English beginner

A Visit to New York City
READING
Luciano: I''m very excited! I am going to visit my cousin.
Michelle: Where does your cousin live?
Luciano: She lives in New York City.
Michelle: What does she do there?
Luciano: She is a student at Columbia University.
Michelle: What do you want to do while you are there?
Luciano: I want to visit the Statue of Liberty and go to a play on Broadway.

Would you like to visit New York City? What would you want to do there?

Marriage
Marry, marriage, married. Which of these is the verbal adjective?
If you chose ''married'', you are correct. If you are a married or engaged person, you use the verb marry and engage in this way with the helping verb "to be".
1. I am married.
2. He / She is married.
3. You /We /They are married.
4. I am engaged.
5. He/She is engaged.
6. You/We/They are engaged.
''Marriage'' is a noun and can be used like this:
Marriage is a good tra***ion.
''A priest is someone who marries people.''
This means that the priest performs marriage ceremonies for other people.
''He married his girlfriend.''
This means that he and his girlfriend became husband and wife.

Pastimes
We spend most of our adult lives working. Most people train for their jobs, and if they are lucky, they also enjoy their jobs. But perhaps the luckiest people in the world are those who have made their pastimes their full-time work. Match the job to the description:
1. spelunker
2. thespian
3. golf pro
4. roadie
5. mountaineer
1. someone who explores ****s
2. someone who climbs mountains
3. someone who travels with rock bands, setting up and taking down their equipment
4. an actor or actress
5. a professional golfer who teaches golf
ANSWERS: 1.(1) 2.(4) 3.(5) 4.(3) 5.(2)

A Visit to New York City
GRAMMAR
There are many kinds of questions you might want to ask in English. Some of the most common questions begin with "what," "where," or "who." Look at the examples below.
What is your name? My name is Carolyn.
What do you do for a living? I am a teacher.
What are your hobbies? I like to go skydiving and to collect seashells.
Where do you live? I live in New York City.
Where is the library? It is on Main Street, next to the post office.
Where is a good place to eat? There is a new restaurant down the street that has good food.
Who is your favorite author? My favorite author is Barbara Kingsolver.
Who do you want to win the Superbowl? I want the Baltimore Colts to win.
Who is that? (pointing to a picture) That is my brother, David.
See if you can ask the question for each answer given below. Look at the example done for you.
Example: Spring is my favorite season. (What is your favorite season?)
1. My mother''s name is Margaret.
2. Lisa is making the cake.
3. The keys are on the table.
Answers:
1. What is your mother''s name?
2. Who is making the cake? (or, What is Lisa making?)
3. Where are the keys?

Pastimes
For some people, watching television is a pastime! Read this conversation:
Shoshana: How can you lie there like a lump watching the idiot box on such a nice day?
Shaun: Cut me some slack! I worked hard this week. I want to veg.
Shoshana: You are such a couch potato. Quit channel surfing and enjoy the day!
Shaun: No thanks.
Shoshana: Your loss!
VOCABULARY (SLANG)
Find the slang expressions in the dialogue that can replace the words in parentheses:
1. My husband (changes the channels quickly with the remote control).
2. He sits there (without moving). He''s (someone who watches a lot of TV).
3. (Don''t bother me!)
4. She likes to (vegetate) on the weekends.
5. I love (television).
ANSWERS:
1. channel surfing
2. like a lump; couch potato
3. Cut me some slack! (same as: Give me a break!)
4. veg (pronounced with a soft "g;" meaning "to do nothing")
5. the idiot box

Marriage
WEDDING RINGS
Do you know your ordinal numbers? Those are numbers that are in a series, e.g. first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and so on. How do you think those numbers refer to fingers where people wear wedding rings?
Married people usually show that they are married by wearing a ring. It is often made of gold. In different parts of the world, people wear wedding rings on different fingers.

First, let''s review the names of the fingers: The biggest or first finger is called the thumb (the final "b" is silent - it is pronounced "thum").
The second finger is called the index finger.
The third finger is called the middle finger.
The fourth finger is called the "ring" finger.
The fifth finger is called the little finger or the pinky.
In India, the wedding ring is worn on the thumb. In Greece it used to be worn on the index finger. In many countries today, the ring is worn on the fourth finger because it is said that the fourth finger has a vein that is directly connected to the heart, the place where love is felt.
Test yourself:

Pastimes
"Surfing the web" is now a popular pastime, but a few years ago, studies showed that some people surfed the web too much. For them, the web was an addiction. Now, however, there is a recent study from England showing a very different problem, especially among young people. Teenagers are bored with the web. It was exciting when the web was new, but now everybody uses it. Website owners are worried that the trend will continue.

