English Recordings

Many students learn vocabulary and try to put many words together to create a proper sentence. It amazes me how many words some of my students know, but they cannot create a proper sentence. The reason is because they didn't study phrases. When children learn a language, they learn both words and phrases together. Likewise, you need to study and learn phrases.

If you know 1000 words, you might not be able to say one correct sentence. But if you know 1 phrase, you can make hundreds of correct sentences. If you know 100 phrases, you will be surprised at how many correct sentences you will be able to say. Finally, when you know only a 1000 phrases, you will be almost a fluent English speaker.

So don't spend hours and hours learning many different words. Use that time to study phrases instead and you will be closer to English fluency.

This rule might sound strange to many ESL students, but it is one of the most important rules. If you want to pass examinations, then study grammar. However, if you want to become fluent in English, then you should try to learn English without studying the grammar.

Studying grammar will only slow you down and confuse you. You will think about the rules when creating sentences instead of naturally saying a sentence like a native. Remember that only a small fraction of English speakers know more than 20% of all the grammar rules. Many ESL students know more grammar than native speakers. I can confidently say this with experience. I am a native English speaker, majored in English Literature, and have been teaching English for more than 10 years. However, many of my students know more details about English grammar than I do. I can easily look up the definition and apply it, but I don't know it off the top of my head.

I often ask my native English friends some grammar questions, and only a few of them know the correct answer. However, they are fluent in English and can read, speak, listen, and communicate effectively.

Do you want to be able to recite the definition of a causative verb, or do you want to be able to speak English fluently?

Running can also have many psychological benefits. Most significantly runners typically report being happier and feeling less stressed than their counterparts who do not run or exercise regularly. Running actually has the ability to alter an individuals moods because hormones called endorphins are released while running. These hormones create a sense of euphoria often referred to as a runner’s high and can result in an improvement in the runner’s mood. Running has also been reported to alleviate stress in most runners. There are a number of factors which may contribute to running lowering stress levels. One of the most obvious reasons is the act of running allows the individual to focus on the task at hand instead of being worried or stressed about work, family or other stressors in his daily life. Additionally, running can be very challenging on the body which can result in the individual feeling a sense of accomplishment by completing the run which shifts the focus of his attention from negative stressors to a sense of pride and accomplishment.

Sigurd Rascher, the distinguished concert saxophonist was born of Swedish and English parentage and spent his childhood in the Swiss Alps. Some of his studies were in Germany, as clarinetist, but he turned early in his musical career to the saxophone and toured Europe with a jazz band from 1927 to 1930. For a time after that he taught school, enjoying association with children in music and woodcrafts. He loved especially his work teaching the small boys and girls to play six-hole flutes, and to carve wooden bowls and boxes. Returning to his profession as an active musician, Rascher entered on his career as a serious and successful saxophone orchestral-soloist and recitalist. Ibert, Glazounov, Milhaud, and Hindemith were among a large number of European composers who wrote music for him and to this general list now has been added or will be added shortly the American names of Roy Harris, Dante Fiorello, Aaron Copland, among others.

It is interesting to note that the daughter of Adolphe Sax, when a very old lady, wrote to Rascher that, after hearing him play, she was convinced the instrument was at last being heard as her father had wished it to be known. - Editor’s Note.

A hundred years seems long in measuring a life span. But in thinking of musical history, a hundred years is not too long. The saxophone, much-maligned, unappreciated, has passed its hundredth year, and only now is beginning to be taken seriously as a musical instrument of artistic and aesthetic possibilities. Only now has the question of its acceptance into orchestral instrumentation come to the front. And even today the musical possibilities of this instrument have not been exploited fully.

In 1842, Berlioz described the saxophone as "... an instrument whose tone color is between that of the brass and the woodwinds. But it even reminds one, thouigh more remotely, of the sound of the strings. I think its main advantage is the greatly varied beauty in its different possibilities of expression. At one time deeply quiet, at another full of emotion; dreamy, melancholic, sometimes with the hush of an echo....I do not know of any instrument having this specific tone-quality, bordering on the limits of the audible." Very few players of this instrument achieve this striking quality described by Berlioz. There are, to be sure, many good saxophonists - especially in this country - but the full capacities of the instrument have not been called upon.

What did Adolphe Sax seek when he invented his instrument in 1840? Did he expect that it would be welcomed into the symphonic orchestra group, or that it would remain almost an outcast for a century? We can leave it to history only to answer these questions. Antoine Joseph Sax (known as Adolphe) perfected the bass clarinet in 1835, when he was only twenty-one years old. In 1840, he was trying to produce a clarinet that would overblow an octave like the flute or oboe, and the result was his new instrument, the saxophone. His aims were definite. He wanted to fill the gap of tone quality between the strings and wind instruments on the one side, and between the brass and woodwinds on the other. Therefore, the new link should have the flexibility of the strings, the power of the brass, and the variety of tone quality of the woodwinds. But in addition the instrument should have a distinct character of its own. Sax was aware that in order to achieve all this in one instrument he must use a single-reed mouthpiece, similar to that of a clarinet, and a conical body of metal. To acquire the necessary flexibility of tone he broadened the mouthpiece outwardly and widened its inner measurements. To make the tone sufficiently voluminous to stand successfully against the brass of the orchestra, the inventor gave the conical body a parabolic shape. These features are mentioned in the patent which Sax took out for the instrument in June, 1846.

