VIP Class Notes (Raph)[R]

Today we focused on:

We reread last class’ article, focusing this time on vocabulary.

Vocabulary

Sibling (n): 1- brother or sister.
E.g.: Do you have any siblings?
E.g.: Jason doesn’t have any siblings, but he has cousins.

Great aunt / uncle (n): 1- your grandparents siblings.
E.g.: Jason just came from his great aunt’s house.
E.g.: Jason visited his great aunt to give her mooncakes.

Viral (adj): 1- used to describe something that quickly becomes very popular or well known by being published on the internet.
E.g.: Here’s a list of the top ten viral videos this week.
E.g.: Within days the film clip went viral.

Mislead (n): 1- to cause someone to believe something that is not true.
E.g.: We’re not misleading people, and we’re not pretending to be something we’re not.
E.g.: He has admitted misleading the police about his movements on the night of the murder.
E.g.: The government has repeatedly misled the public, and we’re here to protest.
E.g.: The advertising campaign intentionally misled consumers about whether the product was natural.

Trick (n/v): 1- an action that is intended to deceive, either as a way of cheating someone, or as a joke or form of entertainment.
E.g.: She played a really nasty trick on me – she put syrup in my shampoo bottle!
E.g.: My niece was showing me all the tricks that she’s learned to do with her new magic set.
E.g.: It’s trick photography – she’s supposed to look like she’s walking on water.
E.g.: Dean tricked the old lady into giving him eight hundred dollars.

Resemble (v): 1- to look like or be like someone or something. (n: Resemblance)
E.g.: You resemble your mother very closely.
E.g.: That actor really resembles my brother-in-law.
E.g.: There was a clear family resemblance between all the brothers.
E.g.: These prices bear no resemblance to (= are completely different from) the ones I saw printed in the newspaper.

Counterpart (n): 1- a person or thing that has the same job or purpose as another one in a different place or organization:
E.g.: The prime minister is to meet his European counterparts to discuss the war against drugs.
E.g.: The president will meet with his Brazilian counterpart tomorrow.
E.g.: Women in top management positions shouldn’t earn less than their male counterparts.

Reading

Deepfake App Puts Your Face In Famous Movie Scenes
(Source www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1909/190906-deepfake.html)

A new online technique called deepfake is causing people to be worried about more fake news and other things that can mislead people. The word “deepfake” is a combination of “deep learning” (which is an important part of artificial intelligence) and “fake” (which means not real). Deepfake software allows people to replace part of a picture or video with another picture or video image. The result is a fake video. The software means you can put your face over the face of a talking president or movie star. This process will make your face speak in the voice of that president or movie star. Many people are worried the technology will be used during national elections. Deepfake videos could be used to trick voters.

A new deepfake app has gone viral in China. It lets users of the app put their face over the top of actors in scenes from movies or TV shows. The app is called Zao. It went to number one on the Chinese iOS App Store chart in just a few days after its release. A Twitter user has achieved a little fame by posting the Zao videos of himself in famous TV and movie scenes. His videos show that he really looks like the main actor in the movies The Hulk, Titanic, and in the TV fantasy drama Game of Thrones. It takes just eight seconds to do this. The Zao app is currently only available for people with a Chinese phone number. It cannot be downloaded from app stores in the USA or Europe.

Grammar

I always put my schedule in busy. – I always make my schedule/myself busy.

Pronunciation

Technique: /tekˈniːk//tek.neek/

Image: /ˈɪm.ɪdʒ//e.mij/

Imagine: /ɪˈmædʒ.ɪn//e.me.gin/

Viral:  /ˈvaɪ.rəl//vai.rel/

Scene: /siːn/

Resemble: /rɪˈzem.bəl//ree.zem.ball/