1. Read Aloud

Statistical Information (15 Feb 2020, Brisbane)

The provision of accurate and authoritative statistical information strengthens our society. It provides a basis for decisions to be made on public policy, such as determining electoral boundaries and where to locate schools and hospitals. It also allows businesses to know their market, grow their business, and improve their marketing strategies by targeting their activities appropriately.

Elephant (26 Feb 2020, Aukland)

The elephant is the largest living land mammal. During evolution, its skeleton has greatly altered from the usual mammal, design for two main reasons. One is to cope with the great weight of huge grinding cheek teeth and elongated tusk, making the skull particularly massive. The other is to support the enormous bulk of such a huge body.

Carbon-neutral (28 Feb 2020, Sydney)

You used to think that being green was a luxury for your company, but climate change has made you realize that you can no longer ignore it. The buzz is about becoming carbon-neutral, but where do you start? Consider your drivers. Do you want to become carbon-neutral for marketing reasons, for financial reasons or to help save the planet?

Augustus (29 Feb 2020, Bangalore)

Augustus was given the powers of an absolute monarch, but he presented himself as the preserver of republican traditions. He treated the Senate, or state council, with great respect, and was made Consul year after year. He successfully reduced the political power of the army by retiring many soldiers, but giving them land or money to keep their loyalty.

MBA Courses (2 Mar 2020, Sydney)

Along with customary classes on subjects such as finance, accounting, and marketing, today’s MBA students are enrolling on courses for environmental policy and stewardship. Indeed, more than half of business schools require a course in environmental sustainability or corporate social responsibility, according to a survey of 91 US business schools, published in October 2005.

Father (4 Mar 2020, Melbourne)

Ever since I remembered, father woke up at five thirty every morning, made breakfast for us all and read newspaper. After that he would go to work. He worked as a writer. It was a long time before I realized he did this for a living.

2. Describe Image

Switzerland (26 Feb 2020, Adelaide)

Switzerland Languages

Sitting Posture (1 Mar 2020, Melbourne)

3. Retell Lecture

Narratives (1 Mar 2020, Sydney)

The comics I show you with lots of people chatting around in a room is a form of description. We use different kinds of methods to describe a situation. Sometimes we have to use visual description, particularly when we do not witness the scenario. I was born during the Second World War and my hometown is X, for example when I asked my mother about the war, I always ask her you have mentioned this or that when you talked to me when asked her about the shelter, I asked her what the shelter looks like and when did you go to the shelter. From her response I could get more visual evidence as I can to write my book.

4. Summarize Spoken Text

Faults and Earthquake (29 Feb 2020, Bangalore)

So faults are breaks in the earth crust, we can identify them because of the discontinuity in the structure within the earth crust across fault. And earthquake occur on these faults, so vary processes by which these faults moves to a large extent is due to earthquakes. So we have a fault plane and the earthquake is so focus on this fault plane and the earthquake starts at the particular point on the fault plane and we call that the focus of the earthquake. The rock prorogate out from that point on the rupture plain to cover the entire fault plane. The rupture is in that particular earthquake. We talked about the epicenter of the earthquake a lot. The epicenter is just the surface projection of the focus of the earthquake. So if you wanted to looking at map view where the earthquake was located we would be able to look that into the earth. We would see the focus down some depth in the earth or the epicenter just a point vertically above that focus at the surface of the earth. So this is the focus between the faults and the earthquakes.

Drug Advertisement (3 Mar 2020, Melbourne)

The amount of money drug companies spend on TV ads has doubled in recent years. And it’s no wonder: studies show the commercials’ work: consumers go to their doctors with a suggestion for a prescription drug they saw advertised on TV. Now a study in the Annals of Family Medicine raises questions about the message these ads promote, NPR’s Patty Neighmond reports.

You’re most likely to see drug ads during prime time, especially around the news. Researchers analyzed 38 ads aimed at people with conditions like hypertension, herpes, high cholesterol, depression, arthritis, and allergies.

The drug industry says the ads arm consumers with information. But researchers found that though the information was technically accurate, the tone was misleading.

UCLA psychologist Dominick Frosch headed the study.” What we would see in these ads is that before taking the prescription drug, the character’s life was out of control and the loss of control really extended beyond just the impact of the health condition,” For example, herpes patients were portrayed as being incapacitated for days, insomniacs utterly out of synch on the job and depressed patients friendless and boring at parties.

“When the character is then shown taking the drug, he then magically regains complete control of his life.”

None of the ads, of course, mentioned lifestyle changes that could also help treat the condition. After all, it’s mass marketing. But in this case, Frosch says, prescription medications are not soap.

5. Summarize Written Text

Tiny Frog Found in Mexico (26 Feb 2020, Adelaide)

MEXICO CITY — A miner in the state of Chiapas found a tiny tree frog that has been preserved in amber for 25 million years, a researcher said. If authenticated, the preserved frog would be the first of its kind found in Mexico, according to David Grimaldi, a biologist and curator at the American Museum of Natural History, who was not involved in the find.

The chunk of amber containing the frog, less than half an inch long, was uncovered by a miner in Mexico’s southern Chiapas state in 2005 and was bought by a private collector, who lent it to scientists for study. A few other preserved frogs have been found in chunks of amber _ a stone formed by ancient tree sap _ mostly in the Dominican Republic. Like those, the frog found in Chiapas appears to be of the genus Craugastor, whose descendants still inhabit the region, said biologist Gerardo Carbot of the Chiapas Natural History and Ecology Institute. Carbot announced the discovery this week.

The scientist said the frog lived about 25 million years ago, based on the geological strata where the amber was found. Carbot would like to extract a sample from the frog’s remains in hopes of finding DNA that could identify the particular species, but doubts the owner would let him drill into the stone.