miércoles, 15 de diciembre de 2010

Video - How to Write an Effective Essay

Parts of a Paragraph - English Academic Writing Introduction

Practice - Chapter 11

1-Parallelism
A. Read the following sentences below that have problems with parallelism. How would you correct the problem?
The Biology class and the class about history are my favorites.
Suggested Answer:_______________________________________________________

Working two jobs and to get enough sleep are difficult to accomplish.
Suggested Answer: ______________________________________________________

Her dress was beautiful, and it cost a lot.
Suggested Answer:_______________________________________________________

His feet were tired and they swelled after a long day on the job.
Suggested Answer: ______________________________________________________

Alexander Graham Bell was the man who invented the telephone and he invented the phonograph, too.
Suggested Answer: ______________________________________________________

My sister is hoping to finish her degree quick and easily.
Suggested Answer:_______________________________________________________

The playful dog and the cat that was feisty didn’t get along well.
Suggested Answer: ______________________________________________________

Mary wanted to paint her office, to add some new draperies, and the carpet need cleaning.
Suggested Answer: ______________________________________________________

When Friday rolls around, do you go to the mall, head for a bar, or are you going to work?
Suggested Answer: ______________________________________________________

Last year, my brother dropped out of school, was looking for work, and needed a place to stay.
Suggested Answer: ______________________________________________________

He watched the latest version of King Lear, studied for his math test, and was talking on the phone.
Suggested Answer: ______________________________________________________


B. Which of the following paired sentences are parallel Write True or False?

_________ She likes to listen to music and reading the latest novels.
_________ She likes listening to music and reading the latest novels.

_________ He spent his time studying Spanish, working at the convenience store, and jogging every afternoon.
_________ He spent his time studying Spanish. working at the convenience store, and he jogged every afternoon.


_________ The dog was excited: running, barking, and he chased after the boys.
_________ The dog was excited: running, barking, and chasing after the boys.

_________ The apartment was filled with old newspapers, broken bottles, and the ashtrays were overflowing.
_________ The apartment was filled with old newspapers, broken bottles, and overflowing ashtrays.


2- Fragment Sentences


A. Write F(Fragment) or S(Sentence)

When you get a new puppy. _________
Since I have to be home early. _________
Where are you going? _________
When you can, come over. _________
As long as we have plenty of room. _________
The team practices whenever the weather allows. _________
Because I overslept. _________
Whatever you decide. _________
While you are here. _________
Where the road ends. _________
Because Tom has a cold. _________
Until someone rescued them. _________
Unless Pam answers your letter. _________
Adam needs money so that he can call home. _________
If it is all right with everyone else. _________
I read the book yesterday evening after dinner. _________
While reading the book yesterday evening after dinner. _________
There is the car which ran into me on the street. _________
Which ran into me on the street. _________
For example, that man over there. _________
The woman who talked to you in the corridor is my English professor. _________
Who talked to me in the corridor. _________
Who talked to you in the corridor? _________
Considering all the factors in this case, I think that he is guilty. _________
Considering all the factors in this case. _________
That he is guilty. _________
Which was a stupid thing to do. _________
Consuming illegal drugs can be very risky. Especially hard drugs like heroin or crack cocaine. _________

3- Choppy Sentences

A. Write a correct sentence

She took dance classes.
She had no natural grace or sense of rhythm.
She eventually gave up the idea of becoming a dancer.

Sentences:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Bears emerge from hibernation in the spring.
They wander through wetlands.
They feed mainly on grasses.

Sentences:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Jesse Ventura has denied an interest in running for the senate.
Ventura is the former governor of Minnesota.

Sentences:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


The boy asked his father a question.
The boy is five years old.
The question was about death.

Sentences:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


My aunt is very strict with my cousin. She expects her to study all the time.

Sentences:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


I was exhausted. I stared at the page. I was unable to comprehend a single word.

Sentences:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


4- Run-on sentence and comma splices:
Run on His friends played golf then they moved to USA and played Basketball .
Comma splice His friends played golf, then they moved to USA and played Basketball .

A. Mention the 4 ways to correct these two sentence errors, also apply them to the example:

1. Add a __________:
His friends played golf Then they moved to USA and played Basketball .
2. Add a __________:
His friends played golf then they moved to USA and played Basketball .
3. Add a __________:
His friends played golf then they moved to USA and played Basketball .
4. Add a __________:
His friends played golf ________ they moved to USA and played Basketball .
__________ his friends played golf, they moved to USA and played Basketball .

B. Some of the following sentences are run-ons or comma splices, and some are correct. Check each sentence. If it is incorrect write RO or CS in the space at the left. If it is correct, leave the space blank. Then, on a separate sheet of paper, correct the incorrect sentences.

1) _____ An encyclopedia is a valuable source of information it contains summaries of every area of knowledge.
2) _____ Because of the rapid expansion of human knowledge, it is difficult to keep encyclopedias current.
3) _____ A printed encyclopedia becomes out of date almost as soon as it is published also it is quite expensive to purchase.
4) _____ Online encyclopedias are available to everyone with access to the internet.
5) _____ If you cannot find any information on a subject, you can always ask a librarian to help you, they are paid to assist students.

