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Good morning.
Alice, is Anne at home? l just met the postman and this package is for her.
No, she's not in now. My! What a large package!
Please, be careful! l think it contains fragile objects.
Hey Peter... Do you know if it contains a set of porcelain plates
that she won with the 'Sweet' biscuits bonus points?
Well, l think so... At least, that's where the package comes from.
Alright Alice, l have to go now. See you later.
Anne will be so happy! She's been waiting for it for a long time! Bye!
Hello, Anne, this is Alice. l've got great news for you:
your set of Chinese porcelain has arrived! They're beautiful.
No, l opened it. l'm sorry Anne, l just couldn't resist...
Oh no! Anne... l'm so sorry... lt broke!
Okay, okay. l'm not allowed to touch any more plates.
You're absolutely right, l'm so sorry! Bye.
Jack be careful, don't touch anything!
This packet contains Anne's set of Chinese porcelain.
l hope you didn't break anything!
l already broke a plate, and guess who heard me breaking it?
- Anne! - Oh my... l didn't notice anything!
- You should look where you are going... - l'm... l'm sorry.
What are we going to do?
Well, let's get ready for Anne to lose her temper...
Who knows, maybe she'll forgive us.
She can't get that angry! They're just plates...
Remember, we can't cook... lf Anne gets angry, we'll have to learn to cook!
That's true...
l've got an idea: let's go get something from the local Take Out place.
Then we can pretend that we cooked dinner.
She might be happy and forget about those plates...
That's a great idea! Let's get going!
Hello and welcome back again to your live English language programme,
and l want to talk to you more about 'can'.
Now, how do you express 'can' in the future or in the past?
'Can' in the future, do we say 'l will can'?
What do we say in the past?
Now this is interesting because it's very strange,
we use the verb 'to be able to',
that's what l want to look at now with you on the language screen.
'To be able to', isn't that strange?
We have learned to use 'can' in the present,
we've had examples like 'l can cook', 'Can you cook?'
and the negative 'l can't cook'.
Now when we talk about ability in the past everything changes,
and we need to use this verb 'to be able to'.
When that goes into the past we say
'l was able to cook yesterday',
you see the verb 'to be' goes into the past
'l was able to cook yesterday' strange?
Another example, the question:
'Were you' past tense of the verb 'to be',
'Were you able to cook?' and the negative is 'He wasn't able to cook'.
So 'can' in the future, we use 'to be able to'
and in the past 'to be able to' so 'was, were able to'.
The future, let's look at that now,
you want to say 'can' tomorrow,
so we use 'to be able to' and say:
'l'll be able to cook tomorrow',
'l will', 'l'll', 'l'll be able to cook tomorrow'.
The question becomes 'Will you',
'Will you be able to cook?'
and the negative, remember the negative of 'will'?
Good 'l won't be able to cook tomorrow' so isn't that interesting?
When you want to express ability in the future
and in the past you need to use this verb 'to be able to'.
Now there's one more thing l want to tell you about,
and it's about permission.
lmagine that you are in a restaurant and you can see 'No smoking',
the person next to you starts smoking.
Now, it's a rule and a regulation that you can't smoke in a restaurant.
So, what do you say to that person?
ln English we say 'Excuse me, you're not allowed to smoke here',
'You're not allowed' see that? 'You're not allowed',
now that pronunciation is difficult 'allowed' ok?
'You're not allowed to smoke in here'.
For example if you go to a museum often they say
'No cameras' so 'You're not allowed to take photos',
'You're not allowed to take photos'. Another example,
if you go into a library and people are reading... 'Silence',
'You're not allowed to speak'.
So those are interesting things we've looked at:
'to be able to' and the use of 'you're not allowed to'.
Great! Now we're going to go back to our friends,
and Anne is very angry about something,
she wants to communicate something to her friends,
let's find out what it is, and l'll see you later, bye.
Hi, Anne! What's that you're holding?
Hello everyone!
Listen... We need some rules in this house!
Living together means obeying some rules!
l've written this list of house rules
that every person who spends time in this house must follow!
No one is allowed to leave this living room until
they read and memorise these rules!
- Bad day, huh? - She's right, Jack!
Anyway, Anne dear, what about these... house rules?
