SELF- ASSESMENT OF ONLINE LISTENING TO PODCASTS

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/yyhealth/
YYHealth: Tooth Whitening 01 Nov 07
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/farming/
Farming 06 Nov 07: Who gets the profits?


I have listened two podcasts. One of them was about farming and its benefit, another about tooth whitening. The main purpose of this task was to prepare better for my listening exam. I think that was very useful and interesting practise.
Podcasts were quite difficult for me, so I had to listen it 2-3 times in order to understand clearly. I perceived that I have to build up my vocabulary, because there were a lot of unknown words in these podcasts. However I think that I learnt main ideas and information quit well and I could answer the questions asked correctly. I am glad that the pronunciation was very clear and I could get the meanings of the words.
Most annoying things in listening are interferences. I managed to understand everything plainly when people were talking at the studio, but when somebody talked by phone I had to listen it twice or even three times. When my roommate hanged around and made noise it was more difficult to concentrate for listening. Another difficult thing in listening is expressions. But you can’t do anything in this situation. You need help of lecturer or big dictionary if you want to find the meaning of one or another expression.
In my opinion I should practise much more, if I want that extrinsic sounds do not disturb me. I should read more English literature or watch more films in English in order to expand my vocabulary.
In conclusion I can say that I feel comfortable when I watch English movies, there usually conversational English is used. But when language is more scientific and it is talking for a long time about one process or event, it is hard to understand all aspects of it.

Alcoholism

For many people, drinking alcohol is nothing more than a pleasant way to relax. However sometimes it becomes an illness
.
Drinking problem has multiple causes, with genetic, physiological, psychological and social factors all playing a role. Not every individual is equally affected by each cause. Some individuals drink to cope with emotional problems. Poverty and physical or sexual abuse could lead to alcohol dependence too.

While some research suggests that small amounts of alcohol may be useful, but heavier drinking can lead to health problems. A lot of people die from alcohol-related causes each year.
Sequence of drinking:
Short-term-memory loss, hangovers, and blackouts.
Long-term- stomach ailments, heart problems, cancer, brain damage, serious memory loss, and liver cirrhosis. Increased chances of dying from automobile accidents, homicide, depression, or anxiety.

Alcoholics often hide their problem or deny it. Some people with drinking problems work hard to resolve them, and often, with the support of family members or friends, these individuals are able to recover on their own. However, most of them usually can't stop drinking without professional help. They may need to get into Anonymous Alcoholic centres and start detoxification process. There also are twelve steps program. In that program alcoholics are communicating with each other, all of them have same problem, so they can share and advice how to solve that problem.

Hhere you can do test: ,, Has drinking alcohol become a problem for me?”

• Can't stop drinking once you start?
• Have tried to stop drinking for a week or so but only quit for a few days?
• Fail to do what you should at work or at home because of drinking?
• Feel guilty after drinking?
• Find other people make comments to you about your drinking?
• Have a drink in the morning to get yourself going after drinking heavily the night before?
• Can't remember what happened while you were drinking?
• Have hurt someone else as a result of your drinking?

If you answered to these questions YES, you have problem with alcohol. So think about it!

Cars

Some people think that the automobile has improved modern life. Others think that the automobile has caused serious problems.
I agree with both the arguments. Along with the tremendous benefits that the automobiles give to us, they also pose a serious threat to people's health and environment. Especially it is big problem in our country, Lithuania.
In the pre-automobile days people traveled on horses and carts. The traveling time was very long. Today, the automobiles can run anywhere close to 200 miles per hour speed.They are the cheapest and one of the fastest inventions of transportation and traveling on the land. The automobiles help people to take care of medical, business and other personal emergency situations.
Benzene and diesel, when used as an automobile fuel emits lot of poisonous gases. Automobiles pose a serious threat to the environment by emitting air pollutants like carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. The Air pollution poses serious threat to the ecology including human's health. Researchers have directly related the cause of various cancers to the air pollution. Automobiles also make people lazy by providing them with an easy means to travel that involves no physical exercise. It is serious problems in Lithuania, because our economy is still low and people can not afford to buy new cars, and old ones pollute atmosphere a lot.
Other terrible problem in Lithuania is Road War. Lithuania is leading country in EU by death in roads. Drivers are driving dizzy of alcohol, do not keep speed limits, and often break traffic rules. In this situation I suggest for government to set much stricter punishments as Latvia did. After that number of roadkills in Latvia reduced considerably.