domenica 10 maggio 2009

What's up?

Ehi everyone, it's been a long long time since last update...

I was very concentrated on the legal wiki and today i have posted my work!
Check it out on http://luisslegalenglish.pbworks.com/
Look for the pages about history of common and civil law for my personal topics :- )

lunedì 30 marzo 2009

Homework 30-03-09

Summary paragraph on the Sydney Opera House

The Sydney Opera House is one of the most famous architectural wonders of the modern World.
It's recognizable both for its roof shells and its impressive location in Sydney Harbour.
The construction of this large performing art centre was started in 1959 and completed in 1973 by the Danish architect Jorn Utzon.
The Opera House includes theatres, rehearsal studios, restaurant, bars and shops.
Even if expected to cost $7 million, the final cost was$102 million, also the completion of the building was expected in four years.
Inaugurated by Queen Elizabeth II on 20th October 1973 millions of people attended the ceremony and the event was televised and included a fireworks display and a classical music performance



Write a paragraph on your blog reflecting on the listening workshop

This week we tested our listening skills : i found it quite useful also because it's been long time since my last listening test.

However i believe that in order to really improve the listening skill recorded tracks are not the best solution : in fact when listen to someone we are able to look at his movements, to see his lips moving and many other things that modify a conversation and are not represented this way.

I find more useful listen to the teacher and see how a real english speaks

mercoledì 25 marzo 2009

Homework!

Decide on what you would like to write about for the Legal English Wiki.

I would like to write about differences between a civil law legal system and a common law legal system , and i can say right now why ;
1) Comparate Law is an argument nowadays essential in the lawyer formation
2) It's very interesting and can help us improve our legal english too
3)Legal English has traditionally been the preserve of lawyers from many countries (USA, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand) which have shared common law traditions. However, due to the spread of English as the predominant language of international business, as well as its role as a legal language within the European Union, legal English is now a global phenomenon.




Some self study work on countable/uncountable nouns and noun phrases.

Countable nouns are easy to recognize. They are things that we can count. For example: "cat". We can count cats. We can have one, two, three or more cats. Here are some more countable nouns:
dog, pen, animal, man, person ,bag,cup,coins


Countable nouns can be singular or plural:

My dog is playing.
My dogs are hungry.


We can use the indefinite article a/an with countable nouns:
A dog is an animal.


When a countable noun is singular, we must use a word like a/the/my/this with it:

I want an orange. (not I want orange.)
Where is my bottle? (not Where is bottle?)


When a countable noun is plural, we can use it alone:

I like oranges.

Bottles can break.

We can use some and any with countable nouns:
I've got some dollars.

Have you got any pens?
We can use a few and many with countable nouns:
I've got a few dollars.
I haven't got many pens.




Uncountable nouns are substances, concepts etc that we cannot divide into separate elements. We cannot "count" them. For example, we cannot count "milk".
We can count "bottles of milk" or "litres of milk", but we cannot count "milk" itself.



Some more uncountable nouns:
music, art, love, happiness
advice, information, news
furniture, luggage
rice, sugar, butter, water
electricity, gas, power
money, currency


We usually treat uncountable nouns as singular. We use a singular verb. For example:
This news is very important.
Your luggage looks heavy.


We do not usually use the indefinite article a/an with uncountable nouns. We cannot say "an information" or "a music". But we can say a something of:
a piece of news
a bottle of water
a grain of rice


We can use some and any with uncountable nouns:
I've got some money.
Have you got any rice?



We can use a little and much with uncountable nouns:
I've got a little money.
I haven't got much rice.

mercoledì 18 marzo 2009

Learning styles & multiple intelligences

All the tests i have done ( the one we all did last week and the tests on the blog) are evidencing that i appear to be an " all-around" intelligence.
I am trying to say that somethimes it appears that i am a visual learner, sometimes and auditory but also in one test a kinesthetic learner.
I can approve these results because whenever I am studyng something i need to use visual materials, to take notes and if possibile to visualize information but at the same time i need to discuss my ideas, to repeat in order to memorize and in the end i really need to take breaks if needed and skim through reading material to get a rough idea what it is about before settling down to read it in detail.
So, when studyng English, i need to use to advantage my learning skills , taking notes, repeating etc.etc.

