Phonetics Course: Do Ya Wanna Sound 'merican?

My accent is a bit of a muddle. I was born in Seattle, Washington and grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Milwaukee accent is quite distinct. I'm not quite sure how to describe it but it is rather sing-song-y in nature and sounds a bit nasal. It reminds me of a Minnesotan accent but not as strong. The city of Milwaukee was settled primarily by German immigrants so that might explain some of its distinct pronunciation patterns. Some say that the accent sounds a bit Canadian. When I visited Toronto, all of the Canadians I met were convinced that I was 'one of them'. They were quite 'horrified' to learn that I was actually a 'Statesider'.  I jest and so did the bartender who said that I was too cool to be an American! ;)

However, my accent has changed through the years because I have lived in many other places including London, Hamburg, Chicago, Las Vegas, and Bozeman. (Bozeman? Where's that you say? It is today's homework assignment to find out where in the heck Bozeman is located. But do that after this lesson of course. That is why it's called homework!)

As a matter of fact, my accent has changed so much that it is now accentless American English. I was speaking with a Liguistics professor about five years ago and right in the middle of our conversation he suddenly said, "Oh, I've got it! You are from Wisconsin originally aren't you?" It had taken him over 15 minutes to place where I was from. He was utterly impressed and said that I was the exception to his 'placing game'  as usually he could place someone within a minute or so of speaking. (Or so he said...)

While it is a bit sad that I have lost some of the accent of my youth, the benefit is that I am able to instruct in a 'Broadcast English' accent for my students. After studying with me, my students don't leave my classroom sounding like they have lived in any particular area of the States. I think this is great because I think English language learners should use their own native language accent and put their own spin on their English pronunciation.

If you desire an American sounding accent or are just curious as to how an American Accent is produced (You geeky linguist you!) check out this wonderful flash animation from the University of Iowa that shows you how to sound 'merican.

For example in this screen capture from my computer, you can see the instructions for the formation of the American English sound /p/. You have the option of watching the animation with sound or playing it with step-by-step instructions for the formation of the sound. Also, to the right you can watch a video of a real person making the sound and you can listen to the pronunciation of specific words.

Note: The University of Iowa also has similar flash animations for the phonetics of Spanish and German languages.

Final Note: Let me say at this point I am not a proponent of accent reducation courses. I think it is beautiful how each English language learner adds their own personal native language accent to their spoken English. Yes, it is essential to master pronunciation so that you can be understood clearly. However, someone from China should sound like someone from China and someone from Kenya should sound like someone from Kenya. English is simply a tool to global understanding and communication and I think that it should reflect the personal speaker's culture and heritage. Your accent is who you are and you should be very proud of it!

Resources Course: So Many New Words, So Little Time...

When you read native-level English, it is very common for EFL learners to feel overwhelmed with so many new vocabulary words in one passage of text. Learners are always frustrated to determine which words you should look up in your dictionary and which you shouldn't.

When my students ask me, I tend to tell them to focus on the nouns and verbs that repeat within a text, but it really isn't a very precise answer. How can you know what is a frequently appearing word unless you read the entire text? Sure, you can look up words upon a second reading, but this technique really doesn't help for a first reading.

However, if you have electronic text or if you can scan in your text, there is a product online that can give you a very precise answer.

VocabGrabber is a thesaurus that allows you to copy and paste in text you are reading and it will show you which words are the key words from the text.

Example
For this blog post, I copied and pasted the entire book Daisy Miller by the American author Henry James into VocabGrabber. Here are what the results look like:

Do you know the meaning of the words parasol, Colosseum, or coquette? According to VocabGrabber, you just might need to know these words if you read Daisy Miller!

Exercise
Take text from an English book/article you are currently reading and see what VocabGrabber recommends as your necessary vocabulary for comprehension.

Note: Daisy Miller is a brilliant tale of a young, naive American who gets up to mischief in Rome during the mid-nineteenth century. If you haven't read it but you are trying to break into native English language literature, this might be a great tale to start with.

Second Note: I won't leave you hanging with the vocabulary words I mentioned above in Daisy Miller. Here are their definitions:

Essential Vocabulary
parasol ~ a sun umbrella for women which was very popular in the nineteenth century and earlier.

