Tag: technology

Video Stores’ Digital Streaming Resistance

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Since the late 1870s, films have been in existence as one of the most popular forms of entertainment. Since its introduction to the society, films and the industry that revolves around it have evolved so much. 

Year 2020, the availability of technology and the Coronavirus pandemic led to a new phase in the history of films and the way we consume them. Streaming digitally through platforms like Netflix, HBO, and Amazon Prime became widely embraced by the world. Keeping the passion for physical movies became more challenging than ever.

Read the article about the video stores in Spain fighting to attract customers amidst the rising popularity of digital streaming.

https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2021-09-16/netflix-resistance-the-video-stores-fighting-the-rise-of-streaming-in-spain.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. Do physical movie stores still exist in your city? Talk about these places and your experience/s going there.
  2. Do you think video stores would continue to thrive further on? Talk about the challenges and opportunities of such business in the recent times. 
  3. Do you agree or disagree that with streaming platforms “You are forced to see what the company wants you to see, you don’t have any autonomy.”? Explain.
  4. What do you think about digital streaming platforms?
  5. Compare and contrast physical and digital film formats.
  6. Should we make sure that our children know about physical movies? Why or why not? 

New Inventions

B2 – Upper Intermediate

We live in a fast-paced world where technology is speeding up exponentially. For example, communication has significantly improved in just a few years. People could still vividly remember the time when they had to wait for ages for a webpage to load. Now, the internet speed is so fast that it allows you to download a full-length movie in just a few seconds.

Aside from the internet, many other innovations changed history significantly. Innovation will not stop and people will continue to create things as long as there is a need for it. As the saying goes, “Necessity is the mother of invention.”

Click the link and listen to the audio to learn more about some new inventions.

https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/new-inventions

Discussion Questions:

  1. What do you think of the inventions mentioned in the audio? Which one is the most interesting for you and why?
  2. Which among these inventions is the most useful? Which is the least useful?
  3. What need or problem do people have today that is yet to be addressed?
  4. What do you think is the most incredible invention that changed the world?

Why You Should Never Visit The Dark Web

B2 – Upper Intermediate

The black market is a platform online, where goods and services are acquired or exchanged illegally. Now, we all wonder how different a black market is from the normal one.

In the black market, goods are most of the time sold, at a lower if not, the lowest price because they won’t remit or declare taxes to the state. Goods that are not legally permitted to be sold in the market are also made available easily in the black market such as illegal substances or smuggled products. There is a big question of whether we should visit the dark web and enter a black market depending on what reasons you have in mind.

Watch the video to learn more about the dark web.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Have you ever heard about the dark web? What are your thoughts on or experience with it?
  2. Have you ever tried getting into the dark web?
  3. Is dark web home to many “bad guys”?
  4. How dangerous is it to transact in this market?
  5. Are you willing to take the risk to get into a site on the dark web?
  6. Could we consider people who transact in black market criminals? Why or why not?

How False Information Spreads

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Today, almost everything we do has something to do online; may it be our pastime or our jobs. Sometimes, we feel the need to be connected online for fear of missing out on a lot of things.

As a result, different industries have adapted to this trend and have increased their online presence. This includes news media. Now, it’s more common to see people reading news articles online than in a newspaper. With so much information available at our fingertips, we need to be careful about the things we read online.

Click the link and listen to the audio to learn more about how quickly false information can be spread online.

https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/skills/listening/advanced-c1-listening/how-false-information-spreads

Discussion Questions:

  1. What are the reasons false information spread so easily with the help of technology?
  2. How can false information be prevented from being spread on the internet?
  3. Share a hoax you have heard of before that many people believed right away.
  4. Do you read the news online? Which websites do you get your news from? Why do you get info from these websites?
  5. Do you use Wikipedia? What is your opinion about it or the information on it?

Domino’s Will Deliver Pizzas Using Robot

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Pizza is the perfect comfort food — not too messy, hard to mess up, good whether it’s hot or cold, and no silverware necessary. It’s just a perfect guaranteed meal to have during such uncertain times. 

The largest pizza company in the world by sales — Domino’s — had the biggest slice of the U.S. market coming into the pandemic. Now pizza lovers in Houston are going to see a new kind of delivery driver — a robot.

Let’s find out more about this autonomous pizza delivery robot.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/369394

Discussion Questions:

  1. What do you think about his autonomous pizza delivery car/robot?
  2. What could be the advantages and disadvantages of this technology?
  3. Overall, what are your thoughts on allocating efforts and resources in the development of autonomous vehicles?
  4. Where else could such technology be useful?
  5. Have you ever called for pizza delivery? If yes, how often do you order pizza to your home?