First of all, don't call me 'Anne, dear'... Now listen:
Rule No.1 : You must never, and l stress 'never', open my post.
Rule No. 2: From now on, clean the house at least once a week.
Rule No. 3: We have to take turns washing-up.
- Rule No. 4... - Okay, okay...
We understand! You must be angry.
Well, yes, Jack! l'm very, very angry!
l was really looking forĘ°ard to getting that set of Chinese plates...
l saved bonus points for a year, eating the same, stupid biscuits...
which, for your information, l can't stand anymore!
l just kept eating and buying them in order to get
the set of Chinese porcelain...
All for nothing!
Oh, please forgive us, Anne.
Just tell us where to go, and we'll buy you a new set!
Well, that's not possible! They were handcrafted in Shanghai!
- And they cost a fortune! - Okay, we'll do our best to make it up...
Somehow... Now, sit down Anne. You must be exhausted.
Jack and l made dinner for you!
You don't have to do anything... We thought of everything!
Really? You made dinner for me?
Yes, Anne... lt was the least we could do...
Well... Okay, l'll forgive you this time...
But, l warn both of you that l want more discipline in this house!
You can't do what you want all the time...
We need some rules!
Don't roll your eyes while l'm speaking to you!
Okay, okay Anne! You're right!
Rules are important, but it's also important to laugh a little!
Hi and welcome back, this is a box which my mother sent me
and she said there are some useful things for me, so l was just looking.
Come and have a look with me.
What's this?
Well it can't be a shoe, can it?
lt's not a shoe, can't be a shoe because it's made of metal,
it's made of metal, well it might be some sort of lamp or something like,
it looks like an Aladdin's lamp, a special lamp,
no but it can't be that... Look, here there's a sort of metal groove,
probably for cigarettes, that's it,
it must be a cigarette holder and a type of ashtray,
an oriental ashtray, how unusual, that's very typical of my mother!
Useful though. Now, did you see the language that l used?
l said: 'lt can't be a shoe', when l say 'lt can't be' means it's impossible,
it's impossible, it's too small and it's metal, so it can't be a shoe.
So l'm talking about probability and possibility.
Then l said: 'Well it might be a magical lamp',
now 'might' is when you're not sure 'might' is M-l-G-H-T,
'it might be a lamp', so when you're not sure you say 'might'.
Then l said 'no, no, no, no it must be an ashtray'.
Now when l say 'must be' it's because l'm absolutely sure,
that the possibility of it being an ashtray is certain.
So three possibilities 'can't be', 'might be' and 'must be'.
So let's have a look at the other things in the box, ashtray...
What is this? What's this? You see this?
Well... lt can't be... lt looks like a negative from a film, doesn't it?
No, it can't be a negative because there are no images.
Well it might be... You know? l just don' t know!
l mean it might be some sort of special sticker that you put on things
but it hasn't got any glue,
l don't know what it is, just a minute, look,
here is something explaining it 'a forehead thermometer',
'put it on your head and it reads the temperature', what?
Let's try that, so l put it on my head like this...
Hold it on your forehead and it tells you your temperature,
let's have a look... Thirty-seven?
That's hot! lt is! lt's a thermometer, incredible!
Now that is very useful because it's small, so interesting.
Next thing, what's this? This is... Look at this!
Now, it's shiny and it's silver but it can't be a mirror
because l can't see myself, can't be a mirror, what can it be? Oh l know!
lt might be for under glasses, you know what l mean?
When you lay the table and you have glasses,
sometimes you put it under to protect the tablecloth.
Look what l have here? So this for example.
Yeah but it's a bit strange isn't?
l mean... no it can't be, it can't be that, really,
not made of metal like this... lt must be...
l don't know again!
Wait a minute, here's the box, 'a drop-stop' a drop-stop?
lt must be something for pouring then, oh look, you put it... Let's try,
l just... So happen to have a bottle here, and it says:
'Put it on the bottle' like this,
a drop-stop so it stop things from dropping
and pour out the liquid and there are no drops, let's try that, let's try...
That works! lt doesn't drop!
So it must be something for stopping drops, you can see, fantastic!
My mother is a genius, she is full of amazing ideas, thanks mum.
Let me show you the language that l was using then.
