João-bobo
é um brinquedo que consiste em um objeto de base arredondada que por mais que seja
inclinado tende a permanecer de pé.
10.19.2013
REBOUND / RESILIENCE = RESILIÊNCIA
(verb) Retornar ao ponto de partida.[A bola resiliu
contra quem a chutara]
to bounce back off something after hitting it
to increase or improve after a recent decrease or decline
to spring back on or as if on collision or impact with another body
to recover from setback or frustration
Habilidade que uma pessoa desenvolve para resistir, lidar e reagir de modo positivo em situações adversas.
An older post:
capacidade de recuperação/adaptação
"The resilience frame speaks not just to how buildings weather storms but to how people weather them, too. Here, psychologists, sociologists and neuroscientists are uncovering a wide array of factors that make you more or less resilient than the person next to you: the reach of your social networks, the quality of your close relationships, your access to resources, your genes and health, your beliefs and habits of mind.
to bounce back off something after hitting it
to increase or improve after a recent decrease or decline
to spring back on or as if on collision or impact with another body
to recover from setback or frustration
the ability to become strong, healthy, or successful again after something bad happens
the ability of something to return to its original shape after it has been pulled, stretched, pressed, bent, etc.Habilidade que uma pessoa desenvolve para resistir, lidar e reagir de modo positivo em situações adversas.
An older post:
11.19.2012
RESILIENCE / BOUNCING BACK / REBOUNDING capacidade de recuperação/adaptação
"The resilience frame speaks not just to how buildings weather storms but to how people weather them, too. Here, psychologists, sociologists and neuroscientists are uncovering a wide array of factors that make you more or less resilient than the person next to you: the reach of your social networks, the quality of your close relationships, your access to resources, your genes and health, your beliefs and habits of mind.
For example, “resilience thinking” is starting to shape how urban planners in
big cities think about updating antiquated infrastructure, much of which is
robust in the face of normal threats like equipment failures but — as was just
demonstrated in the New York region — fragile in the face of unanticipated
shocks like flooding, pandemics, terrorism or energy shortages.
“After 9/11, Lower
Manhattan contained the largest collection of LEED-certified, green buildings
in the world,” he said, referring to a rating program for eco-friendly design.
“But that was answering only part of problem. The buildings were designed to generate
lower environmental impacts, but not to respond to the impacts of the
environment” — for example, by having redundant power systems."
THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES
The
Emperor's New Clothes" (Danish: Kejserens nye Klæder) is a short tale by Hans
Christian Andersen about two weavers who promise an Emperor a new suit of clothes
that is invisible to those unfit for their positions, stupid, or incompetent. When
the Emperor parades before his subjects in his new clothes, a child cries out, "But
he isn't wearing anything at all!" The tale has been translated into over a
hundred languages.
Plot:
A
vain Emperor who cares about nothing except wearing and displaying clothes hires
two swindlers who promise him the finest, best suit of clothes from a fabric invisible
to anyone who is unfit for his position or "hopelessly stupid". The Emperor's
ministers cannot see the clothing themselves, but pretend that they can for fear
of appearing unfit for their positions and the Emperor does the same. Finally the
swindlers report that the suit is finished, they mime dressing him and the Emperor
marches in procession before his subjects. The townsfolk play along with the pretense
not wanting to appear unfit for their positions or stupid. Then a child in the crowd,
too young to understand the desirability of keeping up the pretense, blurts out
that the Emperor is wearing nothing at all and the cry is taken up by others. The
Emperor cringes, suspecting the assertion is true, but continues the procession.Source: Wikipedia
10.12.2013
Mourning
- the act of mourning
for someone who has died
- great sadness felt
because someone has died
-
the act of sorrowing
-
an outward sign (as black clothes or an armband) of grief for a person's
death
-
a period of time during which signs of grief are shown
10.05.2013
9.30.2013
9.23.2013
SE COMPROMETEM VS. COMPROMETEM-SE
"Universidades se comprometem (ou comprometem-se...)?
1) Um leitor indaga se está correta a colocação pronominal na seguinte frase: "Universidades se comprometem a não penalizar alunos inadimplentes".2) Ora, em português, o pronome pessoal oblíquo átono, por não ter força sonora própria, pendura-se, quanto ao som, na sílaba forte do verbo mais próximo.
3) Assim, de acordo com a eufonia, pode o pronome estar em uma de três posições: I) – Próclise (pronome antes do verbo), como em "Não se vá!"; II) – Mesóclise (pronome no meio do verbo), como em "Fá-lo-ei com rapidez"; III) – Ênclise (pronome depois do verbo), como em "Buscou-se uma solução".
