Listening week two

The global food waste scandal

Discussion

We're going to listen to a talk that continues on the theme of food waste. Before we begin, how much do you remember from the article we looked at in this week's reading class? Specifically, what are some of the main causes and implications of food waste?

Note taking practice

Before you listen again, work through the note taking activities on EAP Toolkit.

Transcript of "The global food waste scandal"TED Talk Subtitles and Transcript: Western countries throw out nearly half of their food, not because it’s inedible -- but because it doesn’t look appealing. Tristram Stuart delves into the shocking data of wasted food, calling for a more responsible use of global resources.

Open class listening task

We'll play the talk once first in open class.

What point does the speaker discuss that was also raised in the article we read earlier in the week?
What is the speaker's main purpose for giving his talk? Is he just delivering information, entertaining the audience, or trying to persuade them of something?
Try to summarise the main message of the talk in a single sentence.

Listening again for details

Listen to the talk again, this time on your own with headphones. Your teacher will set a time limit of about half an hour for you to answer the following questions:

How did the speaker first become interested in the problem of food waste?
What is the purpose of his demonstration with the biscuits?
How many opportunities for reducing food waste does the speaker identify?

Language analysis - register

Earlier this week we started to look at the concept of register in our writing class, and specifically we looked at what makes language sound academic, and the effect of depersonalising the language with nominalisation and passive structures. Read through the transcript of the first two minutes of the talk (click on the Transcript tab underneath the video window).

How is the language different to the style we looked at in the writing class?
What patterns are there in the language he's using to present his talk?
Why do you think he's choosing to use this type of language?

Opaque phrases

If something is opaque this means it's solid and impossible to see through. In the same way we say that something that's transparent is open and free of secrets, if something's opaque then it's difficult to see how it works or how it was put together. As an example, policies and procedures in large organisations are often opaque in this way: more like a lump of wood than a glass window. Language also can be opaque, and phrasal verbs are a common example in English of opaque language. If something makes me laugh I can say it 'cracks me up', but if it makes me sad why can't I say it cracks me down? Why do you turn up for a party (arrive unexpectedly) but turn down (reject) a job? The truth is it doesn't matter, and knowing why these phrases are the way they are doesn't help us remember them.

Read the first part of the transcript again, and see how many opaque phrases you can identify. They don't all have to be phrasal verbs. Can you figure out the meaning from the context?

Windows are often transparent.

Discussion

Which of the sources of food waste from the talk do you think would be the easiest to fix?
Should governments give supermarkets and food producers legal obligations to stop food waste? If so, what kind would be effective?
Would you eat a sandwich from a restaurant that was made of the loaf crusts or food that would otherwise have been thrown away, or would you turn your nose up at it?

Independent study

EAP Toolkit: Phrasal verbs

Teacher's notes

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