Dopo le baldorie natalizie eccovi un bel sito per esercitarvi nella comprensione orale. L'ho scovato un po' tardi ma meglio che niente. Pensando al passato abituale con "used to" e alla canzone dei Guns 'n Roses cui abbiamo accennato in classe, eccovi il link
PS. L'altra sera al Robivecchi, o come si chiama, poi passai, ma era un'ora tarda (avevo detto che avevo un impegno per cena) e non c'era nessuno.
Buone feste e seguiranno aggiornamenti.
mercoledì 29 dicembre 2010
martedì 21 dicembre 2010
Behind the Times
by Arthur Conan Doyle
My first interview with Dr. James Winter was under dramatic circumstances. It occurred at two in the morning in the bedroom of an old country house. I kicked him twice on the white waistcoat and knocked off his gold spectacles, while he with the aid of a female accomplice stifled my angry cries in a flannel petticoat and thrust me into a warm bath. I am told that one of my parents, who happened to be present, remarked in a whisper that there was nothing the matter with my lungs. I cannot recall how Dr. Winter looked at the time, for I had other things to think of, but his description of my own appearance is far from flattering. A fluffy head, a body like a trussed goose, very bandy legs, and feet with the soles turned inwards--those are the main items which he can remember.
From this time onwards the epochs of my life were the periodical assaults which Dr. Winter made upon me. He vaccinated me; he cut me for an abscess; he blistered me for mumps. It was a world of peace and he the one dark cloud that threatened. But at last there came a time of real illness--a time when I lay for months together inside my wickerwork-basket bed, and then it was that I learned that that hard face could relax, that those country-made creaking boots could steal very gently to a bedside, and that that rough voice could thin into a whisper when it spoke to a sick child.
And now the child is himself a medical man, and yet Dr. Winter is the same as ever. I can see no change since first I can remember him, save that perhaps the brindled hair is a trifle whiter, and the huge shoulders a little more bowed. He is a very tall man, though he loses a couple of inches from his stoop. That big back of his has curved itself over sick beds until it has set in that shape. His face is of a walnut brown, and tells of long winter drives over bleak country roads, with the wind and the rain in his teeth. It looks smooth at a little distance, but as you approach him you see that it is shot with innumerable fine wrinkles like a last year's apple. They are hardly to be seen when he is in repose; but when he laughs his face breaks like a starred glass, and you realise then that though he looks old, he must be older than he looks.
How old that is I could never discover. I have often tried to find out, and have struck his stream as high up as George IV and even the Regency, but without ever getting quite to the source. His mind must have been open to impressions very early, but it must also have closed early, for the politics of the day have little interest for him, while he is fiercely excited about questions which are entirely prehistoric. He shakes his head when he speaks of the first Reform Bill and expresses grave doubts as to its wisdom, and I have heard him, when he was warmed by a glass of wine, say bitter things about Robert Peel and his abandoning of the Corn Laws. The death of that statesman brought the history of England to a definite close, and Dr. Winter refers to everything which had happened since then as to an insignificant anticlimax.
But it was only when I had myself become a medical man that I was able to appreciate how entirely he is a survival of a past generation. He had learned his medicine under that obsolete and forgotten system by which a youth was apprenticed to a surgeon, in the days when the study of anatomy was often approached through a violated grave. His views upon his own profession are even more reactionary than in politics. Fifty years have brought him little and deprived him of less. Vaccination was well within the teaching of his youth, though I think he has a secret preference for inoculation. Bleeding he would practise freely but for public opinion. Chloroform he regards as a dangerous innovation, and he always clicks with his tongue when it is mentioned. He has even been known to say vain things about Laennec, and to refer to the stethoscope as "a new-fangled French toy." He carries one in his hat out of deference to the expectations of his patients, but he is very hard of hearing, so that it makes little difference whether he uses it or not.
He reads, as a duty, his weekly medical paper, so that he has a general idea as to the advance of modern science. He always persists in looking upon it as a huge and rather ludicrous experiment. The germ theory of disease set him chuckling for a long time, and his favourite joke in the sick room was to say, "Shut the door or the germs will be getting in." As to the Darwinian theory, it struck him as being the crowning joke of the century. "The children in the nursery and the ancestors in the stable," he would cry, and laugh the tears out of his eyes.
He is so very much behind the day that occasionally, as things move round in their usual circle, he finds himself, to his bewilderment, in the front of the fashion. Dietetic treatment, for example, had been much in vogue in his youth, and he has more practical knowledge of it than any one whom I have met. Massage, too, was familiar to him when it was new to our generation. He had been trained also at a time when instruments were in a rudimentary state, and when men learned to trust more to their own fingers. He has a model surgical hand, muscular in the palm, tapering in the fingers, "with an eye at the end of each." I shall not easily forget how Dr. Patterson and I cut Sir John Sirwell, the County Member, and were unable to find the stone. It was a horrible moment. Both our careers were at stake. And then it was that Dr. Winter, whom we had asked out of courtesy to be present, introduced into the wound a finger which seemed to our excited senses to be about nine inches long, and hooked out the stone at the end of it. "It's always well to bring one in your waistcoat-pocket," said he with a chuckle, "but I suppose you youngsters are above all that."
We made him president of our branch of the British Medical Association, but he resigned after the first meeting. "The young men are too much for me," he said. "I don't understand what they are talking about." Yet his patients do very well. He has the healing touch--that magnetic thing which defies explanation or analysis, but which is a very evident fact none the less. His mere presence leaves the patient with more hopefulness and vitality. The sight of disease affects him as dust does a careful housewife. It makes him angry and impatient. "Tut, tut, this will never do!" he cries, as he takes over a new case. He would shoo Death out of the room as though he were an intrusive hen. But when the intruder refuses to be dislodged, when the blood moves more slowly and the eyes grow dimmer, then it is that Dr. Winter is of more avail than all the drugs in his surgery. Dying folk cling to his hand as if the presence of his bulk and vigour gives them more courage to face the change; and that kindly, windbeaten face has been the last earthly impression which many a sufferer has carried into the unknown.
When Dr. Patterson and I--both of us young, energetic, and up-to-date--settled in the district, we were most cordially received by the old doctor, who would have been only too happy to be relieved of some of his patients. The patients themselves, however, followed their own inclinations--which is a reprehensible way that patients have--so that we remained neglected, with our modern instruments and our latest alkaloids, while he was serving out senna and calomel to all the countryside. We both of us loved the old fellow, but at the same time, in the privacy of our own intimate conversations, we could not help commenting upon this deplorable lack of judgment. "It's all very well for the poorer people," said Patterson. "But after all the educated classes have a right to expect that their medical man will know the difference between a mitral murmur and a bronchitic rale. It's the judicial frame of mind, not the sympathetic, which is the essential one."
I thoroughly agreed with Patterson in what he said. It happened, however, that very shortly afterwards the epidemic of influenza broke out, and we were all worked to death. One morning I met Patterson on my round, and found him looking rather pale and fagged out. He made the same remark about me. I was, in fact, feeling far from well, and I lay upon the sofa all the afternoon with a splitting headache and pains in every joint. As evening closed in, I could no longer disguise the fact that the scourge was upon me, and I felt that I should have medical advice without delay. It was of Patterson, naturally, that I thought, but somehow the idea of him had suddenly become repugnant to me. I thought of his cold, critical attitude, of his endless questions, of his tests and his tappings. I wanted something more soothing--something more genial.
