No Fear, No Surprise, No Hesitation - PAU inglés 2016 Madrid

>Exámenes selectividad inglés resueltos C. Madrid

Ancient Samurai Armor | by williamcho

Where does this saying come from? It's from a seventeenth-century samurai warrior. This way his key to successful living.

No fear. There should be nothing in this life that you are afraid of. If there is, you might need to overcome that fear. Here I have to confess to a certain fear of heights. Recently, owing to leaky rain gutters, I had to crawl out on our roof. I gritted my teeth and kept repeating, "No fear, no fear", until the job was done. Oh yes, and of course I didn't look down. Whatever your fear, face it head on and defeat it.

No surprise. Life seems to be full of them. You're going along swimmingly and suddenly something huge rears up ahead of you. But if you look carefully, there were clues all along the way that it was going to happen. So why does life seem to surprise us then? Because we are asleep half the time. Wake up and nothing can sneak up on you.

No hesitation. Weigh up the odds and then just get on with it. If you spend too long thinking, the opportunity will have passed. Once we have looked at the options, we make a choice; then, go for it. No hesitation means not waiting around for other people to help out or make up our minds for us. No hesitation means if there is a certain inevitability about a situation then just throw yourself in, head first, and enjoy the ride. If there is nothing to be done then waiting doesn't help.

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MODELOS DE EXÁMENES OFICIALES ESCUELA OFICIAL DE IDIOMAS 

EXÁMENES INGLÉS

EXÁMENES FRANCÉS

EXÁMENES ALEMÁN

EXÁMENES ITALIANO

PRUEBAS DE CERTIFICACIÓN  DE LA EOI

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Exámenes francés EOI resueltos

 

 

MODELOS DE EXÁMENES OFICIALES DE FRANCÉS EOI RESUELTOS 

 

NIVEL BÁSICO - A2

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PRUEBAS DE CERTIFICACIÓN DE LA ESCUELA OFICIAL DE IDIOMAS

 

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PAU 2015 Cantabria. Train to take you from Los Angeles to San Francisco in three hours

>Exámenes selectividad inglés Cantabria resueltos

Everyone’s talking about California's high-speed rail project – a $68 billion network that could zip passengers from San Francisco to Los Angeles in less than three hours. Construction of the first phase of the line will begin next year in the Central Valley, a 28-mile stretch from Madera to Fresno. In future years, the rail line will stretch north to San Jose and south to Palmdale and the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles. The whole network might not be completed until 2028.

The project has been surrounded by controversy. Some have said even though the nation’s first bullet train will take a quarter of the time it currently takes, it will still not be fast enough to attract sufficient customers.

Others have said the price tag is too high. Yet officials at California’s High-Speed Rail Authority say it is still cheaper than building dozens of new airport runways and highways to accommodate a state population that is estimated to reach 46 million by 2035.

At a special ceremony in Fresno on Tuesday, California Governor Jerry Brown compared the rail line to the construction of the great cathedrals of Europe, which took generations. “The high-speed rail links us from the past to the future, from the south to the north,” he said. “It's not that expensive. We cannot really afford not to build it.

All these projects are a little controversial. You’ll always have some critics say why spend all this money?”

Last year, two government transport officials from the state, Brian Kelly and Mary Nichols, wrote in a newspaper article that the only genuine alternative to the high-speed train was to invest up to $150 billion to build 4,300 new lanes of highway, more freeways and hundreds of new airport gates and runways. They added: “This would cover large parts of the state with concrete and asphalt.”

By car, the journey takes at least six-and-a-half hours in optimum traffic conditions, and can cost about as much depending on the type of car, fuel and highway tolls. The high-speed train tickets will be similar to the cost of air travel, promoters say, and deliver people to central stations, saving more time and money.

The Independent, 7 January 2015 (Adapted)

PAU 2015 inglés. E-Cigarettes increase the risk of flu and pneumonia

>Exámenes selectividad inglés Cantabria resueltos

Using electronic cigarettes may harm the body’s defences against pneumonia and flu, according to a recent study. The research, which reopens the debate on the dangers and benefits of e-cigarettes, suggests the vapour produced by the devices can compromise the immune system in the lungs, leaving them more vulnerable to infection by harmful bacteria and viruses.

Scientists from John Hopkins University exposed mice to e-cigarette vapour twice a day for two weeks.

