Why ‘The Sunday Times’ guide to ‘How to be Spanish’ missed the mark
An article written by the paper’s chief travel writer has raised the ire of Spaniards online, but left English Edition editor Simon Hunter somewhat conflicted
Bullfighting hipster anyone? The photo used by ‘The Sunday Times’ to illustrate the story.GETTY
Not since Jamie Oliver shared his “paella with chorizo” recipe has an article in the British media sparked such anger among Spanish readers… This time it’s the hapless Chris Haslam, the chief travel writer at British daily The Times, who, with an article entitled “How to be Spanish,” has scored a (probably unwanted) viral hit on social networks and prompted thousands of irate comments.
Connectors are very important to make the texts we write more cohesive.
There are many different types, but today we are simply going to sonsider the ones used to express contrast or concession, that means when ideas seem to diverge.
Look at the list below:
They all introduce a note of contrast and disagreement, but they have different ways of being used in the sentences. For example their placement may vary. Some are more often used at the beginning, some at the end and others in the middle.
Besides their position, they also require different types of completion. Note the differences in the explanation below:
Although / though / even though (need a full clause (subject + verb).
Despite /In spite of – take a Gerund (ing form) or noun
Despite the fact that… / In spite of the fact that …. – full clause (subject + verb)
Yet / Still /However / Nevertheless – need a comma (,) and come in the middle of two clauses.
Introduction Paragraph 1
state topic (summary of the topic without giving your opinion) Main Body Paragraphs 2 & 3
arguments for & justifi¬cations, examples, and/ or reasons Paragraphs 4 & 5
arguments against & justification, examples, and/or reasons Conclusion Final Paragraph
balanced consideration/ your opinion directly or indirectly
Useful expressions and linking words/phrases
• To list points: Firstly, First of all, In the first place, To begin/start with, Secondly, Thirdly, Finally
• To list advantages: One/Another/A further/An additional (major) advantage of… is … The main/greatest/first advantage of… is …
• To list disadvantages: One/Another/ A further/An additional (major) disadvantage/drawback of. The main/greatest/most serious/first disadvantage /drawback of… Another negative aspect of…
• To introduce points/arguments for or against:
One (very convincing) point/argument in favour of… / against, A further common criticism of… / It could be argued that…..
often claimed/suggested
It is widely argued maintained that…..
generally felt/believed/held
Some/many/most people/experts/scientist/skeptics/critics
claim/suggest/argue/feel that…
maintain/believe/point out/agree/hold that…
advocate (+ing/noun)/support the view that…
oppose the view that…
are in favour of/against…
are of the opinion that/convinced that…
are opposed to…
• To add more points to the same topic:
in addition (to this), furthermore, moreover, besides, apart from, what is more, as well as, not to mention (the fact) that, also, not only … but also/as well, both … and, There is another side to the issue/question/argument of…
• To make contrasting points:
on the other hand, however, still, yet, but, nonetheless, nevertheless, even so,
it may be said/argued/claimed that,…
others/many people oppose this viewpoint/strongly disagree…, claim/feel/believe this argument is incorrect/misguided
although, though, even though, while, whilst, whereas, despite/in spite of (the fact that), regardless of the fact that
Opponents of … argue/believe/claim that…
The fact that… contradicts the belief/idea that…
While it is true to say that…, in fact…
While/Although …, it cannot be denied that…
Useful expressions and linking words/phrases
• To introduce examples:
for example, for instance, such as, like, in particular, particularly, especially, This is (clearly) illustrated/shown by the fact that… One/A clear/striking/ typical example of (this)… The fact that…. shows/illustrates that…
• To emphasise a point:
clearly, obviously, it is obvious, naturally, of course, needless to say, indeed
• To express reality:
In fact, the fact (of the matter) is, actually, in practice, it is a fact that, in effect
• To make general statements:
as a (general) rule, generally, in general, on the whole, by and large, in most cases
• To make partially correct statements:
to a certain extent/degree, to some extent/degree, in a way/sense, this is partly true (but), to a limited extent, there is some truth in (this), in some cases, up to a point
• To explain/clarify a point:
in other words, that is to say, this/which means that
• To express cause: owing to, due to (the fact that), on account of, on the grounds that, given that, because, as, since
• To express effect: therefore, thus, as a result/consequence, consequently, so, for this reason, if… were to happen, … the effect/result would be…
• To express intention: to, so as to, in order to, so that, with the intention of (+ing)
Useful expressions and linking words/phrases: Conclusion expressing balanced considerations/opinion indirectly
In conclusion,
On balance,
All things considered,
Taking everything into account/consideration,
To conclude,
To sum up,
All in all,
Finally/Lastly,
……………………. it can be said/claimed that …
……………………. it seems/appears that…
……………………. it would seem that…
……………………. it is likely/unlikely/possible/foreseeable that …
……………………. it is clear/obvious that…
…………………….. there is no/little doubt that …
…………………….. it is true to say that …
…………………….. although it must be said that …
……………………. it may be concluded/said that …
Useful expressions and linking words/phrases: Conclusion expressing opinion directly
In conclusion,
On balance,
All things considered,
Taking everything into account/consideration,
To conclude,
To sum up,
All in all,
…………………………… it is my belief/opinion that …
………………………….. I (firmly) believe/feel/think that …
…………………………… I am convinced that …
…………………………… I am inclined to believe that …
…………………………… I (do not) agree that/with …
Medical tourism is an awful term. It conveys an image of people from a cold climate flying off to some warm beach resort for a bit of nip and tuck, some dental repair or a few weeks of health spa rejuvenation. Although this does occur, many people crossing borders for health care are doing so for serious medical conditions.
