Kristoffer; a Korean guy in our class with a Scandinavian name. WOW, talk about random, huh? But in all sincerity, Kristoffer is an awesome guy! He's a killer in school, a great guy to hang out with - all summarized, just a good guy and a really good friend. Kristoffer, or just Kris as his friends call him has an understanding for English very few has. On his exam he got a straight A, with praising from both the sensor and our teacher, who thought that his presentation was and I quote; "Mind blowing". Although I didn't get as good grades in English this year as I thought I would or as Kris did, I feel nothing but proud on Kris' behalf on doing such great this year. If you ever read this, I wish you a very bright future and that you'll achieve greatness in life!
… And before our new school year begins; let’s just have a summer filled with awesomeness!
-your favorite Latino-Norwegian, Mike
But truth be told, I will never sit in the same car with you when you’re in the driver’s seat, LOL
fredag 10. juni 2011
fredag 25. mars 2011
Project of the day: Varieties of the English Language
English has evolved vastly over the last century. This has led to the huge variety of different types of English we have today. I worked together with two guys in my class. We took one type each and wrote a little about said version of English. We picked South African English, Jamaican English and Hong Kong English.
South Africa
South African English is a non-rhotic language with additions from Afrikaans (working class). Non-rothic means that the speaker only pronounces rhotic consonants if they are followed by a vowel. South Africa has been settled by Dutchmen and invaded by Englishmen. Due to this, their language is influenced by both Dutch and English.
South African English is influenced more by English than American due to the invasion by Great Britain in the 1800s. This is clearly shown in the South African English vocabulary. The Dutch has influenced South African English mostly on pronunciation.
South Africa has 11 different languages which are used, so their English are influenced greatly from other languages. Including, English, Indian, Dutch, Afrikaans, Zulu etc. Especially the African languages have had a major impact on the South African English. Here is an example sentence “The old lady has been tuning me grief all avie, coz I bust her tjor going yooees with the okes in Bez Valley"The two main phonological indicators of South African English are the behavior of the vowels in kit and bath. The kit vowel tends to be "split" so that there is a clear allophonic variation between the close, front [ɪ] and a somewhat more central [ɪ̈]. The bath vowel is characteristically open and back in the General and Broad varieties of SAE.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong English is a form of the English language which is quite similar to the British English which is spoken in one of the core English areas. The similarities we find between the two are spelling, pronunciation and vocabularies. These resemblances are all huge, but there need not to be big differences in a language to be called for example a dialect.
However we also find several inequalities as well as likenesses. In Hong Kong they have people they call returnees, a word that might be mixed with refugees. The only difference is that returnees are people from Hong Kong that have been abroad to learn English and then return, which causes the language to be influenced not just by British English, but also by Australian and Canadian English. As well as Australian and Canadian influence the language has some of its vocabulary from India and Malaysia, with words like: chop, shroff, nullah and godown, for example.
Still the biggest difference is probably the accent among the Cantonese people, which are people that are native Honkongers. Many people also pronounce some of the words differently from British, Australian and Canadian English. For example they say: "three" as "free", "shree" or even "fee". They also confuse the endings of words that end with d,g and b and they say t,k and p instead. For example: "bad" as "bat". Also they confuse Tr and Ch which often make "train" sounding like "chain" for example. I believe they confuse many English sounds, because they in their native language they don't have the same sounds at all.
Jamaica
Jamaica is located in the Caribbean. More specifically it is an island located south from Cuba; witch is right underneath the port of Miami, USA. Once known as Santiago, a Spanish possession, it was later to be called Jamaica after British colonies taking over the island. Today it is still remains as a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as head of state.