They then administered some of the mice with an influenza virus and others with the bacteria which is responsible for pneumonia. The mice that had been exposed to the vapour were less able to fight off illness, and some died. Professor Shyam Biswal, senior author of the study, said the findings suggested that e-cigarettes are not neutral in terms of the effects on the lungs and that studies should now be carried out on people, particularly those with common lung problems which often affect smokers and ex-smokers – the main users of e-cigarettes.

It is true that e-cigarettes have been shown to be highly effective in helping smokers to quit, and there is a broad consensus that despite some uncertainty over their health impact, they are less harmful than tobacco cigarettes but Professor Biswal remains concerned e-cigarettes could pose risks to future generations, particularly given evidence from some countries that they are becoming more popular among young people who have never smoked.

He has recommended to the World Health Organisation that they be banned in indoor public spaces – a measure the Department of Health in England has ruled out, but which is being considered by the Welsh government.

However, Professor John Britton from the UK said the most important point was that harm to the lungs was less from e-cigarettes than from tobacco. “The lung is an exquisitely delicate organ and therefore nobody with any common sense would believe that inhaling heated vapour many times a day would be harmless,” he said. “What matters here is not a comparison of the effects of e-cigarette vapour compared with nothing, but the effects compared with those of tobacco smoke. Harm to the lungs will be less with electronic cigarettes than tobacco cigarettes, and any smoker who cannot quit using nicotine, and doesn’t find medicinal products effective, would be well advised to try an electronic cigarette.”

The Guardian, 4 February 2015 (Adapted).

Ces cerveaux européens qui émigrent en France . PAU francés 2015

Exámenes selectividad francés resueltos Andalucía

À l´heure où la fuite des cerveaux français inquiète, Ana, Inge et José, tous trois diplômés de l´enseignement supérieur, ont posé leur valise à Paris. Ils mettent aujourd´hui leur intelligence et leur créativité au service de leur pays d´adoption. Grâce aux accords de Schengen, tous trois ont pu s´installer en toute liberté. Si les Européens représentent la moitié des immigrés arrivés en France en 2012, l´ Europe du Sud est la plus grosse contributrice. Mais ce ne sont plus les mêmes qui font leurs valises. Aujourd´hui, des jeunes bien formés la quittent, quand les vagues précédentes d´immigrés du sud touchaient des travailleurs manuels. Ainsi, plus de la moitié des Italiens et des Espagnols qui s´installent en France ont un diplôme du supérieur. Nombre sont ceux qui commencent par des petits boulots et saisissent le tremplin de la restauration ou de l´hôtellerie. C´est le cas de José Antonio Bautista, diplômé en Économie qui a quitté l´Espagne en 2008 : il a commencé comme réceptionniste de nuit dans un hôtel. Parti à cause de la crise, il n´a pas connu que des jours faciles en France : « Mais c´est quand même nettement moins dur ici qu´en Espagne. Le contrat de travail français est plus protecteur et si on n´est pas trop gourmand, on peut s´en sortir avec un salaire minimum. Ce qui n´est pas le cas en Espagne ».

lemonde.fr 26.12. 2014 (texte adapté)

Bénévolat: Tendre la main ne coûte rien . PAU francés 2015

Exámenes selectividad francés resueltos Andalucía

Du 12 au 14 septembre, ce sont les 3J du bénévolat. L'occasion de se poser cette question : et si, moi aussi, j'aidais les autres ? Être bénévole, c'est aider, le plus souvent une association, sans être payé. En France, le nombre de bénévoles serait compris entre 12 et 14 millions, soit un Français sur quatre.

Ce sont surtout les étudiants et les retraités qui s'engagent le plus. Quand on choisit de devenir bénévole, c'est souvent pour défendre une cause qui nous touche. Par exemple aider des personnes handicapées, accueillir des enfants pour les vacances, protéger les animaux... Pour être bénévole, il suffit d'avoir du temps, et de l'énergie. Il faut normalement avoir 16 ans, mais on peut toujours aller donner un coup de main avec ses parents. D'ailleurs, la loi autorise même les enfants de 16 ans à créer une association.

S'engager comme bénévole, c'est un excellent moyen de découvrir la vie en société, de prendre des responsabilités. C'est une chose qui est très appréciée par les patrons quand on mentionne une telle expérience sur son CV.

