Change up intermediate 2 2014

TEEN for 速

Your English Monthly

2-2013/2014

Change Up! MAGAZINE

速

INTERMEDIATE

2

Report Turning the Earth Into Gold!

UK Today A World of Stories

Teen People

MUSE Innovations Changing the Future g

VISIT US ONLINE!

www.elimagazines.it

Welcome Welcome back to TEEN. In this Spring issue, we learn about a new generation of young people who are going back to nature, we find out what it’s like to be a student in the UK, visit Europe’s newest and biggest public library, and meet a wonderful British writer. Also: do you want to find out about pop group Muse, or how to get your photo taken with some of the most famous people in the world? Then read on… Have fun!

Teen People Muse Under The Surface Being an Undergraduate Report Turning the Earth Into Gold!

UK Today A World of Stories Innovations Changing the Future Culture and Society Madame Tussauds Playstation Audio A subscription to the magazine allows you to download for free, in MP3 format, the audio of all the magazines in the resources section of our website www. elimagazines.com. You can do this by inserting the access code found in each issue of the magazine.

In this issue look out for: • absolute superlative • time words and phrases • complex sentence structures • present continuous • present perfect • infinitive constructions with ‘to’ • language of education • challenging adjectives • idioms

Liz

Teacher’s guide For teachers, the subscription to the magazine allows you to download for free the audio material in MP3 format, as well as the teacher’s guide for all* the magazines available in PDF format. The teacher must first register in the teachers’ resources section on our website www. elimagazines.com Access Code: 0004 7000 0010

Tweet flies into the OED

Around the World

digital revolution that’s forcing the OED, first published in 1884, to make these big changes to the way it works.

The latest edition now includes ‘flash mob’ and ‘live blogging’, right next to words that have been in use for hundreds of years. It also

includes ‘I love NY’ where the word ‘love’ has been replaced by a red heart – the first time a symbol has taken the place of a word in the dictionary. Visit the OED website at

www.oed.com

The internet has managed to break through some of the strictest rules in British academia. The Oxford English Dictionary, often called the OED, has included the noun ‘tweet’ in its latest edition. ‘What’s so amazing about that?’

– you ask. Well, until now, new words could only be included in the OED ten years after they were first used – the first ‘tweet’ was posted in 2006. It’s the

Odd One Out Twittercounter is a platform that tracks Twitter use – it finds out how many people are following a Twitter account. At the moment, there are five Twitter accounts that each have over 30 million followers… Look at the list below. Which of these does NOT have more than 30 million followers?

Madonna

3. Lady Gaga

5. Rihanna

2. Justin Bieber

4. Katy Perry

6. Barack Obama

1.

The answer is on page 15.

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ELI srl, C.P. 6, 62019 Recanati, Tel. (071) 750701, Fax (071) 977851 Direttore responsabile: Lamberto Pigini. Realizzazione testi: Liz Ferretti. Autorizzazione Trib. di Macerata N. 237 del 4 luglio 1984. Realizzazione: Realizzazione: Tecnostampa, Loreto © ELI Italy 2014

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Teen People Muse is everywhere!

The group has a huge, international fanbase*, and their distinctive and atmospheric music is often used in film soundtracks*. Their lyrics* and experimental style of music are so popular, they have become the voice of a generation. Let’s meet Muse!

3

present perfect and simple past – compared

Unpredictable* Muse experiment with a huge variety of musical styles and genres, from the most modern electronic sounds to full orchestral symphony. These styles of music could hardly be more different from each other! In fact Muse are known for combining sometimes harsh* digital sounds, with piano melodies inspired by Romantic composers.

They are classed as a British alternative rock band, but in every album, lead singer Matthew, Chris (bass), Dominic (drums)

Muse Fame and Fortune Muse was created in 1992 when two bands from a high school in Teignmouth, Devon, merged*. For their first school band competition, the group decided to perform a heavy rock song and smash* their instruments in protest. They were rather surprised when they won!

