Investment: Electric Cars vs Future -- Part 1

Sorry about the late posting, I got one wisdom tooth removed last Saturday and have lost a lot of blood, so here's the new posting you have been waiting for.

Electric Cars vs Future -- Part 1

Who wants MyCar?

When Warren Buffett bought China's electric car & battery company BYD (1211.HK) October yesteryear at around $6, I actually wanted to buy it too (just for the sake of following), but the day the stock resume trading the next day, it went as high as $8, so I thought, okay, I should wait, and then, $11 the day after that, and it was "au voir" to the single digit price tag ever after!

Silly or not? I guess I was, but who can foresee the future this far? Even long before BYD could sell a single car, the price had hit as high as $60+. You can call this irrational, and I guess Buffett himself will think this is totally insane, but he lives his reputation higher than the price of his stock, so he won't sell the shares anytime near.

But is BYD really such a potential company? Well, before Buffett had invested in it, "No"; now, "Yes". He makes all the difference in the world! I guess nobody really even care much about the company BYD in the past as it was mainly manufacturing batteries for mobile phones, and even when it had started producing car batteries and "R&D-ing" their own cars, there are

a lot of other stronger, richer, better alternatives in Japan and USA, maybe even in China! But where his finger points, it turns to gold.

I missed the chance, what can I say?

Well, here's what I want to say, since car manufacturing industry is not exactly an industry which has a high "barrier to entry" (as Buffett puts it), small companies can hit big time when standing up against the very large ones, as long as they have quality to beat the big boys!

Heard of the first Hong Kong electric car, MyCar, co-developed by EuAuto Technology and Hong Kong Polytechnic University? If not, read this.

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/breaking_news_detail.asp?id=16868&icid=3&d_str=20091023

Now if you ask me, I will NOT invest in this car or this company. Why? It doesn't look cool, thus doesn't attract mainland billionaires. It doesn't look comfortable because it is so crammed! It is so expensive, it runs so slow, one of them doesn't even have air-conditioning which is definitely a killer in a short-winter Hong Kong.

At the same time when Hong Kong politicians are celebrating their own minor success, financial magazines are already having a real buzz about a USA small company of the same kind. Without further ado, Watch the follow 3 movie clips!!!

MEET TESLA's ROADSTER!!!

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2009/04/08/automobiles/1194839344102/start-up-electric-car-companies.html

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x25986_tesla-electric-car_auto

Now, MyCar anybody? That will be your car. I like the Roadster!

Resources:

As listed above.

Homework: Comment on what you think about electric cars.

Idiom: Give Face...Lose Face

Today, my colleagues and I were talking about the students and I said that the students were "giving" one of my colleagues "face" and paid attention in her class. She suddenly became so curious and asked me how I knew this term. She said this is Chinese.

Really? I wasn't so sure, but I am sure some English speakers do use it. My claim was, if there is such a term as "lose face"(to suffer disgrace, humiliation, or embarrassment), "save face" (to avoid disgrace, humiliation, or embarrassment), why can't there be "give face"? She immediately asked me to find it for her and suddenly, there were 3 English teachers surrounding me waiting for my proof. My computer was slow so eventually, only one waited, and I got the answer from Wiktionary.org,

To give face -- A calque of Cantonese bei2 min2 比面 (literally Give face, with altered pronouciation for face and no written chinese for give.) (idiomatic) To honor; to pay respect.

One more click, I found that all three idioms originated from Chinese. Not surprised, because there are many loanwords that came from Chinese language anyway, those of you who attended my classes knew this well. That does not mean English speakers cannot use these loanwords, right? There is really no need to make

Anyway, there are other idioms related to the word face, which are very popular.

Say, poker-faced (adj), describes sb who shows no feeling or thinking on the face.

eg. That poker face(n) he has makes me want to punch him every time I see it.

Pizza-face (n)(slang)(not polite), sb who has a lot of pimples or spots on the face.

eg. If you don't want anymore pizza-face, call Xacquline!!

Straight face(n), a serious expression, used when you try not to laugh.

eg. The teacher actually liked the naughty student's joke, but to keep his cool, he kept a straight face.

to have a long face(n), a sad face.

eg. He has a long face because his love was not accepted by his female employee.

be in your face(US informal), if sb is in your face they criticise you all the time.

eg. My mum is always in my face!

However, another way I hear most often is when I am playing basketball with my friends or when watching basketball games, when sb score points in front of another player.

eg. "Le Bron goes for a slam...he puts it in! In your face!"

For more basketball terms, don't forget to read Common Terms in Basketball also.

