Universidad Europea de Madrid

Play ball ! A boring end to the game

The scoreboard in Pretoria showed Chile 1-Spain 2 on the 25th of July. The World Cup soccer game was almost over. The players were moving around on the field, but they weren't really playing. Spain had the ball, a ball which was just kicked around, from one player to another. Spain was stalling, waiting for the time to run out. Meanwhile Chile seemed content to hold back. The coaches must have told their teams to just hold tight. They had already classified.

What a boring end to one of the big games of the year! What poor sportsmanship!

These people are paid huge salaries to do what? Mark time?

Four days later the cheers went up all over Spain again as the Portugal-Spain game ended. This one, broadcast from Cape Town, gave Spain another win ! Next on the schedule is Paraguay-Spain on July 3rd. Everyone is counting the days. Go Spain!

Wendy

Vocabulary:

scoreboard: marcador
soccer: fútbol
almost over: casi terminado
moving around: moviendo de aquí para allá
field: campo
kicked around: dar patadas de aquí para allá
stalling: haciendo tiempo
run out: agotarse, se agote
schedule: horario
meanwhile: mientras tanto
hold back: quedar atrás, no adelantar, aguantar
coaches: entrenadores
hold tight: aguantar
poor sportsmanship: poca deportividad, no jugar limpio
huge: grandes
mark time: no continuar,aguantar
cheers: gritos, ánimos
broadcast: emisión
schedule: horario,

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 4 comentarios

How good is your memory?

Do you remember people when you see them again? You may not remember their names, but do you remember if you've seen them before and when you saw them?
? ? ? ? ?
Try this test. You have to pay attention!1. Look at the faces and try to remember them.

2. Look at a 2nd group of faces and try to remember them.

3. Answer the questions:

• Have you seen the faces before?
• Were they in the first group or the second?

I was very surprised. I know that I'm terrible at remembering names and I assumed that I was just as bad at remembering faces. However I got a perfect score, 100% on the first part: recognizing faces, and 92% on the second part: when I'd seen them. Let's see how well you do.

Wendy http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/sleep/tmt/instructions_1.shtml

Vocabulary:

Try: probar

Pay attention: prestar atención

try to: intentar

score: puntuación

I remember faces! ? ? ?

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 1 comentario

Numbers: Why are they written 1,2,3...?

When we were in school we learned to recite our numbers: "1,2,3...." Then we learned to write them down, and finally we learned to spell them. We also learned Roman numerals.

The question is: Why do the numbers look as they do? Watch this demonstation and you'll learn how the Arabic numbers were created. What is the logic behind the shapes? There must be a good reason a 2 looks like a 2, right? Well, it's simple and creative. And logical too. The numbers have lasted as they are, for the most part, for thousands of years.

Living in 2 countries, I've always had problems with the 1 and 7. You know that in Spain there is a line through the middle of the 7. That's the way the Arabic 7 was originally written. In the US our 7 looks like your 1. I had a big problem with my bank recently because I filled out a transfer form with the 7 written without the cross through it, and the teller typed in a 1 in place of the 7. We didn't discover the problem until he tried to send the transfer for the 3rd time, each time saying that the account didn't exist!

http://comunidad.uem.es/blogfiles/shakespeare/numbers.pps

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 2 comentarios

UEM LAB Students Around the World!

This is the UEM LAB Logo which is used by our UEM LAB REPORTERS. In September and October you may see the UEM LAB REPORTERS ON THE BRIDGE, interviewing people in English. Well, now it's YOUR TURN to become a reporter this summer. Actually it's even easier than that. All you need to do is print out one of the logos (under each logo there is a direct link to the image) and take a picture of YOURSELF with the logo, or even just the LOGO in front of a famous place you visit.

Send the photo to me as an email attachment. wendy.frankel@uem.es . I'll print it out and put it on the bulletin board at the university. We'll also put it into the UEM LAB photo album. Let's see how far and how many places our UEM LAB reporters can go this summer.

Here's a double logo for the UEM LAB that is easy to print out:

Have fun! See you soon! Wendy

http://img8.imageshack.us/i/copiadeshakespeareblueh.png/

This is the UEM LAB-English Language Program Logo. Notice that it is blue, black and white instead of the International logo which is red, black and white.

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 3 comentarios

Try these---I dare you! ¡Pruebalos! ¿Te atreves?

Summer time! Time to play!

Try this computer game and see how good you are at spatial reasoning?
How many tries does it take you to capture the cat?
http://www.members.shaw.ca/gf3/circle-the-cat.html

Is this game too tame for you? Maybe you prefer extreme sports.

Doesn't this one look like fun?

http://comunidad.uem.es/blogfiles/shakespeare/brinquedo.wmv

You could invent a game or a sport this summer and make a fortune!