Since 1999, they have released six albums.

Their latest, called The 2nd Law, was released recently and went straight to the top of the album charts in many countries. To date they have sold more than 16 million records, and their 2012 tour attracted record audiences.

Although popular for many years in the UK, they became much better known internationally after their rock anthem Survival became the official song of the London 2012 Olympics. They played this live at the Olympics closing ceremony, with a fantastic choir.

Themes Most of Muse’s lyrics are written by lead singer Matthew Bellamy. They cover topics such as science, UFOs, war, the universe, politics and religion. These themes are also the inspiration for the band’s spectacular live shows. Many of the music prizes that the band has won have been for their live concerts, which are an explosion of sound and colour with spectacular special effects and choreography. Going to one of their concerts is something you won’t forget in a hurry!

and Morgan (keyboards and synthesisers) constantly experiment with new sounds.

Matthew Bellamy has an unusual, original voice. In the beginning, record producers were not convinced his voice would be a success because it was not melodic. They thought the public might not like it. How wrong can you be?! Matthew is one of the most successful lead singers ever!

www.muse.mu

Common European Framework Intermediate Advanced (B2 – C1)

Contents

2

Fighting the Cause Muse have supported the Teenage Cancer Trust, which carries out scientific research in the fight against leukaemia in young people. They played in a concert with other well-known groups, such as Depeche Mode, at the Royal Albert Hall in London, and donated all the money from the concert to the Trust.

In 2005, they played at Live 8, on the Paris stage, to help raise money for some of the poorest countries in the world, and, recently, for the Warchild 20th Anniversary Show. Muse often use their lyrics to protest against war, injustice and corruption*.

Inspiring Muse Author of the Twilight Saga, Stephenie Meyer, included the band in the acknowledgements for all four books in her phenomenally* successful series.

She has often said that she is a huge fan of theirs, and that their music inspired her while she was writing. Best-selling Italian Fantasy writer, Licia Troisi, has also included Muse in her Chronicles of

the Emerged World. She says the band helped inspire whole chapters and characters. At the start of each of the Chronicles, you will find a quote from a Muse song.

Muse have also been a big success in advertising and the cinema. Their music has been used in adverts for perfume, cars and magazines, as well as in the soundtrack for the films The Tourist, Watchmen, and British crime drama Luther. Videogames can’t get seem to get enough of them either! Muse can be heard in Guitar Hero and Rocksmith.

Glossary corruption: when people with power are dishonest (eg take money illegally) fanbase: the group of people who are fans of a person/sports team etc harsh: (here) hard sounds, difficult to listen to lyrics: the words of a song

merged: joined together (to make one thing) phenomenally: extraordinarily smash: break in a violent way soundtracks: the music and songs that go with a film unpredictable: that changes often, in ways that you don’t expect

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Under the Surface

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complex sentence structures; language of education

According to the World University Rankings, the UK has some of the best universities in the world. The Universities of Oxford, founded in the eleventh century, and Cambridge, which began in the thirteenth century, have produced many nobel prize winners, and famous politicians, writers and actors. Other UK universities or colleges in the top twenty in the world are Imperial College, London, and University College, London.

University College London are halls of residence* in or near the main university site (called a campus), which are cheaper than renting* on the open market. Many campuses have student canteens where food is relatively cheap. If there aren’t any rooms at your college or university, which is often the case in the second year of a degree, then university towns and cities are full of houses that students can rent to share with their friends.

Being an * Undergraduate

Student Commuters* Until quite recently most students studied at a university away from their home town.

Now, because it’s so expensive to be a student, or for cultural or health reasons, many are living at home and commuting to their studies. In fact, up to 27% of students now live at home. They have to rely on social networking to link with other students, but they can still feel more isolated than if they live at their university, or with other students.

How Does it Work?