Jamaican English has a much mixed up vocabulary, as it is influenced by mostly British English, but still uses a lot of American English words in both handwriting and in colloquially of the Jamaican English speaker. The Jamaican English vocabulary will mostly contain British words, like “sleeping policeman” which means “speed bump” as we call it. According to Wikipedia, when asking a Jamaican if he or she can pronounce a word or sentence in Jamaican English, that person would reply that it is more natural to let him speak in Irish English. The reason for this, again according to the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, would be that this form of English comes more natural to the Jamaican rather than pronouncing it in what we would call a Jamaican English accent. As it is hard to explain how the Jamaicans speak English, this link is a small taste of how most Jamaicans talks with their accent. The clip is a interview of the world famous song artist Jean Paul, who is known to both sing and rap in English with his Jamaican accent.
And last but not least I would like to thank my two buddies that I have worked with for our Project of the day task! Seriously, it was awesome working with ya'll <3
Kristoffer
Joachim
South Africa
South African English is a non-rhotic language with additions from Afrikaans (working class). Non-rothic means that the speaker only pronounces rhotic consonants if they are followed by a vowel. South Africa has been settled by Dutchmen and invaded by Englishmen. Due to this, their language is influenced by both Dutch and English.
South African English is influenced more by English than American due to the invasion by Great Britain in the 1800s. This is clearly shown in the South African English vocabulary. The Dutch has influenced South African English mostly on pronunciation.
South Africa has 11 different languages which are used, so their English are influenced greatly from other languages. Including, English, Indian, Dutch, Afrikaans, Zulu etc. Especially the African languages have had a major impact on the South African English. Here is an example sentence “The old lady has been tuning me grief all avie, coz I bust her tjor going yooees with the okes in Bez Valley"The two main phonological indicators of South African English are the behavior of the vowels in kit and bath. The kit vowel tends to be "split" so that there is a clear allophonic variation between the close, front [ɪ] and a somewhat more central [ɪ̈]. The bath vowel is characteristically open and back in the General and Broad varieties of SAE.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong English is a form of the English language which is quite similar to the British English which is spoken in one of the core English areas. The similarities we find between the two are spelling, pronunciation and vocabularies. These resemblances are all huge, but there need not to be big differences in a language to be called for example a dialect.
However we also find several inequalities as well as likenesses. In Hong Kong they have people they call returnees, a word that might be mixed with refugees. The only difference is that returnees are people from Hong Kong that have been abroad to learn English and then return, which causes the language to be influenced not just by British English, but also by Australian and Canadian English. As well as Australian and Canadian influence the language has some of its vocabulary from India and Malaysia, with words like: chop, shroff, nullah and godown, for example.
Still the biggest difference is probably the accent among the Cantonese people, which are people that are native Honkongers. Many people also pronounce some of the words differently from British, Australian and Canadian English. For example they say: "three" as "free", "shree" or even "fee". They also confuse the endings of words that end with d,g and b and they say t,k and p instead. For example: "bad" as "bat". Also they confuse Tr and Ch which often make "train" sounding like "chain" for example. I believe they confuse many English sounds, because they in their native language they don't have the same sounds at all.
Jamaica
Jamaica is located in the Caribbean. More specifically it is an island located south from Cuba; witch is right underneath the port of Miami, USA. Once known as Santiago, a Spanish possession, it was later to be called Jamaica after British colonies taking over the island. Today it is still remains as a Commonwealth realm with Queen Elizabeth II as head of state.
Jamaican English has a much mixed up vocabulary, as it is influenced by mostly British English, but still uses a lot of American English words in both handwriting and in colloquially of the Jamaican English speaker. The Jamaican English vocabulary will mostly contain British words, like “sleeping policeman” which means “speed bump” as we call it. According to Wikipedia, when asking a Jamaican if he or she can pronounce a word or sentence in Jamaican English, that person would reply that it is more natural to let him speak in Irish English. The reason for this, again according to the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, would be that this form of English comes more natural to the Jamaican rather than pronouncing it in what we would call a Jamaican English accent. As it is hard to explain how the Jamaicans speak English, this link is a small taste of how most Jamaicans talks with their accent. The clip is a interview of the world famous song artist Jean Paul, who is known to both sing and rap in English with his Jamaican accent.
