[ENVIRONMENT ★★]

IS THERE A NEW PLANET IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM?

(P1) You might have a REPLACEMENT, Pluto. There could be another planet in our SOLAR SYSTEM.

(P2) Researchers at the California Institute of Technology have found EVIDENCE in the outer solar system of an object that could be a real ninth planet.

(P3) Nicknamed Planet Nine, it “has a MASS about 10 times that of Earth and ORBITS about 20 times farther from the sun” than Neptune. That means “it would take this new planet between 10,000 and 20,000 years to make just one full orbit around the sun,” according to Caltech.

(P4) Researchers Konstantin Batygin and Mike Brown haven’t actually seen the planet, but other research helped lead them to conclude that there is one. They discovered that certain objects in the Kuiper Belt — the field of icy objects and DEBRIS beyond Neptune — had orbits that pointed in the same direction.

(P5) Over time, mathematical modeling and computer simulation led them to the conclusion that a planet was EXERTING the GRAVITY necessary to shape these orbits.

(P6) Brown says, “There have only been two true planets discovered since ancient times, Uranus and Neptune, and this would be the third. It’s a pretty SUBSTANTIAL chunk of our solar system that’s still out there to be found, which is pretty exciting.”

(P7) Already, the Caltech researchers are confident that Planet Nine is large enough to rule out any debate about whether it’s a true planet — unlike Pluto, which GOT THE BOOT in 2006 for being too small.

(P8) Brown, who played a role in Pluto’s DEMOTION to a DWARF PLANET, says “all those people who are mad that Pluto is no longer a planet can be THRILLED to know that there is a real planet out there still to be found. Now we can go and find this planet and make the solar system have nine planets once again.”

(P9) Depending on where Planet Nine is, many ASTRONOMERS HAVE A SHOT AT finding it. Brown would love to find a planet he helped discover, “but I’d also be perfectly happy if someone else found it. That is why we’re publishing this paper. We hope that other people are going to get inspired and start searching.”

WORDS: 366

SOURCE: http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/20/us/possible-ninth-planet/

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

If you found the passage difficult to read or had problems understanding specific words or idiomatic expressions, please discuss them with your tutor. The following discussion questions should be answered in your own words and with your own arguments.

1. Briefly summarize the content of the article in your own words.
2. Notice that like many American newspaper and magazine articles, this article has many uses of informal language such as “got the boot” and “have a shot.” Is journalism in your country written in formal or informal language?
3. How can scientists “discover” something that they haven’t actually seen, whether it is a space object or a SUB-ATOMIC PARTICLE? What evidence tells them that these things exist?
4. Have you seen any of the recent space exploration movies like Gravity, Interstellar, or The Martian?
5. Have you ever owned a TELESCOPE? Do you enjoy looking at the night sky?

EXPRESSIONS TO PRACTICE:

What do the following expressions mean? Practice using each expression in a sentence; extra points if you can use it in conversation.

• Solar system
• Get the boot
• Dwarf planet
• Have a shot at
• Sub-atomic particle

[SPORTS ★]

AMERICAN FIGURE SKATING IS IN SERIOUS DECLINE

(P1) These are TROUBLED times for American figure skating, which was once so popular that it beat the men’s NCAA basketball tournament in TV ratings (10.1 to 8.8 in 1996).

(P2) TV ratings have PLUMMETED. Touring shows of Olympic skaters that used to stop in 80 to 90 cities have either DISBANDED or shrunk. American singles skaters, the superstars of the sport for generations, don’t win anything anymore. And more than a decade after the sport introduced a new judging system, no one has any idea what is happening on the ice.

(P3) You remember the 6.0 scoring system? The one with the numbers displayed with the flags of the judges’ countries? It was reality TV before there was reality TV. There were villains. There were heroes. You could scream at the TV.

(P4) But then the leaders of the sport decided to get rid of the 6.0 for a system that allows judges to remain ANONYMOUS and everyone else to have no idea what is going on.