Resources:

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lose+face?o=100074

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/lose_face

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/save_face

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/give_face

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=61196&dict=CALD

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=60329&dict=CALD

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=78586&dict=CALD

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=27457&dict=CALD

http://lockyep.blogspot.com/2009/05/sports-common-terms-in-basketball.html

News Article: Call for lessons to begin at six

First, let's read a news article:

Quoting the entire article from BBC News 16th Oct 09

Call for lessons to begin at six

By Hannah Richardson BBC News education reporter

Nurseries provide a basic foundation for learning

Children should not start formal learning until they are six, a review of primary education in England says.

Instead they should continue the kind of play-based learning that features in nursery schools and reception classes, the Cambridge Primary Review says.

There is no evidence that an early introduction to formal learning has any benefit, the review says, but there are suggestions it can do some harm.

Ministers say a starting age of six would be completely counter-productive.

Most children start primary school in England aged four, and a large proportion are taking advantage of free, part-time pre-school places in local schools and privately-run nurseries from the age of three.

The kind of learning that goes on there follows the government's "Early Years Foundation Stage", which currently runs to the age of five and is a play-based curriculum which includes some early literacy and numeracy goals.

This is not a wishy-washy - just let them get on with it thing. It's a balance between children-initiated and adult-initiated learning Dame Gillian Pugh Co-author

Continuing this informal but structured learning for a year or so would bring children in England in line with many European countries, where school starts at six or even seven, and standards are often higher.

A similar step has already been taken in Wales where a play-based curriculum has been extended to the end of Key Stage 1, when children are aged seven. A similar system is also being introduced in Northern Ireland.

"This would give sufficient time for children to establish positive attitudes to learning and begin to develop the language and study skills which are essential to their later progress," says the review, which is based on six years of academic work.

It stops short of calling for the age of compulsory schooling to be put back to age six, but does call for an open debate on the subject.

However, it adds, that the issue is less about where children learn than what they learn.

Dame Gillian Pugh, who co-authored the review, said play-based learning was not a "wishy-washy, 'just let them get on with it' thing".

"It's a balance between children-initiated and adult-initiated learning," she said.

'Social disadvantage'

She said four and five-year-olds tended to be at a stage where they were just "tuning in" to learning and that they could be "turned off" if they were made to follow too formal a curriculum, too early on.

HAVE YOUR SAY

Sometimes I think people are more interested in the childminding aspects of primary schools and nurseries than whether or not they are having any actual benefit

Lee Brown, Thornhill

Send us your comments

This would be of particular benefit to children from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with speech and language delays, she added.

But she argued it would not hold back brighter children who were ready to begin basic numeracy and literacy in reception classes.

The review also notes that there are downward pressures to get children in reception year ready for the early years of school and the tests that follow.

It also calls for free part-time nursery provision to be offered to two-year-olds in areas of social disadvantage and for children with particular needs.

'Pillars of stability'

This would help them get the most out of school and hopefully close the achievement gap, it says.

The authors also call for national assessment tests, known as Sats, to be abandoned, saying their high-stakes nature, being linked to league tables, encourages a too-narrow focus on literacy and numeracy.

Instead, children should be assessed on the broad range of subjects throughout primary school and at its end, but these assessments should be used to monitor children's progress rather than hold teachers accountable.

Welsh schoolchildren no longer sit SATS at 7, 11 and 14, nor are school league tables used there any more.

The review team also called for a major review of the way schools are staffed, arguing that there is a case for using more specialist teachers alongside the traditional class teacher.

But they also said primary schools were "pillars of stability" that were highly valued by parents and pivotal to communities.

'Counter-productive'

England's schools minister Vernon Coaker said the government was already reforming primary education to make the curriculum less prescriptive and free it up for teachers.

He added: "A school starting age of six would be completely counter-productive - we want to make sure children are playing and learning from an early age and to give parents the choice for their child to start in the September following their fourth birthday.

"Our expert group on assessment said it would be a backward step to scrap English and maths tests at 11 and we are piloting a School Report Card, which will give parents a far broader picture of how schools are doing."

Christine Blower, general secretary of the NUT, said: "All the evidence shows that proper, in-depth early years education provided by qualified teachers gives the best possible start to children's schooling."

Vocabulary:

Wishy-washy : no focus

Pillar of sth: a very important part of sth

pivotal: central and important

counter-: (prefix) oppose to

scrap : to get rid of

*******************************************************************

This article is longer but it is rather easy to read.

How many of the parents are actually making their kids learn formally before the age of 6? It is sometimes tempting to see other people's kids reciting Chinese poems, speaking good English with difficult vocabulary, or calculating maths with their imaginary abacus in their heads while flicking their fingers unceasingly. Frankly speaking, if I were a father, I would also want my kid to be really smart and be good in everything. But because you want them to learn better, you should also give them chances to develop their brain before they absorb the information.