And last but not least I would like to thank my two buddies that I have worked with for our Project of the day task! Seriously, it was awesome working with ya'll <3
Kristoffer
Joachim
onsdag 16. mars 2011
Angels and Demons, by Dan Brown
The book I have chosen to read for the rest of the spring semester is the book "Angels and demons" by the American writer Dan Brown. The reason for why I chose this book is because it is the only book in Dan Brown's book series that I have yet not read. Why I didn't read it before is kind of mind boggling for me, since it would actually make more sense since it was the second book released, with "Digital Fortress" as his first release of the series. And then his all-time best seller "The Da Vinci Code" was released as a third.
But this isn't what you wanted to read about, just some random background check on my life and the fact that Dan Brown's books has been a part of it? Well, technically I can write about anything because it's my blog, but I'm not going to leave you guys hanging anymore.
So, prepare to be… something, I really don't know, hahahah. But seriously, here's some pointers on how I feel about the book so far.
The book starts off kind of like any other Dan Brown books; you get high expectations for what to come before even opening the book, then it holds your breath as you begin reading the first words and so on. But then it kind of shifts it's pace, as the introduction kind of brings the adrenaline that earlier pumped through your veins and vanished in some dull plot in a book. Or at least that's my opinion of it.
And then, BOOM! Like a bomb the whole storyline suddenly changes its pace and becomes much more interesting and thrilling than it began with. This recipe has been used in every Dan Brown book that I have read, and as from my point of view, it really pays up for Mr. Brown to do so.
Will post more as I get a little further in my reading.
But this isn't what you wanted to read about, just some random background check on my life and the fact that Dan Brown's books has been a part of it? Well, technically I can write about anything because it's my blog, but I'm not going to leave you guys hanging anymore.
So, prepare to be… something, I really don't know, hahahah. But seriously, here's some pointers on how I feel about the book so far.
The book starts off kind of like any other Dan Brown books; you get high expectations for what to come before even opening the book, then it holds your breath as you begin reading the first words and so on. But then it kind of shifts it's pace, as the introduction kind of brings the adrenaline that earlier pumped through your veins and vanished in some dull plot in a book. Or at least that's my opinion of it.
And then, BOOM! Like a bomb the whole storyline suddenly changes its pace and becomes much more interesting and thrilling than it began with. This recipe has been used in every Dan Brown book that I have read, and as from my point of view, it really pays up for Mr. Brown to do so.
Will post more as I get a little further in my reading.
fredag 4. februar 2011
Urbanizing
Urbanizing - A phenomenon that has been changing the world year by year since it fully began in the 18th century. But what is urbanization exactly? The true definition of it is a physical growth of urban areas, urban areas being cities, towns or conurbations, as a result of a global change Back then, approximately 2% of the worlds population had moved into urban areas. This massive population and urbanizing growth would continue on. But it wasn't until the 20th century came around, more exactly 1950, that we would actually see humongous results when the number had grown to a total of 30%. Most likely, based on the historical facts, the reason for this was that the WW2 had ended making people rebuild and move into cities, trying to make a better future. Another reason would be that before the war started, many people sought refuge in countries such as the US, in search for a safer and better future.
Today the worlds population is estimated to have more than 47% of it living in these urban areas, and is estimated to grow to 52% by 2015 and later a total of 60% as of 2030. Of course, this is only an estimated number.
The country or area that we see the most results from, are North America and Europe, due to the fact that mostly industry and work offices has made people expand and move to cities because it has become the center of attention, keeping in mind that the Western world is more "civilized" than other parts of the world.
Points on how to come up with good answers for your exam about statistics
• Read the statistic with caution: Many times when one reads different statistics, there are always big chances that some of the information is not interpreted the way it should be. For example, some of the statistics can be mixed up with one another, making the numbers and information that was supposed to help you useless for the answer o n your exam.
