In two years, the reality TV star has become a force in criminal justice, all while continuing to sell body-sculpting undergarments and plugging diet products on Instagram.
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When farmers reduce tilling, plant cover crops and speckle their steads with livestock and trees, they're helping fight climate change and bolstering their bottom lines.
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James Cameron wanted the music of the Na'vi people in "Avatar" to sound like nothing anyone have ever heard before. Unfortunately for the film composers, they accomplished the job all too well.
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Need to brush up on the nitty gritty of world history? These maps hold the key to a better understanding of how we got to today. Plus, they look rad as hell.
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Should the human population disappear tomorrow, what might future archaeologists find of the food we eat? And, most importantly, would any of it still be edible?
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No, the coronavirus is not an "equalizer." Black people are being infected and dying at higher rates. Here's what Milwaukee is doing about it — and why governments need to start releasing data on the race of COVID-19 patients.
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In a conference call with major league sports commissioners on Saturday, President Donald Trump said he believes the NFL season should start on time in September, sources familiar with the call told ESPN.
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The pandemic has hit Germany hard, with more than 91,000 people infected. But the percentage of fatal cases has been remarkably low compared to those in many neighboring countries.
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A Redditor created an animated data visualization of the spread of coronavirus over the United States from February to April after looking at numbers provided by The New York Times.
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The last time New York was the center of a catastrophe, America rallied behind it. The nation's reaction to its coronavirus outbreak is a different story.
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Due to its long history and tendency toward gallows humor and infighting, alt.obituaries provides a strange, fascinating look at how COVID-19 deaths are dealt with online.
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The president approaches the global pandemic as if producing and starring in a reality television show, with each day a new episode — a successive installment to be conquered.
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Nearly a dozen Russian military planes filled with medical supplies landed in Serbia on Friday — the latest in a series of controversial Kremlin humanitarian aid missions carried out amid the global spread of the coronavirus.
"Now we have everything to fight the virus," said Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic in a statement released by Russia's Defense Ministry. "I want to say a big thank you to the Russian people."
Indeed, to some Russians, these airlifts are examples of generosity and show the country pitching in during a time of global need. But others see the Kremlin pursuing wider foreign policy and propaganda goals.
For new readers to the blog, my nationality is Russian/Ukrainian-Russian, and my connections to both Russia and Ukraine are still strong. For the past few weeks I have become a regular feature on some Russian radio programs, podcasts, and once in a while I am on state-run Россия 24 (Russia 24) explaining to viewers on what is happening in Canada/Russia. I do not sugarcoat what this pandemic is doing to the Canada and the U.S., and I try my best to explain why I believe this storm is about to add Russia to its list of victims. My only regret is that wish I was in Moscow right now instead of being isolated in my chalet in the Laurentians of Quebec, Canada. I know I can do far more over there than here. We all know this pandemic is going to change and rearrange the world in ways that we can now only imagine. Speaking only for myself. I do not want to be on the sidelines just watching this unfold, I want to get involved.
Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al-Saud and Russia's Energy Minister Alexander Novak are seen at the beginning of an OPEC and Non-OPEC meeting in Vienna, Austria December 6, 2019. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
DUBAI/MOSCOW (Reuters) - OPEC and Russia have postponed a Monday meeting to discuss oil output cuts until April 9, OPEC sources said on Saturday, as a dispute between Moscow and Saudi Arabia over who is to blame for plunging crude prices intensified.
The delay came amid pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump for the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries led by Saudi Arabia and its allies, a group collectively known as OPEC+, to urgently stabilise global oil markets.
Oil prices hit an 18-year low on March 30 due to a slump in demand caused by lockdowns to contain the coronavirus outbreak and the failure of OPEC and other producers led by Russia to extend a deal on output curbs that expired on March 31.
OPEC+ is working on a deal to cut the production of oil equivalent by about 10% of world supply, or 10 million barrels per day, in what member states expect to be an unprecedented global effort including the United States.
* President Donald Trump warned 'there will be death' as the coronavirus pandemic in the United States worsened * Confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States have increased by 100,000 in three days * The national death toll is now 8,162 * Trump thanked the sacrifices Americans are making with 96 per cent of the country now on lockdown
President Donald Trump warned there will be many American deaths in the coming week in a somber start to his daily briefing on the coronavirus pandemic Saturday at the White House.
Trump predicted that the coming week would be one of the 'toughest' weeks the country could face due to the spreading disease.
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States have increased by 100,000 in the past three days as the death toll stretched over 8,000 on Saturday.
New York City continues to be the epicenter of the nation's outbreak where 1,867 people have lost there lives.
There were 1,300 direct flights to 17 cities before President Trump's travel restrictions. Since then, nearly 40,000 Americans and other authorized travelers have made the trip, some this past week and many with spotty screening.
Since Chinese officials disclosed the outbreak of a mysterious pneumonialike illness to international health officials on New Year's Eve, at least 430,000 people have arrived in the United States on direct flights from China, including nearly 40,000 in the two months after President Trump imposed restrictions on such travel, according to an analysis of data collected in both countries.
The bulk of the passengers, who were of multiple nationalities, arrived in January, at airports in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Seattle, Newark and Detroit. Thousands of them flew directly from Wuhan, the center of the coronavirus outbreak, as American public health officials were only beginning to assess the risks to the United States.
The U.S. military is "preparing for worst-case scenarios with respect to the potential spread" of the COVID-19 virus, U.S. Air Force Gen. Tod D. Wolters told reporters Friday. But just what those scenarios are is a military secret. At a time when the president and his advisers hold daily press conferences where worst-case scenarios for civilians are frankly and alarmingly discussed, the Pentagon is moving to tighten what information it shares about COVID-19's impact on the military.
The Department of Defense has been providing running totals of military-related COVID-19 infections, hospitalizations, and mortality, with separate figures for service members, their families, and civilian contractors. For example, as of Monday, the Pentagon reported 1,087 cases, of which 569 involved troops. These figures were higher by two-thirds than they had been Friday. But the demands of epidemiological accuracy are beginning to clash with the imperatives of operational secrecy.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Saturday defended his decision to fire the top watchdog of the U.S. Intelligence Community, saying Michael Atkinson did "a terrible job" in handling the whistleblower complaint that triggered an impeachment probe of Trump last year.
"He took a fake report, and he brought it to Congress," Trump said during a briefing on the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Late on Friday, the White House told Atkinson, the Intelligence Community's inspector general, that he would be terminated from his position in 30 days.
He was a key figure in the run-up to impeachment, having found credible a complaint from a still-unnamed whistleblower within the administration that Trump abused his office in attempting to solicit Ukraine's interference in the 2020 U.S. election for his political benefit.
WNU Editor: The U.S. intelligence community's focus on undermining President Trump's foreign and national security policy goals has been documented extensively in this blog over the past three years. And even with the US economy on the brink of collapse, coupled with the possibility of tens of thousands of Americans dying in the coming weeks and a global order that is now in ruin, it appears that for some undermining President Trump is still their priority .... 'A searing time for whistleblowers': Ousted intel watchdog wrote letter to Schumer (Politico).
The president informed Congress of the move in a Friday-evening letter to the House and Senate intelligence committees.
President Donald Trump has fired the intelligence community's chief watchdog, Michael Atkinson, who was the first to sound the alarm to Congress last September about an "urgent" complaint he received from an intelligence official involving Trump's communications with Ukraine's president.
Atkinson's decision set in motion the congressional probe that culminated in Trump's impeachment and ultimate acquittal in a bruising political and legal drama that consumed Washington for months.
WNU Editor: Sending this letter to US Senate minority leader Schumer two weeks ago in the middle of a global pandemic that is going to kill hundreds of thousands of lives was probably the straw that broke the camel's back .... (click here for letter). More here .... 'A searing time for whistleblowers': Ousted intel watchdog wrote private letter to Schumer (Politico). In any other past administration Intelligence Community Inspector General Michael Atkinson would have been fired immediately. The fact that he is trying to resurrect President Trump's and Ukraine President Zelinsky's phone call and the impeachment fiasco that followed in the middle of a global crisis impacting billions of people is bewildering. But what is even more bewildering is that it took President Trump this long to fire him.
More News On President Trump Firing The Inspector General Of The Intelligence Community
Half Life‘s introduction is famously slow. Long tram rides and lengthy speeches from co-workers preparing Gordon Freeman for an experiment that would destroy the world. An atmospheric start, for sure, but it’s a pain for folks trying to beat the game as quickly as possible. For one speedrunner, though, those dead minutes aren’t an obstacle – they’re the perfect opportunity to start practising for a record-breaking Star Wars run.
League of Legends spin-off CCG Legends of Runeterra is just about ready to play its hand. After kicking off its open beta in January and testing its deck for the last three months, Riot are ready to play for keeps – bringing crate of new cards, a new region and a new competitive season to Runeterra when the MOBA-inspired card game launches proper on April 30th.
Settlements of bugs and crashes burn behind them, but the campaign is not yet complete. This Friday, Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord developers TaleWords took the fight against the game’s crashing to a new front. Patch e1.0.4 purged the game of 17 more crashes, with a scant few performance issues and balance oddities finding themselves caught in the crossfire.
Thursday should’ve been the highlight of the EVE Online calendar. But even with EVE Fanfest’s cancellation, the next few months are set to be big ones for New Eden with Eclipse, EVE’s second quadrant of the year. An extragalactic invasion comes to a head with star-snuffing starships, interstellar easter egg hunts, and a charity drive to use all those spacebucks you’ve amassed for real-world good.
Now Play This, a festival for experimental game design, is one of the many games events either postponed or cancelled to stop the spread of COVID-19. The festival has been running for six years or so, celebrating the strange and unexpected in game design, and each year it brings together some truly spectacular art pieces and games. This year, the festival team has had to get creative with its lineup. The benefit, of course, being that now you can attend the festival wherever you are. From London to Dundee to Los Angeles, California.
I have never been able to go to Now Play This. For five years in a row I have tried to go, and then found myself unable to get all the pieces together. Year one, I was stuck in a library writing my master’s thesis. Year two, I was visiting family in America and only just missed it. Years three and four, I was in America doing a PhD and teaching undergrads and thought it unwise to just pop back over. This brings us to year five; this year, now, this very weekend. I was meant to go! I’d secured funding which meant I didn’t have to teach, I was looking forward to seeing my friends (former co-organisers and curators, Holly Gramazio and V Buckenham, as well as current curator, Marie Foulston). And then, well, you know.
Here are all the free games in and around the festival’s 2020 exhibits.
GLOBAL shutdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic are hitting the activities of some of the world's biggest organised crime groups - including the Mafia in Italy and the United States.
THE SCIENTIST leading Sweden's radical coronavirus strategy - which has seen the Scandinavian country allow schools, bars and restaurants to remain open in contrast with much of the rest of the world - has claimed the UK lockdown has gone too far, suggesting the Government should have stuck to its original approach.
THE whole European Union is at risk of facing a "very deep recession" if the right measures are not adopted to help EU member states survive the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
CALIFORNIA is on edge today after hundreds of mini-quakes struck the US state, just miles from the San Andreas fault line, as a leading scientist in the state made a terrifying prediction.
THERE IS growing outrage inside Italy at the European Union's neglect of one of its most important member states, as shocking footage emerged showing leading politicians ripping down or tying up the European Union flag.
With the coronavirus pandemic slamming the economy into a severe recession, a revival will depend critically on whether businesses will hire once it's over.
Although economists may argue about whether gas prices have an effect on the economy, there is a connection between consumer confidence, spending habits and gas prices.
Both capital gains and dividend payments are income that must be declared. Selling something for a profit leads to capital gains. A payment made by a corporation to stockholders is a dividend.
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Cash concentration and disbursement (CCD) is a type of electronic transfer, often used to transfer funds among remote locations and so-called concentration (i.e. collection) accounts.
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Net interest cost (NIC) is a mathematical formula that an issuer of bonds uses to compute the overall interest expenses that are payable on their bonds.
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Medicare Part A, or Medicare hospital coverage, is one of the four Parts of Medicare, the federal government's health insurance program for senior citizens.
Investopedia ranks the best discount brokers for low-cost trades. These brokers offer deeply discounted trades and low margin fees for investors and traders.
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Precious metals like gold, silver, and platinum have been recognized as valuable for a very long time. Learn more about what it takes to invest in these prized commodities.
Reporting revenue is a critical and often complex problem for accountants, so they must determine daily the differences between gross revenue and net revenue.
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The like-for-like sales number indicates the growth or decline in revenue of products or stores with similar characteristics and historical sales periods of operation.
A subscription right allows existing shareholders in a publicly-traded company to purchase shares of a secondary offering, usually at a discounted price.
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NEW DELHI: The government has drawn out a containment plan as clusters posing high risk of further spread of COVID-19 cases have emerged in several states like Kerala, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Karnataka, Telangana as also Delhi and Ladakh. The cluster containment strategy would be to contain the disease within a defined geographic area by early detection of cases, breaking the chain of transmission and thus preventing its spread to new areas.Noting that local transmission will lead to clustering of cases in time and space, epidemiologically linked to a travel related case or a positive case that has links to a travel related case, the health ministry has drawn out the plan. The ministry said with 211 districts now reporting COVID-19 cases, the risk of further spread remains very high. India would be following a strategic approach for possible scenarios - travel-related case reported in India, local transmission of COVID-19, large outbreaks amenable to containment, widespread community transmission of COVID-19 disease and India becomes endemic for COVID-19, the ministry said. According to the document, "containment for large outbreaks through geographic quarantine strategy calls for near absolute interruption of movement of people to and from a relatively large defined area where there is single large outbreak or multiple foci of local transmission" of COVID-19. "In simple terms, it is a barrier erected around the focus of infection. Geographic quarantine shall be applicable to such areas reporting large outbreak and/or multiple clusters of COVID-19 spread over multiple blocks of one or more districts that are contiguous," it said. The cluster containment strategy would "include geographic quarantine, social distancing measures, enhanced active surveillance, testing all suspected cases, isolation of cases, quarantine of contacts and risk communication to create awareness among public on preventive public health measures", the document stated. As far as the evidence for implementing geographic quarantine is concerned, the document said that the "current geographic distribution of COVID-19 mimics the distribution of H1N1 pandemic influenza". "This suggests that while the spread of COVID-19 in our population could be high, it's unlikely that it will be uniformly affecting all parts of the country," the ministry said while stressing this calls for differential approach to different regions of the country, while mounting a strong containment effort in hot spots. Large-scale measures to contain COVID-19 over large territories have been tried in China. Mathematical modelling studies have suggested that containment might be possible especially when other public health interventions are combined with an effective social distancing strategy, the document stated. The ministry listed some of the factors affecting large outbreak cluster containment. A number of variables determine the success of the containment operations through geographic quarantine which include the number and size of the cluster or clusters and also how efficiently the virus is transmitting in Indian population, taking into account environmental factors especially temperature and humidity, it said. The factors also include public health response in terms of active case finding, testing of large number of cases, immediate isolation of suspect and confirmed cases and quarantine of contacts along with the geographical characteristics of the area. According to the document, the authorities will do extensive contact tracing and active search for cases in containment zone, test all suspect cases and high risk contacts, isolate all suspect or confirmed cases, implemen social distancing measures and intensive risk communication as part of the cluster containment strategy. For large outbreaks amenable to containment, the documents stated that the strategy will remain the same but vary in extent depending upon spread and response to be mounted to contain it. Geographic quarantine and containment strategy will include defining the area of operation, active surveillance for cases and contacts in the identified geographic zone, expanding laboratory capacity for testing all suspect cases, high risk contacts and SARI cases and operationalising surge capacities created for isolation (COVID-19 hospitals/blocks) to hospitalise and manage all suspect or confirmed cases. It will also include implementation of social distancing measures with strict perimeter control, providing chemoprophylaxis with Hydroxychloroquine to all asymptomatic healthcare workers and asymptomatic household contacts of laboratory confirmed cases and further intensification of risk communication through audio, social and visual media. In alignment with strategic approach, the document provides action that needs to be taken for containing a large outbreak. The actions for mitigation phase will be dealt separately under a mitigation plan. "The objective of this plan is to stop the chain of transmission thus reducing the morbidity and mortality due to COVID-19," it said.