This year there are more students at British universities than there have ever been. In fact, there are currently over 400,000 young people in their first year of university. We look under the surface, to learn why so many young people are choosing to stay in education after the age of 18; and find out what it’s like to be a student in the UK. The Rising Cost of Education Before 1998 UK students were some of the luckiest in the world – they only needed to find the money for food and accommodation, but they could go to university for free. In 1998, tuition fees* were introduced to help pay for the cost of teaching and facilities. This made many people angry, and it’s still not a popular policy today.

Initially, these tuition fees were £1,000 (€1200) per year, but now most universities charge each student £9,000 (€10,700) per

year. Most degrees* last for three years, so, at the moment, the average student owes* £20,000 (€24,000) by the time they leave university. For foreign students wanting to study at UK universities the cost is much higher.

Why Go to University?

When faced with the increasing cost of getting a degree, some students decide it’s not worth it, but most still think it is.

Graduates* can get better jobs and earn a lot more money than people without degrees. Students can borrow money to pay

for their tuition fees and only have to pay it back once they are earning a good salary.

For students from poorer families, there are scholarships* and hardship funds*.

home. They can make lots of new friends, join clubs and play sport, and have a lot of fun. It’s not all fun though – students have to work hard to get a good degree.

Why do young people go to university? Many students say they want to learn more about their favourite subject, while some stay on in education because they don’t know what to do after they leave school – the ‘real’ world can be a scary* place! At the moment, there aren’t as many jobs available – and you’re more likely to get a job with a degree.

Getting a degree is seen by many people as a way of having a more interesting career and having enough money to have a comfortable life. Of course, there are some jobs where you have to study. You can’t become a doctor, surgeon or vet without a degree.

All universities provide accommodation for at least some of their students. There

Towards the end of their time at school, students who want to go to university fill in an application* form. This whole process is organised by UCAS – the Universities and College Admissions Service. UCAS receives applications from over 650,000 students from the UK and abroad, for 340 universities and colleges in the UK. Students decide what they want to study and choose five universities. The universities then decide if they will offer each student a place,

Students only get a place if they get the right A-level grades. For some courses and some universities there can a be a lot of competition for places. Students receive their A-level results in August, and it can be stressful waiting to find out if you’ve done enough to get into the university you really want!

Mirror Use a mirror to read what Nelson Mandela has to say about the importance of education.

CAN USE TO CHANGE THE WORLD. POWERFUL WEAPON WHICH YOU EDUCATION IS THE MOST

An Unusual University The UK has one of the largest universities in the world. Since it was founded in 1969, more than 1.5 million people have studied there. Most of the teaching is done through distance learning, either via the internet or TV programmes shown on the BBC. What is it called? a. The Great University b. The Free University c. The Open University The answer is on page 15.

Glossary

The Benefits For most young people, going to university is the first time they’ve moved away from

according to the grades their teachers expect them to get in their final school exams, or A-levels.

King’s College, University of Cambridge

application: asking to study at a university, or to be given a job commuters: people who travel to work (or university) regularly degree: what you get when you complete your studies at university (usually after three years) graduate: person who has completed a university education halls of residence: large building with many student rooms hardship funds: money you can ask from your university if you are poor owes: has borrowed money that

they need to repay (eg to a bank) renting: paying to live in a house that belongs to someone else scary: frightening scholarships: money the best students are given to help them study tuition fees: money you pay to study at university undergraduate: person who has not completed their university education

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Report

present continuous; challenging adjectives

7

to take people like this out of poverty, they will become more self reliant* and will not need outside support to survive.

Family agriculture creates employment, stops young people having to leave the land and move to the city to find work, and it helps provide people with enough good food to eat. Small-scale agriculture helps families stay independent and healthy!

The Good Life For many young Europeans, Romania is the perfect place to start a career in farming. They’re going to take advantage of the millions of hectares of agricultural land that are available relatively cheaply there. They’re setting up farms, often growing produce organically, and can even apply for a European grant to help them set up their businesses.

Turning the Earth into Gold!