Colosseum ~ this is the famous stadium from the Roman era in Rome.

coquette ~ a polite term for a female who is a flirt. Originating from French.

After Dinner Mints Course: Tech Savvy Egyptian Cobra

Update: As of 4/1/11 our little friend was found safe in the reptile house. She(!) is in good health and is back in her home sweet home, so our tale has a happy ending!

OK. This is wickedly and delightfully funny and a lovely break from all of the sad and distressing news coming out of Japan and the Middle East the last few weeks.

I am not sure if you have been following the news out of the Bronx Zoo in New York, but unfortunately their baby Egyptian cobra has gone missing.

I suppose I should mention at this point that I do not find this bit of the story wickedly delightfully funny. The cobra is absolutely venomous so I worry about the safety of anyone who might tangle with our little slithery friend.  

On the other hand, I also worry about the little baby cobra because the northern half of the States has been having a very cold spring (currently 39F/4C at 2:43p.m. in Chicago as I type!) and I am worried that he might get a really bad 'head cold' and be under the weather. Note: I'm being polite. Actually what I'm delicately trying to say is that I'm worried that the little guy might just get sick and kick the bucket.

Yes, of course, I too hope that our little friend is found safe and sound quickly and gets back to his enclosure.

So what I do find so wickedly and delightfully funny about our poor missing baby cobra is that for such a young age he is one sharp, tech savvy cobra as it seems that he has set up a twitter account.

I can read your mind "Oh, that's nice, his keeper is twittering to try to see if anyone in New York has seen his cobra."

Nope. That is not what I mean.

I mean that the baby Egyptian cobra is twittering himself!

(Dramatic pause in writing while I let this sink in for a moment...)

"Um...What exactly does a baby cobra twitter about?" you might ask. Great question!

It seems that our little reptilian friend is chatting about his adventures in the Big Apple. In one of his posts, he tweeted about visiting the Egyptology exhibit at the Met. (No duh. Of course he would head over to see the exhibit from his homeland.)

If you would like to follow the adventure of the baby cobra, head on over to twitter and follow #SnakeOnTheTown.

Required Reading
The Elusive Bronx Zoo Cobra Emerges — On Twitter ~ Time Magazine
Lost Cobra May Hide for Weeks, Zoo Says ~ New York Times

Essential Vocabulary
distressing ~ causing great stress or worry

wickedly ~ from wicked. Slang. Used in the States and UK. Meaning: So evil/bad it is brilliant. Black humor

venomous (adj) ~ something secreting venom. poisonous

bit ~ part

tangle with ~ to encounter

slithery ~ something that slithers

on the other hand (transition phrase) ~ to look at the other side of an issue

to be under the weather (v) ~ to be mildly ill or slightly sick

to kick the bucket (v) ~ to die

to be found safe and sound (v) ~ to be found in a dangerous situation healthy and alive

enclosure ~ a pen or holding area usually for an animal. In this case it refers to the cobra's home at the Bronx Zoo.

sharp (adj) ~ intelligent

savvy (adj) ~ practical/worldly knowledge

to let this sink in for a moment ~ a pause in which something very complicated or unbelievable is reflected upon

the Big Apple ~ New Yorkers pet name for New York City

No duh (slang)  ~ meaning 'it is obvious'. Something that should be understood by everyone without mentioning it. Usually said deadpan or sarcastically then proceeded with laughter by the speaker

Vocacabulary Course: Jasmine Revolution

Vocabulary Term: 
Jasmine Revolution

Meaning:
Jasmine Revolution is a term coined for the Tunisian Revolution that occurred in the beginning of January 2011.

Most interesting, this term seems to be quickly evolving as I have seen it used to describe all of the democratic movements that are sweeping the Middle East. Note: I use 'democratic' in the sense meaning 'freedom and power to the people', not democratic in the sense of a specific form of governance such as 'Western'-styled democracy.

Interestingly, this term is now coming into parlance in China as well by an online protest movement that the government is increasingly wary over. According to a New York Times article, Chinese censors have even attempted to block the word 'jasmine' from social networking sites and search engines.

Example:
The Egyptian people were quite moved by the Jasmine Revolution and started to protest in their own country for better living conditions and freedom of expression.

Note: I will continue to modify this post as this term evolves.