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Saturday issued an advisory to start rapid antibody based blood tests for COVID-19 in areas reporting clusters and in large migration gatherings or evacuee centres.The decision for recommending these tests was taken at an emergency meeting of the National Task Force held recently.The move comes in the wake of the country reporting 3072 COVID-19 cases including 75 deaths so far.The results of antibody tests similar to blood tests are available in 15-30 minutes."Cases of influenza-like illness to be monitored in health facilities. Any surge in cases to be monitored and brought to the notice of surveillance officer/CMO for additional investigation," the advisory said. As a matter of abundant precautions, all symptomatic persons with influenza-like illness should be advised home quarantine for 14 days. At facility level, symptomatic individuals with influenza-like illness to be tested using rapid antibody tests, the apex health research body said in its advisory.If antibody test comes out negative, then if warranted, it can be confirmed by real-time RT-PCR using throat/nasal swab.At present, the government uses the RT-PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests to detect the coronavirus from samples of throat or nasal swab of people with symptoms or high-risk individuals who might have come in contact with a positive patient.RT-PCR negative indicates the likelihood of a non-COVID-19 influenza-like illness while RT-PCR positive means it is a confirmed case and action as per protocol should be initiated for isolation, treatment and contact tracing, the advisory stated.If the antibody test comes out to be positive, there has to be a clinical assessment and treatment in hospital or isolation as per protocol.Action as per protocol should be initiated for contact tracing."If symptoms worsen, refer to designated COVID-19 hospitals. When home quarantine is not feasible, consider facility-based quarantine," the advisory stated.It also listed some general guidelines according to which healthcare workers doing the rapid antibody test should use gloves, mask, and head covers.Healthcare workers collecting throat/nasal swab should follow standard national infection control guidelines, it said.The rapid antibody tests approved by US-FDA/CE-IVD or non-CE-IVD validated by ICMR-NIV with marketing approval by DCGI should be used.In order to ensure that all such cases are monitored and necessary action is initiated with respect to infectious disease management, details of all test results shall be uploaded in ICMR portal."All such organisations are duty bound to register themselves to ICMR portal and upload the data in real-time. Failure to do so, they will be held liable to action under Disaster Management Act, 2005," the advisory stated.
The lockdown announced by the government to contain the spread of coronavirus has forced employees to work from homes (WFH) for about three weeks now. This new normal might just become a standard practice, at least for some employees even after the Covid-19 situation is resolved.About two-thirds of the 4.3 million ITBPO workforce across the country have moved to a work-from-home model to keep services uninterrupted during the lockdown. Experts say some companies are likely to move to WFH permanently.Nasdaq-listed BPO and analytics firm EXL Service, which has about 70% of its 32,000 employees in India, expects some of its staffers to work from home on a long-term basis. Insurance aggregator PolicyBazaar.com also sees a similar trend. CEO Sarbvir Singh says, "The current situation has paved the way for a paradigm shift. It will allow us to distribute workforce across the country."WFH will encourage more women to join the workforce as the hassles of travelling daily would disappear. "In the US, about 25% of the workforce works out of home," says Rohit Kapoor, vice-chairman & CEO of EXL Service. "In India, we will move to that kind of level over time. This option will also help women, especially mothers, a lot as it will make it easier for them to join the workforce."Other big reasons why India Inc is seriously considering WFH as a new constant is because it involves cost savings, convenience and productivity gains, if implemented correctly. Outside Mumbai's central business districts, a barebones office space that can seat 500 people can cost `10 crore in annual rent, which is `2 lakh per employee. Then comes the cost of staff transportation, air-conditioning and ventilation, furnishing and cafeteria.WFH will give companies more flexibility to move according to business needs. Employees could be compensated based on transactions. "The more productive someone is, more they will be compensated," adds Kapoor. The average cost of an employee in analytics & BPO companies is $24,000 in office, which could decline to $18,000-20,000 in WFH, reckons Kapoor. Singh of PolicyBazaar.com says, "WFH has worked brilliantly for our employees. We plan to make it functional for at least 20-30% of our staff once things normalise." The fully loaded cost for PolicyBazaar.com, which has 13,000 employees, tends to be around 1.25-1.5x of the employee's salary. This money can come down drastically if WFH is implemented.Not all companies, however, are gungho about WFH. At least the heads of two of the largest technology services players in the country have flagged up an issue.The CEO and MD of Tata Consultancy Services, Rajesh Gopinathan, highlighted the need to restrict WFH for those who support critical and confidential functions of global clients. On a LinkedIn post, he said: "We power financial backbones of several countries, support some of the largest healthcare and pharmacy companies in the world, run technology for governments and public services organisations." Infosys' CEO Salil Parekh also shared a similar concern, adding that "we continue to be guided by advisories from local governments in the 46 countries we operate in."Apart from security and regulatory issues, WFH also has a human challenge.The absence of water cooler conversations, impromptu meetings and cafeteria discussions with colleagues could impact productivity. "We want to make sure we don't lose the human touch," says Manish Dalal, managing director, Asia Pacific, Endurance International Group, a web hosting company. "People need to meet to brainstorm. How do I create virtual mentoring sessions and imbibe company culture among people who are at home?" A way out is to have employees come to office a few times every, say, fortnight. At Endurance, 700 employees are working from home at present. 74986069There could be challenges on the home front also. Many employees may not have a spare room at home for longterm WFH. Or, millennials living in paying guest-type accommodations may not have the space or freedom to install the required infrastructure, such as a broadband line or a power back-up system.Work from home hasn't evolved much in India, says Neetish Sarda, founder of co-working company Smartworks. "There isn't a dedicated space at home where one can work, and internet or power glitches can lead to loss of productivity." For many companies, especially in the outsourcing segment, work often happens at odd hours. Making a suitable arrangement for this could also be a problem.Delivery Value from Home More complications will arise in the absence of clear WFH guidelines, says Raman Roy, CMD of Quatrro Global Services. "Electricity companies might charge commercial rates for residences where office work is going on. Telecom permissions will be needed for better connectivity."The way companies trained and managed the workforce will change but how will they handle sensitive client work remains to be seen. "Many offices don't allow smartphones at employee desks during work hours. How do you control that at home?" Roy sees demand for masking software (which blanks out information such as address of a customer) and other such products going up. Atul Shinghal, founder and CEO of fintech startup Scripbox, says the Covid-19 situation has made companies more accustomed to remote working."But it is early days. A complete evaluation of the pros and cons of remote working is needed." One key advantage Shinghal sees is "the learnings we, as an organisation, are getting of our resilience and capabilities to continue to deliver value while working remotely and keeping everyone safe." That will be another big driver to get people to work from the comfort of their homes.
MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court Saturday stayed the temporary bail granted to former Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS) vice chairman Hari Sankaran and former managing director of IL&FS Financial Services Ramesh Bawa.This, after the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) challenged the interim relief granted by a special city sessions court Friday. The lower court allowed a 75-day temporary bail to the duo accused in the alleged irregularities caused at IL&FS and its subsidiaries, accepting the Covid-19 outbreak as a valid reason for providing relief. According to sources hours after the special court's order the SFIO appealed before the HC against it which heard the matter through video conferencing earlier today. "Owing to the contagion,the Supreme Court has allowed bail to accused charged under Indian Penal Code, for offences punishable with less than seven years. However in our case, the two are booked under a special act which attracts punishment of more than seven years. Also, the Maharashtra jail in which they were lodged has no cases of COVID-19 reported and has the wherewithal to deal with the situation," SFIO counsel Hiten Venagaonkar argued before the HC. The matter will be heard on April 8.On Friday a Mumbai sessions court granted interim bail to Sankaran and Bawa, accepting the Covid-19 outbreak as a valid reason for providing relief to the duo accused in a case of alleged fraud. However, the court refused to grant relief to Yes Bank co-founder Rana Kapoor, who had sought interim bail on similar grounds."Considering the medical history of the patients (Sankaran and Bawa) as well as considering the prevailing situation in the country of Covid-19, I allow temporary bail application," judge PR Sitre said in his order, a copy of which was seen by ET. "The temporary bail automatically stands cancelled after expiry of the said 75 days. The applicant is directed to surrender before this court on or before expiry of the said 75 days."Sankaran and Bawa had been behind bars since April last year, when they were arrested by the SFIO under the Companies Act for causing fraud and for issues related to corporate governance.They had filed separate applications last week seeking interim bail on the grounds of the Covid-19 outbreak and their age. While Sankaran is 60 years old, Bawa is 68. The two had filed applications claiming that they were facing medical emergency arising out of various diseases and disorders.At least three agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Delhi Police, are probing the alleged irregularities at IL&FS and its subsidiaries. In June last year, the ED had arrested former directors of IFIN Arun Saha and Karunakaran Ramchand. According to the SFIO charge sheet, six executives – Ravi Parthasarathy, Hari Sankaran, Ramesh Bawa, Arun Saha, Vibhav Kapoor and Karunakaran Ramchand – had formed the "coterie" that allegedly committed fraud with an intent to injure the interest of IFIN, its shareholders and creditors, resulting in wrongful loss to the company.Meanwhile, on Friday, judge Sitre declined to grant similar relief to Rana Kapoor, who was arrested in March on charges of money laundering by ED. "On perusal of the document as well as medical certificates filed by Taloja jail authority clearly read that the applicant is not suffering from diseases which are dangerous to his life," judge Sitre said in his order. "The jail authority is in position to look after the Covid-19 emergency. The applicant was arrested on March 8 and the investigation is at the initial stage... temporary bail is rejected." In another case, Frost International director Sujay Desai, who was arrested along with Rotomac Group promoter Rahul Kothari by the SFIO last month in connection with an alleged fraud of Rs 7,500 crore caused to a consortium of 14 banks, had filed a writ petition before the Supreme Court seeking bail citing Covid-19. The apex court, while disposing of the application, directed the applicant to approach the Allahabad High Court.
Hyundai Motor India Foundation (HMIF), the CSR arm of Hyundai Motor India, on Saturday said it will contribute relief funds to the central and state governments to fight against Covid-19 pandemic. The foundation said it is also preparing to provide the Indian medical fraternity with much needed protective and patient care equipment. "In these challenging times, our global vision - 'Progress for Humanity', holds us firmly rooted to core values of community service," Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) MD and CEO SS Kim said in a statement. The company is committed to support India in this fight against the Covid-19 crisis and it is advancing its CSR initiatives that are aimed at enhancing support and care of society and communities, he added. The auto maker will contribute to PM CARES Fund and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister's Public Relied Fund. It will also provide advanced Covid-19 diagnostic kits imported from South Korea. HMIF said it will also join hands with local manufacturer to enhance the production of ventilators to meet growing demand in Tamil Nadu and other states. Besides, it is working on in-house development of a prototype ventilator which has already been submitted to Tamil Nadu government for consideration, the automaker said.
KOLKATA: Purulia Pump Storage Plant will save West Bengal from a grid crash on Sunday 9 PM when power demand in the state is likely to drop by almost 1 gigawatt (1000 MW) for nine minutes as citizens observe lights off appeal by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.Grid management authorities are worried as 1 GW power demand will drop and then come back on within 10-15 minutes when citizens switch on lights.The state has estimated demand in WBSEDCL's command area at around 9PM to be 5250MW under stable weather condition, while at around 9 PM on Sunday the expected load crash predicted is to the tune of 800 to 1000MW due to switch off light program.Expected power availability from interstate and intra-state generating station at the time of event is estimated at around 4730 MW & WBSEDCL's own availability would be 900 MW from Purulia Pump Storage Plant (PPSP). So, expected total availability shall be to the tune of 5630MWTo manage the situation WBSEDCL will maintain 900 MW PPSP generation with the imposition of required thermal generation backdown in well advance of the event. At time of event while load crashing starts WBSEDCL will ramp down PPSP generation from 900MW to zero in pace with demand crash rate to maintain Grid discipline.As a part of precautionary measure for grid security Unit-5 (215 MW) of Bandel Thermal Power Station (BTPS) will be synchronised well in advance of the event as the same unit has a capability of islanding under grid collapse condition with matching load.The post event upsurge of demand will be tackled by ramping up the PPSP generation & imposed thermal generation back down simultaneously.The West Bengal State Load Despatch Centre (WBSLDC) will facilitate prompt ramp up and down of state sector thermal generation on emergency basis for which WBSEDCL & WBPDCL will extend their best possible support.
By Ayon Mukhopadhyay"Hello! How're you?""I'm fine!"This routine, inconspicuous exchange between two people, with nil expectation of any other reply, has moved from its mere rhetorical boundaries in the last few days, and developed deeper significance. Now our query is more genuine and full of concern: How are you? How is your family? Is everyone safe?And almost always a conversation follows, where we share our experiences on health matters and working-from-home in these unique times of the ongoing pandemic!I have been living in London for the past 10 years, working as a finance professional. A typical week-day entails rising early, ambulating through cold misty mornings, even windy at times, greeted by enthusiastic joggers or a senior citizen walking the dog, straining to keep my balance on crowded underground rides and then disembarking on to the preserved lanes of the Metropolis, where thousands of men and women, pristinely dressed, queue up to pick their favourite coffee from a cherished café and then move towards colossal office buildings that have, through the centuries, withstood the World War II blitz, the Great Fire of London and many grim manmade depressions.Evenings unfold a familiar routine – only that designer ties are now loosened and sleeve cuffs get rolled up, the newspaper readers having swapped their FT for the free Evening Standard, their moods more relaxed, with everyone looking forward to an evening with family or friends, or even at the theatre, a football match, or just the uplifting pint at the pub.But almost abruptly, the music of humdrum life has died down and the electric city feels as if switched off. The sudden hush and the uninhabited streets give a haunting reality check on the austere situation we are facing. We are all in lockdown and our routine has not only been broken, but shackled!Hence, the broker-client calls that usually start by examining management policies, debating analyst upgrades or coming to terms with perplexing central bank policies, have now been preceded by the compassionate approach of checking on each other's health and wellbeing.Make no mistake: we are still buy/sell side; so conversations take the form of the usual fierce deliberations on unearthing opportunities in the crisis. Yet, there is a sense of infinite time and tranquility.Earlier, one could hear eager colleagues on call or the Bloomberg bells in the background; but now these noises, or rather voices, have been traded for the chirping of birds, friendly dog barks and sometimes even a nursery rhyme being recited by an ignorant, happy child at a neighbour's.Non-vocational chats, which were banters about football/cricket results or critiquing a new restaurant or a show at West End have now been limited to conferring sombre Netflix offerings. Keeping motivated is a constant trial, now that work-life balance has curtly been supplanted by work-life integration at home. The television in my office was usually muted; however, I keep the one in my house on high volume, stuck on a business channel, to ensure that 'financial' voices echo in the house.In the UK, daylight saving, which usually heralds longer days and active evenings, commenced this week. But the concept of a dayend or logging off from Bloomberg around 5.30 pm-ish is no more in effect, and the yellow idle dot rolls red on its own judgement. To top the sultry housebounded-ness, smiling almost cynically, the London weather has been dazzling.Though not being able to venture out on weekends, watching the sun rise from my window at home, on the now unspoiled spring horizon (not even a stray aeroplane to blemish the canvas) and slowly sipping my morning coffee is one refreshing change.Nevertheless, the city-boy banker in me wishes to get back to the manic eight meetings a day, roadshows fuelled by endless macchiatos, challenging every London traffic norm and jumping on the Tube, as the familiar recorded voice cautions 'Mind the Gap, Please!'(Ayon Mukhopadhyay is Director of IIFL Institutional Equities for UK and Europe.)