"Mrs. Hudson," said I to my housekeeper, "would you kindly run along to old Dr. Winter and tell him that I should be obliged to him if he would step round?"
She was back with an answer presently. "Dr. Winter will come round in an hour or so, sir; but he has just been called in to attend Dr. Patterson."
My first interview with Dr. James Winter was under dramatic circumstances. It occurred at two in the morning in the bedroom of an old country house. I kicked him twice on the white waistcoat and knocked off his gold spectacles, while he with the aid of a female accomplice stifled my angry cries in a flannel petticoat and thrust me into a warm bath. I am told that one of my parents, who happened to be present, remarked in a whisper that there was nothing the matter with my lungs. I cannot recall how Dr. Winter looked at the time, for I had other things to think of, but his description of my own appearance is far from flattering. A fluffy head, a body like a trussed goose, very bandy legs, and feet with the soles turned inwards--those are the main items which he can remember.
From this time onwards the epochs of my life were the periodical assaults which Dr. Winter made upon me. He vaccinated me; he cut me for an abscess; he blistered me for mumps. It was a world of peace and he the one dark cloud that threatened. But at last there came a time of real illness--a time when I lay for months together inside my wickerwork-basket bed, and then it was that I learned that that hard face could relax, that those country-made creaking boots could steal very gently to a bedside, and that that rough voice could thin into a whisper when it spoke to a sick child.
And now the child is himself a medical man, and yet Dr. Winter is the same as ever. I can see no change since first I can remember him, save that perhaps the brindled hair is a trifle whiter, and the huge shoulders a little more bowed. He is a very tall man, though he loses a couple of inches from his stoop. That big back of his has curved itself over sick beds until it has set in that shape. His face is of a walnut brown, and tells of long winter drives over bleak country roads, with the wind and the rain in his teeth. It looks smooth at a little distance, but as you approach him you see that it is shot with innumerable fine wrinkles like a last year's apple. They are hardly to be seen when he is in repose; but when he laughs his face breaks like a starred glass, and you realise then that though he looks old, he must be older than he looks.
How old that is I could never discover. I have often tried to find out, and have struck his stream as high up as George IV and even the Regency, but without ever getting quite to the source. His mind must have been open to impressions very early, but it must also have closed early, for the politics of the day have little interest for him, while he is fiercely excited about questions which are entirely prehistoric. He shakes his head when he speaks of the first Reform Bill and expresses grave doubts as to its wisdom, and I have heard him, when he was warmed by a glass of wine, say bitter things about Robert Peel and his abandoning of the Corn Laws. The death of that statesman brought the history of England to a definite close, and Dr. Winter refers to everything which had happened since then as to an insignificant anticlimax.
But it was only when I had myself become a medical man that I was able to appreciate how entirely he is a survival of a past generation. He had learned his medicine under that obsolete and forgotten system by which a youth was apprenticed to a surgeon, in the days when the study of anatomy was often approached through a violated grave. His views upon his own profession are even more reactionary than in politics. Fifty years have brought him little and deprived him of less. Vaccination was well within the teaching of his youth, though I think he has a secret preference for inoculation. Bleeding he would practise freely but for public opinion. Chloroform he regards as a dangerous innovation, and he always clicks with his tongue when it is mentioned. He has even been known to say vain things about Laennec, and to refer to the stethoscope as "a new-fangled French toy." He carries one in his hat out of deference to the expectations of his patients, but he is very hard of hearing, so that it makes little difference whether he uses it or not.
He reads, as a duty, his weekly medical paper, so that he has a general idea as to the advance of modern science. He always persists in looking upon it as a huge and rather ludicrous experiment. The germ theory of disease set him chuckling for a long time, and his favourite joke in the sick room was to say, "Shut the door or the germs will be getting in." As to the Darwinian theory, it struck him as being the crowning joke of the century. "The children in the nursery and the ancestors in the stable," he would cry, and laugh the tears out of his eyes.
He is so very much behind the day that occasionally, as things move round in their usual circle, he finds himself, to his bewilderment, in the front of the fashion. Dietetic treatment, for example, had been much in vogue in his youth, and he has more practical knowledge of it than any one whom I have met. Massage, too, was familiar to him when it was new to our generation. He had been trained also at a time when instruments were in a rudimentary state, and when men learned to trust more to their own fingers. He has a model surgical hand, muscular in the palm, tapering in the fingers, "with an eye at the end of each." I shall not easily forget how Dr. Patterson and I cut Sir John Sirwell, the County Member, and were unable to find the stone. It was a horrible moment. Both our careers were at stake. And then it was that Dr. Winter, whom we had asked out of courtesy to be present, introduced into the wound a finger which seemed to our excited senses to be about nine inches long, and hooked out the stone at the end of it. "It's always well to bring one in your waistcoat-pocket," said he with a chuckle, "but I suppose you youngsters are above all that."
We made him president of our branch of the British Medical Association, but he resigned after the first meeting. "The young men are too much for me," he said. "I don't understand what they are talking about." Yet his patients do very well. He has the healing touch--that magnetic thing which defies explanation or analysis, but which is a very evident fact none the less. His mere presence leaves the patient with more hopefulness and vitality. The sight of disease affects him as dust does a careful housewife. It makes him angry and impatient. "Tut, tut, this will never do!" he cries, as he takes over a new case. He would shoo Death out of the room as though he were an intrusive hen. But when the intruder refuses to be dislodged, when the blood moves more slowly and the eyes grow dimmer, then it is that Dr. Winter is of more avail than all the drugs in his surgery. Dying folk cling to his hand as if the presence of his bulk and vigour gives them more courage to face the change; and that kindly, windbeaten face has been the last earthly impression which many a sufferer has carried into the unknown.
When Dr. Patterson and I--both of us young, energetic, and up-to-date--settled in the district, we were most cordially received by the old doctor, who would have been only too happy to be relieved of some of his patients. The patients themselves, however, followed their own inclinations--which is a reprehensible way that patients have--so that we remained neglected, with our modern instruments and our latest alkaloids, while he was serving out senna and calomel to all the countryside. We both of us loved the old fellow, but at the same time, in the privacy of our own intimate conversations, we could not help commenting upon this deplorable lack of judgment. "It's all very well for the poorer people," said Patterson. "But after all the educated classes have a right to expect that their medical man will know the difference between a mitral murmur and a bronchitic rale. It's the judicial frame of mind, not the sympathetic, which is the essential one."
I thoroughly agreed with Patterson in what he said. It happened, however, that very shortly afterwards the epidemic of influenza broke out, and we were all worked to death. One morning I met Patterson on my round, and found him looking rather pale and fagged out. He made the same remark about me. I was, in fact, feeling far from well, and I lay upon the sofa all the afternoon with a splitting headache and pains in every joint. As evening closed in, I could no longer disguise the fact that the scourge was upon me, and I felt that I should have medical advice without delay. It was of Patterson, naturally, that I thought, but somehow the idea of him had suddenly become repugnant to me. I thought of his cold, critical attitude, of his endless questions, of his tests and his tappings. I wanted something more soothing--something more genial.
