someone else
4. The music video premiered to an audience of half a billion viewers, which
ranks as the biggest video debut ever.
a. first public appearance
b. group of people who agree
c. profit from media
5. In 1939, decades after emancipation, blacks were still the victims of hate
crimes – a fact that most Americans preferred to sweep under the carpet.
a. discuss at home
b. ignore and pretend it's not happening
c. resolve a problem permanently
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

alluded plight reeling sweep it under the carpet

breeze poignant resonated take it to heart
debut propelled soothing upbeat
packs a punch rally striking

1. The boss _______________________ to the recent conflicts in the office, although he

didn't name any names.
2. Don't drink too much of that rum - it really _______________________!
3. When my son has nightmares, I give him a _______________________ backrub.
4. I've never seen her sad or angry; she's always _______________________.
5. Sexism is a real problem in the workplace, although most of the male
leadership try to _______________________.
6. After I was attacked on the street, my mind was _______________________ and I
wasn't sure what to do.
7. The baseball team's five consecutive wins have _______________________ it to the
top of the league.
8. It doesn't get too hot on the beach because there's a _______________________ from
the ocean.
9. The criticism was harsh, but I'm trying to _______________________ and improve
my work.
10. We're spreading awareness about the _______________________ of people who
don't have access to clean water.
11. Over 10,000 people were at the _______________________ calling for political
reform.
12. The actress made her _______________________ on stage at the age of 10.
Writing Task
Describe your tastes in music. Do you have particular bands, singers, or songs that
you especially enjoy? Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for
feedback and correction!

Answers

Comprehension Questions
1. b
2. a
3. b
4. b
5. a
6. a
7. c

Discover New Words

1. a
2. a
3. b
4. a
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. alluded
2. packs a punch
3. soothing
4. upbeat
5. sweep it under the carpet
6. reeling
7. propelled
8. breeze
9. take it to heart
10. plight
11. rally
12. debut
SpaceX and Its Plan to
Colonize Mars Vocabulary
Have you ever said to yourself, “I’d just love to
colonize = put
get away from it all”? Well, how about going to
groups/communities of
Mars? Seriously. Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, people in a new area

is aiming to colonize Mars by 2026. humankind = humans in

general
SpaceX has actually made significant strides species = type/category of
toward putting humans on the red planet. Elon living thing

Musk’s goal is for humankind to become a perusing = looking at and

considering
multi-planet species so that we can survive
cost a pretty penny = cost a
even a catastrophic event on earth. If you lot of money
spend a few minutes perusing the recent reused = used again

achievements of SpaceX, you have to believe replenish = provide more

supplies when the first
that it might just be possible.
supplies have been used up

The problem with rocket ships is that they cost cargo = the items carried by a
truck, ship, or other transport
a pretty penny to build and can’t easily be vehicle
reused. However, SpaceX was able to send a running errands = doing
rocket to replenish supplies at the International routine tasks of daily life

Space Station, then return it to earth – becoming

the first private company to do so. SpaceX now
has a $1.6 billion contract with NASA to deliver
cargo to the space station, as well as many other
customers vying for its services.

Running errands is not the long-term goal for

SpaceX, though. The company is working
towards making rocket travel 100 times more
affordable – which, if achieved, would be a game-
Vocabulary
changer for space travel.

SpaceX is planning a manned mission to the red a game-changer =

something that completely
planet in the very near future. There are significant changes the situation
technological hurdles to be overcome, but Musk is manned = having people
on it
dead-set on making it possible – and he’s putting
hurdles = obstacles
his money where his mouth is.
putting his money where
Elon Musk, who is originally from South Africa, sold his mouth is = take action
according to what you say
his start-up software company Zip2 for $300 million
peanuts = (slang) very little
when he was only 28 years old. This was just money
peanuts compared to when his next company, dabbling = be involved in
PayPal, was sold to eBay for $1.5 billion. After something in a casual
manner
dabbling in a hedonistic lifestyle, Musk quickly
hedonistic = only seeking
realized that he needed a more meaningful project pleasure/enjoyment
to sink his teeth into. He began pouring his energy sink his teeth into = get
involved in; give his energy
and fortune into a couple of incredibly ambitious
and effort to
start-ups.
underway = in progress

First he founded Tesla, which aims to replace all the

cars in the world with electric vehicles (the change
is already underway). Then came SpaceX, which he
formed in 2002 and funded with $100M of his own
money. Although both the automobile and
aerospace industries are dominated by strong
corporate mega-companies, Musk has managed to
make a splash in both sectors.
If you’d asked people centuries ago if it would be
possible to colonize the “New World,” meaning the Vocabulary
United States and Canada, they might have told you
that the journey was impossible, the landscape was brutal = harsh, cruel, hard
brutal, and the possibility of survival slim to none. to survive

Think about how far we’ve come as a civilization. slim to none = very little
chance
One thing is for sure – if we ever do colonize other
visionaries = people who
planets, it will be visionaries like Elon Musk who have a strong vision / goal
for the future
will make it possible.

Sources & Further Reading:

• http://www.ajc.com/news/news/world/spacexs-elon-musk-really-wants-
colonize-mars/nhMtG/
• http://www.space.com/25934-elon-musk-mars-colony-spacex-rockets.html
• http://news.yahoo.com/spacexs-elon-musk-reveal-mars-colonization-ideas-
221116397.html
Comprehension Questions
1. Musk wants to colonize Mars so that...
a. it will reduce the population on earth
b. the human race can survive anything
c. we can begin to explore other galaxies
2. SpaceX's major accomplishment was...
a. building a lighter rocket
b. developing a new type of rocket fuel
c. returning a rocket to earth
3. SpaceX does business...
a. making deliveries to the space station
b. selling its technology to airlines
c. doing tourism in space
4. Elon Musk made his money by...
a. inheriting it from his family
b. starting and selling companies
c. success in the stock market
5. Musk's company Tesla sells...
a. cars
b. robots
c. solar power panels
6. The conclusion of the article takes which tone towards the possibility of
Mars colonization?
a. pessimistic
b. optimistic
c. neutral
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.
1. SpaceX has actually made significant strides toward putting humans on the
red planet.
a. made an idea more popular
b. made big plans
c. made major progress

2. Musk’s goal is for humankind to become a multi-planet species so that we can

survive even a catastrophic event on earth.
a. climate- or weather-related
b. completely disastrous
c. totally unexpected

3. SpaceX now has a $1.6 billion contract with NASA to deliver cargo to the
space station, as well as many other customers vying for its services.
a. competing for; trying to get
b. developing new technology for
c. paying a lot of money for

4. There are significant technological hurdles to be overcome, but Musk is dead-

set on making it possible – and he’s putting his money where his mouth is.
a. has made a lot of sacrifices for
b. is extremely determined to
c. is not optimistic about

5. Although both the automobile and aerospace industries are dominated by

strong corporate mega-companies, Musk has managed to make a splash in
both sectors.
a. get a lot of attention and make an impact
b. make connections and build relationships
c. take early action
Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Two words are not used.

brutal dabble hurdle peanuts reused

cargo dead-set made a splash perused underway
catastrophic game-changer made great strides replenish visionary

1. He's ___________________ on going to Hawaii for vacation; he won't even consider

other options.
2. If college education was free for everyone, it would be a ___________________ for
the country.
3. The customs office at the port inspects all the ___________________ of incoming
ships.
4. Let me go get some more candy to ___________________ the bowl on the table.
5. Medical research has ___________________ in treating AIDS, but it still hasn't
developed a cure.
6. The study, with its counterintuitive results, certainly ___________________ in the
scientific world.
7. My father ___________________ his collection of wines, thinking about which one
would go best with dinner.
8. Oh no, I'm not a professional artist. I just ___________________ in painting.
9. One person introduced a ___________________ error into the program, which then
brought the entire computer system down for five days.
10. Repairs on the old bridge are already ___________________, and should be
completed next month.
11. Most internships pay ___________________; they're more valuable for the learning
experience than the salary.
12. The final exams are the last ___________________ before graduation.
13. It was a ___________________ winter, with temperatures far below freezing for
months on end.
Writing Task
Imagine that it’s 100 years in the future, and humans have successfully established a
settlement on Mars. Write your opinion either for (in support of) or against
(disagreeing with) the idea of moving to another planet. Use your imagination to
describe either the benefits or the downsides. Send your text to
homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. b
2. c
3. a
4. b
5. a
6. b

Discover New Words

1. c
2. b
3. a
4. b
5. a
Vocabulary Quiz
1. dead-set
2. game-changer
3. cargo
4. replenish
5. made great strides
6. made a splash
7. perused
8. dabble
9. catastrophic
10. underway
11. peanuts
12. hurdle
13. brutal
Four Strange Sports
from Around the World
Because sports like soccer and volleyball are
well-known around the world, it’s easy to forget Vocabulary
that there are hundreds of lesser-known sports
that are only played and followed by the most ancient = very old
devoted fans.
weird = strange, unusual

Some of these sports come from ancient Navy = the part of the
cultural traditions, while others are very new – military that operates on
the ocean, with ships and
often the combination of two or more sports
submarines
you may already know. Here are a few weird
divers = people who
sports you might never have heard of. explore underwater

Underwater Hockey pads = soft cushions that

protect from impact
According to CMAS.org, this unusual sport was snorkel = tube for
invented by the British Navy in the 1950s as a breathing outside the
water
type of training exercise for divers.
fins = rubber or plastic
The game is played with ten to twelve players “shoes” used for
per team, and in contrast to the array of pads swimming underwater

in a normal hockey game, each swimmer only

has a diving mask and snorkel, large fins, and a
thick glove.
The game is played with a heavy lead puck that
sinks to the bottom of the pool, and players must Vocabulary
constantly resurface and then dive again while
lead = a type of metal
keeping track of the puck and other players’
puck = the round black
movements. Like normal ice or field hockey, the
object used in hockey
teams try to score by passing the puck through games
the goal of the other team.
resurface = come back up
to the surface
Dog Dancing
mesmerizing = something
Dog dancing, or canine freestyle, is one of the that keeps your close
attention
most unique and mesmerizing sports you could
watch. According to MusicalDogSport.org, it choreographed = the
movements were planned
combines training, cooperation, and music to in advance
create a choreographed dance between a dog
tongue-in-cheek =
and owner. expressed ironically

Each dance is meant to be representative of a Finnish = from Finland

dog’s inner personality and its relationship with hilarious = very funny
its loving owner. In this sport, teams of dogs and
owners compete against each other, and the
teams that receive the best scores win.