By Jeff SommerWhen thousands of people are sick and dying, the stock market isn't the world's most pressing problem. It may even be unseemly to worry about it at all.Yet the market's steep fall matters, not just for hedge fund investors but for millions of hardworking people who have poured their savings into it, hoping to generate enough for a decent retirement, an education, a house — really, for anything important in life that costs money.What we've just experienced in the market is a big setback. The first three months of the year were the worst for the S&P 500 since 2008, and the worst for the Dow Jones industrial average since 1987.But what really counts is what you actually held in your portfolio. If you had a well-diversified array of both stocks and bonds, you probably wouldn't have lost all that much — though you may have already lost more than you feel you can handle.It's worth re-examining the classic asset allocation strategies. It's not too late to adjust course.How much pain can you take?"This isn't a dry run," David Booth, the co-founder of the firm Dimensional Fund Advisors, told me on the phone this week. "This is real life, unfortunately or not, and I'd tell someone who is seriously stressed out by this that they may need to rethink their strategy, and find something they can relax with."In late December, I also chatted with Booth — the benefactor for whom the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business is named — about his approach to long-term investing. Like Jack Bogle, the founder of Vanguard, he recommended using low-cost index funds.The key, though, for achieving some degree of personal comfort, is to find an asset allocation that is appropriate for you. How do you accomplish that?Back in those relatively peaceful days just a few months ago, he suggested imagining a stock market decline of more than 50%, one like the terrible bear market of October 2007 through February 2009.In such a decline, he asked, what kind of losses could you live with? As it turned out, that wasn't a theoretical question. This week, he said ruefully, "For a lot of people, that kind of pain's already here."The market dropped more than 33% before action by the Federal Reserve turned stocks around on March 23. I intend to keep buying equities steadily — but with the coronavirus raging, unemployment mounting and the global economy shrinking rapidly, it would not shock me if further declines were to bring the stock market more than 50% from its February peak.Consider a conservative approachFor someone near retirement or already there, a classic allocation might be 25% stock and 75% bonds, he said. The hefty bond component of such a portfolio is intended to provide a buffer, providing some income while protecting him from losses in the stock market.At age 73, that's the recipe he personally favors. "I want to be able to relax, to forget about the market, and sleep at night," he said. "For me, this kind of portfolio lets me do that."How has Booth's conservative portfolio been working this year? He told me he hasn't checked. "It will be OK," he said. "That's the point — setting up something you don't need to look at, so you can do other things."I checked for him and found that with some important qualifications, it has fared about as well as expected. Dimensional's Global Allocation fund has that 25/75 stock/bond asset allocation, for example. It has lost money this year, but not nearly as much as the S&P 500.In the first quarter, the fund declined about 6%, including dividends, compared with a loss, with dividends, of about 20% in the S&P 500, according to FactSet. The Vanguard Target Retirement Income fund, another conservative fund with a fairly similar asset allocation — 30% stock and 70% bonds — also lost about 6%.That doesn't strike me as much to worry about, not for a long-term investment.But for retirees living on such a portfolio, it may be a different matter, because those figures understate the intensity of the downturn at its worst, from Feb. 19 to March 23.Consider that the DFA fund lost 10.5% in that short period, according to FactSet, and that the Vanguard fund lost 12.5%. That's much better than the S&P 500's 34% loss in the same stretch but, still, if you find losses like that too excruciating, you could readjust now by selling stock and holding even more bonds.Note, however, that even many bonds and bond funds faltered in that period. The S&P Aggregate Bond index, which measures the broad bond market, did not rise, as bonds often do in stock-market downturns. It fell in that brief stretch, albeit by less than 1%. Only Treasury bonds held their own, and, even here, there were problems.Large exchange-traded bond funds run by BlackRock, State Street and Vanguard all traded at prices lower than those being offered by their underlying bonds. This unusual market distortion would have cost you money if you had tried to sell one of these ETFs at the depth of the market's troubles, though the situation straightened out after the Fed intervened heavily in the markets.The lesson from this brief bond glitch is, I think, that you do not want to put yourself in a position in which you must make urgent short-term sales. "Raise cash when things are calm," Booth said.Shift enough money into cash — and hold it in a bank or a conservatively run money market fund — so that you can ride out a market storm without having to make sales under duress.One word: uglyYounger investors, of course, most likely have far more than 25% of their portfolios allocated to stocks. The Vanguard target-date fund for people planning to retire in 2065, for example, is allocated nearly 90% to equities.More common stock-bond splits are 70-30 and 60-40. I checked the performance of those kinds of portfolios during the worst of this downturn, from Feb. 19 to March 23. They were, in a word, ugly.Here are the numbers for a few representative, broadly diversified funds, according to FactSet:— Dimensional DFA Global Allocation 60/40 Portfolio (60% stocks, 40% bonds and cash): negative 24%.— Vanguard Balanced (60% stocks, 40% bonds and cash): negative 23%.— Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth (79% stock, 21% bonds and cash): negative 29%.I think it's likely that more aggressive strategies will pay off if you can afford to wait. But as Robert Shiller, the Yale economist, pointed out in The New York Times recently, you might have to wait a long while. We just can't predict the short-term market.This isn't an ideal time to sell stock, because prices have already dropped considerably. But they may well fall further. If you already know, from recent experience, that you couldn't handle that, Booth said, by all means, sell, and switch to investments that you can live with."The textbook answer is to find an asset allocation that you can live with for a long time," he said. But people in distress don't care about textbooks. "This isn't science," he said. "It's about human behavior. And if you're freaking out, the first thing is, you've got to find a way to get comfortable."Perhaps that means getting out of stocks, he said. Better yet, he added, is to find a way to live with stocks. That may mean that you need a more conservative approach than you had expected just a few months ago.
Bengaluru: India's information technology sector is expected to post either flat or negative growth in 2020 due to the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic globally, an IT industry veteran said on Saturday."Look at the economic activity (globally). Worse than what you have seen in 2008 (global financial crisis).So, clients (of Indian IT companies) are not going to increase spending (on IT) or even maintain the current spending," the former Chief Financial Officer of IT major, Infosys Ltd, V Balakrishnan told PTI.There will be cut in spending, and could be pressure on pricing because all the major industries including retail and financial services have been adversely impacted, he said, also noting surging unemployment rate in the US."Economies are doing badly. Spending is not going to happen. I think this year is going to be tough for the IT industry," Balakrishnan said.The Coronavirus pandemic is like a force majeure, and no amount of business continuity planning will help in this situation, he claimed."They (Indian ITcompanies) have to work closely with their clients, figure out how much they can extract; at the same time, they have to keep the cost under control, and manage the current year because in current year if they have a positive growth, that will be a surprise." "It will be either flat or negative growth this year because everything is happening in the first two quarters, when growth is always good. This year is going to be very tough.They have to plan their costs in such a way that margins they can (hold on to) so that they can reduce the impact," he said. Even in 2008 after the global financial crisis, Indian IT companies had some growth because at that time, recovery happened very fast. "This time nobody knows because unless you find medicine for this, this is going to keep coming back; look at Singapore, initially they managed and now they are saying full lockdown.Even US is similar; nobody knows how long this is going to prolong; economies are like titanic ship, everything is frozen now, for you to restart and start the engine kicking is going to take a long time. This year is going to be very tough for IT industry," Balakrishnan added.
Below given are the IELTS Reading Actual Tests that have appeared In the year 2016. These test samples can be used by the IELTS test-takers, for the purpose of practicing for IELTS Exams. Referring these tests will give you an idea of how to appear for the IELTS reading test and you will also be able to achieve your desirable band score.
Below given are the IELTS Reading Actual Tests with answer keys that have appeared In the year 2017. These test samples can be used by the IELTS test-takers, for the purpose of practicing for IELTS Exams. Referring these tests will give you an idea of how to appear for the IELTS reading test and there are answer keys also which will help you to achieve your desirable band score.
IELTS Magazine is our brand new project on our official IELTS blog (ieltsmaterial.com), which is electronically published on a weekly basis. This non-profit project aims to keep IELTS candidates abreast with current trends in IELTS studies, and provide IELTS learners with the latest IELTS lessons/news on our official website and from British Council, IDP: IELTS Australia, and Cambridge English Language Assessment.
It has been an honor and a pleasure building this community and this vision with each of you. Thank you to all of our readers and subscribers for taking a chance on our IELTS Magazine. And thank you, too, to all of the incredible writers, translators, advisers, staff, and interns who made this magazine its best possible self. We deeply appreciate the efforts of everyone who has been helping us with all articles on this very first magazine & upcoming weekly magazines. If you would like to contribute as a writer, feel free to send us an email at admin@ieltsmaterial.com
Now, we can’t wait to share with your our 20-page Week 1 IELTS Magazine (download PDF file below)
The content of the 1st IELTS magazine:
– Top 12 IELTS books
– Cambridge IELTS 12 Academic
– IELTS Writing Actual Test in Canada & Sample Essay
– IELTS Speaking Part 1 Topic: Transport & Sample Answers
– IELTS Speaking Actual Test in Australia & Sample Answers
– Tips to Write an Awesome Introduction in IELTS Writing Task 2
Advanced Grammar for IELTS: Modal verbs (1): can, could, may, might, be able to – Diagnose Test, Grammar Explanation & Practice Exercises
The above mentioned modal verbs like a must, should, ought to, have to, need to do not change the form of the present tense, nor do they past or the future form. These forms are mainly used in your academic writing task 2. These verbs cannot be used as their own but, they should be used with the helping verb.
DIAGNOSTIC TEST: Modal verbs (2): must, should, ought to, have to, need to
Underline the best choice of word(s) in bold in each of these sentences.
Example:
As they get older, teenagers should/ had better be treated more like adults.
To must/ Having to listen to hip-hop music all evening is my idea of torture!
The landlord ought to/ ought to have taken his responsibilities more seriously.
This company is awful to work for. We must / have to account for every minute of the day.
Do you know if we must/ have to have visas for the Caribbean?
The newspaper shouldn’t have/ mustn't have printed the rumor without concrete evidence.
What a state my shoes are in! They need/ must be repairing.
We have to/ are supposed to put our bags in the lockers, but most people take them into the gym.
We couldn’t go/ mustn't have gone into the disco because we were too young.
Polite notice: children do not have to/ are not allowed to play on the grass.
This offer is not open to current employees. Participants must not have/ need not have been employed by the company in the last four years.
We needn't / needn’t have booked the tickets in advance; there was plenty left.
With our new range of hair products, you mustn't/don’t have to spend hours caring for your hair.
There wasn’t anyone on the nightclub door so we didn’t need to show/needn’t have shown proof of our age.
As we’re getting a lodger, we’d better / better to have some more keys cut.
Our advice is that even people as young as twenty-five should / must consider a personal pension.
You won't have to/ had better not tell Shirley what you saw – it will only upset her and she'll blame you.
The ground’s soaking outside – it must rain/ be raining quite heavily.
If you bring your receipt, there shouldn’t/ mustn’t be any difficulty with a refund.
Lewis must have/ should have been training very hard to develop muscles like that!
I walked into the showroom and saw the car, and I knew I had to have / must have had it.
GRAMMAR EXPLANATION: Modal verbs (2): must, should, ought to, have to, need to
English has a number of different ways of expressing the concepts of obligation and necessity, prohibition, recommendation, and logical deduction. This unit looks at the different modal verbs, as well as some common non-modal verbs and phrases, which we use to express these concepts.
OBLIGATION AND NECESSITY
1A. Form
must
have (got) to
need to
should/ ought to
present
must
has/ have (got) to
need/needs to
should/ ought to
past
had to
had (got) to
needed to
should/ ought to have (done)
future
must
will have to
will need to
should/ ought to
Must, should and ought to are modal verbs (unlike the need to and have to). They do not change form in the present tense, nor do they have a past tense or a future form with a will, nor infinitive or participle forms. As an alternative to must or when we can't use must (e.g. to refer to the past), we usually use have to:
Past: The staff and students at the university had to evacuate the campus.
Future: The Council must/ will have to find ways of cutting costs next year.
Infinitive: It’s difficult to have to stand by and watch your child in pain.
Participle: Having to listen to hip-hop music all evening is my idea of torture!
We can express a past meaning of should and ought to by using a modal perfect:
They really should/ ought to have consulted their shareholders first.
The need can be used as a modal verb (without to), usually in negatives and questions:
Need you shout so? I’m right next to you!
We needn’t bother making the bed. The maid will do it.
As an alternative to needing, we can use need to or have to:
Do you need to/have to shout so?
We don’t need to I have to bother making the bed.
We can use must, have to and need to with a passive phrase:
Democracy must/has to be seen to work.
Pulses need to be cooked thoroughly to eradicate the toxins in them.
1 B. Obligation
We usually express obligation in English with must or have to:
You must arrive in good time for the meeting tomorrow. The MD will be there.
Everyone has to register their name and address in order to be able to vote.
The difference in meaning between have to and must be fine and often depends on whether or not the speaker sees the obligation as one they are imposing. We use to have to to express an obligation we see as outside our control, eg. rules imposed by an authority:
Students have to wear school uniforms in the sixth form.
We often use must to express an obligation imposed by the speaker:
I must get up earlier – I waste so much time in the mornings.
Must is commonly used for the following situations:
To give a strong personal opinion: I believe people must vote at elections.
To impose an obligation on oneself: I really must lose some weight.
To give instructions: The electricity must always be switched off before repairs are attempted. (In giving instructions, a must is often used with a passive verb.)
Note: However, must express a strong obligation and we do not often use it in face-to-face conversation as it can seem impolite and often inappropriate.