Young people are going back to the land in greater numbers than ever. In the process*, they are helping local agriculture and learning a new profession. 2014 is the International Year of Family Farming: let’s find out what it means to be a small farmer today!

Back to the Land Youth unemployment is such a big problem at the moment, that many young people are going back to the land to start a completely new career in agriculture. They are transforming themselves into smallscale* or ‘peasant’ farmers, in a tradition that goes back to the start of civilisation.

Agriculture needs these young people because they have energy and enthusiasm, and young people need the income it can give them. This is why in some European countries, such as France and Germany, large numbers of young people are breathing new life into* agriculture and horticulture. The hopes and dreams of these young people are transforming small farms into profitable businesses.

Their success has been to link traditional farming with technology: they are good at networking*, search out* training opportunities, and are not afraid to ask for advice. This new generation of farmers are often well educated, with university degrees or other qualifications, and take advantage of social networks to create new commercial outlets*, such as direct selling or by joining small cooperatives.

FAO

International Year of Family Agriculture The UN General Assembly has declared 2014 the International Year of Family Agriculture. For the first time in the history of “International Years”, this idea was accepted from outside the UN. The campaign in favour of this special year was

supported by more than 350 organisations in over 60 countries across the world.

Small-scale farmers, fishermen, livestock owners and indigenous peoples, want to find concrete* solutions to problems faced

by rural* communities around the planet.

They hope to encourage their governments to put in place practical policies and projects which will protect and support sustainable family agriculture. They believe small-scale farming can meet growing world food needs, as well as help sustainable economic and social development.

To find out more, go to www. familyfarmingcampaign.net

Family Agriculture Family agriculture is based on the strong bond* between man and earth, and between parent and child. This relationship with the earth means that the land is cherished* and protected. If it was not, the crops wouldn’t grow! Family agriculture is a great way to keep rural economies strong.

Rural poverty is a huge problem in many countries. The changing climate and increasing number of natural catastrophes are making the situation worse. It is estimated that 900 million people are affected by rural poverty. If we can find ways

The FAO is the part of the UN that deals with food and agriculture.

Its aim is to improve levels of nutrition around the world and to help increase agricultural productivity. The FAO was founded in Canada in 1945, but it now has its headquarters in Rome.

Every year the FAO chooses its goodwill ambassadors*. These are famous people who use their influence* to help the fight against hunger throughout the world. Current FAO ambassadors are Paoul Bova, Susan Sarandon, Céline Dion and Lea Salonga.

Do you know…?

On 22nd April every year, the world celebrates Earth Day. On the twentieth anniversary of Earth Day, a group of climbers organised an important expedition to Mount Everest. Do you know what these professional climbers did there?

a. They climbed to the top and shouted “We love the Earth!” b. They collected tonnes of rubbish left behind after previous expeditions. c. They raised a flag at the summit, with a picture of the Earth on it.

The answer is on page 15.

Working farm holidays are another popular way of getting back in touch with the land. On these holidays you can earn money, learn new skills, get fit, get to know a new country, and have fun making new friends. In New Zealand, they need people to pick cherries all year, in France farmers need help with the grape harvest, and in Australia they need people to operate farm machinery. It’s certainly a holiday with a difference!

Glossary bond: link, relationship breath new life into: (idiom) make something successful again cherished: something you love very much concrete: (here) that work well and lasts a long time goodwill ambassadors: famous people who work for the UN to promote its work in the process: something (often unplanned) that happens because you did another thing influence: the power to change people or the way they do things networking: meet and talk to people (ie to improve business) outlets: shops etc where things are sold rural: of the countryside, not the town search out: look for something until you find it self reliant: able to live well without asking for help from others small scale: of limited size, not big

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UK Today

9

present perfect – infinitive constructions with to

A World of Stories Library of Birmingham opening launched a campaign to get parents to read with their children for at least ten minutes every day.

The Benefits of Reading Malorie Blackman will have to work hard!