The term has stuck largely due to its aggressive marketing by groups in the US (such as the Medical Tourism Association) which see medical travel and its related tourism spin-offs as a “win-win” for developing countries trying to grow the industry, and for individuals (mostly Americans) who want high quality health care at a low price.
But is medical tourism actually fair?
Advocates tout presumed benefits, like encouraging the construction of more hospital beds for locals, preventing “brain drain” of specialists to greener pastures abroad, and earning revenues that could cross-subsidize and improve the public health system for the destination countries. According to my research in countries like Colombia and Mexico, these benefits all are sound in theory but problematic in practice.
Why do people travel for medical care?
There is nothing new about medical tourism except the term itself. People have long traveled for health spas or medical care. In fact, some researchers like to separate “wellness tourism” from travel for more modern forms of medical care. And we have a pretty good idea of why individuals undertake such travel – usually to avoid long wait times or high costs.
People also travel because their home country lacks quality facilities or to seek treatments illegal or not yet available at home.
And some countries actually send their citizens to other countries for treatment. For instance, the small Caribbean countries of Aruba and Curacao contract with private hospitals in Colombia to take their citizens for medical problems for which they lack treatment facilities.
Even countries with advanced health care systems use medical travel to care for their citizens. Canada sends some of its patients facing long queues for treatment to the US where the system has enough capacity to take extra patients without displacing local patients. And the European Charter of Patients’ Rights allows citizens in EU member states to cross borders for medical care if the wait at home is unduly long. But under this agreement the incoming patient can’t bump a priority case in the destination country and the incoming patient must pay for extra fees or costs.
In these examples, medical tourism is well-regulated and patients are protected. Importantly, locals are not displaced or subject to longer waiting times or delays in care. But the picture in low- and middle-income countries trying to grow medical tourism as an export industry is very different.
Medical tourism industry doesn’t grow public health
In the pursuit of near mythical hordes of uninsured or underinsured American tourists seeking inexpensive medical care, many developing countries have been subsidizing the growth of medical tourism through tax holidays, public marketing programs and infrastructure development.
The medical facilities created to cater to these travelers are generally private. So even if more hospitals and clinics are built and more health staff stay in the country, most regular citizens are unlikely to access these resources. The expansion of capacity is private, not public. And therein lies the trouble.
Hospitals catering at least in part to medical tourists in Mexico and Indiaare exempt from certain taxes in return for offering free services to local needy patients. But it took court cases in India to pressure compliance by more than just a few big hospitals. Such an arrangement is based upon a charity rather than an entitlement model, and is hardly a way to expand universal health coverage.
In Colombia, new hospitals constructed for medical tourists are designated “tax-free zones” with lower tax rates on commercial activities and medical imports in order to attract domestic and foreign investors. Countries compete to reel in private, fee-paying international patients, while many of the health workers providing such care were schooled in whole, or part, at public expense.
Meanwhile the money governments spend promoting or subsidizing this economic sector comes with opportunity costs in the areas it doesn’t invest in, like constructing much needed comprehensive primary health facilities.
There can also be an additional burden on the public health systems of the home countries to which medical tourists return: post-operative complications, follow-up care or transmission of extremely drug resistant infections picked up abroad. These are costs to the public system back home, and are one reason why many Canadian doctors in a recent study expressed dismay at treating those who decide to seek care outside of the country.
Big investments, but uncertain benefits
While some argue that the private medical industry created for tourists could subsidize the public sector, the number of international patients needed to generate substantial new revenues for meaningful cross-subsidization would be of such a scale that they would probably crowd out local access. And trade rules could actually prohibit cross-subsidization from private to public.