"Mrs. Hudson," said I to my housekeeper, "would you kindly run along to old Dr. Winter and tell him that I should be obliged to him if he would step round?"
She was back with an answer presently. "Dr. Winter will come round in an hour or so, sir; but he has just been called in to attend Dr. Patterson."
Round the Red Lamp - Introduction
I quite recognise the force of your objection that an invalid or a woman in weak health would get no good from stories which attempt to treat some features of medical life with a certain amount of realism. If you deal with this life at all, however, and if you are anxious to make your doctors something more than marionettes, it is quite essential that you should paint the darker side, since it is that which is principally presented to the surgeon or physician. He sees many beautiful things, it is true, fortitude and heroism, love and self-sacrifice; but they are all called forth (as our nobler qualities are always called forth) by bitter sorrow and trial. One cannot write of medical life and be merry over it.
Then why write of it, you may ask? If a subject is painful why treat it at all? I answer that it is the province of fiction to treat painful things as well as cheerful ones. The story which wiles away a weary hour fulfils an obviously good purpose, but not more so, I hold, than that which helps to emphasise the graver side of life. A tale which may startle the reader out of his usual grooves of thought, and shocks him into seriousness, plays the part of the alterative and tonic in medicine, bitter to the taste but bracing in the result. There are a few stories in this little collection which might have such an effect, and I have so far shared in your feeling that I have reserved them from serial publication. In book-form the reader can see that they are medical stories, and can, if he or she be so minded, avoid them.
Yours very truly,
A. CONAN DOYLE. 1894
P. S.--You ask about the Red Lamp. It is the usual sign of the general practitioner in England.
Then why write of it, you may ask? If a subject is painful why treat it at all? I answer that it is the province of fiction to treat painful things as well as cheerful ones. The story which wiles away a weary hour fulfils an obviously good purpose, but not more so, I hold, than that which helps to emphasise the graver side of life. A tale which may startle the reader out of his usual grooves of thought, and shocks him into seriousness, plays the part of the alterative and tonic in medicine, bitter to the taste but bracing in the result. There are a few stories in this little collection which might have such an effect, and I have so far shared in your feeling that I have reserved them from serial publication. In book-form the reader can see that they are medical stories, and can, if he or she be so minded, avoid them.
Yours very truly,
A. CONAN DOYLE. 1894
P. S.--You ask about the Red Lamp. It is the usual sign of the general practitioner in England.
lunedì 20 dicembre 2010
Pain
Pain is "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage." It is the feeling common to such experiences as stubbing a toe, burning a finger, putting iodine on a cut, and bumping the "funny bone".
Pain motivates us to withdraw from potentially damaging situations, protect a damaged body part while it heals, and avoid those situations in the future. It is initiated by stimulation of nociceptors in the peripheral nervous system, or by pathology, damage or malfunction in the peripheral or central nervous systems.
Most pain resolves promptly once the painful stimulus is removed and the body has healed, but sometimes pain persists despite removal of the stimulus and apparent healing of the body; and sometimes pain arises in the absence of any detectable stimulus, damage or pathology.
Pain is the most common reason for physician consultation in the United States. It is a major symptom in many medical conditions, and can significantly interfere with a person's quality of life and general functioning. Social support, hypnotic suggestion, excitement in sport or war, distraction, and appraisal can all significantly modulate pain's intensity or unpleasantness.
Pain motivates us to withdraw from potentially damaging situations, protect a damaged body part while it heals, and avoid those situations in the future. It is initiated by stimulation of nociceptors in the peripheral nervous system, or by pathology, damage or malfunction in the peripheral or central nervous systems.
Most pain resolves promptly once the painful stimulus is removed and the body has healed, but sometimes pain persists despite removal of the stimulus and apparent healing of the body; and sometimes pain arises in the absence of any detectable stimulus, damage or pathology.
Pain is the most common reason for physician consultation in the United States. It is a major symptom in many medical conditions, and can significantly interfere with a person's quality of life and general functioning. Social support, hypnotic suggestion, excitement in sport or war, distraction, and appraisal can all significantly modulate pain's intensity or unpleasantness.
Bad - U2
If you twist and turn away
If you tear yourself in two again
If I could, yes I would
If I could, I would
Let it go
Surrender...
Dislocate...
If I could throw this
Lifeless lifeline to the wind
Leave this heart of clay
See you walk, walk away
Into the night
And through the rain
Into the half-light
And through the flame
If I could through myself
Set your spirit free
I'd lead your heart away
See you break, break away
Into the light...
And to the day
To let it go! And so to fade away
To let it go!
And so fade away
I'm wide awake!
I'm wide awake!
Wide awake! I'm not sleeping.
If you should ask then maybe they'd
Tell you what I would say
True colors fly in blue and black
Bruised silken sky and burning flag
Colors crash, collide in blood shot eyes
If I could, you know I would
If I could, I would
Let it go...
This desparation...
Dislocation...
Separation...
Condemnation...
Revelation...
In temptation...
Isolation...
Desolation...
If you tear yourself in two again
If I could, yes I would
If I could, I would
Let it go
Surrender...
Dislocate...
If I could throw this
Lifeless lifeline to the wind
Leave this heart of clay
See you walk, walk away
Into the night
And through the rain
Into the half-light
And through the flame
If I could through myself
Set your spirit free
I'd lead your heart away
See you break, break away
Into the light...
And to the day
To let it go! And so to fade away
To let it go!
And so fade away
I'm wide awake!
I'm wide awake!
Wide awake! I'm not sleeping.
If you should ask then maybe they'd
Tell you what I would say
True colors fly in blue and black
Bruised silken sky and burning flag
Colors crash, collide in blood shot eyes
If I could, you know I would
If I could, I would
Let it go...
This desparation...
Dislocation...
Separation...
Condemnation...
Revelation...
In temptation...
Isolation...
Desolation...
If - Pink Floyd
If I were a swan, I'd be gone.
If I were a train, I'd be late.
And if I were a good man,
I'd talk with you
More often than I do.
If I were to sleep, I could dream.
If I were afraid, I could hide.
If I go insane, please don't put
Your wires in my brain.
If I were the moon, I'd be cool.
If I were a rule , I would bend.
If I were a good man, I'd understand
The spaces between friends.
If I were alone, I would cry.
And if I were with you, I'd be home and dry.
And if I go insane,
Will you still let me join in with the game?
If I were a swan, I'd be gone.
If I were a train, I'd be late again.
If I were a good man,
I'd talk with you
More often than I do.
If I were a train, I'd be late.
And if I were a good man,
I'd talk with you
More often than I do.
If I were to sleep, I could dream.
If I were afraid, I could hide.
If I go insane, please don't put
Your wires in my brain.
If I were the moon, I'd be cool.
If I were a rule , I would bend.
If I were a good man, I'd understand
The spaces between friends.
If I were alone, I would cry.
And if I were with you, I'd be home and dry.