We often use should and ought to as an alternative to must as they express a subjective (often moral) obligation felt by the speaker, but the obligation is weaker than with must:
You should treat your neighbors with more respect.
It is possible to use need to to express external obligation, particularly in the future:
We’ll need to get our visas sorted out or we won’t be able to stopover in the States.
We use have got to for external obligation like have to. but it is more informal than have to and more common in speech than in writing (have got to is rare in US English):
What time have we got to be at the airport tomorrow?
[Claim forms have got to be date-stamped before payment will be made.]
✓ Claim forms have to be date-stamped before payment will be made.
We use should/ought to + have + past participle for an unfulfilled obligation in the past:
You really should have/ought to have registered before term started.
The record was finally released eighteen months later than it should have been
1C. Necessity
We can use need to, must and have to to express necessity (i.e. a requirement that results from things other than just commands, rules or laws):
All living beings need to/ must/ have to take in sustenance in order to live.
I really need to/ must/ have to get some more sleep. I ‘m always exhausted.
Note: It is possible, though quite rare today, to use need without to in questions:
Need he really play his music so loudly?
If we want to express a necessity without suggesting who should deal with it, we can use need + -ing form:
That poor bird – his cage really needs cleaning
This use has a passive meaning and is similar to the passive infinitive:
That poor bird – his cage really needs to be cleaned.
1D. Other ways of expressing obligation
We can use be to for an order from a person in authority:
The members of the jury are to report to the judge's chambers.
We use be obliged to (US: obligated to) or required to informal contexts:
We’re obliged to contribute twenty-five percent of the costs of the repairs.
Motorists are required by law to wear seat belts in the European Union.
We use be supposed to for a lesser obligation and one that is frequently ignored:
We’re supposed to leave our textbooks at school, but we often take them home.
We use be liable to for obligation (often in a legal context):
Anyone causing damage will be liable to pay for all necessary repairs.
PROHIBITION AND CRITICISM
2A. Forms
must not
cannot
other forms
should not/ought not to
present
mustn’t (have)
can’t
may not
is/are not allowed to
shouldn’t
oughtn’t to
past
couldn’t
was/ were not allowed to
shouldn’t have (done)
oughtn’t to have (done)
future
mustn’t
cannot
may not
will not be allowed to
shouldn’t
oughtn’t to
2B. Meaning and use
We use must not (usually mustn’t) to express a prohibition (an obligation not to do something) imposed by the speaker or writer:
You mustn't touch that kettle. It’s hot!
To express a weaker, often moral prohibition, we use shouldn't or oughtn't to:
You really shouldn’t/oughtn’t to speak to your mother like that!
We tend to use shouldn’t more often than oughtn’t to.
To express prohibition by an external authority we often use other modal verbs or non- modal expressions. Mustn’t may appear too strong in these situations:
Guests may not use the pool after 11 p.m. (formal)
Women can't/ aren't allowed to drive in some Arab countries.
Note: It is possible, though not common, to use must not have + past participle for a present prohibition which relates to the past:
Entrants must be aged 16 to 25 and must not have done any professional modeling. (The modeling is in the past, but the prohibition is in the present.)
We use couldn’t or wasn't / weren't allowed to for prohibition in the past:
We couldn't go into the disco because we were too young.
Journalists were shown the disused buildings but they weren't allowed to enter them.
We use shouldn’t/ ought not to have + past participle to criticize a past action:
You shouldn’t have driven through that red light. You could have caused an accident.
We usually use won’t be allowed to or can't to express prohibition in the future:
Let's eat before we go. We won't be allowed to/can’t take food into the auditorium.
ABSENCE OF OBLIGATION OR NECESSITY
3A. Forms
not have to
need not
present
do/does not have to
need not
do/ does not need to
past
did not have to
did not need to
need not have (done)
future
will not have to
will not need to, need not
3B. Meaning and use
We usually use don’t have to/ don’t need to to express a lack of external obligation:
X You mustn’t pay to visit most museums in Britain.
✓ You don't have I need to pay to visit most museums in Britain. (Entrance is free.)
We use don't need to/ needn’t for the absence of necessity felt by the speaker. Needn’t tends to express the speaker's personal opinion more:
We needn't/ don't need to put the heating on yet; it’s not cold enough.
We use didn’t have to/ didn't need to for absence of obligation in the past:
You didn't have to/ didn’t need to finish the washing-up. I could have done it.
Note: Need has two past forms: didn’t need to and needn't have done. We use didn't need to when we don’t know if the action happened or not:
We didn't need to take warm sweaters, as the weather was so good. (We don't know if the speaker took warm sweaters or not.)
We use needn't have + past participle when the action happened but was unnecessary:
We needn't have taken warm sweaters. We could have used the space in our luggage for more books! (We know that the speaker took warm sweaters.)
We use won’t have to, won't need to or needn't for the absence of obligation in the future:
With one of the new generation of food processors, cooks won't have to I won't need to/needn't peel or chop anymore.
RECOMMENDATION AND ADVICE
4A. Forms
must
should
ought to
had better
present
must (not)
should (not)
ought (not) to
had better (not)
future
must (not)
should (not)
ought (not) to
had better (not)
4B. Meaning and use
We use must for strong recommendations and advice:
You really must read Sebastian Faulks's latest book. It’s stunning!
You must do something about that cough. Please go and see the doctor.
Note that this use must is usually heavily stressed in speech.
Recommendation or advice with should or ought to is less emphatic:
Even people as young as twenty-five should consider a personal pension.
Children ought not to spend long periods in front of a computer screen.
We often use should and ought to with the passive:
The underlying shift in public opinion ought not to be exaggerated.
Had better (not) expresses the best thing to do in a particular situation. It often has a sense of urgency and can be a warning or a threat:
If the burglars took your keys, you'd better change the locks in case they come back.
Your dog had better not dig up my rose bush again!
LOGICAL DEDUCTION AND PROBABILITY
5A. Forms
must
have (got) to
should
present
must (not)
have (got) to
should (not)
past
must have + past participle
have (got) to
should (not) have + past participle
future
must (not)
have (got) to
should (not)
In this sense, we can also use must, have to and should with the continuous:
That disco is so loud. You must be damaging your ears when you go there.
You have got to be joking! That was not a foul!
The accused should not have been driving at 80 in a built-up area.
5B. Meaning and use
We use must for something that we believe to be true because of evidence (i.e. we are making a logical deduction):
This must be the place – it’s the only restaurant in the street.
I thought the eclipse was today, but it must be happening tomorrow.
The opposite of must in this sense is can’t, not mustn't :
This can't be the place – there’s no one inside and there are no lights on.
It is possible to use 'have (got) to' for emphatic logical deduction:
There has (got) to be some mistake. I didn’t order this furniture.
We use 'must-have' + past participle to express a logical deduction about the past:
There was a terrific noise last night. It must have been an explosion.
I couldn’t wake you this morning. You must have been sleeping really soundly.
The negative of this is 'can't/couldn’t have' + past participle.
Note the difference between the two past forms 'must-have' + past participle and 'had to'.
The Corrs’ new single has been played non-stop. You must have heard it! (deduction)
I've always loved The Corrs and when I heard they had a new single out, I had to hear it! (obligation imposed by the speaker)
We use should/ ought to for probability and shouldn't /ought not to for improbability. We believe the statement to be true because of our prior knowledge, experience or present evidence:
The plane should be landing about now.
There shouldn't be problems with traffic at that time of the evening.
Note: We rarely use should to ‘predict’ a negative (unpleasant) situation. Instead we use will:
X There should be problems with traffic at that time. The roads should be awful.
✓ There'll be problems with traffic at that time. The roads will be awful.
We use should (not)/ ought (not) to + have + past participle to talk about the probability of an action in the past:
I don't know where our main speaker can be. He should have arrived hours ago.
PRACTICE EXERCISE
Q 1.
Complete the dialogue with the best words or phrases from the box. Use each word or phrase once only.
do I have to had to has to have to having to must
need to needs obliged to should supposed to will have to
BETH Hello. Reception said that you wanted a word with me.
LISA That's right. I’m interested in joining your gym. What (1)…….. do?
BETH Take a seat. First, you (2) …….. fill in this form. It asks for details about you and your state of health. We want to be sure that you’re fit enough to use the gym.
LISA OK … I have a slight problem with one knee. I twisted it a few weeks ago.
BETH Well, you really (3) …….. tell the instructor about that, then he'll make sure that your fitness program takes account of it.
LISA Fitness program?
BETH Yes. If you join, you (4) …….. have an induction session with one of our fitness instructors. He'll design a program suited to your level of fitness.
LISA Oh, that's good. Now. it's £30 a month, isn't it?
BETH Well, yes, but that’s the special rate if you take out an annual subscription, so you’re (5) …….. join for the whole year to get that rate. Otherwise, it's £40 a month.
LISA I see. Yes, I think I’ll join for the year. Is there anything else I should know?
BETH Let's see … there are some rules, but they're pretty obvious. Of course, every one (6) …….. wear appropriate clothing and footwear. There are lockers outside the gym, so you’re not (7) …….. take anything in with you. but we don't apply that rule very strictly. You'll probably want to take a towel and a bottle of water in with you anyway: you (8) …….. drink plenty of water while you’re exercising, to prevent dehydration.
LISA Yes … are there any restrictions, like (9) …….. book time ahead in the evenings?
BETH No. You can use the gym whenever it's open. Obviously, if you think a piece of equipment isn't working properly and (10) …….. mending, tell an instructor. Also, for your own good, you (11) …….. tell us if you feel unsure about how to use a particular machine.
LISA Of course. Now, the receptionist said I (12) …….. provide a photo for the membership card, but I'm afraid I don't have one on me.
BETH That's OK. Bring it next time you come. Until then you can use your receipt as proof of membership.
Q 2.
Read the letter on the next page and decide which word or phrase below fits each space. In each case, only one answer is possible. Circle the letters you choose. The first one is given as an example (0).
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
A must not
A need not have
A mustn’t have
A could not
A are to
A must not
A are required to
A need not
A need to
A are not supposed to
A had to
A shouldn't be allowed
A need not have been
B cannot
B must not have
B shouldn't have
B did not need to
B is obliged to
B is liable to
B does not have to
B does not need to
B does not have to
B is not obliged to
B will have to
B oughtn't to be allowed
B must not have been
C need not
C had to
C needn't have
C needed to
C aren't allowed to
C must
C need to
C have to
C must not
C need not
C are to
C needn't allowing
C did not have to be
Hilverstone Fox Watch
Dear New Member,
Many thanks for your application form for membership of the HFW (Hilverstone Fox Watch). Before I introduce the club to you, I would like to point out that you (0) … pay your subscription until your membership application has been processed and approved, so those of you who joined at the fete last Saturday (1) … provided cheques on the spot. Our representative (2) … accepted your cheques. I am returning them where necessary, with apologies for any inconvenience.
HFW was set up three years ago for two reasons: to lobby for the abolition of fox-hunting – the founder members felt we (3) … do this as the Hilverstone Hunt is so powerful in this area – but also to provide some protection for the urban foxes here, who (4) … subsist on household scraps in some cases. Our meetings are fortnightly but please do not feel that you (5) … attend each one. All our members, however, (6) … attend six meetings a year and at least two all-night watches. We (7) … insist upon this to prevent all of the work from falling on the shoulders of a few people.
One or two words of advice: a lot of people interested in foxes attempt to domesticate them by putting food down for them. Please – you (8) … do this. For one thing, we (9) … encourage vermin under local by-laws (and foxes are classed as vermin), but also, we (10) … try to reintroduce these foxes to their natural habitat, as they are not naturally domestic creatures. Please remember also that female foxes with young cubs can be quite aggressive: children in particular (11) … to go near them at this potentially dangerous time.
Finally, may I remind you that members of HFW (12) … involved in the Hilverstone Hunt for at least one year prior to joining.
Thank you once again for your interest. I enclose a timetable of our meetings and events for the next three months, and look forward to welcoming you to one of them.
Yours faithfully,
Jonathan Harker
Q 3.
Complete texts A-C with an appropriate verb or expression. Use the information in the box to help you. The first one is given as an example (0).
REQUIREMENTS OF COURSE
course
A
B
C
important
keyboarding skills
previous experience
three GCSEs
advisable
access to a computer
keyboarding skills
good level of English
unnecessary
prior publishing experience
own computer
prior publishing experience/ computer skills
DESK-TOP PUBLISHING
Ten-week intensive course for people interested in producing small-scale publications. Applicants for this course (0) …must… have good keyboarding skills but are not (1)…….. to have prior publishing experience. If possible, applicants (2) …….. have access to a computer and Microsoft Publisher, but there are a limited number of machines available at the college.
DESK-TOP PUBLISHING
Learn how to self-publish from the professionals! We offer Desk-top Publishing courses to suit all schedules and budgets, from five-week intensive courses to year-long evening courses. You (3) …….. have your own computer (on our full-time courses) but you (4) …….. have some previous experience in publishing. You (5) …….. be able to use a keyboard. Call us on 01202 867349
DESK-TOP PUBLISHING
One-year course. Applicants (6) …….. have previous experience in publishing, as part of the course involves work experience with a local printing company. Equally, you are not (7) …….. to have good computer skills as all basic training is provided. A minimum of three GCSEs is (8) …….. and applicants (9) …….. have a good level of English.
Q 4.
Write four statements making deductions about each picture. Use the words and phrases underneath the pictures. The first one is given as an example (0).
(daughter) They must ……..be waiting for their daughter………
(on/train) She can't ………………………………………………………………….
(miss/it) She must ………………………………………………………………….
(child/mother) She must …………………………………………………………..
(phone/parents) She can't …………………………………………………………..
(rain) It must …………………………………………………………………………………
(slip/banana skin) The man must ………………………………………………….
(not/wife) She can't ………………………………………………………………………
(ambulance) Someone must …………………………………………………………..
Q 5.
For each of the sentences below, write a new sentence as similar in meaning as possible to the original sentence, but using the word(s) given. The word(s) must not be altered in any way.
It looks certain that the orchestra's instruments are arriving on a later plane.
must ………The orchestra's instruments must be arriving on a later plan…………..
1. I strongly recommend you to try this sundried tomato bread.
must ………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
2. There is no obligation to get an international driving license for this country.
have ………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
3. It was stupid of the government to try to break the strike.
should ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
4. I warn you not to chat up with my girlfriend again!
had ………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
5. We didn’t book the table but it didn’t matter as there was hardly anyone in the restaurant anyway.
need ………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
6. My hair's much too long. I’ll have to get it cut soon.
cutting ………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
7. It is essential that you disconnect the gas supply before removing the boiler.
be disconnected ………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
8. The management will not permit latecomers to enter the theatre until there is a suitable break.
allowed ………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
9. Why do we have to state ethnic origin on official forms these days?
Advanced Grammar for IELTS: Possessives and compound nouns – Diagnose Test, Grammar Explanation & Practice Exercises
The possessive nouns are generally used while referring to an ownership or possession, personal or professional relationship, person or an animal and so on.
Whereas the compound noun describes the nature of the second noun, the first noun will be having the same function as the classifying adjective like paintings, Sunday times earthquakes and so on.
