Wednesday, April 4, 2012

BEC Preliminary Reading

Read the passage  and answer the questions given below:

Biofuels and the Environment

Leading investors have joined the growing chorus of concern about governments and companies rushing into producing biofuels as a solution for global warming, saying that many involved in the sector could be jeopardising future profits if they do not consider the long-term impact of what they are doing carefully.

It is essential to build sustainability criteria into the supply chain of any green fuel project in order to ensure that there is no adverse effect on the surrounding environment and social structures. The report produced by the investors expresses concern that many companies may not be fully aware of the potential pitfalls in the biofuel sector.

Production of corn and soya beans has increased dramatically in the last years as an eco-friendly alternative to fossil fuels but environmental and human rights campaigners are worried that this will lead to destruction of rain forests. Food prices could also go up as there is increased competition for crops as both foodstuffs and sources of fuel. Last week, the UN warned that biofuels could have dangerous side effects and said that steps need to be taken to make sure that land converted to grow biofuels does not damage the environment or cause civil unrest. There is already great concern about palm oil, which is used in many foods in addition to being an important biofuel, as rain forests are being cleared in some countries and people driven from their homes to create palm oil plantations.

An analyst and author of the investors' report says that biofuels are not a cure for climate change but they can play their part as long as governments and companies manage the social and environmental impacts thoroughly. There should also be greater measure taken to increase efficiency and to reduce demand.


Questions

Q1 - ____ are worried about the boom in biofuels.


Q2 - Biofuel producers ____ know about the possible problems.


Q3 - Environmentalists believe that increased production of corn and soya


Q4 - Biofuels might


Q5 - The increased production of palm oil


Q6 - The author of the report says that biofuels



Write your answers in your Blog.

Revathi

What is Signposting?

 Do you know what is signposting? It is a "a technique to help people follow the meaning of what you are saying.

They act as guides to help the reader follow what you are saying throughout a conversation, helps in establishing rapport and helps them to categories what you are saying." 


Here are more examples of signposting

To Begin Introducing your Point, you might consider starting with...
• I'd like to begin by...
• Let's start by...
• First of all, I'll...
• Starting with...
• To start with...
• I'll begin by...

For Finishing a Topic, try...

• Well, I've finished talking about...
• Well, that's all I have to say about...
• We've considered...
• So much for this subject...

To Start another topic, why not use...

• Now, let us move on to.
• Next, let us consider...
• Turning to...
• Moving on to...
• I would like now to discuss...
Applying Signposting Techniques in a discussion...

• So, where does that lead us?
• Let us consider this in more detail...
• What does this all mean?
• Translated this into real terms...

Giving an example...

• Here’s an example. I was...
• For example,...
• A good example of this is...
• To illustrate,...
• To give you an example,...
• To illustrate this point...
• Let’s consider a hypothetical situation for a moment. If you were to...
• Let me play the devil’s advocate for a moment. What might happen if...

To Summarize and conclude...

• In conclusion,...
• To conclude,...
• So, let's sum up, shall we?
• I would like now to recap...
• Let’s summarize what we’ve covered briefly...
• Finally, let me remind you of some of the issues we've covered...
• To sum up the main points...


Write to me-- how useful is the above information to you, in your Blog.
Revathi

Making a mini presentation

Hi,
Learn a few tips to make short presentations from the audio files given in Twitter. Make notes of the audio file contents, more with respect to expressions used for making effective presentations and sign posting.
Complete the task in two days.
Revathi