Vocabulary Course: New Oxford English Dictionary Entries March 2011 Edition

Languages are fluid like water. The popularity of words ebb and flow like the tides themselves. If you don't believe me, check out this comparison chart of Old and Middle English.

EEEK! Painful to read, isn't it? It doesn't look anything like modern English, right?

When I had to read even a 'translated' version of Beowulf (written sometime between the 8-12 century) for high school, I thought my head would pop off. Instant headache. (Although I must admit, it is a very cool tale indeed.)

However, I digress. This post isn't about archaic forms of English. (I think I actually heard you breathe a sigh  of relief at this piece of information!) I will leave that topic for another day. (I promise I will make it interesting.)

My point is that English is constantly evolving. Personally, I think it is changing even faster nowadays due to the Internet, but I digress again.

(Um, I really, really hope that you bothered to look up digress in your dictionary. How'ya gonna learn advanced English if you don't look up the verbose words I use occasionally in your posts? See, there is a method to my madness. Yup. You do need to look up verbose too.)

The point of this post is to teach you some really cool slang that is currently being used in the States which has now made it to the latest version of the Oxford English Dictionary.

So let's have a little fun, shall we? I am going to list several of the new entries and give you a wee little multiple choice test. Scroll down to the bottom of the post for the answers. Good luck!

Let's begin...

1. muffin top
a. the flabby around ones hips that 'pops up' over ones waistline when one wears too tight of trousers
b. the yummy crumbly bit of extra dough that is stuck to a bake pan
c. any strange rock formation that is created from volcanic flow

2. five second rule
a. what you yell right before you pass gas
b. what you yell when you quickly put in your mouth any dropped food upon the floor that you still really want to eat
c. what you yell in a nightclub when you see an attractive person lock eyes with you across the dance floor. This means that they are obligated to come over and talk to you.

3. OMG
a. texting slang for 'oh my god!'
b. texting slang for 'oh the man's gorgeous!'
c. texting slang for 'only my guess!'

4. La-La Land
a. the name of a pretend place where no one gets old or is poor
b. a polite term for saying you have to go to the toilet
c. a term for Los Angeles that equates the city to being a fantasy place

Can't get enough of the latest in English vocabulary? Follow this link to the Oxford English Dictionary and learn all of the newest words in the English language. Then at cocktail parties, go up to native English speakers and quiz them! Watch their reaction as they realize that you know more about their language than they do. hee-hee! (Just be a good sport about teasing them, OK? OK.)

And now, drum roll please...

Quiz Answers
1. a; 2. b; 3. a; 4. c

Resources Course: Excellent Sites for English News Media

Here is a list of sites that I think will be quite helpful for you to use to learn English via reading or watching news media. If I overlooked a site that you find particularly useful, let me know and I may add it to the list. 

Online English News: Video Format

Al Jazerra English
Source: Qatar

Deutsche Welle
Source: Germany

France 24
Source: France

NHK World
Source: Japan
Hint: The video is on the right side of the page.

Online English News: Print Format

Al Jazerra English
Source: Qatar

BBC
Source: United Kingdom

Deutsche Welle
Source: Germany
France 24
Source: France

Kyodo News
Source: Japan

Keep checking this page for future updates!

Reading Course: Making Reading or Watching English News Media Easier

The world seems to be changing at break neck speed at the moment. Keeping up with the news in your L1 (first language) is extremely important in our interconnected world. I cannot stress to you enough that you should read or watch the news in your L1 every day to make sure that you are an informed citizen of the world no matter the corner of the world that you may call home.

Now that I have talked you into following contemporary events (maybe?), let all of your hard work at following the daily news pay off by propelling you further along in your study of English. How to do this? If you have patience and are willing to push yourself, you can quickly become more proficient in advanced English by watching and or read contemporary events in English alongside your L1.

I know that diving right into an English language news site can be down right scary as there are so many advanced vocabulary words, obscure technical jargon terms, and complex sentence structure patterns in native English language media. However, with a little warm up and practice, you can make this process a little easier on yourself. (Honestly, you can. You have to start somewhere.)

