How many calories do you burn while doing nothing?

So the good news is that you burn about 700 calories just sleeping 8 hours a day. Then, even if you do nothing, just sitting at a desk, sitting in a chair, you'll burn another 1,000 or so calories throughout the day. So your body is burning about 1,700 calories a day for you for free - no effort needed. Now, if you want to lose weight, you just have to cut back on the amount of food you eat and increase your activities a little more. The weight should start flying off!

to lose weight - many students will say, "I need to lose my weight." or "Joe is trying to lose his weight." There is no need, however, for a possessive pronoun. 

You should say, "I need to lose weight." or: "Joe needs to lose weight."

Interesting article about burning calories while doing nothing.

http://www.livestrong.com/article/461950-how-many-calories-can-you-burn-daily-just-from-sitting-walking-around-a-house/

Vocabulary from the article:

bowling - I don't know why they included bowling along with these other activities. I have not been bowling in 20 years and I don't think I know one person who regularly bowls. Here is an image of a bowling ball hitting some pins in a bowling alley:

thermal energy - heat energy

body composition - what your body is made up of, the proportion of fat to muscle to bone etc.

There is very simple vocabulary in this article, I just wanted to point out that you don't have to use a possessive pronoun with 'weight'.

Also, as someone who is trying to lose weight, I found this article useful.

Kyrgyzstan breastfeeding controversy

The daughter of the president of Kyrgyzstan posted this photo of herself breastfeeding and then removed it shortly thereafter, when her parents requested that she do so.

{{{photo from the BBC}}}

Do you think it is ok for women to breast feed their children publicly?

Some folks think this woman was trying to show off her (sexy) body more than showing the process of breast-feeding? Was she 'sexualizing' the breast-feeding process?

Do you think Aliya should have taken the photo off of social media?

Article about this topic:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-40479231

Vocabulary from this article:

a controversy - when a topic causes people to strongly disagree with each other 

to spark - to cause, to initiate

a debate - when a topic is discussed and there are at least two differing opinions

the row - this is an English term meaning the controversy or disagreement or conflict

hyper-sexualized - too sexualized, over sexualized

sexualisation vs. sexualization - sexualisation is how the English spell this word and sexualization is how Americans spell it. So images of women are 'sexualized' when the images are deliberately meant to excite or arouse sexual desire when one sees the image

the caption - explanatory words under an image

immoral - not moral, not ethical, not acting in a right way; if you are doing something immoral you are doing something wrong.

vulgar - dirty, overly and inappropriately sexual

physiological needs - body needs

to disapprove - to express that one does not like something, when one expresses that something is wrong

conservative - someone who is conservative doesn't like things to change; a conservative person is usually not considered to be very open-minded

the outskirts - near the outer border of the city

stylized portraits - not realistic, more attractive and stylish than realistic

the backdrop - the background, what can be seen behind something that you will first focus on

landscapes - wide areas of nature depicted/shown in paintings

a recurring theme - it is something that happens over and over again in her postings

her flat - her apartment

prestigious - famous for being really good or special

a rarity - not common, not usual

the context of a post-Soviet Muslim society - The Soviet Union used to contain many countries including Russia and many smaller countries surrounding Russia. The Soviet Union broke up and these smaller countries gained their independence in the early 1990s. Some of these countries have traditional Islamic values. So the author is pointing out that this young woman is really different from most others in her traditionally Muslim society.

the generation gap - this is when the values and culture of the generation of one's parents is very different from the values and culture of the children. There was a lot of talk about the generation gap in the USA in the 1960s. Parents from the World War II generation generally supported the Vietnam War but their university student children opposed it.

compromise - when both sides in a disagreement meet in the middle

to be ousted - to be kicked out of office, to be removed from office

the incumbent leader - the current leader, the person in charge right now

to pledge - to promise

to meddle in - to get involved in, to interfere in

to cause a stir - to create controversy, to create heated discussion

Should restaurants have to provide free access to restrooms for the public?

A politician in Chicago wants to create a law which will force restaurants to provide free access to anyone who needs a bathroom if the situation is an 'emergency'. 

