Red Nose Day

Do something funny for money

red nose day

Red Nose Day

Do something funny for money

red nose day

The Grand Canyon walkway

Take a stroll, 4,000ft above the Grand Canyon

Standing over a U-shaped glass walkway that juts 70ft over the edge of the Grand Canyon is a strange sensation. But that is the experience developers hope will lure visitors to a new attraction at the Grand Canyon.
David Jin, originally from Shanghai, is giving the walkway to the Indian tribe, the Hualapai, on whose land it has been built. He will share the profits with the tribe for the next 25 years.
The designers promise that with thick glass, shock absorbers to prevent wobbling and enough space to hold 120 people at a time, the new attraction is very safe. The walkway is said to be able to survive winds of more than 100mph, as well as an eight magnitude earthquake within 50 miles.
Mark Johnson, the architect, said the Skywalk could hold the weight of several hundred people.
The development was proposed in 1996 by Mr Jin and construction began in 2004. But the project has split the impoverished 2,200-strong Hualapai tribe.
Some members, who believe their ancestors emerged from the earth of the canyon, claim that it intrudes upon sacred land. "We have disturbed the ground," said Dolores Honga, a tribal elder who regularly performs traditional dances at the canyon edge. Workers on the walkway, which is surrounded by sacred archaeological and burial sites, often complained to her about nightmares. "Our people died right along the land there. They blend into the ground. It's spiritual ground. This is why they're awakened," she said. Don Havatone, 46, a tour guide and member of the tribe, said most of the Hualapai were opposed and that the walkway had "shaken up the community".
The tribe did not accept the "commercialisation" of their land and he at first rejected the idea.


Question 1 Indicate whether these sentences are true or false. Justify your answers with evidence from the text:
a) The walkway can resist severe weather conditions.
b) The walkway can’t hold more than 120 people.
c) The Hualapai are a wealthy tribe.
d) The majority of the tribe disliked the idea of the walkway being built.

Question 2 Answer these questions in your own words:
a) Why does Dolores Honga believe that the workers had nightmares?
b) Why is the walkway a safe place?

Question 3 Find a word or phrase in the text that means the same as:
a) tempt (par. 1)
b) divide (par. 5)
c) affirm (par. 6)

Question 4 Rewrite the following sentences without changing the meaning
a) David Jin is giving the walkway to the Indian tribe.
The Indian tribe...
b) They blend into the ground. Our people died along there.
They blend...
c) It’s spiritual ground; that’s why they are awakened.
If it weren’t...

Question 5 Write a short essay (120 to 150 words) on the following topic:
 What is your favourite way of travelling and why?


Self-Access Group. CEP Santander

The Grand Canyon walkway

Take a stroll, 4,000ft above the Grand Canyon

Standing over a U-shaped glass walkway that juts 70ft over the edge of the Grand Canyon is a strange sensation. But that is the experience developers hope will lure visitors to a new attraction at the Grand Canyon.
David Jin, originally from Shanghai, is giving the walkway to the Indian tribe, the Hualapai, on whose land it has been built. He will share the profits with the tribe for the next 25 years.
The designers promise that with thick glass, shock absorbers to prevent wobbling and enough space to hold 120 people at a time, the new attraction is very safe. The walkway is said to be able to survive winds of more than 100mph, as well as an eight magnitude earthquake within 50 miles.
Mark Johnson, the architect, said the Skywalk could hold the weight of several hundred people.
The development was proposed in 1996 by Mr Jin and construction began in 2004. But the project has split the impoverished 2,200-strong Hualapai tribe.
Some members, who believe their ancestors emerged from the earth of the canyon, claim that it intrudes upon sacred land. "We have disturbed the ground," said Dolores Honga, a tribal elder who regularly performs traditional dances at the canyon edge. Workers on the walkway, which is surrounded by sacred archaeological and burial sites, often complained to her about nightmares. "Our people died right along the land there. They blend into the ground. It's spiritual ground. This is why they're awakened," she said. Don Havatone, 46, a tour guide and member of the tribe, said most of the Hualapai were opposed and that the walkway had "shaken up the community".
The tribe did not accept the "commercialisation" of their land and he at first rejected the idea.


Question 1 Indicate whether these sentences are true or false. Justify your answers with evidence from the text:
a) The walkway can resist severe weather conditions.
b) The walkway can’t hold more than 120 people.
c) The Hualapai are a wealthy tribe.
d) The majority of the tribe disliked the idea of the walkway being built.

