My life in Disney!

This is my chinese Blog. http://www.wretch.cc/blog/MiniKobe

And I uploaded all my photos about my life in USA on Pisca. http://picasaweb.google.com/B9502045

Assignment 11

Discussion:so much "of"

Message 1 - posted by MiniKobe (U14017684) , 15 Hours Ago

There are so much "of" in the sentence below.

[The law of gravity summarizes measurements of the effect of gravity on objects of different mass.]

1.How to understand the relationship between the nouns which are conected by "of" well?

2.Is there another way to express this sentence without using so much "of"?

THX^^


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Message 2 - posted by Jay* (U2975371) -networker, 12 Hours Ago

Prepositions give so much information in English that it is diffiecult to be understood without them.
" of" has many different meanings.
the fisrt two instances, it shows possession.
I can rewrite them to say, "gravity's law" and "gravity's effect".
In the last phrase it is a function word to show a relationship between the object and its mass.

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Assignment: 10

This artical is about the MIT OpenCourseWare, which website I learned in last CALL class.
I really interested in this website because many courses are related to my major.
As soon as I finished my cram school, I logged in and took two "Differential Equations" classes in May 21's night.
I also took some classes what I major in yesterday.
After this tries, I think there is a big different between NTUST and MIT, even though they are not on the the same level.
MIT is such a great college that most of the professors there teach hard.
The professors in NTUST only focus their time on how to get promotion, maybe it's not all.
But many of them don't know how to teach is a fact, that no one really concern about.
I think they should view and emulate how MIT teaching.
My comments are extremely, but the attitude of teaching is one of the reasons why MIT could be so powerful.


I will try to learn more classes, that my teacher dindn't bring me enough, on MIT.

Assignment:9

The radio I chose is "CNN Headline News" which is under the genres of news.
The reason is quite simple. I think CNN is one of the best medias with authority and I can learn many things around the world.
As a matter of fact, I could not figure out what was the program I listened after I have tried three times. Maybe I always listened it in the night is the major problem.

I will keep going to listen it as soon as I have free time.
I hope I could find a perfect program that really attract me.

Intresting Commercials

Assignment 8:English song

The song I want to share with everyone is "Fearless", one of Taylor Swift's songs.
She is a very talented person and also a very good singer.
I'd really like her album for no reason.
Maybe you could start to notice her.

Assignment 7:The Inanguration Speech of Barack Obama

This article is about posting a film from YouTube that really interests me.

In fact, the address of Steve Job in Stanford University give me a big impact.
By listening the successes' experience sharing, you can learn not only the thoughts they believe but also the examples they perform.
For this reason, the film that I want to post would be the Inanguration Speech of Brarack Obama.
It's also one of the hot topics recently.

You can know how charming Obama is by watching the introduction film first.

Maybe you will be inspired by his excellent oration.

Here is the script.
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My fellow citizens:

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and co-operation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms.

At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we, the people, have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

Serious challenges

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

Nation of 'risk-takers'

We remain a young nation, but in the words of scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labour, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and travelled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and ploughed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

'Remaking America'

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Restoring trust

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions - who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply.

The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account - to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day - because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control - that a nation cannot prosper long when it favours only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

'Ready to lead'

As for our common defence, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with the sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort - even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the spectre of a warming planet. We will not apologise for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defence, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

'Era of peace'

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

'Duties'

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honour them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with the sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort - even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the spectre of a warming planet. We will not apologise for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defence, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

'Era of peace'

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

'Duties'

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honour them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends - honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism - these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths.

What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility - a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

'Gift of freedom'

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence - the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed - why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have travelled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

"Let it be told to the future world... that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive... that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it]."

America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.

Assignment 6:ESL Podcast 466 – Having a Good or Bad Bedside Manner

What a wonderful wedsite that ESL is.
Althout I already have the habit to listen Studio Classroom every.
I won't absorb as much as other who takes notes while listening.

The article below is my first trying of taking notes.

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Monday - April 06, 2009
ESL Podcast 466 – Having a Good or Bad Bedside Manner
Tags: Health/Medicine
Audio Index:
Slow dialogue: 1:30
Explanations: 3:12
Fast dialogue: 14:35

Cho: I’m not sure I’m cut out to be a doctor.

*cut out: to be created to do st. / have talent to do st.

