What is trolling and what can you do about it? (1)

Beware Internet Trolls! 

• What are trolls?
• What do they have to do with the Internet?

For anyone who grew up reading world-renowned fairy tales, the term troll will bring a certain image to mind. In the story Three Billy Goats Gruff, a troll is an ugly, menacing bully who lives under a bridge and threatens the goats who pass over. But what does this awful creature have to do with the World Wide Web?

On the internet, trolls are individuals who provoke people online by starting arguments using hostile posts. They're basically cyberbullies, always ready to post mean, hurtful comments, often hoping to pick a flight.

Instead of hiding out under bridges waiting for innocent passersby, they lurk by comment boards or wherever online users interact with one another. They're ready and waiting to attack unsuspecting internet users. This similarity is one reason why these internet intruders have come to be known as trolls.

While this hidden community taunts the rest of the internet, many people are asking why. Psychologists may have an answer. People who engage in trolling enjoy distressing others and making them feel bad. The internet is a playground for trolls.

Info Cloud

• jump scare
• mirror scare
• surprise creepy

Language Lab
beware v.
to be careful: to act in a way that shows you know that there may be danger or trouble — used only as beware or to beware
- Beware! A low-carb diet isn't suitable for all people.
beware of
- Beware of the slippery floor.
- Beware of putting your personal info on the internet.

menacing adj.
a dangerous or possibly harmful person or thing — usually singular
menace v.
/ˈmɛnəs/
- The strange man's menacing behavior scared the passersby.
- Menacing dark clouds moved fast toward us as we tried to leave the forest.

lurk v.
to be in a hidden place
- The thief was lurking in the crowd trying to find his next victim.
lurk v.
computers : to read messages written by other people on the Internet in a newsgroup, chat room, etc., without writing any messages yourself
- Ron loves to lurk around music forums and find new songs to listen to.
- Issac spends a great deal of time lurking about teen chat rooms.

taunt v.
/ˈtɑːnt/
to say insulting things to (someone) in order to make that person angry
- When he was young, Cliff used to taunt kids who were smaller than him in his class.
- Taylor's classmates love to taunt her because she's chubby.
- The kids in high school kept provoking Sean with taunts and nasty nicknames.

provoke v.
to cause (a person or animal) to become angry, violent, etc.
- He just says those things because he's trying to provoke you.

Micro-homes (2)

Understanding the tiny
As visually appealing as micro-homes are, there are a few drawbacks to consider before getting cozy on a mini-couch. Moving into a tiny house requires the elimination of most non-essentials, no matter the emotional connection to them. Guests will also mostly be out of the question as the limited space may even cause a solitary individual to experience some cabin fever.

And finally, a micro-home is likely a temporary living option for most people since they will probably start families and acquire more possessions.

Embracing the tiny
Though the limitations will scare some, there is usually a benefit. A small size results in a small price tag and small bills, making tiny houses easier to save up for and budget. And though you won’t have much stuff around the house, this can provide the comfort of simple living and maintenance. Micro-homes are also practically mobile and boast eco-friendliness that can’t be matched by other homes. They probably aren’t for everyone or forever, but when it comes to your next (or first) home, they could be just what you need.

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Teaching Topic: Pros and Cons教學主題: 利與弊

A drawback is a disadvantage or downside. Of course when there are disadvantages or downsides, there are often advantages or upsides.

So we often have to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of something, and we can call them the pros and cons.

Pros and cons is actually short for pro and contra, a Latin phrase that means for and against.

Now since this is a stock expression we should use it as such and not break it up, if we just talk about a pro or a con by itself, it may cause confusion.

Right, since the two words have different meanings outside of the phrase pros and cons without the context a pro or a con can be misinterpreted.

Yes. So if I want to emphasize that many advantages of football team has, for example, I should just say that instead of saying the football team has lots of pros.

Right, if I heard the football team has a lot of pros, I would think the team has many professional players.

Yeah, the same with con, which can mean fraud, so if we don’t first mention pros and cons, we should stick to words like, advantages, disadvantages, upsides, downsides, pluses and minuses. For example, being a fashion model is fun and exciting but there are downsides to the job as well.

Language Lab
elimination n.
the act or process of removing something or someone
- The new vaccine has contributed to the elimination of the disease.
eliminate v.
to remove (something that is not wanted or needed) : to get rid of (something)
- Ninety percent of the applicants were eliminated in the first interview.

cabin fever n.
an unhappy and impatient feeling that comes from being indoors for too long
- She suffered from cabin fever during the long winter.
- Some researchers who lived at the isolated camp experienced some cabin fever during winter.

embrace v.
to accept (something or someone) readily or gladly
- The new communication apps were quickly embraced by teenagers.
to hold someone in your arms as a way of expressing love or friendship
- Charlene embraced her husband when she greeted him at the airport.
embrace n.
the act of holding someone in your arms : the act of embracing someone
- Susan gave her boy a warm embrace when he got home.

maintenance n.
the act of maintaining something or someone: such as a : the act of keeping property or equipment in good condition by making repairs, correcting problems, etc.
- The car fuse was replaced during a regular maintenance check last week.
maintain v.
to keep (something) in good condition by making repairs, correcting problems, etc.
- Paul's Porsche costs a fortune to maintain.

