Vocabulary: crime and punishment

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT

Hello to everyone! Today, we are going to change radically the topic of this class. I am going to talk about crime and punishment. Actually, in the university all the degrees requires a level of English or the language you prefer but this level usually does not specify some fields like this. Thus, I consider this post interesting. 

First of all, what is crime and what is punishment?

Crime is an act (something you do) or omission (something you don’t do) that is against the law and punishable uponconviction.

Punishment is a penalty imposed on somebody who is convicted of a crime. A punishment could be, for example, some period of time in prison.

After this definition, you may be wondering what types of crime there are. Well, there are many but I mention some of them so that you have some ideas.

1.      Abduction / kidnapping => taking a person to a secret location using force. 2.      Armed robbery => using a weapon to steal. 3.      Arson => setting fire to a place on purpose. 4.      Assault => hurting another person physically. 5.      Attempted murder => trying to kill someone (but failing). 6.      Burglary, breaking and entering => going into another person´s home or business with force. 7.      Child abuse => injuring a child on purpose. 8.      Domestic violence => physical assault that occur within the home. 9.      Drug trafficking => trading illegal drugs. 10.  Drunk driving => driving after having too much alcohol. 11.  Fraud => lying or cheating for business or monetary purposes. 12.  Hijacking => holding people in transit hostage (usually on plane). 13.  Murder/ homicide => taking someone´s life through violence. 14.  Shoplifting => stealing merchandise from a store. 15.  Smuggling => bringing products into a country secretly and illegally. 16.  Speeding => driving beyond the speed limit. 17.  Terrorism => acts of crime against a group (political religious) or another country. 18.  Theft => stealing. 19.  Torture => extremely cruel and unfair treatment (often towards prisoners). 20.  Vandalism => damaging public or private property (for example with spray paint). 21.  White collar crime => breaking the law in business. And after this, I list some types of punishment. 1.      Traffic ticket => leaves marks on driving record/ involves paying a fine. 2.      License suspension => driving rights is removed for a certain period of time. 3.      Fine => pay money as punishment for minor/ pretty crime. 4.      House arrest => remain in one´s home for a certain period of time. 5.      Community service => do volunteer work such as teaching children about crime or cleaning up garbage. 6.      Jail time => spend a certain amount of months or years locked away from society. 7.      Life in prison => spends the rest of one´s life in prison with no chance of going back into society.

READING: The Life Cycle of Butterflies and Beetles

Butterflies.There are four separate stages in the life of a butterfly: 

The egg.The egg is a tiny, round or oval shape that gets attached by the female butterfly to a leaf,stem or other object.The egg is usually attached near the intended caterpillar food.

The caterpillar or larva.The caterpillar or larva is the long, worm -like state of the butterfly.It sometimes has an interesting pattern of stripes or patches.It might have  spine-like hairs.This is the feeding and the growth stage     of the butterfly.As the caterpillar grows,it sheds its skin    four or more times so it can enclose its rapidly growing body. 

The chrysalis or pupa.The chrysalis or pupa is the transformation stage.The caterpillar tissues are broken down to form the adult insect structures.Usually the chrysalis is brown or green color to blend

into the surroundings.Many times the chrysalis stage will remain this way over winter.

The adult or imago.The adult or imago is the colorful butterfly that you see throughout the warmer months of spring and summer.The adult stage is called the reproductive stage.These adults find their mates and lay more eggs.The adult stage also migrates or colonizes     new places to live. 

 

Beetles.The beetle has mouth parts to allow it to use a variety of solid foods in the environment.It has elytra    which protect the hind-wings and give the beetle help         in survival.Beetles undergo a change which is called “metamorphosis”.There are three stages before                     becoming an adult: 

The egg.The beetle larva hatches from the eggs                   in the female’s saclike structure after the eggs were              fertilized. 

The larva. The larva hatches and grows until its body          splits the skin.The larva crawls out of the old skin and      forms a new skin.This is called “molting”.Molting             occurs several times until the larva is mature.

The pupa.Wings develop and are seen in this stage. 

The adult.Within a month, the adult emerges from               the pupa and searches for prey.The beetle feeds                  on plants and other insects.Its wings are full-size                 and the outer skeleton is now hard.

EXERCISES:

a) Look for the correspondent word

life cycle ___________________________________

stages ___________________________________

oval___________________________________

transformation___________________________________

structures___________________________________

reproductive___________________________________

mates___________________________________

colonized___________________________________


b) Answer the following questions

 1.Select either the butterfly or the beetle and explain         its life cycle.Use all of the steps and the vocabulary associated with each stage in the life cycle from an              egg to an adult.

