LEVEL TWO READING TASKS BY THEME

Reading Tasks with TWO STARS by theme: 

ENVIRONMENT

1.      The Garden of Our Neglect

2.      Sucking CO2 from the Air with Artificial Trees

3.      Can the World save Lives and Combat Climate Change?
4.Unwanted Electronic Waste Rısıng in Toxic Piles
5. The Swedish version of Visionzero

EDUCATION

1. Teachers Flip for ‘Flipped Learning’ Class Model

2.      Curiosity Driven Education
3. The 4 Million Dollar Teacher
4.  What Tech Innovation Would You Like in the Classroom?
5.  What College Will Be Like in 2023
6.  Multiple Text Reading-into-Writing Project: The Advantages of Bilingualism
7.  Multiple Text Reading into Writing Project: Joy and Passion in Teaching and Learning
8.  Double Text Related Reading into Writing Activity: Media Multitasking and its Short Term and Long Term Impact on Learning
9. Teacher spends two days as a student and is shocked at what she learns
10. Pre-crastination: the opposite of procrastination
11. Teach kids to daydream
12. When success leads to failure
13. Germany is taking away kindergardener's toys to curb future addiction
14. Why being bilingual helps keep your brain fit
15. Five ways science can improve your focus
16. An effortless way to improve your memory
17. Our fiction addiction: why we need stories
18. Skim reading is the new normal. The effects on society are profound
19. How to cultivate a daily reading habit
20. How can a distracted generation learn anything?
      HISTORY
1.   How climate change and disease helped the fall of Rome
      PHILOSOPHY
1. Descartes was wrong: a person is a person through other persons
2. Utopia is a dangerous ideal: we should aim for 'protopia'
3. What we say versus what we mean: what is conversational implicature?
4. Aristotle got it wrong: we have a lot more than five senses

BUSINESS

1.      The Peak Time for Everything

2.      The Busy Trap

3.      The Silent Epidemic: Workplace Bullying

4.      Obama vs. ATMs: Why Technology Doesn’t Destroy Jobs

5.      Relax! You’ll Be More Productive
6.   On Effectıve Leadership
7.   Does job success depend on data rather than your CV?
8.   Is your boss a fear monger?
 9.  Why you feel busy all the time (although you are not)  
10. Is full time work bad for our brains?
11. The subtle design tricks thathelp and harm creativity
12. Do psychopaths make better leaders?
13. How your workplace is killing you

THE INTERNET

1.      Why Are We So Rude Online?

2.      High-Wired: Does Addictive Internet Use Restructure the Brain?
3. Social Networking in the 1600's
 5. Social media:What's not to like

POLITICS

1.      What is Terrorism?

2.      Kalashnikov Kids
3.   Understanding Stalin
4.   How collective narcissism is directing world politics
5.   The virtues of isolation
6.   The reasons you can't be anonymous anymore
7.   War once helped build nations now it destroys them

WOMEN’S ISSUES

1.      Women See Worrisone Shift in Turkey

2.      In Spain, Women Enslaved by a Boom in Brothel Tourism
3.   Double text reading into writing activity: assault on the subway and will women ever feel completely safe on mass transit?

MEMORY

1.      What Are Memories Made Of?

2.      Memory in the Digital Age

3.      The Science Behind Memory Glitches

4.      The Importance of Observation

5.      Can Memory Improve With Age?
6.    Four ways that others can warp your memory
MATHS
1.  Who says math has to be boring?