Eukonkanto

Eukonkanto, which translates to “wife-carrying”

in English, is a tongue-in-cheek Finnish sport
that is starting to develop a worldwide following
due to its hilarious visuals.
The sport is an obstacle course-style race. Men
must race each other through different types of
Vocabulary
terrain such as sand, gravel, or water. Some
Eukonkanto events are longer distances while obstacle course = an area
others are more like short sprints. with various physical
obstacles and difficulties
The catch is that each man must carry a woman
gravel = small rocks
on his back for the entire race – hence the name,
sprint = a short, quick
“wife-carrying.” The women agree to do this burst of speed
willingly.
willingly = voluntarily
(they agree to do it;
Chess Boxing nobody is forcing them)

This sport is exactly what it sounds like: two rounds = the different
“sections” of a
competitors compete in eleven rounds of chess
competition or game
and boxing, alternating between the activities show
after each round. A winner is declared after either
checkmate = when one
a boxing stoppage or checkmate. chess player traps the
other, and wins the game
If there is no winner after eleven rounds, the
fighter with the most points from the boxing
rounds will be declared the winner. The fighters
also have an agreed-upon time for each chess
round, so if one person is taking too much time to
make his moves, he might lose the match due to a
time penalty.

…………………
So, what did you think of these four non-traditional sports? If they sound interesting,
you might want to give them a shot. You never know if one could become your new
favorite hobby!

Sources & More Information:

• http://www.cmas.org/hockey/about-hockey
• http://www.musicaldogsport.org/
• http://www.eukonkanto.fi/en/
• http://worldchessboxing.com/
Comprehension Questions
1. Underwater hockey was invented as...
a. an Olympic sport
b. a military exercise
c. a game among friends

2. This game is played...

a. on the water surface
b. only underwater
c. both on the surface and underwater

3. In dog dancing, the dogs dance...

a. by themselves
b. with their owners
c. on a team of other dogs

4. Eukonkanto races are...

a. all created by the sport's founder
b. standardized throughout the world
c. varied in type and length

5. If there is no winner in chess boxing, the victory goes to the person who...
a. got more points in the boxing rounds
b. played chess with a better strategy
c. took the least time to make his moves
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Because sports like soccer and volleyball are well-known around the world,
it’s easy to forget that there are hundreds of lesser-known sports that are
only played and followed by the most devoted fans.
a. very athletic
b. very dedicated
c. very popular

2. … in contrast to the array of pads in a normal hockey game, each swimmer

only has a diving mask and snorkel, large fins, and a thick glove.
a. large number of
b. high quality of
c. thickness of

3. The game is played with a heavy lead puck that sinks to the bottom of the
pool, and players must constantly resurface and then dive again while
keeping track of the puck and other players’ movements.
a. avoiding
b. monitoring or observing
c. trying to imitate

4. Men must race each other through different types of terrain such as sand,
gravel, or water.
a. disadvantage
b. land surface
c. speed

5. The catch is that each man must carry a woman on his back for the entire
race.
a. the aspect that everybody likes is
b. the thing the competitors receive is
c. the tricky, difficult, or unexpected part is
Vocabulary Quiz

ancient choreograph keep track sprinted

array devoted mesmerizing weird
catch hilarious

1. Her ________________________ comment made the entire audience burst out

laughing.
2. I stared at the fire, finding the flames ________________________.
3. My karate instructor was hired to ________________________ a fight scene for a
movie.
4. Our catalog features an impressive ________________________ of wedding dresses
in various styles.
5. The ________________________ castle on the hill is now mostly in ruins.
6. The soccer player ________________________ past the defender and took a shot at
the goal.
7. It's ________________________ that he didn't show up. He's normally very reliable.
8. This animal shelter is ________________________ to caring for abandoned dogs and
cats.
9. You can buy a used cell phone cheap, but the ________________________ is that
there's no warranty.
10. There are so many versions of this documents that it's hard to
________________________ of them all.
Writing Task
Write about an interesting or unusual sport, festival, or cultural tradition in your
country. Send me your text (2-3 paragraphs) at homework@espressoenglish.net for
feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions

1. b
2. c
3. b
4. c
5. a

Discover New Words

1. b
2. a
3. b
4. b
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz

1. hilarious
2. mesmerizing
3. choreograph
4. array
5. ancient
6. sprinted
7. weird
8. devoted
9. catch
10. keep track
Fame After 40
Some people moan about their 40th
birthdays as if their best years were behind
Vocabulary
them. But there are a significant number of
famous and successful people who didn’t come into their own = finally get
really come into their own until their 40s, recognition and success

50s, or even older.

milestone = a point or mark of
significant progress on a journey
If you’re turning 40 – or if you’ve already or in a process

passed that milestone – don’t despair! You

despair = become very sad and
could be on the cusp of an exciting new hopeless
chapter in life. Let’s learn about a few
on the cusp of = at a point in
phenomenal achievements made by folks time that marks the beginning of
over 40.
phenomenal = incredibly great

Stan Lee folks = people (informal)

Everyone knows Spiderman and the X-Men

penned = wrote
– but how much do you know about the
man who came up with these legendary hit = successful (informal)

characters? Stan Lee penned his first hit just shy of = just before
comic book when he was just shy of his
had a knack for = had natural
39th birthday. He had already been in the
skill in
comics business for twenty years, and
although he had a knack for writing, none caught on = become popular

of his comics had caught on.

At the time, he was thinking of quitting the Vocabulary
business entirely, so he had nothing to lose –
had nothing to lose = there
and he decided to experiment with a new were no negative
approach, creating superheroes with complex consequences to taking a
risk
personalities and flaws. This group of
characters – the Fantastic Four – catapulted catapulted Lee to success =
Lee to success and led to the creation of the made him successful very
quickly
entire Marvel Universe. Today, Lee is in his 90s
and continues to make cameo appearances in cameo appearances = a brief
films. appearance in a very small
part of a movie

Henry Ford ubiquitous = appearing to be

everywhere
The car is a ubiquitous part of our daily life –
and the man who invented it spent fifteen years backing = support

on its development. Ford came from a family of

right off the bat =
farmers, but he despised farm work and immediately
became an engineer instead. With backing
fervently = intensely and
from investors, Ford successfully created a self-
passionately
propelled vehicle – but this revolutionary
invention was not popular right off the bat. dealers = people who sell
something produced by
others
The landmark Model T was launched in 1908,
when Ford was 45 years old. He fervently
promoted the car in newspapers and through a
network of independent dealers, and by 1918,
half the cars in America were Model Ts.
Charles Darwin
Darwin is one of the most influential figures in Vocabulary
scientific history. He was passionate about
natural science and mostly kept to himself, kept to himself = was
introverted; didn’t have
devoting years to his research on wildlife and much contact with other
fossils. Mired in work and under pressure people
from his publisher to deliver, Darwin
wildlife = animals in nature
developed myriad health problems. Despite
this, he was able to put the finishing touches fossils = skeletons of
plants/animals that are
on his theory of natural selection, and his
preserved in rock
landmark work, "On the Origin of Species,"
was published when he was 50 years old. mired in work = having a
LOT of work; too much to
handle
Julia Child
myriad = many and various
She is one of the most famous celebrity chefs,
renowned for making the art of French put the finishing touches on
= finally finish the last details
cooking accessible to the American public.
However, she wasn’t always a culinary landmark = important in
virtuoso – her early career was spent in history

advertising, and she also did a stint in the

renowned = famous
military as a research assistant. Her husband
introduced her to fine French cuisine, and she virtuoso = expert

later studied cooking in Paris. Child’s 726-page masterpiece = an excellent

masterpiece, "Mastering the Art of French work
Cooking," was published in 1961, when she was
49 years old. She went on to star in multiple
television programs and publish numerous
books.
Vocabulary

Harland David Sanders unremarkable = there was

nothing special or notable
Sanders had a fairly unremarkable career that about it
included army service, manual labor, and a
short-lived = lasted a short
short-lived career as a lawyer that ended after
amount of time
a courtroom brawl with his own client. He was
fired from several jobs and opened a few brawl = physical fight

companies, most of which failed. Sanders

license = let other people
eventually opened a restaurant serving chicken use in exchange for payment
and other meals, but tourism dried up during
boom = great and sudden
World War II and the place had to close.
increase

At the age of 62, Colonel Sanders began to crunchy = hard, makes

sounds in your mouth as you
license his fried chicken recipe to other
chew it
restaurants. The first one experienced a boom
in sales, 75% of which were thanks to Sanders' franchise = network of
stores or restaurants
crunchy, delicious chicken. Within ten years
the Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise had in earnest = with serious
intent
expanded to over 600 locations and Sanders
sold the corporation for $2 million.

Anna Mary Robertson Moses

“Grandma Moses” was a famous artist who
began painting in earnest at the age of 78. In
her youth, she was a live-in housekeeper for
wealthy families, one of which noticed her
Vocabulary
interest in art and purchased chalk and wax
crayons for her. Later, as a housewife, she housekeeper = someone
enjoyed decorating her home with quilts and who kept the house clean
and took care of chores
embroidery.
around the home

When she developed arthritis, her sister quilts = blankets made by

putting together pieces of
suggested that painting might be easier on her
fabric
joints. This spurred the beginning of her
painting career in her late 70s. She then embroidery = decorative
sewing
produced over 1,500 canvasses - which
initially sold for $5, then later for $10,000, and arthritis = a disease that
makes your joints painful
recently for 1.2 million. She painted scenes of
rural life, which are described as simple and canvasses = paintings (the
light-hearted. word “canvas” is the
material on which the artist
paints)

rural = outside the city, in

areas with little population

light-hearted = amusing,
optimistic, happy
Comprehension Questions
True or false according to the article?

1. Stan Lee's hit was the first comic book he'd written

2. Lee's superheroes were portrayed as imperfect

3. Lee is still active in the film industry

4. Henry Ford came from a family of engineers

5. The car's success was largely thanks to Ford's marketing efforts

6. Darwin was so stressed about his book that he got sick

7. "On the Origin of Species" was released after his death

8. Julia Child had trained as a cook since she was young

9. She later became a TV star

10. Harland David Sanders had a number of successful businesses

11. He continues to run the company today

12. Grandma Moses came from a wealthy family

13. She mainly painted portraits

Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Some people moan about their 40th birthdays as if their best years were
behind them.
a. complain about
b. look forward to
c. think too much about

2. Ford came from a family of farmers, but he despised farm work and became
an engineer instead.
a. didn't understand
b. failed to learn
c. hated very strongly

3. However, she wasn’t always a culinary virtuoso – her early career was spent
in advertising, and she also did a stint in the military as a research assistant.
a. active combat position
b. required time
c. short period of service

4. Sanders eventually opened a restaurant serving chicken and other meals, but
tourism dried up during World War II and the place had to close.
a. decreased and disappeared
b. had a lot of risks
c. was prohibited

5. When she developed arthritis, her sister suggested that painting might be
easier on her joints. This spurred the beginning of her painting career in her
late 70s.
a. celebrated
b. delayed
c. encouraged
Vocabulary Quiz

Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three are not used.

brawl did a stint moaning about renowned

caught on have a knack for myriad right off the bat
despair in earnest nothing to lose rural
despise light-hearted on the cusp of

1. Why don't you do something constructive instead of just ____________________

how bad things are?
2. If the plane's pretty empty, why not ask for an upgrade to first class? We've
got ____________________.
3. The war has dragged on for so long with no end in sight, and the population is
in ____________________.
4. Now that you've graduated from high school, you're ____________________ a real
adventure in self-discovery.
5. Randy got his nose broken during a ____________________ at the local bar.
6. She's a very successful investor; she seems to ____________________ identifying
good potential opportunities.
7. The band has recorded a number of decent songs, but their music still hasn't
really ____________________.
8. He's a ____________________ human rights activist who has worked on a number
of high-profile cases.
9. They have electricity in the ____________________ areas, but cell phone coverage is
spotty.
10. My dad's a gymnastics instructor, and he actually ____________________ in the
circus when he was younger.
11. When I started my new job, I was given a very important project
____________________.
12. We’ve been talking about buying a house for a long time, but now we’re
starting the search ____________________.
Writing Task
Write about a famous person who you admire or look up to – it could be a celebrity,
politician, artist, historical figure, etc. Tell me about this person and why you like
him or her. Also, would you want to be famous yourself? Why or why not?