Question 2 Answer these questions in your own words:
a) Why does Dolores Honga believe that the workers had nightmares?
b) Why is the walkway a safe place?

Question 3 Find a word or phrase in the text that means the same as:
a) tempt (par. 1)
b) divide (par. 5)
c) affirm (par. 6)

Question 4 Rewrite the following sentences without changing the meaning
a) David Jin is giving the walkway to the Indian tribe.
The Indian tribe...
b) They blend into the ground. Our people died along there.
They blend...
c) It’s spiritual ground; that’s why they are awakened.
If it weren’t...

Question 5 Write a short essay (120 to 150 words) on the following topic:
 What is your favourite way of travelling and why?


Self-Access Group. CEP Santander

Google tracks flu

The internet search engine company Google has launched a new online tool to help track the spread of influenza in the United States. The company found that Americans falling ill searched for advice about flu online using its web facilities before they sought help from a doctor. Now the internet search engine Google has come up with a tool designed to register search requests for common phrases such as "flu symptoms" or "muscles aches".
"Our team found that certain search queries tend to be very common during the flu season each year," Google said in their official blog on the topic. "We compared these queries to data provided by the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and we found that there's a very close relationship between the frequency of these search queries and the number of people who are experiencing flu-like symptoms each week."
Traditional survey techniques employed by the CDC take about two weeks to precisely identify outbreaks, and Google hopes that its data will serve as an early warning system that the CDC can then act upon.
There are also plans to roll out the system in other countries around the world. The new web tracker known as "Google Flu Trends" could act as an early warning system for internet users: if there are a lot of flu cases in your area, then you could take preventative measures such as have a flu jab. Early tests of the new web tool show it can detect regional outbreaks up to ten days earlier than the US health authorities.
A senior health expert from the United Nations told the BBC, Google Flu Trends would have to prove its reliability over time. But he added it could be very useful in nations where health authorities don't have a reliable database of infectious diseases.

Question 1 (2 Points)
Indicate whether the following questions are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.
a) Some people look on the internet before they make an appointment to see a doctor.
b) The methods used until now mean that the authorities know about increases in the number of diseases in a week.
c) The Google system has not yet demonstrated that it can be trusted.
d) Every country in the world has precise information on illnesses.

Question 2 (2 Points)
Answer the following questions in your own words.
a) How does Google Flu Trends identify areas where there are a lot of cases of flu?
b) How does the text suggest you can avoid catching flu?

Question 3 (1.5 points)
Find words or phrases in the text that correspond in meaning to the words and definitions below.
a) to create: paragraph 1
b) make available: paragraph 4
c) steps: paragraph 4

Question 4 (1.5 points)
Complete the following sentences without changing the meaning.
a) Google has launched a new online tool to help track the spread of influenza.
A new online tool ……………………………………………….
b) Google said: "We found that there's a very close relationship between the frequency of search queries and the number of people who are experiencing flu symptoms each week."
Google said that …………………………………………………
c) Early tests of the new web tool show it can detect regional outbreaks up to ten days earlier.
When the web tool was tested, it………………………………………

Question 5 (3 points)
Write a short essay (120-150 words) about the following topic.
Many people say that the internet is the most important invention ever. Do you agree?

Self-Access Group. CEP Santander

Google tracks flu

The internet search engine company Google has launched a new online tool to help track the spread of influenza in the United States. The company found that Americans falling ill searched for advice about flu online using its web facilities before they sought help from a doctor. Now the internet search engine Google has come up with a tool designed to register search requests for common phrases such as "flu symptoms" or "muscles aches".
"Our team found that certain search queries tend to be very common during the flu season each year," Google said in their official blog on the topic. "We compared these queries to data provided by the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and we found that there's a very close relationship between the frequency of these search queries and the number of people who are experiencing flu-like symptoms each week."
Traditional survey techniques employed by the CDC take about two weeks to precisely identify outbreaks, and Google hopes that its data will serve as an early warning system that the CDC can then act upon.
There are also plans to roll out the system in other countries around the world. The new web tracker known as "Google Flu Trends" could act as an early warning system for internet users: if there are a lot of flu cases in your area, then you could take preventative measures such as have a flu jab. Early tests of the new web tool show it can detect regional outbreaks up to ten days earlier than the US health authorities.
A senior health expert from the United Nations told the BBC, Google Flu Trends would have to prove its reliability over time. But he added it could be very useful in nations where health authorities don't have a reliable database of infectious diseases.

