English Conversation Course

What is Big Data? This term has become popular recently, you can hear it everywhere. But what does it generally mean? What does it  need  for? What benefits does it give us? In this presentation, I’m going to answer these questions and make a short introduction to the Big Data. People for ages have collected data. Starting from cave painting through papyruses, books, tapes to modern devices such as discs. Along with it an amount of data has grown exponentially, so our technologies have improved and now allow as to store a huge amount of data on small and light devices. If we gathered all the data which had been collected before the year 2000 it would be less, then we generate now in 1 minute. The number of data roughly doubled every 40 months starting from the 1980s. From 2012, every day has generated 2.5 exabytes of data (exabyte 10^18). IDC predicts that we will have gathered 163 zettabytes (zettabyte 10^21) of data ...

There is a common belief that you need to study hard, work hard to be more successful and happy. Does it really work this way? Do you really need a better job or higher degrees to feel happy? Shawn Achor presents his studies below regarding correlation between happiness and success. How you can improve your lives by just being happier Video: https://watchengo.blogspot.com/2016/06/shawn-achor-happy-secret-to-better-work.html?m=1 Questions: Do you agree with the speaker? Why/Why not? Do you feel happy? Why/Why not? What do you do to be happier?

Some time ago in Poland, a ban was introduced for trading on some Sundays. As it turns out, contrary to opinions of many experts, sales didn't fall down but grew. When in February 2018, the Statistics Poland (Central Statistical Office) reported that the sales figures grew up by 7,9 percent, everyone was wondering if this was the last month in which trade recorded such spectacular growth. However, the March results turned out to be more optimistic. After taking inflation into account , the increase was 8,8 percent. It happened despite the fact that two Sundays the stores had to close their doors for customers. http://www.se.pl/wiadomosci/polska/badz-bezpieczny-na-zakupach_697466.html The Act of January 10, 2018 on the limitation of trade on Sundays and public holidays and on certain other days provides for a gradual reduction of the number of Sundays in which shops will be closed. By the end of 2018, the ban will not apply on the first and last Sunday every month, and two c...

Keller Rinaudo, one of the computer geeks, wants to build a robot for everyone. Small robot and affordable price which everyone would like to have at home. It's called Romo, whose power is our phone. The robot uses a telephone camera to track our face. You can also manage the robot yourself and connect with it from a different part of the world. I invite you to watch a short film. Would you like to have this robot at home? Can you imagine playing hide-and-seek with  help of this robot? Do you think such projects make sense?

I am pretty sure that each and every one of us has heard about paintball. Airsoft is similar except there is no paint involved and instead, smaller plastic pellets are used. However, don’t be fooled by the name of the sport, it is not soft at all. Airsoft is a military simulation sport where players participate in mock combat with authentic military-style weapons and tactics. It was originated from Japan in the early 1970s, tailoring to the needs of shooting enthusiasts while conforming to Japan’s strict gun control. http://www.patrolbase.co.uk/ Unlike paintball, Airsoft uses 6mm round BBs made of hard plastic and the used guns are full scale replicas of real world weapons. Moreover, Airsoft pellets do not mark their target, and hits are not always visibly apparent. Though the pellets will not leave red marks or "welts" on the targets’ exposed skin, the game relies heavily on an honor system in which it is the ethical duty of the person who has been hit to c...

In this in-depth talk, ethnographer and leadership expert Simon Sinek reveals the hidden dynamics that inspire leadership and trust. In biological terms, leaders get the first pick of food and other spoils, but at a cost. When danger is present, the group expects the leader to mitigate all threats even at the expense of their personal well-being. Understanding this deep-seated expectation is the key difference between someone who is just an "authority" versus a true "leader”. I encourage you to watch Simon’s speech and try to answer questions below. 1.      Do you know someone like Johnny Bravo, a person who is ready to sacrifice his life to save the others? 2.      Do you consider yourself as a leader or do you rather prefer to follow the true authorities? 3.      Please name few qualities, which a true leader should have.

Children who live in rural areas can have a hard time getting to the doctor -- much less to an audiologist's clinic for expensive, complex tests to check their hearing. The result for too many kids is hearing loss caused by ear infections and other curable or preventable problems. That's why ear surgeon and TED Fellow Susan Emmett is working with 15 communities in rural Alaska to create a simple, low-cost test that only requires a cell phone. Learn more about her work and how it could change the lives of children who don't have access to hearing care. 1. Do you think, that mobile telemedicine can revolutionize access to care? 2. What in your opinion is the hardest part of spreading the mobile telemedicine around the world? Source https://www.ted.com/talks/susan_emmett_this_simple_test_can_help_kids_hear_better#t-267194

Basketball is a sport full of improvisation, contacts, but also a sport full of schemes arranged by coaches , played by the players. Can mathematics be used to find out what a player will or will not do? Rajiv Maheswaran believes that he is able to determine this with the help of a moving-dots system and a machine. Let him show you this better. Listen! Have you ever played basketball? Did you know what pick-and-roll is? Do you think that mathematics can determine who will do what?