Home Sweet Home

Hey There!

It's been a while since last post, but now lessons are started and there will be many updates!
Stay tuned :- )

lunedì 8 dicembre 2008

Discussion Topic Six: Reflection
Now that most of you have completed your essays and written assessments and we are coming to the end of the term, I would like you to look back to the first lesson and the goals that you set for yourself. Do you think that you have achieved those goals?What have you learned this term?How has your English improved?What is the next thing you want to achieve?

During this lessons I have learnt and strengthened many areas of English learning.
First of all speaking, because during this time I always spoke English in classroom with the teacher and with my pals, improving my pronunciation and accents in order to understand each other.
Then it comes listening, because to speak also means to listen.
Collocation was a great adding to my English knowledge and to repeat the forms of conditional also was very useful.
Now I am looking forward to the next course, in order to be ready for the final test at June.
I know there is a lot to learn but ..no pain no gain!






Discussion Topic Five. Euthanasia & the Law
Last week in class we touched on the topic of Euthanasia. This is a very emotive and controversial issue and the legal arguments for and against Euthanasia highlight some important differences between various legal philosophies. For example, a Natural Law theorist would probably argue against Euthanasia while a Legal Positivist might be in favour of it.In the U.K. Euthanasia is still technically illegal though the Courts have made a distinction between acting and refraining to act. Mick Hume, in his editorial in The Times, "Forget A New Euthanasia Law" (
http://timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/coulumnist/mick_hume/article3308471.ece )argues that there is no need to reform the law on Euthanasia in the U.K. because Common Law Judges are able to deal with the complexity of the issue on a case by case basis.What are your views on Euthanasia?What is the situation in Italy?Do you think the law should be reformed? Why/Why not?For more information on Euthanasia and the law in the U.K. and Europe go to:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/background_briefings/euthanasia/1044740.stm



Euthanasia (literally "good death" in
Ancient Greek) refers to the practice of ending a life in a painless manner.
In my humble opinion euthanasia is a very controversial theme nowadays.
Of course to end a life is not something that a man could tolerate without a right cause but there are some situations in which it could not be so easy.
I would never kill anyone even if he asks me, still if had no chances of surviving a fatal ill I would probably be happy to know that when I want I can decide to stop living : after all it’s my life I am talking about.
In Italy there are no laws regarding euthanasia and I think it would really be important to move forward this direction.
Maybe everyone should be free to decide his own destiny.













Discussion Topic Four:
Last week saw Barack Obama win the U.S, Election in a historic victory. Obama is the 27th lawyer to become president of the United States. Why do you think so many lawyers go into politics? Do you think lawyers make good politicians? Why/Why not?See also:http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11/03/election.trivia/index.html




I believe that so many lawyers go into politics because while studying law, and when utilizing what you learnt, you truly understand many things of our society.
I have just begun my law degree and I already have analyzed many interesting topics.
Good politicians are not necessary lawyers, but people aware of the society, and a lawyer is often so.










Discussion Topic Two: Pronunciation & Phonetics
This week I'd like you to consider the importance of using phonetic symbols.Do you use these symbols to help you? Why/Why not?How do you learn the correct pronunciation of new words?What other aspects of your English language learning can these symbols help you with apart from pronunciation?

I often use International Phonetic Alphabet while studying foreign languages ; being based on the Latin alphabet I find it really useful and easy .

But for correct pronunciation of new words I believe that the best way to follow is hear them and then repeat them, until you are really comfortable with them
Even if the IPA is designed to represent only those qualities of speech that are distinctive in
spoken language: phonemes, intonation, and the separation of words and syllables, in order to represent additional qualities of speech such as tooth-gnashing, lisping, and sounds made with a cleft palate, an extended set of symbols called the Extensions to the IPA is used.

Discussion Topics