#24 It’s a strange world: Singularity
❓Are computers smarter than humans? If not, will they be? If yes, when will they be?
❗️ Most experts agree that we’re not far away from this moment, the moment that is called “singularity”. Probably within our lifetime even! So it’s good to know a thing or two (=a couple of things) about it, right?
⛓ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_singularity
▶️ Here’s a TED Talk about the Singularity:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnT1xgZgkpk
👉@afandi_english👈 #strange_world #technology
❓Are computers smarter than humans? If not, will they be? If yes, when will they be?
❗️ Most experts agree that we’re not far away from this moment, the moment that is called “singularity”. Probably within our lifetime even! So it’s good to know a thing or two (=a couple of things) about it, right?
⛓ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_singularity
▶️ Here’s a TED Talk about the Singularity:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnT1xgZgkpk
👉@afandi_english👈 #strange_world #technology
#53 Afandi Quiz: Which country?
▶️ Here is a mysterious picture.
👉@afandi_english👈 #quiz #picture_quiz
▶️ Here is a mysterious picture.
👉@afandi_english👈 #quiz #picture_quiz
Afandi English
#1 Self-study: Tom & Savannah 🆕 Brand new on the channel: Materials for self-study! Learn English with interesting videos. You won’t believe how much English you can extract from a video if you go to the bottom of it. IELTS students – here is your source…
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#17 Self-study: Miss Japan
▶️ Today’s video and handout are about a black woman who became “Miss Japan” – the country’s officially most beautiful woman. Find out why many Japanese people disagree!
❗️If you think this is good material for your self-study, please follow the instructions in #1 👆 and the instructions on the handout below 👇.
👉@afandi_english👈 #self_study
▶️ Today’s video and handout are about a black woman who became “Miss Japan” – the country’s officially most beautiful woman. Find out why many Japanese people disagree!
❗️If you think this is good material for your self-study, please follow the instructions in #1 👆 and the instructions on the handout below 👇.
👉@afandi_english👈 #self_study
Afandi English
This picture was taken in ...
Well done!
👍 Romania was correct. That was all about the language of the billboard (=big advertising poster). Romanian language belongs to the Romance (=languages based on Latin) family of languages, together with French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.
👎 Neighbouring Bulgaria and Greece were wrong because their languages do not use the Latin alphabet. In communist Cuba you may find colonial European architecture but the cars and buses would probably look different, and the language would be Spanish.
👍 Romania was correct. That was all about the language of the billboard (=big advertising poster). Romanian language belongs to the Romance (=languages based on Latin) family of languages, together with French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.
👎 Neighbouring Bulgaria and Greece were wrong because their languages do not use the Latin alphabet. In communist Cuba you may find colonial European architecture but the cars and buses would probably look different, and the language would be Spanish.
#90 Our favourite mistakes: Pronunciation
▶️ Try pronouncing the following words:
• ask
• bath
• castle
• class
• fast
• glass
• maths
• pass
• passport
• passed
• past
• task
❓What do these words have in common?
❗️ They have the long vowel [a:] in British English or [æ:] in American English. Some students want to sound more American but unfortunately pronounce a short [e] here. Whether you prefer British or American accent, the vowel MUST be long!
👉@afandi_english👈 #mistakes #pronunciation
▶️ Try pronouncing the following words:
• ask
• bath
• castle
• class
• fast
• glass
• maths
• pass
• passport
• passed
• past
• task
❓What do these words have in common?
❗️ They have the long vowel [a:] in British English or [æ:] in American English. Some students want to sound more American but unfortunately pronounce a short [e] here. Whether you prefer British or American accent, the vowel MUST be long!
👉@afandi_english👈 #mistakes #pronunciation
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🎉 Special Day: Teachers' Day
🆕 Special days help us pay more attention to the things and people that matter. Celebrate with Afandi English!
▶️ Today’s video is “Muellim”, a Uyghur music video honouring teachers. The singer is Ablajan Awut Ayup (here's a BBC report about him) who disappeared into one of Xinjiang’s reeducation camps (=prison camp, concentration camp) in 2018. And guess what, today is also China’s national holiday. 🇨🇳😈
Follow the lyrics with English subtitles (if you need them at all).
👉@afandi_english👈 #special_day
🆕 Special days help us pay more attention to the things and people that matter. Celebrate with Afandi English!
