Mood and Staying in "Shape"

Fun Fact of the Day: Virginia Dare, "the first English child born in America, was born in Roanoke in 1587" (http://awesomeamerica.com).

Topic: Mood and Staying in "Shape"

/Wikipedia/

Etymologically, mood derives from the Old English mōd which denoted military courage, but could also refer to a person's humour, temper, or disposition at a particular time. The cognate Gothic mōds translates both θυμός "mood, spiritedness" and ὀργή "anger".

According to psychologist Robert Thayer, mood is a product of two dimensions: energy and tension. A person can be energetic or tired while also being tense or calm. According to Thayer, people feel best when they are in a calm-energy mood, and worst when in a tense-tired state. People often use food to regulate mood. Thayer identifies a fundamental food-mood connection, and advises against the reliance on food as a mood regulator. The low energy arousal coupled with tension, as experienced in a bad mood, can be counteracted by walking. Thayer suggests walking as a means to enhanced happiness.

A recent meta-analysis found that, contrary to the stereotype of the suffering artist, creativity is enhanced most by positive moods that are activating and associated with approach motivation (e.g. happiness), rather than those that are deactivating and associated with avoidance motivation (e.g. relaxation). Negative, deactivating moods with an approach motivation (e.g. sadness) were not associated with creativity, but negative, activating moods with avoidance motivation (e.g. fear, anxiety) were associated with lower levels of creativity.

Mood is considered to be a long lasting effect that makes a difference in the way you interact with people or external stimuli. "Moods are frequently described as more diffuse and nonspecific". Moods are considered to be mild, different from the concept of an emotion. “Moods are most often described by their valence either positive or negative, happy or sad, good or bad or neutral”. There are mainly two types of moods that people consider; these are positive mood and negative moods.

Positive mood can be caused by many different aspects of life as well as have certain effects on people as a whole. People seem to experience positive mood when they have a clean slate, had a good night sleep, and feel no sense of stress in their in life. "Generally, positive mood has been found to enhance creative problem solving and flexible yet careful thinking.

Like positive moods, negative moods have important implications for human’s mental and physical wellbeing. Moods are basic psychological states that can occur as a reaction to an event or it can surface for no apparent external cause. Since there is no intentional object that causes the negative mood, it has no specific start and stop date. It can last for hours, days, weeks, or longer. Negative moods can manipulate how individuals interpret and translate the world around them, and can also direct their behavior.

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION:

1. Many people talk about staying in 'shape' as physical exercise. What is the difference between physical and mental exercise? How do you keep 'mentally fit"? Does studying or working hard help you stay intellectually challenged and mentally fit? What else cn help you stay in shape?

2. Do you agree that staying in shape, both physically and mentally, can have a big affect on attitude and mood? How do you define the terms "attitude" and "mood"? How are they related? Does a positive attitude automatically lead to a good mood? Can good humor change your mood?

3. Many people experience changes in mood based on weather. When the weather becomes colder. how does this alter your mood? Does spending time outdoors help with your general happiness and in creating a positive attitude?

4. What other activitites affect your mood? Does spending time with friends and fanily help create a positive atmosphere for you? How do you respond to music, dancing, chatting? Do you think that positive moods and attitudes are "contagoius"?

5. What can you do to help keep a postivie attitude? What situations automatically dampen your mood (such as weather, too much work, etc.)? how can you combat negative situations in keeping a good attitude and a possitive mood?

SATURDAY, 08 October at 10:30 - Special 527 Presentation

Pop Quiz "How Well Do You Know Agatha Christie?"

The birthday of the 'queen of crime' is celebrated by her fans every September. Take our quiz to find out whether you've really got to the bottom of her books

1. Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple are Agatha Christie's most famous de­tectives, but she also created a host of other mystery solvers. Which of the fol­lowing is NOT a Christie detective?

* Tuppence Beresford

* Roger Ackroyd
* Harley Quin
* Parker Pyne
2. How many murders did Miss Marple solve?
- 3
- 47
- 36
- 102

3. And how many cups of tea did she drink over the 12 novels and 20 short stories in which she appears?

•22
• 143
•68
• 740
4. Which Guinness world record does Christie hold? 
- Oldest novelist to have had a book published
- Most murders in her novels
- World's bestselling novelist
- Novelist most frequently adapted for TV
5. Under what name did Christie write general fiction?
- Mary Wesley
- Mary Westmacott
- LC Fisher
- Georgina McCullagh
6. What happened to Christie in December 1926?
She met a suave moustachioed Belgian detective who inspired the character of Hercule Poirot
She disappeared for 11 days
She was acclaimed by the press for solving a real-life murder in her local village
She first set pen to paper
7. What was Christie's first novel?
The Mysterious Affair at Styles
Death on the Nile
Murder for Christmas
The Seven Dials Mystery

8. Agatha Christies job during the first world war gave her knowledge that would later feed into her murder mysteries. What was the job, and what was the knowledge?