(P5) Sit and watch an event at the national championships next to Olympic gold medalist Brian Boitano and you know you’re not alone in your confusion. “I look at the scores and kind of go, ‘huh,’ then lean over and ask (younger former competitive skaters) Michael Weiss or Ryan Bradley to explain it for me,” Boitano said with a laugh.

(P6) “The current scoring system leaves people BEWILDERED,” Dick Button, the two-time Olympic gold medalist and long-time announcer told me over the phone the other day.

(P7) Let’s remember how good it once was. Travel with me back to the glorious 1990s.

(P8) The women’s short program at the 1994 Lillehammer Olympics received a 48.5 TV rating, making it the sixth-highest rated television show in history.

(P9) There was nowhere to go but down. But now we’ve hit ROCK BOTTOM.

(P10) Stars would have helped. But Michelle Kwan has been retired for almost 10 years now, and no one has taken her place. No one has broken through with an individual Olympic or world championship medal, leading to an UNPRECEDENTED nine-season DROUGHT for U.S. women at the worlds and Olympics.

(P11) Without reliable and consistent personalities, fans go elsewhere. There are too many injuries, too many falls, too many disappointments.

WORDS: 374

SOURCE: http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/columnist/brennan/2016/01/21/brennan-heres-why-us-figure-skating-has-fallen-so-far/79138476/

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

If you found the passage difficult to read or had problems understanding specific words or idiomatic expressions, please discuss them with your tutor. The following discussion questions should be answered in your own words and with your own arguments.

1. Briefly summarize the content of the article in your own words.
2. Have you ever watched a figure skating competition on television?
3. Is figure skating a popular sport in your country? Who are the most famous skaters?
4. Several Olympic sports involve SUBJECTIVE judging – figure skating, GYMNASTICS, diving. Do you understand the scoring systems, or are they confusing to you?
5. Why is women’s figure skating more popular than men’s figure skating? (Women’s gymnastics is also more popular than men’s gymnastics.)

EXPRESSIONS TO PRACTICE:

What do the following expressions mean? Practice using each expression in a sentence; extra points if you can use it in conversation.

• Rock bottom

[CULTURE AND ENTERTAINMENT ★★]

WROCLAW IS 2016 EUROPEAN CAPITAL OF CULTURE

(P1) Combining a long Polish and German HERITAGE, Poland’s western city of Wroclaw becomes one of the European Capitals of Culture in 2016.

(P2) Formerly known as Breslau and part of Germany before the end of World War II, Wroclaw will share the honor with the city of San Sebastian on Spain’s northern coast.

(P3) Poland’s fourth largest city with a population of 630,000, Wroclaw is an industrial centre and university town.

(P5) The central European MELTING POT was part of the Kingdom of Poland, Bohemia, Hungary, the Austrian Empire, Prussia, and Germany at different times over the centuries.

(P6) The city’s honor comes at a time of difficult relations between Poland and Germany.

(P7) But in Wroclaw there is no ILL WILL, according to longtime resident Amanda Rozanska: “We don’t have a problem with Germans.”

(P8) The culture capital celebrations begin this weekend, with dancers and musicians TAKING TO THE STREETS.

(P9) “I believe this may be the most important year in the post-war history of Wroclaw,” says Mayor Rafal Dutkiewicz on the city’s website about the many cultural events planned over the next 12 months.

(P10) “We want Wroclaw to be important on the map of Europe and the world.”

(P11) One way to look at the city’s history is to read about daily life in pre-war Breslau, depicted in detail by local writer Marek Krajewski in his detective novel series featuring policeman Eberhard Mock, which has been translated into 18 languages including German.

(P12) Soviet bombing destroyed 70 percent of the city in 1945 and most of the German residents left after the war ended.

(P13) Wroclaw was mainly repopulated by Poles from the city of Lwow — which became Ukraine’s Lviv after the war — and also attracted Jews and Greek immigrants.