Question 1 (2 Points)
Indicate whether the following questions are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.
a) Some people look on the internet before they make an appointment to see a doctor.
b) The methods used until now mean that the authorities know about increases in the number of diseases in a week.
c) The Google system has not yet demonstrated that it can be trusted.
d) Every country in the world has precise information on illnesses.

Question 2 (2 Points)
Answer the following questions in your own words.
a) How does Google Flu Trends identify areas where there are a lot of cases of flu?
b) How does the text suggest you can avoid catching flu?

Question 3 (1.5 points)
Find words or phrases in the text that correspond in meaning to the words and definitions below.
a) to create: paragraph 1
b) make available: paragraph 4
c) steps: paragraph 4

Question 4 (1.5 points)
Complete the following sentences without changing the meaning.
a) Google has launched a new online tool to help track the spread of influenza.
A new online tool ……………………………………………….
b) Google said: "We found that there's a very close relationship between the frequency of search queries and the number of people who are experiencing flu symptoms each week."
Google said that …………………………………………………
c) Early tests of the new web tool show it can detect regional outbreaks up to ten days earlier.
When the web tool was tested, it………………………………………

Question 5 (3 points)
Write a short essay (120-150 words) about the following topic.
Many people say that the internet is the most important invention ever. Do you agree?

Self-Access Group. CEP Santander

Best of Woork in February 2009

Did you miss anything in February 2009 on Woork? Take a look at this list with the most interesting articles I wrote on my blog in the past month.

Interesting Resources to learn Object Oriented Design
This is a small list with some basic references about Object Oriented Design process and it includes an UML guide, some articles about how to write OO javascript, PHP and Perl code. I also included some video tutorials about an useful introduction to OO PHP.

Simple process to estimate times and costs in a web project
In this articles I want to illustrate a simplified top-down process to estimate times and costs of a web process using a simple spreadsheet (in this example I used Google Spreadsheets but if you prefer you can use Microsoft Excel, OpenOffice Spreadsheet or a free online service such as Zoho or EditGrid).

Best Image Croppers ready to use for web developers
If you are looking for an image cropper user interface ready to use in your web projects and simple to customize, take a look at this list with the best and free image croppers UI currently in circulation.

Ultra small code to drag everything in HTML pages
A frequent question I receive from my readers is about how to implement a simple script to drag elements in a web page. So in this post I want to illustrate the simplest method I know and use to drag everything in HTML pages, using just three rows of Javascript code.

File uploaders collection for web developers
After my previous post about Best Image Croppers ready to use for web developers I want to suggest you some interesting resources where you can find useful and free file uploaders ready to use in your web projects.

Best Rich Text Editors ready to use in web projects
This post illustrates five interesting rich text editors ready to use in your web projects.



Interesting html FORM Validators for web developers
This post illustrates how to use some interesting HTML Form validators to check FORM fields writing only some lines of HTML and JavaScript code. All these proposal are lightweight, cross-browser and simple to use and customize in your web projects in few minutes.

Useful Ajax Auto Suggest scripts collection
This post is a collection of some interesting and useful Ajax Auto Suggest scripts ready to use (from beginner or professional web developers) in your web projects. This collection includes standard auto suggest scripts, del.icious tag suggestion, autosuggest control to search images on Flickr, and advanced table filter with auto suggest control.

10 Beautiful and free fonts for web designers
Are you looking for new interesting fonts to make inspiration for your new website or design project?



Take a look at this list with some beautiful free fonts you can download and use on your creative projects.

Free spell checkers for HTML Forms
In this post I want to suggest you five interesting and free spell checkers for HTML Forms (input and text area) ready to use in your web projects. I also provided some suggestions regarding how to implement them on your pages using a few lines of HTML and Javascript code.

6 Interesting online presentations for web developers
If you are looking for free resources to learn Ajax, PHP, CSS and JavaScript take a look at this collection with six interesting online presentations about these topics. The list includes a short introduction to Ajax, how to write modular CSS code, PHP Object Model fundamentals and an overview about the most popular JavaScript libraries.

Free resources for quickly developing AJAX applications
In this post I want to suggest you some free resources which allow developers to quickly build and mantain powerful and advanced AJAX web applications. In this list you can find advanced grid features, calendars, tab-strip and a lot of other interesting components to develop and enrich your AJAX web applications.

10 Free CAPTCHA scripts and services for websites
In the past days I received several requests from my readers to suggest some CAPTCHA scripts and services quickly to embed into a web page. This post proposes a list of ten interesting scripts and services you can use to provide protection from spam bots and ensure that only humans perform certain actions.