And if I go insane,
Will you still let me join in with the game?
If I were a swan, I'd be gone.
If I were a train, I'd be late again.
If I were a good man,
I'd talk with you
More often than I do.
domenica 19 dicembre 2010
Morbidity
Morbidity (from Latin morbidus: sick, unhealthy) refers to a diseased state, disability, or poor health due to any cause.[13] The term may be used to refer to the existence of any form of disease, or to the degree that the health condition affects the patient. Among severely ill patients, the level of morbidity is often measured by ICU scoring systems.
Comorbidity is the simultaneous presence of two medical conditions, such as a person with schizophrenia and substance abuse.
In epidemiology and actuarial science, the term morbidity rate can refer to either the incidence rate, or the prevalence of a disease or medical condition. This measure of sickness is contrasted with the mortality rate of a condition, which is the proportion of people dying during a given time interval.
Comorbidity is the simultaneous presence of two medical conditions, such as a person with schizophrenia and substance abuse.
In epidemiology and actuarial science, the term morbidity rate can refer to either the incidence rate, or the prevalence of a disease or medical condition. This measure of sickness is contrasted with the mortality rate of a condition, which is the proportion of people dying during a given time interval.
Illness
Illness and sickness are generally used as synonyms for disease.[4] However, this term is occasionally used to refer specifically to the patient's personal experience of their disease.[5][6] In this model, it is possible for a person to be diseased without being ill, (to have an objectively definable, but asymptomatic, medical condition), and to be ill without being diseased (such as when a person perceives a normal experience as a medical condition, or medicalizes a non-disease situation in his or her life). Illness is often not due to infection but a collection of evolved responses, sickness behavior, by the body aids the clearing of infection. Such aspects of illness can include lethargy, depression, anorexia, sleepiness, hyperalgesia, and inability to concentrate.
Disease
A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs.[1][2] It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune diseases. In humans, "disease" is often used more broadly to refer to any condition that causes pain, dysfunction, distress, social problems, and/or death to the person afflicted, or similar problems for those in contact with the person. In this broader sense, it sometimes includes injuries, disabilities, disorders, syndromes, infections. Isolated symptoms, deviant behaviors, and atypical variations of structure and function, while in other contexts and for other purposes these may be considered distinguishable categories. A diseased body is quite often not only because of some dysfunction of a particular organ but can also be because of a state of mind of the affected person who is not at ease with a particular state of its body.
Death due to disease is called death by natural causes. There are four main types of disease: pathogenic disease, deficiency disease, hereditary disease, and physiological disease.
Diseases can also be classified as communicable and non-communicable disease.
Death due to disease is called death by natural causes. There are four main types of disease: pathogenic disease, deficiency disease, hereditary disease, and physiological disease.
Diseases can also be classified as communicable and non-communicable disease.
mercoledì 1 dicembre 2010
More elements to associate
Medical term >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Non-medical term
1 paraesthesia >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> a) swelling, puffiness
2 productive cough >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> b) indigestion
3 anaesthesia >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> c) coughing up phlegm or spit
4 retrosternal chest pain >>>>>>>>>>>> d) trouble holding your water
5 orthopnea >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> e) cramp in the leg muscles which comes and goes
6 stress incontinence >>>>>>>>>>>>>> f) numbness
7 dysmenorrhoea >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> g) sleeplessness
8 dyspepsia >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> h) out of breath, out of puff, breathlessness
9 oedema >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> i) painful periods
10 intermittent claudication >>>>>>>> j) pain behind the breast bone
11 insomnia >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>k) pins and needles
12 dyspnoea >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> l) shortness of breath when you lie down
1 paraesthesia >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> a) swelling, puffiness
2 productive cough >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> b) indigestion
3 anaesthesia >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> c) coughing up phlegm or spit
4 retrosternal chest pain >>>>>>>>>>>> d) trouble holding your water
5 orthopnea >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> e) cramp in the leg muscles which comes and goes
6 stress incontinence >>>>>>>>>>>>>> f) numbness
7 dysmenorrhoea >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> g) sleeplessness
8 dyspepsia >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> h) out of breath, out of puff, breathlessness
9 oedema >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> i) painful periods
10 intermittent claudication >>>>>>>> j) pain behind the breast bone
11 insomnia >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>k) pins and needles
12 dyspnoea >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> l) shortness of breath when you lie down
Acronyms
English, and especially American English, make an extensive use of acronyms. The more so when we're dealing with a technical and/or scientific language.
We'll begin with a list of the more common acronyms used in medicine.
This is the "A" section.
I do not expect you to learn them all by heart, but the present table will come handy for future reference.
..............................
AB
abdo.
abdms (M)(I)(o)
a.c.
ACTH
AF
AFP
A:G
AHA
AI
AJ
a.m.
AN
AI'
APH
ARM
AS
ASD
ASHD
ASO
ATS
A&W
AMA
apex beat
abdomen
abdomen without masses. tenderness, organomegaly (US)
before meals
adrenocorticotrophic hormone
atrial flbrillation
alphafoetoprolein
albumen globulin ratio
Area Health Authority (UK)
aortic Incompetence
ankle Jerk
morning
antenatal
an tero-posterior
an tepartum haemorrhage
artificial rupture of membranes
alimentary system
atrial septal defect
arteriosclerotic hearl disease (US)
antistreptolysin 0
antitetanic serum
alive and well
American Medical Association
We'll begin with a list of the more common acronyms used in medicine.
This is the "A" section.
I do not expect you to learn them all by heart, but the present table will come handy for future reference.
..............................
AB
abdo.
abdms (M)(I)(o)
a.c.
ACTH
AF
AFP
A:G
AHA
AI
AJ
a.m.
AN
AI'
APH
ARM
AS
ASD
ASHD
ASO
ATS
A&W
AMA
apex beat
abdomen
abdomen without masses. tenderness, organomegaly (US)
before meals
adrenocorticotrophic hormone
atrial flbrillation
alphafoetoprolein
albumen globulin ratio
Area Health Authority (UK)
aortic Incompetence
ankle Jerk
morning
antenatal
an tero-posterior
an tepartum haemorrhage
artificial rupture of membranes
alimentary system
atrial septal defect
arteriosclerotic hearl disease (US)
antistreptolysin 0
antitetanic serum
alive and well
American Medical Association
martedì 30 novembre 2010
Riddle one
In the view of the creation of a personal, technical glossary, I want to give you the first imput by suggesting a extended definition. You will have to guess the short one.
The way speech sounds are produced. Children who mis-articulate sounds usually have difficulties saying sounds such as 's', 'l', 'g', 'k' correctly in words. Articulation problems can be caused by poor listening ability, developmental delay, dental problems, or poor control of the lips and tongue.
The way speech sounds are produced. Children who mis-articulate sounds usually have difficulties saying sounds such as 's', 'l', 'g', 'k' correctly in words. Articulation problems can be caused by poor listening ability, developmental delay, dental problems, or poor control of the lips and tongue.
Taking a history
What to ask, how to do it. A short execise
..........................
Match each of the suspected problems in the first column with a suitable ~ question from the second column.