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers

Comprehension Questions
1. False
2. True
3. True
4. False
5. True
6. True
7. False
8. False
9. True
10. False
11. False
12. False
13. False

Discover New Words

1. a
2. c
3. c
4. a
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz
1. moaning about
2. nothing to lose
3. despair
4. on the cusp of
5. brawl
6. have a knack for
7. caught on
8. renowned
9. rural
10. did a stint
11. right off the bat
12. in earnest
The Origins of Disney
You probably thought it all began with a mouse,
didn’t you? Mickey Mouse has been the face of
Vocabulary
Disney for nearly a century, after the cartoon
that brought him into the spotlight in 1928. a century = 100 years
Some even remember that Mickey was originally
into the spotlight = to a
called “Mortimer.” position of fame and
prominence
It takes a real Disney maven to know that it
appealing = able to attract
actually began with a rabbit. Walt Disney’s first interest
series of animated films featured Oswald, the starring = featuring (often
Lucky Rabbit. It was Walt’s wife who thought that used for an actor or
character appearing in a
a mouse might be more appealing, and she film, TV show, or
encouraged Walt to pull back, regroup, and think performance)

about a mouse. irascible = tending to have

outbursts of anger
The rest is history.
dominated = completely
controlled, was the
The 1930s and 1940s strongest in the area

In 1929, Walt Disney formed Walt Disney

Productions and released a number of cartoons
starring Mickey Mouse. Later on, he added the
lovably irascible Donald Duck, as well as Goofy
and Pluto. When it came to animation, Disney
quite simply dominated the market.
Then, Walt got an idea – what if cartoons could
actually be full-length feature films? In 1937, he
Vocabulary
began creating his vision of the fairy tale, “Snow
White and the Seven Dwarfs.” He obviously didn’t fairy tale = fictional story,
know that the correct plural of “dwarf” is usually involving magic

“dwarves,” but who cares? It was a resounding a resounding success = a

clear and definite success
success.
a complex take on = a
Walt Disney productions followed Snow White complex interpretation of

with a complex take on the story of Pinocchio, instilling terror = putting

fear
instilling terror into the hearts of children (and
portrayal = how
maybe a few adults) worldwide with the
something is shown
portrayal of Monstro, the whale. In addition to
a cinematic coup = a
being a cinematic coup, it was a tale of the “takeover” of the cinema
triumph of good over evil. industry by a new film
triumph = victory
Some would say that this was a parallel to the
prevail = win, be stronger
innocent nature of Walt Disney himself, who than
always wanted to see good prevail. Over the past homophobe = someone
few decades, more information has come to light who hates/dislikes
homosexual people
about Walt Disney being a horrible boss and a
lived very modestly =
homophobe. Yet there was an innocence about
lived simply, without
the man that came through in his animated spending a lot of money
movies. on himself or showing off
his wealth
Walt was a perfectionist, and cared deeply about
the quality of his productions. Despite founding
one of the richest empires in the history of TV
and film, Walt Disney lived very modestly. He
once said, “I don’t make movies to make money. I
make money so I can make more movies.”
Vocabulary
The 1950s and Beyond
flourished = grew and did
In the mid-20th century, the company flourished well
with television shows like “The Mickey Mouse beloved = describes a
Club,” “The Wonderful World of Disney,” and person or thing that is
greatly loved
“Walt Disney Presents.” Disney continued to
son-in-law = the husband
adapt beloved stories and fairy tales like of Walt’s daughter
Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Winnie the Pooh. daring = brave,
courageous
In the 1970s and 1980s, it looked for a while as
hits = successes
though Disney was floundering. But Ron Miller,
brands = markets
Walt’s son-in-law, had a daring idea: to develop
cruise line = route of a
films that would appeal to an older audience. The
large ship with lots of
expansion of the target market was successful, as entertainment
Disney produced several films that were hits The sky’s the limit! =
with teens and adults. there is practically no limit
for future progress and
Yes, and More! growth

Today, Disney is an entertainment empire. Its

theme parks delight children of all ages, all over
the world. Disney brands them as the happiest
places on earth, and they might be right. There’s
even a Disney cruise line. Where will it go from
here? Who knows? The sky’s the limit!
Comprehension Questions
1. Mickey Mouse became famous in the...
a. 1920s
b. 1930s
c. 1940s
2. Walt Disney's first animated character was...
a. a dog
b. a mouse
c. a rabbit
3. Walt Disney changed that character based on...
a. his kids’ favorite animal
b. his wife's influence
c. market research
4. Disney's major innovation in the 1930s was...
a. creating stories from historical characters
b. developing new animation techniques
c. pioneering animated long films
5. Walt Disney cared greatly about...
a. expanding Disney's business
b. the quality of the movies themselves
c. using his wealth to help poor children
6. Walt Disney's son-in-law successfully brought Disney out of a difficult
time by...
a. cutting costs at the company
b. making films for a new audience
c. re-releasing the classic films with better marketing
7. The article concludes with what kind of tone about Disney's future?
a. optimistic
b. pessimistic
c. neutral
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. It takes a real Disney maven to know that it actually began with a rabbit.
a. a person who has lived for a long time
b. a person who is creative and clever
c. a person with special knowledge, an expert

2. It was Walt’s wife who thought that a mouse might be more appealing, and
she encouraged Walt to pull back, regroup, and think about a mouse.
a. form a new group, partnership, or company
b. redesign the artwork in a project
c. reorganize and prepare for a new attempt or effort

3. Over the past few decades, more information has come to light about Walt
Disney being a horrible boss and a homophobe.
a. been criticized
b. been revealed
c. become positive

4. In the 1970s and 1980s, it looked for a while as though Disney was
floundering.
a. becoming considered old-fashioned
b. having trouble moving forward or making progress
c. suffering from a lack of leadership

5. Its theme parks delight children of all ages, all over the world.
a. accept and welcome
b. make extremely happy
c. should be visited by

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Two words are not used.

appealing delighted portrayed spotlight

beloved dominates prevail take
daring floundered regroup triumph

1. After an unsuccessful attack on the enemy outpost, the soldiers went back to
the base to __________________________.
2. The development of a groundbreaking new treatment for cancer was the
biggest __________________________ of his career in medical research.
3. He always __________________________ the conversation! It's impossible to get a
word in without interrupting him.
4. I'm not sure what to think about this issue. What's your
__________________________ on it?
5. In the book, the main character was described as a deep thinker - but the
movie __________________________ him as being rather superficial.
6. My daughter __________________________ in her first year of school; she needed
some extra tutoring.
7. Rick has told me so many wonderful things about you - I'm
__________________________ to finally meet you!
8. The elderly couple had lived in the sample place for 50 years, and they didn't
want to sell their __________________________ home.
9. This credit card has no foreign ATM fees, which makes it
__________________________ to frequent international travelers.
10. Although her work is quite well-known, she's a very private person who
doesn't like being in the __________________________.
Writing Task
Write about some of your favorite things from your childhood. What were your
favorite toys? Games to play? Things to do? TV shows to watch? Send me your text
at homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback.

Answers
Comprehension Questions:
1. a
2. c
3. b
4. c
5. b
6. b
7. a

Discover New Words:

1. c
2. c
3. b
4. b
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz:
1. regroup
2. triumph
3. dominates
4. take
5. portrayed
6. floundered
7. delighted
8. beloved
9. appealing
10. spotlight
The Psychology of Advertising
The psychology of advertising goes beyond
just a catchy tune and colorful product
packaging. It taps into the area of the brain Vocabulary
where humans can be influenced without
being cognizant of the fact that we’re being a catchy tune = melody of a
persuaded. song that is appealing and easy
to remember
The visual aspects are the most prevalent – cognizant = aware
for example, the subtle placement of
subtle = difficult to notice; not
attractive young women in the background
obvious
of a product for men, or the slanted ‘e’s in
the Heineken beer logo that simulate a slanted = inclined
smile. These advertisements are logo = a symbol or graphic that
meticulously engineered to represents a company
subconsciously hook you and make you
simulate = take on the
want the products.
appearance of

In the book entitled Hidden Persuasions, meticulously engineered =

carefully created and developed
Marc Andrews, a psychologist and creative
director from Amsterdam, works with two hook = catch your attention
social psychologists to pry into many of the pry into = investigate or inquire
psychological ploys that are used in closely
advertising. Marketing gurus design
ploys = clever and potentially
advertisements not only to plug the
deceptive ways to achieve a
benefits of the product itself, but also to
goal
evoke an emotional response. The goal is to
make consumers want the item so badly evoke = give rise to, produce
that the product goes from a “want” to a want something badly = want it
“need.” very much

One of the most popular ways to create an

emotional connection is through
anthropomorphism – altering a common
object so that it appears to be more human-
like. We have all seen examples of this in Vocabulary
television commercials that feature
everything from dancing laundry detergent altering = changing
to talking cereal. Although such tactics
silly = ridiculous, funny
might seem silly, they are designed to help
us bond with the brand or product, making bond with = make a strong
us more likely to buy it. emotional connection with
intangible = non-physical, not
Another strategy involves linking a product able to be touched
with something intangible that we all
yearn for = strongly and deeply
yearn for. A washing machine, for example, desire
can be presented as not just an appliance –
but instead, as an integral part of caring for integral = essential
one’s family. Although you might not be prompted = caused
immediately prompted to buy a washing
vulnerability = point of
machine by such a commercial, the weakness or openness
associations linger in your mind when it’s
time to make a buying decision. exploit = take advantage of in a
way that may cause harm

Our desire for social acceptance represents triggers = activates

another vulnerability for advertisers to longing = desire
exploit. When phrases like “9 out of 10
the odd one out = the person
people prefer this product” or “1 million
who is clearly different from
happy customers” are used, this triggers
others and viewed as strange
both our longing to be part of a group and
our fear of being the odd one out. Although aversion = dislike or desire to
we might pride ourselves on our avoid
individuality, social proof in advertising
actually makes us more likely to jump on
the bandwagon.