Reading for pleasure is the most popular pastime* in the UK, but on average, children in the UK read less than their contemporaries in Italy and Germany.

The brand new Library of Birmingham

The human race has enjoyed stories for as long as we’ve had complex language – it’s written into our DNA. Today we get our stories through film, TV, theatre, music and, mostly, from books. But the world of books is changing fast.

The digital revolution is providing both threats* and opportunities to writers and Meyer and The Hunger Games trilogy by publishers. We get some of Suzanne Collins have been international the latest news on the book bestsellers, and Hollywood blockbusters. world in the UK. Malorie Blackman A New Generation of Readers It was JK Rowling who started it all off back in the late 1990s. Before that, everyone was convinced that the book was dead, or nearly dead. JK Rowling’s successful Harry Potter series introduced a whole new generation to reading. As this generation has grown older, the publishing world has seen an explosion of exciting, new novels aimed at the YA, or Young Adult, market. Books such as the Twilight Saga by Stephenie

One of the most enthusiastic supporters of the book is YA writer, Malorie Blackman. Her fans say her books are realistic, exciting and thoughtprovoking*. Malorie’s big success came with the series Noughts And Crosses.

This deals with the difficult subjects of racism and terrorism.

Noughts and Crosses is set in a future dystopia*, where the people with all the power and wealth are black (the Crosses), while the poor and uneducated are all white (the Noughts). It is a Romeo-and-Juliet story of two people

The Children’s Laureate 2013-2015 Malorie is the UK’s current Children’s Laureate. This important job is given to someone who has made an outstanding* contribution* to children’s books. Malorie was delighted to be given this prestigious role. She’s said she will do everything she can in her two years as Laureate to encourage children and young people to read. In fact, she’s

The benefits of reading are much wider than you might expect. Children who read for pleasure at home do a lot better at school, and reading is a powerful way for people to escape poverty. Reading has been shown to help people improve their mental health, reduce dementia, and even improve self-confidence.

The Future in Books Birmingham City Council has invested a lot of money in books! They have spent €225 million building the new Library of Birmingham. This fantastic building is the biggest lending* library in Europe.

from different backgrounds* who fall in love. These books also make us look at racism in a new way, challenging our ideas about our world.

Writing About Racism Malorie says that she’s wanted to write a story with a black protagonist* for a long time. She talks of several incidents where she experienced racism, directly or indirectly, while she was growing up (she was born in London in 1962). She always loved reading and would often go to her local library. She read everything she could find, but she soon realised that almost no books in the UK had black children or adults in the main roles. In her Noughts and Crosses series, Malorie Blackman has found a powerful and interesting way to think about racism.

It is home to over 400,000 books. The library also has one of the world’s best Shakespeare collections. The city hopes its new library will encourage people to visit Birmingham, and help to regenerate the city centre.

Book Quiz 1. How many books do you read for pleasure per year? a. 0–5

b. 6–10

c. 11+ 2. What are your favourite kinds of books?

Comics Adventure Romance Sci-Fi Crime Other ...........................................

3. What was the last book you read? Did you enjoy it?

Why/why not? ................................................................... ...................................................................

4. If you see a film adaptation of a book, does it make you want to go and read the original book?

Why? ................................................................... ...................................................................

Glossary

Children’s Laureate, writer Malorie Blackman

backgrounds: where you come from, your family, culture etc contribution: (here) help given dystopia: an imagined future which is bad or dangerous lending: giving something (like a book) to someone for a short time, who then brings it back outstanding: extraordinary, very good pastime: something you do in your free time protagonist: main character thought-provoking: something that makes you think threats: dangers

10 Innovations

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idioms; absolute superlative; future – will be doing

Rapper Jay-Z

Changing the Future

Rapper Jay-Z recently had a huge Youtube hit with a six-hour performance of Picasso Baby at an art gallery in New York. He was working with artist Marina Abramovic.

Several guest singers and other stars also took part.