Children are children because their brain is not as developed as an adult, so they need to discover, learn through trial and error and mimicking. Parents should guide but not force, be patient and give lots of encouragement.

I cannot say how all children feel, but if you ask any adults, their best memories are the ones they feel happiest and saddest. If you don't want the learning part to be part of their saddest memories, then you need to make it the happiest ones.

After reading the article, I suppose you understand that for young children, they should play more, so it is advisable you let them try more and allow them to expose to more, both active (such as sports) and patience-required (such as music and chess). Allow them time and guide them as they discover their own interests, and then develop their interests from there.

As for me, I think the most useful skill that I have acquired is imagination, and I attained that from painting pictures since 2 years old.

If you really want them to learn certain things, then the only way is for you to show the child what you want them to learn more often. But whether they will learn from you eventually, remember it is their choice.

HW: If you do not know the words in bold, check dictionary and then write a sentence each. Post them here.

Resources:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/8309153.stm

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=90941&dict=CALD

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=59919&dict=CALD

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=60323&dict=CALD

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=1082868&dict=CALD

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=70570&dict=CALD

Website: CNN.com (for Listening Practice)

We've been working on grammar for almost a week or more, so it is time to chill out a little and broaden our horizon. Since the last time I recommended SCMP.com Video, I now have yet another great website with more than enough reading articles and videos for your taste.

The CNN Video:

This website allows your to watch videos in English according to categories such as U.S., Politics, World Business, Entertainment, Health, Living, etc.

Just like the SCMP.com, it does not come with subtitles, but if you are looking for both higher level listening practice as well as knowledge or the most updated happenings around the world, or even some really bizarre things, this is your channel!

CNN

Not to forget that this website also has many articles for reading, so you can also have free access to world news, and it is totally free, unlike the SCMP.

Take it easy this week! Bigger topics next week!

Resources:

http://www.cnn.com/

http://www.cnn.com/video/

Grammar: -ed, -ing Adjectives

A simpler and lighter article today after a difficult one, still on grammar though.

The ed/ing Adjectives are most often misused in English. They are very similar, but they are not that difficult to be correctly used.

The easy rules generally (with exceptions) are:

Non-living thing(s) --> ing

Examples goes:

1. The movie is interesting for it is free. (Movies are not living things)


2. Your cooking is really amazing! Much better than mine! (Cooking skill is not a living thing)

Living thing(s) --> ed

Examples goes:

1. I feel so bored half way through the lecture that I left to play football. (I am a living thing)


2. He was so depressed that he ate one large pizza on his own. (He is a person)

But if you want to be 100% correct, then you need to remember another two:

Describe the people or things that cause the feelings -->-ing
eg. Sandra is an amazing person. (Sandra caused the feeling)

To say how people feel --> -ed

eg. Sandra is amazed. (Sandra feels this way)

The use of ed/ing adjectives can be very wide, here I have just mentioned some. If you have seen others, you are welcome to post them here.

For exercises, try: http://www.better-english.com/grammar/adjing.htm

Grammar: Third Conditional (Add-ons answer)

Yes, this entry is posted late, on Thursday, because I did not receive replies for the previous questions I posted. Now that I have, here is the answer to the previous article:

1) If I had left home earlier, I would have caught the first bus.

(But I didn't leave home earlier, I left home late, so I missed the first bus)

2) If I had left home earlier, I wouldn't have caught the first bus.

(I didn't leave home earlier, I left home late, but because of that, I saw the news and realised that there was a change of bus route, so I went to another bus stop, and I still caught the bus)

3) If I hadn't left home earlier, I would have caught the first bus.

(I left home earlier, but I ran into a police who caught me jaywalking, that delayed my time and I missed the first bus)

4) If I hadn't left home earlier, I wouldn't have caught the first bus.

(I left home earlier, so I caught the first bus)

So, all the correct answers are, there are no repeated situations.

C, need to try harder.

Phy, you are right for all sentences, but a little explanation would be better.

Mei, you are close.

Gladys, well done, very detailed and organised, you have got it spot on for the mood of the sentences, but the time implied in the condition wasn't so really linked up to the results. The tricky thing in my questions is the term "first bus". If I just say "bus", you will be very correct, but since this is the first one, then you need to be careful why in 2) that I still caught the first bus even if I left home late.

Everyone, study the answers carefully. Get back to me if you have anymore doubts. If it crucial that you understand the logic perfectly well.

Do you want more questions? I can think of more!