June 29, 2013

Weekly Finds: June 29, 2013

A Man With Magnifying Glass by digitalart
Image courtesy of digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

If you're ready, here we go...

LISTENING


The Funniest Jokes in the World

Here's the story of the group of scientists and psychologists who decided to try and find out what the funniest joke in the world was.

READING


Five facts about the esophagus

Learn some interesting facts about the esphophagus from Stephen Hauser’s Mayo Clinic Gastroenterology and Hepatology Board Review.

WRITING


Why Writing With Our Hands Is Still Important

Life wasn't meant to be lived entirely in some company's cloud.

SPEAKING


Kids Explaining Computers in 1984

So what is a computer? Find out how the kids on Sesame Street in 1984 did it.

GRAMMAR


Comparative and superlative adjectives

These could be useful for your Academic Writing Task 1.

VOCABULARY


Phrasal Verbs for Romantic Relationships

Add these to your list of phrasal verbs.

SELF-IMPROVEMENT


The most dangerous word to use at work

After fraud, theft, flood, and fire, the most precarious office word is short, deceptively sweet, and open-ended: try.

June 22, 2013

Weekly Finds: June 22, 2013

A Man With Magnifying Glass by digitalart
Image courtesy of digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

If you're ready, here we go...

LISTENING


11 Common Words You're Probably Mispronouncing

Ever feel embarrassed when you don't know how to say a word? Don't be. Even the most fluent English speakers—and, ahem, political figures—stumble. Besides, pronunciations change over time. See if you've been mispronouncing these common words.

READING


IBM's Watson Memorized Entire Urban Dictionary, Then His Overlords Deleted It

When IBM's famous artificial intelligence, Watson, he/she/it of Jeopardy-winning fame, was in development, its head researcher had a great idea.

WRITING


Keep calm, and say it plainly

What is plain English, and why should you use it?

SPEAKING


Utahns who drop the T in words like 'mountain' not so unusual, Y study says

Utahns are known for their unique English. However, linguistic habits in the Beehive state — like dropping the T in mountain — may not be as uncommon as many think.

GRAMMAR


5 Verbose Sentences Made Shorter

The author shares this great piece of advice: "When you write, think tight. The goal is not to reduce every sentence to its most concise form but to avoid distractingly extraneous wording and phrasing."

VOCABULARY


LIVE, LIFE, ALIVE, LIVING

I make a living by making some people’s lives easier to live. Because English can be confusing, it’s sometimes better to get live instruction that will make the language come alive. In this lesson you will learn new vocabulary by really learning one word.

SELF-IMPROVEMENT


4 Reasons Why Today is Going To Be Awesome

Focus on why today is going to be great day.

June 15, 2013

Weekly Finds: June 15, 2013

A Man With Magnifying Glass by digitalart
Image courtesy of digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

If you're ready, here we go...

GRAMMAR


When to use 'THE' with country names

When do we use the with countries, continents, and landmarks? Check out this lesson to find out.

LISTENING


Vowel Pronunciation – u (uh/oo)

Vowel sounds in English are very confusing! In this video, learn the difference between the oo and u sounds. Youll learn the difference in sound between words like: full & fool, pull & pool, Luke & look, and more.

READING


Language Learning Begins in Womb

Long before parents start watching their words, it seems, their kids are taking in everything they say.

SELF-IMPROVEMENT


How to Train Your Brain to Stay Focused

Understand how your brain reacts to distractions and use these three tips to help you stay focused and get things done.

SPEAKING


How to Project Confidence

The author shares four tips to help you appear confident. These could be used in your Speaking exam.

VOCABULARY


New Jargon: 9 New Words To Add To Your Business Vocabulary

According to Trendwatching website, the following words and phrases will likely be in your business vernacular for 2013. Start learning them now.

WRITING


Coordination: Practice in Building, Combining, and Revising Sentences (Part Two)

The author teaches us how to use coordinating words, phrases, and clauses.

June 8, 2013

Weekly Finds: June 8, 2013

A Man With Magnifying Glass by digitalart
Image courtesy of digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

If you're ready, here we go...

GRAMMAR


Can You Start a Sentence with "However"?

A Grammar Expert explains whether you can start a sentence with however.

5 Parallelism Problems in Sentence Structure

The author teaches us that it’s easy to produce a faultily constructed sentence by neglecting to install all the necessary parts.

READING


Reading skills that work – for tests and in class

Do you run out of time when reading in class? Have trouble remembering or understanding what you read? Then put down that book and press play to learn how to improve your reading speed and comprehension today.

SELF-IMPROVEMENT


10 Doubting Thoughts That Can Cripple Creativity [Infographic]

All creative people have doubting thoughts sometimes, but it's important to know those can cripple your creativity. Here's a list of 10.

VOCABULARY


20 Synonyms for "Law," "Order," or "Rule"

Many words exist that refer to an expectation expressed by an authoritative person or entity, and sometimes it’s difficult to distinguish such terms when one tries to convey a reference to a law, an order, or a rule.

June 1, 2013

Weekly Finds: June 1, 2013

A Man With Magnifying Glass by digitalart
Image courtesy of digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

If you're ready, here we go...

GRAMMAR


5 common grammar pitfalls

Watch your verbal footing—with help from the AP Stylebook.

SELF-IMPROVEMENT


The Do Plan, or Why We Know But Don’t Do

You know you should stop procrastinating. You know you should be writing, or learning that language you’ve always wanted to learn. Knowing isn’t the problem. It’s the doing that gets us every time.

SPEAKING


Speaking English – Bad Habits

Do you bite your nails? Thats a bad habit! Watch this lesson to learn vocabulary and expressions to talk about bad habits in English.

WRITING


How to Write Well

The author shares that if you a few simple rules and some practice, your writing can vastly improve.

Three Edits To Make When You Don’t Have Time to Edit

How do you edit your 1,000-word article in five minutes, your 5,000-word short story in ten, 400-page novel in under an hour (and in our case, your 250/150 word IELTS writing tasks?

VOCABULARY


Why there's a "b" in the word "doubt"

Most well-read (well-written?) English-speakers will tell you: the "b" is silent. But if it's silent, why is that "b" there to begin with?