英语教程

大学英语自学教程(上)

easuccessfullanguagelearner?

“Learningalanguageiasy,evenachildcandoit!”

Mostadultswhoarelearningacondlanguagewould

m,learningalanguage

edhundredsofhoursofstudy

andpractice,andeventhiswillnotguaranteesuccessfor

everyadultlanguagelearner.

Languagelearningisdifferentfromotherkindsof

oplewhoareveryintelligentand

successfulintheirfieldsfinditdifficulttosucceedin

ly,somepeoplewhoare

successfullanguagelearnersfinditdifficulttosucceedin

otherfields.

Languageteachersoftenofferadvicetolanguage

learners:“Readasmuchasyoucaninthenewlanguage.”

“Practicespeakingthelanguageeveryday.”“Livewith

peoplewhospeakthelanguage.”“Don’ttranslate-tryto

thinkinthenewlanguage.”“Learnasachildwouldlearn;

playwiththelanguage.”

Butwhatdoesasuccessfullanguagelearnerdo?

Languagelearningrearchshowsthatsuccessfullanguage

learnersaresimilarinmanyways.

Firstofall,successfullanguagelearnersare

notdependonthebookor

theteacher;theydiscovertheirownwaytolearnthe

dofwaitingfortheteachertoexplain,they

aregoodguesrswholookforcluesandformtheirown

eyguesswrong,theyguessagain.

Theytrytolearnfromtheirmistakes.

Successfullanguagelearningisactivelearning.

Therefore,successfullearnersdonotwaitforachanceto

uthelanguage;nd

peoplewhospeakthelanguageandtheyaskthepeopleto

lltry

enotafraidtorepeatwhat

theyhearortosaystrangethings;theyarewillingtomake

mmunicationisdifficult,

ismoreimportantforthemtolearntothinkinthelanguage

thantoknowthemeaningofeveryword.

Finally,successfullanguagelearnersarelearnerswitha

nttolearnthelanguagebecautheyare

necessaryforthemtolearnthelanguageinorderto

communicatewiththepeopleandtolearnfromthem.

Theyfinditeasytopracticeusingthelanguageregularly

becautheywanttolearnwithit.

Whatkindoflanguagelearnerareyou?Ifyouarea

successfullanguagelearner,youhaveprobablybeen

learningindependently,actively,

otherhand,ifyourlanguagelearninghasbeenlessthan

successful,youmightdowelltotrysomeofthetechniques

outlinedabove.

ge

Whenwewanttotellotherpeoplewhatwethink,wecan

doitnotonlywiththehelpofwords,butalsoinmanyother

tance,wesometimesmoveourheadsupand

downwhenwewanttosay"yes”andwemoveourheads

fromsidetosidewhenwewanttosay"no."Peoplewhocan

neitherhearnorspeak(thatis,deafanddumbpeople)talk

whodo

notunderstandeachother'slanguagehavetodothesame.

Thefollowingstoryshowshowtheysometimesdoit.

AnEnglishmanwhocouldnotspeakItalianwasonce

heenteredarestaurantandsat

ewaitercame,theEnglishman

openedhismouth,puthisfingersinit,tookthemoutagain

wayhemeanttosay,"Bringme

somethingtoeat."Thewaitersoonbroughthimacupoftea.

TheEnglishmanshookhisheadandthewaiterunderstood

thathedidn'twanttea,sohetookitawayandbroughthim

lishman,whowasveryhungrybythis

timeandnotatallthirsty,khis

headeachtimethewaiterbroughthimsomethingtodrink.

Thewaiterbroughthimwine,thenbeer,thensoda-water,

butthatwasn’tfood,ustgoingtoleave

is

mansawthewaiter,

wanough:inafewminutestherewasalargeplateof

macaroniandmeatonthetablebeforehim.

Asyoue,theprimitivelanguageofsignsisnotalways

guageofwordsismuchmoreexact.

Wordsconsistofsounds,buttherearemanysounds

mple,

wemaysay"Sh-sh-sh”whenwemean"keepsilent.”

Whenbabieslaugh,weknowtheyarehappy,andwhenthey

cry,weknowtheyareillorsimplywantsomething.

ogsays“G-r-r”

oracatsays"F-f-f”weknowtheyareangry.

geconsists

mals

cannotdothis:adogcansay“G-r-r”whenhemeans"I

amangry,”buthecannotsayfirst"I”andthen"am”and

then"angry.”Aparrotcantalklikeaman;itcanrepeat

ay

thataparrottalks,butcannotsaythatitreallyspeaks,

becauitcannotformnewntencesoutofthewordsit

nhasthepowertodothis.

,Taxes,andMoreTaxes

Americansoftensaythatthereareonlytwothingsa

personcanbesureofinlife:deathandtaxes,Americansdo

nothaveacorneronthe"death"market,butmanypeople

feelthattheUnitedStatesleadstheworldwiththeworst

taxes.

Taxesconsistofthemoneywhichpeoplepaytosupport

regenerallythreelevelsof

governmentintheUnitedStates:federal,state,andcity;

therefore,therearethreetypesoftaxes.

Salariedpeoplewhoearnmorethanafewthousand

dollarsmustpayacertainpercentageoftheirsalariestothe

centagevariesfrompersonto

eralgovernment

hasagraduatedincometax,thatis,thepercentageofthe

tax(14to70percent)increasasaperson'sincome

ehighcostoftaxes,peoplearenotvery

happyonApril15,whenthefederaltaxesaredue.

Thecondtaxisforthestategovernment:NewYork,

California,NorthDakota,oranyoftheotherforty-ven

ateshaveanincometaxsimilartothatofthe

,thepercentageforthestate

tateshaveasalestax,whichisa

percentagechargedtoanyitemwhichyoubuyinthatstate.

Forexample,apersonmightwanttobuyapacketof

eisasalestaxofeight

percentinthatstate,thenthecostofthecigarettesis

statesuincometaxinadditiontosalestaxtoraitheir

tetaxlawsarediverandconfusing.

xcomesintwoforms:

propertytax(peoplewhoownahomehavetopaytaxesonit)

andexcitax,ies

uthefundsforeducation,policeandfiredepartments,

publicworksandmunicipalbuildings.

SinceAmericanspaysuchhightaxes,theyoftenfeel

thattheyareworkingonedayeachweekjusttopaytheir

ten

protestthatthegovernmentustheirtaxdollarsinthe

ythatitspendstoomuchonulessand

ghAmericanshavedifferent

viewsonmanyissues,theytendtoagreeononesubject:

taxesaretoohigh.

ising

Advertisingisonlypartofthetotalsaleffort,butitis

natural

enoughbecauadvertisingisdesignedforjustthat

papers,inmagazines,inthemail,on

radioandtelevision,weconstantlyeandhearthe

messagesforhundredsofdifferentproductsandrvices.

Forthemostpart,theyarethekindsofthingsthatwecan

bepersuadedtobuy–foodanddrinks,carsandtelevision

ts,furnitureandclothing,travelandleisuretime

activities.

Thesimplestkindofadvertisingistheclassifiedad.

Everydaythenewspaperscarryafewpagesoftheads;in

thelargeSundayeditionstheremaybeveralctionsof

reallyanoticeorannouncementthatsomethingisavailable.

Newspapersalsocarryalargeamountofdisplay

itisforstoresorforvariousformsof

persgenerallyreachanaudience

gtheirmessagetoalarger

audience,manywhowanttoputouttheiradsunational

thetechniquesofmodernadvertising

ofbrightcolors,

attractivepictures,andshortmessagesisallcharacteristic

timportantpurpoistocatchthe

sageitlfisusuallyshort,oftennomorethan

asloganwhichthepublicidentifieswiththeproduct.

Thesametechniqueshavebeencarriedoverinto

andmusichavebeenaddedto

colorandpicturestocatchtheearaswellastheeye.

Televisionadsareshort–usuallyonly15,30,or60conds,

buttheyarerepeatedoverandoveragainsothatthe

cial

wanttheentertainment,youhavetoputupwiththe

advertising-andmillionsofpeoplewanttheentertainment.

Themenandwomeninthesalesdepartmentare

responsibleforthecompany’sadvertising,Theymust

stalso

decideonthebestwaytogettheirmessagetotheir

somakeanestimateofthecosts

large

companiesmanagementisdirectlyinvolvedinplanningthe

advertising.

anticOcean

TheAtlanticOceanisoneoftheoceansthatparate

turiesitkeptthe

AmericasfrombeingdiscoveredbythepeopleofEurope.

ManywrongideasabouttheAtlanticmadeearlysailors

awasthatitreached

outto"theedgeoftheworld."Sailorswereafraidthatthey

rideawasthatatthe

equatortheoceanwouldbeboilinghot.

TheAtlanticOceanisonlyhalfasbigasthePacific,but

rethan4,000miles(6,000km)

itsnarrowestitis

about2,000miles(3,200km)rrowestplaceis

betweenthebulgeofsouthAmericaandthebulgeofAfrica.

TwothingsmaketheAtlanticOceanratherunusual.

,itisthe

world'ssaltiestocean.

ThereissomuchwaterintheAtlanticthatitishardto

ponomorerainfell

wouldtaketheoceanabout4,

averagethewaterisalittlemorethantwomiles(3.2km)

deep,pestspotis

"deep"30,246feet-almostsix

miles(9.6km).

Oneofthelongestmountainrangesoftheworldris

untainrangerunsnorth

sofafewof

themountainsreachupabovetheaandmakeislands.

TheAzoresarethetopsofpeaksinthemid-Atlantic

mountainrange.