Suspected problem
1 depression
2 cardiac failure
3 asthma
4 prostate
5 coronary thrombosis
6 cancer of the lung
Questions
a) Have you had any pain in your chest?
b) Do you ever get wheezy?
c) What sort of mood have you been in recently?
d) Any problem with your waterworks?
e) Have you ever coughed up blood?
f) Have you had any shortness of breath?
..........................
Match each of the suspected problems in the first column with a suitable ~ question from the second column.
Suspected problem
1 depression
2 cardiac failure
3 asthma
4 prostate
5 coronary thrombosis
6 cancer of the lung
Questions
a) Have you had any pain in your chest?
b) Do you ever get wheezy?
c) What sort of mood have you been in recently?
d) Any problem with your waterworks?
e) Have you ever coughed up blood?
f) Have you had any shortness of breath?
mercoledì 24 novembre 2010
Reading - Arthur Conan Doyle - Medical Tales
Eccovi la descrizione di un medico fatta da Conan Doyle.
Siamo nella seconda metà dell'Ottocento.
--------------------------------------
He is so very much behind the day that occasionally, as things move round in their usual circle, he finds himself, to his bewilderment, in the front of the fashion. Dietetic treatment, for example, had been much in vogue in his youth, and he has more practical knowledge of it than any one whom I have met. Massage, too, was familiar to him when it was new to our generation. He had been trained also at a time when instruments were in a rudimentary state, and when men learned to trust more to their own fingers. He has a model surgical hand, muscular in the palm, tapering in the fingers, "with an eye at the end of each." I shall not easily forget how Dr. Patterson and I cut Sir John Sirwell, the County Member, and were unable to find the stone. It was a horrible moment. Both our careers were at stake. And then it was that Dr. Winter, whom we had asked out of courtesy to be present, introduced into the wound a finger which seemed to our excited senses to be about nine inches long, and hooked out the stone at the end of it. "It's always well to bring one in your waistcoat-pocket," said he with a chuckle, "but I suppose you youngsters are above all that."
Siamo nella seconda metà dell'Ottocento.
--------------------------------------
He is so very much behind the day that occasionally, as things move round in their usual circle, he finds himself, to his bewilderment, in the front of the fashion. Dietetic treatment, for example, had been much in vogue in his youth, and he has more practical knowledge of it than any one whom I have met. Massage, too, was familiar to him when it was new to our generation. He had been trained also at a time when instruments were in a rudimentary state, and when men learned to trust more to their own fingers. He has a model surgical hand, muscular in the palm, tapering in the fingers, "with an eye at the end of each." I shall not easily forget how Dr. Patterson and I cut Sir John Sirwell, the County Member, and were unable to find the stone. It was a horrible moment. Both our careers were at stake. And then it was that Dr. Winter, whom we had asked out of courtesy to be present, introduced into the wound a finger which seemed to our excited senses to be about nine inches long, and hooked out the stone at the end of it. "It's always well to bring one in your waistcoat-pocket," said he with a chuckle, "but I suppose you youngsters are above all that."
Parts of the body how to describe problems
Cominciamo ad immergerci nella terminologia tecnica.
Domani ne parleremo più diffusamente
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
giovedì 18 novembre 2010
Doll's House vs Dollhouse
ecco qua una definizione di dollhouse (ovviamente il contesto è americano)
ma confrontiamo anche con A Doll's House, che invece ha radici europee e late 19th century.
ma confrontiamo anche con A Doll's House, che invece ha radici europee e late 19th century.
Street Yarn
by Walt Whitman
Soldiers and militiamen are not the only people who wear uniforms. A uniform serves two purposes; first, to distinguish the wearers from others, and secondly, to assimilate them to each other. The universal uniform is more for the former of these than the latter; and is not only the style and substance of garments, but appearance and carriage. Come and walk in New York streets, or sit in a restaurant; we will detect some people for you by their uniforms.
Mild, foolish, dough-colored, simpering face; black cloth suit-shad-bellied, single-breasted coat, with low standing collar all round, vest buttoned close to throat, knees a little bent, toes turned out, and chin down. Episcopalian deacon.
Wild cataract of hair; absurd, bunged-up felt hat, with peaked crown; velvet coat, all friggled over with a gimp, but worn; eyes rather staring, looking upward. Third-rate artist.
Dress strictly respectable; hat well down on forehead; face thin, dry, close-shaven; mouth with a gripe like a vice; eyes sharp and quick; brows bent; forehead scowling; step jerky and bustling. Wall Street banker.
Hands crossed behind him; step slow; dress well enough, but careless all over; face bent downward, and full of thought. Leading lawyer.
Rusty black costume; white choker; look oddly compounded of severity, superiority, curiosity, apprehension, and suspicion; shoulders stooping, chest flat. Country clergyman.
Half-dozen ill-dressed fellows together (this is in the evening); dirty, unshorn faces; debauched expression; the half-shut eyes, and loose, hanging lips of the tribe; hoarse voices, incredibly tuneless; oaths and curses; laughs made up of a yell and a cackle; a peculiar quick, eager step, as they flock along close together. Short boys; damnable dangerous villains.
Dirty finery, excessively plentiful; paint, both red and white; draggle-tailed dress, ill-fitting; coarse features, unintelligent; bold glance; questioning, shameless, perceptibly anxious; hideous croak or dry brazen ring in voice; affected, but awkward, mincing, waggling gait. Harlot.
Heavy moustache; obtrusively expensive dress; big breast pin; heavy gold chain; rings; hat down over brows; loafing attitude on corner; eye furtive, glassy, expressionless; oaths; tobacco-spit. Gambler.
There, somewhat in that manner, you may learn even to distinguish the trades from each other. But now let us sketch individuals. We are sitting, we will suppose, in the St. Nicholas front windows, or standing in front of Delmonico's, or anywhere in a thoroughfare. The crowd flows; among it goes, now and then, one of the following:
A tall, slender man, round-shouldered, chin stuck out, deep-set eyes, sack-coat. His step is quick, and his arms swing awkwardly, as if he were trying to knock his elbows together behind him. Albert Brisbane the Socialist; the capitalist, too--an odd circumstance for a radical in New York! Somehow or other, he always looks as if he were attempting to think out some problem a little too hard for him.
Old gentleman in carriage. A well-built, portly old man, full, ruddy face, abundant wavy--almost frizzly--white hair, good forehead, kindly, intelligent look. Dr. Francis, the encyclopaedia of historical information, especially in local history and genealogy.
Tall, large, rough-looking man, in a journeyman carpenter's uniform. Coarse, sanguine complexion; strong, bristly, grizzled beard; singular eyes, of a semi-transparent, indistinct light blue, and with that sleepy look that comes when the lid rests half way down over the pupil; careless, lounging gait. Walt Whitman, the sturdy, self-conscious microcosmic prose-poetical author of that incongruous hash of mud and gold--"Leaves of Grass."
-----------------------------------
link al saggio >>
----------------------------------
provate a fare un elenco dei personaggi withmaninani e a descriverli in altre parole, con la terminologia che avete a disposizione. potete imitare la tecnica (compound words, ad esempio) ma non ricopiare
provate a fare una descrizione di caratteri (nel senso di personaggi) che conoscete imitando withman
i più audaci possono anche disegnare!