5-Stringy sentences (excessive coordination or subordination)
Examples:
Many students attend classes all morning, and then they work all afternoon, and they also have to study at night, so they are usually exhausted by the weekend.
Many students attend classes all morning and work all afternoon. Since they also have to study at night, they are usually exhausted by the weekend.
Practice:

A. Select True or False for each statement.

1) Fashions in children's books have changed considerably, and what was popular one hundred years ago is not popular now, for tastes have changed, and the production techniques have also changed.
True_____ or False_____

2) One hundred years ago, children's books were usually printed in black and white, and they had simple illustrations (often very good), and they told stories with strong and simple moral messages.
True_____ or False_____

3) By the 1950s, children's books were more colorful and more varied in content.
True_____ or False_____

4) In the 1950s and 1960s, children's books by authors like Dr. Seuss began taking on serious social themes, and they did so without becoming too heavy-handed, but they also were quite imaginative, and the illustrations became more and more imaginative.
True_____ or False_____

5) During the 1960s and 1970s, books by writers and illustrators like Maurice Sendak expanded most people's notions of what children's books should be like because they openly probed psychological experiences and fears that had been approached only indirectly before.
True_____ or False_____

6) In addition, many well-known writers, like the poet Donald Hall, began paying attention to children's books, and many of their books were quite successful, and some even won awards, and these awards included the most important ones, the Newbury and Caldicott awards.
True_____ or False_____

7) In the 1990s, celebrities began writing children's books, and some of them were well done, but others were, at best, only passable, and many of the celebrities did not do the writing all by themselves.
True_____ or False_____

8) Among the celebrity authors, several-including Jamie Lee Curtis, Carl Reiner, and Maria Shriver, wrote works that were critically applauded, but others' books, including Madonna's, have not been well-received.
True_____ or False_____

9) Recently, children's books have become even more colorful, and more expensive, and they display varied gender and social roles that children may adopt later in life or that they may see in the adults around them, as well as including more social problems.
True_____ or False_____

10) The number of children's books published each year continues to increase, so that today's parents (and children) have an extraordinary number of choices, and they are often available at a discount, so most families can afford to give children varied reading experiences, yet not all families choose to do so.
True_____ or False_____

jueves, 9 de diciembre de 2010

Pollution – Causes and Effects-

Nowadays, pollution is a very harmful and serious problem, which most people do not care. Nevertheless people should contribute on the prevention and solve this situation, but if the situation continues, the planet will no longer be habitable for neither animals nor people. There are several kinds of pollution; for example, the most common are air, water, and land pollution; it is important than every human beings have in mind the consequences if the pollution grows more each days and the future of children who would be starting their lives.

The land pollution is the degradation of Earth’s land surfaces; it is caused by human activities like exploitation of minerals, inadequate agricultural, and urban and industrial wastes. Some statics from the green students in the USA says that every year one American produces over 3285 pounds of hazardous waste and, over 80% of these items in landfills can be recycled, but they’re not. In other words, the major sources of this problem are because people do not care about the end of their wastes or activities as a result of the Urbanization and Industrialization (wikipedia); as a consequence, people, who live or work in nearby areas, could suffer from health-problems like deformities, cancers, respiratory and skin problems and it can lead to birth defects (buzzle and earthplatform).

Second type is Air pollution, that includes all contaminants found in the atmosphere, which dangerous substances can be either in the form of gases or particles. Every day, the average person inhales about 20,000 liters of air, according to "Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1985"; therefore, every time we breathe, we risk inhaling these dangerous chemicals and contaminated gases. Air pollutants have sources that are both natural and human; however, most of this pollution is the result of human activity such as: excessive burning of fossil fuels, automobiles combustion and the utilization of agrochemical substances and aerosols. Air pollution has several bad effects over human health since it increases the appearance of diseases like: bronchitis, lung cancer, and heart disorders; plus, it affects the survival of both plants; because, their leaves become deteriorate and animals because they suffer diseases and die.

The water covers over 70% of the Earth’s surface, and it is a very important resource for the different species in the earth and the environment. However the pollution affects drinking water, rivers, lakes, and oceans all over the world. This type of pollution may not damage our health immediately but can be dangerous with the pass of the time causing diseases like colera, hepatitis illness that cause the death; also the acid rain can cause harm the health of marine life in the rivers and lakes as a result can produce a disrupting the growth of photosynthetic plants, micro-organisms and other aquatic organisms that depends on this natural environment to survive created some extinctions of the species. These consequences start due some chemical pollution cause mainly to the technologies development that occurred with the pass of the time, the oil and petrol from the ships.

People know those problems about pollution, and most of us understand the harmful effects; however, we sometimes think that those consequences could never affect us, so we continue contaminating; destroying ourselves and also the environment, which nowadays is less habitable than before. The solution is people understand the consequences of pollution to start taking actions to stop it, like recycling, reusing and reducing waste. In conclusion, those actions (3R) could help us to decrease pollution levels in water, air and land.

Work Cited

Wikipedia. “Land Pollution”. Was modified on 01/12/10. Taken the 06/12/10 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_pollution.

Wikipedia. “Air Pollution”. Was modified on 10/12/10. Taken the 09/12/10 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_pollution.

Buzzle.com. “Land Pollution”. Taken the 06/12/10 from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/land-pollution.html.

EarthPlatform.com. “Land Pollution”. 2010. Taken the 06/12/10 from http://www.earthplatform.com/c/pollution/land.

GreenstudentU.com. “Pollution”. 2008-2010. Taken the 06/12/10 from http://www.greenstudentu.com/encyclopedia/pollution.

“Water Pollution”. Taken the 06/12/10 from http://library.thinkquest.org/26467/water_pollution.htm.

The Guides Network. “Water Pollution Guide”. 2003-2010. Taken the 06/12/10 from http://www.water-pollution.org.uk/health.html.

Tom Soncha. “Air Pollution Cause and Effects”. 09/11/2007. Taken the 09/12/10 from http://healthandenergy.com/air_pollution_causes.htm.

Caroline, David, Michael, Mindy, Neil, and Vikas. ThinkQuest.com. “Air Pollution”. 1999. Taken the 09/12/10 from http://library.thinkquest.org/26026/Environmental_Problems/air_pollution.html.