We were talking about probability and possibility and,
the first thing that we can talk about
is when you are expressing strong probability,
is when you think almost certainly you know what something is,
so 'it must be an ashtray', so when l use
'must' l am a hundred percent sure of something
'it must be an ashtray'.
Now if you are sure that it isn't something, that is totally improbable,
one hundred percent, the opposite is 'it can't be' like that,
l said 'it can't be a shoe, it's too small'.
So 'it must be',
'it can't be' and then if you're not sure about something we use,
we use the simple verb 'might',
look at the spelling M-l-G-H-T
'it might be an incense burner' for example.
We can also say 'it could be', 'might',
'could' both express uncertain probability, alright?
So this is very useful when you are making deductions.
'Must be', 'it can't be' and 'it, well... it might be'.
So those are the three verbs that we use ok? Great!
So thanks mum and l'll see you again very soon, bye.
Hi everybody, what's on TV?
Shh... Jack! Just a minute... lt's almost finished.
So... What were you watching that was so engrossing?
lt was an extremely interesting documentary about Picasso's life.
There were lots of details about some of his stranger habits.
Did you know that Picasso preferred painting women with four eyes?
No, l had no idea...
And that he had lots of different types of dogs?
He used to give only dogs to his friends. Strange, isn't it?
And that he liked eating ltalian cake at Christmas?
Well, l also go crazy for ltalian cake at Christmas,
and my name isn't Picasso!
By the way, where is our resident artist, Alice?
She left early this morning.
She said that she had something important to do.
She wouldn't tell me what...
But she did say it was none of my business. You know how she is...
That's strange... She usually leaves late...
Well... As a matter of fact, she was very serious this morning.
She told me she had a headache, but l didn't believe her.
Oh look: but it's getting late!
l'm starting to get worried.
Don't play 'mom', Anne! Alice is a big girl now...
l know... l know... But it's just that she didn't tell me
she would be late...
ln fact she asked me if l would be late today...
Just a moment... A few days ago Alice told me
that she wanted to enter a painting contest.
She said she thought it was her big chance...
Maybe that's where she is today.
Well, you're probably right...
But, but it's almost midnight. l don't think contests last that long.
Why not? We all know that artists are a little crazy!
Picasso was a perfect example!
That's true! You know something about being crazy, Jack, don't you?
Hello again!
Did you hear them talking about Picasso,
some interesting things about him.
They said he used to give only dogs to his friends,
he used to give only dogs and he used to eat ltalian cake at Christmas.
Now this verb 'used to', well it's written U-S-E-D
but the pronunciation is 'used' and we'll see that on the screen later.
And we use it to talk about habits that people have had in the past
and now don't have anymore.
And to illustrate this l have some, here,
some examples of habits that l have had in the past,
for example this, this is a cigarette, well 'l used to smoke'.
Now that means that l did smoke in the past
but l don't smoke anymore, l stopped the habit, 'l used to smoke'.
Look at this tennis racket, 'l used to play tennis',
l was quite good actually, 'l used to play tennis'
but then l stopped, l didn't have enough time, too much work,
you know how it is... Now look at this, look at this,
this is fur, l used to wear this in England, it's a fur,
you know F-U-R, this, l used to wear it in England
but then l stopped because now in England people spit,
spit at you if you wear fur.
So that is a habit l have definitely stopped.
Now these, these are vitamins,
now, l didn't use to take vitamins in the past,
l didn't use to, but then my mother,
you know my mother's fantastic,
she explained how useful they can be, so now l do,
but in the past l didn't use to.
And this opera, yeah another thing, opera,
l didn't use to listen to opera but now l just love it, so l listen to it a lot.
So there were some examples for you of 'used to',
let's go and look at the different forms on the board now.
So when we speak about habits that we had in the past
and we don't have now, we use 'used to'.
Look at the spelling U-S-E-D and then T-O
but the pronunciation is not 'used' it's 'used', unusual 'used' ok?
So the example is 'l used to smoke'
and that's for all the subject forms l used to,
you used to, he used to, she used to, we used to, they used to, ok?
So 'l used to smoke', 'l used to play tennis', 'l used to wear fur'.
Pronunciation 'used'.