Step-by-Step Instructions on How to Become Proficient at Following the News in English

1. Go to your favorite L1 newspaper or online news source and read or watch one story that:
• Really interests you
• You already have some knowledge of
• Is a main story. Do not pick something known only to your culture/country
2. Now go to another news source in your L1 and read/watch the exact same story. Pay attention to how the exact same topic is expressed with perhaps new vocabulary and sentence structures.
3. How are the stories similar? How are they different?T ake a few moments and either:
• Recite outloud the main points of the news story or
• Write down a short bullet point list of the main points of the story
• Don't go crazy trying to remember everything. Just mentally note the main ideas.
4. Repeat number 2. You now have read or watched a news story on the same topic from three different sources in your native language. Do you feel like you can almost recite the story by heart? Good!
5. Now go to a similar news source but in the English language and find the exact same news story. If you need ideas for great English media outlets, click here.
6. Read or watch the article/video. Try to:
• Understand as much as you can in English. Maybe you are just looking for vocabulary words that you are familiar with if you are an intermediate level student. If you are a more advanced student, try to identify the main points of the topic. 
• Relax! If you feel anxious about trying to understand English media, or you have tried to follow the news before in English and feel that you had failed miserably, simply take a deep breath. This is not a contest and there is no grade. Just see what you can understand and be honest with your abilities.
• Use your dictionary for no more than a total of 5 minutes. Do not get bogged down looking up every word! You are not translating for the UN so any error you make isn't the difference between peace and war. Remember your goal. You are simply trying to comprehend an English article! (Breathe, keep breathing. I know this is scary.)
7. Repeat number 6 but now try to push yourself a little more. Can you understand more vocabulary words? Can you find the thesis statement or topic sentences? Again, stay loose and focused but not stressed out. Learning does not take place when tense!
8. Repeat number 6 but now try to compare how the news story is similar or different to what you read in your L1. What you are focusing on now is cultural language differences. Maybe the main points of what you read or watched in your L1 was expressed far more discreetly or politely than what you have observed in English. This is very advanced English practice because now you are trying to understand the finer points of how English is used based upon a particular culture. 
9. Finally find the exact same article but from a brand new English language source. Maybe your first site was from the UK and now you want to use an Australian source. Maybe you want to find a different political perspective. Play the video or read the article as many times as you need. When you feel that you have learned all that you can, compare and contrast the two English stories/videos. How are they the same? How are they different? How is culture playing a role? Even if they seem the same, look for the tiny differences. You are looking for the nuances in the varieties of the different forms of the English language. How Californians use English is not the same as now a New Yorker uses English is not the same as how someone in Mumbai or Vancouver uses English. (Really, it is true!)
10. Write down the most important vocabulary words in your vocabulary journal from the story that you had either not previously known or might have forgotten from your past studies. How do you know what is important? Write down only the words that appeared over and over again in the article.
11. Take a break and set the project aside. Smile. You did a lot of hard work. I can guarantee you learned something. Even if you only learned one vocabulary word, it is one more word than what you knew when you sat down for the activity. Baby steps people. Baby steps. They are worth celebrating.
12. Later that day or the next day, re-read the article or re-play the video. Check in with yourself as you read or watch. Does anything jump out at you that you wonder why you didn't catch it the first time you read or watched? (Good! But if not, no worries! Someday!)

I recommend that you try to do this at least once a week. The goal of course is that eventually, you will not need to read or watch a story in your L1 before you read or watch it in English. (Applaud loudly when this day arrives and let me know and I will clap for you too!)

Grammar Appetizer Course: Use To vs. Used To

Bite-sized Grammar: Used To vs. Use To
Don't feel shy about mixing up 'use to' vs. 'used to'. If you listen carefully to native English speakers, you will hear them very often mix up the correct form too! This little grammar bug-a-boo mistake isn't just for non-native speakers, so don't feel bad if you have a tough time keeping these two straight.

However, I'm about to clarify this confusing construction once and for all, so let's master this together, shall we? Cool!

Used To
Meaning: 'Used to' means something you habitually did in the past.

Usage: As a verb

Example: I used to live in Hamburg, Germany.

Notes: Yes, yours truly did indeed live in Hamburg. I lived there to teach Business English to hip professionals. After about a year and a half, I moved back to the States. Currently, I live in Chicago, where I teach English. So am I still in Hamburg? Nope. I need to indicate this by using the past and one way I can do this by using 'used to'.