SCIENCE

1.      A Harvest of New Moons

2.      Synthetic Biology and the Rise of the “Spider Goats”

3.      The Top 10 Science Stories of 2011

4.      Interesting Environment Wards off Cancer

5.      Braingate Gives Paralysed the Power of Mind Control
6.   Does Death Exist? New Theory Says 'No'
7.   Life on Earth but Not As We Know It
8. Why People Keep Misunderstanding the Connection Between Race and IQ?
9. Mountain People Provide Clues to Human Evolution
10. Human Evolution: The Next Stages
11. Illusiory scenes flow into and out of view
12. Smart robots, driverless cars work - but they bring ethical issues too
13. Snoozers are, in fact, losers
14. Your brain on poverty: why poor people seem to make bad decisions
15. Multiple Text Reading-into-Writing Project: Our Prehistoric Ancestors
16. Are Men the Weaker Sex?
17. Be my valentines: is monogamy natural to us?
18. Smartphones are killing us and destroying public life
19.How the web became our 'external brain' and what it means for our kids
20. Robot servants are going to make your life easy. Then they'll ruin it
21. If someone secretely controlled what you say, would anyone notice?
22. Stress and the body
23.  Is another human living inside you?
24. The enormous power of the unconscious brain
25. The mystery of why you can't remember being a baby
26.  Why there might be many more universes like our own 
27.  A brainless mold that shares memories by fusing
38. The astonishing vision and focus of Namibia's nomads
29. The dark town that built a mirror to deflect the sun
30. How Tibetans survive life on the roof of the world
31. There are diseases in the ice, and they are waking up
32. We have still not found the missing link between us and apes
33. The tiny changes that can cause AI to fail
34. Are you just inside your skin or is your smartphone phone part of you?
35. The hidden side to your personality
36. When the going gets tough, have a nap 
37. How brain biases prevent climate action 

 PSYCHOLOGY

1.      How to Look and Act Like a Leader

2.     Social Networks and Happiness

3.      Dark Visions, Ancient Fears
4.  What Makes a Risk Taker?
5. Peer Pressure for Teens Paves the Way to Adulthood
6. Is Nostalgia Good for You? Quite a Bit, Research Shows
7. Double Text Reading into Writing Activity: Procrastination, Imposter Syndrome and Self-Hadicapping
8.  How Do We Really Make Decisions?
9.  Mentally strong people, double text reading into writing activity
10. The Introverted Face
11. Seeing red http://theproproom.blogspot.com.tr/search/label/Level%20of%20Difficulty%3A**?updated-max=2015-01-07T03:10:00-08:00&max-results=20&start=20&by-date=false

12. How Color Shapes our Lives
13. Why do some brains enjoy fear?
14. How an introvert can be happier: act like an extrovert
15. How to teach doctors empathy 
16. Double text reading into writing activity: Four words to seem more polite and How to make the narcissist in your life a little nicer.
17. Reach understanding; Can you teach people to have empathy?
18. Mixed signals: why people misunderstand each other
19. What is social anxiety?
20. How Nazi's defense of "just following orders" plays out in the mind

22. Our IQ's have never been higher - but it hasn't made us smart
23. Masters of Love
24. What are the implications of believing it is possible to alter other people's beliefs?
25.  Forgiveness
26. The man who studies the spread of ignorance
27. Why it pays to be grumpy and bad tempered
28. How east and west think in profoundly different ways
29. How fake images change our memory and behavior
30. Why are people so incredibly gullible?
31. Why even the best feedback can bring out the worst in us
32. The hidden upsides of revenge
33. The hidden way architecture affects how you feel
34. The psychology behind spending big
35.  Be yourselves
36. The devious art of lying by telling the truth
37.  Why we should all give up on goals already
38.  The secret science that rules crowds
39. No hugging: are we living through a crisis of touch?
40. Why we should treat violence like an epidemic
41. Why we shouldn't be too modest 
42. What are we like? 10 psychology findings that reveal the worst of human nature (Coming soon)
43. Is love just a fleeting chemical high in the brain?

 ETHICS and SOCIETY

1.      Moral Machines Raise Killer Questions

2.      How to Die

3.      Rethinking the War on Drugs
       Bringing Mod Cons to the Slums
5. Privacy and the Threat to the Self
6.  Going it alone
7.  Theives should not be jailed says law expert
8.  America can't fix poverty until it stops hating poor people
9.  Children deserve liniency in law, and the reason is political 
10. What the meat paradox reveals about moral decision making

RELAX! YOU'LL BE MORE PRODUCTIVE

By: Tony Scwartz

Published: The New York Times, February 9, 2013, http://www.nytimes.com Alternatively, just google the title and author’s name
Level of Difficulty: **

Links:“The power of time off” by Stefan Sagmeister

“Why work doesn’t happen at work” by Jason Fried

BEFORE YOU READ

• What, in your view, are the factors that influence productivity?
• Is personality a factor in your view?
• What about upbringing and habits?
• Can you think of any external factors that may influence productivity?