4) A par dessa observação, deve-se ver que há determinadas palavras que, se existirem antes do verbo, atraem o pronome: negativas, advérbios, pronomes relativos, pronomes indefinidos e conjunções subordinativas.
5) No caso da consulta, o que se tem é uma oração em ordem direta (sujeito [universidades], verbo [comprometem] e complementos), e não aparece nenhuma daquelas palavras que normalmente atraem o pronome para antes do verbo.
6) Pois bem. Quando se tem uma oração com esses dois requisitos (oração em ordem direta e inexistência de palavra atrativa), então é facultativa a colocação do pronome em próclise ou em ênclise.
7) Por isso estão corretas as duas formas de expressão: I) – "Universidades se comprometem a não penalizar alunos inadimplentes" (correto); II) – "Universidades comprometem-se a não penalizar alunos inadimplentes" (correto)."
Fonte: Migalhas
[http://www.migalhas.com.br/Gramatigalhas/10,MI72886,51045-Universidades+se+comprometem+ou+comprometemse]
9.05.2013
“Economic” or “Economical”?
“Economic”
and “economical” are two adjectives that are frequently used interchangeably.
They are clearly related but they have, strictly speaking, quite distinct
meanings.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the definition of economic is related to economics or the economy.
Economical, however, means “giving good value or return in relation to the resources used or money spent; sparing in the use of resources or money”.
So, government policies to do with finance would be economic but fuel-efficient cars would be described as more economical.
Briefly:
Economic means, primarily, of or relating to the economy or economics.
Economical means prudent, efficient, or thrifty
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the definition of economic is related to economics or the economy.
Economical, however, means “giving good value or return in relation to the resources used or money spent; sparing in the use of resources or money”.
So, government policies to do with finance would be economic but fuel-efficient cars would be described as more economical.
Briefly:
Economic means, primarily, of or relating to the economy or economics.
Economical means prudent, efficient, or thrifty
8.24.2013
COMMAS
"Marty Peretz, a former editor and owner of the New
Republic, insists that commas must always come in pairs. He once made his
staff count the commas in an entire issue of the magazine, telling them that
the number had better come out even. (The incident, which is not fiction, was
made famous in the film "Shattered Glass".) (...)
Mr Carey quotes Gertrude Stein:
"A comma does nothing but make easy a thing that if you like it enough is
easy enough without the comma." Not quite true: commas clean up many
things that would be a mess for the reader without them. But few comma-rules
are absolute. Don't trust anyone who tells you otherwise."
6.26.2013
Time banking / Time Credit (UK) / Time Dollar (US)
Time banking is
a pattern of reciprocal service exchange that uses units of time as currency.
It is an example of a complementary monetary system.
A time bank, also known as a service exchange, is a community that practices
time banking.
The unit of currency, always valued at an hour's worth of any person's labor, used by these groups has various names, but is generally known as a time dollar in the U.S. and a time credit in the U.K.
Time banking is primarily used to provide incentives and rewards for work such as mentoring children, caring for the elderly, being neighborly—work usually done on a volunteer basis—which a pure market system devalues. Essentially, the "time" one spends providing these types of community services earns "time" that one can spend to receive services. As well as gaining credits, participating individuals, particularly those more used to being recipients in other parts of their lives, can potentially gain confidence,social contact and skills through giving to others.
Communities therefore use time banking as a tool to forge stronger intra-community connections, a process known as "building social capital." Time banking had its intellectual genesis in the U.S. in the early 1980s.[...] Today, 26 countries have active Time Banks. There are 250 Time Banks active in the U.K. and over 276 Time Banks in the U.S.
From Wikipedia
The unit of currency, always valued at an hour's worth of any person's labor, used by these groups has various names, but is generally known as a time dollar in the U.S. and a time credit in the U.K.
Time banking is primarily used to provide incentives and rewards for work such as mentoring children, caring for the elderly, being neighborly—work usually done on a volunteer basis—which a pure market system devalues. Essentially, the "time" one spends providing these types of community services earns "time" that one can spend to receive services. As well as gaining credits, participating individuals, particularly those more used to being recipients in other parts of their lives, can potentially gain confidence,social contact and skills through giving to others.
Communities therefore use time banking as a tool to forge stronger intra-community connections, a process known as "building social capital." Time banking had its intellectual genesis in the U.S. in the early 1980s.[...] Today, 26 countries have active Time Banks. There are 250 Time Banks active in the U.K. and over 276 Time Banks in the U.S.