Mais bien sûr, c'est une aide indispensable pour les associations, qui ont toujours besoin d'aide. Alors si devenir bénévole vous intéresse, pourquoi ne pas en parler à vos parents et chercher ensemble quel type de cause vous aimeriez aider ?

Journal des enfants 12.09.2012.

Nous collaborons à la disparition du français . PAU francés 2015

Exámenes selectividad francés resueltos Andalucía

Les Anglo-saxons ont un projet explicitement hégémonique. On l'a vu lors des Jeux olympiques de Londres. À l'exception du prologue, le français en était totalement absent. Même constat dans les aéroports (control passport), ou dans les colloques internationaux, etc. : ils font perdre à la langue française sa visibilité. Le drame, c'est que nous collaborons à cette disparition -dans tous les domaines, « l’anglobal » est une forme de parasite. À la Renaissance, des milliers de mots italiens sont entrés dans la langue française, mais ils ont été rapidement absorbés, transformés, francisés. Aujourd'hui, et c'est nouveau, les mots anglais qui s'implantent chaque jour dans notre vocabulaire ne sont plus de l'ordre de l'échange, mais de la substitution ("checker" à la place de "vérifier"). En France colonisée, c'est Halloween tous les jours. Mais, plus que de colonisation, nous devons parler d'auto-colonisation. Tous les domaines sont victimes : la mode avec la "fashion week", la cuisine et ses "fast-foods", les conseils d'administration, la diplomatie, la défense, la chanson, l'aviation, la médecine, le sport... Tout le monde désormais fait des fautes massivement, et des fautes sur le logiciel, comme la confusion des sons et des temps, le futur et le conditionnel, etc. La langue et la culture françaises sont désirées partout dans le monde comme une alternative au modèle anglo-saxon. Mais nous les Français, nous y avons renoncé. Que nous propose-t-on à la télévision ? Des séries américaines. La France a renoncé à la francophonie pour prendre part à l'Europe anglophone.

L’Express 21.10. 2014 (texte adapté)

Apprendre une langue étrangère c'est bon pour le cerveau . PAU 2015

Exámenes selectividad francés resueltos Andalucía

Qui aurait cru qu'apprendre les langues était bon pour la santé ? Pourtant, le phénomène est étudié depuis plusieurs années au Canada. En étudiant un groupe de 184 patients atteints de la maladie d'Alzheimer dans une clinique de Toronto entre 2002 et 2005, le docteur Ellen Bialystok avait mis en évidence que ceux qui avaient parlé deux langues durant toute leur vie pouvaient retarder l'apparition de la maladie de quatre années par rapport à ceux qui ne parlaient qu'une seule langue. Un effet constaté même après avoir pris en considération la possible influence des différences culturelles, de l'immigration, de l'éducation, de la profession et même du genre... Les effets ainsi constatés du bilinguisme sont les plus forts en matière d'intelligence générale et de capacités à la lecture. De plus, l'étude suggère un effet positif de ce bilinguisme en fin de vie, y compris chez ceux qui ont acquis leur seconde langue à l'âge adulte : dans le groupe test, en effet, 195 ont appris une seconde langue avant l'âge de 18 ans, mais 65 l'ont apprise plus tard car des millions de personnes dans le monde acquièrent leur seconde langue tard dans la vie. Selon le Dr. Thomas Bak, l’étude montre que le bilinguisme, même acquis à l'âge adulte, peut bénéficier le cerveau prenant de l'âge. Reste à savoir si apprendre plus d'une langue supplémentaire aurait des effets encore plus bénéfiques, et si la pratique active de la seconde langue est également un facteur à prendre en compte... Mais dans tous les cas, apprendre une autre langue, c'est bon pour le cerveau ! 

L’Obs 04.06.2014 (texte adapté)

How Facebook affects us - PAU 2015

>Exámenes selectividad inglés Cantabria resueltos

Two recent studies have revealed amazing facts about how Facebook affects its users. The first study, carried out by researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia, has shown that being envious of Facebook friends can cause depression and that looking through the site to compare achievements with those of friends can have a very detrimental effect on a person`s mental health. Margaret Duffy explains, "Facebook can be a fun and healthy activity if users take advantage of the site to stay connected with family and old friends and to share interesting and important aspects of their lives. However, using it to see how well an acquaintance is doing financially or how happy an old friend is in his relationship can lead to feelings of depression."