SeveralhundredmileastwardfromFloridathereisa

ewateris

quiet,aysofsailingvesls

thecrewwereafraidtheywouldbebecalmedhere.

Sometimestheywere.

Oceancurrentsaresometimecalled"riversinthea."

Oneofthe"river"intheAtlanticiscalledtheGulfStream.

ristheLabrador

currentsaffecttheclimatesofthelandsnearwhichthey

flow.

TheAtlanticfurnishesmuchfoodforthepeopleonits

tsmostfamousfishingregions,theGrand

Banks,isnearNewfoundland.

t,however,

sweepacrossitand

gsfloatdownfromtheFarNorth

acrossthepathsofships.

Wenowhavesuchfastwaysoftravelingthatthisbig

ussailedfor

odernsteamship

nesflyfrom

NewYorktoLondoninonlyeighthoursandfromSouth

AmericatoAfricainfour!

n

Wefindthatthemoonisabout239,000miles

(384,551km)awayfromtheearth,and,towithinafew

thousandmiles,

verylittleobrvationshowsthatthemoonisnotstanding

tancefromtheearthremainsthesame,butits

thatitistravelingin

acircle-orverynearlyacircle-roundtheearth,going

completelyroundonceamonth,or,moreexactly,onceevery

271/rnearestneighbourinspace,andlike

ourlvesitiskepttiedtotheearthbytheearth's

gravitationalpull.

Exceptforthesun,themoonlooksthebiggestobjectin

lyitisoneofthesmallest,andonlylooksbig

meterisonly2,160miles

(3,389km),oralittlemorethanaquarterofthediameterof

theearth.

Onceamonth,or,moreexactly,onceevery291/2days,

atthetimewecall"fullmoon,"

othertimesonlypartofitappearsbright,andwealwaysfind

thatthisisthepartwhichfacestowardsthesun,whilethe

scould

maketheirpicturesbetteriftheykeptinmind--onlytho

partsofthemoonwhicharelightedupbythesunarebright.

ly

reflectsthelightofthesun,likeahugemirrorhunginthe

sky.

Yetthedarkpartofthemoon’ssurfaceisnot

absolutelyblack;generallyitisjustlightenoughforustobe

abletoeitsoutline,sothatwespeakofeing"theold

mooninthenewmoon'sarms."Thelightbywhichwee

theoldmoondoesnotcomefromthesun,butfromthe

swellhowthesurfaceoftheaorofsnow,

orevenofawetroad,mayreflectuncomfortablymuchofthe

sun'amewaythesurfaceof

thewholeearthreflectnoughofthesun'slightontothe

faceofthemoonforustobeabletoethepartsofitwhich

wouldotherwibedark.

Iftherewereanyinhabitantsofthemoon,theywould

eourearthreflectingthelightofthesun,againlikea

uldspeakofearthlight

justaswespeakofmoonlight."Theoldmooninthenew

moon'sarms"isnothingbutthatpartofthemoon'ssurface

onwhichitisnight,ame

way,thelunarinhabitantswouldoccasionallyepartof

ourearthinfullsunlight,andtherestlightedonlyby

moonlight;theymightcallthis"theoldearthinthenew

earth'sarms.”

ingYourMemory

Psychologicalrearchhasfocudonanumberof

basicprinciplesthathelpmemory:meaningfulness,

organization,association,efulto

knowhowtheprincipleswork.

Meaningfulnessaffectsmemoryatalllevels.

Informationthatdoesnotmakeanyntoyouisdifficult

reveralwaysinwhichwecanmake

ople,forinstance,learn

nowtherhyme

“ThirtydayshasSeptember,April,June,and

November…?”Ithelpsmanypeoplerememberwhich

monthsoftheyearhave30days.

Organizationalsomakesadifferenceinourabilityto

fulwouldalibrarybeifthebookswere

keptinrandomorder?Materialthatisorganizedisbetter

mpleof

ngconsistsofgrouping

mple,thenumber

4671363ismoreeasilyrememberedifitischunkedas

467,13,rizingisanothermeansoforganization.

Suppoyouareaskedtorememberthefollowinglistof

words:man,bench,dog,desk,woman,hor,child,cat,

oplewillgroupthewordsintosimilar

categoriesandrememberthemasfollows:man,woman,

child;cat,dog,hor;bench,chair,sstosay,

thecondlistcanberememberedmoreeasilythanthefirst

one.

Associationreferstotakingthematerialwewantto

rememberandrelatingittosomethingweremember

rizinganumber,youmighttryto

mple,

theheightofMountFujiinJapan-12,389feet-mightbe

rememberedusingthefollowingassociations:12isthe

numberofmonthsintheyear,and389isthenumberof

daysinayear(365)addedtothenumberofmonthstwice

(24).

chhasshown

strikingimprovementsinmanytypesofmemorytasks

whenpeopleareaskedtovisualizetheitemstobe

tudy,subjectsinonegroupwere

askedtolearnsomewordsusingimagery,whilethecond

sing

imageryremembered80to90percentofthewords,

comparedwith30to40percentofthewordsforthowho

rminganintegratedimage

withalltheinformationplacedinasinglementalpicture

canhelpustoprerveamemory.

-termMemory

Therearetwokindsofmemory:shore-termand

ationinlong-termmemorycanberecalled

ormationmaybe

mesinformationinthe

tstaking

rast,informationin

shore-termmemoryiskeptforonlyafewconds,usually

mple,

youlookupanumberinthetelephonebook,andbeforeyou

dial,one

interruptsyou,

laboratorystudies,subjectsareunabletorememberthree

lettersaftereighteencondsiftheyarenotallowedto

repeattheletterstothemlves.

Psychologistsstudymemoryandlearningwithboth

experimentshere

showhowshort-termmemoryhasbeenstudied.

aspecialapparatuswhichhadacagefortheratandthree

doors,heratwas

,oneofthelightswasturned

asfoodfortheratonlyatthisdoor.

Afterthelightwasturnedoff,therathadtowaitashorttime

,ifitwenttothe

correctdoor,itwasrewardedwiththefoodthatwasthere.

ysturned

hadtowaitdifferent

found

thatiftherathadtowaitmorethantenconds,itcould

'sresultsshowthat

ratshaveashort-termmemoryofabouttenconds.

Later,gstudiedhowstudentswhoare

learningEnglishasacondlanguageremember

jectsinhixperimentwere75

reprentedalllevelsofabilityinEnglish;beginning,

intermediate,advanced,andnative-speakingstudents.

Tobegin,thesubjectslistenedtoarecordingofanative

ingthe

recording,thesubjectstooka15-questiontesttoewhich

estionhadfourchoices.

Thesubjectshadtocirclethewordtheyhadheardinthe

thequestionshadfourchoicesthat

mple,weather,whether,wither,and

the

questionshadfourchoicesthathavethesamemeaning.

Method,way,manner,andsystemwouldbefourwordswith

themhadfourunrelatedchoices.

Forinstance,weather,method,love,andresultcouldbe

ythesubjectstooka

languageproficiencytest.

Henningfoundthatstudentswithalowerproficiencyin

Englishmademoreoftheirmistakesonwordsthatsound

alike;studentswithahigherproficiencymademoreoftheir

g’s

resultssuggestthatbeginningstudentsholdthesoundof

wordsintheirshort-termmemory,whileadvancedstudents

holdthemeaningofwordsintheirshort-termmemory.

iesaboutFood

Manyprimitivepeoplesbelievedthatbyeatingan

animaltheycouldgetsomeofthegoodqualitiesofthat

ought,forexample,that

savagetribesbelievedthateatingenemiesthathadshown

-eatingmay

havestartedbecaupeoplewereeagertobecomeasstrong

andbraveastheirenemies.

Amongcivilizedpeopleitwasoncethoughtthatginger

rootbysomemagicalpowercouldimprovethememory.

esalso

recalledlove

applesandweresuppodtomakepeoplewhoatethemfall

inlove.

Lateranotherwrongideaabouttomatoesgrewup-the

pridthepeople

whothoughttomatoespoisonouswouldbeiftheycould

knowthatmillionsofpoundsoftomatoesweresuppliedto

soldiersoverasduringWorldWarII.

Eventodaythereareagreatmanywrongideasabout

themareverywidespread.

goodbrainfoodjustasitisgoodmusclefoodandskinfood

nehasbeenabletoprovethatfishis

anybetterforthebrainthanmanyotherkindsoffood.

Anothersuchideaisthatyoushouldnotdrinkwater

gfooddownwithwaterasasubstitute

forchewingisnotagoodidea,butsomewaterwithmeals

sthedigestivejuices

flowmorefreelyandhelpstodigestthefood.

Manyoftheideaswhichscientiststellushaveno

ars

agothebeliefbecamegeneralthatorangejuiceandmilk

songiven

wasthattheacidintheorangejuicewouldmakethemilk

teroffact,milk

alwaysmeetsinthestomachadigestivejuicewhichcurdles

it;thecurdlingofthemilkisthefirststepinitsdigestion.A

similarwrongideaisthatfishandicecreamwheneatenat

thesamemealformapoisonouscombination.

Stillanotherwrongideaaboutmixingfoodsisthat

proteinsandcarbohydratesshouldneverbeeatenatthe

oplethinkofbread,forexample,asa

ieflyacarbohydratefood,butit

ameway,milk,probablythe

bestsinglefood,containsbothproteinsandcarbohydrates.

Itisjustasfoolishtosaythatoneshouldnevereatmeatand

potatoestogetherasitistosaythatoneshouldnevereat

breadordrinkmilk.

alsThink?