From Wikipedia
6.24.2013
Responsibility vs. Liability
Briefly: a
person is responsible for duties and is liable for obligations.
Responsibility is an obligation you have to do something. "You're responsible for finishing your work".
Liability means that you're subject to repercussion if your duties are not finished.
"You're liable to get in trouble if you don't finish your work" .
Responsibility is an obligation you have to do something. "You're responsible for finishing your work".
Liability means that you're subject to repercussion if your duties are not finished.
"You're liable to get in trouble if you don't finish your work" .
6.13.2013
5.17.2013
TRIFLES
"Trifles
make perfection and perfection is not trifle."
"Pequenas coisas fazem a perfeição e a perfeição não é uma pequena coisa."
Michelangelo
5.16.2013
Brazilian Currency: Real
Brazil's
currency unit is the real (plural = reais) and is made up of 100 centavos
and written using the symbol R$. The currency exchange symbol for the real is BRL. The real is issued
in denominations of 1 real (coin), 2 reais, 5 reais, 10 reais, 20 reais, 50 reais and 100 reais notes. Centavos are issued in
denominations of 1 centavo, 5 centavos, 10 centavos, 25 centavos and 50 centavos. (coins)
Abreviaturas
Abreviaturas: Como regra geral,
abreviaturas não são terminadas em vogal.[Correto: “Ap.”; Errado:
“Apto.”]
Somente em palavras femininas é que a abreviatura incluirá o “a”. [Ex.: “Dra.”, “Sra.” ]
Somente em palavras femininas é que a abreviatura incluirá o “a”. [Ex.: “Dra.”, “Sra.” ]
“Atenciosamente”?: Correto: “At.te”. [Obs.: Se a
correspondência for formal, use “Atenciosamente”; se for informal, não escreva
nada.]
Curiosidade: No inglês, a
tendência é não usar ponto nas abreviaturas: Mr Mrs
ie etc
Euro
The full term
‘euro’ is used when there is no direct reference to the amount, e.g. in
table/graph footnotes (such as ‘The euro became the new currency for 15 Member
States’. In English and German, the term euro (German: Euro) is never written
in plural. In French, a plural ‘s’ is added (euros). In English and French,
euro starts with a lower case letter, in German with an upper case letter. If
there is a reference to an amount, the ISO 4217 code of euro ‘EUR’ is used
(such as ‘EUR 30’).
4.15.2013
"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." - Leonardo da Vinci
Desculpem-me pelo longo e tenebroso inverno. De repente, fiquei sem vontade de postar, atarefada com uma reforma do apê, aguardando visitas de Albion [Britain]. Tudo já passou, foi muito bom mas não deixo de reconhecer que às vezes exagero. Ainda tenho muito a aprender.
2.12.2013
EDITION Vs. ISSUE
edition (edição): The entire number of copies of a publication issued at
one time or from a single set of type. A single copy
from this group. The form in which a
publication is issued: a paperback edition of a novel; an annotated edition
of Shakespeare. A version of an earlier publication having substantial
changes or additions: a newly revised edition of a standard reference work. All
the copies of a specified issue of a newspaper: the morning edition; the
Sunday edition. A broadcast of a radio or television news program: Thursday's
edition of the six o'clock news
issue (exemplar) : Something produced, published, or offered, as: An item or set of items, as stamps or coins, made available at one time by an office or bureau. A single copy of a periodical: the May issue of the magazine. A distinct set of copies of an edition of a book distinguished from others of that edition by variations in the printed matter.
issue (exemplar) : Something produced, published, or offered, as: An item or set of items, as stamps or coins, made available at one time by an office or bureau. A single copy of a periodical: the May issue of the magazine. A distinct set of copies of an edition of a book distinguished from others of that edition by variations in the printed matter.
1.12.2013
ONLY
Professor
Ernest Brennecke of Columbia is credited with inventing a sentence that can be made to have eight different meanings by
placing ONE WORD in all possible positions in the sentence: "I
hit him in the eve vesterdav."
The word is "ONLY". The Message:
ONLY I hit him in the eve vesterdav. (No one else did.)
I ONLY hit him in the eye vesterdav. (Did not slap him.)
I hit ONLY him in the eye vesterday. (I did not hit others.)
I hit him ONLY in the eve vesterdav. (I did not hit outside the eye.)
I hit him in ONLY the eye yesterday. (Not other organs.)
I hit him in the ONLY eve vesterdav. (He doesn't have another eye.)
I hit him in the eye ONLY vesterdav. (Not todav.)
