VIP Class Notes (Raph)

Vocabulary

Workload (n): 1- the amount of work to be done, especially by a particular person or machine in a period of time.
E.g.: Teachers are always complaining about their heavy workloads.
E.g.: Students do find that their workload increases throughout the course.

Escalate (v): 1- to become or make something become greater or more serious.
E.g.: His financial problems escalated after he became unemployed.
E.g.: The row could escalate into full-blown conflict.
E.g.: The decision to escalate UN involvement has been made in the hopes of a swift end to the conflict.
E.g.: The escalating rate of inflation will almost certainly bring escalating prices.

Hostile (adj): 1- unfriendly and not liking something.
E.g.: He had to face a very hostile crowd
E.g.: The president had a hostile reception in Ohio this morning.
E.g.: There has been a hostile reaction to the government’s proposed tax increases.

Hostility (n): 1- an occasion when someone is unfriendly or shows that they do not like something,
E.g.: They showed open (= obvious) hostility to/towards their new neighbors.

Hostilities (n): 1- fighting in a war.
E.g.: Hostilities began/broke out just after midnight.
E.g.: Hostilities were suspended (= fighting stopped temporarily) during the talks.

Deter (v): 1- to prevent someone from doing something or to make someone less enthusiastic about doing something.
E.g.: These measures are designed to deter an enemy attack.
E.g.: High prices are deterring many young people from buying houses.

Gaze (n/v): 1- to look at something or someone for a long time, especially in surprise or admiration, or because you are thinking about something else:
E.g.: Annette gazed lovingly at Warren as he spoke.
E.g.: He spends hours gazing out of the window when he should be working.
E.g.: The child gave him an innocent/admiring gaze
E.g.: As I looked out, my gaze fell on a small child by the road.

Swoop (v): 1- to move very quickly and easily through the air, especially down from a high position in order to attack. 2- to make a sudden attack on a place or group of people in order to surround and catch them.
E.g.: The eagle swooped down to snatch a young rabbit.
E.g.: Undercover police swooped on three houses in the city at 5 o’clock this morning.

Oblivious (adj): 1- not conscious of something, especially what is happening around you.
E.g.: Absorbed in her work, she was totally oblivious of her surroundings.
E.g.: The mayor (市长) seems oblivious to the likely effects of the new law.

Stare At Seagulls To Stop Them Stealing Your Food
(Source: www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1908/190819-seagulls.html)

Researchers have come up with a useful tactic to deter seagulls from stealing your picnic sandwiches or making a grab for your French fries. The advice is to stare at the birds to prevent any food theft. This invaluable tip comes from a study from the University of Exeter in the UK. Researchers conducted tests at a beach on the effects of staring at the sea birds. They put a bag of fries on the ground and monitored how long it took gulls to approach and snatch the fries without a researcher looking at the birds. They then carried out the same test, but this time a researcher made eye contact as a bird approached. The birds took an extra 21 seconds to approach the food when a researcher stared at them.

The researchers concluded that the seagulls were deterred by the human gaze. Only 26 per cent of the birds made an attempt to take the researchers’ food with the eye contact. Three-quarters of the birds just stood still and looked at the food or flew away. Lead researcher Madeleine Goumas said: “I noticed that gulls seemed to have a bad reputation for food-snatching, but I saw it happen quite rarely. When I did see it happen, gulls often swooped in from behind, and the people were completely oblivious. Gulls are often seen as aggressive and willing to take food from humans, so it was interesting to find that most wouldn’t even come near during our tests.”

Grammar

Present the presentation – Make a presentation.

I started to looking for new opportunities. – I started looking for new opportunities. / I started to look for new opportunities.

Pronunciation

Naive: /naɪˈiːv/

Approach: /əˈproʊtʃ/

Hostile: /ˈhɑː.st^əl/

Oblivious: /əˈblɪv.i.əs/

Aggressive /əˈɡres.ɪv/

Death By Overwork in Japan: Karoshi & Japanese Salarymen | NowThis
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qp_KiDqfjGo