Joy: I think you’ll be great. I’ve seen you with patients and you have a great bedside
manner –not like Gregory.

*bedside manner: refers to the way that a doctor or nurse talks to people how they give
medical advice or information / how doctors treat their patients

Cho: Why? What’s wrong with his bedside manner?

Joy: I’ve seen him with patients and he can be really callous. For instance, I was in the
room last week when he was telling one of his patients that she was taking a turn for
the worse.

*callous: not thinking about the feelings of someone else / without considering another
person's feelings

*taking a turn for the worse: to be getting worse / become sicker / more ill

Cho: What did he say?

Joy: He just blurted it out. He told her the diagnosis, and he didn’t even try to soften the
news when she asked about her prognosis. He did absolutely nothing to try to comfort
or reassure her.

*blurted it out: to say st. without thinking about it first

*diagnosis: the doctor's conclusion about the problem

*prognosis: the doctor's opions how the future will be for someone's problem

*comfort: to do or say st. to make the person feel better

*reassure: to let someone be less worry about st.

Cho: I feel sorry for the patient.

*feel sorry for: to understand someone's difficulties

Joy: That’s the point. Gregory didn’t, and it didn’t seem to faze him that the patient was
very upset and close to hysterics.

*didn’t seem to faze: someone wasn't affcted by st.

*hysterics: someone has uncontrol emotion

Cho: That’s terrible. I’ll try to remember to be more compassionate with my patients.

*compassionate: to be kind to someone

Joy: Don’t worry. It’s against your nature to be anything but considerate.

*against someon's nature : not a part of someone's personality

*anything but considerate: to emphasize the second word is not true


Script by Dr. Lucy Tse
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Randall's Sites

Assignments:

Listen to 2 audio clips at your chosen level at Randall's ESL Cyber Listening Lab. List the topics of your chosen clips and 5 expressions you learn from the listening in your blog before April 6.

I think this is really a good site for any one who wants to improve the ability of listening.
There are many classifications depend on different need or level.
As for me, I have chosen the topics under the classification of Academic Purposes to practice.
In fact, I have a plane to attend the TOEIC exam in May.
Haha, let's back to main topic.

Course 1: Hiking Arches National Park

Level:medium - Topic:hiking - Type:mini lecture - Speakers:one man - Length:02:01

Course 2: Internet Access

Level:medium - Topic:Web Hosting/ISP - Type:radio commercial - Speakers:one man - Length:00:45

Course 3: I Love Trees

Level:difficult - Topic:nature - Type:essay reading - Speakers:girl - Length:01:57


The above three are the audios that I chose.
I think the medium level is suitable for me in spite of I sill have to pay attention on it so much.
I can get the score about 80 to 100 in the exercises.
Then, it's not so smoothly to listen to the audio of "I Love Trees".
The immature accent of that girl was so hard to understand, not to mention the fast tempo that she speaks.
I can only get 60 after I listen it thrice.
Well, I have to choose the most comfotable level for me.
Otherwise, I will feel very frustrated all the time.

Let's talk about the functions..........
The best thing of this website is that it not just offers the script of the audio, it also offers some quizzes such us "listening exercises" and "text completion quiz".
The quizzes do help me a lot for checking the result I listen it.
On the other hand, the "Key Vocabulary" of the audio are just listed in the same page with the script.
All functions are rally thoughtful.

In conclusion, if you don't do learning English day by day.
Despite owning the best tool, you still won't mark any achievement.

It said "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink".

Assignment 4

The tools for me were new, such that concordancers or collocation retrieval systems.


It provided me a new way to learn English.





I have some thought for these tools.





Some times if I wanted to make articles or presented sentences in English.


I would be always confused by the process of translating from Chinese to English.


The worst of all, I made many mistakes for useing the improper words, because my logical is in Chnese type.


If I just used the dictionary for checking, the results always were failure because the examples in the dictionary were limited.



You won't find the example that you want many times.

I found it not a good idea to use dictionaries for helping writting.

Maybe to use concordancers or collocation retrieval systems is a better way.

You can know the specific amount of how others used the word by exercising collocation retrieval systems.

The matter does not mean the dictionary is bad.

After all, I will still use the dictionary if I have some questions about the meaning of a word.

I have to do that because when I know which is the best word to collocate, I don't really understand it.

Choosing the right tool will benefit learning, so does work.

You can also use one another to complement each other.