The internet and the latest technology, such as smartphones, are changing our world beyond all recognition*. From music to art, education to health – we look at a few of the inventions and new ideas that are creating a revolution before our eyes!

1 STAYING IN TOUCH

8 SHOPPING

There is hardly a place on the earth where you can’t get a signal on your mobile phone now. Even the remotest communities, high up in the mountains, are connected to the rest of the world.

We’ll soon be waving goodbye to our purses and wallets. In the near future we won’t be needing cash dispensers or credit cards – we’ll be paying by phone!

9 PRIVACY

2 PHOTOGRAPHY

Whether we are aware of it or not, our mobile phones and what we do on social networking sites, say a lot about us.

That information can be very valuable to businesses and the police.

Camera phones let us take photos wherever we are on the planet – even in the most inaccessible places, like at the bottom of a mine!

3 WIRELESS We don’t need cables and wires to get connected any more. Many of our electronic devices use wireless technology now, which makes them a lot easier to use.

Mobile phones and the world-wide web have changed our lives in so many ways. New software, or apps, that we can download onto our mobile phones, now mean that we have the whole world at our fingertips!

We can use these amazing mobile phones to phone or text our friends, but also to do our shopping, get the latest news from around the world as it’s happening, monitor our health, and discover new music. American news magazine, Time, tells us which ten advances* they think are going to change our lives the most in the coming years.

4 SCHOOL There’s no blanket ban* on mobile phones in schools any more. Increasingly, schools are using mobile phones to support teaching.

5 MEDICINE Doctors in Uganda are using their mobile phones to save hundreds of lives. In this part of Africa, medical staff use text messages to report problems with equipment and supplies* to a central office.

10 STAYING CONNECTED

6 ELECTIONS Political elections will never be the same again. More and more countries are allowing people to vote using a smartphone app. The 2012 US Presidential Elections were the first to ‘go mobile’!

7 GIVING TO CHARITY Now you can ‘do your bit’* via text. Mobile Commons is a company helping charities and non-profit organisations to use mobile technology to raise money for the work they do around the world.

We keep our mobile phones within reach 24 hours a day. Whether we’re walking, talking, eating or sleeping, we’re always connected to the rest of the world!

Don’t Buy – Rent!

The digital revolution has given us a never-ending supply of new ideas, Time explains. One of these new ideas is in the way that we experience music and books. Today you don’t have to buy them you can rent them! Spotify for example is a digital music service that gives you access to millions of tracks for a small monthly subscription. You’re not buying anything or downloading anything. When you listen to Sptofiy you

are renting the songs.

Streaming is the transfer of data over the internet via a continuous flow, or stream.

You can stream anything, from music to podcasts and films, and to any of your digital devices – tablet, smartphone, games console or smart TV. For example, Gaikai, is a cloud-based gaming service which lets you stream demos and games, and sites like Hulu will let you download TV and movies if you are in the US.

Concerts and Social Networking People love sharing their experiences with friends and the rest of the online community. Sharing photos from a concert or an exhibition helps people feel that they’re there with you even if they aren’t!

Now, you can experience live music wherever you go – even if you aren’t at the performance. Apps such as Soundhalo and Lively allow fans to connect directly with the music that they love, via informal recordings of concerts known as bootlegs*.

These are not illegal bootlegs however, but have been endorsed* or sanctioned* by the artists. Some artists aren’t happy about this sort of thing. The lead singer of Iron Maiden gets cross with people who text during his live performances!

Secret Code Ricken Patel is the founder of one of the world’s biggest online organisations campaigning for social and environmental change. This organisation has over 30 million members from 194 countries, has organised thousands of campaigns, and millions of people across the world have signed their petitions. The name of this organisation means ‘voice’ in a number of languages. Use the secret code to find out what it is called!

A = 5 5

Q

V = Q 5

5

Z = H H

The answer is on page 15.