Soldiers and militiamen are not the only people who wear uniforms. A uniform serves two purposes; first, to distinguish the wearers from others, and secondly, to assimilate them to each other. The universal uniform is more for the former of these than the latter; and is not only the style and substance of garments, but appearance and carriage. Come and walk in New York streets, or sit in a restaurant; we will detect some people for you by their uniforms.
Mild, foolish, dough-colored, simpering face; black cloth suit-shad-bellied, single-breasted coat, with low standing collar all round, vest buttoned close to throat, knees a little bent, toes turned out, and chin down. Episcopalian deacon.
Wild cataract of hair; absurd, bunged-up felt hat, with peaked crown; velvet coat, all friggled over with a gimp, but worn; eyes rather staring, looking upward. Third-rate artist.
Dress strictly respectable; hat well down on forehead; face thin, dry, close-shaven; mouth with a gripe like a vice; eyes sharp and quick; brows bent; forehead scowling; step jerky and bustling. Wall Street banker.
Hands crossed behind him; step slow; dress well enough, but careless all over; face bent downward, and full of thought. Leading lawyer.
Rusty black costume; white choker; look oddly compounded of severity, superiority, curiosity, apprehension, and suspicion; shoulders stooping, chest flat. Country clergyman.
Half-dozen ill-dressed fellows together (this is in the evening); dirty, unshorn faces; debauched expression; the half-shut eyes, and loose, hanging lips of the tribe; hoarse voices, incredibly tuneless; oaths and curses; laughs made up of a yell and a cackle; a peculiar quick, eager step, as they flock along close together. Short boys; damnable dangerous villains.
Dirty finery, excessively plentiful; paint, both red and white; draggle-tailed dress, ill-fitting; coarse features, unintelligent; bold glance; questioning, shameless, perceptibly anxious; hideous croak or dry brazen ring in voice; affected, but awkward, mincing, waggling gait. Harlot.
Heavy moustache; obtrusively expensive dress; big breast pin; heavy gold chain; rings; hat down over brows; loafing attitude on corner; eye furtive, glassy, expressionless; oaths; tobacco-spit. Gambler.
There, somewhat in that manner, you may learn even to distinguish the trades from each other. But now let us sketch individuals. We are sitting, we will suppose, in the St. Nicholas front windows, or standing in front of Delmonico's, or anywhere in a thoroughfare. The crowd flows; among it goes, now and then, one of the following:
A tall, slender man, round-shouldered, chin stuck out, deep-set eyes, sack-coat. His step is quick, and his arms swing awkwardly, as if he were trying to knock his elbows together behind him. Albert Brisbane the Socialist; the capitalist, too--an odd circumstance for a radical in New York! Somehow or other, he always looks as if he were attempting to think out some problem a little too hard for him.
Old gentleman in carriage. A well-built, portly old man, full, ruddy face, abundant wavy--almost frizzly--white hair, good forehead, kindly, intelligent look. Dr. Francis, the encyclopaedia of historical information, especially in local history and genealogy.
Tall, large, rough-looking man, in a journeyman carpenter's uniform. Coarse, sanguine complexion; strong, bristly, grizzled beard; singular eyes, of a semi-transparent, indistinct light blue, and with that sleepy look that comes when the lid rests half way down over the pupil; careless, lounging gait. Walt Whitman, the sturdy, self-conscious microcosmic prose-poetical author of that incongruous hash of mud and gold--"Leaves of Grass."
-----------------------------------
link al saggio >>
----------------------------------
provate a fare un elenco dei personaggi withmaninani e a descriverli in altre parole, con la terminologia che avete a disposizione. potete imitare la tecnica (compound words, ad esempio) ma non ricopiare
provate a fare una descrizione di caratteri (nel senso di personaggi) che conoscete imitando withman
i più audaci possono anche disegnare!
mercoledì 17 novembre 2010
lunedì 15 novembre 2010
Eye Anomalies as Diagnostic Indicators of Communication Disorders
un articolo trovato sul net.
per ora solo l'introduzione.
vi chiedo di fare un elenco delle informazioni utili che riuscire ad isolare, sia in termini di regole grammaticali che di informazioni tecniche. vi metto in neretto alcune forme o espressioni che potranno essere fonte per discussione in classe.
Although eyes occupy a prominent position in the human face, the information they can provide about presence of communication disorders often goes unnoticed during an oral-facial examination. Many speech-language pathologists (SLPs) associate eye examination with vision testing, and rightly believe that vision assessment does not fall within the responsibilities of a speech-language pathologist. Visual acuity, however, is only one aspect of eye examination. Eye orientation, color, and appearance can provide useful diagnostic information as to presence and type of communication disorders, particularly those disorders having hearing loss as a component. Observation of external eye appearance can yield information about health conditions such as otosclerosis; neurological disorders like Wilson’s disease; first arch and mid-face anomalies including Treacher Collins and Crouzon; hearing loss due to genetic conditions like Waardenburg syndrome; and dual sensory disorders, such as CHARGE syndrome. This article describes several diagnostically significant anomalies of eye structure, but does not address anomalies of eye function, disorders of visual acuity, or eye muscle-related problems. This article also describes the relationships between external eye appearance and communication disorders, and suggests a simple protocol for observing, treating, and referring patients with eye anomalies.
trovate qui il resto dell'articolo
per ora solo l'introduzione.
vi chiedo di fare un elenco delle informazioni utili che riuscire ad isolare, sia in termini di regole grammaticali che di informazioni tecniche. vi metto in neretto alcune forme o espressioni che potranno essere fonte per discussione in classe.
Although eyes occupy a prominent position in the human face, the information they can provide about presence of communication disorders often goes unnoticed during an oral-facial examination. Many speech-language pathologists (SLPs) associate eye examination with vision testing, and rightly believe that vision assessment does not fall within the responsibilities of a speech-language pathologist. Visual acuity, however, is only one aspect of eye examination. Eye orientation, color, and appearance can provide useful diagnostic information as to presence and type of communication disorders, particularly those disorders having hearing loss as a component. Observation of external eye appearance can yield information about health conditions such as otosclerosis; neurological disorders like Wilson’s disease; first arch and mid-face anomalies including Treacher Collins and Crouzon; hearing loss due to genetic conditions like Waardenburg syndrome; and dual sensory disorders, such as CHARGE syndrome. This article describes several diagnostically significant anomalies of eye structure, but does not address anomalies of eye function, disorders of visual acuity, or eye muscle-related problems. This article also describes the relationships between external eye appearance and communication disorders, and suggests a simple protocol for observing, treating, and referring patients with eye anomalies.
trovate qui il resto dell'articolo
giovedì 11 novembre 2010
A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall
Vi propongo una canzone con due tipi di passato: present perfect e past simple.
e una domanda: perché dylan usa una volta uno e una volta l'altro? con che logica (se c'è)?
Oh, where have you been, my blue-eyed son ?
And where have you been my darling young one ?