Now in the negative we use the auxiliary 'did' so
'l didn't use', notice we take off the D
because it's the infinitive, 'l didn't use to take vitamins'
and 'l didn't use to listen to the opera'
and the question form is easy, it's
'Did you use to do a lot of sports?'
'Did you use to stay in bed until midday?'
l remember that.
So if you think about your lives and about habits
that you had in the past and you don't have now,
when you talk about those to people, that's what you use.
'l used to smoke but l don't anymore',
'l used to play tennis, but now l'm too busy' alright?
So very important for describing past habits 'used to'. Great!
That's the lesson for now and l'll see you again very soon, bye!
Good morning, Alice.
Where were you last night?
- We were getting worried... - Good morning.
l'd prefer not to talk about it...
Why, what happened?
Well, l took part in a young artists competition...
l thought it would be the perfect occasion for me to show my talent!
So, how did it go? You made a great impression, didn't you?
Well, no...
lt went badly. They said that l wasn't cut out to be an artist.
But the jury was made up of incompetents...
Maybe no one appreciates my talent!
Come on Alice, don't take it so badly.
You know you are a genius, right? That's all that matters!
Yes, just like Van Gogh... who, by the way,
only became famous after he had died.
Maybe that's my destiny...
Maybe, you're exaggerating just a little bit...
l mean, Van Gogh?!
But you don't really think you're in the same league, do you?
And why not?! No one appreciates my talent either!
Anyway, l want your opinions! Wait just a moment
while l get something...
My Goodness!
Here you go! This is the painting l took along yesterday.
What do you think? lsn't it beautiful?
lt's... lt's interesting! lt's a very... A very unique painting, yes...
Unique is the right word.
Hum... Alice... You know l don't really understand art, don't you?
What does it represent?
That's the same question they asked me yesterday.
l can't believe that! lt's so clear!
lt's a painting of a man and a woman walking hand in hand!
Oh... l see...
Well, the truth is, it's a bit difficult to see... l mean,
at first glance... lt looks like a whole lot of mixed-up colours...
Come on Jack, you just don't understand abstract art, do you?
Well, now l understand that neither of you has any appreciation of fine art!
Oh, artists! Never tell an artist what you really think!
Hello again to you and welcome back for some more English,
did you hear in that last episode
how Anne said to Alice 'So how did it go?
You made a great impression, didn't you?',
'You made a great impression, didn't you?'
Do you remember that grammatical form?
'Didn't you?'. A question... question tag?
Yeah? Remember we did a lesson about this
and the example we used was 'She's unhappy, isn't she?
Do you remember that? Yes?
l want to give you a little test on it,
and in order to do this well you have to be very careful
about your auxiliaries so pay attention.
Number one: 'You're married...', question tag
'You're married, aren't you?', did you get that right?
Wrong? Difficult?
Do you remember 'You are married' you take the verb,
the auxiliary, and at the beginning it's positive
so you turn it into negative 'You're married, aren't you?'.
Try this: 'You didn't go to the party...',
'didn't' is negative, becomes positive
'You didn't go the party, did you?', great!
Next one: 'He lives in Paris',
'He lives in Paris', lives, simple present, auxiliary?
Yeah! 'Doesn't he?', 'He lives in Paris, doesn't he?'.
'They aren't French' aren't...
'They aren't French', positive... 'are they?', great!
Next one: 'She went to the cinema',
'She went to the cinema' auxiliary... past tense... 'didn't she?',
'She went to the cinema, didn't she?' alright?
'You don't like him',
'You don't like him' negative... 'do you?',
'You don't like him, do you?', great,
'They were enjoying the show'
'They were enjoying the show' past continuous... 'weren't they?'
They were, weren't they, great!
'He's coming tomorrow', 'isn't he?',
great, you're getting better all the time.
'They'll be late', 'They'll be late' will... will... 'won't they?',
'They'll be late, won't they?'.
And the last one: 'We can't buy it',
'We can't buy it... can we?'
So, it's negative and positive 'We can't buy it, can we'.
Well done!
You know these are difficult,
only if you know your auxiliary verbs can you do these question tags,
so congratulations, we're making progress.
Great, so l'll see you in the next lesson very soon,
take care and enjoy studying, bye!