Glossary advances: (here) developments, improvements beyond all recognition: (idiom) changed so much you can’t recognise it blanket ban: when something is stopped completely bootleg: (usually) unofficial or illegal recording of a concert do your bit: (informal, idiom)

give to a charity, eg money or work as a volunteer endorsed: officially supported by sanctioned: give someone permission to do something (here, to publish the recording) supplies: (here) equipment, medicines etc that you need to do your job

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Culture and Society

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present tense; infintive constructions

Madame Tussaud Facts • The models cost €180,000 to make.

• It takes the equivalent of 16,000 candles to make each model.

• You can still see some of the death masks from the French Revolution.

• Notorious* criminals can be seen in the very scary Chamber of Horrors.

• You can have your picture taken with The Beatles, Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga, and meet Prince William and his wife Kate.

• Visit www. madametussauds.com for more information.

Madame Tussauds that had been executed* – not a nice job!

Then in 1794, Dr Curtius died, and he left her his collection of wax figures. She took these on tour to England where her wax effigies* of executed aristocrats and famous criminals became very popular.

Madame Tussaud made a self-portrait in wax a few years before she died. You can meet her today in the entrance to Madame Tussauds in London.

Labour of Love If you are obsessed with celebrity, then Madame Tussauds is the place for you! Where else could you say hi to the Queen, shake hands with world leaders like Nelson Mandela, and kiss Brad Pitt or Kylie Minogue, without being taken away by a bunch* of security guards!? Let’s go and find out about London’s most popular tourist attraction.

The Little French Revolution Madame Tussauds has had millions of visitors since it was opened over 200 years ago, by the real life* Madame Tussaud. Madame Tussaud learned how to make wax* figures from doctor Philippe Curtius during the 1770s. During the French Revolution she was forced to make wax death masks* of aristocrats

The attention to detail in these wax models is incredible. A team of twenty people work for six months to make each

one. It’s a long process that starts when the VIP arrives at the workshop. The VIPs have to sit for at least two hours while photographs are taken of them from every possible angle, and every part of them is measured. The team usually take about 500 measurements during these two hours. These statistics are never revealed to the public – they are kept a secret even

though people ask for them all the time!

The faces are made to look as life-like as possible. The first step is to make a metal armature*, or structure, which gives a rough shape to the head. Then clay* is used to build up a 3D model of the head, rather like a sculpture. When that’s finished (and this process can take several weeks) a rubber cast* is made of the clay head. Melted wax is then poured into the cast, and the final head is revealed.

Every-day Repairs

Hair and Make up

A Big Success

Once you have your wax head, that is when the real process of making the head

come to life begins. Artists take incredible care to choose the correct colour for the skin. Each head is painted with several thin layers of oil paint. Each hair is placed into the head individually – this alone can take up to four weeks – and the teeth are exactly like false teeth! The clothes are all hand made too, and some celebrities have even donated* their own clothes.

Because visitors can get close to their favourite pop stars (the models that receive the most kisses are Justin Timberlake, Kylie Minogue, Johnny Depp, and Brad Pitt), they need to be repaired every day. At 7.30 every morning, before the doors open for the thousands of visitors, a team of make-up artists makes sure that each face is perfect. They repaint the skin, lips and eyes, and make repairs to the clothes.

Since Madame Tussauds opened in the 1830s, some of the most popular

Antica Focacceria San Francesco

exhibits have been royal families, pop and film stars, and people who are more infamous* than famous! Most of Madame Tussaud’s original figures were destroyed in a fire in 1925. A few survived however, and today the oldest figure is Sleeping Beauty, who even appears to be breathing.

Madame Tussaud now has exhibitions right across the world, from Europe to Japan. It is interesting to see who is famous in each country. Sometimes, the most popular people in one country are almost unknown in another!

Mirror Use a mirror to read what comic actor Steve Martin says about celebrities.

SWORKINGONHISHAIR. HESPENDSMORETHANTWOHOUR TVORMOVIESTARWHOLOOKSLIKE ACELEBRITYISANYWELL-KNOWN The answer is on page 15.