I've stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains
I've walked and I've crawled on six crooked highways
I've stepped in the middle of seven sad forests
I've been out in front of a dozen dead oceans
I've been ten thousand miles in the mouth of a graveyard
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard
It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
Oh, what did you see, my blue eyed son ?
And what did you see, my darling young one ?
I saw a newborn baby with wild wolves all around it
I saw a highway of diamonds with nobody on it
I saw a black branch with blood that kept drippin'
I saw a room full of men with their hammers a-bleedin'
I saw a white ladder all covered with water
I saw ten thousand talkers whose tongues were all broken
I saw guns and sharp swords in the hands of young children
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard
It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
And what did you hear, my blue-eyed son ?
And what did you hear, my darling young one ?
I heard the sound of a thunder, it roared out a warnin'
I heard the roar of a wave that could drown the whole world
I heard one hundred drummers whose hands were a-blazin'
I heard ten thousand whisperin' and nobody listenin'
I heard one person starve, I heard many people laughin'
Heard the song of a poet who died in the gutter
Heard the sound of a clown who cried in the alley
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard
And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
Oh, who did you meet my blue-eyed son ?
Who did you meet, my darling young one ?
I met a young child beside a dead pony
I met a white man who walked a black dog
I met a young woman whose body was burning
I met a young girl, she gave me a rainbow
I met one man who was wounded in love
I met another man who was wounded in hatred
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard
And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
And what'll you do now, my blue-eyed son ?
And what'll you do now my darling young one ?
I'm a-goin' back out 'fore the rain starts a-fallin'
I'll walk to the depths of the deepest black forest
Where the people are a many and their hands are all empty
Where the pellets of poison are flooding their waters
Where the home in the valley meets the damp dirty prison
Where the executioner's face is always well hidden
Where hunger is ugly, where souls are forgotten
Where black is the color, where none is the number
And I'll tell and think it and speak it and breathe it
And reflect it from the mountain so all souls can see it
Then I'll stand on the ocean until I start sinkin'
But I'll know my songs well before I start singin'
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard
It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
la versione di edie brickell (una decente di dylan non l'ho trovata)
e una domanda: perché dylan usa una volta uno e una volta l'altro? con che logica (se c'è)?
Oh, where have you been, my blue-eyed son ?
And where have you been my darling young one ?
I've stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains
I've walked and I've crawled on six crooked highways
I've stepped in the middle of seven sad forests
I've been out in front of a dozen dead oceans
I've been ten thousand miles in the mouth of a graveyard
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard
It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
Oh, what did you see, my blue eyed son ?
And what did you see, my darling young one ?
I saw a newborn baby with wild wolves all around it
I saw a highway of diamonds with nobody on it
I saw a black branch with blood that kept drippin'
I saw a room full of men with their hammers a-bleedin'
I saw a white ladder all covered with water
I saw ten thousand talkers whose tongues were all broken
I saw guns and sharp swords in the hands of young children
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard
It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
And what did you hear, my blue-eyed son ?
And what did you hear, my darling young one ?
I heard the sound of a thunder, it roared out a warnin'
I heard the roar of a wave that could drown the whole world
I heard one hundred drummers whose hands were a-blazin'
I heard ten thousand whisperin' and nobody listenin'
I heard one person starve, I heard many people laughin'
Heard the song of a poet who died in the gutter
Heard the sound of a clown who cried in the alley
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard
And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
Oh, who did you meet my blue-eyed son ?
Who did you meet, my darling young one ?
I met a young child beside a dead pony
I met a white man who walked a black dog
I met a young woman whose body was burning
I met a young girl, she gave me a rainbow
I met one man who was wounded in love
I met another man who was wounded in hatred
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard
And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
And what'll you do now, my blue-eyed son ?
And what'll you do now my darling young one ?
I'm a-goin' back out 'fore the rain starts a-fallin'
I'll walk to the depths of the deepest black forest
Where the people are a many and their hands are all empty
Where the pellets of poison are flooding their waters
Where the home in the valley meets the damp dirty prison
Where the executioner's face is always well hidden
Where hunger is ugly, where souls are forgotten
Where black is the color, where none is the number
And I'll tell and think it and speak it and breathe it
And reflect it from the mountain so all souls can see it
Then I'll stand on the ocean until I start sinkin'
But I'll know my songs well before I start singin'
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard
It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
la versione di edie brickell (una decente di dylan non l'ho trovata)
domenica 7 novembre 2010
I still haven't found what I'm looking for
La canzone degli U2 a cui avevo accennato in classe
e il testo
I have climbed highest mountains
I have run through the fields
Only to be with you
Only to be with you
I have run
I have crawled
I have scaled these city walls
These city walls
Only to be with you
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
I have kissed honey lips
Felt the healing in her fingertips
It burned like a fire
This burning desire
I have spoke with the tongue of angels
I have held the hand of a devil
It was warm in the night
I was cold as a stone
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
I believe in the Kingdom Come
Then all the colors will bleed into one
Bleed into one
But yes I'm still running
You broke the bonds
And you loosed the chains
Carried the cross
Of my shame
Oh my shame
You know I believe it
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
e il testo
I have climbed highest mountains
I have run through the fields
Only to be with you
Only to be with you
I have run
I have crawled
I have scaled these city walls
These city walls
Only to be with you
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
I have kissed honey lips
Felt the healing in her fingertips
It burned like a fire
This burning desire
I have spoke with the tongue of angels
I have held the hand of a devil
It was warm in the night
I was cold as a stone
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
I believe in the Kingdom Come
Then all the colors will bleed into one
Bleed into one
But yes I'm still running
You broke the bonds
And you loosed the chains
Carried the cross
Of my shame
Oh my shame
You know I believe it
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
venerdì 5 novembre 2010
past simple or past continuous
per chi volesse continuare ad esercitarsi...
Put the verbs in brackets into the past simple or past continuous
Here he was (be), Davey Stark, the big rock star. It 2 ........................... (be) the
end of an exhausting two-hour concert. The fans 3 ........................... (scream)
and 4 ........................... (shout). They ........................... (want) Davey, their
hero. His face 6 ........................... (pour) with sweat, his hair 7 .......................... .
(drip) and his heart 8 ........................... (thump) violently. But he
9 .......................... (love) these moments at the end of a concert. He always
10 .......................... (feel) powerful and in control. He 11 .......................... .
(decide) to do one more song for the crowd: one of his most popular. When he
12 ........................... (start) singing, the crowd 13 ........................... (go) wild. By
the end of the song, they 14 ........................... (all/dance) and 15 .......................... .
(clap) their hands. When Davey 16 ........................... (leave) the stage, he
17 ........................... (be) exhausted but exhilarated. But when he
18 ........................... (get back) to the dressing room, he 19 ......................... ..
(open) the door and 20 ........................... (see) that two men 21 .......................... .
(wait) for him. They 22 ........................... (lock) the door behind Davey. He
23 ........................... (shout) for his bodyguard Bernard, but no-one
24 ........................... (come). The two men 25 ........................... (tie) his hands
behind his back, 26 ........................... (blindfold) and 27 ........................... (gag)
him. Davey 28 ........................... (can hear) Bernard in the next room. Bernard
29 ........................... (talk) to someone and he 30 ........................... (say) terrible
things about Davey. He 31 ........................... (say) that Davey 32 ......................... ..