Good morning, welcome to this week's edition of 'Climate Change'.
ln the studio with me is our weather expert Susan Ferley.
Good morning Eric.
Well Susan, there's a lot of talk these days
about climate change.
Could you explain exactly what is happening?
Of course.
You know the first thing to stress is that the earth's climate
is always changing.
ln the past this happened due to natural causes.
l mean, the atmosphere
and the earth's climate changed naturally.
Now things are different.
Scientists believe that climate change today
is a result of man's activities, our activities.
And why are scientists so worried about this climate change?
Well, before l answer that question l'd like to talk
a little about what we call the greenhouse effect.
Certainly, scientists often talk about the greenhouse effect.
What is this exactly?
The 'greenhouse effect'
is very important for the world's weather.
Greenhouse gases help to capture
the energy we receive from the sun.
They keep the earth warm.
Without these gases the world would be a colder place,
and our lives would be very different.
Well, if the greenhouse effect is so useful for the earth,
why do scientists talk about it nowadays
as if it's something dangerous?
lt's the extra greenhouse gases that are dangerous!
Our way of life, cars, factories, central heating,
is producing too much of these greenhouse gases.
These gases are trapping more and more of the sun's energy
and the world's becoming warmer.
ls carbon dioxide one of these gases?
Yes, carbon dioxide, co2, is one of the main greenhouse gases.
Carbon dioxide is produced when we burn coal
and natural gas.
The problem is that over the years the concentration
of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
has increased enormously.
So, to stop global warming we need to use
less coal and natural gases?
Exactly! but not only that!
We also need to plant more trees
and we must stop destroying our forests
because they take carbon dioxide out of the air.
ls there anything else we can do?
Well, governments around the world need to encourage
the use of renewable energy sources.
Solar panels can use the sun's energy,
wind turbines can generate electricity from the wind
and hydroelectric power plants can use water to generate electricity.
Renewable energy is becoming popular today, isn't it?
Yes, it is, but there's still a long way to go.
Ok, Susan one last question,
what are the consequences of climate change?
Well, higher average temperatures around the world.
You know even a small change in temperature,
even a one degree increase,
can cause the sea level to rise as the polar ice caps melt,
in fact this is already happening.
Other consequences?
More rainfall in some parts of the world
and less in others, more extreme weather conditions,
stronger hurricanes and typhoons.
So this is definitely a serious issue!
We mustn't underestimate the importance of climate change
and we need to use more renewable energy.
Well, thanks to Susan for your clear explanation of the problems.
Thank you, goodbye.
And goodbye and see you again next week
for another edition of 'Climate Change'.
Ok, now let's have a look at all the terms and expressions
we used to talk about the weather and climate change.
Firstly, 'climate change' is the term
we use for the changes to the world's weather.
For example higher temperatures and more rainfall.
'Rainfall' is how much rain there is, the volume of rain that falls.
And l finally understand what the 'Greenhouse effect' is!
Well, a 'greenhouse' is a transparent house, usually made of glass,
where we grow plants. lt gets very hot in a greenhouse!
ln fact the 'Greenhouse effect'
is the gases in the atmosphere that trap the sun's energy,
causing an increase in temperature of the world.
This is what we call 'global warming', the world becoming hotter.
'The atmosphere' is word for the gases that cover the world.
The main gases are nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide.
Now carbon dioxide is one of the main greenhouse gases,
these are the gases responsible for the Greenhouse effect.
The carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is increasing due to
man's activities so we have to do something to reduce it.
We use the expression 'due to' to say 'as a result of.
Susan said we should use more renewable energy sources.
'Renewable energy' is energy from the sun, the wind and water.
For example solar panels generate electricity
from the sun and wind turbines generate electricity from the wind.
The verb 'to generate' means 'to make'.
Well, renewable energy is becoming popular today which is good
but there's still a long way to go!
This expression 'there's a long way to go' means
that there is still a lot we have to do before we reach our objective,
which is to reduce global warming.
We've run out of time so that's all for now, see you soon!
Welcome to 'Cooking Today'!
All homemakers will be thrilled to know that we are back with Lisa French!
Thank you for inviting us into your lovely home once again, Lisa.
l'm glad to have you.