Duffy and a colleague based in Singapore surveyed 700 students for the paper, published in the journal ‘Computers in Human Behaviour’. She went on to say, "Facebook can be a very positive resource for many people, but if it is used as a way to compare your own accomplishments against others, it can have a negative effect. It is important for Facebook users to be aware of these risks so they can avoid this kind of behaviour when using Facebook."

A second study, completely independent from the first, has shown that a computer can be better at assessing someone’s basic personality than close friends or family. A study of more than 86,000 users of Facebook has demonstrated the power of intelligent machines to predict an individual’s character based on what they have listed as their “Likes.”

Researchers said that the day when computers are able to judge a person’s personality accurately has almost arrived and even suggested that science fiction films like “Her”, based on a man’s emotional attachment to an intelligent computer, are closer than we think. In the future, computers could be able to infer our psychological characteristics and react accordingly in an emotionally-intelligent way. “People may choose to change their own intuitions and judgements with this kind of data analysis when making important life decisions such as choosing activities, career paths or even romantic partners,” said Wu Youyou of Cambridge University.

The Independent, 12 January and 4 February 2015 (Adapted)

Do young people care about learning foreign languages? - PAU 2015 inglés Cantabria

>Exámenes selectividad inglés Cantabria resueltos

Do young people in the UK care about learning languages? Fewer students than ever are choosing to study a language degree at university, and since 2004, taking a language at GCSE* has not been compulsory, so the simple answer would seem to be no. This is disconcerting news for a country which is not exactly famous for its multilingualism.

However, research conducted by the organisation ICM paints a far more complex picture of youth attitudes in the UK. Those choosing to study languages may have dropped, but of the 1001 young people between the ages of 14-24 interviewed in the survey, almost 20% already speak another language at home with their family, and 70% would be interested in learning another language in the future.

When asked to pick the three main benefits of learning a language, students said that job prospects at home and abroad were both key incentives. Learning about another culture and the experience of communicating also scored highly in this section. So if languages offer you the ability to make new friends and work abroad, why are young people put off? Asked to pick the three main downsides of learning a language, the difficulty of the learning process was an important reason but the idea that they were less interesting than other subjects came top for our young interviewees. Interestingly, low confidence levels in speaking another language also played a role in this decision.

Asking interviewees to comment on their ability in the language they had studied at school provided perhaps the most revealing piece of data from the survey. For most of the languages, students don’t perceive themselves to be progressing past basic language levels. The survey suggested that the opportunity to use a language outside the classroom and communicate with native speakers would make language learning more attractive. As for teaching inside the classroom, young people want more interaction, and more technology.

November 2014, The Guardian (Adapted).

• *GCSE – General Certificate of Secondary Education (in the UK)

Qu'est-ce que le droit à la liberté d'expression? . PAU francés 2015

Exámenes selectividad francés resueltos Andalucía

La Déclaration universelle des droits de l’homme et le Pacte international relatif aux droits civils et politiques protègent le droit à la liberté d’expression dans leurs Articles 19 respectifs. La liberté d’expression est non seulement importante en soi mais aussi essentielle à l’exercice d’autres droits humains.

Au niveau individuel, la liberté d’expression est essentielle au développement, à la dignité et à l’épanouissement de chaque individu. Les individus parviennent à comprendre leur environnement et le monde en échangeant librement des idées et des informations entre eux. La liberté d’expression renforce leur capacité à planifier leur vie et à exercer une activité professionnelle. Les individus se sentent plus en sécurité et respectés par l’État s’ils sont capables d’exprimer ce qu’ils pensent.

Au niveau national, la liberté d’expression est essentielle à la bonne gouvernance et, de ce fait, au progrès économique et social. La liberté d’expression et la liberté d’information contribuent à améliorer la qualité de la gouvernance de diverses manières : en garantissant que des personnes honnêtes et compétentes administrent l’État […], en favorisant la bonne gouvernance en permettant aux citoyens d’exposer leurs préoccupations devant les autorités […], en favorisant la mise en oeuvre d’autres droits humains […].

Pour toutes ces raisons, la liberté d’expression et la liberté d’information sont reconnues par la communauté internationale comme des droits humains primordiaux. 