There is little evidence that growth in private medical tourism – which is where most of the growth in the industry is occurring – prevents health workers from migrating. Even when it works, these health workers are employed in the private health sector in their home countries, not the public health sector. So holding on to health workers doesn’t necessarily translate into better access to health care for average citizens.
As for the claims about a spectacular growth in medical tourism made by some, and banked upon by those trying to grow the industry, this has yet to come about. We’re still in a Field of Dreams stage where the idea of medical tourism is “if you build it, they will come.” We need to think harder about how to manage growth in the medical tourism sector in low- and midddle-income countries without starving investment in their public health systems.
We use relative clauses to give additional information about something without starting another sentence. By combining sentences with a relative clause, your text becomes more fluent and you can avoid repeating certain words.
How to Form Relative Clauses
Imagine, a girl is talking to Tom. You want to know who she is and ask a friend whether he knows her. You could say:
A girl is talking to Tom. Do you know the girl?
That sounds rather complicated, doesn't it? It would be easier with a relative clause: you put both pieces of information into one sentence. Start with the most important thing – you want to know who the girl is.
Do you know the girl …
As your friend cannot know which girl you are talking about, you need to put in the additional information – the girl is talking to Tom. Use „the girl“ only in the first part of the sentence, in the second part replace it with the relative pronoun (for people, use the relative pronoun „who“). So the final sentence is:
Do you know the girl who is talking to Tom?
Relative Pronouns
relative pronoun
use
example
who
subject or object pronoun for people
I told you about the woman wholives next door.
which
subject or object pronoun for animals and things
Do you see the cat which is lying on the roof?
which
referring to a whole sentence
He couldn’t read which surprised me.
whose
possession for people animals and things
Do you know the boy whosemother is a nurse?
whom
object pronoun for people, especially in non-defining relative clauses (in defining relative clauses we colloquially prefer who)
I was invited by the professor whom I met at the conference.
that
subject or object pronoun for people, animals and things in defining relative clauses (who or which are also possible)
I don’t like the table that stands in the kitchen.
Subject Pronoun or Object Pronoun?
Subject and object pronouns cannot be distinguished by their forms - who, which, that are used for subject and object pronouns. You can, however, distinguish them as follows:
If the relative pronoun is followed by a verb, the relative pronoun is a subject pronoun. Subject pronouns must always be used.
the apple whichis lying on the table
If the relative pronoun is not followed by a verb (but by a noun or pronoun), the relative pronoun is an object pronoun. Object pronouns can be dropped in defining relative clauses, which are then called Contact Clauses.
the apple (which)George lay on the table
Relative Adverbs
A relative adverb can be used instead of a relative pronoun plus preposition. This often makes the sentence easier to understand.
This is the shop in which I bought my bike.
→ This is the shop where I bought my bike.
relative adverb
meaning
use
example
when
in/on which
refers to a time expression
the day when we met him
where
in/at which
refers to a place
the place where we met him
why
for which
refers to a reason
the reason why we met him
Defining Relative Clauses
Defining relative clauses (also called identifying relative clauses or restrictive relative clauses) give detailed information defining a general term or expression. Defining relative clauses are not put in commas.
Imagine, Tom is in a room with five girls. One girl is talking to Tom and you ask somebody whether he knows this girl. Here the relative clause defines which of the five girls you mean.
Do you know the girl who is talking to Tom?
Defining relative clauses are often used in definitions.
A seaman is someone who works on a ship.
Object pronouns in defining relative clauses can be dropped. (Sentences with a relative clause without the relative pronoun are called Contact Clauses.)
The boy (who/whom) we met yesterday is very nice.
Non-Defining Relative Clauses
Non-defining relative clauses (also called non-identifying relative clauses or non-restrictive relative clauses) give additional information on something, but do not define it. Non-defining relative clauses are put in commas.
Imagine, Tom is in a room with only one girl. The two are talking to each other and you ask somebody whether he knows this girl. Here the relative clause is non-defining because in this situation it is obvious which girl you mean.
Do you know the girl, who is talking to Tom?
Note: In non-defining relative clauses, who/which may not be replaced with that.
Object pronouns in non-defining relative clauses must be used.
Jim, who/whom we met yesterday, is very nice.
How to Shorten Relative Clauses?
Relative clauses with who, which, that as subject pronoun can be replaced with a participle. This makes the sentence shorter and easier to understand.
I told you about the woman who lives next door. – I told you about the woman livingnext door.