Thequestionhasoftenbeenasked,Doanimalsthink?I

them

cethistobetrue

veryoftenwithdogsandcats;butitistruewithother

animalsaswell.

Somebirdsareverylivelyintheirsports;andthesame

s,hardworkingastheyare,

nraces;theywrestle;and

symust

betheirthoughtswhileengagedinthesports.

Therearemanyanimals,however,thatneverplay;their

re

lthetimeappeartobevery

eistrueoftheowl,whoalwayslooksasifhe

wereconsideringsomeimportantquestion.

birdarchesforwhatitcanuinbuildingitsnest,andin

versthinkastheybuildtheir

inkingettingtheirmaterials,

andalsoinarrangingthem,andinplasteringthemtogether

idersbuildhouswhichcouldscarcely

havebeenmadeexceptbysomethinkingcreature.

Asanimalsthink,arnmorethan

rotlearnstotalk,thoughinsomeother

kingbirdlearnsto

isnotlong

inlearningmanythingsconnectedwiththeworkwhichhe

pherddogdoesnotknowasmuchabout

mostthingsassomeotherdogs,andyetheunderstands

verywellhowtotakecareofsheep.

Thoughanimalsthinkandlearn,theydonotmake

anyrealimprovementintheirwaysofdoingthings,asmen

ndofbirdhasitsownwayofbuildinganest,

havenonewfashions,

men,asyouknow,arealwaysfindingnewwaysofbuilding

hous,andimprovedmethodsofdoingalmostallkindsof

labor.

Manyofthethingsthatanimalsknowhowtodothey

emtoknoweitherwithoutlearning,orinsomewaywhich

esaidtodosuchthingsby

instinct;this

instinctthatbirdsbuildtheirnestsandbeaverstheirdam

ethingswereallplannedandthoughtout

ouldbesomechanges

inthefashionsofthem,andsomeimprovements.

Englishgentlemancaughtayoungoneandputhimatfirst

whilehelethimoutinaroomwherethere

ashewasletouthe

eredtogether

whateverhecouldfind,brushes,baskets,boots,clothes,

sticks,bitsofcoal,etc.,andarrangedthemasiftobuilda

,ifhehadhadhiswitsabouthim,hewouldhave

knownthattherewasnouinbuildingadamwherethere

wasnowater.

Itisplainthat,whileanimalslearnaboutthingsbytheir

nsaswedo,theydonotthinknearlyasmuchabout

whattheylearn,andthisisthereasonwhytheydonot

ewistofthem,asthe

elephantandthedog,donotthinkverymuchaboutwhat

resomethingthat

weunderstand,butaboutwhichanimalsknownothing.

Theyhavenoknowledgeofanythingthathappensoutsideof

indsaresomuchunlikeours

thattheydonotknowthedifferencebetweenrightand

wrong.

ds

Diamondsarerare,beautiful,andalsoquiteuful.

y

anotherdiamondcanmakeaslightcutinadiamond.

isfoundinall

livingthings,thecarbonin

theearthcomesfromthingsthatoncelived.

Scientistsknowthatthecombinationofextremeheat

atand

pressureexistonlyinthehot,liquidmassofmoltenrock

oughtthatmillionsofyearsago

thisliquidmasspushedupwardthroughcracksinthe

earth’iquidcooled,thecarbonchangedinto

diamondcrystals.

Thereareonlyfourareaswhereverymanydiamonds

havebeenfound.

ThefirstknownareawasinIndia,wherediamondswere

1600’s,travelersfrom

EuropebroughtbackthebeautifulstonesfromIndia.

Diamondsbecameverypopularwiththekingsandqueens

ofEurope.

Inthe1720’s,diamondswerediscoveredinBrazil.

Thisdiscoverycameatagoodtime,’ssupplyof

diamondswasfinallyrunningoutafter2,500yearsof

miningthestones.

Inthe1800’s,twootherimportantareaswerefoundin

,mostdiamondsudin

amondsudasgems

25percentofalldiamonds

minedaregoodenoughforcuttingintogems.

MostofthediamondsinIndiawerefoundinstream

wouldpickuphandfulsofgravelfromthe

diamondswereprobablycarriedfromwheretheywere

formedtoIndiabygreatsheetsofmovingicethatcovered

partsoftheearth20,000yearsago.

Mostdiamondstodayarenotfoundinstreambeds,

eminedfromrockformationsdeepinside

istsbelievethattheareparts

ofvolcanoesthatwereformedwhenmoltenrockpushed

upwardthroughtheearth’drockinwhich

diamondsarefoundiscalledblueground,becauitis

egroundisblastedintolargepieces

e

rocksarecarefullycrushedsothatthediamondsarenot

,thecrushedmaterialistakenoverto

,itflowsoverboardsthicklycoated

iamondssticktogrea,theyareleft

behindbytherocksandmudwhichflowdownthetables.

Diamonds,astheyarefound,donotlookvery

egray,greasy-lookingpebbles.

Experienceddiamondminerscantelladiamond

epeoplehavecarriedaroundan

unusualpebbleforweeksbeforefindingoutthattheyhad

gotadiamond.

ferencebetweenplantsandanimals

ifyouwereasked,“whatisthedifferencebetween

plantsandanimals?”whatanswerdoyouthinkyouwould

give?Yourfirstthoughtmightbethataplanthasleavesand

rootsandflowers,twould

notbecorrect;fortherearemanyplantswhichhaveneither

rootsnorleavesnorflowers,whiletherearesomeanimals

whichemtohaveallthree.

Lookupintothesky,andthendownattheearth

beneathyourfeet,Itiasyenough,youthink,totellwhich

iarthandwhichissky;butifyouliveinthewide,open

country,ornearthea,youwilloftenfindwhenyoulook

farawaytotheplacewhereskyandearthemtomeet,that

onlythethinblue

haze,likesmoke,whichisthedividinglinebetweenthe

twheretheoneendsandthe

otherbegins,youcannottell.

lookatagroupofcowsstandingunderthetreesorcatcha

beeathiarlydrinkinamorning-glorybell,andyouwould

laughifanyoneshouldaskyouwhetheryoucantellan

animalfromaplant.

Butsuppoyouturnasidefromthefamiliar,

everydaythings,andstudyobjectswhichyouhavetolookat

throughamagnifyingglass,andyouwillfindmanythings

lfindplantswithoutroots,

leaves,flowers,oreds;andyouwillfindanimalswithout

heads,legs,eyes,mouths,orstomachs.

StudentsofNaturearenotsatisfiedwithguessing,but

theyobrve,dayafterday,thechangeswhichtakeplacein

anobject;andtheyemanythingswhichmostpeople

stheyhavefoundthatthereal

differencebetweenplantsandanimalsliesinwhattheydo,

andnotinwhattheyemtobe.

Wenowknowthataboutonefourthofallthekindsof

arsageallofthemwere

ongsuppodthatthemain

differencebetweenanimalsandplantswasthattheformer

s

differencewillnotholdgood.

Howthenarewetoknowwhetheralivingobjectisa

plantorananimal?Plantscanliveoninorganicmatter;they

havethepowerofchangingearthandairandwaterinto

substanceswhichenterintoandbecomeapartof

scanliveonlyonwhatplantshave

s,

althoughtheyneedsomeinorganicfood,cannotliveonit

alone.

Allthefoodthatkeepsourbodiesstrong,ormakesthem

grow,norfishnor

otheranimalcouldeverhavelivedonthiarth,iftheplants

hadnotcomefirstandfitteditforthedwellingplaceofa

higherorderofbeings.

Plantsarethetruefairiesthatareforeverworking

ootsdigdownintotheearthand

eavesspreadtheirbroad

surfacestotheairandtakemitsriches;andoutofwhat

theyhavethusgatheredtheyproducethebeautifulflowers,

thedeliciousfruits,andthegoldengrain.

Letusstudymoreclolythewayinwhichaplant

nds

nowater,ndswater,itbeginstosuckitup

andchangeitintosapBesidesthewater,ittakesupsuch

partsofthesoilasaredissolvedinthewater.

Here,then,youeinwhatwaysthefoodoftheplantis

differentfromthatofanimals.

es

“Family”—thewordhasdifferentmeaningsfor

differentpeople,andeventhedictionarygivesusveral

definitions:“agroupofpeoplerelatedbybloodor

marriage,”“twoadultsandtheirchildren,”“alltho

peopledescendedfromacommonancestor,”“a

houhold,”andsoonSomepeoplethinkofafamilyasa

mother,afather,andtheirchildren;othersinclude

grandparents,aunts,uncles,eofus,

familymeansthegroupofrelativeslivingfarawayfrom

ers,havingafamilysimplymeanshaving

milieshavelonghistories,whileothers

erifitis

youngorold,largeorsmall,traditionalormodern,every

atfeelingof

belonging,ofloveandcuritythatcomesfromliving

together,helpingandsharing.

Therearebasicallytwotypesoffamilies:nuclear

learfamilyusually

consistsoftwoparents(motherandfather)andtheir

herandfatherformthenucleus,orcenter,

ldrenstayinthenuclearfamily

rmnewnuclear

families.

reoftenmany

ndedfamily

includeschildrenparents,grandparents,uncles,aunts,and

bersofanextendedfamilyarerelatedby

blood(grandparent,parents,children,brothers,sisters,etc.)

orbymarriage(husbands,wives,mothers-in-law,etc).They

areallrelated,sothemembersofanextendedfamilyare

calledrelatives.

