English Club's Discussion: 'What trait or characteristic do you admire most in people?'

 

Introductions

What event would you most like to attend (Rank 1-8):
- The Olympic Games this summer in London
- The Championship match of Euro 2012
 - A Hollywood Movie premier with your favorite star
 - The Prince’s wedding in London
 - A Championship fight of the Klitschko brothers
 - Easter Church service in Jerusalem
 - A Concert of your favorite Band in the world
 - A lunch and personal interview with your favorite writer of all time

Discussion Topic: 

What trait or characteristic do you admire most in people? Why is this trait important to you? 

What is the trait or characteristic that you can’t stand in other people?
Is there one characteristic that you don’t have that you would like to have?
Do admire people who are brave? Can you think of some examples of brave people or brave actions? Where does their bravery come from?
Are you a person who can persevere through difficult times?

Group Contest

Our Schedule

Thursday, May 3 – 1730 Library

Saturday, May 5 – 1030 Library

Visit Our Group on www.Facebook.com – English Club in Vinnytsia

English Club Blog - www.woavinnitsa.blogspot.com

Skype Discussion with Andrea Chalupa

April 26, 2012. Vinnytsia 'Window on America' Center hosted a guest from New York for the forth Skype Discussion. 

We were focusing on American cinema, Oscar Film Festival and its results, the current state of Hollywood and how Oscar Award-winning movies are made. Our guest, Andrea Chalupa, is a journalist and producer in New York, her public speaking experience began as the Director of Entertainment for UC Davis, lived in Kyiv where she auditioned to be a national news anchor. 

The 84th Academy Awards ceremony with the best films of 2011 was one of the points of our discussion. 

It started with Andrea Chalupa's presentation “American Film & the Oskars' and continued with questions from participants.

 Andrea C. adviced to watch 10 the best American movies. 

This Day at Our Center

Chicago will host the 12th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates

12th Annual World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates 

Last Day of Summit Webcasts: Wednesday, April 25, 2012

12:45-16:00 EDT (16:45-20:00 UTC)

Chicago will host the 12th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates April 23 - 25. Laureates will bring their messages of peace, human rights, and individual responsibility to students, government leaders, international dignitaries and the general public. 
URL to participate in the live programs: http://conx.state.gov/digital-diplomacy/ (Short URL: http://goo.gl/q7G6N )
Description: Interested in seeing Nobel Peace Laureates and superstars, including President Jimmy Carter? Join us for live webcasts of the 12th Annual World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates, on April 23-25. Nobel Laureates and Panelists will include: President Mikhail Gorbachev; Professor Muhammad Yunus; President Lech Wa??sa; President Frederik Willem de Klerk; President Oscar Arias; President Jimmy Carter; Dr. Shan Cretin, American Friends Service Committee; Mr. Steve Goose, International Campaign to Ban Landmines; Dr. Bruce Lampard, Médecins Sans Frontières; Dr. Shirin Ebadi; Ms. Suzanne Nossel, US Executive Director of Amnesty International; Mrs. Ingeborg Breines, International Peace Bureau; International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War; Dr. Jayantha Dhanapala, PUGWASH Conferences; Professor Jody Williams. Also joining the event to receive an Annual Peace Summit Award will be actor and director Sean Penn. For more information and the complete list of panelists, visit the 12th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates website:www.nobelsummitchicago.org.
Format: This will be a video webcast in English. Please click on the URLs above to learn more and participate. Follow the conversation on Twitter by tweeting your thoughts and questions with the hashtag #Nobel

READ MORE: http://www.nobelsummitchicago.org/?utm_source=CO.NX+Online+Programs&utm_campaign=96696d8584-MailChimp_April_24_2012&utm_medium=emai

Study in the U.S.

A First Draft of 2012 Admissions Decisions at Dozens of Universities

thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com

CO.NX Webchat "Networked Librarians Serving Networked Patrons"

Vinnytsia Information Center “Window on America” participated in CO.NX webchat “Networked Librarians Serving Networked Patrons” organized by Lee Rainer (Director of Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project - http://www.pewinternet.org/) on April 20, 2012 (Biblionext: Rome). Representatives of American Corners abroad and public libraries took an active part in this discussion having a lot of questions concerning on Strategic Visions for the 21st Century Public Library (“HOW LIBRARIANS CAN BE MORE VALUABLE IN THE DIGITAL AGE”). In a focus of this discussion was the rise of e-reading in the USA (Read more: 1- http://libraries.pewinternet.org/2012/04/04/the-rise-of-e-reading/ 2- http://pewresearch.org/pubs/2236/ebook-reading-print-books-tablets-ereaders).

 “5 questions for librarians as they confront changes” were presented by Lee Rainer (What is the future of knowledge? What is the future of reference expertise? What is the future of public technology in libraries? What is the future of learning spaces? What is the future of community anchor institutions?).

 A lot of questions were asked. The following ones are among them:

- What strategies should be utilized to link social media with centers of information resources particularly when reaching out to youth audiences?
- Could you expand a bit more on the concept of a creation library?
- Where do you think most libraries will fall on the ALA spectrum? 

- What do you think about the rise of e-reading in the USA?
- How do you counter pricing issues, we know that apples attempt to price all e-books at $10 was thwarted by the US consumer groups?
- What about a piracy, how do you protect digital assets? We know, last year when students at the MIT tried to steal jester article in an attempt to share them free online, and how do you make sure protection does not stifle creativity.
- How do I read a Google e-book on my e-reader? (http://www.mainstreetbookcompany.com/gbook/help/other_ereader),
- I've heard that Facebook has become 'uncool' since too many people are on it now. Is there anything 'cool' out there we should be keeping our eyes on?
- What is your opinion on e-books in academic libraries?
- Any word on Pinterest and ways to use it? It seems to be catching up fast (http://blogoreader.org.ua/2012/03/11/popularity-of-pinterest/, http://pinterest.com/).

More about Pew Research Center project:

Source: Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project – April 26 – May 22, 2011 and January 20- February 19, 2012 tracking surveys. For 2011 data, n=2,277 adults aged 18 and older, including 755 interviews conducted on respondent’s cell phone. For 2012 data, n=2,253 adults and survey includes 901 cell phone interviews. Both 2011 and 2012 data include Spanish-language interviews.
More pictures: 

Earth Day

Earth Day is a day early each year on which events are held worldwide to increase awareness and appreciation of the Earth's natural environment. Earth Day is now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network, and is celebrated in more than 175 countries every year. In 2009, the United Nations designated April 22 International Mother Earth Day. Earth Day is planned for April 22 in all years at least through 2015.

The name and concept of Earth Day was allegedly pioneered by John McConnell in 1969 at a UNESCO Conference in San Francisco. Earth Day was first observed on March 21, 1970, the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere. This day of nature's equipoise was later sanctioned in a Proclamation signed by Secretary General U Thant at the United Nations where it is observed each year. About the same time a separate Earth Day was founded by United States Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in first held on April 22, 1970. While this April 22 Earth Day was focused on the United States, an organization launched by Denis Hayes, who was the original national coordinator in 1970, took it international in 1990 and organized events in 141 nations. Numerous communities celebrate Earth Week, an entire week of activities focused on environmental issues.

READ MORE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Day

BELLA GAIA - A Poetic Vision of Earth from Space