Example

You need to be computer literate if you want a good job in the United States. One needs to be computer literate if one (he, she) wants a good job in the U.S.

1. If you have a cell phone, you can make calls from your car.

_______________________________________________

2. If you are computer-literate, you'll find a job more easily.

________________________________________________

7. Sharing ideas

A. Issues

Debate these issues in small groups. Then choose one and write about it.

1. Everyone knows how to use a telephone. Some people say that everyone should also know how to use a computer. Do you agree?

2. The Internet is a sociable place. It has chat rooms, special-interest groups, auctions, and games. Some people become computer addicts. They communicate with people from all over the world via the Internet, but they forget to communicate with family members in their own living room. Have computers encouraged Americans to substitute virtual (online) relationships for real, personal human relationships? What will be the results of this?

3. When people put messages on the Internet, do they risk a loss of privacy? Is it risky to send credit card information on the Internet?

B. On a personal note

Write about one of these topics.

1. Some people imagine a world in which everyone is carrying a cell phone (perhaps worn like a wristwatch) at all times. Do you think that would be a good or a bad development?

2. Some people treat their computer like a person. They get angry when it doesn't follow orders. They praise it when it produces good work. How do you feel about the computer you use? Do you like it, hate it, or distrust it? Do you ever talk to your computer? Do you ever hit it or curse it? Write a humorous piece about your relationship with your computer.

3. Where do you think high technology will take us in the future? Write your predictions.

Unit 5 American Holidays: History and Customs

Christopher Columbus: A Controversial Hero

BEFORE YOU READ

Discuss

1. Have you heard of Christopher Columbus? Tell what you know about him.

2. Some people think of Columbus as a great man. Others consider him a villain.

What's your opinion?

3. Have you ever traveled by ship? Where did you go? Was the water rough?

Guess

Try to answer the questions. Then look for the answers in the reading.

1. On his first voyage, how many days did it take Columbus to cross the Atlantic Ocean? Check (Ö ) one:

____ 18 ____ 36 ____ 64

2. In what year did Columbus make his first voyage? Check (Ö ) one:

____ 1492 ____ 1541 ____ 1620

Christopher Columbus: a Controversial Hero

His Accomplishments, His Holiday

He was called Cristofaro Colombo in Italian and Cristobal Colon in Spanish. Today, Ameri­cans call him Christopher Columbus. Worldwide, he's commonly called the discoverer of America. Some people might wonder why. After all, Columbus didn't set out in search of new continents, and he never realized that he had found any. Moreover, he wasn't the first European to set foot in the Western Hemisphere. Human skeletons with European characteristics-bones that may be 10,000 years old-have been found in North Amer­ica. About A.D. 1000, Vikings (Scandinavian sailors) probably reached the New World and lived for a while on the coast of North America. Historians also believe that, in the four­teenth century, Portuguese and English fishing boats crossed the Atlantic Ocean and landed in Newfoundland and Labrador. But these contacts didn't last long and didn't change anything. Only Columbus's voyages resulted in permanent links between the Eastern and Western Hemispheres and the widespread colonization of the Americas. Columbus's historic landing on an island in the Bahamas on October 12, 1492, was a turning point in world history.

In the U.S.A., this event is celebrated on Columbus Day, the second Monday in October. The holiday is also celebrated in Italy and in most Spanish-speaking countries. In some places, it's called Landing Day or Discovery Day. In many Latin American countries, it is called Dia de la Raza (Day of the Race). Columbus Day celebrations often involve pa­rades, patriotic speeches, and dramatizations of the landing.

In 1992, the year of the quincentennial celebration of Columbus's discovery, there were many debates about who should honor Columbus and even whether he should be honored. In Columbus and the Age of Discovery, the author (Zvi Dor-Ner) describes some of these disputes: "The Spaniards and the Italians argued over how to divide the na­tional honor. [Columbus was born in Genoa, which is now part of Italy, but Spanish money paid for his expeditions.] The Scandinavians contended that if any man should be honored for discovering America, it should be Eric the Red. [Eric the Red, from Nor­way, explored Greenland in the year 985. His son, Leif Ericson, was one of the first ex­plorers to visit mainland America.] The Third World countries insisted that there was no need to honor a rank colonialist. And the nations in the Caribbean basin resented the notion that they had been discovered at all. As the joke has it, they knew where they were; it was Columbus who was lost."

The consequences of Columbus's voyages were most tragic for the native peoples of the Americas. For them, Columbus Day is not a festive occasion but a day of mourning. As Europeans took over the New World, Native Americans lost their lives by the mil­lions. They died from European illnesses or were killed in battles with colonists. Those who survived were forced to live like prisoners in special areas called reservations. So today, when Americans honor the bravery and the genius of Columbus, they also re­member the pain that resulted from his ventures.

Check your comprehension.

Why do some people object to a holiday honoring Columbus?