Traditionally,allthemembersofanextendedfamily

r,withthechangefroman

agriculturaltoanindustrialsociety,manynuclearfamilies

industrialsocietiestoday,themembersofmostnuclear

familieslivetogether,butmostextendedfamiliesdonotlive

orewecansaythatthenuclearfamily

becomesmoreimportantthantheextendedfamilyasthe

societyindustrializes.

Inpost-industrialsocietiesliketheUnitedStates,even

learfamilyis

becomingsmallerasparentswantfewerchildren,andthe

ionally,the

fatherofanuclearfamilyearnedmoneyforthefamilywhile

morethan50%ofthenuclearfamiliesintheUnitedStates

aretwo-earnerfamilies–boththefatherandthemother

earnmoneyforthefamily–andinafewfamiliesthemother

earnsthemoneywhilethefathertakescareofthehou

clearfamiliesarealso“splitting

up”–moreandmoreparentsaregettingdivorced.

Whatwillbetheresultofthis“splitting”ofthe

nuclearfamily?Socialscientistsnowtalkoftwonewfamily

forms:thesingleparentfamilyandtheremarriedfamily.

Almost20%ofallAmericanfamiliesaresingleparent

families,andin85%ofthefamiliesthesingleparentisthe

ngleparentsfinditverydifficulttotakecare

ofafamilyalone,sotheysoonmarryagainandform

alscientistsstudythetwonew

familyform,theywillbeabletotellusmoreaboutthefuture

ofthenuclearfamilyinthepost-industrialage.

ngingAmericanFamily

Thefamilyisimportanttopeopleallovertheworld

althoughthestructureofthefamilyisquitedifferentfrom

nitedStates,asinmany

countriesintheworld,ation

ortwoago,thetraditionalfamily,inwhichthefatherwas

boss,,themodernfamily,inwhich

boththefatherandthemotherareequalpartners,ismore

ghthereareveralsimilaritiesbetweenthe

traditionalandthemodernfamily,therearealsosomevery

importantdifferences.

Thetraditionalfamilyofyesterdayandthemodern

ditional

familywasanuclearfamily,andthemodernfamilyis,too.

Theroleofthefatherinthetraditionalfamilywastoprovide

rly,thefatherinthemodernfamilyis

expectedtodoso,herinthetraditionalfamily

tookcareofthechildren’sphysicalandemotionalneeds

justasthemodernmotherdoes.

Ontheotherhand,therearesomegreatdifferences

firstimportantdifferenceisintheman’

traditionalhusbandwastheheadofthehouhold,becau

wifeworkedforpay,thenthehusbandwasnotconsideredto

familiestoday,bothhusband

ore,theysharetheroleofhead

tion,thetraditionalhusbandusually

r,the

modernhusbandsharesthedecisionswithhisworking

,thetraditionalhusbanddidnothelphiswifewith

wasreadywhen

rast,themodernhusbandhelpshis

osomeofthehouholdjobs,

anditisnotunusualforhimtocook.

Theconddifferenceisinthewoman’

traditionalfamily,thewomanmayhaveworkedforpay

r,aftershe

becamepregnant,

contrast,inmanyfamiliestoday,themodernwomanworks

'sdoing

twojobsinsteadofone,sosheisbusierthanthetraditional

ditionalwifelearnedtolivewithinher

husband'therhand,themodernwifedoes

nothavetobecauthefamilyhastwoincomes.

traditionalfamily,thechildrenweretakencareofbythe

motherbecaushedidnotworkoutsidethehome.

However,todaypreschoolchildrenmaygotoachildcare

centerortoababy-sitterregularlybecauthemother

ool-agechildrenofatraditionsfamilywere

otherwastheretohelpthemtoget

rast,

vetogetup

other

isbusygettingreadyforwork,sotheymayevenhaveto

maketheirownbreakfast.

Inconclusion,theAmericanfamilyoftodayisdifferent

odernfamily,the

rolesofthefather,mother,andchildrenhavechangedas

t

centurymaybringmoreimportantchangestotheAmerican

ldbeinterestingtoe.

mmunicationviaSatellite

Atthebeginningofthetwentiethcentury,therewere

fourpowerfulmeansoftransmittingandreceiving

informationoverlongdistances:print,photography,

iddleofthecentury,both

radioandtelevisionhadbecomeestablishedmeansof

transmittingsoundand/1964,theOlympic

GamesinTokyobecamethefirstprogramtobetransmitted

viasatellite.

InordertotransmitaneventsuchastheOlympicsvia

satellite,televisionsignalsarefirstchangedintoradiowaves,

whicharethenntfromastationonearthtoanorbiting

ellitereceivestheradiowavesandnds

thembacktoearth,whereanotherstationpicksthemup

eany

formofsoundorvisualinformationcanbechangedinto

radiowaves,satellitesarecapableoftransmittingnotonly

televisionbroadcasts,buttelephonecallsandprinted

materialssuchasbooksandmagazines.

Thecombinationofsatellites,whichtransmit

information,computers,whichstoreinformation,and

television,whichdisplaysinformation,willchangeevery

ry,

everypersonwillhaveaccesstoanunlimitedamountof

information.

Anotherimportantuoftelecommunicationsatellites

wasdemonstratedin1974whenthe"TeacherinSky"

satellitetransmittededucationalprogramstoclassin

1975,manypeoplein

Indiasawtelevisionforthefirsttimeastheywatched

programsaboutagricultureandhealth.

Thesatellitealsodemonstratedhowitcouldprovide

helptopeoplelivinginisolatedareaswheretransportation

mple,ahealthworkerinanisolatedarea

wasabletotransmitpicturesofapatientswoundtoa

henabletofollowthedoctor's

instructionsonhowtocareforthepatient.

Themostcommonuoftelecommunicationsatellites,

however,

themtrave140,000milestoasatelliteandthenbackto

rsago,asatellitewascapableofreceivingand

transmittingmorethan3?000telephoneconversations

nglesatelliteisabletotransmit

over100,000conversationsaswellasveralhundred

televisionchannels-allatthesametime.

Telecommunicationcanmakeinformationfromaround

theworldavailabletouquicklyandeasily,butsome

personalinformationisstoredincomputers,thenitmaybe

easilytransmittedviasatellitetoanyonewhocanpayforthe

rvice.

Anotherworryisthattelecommunicationsystemsmay

opleareabletoshop

fromtheirhomes,dotheirbankingwithoutleavingthe

hou,watchanymovietheywantontheirtelevision,as

wellasgetanyinformationtheyneed,thentherewillnotbe

asmuchcontactbetweenpeople.

Itisimportanttorealizethatthesametechnologythat

reventthisfrom

onetelecommunicationexpertsays,“Wemustremember

thattechnologyaloneisnottheanswer…Itistheintelligent

applicationoftechnologythatwillleadustosuccess.

opleDon’tknowaboutAir

tair,

is

necessaryinmanyotherways-waysthatarenotalwaysso

obviousorwidelyknown.

Forexample,ifwedidnothaveair,therewouldbeno

hereisnoair,

tair,

wouldbenocarsortrucks,sincemotorsneedairinorderto

work.

Withoutair,

wouldbenoweather,httimewouldbe

dbeforcedtoek

shelterfromthesun,astherewouldbenoatmosphereto

protectusfromthesun'sdeadlyrays.

Theatmosphereisalltheairsurroundingtheearth.

Atmosphericpressureistheweightofallthatairagainstthe

dnothaveatmosphericpressure,

eswouldburstif

theydidnothavethepressureoftheatmosphereagainst

theirsurfaces.

Largeandpowerful,theatmosphereconsistsofan

sdownon

outbodieswithaforceofmorethanfourteenpoundsper

rowcolumnofairwhichrestsuponour

shouldersweighsalmost2,bodiesare

builtinsuchawaythatthisweightdoesnotcrushus.

Inthishugeoceanofairthereismoreenergythaninall

thecoal,oil,icalenergyis

collectedintheatmosphereaswateriscollectedandstored

stenceofelectricityintheairhasbeen

egazedinwonderatthebright

oroughstudy

ofelectricityintheatmospherewasnotpossibleuntilthe

developmentofradioandradar.

Onescientist,Chapman,hastriedtoexplain

evesthat

thegreatstormsonthesuncreatelargeamountsofelectric

ergyiscontainedinaverylightgascalled

thpullsthegastowardit,andaringis

formedaroundtheearthveralthousandfeetaboveits

atspaceringisapowerfulcurrentof

mestheringcomesdownand

curvesintotheloweratmosphere,causingstrangeelectrical

effects.

n'ong

movesinmuchthesamemannerastheelectricenergy

istsnowbelievethatthe

electricenergyintheatmospherecaustheelectricenergy

insidetheearthtoflow.

Ifwecanlearntocontroltheenergyintheatmosphere,

ientists

eantime,even

thoofuswhoarenotscientistshavebeguntopay

izethatairdoesnotcontainthe

biles,

airplanes,factories,andatomicexplosionshaveaddeddust

metolearnhowto

protectouratmosphere,theroofovertheworldofman.

dwordsandpopularwords

Ineverycultivatedlanguagetherearetwogreatclass

ofwordswhich,takentogether,makeupthewhole

,therearethowordswithwhichwe

becomefamiliarinordinaryconversation,whichwelearn,

thatistosay,fromthemembersofourownfamilyandfrom

ourfriends,andwhichweshouldknowanduevenifwe

ncernthecommonthingsof

life,andarethestockintradeofallwhospeakthelanguage.

