Unit 14 Science and technology

Unit 14 Science and Technology Chat online III. Script                                             (1’9’’) Voice and Text Chat: Communicating Across the Internet Voice and text chat, in addition to instant messaging, are quickly becoming preferred ways of communicating with others online. For language learners, these forms of communication allow users to share ideas about themselves and the world in almost real time, and students can establish friendships with people from around the globe, and thus, it can be an easy way to learn languages and world cultures. However, care and consideration should be given when finding friends on the Internet because you really don't know who the person is at the other end. Thus, always use a nickname when chatting online and never give out personal information including your age, where you live, and the name of the school where you attend. Also, be careful about meeting online acquaintances in person, and if you do so, make sure it is in a public place and go with a friend or family member. Finally, contact local authorities if you feel you are in danger. Again, chatting with others can be a fun and educational activity if you use care when doing so. IV. Key to exercises A. Circle T (True) or F (False) according to what you hear.. 1. Voice and text chat are quickly becoming preferred ways of communicating with others online. (T) 2. Language learners can share ideas with others in almost real time by way of internet. (T) 3. It is not an easy way for students to learn languages and world cultures by way of establishing friendship with people from the globe. (F) It can be an easy way to learn languages and world cultures. 4. It is suggested in the recording that personal information should be given when users are making friends online. (F) 5. One should contact local authorities if one feels one is danger when one is establishing friendship with others through internet.(T) B. Listen to the recording again and give the main idea of each paragraph 1. Voice and text chat are becoming preferred ways of communicating with others and it can be an easy way to learn languages and cultures. 2. Care and consideration should be given when finding friends on the Internet because you really don't know who the person is at the other end. 3. Voice and text chat can be funny and educational if it is used properly. C. Listen to the following report on Email and fill in the blanks: Email: A Tool for International Communication  (1’35’’) Sending and reading email has quickly become one of the most common daily activities around the world, either for business or pleasure. Now, more and more teachers and students are using this form of communication to improve their language skills, particularly English. Several reasons why email has become a great tool is that it is fast, convenient, and affordable. One particular activity that takes advantage of these points is a keypal exchange. In the past, teachers often organized pen friends project where their students would exchange letters with another group of students in another country. However, the turn-around time for sending and receiving traditional letters (and then follow-up replies) can take up to month for the whole process, and by that time, students might lose interest in the project or the class might end before a series of meaningful exchanges can take place. Furthermore, students have to pay international postage to send the letters, something the students might be unwilling to do. With email, however, messages can be sent at a click of a button at school, home, or an Internet cafe, and if you are using a free email account, the cost is free (not taking into account any Internet Service Provider fees you have to pay). Instead of waiting days or weeks for a response, students can receive a reply within days, hours, or even minutes. Email has a lot to offer for language learner and teachers in the classroom. Lesson B Ipod and MP3 players: Rocking the Internet and Learning Languages I. Additional Background Notes An MP3 is a digital audio file compressed using a standard defined by the Motion Pictures Experts Group (MPEG). Officially known as "MPEG-1, Layer 3", MP3s can use as little as 10% of the storage required by the CD format. An MP3 player is a device for playing MP3 files. MP3 players come in many sizes and capacities. The smallest MP3 players use a type of memory known as flash; unlike conventional memory such as that found in a desktop computer, flash does not lose stored information when the power is turned off. Flash is very compact and uses very little power, allowing for extremely small designs with long battery life. The limitation of flash-based MP3 players is that they do not have a great deal of storage capacity. For larger storage needs, hard disk-based MP3 players were developed. These can have storage capacities in the tens of thousands of songs, but sacrifice the ultra compactness of flash-based players. Hard disk-based MP3 players are also generally more expensive than flash-based players. While not invented by Apple, it was Apple's line of iPod MP3 players that popularized the devices. With their distinctive white headphones and Lucite and chrome styling, coupled with extreme ease of use, iPods soon dominated the portable MP3 player market. With the rise in popularity of MP3s as a format for storing music, a number of non-portable MP3 players appeared for the home market. Sometimes referred to as "digital hubs" or "media centers", these devices are a cross between a stereo component and a computer. With network connections, often wireless, they are able to access MP3s and other digital content stored on computers on the home network. With a full array of standard audio/visual connections, they are able to integrate with home entertainment systems. These devices come with remote controls and may use a television as a display screen for menus and playback information. A major advantage of these devices when used as MP3 players is that more than one device can access your MP3 files at the same time. All the music can be stored in one place, and the various MP3 players in the home can treat the MP3 collection like a library with unlimited copies of every book. II. Teaching Tips: 1. Students are supposed to get to know the history of t ipod and similar MP3 players 2. Teachers are supposed to get students active in discussion on such devices. 3. Students are supposed to get the understanding of the function of IPod and MP3 players 4. Students are supposed to understand the negative effects of such devices. III. Script (for exercise A and B)                                (1’11’’) IPod and MP3 Players: Rocking the Internet and Learning Languages Devices like iPod media players from Apple computers, as well as similar mp3 players from companies like HP, Sony, Dell, and Creative Labs, offer users the ability to listen to MP3 audio files (as well as other formats) on the go away from their computers or home entertainment centers. So what does this mean for language students? First of all, media files from textbooks (when permission is granted by the specific publisher) could be digitized from an audio CD, converted to MP3 audio, and then uploaded to an i-Pod player. Then, the student could listen to the media files as he or she looked over the corresponding material from the class textbook. Furthermore, many MP3 audio players have a recording feature that will allow you to record your voice. One practical use of such a feature is to keep a digital voice journal, that is, keep weekly recordings of your life events much like you would in a traditional diary. By maintaining such a journal, students can go back weeks, months, or years later to hear evidence of their progress. ( for exercise C and D)                              (3’38’’) Portable Music Players Linked to Hearing LossBy Cynthia Kirk I'm Shep O'Neal with the VOA Special English HEALTH REPORT. Electronic devices are changing the way people listen to music. But studies show the devices may be causing hearing loss in many people. Some experts say people may be playing them too loud and for too long. A college student listens to her iPod. Experts say sound levels on these devices need to be set lower. (AP Photo) Researchers from Zogby International did a study for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. It involved three hundred high school students and one thousand adults. They were asked about their use of portable music devices. Some of the most popular are Apple Computer's iPod, C.D. players and portable laptop computers. Forty percent of students and adults said they set the sound levels, or volume, at high on their iPods. But students were two times more likely to play the music at a very loud volume. More than half of the students said they would probably not limit their listening time. And about a third said they were not likely to reduce the volume. The study found that more than half of the students and less than forty percent of the adults had at least one kind of hearing loss. Some reported difficulty hearing parts of a discussion between two people. Others said they had to raise volume controls on a television or radio to hear it better. And, some experienced ringing in their ears or other noises. Hearing experts say part of the problem is the listening equipment people are using. They say large earphones that cover the whole ear are probably safer than the smaller earbuds that come with most music players. Earbuds are thought to be less effective than earphones in blocking out foreign noises. Hearing loss may not be apparent for years. But once it happens, it is permanent. About thirty million Americans have some hearing loss. One third of them lost their hearing as a result of loud noises.