Questions You May Have When Going Places. Literally anywhere.

English in a Minute

Questions You May Have When Going Places

Die kleine Geschichte von dem deutschen Schriftsteller Leonardo Thoma über das Zusammenleben ohne Konflikte.

Deutsch unterwegs / German on the go

L. Thoma "Das Idealpaar"

SWAHILI WITH JANE

SWAHILI VOWELS AND CONSONAUTS

El Poira es un espíritu que, según la leyenda, habita en los ríos, especialmente en las regiones cercanas a la Amazonía. Es descrito como un ser mitad hombre y mitad pez, similar a una sirena masculina. El Poira es conocido por atraer a las mujeres jóvenes y bellas que se acercan a los ríos a bañarse o lavar ropa. Aparece como un hombre atractivo y encantador, con una sonrisa hipnótica.

Las jóvenes que caen bajo su hechizo son llevadas al fondo del río, donde desaparecen para siempre. A pesar de su apariencia seductora, el Poira es un ser peligroso que sólo busca robar las almas de las mujeres. Las madres de los pueblos cercanos advierten a sus hijas que no se acerquen solas a los ríos, especialmente al atardecer, cuando el Poira suele aparecer.

Colombian Legends

El poira

How motivated are you? Learn about the types of motivation and understand how it can help you learn a language. 

 Ideas for Learning English

Motivation

PDF link: https://1drv.ms/w/s!Au5cQv1jU9-GuBVCVvHrhxFi4Yy_?e=G6bvax
This episode is all about job interviews and we will be looking at the most typical questions as well as the best words and phrases to use in your answers. To help us with this topic, Miss Finesstocrat will be telling us of her traumatic experience in her first ever job interview.
After her monologue, I will explain the key vocabulary and grammar of the topic covered, so that you will be able to use them in your own speaking and writing with the same finesse and confidence as Miss Finesstocrat herself.

You can also follow us on Instagram where we will be providing videos, quizzes and new vocabulary as supplement material for every episode in our podcast.  


ENGLISH IN A TEACUP

EP1: JOB INTERVIEWS 

You're lying on the couch, bored, looking at videos on TikTok or YouTube. You watch a video of a dog swimming, and then switch to a cooking video, then to someone doing a weird dance.

But it doesn't help your boredom.

In fact, according to new research, it could make it even worse.

Researchers in Canada found that switching from one video to another, or moving forward or backward in the same video, can increase feelings of boredom.

In a study published by the American Psychological Association, the researchers did several experiments with more than 1,200 people.

In one experiment, participants were first given seven different five-minute videos they could switch between over 10 minutes. They were then given one 10-minute video to watch, without being able to fast-forward.

The participants reported lower levels of boredom when they watched the single 10-minute video, and found the experience to be more engaging and meaningful than when they switched between the shorter videos.

In another experiment, participants were found to be less bored when they watched a single 10-minute video than when they were given 10 minutes to skip forward and backward through a 50-minute video.

Katy Tam, one of the researchers, said digital switching — switching between videos or within a video itself — can make watching something feel meaningless, because you don't have time to engage with it or understand it.

"If people want a more enjoyable experience when watching videos, they can try to stay focused on the content and minimize digital switching," she said. "Just like paying for a more immersive experience in a movie theater, more enjoyment comes from immersing oneself in online videos rather than swiping through them."

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Swiping Through Online Videos Can Increase Boredom

In questo episodio scopriamo la vera storia del tiramisù un dolce italiano ormai famoso in tutto il mondo. In effetti, chi è che non conosce il tiramisù? 
Ecco una piccola parte del testo 

La Vera Storia del Tiramisù
La vera storia del Tiramisù è avvolta da un'atmosfera romantica e suggestiva, una storia di sapori e di persone che hanno contribuito a creare uno dei dolci italiani più celebri al mondo.
Si ritiene che le origini del Tiramisù possano essere fatte risalire al XVII secolo, nel cuore delle affascinanti città di Treviso o Venezia, nella regione del Veneto. Una delle leggende più amate racconta di donne delle locande veneziane che preparavano questo dessert per i marinai che arrivavano in città. Il Tiramisù era un dolce perfetto per quei tempi, in quanto conteneva ingredienti facilmente conservabili, come uova, zucchero e caffè. I savoiardi, i biscotti leggeri e asciutti utilizzati nella ricetta, garantivano che il dolce rimanesse fresco e delizioso anche dopo lunghi viaggi in mare.
Un altro aneddoto racconta la visita del Granduca di Toscana, Cosimo III de' Medici, alla città di Siena nel XVII secolo. (...)

Glossario dei verbi e parole utili per gli studenti di italiano:

	Avvolto - Circondato o coperto da qualcosa.
	Suggestivo - Che evoca immagini o sentimenti vivaci e coinvolgenti.
	Inzuppati - Immergere un alimento in un liquido per ammorbidirlo o insaporirlo.
	Conservabili - Alimenti o ingredienti che possono essere conservati a lungo senza deteriorarsi.
	Incarnazioni - Forma o espressione particolare di un'idea o di un concetto.
	Reinterpretato - Interpretare o presentare di nuovo qualcosa in modo diverso.
	Arricchirne - Aggiungere valore o migliorare qualcosa in termini di qualità o quantità.
	Iconica - Rappresentativa di un'idea o di una cultura in modo distintivo e riconoscibile.
	Prelibatezza - Qualcosa di particolarmente delizioso o pregiato.
	Tesoro - Un bene o un oggetto di grande valore o importanza.





Italiano espresso

La vera storia del tiramisù- listening B1

Is college worth the time and money? Americans are increasingly skeptical about the value and cost, according to a new survey.

And most said they feel the US higher education system is moving in the "wrong direction."

Overall, only 36% of adults said they have a "great deal" or "quite a lot" of confidence in higher education, according to a report released by Gallup and the Lumina Foundation. That confidence level has declined steadily from 57% in 2015.

Some of the same opinions have been reflected in declining enrollment numbers as colleges contend with the effects of the student debt crisis, concerns about the high cost of tuition and political debates over how they teach about race and other topics.

"It's so expensive, and I don't think colleges are teaching people what they need to get a job," said Randy Hill, a 59-year-old driver from Connecticut.

He added: "You graduate out of college, you're up to [your] eyeballs in debt, you can't get a job, then you can't pay it off. What's the point?"

The June 2024 survey's overall finding — that 36% of adults feel strong confidence in higher education — is the same as the year before.

But what concerns researchers is that more Americans — 32% — said they have "very little" or no confidence in higher education.

Experts say that fewer college graduates could lead to labor shortages in fields from health care to information technology.

For those who choose not to go to college, it often means lower lifetime earnings — 75% less compared with those who get bachelor's degrees, according to Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce. And during an economic downturn, those without degrees are more likely to lose jobs.

However, others still see the value in higher education. College student Kristen Freeman from California told The Associated Press: "I think higher education can give students the spark to want to change the system."