Here is the article about this situation:

http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/gotta-go-proposal-guarantees-public-toilet-access-in-emergency/

Vocabulary from the article:

restroom, bathroom, washroom - these terms are used interchangeably for the place where a toilet is located. 

gotta go? - Do you have to go?

an ordinance - a law

when nature calls - another way of saying: when a person has to go to the bathroom

rookie - someone new is often called a rookie. If it is your first year as a nurse, you are a rookie nurse. Teacher: rookie teacher. a rookie Ald. means rookie Alderman. An Alderman in Chicago represents his neighborhood in the city government and helps make laws for the city.

to be humiliated - to be deeply embarrassed, to do something that others might laugh at or look down on someone for

who had just had an accident - this means that she either peed or pooped in her pants. If you are a parent and your very young child pees or poops in his/her pants, you might say, "Oops my child just had an accident. We need to change his/her pants."

to be inhumane - to be lacking in real human values or morality, not to act like a kind and caring human being

Moore's ordinances goes further - it should be 'ordinance'

general counsel - general adviser/lawyer

well-intentioned - the person who created the ordinance wants to do something good, but....

Wrigley Field - the place where the Chicago Cubs play baseball. It is an area with lots of restaurants.

St. Patty's Day - St. Patrick's Day, a day celebrating the accomplishments of St. Patrick, who brought civilization to Ireland. Lots of people drink on this day and there are parades in many American cities.

massive amounts - huge, large amounts

too much of a burden - too difficult to deal with; a burden is something heavy you have to carry

the mandate - the law

burdensome - difficult

to be equipped - to have the capacity or facilities necessary to do something

substantial - big enough to matter

a genuine emergency - a real emergency

hit the head without having to walk too far - to hit the head means to go to the bathroom

edict - law

imposed on - forced on

death by a thousand cuts - business owners are saying that the government of Chicago is killing business slowly by doing one little thing after another that hurts business, like the form of execution (public killing) called 'death by a thousand cuts' where the person dies slowly after being cut by a knife several times. Chicago has some of the highest taxes in the country because it did not transition well after all of its factories moved to other cities in other countries. So the government keeps trying to get as much money as it can from its businesses (thus causing more and more businesses to leave the city). Chicago, as well as its businesses, is dying a slow death. 

a higher minimum wage - the minimum wage in Chicago is now $11/hr. Businesses would prefer that wages be established by the market and by supply and demand. Many business owners feel that a higher minimum wage hurts their businesses. Proponents (supporters) of a higher minimum wage feel this helps people overcome poverty and that it puts more money into the economy.

paid disproportionately - there are many people in labor unions in Chicago. A labor union is an organization that is supposed to protect workers in a particular industry. The biggest unions in Chicago are of government workers: the police, firemen and teachers. There are many of these people and so politicians have given them good salaries and large pensions after their retirement. Politicians have done this to get the votes of these union workers. In order to pay for the huge pensions (money paid to a person after he/she retires) the city is taxing businesses well above and beyond what citizens are being taxed (businesses are being taxed disproportionately - not in the right proportion). Yes, Chicago is PIGS: Portugal, Italy, Greece, Spain.

to be nickeled and dimed - to have someone stealing small amounts of money from you repeatedly

piling on - when one burden is added to another, then another burden is added then another etc.

The guy who was dragged off an airplane in Chicago...

United Airlines had a full airplane ready to go on a flight from Chicago to Louisville. They then realized that they needed to put 4 United employees on that last flight of the day to Louisville so they could begin work in Louisville the next morning. This meant removing 4 paid customers who were already seated.

Usually an airline will offer money to people who might be willing to give up their seats in a situation like this. In this case, nobody wanted to accept the money and leave and people were chosen randomly to be forced off the flight.

One man refused to move. When the police arrived, they violently removed him.

This is just another example of how people simply do not seem to have basic problem solving skills and will resort to violence and force instead of fully using their intelligence to defuse and resolve a problem.

