#0329 – Being Persuasive, - Ang, mater, ESL Podcast McQuillan Jeff mp3+PDF

#0329 – Being Persuasive

#0329 – Being Persuasive, - Ang, mater, ESL Podcast McQuillan Jeff mp3+PDF

[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 329 – Being Persuasive
GLOSSARY
favor –
something that one does for another person, because one has been
asked to do it; something that one person asks another to do out of kindness
* Please take this message to Antuka as a favor for me.
down in the dumps –
feeling depressed; feeling sad and without energy, often
for no reason
* Anita was down in the dumps for weeks after she found out that she didn’t get
the scholarship.
shy –
timid, quiet, and not comfortable speaking with other people
* Damian is so shy that his face turns red whenever he has to talk to a stranger.
off the top of my head –
a phrase used to show that one is saying something
very quickly, without thinking about it very much and/or without additional
information
* Off the top of my head, I think we sold about 40,000 units last year, but if you
can wait a few minutes I’ll get you the exact sales figure.
no offense –
a phrase used when one says something that another person
probably won’t like, but doesn’t want the other person to become angry
* No offense, but I think you should wear more professional clothes to work.
to miss –
to not experience; to not be able to enjoy; to not have an opportunity to
do something
* We came late to the movie theater and missed the previews, but we were able
to see the movie.
witty –
clever, funny, and quick-thinking
* Xena is very witty and can find something funny to say in any situation.
to persuade –
to convince; to do or say something that makes another person
believe that something is true
* Paola persuaded us that her company was a great investment opportunity, but
then it failed and we lost our money
convinced –
persuaded; believing that something that another person has told
oneself is true
* The children in this neighborhood are convinced that Mrs. Urquizo is a witch.
1
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2007). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 329 – Being Persuasive
to live up to –
to fulfill or meet expectations; to be what one wants or expects
* Bella has always struggled to live up to her family’s expectations for her to
become a doctor.
hype –
advertising or other excited statements about how good something or
someone is, often more than he/she or it really is
* There was a lot of hype about this company’s new cell phone.
to twist (one’s) arm –
to force someone to do something; to make someone do
something; to insist strongly that one do something
* Tracy kept twisting his arm until he agreed to help her with the project.
on the fence –
undecided; not sure what to do; trying to decide between two
options
* Betty was on the fence regarding whether she should go to medical school or
law school
to sweeten the pot –
to do or offer something that makes a deal more
interesting and attractive
* The company has competitions to see which sales representative has the
highest sales, and it sweetens the pot by giving the winner $2,500.
to tempt –
to try to make someone do what one wants him/her to do, often by
offering to give him/her something
* The university tempts students into difficult majors like biophysics by offering
them full scholarships.
2
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2007). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 329 – Being Persuasive
COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
1. What does Sylvia mean when she says “she’s down in the dumps”?
a) She feels very sad and depressed.
b) She is in a part of town known as the dumps.
c) She is downtown near the dumpsters.
2. How is Sylvia going to “sweeten the pot”?
a) By adding sugar to the pot.
b) By giving Joon two movie tickets.
c) By making Joon’s favorite sweet drink.
______________
WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN?
no offense
The phrase “no offense,” in this podcast, is a phrase used when one says
something that another person probably won’t like, but doesn’t want the other
person to become angry: “No offense, but your car smells like cigarette smoke.”
The phrase “to take offense” means to become angry because of what someone
else says or does: “Jacques took offense when his sister decided not to go to the
concert with him and went with her friends instead.” The word “offense” refers to
the part of a game or team that tries to earn points, while “defense” is the part of
a game or team that tries to stop the other team from earning points: “The team
has very strong offense and scored 20 points in the first half of the game.” A
“criminal offense” is a crime or something that one does against the law: “Hitting
another car without stopping is a criminal offense.”
to miss
In this podcast, the verb “to miss” means to not experience something: “If you
don’t go outside and look at the stars, you’ll miss the meteor shower.” The
phrase “to miss out on (something)” means to not enjoy something because one
chose not to participate or wasn’t able to participate: “You missed out on a great
party last night!” The phrase “to miss the boat” means to be unable to do
something because one came too late or did something too late: “We had an
opportunity to buy stock in this company years ago, but we missed the boat and
now we wish that we had bought it!” The phrase “to not miss a trick” means that
someone takes advantage of every opportunity: “Fely never misses a trick,
always finding new opportunities to open a business and make money.”
3
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2007). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 329 – Being Persuasive
CULTURE NOTE
“Statistics” is a type of math that collects, analyzes, and reports “quantitative
data” (information with many numbers) about many topics. In the United States
and in other countries, many people and organizations use statistics to persuade
others to believe what they believe. When statistics are used correctly, they can
be a good way to “support an argument” (present reasons for one’s beliefs). But
sometimes statistics are used incorrectly and are “deceptive” (make people
believe something that isn’t true).
A British man named Benjamin Disraeli once said, “There are lies, ‘damned’
(very bad) lies, and statistics,” meaning that statistics can be even more
deceptive than lies. American author Mark Twain “popularized” (made
something well known by most people) this saying.
In the 1950s, Darrell Huff wrote a book called
How to Lie with Statistics
. The
book is about how incorrect statistics, whether “intentional” (done on purpose) or
“unintentional” (done by accident), and the “interpretation” (how something is
understood) of those statistics can be used to make people come to the wrong
“conclusion” (main idea based on all the available information). For example, the
book describes how making a graph with “bars” (rows or column) in “three
dimensions” (with length, width, and height) can make numbers seem bigger
than if they are presented only in “two dimensions” (length and width).
Numbers can be very “compelling” (making one want to believe something), but
that means that they can also be dangerous. In American schools, students are
taught to support their arguments with “well founded” (solid, honest, and based in
reality) statistics, but it can be difficult for people who are not statisticians to know
which statistics they should believe.
______________
Comprehension Questions Correct Answers: 1 – a; 2 – b
4
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2007). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 329 – Being Persuasive
COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT
Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 329: Being
Persuasive.
This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 329. I'm your host, Dr.
Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in
beautiful Los Angeles, California. How are you today?
You can visit our website at eslpod.com. While you’re there, you can take a look
at our new ESL Podcast Blog, you can take a look at our special courses on
business and daily English in our ESL Podcast store, and you can download a
Learning Guide for this episode to help you improve your English even faster.
This episode is called “Being Persuasive.” “To be persuasive” means to try to
convince someone that what you are saying is true or right, or to do something.
Let’s get started.
[start of dialogue]
Sylvia: How would you like to take my sister, Donna, to the movies this
weekend? You’d be doing me a favor.
Joon: Why? What’s wrong with her?
Sylvia: Nothing is wrong with her! She just broke up with her boyfriend of four
years and she’s down in the dumps. She’s shy, so I thought I’d try to set her up
on a date.
Joon: Off the top of my head, I can think of a dozen things I’d rather do than to
take out anyone’s little sister, including yours, no offense.
Sylvia: You don’t know what you’re missing. She may be shy, but she’s very
pretty and witty. If you met her, you wouldn’t need me to persuade you.
Joon: I don’t know. I’m not convinced. Whenever someone sets me up on a
blind date, they always tell me how great the woman is. She never lives up to
the hype.
Sylvia: I’m not going to twist your arm, but if you’re on the fence, I have two free
movie tickets to that new movie you want to see, just to sweeten the pot.
5
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2007). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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