2.How is the life cycle of a butterfly and a beetle the              same? How are they different?

3.Why do you think the author used the word “life                cycle” in the title of this text and also within the text?

READING: Cinco de Mayo

Because Texas was once a part of Mexico, it has a strong Mexican heritage. That is why Texas celebrates the popular Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo.

In fact, many towns and cities throughout Texas have festivals to celebrate Mexico’s most famous military victory. About 4,000 Mexican soldiers fought the much larger French army at Puebla, Mexico, on  the morning of May 5, 1862. In honor of this victory, Cinco de Mayo is celebrated as an annual holiday.

The French had landed in Mexico along with Spanish and English troops to help collect debts from President Benito Juarez. While  the English and Spanish made deals and left, the French stayed. They wanted to rule the Mexican empire. The French invaded  Mexico, traveling from the port of Vera Cruz to attack Mexico City to the west. 

 

Under the command of Texas-born General Zaragosa and the cavalry under the direction of Colonel Diaz (later to be Mexico’s president and dictator), the Mexicans waited. Diaz took his cavalry out to meet the French, and the French could not overcome the Mexicans.

The remaining French infantry tried to overpower the Mexicans, but there was a thunderstorm that frightened

hundreds of cattle, which in turn started a stampede. When the battle was over, many French soldiers were wounded and killed, and the cavalry was chased away. The Mexicans had won a great victory.



Cinco de Mayo celebrates freedom and liberty. Many people think Cinco de Mayo is when Mexico declared   independence. That is not true. Mexico declared independence from Spain on the 15 of September, 1810,  and it took 11 more years before the first Spanish soldiers were forced to leave Mexico.

Freedom and liberty are worth fighting for and they are   worth celebrating, especially on Cinco de Mayo. Viva! el Cinco de Mayo!

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

1. Why does Texas have a long Mexican heritage?

2. Describe the invasion leading up to the Mexican victory, detailed in the text.

3. Explain why Cinco de Mayo is considered Mexico’s most famous military victory.

READING: The History of Chocolate

People from all over the world like the taste of chocolate. Chocolate is a refreshment that many people enjoy as a dessert or snack. Did you ever graba chocolate bar at the store when you were checking out groceries with your mom or dad? Did you ever buy a chocolate bar at the gas station when your parents stopped to buy gas? Did you ever get to pick out a chocolate candy bar at a basketball game or a soccer game?

Some people like dark chocolate and some people like light chocolate. Some people like plain chocolate and others like nuts or cream inside.

Maybe you have gone to a candy shop that made lots of different kinds of chocolate. Or you might have taken a trip out east and stopped at Hershey, Pennsylvania, where Milton Hershey first made chocolate for Hershey’s candy. The name “Hershey” is known throughout the world. Milton Hershey died in 1945, but the chocolate factory and Hershey’s chocolate continues to be made in Hersey,

Pennsylvania.

Mrs. Hershey thought it would be a good idea for her son Milton to learn a business from someone who was a successful businessman. So when Milton finished fourth grade, she arranged for Milton to become a printer’s apprentice where he would learn about print, newspapers, and books.

However, Milton did not like this kind of work and soon he was serving as an apprentice under his father who got a  new job in a candy factory where he helped to make candy.

After a few years, Milton knew that he was a good candy maker and he wanted to start his own candy business. He tried to build several businesses in many different cities, and he did not give up until his candy business was finally a success.

He learned to make caramels and to expand the kinds of candy he made. When he was 29-years-old, he moved back to Pennsylvania  to start a caramel business, and in four years his business was very successful.

After seeing how chocolate was made at a chocolate convention, Milton purchased the equipment needed to make similar chocolates. He got married and sold the caramel company for $1,000,000 dollars and opened up a chocolate factory.

Hershey built an entire town complete with houses, schools, churches, and stores so the people who worked in his factory could live nearby. The Hershey Chocolate Company grew to make sweet chocolate and cocoa.

He focused his factory on the “nickel bar”, a chocolate bar that everyone could afford. He then added Hershey Kisses and Hershey’s with Almonds.

As success and profits rose, he expanded his town to add a sports arena, a stadium, and a school to learn how to make chocolate. The school was for orphaned children, and when his wife died, Milton took all of his money  ($60 million dollars) and gave it to the school to help these children.

He also made a foundation which is an organization that gives money to people who need it. His foundation is designed to help people get an education.