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Micro-homes (1)

For housing, bigger may not always be better

When young people begin to live independently, home-hunting can involve some stress. But they would do well to remember that a new alternative is available – micro-homes.

Introducing the tiny
Fondly called “tiny houses,” these dwellings have all living necessities in a small package, including kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. Generally under 50 square meters, most tiny houses accommodate just one or two people though some claim the space for more. What’s lost in size is not lost in design as these homes are often quite unique and modern in design.

Innovating the tiny
Besides an attractive appearance, tiny houses can also boast unique practical features. Making the best of urban space, the 72- to 122-centimeter-wide Keret House in Warsaw, the world’s narrowest home, filled in an alley. The prototype home Ecocapsule uses solar power, wind power and rain water collection to enable its owner to live practically anywhere. A system of rails allows the DALE micro-home to adjust room size and number as well as adding the option of an open or enclosed courtyard.

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Teaching Topic: Urban, Suburban and Rural 教學主題: 都市、郊區與鄉間
If you live in a big city, you live in an urban area. Urban is an adjective, meaning having the characteristics of a big city.

Okay, add the prefix sub in front of urban and we get suburban, the prefix sub means below but you can also refer to what’s outside. Suburban area is just outside the urban area.

Suburban area is also called the suburbs and suburbia, both of which refer to residential communities outside a large city. Usually people who live in the suburbs are middle class that is people who are neither very rich nor poor but fall somewhere in the middle.

Okay, most of the time people in the suburbs work in the city and have to commute from home to work, now why do people go to the hustle of commuting? Well, suburbs are known fit for their quiet neighborhoods and for being family-friendly. So many families choose to raise their children in the suburbs.

Now if you go farther out from the city, pass the suburbs, you’ll come to rural areas or the country, where there are fewer people and their homes and businesses are located far away from one another.

In the past, more people lived in rural areas than in urban areas, but in many places this is no longer the case due to urbanization. And that is the process in which people move into urban areas to live and work.

Language Lab
micro- (combining form)
very small
- These micro-homes were built with recycled materials.
- microwave
- microphone
- microchip

dwelling n.
/ˈdwɛlɪŋ/
a place where a person lives
- The church became a temporary dwelling for hurricane victims.
- Over 2000 dwellings will be built in this development.

innovate v.
/ˈɪnəˌveɪt/
to do something in a new way : to have new ideas about how something can be done
- The research team is trying to innovate a new cancer treatment.
innovation n.
a new idea, device, or method
- You can see the latest innovations in computer technologies at the fair.

prototype n.
/ˈproʊtəˌtaɪp/
an original or first model of something from which other forms are copied or developed
- A prototype of the car is still undergoing manufacturing.
- A prototype of this new cellphone will be released to the public soon.

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The Speed of Cities (1)

A city’s pace of life reveals a lot about its size, success and culture

Are you a fast or slow walker? Is your city or town wealthy or poor? Believe it or not, research suggests walking speed and a city's prosperity may be related! Citizens of bigger, affluent cities tend to walk faster, while residents of poorer cities tend to take things a little slower. Why is that? A social psychologist named Robert Levine wanted to know, so he went out into the streets to get answers.

A worldwide experiment

With help from all over the world, Levine conducted an experiment. What's the average speed of a pedestrian over a distance of 18.29 meters?

Volunteers in big cities in 31 countries timed pedestrians as they covered this distance and submitted their results. The fastest pedestrians lived in Ireland, crossing the distance in an average of 11.13 seconds. The slowest walkers hailed from Brazil, where they got from point A to point B at a more leisurely 16.76 seconds.

Levine found that these results were strongly related to economic success. Residents of cities that struggled or were still developing moved at a slower pace, and residents of wealthy cities moved faster. The motto "Time is money" seems to be true!

Info Cloud

Teaching Topic: Speed vs. Pace

The title of our article today is "The Speed of Cities", but if look below the title, you will notice the word "pace." The deck of the article said, "a city's pace of life reveals a lot about its size, success, and culture".

So, you may be wondering, "Are the words speed and pace synonymous? Are they interchangeable?"

Hmm... well, why don't we talk about this as it relates to a car. Would you say your new car has a very good pace? Or a very good speed?

I would choose "speed" because a car is a mechanical object. If we are talking about an animate object, like a man, a dog, or a horse, "pace" would me more appropriate.

That's right. A man or an animal might walk or run at a fast pace. Your car or motorcycle travels at a certain speed.