As a servant in a stately home, teaching her about the life of the up­per classes
As a policewoman, giving her an insight into the way detectives work
As a nurse, giving her a working knowledge of poisons
As a sniper, teaching her about guns

9. How did Christie describe Hercule Poirot, when explaining why he wouldn't have liked Miss Marple?

As "a complete egoist"
As "a silly little man"
As "the embodiment of all my desires"
As "a fussy Belgian twerp"
10. Christie's play The Mousetra is the longest-running in history - how long has it been going for?

•80 years 

• 42 years

•57 years

• 25 years

11. And what is its plot?  

- The passengers on a train conspire to kill a fellow passenger

- A serial killer is on the loose in a small Devon village

- A murder occurs in a hotel whc the guests are trapped by snow

- After a murder at a butler's cc vention, everyone is a suspect

Answers:

1. Roger Ackroyd

2.47

3.143

4.World's bestselling novelist

5.Mary Westmacott

6.She disappeared for 11 days

7.The Mysterious Affair at Styl

8.As a nurse, giving her a work knowledge of poisons

9.As "a complete egoist"

10.57 years

11.A murder occurs in a hotel wl the guests are trapped by snc

From "Guardian"

Rosetta Stone at Our Center!

 ROSETTA STONE AT OUR CENTER!

LEARN ENGLISH WITH US!

Inferiority/Superiority Complex

Fun Fact of the Day: New Amsterdam. Indianna is the smallest city in the U.S., with a population of 1 (http://www.theholidayspot.com).

Topic: Inferority / Superiority Complex

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inferiority_complex

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superiority_complex

/Wikipedia/

1. In your opinion, what is the inferiority complex? What is the superiority complex? Related words: hierarchy (structure), self-righteousness (feelings of greater value), narcissism (egoism), megalomania (fantasies of wealth or power), hubris (extreme pride or arrogance).

2. What characteristics may make someone feel less qualified or less intelligent than another person? Do you believe that feelings of inferiority are based on self-esteem or are they created by others' actions?

3. What may make someone feel better that others? Are feelings of superiority or greatness created by self-interest or through interactions with others?

4. What are the advantages and disadvantages to feeling inferior or superior? Are feelings of inferiority or superiority always negative or are there sometimes benefits? Do you think that inferiority or superiority complexes help or hurt our lives?

5. Does age lead to feelings of inferiority or superiority? How may personal history or the surroundings social environment cause someone to feel inferior or superior?

6. Has anyone ever made you feel inferior? How did you deal with that feeling?

7. Have you ever felt superior to someone? If so, why did you feel that way? Do you think it was a fair assessment? Why or why not?

Schedule: Thursday, 29 September 2011 at 5:30, Saturday, 1 October 2011 at 10:30

Vinnytsia English Club with Masha Malogovchuk

Hey everyone)) My name is Masha and I’m going to tell you the story about my journey, not a simple one, but the best journey I’ve ever had in my life. If I were to describe all my colourful adventures using one word, I would name them “Dream”. And it’s really true because when I found myself in London I was amazed at the gorgeous and marvelous architecture of the buildings, palaces and especially The Houses of Parliament at night. It was like in the sweetest fairy-tale. 

I adored the London Eye and all the landmarks on my way, I appreciated every moment ‘cause it was the first time I could view the country I’d been learning so much about from inside. I spent only several days in England as a simple tourist since my main purpose of staying there was to participate in a voluntary project which took place near the city of Derby in the village called Etwall. I owe much to my boyfriend Yaroslav who advised to ferret out in the internet and find some work camps organized by SCI – Service Civil International, one of the largest international volunteering organizations which is dedicated to promoting a culture of peace by organizing international voluntary projects for people of all ages and backgrounds. 

Volunteers can choose to participate in thousands of projects all over the world. I would certainly say that projects help to break down barriers and prejudices between people of different social, cultural and national backgrounds and promote a culture of peace. Svit-Ukraine is a branch of SCI which resides in Donetsk region, with the help of which I arranged my documents and organized my journey in a safe and exciting way.

Well, speaking about my work camp I should say that I hadn’t really expected to find myself in such an amazing and miraculous place full of greenery, wonderful landscapes, golden fields of wheat, stunning vendure and peaceful corners of nature. Moreover there were volunteers from different countries – France, Spain, Poland, China, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Russia, Slovakia, Scotland, Italy and Portugal. While working we had a great chance to know more about other cultures and share experiences. As for the accommodation , all the volunteers dwelled in Tara Kadampa Meditation Centre, the Buddhist centre, where we both lived and worked. Our task was to help to set up the festival for 400 people from all over the UK who were going to receive teachings of Buddhism and meditation. Every day each of us pulled a small stick with a special colour corresponding to each type of work. Most of the days I spent gardening, especially weeding and learning new English words concerning garden tools). In the evenings we had some social programmes about peace in the world, chanted prayers, Buddhism teachings and meditation sessions (of course it was not compulsory), we played quizzes, visited the village pub where we had an opportunity to improve our skills to play darts and billiards or just walked around enjoying the magic world of nature. 

