Buenas tardes, estimados alumnos.
Comenzamos una serie de ejercicios dedicados a revisar los puntos principales del programa del curso.
Hoy toca: People, culture and traditions.
Nota: Los textos están seleccionados tanto del programa CREA como de otras fuentes, a quienes doy las gracias y cito, pero todos tienen el nivel del curso.
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| https://www.visitbritain.com/es/es/inglaterra/londres |
Texto nº 1:
Looking for a job in London.
Paul: Hello Pablo! I didn't know you were here.
Pablo: Oh, I've been here for nearly two months, I arrived here in January.
Paul: The last time I saw you you said nothing about coming to England. What made you change your mind?
Pablo: Well, as you know I've studied ingeneering at university in Spain. When I finished my studies I tried to look for a job but unfortunately I couldn't find anything suitable for me. Then, I decided I needed a gap year and that I needed to improve my English. My sister is working here, so it seemed a good option.
Paul: What have you done so far?
Pablo: I arrived two months ago and I stayed with my sister till I found a flat on my own. I've found a job as a barman at a local pub, I've worked since February. I've met a lot of people at the pub so I've got many friends. Some of them work there, and I have travelled a lot with them. I have met English people too, so I have learnt good English. I also attend formal lessons. I've been at a languages school for one month and I've improved a lot. Don't you think so?
* to change one's mind: cambiar de opinión
📝 Reading Comprehension Questions
Question 1
What was Pablo's primary motivation for moving to England?
A. He wanted to start an Engineering job immediately after finishing university in Spain. (Quería empezar un trabajo de Ingeniería inmediatamente después de terminar la universidad en España.)
B. He needed a break (a gap year) and wished to improve his English after failing to find a suitable job in Spain. (Necesitaba un descanso (un año sabático) y deseaba mejorar su inglés después de no encontrar un trabajo adecuado en España.)
C. His sister asked him to move to London to live with her and help her find a job. (Su hermana le pidió que se mudara a Londres para vivir con ella y ayudarla a encontrar trabajo.)
D. He decided to attend a formal language school in London immediately upon arrival. (Decidió asistir a una escuela de idiomas formal en Londres inmediatamente después de llegar.)
Question 2
Which of the following activities has Pablo done since arriving in London?
A. He found an Engineering job, rented a flat, and traveled with colleagues from his new company. (Encontró un trabajo de Ingeniería, alquiló un piso y viajó con colegas de su nueva empresa.)
B. He has been working as a barman since January, living with his sister, and has not yet started formal English lessons. (Ha estado trabajando como camarero desde enero, viviendo con su hermana, y aún no ha comenzado las clases formales de inglés.)
C. He lived with his sister briefly, started working as a barman in February, and has been attending a language school for one month. (Vivió brevemente con su hermana, comenzó a trabajar como camarero en febrero y lleva un mes asistiendo a una escuela de idiomas.)
D. He rented a flat on his own immediately, started studying at a language school, and has met English people through his classes. (Alquiló un piso por su cuenta inmediatamente, comenzó a estudiar en una escuela de idiomas y ha conocido gente inglesa a través de sus clases.)
Texto nº 2:
A funny anecdote
A suspected hit and run driver told police she hadn´t stopped because she feared her ice cream would melt. Flora Burkhart was driving home around 6pm on Sunday night when she crashed into the back of a pick-up truck. But instead of stopping at the scene, on state highway 59 in Van Buren, a city in the Ozark Mountain foothills in Arkansas, the 58-year-old continued driving.
Quick thinking victim, Derek Parker, dialled 911. Before that, he had followed the suspect home.Officers from Van Buren Police Department later confronted Burkhart and asked why she had fled the scene of the accident. According to a police report, she told them: “I left because I did not want my ice cream to melt.”
The accused also claimed that she “didn’t think there was enough damage to the vehicles to call police. ”In fact, cops estimated that each car sustained $500 worth of damage in the crash. Burkhart was issued a citation for leaving the scene of an accident and driving too closely to Parker’s vehicle.
📝 Reading Comprehension Questions
Question 1
What was the alleged reason Flora Burkhart gave the police for leaving the scene of the accident?
A. She didn't have her driving license with her. (No tenía su licencia de conducir consigo.)
B. She believed the victim was following her too closely. (Creía que la víctima la estaba siguiendo demasiado de cerca.)
C. She was afraid her ice cream would melt. (Tenía miedo de que su helado se derritiera.)
D. She thought the police were already aware of the crash. (Pensó que la policía ya estaba al tanto del choque.)
Question 2
What action did the victim, Derek Parker, take immediately after the crash?
A. He drove away from the scene and immediately called 911. (Se alejó de la escena e inmediatamente llamó al 911.)
B. He followed the suspect's vehicle home before calling 911. (Siguió el vehículo del sospechoso hasta su casa antes de llamar al 911.)
C. He reported the suspect's vehicle to the police department via social media. (Reportó el vehículo del sospechoso al departamento de policía a través de las redes sociales.)