Now, Lisa, Leslie Forbes, from New Castle on Tyne, is desperate.
Her family's always complaining about her cooking.
They say it's really... yucky!
And they sneak out to get junk food!
How can she make her meals more appetizing?
Well... actually, it's just a matter of good meal planning.
That sounds rather serious!
Yes, it is... but it can also be a fun challenge!
This means preparing food that's healthy as well as
appealing and involves the senses, such as smell, taste, and sight.
ls that why they say:
'Your eyes are bigger than your stomach?'
Not exactly.
Now, getting serious, when you say healthy,
you're referring to nutrition, aren't you?
Yes, of course. Nutrition is the key to good health!
As a matter of fact, nutritionists agree that a varied diet
is fundamental for physical and mental well-being.
What are the correct guidelines to good nutrition?
As you can see... l have an example of a food pyramid here.
These six main food groups contain the nutrients
essential to a well-balanced diet.
Why a pyramid?
Because it enables us to understand the correct number of servings per day.
Can you give an example?
Certainly. You see, the largest group includes bread,
cereals, rice and pasta.
Then, going up the pyramid, you find fruits
and vegetables, then meats and dairy products.
What's at the top?
You mean here? These are fats, oils and sweets which,
although essential to the diet,
must be eaten in moderate quantities.
Now, going back to Leslie's request,
how can she make tasty meals for her family?
lf she hasn't much time for shopping, she can make a weekly plan.
Besides a correct diet,
she must consider the likes and dislikes of her family.
You're telling me! ln my family my son hated beans,
and my daughter was allergic at the milk!
That's a common problem.
The thing is to compensate with food
belonging to the same group or supplements.
Really? That's good to know.
A little secret, if you truly enjoy preparing meals,
then your family will probably enjoy eating them.
How can l get my family to enjoy my cooking?
Just be creative!
Think like an artist, play with the colours, shapes
and textures of food.
Oh my gosh! How time flies!
We've got to wind this up!
Lisa, thank you for inviting us into your home again,
it's been a pleasure being here.
Thank you for coming.
And now, let's pay attention to some expressions used in the dialogue.
We've talked about 'meals': 'breakfast' in the morning,
'lunch' at noon, 'dinner', or in the US, 'supper', at night.
ln the US a dinner is the main meal of the day, even at lunchtime.
Notice that in the UK 'tea' is sometimes used instead of 'dinner'.
When we refer to specific times during the day,
we can say 'lunch time', 'tea time'.
Lisa showed a 'food pyramid': it contains 'food groups',
such as 'cereals', 'meats', 'dairy products' (milk, cheese, yoghurt),
'fats and oils' and 'vegetables'.
All these foods contain nutrients.
Then, some positive adjectives used to define food are:
'appetizing' and 'healthy', while 'yucky' is something rather disgusting!
Moreover, the expression 'junk food' refers to food
which is not considered healthy at all!
We say 'diet' to indicate what we eat;
it also means a series of rules to be followed to improve one's health.
lf we want to lose weight, we say 'l'm on a diet'.
A diet is correct when it's 'varied', or 'well-balanced'.
lf you're 'allergic' to a type of food eating that food
can make you ill or cause skin problems.
Lisa talked about 'texture' of food, for example, food can be defined:
'soft', 'crispy', 'crusty'; or 'shape': food can be cut into 'slices',
'cubes' and 'rings'.
During the interview, l quoted a common way of expressing
that somebody has put more food on their plate
than they're actually able to eat:
'Your eyes are bigger than your stomach'.
All right, that's all this week. Bye, bye.
Now let's watch the whole episode together,
watch the subtitles carefully
because the language points that we've studied together
are highlighted, ok? Enjoy your viewing!
Hello and welcome back to 'English today'.
This is DVD eleven and the third DVD of your lower intermediate level.
And in this DVD we'll begin with another two episodes of the story
'That's life!', followed by our special TV programmes,
where we will look at climatic change,
and then in our cooking programme we'll talk about planning meals.
Then, in the grammar section, we're going to do some more work
on the modal verbs 'can', 'might' and 'must',
and the concept of probability and possibility.
We'll also be studying the grammatical form 'used to' ok?
So, l hope you enjoy yourselves.