Articles 19 DUDH et PIDCP

Opération: Tous au restaurant - PAU francés 2016

>Exámenes selectividad francés Madrid resueltos

Un repas acheté pour un repas offert, telle est la consigne de l ́opération Tous au restaurant pendant le mois de septembre. Sur plus de 1000 tables dans toute la France, 80 sont étoilées*.

Il y a des dates clés qu ́il ne faut pas oublier: le premier jour des soldes, la Saint-Valentin pour certains, le début de la saison de la chasse pour d ́autres, mais aussi depuis cinq ans, l ́ouverture, à dix heures précises, des réservations en ligne de l’évènement gastronomique Tous au restaurant.

L ́opération lancée en 2010 par Alain Ducasse**, mobilise plus d ́un millier de restaurants, dont 80 étoilés, à travers toute la France, sur un principe simple: un repas acheté, un repas offert. Elle se déroule en septembre et la période n ́a pas été choisie au hasard. Traditionnellement, le mois de septembre est mauvais pour la restauration. Les vacances et les impôts passés ont laissé les finances en mauvais état. Une addition pour deux couverts au prix d ́un seul est effectivement l’occasion de faire que l ́exceptionnel devienne accessible.

Conçu sur le modèle de la «Restaurant week» de New York, lancée en 1992 et désormais organisée deux fois par an, Tous au restaurant rencontre un succès grandissant. La manifestation, faite à l ́origine pour soutenir les tables françaises, s ́exporte pour la première fois dans cinq métropoles européennes: Berlin, Genève, Milan, Bruxelles et Luxembourg.

D’après Alice Bosio, Lefigaro.fr,9 septembre 2014

The birth of Rock and Roll - PAU 2016 Andalucía inglés

>Exámenes selectividad inglés resueltos Andalucía

The  origins  of  rock  and  roll  have  been  fiercely  debated  by  commentators  and  historians  of  music.  There  is  general  agreement  that  it  began in  the  Southern  United  States  –  a  region  which  would  produce  most  of  the  major  early rock and roll acts – through the meeting of various influences that embodied a merging of the African musical tradition with European instrumentation.  The migration of many former slaves and their descendants to major urban centers  such  as Memphis,  New  York  City,  Detroit  and  Chicago meant  that  black  and  white  residents  were  living  in  close  proximity  in  larger  numbers  than  ever  before,  and  as  a  result  heard  each  other's  music  and  even  began  to  emulate each other's fashions.

Radio stations that made white and black forms of music available to both groups, the development  and  spread  of  the gramophone  record,  and  African  American  musical  styles  such as  jazz  and  swing  which were taken up by white musicians, aided this process of "cultural collision".

The immediate roots of rock and roll lay in the rhythm and blues, then called " race music", and country music of 10 the  1940s  and  1950s.  

Particularly  significant  influences  were  jazz, blues, gospel,  country,  and folk. Commentators differ in their views of which of these forms were most important and the degree to which the new music was a re-branding of African American rhythm and blues for a white market, or a new hybrid of black and white forms.

In the 1930s jazz, and particularly swing, both in urban based dance bands and blues-influenced country swing, was among the first music to present African American sounds for a predominantly white audience.

PAU Galicia 2015 inglés - The Polite Society

>Exámenes selectividad inglés Galicia resueltos

When  was  the  last  time  you  stopped  to  have  a  friendly  chat  with  your  neighbour,  or  paused  to open  the door for someone, or gave up your seat on the bus to an elderly person? If you have to stop to think, then it was too long ago.

Ian Gregory, the founder of the Polite Society, is the sort of person who does it every day and thinks that the world would be a better place if we all did the same. What we need, he says, is a touch more courtesy. Our society is full of rude, inconsiderate and selfish people who wouldn’t give you the time of day even if your life depended on it. He’s absolutely right, of course, but isn’t that “a sign of the times”? Well,  he  thinks there is  something  that  is  going  wrong  with  the  way  we  live  our  lives  and  interact  with one another, especially  on  the  roads,  where  an  estimated  47  per  cent  of  accidents  can  be  traced  back  to some act of discourtesy.
There is nothing that legislation can do about this; there’s nothing that money can do about it either. You can’t impose a personality on a nation and say: “Well, let’s all be nicer to one another”. But the only way you  are going  to  get  anything  effective  done  about  it  is  if  you  persuade  enough  people  that  they  can  be happier, more successful individuals if they are more considerate to one another in their business, in their love lives, in their family lives, in everything.
You  see,  we  are  brilliant  at  discovering  things,  learning  how  to  use  computers,  etc.,  but  in  terms  of behaviour towards one another we are no better than cavemen.