Advertisers also make use of reverse

psychology. The trick is to appeal to the side
of human nature that has an aversion to
being persuaded. The advertisement will
not use hype, nor will it put down its
competitors – instead it will simply mention Vocabulary
them and leave the decision to the
consumer. This method endears people to hype = exaggerated words or
the brand because they feel their intellect presentation that makes
and objectivity have been respected. something seem better than it
really is
Each of these tricks is part of the game of put down = insult, make
advertising psychology – and marketing someone/something seem
professionals have many more tactics up inferior
their sleeve. In fact, they usually design endears = makes people feel
various versions of an advertisement, then affection for
run trials with groups of people in order to
objectivity = ability to make
hone the messaging and gauge which
logical, rational decisions
version is most effective.
without the influence of
emotion or prejudice
Make a mental note of these strategies and
see if you can spot them in the ads you see up their sleeve = having a secret
or hidden resource or strategy
every day.
hone = refine, make it better by
making small adjustments
Make a mental note = pay
special attention and try to
remember
spot = an informal word for
“see” – usually to see something
briefly or see something that is
hard to observe/find
Comprehension Questions
1. According to the introduction, humans can be influenced...
a. by the music used in advertisements
b. in a matter of milliseconds
c. without knowing it's happening
2. Part of the Heineken logo is suggestive of...
a. an attractive woman
b. a beer bottle
c. a smile
3. Marketers try to involve the viewer's...
a. emotions
b. family
c. logic
4. Personifying a product can make it...
a. appeal more to children
b. more likely to be purchased
c. popular on television
5. In the example given in the article, a washing machine is portrayed as...
a. an advanced piece of technology
b. a way of caring for loved ones
c. an appliance that will save you time
6. In general, when making a buying decision, people are likely to...
a. express their individuality
b. follow the majority
c. use the same brands their parents did
7. A "reverse psychology" advertisement...
a. attacks competing products
b. does not exaggerate the product's benefits
c. suggests that the product isn't right for everyone
8. To test the effectiveness of ads, marketers...
a. run trials with groups of people
b. perform computer simulations
c. vote in a group about which ad to use
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Marketing gurus design advertisements not only to plug the benefits of the
product itself, but also to evoke an emotional response.
a. people who are creative
b. people viewed as experts
c. people who work in an area

2. Although such tactics might seem silly, they are designed to help us bond
with the brand or product, making us more likely to buy it.
a. appearances, designs
b. goals, objectives
c. methods, strategies

3. Although you might not be immediately prompted to buy a washing machine

by such a commercial, the associations linger in your mind when it’s time to
make a buying decision.
a. bother or disturb
b. make you feel better
c. stay for a long time

4. Although we might pride ourselves on our individuality, social proof in

advertising actually makes us more likely to jump on the bandwagon.
a. do what the majority of people are doing
b. take action quickly
c. tell other people about something

5. In fact, they usually design various versions of an advertisement, then run

trials with groups of people in order to hone the messaging and gauge which
version is most effective.
a. add
b. evaluate
c. publish
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

aversion exploits hooked longing subtle

engineered gauge hype ploy tactics
evokes honing lingering pry into trigger

1. After growing up in an abusive church, he now has a strong ___________________

to any type of organized religion.
2. There's been so much ___________________ about the release of this movie that
the first three nights are already sold out.
3. He spent years ___________________ his skills at a local restaurant before applying
for a position at an elite restaurant.
4. If my brother is exposed to cigarette smoke, it can ___________________ an asthma
attack.
5. I'm ___________________ on this TV series; I can't wait for the next episode!
6. My Aunt Bertha always tries to ___________________ my personal affairs by asking
intrusive questions.
7. The smell of banana bread ___________________ memories of my grandmother's
house - she used to bake it all the time.
8. Although I'd made my decision months ago, there were still a few doubts
___________________ in my mind.
9. There are ___________________ flavors of raspberry and orange in this wine.
10. We don't support any company that ___________________ child labor in
developing countries.
11. The written and oral tests help us ___________________ each student's level of
English.
12. My wife is ___________________ to have another child; she talks about it all the
time.
Writing Task
Think of a product that you use, enjoy, and truly find beneficial. Write a short
advertisement describing the product and how it will make someone’s life better.
Try to be as persuasive as possible!

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction.

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. c
2. c
3. a
4. b
5. b
6. b
7. b
8. a

Discover New Words

1. b
2. c
3. c
4. a
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. aversion
2. hype
3. honing
4. trigger
5. hooked
6. pry into
7. evokes
8. lingering
9. subtle
10. exploits
11. gauge
12. longing
What’s the Deal with Tipping?
Tipping service workers is a common practice in
certain American industries. It is a way to show
appreciation – or, for that matter, express your Vocabulary
grievances – with the quality of service. There is
some controversy over whether or not to tip, grievances = complaints
and although tipping is supposedly voluntary,
a must = an obligation,
the social pressure makes it feel like a must.
something you have to do

The custom of tipping arose shortly after the Civil War = a “civil war”
Civil War, and was adopted from Europe. refers to a war inside one
Americans with the means to travel abroad country. The American Civil
brought the ritual back with them, and flaunted War happened in the 1860s
the habit to demonstrate their status. Tipping flaunted = showed off,
was initially looked down upon as inconsistent arrogantly made sure
with an egalitarian society. But in the early 20th everyone could see it
century, the prohibition on alcoholic beverages
caused hotels and restaurants to lose revenue, egalitarian = characterized
by equality
and proprietors began to welcome tips from
customers. proprietors = owners

The most common setting for tips is in gratuity = another word for
restaurants, where diners typically add an extra “tip”
fifteen to twenty percent of the total bill as
a pittance = an insultingly
gratuity. The reason for such a sizeable tip is small amount of money
because waiters and waitresses often earn a
pittance – they make far less than minimum begrudge = are reluctant to
wage; sometimes as low as just a couple dollars accept
an hour. The workers are therefore banking on
receiving tips in order to make a decent living.

Some Americans begrudge being expected to

pay a tip on top of the established price. This is
especially the case when restaurants mandate
tips for larger parties (often groups of six or
more), and tack on the cost of the tip in the final Vocabulary
bill. Those who resent the practice of tipping say
it should be the responsibility of the restaurant mandate = command,
owner—not the patrons—to compensate the require
staff fairly.
tack on = add

In Europe, where the practice of tipping patrons = customers

originated, waiters are paid higher wages and
receive only small tips, such as leftover change – the bulk of = the majority
not to contribute to the bulk of their income, of
but simply as a gesture of goodwill. However, in
goodwill = an attitude of
these countries, the cost of employing waiters is kindness and friendliness
built into the cost of the food.
abolished = prohibited,
If tips were abolished in the U.S., the prices on eliminated
the menu would have to rise in order to
payroll = the money
compensate for the costlier payroll – likely reserved to pay employee
causing the restaurant to lose customers. salaries
Tipping is so entrenched in American culture
that few restaurant owners are willing to stick entrenched = deeply
established
their necks out.
adamant = certain,
There is, however, an experimental movement of insistent
no-tip restaurants. Girard, a French restaurant in
Philadelphia, prohibits tipping and pays its pays off = it is worth the
difficulty or suffering
servers thirteen dollars an hour (more than
twice minimum wage). The owners admit they
forfeit some personal income to maintain this
policy, but they are adamant that it pays off in
terms of a better atmosphere for both diners and
servers.

Other professions for which receiving tips is the

norm in the U.S. include hairdressers,
bartenders, taxi drivers, delivery people,
manicurists, tour guides, and masseurs. Other
workers receive flat rate tips of a couple dollars, Vocabulary
such as housekeepers, porters, and parking
attendants. manicurist = someone who
takes care of and paints
At takeout restaurants and cafes, there is a people’s nails
growing trend of setting a tip jar on the counter.
masseur = someone who
Some Americans don’t mind dropping their gives massages
change in the jar, but others find it to be a crude
call for more money than deserved. flat rate = a fixed price

housekeeper = someone
Many people wonder where we draw the line
who cleans and organizes
for what type of worker should be tipped. After your house
all, isn’t every employee, regardless of industry,
providing a service to someone else? If we tip crude = lacking politeness,
our manicurist, why not our dental hygienist? If offensive
we tip food delivery people, should we tip our
draw the line = establish
mailmen? There isn’t a hard and fast rule for the limit
gratuity, so confusion sometimes evolves into
bitterness. dental hygienist = the
person who cleans your
teeth before the dentist
looks at them

a hard and fast rule = an

established rule that is
correct in all situations

bitterness = feeling
annoyed/angry inside
Comprehension Questions
1. The custom of tipping started among...
a. Americans who had traveled to Europe
b. Europeans of the aristocratic class
c. the wives of soldiers in the Civil War
2. Tipping started to gain traction due to...
a. alcohol being made illegal
b. a worldwide economic crisis
c. competition among hotels and restaurants
3. A large tip is typically given in restaurants because...
a. it costs a lot to keep a restaurant open
b. people like to show off their generosity
c. tips are a significant part of servers' salaries
4. Nowadays, in Europe...
a. tips are illegal
b. tips are larger than in the U.S.
c. tips are small
5. The owners of Girard in Philadelphia say that the no-tipping policy...
a. hasn't worked as expected
b. is better for everyone
c. made the restaurant famous
6. Which of these professions is NOT among the ones that typically receive
tips?
a. dental hygienist
b. food delivery people
c. taxi drivers
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Americans with the means to travel abroad brought the ritual back with
them, and flaunted the habit to demonstrate their status.
a. obligation
b. relationships
c. sufficient money

2. The workers are therefore banking on receiving tips in order to make a

decent living.
a. demanding
b. depending on
c. taking advantage of

3. Those who resent the practice of tipping say it should be the responsibility of
the restaurant owner—not the patrons—to compensate the staff fairly.
a. benefit from
b. dislike and are angry about
c. regularly forget

4. The owners admit they forfeit some personal income to maintain this policy,
but they are adamant that it pays off in terms of a better atmosphere for both
diners and servers.
a. don't want
b. lose or sacrifice
c. spend money

5. Tipping is so entrenched in American culture that few restaurant owners are

willing to stick their necks out.
a. do the work themselves
b. say something offensive
c. take a risk
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

abolished flaunting mandates resented

adamant forfeit must stick their necks out
banking on grievances pay off tacking on
bulk hard and fast rule pittance

1. If you want to be a good writer, getting feedback from others is a

______________________.
2. He didn't want to move to a smaller town because he was unwilling to
______________________ all the excitement of the big city.
3. He's really smart, but he's always ______________________ his knowledge by
correcting everyone else all the time.
4. I just bought some gifts online; now I'm ______________________ them arriving in
time for Christmas!
5. The law ______________________ the presence of emergency exits in public
buildings.
6. Any ______________________ you have against your coworkers should be brought
to the Human Resources department.
7. It's not easy for me to give up fast food, but I know eating healthier will
______________________ in the long run.
8. Melissa is ______________________ that she only sees Frank as a friend - she's not
attracted to him in the least.
9. Few people are willing to ______________________ and stand up for what's right,
even when it's unpopular.
10. The ______________________ I earned as a teaching assistant wasn't enough to pay
for any travel.
11. We've already finished the ______________________ of the work; there are just a
few little tasks to wrap up.
12. I ______________________ the fact that my parents always favored my brother over
me.
Writing Task
Some people say that the minimum wage should be low in order to motivate people
to improve their skills and move up into better jobs. Others argue that the minimum
wage should be higher so that a person could survive on it. What do you think?
Describe some of the laws about workers’ rights in your country (is there a
minimum wage? Guaranteed time off? etc.) Send your text to
homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. a
2. a
3. c
4. c
5. b
6. a