I hit him in the eve yesterday ONLY. (Did not wait for todav.)
The word is "ONLY". The Message:
ONLY I hit him in the eve vesterdav. (No one else did.)
I ONLY hit him in the eye vesterdav. (Did not slap him.)
I hit ONLY him in the eye vesterday. (I did not hit others.)
I hit him ONLY in the eve vesterdav. (I did not hit outside the eye.)
I hit him in ONLY the eye yesterday. (Not other organs.)
I hit him in the ONLY eve vesterdav. (He doesn't have another eye.)
I hit him in the eye ONLY vesterdav. (Not todav.)
I hit him in the eve yesterday ONLY. (Did not wait for todav.)
1.09.2013
Cair bem / dar-se bem / fazer bem
cair bem = becoming (adj): Death looks becoming on you (cair bem). That shirt's very becoming on you.
dar-se bem = fare well (v+adj): Audiences have fixed expectations of big-canvas movies, and those who try to subvert them do not fare well.= não se dão bem (se dar bem / dar-se bem)
fazer bem = do well (v+adj): A little planning ahead does you well (fazer bem)
dar-se bem = fare well (v+adj): Audiences have fixed expectations of big-canvas movies, and those who try to subvert them do not fare well.= não se dão bem (se dar bem / dar-se bem)
fazer bem = do well (v+adj): A little planning ahead does you well (fazer bem)
PICKUP LINES
cantadas (pickup lines) - Bad pickup lines:
“Can I have your phone number? I seem to have lost mine.”
“Do you believe in love at first sight or should I walk past again?”
Read more: http://uk.askmen.com/top_10/dating_top_ten/35b_dating_list.html#ixzz2HTSNdVgL
“Can I have your phone number? I seem to have lost mine.”
“Do you believe in love at first sight or should I walk past again?”
Read more: http://uk.askmen.com/top_10/dating_top_ten/35b_dating_list.html#ixzz2HTSNdVgL
1.02.2013
"Fiscal cliff" heard round the world:
how the term translates across the globe
Argentina: abismo fiscal
Brazil: abismo fiscal (Portugal: "penhasco fiscal")
Denmark Afgrundens rand /Økonomisk afgrund / den Finansielle afgrund og "Afgrunden".
England in British English it is "WTF are those idiots in the US doing now"
France le fiscal cliff / mur de la dette (literally debt wall or “mur budgétaire", or literally, budgetary wall
Germany Fiskalklippe / sparbombe (actually, this sounds even scarier than a cliff)
Indonesia jurang fiskal (which in Indonesian actually translates as "fiscal abyss"
Ireland fiscal baby step ("You think that is a fiscal cliff, you should see what we went over in 2008" )
Italy: abisso fiscale
Montenegro, Serbia and Croatia fiskalna litica
Norway budsjettstupet (budget ravine)
Portugal: Penhasco fiscal
Spain: precipicio fiscal
Sweden stupet (the idea of a ravine also holds sway) / finansiella stupet / budgetstupet
Thailand หน้าผาทางการคลัง". It pronounces "Nah-pah-tarng-karn-klang"
The Netherlands Belastingkloof / begrotingsravijn / begrotingsafgrond / fiscale kloof
Turkey mali uçurum (Turkish) (i.e.: capital flight... literally, money running away)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/fiscal-cliff-blog/2012/dec/27/fiscal-cliff-translated-around-the-world
Argentina: abismo fiscal
Brazil: abismo fiscal (Portugal: "penhasco fiscal")
Denmark Afgrundens rand /Økonomisk afgrund / den Finansielle afgrund og "Afgrunden".
England in British English it is "WTF are those idiots in the US doing now"
France le fiscal cliff / mur de la dette (literally debt wall or “mur budgétaire", or literally, budgetary wall
Germany Fiskalklippe / sparbombe (actually, this sounds even scarier than a cliff)
Indonesia jurang fiskal (which in Indonesian actually translates as "fiscal abyss"
Ireland fiscal baby step ("You think that is a fiscal cliff, you should see what we went over in 2008" )
Italy: abisso fiscale
Montenegro, Serbia and Croatia fiskalna litica
Norway budsjettstupet (budget ravine)
Portugal: Penhasco fiscal
Spain: precipicio fiscal
Sweden stupet (the idea of a ravine also holds sway) / finansiella stupet / budgetstupet
Thailand หน้าผาทางการคลัง". It pronounces "Nah-pah-tarng-karn-klang"
The Netherlands Belastingkloof / begrotingsravijn / begrotingsafgrond / fiscale kloof
Turkey mali uçurum (Turkish) (i.e.: capital flight... literally, money running away)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/fiscal-cliff-blog/2012/dec/27/fiscal-cliff-translated-around-the-world
Feliz Ano Novo! Happy New Year!
