A2 • B1
THE MAGAZINE FOR YOUR ENGLISH
a
1
of English
YEAR XLIII N° 1 • September-October 2020 • Imprimé á Taxe Réduite
Find out about...
Surfing
The Great Wall of China
Animals and their feelings
Timothée Chalamet
06 07 10
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Street art!
Balloon Girl
Artist: Bansky is one of the most mysterious and mythical street artists. Nobody knows what he looks like! His works are revolutionary and criticize the modern world Date and place: 2002, wall of an East London shop
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Subject: a little girl lets go of, or loses, her heart-shaped balloon. Next to the famous image are the words: “There is always hope” Interesting fact: the work was removed* from the wall in 2014, then sold for hundreds of thousands of pounds
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Greetings
Samantha
Hi dear readers! I’ve missed you all! I don’t know about you, but I’m definitely ready to start another year of A TOT of English. I hope that you enjoy the street art by Banksy, which this issue begins with (I love Banksy!), as well as the report about animals... and their feelings! In this issue we’re visiting Sydney, Australia – and we’re learning how to surf. We’ve also got an interview with Timothée Chalamet, a well-loved and talented actor! What are you waiting for? Let’s get started!
Contents Sommario The World’s Great Cities
4
Wonders of the modern world
6
Report
7
Sydney
The Great Wall of China Animals and their feelings
People 10 Timothée Chalamet
Test 11 How much do you care about the environment?
Find out about...
12
Games Galore
14
Surfing
Novel 16 Where the Crawdads Sing
2020: year of special moons! In early April we admired the “super moon” in the sky, with the naked eye – the moon in fact shone at its maximum intensity. It appeared 7% larger and 15% brighter than on nights when there is a regular full moon. Native Americans, who called it the “snow moon” because it was seen in the middle of winter, gave a name to the full moon of each month (“deer moon”, “blue moon”, “long night moon”...). The colours in which we occasionally see the moon in the sky are caused by refracted light* from the Earth’s atmosphere, which allows only a few luminous frequencies to pass. The full moon seen in traditional Halloween images hardly ever happens. It is very rare indeed that on 31 October there is a full moon. But this year you can raise your eyes to the sky and enjoy this special event!
Match
On 31 October Halloween, a celebration of British origin, is celebrated almost everywhere in the world. But did you know that there is a fear of Halloween, studied by doctors? And did you know that there are other really specific fears related to this period? Match the name of the fear to its meaning!
Hi, I’m Grammy. This month we’ll learn about: - modal verbs - personal pronouns - use of prepositions - the superlative form
- reflexive verbs - the infinitive form
Glossary
light frequencies: light rays Native Americans: American Indians, populations who lived in America before colonization refracted: broken, then sent in a different direction removed: taken away with the naked eye: without devices, without binoculars or telescope
a
Samhainophobia
1. Fear of witches
b
Phasmophobia
2. Fear of the dark
c
Wiccaphobia
3. Fear of Halloween
d
Nictophobia
4. Fear of ghosts
The answers are on page 14.
03
Harbour Bridge
Sydneysiders (people who live in Sydney!) call this ‘the giant coathanger*’. Opened in 1932, this incredible structure crosses the narrowest points of the harbour. It is 134m high, 1149m long, 49m wide and weighs 52,800 tonnes. Sydney’s Harbour Bridge is the largest and heaviest (but not the longest) steel* arch in the world. The best way to experience this bridge is on foot!
Bondi Beach
For many, this beach symbolises Sydney. Bondi is one of the world’s most famous beaches. This is the perfect place for surfing, swimming or sunbathing, and it’s just 8km from the city centre.
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Sydney
One of Australia’s largest cities, Sydney is best known for its distinctive* Opera House, sparkling harbour and massive* arched Harbour Bridge. There are plenty of other things to see and do in Sydney. Let’s take a tour around this exciting city!
the superlative form
The world’s great cities
the superlative form
New Year in Sydney!
Sydney is the perfect place to spend New Year’s Eve. Every year, the city lets off a spectacular fireworks display from the Harbour Bridge. There are two displays – the first is at 9pm and the second is at midnight. This one is televised around the world!
Royal Botanic Garden
Established in 1816, this large, beautiful garden has plants from Australia and around the world. This is the best place in Sydney to have a picnic, go for a jog, or just relax on the grass! Or you can take a free guided walk that lasts 1 ½ hours, and learn about the garden’s Aboriginal and local history.