Suchwordsmaybecalled“popular,”sincetheybelongto

thepeopleatlargeandarenottheposssionoflimited

classonly.

Ontheotherhand,ourlanguageincludesalarge

numberofwordswhicharerelativelyldomudin

eaningsareknowntoevery

educatedperson,butthereislittleoccasiontouthemat

stacquaintancewiththemcomesnotfromour

mother'slipsorfromthetalkofourclassmates,butfrom

booksthatweread,lecturesthatwehear,orthemore

formalconversationofhighlyeducatedspeakerswhoare

wordsarecalled"learned",andthedifferencebetweenthem

and"popular"wordsisofgreatimportancetoaright

understandingoflanguage.

Thedifferencebetweenpopularandlearnedwordsmay

escribeagirlas

“lively”oras"vivacious."Inthefirstca,weareusinga

thelatter,weareusingaLatinderivativewhichhaxactly

atmosphereofthetwowordsis

vergottheadjectivelivelyoutofa

artofeverybody'ot

rememberatimewhenwedidnotknowit,andwefeelsure

otherhand,wemusthavepasdveralyearsofourlives

venremember

thefirsttimethatwesawitinprintorhearditfromsome

velyandvivaciousaregoodEnglish

words,butLivelyispopularandvivaciousislearned.

Theterms"popular"and"learned,”asappliedtowords,

ersonshavethesame

stockofwords,andthesamewordmaybe"popular"inone

man'svocabularyand"learnedinanother'realso

differentgradesof"popularity."Still,theclassificationinto

"learned"and"popular"ent

opinionsmaycomeupastotheclassificationofany

particularword,buttherecanbenodifferenceofopinion

becareful,however,to

callaword"popular,"wedo

notmeanthatitisafavoriteword,butsimplythatitbelongs

tothepeopleasawholethatis,itiverybody'sword,not

callaword

"learned”wedonotmeanthatitisudbylearnedpersons

alone,butsimplythatitsprenceintheEnglish

vocabularyisduetobooksandthecultivationofliterature

ratherthantotheactualneedsofordinaryconversation.

uldYouBuildUpYourVocabulary

Throughcontext

Whenstudentsinacollegeclasswereaskedwhat

shouldbedonewhentheycomeacrossanewwordintheir

reading,84percentsaid,“Lookitupinthedictionary.”if

youdo,however,youinterrupttheverymentalprocess

neededtomakeyoureffortsmostproductive.

Butthere’esomeoneasks

youwhattheword"fast"wer,"swift."But

doesitmeanthatinsuchcontextsas"fastcolor,""fast

woman,"or"fastfriend"?Andifahorisfast,isitcurely

tiedorrunningattopspeed?

ictionary?No,oncontext-onhowthe

lltherearetwentydifferent

meaningsfor"fast"dictionary

doesn’'swhyit

makessuchgoodntobeginwithcontext.

ThroughWordParts

ewwordscontainoneor

moreparts,which,ifrecognized,providespecifichelpwith

eyoureadthatsomeone"hadapreference

forreadingtravelbooks."Thecontextcertainlyisn’ttoo

oueaprefix,suffix,orrootthatyouknow?

Well,there'sthefamiliarprefixpre-,meaning"before.

Lookbackatthecontextandcryinrting"before."Reading

travelbooksapparentlycomes"before”otherkindsof

,apreferenceissomethingput"before"

somethingel.

Yourcondstep,then,istolookforfamiliarwordparts.

Iftheydonotgiveyouexactmeanings,theyshouldatleast

bringyoumuchclor.

Nowyoucanewhyyoushouldconsultthedictionary

last,'velooked

playSherlockHolmes-an

actlydoesthatstrange

wordmean?Onlywhenyougothroughthementalexercis

tocomeupwithatentativedefinitionshouldyouopenthe

dictionarytoeifyou'reright.

Afterall,thofirsttwostepsorapproachessparka

strongerthanusualinterestinthatdictionarydefinition.

You'findouttheword

meaning?Yourheightenedinterestwillleadtobetter

encouragesyour

developmentofthehabitsneededtospeedyourprogress.

Andwhenyoueinblackandwhitethedefinitionyouhad

expected,way,the

CPDFormulaprovidesyouwithmaximumeffectiveness.

Well,thereitis,yournewformula-Context,Parts,

!Theexerciswhichfollowwillgiveyou

specific,step-by-stephelpinsharpeningyourawarenessof

contextualclues,learningthemostufulwordparts,and

resultswillbelikemoneyinthebank.

ificAttitudes

Sciencehaditsbeginningwhenmanstartedasking

eredwherethe

tioned

htanswersto

hisanswerswerecorrect,

butatleasthedidwanttoknow.

CuriosityandImagination

Sciencebegantodeveloprapidlywhenmanlaidaside

ld

wantstotakeapartawatchtoewhatmakesitwork.

BenjaminFranklinwonderedaboutlightningHe

combinedhiscuriositywithimaginationandcarriedouthis

well-knownexperimenttoshowthatlightningandan

ityand

imaginationareimportantqualitieswhichhelpstimulate

thediscoveryofnewfactsandadvancescience.

BeliefinCauandEffect

Scientificallymindedpeoplebelieveina

"cau-and-effect"elthereisaperfectly

mple,thereisa

goodreasonwhysomeleavesturnredandothersyellowin

ssuchasthe,whichareeasilyobrved,

mmonphenomena,

however,therscannot

swherethe

explanationisunknownthescientificpointofviewisthat

thereisareasonifitcanonlybediscovered.

BeingOpen-Minded

Open-mindednessisalsoextremelyimportanttoa

anstheabilitytofacethefactsas

includesanabilitytoacceptnewandsometimeven

kerinsciencemustfacefacts

expect

Edison

failedthousandsoftimesbeforehesucceededinproducing

thefirstelectriclamp.

Thesolutionstorealproblemscannotbeenin

istsmustbeabletochangetheirthinking

andtoadapttheirtheoriestonewfactsastheyare

dcannotbemadeuponceandforall.

Newknowledgemaymakeachangeinthinkingnecessary.

Thisisanotherwayofsayingthatman'sunderstandingis

acceptedastrueoftenis

relatively,andnotabsolutely,tifictruthoffers

anexplanationthatisacceptableonlyinthelightofwhatis

knownataparticulartime.

RespectfortheViewsofOthers

Anotherpartofascientificattitudeisrespectforthe

easywhentheviewsarelikeone's

ficultycomesupwhentheirideasaredifferent.

Viewswhichareentirelyneworforeignmayalsobehardto

accept.

Newideasarefrequentlyveryslowtobeaccepted.

ScientistssuchasGalileo,LouisPasteur,andEdward

Jennerwerelaughedatbecautheyheldtheoriesthatwere

tfornewideasisimportantfor

continuedprogressinallfieldsofknowledge

OpinionsonEvidence

aketime

eyareavailable,a

dingsmayalso

requirea“wait-and-e”mple,thereisan

experimentonthesproutingofedswhichhasbeen

poistodetermine

howlongatimecanbeburiedinthegroundandstillgrow

whenproperconditionsforgrowthexist.

gProblemsScientifically

Therearescientificwaysinwhichmansolvesproblems.

Oncehiscuriosityhasbeenaroud,heuscertain

methodsandprocedurestoobtainnewknowledgeand

ghthemethodsarenot

alwaysthesame,thereareusuallycertainelementsinthe

proceduresthataresimilar.

RecognizingtheProblem

ht

answerscanbeobtainedonlyiftherightquestionsare

ughlyunderstoodproblemiswellstarted

msariinavarietyofways.

y

resultfromreading,fromlaboratoryexperiments,orsimply

somayresultfromnewdevelopments

,forexample,

problemsarearisingfromnewdiscoveriesinthefieldsof

nuclearphysics,biologicalengineeringandmicroelectronics.

Thedevelopmentofindustryhasalsobroughtaboutlarge

numbersofproblemswhichhavetobesolved.

CollectingInformation

Next,thescientisttriestolearnasmuchaspossible

hismeansgoingtothelibraryandstudying

bookswhichcontainaccountsofman’xperienceand

calledarchingthe

literature.

Thescientistmayfindthatothershavealreadysolved

onallyhefindsanswersto

clolyrelatedquestions,whichgivecluesforsolvingthe

earchthescientistaccumulatesmuch

enewideasandfactshe

buildsafirmfoundationforsolvingtheproblem.

OrganizingtheInformation

Afterthescientisthasfinishedthispartofhisworkhe

willprobablytakethemanyfactswhichhehascollectedand

ybea

logicalclassificationoritmaybeamathematicalanalysis.

Usuallytheanalysiswillshowunansweredquestions.

Sometimesitwillsuggestareasthatareinneedoffurther

soneofthemostimportantresultsofsuchan

analysisisthatitindicatescertaintruths,whichgenerally

arecalledinferences.

MakingaHypothesis

Inmakinganinferencethescientisthasbuiltupa

hesisisonlya"best”

nextbetested.

Ifitiscorrect,

meansifaparticularexperimentiscarriedout,certain

obrvationsoughttobepossibleoritshouldbepossibleto

makecertainpredictions.

Shouldtheobrvationsorpredictionsturnouttobeas

expected,thescientisthasaddedconfidenceintheprobable

,however,obrvationscannotbe

madeorthepredictionsareunreliable,thenthehypothesis

willprobablybegivenuporatleastmodified.

TheExperiment

ific

factsareusuallyestablishedbyworkinthelaboratory.

Experimentshavetobemadeundercarefullycontrolled

ghandaccuraterecordsmustbekept.