Facebook Wrist Device Aims to Permit Control of Virtual Objects

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Technology is evolving fast. It is changing how people live their lives. We now have The Internet of Things wherein all devices we use can be connected to the internet. From washing machines to air conditioners, we can now control them through voice commands.

Facebook is developing a technology that would allow us to control objects that exist in the virtual world. This technology aims to give people the augmented reality (AR) experience that could one day be used in our day-to-day lives.

Listen to the audio and read the transcript to know more about this wristband device that is supposed to be used with AR glasses.

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/facebook-wrist-device-aims-to-permit-control-of-virtual-objects/5828544.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is Augmented Reality (AR)? How interesting is this for you?
  2. Is this kind of device something interesting to you? Why or why not?
  3. Do you think that AR technology could replace smartphones one day? Why or why not?
  4. What could be the possible uses of AR in our day-to-day lives?
  5. How important is technology in your life? Can you live without it?

Students Tackle Global Issues with Innovation

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Innovation in education encourages students to explore, research, and use all the tools to uncover something new. It involves a different way of looking at problems and solving them.

The right combination of an innovative approach and creative thinking can help students address humanity’s major challenges such as climate change, energy poverty and security, health security and disease, food and nutrition security, and ensuring safe access to water and sanitation.

Read this article on how students tackle global issues with innovation.

https://www.euronews.com/2020/12/21/students-tackle-global-issues-with-innovation

Discussion Questions:

  1. How have technological advances/innovations affected our lives?
  2. What do you think is the most interesting innovation mentioned in the article?
  3. Do you appreciate innovation or do you prefer the good old ways?
  4. Which is more important to you – innovation or hard work?
  5. What are some good innovation ideas?

Living Online

B2 – Upper Intermediate

We are now living in a technological era. Whether we like it or not, technology is slowly changing the way we live and work. As a result, we are spending more time online than ever before.

People are doing loads of things online. From watching videos to shopping, we spend a lot of our time on the internet. Some say it is so addictive that we do not realize we are already spending a worrying amount of time on it.

Click the link and listen to the audio to learn more about the life of people online.

https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/skills/listening/advanced-c1-listening/living-online

Discussion Questions:

  1. What are some of the common activities we can do online?
  2. Do you agree or disagree that we should be equally worried about how much adults are becoming obsessed with online communication as much as teenagers?
  3. How do you communicate with your friends?
  4. Do you ever have FOMO? Share your experience.
  5. How do think the world would be without the internet?
  6. What are the pros and cons of online communication?
  7. What are your thoughts on being able to ‘stay in touch with everyone at the same time, all the time’?

Coca-Cola Trials Paper Bottle

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Until the last couple of years, the concept of a paper bottle would seem at best an oxymoron, but innovations continue to break barriers in the pursuit of packaging that offers sustainability benefits, ideally aligned with recycling.

Soft drink manufacturers are facing pressure on two fronts: the amount of sugar in their drinks and the amount of plastic waste their products produce. Coca-Cola is attempting to solve that second problem with the development and testing of a paper bottle.

Read the article below to learn more about Coca-Cola’s project on eliminating plastic from its packaging entirely.

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-56023723

Discussion Questions:

  1. Are plastic bottles a problem in your country?
  2. Why are paper bottles better?
  3. What might be the technical challenges to the paper bottle?
  4. We rarely bought bottled water 50 years ago. Why do we buy so much today? Is it clever marketing by water companies?
  5. Would your life change much if all bottled water was banned?
  6. What do you do with the plastic bottles at your home?

Face To Replace Bank Card

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Face recognition is a technology capable of identifying or verifying a subject through an image, video, or any audiovisual element of his face. It simply requires any device that has digital photographic technology to generate and obtain the images and data necessary to create and record the biometric facial pattern of the person that needs to be identified.

Unlike other identification solutions such as passwords, verification by email, selfies or images, or fingerprint identification, Biometric facial recognition uses unique mathematical and dynamic patterns that make this system one of the safest and most effective. But are there data security and privacy issues that we should be worried about?

Let’s read the article to know more about facial recognition payment.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55748964

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is your opinion about this new technology?
  2. Would you use facial recognition when making payments?
  3. What is your preferred way of paying for things?
  4. How important are notes and coins?
  5. What are the benefits of cashless payments? How about its dangers?
  6. How will facial recognition affect our data security and privacy?