Also, the word "pace" is usually used in expressions like "the pace of life" or "work at a slow pace". It's more related to human activities.

Right! OK. Let's get more technical. If you're a runner, you can focus on either your pace or your speed. Your pace is the time it takes to cover a certain distance, such as four minutes.  But your speed is indicated by the ratio, kilometers per hour.

So, if I run at a speed of ten kilometers an hour, I would be running at a pace of six minutes per kilometers.

Oh, that sounds like a good workout.

Grammar Gym

"...while residents of poorer cities tend to take things a little slower."

to take things: to handle or respond to situations

- Edward likes to take things one at a time.

- Sam doesn't take things too well whenever he's hungry and tired.

Language Lab

affluent adj.

/ˈæfluwənt/

having a large amount of money and owning many expensive things : rich, wealthy

- Jacky was born and raised in an affluent family.

- Tina lives in an affluent neighborhood in Miami.

pedestrian n.

a person who is walking in a city, along a road, etc.

- Pedestrians are not commonly seen in Los Angeles.

pedestrian adj.

relating to or designed for people who are walking

- a pedestrian zone

- a pedestrian bridge

hail from [phrasal verb]

hail from (a place) : to have been born or raised in (a place) : to come from (a place)

- The band hailed from Sydney, Australia.

- The girl hails from a wealthy family, but she's very down to earth.

motto n.

/ˈmɑ:toʊ/

a short sentence or phrase that expresses a rule guiding the behavior of a particular person or group

- My father's motto is "Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dine like a pauper."
pauper n.

a very poor person who has no money to pay for food, clothing, etc.

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[Advanced] How Women Are Changing the Tech World (2)

Five years ago, starting and funding a female-led tech company would have been a formidable task, says Vivek Wadhwa, a fellow at the Rock Center for Corporate Governance at Stanford University. But, today, women are helping each other through groups such as Women Who Code, Astia and Girls in Tech, and some venture capitalists are warming up to backing companies led by women.

"We (women) try to band together and look out for each other," says Brit Morin, 26, founder of Brit. In April, she landed $1.25 million in seed funding for Weduary, a Web app for building wedding sites.

"It's great to be a woman in tech. It's definitely a buzzy time," says Katia Beauchamp, 29, CEO of Birchbox, a monthly subscription service for grooming and beauty products. "We're blazing a path, but we're also benefiting from other pioneers."

Foremost among those receiving credit is Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook's chief operating officer, who has successfully juggled running a multibillion-dollar company and raising a family while mentoring female execs.

Sarah Leary, who co-founded Nextdoor, a private social network for neighborhoods, also credits the dramatic jump in angel investors who have taken their riches from Google, PayPal, eBay and Yahoo, and invested them in start-ups.

Only 1% of venture-capital money was invested in companies run by female CEOs in 2010, the most recent year available, according to Dow Jones VentureOne. 

A scant 3% of public companies are headed by women, says research company GMI.

"There always has been, and continues to be, a shortage of female-led companies," says Dana Stalder, general partner at VC firm Matrix Partners, which has investments in female-led start-ups. About 10% of private companies in Matrix's portfolio were founded by female entrepreneurs.

Female leaders are convinced that such start-ups will lead to spin-offs or investments in other companies led by women.

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[Advanced] How Women Are Changing the Tech World (1)

It’s a long journey, but women are finding success! By Jon Swartz, USA TODAY

Reshaping a time-worn narrative isn't easy. Social revolutions rarely are, especially when you're a woman trying to break into the boys' club that is Silicon Valley.

But an emerging class of early-stage tech start-up executives is helping dispel the notion that there isn't a leading role for them in the male-dominated valley.

The emergence of young female tech founders and executives reflects sweeping change in the worlds of start-up companies and angel funding, where wealthy investors give money in return for a stake in a company. It underscores the enormous purchasing prowess of women online that is transforming the Web economy. As more consumers reach for their smartphones and tablets to shop and communicate, there is a pressing need for commerce sites that cater to women, who control 70% of online purchases worldwide, according to Lisa Stone, CEO of BlogHer, a digital media company.

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"Female users are the unsung heroines behind the most engaging, fastest-growing and most valuable consumer Internet and e-commerce companies," says venture capitalist Aileen Lee. She has invested in Brit, a lifestyle branding company, and Plum District, an e-commerce site for moms, among many ventures led by women.

Make no mistake: The executive suite for business in general and the technology industry specifically remains a male stronghold. Just 3% of all tech start-ups are led by women, according to a Kauffman Foundation report. Only a handful of CEOs at Fortune 500 companies are women. Indeed, the glass ceiling remains a reality for many women, and charges of sexual harassment and sexual discrimination persist.

Of late, it's been a thrill ride for female entrepreneurs in tech. Advances in technology, lower infrastructure costs and ample angel investing have made it easier to launch an early-stage company, says Leah Busque, CEO of TaskRabbit, an eBay of sorts for odd jobs.






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