The barn was very large. It was very old. It smelled of hay and it smelled of manure. It smelled of pespiration of tired horses and the wonderful sweet breath of patient cows. It often had a sort of peaceful smell- as though nothing bad could happen ever again in the world. It smelled of grain and of harness dressing and of axle grease and of rubber boots and of new rope. And whenever the cat was given a fish-head to eat, the barn would smell of fish. But mostly it smelled of hay, for there was always hay being pitched down to the cows and the horses and the sheep.
The barn was pleasently warm in winter when the animals spent most of their time indoors, and it was pleasantly cool in summer when the big doors stood wide open to the breeze. The barn had stalls on the main floor for the work horses, tie-ups on the main floor for the cows, a sheepfold down below for the sheep, a pigpen down below for Wilbur, and it was full of all sorts of things that you find in barns: ladders, grindstones, pitch forks, monkey wrenches, scythes, lawn mowers, snow shovels, ax handles, milk pails, water buckets, empty grain sacks, and rusty rat traps. It was the kind of barn that swallows like to build their nests in. It was the kind of barn that children like to play in. And the whole thing was owned by Fern's uncle, Mr. Homer L. Zuckerman.

Hi, there.

Today I want to talk about LingQ. LingQ is the system of language learning that I have been using for one year or so. At first, I began learning English using this system. As the time went by, I decided to prove to myself the effectiveness of the so-called “listen first” approach and I began studying Spanish on LingQ.

So, first things first.

LingQ is a great tool for reading texts in foreign languages. You create your own personal database of words that you want to learn. After you created a LingQ for a particular word you do not have to spend your time by searching the meaning of the word in a dictionary. You can simply move your mouse over the word and you see the explanation. Of course, if you already have a lot of years of studying English with traditional grammar method it is safe to assume that you already know many words. To be honest, this was the case when I began to study English. For Spanish it is different. I have to LingQ every word. It is a lot of work, but once the work is done, then you are kind of on an autopilot, because you can concentrate all your attention on the text that you are reading. Reading really becomes much more effective and pleasurable. It is no secret that reading is a powerful way to enrich your passive vocabulary, to make it grow. LingQ provides you with a very powerful tool regarding this matter. It is amazing.

If you don't live in an English-speaking country, and you don't have friends or family to speak English with, where can you practise your English speaking skills?

It's easier to have a conversation if you have a reason to speak – something to talk about. These ideas all give you a reason to speak with another person.

Start a film or book club

Invite people to discuss a film that you all watch together, or a book that you are all reading. Prepare questions before, to help people talk about specific aspects.

Volunteer to help other people

Does your town or company often welcome foreign guests? Can you offer to translate for them? Or perhaps you can offer to help children or students with their English homework.

Take part in a film conversation

Watch a film on DVD, and decide in which part you can speak with the film character. Listen to what the character says (and the reply) then rewind, and either mute or pause the DVD after the film character speaks. Take the other character's role, and reply to the first character. You can also find film scripts on the imsdb site. Print it out, then practise taking a role in the film.

Use skype

Chat with other people in the penpal forum via skype. You can get to know them first by writing to them, then invite them for a conversation.

Take English lessons

This is the most expensive option, but paying for private or group lessons is a good way to regularly practise your English. If you have a job, maybe your company can also arrange lessons for you.

Mary: Have you had your holiday for this year, Jane?

Jane: Not yet. I’m taking it at the end of September.

Mary: Where are you going? Have you made up your mind?

Jane: Not really. I thought of going to Spain again, but I’ve already been there twice and I’d like to try somewhere new.

Mary: My brother’s just gone to Mexico for two weeks. I had a card from him yesterday and he seems to be having a good time. Why don’t you go there?

Jane: I couldn’t possibly afford it. I’ve already spent a lot of money this year so I haven’t got much to spare for expensive holidays abroad.

Mary: Oh, I see.

Jane: Perhaps I’ll just go to Scotland or Ireland in the end. I’ve heard they are both very beautiful and I’ve never been there.

Mary: We went to Ireland two years ago to visit Jill and her husband. They are in Dublin now.

Jane: Oh, yes, so they are!

Mary: If you decide on Ireland you can call in on them. Jill would surely put you up for a few days.

Jane: That’s a good idea! I haven’t seen Jill for more than three years and I’d like to know how she’s getting on.