One simple trick for keeping straight whether to use 'used to' or 'use to' is to remember that verbs which end in '-ed' indicate the simple past, so 'used to' has an 'ed' indicates the past.

Use To
Meaning: 'Use to' indicates accustomed to.

Usage: As an adjective

Example: The first few months I lived in Hamburg, I was not use to such cold, damp, and gray weather.

Notes: Popular formations of this construction include 'to be + use to' and 'to become + use to'.

The Final Dish: Putting It All Together
Can we create a sentence that uses both forms in one sentence? Let's try!

When I used to live in Hamburg, after a few months I gradually became use to the gloomy weather in the fall months.

Vocabulary Course: Foreign Origin English Word of the Day: Tsunami

Tsunami
Origin: Japanese; Meaning: 津(harbor) 波(wave)
English Meaning: Gigantic wave originating from a volcano or oceanic earthquake. (Incorrectly translated as 'tidal wave'.)

According to scientists, tsunamis have everything to do with plates and nothing to do with tides. English speakers used to use the term 'tidal wave' for such waves but tsunami is now used instead as it properly describes the geologic event English speakers were trying to describe. This term came into popular daily spoken and written English after the tsunami in 2004 in Indonesia.

This illustrates how languages are living breathing cultural entities. Languages will adapt and incorporate terms from other languages if the new term can describe something more precisely than what was used in the original language. (Thus tsunami replaced 'tidal wave'.)

Now that people can watch a tsunami live on television no matter where they are in the world, whether in a desert or in a rainforest or in a tundra, this word in here to stay as part of this eras modern English language vocabulary.

Vocabulary Course: Japanese Nuclear Crisis

Sadly the Japanese disaster of March 11, 2011 came in threes: 1. an earthquake, 2. a tsunami, and 3. a nuclear crisis. We are one connected world. Radiation does not stop at a nation's border. Do care about the people of Japan and also care about yourself in the world you live in by learning these terms so you can follow the news in English and make educated decisions about this monumental disaster.

IAEA (acronym)
Definition: The United Nations' nuclear watchdog is the International Atomic Energy Agency. This organization follows all things relating to nuclear science.
Example: The IAEA has been prodding the Japanese government for more information about the crippled nuclear reactors.

nuclear fission (n)
Definition: The process by which the nuclear reaction takes place in a nuclear power plant.Example: In nuclear fission, the atoms sub divide and form products such as gamma rays.

nuclear fusion (n)
Definition: The process by which the sun generates its energy.
Example: In nuclear fision, the atoms come together and fuse.

radioactivity (n)
Definition: When a nuclei is unstable, it emits particles or rays which can be dangerous for human health.
Example: Radioactivity has been detected in the tap water in the Tokyo area.

radioactive (n)

Definition: That which gives off radioactivity.
Example: Uranium is a radioactive substance.

radiation (n)
Definition: The transmission radiant energy.
Example: The different types of radiation are alpha, beta, and gamma.

to irradiate (v) 
Definition: To be exposed to radiation.
Example: Unfortunately three workers at the Fukushima nuclear power plant were irradiated when they stepped in radioactive water and received beta burns on their feet.

uranium (n)

Definition: Number 92 of the periodic table, a naturally occurring element that emits radiation.
Example: Uranium can be found in mines and is used in nuclear fuel rods.

plutonium (n)
Definition: Number 94 of the periodic table, the most toxic element on earth.
Example: Fukushima Daiichi reactor #3 runs on a combination of uranium and plutonium.

nuclear reactor (n)
Definition: The piece of equipment in which nuclear fission takes place in order to generate electricity or power. Within the nuclear reactor is the reactor core.
Example: Fukushima Daiichi #1 nuclear power plant has a total of six nuclear reactors on site.

nuclear reactor core (n)
Definition: Within a nuclear reactor is the reactor core which contains the nuclear fuel rods.
Example: Japanese officials are worried that the reactor core of reactor #3 is damaged and leaking radiation.

nuclear fuel rod (n)
Definition: The nuclear fuel rods are contained in the reactor core. Each fuel rod is made up of pellets of uranium.
Example: A nuclear fuel rod is enclosed in a zirconium casing in order to keep the radioactivity form leaking out.