DIAGNOSTIC TEST: Possessives and compound nouns
Eighteen of these sentences contain mistakes. Tick (✓) the correct sentences, then find the mistakes and correct them.
Example
Have you met the new girlfriend of my stepson yet?
Have you met my stepson's new girlfriend yet?
Did you notice that greasy stain on the side of our sofa?
Dave's company has been awarded a contract to repair all the buses' engines.
People in this street are very proud of their's manicured front lawns.
Isn't she your secretary's brother's boss?
These gloves look familiar; I think they're Joe’s.
The villa we’re borrowing belongs to my sisters-in-law’s parents.
I adore Lennon's and McCartney's music, especially the early stuff.
This is Mario, he’s a colleague of Professor Grigson.
I might be able to get you an interview; the owner’s a friend of me.
Is that the new car for Hilary?
Elizabeth's the youngest daughter of Mr. Granger.
Jem saw a fantastic article in the local paper of today.
Galileo was NASA's biggest project.
It's in a great location, only five minutes’ walk from the supermarket.
Could you give me a dollar's worth of those bananas, please?
How about all of us going back to the house of my brother for some coffee?
Did you manage to get an appointment at the doctor?
Oh, for the sake of heaven, can’t you get a move on?
He's doing some research for his dissertation on anthropology’s history.
The celebrities acknowledged the crowd’s cheers who lined the street.
Astronomers predict an eclipse of the sun on April the thirteenth morning.
Inspector Walters achieved fame with the famous serial killer's arrest.
Commentators have been stunned by the scale of the scandal.
The processor is the computer’s main component, wouldn’t you agree?
This term the class will be reading the short stories' collection of Graham Greene.
Everyone’s been admiring my expensive wife's car.
If there’s one thing I can't stand it's fussy children's clothes.
There's a beautiful old house for sale at the local estate agent's.
If you want a really unique wedding dress, you need to find a good maker of dresses.
Great news – the college is going to give me a one-year sabbatical.
GRAMMAR EXPLANATION: Possessives and compound nouns
We can show the relationship between two nouns by using possessive forms or compound nouns. There are two basic possessive forms: the genitive ('s – eg. the company's shareholders) and the structure (e.g. the shareholders of the company). This unit describes the forms and uses of the genitive and explains how we choose between this and of phrases. It also contrasts the use of possessives and compound nouns.
FORM AND MEANING
1A. Possessive forms
We can indicate the possessive form of a noun by adding ‘s or we can use the structure (noun + of + noun):
There was a scratch on my car's paintwork.
There was a scratch on the paintwork of my car.
Note: We usually use the definite article before an of structure (except with the ‘double possessive’):
X … on a paintwork of my car. X …on paintwork of my car.
✓ … on the paintwork of my car.
There are possessive forms of pronouns and also possessive adjectives:
You can’t use that card, it’s mine
Oh sorry. I didn’t realize it was your personal photocopy card.
1B. 's – basic rules
These are the key rules about which form of the genitive ( 's/ s / ' ) to use:
singular noun: add ‘s
house => house’s bus => bus's
singular proper noun ending in -s:
add 's or an apostrophe (') only
Mr. James => Mr. James's house/ Mr. James’ house
regular plural noun: add an apostrophe only
boys => boys' buses => buses'
irregular plural noun (not ending in -s): add ‘s
men => men's children => children’s
one. somebody, everyone, each
other, etc.: add ‘s
one's house somebody’s house
nobody’s house everyone's rights
each other's houses
1C. 's – special rules
We can have two genitives together:
We were beginning to get fed up with our neighbor's tenant's loud music.
If the meaning is clear from the context, we can use the genitive without a following noun:
That isn't my handwriting. It's Selina’s. (= Selina's handwriting)
If the possessive form consists of a compound noun or two or more nouns which form a single team or group we put the 's on the last noun only:
Are you coming to my brother-in-law’s party? (compound noun)
I’m a great fan of Lerner and Lowe's musicals. (They wrote as a single team.)
Note: When the nouns do not form a single group we must use ‘s with both nouns:
Schrodinger's and Heisenberg's versions of quantum mechanics had seemed different. (two versions of the theory)
If the possessive noun is part of a short phrase (without a verb in it), we usually put the ‘s at the end of the phrase:
X The man's in the corner dog began to bark.
✓ The man in the corner’s dog began to bark. (= The dog belonging to the man in the corner …)
1D. The double possessive ( of structure + genitive)
We can use the genitive form and the structure in the same phrase (the double possessive) when we want to make the first noun specific, but at the same time shows that it is one of several. We usually use the indefinite article with this pattern:
I heard the story from a friend of my brother's. (= from one of my brother's friends)
We do not always include the genitive 's on the second noun:
They got a tip-off from a friend of the owner.
Note: The double possessive is common with pronouns. We always use the possessive pronoun:
X, She’s a friend of us. X, She’s a friend of our.
✓ She's a friend of ours. (= We have several friends. She is one of them.)
THE GENITIVE (‘S) OR OF STRUCTURE
2A. The genitive
We usually use the genitive ‘s (and not the of structure) to express the following ideas:
use
example
referring to general ownership, or possession of somebody’s home
Have you seen Sheila's new car?
We’ll be at Mum's soon. (= Mum’s house)
referring to people and animals (especially with proper nouns) and to personal/ professional relationships and human qualities
Sheila is Harold's youngest daughter.
Do you like Snap’s new collar?
Have you met the boss's new secretary?
John’s intransigence is a pain.
referring to location in time (but not with dates)
Have you seen the poem in today’s 'Observer'?
X It was in 19th December's paper.
referring to the origin of something, for example where It comes from or who made it.
Oil is Saudi Arabia's biggest export.
The St Matthew Passion' is Bach's most
profound work.
referring to a quantity or measure, for example of duration, distance or value
in expressions for value/quantity with worth
with the names of shops, companies and people/places that provide a service
in certain fixed expressions
There will be an hour's delay.
The hotel was ten minutes' drive from
the beach.
Could you give me a pound's worth of chips?
I'm getting the Thanksgiving shopping at
Macy's. (= Macy’s department store)
Was there anything nice at the butcher’s this
morning? (= the butcher’s shop)
She was at death's door. For Cod's sake!
For pity’s sake! For heaven's sake!
2B. The of structure (noun + of + noun)
We usually use the structure (and not the genitive 's) in the following situations:
use
example
with abstract nouns (e.g. science) and
when we are referring to inanimate things
I’ve been studying the philosophy of science.
We set up our base camp at the bottom of
the mountain.
when the noun is followed by a verb phrase or clause which defines it
The players ignored the jeers of the women
standing in the front row.
when we refer to a specific date
with long or complex phrases, even when
we are referring to people
certain fixed expressions and titles
It was destroyed in the fire of 1666.
A man was sentenced to death for the murder
of an English tourist. Monica Cantwell.
He's the President of the United States.
The Prince of Wales is to visit Iceland.
2C. Either pattern
We can usually use the genitive 's or the structure to express the following ideas:
use
example
referring to a quality that something possesses or displays (but we prefer to use the genitive with human qualities)
We were amazed by the ship’s sheer size.
We were amazed by the sheer size of the ship.
referring to the subject of something,
its topic or theme
with human creations such as countries, organisations, cities, institutions, machines, vehicles, buildings, etc. (The genitive is more common)
The Queen's portrait has caused dismay.
The portrait of the Queen has caused dismay.
Radio City Music Hall is one of New York's most famous theatres.
Plane trees are a common sight on the streets of London.
expressing a reason or purpose with sake
We agreed to make a go of it for the sake of the children/ for the children’s sake.
2D. Genitive + of structure
The genitive and the structure can describe different types of relationships such as ownership, origin, and subject. To avoid confusion when we are describing more than one relationship between nouns in a phrase, we prefer to use the 's genitive for the origin, owner or creator, and the of structure for the subject or topic:
X I wasn’t convinced by the quarrel's description of the witness
✓I wasn’t convinced by the witness’s description of the quarrel.
(the witness = the person who made the description; the quarrel = the topic of the description)
One of our most popular exhibits is Van Dyck's portrait of King Charles
(Van Dyck = the creator of the portrait; King Charles = the subject of the portrait)
We can also combine possessive forms with prepositions to describe a number of different relationships:
Have you seen the National Gallery's portrait of King Charles by Van Dyck?
We can use the structure to put new information at the end of a sentence. Compare:
American presidential candidate Robert Kennedy was assassinated in 1968.
X, He was former president John F Kennedy’s younger brother.
✓ He was the younger brother of former president John F Kennedy. (The new information is the reference to John F Kennedy.)
SPECIFYING OR CLASSIFYING POSSESSIVES AND COMPOUND NOUNS
3A. Specifying or classifying possessives
Possessive forms of nouns can describe two types of relationships. In most cases we use possessive nouns as ‘specifying’ words, showing a relationship with something specific, such as a person or place (underlining = stressed word):
Marion washed the children’s clothes every Thursday. (= the clothes belonging to Marion’s children)
In other cases, possessive nouns can describe a 'classifying' relationship, describing the type of thing something is (underlining = stressed word):
Janice decided to open a shop specializing in children's clothes (= clothes designed for any children to wear)
We use adjectives in a different way depending on which type of relationship the possessive form is describing. With specifying possessives the adjective only describes the noun following it:
She was suspicious of her wealthy brother’s girlfriend (= Her brother is wealthy.)
She didn’t like her brother's wealthy girlfriend (= His girlfriend is wealthy.)
But when we use adjectives in front of a possessive noun with a ‘classifying’ meaning, the adjective describes the whole phrase, not just the possessive noun which follows it:
Janice’s shop had a large selection of hand-made children's clothes (= The children's clothes are hand-made, not the children.)
3B. Other classifying relationships
We use and other prepositions to describe classifying relationships such as type of content, subject, source, and purpose:
I’ve got a marvelous book of short stories by Somerset Maugham. (content)
The kids have been watching a film about rollerblading (subject)
I’m hoping to buy a sofa from that Swedish store (source)
Our uncle's company manufactures lubricants for ball-bearings (use/purpose)
Note: We do not use a possessive if there is a compound noun with the same meaning:
X I bought a new racquet at the sport s shop
✓ I bought a new racquet at the sports shop (sports shop is a compound noun)
3C. Compound nouns
Compound nouns are words that have been created by combining two nouns that are related to each other. They are similar to classifying possessives because the first noun ‘classifies’ the second noun, it describes it or tells us its purpose:
dressmaker (= maker of dresses) fashion magazine (= magazine about fashion)
Compound nouns can be written as a single word (dressmaker), two separate words (fashion magazine) or two words joined by a hyphen (waste-bin). There are no rules for this and it is best to check in an up-to-date dictionary.
Compound nouns can also be formed by combining nouns with verbs or adjectives:
noun + verb:
verb + noun:
adjective + noun:
windsurfing
cookbook
highway
fire-eater
rocking chair
blackbird
Thanksgiving
filing cabinet
real estate
screwdriver
swimsuit
easy chair
Note: Some compound nouns are formed from multi-word verbs. They usually follow the same order as the verb, but there are a few exceptions:
turn out => turnout spill over => overspill turn down => downturn
We can also make compound nouns from time expressions:
a three-week holiday a four-hour delay a ten-minute drive
Note: Be careful with compound nouns describing containers. The compound form only describes the container itself, not its contents. Compare these examples:
· In a shop:
I'd like a dozen Royal Doulton teacups. (compound noun = cups designed to hold tea)
· In a café:
X I'd like a teacup and a Mars bar, please.
✓ I'd like a cup of tea and a Mars bar, please. (= tea in a cup)
PRACTICE EXERCISE
Q 1.
Rewrite the sentences using genitive forms. The exercise begins with an example (0).
The stories Steve told and the stories Jane told were completely different.
… Steve's and Jane's stories were completely different……
I’m sure this bag belongs to somebody.
Let's go to the shop the girls own.
That is the hotel belonging to Mr. Hollis.
I love the operettas of Gilbert and Sullivan.
It's the fault of nobody.
They had respect for the opinions of each other.
The dog belonging to my next-door neighbor never stops barking.
I’m fed up with the hopeless inefficiency of the secretary of my boss.
The personality of my mother and the personality of my father are very alike.
These aren’t my keys, they are the keys belonging to my flatmate.
The new Act of Parliament will protect the right of everyone to privacy.
The toilet for men is over there on the right.
I’ve just inherited the house belonging to the brother of my grandmother.
The opinions of residents of sink estates are rarely taken into consideration.
The dance routines of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers are legendary.
Q 2.
Eight of these sentences contain mistakes. Tick (✓) the correct sentences, then find and correct the mistakes.
Elizabeth is a good friend of him.
I’m really fed up with my landlord's wive's endless complaints about noise.
As the English say, ones' home is ones' castle.
You should pay attention to what he says; he’s a close associate of the managing director.
Don't blame him; it was my own fault.
She's been put in charge of childrens’ activities at the summer camp in Maine.
Since they got married they've only been interested in each other.
My brother-in-law’s parents have decided to emigrate.
We don't know him very well; he's just an acquaintance of us from our university days.
There's something wrong with that buses’ brake lights.
Q 3.
Choose the correct alternative, A or B. In some cases both options are correct.
1. What did you do …
at the course's end?
at the end of the course?
2. Have you met …
Sam’s new girlfriend?
the new girlfriend of Sam?
3. … is a constant source of inspiration.
Barcelona's architecture
The architecture of Barcelona
4. I need to visit …
the doctor's surgery.
the surgery of the doctor.
5. Some debris got caught under …
the conveyor belt's wheels.
the wheels of the conveyor belt.
6. Our organization strives towards …
poverty's elimination.
the elimination of poverty.
7. The Ninth Symphony is arguably …
Beethoven's greatest work.
the greatest work of Beethoven.
8. ….. is the search for personal fulfillment in a hostile world.
The novel's theme
The theme of the novel
9. He's taking … from his job at the university.
a year's sabbatical
a sabbatical of a year
10. … sometimes drives me up the wall.
My husband's impatience
The impatience of my husband
11. Throughout the flight, we had to put up with …
the children sitting in the back row's antics
the antics of the children sitting in the back row.
12. The most senior clergyman in the Church of England is …
Canterbury's Archbishop.
the Archbishop of Canterbury.
13. We're going to hold the party at …
Michael’s place.
the place of Michael.
14. … was an important turning point in French history.
1789's revolution
The revolution of 1789
15. Researchers have been amazed by the … to mutate when attacked.
virus’s ability
ability of the virus
16. The vet wasn't very pleased with …
Fido's progress.
the progress of Fido.
17. Her doctoral thesis investigates … in medieval China.
Confucianism's spread
the spread of Confucianism
18. The blessing will take place at …
the Twelve Apostle's church.
the church of the Twelve Apostles.
19. Why can’t you just hand in your notice, …
for heaven's sake!
for the sake of heaven!
20. … are generating a lot of excitement at the Paris fashion shows.
Galliano's latest designs
The latest designs of Galliano
Q 4.
Use the words (1-15) in the box to form compound nouns that fit in the same numbered gaps in the text. You will need to add the second part of the compound yourself. The exercise begins with two examples (0) and (00).