Discover New Words

1. c
2. b
3. b
4. b
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz
1. must
2. forfeit
3. flaunting
4. banking on
5. mandates
6. grievances
7. pay off
8. adamant
9. stick their necks out
10. pittance
11. bulk
12. resented
Famous Unsolved
Vocabulary
Crimes
perpetrators = people who
The problems of crime and violence are as old
committed a crime
as humanity itself. Although we now have the
anguish = great pain or
help of cutting-edge technology to identify the suffering
perpetrators and bring them to justice, some rampage = a course of angry,
crimes remain unsolved. violent, or destructive
behavior
seedy areas = areas that are
Jack the Ripper bad or dangerous
recourse = access to a person
or thing for help or
The people of London lived in fear and
protection
anguish during Jack the Ripper’s murderous
maimed = body very badly
rampage in 1888. The prostitutes working the injured / damaged
streets in the seedy areas of the city often had slashed = cut in a violent way
no other recourse for supporting themselves, sadistic = describes someone
thus making them easy prey. Between August who enjoys inflicting pain

7th and November 10th, 1888, five women were at large = not yet captured

found not only murdered, but also horribly taunting = teasing or

provoking
maimed, having been slashed with a knife.
well-versed = very
knowledgeable and skilled in
There was a sadistic serial killer at large –
one who even sent handwritten notes to the
police, taunting them. The investigators
believed that the killer was well-versed in
some form of medical surgery, based on the
removal of organs and overall cutting process.
Potential leads were brought to the attention of
Vocabulary
London’s police brigade, but there was not
enough proof to convict any of the suspects. leads = information
possibly leading to a
After the string of murders ceased, the case solution

eventually faded from the public eye. To this ceased = stopped

day, it remains one of the world’s most popular faded from the public eye
= stopped getting so
unsolved cases.
much attention
infamous = famous for a
The Beaumont Children bad reason
vanished = disappeared
One of Australia's most infamous cold cases is unsupervised = without
that of the Beaumont children, who seemingly someone watching them

vanished into thin air. On January 26, 1966, three mature = mentally and
emotionally advanced,
siblings, ages nine, seven, and four went to a
responsible
beach that they visited often. In that era, it was
at ease = comfortable and
common and safe for young children to play relaxed; feeling OK
unsupervised. The normally mature and reliable spotted = seen briefly
Beaumont children were expected to be home by
noon – yet they never returned.

Witnesses reported the presence of a tall, thin

blonde man playing with the children on the
beach, and the children seemed to be at ease with
him. The oldest sister was then spotted buying a
snack with money her mother had not given her.
At around 3 PM, the mail carrier saw the children
walking unaccompanied in the direction of their
home. This was the last time the children were ever
Vocabulary
seen.

unaccompanied =
Despite a nationwide search for the missing without anyone else
with them
children, they were never found – nor were their
nationwide = in the
remains. Police diligently followed up on possible
entire country
sightings of the children, but they all led to dead
remains = dead bodies,
ends; and the blonde man was never identified. or what remains of dead
Even a psychic was called in to consult about the bodies after some time

case, to no avail. The Beaumont children’s parents diligently = with good

effort
remained in the same house for years, hoping
dead ends = stop, no
against all odds that someday their children would progress
return. against all odds =
despite little chance of
success
The Gardner Museum Heist
priceless = extremely
valuable
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston is clever = intelligent,
tricky
home to many priceless works of art – but it is
perhaps better known for the pieces that aren't disguised as police
officers = the men made
there. This museum lost $500 million worth of art themselves appear to
in a simple yet clever robbery, making it the United be police officers

States’ largest ever theft of private property.

At 1:24 AM on the night before a festival, two men

disguised as police officers ordered the security
guards to let them in, claiming they were
investigating a disturbance in the museum
courtyard. The fake officers then handcuffed
Vocabulary
the guards and left them in the basement while
they stole thirteen works of art. The selection of disturbance = a problem
the pieces puzzled investigators since the that is noisy or breaks the
tranquility of a place
thieves bypassed some even more valuable art.
courtyard = an open space
They made two trips to their car with the loot,
surrounded by walls or
and then disappeared. buildings
basement = the
The FBI has been unable to crack the case underground floor of a
building
despite the offer of a five million dollar reward
loot = stolen money/items
and promises of leniency. Authorities believe
unable to crack the case =
the thieves had links to organized crime, and can’t solve the case
that the artwork has probably changed hands. leniency = being generous
or merciful in judgement
Unfortunately, none of the stolen masterpieces changed hands = been given
or sold from one person to
have resurfaced. Twenty-five years after the
another
heist, empty frames hang in the Gardner
masterpieces = extremely
Museum, both to pay homage to the missing excellent works
works and in hope that eventually they will be resurfaced = reappeared
recovered. heist = robbery
pay homage = give honor
and recognition to
Comprehension Questions
1. Jack the Ripper operated in...
a. Dublin
b. London
c. Edinburgh

2. His victims were...

a. children
b. doctors
c. women

3. The murderer...
a. contacted the police
b. eventually killed himself
c. was probably a policeman

4. The Beaumont children went to...

a. a beach
b. a park
c. a playground

5. The last person to see the children was...

a. a shopkeeper
b. their mother
c. the mail carrier

6. The police…
a. investigated thoroughly
b. did not take the parents’ concerns seriously
c. found the children’s dead bodies

7. The robbery of the Gardner Museum was...

a. the fastest in history
b. the largest loss of property
c. the most complicated
8. The security guards let the robbers in because...
a. they appeared to be police officers
b. they threatened to blow up the building
c. they were asking for help

9. The works of art were...

a. destroyed
b. never returned
c. sold overseas
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Although we now have the help of cutting-edge technology to identify the

perpetrators and bring them to justice, some crimes remain unsolved.
a. modern and advanced
b. potentially dangerous
c. very precise

2. The prostitutes working the streets in the seedy areas of the city often had no
other recourse for supporting themselves, thus making them easy prey.
a. criminals
b. people who can't be identified
c. victims of attack

3. Witnesses reported the presence of a tall, thin blonde man playing with the
children on the beach, and the children seemed to be at ease with him.
a. friends of the family
b. local residents
c. people who saw something

4. Even a psychic was called in to consult about the case, to no avail.

a. at no cost
b. surprisingly
c. unsuccessfully

5. The selection of the pieces puzzled investigators since the thieves bypassed
some even more valuable art.
a. avoided or ignored
b. damaged or destroyed
c. were looking for

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

against all odds ceased pay homage seedy to no avail

anguish changed hands priceless spotted vanished
at ease diligently recourse taunting well-versed

1. After the training course, everyone was ____________________ in the use and
maintenance of the new machinery.
2. The ceremony will ____________________ to the soldiers who lost their lives in the
war.
3. I felt more ____________________ after the surgeon explained that the operation
was very low-risk.
4. If I can't save up the money, and I can't get it from family and friends, my last
____________________ is to take out a loan.
5. My cell phone still won't turn on. I tried changing the battery,
____________________.
6. We ____________________ a rat in the kitchen - it ran from the garbage can into the
cabinet.
7. Some ____________________ manuscripts were discovered in the cave - they're the
only records of that historical period.
8. The house across the street has ____________________ three times in the past five
years - nobody seems to stay there for long.
9. This used to be the largest steel factory in the region, but it ____________________
production in 1950 and hasn't been used since.
 10. He wasn't expected to survive the accident, but he made a full recovery
____________________.
11. We watched as the sun ____________________ below the horizon.
12. My daughter's a very good student; she ____________________ finishes her
homework every night.

Writing Task

Describe a famous case of crime that happened in your country (it doesn't need to
be an unsolved one).

In general, what do you think can and should be done to fight and prevent crime?
Give some specific ideas.

Some people believe strongly that criminals should be punished; others think that
criminals should be reeducated and reintegrated into society. Which side do you
tend to be on, and why?

Send me your answers at homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and

correction on your written English.
Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. b
2. c
3. a
4. a
5. c
6. a
7. b
8. a
9. b

Discover New Words

1. a
2. c
3. c
4. c
5. a
Vocabulary Quiz
1. well-versed
2. pay homage
3. at ease
4. recourse
5. to no avail
6. spotted
7. priceless
8. changed hands
9. ceased
10. against all odds
11. vanished
12. diligently
History of
U.S.-Cuba Relations Vocabulary

ties = connections,
In December 2014, President Obama announced the
relationships
decision to reopen diplomatic and economic relations
severed = cut off
with Cuba. Diplomatic ties had been officially severed
for decades, and the relationship of the U.S. and Cuba presidencies = time
periods of each
has a long and confusing history. Through eleven president
presidencies, Americans have watched the country’s
make concessions =
relationship with Cuba worsen, as both sides have give the other side
been reluctant to make concessions to the other. something it wants

wary = cautious,
The Beginning slightly suspicious

Fidel Castro first took power in Cuba in 1959. Later rhetoric =

communication
that year, he visited the United States and met with
Vice President Nixon. At this time, both countries were things took a
decisive turn = things
still establishing their diplomatic relationship, but the
began clearly going in
American government was wary of some of Castro’s a particular direction
communistic rhetoric. nationalized = made
them the property of
Things took a decisive turn in 1960 when Castro not the national
only continued to strengthen his relationship with the government
Soviet Union, but also nationalized all American trade embargo = a
companies in Cuba and provided no compensation. It barrier to importing
or exporting to/from
was at this time that the U.S. cut relations and imposed
that country
the first trade embargo on Cuba.
The Bay of Pigs

In 1961, President Kennedy approved the Bay of Pigs Vocabulary

mission where the U.S. government supported an
exiles = people who
attempted invasion by Cuban exiles. Fidel Castro were forced out of
easily defeated the U.S.-backed army and began more the country
openly supporting the Soviet Union. This became only U.S.-backed =
the first of eight U.S. attempts in the 1960s to oust supported by the
U.S.
Castro. Each obviously ended in failure.
standoff = when two
The Cuban Missile Crisis forces of similar
power face each
In 1962, Cuba and the Soviet Union agreed to house other without taking
action
Soviet nuclear missiles on the island. The U.S. released
photos of the missile silos and began an international refugees = people
who leave a country
standoff with the Soviet Union. Though many feared a because of war or
nuclear war would begin, both sides were able to poverty
deescalate the situation by agreeing to remove the
Soviet missiles in Cuba and the U.S. missiles in Turkey.

