English Recordings

Presidents Day is a public holiday in the USA.
It is also called Wahsington's Day.
It is celebrated on the third Monday of February.
What date is it this year?
Americans celebrate the birthdays of two great presidents ! Do you know who ?
It is always celebrated on the third Monday of February because President George Washington was born on February 22nd.
On this day, Americans honour all the presidents in the history of the United States, but particularly George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.
Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery in 1865.

Well, it's that time of year again! Tax season. Which do I dislike more, tax time or winter? It's a toss up. Actually, except for this winter, I think I dislike tax time more.

For some people, it's not too difficult. Their boss gives them a form at the end of the year, they fill out the form, and it's over. But because I'm self-employed, there many, many things I need to record, add, subtract, multiply... well, you get the idea.

Once I get the final figures, I send them to my accountant to finish the process. The tax laws change from year to year, and I could never keep up with the changes on my own. I'm so grateful that he is willing to take care of the final filing for me! The deadline is April 15, so I have to be diligent in working on this! At least when I finish, I can forget about it for another year!

P: Hello, Michelle. Can I help you?

S: SILENCE FOR 5 SECONDS
P: Sure. Sit down.

S: SILENCE FOR 15 SECONDS
P: Well, you're not alone, Michelle. I'm afraid most of the class is doing poorly this term. Now, I've tried to explain what I want you all to do several times now, but nobody seems to get it. I guess I'm a failure as a teacher.

S: SILENCE FOR 20 SECONDS
P: Have you got your paper with you?

S: SILENCE FOR 5 SECONDS
P: Let me have a look.

S: SILENCE FOR2 SECONDS
P: Mmm...yes...I remember now. Actually, Michelle, you have a very good thesis here. I like it. I just wish you could've presented it more effectively.

S: SILENCE FOR 5SECONDS
P: Well...just look at your opening sentence. This is the first sentence that the reader meets. "Most authorities consider the zygote the initiation of a new existence." Now tell me, Michelle, if the average person picked this up and started reading it, would they understand that?

S: SILENCE FOR10 SECONDS
P: Of course. It seems short and direct. But you must remember that when you wrote this, you had been reading and researching your topic beforehand- I hope- but the reader is coming to this cold. How many people know what a zygote is? How self-evident is the meaning of "a new existence"? That's a very abstract phrase.

S: SILENCE FOR5 SECONDS
P: Michelle, the writer's first duty is to his readership and his second duty is to his thesis. Think of all the articles you've read that've been built on flimsy arguments, misconceptions or untruths, and yet have become widely popular, have enjoyed wide acceptance because of the writer's talent at communicating.

S: SILENCE FOR10 SECONDS
P: (laughs) Well, I certainly don't want you to be promulgating untruths- that's what I hope I'm helping my students avoid- but it would be worth your while to notice how some of those writers do it. The key to effective writing is "Know thy readership"- assess your reader accurately.

S: SILENCE FOR 5SECONDS
P: Exactly! What they know... and what they don't know. If you talk down to them, they feel insulted. They say to themselves, "Does he think I'm stupid or something?" And they walk away.

S: SILENCE FOR 5SECONDS
P: Maybe not, but your opening sentence borders on the other extreme- if you expect too much of your readers, you'll also put them off. They'll say to themselves, "Who does he think I am, Einstein?" And again, they'll walk away.

S: SILENCE FOR10 SECONDS
P: No, but you can certainly tone down the vocabulary. Either that or define difficult or arcane words when you use them. But that usually slows things down. Anyway, you have to bring yourself and the reader to the same level somehow- that's what you should always be shooting for.

S: SILENCE FOR 10 SECONDS
P: That's the idea...but keep it short, or you'll lose the effectiveness of your opening. Why not just go ahead and use 'egg'? Then you can introduce the more, uh, precise scientific term later in the paragraph.

S: SILENCE FOR5 SECONDS
P: Sure. It's strong and clear, which is just what you want in order to interest your reader. You have a whole essay to be more precise in, to get down to the details.

S: SILENCE FOR10 SECONDS
P: Too abstract. OK, just tell me this: what do you mean by that phrase?

S: SILENCE FOR10 SECONDS
P: Good! Well, why didn't you say that in the first place? That's much more direct and attention-getting. It's expressed in a way that anyone can understand. "An egg is the start- or the beginning- of a new life".

S: SILENCE FOR5 SECONDS
P: Don't confuse formality with obfuscation, Michelle. You don't have to write densely to be formal- and lord knows you don't have to use big words! You just need to avoid slang and, uh, casual language. And be sure that the grammar is standard. Write clearly, simply, directly- that's what makes a good essay.

S: SILENCE FOR10 SECONDS
P: Good. And I'll be looking forward to how well you succeed. I'm not averse to giving A grades if they're deserved, you know.

S: SILENCE FOR 10SECONDS
P: Not at all, Michelle. That's what I'm hear for. See you in class.

I'm going to speak about my smartphone. It is a Samsung Galaxy Y young. It is white. It is 11 centimeters long and 6 centimeters large. The storage capacity is 500 GB. The price is 15 euros. I like it because it is small. I listen to music. I use it to take phots.

A．I did a horrible job today.
B．It wasn't like you at all. What went wrong?
A．I was very nervous.

A．That was the worst game ever!
B．I agree. What went wrong?
A．Let's talk about it with the entire team.

A．The bell's ringing!
B．We've got to run.
A．Whew! We barely made it.

A．Oh, that was close.
B．I didn't think you were going to show up.
A．Sorry. I barely made it.

A．Oh, no! My iPad battery is about to die.
B.充電器持ってないの？
A.今は持ってない。

Look at this beautiful loaf of homemade bread. Doesn't it look delicious? It is Walnut Bread. It must have come out of the oven very recently, because it is setting on a cooling rack.

This bread has been made by hand instead of in a bread machine. If it had been made by machine, it would have baked right in the machine. Since it has a more natural surface, we can see that it was made by hand and baked in an oven.

If you want to refer to one of these, it is a loaf of bread. Since the word bread is uncountable, it cannot be called a bread. If you want to refer to more than one, you can say loaves of bread. There might be two loaves of bread, five loaves of bread, or just some bread.

Once you have sliced the bread, you will have slices of bread. In some restaurants, mini loaves of bread are served before the meal. These are often split in half rather than sliced because of their small size. If they are very small, they are called rolls instead of loaves of bread.

Some realtors tell sellers to bake some bread just before potential buyers come to look at a house. They say that the fragrance of baked bread gives the buyers a warm feeling and makes them see the house in a more positive light.