0 lap
00 buyer's
1 brand
2 mail
3 credit
A high
5 shop
6 check
7 soft
8 hard
9 word
10 key
11 world
12 out
13 short
14 instruction
15 after
Today's consumer guide looks at (0)…..laptop….computers. The range of these portable computers on the market can be daunting, but a good place to start is computer magazines. These often contain useful (00)…….buyer's guides…… and reviews of models currently on the market. Suppliers of the leading (1) ……. often sell their products at cut prices through these magazines. If you decide to buy by (2) …. you will find the advertisements a good source of bargains. And if you pay by (3) …….. you will automatically be insured. But if you need help in choosing a model, it might be better to shop in the (4) ……. where you can ask (5)……… for impartial guidance and advice.
You should make a (6)………. of the features and facilities you require and these will depend to a large extent on the way you plan to use your machine. If you use a lot of graphics (7)…….. you'll need a fast processor, a large (8)….. and a high-definition screen. If you are only going to be using the machine for (9)……. processor speed will not be so important, but you will want a comfortable and sturdy (10) …………
Almost everyone these days needs to access the Internet in order to use e-mail and cruise the (11) …….. so look for a high-speed modem. Be aware of the input and (12)……. devices you want; CD and floppy disk drives usually come as standard, but you may want a DVD drive or a PC-card slot.
Once you have checked all these features you can compile a (13)……. of models you are interested in. Check that your chosen models include comprehensive (14) …….. and ask your supplier about warranties and (15) ………. service.
Q 5.
Which explanation is correct, A or B?
1. Stephanie loved her beautiful daughter’s sports car.
Stephanie’s daughter was beautiful.
The car belonging to Stephanie’s daughter was beautiful.
2. There's a new doctor’s surgery on the corner of Greenford Street.
The doctor has recently qualified.
The surgery has recently opened.
3. She inherited a wonderful wooden doll’s house.
The doll is made of wood.
The house is made of wood.
4. The company manufactures low-cost nurses’ uniforms.
The nurses earn low wages.
The uniforms aren't expensive.
5. Gary didn’t think much of his new boss's management techniques.
Gary has a new boss.
Gary’s boss has some new management techniques.
6. Bill and Suzy found hiring a well-educated children's nanny was worth every penny.
Their nanny was well-educated.
Their children were well-educated.
7. I managed to find a place in the 24-hour supermarket’s parking lot.
The supermarket is open 24 hours.
The parking lot is open 24 hours.
8. Dave was often embarrassed by his aggressive flatmate's comments.
Dave's flatmate was aggressive.
His flatmate's comments were aggressive.
9. My uncle is restoring a redundant tax inspector’s office in Newcastle.
Some tax inspectors have been made redundant in Newcastle.
The office in Newcastle is no longer required by the tax inspectors.
10. Who's going to look after our sick neighbor's puppy?
Our neighbor is sick.
Our neighbor’s puppy is sick.
Q 6.
Use compound nouns to complete the sentences. The compound nouns you need can be formed by combining words from each of the boxes below. Then rewrite these sentences using appropriate possessive forms to replace the phrases in brackets. In two sentences the phrase in brackets does not need to be changed.
Land down horse news bank traffic data out rail filing wind five-minute walking
jam fit cabinet robber stick turn agent surfer racing walk lord ways bases
The only thing missing from (the office belonging to my boss) is a……………
The only thing missing from my boss's office is a filing cabinet.
Could you pop down to the…….. and pick up (the evening paper that Charles orders).
That silver-topped…….. belongs to (one of the friends that I have).
The (private beach of the hotel) is only a ……… from here.
The (privatization organized by the government) of the ……. is going ahead next year.
The …….. wouldn't allow (the girlfriend of his tenant) to move in.
(The pension fund of my father) has been badly affected by the …….. in the value of blue-chip stocks.
Clare bought a beautiful new ……….. for (the wedding of the sister of her brother-in-law).
The ……….. managed to ignore (the screams of the crowd) lining the beach.
Whenever we are over at (the house belonging to Dad) we seem to spend the entire time watching ………. on the television
The …………….refused to accept (the jurisdiction of the legal system) over him.
(The firm my wife works for) specializes in setting up ………. for insurance companies.
The ………. was caused by the volume of cars setting out for the south coast at (the start of the bank holiday)
ANSWER KEY FOR DIAGNOSTIC TEST
on a-side => on the side
✓
their’s -» their
✓
✓
sister's -in-law's => sister-in-law's
Lemon’s-and => Lennon and
✓ (but also of Professor Grigson’s)
afriend of me => a friend of mine
the new car of Hilary => Hilary’s new car
the youngest daughter of Mr. Granger => Mr. Granger’s youngest daughter
the local paper of today => today’s local paper
✓
✓
✓
the house of- my brother => my brother’s (house)
✓
for the sake of heaven => for heaven's sake
anthropology’s history => the history of anthropology
crowd’s cheers ==> cheers of the crowd
April-the-thirteennth's morning => the morning of April the thirteenth
the famous serial killer’s arrest => the arrest of the famous serial killer
✓
✓
the short stories’ collection of Graham-Greene => the/a collection of short stories by Graham Greene/ Graham Greene's collection of short stories
my expensive wife’s car => my wife’s expensive car
✓
estate’s agent's => estate agent’s
maker of dresses => dressmaker
✓ (but also one year's sabbatical)
ANSWER KEY FOR PRACTICE EXERCISE
Q 1.
I’m sure this is somebody’s bag.
Let’s go to the girls’ shop.
That is Mr. Hollis’s/ Mr. Hollis’ hotel.
I love Gilbert and Sullivan’s operettas.
It’s nobody’s fault.
They had respect for each other's opinions.
My next-door neighbor's dog never stops barking.
I’m fed up with the hopeless inefficiency of my boss's secretary/my boss's secretary's hopeless inefficiency.
My mother’s and (my) father’s personalities are very alike.
These aren’t my keys, they are my flatmates (keys).
The new Act of Parliament will protect everyone's right to privacy.
The men's toilet is over there on the right.
I’ve just inherited my grandmother's brother's house/the house belonging to my grandmother’s brother.
Residents of sink estates’ opinions/Sink estates’ residents’ opinions are rarely taken into consideration.
Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers’ dance routines are legendary.
Q 2.
him => his
wive's => wife’s
ones’ home is ones' castle => one’s home is one's castle
✓/managing director’s
mine => my
childrens => children's
✓
brother's in- law's => brother-in-law’s
us => ours
buses' => bus's
Q 3.
B
A
A, B
A
A, B
B
A
A, B
A
A
B
B
B
A, B
A
B
B
A
A
Q 4.
brand names
mail-order
credit card
high street
shop assistant
checklist
software
hard disk
word processing
keyboard
world-wide-web
output
shortlist
instruction manuals
after-sales
Q 5.
A
B
B
B
A
A
A
A
B
A
Q 6.
Could you pop down to the newsagent and pick up Charles’/Charles's evening paper.
That silver-topped walking stick belongs to a friend of mine.
The hotel’s private beach is only a five- minute walk from here.
The government's privatization of the railways is going ahead next year.
The landlord wouldn’t allow his tenant's girlfriend to move in.
My father’s pension fund has been badly affected by the downturn in the value of blue-chip stocks.
Clare bought a beautiful new outfit for her brother-in-law's sister's wedding/the wedding of her brother-in-law’s sister.
The windsurfer managed to ignore the screams of the crowd lining the beach.
Whenever we are over at Dad’s (house) we seem to spend the entire time watching horse racing on the television.
The bank robber refused to accept the legal system's jurisdiction/ the jurisdiction of the legal system over him.
My wife’s firm specializes in setting up databases for insurance companies.
The traffic jam was caused by the volume of cars setting out for the south coast at the start of the bank holiday.
In this particular page, you can find IELTS Reading samples which can be used in the IELTS practice test. There is a procedure to calculate the marks obtained by the IELTS reading practice test. You can follow the below procedure to calculate the IELTS reading band score obtained.
Choose a particular practice test and click on the first section of the test.
Read the given passage and answer the question below and click on the check button. You will get the correct and wrong answer for the same.
Go to the next section and repeat the same procedure
After you finish reading all the 3 passages and answering all the questions. Click on Get Results button to check the scores obtained in the reading test.
In the Reading test, there are 2 categories one is the IELTS Academic Reading test and another is the IELTS General Training Reading test. The practice test for both is explained below.
IELTS Academic Reading Practice Test
While taking up the Academic Reading Practice test certain things have to be kept in mind which are pointed down as below:
The Academic Reading test will go up to 60 minutes long.
Totally there will be 3 sections and each section will have a long text which will be 2,150-2,750 words long.
The texts which are given in the exam are taken from journals, newspapers, magazines. These topics will be written on Academic topics of general interest and these are given for non-specialist audiences.
The texts or the passages given are appropriate or to the point for the audience who are taking up undergraduate or postgraduate programs or for those who are taking the professional registration like, teacher, doctor and so on in the foreign countries.
From the text given you may be asked descriptive, discursive, analytical and factual questions.
The text which is given may also contain non-verbal materials like graphs, tables, diagrams and so on.
If the text has words which are not understandable by the test taker, then a separate vocabulary is provided for the same.
There are different question types based on the text given such as multiple-choice, matching information, matching sentence, flow chart completion, table completion and so on.
Each of the right answers will receive 1 mark and there will be 40 questions. Scores out of 40 are converted to 9 bands and these bands will be given in the form of full or half band.
Here is the list of 70 IELTS Reading Practice Tests
The IELTS General Training Reading Practice test will help you to take up the practice test in order to get an idea of how this particular test goes and how you can manage the time. Some of the procedures to be followed while taking up these tests are as follows:
The General Training Reading Test will also go up to 60 minutes long and even here you are given a particular topic to read and answer the questions on the same.
In the General training also there will be 3 sections and for each section different topics will be given
In section 1 there will be three factual passages based on the topics related to everyday life.
In section 2 there will be two factual texts based on work-related issues.
Section 3 will have a more complex paragraph on the general topics.
The topic given is very appropriate and is taken from newspapers, magazines, journals and so on.
The questions will be based on different types such as matching information, sentence completion, flowchart completion. Graph completion, table completion and so on.
There will be 40 questions in each part and each question carries a single mark which is then converted into 9 bands or half band.
Computer-delivered IELTS Reading Practice Test
By taking the Computer-delivered IELTS Reading test you can practice for the reading test on your own computer sitting at home. These tests should be taken on your computer or laptops. The Reading practice test consists of 11 question types consisting of 41 questions which include:
Below is the task card on the topic A song that has a special meaning, you can use this for practicing for the speaking test and also related vocabulary is given so that you can refer and understand the meaning of the complex words that you can make use in the actual test.
IELTS Cue Card for IELTS Speaking Part 2:
Describe a song that has special meaning for you. You should say:
what this song is about
when and where you first heard this song
how often you listen to this song
and explain why it has a special meaning for you.
BAND 9.0 SAMPLE ANSWER:
I love listening to music, so I like many songs. However, one of my favorite songs that I want to talk about today is "Hall of Fame" by The Script and Will.i.am. This song was written for the 2012 Olympic Games.
IELTS Speaking Actual tests Jan - May 2020 with suggested answers)
$80 $37
IELTS Speaking Actual Tests & Suggested Answers written by IELTS teachers aims to help IELTS candidates perform at their best on the big day.
When it came out, it quickly became a hit on every single music chart throughout the world, not just because of its catchy melody, but also for its meaningful lyrics. The song talks about how each of us can be a champion or anything we want to be as long as we dedicate our time and efforts to doing what we are passionate about. The song is played at big athletic events to pump up the crowd, but you can easily relate to the song at other times as well, especially when you are about to give up.
I think this song has such a powerful message that whenever I was tired or had decided to quit, it would lift me up right away. It made me think about why I had started in the first place and that I needed to finish the job that I was currently doing.
VOCABULARY:
became a hit: when a song becomes a hit, it means that it is super popular and that people are listening to it on the radio and buying it on iTunes or elsewhere. Example: Taylor Swift‟s song "Bad Blood" became a hit instantly.
catchy melody: the melody is the part that you sing along with and if it is catchy, it means that it is easy to sing along with and people like it, you easily remember it and it sticks in your mind. Example: The song "Uptown Funk" has a catchy melody that people love to sing.
meaningful lyrics: lyrics are the words in a song and if they are meaningful, it means that they actually mean something or have some sort of importance or significance; they aren’t just silly, meaningless words. Example: His sister writes meaningful lyrics for her songs.
champion: someone who wins, a winner. Example: He didn‟t see himself as a champion until he had reached his goals.
dedicate: to commit your time to do something; to make a promise to yourself to do something. Example: You were able to get a high score on the test because you dedicated 2 hours every day to studying and preparing yourself.
effort: the work that you put into doing something. Example: The time and effort he spent improving his English paid off when he got a $10,000 raise.
passionate: if you are passionate about something it means you have a strong desire to do something or a strong interest in something. Example: Elite athletes are passionate about their sport and want to become the best.
played at: to play a song at an event means to broadcast it over loudspeakers so everyone can hear it. Example: They always play the song "We Are the Champions" at basketball games.
to pump up the crowd: to get the people excited about the game or event. Example: The cheerleaders tried to pump up the crowd during the football game.
relate to: to see yourself in something or to understand it in a personal way. Example: She can relate to the lyrics of that song about love and loss.
give up: to quit; to stop doing something. Example: He decided to give up smoking after 10 years.
quit: to stop doing something; to give up. Example: She convinced her son not to quit the soccer team.
lift me up or lift someone up: to make someone feel better. Example: His brother is good at lifting others up when they are feeling down.
Advanced Grammar for IELTS: Nouns and noun phrases – Diagnose Test, Grammar Explanation & Practice Exercises
A noun phrase is a phrase that contains a noun. It is not like a noun clause and it doesn’t contain a verb. these are also called premodifiers because it goes before the noun. Here are some tests about nouns and noun phrases, which you can use for the IELTS exam.
DIAGNOSTIC TEST: Nouns and noun phrases
In each sentence, either one or both of the forms in bold is correct. Tick (✓) the sentences where both forms are correct. Underline the correct form in the others.
Example:
Mumps is/ are not too problematic if contracted in childhood, but can be dangerous in later life.
The chair/ chairwoman has just phoned to say she's been delayed in traffic.
For really good electric pianos/ pianoes, have a look in Marston's.
Corn circles are one of the strangest phenomenons/ phenomena of recent times.
Parliament consists of 653 MP’s/ MPs, about two-thirds of whom belong to the Government.
For this dish, you need to weigh the ingredients carefully on the kitchen scale/ kitchen scales.
The Asthma Helpline will be able to give you advice/advice.
This checkout is for customers with fewer/ less than five items only.
He was hit on the head by stone/a stone and had to go to hospital.
The supermarket is doing a lot of different fruit/ fruits from the Far East at the moment.
The most exciting event for most British viewers in the Sydney Olympics was/ were the rowing finals.
The Society’s President, against the wishes of the other founder members, has/ have agreed to the sale.
Bread and butter is/ are eaten with meals by most people in the North of England.
'The Three Kings' was/ were a great success for George Clooney.