Mariel Boatlift

When the U.S. government said that it would welcome

Cuban refugees, it resulted in the Mariel boatlift of
1980. This was the largest arrival of Cuban refugees at
one time, as approximately 125,000 people arrived on
American shores. It is suspected that many of these
people were individuals who Castro willingly freed
from his prisons and mental institutions in order to
send them to the U.S.

Wet Foot, Dry Foot

Eventually the U.S. government adopted the “wet foot,

Vocabulary
dry foot” policy, which indicated that if refugees
soil = in this context,
arrived on U.S. soil, they could stay. Refugees that another word for
were caught before they reached the shore were sent land or territory
back. remittances = the
sending of money to
Various changes to refugee policies, cultural exchange, someone at a
and remittances have been made in the last twenty distance

years. Despite all these tweaks, the situation remained ushers in a new age
the same as it has for over four decades. = begins a new time
period
President Obama’s decision ushers in a new age for
it is still too early to
U.S.-Cuba relations. This could mean greater cultural tell = in this case,
and economic exchange as well as the improvement of “tell” means “know
by observation”
lives for the poorest in Cuba. However, it is still too
early to tell.

Read more about the history of U.S.-Cuba relations:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2014/12/17/37
1405620/the-u-s-and-cuba-a-brief-history-of-a-
tortured-relationship
Comprehension Questions
1. The U.S. was suspicious because of Castro's...
a. desire to attack the U.S.
b. history of manipulation and violence
c. ideas and philosophy

2. Which country cut off the relations?

a. Cuba
b. The U.S.
c. The Soviet Union

3. In the Bay of Pigs mission, the U.S….

a. invaded Cuba
b. helped Cubans fight Castro
c. tried to break up the alliance between Cuba and the Soviet Union

4. The missile crisis in 1962 was resolved by...

a. agreeing to relax the economic sanctions
b. both sides agreeing to remove missiles
c. threatening nuclear war

5. U.S. policy said that Cubans could stay if...

a. they agreed never to go back
b. they stepped onto U.S. land
c. they renounced allegiance to Castro

6. The article concludes that because of the decision to re-establish

relations...
a. life will improve for Cubans soon
b. more U.S. citizens will visit Cuba
c. we don’t know yet what the effects will be
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Through eleven presidencies, Americans have watched the country’s

relationship with Cuba worsen, as both sides have been reluctant to make
concessions to the other.
a. hesitant; not willing to
b. unpopular
c. wanting more than is possible

2. This became only the first of eight U.S. attempts in the 1960s to oust Castro.
Each obviously ended in failure.
a. discredit an authority in the eyes of the citizens
b. kill a political rival
c. force someone out of a position of power

3. Though many feared a nuclear war would begin, both sides were able to
deescalate the situation by agreeing to remove the Soviet missiles in Cuba
and the U.S. missiles in Turkey.
a. distract from
b. decrease the intensity
c. deny the presence

4. This was the largest arrival of Cuban refugees at one time, as approximately
125,000 people arrived on American shores.
a. the areas near major cities
b. the part of the land near the ocean
c. immigration centers

5. Despite all these tweaks, the situation remained the same as it has for over
four decades.
a. agreements between two parties
b. progress in a positive direction
c. small adjustments

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete the sentences with words from the box:

backed reluctant ties

concessions severed tweaks
presidencies shore wary
refugees

1. ___________________ from the war are pouring into neighboring countries.

2. Doctors are ___________________ of this new weight-loss drug; it hasn't been
thoroughly tested yet.
3. Don't swim too far out - stay close to ___________________.
4. He survived the accident, but his left leg was ___________________ below the knee.
5. She was adopted as a baby and she has no ___________________ with her
biological parents.
6. The economy has been strong throughout the past three ___________________.
7. The editor would like to make a few ___________________ to the article before
publication.
8. This is a big decision; I'm ___________________ to make it until I have more
information.
9. This organization is very strong. It's ___________________ by a number of
influential politicians.
10. You can't have your own way all the time when you're in a relationship. You
have to make some ___________________ to your partner.
Writing Task
The U.S., which is strongly capitalistic, was concerned about Castro’s communistic
beliefs. What are the advantages and disadvantages of capitalism and
communism/socialism? Which philosophy do you tend to prefer, and why?

Write 2-3 paragraphs, then send me your text at homework@espressoenglish.net

for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions

1. c
2. b
3. b
4. b
5. b
6. c

Discover New Words

1. a
2. c
3. b
4. b
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz

1. refugees
2. wary
3. shore
4. severed
5. ties
6. presidencies
7. tweaks
8. reluctant
9. backed
10. concessions
Vaccines
Vaccines are invaluable in helping humanity
fight disease. They help us prevent illness
Vocabulary
rather than just treating after transmission.
In fact, according to the Centers for Disease invaluable = extremely
Control, vaccines are the most effective valuable

means of preempting infectious diseases and transmission = the disease

being passed from one person
stopping outbreaks in their tracks.
to another

outbreaks = sudden increases

Vaccines work by introducing a weakened or
in a particular area
dead form of a disease into a person’s body.
stopping in their tracks =
The body’s immune system reacts by creating stopping something exactly
antibodies to fight even the mild presence of where it is, so it can’t make
any more progress
the infection. Then, if the person ever catches
the full-fledged infection, the body’s antibodies = cells that fight
disease
defenses are already equipped to attack and
mild = weak, little, not
destroy it.
strong/intense

full-fledged = the fully-

The theory behind vaccines was first applied developed, complete version
by an Englishman named Edward Jenner in
equipped = prepared and
the 1760s. He heard that dairy farmers who having the necessary resources
were infected by cowpox, a milder version of
plagued by = bothered by or
smallpox, were never plagued by the latter suffering from
disease. As an experiment, he took pus from a
pus = infected liquid from an
milkmaid who had cowpox and scratched it injury or skin problem
into the arm of a small boy. After a six-week
period, he then inoculated that small boy with the
smallpox infection. When the boy did not get sick,
Jenner continued his studies, which paved the Vocabulary
way for the later work of Louis Pasteur—the man
paralysis = when you
who developed the cholera and anthrax vaccines. lose the ability to move
parts of your body. The
adjective form is
Vaccines started to become part of standard paralyzed - a person
medical treatment in the late nineteenth century, becomes paralyzed

with the first laws obligating citizens to be contingent = group

vaccinated. The twentieth century saw the
autism = a neurological
successful introduction of vaccines for many more disease that causes
difficulties in
diseases – including polio, which can cause muscle communication and
weakness and paralysis. Thanks to the vaccine, relation to the outside
world
the number of polio cases in the U.S. dropped from
35,000/year to under 200 within a mere ten years. discredited = shown to
be not trustworthy

deep-seated = deeply
While there is no scientific evidence that vaccines
located feeling/belief
have any widespread negative side effects, a
significant contingent of citizens have voiced
concern in recent years. The controversy started
with the publication of a study linking autism to
childhood vaccinations. Although this research was
later discredited, the damage had been done –
parents with a deep-seated distrust of
pharmaceutical companies began refusing to allow
doctors to vaccinate their children.
Some “anti-vaxxers” are clamoring for an end to
compulsory vaccinations. Currently, the United
Vocabulary
States requires children to be vaccinated in order
to attend public school – although there are certain exemptions = exceptions
exemptions to this policy, including for medical, to a requirement

religious, and philosophical reasons. But with a opting out = choosing

not to do something
significant number of parents opting out of
vaccinations for their children, the country is now quelled = suppressed,
made quiet
seeing a resurgence of diseases that vaccines had
previously quelled. These diseases could be compromised =
weakened or reduced
deadly for people who cannot be vaccinated
themselves due to medical reasons, such as infants contend = say, argue,
insist
and those with compromised immune systems.
adverse = negative

Critics of compulsory vaccination believe that decimated = destroyed a

large part of
forcing parents to vaccinate their children is an
infringement on their liberties. Defenders of
compulsory vaccination contend that being
vaccinated is a matter of safety and social
responsibility.

The Centers for Disease Control estimates that,

between 1994 and 2014, the lives of 732,000
American children were saved thanks to vaccines.
The anti-vaxxers must ask themselves: is the one-
in-a-million chance of an adverse reaction really
worth a return to the era when plagues decimated the population?
Comprehension Questions
True or false according to the article?

1. Vaccines are the most useful tool we have to fight disease

2. Vaccines contain antibodies

3. Edward Jenner tested his vaccine theory on cows

4. Vaccines began to be required in the twentieth century

5. The polio vaccine is quite effective

6. The link between autism and vaccination is not scientifically supported

7. Parents who don’t vaccinate their children are breaking the law in the U.S.

8. The conclusion of the article favors the pro-vaccination point of view

Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control, vaccines are the most
effective means of preempting infectious diseases and stopping outbreaks in
their tracks.
a. helping people recover faster
b. researching in order to understand better
c. taking action before something else happens

2. When the boy did not get sick, Jenner continued his studies, which paved the
way for the later work of Louis Pasteur—the man who developed the cholera
and anthrax vaccines.
a. copied or imitated someone else's work
b. discovered a new way to do something
c. prepared to make something possible or easier in the future

3. Some “anti-vaxxers” are clamoring for an end to compulsory vaccinations.

a. hoping or wishing
b. loudly making a demand
c. taking legal action

4. But with a significant number of parents opting out of vaccinations for their
children, the country is now seeing a resurgence of diseases that vaccines
had previously quelled.
a. appearing again
b. creating something new
c. getting worse

5. Critics of compulsory vaccination believe that forcing parents to vaccinate

their children is an infringement on their liberties.
a. assistance
b. example
c. violation
Vocabulary Quiz
clamoring discredit full-fledged opted out preemptive
contended equipped invaluable pave the way resurgence
deep-seated exempt mild plagued by stopped in my tracks

Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.
1. Getting a college education will _________________________ for better employment
opportunities.
2. The military is making a _________________________ attack on the rebel camp.
3. If you don't like strong-flavored cheese, try this one - it's
_________________________.
4. My kids were _________________________ for a chocolate bar, but I told them they
couldn't have one until after dinner.
5. She started as an intern, but now she's a _________________________ journalist.
6. I live in the tropics, and my house is _________________________ mold during the
rainy season.
7. The award will be given to Dr. Jones, who has made _________________________
contributions to the field of sociology.
8. We signed up for a cell phone plan, but we _________________________ of unlimited
texting.
9. The presidential candidate ran an ad campaign to try to _________________________
his opponent.
10. If you have good grades throughout the semester, you're
_________________________ from having to take the final exam.
11. When he called my name, I _________________________ and turned around.
12. The ambulance is _________________________ to provide a variety of life-saving
treatments.
Writing Task
It can take 20+ years to develop a new drug, test it, and get it approved for use. One
debate in the world of medicine has to do with this process – on the one hand,
extensive trials help make sure the drug is safe and effective. On the other hand,
many people suffer and die from diseases while the drug is still being evaluated.