QUESTIONS

1. What conclusion can we draw from the information in paragraph 1?
2. The solution to the above problem according to experts is ……………………………………………………
3. Refer back to the first paragraph once again. The reason why employees are pushed to this extent is the firm belief that …………………………………………………………………………………………………..
4. What is the dilemma involving time and work?
5. Problems with tiredness or exhaustion can be dealt with because ………………………………………….
6. What is the misconception involving time?
7. Read the account of the research involving 400 employees and Stanford researcher Cheri D. Mah’s research. What conclusion can you draw from them? The …………………………. you sleep, the …………………productive you are or the …………………………. you perform.
8. What aspect of naps determined the benefits derived?
9. What are the two advantages of more holidays?
10. What does “This” refer to in the phrase “This may explain why…”?
11. Klewitman’s research proved conclusively that ………………………………………………………………………
12. What are the two maxims one must keep in mind to work most productively?
13. What enabled the writer to complete his two latest books in six months rather than a year as in the case of his previous books?
14. Read the business practices listed in the last paragraph but one. In what two ways do these suggestions benefit the company?

WRITING TASK

Write a problem solution essay discussing how workers can be more productive. Use the points below and any others you discover as a result of any videos you watch on the topic

• Getting a good night’s sleep
• Taking power naps
• Working 90 minute intervals
• Taking renewal breaks and leaving the office for lunch
• Working from home several days a week
• Having a renewal room or lounge in the office
• Not answering e-mails in the evening or at weekends

RELAX! YOU’LL BE MORE PRODUCTIVE KEY AND TEACHER’S NOTES

This simple little text could be used to introduce problem solution essays as it is, in fact, such an essay and the writing task addresses the same issue. A video dealing with the topic does, however, need to be found to spice up the activity.

1. More and more of us find ourselves unable to juggle overwhelming demands and maintain a seemingly unsustainable pace.
2. Strategic renewal. Spending more time doing less is not the best answer but acceptable at a pinch.
3. Our resources are infinite
4. Time is finite and many of us feel we are running out , that we are investing as many hours as we can while trying to retain some semblance of a life outside work
5. Energy is renewable
6. Downtime is time wasted. What you see in the text is: downtime is typically viewed as time wasted, which you should make to fit the question.
7. More, more, better; OR, less, less, the worse
8. The length. This answer you should be able to work out after reading the section.
9. End of year performance ratings for employees improved by 8%; frequent holiday makers were also less likely to leave the firm.
10. The fact that most of us experience the opposite impulse: to push harder rather than rest.
11. We’re meant to pulse between spending and recovering energy; OR BRAC recapitulates during our working lives. This cycle… is not possible as it is not clear.
12. Individuals must avoid exhaustion and limit practice to an amount from which they can completely recover on a daily or weekly basis.
13. He learnt to quiet his mind and relax his body rapidly and deeply. The mental and emotional renewal also turned out to be a time… is not why he completed the books in six months; it is the added advantage of taking breaks.
14. More gets done in less time more sustainably; no one chooses to leave the company.

SINGLE AND OVER 27: WHAT THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT CALLS 'LEFTOVER WOMEN'

By: Mary Kay Magistad

Published: The World; January 18, 2013;http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21320560
Level of Difficulty: *

Note to the Student: It is suggested, though not compulsory, that this reading task be followed by War Against Girls, which is also in this file. The reason is that the themes overlap to some extent.

BEFORE YOU READ

·         Read the title of the text. Why do you think these women can’t get married?

·         What kind of women do you think are the ones who can’t get married in China?

·         Do you see the issue as a problem? If so what would the effects be?

NOW WATCH THE VIDEOS

·         Leftover women in China https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwKR_rZz-8M

        BBC World News: China's "Leftover Women" with Leta Hong Fincher

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A63_RopBEQ

QUESTIONS

1.       Why is Huang Yuanyuan so anxious about getting older?

2.       What does “It” refer to in the phrase “It is an odd label”?

3.       Why exactly is it an “odd label”

4.       What does “This kind of message” refer to?

5.       What is the real underlying reason for the government campaign against single women over the age of 27 or 30?

6.       Why does a surplus in men lead to some women being unmarried?

7.       In the current social climate in China, what are the chances of educated single women getting married? Why?

8.       What does “that” refer to in the phrase “that’s kind of offensive”?

9.       What is the underlying reason for “mixers” aside from just promoting marriage? To prevent ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

10.   Why are women who have done graduate work compared to yellow pearls?

11.   Did the follow up study to the one published in Newsweek prove or disprove the first study?

12.   Read Elissa’s story to the end. How happy does she seem with her life?

WRITING TASK

Write an essay discussing the causes and effects of the problem of “Leftover Women”. Use the suggestions below and any notes you make on a related video.You will find an example of this writing task under "Sample Essays"

In you introduction, introduce the problem of “Leftover Women” and the paragraph with a thesis statement that states you are going to be discussing the causes and effects.