Opera House
This building is famous all around the world, and is Australia’s most recognisable landmark*! Its shape
represents white sails. Located on Circular Quay, the best way to experience Sydney’s Opera House is to go to a dance, concert, opera or theatre performance!
Taronga Zoo
Take a 12-minute ferry ride from Circular Quay and visit a unique zoo full of kangaroos, koalas, platypuses, and many other animals from around the world. Taronga Zoo is 75 hectares in size and has an incredible view over Sydney Harbour.
Sydney Superlative Quiz
Have you read the story about Sydney? Complete the superlative forms in the brackets below and then answer the questions! 1 Where’s the .................................. (good) place to have a picnic? ............................ .......................................................................
4 What’s the .................................... (good) way to experience Sydney’s Harbour Bridge? ........................................................ ....................................................................... 2 What’s the name of the ........................... 5 What’s the name of one of the world’s (large) and .................................. (heavy) .................................... (famous) beaches, steel arch bridge in the world? ............. located in Sydney? ................................... ....................................................................... ....................................................................... 6 What’s the .................................... (good) 3 What’s Sydney’s ........................................ way to experience Sydney Opera (recognisable) landmark? ....................... House? ........................................................ ....................................................................... .......................................................................
Glossary
coathanger: an object to hang clothes up with in a wardrobe distinctive: easy to recognise landmarks: an important place massive: very big steel: a type of metal
The answers are on page 14.
05
Wonders of the modern world
The Great Wall of China
The Great Wall of China is a very long series of walls in present-day China. It crosses 15 provinces in the north of the country, including Beijing. In 1987 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and in 2007 it was included among the seven wonders of the modern world. It is considered a symbol of China and its thousand-year history.
How and when
The Chinese began building it in 215 BC, at the behest of the first emperor of the Qin dynasty* - the first Chinese dynasty in order to protect the Silk Road* and the Empire from barbarian invasions. His project was truly ambitious and original, and it happened more than 2000 years ago! The wall was built with the use of the forced labour* of soldiers, peasants and prisoners, with different materials depending on the period. Mostly it is built from stone, earth, sand and bricks, transported by hand with wagons, ropes or animals. Every 500 metres there is a turret*, from which soldiers fired arrows and defended the walls.
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The size
The wall was previously thought to be 6350 km long, but from the measurements made today, with infrared rays and GPS, it appears to be 8850 km long. To this we must add thousands of kilometres of branches* for a total of 21,196.18 km. The walls are 5 to 8 metres high and meet the sea at Shanhaiguan, known as “First Step Under Heaven”. The wall, which looks like a huge dragon, has a head, “Old Dragon’s Head”: it is the point where the wall crosses the Gulf of Bohai.
Did you know?
The Wall is one of the most visited tourist places in the world, partly because it weaves through the middle of hills and mountains where there is wonderful nature and unique panoramas to be admired. It’s not true that you can see the Great Wall from space with the naked eye, because although it’s very long, it’s not very wide (less than 10 metres on average).
The meaning
The Wall is a symbol of the Chinese people, a very proud and strong civilization with a unique and ancient culture. In fact, it has inspired paintings, poems, plays, stories and legends. One of the most famous is that of Meng Jiang Nu, the sad love story of a girl who saves a man from forced labour on the wall. Legend has it that the girl cried on the wall for days and nights.
Mao said, “You are not a true hero until you have climbed the great wall.” This sentence has become a saying: to reach your goals, you have to face many challenges.
Glossary
branches: roads that detach like branches from the main road (here from the wall) dynasty: set of emperors of the same family forced labour: heavy labour given as punishment for slaves, prisoners, etc. Silk Road: set of commercial routes that linked East Asia to the Near East and the Mediterranean turret: small tower within the walls, from which incoming enemies were controlled
Report
Animals and their feelings
They are our great friends. When we look into their eyes, we sense how much they love us but... apart from this affection, do animals actually feel emotions like us? From Darwin to new scientific discoveries, we discover that animals are full of feelings! When we look our little dog in the eye, we feel a lot of affection, of course. But what do animals really feel? For example, pigs get excited, and if they can’t play with other pigs, they suffer from depression* and get sick. Just like us! For this reason, on German pig farms, the
animals are cuddled* for at least 20 seconds a day and given toys to keep them entertained. Strong emotions can be seen in all animals when faced with death or separation from a loved one. In short, animals are capable of more than just instinct*; they are capable of displaying a wide range of emotions. Elephants and birds can feel displeasure; mice, chickens and cetaceans are empathetic*; while monkeys, crows, turtles and octopuses suffer, rejoice and get angry.
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