Inmakingcertainkindsofexperimentsinscience

bleissomethingwhichhas

ypeof

methodoftestingiscalledcontrolledexperimentation.

atAmericanGarageSale

Notlongago,CharlesEricksonandhisfamilydecidedto

gthroughtheir

posssions,theycameupwithsome1,500old,unwanted

EricksonsdecidedtodowhatalotofotherAmericansare

doingthedays--havea“garagesale.”Theyposted

homemadesignsthroughouttheneighborhood,ranan

advertimentinthelocalnewspaper,thentoutthe

unwantedobjectsonthefrontyardoftheirhomein

BloomfieldHills,Michigan,andwaitedtoeifanyone

cksonsneedn’

buyersboughtallbut50oftheitemsinoneweekend,

leavingthefamily$442richer.

Garagesale,yardsale,bamentsale-whateverthey're

calledandwhereverthey'reheld,Americansarehaving

theminever-increasingnumbers.

Thevarietyofthingsputupforsaleisreallywonderful-

dishes,books,udclothing,tools,tires,emptybottles,

bicycles,Atlanta,Georgia,evensolda

full-sizereplicaofa1931Ford.

"Youwouldn'tbelievethestuffpeoplewillbuy,”says

cNeelyofHouston,Texas,whohasheldtwo

garagesaleswithfriends."Ontheotherhand,you

wouldn’tbelievesomeofthethingspeoplewillputoutto

ll.”

WhywouldAmericanswanttoshopbyarching

amongsomeoneel’scastoffs?

Risinglivingcostsareconsideredbyalmosteveryoneas

llermakesalittleextramoneyandthebuyersavesquitea

lot,sincegarage-saleitemsusuallyarepricedataverysmall

partoftheiroriginalcost.

Butbeyondthat,they’saleshave

becomesuburbansocialevents,drawingpeopleofallages.

Neighbornjoymeetingnewpeople,andsomefamilieven

chologistsuggeststhat

peoplearefedupwiththecomputerizationoftheirlives-

theyounger

buyerssaytheyareturnedoffbythepoorqualityofmodern

goodsandarelookingforremnantsofastrongerandfirmer

era,whenthingswerebuilttolast.

Somepeoplehavemadegarage-saleshoppingintoa

hobby;theyspendtheirweekendsgoingfromsaletosale,

elong-time

weekendbargainhunter,"Inthebackofyourmindyouhave

thehopeoffindingsomefabulouspaintingstoredaway

somewhereorsomethingelofgreatvalueforabargain

price.

DianaMcLellan,areporterfortheWashington

Star-News,wrote,"Thegaragesaleislikethequalityof

paratesclothes,toys,pots,cups,forksandknivesfrom

theirreluctantownersandplacestheminlovingnew

homes.”

Howlongwillallthinthusiasmcontinue?Saysone

recentller,“Somedaythepeoplewhoarebuyingare

boundtobefacedwiththesameproblemwehad–getting

ridofthisstuff.”

anStores

IntheUnitedStatesyouwillfindyourlfbeingurged

fromeverypageofeverynewspaperandonpracticallyevery

televisionstationtobuyallkindsofgoodsthatyouare

actuallyquitehappywithout.

Notonlyisthereawiderangeofpricesforgoodsin

America,thereisalsoawiderangeinthequalityofgoods

somecountries,Americansgenerally

paythepriceofaproductwithoutquestion,insteadoftrying

r,therearemany

"sales”intheUnitedStates,duringwhichtimestoreswill

yallbeveryconfusingto

sthebestproducttobuyoutofhundreds

tochoofrom?Howareyougoingtoknowhowto"getyour

money'sworth”whenyoushop?Perhapsthebestadviceis:

Don'ariousstoriesanddeterminethequality

eadvertiments

eandexaminebefore

youbuy.

ThereisagreatvarietyofshopsintheUnitedStates,

rangingfromverylargestorescalled"departmentstores,”

offeringclothing,furniture,houholdgoodsaswellas

manyothergoods,toverysmallshopsthatspecializeinjust

re"discounthous”offering

goodsatlowprices,and“dimestores”specializingina

widerangeofinexpensiveitems.

Mostdepartmentstoresinlargecitiescarryaverageto

r,

theyoffertheshoppergreatconveniencesincetheycontain

suchawidevarietyofproducts.

Ifconvenienceisn'tasimportanttoyouasprice,you

storeshavenearlyasgreatavarietyofgoodsasdepartment

stores,ndosoforveral

n'tofferthesamervicestobuyersthat

departmentstoresdo;theremaybefewersalespeople;and

thestoreprobablydoesn'tdeliverpurchas.

TherearemanysmallshopsinAmerica,asthereare

everywhere,thatofferamorelimitedquantityofproducts.

Usuallyrunbyasmallnumberofsalespeople,theshops

offerproductsthatrangefrominexpensivetoveryexpensive,

likelytoreceivemore

attentionfromthesales-peopleinsmallshopsthanin

departmentstores.

Anotherpopularshopisthe"dimestore,”sometimes

referredtoasthe"fiveandten.”Nolongerllingmany

thingsforfiveortencents,thestoresgottheirnameinthe

lastcenturywhenitwasdecidedthatasmallprofitona

greatquantityofgoodswouldbebetterthanalargeprofiton

oresspecializeinawidevarietyof

inexpensiveitemsandtoday,pricesrangefromaquarteror

eedasmallitemand

don’twanttospendverymuch,thedimestoreislikelyto

havejustwhatyouarelookingfor.

TheUnitedStatesisalsoknownforits

"supermarkets,”wherehugequantitiesofallkindsoffood

toresoffergood

qualityfoodatlowerpricesthansmallerfoodstores.

ThevastmajorityofAmericansdoalltheirfood

hemostinteresting

scoveries

inmethodstoprervefood,almosteverykindoffoodcan

rozenfoods

requiresolittletimetocook,theyhavenaturallybecome

verypopulareverywhereinthecountry.

tionariesAreMade

Itiswidelybelievedthateverywordhasacorrect

meaning,thatwelearnthemeaningsmainlyfrom

teachersandgrammarians,andthatdictionariesand

grammarsarethesupremeauthorityinmattersofmeaning

pleaskbywhatauthoritythewritersof

otinto

adisputewithanEnglishwomanoverthepronunciationof

Englishwomansaidfirmly,“Whatfor?

bornandbroughtupinEngland,ThewayIspeakis

English.”Suchlf-assuranceaboutone’sownlanguage

nitedStates,

however,anyonewhoiswillingtoquarrelwiththedictionary

isregardedaithereccentricormad.

Letusehowdictionariesaremadeandhowthe

llowsappliesonlyto

thodictionaryofficeswherefirst-hand,originalrearch

goeson-notthoinwhicheditorssimplycopyexisting

kofwritingadictionarybeginswiththe

readingofvastamountsoftheliteratureoftheperiodor

ditorsread,

theycopyoncardveryinterestingorrareword,every

unusualorpeculiaroccurrenceofacommonword,alarge

numberofcommonwordsintheirordinaryus,andalso

thentencesinwhicheachofthewordsappears.

Thatistosay,thecontextofeachwordiscollected,

allybigjobofdictionary

writing,suchastheOxfordEnglishDictionary,millionsof

suchcardsarecollected,andthetaskofeditingoccupies

ardsarecollected,theyarealphabetized

esortingiscompleted,therewillbefor

eachwordanywherefromtwoorthreetoveralhundred

quotations,eachonitscard.

Todefineaword,then,thedictionaryeditorplaces

beforehimthestackofcardsillustratingthatword;eachof

thecardsreprentsanactualuofthewordbyawriterof

sthecards

carefully,discardssome,re-readstherest,anddividesup

thestackaccordingtowhathethinksaretheveralns

y,hewriteshisdefinitions,followingthe

hard-and-fastrulethateachdefinitionmustbebadon

whatthequotationsinfrontofhimrevealaboutthe

torcannotbeinfluencedby

work

accordingtothecards,ornotatall.

Thewritingofadictionary,therefore,isnotataskof

ttingupauthoritativestatementsaboutthe"true

meanings"ofwords,butataskofrecording,tothebestof

one'sability,whatvariouswordshavemeanttoauthorsin

thedistantorimmediatepast,If,forexample,wehadbeen

writingadictionaryin1890,orevenaslateasl919,we

couldhavesaidthattheword"broadcast"means"toscatter"

(ed,forexample),butwecouldnothavestatedthatfrom

1921on,thecommonmeaningofthewordshouldbecome

“tondoutprogramsbyradioortelevision.”In

choosingourwordswhenweSpeakorwrite,wecanbe

guidedbythehistoricalrecordprovidedusbythedictionary,

butwecannotbeboundbyit,becaunewsituations,new

experiences,newinventions,newfeelings,arealways

gundera

“hood,”weshouldordinarilyhavefound,fivehundred

yearsago,amonk;today,wefindacarengine.

gProvidesNecessarySurvivalSkills

Withthecomingofthetelevisionageandtheincreasing

emphasisonpicturesandsoundinallquartersofour

society,manypeoplewouldhaveusbelievethatweare

movingrapidlyawayfromreadingasanecessarylifeskill.

Butthisisnotthecaatall.

Goodreadingisamoreimportantlifeskillthanever

beforeandtheprintedwordcontinuestobethecornerstone

ofbothhighereducationandbetterpositionsinthejob

market.

Forstudents,

adults,readingisdaytoday,eitherastumblingblockora

whygood

readinghabitsarenotonlyanimportantstudyskillforthe

student,butalsoanimportantlifeskillforanyone.