Have you thought about doing gymnastics? I think it's/ they’re very good for you.
Recent events prove the saying that twenty-four hours is/ are a long time in politics.
The Council's team of social workers is/ are to be commended for their actions.
The United Nations is/ are sending a special envoy to the conflict zone.
I’ll take you to the station if you give me a shout/ a shout when you’re ready.
The attack on the Minister was/ The people attacked the Minister and it was unprovoked and extremely vicious.
The first outbreak/ breakout of the epidemic was in Zaire in the 1980s
GRAMMAR EXPLANATION: Nouns and noun phrases
English nouns generally present few problems for the advanced learner but some aspects of countability and noun-verb agreement can be problematic. This unit looks at these aspects, as well as at plural nouns and at the nominalisation of verbs into nouns.
BASIC POINTS
1A. Form and meaning
English nouns only change their form when they are plural and to show possession.
Nouns can be countable or uncountable, and concrete (table, child, station, food, storm) or abstract (hope, responsibility, anger, efficiency, consternation).
1B. Gender
Nouns do not have grammatical gender in English. Some have a ‘natural’ gender, e.g. woman = female, father = male. Most nouns for jobs do not imply a gender. To specify gender, we have to say, e.g. a woman doctor. However, some nouns for jobs and roles do refer to males or females, often by their suffix, e.g. businessman (male), manageress (female). It used to be common to use the -man suffix to refer to people of both sexes:
That’s the view of Sheila Davison, chairman of the Institute of Public Relations.
A lot of people avoid this now, especially if referring to a woman, and prefer a form with no implicit gender, e.g. chair, or to match the suffix to the person, e.g. chairwoman:
That’s the view of Sheila Davison, chair(woman) of the Institute of Public Relations.
SINGULAR AND PLURAL NOUNS
2A. Regular plurals
In writing, most English nouns form the plural with -s. This is true of nouns which end in most consonants (e.g. road -» roads, bag -» bags, town -» towns) and the vowels a and e (e.g. area -» areas, rope -» ropes). But note these variations:
noun
plural form
examples
ending in consonant + y:
BUT vowel + y:
ending in –ch, -s, -sh, -x, -z:
ending in consonant + o:
BUT vowel + o:
+ ies
+ s
+ es
+es
+s
family => families, party => parties
tray => trays, monkey => monkeys
watch => watches, boss => bosses,
fox => foxes, waltz => waltzes 2
potato => potatoes, hero => heroes 3
radio => radios, video => videos
If the pronunciation of ch is /k/, add – s only: patriarch => patriarchs.
Note these exceptions of vowel + z: quiz => quizzes, fez => fezzes.
Some words ending in -o, especially words from other languages, take -s only: piano => pianos, photo => photos, kilo => kilos, adagio => adagios.
2B. Irregular plurals
English does not have very many irregular plurals. Here are some examples:
noun
plural
examples
Ending in –f or –fe
foreign nouns
usually + ves 1
varies according
to origin of word:
leaf => leaves, loaf => loaves
Latin origin: terminus => termini,
datum => data, vertebra => vertebrae
Greek origin: crisis => crises,
phenomenon => phenomena
other irregulars
+ (r)en:
change of vowel:
no change in plural:
child => children, ox => oxen
women => women, foot => feet
sheep => sheep, craft => craft (e.g. boat)
Several words ending in -f and all those ending –ff just take -s: chief => chiefs, belief => beliefs, cliff => cliffs. Some words ending in -f take either plural ending: scarf => scarfs/ scarves. You can check irregular plurals in a dictionary.
You may sometimes see plurals formed with an apostrophe, especially with dates and abbreviations: 1960’s, some CP’s. This is quite common and may be considered correct in informal writing, but it is considered incorrect in formal written English.
2C. Nouns with no singular form
Some English nouns are more common in the plural form. These occur in a number of categories:
These nouns may have a singular form with a different meaning or as part of a compound noun: a glass (e g. wine glass), a pajama party, a dartboard
COUNTABLE AND UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS
3A. Use
Countable nouns are usually concrete nouns and they can be 'counted’: a computer, three computers. Uncountable nouns cannot be 'counted': oil, beauty, fruit. We do not use a/ an with uncountable nouns, and we do not make them plural:
X The Asthma Helpline will be able to give you an advice/some advices
✓ The Asthma Helpline will be able to give you (some) advice
Note: There are some differences between British English and US English: accommodation (uncountable in British English / accommodations (countable in US English).
Some determiners change according to whether the noun is countable or not:
For good health we should eat a few vegetables every day, as well as a little fruit.
It is also advisable to drink less alcohol and eat fewer sweet things.
Note: In informal English it is possible to use less rather than fewer with countable nouns, although many people consider this to be incorrect:
[You should eat less sweet things.] [There are less people here than yesterday.]
Less is always correct if it refers to a ‘whole’, e.g. a period of time:
The flight takes less than three hours (three hours = a period of time)
3B. Countable and uncountable meanings
Some nouns can be countable or uncountable, but have different meanings:
noun
countable meaning
uncountable meaning
Coffee 1
I’d love a coffee, please. (= a cup of coffee)
Do you drink coffee? (= the liquid)
Chicken 2
I’ll buy a chicken for dinner tonight. (= the whole bird)
Would you like some chicken for dinner?(= a part/the dish)
Drawing 2
This is an amazing drawing by Leonardo. (= a picture)
My son is very good at drawing (= the activity)
Stone 2
Someone threw a stone at our window. (= one item)
In this flat landscape of scrub and stone … (= the material)
This applies to all drinks: tea/a tea, beer/ a beer, lemonade/ a lemonade
There are other examples of the same type as these, but not all nouns of the type can be both countable and uncountable: a duck/duck, a fish/fish, but not a-beef, a-pork, a painting/ painting, a sculpture/ sculpture, but not an-aft, a-poetry: a paper/ paper., a rock/rock, but not a wool, a –cotton.
3C. Quantifying uncountable noun
We can refer to a specific example of an uncountable noun with determiner + countable noun + of + uncountable noun. Common countable nouns in this pattern are piece and bit:
The Council will remove two pieces of unwanted furniture if desired.
Did you hear that interesting bit of gossip about Susan?
Other common nouns used in this way are: a slice of bread/meat/cheese/cake, an item of news/furniture/clothing, a lump of sugar/coal, a cup of coffee/tea.
We can sometimes make an uncountable noun countable when we want to express 'different types’ of the noun:
The wines of Australia are now of similar quality to many from France.
We can make some uncountable abstract nouns countable if we refer to a specific type of the noun, for example, distrust => a deep distrust, a distrust of accountants. This is common with nouns connected with emotions. We do not make these nouns plural:
Jealousy is an enormously destructive emotion.
She felt an incomprehensible jealousy when she saw him with her daughter.
AGREEMENT
4A. Subject + verb + object/ complement
In English the verb usually agrees with the subject even if the verb is separated from its subject by prepositional phrases, relative clauses, brackets or commas:
The petrol station across the road from the new shops has just cut its prices.
However, if the verb is a long way from the subject but is closer to a complement, it is possible to agree the verb with the complement. Compare:
The most exciting event was the rowing finals.
The most exciting event in the Sydney Olympics for most British viewers was/ were the rowing finals.
The same can apply after what used to introduce a relative:
What the Board needs to address now is/ are the terms of the redundancies.
4B. Two subjects/ Plural subjects + verb
We usually use a plural verb with two subjects linked by and or both … and:
Mum and Dad were hoping that you’d join them this evening.
Both the doctor and the surgeon have advised me to have my gall bladder out.
Note: However, we use a singular verb if we consider the two items as one concept:
X Fish and chips are one of the most common English dishes.
✓ Fish and chips is one of the most common English dishes.
Titles of books, films, etc. take a singular verb, even if they are plural nouns:
Hitchcock’s film 'The Birds' is based on a story by Daphne du Maurier.
When we link two items by or, the verb usually agrees with the second of the items:
Either my brother or my parents are going to bring the sleeping bags.
4C. Noun ending in -s + verb
Some uncountable nouns end in -s but take a singular verb. These often concern illness (measles, mumps), sport (aerobics, gymnastics) or study (mathematics, politics):
German measles is a particularly dangerous illness for pregnant women.
Politics is a topic best avoided with people you don’t know well.
Some nouns refer to one object divided into two parts and take a plural verb, e.g. scissors, trousers, scales:
Scissors are used to cut the jeans.
Note: A plural subject describing a single entity, e.g. measurement, can take a singular verb:
X Two metres aren't particularly tall these days.
✓ Two metres isn't particularly tall these days.
Twenty-four hours is a long time in politics.
4D. Collective noun + verb
We can use either a singular or a plural verb with most collective nouns, i.e. nouns referring to a group of people, animals or things, e.g. family, government, group, staff, team, band, class, jury. A singular verb presents the collective noun as a ‘whole’ entity:
The family has agreed that the funeral should be held in Ireland.
A plural verb presents the noun as a group of individuals, e.g. family members:
The family are all gathering here for Christmas.
A large number of proper nouns fall into this category, e.g. the United Nations:
The United Nations has agreed to deploy a peacekeeping force.
The United Nations are in disagreement on this issue.
Note: Unlike British English, US English prefers a singular verb in these cases. In English we prefer to use a singular verb after a collective noun if we use a/an rather than the:
A team of inspectors is visiting the prison tomorrow afternoon.
A few collective nouns always take a plural verb, e.g. cattle, police, people:
The police are investigating his accusation of fraud.
An adjective used as a collective noun always takes a plural:
The middle-aged have a lot to offer employers, if only they would see it.
It is common to use a plural verb after nouns such as the majority, a number, a couple, when these are followed by of + a plural noun:
The majority of the people were pleased to see the government fall.
NOMINALISATION
5A. Verb => noun
It is possible to make verbs into nouns in English by adding a suffix, e.g. -ion, -ment, -er: educate => education, establish => establishment, teach => teacher.
It is also possible to use many verbs as nouns, especially in informal English:
Can’t you open that? Shall I give it a try?
I’ll take you to the station if you give me a shout when you’re ready.
Note: This does not apply to every verb. It is best to check in a good dictionary. It is also possible to make nouns from multi-word verbs. The particle often (but not always) precedes the verb in the noun form:
The epidemic first broke out in Zaire.=> The first outbreak of the epidemic …
The plane took off very smoothly. => The takeoff was smooth.
The car broke down five kilometres from home. => The breakdown happened …
5B. Verb phrase => noun phrase
It is sometimes more concise and elegant, especially in written English, to use noun phrases rather than verb phrases to express an idea:
Verb phrase: The committee decided to open the playground to all children. This was
welcomed by the local schools.
Noun phrase: The committee's decision/ The decision of the committee to open the
playground to all children was welcomed by the local schools.
The noun phrase is often made up of two nouns linked by a preposition:
verb phrase
noun phrase
They released the video in 1998.
The low was amended last week.
The war drained the country’s resources.
The release of the video in 1998 …
The amendment to the law last week.
The war was a drain on the country’s resources.
An adverb in a verb phrase changes to an adjective if the verb is nominalised:
The girl shouted loudly and attracted the attention she wanted.
The girl's loud shouts attracted the attention she wanted.
PRACTICE EXERCISE
Q 1.
Complete the crossword from the clues below.
CLUES ACROSS
1 plural of quay
5 neutral form of chairman
6 singular of media
7 singular of wharves
10 plural of formula
12 singular of heroes
15 plural of monarch
16 plural of mosquito
CLUES DOWN
2 plural of sheriff
3 neutral form of manageress
4 plural of quiz
8 plural of address
9 plural of flamingo
11 plural of goose
13 plural of crisis
14 singular of oases
Q 2.
Underline the correct words or phrases in bold to complete this article.
Cookery Corner
In today’s Cookery Corner I’d like to address a request from Mrs Parkinson of Suffolk for (1) an information/information about which type of (2) chocolate/chocolates to use in cooking. Well. Mrs P, my (3) advice is/ advices are always to use the best possible chocolate you can find. It's the same principle as with (4) wines/wine: in cooking always use (5) an equivalent quality/ equivalent quality to what you eat or drink. With chocolate, the reason for this is that higher quality chocolate will always give your cakes and sweets (6) better/ a better taste. To judge the quality of chocolate, look at the amount of cocoa in the chocolate. Good quality chocolate has more cocoa solids and (7) less sugar/ fewer sugars. For the best taste choose chocolate with a high cocoa (8) contents/ content – never (9) fewer than/less than TO per cent cocoa solids and as much as 80 per cent if possible. It goes without saying that you should also use other (10) ingredient/ ingredients of the highest quality, too. If, for example, you’re using coffee in your chocolate recipe, always use (11) a strong, fresh coffee /strong, fresh coffee. If you're making (12) a cake/cake. Use the right kind of (13) flours/ flour, and always weigh the ingredients on your kitchen (14) scale/ scales. Believe me. if you follow these simple rules, the next time you bake a chocolate cake, there won't be (15) a lump/ a slice left over!
Q 3.
Read this draft of a newspaper article, then complete the rewritten sections of the article below with a noun or noun phrase. The first one is given as an example (0).
St Andrew's Hospital Trust has recently confirmed that a fresh wave of flood positioning has broken out in the Scottish resort, and this is alarmed everyone who lives in the town. A spokesperson stated that the illness was not serious and could be easily treated. This appeased community leaders but they requested further reassurances that the authorities were doing everything within their control to contain the spread. The hospital authority has announced that it will investigate fully the causes of this epidemic. As a recent investigation into a similar outbreak concluded that the cause was poor meat hygiene in a local butcher’s shop, local shopkeepers are concerned about what will come out of the pending investigation. The leader of the Shopkeepers’ Association, Len Murphy, suggested that the source of epidemic might be hospital kitchens, which has angered hospital staff. The kitchen staff at the hospital have now called for a strike of hospital auxiliaries across the region, which is likely to have severe financial consequences for the health authority.
(0)…… by St Andrew's Hospital Trust of (1)……… of food poisoning in the Scottish resort has alarmed (2) ………. A (3) ……….. that the illness was not serious and could be easily treated appeased community leaders, but they requested further reassurances that the authorities were doing everything within their control to contain the spread. The hospital authority has announced (4) ……….. into the causes of this epidemic. As (5) ……….. of a recent investigation into a similar outbreak cited poor meat hygiene in a local butcher's shop as the cause, local shopkeepers are concerned about (6) ……….. of the pending inquiry. (7) ……….. by the leader of the Shopkeepers' Association, Len Murphy, that the source of the epidemic might be hospital kitchens has angered hospital staff. (8) ………. by kitchen staff at the hospital for a strike of hospital auxiliaries across the region is likely to have severe financial consequences for the health authority.
Q 4.
Find fifteen more mistakes, or places where the style could be improved, in this text. Underline the mistakes and correct them. The exercise begins with two examples.