2012 was a marvelous year. Hopefully 2013 will be twice as good for all of us!
12.28.2012
Good Riddance Day (Times Square, New York)
"On
December 28, say goodbye to your worst memory from 2012 once and for all on
Good Riddance Day.
Whether you're bidding farewell to pink slips or parking tickets, credit cards or Valentine's Day cards, your bad memories from 2012 will be destroyed, never to be seen again. A Cintas secure, mobile shredding truck along with a dumpster and sledgehammer were on hand to discard any distasteful, embarrassing and downright depressing memories from 2012.
Good Riddance Day is inspired by a Latin American tradition in which New Year’s revelers put artifacts from the previous year into giant dolls and set them on fire.
Whether you're bidding farewell to pink slips or parking tickets, credit cards or Valentine's Day cards, your bad memories from 2012 will be destroyed, never to be seen again. A Cintas secure, mobile shredding truck along with a dumpster and sledgehammer were on hand to discard any distasteful, embarrassing and downright depressing memories from 2012.
Good Riddance Day is inspired by a Latin American tradition in which New Year’s revelers put artifacts from the previous year into giant dolls and set them on fire.
12.18.2012
Twelve Days of Christmas (song)
The "TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS" is an English Christmas carol
that enumerates a series of increasingly grand gifts given on each of the
twelve days of Christmas.
The twelve days in the song are the twelve days starting Christmas Day,
or in some traditions, the day after Christmas (December 26) (Boxing Day or St.
Stephen's Day, as being the feast day of St. Stephen Protomartyr) to the day
before Epiphany, or the Feast of the Epiphany (January 6, or the Twelfth Day).
The Twelfth Night is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as "the
evening of the fifth of January, preceding Twelfth Day, the eve of the
Epiphany, formerly the last day of the Christmas festivities and observed as a
time of merrymaking."
Currently, the twelve days and nights are celebrated in widely varying ways around the world. For example, some give gifts only on Christmas Day, some only on Twelfth Night, and some each of the twelve nights, with each day of the Twelve Days representing a wish for a corresponding month of the new year.
The "Twelve Days of Christmas" is a cumulative song, meaning that each verse is built on top of the previous verses. There are twelve verses, each describing a gift given by "my true love" on one of the twelve days of Christmas ...and so forth, until the last verse:
Currently, the twelve days and nights are celebrated in widely varying ways around the world. For example, some give gifts only on Christmas Day, some only on Twelfth Night, and some each of the twelve nights, with each day of the Twelve Days representing a wish for a corresponding month of the new year.
The "Twelve Days of Christmas" is a cumulative song, meaning that each verse is built on top of the previous verses. There are twelve verses, each describing a gift given by "my true love" on one of the twelve days of Christmas ...and so forth, until the last verse:
TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
11.19.2012
RESILIENCE / BOUNCING BACK / REBOUNDING
capacidade de recuperação/adaptação
Source: NYT
"The resilience
frame speaks not just to how buildings weather storms but to how people weather
them, too. Here, psychologists, sociologists and neuroscientists are uncovering
a wide array of factors that make you more or less resilient than the person
next to you: the reach of your social networks, the quality of your close
relationships, your access to resources, your genes and health, your beliefs
and habits of mind.
For example,
“resilience thinking” is starting to shape how urban planners in big cities
think about updating antiquated infrastructure, much of which is robust in the
face of normal threats like equipment failures but — as was just demonstrated
in the New York region — fragile in the face of unanticipated shocks like
flooding, pandemics, terrorism or energy shortages.
“After 9/11, Lower
Manhattan contained the largest collection of LEED-certified, green buildings
in the world,” he said, referring to a rating program for eco-friendly design.
“But that was answering only part of problem. The buildings were designed to
generate lower environmental impacts, but not to respond to the impacts of the
environment” — for example, by having redundant power systems."Source: NYT
11.04.2012
“In behalf of” vs. “on behalf of”
Q: Which is proper, “on behalf of” or “in behalf of”?
A: Both expressions are correct, but they mean slightly different
things.
“In behalf of” means “for the benefit of” or “in the interest of.”
“On behalf of” means “in place of” or “as the agent of.”
So I might give a donation, “on behalf of” my gardening club, to be used
“in behalf of” tree restoration in the park.
10.08.2012
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