Milton Hershey died in 1945, but the world remembers him for not only making chocolate bars, but for his work to help people through his foundation. A medical center for The Pennsylvania State University was also founded.

Milton Hershey is remembered as someone who built an entire city and helped people get jobs. He is remembered   for someone who made a school for children who did not  have families. He is someone who made a medical center   to help those who are sick and someone who made that  chocolate, that yummy chocolate that most of us       throughout the world enjoy.






NOW YOU HAVE TO ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

1. Why do you think Milton Hershey gave funds to the orphan  school and made a foundation when his wife died?

2. How will Milton Hershey be remembered?

3. Who likes chocolate in your family? What kind is their       favorite and why?

Relative Clauses

                      Relative Clauses give us more information about the subject or the object of a sentence, but there are two types of relative.

DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES:

             Those which complete the sentence with essential information.

• Who/that for people: There's the man who/that helped me.
• Which/that for objects or animals: This is the computer which/that I broke.
• Where for place: This is the restaurant where we first met.
• Whose for possession: That's the stupid woman whose dog bit me.
• When for time: Do you remember the time when Mary and Jack come to stay?
• Why for reason: He gave the reason why he couldn't came.
• Whom * (in more formal written or spoken English whom ii used as the object pronoun): Here is the man whom we told you about.

NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES:

               Those which give extra information that is not absolutely  essential  for the main meaning of the sentence. In written English we separate them from the main clause by commas.

Now check what you've learned in this hotpotatoes exercise!!

Gerunds & Infinitives

It is important to realise that verbos cannot be learnt in isolation. You should learn what follows each verb in order to use it accurately.

          GERUND:

We use gerund in the following cases:

 - After verbs such as involve, avoid, consider, mind ans risk.

         EX: Do you mind telling me what you are doing?

 -After many verbs which expresses like or dislikes, such as love, hate, loathe, enjoy.

          EX: I love cooking.

 - As a subject or object:

        EX: Eating is not permitted on the premises. 

 - After prepositions, phrasal verbs and expressions ending in a preposition:

        EX: He burnt the letter after reading it.

        INFINITIVE:

We use the bare infinitive (infinitive without to):

  - After modal verbs: 

         EX: We should listen to what he says.

  - After make and let:

         EX: They made me wear school uniform.

                 You wouldn't let me play.

  

We use the full infinitive (infinitive with to):

  - To express a reason or purpose:

    EX: He enrolled in the evening classes to improve his German.

  -After certain verbs such as appear  manage, seem, want, intend, plan, decide, would like and prefer.

  - Verbs which have two objects: encourage, request, advise, recommend, tell and ask.

  - EX: His mother encouraged him to apply for the course.

But there are some verbs which take both the infinitive or the gerund with a change of meaning.
 These verbs are, for example, like, try, stop, remember, hate and mean.


Let's do some exercises to check:

GRAMMAR: Conditionals

There are four types of conditionals:

ZERO CONDITIONAL: When we talk about things that are generally or always true. 

If/Whether + Present Simple/Continuous + Present Simple/Continuous

EX: If you do aerobic exercise, you burn up calories.

FIRST CONDITIONAL: Future  events that are likely to happen.

If/ Whether + Present tense + Will/ Won't

EX: Whether we don'y hurry up, we will be late.

SECOND CONDITIONAL: To talk about very improbable situations 

If/ Whether + Past simple + Would + Infinitive

EX: If I had a million dolars, I would buy ten cars.

THIRD CONDITIONAL: When we talk about impossible conditions because they are in the past and we can't change the past.

If/ Whether + Past perfect + Would Have + Participle 

EX: If I had worked harder, I would have got better marks.

Exercises:

 -  If he _________________ (be) younger, he _________________ (travel) more. 

- If I __________________ (go) out tonight, I __________________ (go) to the cinema.

 - If we __________________ (not / see) each other tomorrow, we_________________ (see) each other next week.

 - If he __________________ (come), I __________________ (be) surprised.

 - If I _________________ (be) you, I _________________ (get) a new job.

 -  If he _________________ (be) younger, he _________________ (travel) more.

 -  If we _________________ (not / be) friends, I _________________ (be) angry with you.

 - If you ______________ (not / be) late, we ______________ (not / miss) the bus.

 -  If she ______________ (study), she ______________ (pass) the exam.

 -  If they ______________ (go) to bed early, they ______________ (not / wake) up late

 -  If we ______________ (arrive) earlier, we ______________ (see) John.

 - If you __________________ (get) back late, I __________________ (be) angry.

-  If I _________________ (have) enough money, I _________________ (buy) a big house.