SCANNING--Youcangetagoodideaaboutthematerial

bytakingafewmomentsrightofftoreadthetitle,chapter

headings,poof

scanningistogetaquickunderstandingofwhattoexpect

fromthereading,sothatyouwillknowwhatyouarereading

asyougoalong.

Maps,charts,graphsandpicturesarecluesthatwill

helpthereadertocueinonthecontentandorganizationof

mpletechniqueofscanningcanhelp

youreadforideasbecauyouwillknowwhereyouare

goingwhenyoubegintoread.

READINGSPEED--Anothergoodreadinghabitis

ression"hastemakeswaste"doesnot

,mostpeoplereadmuchtooslowly.

Rightnowyouareprobablyreadingthisslowerthanyou

sshowthatfast

readersarethebestreaders,andthatslowreadersoftenlo

theirconcentrationandcomprehensionabilitiesbecau

theirmindswillwanderoutofboredom.

Remember,nothinghurtsconcentrationmorethan

ndwillkeepupwithyourreading

ysreadingatyourtopspeed,

youchallengeyourunderstandingandmakeiteasierfor

yourmindtoconcentrateonthematerial.

VOCABULARYBUILDING--Forapersonwithgood

readinghabits,aprintedpagecontainsnotonlywordsbut

ideas,actions,thethings

ewordsyouarefamiliarwith,

thelessyouareawareofreadingwordsandthemoreyou

ingyour

vocabularywillhelpyoutoreadmoreeffectivelyandrapidly.

Manypeoplesimplyskipoverwordstheydonot

,naturally,hurtstheiroverall

eoplestopateachnewwordand

lookitupinthedictionary,butthismethodcanslowdown

yourreading,affectingconcentrationandcomprehension.

Butyoucanbuildyourvocabularywithoutusinga

etworules:

oramomentoneachnewwordandletit

registerinyourmind.

uesswhatthewordmeansfromcontextclues,

fromthewordsaroundit.

Whathappenswiththismethodisthatyouwillethe

meyouwillhaveastronger

,thenewwordwillbe

familiaranditsmeaningclear.

Thekeytothemethodistobealerttonewwords.

Don’'llfindyouareaddingtoyour

vocabularyeachdayandagoodstrongvocabularyisagreat

helptoreadingquicklyandwithstrongcomprehension.

Goodreadinghabitslikethecanhelpstudentsand

cial

worldofschoolandtherealworldofschoolandofeveryday

lifecanbemorecomfortable,productiveandrewardingwith

theadditionofsimpleyetimportantlifeskillssuchasgood

readinghabits.

nce

particularagentwantedtodiscussmyautomobilecoverage,

butthenextagenttocallmightbeinterestedinmylife

insuranceprogram,myhealthinsurance,orfireprotection

ricanconsumeroften

agentsllingmanydifferentpoliciescallusbyphoneand

nsuranceagents

arealwaysfriendly,welldresd,andeagertobeofhelp.

YetfewAmericansreallyenjoyvisitingwiththeeager,

othappywhentheycall

us;e

neverreallyourfriends;atbest,theyareanecessaryevil.

Threereasonswhyweareunwillingtodiscuss

fall,insuranceis

fatherwhopurchasafairlysmalllife

insurancepolicyagreestopayasumof$200everyyearfor

40years-atotalof$8,llegestudentspay$800

to$1,ct,theypayas

insurancethatpaysformodernmedicalmiraclesoftencosts

Americansasmuchas$2,te

insuranceixpensive;itisamajoritemformostfamilies.

Insurancealsoremindsusthatweliveinanunsafe

umanandwemustfacethepossibilitiesof

illness,injury,death,ionalminds

recognizethemanyunfortunateeventsthatcanoccur,but

s

injuryordeathisnotapleasantsubjecttodiscussoreven

fraid;wewouldrathertalkaboutfootball

ortheweatherorwhatwehadforlunch.

Finally,insuranceisadifficult,

understandsitcompletelyandonlyafewinsurance

professionalsreallyfeelcomfortableinadiscussionof

automobile,life,

inadequateandtrytohideourignorancebyavoiding

discussionsofinsurance.

Yetthethreereasonsfornotdiscussinginsurance

providethreeexcellentreasonswhyweshouldlearnmore

etime,manyofus

spendasmuchoninsuranceaswedoonthepurchaofa

etospendourmoneyintelligently,weneed

don’tdependentirelyonsalespeoplewhenwebuyacar,a

hou,rshouldwedepend

a

basicknowledgeofinsurancecoveragesifwearetobe

intelligentconsumers.

Theintelligentconsumerlooksproblemsintheface.

Althoughaccident,illness,anddeatharenotpleasant

subjects,

betterthatweplanforthesituationsbyfindingmeansto

dealwiththemthantojusthopethattheywillsomehowgo

away.

Althoughinsurancecanbecomplex,itsbasicconcepts

he

ncefundamentalscanbeunderstoodby

sstudyprovides

dyofinsuranceisaneffective,proven

methodofdealingwiththeinsuranceignorancefacedby

manyAmericanfamilies.

MoneyandWhatAreItsFunctions?

Moneyissomethingyou'vebeenfamiliarwith

,youmayalreadyconsider

ularlyumoney

ohavesome

tsurpri

youtolearnthatthere'sagreatdealofdisagreementamong

economistsaboutwhatmoneyisandhowtomeasureit.

Moneyrvesanumberoffunctions,andanydefinitionof

moneymustconsiderallofitsfunctions.

Thefourmajorfunctionsofmoneyareasamediumof

exchange,astandardofvalue,astandardofdeferred

payment,andastoreofvalue.

erallyacceptedmedium

ofexchange,moneyrulesouttheneedforbarter,thedirect

isavery

inconvenientmeansoftradingbecauitrequiresthe

rwithagoodorrvice

tooffermustarchforabuyerwhohaxactlywhatthe

mple,ifabakerwantsmeat,hemust

archforapersonwhollsmeatandwantsbreadundera

emoneyisgenerallyacceptedas

paymentforanypurcha,abakerwhollsbreadfor

moneycanuthemoneytobuymeatoranythingelhe

wants.

rovidesaunitofaccount

ueofan

itemisameasureofwhatapersonwillsacrificetoobtainit.

HowmuchisatwoweekvacationinHawaiiworthtoyou?If

you'relikemostpeople,you'llprobablyrespondtosucha

questionbyvaluingthevacationindollars-say$2,000-

ratherthanintermsofotherthings(likeyourcar).Whether

ornotyou'reconsciousofit,you'reconstantlyvaluingitems

ndardofvalue,moneyallowstheaddition

ofvaluesofmanydifferentitemsasautomobiles,repairs,

ceptofGNPis

ulesswithoutastandardofvaluesuchasthedollar.

ntracts

unitofaccountfordeferredpaymentofdebtsisalsomoney.

Ifyouborrowmoneytobuyacar,theloancontractspecifies

howmuchyoumustpaybackeverymonthandthenumber

r,

moneyrvesitsfunctionasastandardofdeferredpayment

onlyifitspurchasingpowerremainsfairlyconstantover

ricelevelris,thefuturepurchasingpowerof

rly,adecreainthe

pricelevelwillincreathefuturepurchasingpowerof

money.

analsorveasastoreof

valuethatcanbequicklyconvertedtogoodsandrvices.

Moneyastheactualmediumofexchangeiscompletely

liquid,meaningitcanimmediatelybeconvertedtogoods

aststhatrveasstoresofvaluemustfirstbesoldtobe

convertedintoagenerallyacceptedmediumofexchange.

Thereareoftencostsandinconvenienceassociatedwith

gmoneyasastoreofvalue

thuscanreducethetransactioncostsinvolvedineveryday

business.

ortanceofBeingKindandPolite

"Frankly,Ithinkyou’reboring.”Whydoweldom

hearpeoplespeaksohonestly?Unlessyouwanttoenda

relationship,youdon'ttellanotherpersonwhatyouthinkof

gtobeimpresdbyafriend's

collectionofstamps,yawningwhenagolfertellsyouabout

thatgreatshuthemadeonthe14thhole,orfallingasleep

whenfriendsshowpicturesfromtheirlasttriptoSaultSte.

iswhatmannersareabout:actinginacivilizedwaytoavoid

misunderstanding,friction,andconflict.

annot

interactwithotherswithoutsomerulesofbehavior,rules

guidelinesreprentwhatamajorityofpeopleconsider

peoplearethowhobehaviorshowslittlerespectforthe

tance,becauthey

talkathomewhilethetelevisionison,manypeoplethink

enotevenawarethat

thishabitwillbothertheothermembersoftheaudience.

Restaurantshavesmokingandnon-smokingctions,

andmostsmokersarepoliteenoughtoask,"Doyoumindif

Ismoke?"rantsshouldalsohave

ass

ofrudepeoplehasbeenborn:thelook-at-mephoneurs

whoboringconversationsarejustasdangeroustoour

mes,itis

bettertoremainunknownthantomakepimplehateyou.