Snow Falling on Cedars
by David Guterson
Snow Falling on Cedarsopen in the courthouse of San Piedro, a small sleepy => opens
island off the Pacific coast of the north-west United States. Underneath the
courtroom windows, four tall narrow archs of a leaded glass, a drama which will arches
divide the island's communitys are unfolding. The defendant stands erect in the
dock: the local press and the jurors – farmers, grocers, builders, fisher wifes
– await the start of this trial. Kabuo Miyamoto is accused of the murder of Carl
Heine, a young fisherman. The alleged crime by a young man of Japanese
descent stirs up the emotions of the islanders and questions their believes and
their politic. It takes place in the 1950’s, and not many years has passed since the
Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour and the horrors of World War II. Although
the Japanese on San Piedro was eager to defend their adopted country against the
country of their ancestors, some people in the community were unable to forgive
Japan its role in the War. and the trial causes their deeply-held prejudicies to
surface.
Snow Falling on Cedars is not only one of the best mysterys of recent years,
but it raises issues which affects us all. However, it ends with a great optimism.
David Guterson has succeeded in combining the best from both classic and
populist American literatures into a spellbinding art. Buy and read this beautiful
novel.
Q 5.
Fill the gaps in these sentences with a, an, nothing (-) or the correct form of a suitable verb. If there are two possible answers, put both possibilities.
Have you put………..pepper in this dish? I like plenty of seasoning.
What he'd really like us to buy him for his birthday ………..some new Nike trainers.
Rickets a ………..disease caused by a deficiency of vitamin D.
I first felt the desire to visit Venice when looking at ………..painting by Canaletto.
You can't hold a classical concert in the village hall; the acoustics ………..terrible!
A large number of police officers ……….. present at the demonstration last week in case of trouble.
At present 10,000 kilometres ………..t he longest walking competition held in the Olympics.
'What have we got for supper?' ‘Salmon. I got ……….. huge fish at the fishmonger’s for only five pounds.’
Either the twins or John, the eldest brother, ……….. going to make a speech at the Golden Wedding party.
My brother thinks that economics ……….. really interesting. I disagree.
Saudi Arabia, along with most of the oil-producing nations, ……….. voted to raise the price of crude oil again.
That band ……….. always had a reputation for performing better in the studio than live.
Both my brother and sister ……….. lived in this town all their lives.
We developed ……….. passion for Baroque music at university.
Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding ……….. definitely still the favourite of many British people!
Q 6.
Finish each of the following sentences in such a way that it is as similar as possible in meaning to the sentence printed before it. The exercise begins with an example (0).
The drama school is always looking out for new talent.
The drama school is always on …….the lookout for new talent……….
I heard some fascinating news on the radio this morning. I heard a fascinating ………………………………………..
The police used handcuffs to restrain the aggressive young man. Handcuffs ………………………………………..
A few roads in the Brighton area have been affected by the recent floods. A small number ………………………………………..
OK. I’ll call the bank tomorrow and check our balance. I’ll give ………………………………………..
The medical profession considers that children eat too many sweet and fatty things today. The medical profession considers that children should ………………………………………..
It didn't take us ten minutes to get here from the station. It took us ………………………………………..
A lot of people have taken up our new offer, which has delighted us. We have been delighted by the ………………………………………..
We've got quite a lot of unwanted furniture since we moved to the smaller house. We've got several ………………………………………..
The management expects all staff to attend the meeting tomorrow afternoon. All staff ………………………………………..
They should now address the questions of VAT and fuel tax. What ………………………………………..
A lot of the older men sit in cafes and play dominoes. Dominoes ………………………………………..
We launched the new women's magazine in April and it was a great success. The ………………………………………..
In a democracy the government is elected by the people. In a democracy the people ………………………………………..
The teachers were boosted by the fact that the parents agreed to help fund the new playground. The teachers were boosted by the parents’ ………………………………………..
One of the biggest mistakes most IELTS candidates repeat in IELTS writing is they try to write overly complicated sentences, which results in grammar mistakes and sabotage their IELTS score.
Therefore, knowing how to make good use of complex structures for your IELTS Writing Task 2 essay is an essential skill that can make the difference between getting and not getting the band score you deserve. Nevertheless, bear in mind that we should use complex sentences in our writing rather than try to make all of our sentences complex. Complex sentences can be Relative Clauses, Subordinate Clauses, Conditional Clauses, Compound Sentences.
As you all know that grammar and vocabulary plays a very important role in IELTS. There are some sentences that are simple to understand and some others are complex, and it is important to know the differences between the two, to make proper use of it. You can go through the few useful structures below that help you to get a good band score.
Structure to get Band 7.5+ in IELTS Writing
This post will fully equip you with 12 useful grammar structures to help you boost your IELTS score.
No
Structure
Example
1
When Subject+Verb+Object, Subject 1 +Verb 1 + Object 1
When a language dies out, a whole way of life disappears with it.
2
While Subject+Verb+Object, Subject 1 +Verb 1 + Object 1
While some students drop out after a few years of studying, others finish academic courses with poor degrees.
3
Subject+Verb+Object, resulting in an increase/a decrease in + the number of smth/the demand for smth
Many people in the countryside migrate into big cities, resulting in an increase in the demands for accommodation, food, and services in urban areas.
4
Subject+Verb+Object, giving rise to smth
Advertisements give people more choices on what they want to buy, giving rise to the consumer society
5
By doing smth, Subject+Verb+Object
By spending money to protect minority languages, governments can also preserve traditions, customs and behaviors.
6
Subject+Verb+Object and this will +Verb+Object.
The use of private cars is increasing in Hanoi, and this puts a strain on its infrastructure.
7
Instead of + Verb-ing + Object, Subject+Verb+Object.
Instead of driving cars, people should use public transport.
8
Subject+Verb+Object. This allows/urges/encourage smth/smb to do smth (This will discourage smb from doing smth).
The utilization of cheap labor helps companies to reduce production costs. This encourages business expansion.
9
Compared to those who +Subject+Verb+Object, Subject+Verb+Object
Compared to those who hold high school qualifications, university graduates often have more employment opportunities.
10
If Subject+Verb+Object, Subject+Verb+Object
If air travel is restricted, people would opt for other means of transport such as buses and cars.
When the government pays for tuition fees, the constraint of finance is removed, encouraging a greater number of students to attend academic courses
I hope this post can helps you to understand the marking criteria for complex sentences.
When you are practicing IELTS writing questions, try to think of what you want to say in simple sentences and then think of how these might be linked into complex sentences. After enough practice, it will become a natural thing to do and your writing will really improve.
Environment is a controversial topic in life and in IELTS as well. If you don’t prepare yourself for environment topic, you will find it hard to express your idea when facing the topic in the IELTS test or in the real-life conversation. Thus, my advice is that you should equip yourself with some phrases and collocations about environment right now.
At first, there are several causes and solution of environmental issues.
Causes Of Environmental Problems
Chemical and industrial waste
Example: The chemical and industrial waste being released from factories cause to the pollution of my local area.
Emission from cars and motorbikes
Example: The pollution of land and air can be blamed for emission from cars and motorbikes.
IELTS Speaking Actual tests Jan - May 2020 with suggested answers)
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IELTS Speaking Actual Tests & Suggested Answers written by IELTS teachers aims to help IELTS candidates perform at their best on the big day.
Solutions To Environmental Problems
To raise people awareness of preserving water and forest resources
Example: It is necessary to run some campaigns to raise people awareness of preserving water and forest resource.
To use alternative energy resources
Example: In order to mitigate the environmental issues, alternative energy resources such as wind and solar energy should be implemented.
Collocations And Phrases For IELTS Speaking Test – Topic: Environment
1. Wildlife reserve/ nature reserve/ game reserve: an area of land in which plants and animals are protected
Example: Rare animals should be protected in game reserve.
2. Wildlife conservation: to protect animals and plants and their habitats
Example: The government are considering whether they should invest money on wildlife conservation.
3. Natural environment: the place where animals and plants would normally be found
Example: Legislation to protect natural environment should be enacted due to enhanced greenhouse effect.
4. Toxic waste/poisonous fumes/emissions: poisonous rubbish produced by industrial process
Example: Local people are suffered from great deal of toxic waste being released by factories.
5. Air quality: the cleanliness of the air we breathe
Example: Living in the environment with high air quality can have a good impact on our health.
6. Pollution levels: the amount of toxic waste
Example: Many factories are releasing waste illegally into air and water, which contributes to the increase of pollution levels.
7. Man-made disaster: widespread damage or loss of life brought about by action of humans
Example: Man-made disaster is a controversial issue, and people should pay more attention to find a solution for this problem.
8. Loss of habitats: the decline in areas of land where animals and plants would normally exit
Example: Due to logging, loss of habitats is increasingly common at present.
9. Endangered species: animals or plants are on the verge of extinction
Example: We have to take the responsibility for protecting endangered species from hunting and natural disaster.
10. To die out: to become extinction
Example: The population of Kangaroo are is in danger of dying out.
11. Global warming: the increasing temperature of the world brought about by gases such as CO2
Example: We are beginning to experience global warming due to the enhanced greenhouse effect.
12. Greenhouse effect: the gradual warming of the air surrounding the Earth as a result of heating trapped by pollution
Example: The deforestation of forests is contributing to greenhouse effect.
PRACTICE
IELTS Speaking Task 1:
Are there any environmental problems in your country?
Absolutely yes, the most common environmental issue in my hometown is exhausted emissions produced by cars and motorbikes have been afflicting the air and water quality. My government is struggling to deal with the problem.
Do you take an interest in nature?
Of course yes, As a city person, I barely have a opportunity to experience the natural environment. Then whenever I have a holiday, I really prefer to go to the far-off destination, so I could get closer to the nature and discover the natural world.
Do you or your family take steps to help the environment?
Yes we do. We always turn of lights or electronic appliances when they are unnecessary. Although this is minor action, but I believe that it could make significantly contribution to the environment.
IELTS Speaking Task 2:
Describe environmental pollution in you city.
What type of pollution is/are?
Why it had happened?
And explain how this pollution can be controlled?
Sample answer:
I have been living in Hanoi for almost 8 years, then I have the chance to see how the city has changed in these years. Due to the increasing number of tourist, Hanoi’ environment has been polluted significantly. Indeed, many people traveling to there has thrown illegally thrown rubbish into the land and water, which causes to land and water pollution. In addition, industrial and household waste from factories and families is contributing to the high level of pollution.
In order to solve this issues, I would recommend the Hanoi’s authority to heavily fine who are caught realising trash into the atmosphere. By carrying out the rule, people being intent to litter the environment will be afraid of being punished, which can deter them from discharging unlawful waste . Another solution is that the government should run some campaigns to raise the awareness of people about how important the environment is. For example, showing local people and visitors the danger of global warming and greenhouse effect that I believe could change their attitude towards the protection of environment, which is likely to have a good impact on air quality.
Although the two actions above is just simple, I think it will be an effective way to mitigate the environmental contamination in a long-term.
IELTS Speaking Part 3:
What do you think is the main danger the world face in term of environment?
It would have to be global warming, which cause some natural disasters such as flash flood and drought. The problem mainly stems from enhanced greenhouse effect in recent year. I believe that several steps should be taken to deal with the issue.
What example are there of how we damage the natural world?
There are factories that release toxic waste directly into the air and water, which is main cause of air and water pollution. As a result loss of habitats is increasingly common, many people are diagnosed with health problems such as lung and throat cancer. In addition, a large number of land and rain forests are destroyed to make a way for agriculture field.
Below re the audios on the topic sports club and also it is explained how to answer for the given question in the listening test. You can go through this sample test and practice for the test.
9. To join the center, you need to book an instructor's…………………….
10. To book a trial session, speak to David……………………(0458 95311).
SECTION 2
Questions 11-16
What change has been made to each part of the theatre?
Choose SIX answers from the box and write the correct letter, A-G, next to questions 11-16.
RIVEN DEN CITY THEATRE
A. doubled in number B. given separate entrance C. reduced in number D. increased in size E. replaced F. strengthened G. temporarily closed
Part of the theatre
box office ………………….
shop ………………….
ordinary seats ………………….
seats for wheelchair users ………………….
lifts …………………
dressing rooms …………………
Questions 17 – 20
Complete the table below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS ANDIOR A NUMBER for each answer.
Play
Dates
Starting time
Tickets available
Price
Royal Hunt
October 13th to 17………………….
18…………………pm
for 19……………… and …………………
20 £………………..
SECTION 3
Question 21
Choose the correct letter, A, B or C.
21. What is Brian going to do before the course starts?
A. attend a class B. write a report C. read a book
Questions 22-25
Complete the table below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.
College Facility
Information
Refectory
inform them 22……………………… about special dietary requirements
23………………………………………
long waiting list, apply now
Careers advice
drop-in center for information
Fitness center
reduced 24…………………………… for students
Library
includes books, journals, equipment room containing audio-visual materials
Computers
ask your 25……………………………. to arrange a password with the technical support team
Questions 26 – 30
Complete the summary below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer
Business Centre
The Business Resource Centre contains materials such as books and manuals to be used for training. It Is possible to hire 26……………………and 27……………………. There are materials for working on study skills (e.g. 28……………………) and other subjects include finance and 29……………………. 30…………………………………………… membership costs £50 per year.
SECTION 4
Questions 31-37
Complete the table below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.
A social history of the East End of London
Period
Situation
1st—4th centuries
Produce from the area was used to 31 the people of London.
5 th—10th centuries
New technology allowed the production of goods made of 32……………… and …………………………….
11th century
Lack of 33……………………………. in the East End encouraged the growth of businesses.
16th century
Construction of facilities for the building of 34………………………….. stimulated international trade.
Agricultural workers came from other parts of 35………………………….. to look for work.
17th century
Marshes were drained to provide land that could be 36……………………………… on
19th century
Inhabitants lived in conditions of great 37……………………………… with very poor sanitation.
Questions 38 – 40
Choose THREE letters, A – G
Which THREE of the following problems are mentioned in connection with 20th-century housing in the East End?
A. unsympathetic landlords B. unclean water C. heating problems D. high rents E. overcrowding F. poor standards of building G. houses catching fire
Answer keys
1. (a) keep-fit (studio) 2. swimming 3. yoga (classes) 4. (a) salad bar 5. 500 6. 1 7. 10 (am), 4.30 (pm) 8. 180 9. assessment 10. Kynchley 11. B 12. G 13. C 14. A 15. E 16. D 17. (October (the)) 19th 18. 7 19. Monday, Thursday 20. 18 21. A 22. in advance 23. nursery 24. annual fee 25. tutor 26&27. IN EITHER ORDER laptops printers 28. report writing 29. marketing 30. Individual 31. feed 32. IN EITHER ORDER metal leather 33. restrictions 34. ships 35. England 36. built 37. poverty 38-40. IN ANY ORDER C E F
BONUS EXERCISE: GAP-FILLING
The texts below are a transcript for your IELTS Listening Practice Test. To make the most out of this transcript, we removed some words from the texts and replaced them with spaces. You have to fill each space with the missing word by listening to the audio for this IELTS listening practice test.
9-minute lights off for solidarity: Government assures stability of grid during blackout The government assured that "only lights should be switched off" and "there is no call to switch off either street lights or appliances like computers, TVs, fans, refrigerators and ACs in the homes".
Use pooled testing to identify hotspots, lower number of Covid-19 tests: CDDEP This will lower the number of tests to be conducted, while help identify corona hotspots faster, critical for any containment strategy.