D. He stopped his pick-up truck and waited for the police to arrive. (Detuvo su camioneta y esperó a que llegara la policía.)
Texto nº 3:
Lee la siguiente biografía sobre el boxeador norteamericano Muhammad Ali, toda una leyenda.
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| https://www.elespanol.com/deportes/otros-deportes/20200603/sin-muhammad-ali-negro-musulman-racismo-boxeador/494951910_0.html |
Early life
Muhammad Ali has been the only professional boxer to win the heavy-weight championship three times. He has provided leadership and is an example for African American men and women around the world with his political and religious views.
Muhammad Ali was born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. His father was a sign painter who also loved to act, sing, and dance; his mother worked as a cleaning lady when money was tight. Ali began boxing at the age of twelve. His bicycle had been stolen, and he reported the theft to a policeman named Joe Martin, who gave boxing lessons in a local youth center. Martin invited Ali to try boxing and soon saw that he had talent. An African American trainer named Fred Stoner taught Ali the science of boxing.
"Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee"
As a teenager Ali won both the national Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) and Golden Gloves championships. At the age of eighteen he competed in the 1960 Olympic games held in Rome, Italy, winning the gold medal in the lightheavyweight division. Ali worked his way through a series of professional victories, using a style that combined speed with great punching power. He was described by one of his handlers as having the ability to "float like a butterfly, and sting like a bee. In February 1964, when he was only twenty-two years old, he fought and defeated Sonny Liston for the heavyweight championship of the world.
Religious change
Inspired by Muslim spokesman Malcolm X (1925–1965), Ali began to follow the Black Muslim faith (a group that supports a separate black nation) and announced that he had changed his name to Cassius X. This was at a time when the struggle for civil rights was at a peak and the Muslims had emerged as a controversial (causing disputes) but important force in the African American community. Later the Muslim leader Elijah Muhammad (1897–1975) gave him the name Muhammad Ali. In his first title defense in May 1965 Ali defeated Sonny Liston with a first-round knockout. Ali successfully defended his title eight more times.
In April 1967 Ali was drafted into military service during the Vietnam War (1964–75). He claimed that as a minister of the Black Muslim religion he was not obligated to serve. The press criticized him as unpatriotic, and the New York State Athletic Commission and World Boxing Association suspended his boxing license and stripped him of his heavyweight title. Ali was finally sentenced to five years in prison but was released on appeal, and his conviction was thrown out three years later by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Back in the ring
Ali returned to the ring and beat Jerry Quarry in 1970 and he regained his title as the world heavyweight champion in the 1970s. In 1975 Sports Illustrated magazine named Ali its "Sportsman of the Year. Ali successfully defended his title ten more times. At the end of his boxing career he was slowed by a condition related to Parkinson's disease. He retired in 1981. Since Ali's boxing career ended, he has became involved in social causes and politics. He has campaigned for Jimmy Carter (1924–) and other Democratic political candidates and has been taking part in the promotion of a variety of political causes addressing poverty and the needs of children. He even tried to win the release of four kidnapped Americans in Lebanon in 1985. As a result, his image changed and he became respected as a statesman. At the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia, the world and his country honored Ali by choosing him to light the Olympic torch during the opening ceremonies.
Ali remains in the public eye even as he has been suffering from the effects of Parkinson's disease lately.
📝 Reading Comprehension Questions
Question 1
What was the primary reason Muhammad Ali was suspended from boxing and stripped of his title in 1967?
A. He lost a title defense fight against Jerry Quarry. (Perdió una pelea de defensa del título contra Jerry Quarry.)
B. He was sentenced to five years in prison for theft. (Fue sentenciado a cinco años de prisión por robo.)
C. He refused to be drafted into military service during the Vietnam War, claiming religious exemption. (Se negó a ser reclutado para el servicio militar durante la Guerra de Vietnam, alegando exención religiosa.)
D. He changed his name to Muhammad Ali, which caused public controversy. (Cambió su nombre a Muhammad Ali, lo que causó controversia pública.)
Question 2
What event marked a significant change in Muhammad Ali's public image from a controversial figure to a respected statesman?
A. Winning the Olympic gold medal in the light-heavyweight division in 1960. (Ganar la medalla de oro olímpica en la división de peso semipesado en 1960.)
B. His efforts in social causes, politics, and trying to win the release of kidnapped Americans in Lebanon. (Sus esfuerzos en causas sociales, la política y tratar de conseguir la liberación de estadounidenses secuestrados en el Líbano.)
C. Defeating Sonny Liston for the heavyweight championship of the world in 1964. (Derrotar a Sonny Liston por el campeonato mundial de peso pesado en 1964.)
D. Announcing that he was following the Black Muslim faith. (Anunciar que estaba siguiendo la fe musulmana negra.)
GLOSARIO:
¡Claro! Aquí tienes un glosario de 100 palabras extraídas del texto, con su traducción del inglés al español, numeradas.
📚 Glosario del Texto sobre Muhammad Ali
Saludos y nos vemos la próxima semana Dios mediante.