(deserve) it. 33 ........................... (Deserve) what? What 34 ......................... ..
(he/mean)? What 35 ........................... (go on)? Why 36 ........................... (not
someone tell) him what 37 ............................ (happen)?
Put the verbs in brackets into the past simple or past continuous
Here he was (be), Davey Stark, the big rock star. It 2 ........................... (be) the
end of an exhausting two-hour concert. The fans 3 ........................... (scream)
and 4 ........................... (shout). They ........................... (want) Davey, their
hero. His face 6 ........................... (pour) with sweat, his hair 7 .......................... .
(drip) and his heart 8 ........................... (thump) violently. But he
9 .......................... (love) these moments at the end of a concert. He always
10 .......................... (feel) powerful and in control. He 11 .......................... .
(decide) to do one more song for the crowd: one of his most popular. When he
12 ........................... (start) singing, the crowd 13 ........................... (go) wild. By
the end of the song, they 14 ........................... (all/dance) and 15 .......................... .
(clap) their hands. When Davey 16 ........................... (leave) the stage, he
17 ........................... (be) exhausted but exhilarated. But when he
18 ........................... (get back) to the dressing room, he 19 ......................... ..
(open) the door and 20 ........................... (see) that two men 21 .......................... .
(wait) for him. They 22 ........................... (lock) the door behind Davey. He
23 ........................... (shout) for his bodyguard Bernard, but no-one
24 ........................... (come). The two men 25 ........................... (tie) his hands
behind his back, 26 ........................... (blindfold) and 27 ........................... (gag)
him. Davey 28 ........................... (can hear) Bernard in the next room. Bernard
29 ........................... (talk) to someone and he 30 ........................... (say) terrible
things about Davey. He 31 ........................... (say) that Davey 32 ......................... ..
(deserve) it. 33 ........................... (Deserve) what? What 34 ......................... ..
(he/mean)? What 35 ........................... (go on)? Why 36 ........................... (not
someone tell) him what 37 ............................ (happen)?
giovedì 4 novembre 2010
What is grammar for...
ecco il link al divertente estratto dal film Life of Brian, dei Monty Python.
di seguito il transcript della scena
Monty Python's "Life of Brian" (Romanes eunt domus...)
- What's this, then? "Romanes eunt domus"? "People called Romanes, they go the house"?
- It says, "Romans go home".
- No, it doesn't. What's Latin for "Roman"? Come on.
- Romanus?
- Goes like...?
- Anus?
- Vocative plural of "anus" is...?
- Ani?
- Romani.
- "Eunt"? What is eunt?
- "Go".
- Conjugate the verb "to go".
- Ere, eo, is, it, imus, itis, eunt.
- So "eunt" is...?
- Third person plural, present indicative. "They go".
- But "Romans go home" is an order, so you must use the...?
- Imperative!
- Which is...?
- Oh, "i".
- How many Romans?
- Plural, plural. "Ite", "Ite"!
- "Ite".
- "Domus"? Nominative?
- "Go home". This is motion towards, isn't it, boy?
- Dative! Not dative, not the dative, sir! The accusative! Accusative! "Domum", sir! "Ad domum".
- Except that "domus" takes the...?
- The locative, sir.
- Which is...?
- "Domum"!
- "Domum".
- Understand?
- Yes, sir!
- Now, write that 100 times.
- Yes, sir. Thank you. Hail Ceasar, sir.
- Hail Ceasar. If it's not done by sunrise, I'll cut your balls off.
- Oh, thank you, sir. Thank you, sir. Hail Ceasar and everything, sir.
- Finished...
- Right. Now, don't do it again!
di seguito il transcript della scena
Monty Python's "Life of Brian" (Romanes eunt domus...)
- What's this, then? "Romanes eunt domus"? "People called Romanes, they go the house"?
- It says, "Romans go home".
- No, it doesn't. What's Latin for "Roman"? Come on.
- Romanus?
- Goes like...?
- Anus?
- Vocative plural of "anus" is...?
- Ani?
- Romani.
- "Eunt"? What is eunt?
- "Go".
- Conjugate the verb "to go".
- Ere, eo, is, it, imus, itis, eunt.
- So "eunt" is...?
- Third person plural, present indicative. "They go".
- But "Romans go home" is an order, so you must use the...?
- Imperative!
- Which is...?
- Oh, "i".
- How many Romans?
- Plural, plural. "Ite", "Ite"!
- "Ite".
- "Domus"? Nominative?
- "Go home". This is motion towards, isn't it, boy?
- Dative! Not dative, not the dative, sir! The accusative! Accusative! "Domum", sir! "Ad domum".
- Except that "domus" takes the...?
- The locative, sir.
- Which is...?
- "Domum"!
- "Domum".
- Understand?
- Yes, sir!
- Now, write that 100 times.
- Yes, sir. Thank you. Hail Ceasar, sir.
- Hail Ceasar. If it's not done by sunrise, I'll cut your balls off.
- Oh, thank you, sir. Thank you, sir. Hail Ceasar and everything, sir.
- Finished...
- Right. Now, don't do it again!
mercoledì 3 novembre 2010
La grammatica
Per un testo di riferimento di base si può scegliere tra varie grammatiche di self-study, ossia con ampie spiegazioni e key in fine di libro.
Un classico è English Grammar in Use di Raymond Murphy edito da Cambridge.
Una versione molto basic si trova a>> http://englishgrammarinuse.net
Sempre di Cambridge sono poi un utile riferimento i testi della serie "In Use" come il vocabulary >> http://www.cambridge.org/it/elt/catalogue/subject/custom/item2701511/in-Use-Vocabulary/?site_locale=it_IT
oppure, per i più pignoli, anche il pronunciation >>http://www.cambridge.org/it/elt/catalogue/subject/custom/item2701512/in-Use-Pronunciation/?site_locale=it_IT
Un classico è English Grammar in Use di Raymond Murphy edito da Cambridge.
Una versione molto basic si trova a>> http://englishgrammarinuse.net
Sempre di Cambridge sono poi un utile riferimento i testi della serie "In Use" come il vocabulary >> http://www.cambridge.org/it/elt/catalogue/subject/custom/item2701511/in-Use-Vocabulary/?site_locale=it_IT
oppure, per i più pignoli, anche il pronunciation >>http://www.cambridge.org/it/elt/catalogue/subject/custom/item2701512/in-Use-Pronunciation/?site_locale=it_IT
giovedì 28 ottobre 2010
Link dizionari
www.thefreedictionary.com >>al mio avviso uno dei più completi. non fermiamoci alle semplici definizioni. ci sono un numero importante di dati che possono essere incrociati
www.wordreference.com >> sviluppa bene la parte bilingue, quindi del confronto tra varie lingue. ottimo il blog di traduttori collegato, una volta che si cerca un lemma inserito in un contesto particolare.
www.wordreference.com >> sviluppa bene la parte bilingue, quindi del confronto tra varie lingue. ottimo il blog di traduttori collegato, una volta che si cerca un lemma inserito in un contesto particolare.
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