PAU inglés Galicia 2015 - Attitudes towards Britain and the British

>Exámenes selectividad inglés Galicia resueltos

The  British  Council  recently  conducted  a  31-nation  survey  (including  Spain)  of  attitudes towards Britain and the British, as part of the British Government’s efforts to improve the UK’s image  overseas.  In  general  the  attitudes  of  people  in  Africa,  the  Middle  East  and  South  Asia were  quite  positive,  but  those  in  Western  Europe  and  East  Asia  gave  more  critical  responses. However,  all  areas  agreed  on  Britain’s  most  famous  representatives:  David  Beckham,  Hugh Grant and Mr Bean.

In  Spain people  were  more  critical  than  in  other  countries  when  asked  about  Britain.  As  far  as British  people  are  concerned,  Spanish  attitudes  were  positive  in  some  aspects  and  negative  in others.  On  one  hand  they  seemed  to  think  that  the  British  are  honest,  fair, hardworking  and loyal,  but,  on  the  other  hand  they  regarded  them  as  being  rather  conservative,  a  little  bit  dull, and not terribly friendly, particularly to people from other countries and cultures. The country’s main  strengths  were  felt  to  be  the  English language, the nation’s stable economy and its legal, government and education systems. The country’s higher education system, its universities and colleges,  were  well thought of and most Spanish people believe  that if they  go to the UK, they will  get  a  good academic experience in the universities and colleges there. Britain’s art world was widely praised, especially because of its tremendous capacity for innovation.
Contrary  to  people  from other  countries,  the  Spanish  are  more  or  less  aware  of  the  differences between the four countries that make up the United Kingdom. Scotland (whose key images were mountains,  kilts  and  whisky)  was  the  most  recognised,  ahead  of  England  (best  known  for London,  the  Royal  Family  and  the  Tower  of London),  Wales  (the  Prince  of Wales,  castles  and rugby) and Northern Ireland (violence and the IRA).

PAU Galicia 2015 - Kirkland, the most desirable place to live in the USA

>Exámenes selectividad inglés Galicia resueltos

Kirkland,  in  Western  Seattle,  has  been  voted  the  most  desirable  place  to  live  in  the  United  States. Seattle’s  eastside  suburbs  are  a  pleasant  mass  of good  schools,  great  jobs  and  family-friendly neighborhoods. Kirkland has  all  that, while also offering  a unique, lively downtown on  the shores of Lake Washington.

From Kirkland’s beaches on the lake you can see the Seattle skyline, but there’s no need to go to the big city to have fun. Even on a weeknight, the downtown restaurants and sidewalks are full. “Kirkland is definitely a hotspot right now,” says Kristi Caggiano, 42, who moved to town 14 years ago. She lives near downtown with her husband, daughter and 10-year-old son, and says the family can walk to the market, local shops, pool and library. “The school system is fantastic,” Kristi says, “and we are going to send our daughter to a high school which is going to open right next to our house.” This is just one of several schools that will open in the near future. Her son’s elementary school has a well-attended  choir  program,  and  every  child  has  a  chance  to  take  swimming  lessons.  Also,  25%  of Kirkland’s total area is made up of parks. Some of these have sandy beaches and attractions for kids. 

“There’s always something to do,” says Caggiano. Residents report that Kirkland’s proximity to Google and Microsoft offices is attracting a lot more young  people  and  families.  Google  now  employs  about  800  people,  and  has  announced  plans  to double the size of its Kirkland offices by 2016. The town is seeing many other new business start-ups.

The  good  job  market  means  reasonably-priced housing is in short supply. “It’s a problem we are hoping to solve soon, but we’re not there yet,” says real estate agent Brenda Nunes. A three-bedroom home averages $440,000. 

PAU inglés Galicia 2015 - Once upon a time, fashion was only for the rich

>Exámenes selectividad inglés Galicia resueltos

Once upon a time, fashion was only for the rich. Paris was the centre of the fashion world, and everyone else  tried  to  copy  the  top  French  designers.  But  now,  fashion  is  a  much  more  international  matter. London,  like  other  big  European  cities,  has  a  large  number  of  its  own  talented  and  hard-working designers.