The Economist offers some solutions to this situation in this brief article:

http://www.economist.com/blogs/gulliver/2017/04/when-ticket-not-enough

Vocabulary from the article:

to compensate - in this case, to provide money for a service or action

a bumped passenger - someone who has to leave the plane because it was overbooked

habitually - a habit is something you tend to do over and over again, for instance smoking is a habit, and drinking sugary soft drinks is a habit

the assumption - the belief

to misfire - in this case: to be wrong, to miscalculate, to develop in a way you did not want it to

plumped for - chose (this is an obscure word choice, don't bother memorizing it)

would strike someone as wrong - someone would realize it to be wrong

they upped the ante - a poker term meaning it raised the amount of money at stake or available

to tempt them to leave - if you tempt someone to do something you try to get them to do something by offering something pleasurable. 

randomly selected two people - they did not deliberately choose two people, they allowed a computer to choose two people by chance or without making a conscious choice

to disembark - to leave

distress - emotional pain

unrepentant - not sorry

mealy-mouthed - if someone says something in a mealy-mouthed way, he is lying because he is afraid to say what really happened

stinginess - cheapness

publicity - news

Questions to consider:

Why do airlines sometimes overbook flights?

Have you ever been in a situation where a flight was overbooked? What happened? 

If an airline overbooks a flight and nobody wants to leave, what should the airline do?

If the police come to a passenger who refuses to leave, what should they do?

If you had been that passenger, what would you have done?

Who was right and who was wrong in this situation?

Do you feel differently about United Airlines because of this video?

Some people want to boycott United now, how do you feel about this?

Were chemical weapons used by Assad's army in the Syrian Civil War?

{{{Photo from NY Daily News}}}

The Syrian Civil War began in 2011 when a series of protests around the country led to the formation of rebel armies meant to overthrow the dictator of Syria, Bashar al Assad. Anywhere from 250,000 to 400,000 people have died in the fighting. Millions of refugees have been forced to leave the country.

Initially the United States, under Barack Obama, tried to avoid involvement in this conflict. Later, the Obama administration began to support various rebel armies in their attempt to overthrow Assad. It is hard to understand what Trump's policy might now be - he seemed willing to support a Russian plan to keep Assad in power while eliminating ISIS and negotiating with other rebel groups to stop fighting.

The latest development concerns allegations that Assad's government attacked a city controlled by rebels with chemical weapons. Russia and Assad deny this. Hopefully this latest act of horror will not cause this war to escalate.

Below is an article from the BBC about this latest situation. 

Vocabulary from the above passage:

a protest - when groups of people gather publicly to express disapproval of some government policy or action.

a rebel group/army - a group or army opposed to the established government.

a dictator - one person who controls or dominates the government.

refugees - people forced to leave their own country due to war or some other horrible situation.

allegations - claims that something wrong has occurred.

to escalate - to get worse.

The article:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-39500319

Vocabulary from the article:

fury (uncountable) - extreme anger

UN Security Council - an organization at the United Nations which is supposed to help ensure peace in the world.

an ally - a friend

pledged - promised

a monitoring group - a group that is supposed to watch what happens

choking - not being able to breathe

foaming at the mouth - lots of small bubbles due to the reaction between poisonous air and internal bodily fluids

to feel dizzy - not to feel stable, to feel as if you are going to fall down

symptoms - evidence of some type of disease or physical problem

neurotoxic - harmful to brain cells

to launch an attack - to make an attack or begin an attack

a depot - an area where things are stored

militants - fighters, soldiers

aviation - air planes

made a strike on - dropped bombs on or shot missiles at

munitions - stuff to be shot out of guns or dropped from planes, ammunition

making a mockery of the peace process - making a joke out of the peace process, not taking the peace process seriously, showing contempt for the peace process

brokered - negotiated

senseless - if something is senseless there is no reason for it

to impose sanctions on - if a country has sanctions imposed on it, other countries might not trade with that country or be allowed to interact with it

obsessed with - completely and totally focused on

a UN Security Council resolution - an order to do something issued by the Security Council

to be staged - if something did not really happen, but people made it look as if it happened, it has been staged

a false narrative - a false story

to deflect attention from - to deflect something means to push it to the side

hinting - not saying something directly but implying something, suggesting something

unilateral action - action by the USA alone

to be compelled to do something - to feel forced to do something

an array - a grouping

broadly aligned groups - groups agreeing with each other in general terms

fanciful - like a fantasy, not real

unsustainable - in this case, not provable

an affront - an insult

subsequently - afterwards

internally displaced - no longer living in their own homes

Poverty went through the roof during the Obama administration (i.e. Baltimore)

Here is an amazing and depressing video from the BBC.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-39122283

25% of the people of Baltimore are living in poverty and there is more violence there than in Chicago (a city known for gun violence).