In the first paragraph of your development, discuss the causes: the gender imbalance and the male preference for younger less educated women

In the second paragraph of the development, discuss the effects: two groups of people who have little hope of marriage and the havoc that may be caused by an army of restless, single men

In your conclusion, suggest solutions: taking measures to correct the gender imbalance and raising the level of education nationwide

SINGLE AND OVER 27: WHAT THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT CALLS ‘LEFTOVER WOMEN’ KEY AND TEACHER’S NOTES

This simple little text focuses on an issue which is not only a problem in China but in a lot of other places as well including perhaps Turkey. In the latter country too children coming from working class or lower middle class backgrounds are moving into the middle class thanks to higher education, which creates a problem. Who do they marry? They may no longer be satisfied with partners their parents select for them. It might be interesting to discuss the issue. The text is followed by a very tidy plan for an essay which should follow the reading activity. All the points in the plan come out of the text and you will be discussing the issue as you red so it should be a doddle.

1.       Three reasons: because she is still single, she has no boyfriend and big pressure to get married.

2.       Sheng nu or leftover women

3.       Because there is a surplus of single young men

4.       To stop being so picky and just find a man

5.       A severe demographic crisis OR China’s gender imbalance

6.       Men want to marry down

7.       Very low because there are only D quality men left

8.       The word eugenics

9.       Social havoc (caused by an army of single men)

10.   Because as they age, they are worth less and less

11.   Disproves it

12.   She’s happy

TEACHERS FLIP FOR 'FLIPPED LEARNING' CLASS MODEL

By: Christina Hoag

Published: The Associated Press; 4 February 2013; http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/teachers-flip-flipped-learning-class-model-18330896

Level of Difficulty:**

Note to the Student: This is an easy level ** so it is a good place to start work on this file.

Thanks are due once again to my friend KEREM ÖZKAN for this really wonderful text

BEFORE YOU READ

·         What is the most effective way to learn? By listening to a lecture or practicing?

·         Think back on classes where you did well, learned fast and loved. Now try and explain why.

·         What changes would you make to teaching methods to make the process both more interesting and innovative?

QUESTIONS

1.       Timmy and his classmates spent part of their time in class “explaining the concept to other students”. What made it possible for them to do this?

2.       Not having a lesson to explain, Timmy’s teacher spends class time ……………………………………..

3.       What does “It” refer to in the sentence “It was hard to get used to”?

4.       How effective is flipped learning according to the evidence in the text?

5.       What is enabling flipped learning to become more widespread?

6.       The fact that training workshops are being held for flipped learning means that……………………(Use your head and your own words)

7.       What does “where” refer to in the phrase “where they can be accessed”?

8.       What is the major advantage of learning the lesson at home?

9.       According to Kirch, flipped learning is so successful because………………………………………………..

10.   According to Sams, the basic principle behind flipped learning is the belief that ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

11.   Two additional advantages of flipped learning are ………………………………………………………………

12.   The above advantages of flipped learning are down to the fact that ………………………………….

13.   Read the examples including Lisa Highfield and her colleague. What is the major disadvantage of the activities described?

14.   What is the compromise some teachers support?

WRITING TASK

Write an advantages disadvantages essay using the points in the text. If you need guidance as to how to write this type of essay, check out the explanation in writing files 1. Write four paragraphs.

In you introduction, do the following:

Explain the concept of flipped learning and end the paragraph with a thesis statement stating that there are both upsides and downsides of flipped learning

The advantages in the text are as follows:

·         More opportunities for practice (problem solving in small groups, taking quizzes, explaining the concept to other students, making their own videos, more lab time and the like)

·         Higher success rates

·         Less absenteeism

·         Flipped learning engages the students more (not falling asleep in class, constantly working)

·         Fewer discipline problems

The disadvantages are as follows:

·         Making the videos and coming up with the project activities is a lot of extra work

·         Teachers need to be tech savvy

·         They need to  get out of their comfort zones and get used to a new way of working

·         Flipped learning may not work with slow learners

In your conclusion, do the following:

Suggest the compromise mentioned in the text: covering the harder stuff in class and the rest at home with videos. Also suggest that teachers should pool their resources and work together to share ideas and make videos

TEACHERS FLIP FOR ‘FLIPPED LEARNING’ CLASS MODEL KEY AND TEACHER’S NOTES

I personally loved this simple yet brilliant text which expounds a method of teaching I can safely admit I have fallen for hook, line and sinker. Aside from that, being accustomed to a deductive method of teaching, our students should find it an eye opener. I expect some lively discussion and anecdotes. There is a very guided writing activity too which should immediately follow the reading.