(P14) In the 1980s, Wroclaw was an active location of the Solidarity TRADE UNION that worked for a peaceful end to communism in Poland in 1989.

(P15) Then came the “Flood of the Century” in July 1997, an event that united Wroclaw residents.

(P16) “Everyone came out to carry SANDBAGS to block the water,” said Grzegorz Roman, an advisor at the mayor’s office.

WORDS: 351

SOURCE: http://artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=11&int_new=84408#.VqF33PkrLIV

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

If you found the passage difficult to read or had problems understanding specific words or idiomatic expressions, please discuss them with your tutor. The following discussion questions should be answered in your own words and with your own arguments.

1. Briefly summarize the content of the article in your own words.
2. Many cities in Europe, like Wroclaw/Breslau and Lwow/Lviv, have been parts of different countries at different times. Have the BORDERS of your country changed much, or have they remained the same?
3. How does your city celebrate culture? Are there any regular events or festivals?
4. Have there ever been any natural disasters such as floods in your city?
5. Do you enjoy reading HISTORICAL NOVELS to learn about the past?

EXPRESSIONS TO PRACTICE:

What do the following expressions mean? Practice using each expression in a sentence; extra points if you can use it in conversation.

• Melting pot
• Ill will
• Take to the streets
• Trade union
• Historical novel

[WORLD NEWS ★]

BLIZZARD HITS EASTERN UNITED STATES

(P1) A BLIZZARD covered the eastern United States in near-record amounts of snow Saturday, shutting down New York and Washington in a huge storm expected to affect more than 85 million people.

(P2) More than 4,400 flights were cancelled as the storm brought airports in New York, Philadelphia, Washington and Baltimore to a HALT.

(P3) Fifteen people died in Arkansas, Kentucky, New York, North Carolina, Maryland and Virginia, while more than 200,000 people were left without power.

(P4) METEOROLOGISTS said the storm would last into Sunday with two feet (60 centimeters) expected in Washington and more than 20 inches falling in parts of New York, making it one of that city’s five biggest blizzards in history.

(P5) State Governor Andrew Cuomo closed all roads in the city.

(P6) “Safety is our number one PRIORITY,” Cuomo told reporters.

(P7) Broadway plays cancelled performances, museums and shops closed.

(P8) Strong winds are causing coastal flooding concerns for a large portion of the East Coast, the National Weather Forecast (NWS) warned, with streets in some New Jersey towns filled with water and ice.

(P9) Thousands of motorists were STRANDED for hours on highways in the south.

(P10) SNOW PLOWS struggled to clear New York streets, where parked cars were buried under the snow.

(P11) Washington saw around 20 inches of snow, with winds creating massive SNOW DRIFTS. Reagan National and Dulles International airports were expected to remain closed through Sunday.

(P12) “We know that it is very rough outside, and in some cases, there have been reports of WHITEOUT conditions for the past two hours. VISIBILITY is extremely poor,” Washington mayor Muriel Bowser told reporters.

(P13) One resident of Washington was having a great time, though – Tian Tian, a PANDA at the National Zoo. Footage of him playing outside quickly went viral.

WORDS: 292

SOURCE: http://news.yahoo.com/massive-blizzard-shuts-down-eastern-united-states-222902937.html

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

If you found the passage difficult to read or had problems understanding specific words or idiomatic expressions, please discuss them with your tutor. The following discussion questions should be answered in your own words and with your own arguments.

1. Briefly summarize the content of the article in your own words.
2. Have you ever experienced a snowstorm?
3. Have you ever experienced a long power OUTAGE (also known as a “blackout”)?
4. What was the last severe weather event to happen in your city?
5. Why do cute videos and photographs like the panda rolling in the snow “go viral”?
6. Have you ever experienced whiteout conditions when you couldn’t see while you were driving (from snow, rain, FOG, dust, etc.)? Was it scary?

EXPRESSIONS TO PRACTICE:

What do the following expressions mean? Practice using each expression in a sentence; extra points if you can use it in conversation.

• Snow plow
• Snow drift