For 8 years President Obama was highly respected by the newspapers and TV networks in the USA. He was considered a saint in Hollywood. Over his 8 years, however, the situation for poor and black folks became worse and worse. These were the folks who voted for Obama, and these were the folks who suffered the most under him.

Here is another incredible video about poverty in Baltimore:

Text of Trump's Inauguration Speech

(photo from aljazeera.com)

On the day that a president begins a four-year term, he delivers an 'inauguration' speech. Inauguration basically means introduction.

A couple of weeks ago Trump gave his inauguration speech as a type of introduction as to what he intends to do for the new four years.

On the following link you can read his entire speech and I have the most interesting vocabulary words listed and defined under the link.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/20/politics/trump-inaugural-address/

Vocabulary to help you understand the text in the link:

an address - to address someone is to speak to him/her, so an address is, basically, a speech.

Chief Justice Roberts - he is the head or leader of the US Supreme Court. He reads the oath of office to the person who will become president and that person repeats the oath in order to officially begin as president. The oath of office is the promise made by the person who will become president that he will protect the Constitution and attempt to serve the American people well.

to restore its promise - basically Trump is saying that recent American leaders have been going in the wrong direction and he is going to 'restore' or bring America back onto the right path. America's promise means America's potential. Previous leaders have lost America's potential and he will get it back.

the course of America - the path, the direction in which America will go.

to confront hardships - to face or deal with difficult times.

the transfer of power - when one president takes over for another.

gracious - very kind and polite and supportive.

transferring power - Trump claims that his election was special because he will help bring power back to the people and take power away from the professional politicians in Washington D.C.

reaped the rewards - they have benefited from being in government.

borne the costs - the people have been paying for dishonest (corrupt) politicians to become wealthy. bear, bore, borne  (to bear is to carry or to endure)

Washington flourished - politicians in Washington did very well and made lots of money.

politicians prospered - politicians became rich but people lost their jobs.

the establishment - politicians who have been around for a long time, people who have been doing the same thing for many years.

a crucial conviction - an essential belief; crucial - essential, a conviction - a belief

a nation exists - Trumps states that the US government should be doing a better job of serving its citizens.

a righteous public - a public that believes in doing the right thing or moral things; if you are righteous you are a good person.

trapped in poverty in our inner cities - 'inner city' is a term used for the very poorest and often most dangerous part or parts of a city. If a person is trapped in poverty, that person cannot escape or overcome poverty.

rusted out factories - factories that have not been used and which are rusting (when metal starts to become covered with reddish dust)....like tombstones - tombstones are placed on the graves of dead people in cemeteries

flush with cash...deprived of knowledge - our education system has lots of money but children are not learning as much as they ought to. to be deprived of knowledge means not receiving knowledge.

carnage - destruction, horror.

allegiance - loyalty.

at the expense of American industry - Trump states that we have helped other countries develop their economies while hurting our own.

subsidized armies - he states that we pay lots of money to help other countries to protect themselves and that the US gets nothing in return.

depletion of our military - Trump believes our military has become weaker or depleted (it has lost strength).

infrastructure - bridges, roads, tunnels etc.

factories shuttered - factories closed down (to shutter something is to close it down).

redistributed - sent out to.

a new decree - a new order, a new set of rules.

ravages - destruction...Trump is stating here that in the process of other countries making goods which we buy we are becoming weaker.

welfare - when the government gives away free money, free housing, free food etc. to the poor.

to impose our way of life on others - to force others to live as we do.

eradicate - eliminate.

the bedrock - the foundation.

patriotism - a love for one's country.

law enforcement - the police.

to harness the energies etc. - to utilize or use the energies etc.

sprawl - something spread out very widely.

plains - flat land