1.       They have already learned the day’s lesson; OR they watched it on a short online video prepared by their teacher for homework.

2.       Buzzing from desk to desk to help pupils who are having trouble.

3.       The fact that the lecture becomes homework and class time is for practice.

4.       Very; Timmy’s grade went from D to A

5.       A younger, more tech savvy generation of teachers

6.       Possible answers: it is catching on, it is becoming popular and there is a demand or some such phrase.

7.       A teacher or school website, or even YouTube

8.       Class time is then devoted to practical applications of the lesson – often more creative exercises designed to engage students and deepen understanding

9.       It is a student focused classroom where the responsibility for learning has flipped from the teacher to the student; OR JUST it is a student centered classroom; OR JUST the responsibility for learning has flipped from the teacher to the student.

10.   Students don’t need teachers for content dissemination, they need them to dig deeper.

11.   A drop in failure rate and a drop in disciplinary problems

12.   It engages the students more in their classes

13.   It is a lot of extra work up front

14.   Students can get easy stuff on their own but the hard stuff should be under the watchful eye of a teacher.

  

WHAT MAKES US INTELLIGENT?

“…and does Google and Wikipedia make it better or worse? Studies show that other people and tools influence our brain power as much as our own minds”

By: Tom Stafford

Published: BBC Future; 20 November 2012; http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20121120-what-makes-us-intelligent

Level of difficulty: *

BEFORE YOU READ

·         What factors determine intelligence?

·         Do you think the changing environment with all the modern technology makes a difference?

·         Do you think this effect is negative or positive?

      WATCH AND LISTEN

·         What is intelligence? https://slideplayer.com/slide/7080256/

QUESTIONS

1.       Which sentence in paragraph 1 best expresses the main idea?

2.       Experts state that intelligence is closely linked to …………………………………………………………………..

3.       Shopping at a certain mall because most people you know shop there makes a person a ………………………………………………., which basically means that this person ……………………………….

4.       If the cashier at your local supermarket is replaced and you don’t notice it you are exhibiting ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.       What is the reason for the above?

6.       Why does Andy Clark call humans natural born cyborgs?

7.       Read the experiment Wegner conducted. What was the result of the experiment?

8.       What was the reason for the above result?

9.       What does “this way” in the phrase “Having minds that work this way…” refer to?

10.   The latest player in what Wegner calls “transactive memory” is ………………………………………

11.   Wikipedia is provided as an example of ……………………………………………………………………………..

12.   What is the function of the last sentence of the text?

WRITING TASK

Write a brief summary of about 150 words of the text. Remember a good summary must have the following qualities: it needs to be short yet complete with all the main ideas covered and none of the details included; it needs to be written in your words. If you are not sure of how to do this, check out the tasks in the file marked “Summaries” on this blog.

WHAT MAKES US INTELLIGENT KEY AND TEACHER’S NOTES

This relatively straightforward yet interesting text is another of Tom Stafford’s brilliant articles. Being topical and having a wow factor it should interest students. I have also taken a stab at introducing some real comprehension questions albeit at a simple level. The writing task is a summary; an invaluable writing and reading activity and a must have in any decent program. This might be a good opportunity to work with the students on what should and what shouldn’t be included in a summary. The Cornell method remains my preferred method, exercises relating to which you will find in the file marked “Summaries”.

1.       But the rise of Google, Wikipedia and other online tools has made many people question the impact of these technologies on our brains.

2.       How we coordinate ourselves with other people and the environment.

3.       Cognitive miser; we are reluctant to do mental work unless we have to.

4.       Change blindness

5.       People don’t tend to rely on their memories for things they can easily access.

6.       Because they have minds that naturally incorporate new tools, ideas and abilities.

7.       The pairs that were made up of couples in a relationship could remember…

8.       Because couples in a relationship had a good understanding of their partners, they would tacitly divide up the work between them.