Anyway,  many  people,  especially  the  young, take  no  notice  of the  clothes  the  designers produce.  They wear  things  which  express  their  ideas  and  feelings  about  life.  They  use  fashion  like  a  kind  of  uniform. Take hairstyles, for example. If a boy has very short, almost shaven hair, people expect him to have right-wing politics whereas they expect boys with very long hair to have left-wing politics. A boy who wears a leather jacket covered in bits of metal will probably ride a motorbike, and a girl who wears Laura Ashley dresses will probably have middle-class ideas.

Some young people, of course, have fun with all the latest “street styles”. They cut their hair into strange shapes, wear lots of cheap jewellery, cut holes in their trousers to make them look old, or paint their lips blue. These “street styles” come and go, and are not the creation of the big fashion designers, who, in fact, often use ideas from street fashions when they make their own designs. Many young people simply try to look  as  clean  and  tidy  as  possible,  particularly  when  looking  for  a  job,  in  order  to  produce  a  good impression  on  possible  employers.  Clothes  with  a  sporty  look  are  popular,  as  they  make  people  look healthy and energetic.

Most British people are possibly not very fashion-conscious. Even the richest and most important people frequently wear old and untidy clothes, and, of course, only a very few can afford designer clothes.

Parler une autre langue: est-ce un don? - PAU francés 2016

>Exámenes selectividad francés Madrid resueltos

Il ne faut pas disposer de facultés particulières pour parler correctement une autre langue. Se lamenter de ne pas avoir cette facilité est donc une très mauvaise excuse pour ne pas s'y appliquer.

Au siècle dernier, certains linguistes ont tenté de mettre au point des tests d'aptitude pour vérifier l'existence d'un don. Mais, depuis les années 70, la grande majorité d'entre eux admet qu'aucune preuve ne va dans ce sens. Ni liée à un talent particulier ni en relation avec notre niveau d'intelligence, notre capacité à accéder à une autre langue ne dépend donc que de nous: de notre milieu culturel d'origine, de notre curiosité et de notre intérêt pour les autres et pour le monde, mais également de nos oreilles. C'est en tous cas ce qu'a démontré Alfred Tomatis, médecin spécialiste en oto-rhino-laryngologie, inventeur d'une méthode d'apprentissage souvent sollicitée par les acteurs et les chanteurs.

Selon lui, «la voix ne reproduit que ce que l'oreille écoute, ce qui signifie que si l'on parle mal une langue étrangère, c'est parce qu'on ne l'écoute pas correctement. »

Huit universités l'ont confirmé: rééduquer son oreille, c'est-à-dire l'accorder pour se mettre sur la même longueur d'onde que la langue à apprendre, permet de réduire de moitié le temps d'apprentissage.

D ́après Stéphanie Torre, Marie France, 19 janvier 2014

How would we live in a world without oil? -PAU 2016 inglés Madrid resuelto

>Exámenes selectividad inglés resueltos C. Madrid

What would happen if our oil supply were shut off in a day? First, there is transportation. With the overwhelming majority of the oil we produce devoted to powering our vehicles, the impact on getting around would be most dramatic. Price-speculation would begin right away, and long lines would form at gas stations. Soon, we would all be looking for an electric car or converting our vehicles to run on natural gas. But it would not be long before natural gas supplies were also driven to extinction.

Fuel shortage is not the only problem our enslavement to black gold would cause. We also need to keep the lights on and blackouts would soon begin. It gets much worse still, of course, because a world without oil would quickly become a world without all of the products made from petroleum that we have come to know, love and depend upon. The list of essentials that we would soon be doing without is prodigious: medicines, paints, utensils and equipment, virtually all plastics, etc.

Eating would get tougher, too. If no one can truck fresh vegetables from across the country, we might be inclined to go back to basics and grow our own food. Local farmers would become a necessity, not just people who sell us honey at the street fair. It is an interesting thought experiment to picture such a world. Though the scenario is unreal, of course, taken to its logical conclusion, it encompasses so much more. A complete extinction of oil would lead to a rapid breakdown of society, desperation, lawlessness, wars and untold suffering.