Trend: a fad, something that is popular for a short time
QUESTIONS
1. What does "surfing the web" mean?
2. What is an addiction?
3. How much time do you spend surfing the web? Too much?
4. Do you think the study is correct? Will internet use continue to decline? Why or why not?
ANSWERS:
1. going to many different websites
2. something you can''t live without.
For 3 and 4, come share your answers with us at the Forums and Chats!! We''d love to "chat" with you!

Marriage
WEDDING TRA***IONS
Read the following paragraph about wedding tra***ions.
"Tossing the bouquet" (a bunch of flowers) is a common wedding tra***ion in the United States. The bride (= the woman getting married) usually carries a bouquet of flowers during the wedding. After the wedding, the bride throws a bunch of flowers to a group of unmarried women. Catching the bouquet is a sign that the woman will marry next.
Now read the paragraph again, and count the gerunds (verb plus -ing) used in the beginning of sentences (as subjects) in this reading.

Gerunds as subjects can be used in the beginning of sentences. In this reading, ''tossing'' and ''catching'' are gerunds.

Grammar
English is a difficult language. There are very few rules in it that apply all the time. So remember that some of the rules you learnt in your English course can occasionally be broken. The best way to learn English is by looking at lots of examples and seeing when the rules apply and when they don''t.
Check that the endings of verbs agree with their subjects and with the tense.
Make sure you know the difference between adjectives and adverbs. Is the adjective/adverb you are using modifying a noun or a verb?
Most, but not all, nouns need to be preceded by an article. Make sure you understand the difference between `a'' and `the''.
People''s names followed by ''s are never preceded by an article. `The Zipf''s Law states that...'' is wrong. It should be `Zipf''s Law states that...''.
Be suspicious of sentences that contain verbs in different tenses. Should they be in the same tense?
`as follow'' is wrong. It should be `as follows''.
`in term of'' is wrong. It should be `in terms of''.
Some nouns (like water and rice) don''t have a plural. E.g. information, research, work - there is no such word as `informations''. These can also never be preceded by `a'' or `an''.
Be careful not to use adjectives instead of nouns.
`parametric values'' is wrong. It should be `parameter values''.
Don''t use the phrase `there exists'' except inside a mathematical theorem. Instead write `A ... exists ...''.
All sentences must have a verb, but remember that a phrase containing a verb might not be a sentence. E.g. `Although the test results were positive.'' is not a sentence. It is a subordinate clause that must be preceded or followed by a main clause.
Verbs without a subject must be in the present continuous (-ing form) except for commands. E.g. `Referring to Fig. 4, ...''; `A method has been developed for solving ...''; `Integrating (3.2) gives ...''.
Adjectives must (nearly always) be associated with a noun. E.g. `Similar to ...'' is wrong. You must write something like `In a similar way to ...''. [Adjectives can sometimes be used as nouns, but this is not commonly seen in scientific writing.]
Be careful about when to use the past and present tense. If the thing is still true, you should be using the present. Hence, analytical derivations should be described using the present tense. Experimental procedures that you carried out should be described using the past tense.
Make sure you know when to use `many'' and `much''. They are for discrete and continuous things, respectively. `A lot of'' can be used for either.
``that defines, which refines''''. This is a more subtle point which even native speakers often get wrong.
If you are in doubt about whether a phrase is correct, you could search for the whole phrase on the web using an advanced search engine such as http://www.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en. If most of the sites found are in non-English speaking countries, your phrase is likely to be wrong.

Pastimes
In North America, fitness clubs are very popular. For a fee, you can join a club (or "gym") and "get fit." The clubs offer fitness classes, weight rooms, a variety of exercise machines, and sometimes a pool or a running track. January is the busiest month at these clubs in North America. Why? Because many people make getting fit a New Year''s Resolution!
Here are some popular fitness classes:
1. tae bo
2. yoga
3. step class
4. spinning class
1. a fitness class with stationary bicycles
2. a fitness class with slow, gentle stretches
3. a fitness class with boxing moves
4. a fitness class with a moveable step for extra exercise
ANSWERS: 1.(3) 2.(2) 3.(4) 4.(1)