▶️ Today’s video is “Muellim”, a Uyghur music video honouring teachers. The singer is Ablajan Awut Ayup (here's a BBC report about him) who disappeared into one of Xinjiang’s reeducation camps (=prison camp, concentration camp) in 2018. And guess what, today is also China’s national holiday. 🇨🇳😈
Follow the lyrics with English subtitles (if you need them at all).
👉@afandi_english👈 #special_day
#56 Travelogue Germany: The Green Republic
Germany is already pretty green and is set to become even greener with the Green Party’s likely role in the future government. Let’s look at a few past achievements:
Renewable energy
About half of all the energy used in Germany comes from renewable sources, such as wind power and solar power. The countryside is dotted with wind turbines and many people have solar panels on their roofs.
Bottle refund
Littering the nature with empty bottles is a costly habit in Germany. When you return your empty bottles to the supermarket you get a bit of money back. Unfortunately the system is quite complicated and fails to reduce the amount of rubbish.
Single-use plastics
You can’t easily find single-use plastic spoons or cups, it’s all been outlawed. Alternatives are made from cardboard or wood, and sometimes you can even find edible plates. But then again, how much of a difference do these items make in the great scheme of things?
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #germany
Germany is already pretty green and is set to become even greener with the Green Party’s likely role in the future government. Let’s look at a few past achievements:
Renewable energy
About half of all the energy used in Germany comes from renewable sources, such as wind power and solar power. The countryside is dotted with wind turbines and many people have solar panels on their roofs.
Bottle refund
Littering the nature with empty bottles is a costly habit in Germany. When you return your empty bottles to the supermarket you get a bit of money back. Unfortunately the system is quite complicated and fails to reduce the amount of rubbish.
Single-use plastics
You can’t easily find single-use plastic spoons or cups, it’s all been outlawed. Alternatives are made from cardboard or wood, and sometimes you can even find edible plates. But then again, how much of a difference do these items make in the great scheme of things?
👉@afandi_english👈 #travel #germany
---Vocab---
📍set to become = very likely to become 📍renewable = is always available, doesn’t get less 📍dotted with = full of, in many places 📍solar panel = flat item that collects sunlight and turns it into energy 📍refund = pay money back 📍littering = throwing rubbish carelessly 📍outlawed = made illegal 📍cardboard = thick paper 📍edible = can be eaten 📍in the great/grand scheme of things = considering the big picture
📍set to become = very likely to become 📍renewable = is always available, doesn’t get less 📍dotted with = full of, in many places 📍solar panel = flat item that collects sunlight and turns it into energy 📍refund = pay money back 📍littering = throwing rubbish carelessly 📍outlawed = made illegal 📍cardboard = thick paper 📍edible = can be eaten 📍in the great/grand scheme of things = considering the big picture
Are you worried about the environment in your country?
Anonymous Poll
55%
Yes, pollution is a big problem.
19%
I'm a little worried, but not that much.
18%
Not really, other problems are more serious.
8%
I'm not worried about pollution at all.
#30 YouTube Channel Recommendation: Veritasium
📊 English Level: Advanced
🔤 Subtitles: Available
💬 Topic: Popular science
💡 Content: This channel’s owner Derek Muller is a studied scientist and presents science topics in very interesting ways, often countering (=going against) popular myths (=false beliefs) or answering tricky (=difficult) questions.
⛓ Link: https://www.youtube.com/c/veritasium
👉@afandi_english👈 #youtube
📊 English Level: Advanced
🔤 Subtitles: Available
💬 Topic: Popular science
💡 Content: This channel’s owner Derek Muller is a studied scientist and presents science topics in very interesting ways, often countering (=going against) popular myths (=false beliefs) or answering tricky (=difficult) questions.
⛓ Link: https://www.youtube.com/c/veritasium
👉@afandi_english👈 #youtube
#67 Spot Something: Shiva’s peeler
❓ Can you spot a peeler in this Indian kitchen?
❗️If you can you might win 5,000 Paynet-soums! Mark the picture and send it to @jochenho. You have half an hour!
👉@afandi_english👈 #spot_something
❓ Can you spot a peeler in this Indian kitchen?
❗️If you can you might win 5,000 Paynet-soums! Mark the picture and send it to @jochenho. You have half an hour!
👉@afandi_english👈 #spot_something