• Historical background: It is always good to have a some insight in what you are looking at. When observing and gathering information from graphs and statistic, you will most likely see that there are different dates to each graph. Having some historical knowledge will then help you write a bigger and better text, touching on various themes that the text might not have included in the first place,
• False information: Sometimes the statistic you are viewing can have information that is not true, that the is not legitimate. This can be misguiding, and make the paper or exam not fulfilling the criteria it was supposed to. Therefore it is always a good thing to make sure that the information you bring into your exams are both up to date and has at least 2 sources, referencing to the same numbers and dates.
torsdag 20. januar 2011
9/11
Last Friday, we watched the film documentary "9/11", a dramatic and emotional movie made by two French brothers. The documentary was at the beginning made to be about firemen on Manhattan, NY, in the down town area where the World Trade Center once stood.
The documentary is gripping in many ways. For one it takes you to the scene of the horrible event that happened in Manhattan, only minutes after the first plain crash. Not only do they capture the evacuation procedure of the firemen that were there, but haunting screams of innocent lives being taken and hurt are screamed throughout the corridors and hallways as they bravely manages to make it to their objective; to help. Another factor that plays into this unbelievable happening, is that as you've already watched the film documentaries beginning, you can't help to bear in mind that the firemen are heroic people that hasn't got the faintest idea of what's coming for them!
Now, I'm not going to give away every single detail about the storyline of this film, but what I can reveal is that to whomever is going to watch this movie, will be both moved and touched by what happens 'till the end when the credits roll in. Further more, I hope that everyone who chooses to watch this film will enjoy it just as much as I did, and perhaps get another perspective of what went on the day of 9/11 and the days after.
Do the ones that lost and risked their life during this day; Remember 9/11 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zr1pwZXf65w&feature=related
fredag 3. desember 2010
Open your eyes
December; the 12th month of the year, more merry than any other months of the year some would say. The time of the year where families unite to celebrate, exchanging gifts with one and other, kids can be seen outside playing in the cold, white snow and the very idea of life shines through most people’s heart shine through; love. This is how we like to picture ourselves what Christmas is like all over the world.
Unfortunately not everyone celebrates their holidays as you and I. There are a lot of people that doesn’t even know this very idea that the Western population of the world has created Christmas to be. Many people are only focusing on surviving through the month and the next ones to come. It is therefore important to keep in mind what you value in life, and reflect upon how other peoples lives may be very different from yours and mine. Take China for an example. A country that is much divided between the rich and poor. A country which is ran by a government that has been debated and discussed many times, but has only recently been shunned in the spotlight it deserves. Much of this is because of the work that Mr. Liu Xiaobo has done throughout his life as a human rights activist, being also a Chinese literacy critic, a writer and a professor, this earning him the Nobel peace prize “"for his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China". He received the prize during his 4th prison term, being incarcerated as a politic prisoner for his criticism against the Chinese government. This is just what was needed, showing the government of China its true face. I applaud this man for standing up for his people, being brave enough to fearlessly go against such a big, corrupted government.
So to all my readers, I wish you all a merry Christmas.
And I hope you keep in mind that most of us are privileged to live the lifestyle we do. I know I will…
Mike
lørdag 20. november 2010
I'm back, sort of...
As you can see, there haven’t been many entries published on my blog lately. First And foremost I wish to apologize to all my readers. Reason for why my blog entries haven't been published, is that I haven't been avle to log into my user. Why this issue has appeared, I have no idea. But what matters is that I highlighted to the admins, and now it finally works again! I also want to talk a little bit about my school year in International English, the class I'm attending, this far. There's been a lot going on. We've seen movies, worked with Americans in a project that is still ongoing by the way. But unfortunately we've had just as much, if not more to do in the other classes we the students are attending as well. Luckily, our teacher has shown us compassion and understanding, by not being to hard on us. If Ann, my IE (International English) teacher reads, I truly thank you for this. Hopefully, more focus and dedication will be put into IE from now on. All in all, one of my favorite subjects is still English and I hope to learn about it 'till the end of my year in second grade.
Mike
Mike
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