zirconium casing (n)

Definition: The outer cover of a nuclear fuel rod.
Example: A nuclear fuel rod is enclosed in a zirconium casing in order to keep the radioactivity form leaking out.

containment vessel (n)
Definition: The steel shell that surrounds a nuclear reactor.
Example: If a containment vessel of a nuclear reactor is cracked, radioactivity will be emitted into the environment.

spent fuel rod (n)
Definition: When a nuclear fuel rod has run out of energy it is used up or spent.
Example: There is fear that the spent fuel pools at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant are damaged and leaking water, causing the spent fuel rods to be exposed to oxygen and heat up.

spent fuel pool (n)
Definition: A large container of water where the spent fuel rods of a nuclear power plant are kept.
Example: There is fear that the spent fuel pools at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant are damaged and leaking water, causing the spent fuel rods to be exposed to oxygen and heat up.

recriticality (n)

Definition: When previously spent fuel rods overheat and form a nuclear chain reaction creating fission once more.
Example: There is great fear that the spent fuel pools at the Fukushima nuclear power plant will reach recriticality. 

meltdown (n)

Definition: When a nuclear core overheats or if a spent fuel pool is damaged, the nuclear fuel rods can melt. This is a problem because radiation can be emitted.
Example: There is fear that at least three reactors are in the process of meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

sievert (n)
Definition: A measuring system for biological changes from radiation.
Example: Two workers at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant were exposed to 2-6 sievert of radiation when they stepped into radioactive water.

cold storage (n)
Definition: A term for when a nuclear reactor or rod is in cold water and is no longer producing fission.
Example: Workers at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant are scrambling to get the nuclear reactors and spent fuel rods in cold storage.

Vocabulary Course: Great Tohoku Canto Earthquake and Tsunami

For those of you trying to keep up with the devestating news out of Japan, I have compiled a list of essential English vocabulary words that will help you when reading or listening to English media.

earthquake (n)
Definition: shaking or moving of the earth's crust resulting to shifts in geological plates.
Example: Last week Japan had a huge earthquake measuring 9.0 on the richter scale.

richter scale (n)

Definition: a scale used to measure the intensity of earthquakes from 0 to 10+.

Example: Last week Japan had a huge earthquake measuring 9.0 on the richter scale.

tsunami (n)

Definition: A Japanese word which means 'tidal wave' in English. Due to the power of this word, English speakers are using this word more and more and it can now be considered part of the English language. In recent years, English speakers would use 'tsunami' instead of 'tidal wave'. This is a great example of how languages are fluid and adaptable. If one culture has a better way to express a concept, this word in time becomes incorporated into another culture's language.

Example: A massive tsunami hit Japan after the earthquake on March 11. 

search and rescue (n)

Definition: first responder teams try to aid people in the early hours of a disaster.

Example: Many countries sent their search and rescue teams to Japan to look for survivors from the earthquake. 

rescue mission (n)

Definition: an attempt to try to save someone from danger.

Example: There are many rescue missions taking place in Japan after the earthquake.

recovery mission (n)

Definition: A delicate term in English used to describe recovering bodies from a disaster. When the English media switches from using the term of 'rescue mission' to 'recovery mission', it means that the government has very little hope at that point in time of finding anyone alive from the disaster. In earthquakes, this usually occurs around day seven to day ten.

Example: Sadly, the recovery mission has started after the earthquake in Japan.

relief effort (n)

Definition: This describes the aid given to survivors from a disaster. Relief efforts include bringing hot meals, water, and blankets to the survivors by groups like the red cross and red crescent.

Example: The Japanese Red Cross is engaged in a massive relief effort in Japan.

to evacuate (v)

Definition: to leave one's home due to a disaster.

Example: Many people have had to evacuate their homes in Sendai due to their houses being structurally unfit for habitation.

evacuation (n)

Definition: an organized effort to remove people from a dangerous place.

Example: The Japanese government has order an evacuation from villages that were destroyed by the earthquake.

evacuee (n)

Definition: a person who has been evacuated.

Example: The evacuees have been taken to an evacuation center.

evacuation center (n)

Definition: a place where an evacuee is taken.

Example: 

The evacuees have been taken to an evacuation center.