Glossary armature: (sculpture) framework or structure beneath finished object bunch: (informal) group clay: type of earth, used to make plates and cups etc death masks: model of a person’s face after death donated: given for free effigies: 3D model of a person executed: killed by the government infamous: famous for the

wrong reasons! notorious: evil or very bad real life: (informal) real, not fictional rubber cast: here, the clay head is covered in rubber (you make car tyres from this). When it is dry, the rubber is filled with wax to make a copy of the head trick: something you do to surprise people in a funny way wax: you use this to make candles (comes from plant or animal fat)

One Direction are one of the world’s most successful boy bands at the moment. It was not long before Madame Tussauds decided to turn these young pop stars into wax models. Thousands of One Direction fans were delighted at this news. One day, the group decided to play a trick* on visitors to Madame Tussauds – they pretended to be waxworks. Some fans came and sat next to them and were shocked to discover they were sitting next to the real thing!

14 Playstation

15

The Most Borrowed Book Millions of books are borrowed from libraries each year. 2012 was the two-hundredth anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens. As a result, many of his novels were popular in libraries last year. During the ten years between 2000-2010, there was one book by a modern author that was borrowed from British libraries more times than any other book. Can you guess what it was? a. b. c. d.

Crossword Have you read our article on agriculture?

Use the clues below to help you complete the crossword.

1

2

3

Madame Tussauds True or False?

4

1. Country in Eastern Europe where young people are

5

buying farms.

6

2. When people don’t need help they are ...

3. Small, red fruit you can pick in New Zealand.

7

4. Something you learn to do well is a ...

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by JK Rowling The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer

T

5. Family farming is about farming on a ... scale.

1. There have been eleven wax versions of Queen Elizabeth II. 2. Madame Tussaud’s first figure was French writer, Voltaire.

3. Sleeping beauty is based on the mistress of Louis XV, Madame du Barry.

4. Tussaud’s first permanent exhibition in London was in Piccadilly Circus.

5. Lady Gaga is the first person to be in every Madame Tussauds across the world.

6. Madame Tussauds has only one site in the UK – London.

7. The biggest exhibit is comic book hero, The Hulk, the smallest is Tinkerbell.

8. Each head has around 1,000 individual hairs!

6. The UN’s food and agriculture organisation.

7. Another word for farming 8. The strong relationship between people and the land they farm.

8

Book Idioms There are lots of idioms using the word book in English. Do you know what these mean?

3 She always does things by the book. a. She uses other people’s ideas. b. She always does things exactly as she is told.

1 She’s like an open book. a. She’s open minded. b. She doesn’t hide her thoughts/feelings.

4 You can’t judge a book by its cover. a. You can’t tell what someone is like just by looking at them. b. It’s easy to deceive people.

2 They threw the book at her. a. They gave her the maximum punishment for a crime. b. They tried to catch her by surprise.

5 When you are in someone’s good books… a. they are pleased with you and what you have done. b. they want to tell you about a great book they have read.

F

Answers P. 3 Odd One Out: 2).

P. 4-5 Mirror: Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world; An Unusual University: c).

P. 6-7 Do you know…: b).

P. 10-11 Secret Code: Avaaz.

The answers are at the bottom of the page.

P. 12-13 Mirror: A celebrity is any well-known TV or movie star who looks like he spends more than two hours working on his hair.

P. 14 Crossword: 1.Romania; 2.self-reliant; 3.cherries; 4.skill; 5.small; 6.FAO; 7.agriculture; 8.bond.

Book Idioms: 1. B; 2. A; 3. B; 4. A; 5. A.

Borrowed Books: b).

True or False: 1F (there have been 22), 2T, 3T, 4F (it was in Baker Street, home of fictional detective Sherlock Holmes), 5T, 6F (it’s two – London and seaside resort Blackpool), 7T, 8F (there are usually 10,000 individual hairs on each head!).

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