Do you see the cat which is lying on the roof? – Do you see the cat lying on the roof?
On December 21st2017, most of the Spanish alumni of the Benjamin Franklin Summer Institute Program gathered in Madrid to celebrate the 10thedition of this exchange program for youth. The Benjamin Franklin Transatlantic Fellows Summer Institute is an intensive short term exchange program created in 2006 to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the birth of Benjamin Franklin. The initiative was named after this great American statesman and diplomat, to honor the inspiration his life and career provided to those who work to strengthen transatlantic cooperation. Thus, the purpose of the program is to foster relationships among young Europeans and Americans to build strong linkages and an awareness of shared values. The four week program enables participants to explore U.S. foreign policy priorities such as youth engagement, support for democracy and civil society, and economic prosperity. For the Embassy, the reunion was a great opportunity to share ideas and to renew the already close ties we maintain with these exchange grantees. For the alumni, it was a unique occasion to get to know the Embassy and its work better, and to connect with important alumni groups and resources.
If you are between 16 and 18 years of age, we encourage you compete to become a member of this selected group of young alumni. The next program will take place in June and July of 2018 hosted by Wake Forest University (WFU) in North Carolina. To apply, please check the Call for Applications to the 2018 Benjamin Franklin Summer Institute here. Deadline for receiving applications is Friday February 16, 2018 – 6 PM.
Passive voice is used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not known, however, who or what is performing the action.
Example: My bike was stolen.
In the example above, the focus is on the fact that my bike was stolen. I do not know, however, who did it.
Sometimes a statement in passive is more polite than active voice, as the following example shows:
Example: A mistake was made.
In this case, I focus on the fact that a mistake was made, but I do not blame anyone (e.g. You have made a mistake.).
Form of Passive
Subject + finite form of to be + Past Participle (3rd column of irregular verbs)
Example: A letter was written.
When rewriting active sentences in passive voice, note the following:
the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence
the finite form of the verb is changed (to be + past participle)
the subject of the active sentence becomes the object of the passive sentence (or is dropped)
Examples of Passive
Tense
Subject
Verb
Object
Simple Present
Active:
Rita
writes
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
is written
by Rita.
Simple Past
Active:
Rita
wrote
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
was written
by Rita.
Present Perfect
Active:
Rita
has written
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
has been written
by Rita.
Future I
Active:
Rita
will write
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
will be written
by Rita.
Hilfsverben
Active:
Rita
can write
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
can be written
by Rita.
Examples of Passive
Tense
Subject
Verb
Object
Present Progressive
Active:
Rita
is writing
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
is being written
by Rita.
Past Progressive
Active:
Rita
was writing
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
was being written
by Rita.
Past Perfect
Active:
Rita
had written
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
had been written
by Rita.
Future II
Active:
Rita
will have written
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
will have been written
by Rita.
Conditional I
Active:
Rita
would write
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
would be written
by Rita.
Conditional II
Active:
Rita
would have written
a letter.
Passive:
A letter
would have been written
by Rita.
Passive Sentences with Two Objects
Rewriting an active sentence with two objects in passive voice means that one of the two objects becomes the subject, the other one remains an object. Which object to transform into a subject depends on what you want to put the focus on.
Subject
Verb
Object 1
Object 2
Active:
Rita
wrote
a letter
to me.
Passive:
A letter
was written
to me
by Rita.
Passive:
I
was written
a letter
by Rita.
.
As you can see in the examples, adding by Rita does not sound very elegant. That’s why it is usually dropped.
Personal and Impersonal Passive
Personal Passive simply means that the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence. So every verb that needs an object (transitive verb) can form a personal passive.
Example: They build houses. – Houses are built.
Verbs without an object (intransitive verb) normally cannot form a personal passive sentence (as there is no object that can become the subject of the passive sentence). If you want to use an intransitive verb in passive voice, you need an impersonal construction – therefore this passive is called Impersonal Passive.
Example: he says – it is said
Impersonal Passive is not as common in English as in some other languages (e.g. German, Latin). In English, Impersonal Passive is only possible with verbs of perception (e. g. say, think, know).
Example: They say that women live longer than men. – It is said that women live longer than men.
Although Impersonal Passive is possible here, Personal Passive is more common.
Example: They say that women live longer than men. – Women are said to live longer than men.
The subject of the subordinate clause (women) goes to the beginning of the sentence; the verb of perception is put into passive voice. The rest of the sentence is added using an infinitive construction with 'to' (certain auxiliary verbs and that are dropped).
Sometimes the term Personal Passive is used in English lessons if the indirect object of an active sentence is to become the subject of the passive sentence.
