blog 1- term 2020

 A) Explain the reference to 1962 and the book Hidden Figures. B) Explain the main idea of the article. Use your own words.   To live up to the hype, quantum computers must repair their error problems  The devices will reach their potential only if they can fix their glitches By Emily Conover June 22nd 2020 Astronaut John Glenn was wary about trusting a computer. It was 1962 early in the computer age, and a room-sized machine had calculated the flight path for his upcoming orbit of Earth — the first for an American. But Glenn wasn’t willing to entrust his life to a newfangled machine that might make a mistake. The astronaut requested that mathematician Katherine Johnson double-check the computer’s numbers, as recounted in the book Hidden Figures . “If she says they’re good,” Glenn reportedly said, “then I’m ready to go.” Johnson determined that the computer, an IBM 7090, was correct, and Gle...

 Read the article and translate the first part (the introduction in bold type) 10 Incredible Real-Life Mad Scientists  adapted from bestcollegereviews.org By the time we reach college age, most of us are aware that real scientists are nothing like their movie counterparts. There's a lot less wild hair, while bad German accents and screams of "it lives!" are few and far between. However, not so long ago, the line between real life and fiction was much more blurred. Right into the 20th century, great scientists were conducting vital, world-changing research while also, in some cases, presenting more than their fair share of oddness and peculiarity. Here, we give you ten real-life scientists who could give Victor Frankenstein a run for his money in the eccentricity stakes. 10. Francis Crick (1916-2004) Along with James D. Watson, Francis Crick will forever be remembered as one of the discoverers of the very structure of DNA. The duo met while workin...

Rare 'ring of fire' annular solar eclipse to cast shadow over Africa and Asia Event will be visible across a narrow band from Congo-Brazzaville to southern China Sunday’s annular eclipse coincides with northern hemisphere’s summer solstice, when Earth’s north pole is tilted most directly toward the sun. Photograph: Ferdinandh Cabrera/AFP via Getty Images Skywatchers along a narrow band from west Africa to the Arabian peninsula, India and southern China will witness the most dramatic “ring of fire” solar eclipse in years on Sunday. Annular eclipses occur when the moon passes between Earth and the sun, but not quite close enough to our planet to completely obscure the sun’s light. They occur every year or two, and can only been seen from a narrow pathway across the planet. Sunday’s eclipse coincide’s with the northern hemisphere’s longest day of the year, the summer solstice, when Earth’s north pole is ti...

 Use the last two documents (article + video) to answer the questions. A) Find a definition of  "antihero". B) Read and sum up the article about TV villains. C) Can you tell the difference between a hero, a villain, an antihero, a monster? D) Watch the video (Tyrion's speech) and explain  - what Tyrion is accused of - what he admits - what he demands - why he can be called an antihero.

The New Golden Age of Television in which we find ourselves is marked by a few spots of tarnish. There's a sameness of tone (i.e. grim) and skin color (i.e. white), a tendency to confuse violence (i.e. brutally assaulted women) for plot, and a mystifying reluctance to let villains be villains... And let's take monsters off the table while we're at it. Television has always loved its monsters, on shows like Kolchak: The Night Stalker, The X-Files, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Angel, True Blood, Teen Wolf, Grimm, Supernatura l and Sleepy Hollow ... The thing about villains is that they are entirely human, outfitted with understandably human motivations. What's more, they have a plan. That's what truly separates them from generic bad guys and monsters: TV's best villains play the long game. Episode after episode, season after season, they plot and scheme and wait, tenting their fingers. And not only do they have a plan, they're only too ...

 Rephrase what is underlined: A) Had we seen the dragon we would have reacted differently. →  If we had seen the dragon... B)  They saw nobody. →  They didn't see anybody. C)  It was such a scary sight ! →It was so scary! D)  She couldn't breathe. → She was not able to/ was unable to breathe. E)  You don't have to worry.  → You needn't worry.  F)  I wish I had tried.   → If only I had tried.

 Rephrase what is underlined: A) Had we seen the dragon we would have reacted differently. B)  They saw nobody. C)  It was such a scary sight ! D)  She couldn't breathe. E)  You don't have to worry. F)  I wish I had tried.