I am trying to do and I believe it really help me a lot.

Assignments：Concordancers

Is there any rule governing the use of "big" and "large"?

Sally said "yes".

I used the Oxford & Cambridge to seach the meaning before I did this assignment.

It was suitable to use Oxford for me because the explanation is more clearly.

Searching result is beneath this paragraph.

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big

adj. (big•ger, big•gest) LARGE

large in size, degree, amount, etc.: a big man / house / increase

This shirt isn’t big enough.

It’s the world’s biggest computer company. (informal)


He had this great big grin on his face.

They were earning big money.

The news came as a big blow.

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large

adj. (larger, larg•est)

1. big in size or quantity:

a large area / family / house / car / appetite



a large number of people

very large sums of money



He’s a very large child for his age.

A large proportion of old people live alone.

Women usually do the larger share of the housework.

Brazil is the world’s largest producer of coffee.

Who’s the rather large (= fat) lady in the hat?



2. (abbr. L) used to describe one size in a range of sizes of clothes, food, products used in the house, etc.: small, medium, large



3. wide in range and involving many things:

a large and complex issue

Some drugs are being used on a much larger scale than previously.

If we look at the larger picture of the situation, the differences seem slight. note at big

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In fact, when I finished checking the different between "large" & "big", I can't figure out any version with logic.
After all, it's "learner's" dictionary.

Then I tried to find the answer by knowledge A+ where you can just post your questions and there will be someone help you.

(1)They are different in level. ==> Big <>(2)Big has always been used to decribe something abstract, such as importance, and concrete size.

On the other hand, large is almost like big but it doesn't have the meaning of importance.

(3)Sometimes we can exchange them, but it's not free.
Some hint beneath.....

(X) He is making a big amount of money in China.
(O) He is making a large amount of money in China.

(X) The number of tourists in Taiwan gets bigger every year.
(O) The number of tourists in Taiwan gets larger every year.


That's my answer, it seems concordancer can't help me to resolve this puzzle...XD

Assignment 2 Dictionary Exercise

The words I want to exercise the use of the dictionaries are "progress" and "advancement".
Do you remember my first article?
I have mentioned that I want to make a big "progress" by taking Sally's course.
It seems very natural to use the word "progress".
I begin to think if I learned other similar meaning word.

Bingo! The word "advancement" rised on my mind, then.
Maybe someone met the same problem with me.

• First, let check the different by using Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

I just put the meaning of noun, because progress can be used in verb type.

progress

1. advancement to an improved or more developed state, or to a forward position:

Technological progress has been so rapid over the last few years.
I'm not making much progress with my Spanish.
The doctor said that she was making good progress.
(= getting better after a medical operation or illness)
The recent free elections mark the next step in the country's progress towards democracy.
The yacht's crew said that they were making relatively slow progress north-easterly.

advancement

All she was interested in was the advancement (= improvement, development) of her own career.

• Second, let check the definition by using Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

progress

1. the process of improving or developing, or of getting nearer to achieving or completing sth:

---to make progress
---slow / steady / rapid / good progress
We have made great progress in controlling inflation.

---economic / scientific / technical progress
They asked for a progress report on the project.

2. movement forwards or towards a place:

She watched his slow progress down the steep slope.
There wasn’t much traffic so we made good progress.

advancement

1. the process of helping sth to make progress or succeed;

the progress that is made:

---the advancement of knowledge / education / science

2. progress in a job, social class, etc.:

There are good opportunities for advancement if you have the right skills.

After searching the definitions.
I will use these two words in the applicable situation carefully, although they are the same meaning in Chinese.
The dictionaries are really the good tools to distinguish the words that you are really confused.

If I made something wrong or mistake on this article, I will very appreciate if you could give me some advice. :D

Introduction of "MiniKobe"

Welcome to my new blog. This blog is created for "CALL".

My name is Edward. I was born in March 24, 1988.
I always play basketball and watch NBA or MLB game in my leisure time.
The player that my favorite is Kobe Bryant. Maybe he is the best basketball player on the earth.
I enjoy every game he played, that why my virtual ID is MiniKobe.

I major in electronics engineering. It’s my third year to study in NTUST, so I will graduate in one year.
In fact, I haven’t decided what to do in my future.
As others view, maybe it means I am still blind on my career.
I just think life will be change all the time, I don’t have to restrict myself now.

I hope I can make a obvious progress at the end of this semester.