Do you favor MORE testing to maximize safety, or LESS testing so that the drug can
be given faster to those who could benefit from it? Write your opinion and explain
your reasons. Also – do you agree with testing on animals? Why or why not?

Send your text to homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers

Comprehension Questions
1. True
2. False
3. False
4. False
5. True
6. True
7. False
8. True

Discover New Words

1. c
2. c
3. b
4. a
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz
1. pave the way
2. preemptive
3. mild
4. clamoring
5. full-fledged
6. plagued by
7. invaluable
8. opted out
9. discredit
10. exempt
11. stopped in my tracks
12. equipped
Stories Behind Famous
World Landmarks
Vocabulary
Famous landmarks are magnets for tourists,
artists, students, and lovers. We marvel at them, marvel at = be amazed or
impressed by
buy postcards, and take selfies so we can say
we’ve been there. But how much do we know selfies = photos of oneself

about their histories? Here are a few snapshots snapshots = quick summaries
of the stories behind four famous sights.
perched = sitting lightly (like a
bird)
The Little Mermaid
craft = create with artistic skill
This small sculpture is perched on a rock by the
homage = honor, recognition
seashore in Copenhagen, Denmark. Carl Jacobson
commissioned sculptor Edvard Eriksen to craft fairy tale = fictional story full
of fantasy elements
this lovely bronze and granite statue as an
homage to the mermaid in the fairy tale by nude = naked (completely
without clothes)
Hans Christian Andersen. Jacobson, who had
seen the fairy tale performed in a ballet, wanted shapely = having a pleasant
shape
to base the sculpture on the lead ballerina.
However, she refused to model for the nude decapitated = its head was
cut off
sculpture, so the mermaid’s face was based on
the ballerina and her shapely body was based on replica = copy of the original
Eriksen’s wife. Sadly, the Little Mermaid has
been vandalized several times – including being
decapitated – and the statue now on display is a
replica.
Sagrada Família
One must-see when visiting Barcelona is the Vocabulary
Sagrada Família, a Roman Catholic church that
must-see = a place or object
has been under construction for over a hundred
that should be seen
years and remains incomplete. Its radical design
brainchild = idea or invention
was the brainchild of Antoni Gaudi, who came
on board one year after the building began in came on board = joined the
1882. The construction, which is funded entirely project

by donations, has proceeded intermittently intermittently = stopping and

over the past century and is expected to be starting, not continuous

finished in 2026 to commemorate the 100th critics = people who analyze

anniversary of Gaudi’s death. The design has and evaluate art, literature,
architecture, movies, etc.
been polarizing – some critics adore the
unique, whimsical stonework and others decry whimsical = playful

it as one of the most bizarre and hideous decry = express disapproval of

buildings in the world.
bizarre = strange (negative
connotation)

Rock of Gibraltar hideous = extremely ugly

Not every landmark is manmade – the Rock of
majestic = impressive in a
Gibraltar is one of the most majestic natural dignified or inspiring way
landmarks. It juts into the Mediterranean Sea at
juts into = protrudes, extends
the southern tip of Europe; the ancient Greeks into
viewed it as “the end of the world.”
One interesting feature of the Rock of
Gibraltar is the 304-meter network of
Vocabulary
tunnels it contains. The British dug these
tunnels in the late 1700s in order to defend siege = surrounding of an area by
the territory during a siege. an attacking army that wants to
capture it

perimeter = outer edge of an area

Easter Island moai
Nearly 900 giant stone statues, called moai, depict = show, display

line the perimeter of this small South gazing = looking thoughtfully

Pacific island. The statues were constructed
guardians = people responsible for
over 800 years ago, and each weighs around protecting someone or something
13 tons. The faces depict the deified
quarry = a place where stone is
ancestors of the native people, gazing upon removed from the ground
the villages as though they were guardians.
carved = form a shape or design by
cutting
The great enigma of the Easter Island
feat = accomplishment
statues is how they were brought from the
quarry where they were carved to their upright = vertical

locations on the coast. Researchers have rocking = a motion that goes from
attempted to replicate the feat by rolling side to side

the statues on top of logs. It is also possible

ingenious = characterized by great
that the statues were “walked” in an skill, intelligence, and creativity

upright position with a rocking motion and

clans = tribes or communities
an ingenious use of ropes. The island’s based on family relationships

clans toppled the moai during the collapse

of their civilization in the 18th and 19th
centuries.
Comprehension Questions
1. The Little Mermaid is located by...
a. a lake
b. a river
c. the ocean
2. The mermaid's body is based on...
a. a ballerina
b. a famous model
c. the sculptor's wife
3. The Sagrada Família is incomplete because...
a. it has not yet been finished
b. it was designed to be incomplete
c. it was destroyed in a war
4. The design can best be described as...
a. futuristic
b. traditional
c. unusual
5. The Rock of Gibraltar was viewed as "the end of the world" by the...
a. British
b. Greeks
c. Romans
6. The tunnels were created for...
a. hiding persecuted people
b. defensive military action
c. mining for precious metals
7. The statues on Easter Island are of...
a. animals
b. people
c. religious symbols
8. We still don’t know exactly how the Easter Island statues were...
a. made
b. destroyed
c. transported
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Famous landmarks are magnets for tourists, artists, students, and lovers.
a. are created by
b. attract a lot of
c. are fun for

2. Sadly, the Little Mermaid has been vandalized several times – including
being decapitated – and the statue now on display is a replica.
a. criticized in the media
b. damaged on purpose
c. stolen or removed

3. The design has been polarizing – some critics adore the unique, whimsical
stonework and others decry it as one of the most bizarre and hideous
buildings in the world.
a. causing opinions to be divided
b. inspiring to others
c. totally unique

4. The great enigma of the Easter Island statues is how they were brought from
the quarry where they were carved to their locations on the coast.
a. discovery
b. importance
c. mystery

5. The island’s clans toppled the moai during the collapse of their civilization in
the 18th and 19th centuries.
a. built slowly over many years
b. knocked down; hit and caused to fall
c. worshipped as gods

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. Three words are not used.

bizarre depicts ingenious marveled snapshot

come on board feat intermittently nude toppled
crafted hideous magnet polarizing vandalized

1. This mural was painted in 1826. It ___________________ the battle of Trafalgar.

2. The project is quite complex, so we're having a specialist ___________________
temporarily.
3. It costs a lot of money to clean and repair historic buildings after they've been
___________________.
4. She's very unhappy with her love life. She says she seems to be a
___________________ for losers.
5. That neon-colored tablecloth is absolutely ___________________. Why would
anyone buy that?
6. The actress was not willing to pose ___________________ for a photo shoot.
7. Everyone ___________________ at the skill of the 5-year-old piano prodigy.
8. The earthquake ___________________ quite a few telephone poles.
9. Each piece of pottery is hand-___________________ and unique.
10. They've come up with an ___________________ way to generate electricity without
expensive equipment.
11. His amazing athletic ___________________ earned him a spot in the Guinness Book
of World Records.
12. The coffee machine only seems to work ___________________. I can't figure out
what's wrong with it.
Writing Task
Imagine that you have the chance to go back in time and experience life in another
period of history. When and where would you go? Describe the reasons for your
decision, and what you think life would be like. Send your text to
homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions
1. c
2. c
3. a
4. c
5. b
6. b
7. b
8. c

Discover New Words

1. b
2. b
3. a
4. c
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz
1. depicts
2. come on board
3. vandalized
4. magnet
5. hideous
6. nude
7. marveled
8. toppled
9. crafted
10. ingenious
11. feat
12. intermittently
The World’s Most Expensive Foods
If you could spend an unlimited amount of money
on something delicious to eat, what would you
Vocabulary
choose? If you have money to burn, you might
like to pick out one of the world’s most expensive money to burn = a LOT of
foods. Which one of these pleases your palate? extra money, much more
than you need
Bagels palate = sense of taste

For a thousand dollars, the chef of the Westin toasted = describes a

piece of bread that is
Hotel in New York will present you with a heated and turned brown
delicately toasted bagel, topped with goji berry by bringing it close to a
fire or heat source
and white truffle cream cheese, infused with a
white truffle = a very
jelly made from Riesling wine. What makes it so expensive type of fungus
expensive? It’s the truffles – white truffles are the
infused with = filled with
most expensive in the world. They grow only in
harvested = when a fruit
Alba, Italy, under certain oak trees. or vegetable is gathered
from the place where it is
Potatoes growing
a mere ten days = only ten
Would you believe that potatoes could cost $45 days (the word “mere” is
per pound? It’s true. The La Bonnotte potato only used for emphasis when a
quantity is small)
grows on a particular French island. It has to be
harvested by hand, and the growing season is a
mere ten days in the month of May. You can buy
it only in the ritziest restaurants in the
Netherlands and France.
Mushrooms

You won’t find matsutake mushrooms in your Vocabulary

local supermarket. They’re found only in Japan,
cultivated = grown and
only in autumn, and they can’t be cultivated. The produced deliberately by
trees under which they grow are becoming humans

scarce, and these mushrooms cost in the in the neighborhood of =

approximately
neighborhood of a thousand dollars for a pound.
upscale = high-level, fancy,
Frittata expensive
caviar = fish eggs
Another thousand-dollar dish is the breakfast
dine on = eat (the word
frittata that upscale restaurants create using the “dine” is like a more
world’s third-most expensive variety of caviar – refined word for eat)

ten ounces of it, at a cost to the restaurant of $65 coated in = covered in

per ounce – combined with lobster and, of course, abalone = a type of
shellfish
eggs.
fit for a king = very fancy;
Samundari Khazana Curry appropriate for a king

For $3,200, you can dine on the most expensive

curry in the world, available from Bombay
Brassiere. It consists of white truffle, Devon crab,
beluga caviar and half a tomato, garnished in
gold leaf. Add to that a Scottish lobster (also
coated in gold), quail eggs stuffed with caviar,
and abalone, and you have a dish fit for a king…
and it’s likely that only a king can afford it!
Wagyu Steak

Japanese Wagyu cattle are fed beer and Vocabulary

massaged by hand to ensure the superior
cattle = cows
marbling and tenderness of the meat. The fat
massaged = rubbing and
content is through the roof, so people at risk for pressing the body with the
heart problems should likely avoid it. hands
marbling = the mixture of
If you’re in good health, though, and want to taste
fat and muscle in the meat
a steak from the world’s most pampered cow,
tenderness = softness,
you can get a Wagyu steak at Craftsteak in New easy to chew
York for just $2,800. cognac-marinated =
cognac is a type of liquor,
Pizza Royale 007 and “marinate” means to
soak meat in a liquid, so
You’d think that $4,200 would get you more than that the liquid affects the
just a twelve-inch pie, but not when it’s topped flavor of the meat

with cognac-marinated lobster, champagne- venison = meat from a

deer
soaked caviar, smoked salmon from Scotland,
prosciutto = a type of
venison, and the finest prosciutto. Italian ham

Add to that a garnish of 24-carat gold flakes, and flakes = tiny, thin pieces

you have the world’s most expensive pizza. auction = an event where
potential buyers say how
Yubari Melons much they are willing to
pay for the item, until the
If you think something as simple as a piece of person who offers the
highest price wins and
fruit couldn’t possibly be expensive – think again!
buys it
The most expensive melons ever sold were a pair
fetched = got
of Yubari cantaloupes that were grown in 2008.

