Category Archives: News and Current Events

The Disappearing Mural

Posted on Thursday - May 1, 2008 by Dr. Lucy Tse

If you are an artist in the U.S., your artwork (piece of art) may be protected under the Visual Artists Rights Act, which became law in 1990. If you live in California, your artwork may also be protected by the … Continue reading →

Posted in News and Current Events | 5 Comments

An ESLPod Experiment

Posted on Wednesday - March 12, 2008 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

I just discovered this very cool web service called Shared Copy. It allows you to make notes on web pages and share them with others. I tried using it and I think it may be useful for what we do … Continue reading →

Caught With Your Pants Down

Posted on Tuesday - March 11, 2008 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

A scandal is when someone does something wrong, usually a well-known person such as a politician or a movie star. There can be many different types of scandals, including scandals involving sex. In today’s U.S. papers, the American press is … Continue reading →

Posted in News and Current Events | 11 Comments

Buyer’s Remorse and the American Elections

Posted on Wednesday - March 5, 2008 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Well, the results are in (are available): Hillary Clinton won the elections in Texas and Ohio that I discussed in yesterday’s post, and so the fight for the presidential nomination in the Democratic Party will continue. The next big election … Continue reading →

Posted in News and Current Events | 5 Comments

Do or Die for Hillary Clinton

Posted on Tuesday - March 4, 2008 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Today is a very important primary election in the states of Texas and Ohio (see my explanation of the U.S. election system here). One expression that you can read in the American newspapers today is “do or die.” People are … Continue reading →

Posted in News and Current Events | 14 Comments

And The Winner Is…Not an American!

Posted on Thursday - February 28, 2008 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Last Sunday the annual awards for the best movies were given out (awarded, given to the winners) in Los Angeles. The awards are popularly called the Oscars, because the statue you win is called “Oscar.” But no one is exactly … Continue reading →

Posted in News and Current Events, Television and Movies | 9 Comments

Foreclosures and the U.S. Economy

Posted on Wednesday - February 20, 2008 by Dr. Lucy Tse

As many of you probably know, the U.S. economy is doing poorly right now, with some economists saying that we are going into a recession, a period of major economic decline. The major reason for this downslide (decline) is that … Continue reading →

Posted in Life in the United States, News and Current Events | 6 Comments

The Onion Reports: Science is Hard

Posted on Monday - February 11, 2008 by Dr. Lucy Tse

The Onion is a well known newspaper published in the U.S., but be careful about getting your news from it. None of the stories are true. The Onion is a parody (imitation; false) newspaper that publishes satirical (using humor to … Continue reading →

Posted in Jokes and Humor, News and Current Events | 7 Comments

Mardi Gras, Ash Wednesday, Lunar New Year

Posted on Wednesday - February 6, 2008 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

This is not just a big week for American football or the U.S. presidential elections. There are at least three other major world events that happen this week. The first is Mardi Gras (“Fat Tuesday”), which marks (celebrates, commemorates) the … Continue reading →

Posted in Life in the United States, News and Current Events | 10 Comments

Super Tuesday

Posted on Tuesday - February 5, 2008 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Today is being called Super Tuesday in the United States. This is not related to the Super Bowl, which was last Sunday. It’s called Super Tuesday because it is the most important day for electing the candidates of the two … Continue reading →