Therearemanychildrenandadolescentswho

earnomatter

whoisaroundthem,theylistentotheirWalkmanswhilethe

erentparentswhorefuto

o

havenoideawhatbeingpolitemeanswillpaytheprice

eyjointheworkforce,their

employersandassociatesalikewillsoonrealizethatthe

behavioroftherudeyoungpeopleisclortothatof

eyloafew

contractsbecautheytalkwiththeirmouthfull,orwhen

theysay"Bob"tosomeonewhoshouldbe"n,"

thegrown-upkids,becauoftheirignorance,willnever

understandwhyothersaregettingaheadandtheyarenot.

nners,the

siertolookandsound

oliteand

eneedan

edge?Successinlifeoftenstartswithajobwelike,and

sincegettingajobisusuallybadonmakingtheright

impression,itisalwaysagoodideatobekindandpolite.

alkinCircles

"PintheTailontheDonkey"isalwaysfunwhenyou're

mewhatsurprisingto

dofgoing

straight,

greaterthedistancetothedonkey,thefarthertheygoastray.

Haveyoueverwonderedwhytheyareunabletowalk

straightahead?

Itisawell-knownfactthatapersonwillmoveinacircle

nights,denfogs,blindingsnowstorms,thickforests-all

thecankeepatravelerfromeingwhereheisgoing.

Thenheisunabletomoveinanyfixeddirection,butwalks

incircles.

eprobablyheardthe

saying"runningaroundlikeachickenwithitsheadcutoff."

Well,achickenwithitsheadcutoffactuallydoesrun

indfolded

dogwillswimincircles.

ANorwegianbiologist,rg,decidedthatthis

collectedmanytruestoriesonthesubject.

Oneofhisstoriesisaboutpeoplerowingonalake

upofrowerswhotried

tocrossthreemilesofwaterinfoggyweathernever

tknowingit,they

eyfinallygottotheshore,

theydiscoveredthattheywereatthespottheyhadstarted

from.

Afterstudyingmanystoriessuchasthis,Professor

Guldbergwroteanarticleinwhichhediscusd"Circular

MotionastheBasicMotionofAnimals."Asimpleexample

willhelpyoutounderstandhixplanationofwhywewalk

incircles.

Haveyoueverwoundupatoyautomobileandstartedit

offacrossthefloor?Thenyouknowthatitwillrarelytravel

travel,instead,insomekindofarc,

totravelinastraightline,thewheelsonboth

arenot,thelittle

automobileturnstowardthesidewiththesmallerwheels.

Circularmovementinwalkingiscaudinmuchthe

yamanwalkingwill"watchhisstep”and

"lookwhereheisgoing."Heneedshisns,especiallyhis

eyes,cannot

uhiyestoguidehissteps,hewillwalkstraightonlyif

hetakesastepofthesamelengthwitheachfoot.

Inmostpeople,however,muscledevelopmentisnotthe

sameinbothlegs,sothatitisprobablethatthestepswillbe

ferencemaybesosmallthatnooneisaware

llasitis,itcancaucircularmovement.

Letussuppothataman'sleftfoottakesastep20

incheslongandthathisrightfoottakesastep30inches

pohetakestenstep--fivewithhisleftfoot

undsimpossible.

reallyhappens?Ateachstepthemanturnsalittlebittothe

cks

ofhisfeet,however,maketwocircles,oneinsidetheother.

Hisleftfootmakesthesmallercirclebecauitistaking

htfootmakesthelargercirclebecau

whyapersonmaywalkinan

arcwhenhetsoutinastraightline.

Themusclesofaman'sarmsarenomoreidenticalthan

plainswhytherowerswho

samerule,abird’swingsdonotdevelopevenly,andsoit

,dearreaders,our

circularmysteryhasaverystraightanswer.

iolenceAffectsKids

Formorethanaquarterofacentury,evidencehasbeen

increasingthatchildren'xposuretoviolenceontelevision

haslong-lasting,n1982

and1986,theamountoftelevisiontimeallocatedeachweek

number

ofviolentactsontelevisioninthepastyearshasincread

heamountoftimethat

childrenwatchtelevision,ithasbecomeoneofthemost

powerfulmodelstheywanttofollow.

ThePositionStatementonMediaViolencein

Children'sLives,recentlyadoptedbytheNational

AssociationfortheEducationofYoungChildren,pointsout

thatpreschoolchildrenareparticularlyeasilyaffectedby

themediabecautheyarenotyetfullyabletodistinguish

fantasyfromrealityandtheirunderstandingofthe

underlyingmotivesforbehaviorandthesubtletiesofmoral

mple,therapid

recoveriesofpeopleonTVfromviolentattacksgivechildren

anunrealisticpictureoftheinjuriesthathavebeen

suffered.

EffectsonPlay

Childrennaturallyoftenwantthetoysshownonand

hthetoys,their

en

simplyimitatethebehaviorobrvedduringtheprogram,

thusunderminingboththeimaginativeandtheexpressive

rowrangeofmostviolence-related

toysadvertidontelevisionjeopardizestheroleofplayin

helpingchildrenmakebetternoftheirownfeelingsand

archevensuggeststhat

childrenapplythebehaviorsobrvedonTVprogramsto

theirreal-lifesituations.

ParentsCanHelp

Itisagoodideaforparentstomonitortheamountas

yourchildappearstobecrazyaboutwarplayandweapons,

lling

viewingiasiertododuringthepreschoolyearsthan

duringtheschoolyears,soyoushouldinitiateapatternof

restrictedtelevisionwatchingnow.

Helpyourchildtointerpretwhatshees-tothinkof

explanationsfortheeventsdepictedandtoimaginehowthe

mplecritiqueofashowwithout

implyingthatherfascinationwiththedramaandthe

weaponsmakesherguiltybyassociation.

Asktheteachersofyourchild'spreschoolabouttheir

eschool

teachersdonotliketohavecommerciallymadetoyweapons

broughtintotheclassroomandwelcomehearingyour

rotherparentswho

gethertocontroltheamountof

violentprogramswatchedandthenumberofviolenttoys

rrangeplaydatesforthechildren

forvideosofhealthy,

nonviolentprogramsforchildren,andencouragetheiru

asanattractivealternativetoviolenttelevisionprograms.

’tGirlsThinkLikeBoys?

Doyoubelievethatonlyboysdowellinscience?Doesit

emtoyouthatgirlshavebettervocabulariesthanboys?In

youropinion,areboysbetteratbuildingthings?Ifyour

answertoeachofthoquestionsis"Yes,"youareright,

re

exceptions,butherearethefacts.

Ontheaverage,malesscorehigheronteststhat

measuremathematicalreasoning,mechanicalability,and

sshowsuperiorabilityin

testsmeasuringvocabulary,spelling,

uture,

aperson’

scientistsays,"Nothingisimpossibleforapersontobeor

do.

Inveralrecentstudies,youngbabieshavebeen

obrvedandtestedtodiscoverhowdifferentabilitiesare

tificteamheadedbyJeromeKagan,a

psychologistatHarvardUniversity,isstudyingthethinking

abilityofchildren111/tisasimple

y,whileatedonitsmother'slap,watchesa

"show”onasmalltheaterstage.

Inact1oftheshow,anorange-coloredblockislifted

2is

similar,ys

donotemtonoticethedifferenceinthesizeoftheblock,

butgirlsimmediatelybecomeexcitedandbegintomake

emtobetryingto

talk.

Itisknownthatbones,muscles,andnervesdevelop

y,too,babygirlstalkatanearlier

iststhinkthereisaphysicalreason

lievethatnervesintheleftsideofthebrain

sthissideofthe

brainthatstronglyinfluencesanindividual'sabilitytou

words,tospell,andtorememberthings.

Bythetimetheystarttoschool,therefore,littlegirls

re

physicallymorereadytorememberfacts,tospell,andto

,ofcour,areskillsthatareimportantin

elementaryschool.

Butwhathavetheboysbeendoingintheyearsbefore

startingschool?Theyhavebeendevelopingsomething

essivepersonhascourageand

tenthefirst

onetostartafight.

Whatproducesaggressioninlittleboys?Ithaslong

beenassumedthataggressioniscaudbymalehormones.

Scientiststodaybelievethatmalehormonesareonlypartof

theexplanation,yaggressivenessinboysis

alsocaudbymothers.

Ateamofpsychologistsdiscoveredthisbyplacing

mothersandtheirone-year-oldbabiesinaroomfilledwith

mhadawallthroughwhichthescientists

ok

notesoneverythingthemothersandbabiesdid.

Hereisasampleofthonotes,takenduringthe

obrvationofababyboyandhismother:

"

saway,picks

mother,dropscat,andleansagainsther.

nshimaround."

Fromsuchobrvationsandfromconversationswith

mothers,thescientistslearnedsomethingaboutthe

hemother

keepsherdaughterclotoher,shetrainshersontomove

awayfromher,todevelopindependence.

Conquently,itiasytounderstandwhylittlegirls

oftenper-formschooltasksbetterthanboys,especiallyif

thetaskrequiresittingstill,obeyingcommands,and

acceptingtheteacher’aypasasily

oysofheragebring

homelowmarks,

emtohave"betterbrains",then,dosofew

girlsbecomegreatscientists?Whyisthemostimportant

thinkinginadultsocietydonebymen?

Accordingtoscientists,theanswerisaggression.

Becauboysareaggressive,theyrefutoacceptother

people'ssolutions;theyinsistuponsolvingproblemsfor

,whilelittlegirlsaregettinghighmarksin

schoolforrememberingwhattheteacherhastoldthem,

littleboysarelearningtothinkinmoreindependentways.

Intheadultworld,theaggressivepersonisusuallythe

onewhogetsthebigsalary,thegreatresponsibility,the

cemalesaretrainedatanearlyageto

beaggressive,malesaremoreoftenchonforkey

positions.

ink

womencouldbesuccessfulinscienceandindustryifthey

weretrainedtobeindependentandproblemsolving,asboys

are.