9.       Developing a shared system for committing items to memory and bringing them out again; OR transactively

10.   Technology

11.   A system of knowledge that serves the needs of society as a whole; OR a potential to share knowledge.

12.   It is the concluding statement and ties back to paragraph one and the main idea, all of which makes the article very well organized.

SPORTING SUPERSTITIONS: WHY DO WE HAVE THEM?

By: Tom Stafford

Published: 27 March 2012; BBC Future; http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20120327-why-do-we-have-superstitions

Level of Difficulty: *

Note to the Student: Don’t make this your first reading task in Level *; start with Breathing Lessons, How to Fight and The Origins of The Swastika. Once you have done those, tackle the rest.

BEFORE YOU READ

1.       Do you have any rituals or habits? What are they?

2.       Why do you think you have these rituals? Explain.

3.       Do any celebrities you know have rituals or superstitions?

NOW WATCH THE VIDEOS  
 8 Strange athlete superstition https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuGJ1BDrdf0
Sports superstitions https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiLyfwsMbDE

QUESTIONS

1.       What does “they” refer to in the sentence “And they are not always done to bring good luck”?

2.       What is the function of the sentence beginning “Behind the seemingly irrational acts…” just before the subtitle?

3.       What are the two reasons why habits are useful?

4.       What does the phrase “this strange behavior” in the phrase “Skinner’s explanation for this strange behavior is…” refer to?

5.       What does “this seed” in the following paragraph refer to and why does it lead to superstition?

6.       What is overtraining and what explanation is offered for it in the text?

7.       What practical advantage do habits provide sportsmen with?

8.       The rituals or habits described in the text don’t seem to have their roots in personality. On the contrary they are ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

WRITING TASK

Write a brief summary of about 150 words of the text. If you don’t know how to write summaries refer to the section marked Summaries on the blog.

SPORTING SUPERSTITIONS: WHY DO WE HAVE THEM? KEY AND TEACHER’S NOTES

It is very hard to find texts which are both simple and interesting so this was a very lucky find indeed. Since the topic is a very common one students can relate to it should go well. They will probably be able to provide examples of their own and come up with theories as well.

1.       Little routines or superstitions

2.       It hints at the thesis that there is an evolutionary advantage to superstitions and that they are not just irrational acts. It also provides transition from the introduction to the development.

3.       They do not take up mental effort (OR they are things we do without thinking) and they make us successful

4.       Some particular ritual

5.       You repeat the action and – lo! – food arrives; because our brains try and repeat whatever actions precede success (even if we cannot see how they have had their influences).

6.       If animals keep practicing these actions beyond the point at which they have effectively learnt them, they seem to forget about the specific effects of each action; the rat has developed a habit; something it does just because the opportunity is there, without thinking about the outcome.

7.       They help them relax and get in the zone.

8.       Coded in parts of our brains (which are designed by evolution not to think about reasons) OR ancient animal parts of our brains.

  

A MILLION FIRST DATES

HOW ONLINE ROMANCE IS THREATENING MONOGAMY

By: Dan Slater;

Published: 10 January 2013; The Atlantic Magazine; http://www.theatlantic.com  Alternatively, just google the title and the author’s name.

Level of Difficulty: ***

BEFORE YOU READ

1.        What are some pros and cons to online dating? https://monkeysee.com/what-are-some-pros-and-cons-to-online-dating/

       Pros and cons of online dating https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKL0GM4-VGY

       The Beautiful Truth About Online Dating | Arum Kang & Dawoon Kang | TEDxUCDavisSF

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRWPqwyukGY

QUESTIONS

1.       What major difference did Jacob observe between big cities and smaller towns? Big cities provided …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

2.       What aspect of the way Jacob lived was a problem with his girl friends?

3.       What two mistakes caused his girl friend in Portland to leave him?

4.       Aside from being younger, more beautiful and sharing various hobbies with Jacob, in what additional way was Rachel different from previous girl friends?

5.       Jacob wasn’t unduly put out when Rachel broke up with him because …………………………….. (There are two answers; find both)

6.       In what way did meeting Rachel online change his attitude to the relationship?

7.       What is the function of the paragraph beginning “The positive aspects of online dating are clear…” and where else could you have this paragraph?