At auction, they fetched $22,872 – that’s

$11,436 per melon. You should never again
complain about your grocery bill.
Vocabulary
The Golden Opulence Sundae
sundae = ice cream with
Time for dessert – it’ll run you about $1,000. The additional treats added to
the dish
Golden Opulence Sundae is made from Tahitian
syrup = a thick, sweet
vanilla ice cream topped with chocolate syrup
liquid
made from melting one of the world’s most
melting = when a solid
expensive chocolates. The sundae is also turns into a liquid
adorned with caviar, exotic candied fruit, adorned with = decorated
truffles, marzipan cherries, and edible 23-carat with; made beautiful with

gold leaf. edible = can be eaten

your wallet will be lighter
After meals like these, your stomach will be full, = you will have spent a lot
but your wallet will be lighter! of money

Sources:

http://most-expensive.com/foods

http://www.urbanspoon.com/articles/13059/
Comprehension Questions
True or false? Mark these sentences true or false, and correct the false ones.

1. What makes the bagel so expensive is the Riesling wine in the jelly.
2. The La Bonnotte potato only grows in a single place on the planet.
3. Matsutake mushrooms cost a thousand dollars each.
4. The fritatta uses $650 worth of caviar.
5. The Samundari Khazana curry includes seafood.
6. You can only get a Wagyu steak in Japan.
7. The Pizza Royale is a vegetarian dish.
8. Nobody has ever actually bought a Yubari melon.
9. The Golden Opulence Sundae is served in a bowl made of gold.
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. You can buy it only in the ritziest restaurants in the Netherlands and France.
a. most elegant, fanciest
b. most isolated
c. most well-known

2. The trees under which they grow are becoming scarce, and these mushrooms
cost in the neighborhood of a thousand dollars for a pound.
a. diseased
b. expensive
c. rare, hard to find

3. It consists of white truffle, Devon crab, beluga caviar and half a tomato,
garnished in gold leaf.
a. cooked
b. decorated
c. purchased

4. The fat content is through the roof, so people at risk for heart problems
should likely avoid it.
a. completely unknown
b. extremely high
c. not dangerous

5. If you’re in good health, though, and want to taste a steak from the world’s
most pampered cow, you can get a Wagyu steak at Craftsteak in New York
for just $2,800.
a. highly desired by many professionals
b. receiving very nice treatment and lots of comfort
c. trained for a specific purpose

Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.

Vocabulary Quiz

cattle harvested mere toasted

coated infused scarce upscale
flakes marinated

1. I can't believe he started his company with a ___________________________ $100!

2. Instead of renting a cheap room like we usually do, we treated ourselves to a
weekend in an ___________________________ hotel.
3. My shoes were ___________________________ in mud after I walked across the field
in the rain.
4. She sprinkled some coconut ___________________________ on top of the ice cream.
5. The chicken is so tasty because it was ___________________________ in the sauce for
several hours before being grilled.
6. The farmers ___________________________ the corn in early November, then
prepared the fields for winter.
7. This is organic beef, from ___________________________ that has not been treated
with any hormones.
8. Would you like the bread for your sandwich to be ___________________________?
9. You should definitely apply for this job. Opportunities like this one are
becoming ___________________________.
10. This specialty chocolate is ___________________________ with the flavor of passion
fruit.
Writing Task

Imagine that you've been given a budget of $10,000 to welcome an important

foreign visitor to your country. Describe in detail:

• What kind of food you would serve them.

• What places you would take this person, and what you would want them to
experience in your country.

Send me your text (2-3 paragraphs) at homework@espressoenglish.net for feedback

and correction!

Answers
Comprehension Questions

1. False - it's the truffles

2. True
3. False - they cost a thousand dollars per pound
4. True
5. True
6. False - you can get it in New York, too
7. False - it includes venison and prosciutto, which are two types of meat
8. False - someone bought a pair of melons for $22,872
9. False - it is only decorated with gold leaf, not served in a golden bowl

Discover New Words

1. a
2. c
3. b
4. b
5. b
Vocabulary Quiz

1. mere
2. upscale
3. coated
4. flakes
5. marinated
6. harvested
7. cattle
8. toasted
9. scarce
10. infused
Young Entrepreneurs

Most people spend their youth learning, growing,

and goofing off. A select few, however, manage
Vocabulary
to turn their childhood into a staging ground for
future accomplishments. Here are three people goofing off = being silly
who started successful companies before they staging ground =
were 18 years old. preparation
outhouses = outdoor
bathrooms / toilets that
David Buckingham: are in a small building
separate from the main
Custom Alaskan Outhouses house
niche = small, specialized
Who would think there’s a market for outhouses area of the market
in the 21st century? Talk about a tiny niche! Yet aesthetic appeal = the
attractive way they look
an industrious 16-year-old named David
plumbing = the system of
Buckingham started building and selling
pipes and water inside a
customized outhouses in Alaska. house or building
tap into = access an area
Most people buy the outhouses for their of resources

aesthetic appeal rather than their functionality,

since most Alaskan homes do in fact have indoor
plumbing and running water. But David was still
able to tap into a niche market of people looking
for the authentic rustic feel of an outhouse built
to their exact specifications.
Aaron Swartz:
Co-creator of RSS 1.0 and Reddit Vocabulary

aggregates = brings together

RSS is a computer program that aggregates
compatible = things that can
posts from a number of different compatible
work well together
sources; such as blogs, twitter feeds, and
live-streaming = appearing at
article headlines. If a website has a live- the same time as the content
streaming update of posts or other data, it is produced

probably uses RSS. co-authored = wrote together

with other people
activist = someone who
Aaron Swartz co-authored RSS 1.0 when he supports and works in favor of
was just 14. He went on to form his own a particular cause
company, Infogami, and was later involved in transparency = being clear
and not hiding anything
the creation of the popular social media site
Reddit. As an adult, Aaron was an outspoken net neutrality = the principle
that all internet data should
activist, particularly supporting government be treated as equal, not
transparency and the early stages of net restricted by governments or
companies
neutrality.
took things too far = went
beyond what is acceptable
Sadly, Aaron took things too far in his quest broke into = illegally entered a
to make information freely available. He building or house
broke into a university building to install a took his own life = committed
suicide; killed himself
computer to secretly download articles from
a digital academic library with paid access. In
the midst of Aaron’s trial, he took his own
life.
Anshul Samar:
Alchemist Empire Inc. Vocabulary

found = establish a
When Anshul was in 4th grade, he played a lot of
company or organization
card games – and then decided that he'd like to
media coverage =
make his own. Two years later, he released the appearances in the media
first version of his game, Elementeo, which is a freshman = first-year
card game geared towards kids and based on college student

the periodic table of the elements. Anshul then CEO = president of a

company
went on to found Alchemist Empire Inc., a
company that manages the production and
marketing of Elementeo. The game has earned
extensive media coverage, and it was also
presented at the National Academies of Sciences
and the American Chemical Society. Anshul
Samar is now a freshman at Stanford University
and still runs Elementeo as its founder and CEO.

These young entrepreneurs show us that it’s

never too early to begin thinking creatively about
developing a good idea and making a
contribution to the world.
Comprehension Questions
True or False?

1. David Buckingham makes his money by reselling others’ products.

2. Most people buy outhouses just because they like the way they look.
3. Each of David's products is made the way the customer wants it.
4. The RSS program allows photos to be displayed in an online gallery.
5. Aaron Swartz invented RSS on his own.
6. Aaron was politically active.
7. Aaron's crime involved revealing U.S. government secrets.
8. Anshul started a company around something he enjoyed doing.
9. Elementeo helps teach kids about science.
10. Anshul sold the company when he went to college.
Discover New Words
Choose the best definition for the vocabulary word in bold.

1. Yet an industrious 16-year-old named David Buckingham started building

and selling customized outhouses in Alaska.
a. employed
b. hard-working
c. intelligent

2. But David was still able to tap into a niche market of people looking for the
authentic rustic feel of an outhouse built to their exact specifications.
a. not well-maintained
b. related to countryside life
c. useful for daily life

3. As an adult, Aaron was an outspoken activist, particularly supporting

government transparency and the early stages of net neutrality.
a. describes someone who everyone else talks about
b. describes someone whose opinions are not popular
c. describes someone who speaks directly and loudly about their ideas

4. Sadly, Aaron took things too far in his quest to make information freely
available.
a. seeking or aiming to do something
b. technological advance
c. unusual philosophy

5. Two years later, he released the first version of his game, Elementeo, which is
a card game geared towards kids and based on the periodic table of the
elements.
a. designed by
b. given to
c. made/adapted for
Check your answers before continuing to the next quiz.
Vocabulary Quiz
Complete each sentence with a word from the box. All the words are used.

break into coverage industrious quest

co-authors geared towards outspoken rustic
compatible goofing off plumbing transparency

1. He's extremely ______________________ about his religion - I wish he'd just keep
his beliefs to himself.
2. The shower in my apartment isn't working. There must be some problem
with the ______________________.
3. I don't like group projects because most people waste time
______________________ and joking around instead of getting some serious work
done.
4. My sister broke up with her boyfriend; he's a great guy, but she felt that their
personalities just weren't ______________________.
5. No, I hadn't heard about the earthquake in Chile. I'm surprised there hasn't
been any ______________________ of it in the news.
6. One of the book's ______________________ will be available after the event to
answer questions from the audience.
7. He's on a ______________________ to become the youngest person ever to visit
every country in the world.
8. Our company is looking to hire someone who is motivated and
______________________.
9. The company has a policy of complete ______________________ when it comes to
finances - they even publish staff salaries online.
10. This special re-training program is ______________________ middle-aged adults
who want to make a career change.
11. We stayed in an old, ______________________ cabin in the middle of the woods; it
was wonderful to be so close to nature!
12. Our burglar alarm will alert the police if anyone tries to ______________________
the house.
Writing Task
Some people view large companies as great for generating jobs and improving the
country’s economy. Other people see big corporations as places that unfairly
dominate the market, which only care about profit and don’t care about people.
What are your views?

• Do you think large corporations are helpful or harmful?

• Is it fair that the CEO gets a far higher salary than most of the employees?
• Should bigger companies pay a higher tax rate, or a lower tax rate?

Send me your text (2-3 paragraphs) at homework@espressoenglish.net

Answers
Comprehension Questions:
1. False
2. True
3. True
4. False
5. False
6. True
7. False
8. True
9. True
10. False

Discover New Words

1. b
2. b
3. c
4. a
5. c
Vocabulary Quiz:
1. outspoken
2. plumbing
3. goofing off
4. compatible
5. coverage
6. co-authors
7. quest
8. industrious
9. transparency
10. geared towards
11. rustic
12. break into