Vocabulary:
I dare you: ..........................................¿A que no te atreves?
spatial reasoning.................................inteligencia espacial
tries......................................................intentos
does it take you.................................. ¿te cuesta?

too tame................................................demasiado fácil/sencillo
extreme sports.....................................deportes de alto riesgo

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 5 comentarios

The Millionaire Game

Hello all you smart people out there.

Try the Millionaire Game!

Careful! It's addictive!

www.millionairetv.com/game/index.html

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 2 comentarios

Are you intelligent or are you dumb?

You are probably a university student working on your degree. You're studying English, doing research for your projects, and getting ready for a semester or year abroad , maybe on the Erasmus program. Then you'll do a couple of internships so that you can get a feel for the different options available to you. You hope to get a good job, possibly in a multinational. You'll have great career opportunities because you're getting good grades and taking your studies seriously.

Some of you are already employed. You're working on an advanced degree: an MA or a PhD. You've found that you still need to improve your English because you want to travel to countries where Spanish is NOT spoken. You want to go to conventions overseas, and give presentations in English yourself.

You're a very intelligent person, but sometimes you like to test yourself. Sometimes you just like to have fun. Look at the vocabulary and then take the test at the bottom. It is very un-academic, but kind of fun. Try it ! Are you dumb?

Careful. There is one trick question.

Vocabulary:

your degree: your major, university studies: tu título de estudios/licenciatura etc

doing research: "hacer investigación"

PhD: Doctorate: "doctorado"

improve: to get better: "mejorar"

dumb: stupid: "tonto"

I think you just learned or reviewed some vocabulary.
Now, try the test.

Wendy

http://www.dumb123.com/index.html

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 3 comentarios

In the desert and on the computer screen!

Last summer I went to Tucson, Arizona for a week. This is a desert area near the Mexican border. It was very hot during the day, so we went out walking a lot in the evening. There were a lot of beautiful cactus, but not many living creatures. We did see rabbits and quail and lizards and heard that there were snakes about. Eiuuuu! That worried us. Then….walking back towards our room...Oh....watch out! We saw not 1 but 2 tarantulas about 2 meters from our front door! It was dusk and these 2 were checking each other out! O.K. Keep calm! We are the intruders.
Vocabulary:
Border: division between countries; "frontera"
Rabbits: rodents with long ears. Bugs bunny is a famous rabbit; “conejos”
Quail: a bird that runs on the ground, usually with others; “cordoniz”
Lizards: similar to a small crocodile; "lagartos"
snakes: long thin serpent; "serpientes"
Watch out : be careful; “ojo! Ten cuidado!”
Tarantula: large, hairy creature similar to a spider; “tarantula
Dusk: evening and almost dark; “anochecer”
Check X out: look at someone/something with interest; fijarse en algo/alguien”
keep calm: don't get nervous; "tranquilízate"
intruders: people that interrupt you or invade your space; "intrusos"

Here is A GAME for you. There is a big spider/tarantula walking around Europe. You can drag it out of your country with your mouse. If you hit your space bar you can put little flies on the map. The spider will eat them, with or without your help! Oh, I love computer technology!
Vocabulary:
Drag: pull something ; “arrastrar”
Mouse: instrument used to activate things on your computer screen; “ratón”
Hit: touch with force; “tocar con gana; pegar”
Spacebar: long key on the bottom of the keyboard of a computer; “barra; tecla”
Flies: common insects which come out in the summer; moscas
screen: the rectangular object you are looking at right now!

Oh, there's a big spider is on MY computer screen! Click on "a big spider"

Send in a comment !
Wendy

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 0 comentarios

Think! Think ! Think! You KNOW the answers

Try this test. Think! There's no time limit.
Use logic ! Use math ! THINK !

How smart are you really ? This Test has been used for over 50 years and has pretty much done it with great accuracy. If you don't score high, remember, you can always improve. It has been said Bill Gates once took this test and scored a 3 on it. I don't believe that because I got a 9 out of 11 and I'm definitely no Bill Gates. Let's see how well you do. Scroll down on the link to see the answers. I KNEW the answers to the 2 I missed. I just didn't THINK long enough. Have fun! and don't forget to THINK !

Wendy

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 0 comentarios

How long will you live? A longevity game

How long will you live? Do you have any bad habits? Is your life style affecting your life expectancy? If your grandmother is 94 now and has no bad habits, she may live until she's 108 ! Her children may NOT outlive her! Now, that's scary!
Click here:
Longevity Test
Watch the age prediction on the top right of the screen change as you answer the various questions. Change an answer and see just how much longer you'll live if, for example, you stop smoking!

• Publicado por shakespeare•
• 0 comentarios