8.       What prediction has been made about the future of marriage?

9.       What is the reason for the above prediction?

10.   What condition would have led Blatt to get married and start a family?

11.   What aspect of modern life will have a negative effect on commitment according to Niccolo Formai? There are two possible answers; find them both.

12.   According to Noel Bidermann, what attitude of 20^th century man will negatively impact certain societal values we have so far held dear?

13.   Online dating sites have a vested interest in opposing commitment because………………………..

14.   How do the same websites try to entice previous users back to the site?

15.   How does Alex Mehr feel about the effects of online dating that came up in the study? What does he attribute commitment or the lack of it to?

16.   According to Schwartz, what is the main disadvantage of too many choices?

17.   Which of the three basic components of commitment will not be affected by online dating?

18.   What immediate conclusion can we draw from the chocolate example? What is the reason for this conclusion? There are two answers to the latter question; find both.

19.   According to Eli Finkel, increasing divorce rates are sometimes good in that …………………………, they can also be harmful  for……………………………………………………………………………………………..

20.   Gilbert Fiebleman doesn’t only blame internet dating for the attitude to commitment, he also blames …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

21.   Read the rest of Jacob’s story. What, in your view, is wrong with the way he lives? Discuss.

22.   For what three reasons do relationships that start online move quickly?

23.   The major disadvantages of a life style like Jacob’s are stated in the conclusion to the text. State clearly what they are. Then compare the answer to your answer to question 21.

WRITING TASK

Write an essay discussing the effects of online dating. Make use of the text and notes you make on any other research you do. The effects – as stated in the text – are as follows but you are welcome to add any others you discover. Remember also that the effects below are presented in a haphazard list; you will need to organize them into groups to break up your development.

1.       Internet dating has made people more disposable

2.       Internet dating may be partly responsible for the rise in the divorce rates

3.       Low quality, unhappy and unsatisfying marriages are being destroyed as people drift to internet dating sites.

4.       Our pickiness will increase

5.       The realization that there is no need to settle for a mediocre relationship

6.       Internet dating removes barriers to meeting

7.       Men may pursue more short term mates

A MILLION FIRST DATES KEY AND TEACHER’S NOTES

This is another highly topical issue yet it may look a little trivial at first glance; it is far from being so in fact. The text analyses the long term individual and social consequences of this new trend and draws some disturbing conclusions. The whole activity is bound to lead itself to discussion. There is a writing task as well which should be covered immediately after the text.

1.       Readymade social scenes

2.       His lifestyle which emphasized watching sports and going to concerts and bars.

3.       The fact that he made plans by negotiation and the fact that he was passive in arguments.

4.       She came from a blue collar military background and she placed high value on things he didn’t think much about: a solid credit score, a 40 hour work week.

5.       Having met Rachel so easily online he felt confident that he could always meet someone else; because he’d gone from someone … to being much more relaxed and comfortable about it.

6.       If he’d met Rachel off line and if he’d never done any online dating, he would have married her; OR he would have overlooked everything else and done whatever it took to make things work.

7.       It is the main idea; the thesis; what the text is all about. It could have been the first paragraph before the examples but this is better as this is an article not an academic paper. The example captures the readers’ attention.

8.       An overall decrease of commitment; OR marriage will become obsolete.

9.       Matching people up with great people is getting very (so) efficient.

10.   Mate scarcity. Living in Iowa is nonsensical because then the implication is that this is a problem we only see in Iowa and nowhere else, which would be wrong according to the rest of the text.

11.   The expectation of constant flow; over time you’ll expect constant flow; OR the goal to make everything faster.

12.   The security and confidence in our ability to find someone else, usually someone better.

13.   A permanently paired off dater means lost revenue.

14.   Lapsed users receive notifications informing them that wonderful people are browsing their profiles and are eager to chat.

15.   He disagrees with the prevailing view; to personality

16.   Thinking about the attractions of some of the options detracts from the pleasure derived from the chosen one

17.   The investment one has put into the relationship

18.   People are less satisfied when choosing from a larger group; the mere fact of having chosen from such a large set of options can lead to doubts about whether the choice was the right one; they are liable to become cognitively overwhelmed.

19.   Fewer people feel like they are stuck in relationships; children or even society as a whole.

20.   The internet

21.   Open ended

22.   Familiarity

23.    Is established during the massaging process ; if a woman is on a dating site there is a good chance she wants to connect; the sense of urgency.

24.   The last paragraph of the text. This paragraph also represents the writer’s view.