During the first  weekends we dropped in the city of Derby, a small one, but very beautiful and out of common. While visiting Peak District, Mattlock Bath during the last days of our staying there four of us – a Russian boy, a Slovak, a Bulgarian girl and me suggested an idea of making several pictures of a striking castle on the far hill which was considered to be a private property. Unfortunately we didn’t notice the table where it was written: “Trespassers will be prosecuted” and penetrated inside. Nobody took the notice of special movement detectors and we proceeded further and further reveling in the castle’s beauty until a security guy ran up to us shouting and threatening to call the police. Those moments were really unpleasant because never before I had seen such a furious  English man. Thanks God everything ended well and the man let us out. 

   Frankly speaking I experienced such intense moments several times during my staying in England so that my heart pounded violently and my palms were sweating)).

  On the whole I loved England and people there are very very friendly and smiling, but I still can’t understand some things like – why they use two taps instead of one in washbasins with cold and hot water separately, my hands were either burning or freezing,  I got to know that they eat much potato and pasta, drink much beer and spend more money on animals’ funeral rather than on human beings’. Furthermore I was charmed and fascinated by their fairy, peerless and delightful nature that inspired me and gave me food for thought. I’m very thankful to SCI and IVS(British branch of SCI) for accepting me in their work camp and giving the chance to get the most valuable experience and  to have cool friends all over the world)) I hope that I’ll be able to find a volunteer project in London during the Olympic Games in 2012. Looking forward to experiencing new adventures in my eventful life……)))))

The International Day of Peace

The International Day of Peace, also known as the World Peace Day, occurs annually on September 21. It is dedicated to peace, and specifically the absence of war, such as might be occasioned by a temporary ceasefire in a combat zone. It is observed by many nations, political groups, military groups, and peoples. The first year this holiday was celebrated was 1981.

To inaugurate the day, the "Peace Bell" is rung at UN Headquarters (in New York City, United States). The bell is cast from coins donated by children from all continents. It was given as a gift by the United Nations Association of Japan, and is referred to as "a reminder of the human cost of war." The inscription on its side reads: "Long live absolute world peace." Individuals can also wear White Peace Doves to commemorate the International Day of Peace, which are badges in the shape of a dove produced by a non-profit in Canada /http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_Day/. The International Day of Peace “is meant to be a day of global cease-fire, when all countries and all people stop all hostilities for the entire day. And it is a day on which people around the world observe a minute of silence at 12 noon local time. And let us pledge to do our utmost to carry out the important decisions on peace taken by last week's 2005 World Summit.” -- Kofi Annan -- United Nations Secretary-General 21 September 2005 /http://www.un.org/events/peaceday/2005/
Peace Day on Facebook -/http://www.facebook.com/peaceday//
The International Day of Peace ("Peace Day") provides an opportunity for individuals, organizations and nations to create practical acts of peace on a shared date. It was established by a United Nations resolution in 1981 to coincide with the opening of the General Assembly. The first Peace Day was celebrated in September 1982. In 2002 the General Assembly officially declared September 21 as the permanent date for the International Day of Peace  /http://internationaldayofpeace.org/ 

English Club On "Modern Technology"

Topic: Modern Technology

1. What do you think about the Internet - is a good or a bad invention? Do social networks substitute personal communication? Is it possible to have a real friend without meeting him or her in person but by communicating only through the Internet?

2. What is th difference between video chatting, such as Skype, and personal communication? Is there a difference, in your opinion? Is something lost in communication online or would you consider these interactions equal to face-to-face relationships?

3. How dependent are you on your mobile phone? can you imagine your life without this gadget? Why or what not? What price do we pay for using mobile phones?

4. Recently, there have been discussions abroad to exclude penmanship (writing) lessons and to replace them with typing courses. If these discussions were put into effect, how would the lack of writing classes affect the next generation? Would writing potentially become unimportant or irrelevant?

5. Try to imagine life in 20, 50 and 100 years. Which aspects of life do you think will be the most altered by technical progress in the future? Could these changes be dangerous for future generations? Can potentially dangerous consequences of technical progress be controlled?

                    
6.When you think of the future, do you see progress in high technology or retreat to relationships with natural features and the environment? Could such technical progress and a harmony with the surrounding world go together?
 /Picture taken from Wikipedia/