The use of strain gauges in the prediction of sidewall cutting forces, in milling

ABSTRACT:

This study investigates the use of strain gauges in the prediction of cutting forces in slab milling of aerospace specification aluminium. Can strain gauges be used in the prediction of machining forces? An experiment is furmulated using Minitab (in order to deal with a large number of variables). Captured strains are validated using a secondary test, involving the Instron universal tensile tester. Forces are calculated from the recorded strains using bending moment equations and the process is simulated using the Instron machine to try to validate these calculated forces. Numerous techniques are used and assumptions made in order to specify the problem. This thesis analyses the problems involved, advices on their solutions and most importantly highlights through graphical representation how well strain gauges can perform in these conditions.

INTRODUCTION:

This theisis is a study of the sidewall forces in milling. The purpose of the study is to try and find a method for predicting these forces. Prediction of these forces is of major importance as it helps significantly in reducing manufacturing times and costs (rework and scrap). Engineering/Manufacturing companies often have trouble when it comes to machining thing cross-sections. Airbus and the aerospace industry as a whole are particularly interested in methods of force prediction as they regularly experience difficulties in achieveing optimum dimensions for the designs of their airplane wing ribs. Once the cross-section of the rib reaches a certain "thickness" they deform under the forces applied by the cutter. It is at this thickness that the designers must plan around. If there were some technique that would allow engineers to know what forces are applied during cutting, they could have fewer limitations imposed on their designs.

The ideal solution would be to input all the relevant variables into an equation or mathematical model, for example, dimensions of the specimen, cutter material, depth of cut, cutter speed etc, which produces a result for the output force experienced by the sidewall of the component as a result of those variables. Such an equation would allow optimum dimensions to be achieved at the design stage, reducing rework and scrap materials resulting in an overall decreased cost and a reduction in manufacturing times. The prediction of these forces cannot be estabilished from one experiment or even in the amount of time available to complete this thesis. The aim here is to test some of the variables to a suitable degree of understanding in order to evaluate the process and hopefully find a link between the variables and the forces exerted on the component. This study will take future researchers in this field a step further to understanding the connection between all the variables involved in the milling process, by attempting to establish, which of the three chosen variables (speed of cutter, aluminium cross-section and cutting distance from gauge) has the largest effect on the output forces. The thesis will also try and prove that the technique used to measure the strain is a valid one. The machining operation under review is the "milling operation". This cutting technique was chosen as it is the most widely used in industry due to its versatility and also because of its use in the production of wing ribs at Airbus. It is for the same reason that the material chosen to undergo machining is aerospace specification aluminium.

The milling operation is a straightforward process but the fact that it can be used in various orientations and speeds makes it difficult to analyse (these orientations and other variables are discussed in sections 3.1 and 4.1.1 of the thesis) because any one slight change made to the process can potentially have major affects on the forces that are exerted on the specimen. It is obvious therefore, that in order to obtain a full understanding of the output forces, every parameter must be tested individually and an experiment must be conducted for every possible variable to see which of them have the most substantial effect on the resultant force. To do this would require a huge amount of time, which simply wasn’t available to me. Therefore, to get around the problem of having many variables some were to remain fixed depending on valid reasoning. These will be discussed further in section 4 of this Thesis.

Artificial life, the stuff of dreams and nightmares, has arrived

TO CREATE life is the prerogative of gods. Deep in the human psyche, whatever the rational pleadings of physics and chemistry, there exists a sense that biology is different, is more than just the sum of atoms moving about and reacting with one another, is somehow infused with a divine spark, a vital essence. It may come as a shock, then, that mere mortals have now made artificial life.

Craig Venter and Hamilton Smith, the two American biologists who unravelled the first DNA sequence of a living organism (a bacterium) in 1995, have made a bacterium that has an artificial genome—creating a living creature with no ancestor (see article). Pedants may quibble that only the DNA of the new beast was actually manufactured in a laboratory; the researchers had to use the shell of an existing bug to get that DNA to do its stuff. Nevertheless, a Rubicon has been crossed. It is now possible to conceive of a world in which new bacteria (and eventually, new animals and plants) are designed on a computer and then grown to order.

That ability would prove mankind’s mastery over nature in a way more profound than even the detonation of the first atomic bomb. The bomb, however justified in the context of the second world war, was purely destructive. Biology is about nurturing and growth. Synthetic biology, as the technology that this and myriad less eye-catching advances are ushering in has been dubbed, promises much. In the short term it promises better drugs, less thirsty crops (see article), greener fuels and even a rejuvenated chemical industry. In the longer term who knows what marvels could be designed and grown?

On the face of it, then, artificial life looks like a wonderful thing. Yet that is not how many will view the announcement. For them, a better word than “creation” is “tampering”. Have scientists got too big for their boots? Will their hubris bring Nemesis in due course? What horrors will come creeping out of the flask on the laboratory bench?

Such questions are not misplaced—and should give pause even to those, including this newspaper, who normally embrace advances in science with enthusiasm. The new biological science does have the potential to do great harm, as well as good. “Predator” and “disease” are just as much part of the biological vocabulary as “nurturing” and “growth”. But for good or ill it is here. Creating life is no longer the prerogative of gods.