English 101: Uses of Nouns (series 1.A3)

         This is my 7th writing in the series of English 101, and the 3rd writing under the Noun series. The first in a series is about the different Parts of Speech, wherein a noun is a part. 

    The second series is about different kinds of Nouns, and the third series is about Singular and Plural Nouns. 

    Due to the pre-requisites in understanding this topic, Uses of Nouns, I have to post first the different Kinds of Pronouns and the Kinds of Verbs and Characteristics of Verb.

      

This is one topic about nouns that some high school students are having a hard time with, identifying in a sentence the use of the noun. To start with, let us enumerate the seven (7) uses of nouns and how to identify each of them in a sentence. 

1) as SUBJECT. The noun is placed before the verb (action word/linking verb/helping verb).
    Examples: God cares for us.
                      Alex lived on a small island.
                      A lullaby is a song for babies.
                      Mother and I are cooking some pasta.
                      Grandfather had his boat ready for the sail.
                      The crew did nothing to save the passengers on the ship.
                       Leo should win the academy award for his performance.

*linking verbs=am, is, was, are, were
*helping verbs=do, does, did, has, have, had, shall, should, may, might, will, would, can, could, ought, must

2) as SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT. The noun is placed after the linking verb.
    Examples: The giver of any good gift is God.
                      The time setting of the movie was 1942.

3) as DIRECT OBJECT. The noun is placed after the transitive verb.
        (transitive verb=when a person or thing directs the action toward someone or something)
    Examples: We thank God for all His blessings.
('we' directs the action 'thank' to God, thus making it the direct object)
                       Let us help Gino and his family.
('us' direct the action 'help' to Gino, thus making it the direct object)

4) as INDIRECT OBJECT. The noun is placed between the transitive verb and the direct object.
    (direct object=answers the question of who or what receives the action)
    Examples:  The mother gives Laura the consent she was asking for.
    ('gives', the transitive verb, 'the consent' answers the question, what does the mother give? so Laura is
       the indirect object)
                       She asked the teacher about the contest tomorrow.
    ('asked', the transitive verb, 'the contest' answers the question, what did she ask? so the teacher is the
       indirect object)

5) as NOMINATIVE ADDRESS. The noun refers to a person or persons spoken to in a sentence.
     Examples: Gina, stop it.
                       Sheila, Andrea, go get some help!

6) as OBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT. The noun comes after the direct object to modify or
    describe it.
    Examples:  She considered Manang a member of the family.
                       He plays basketball well, my favorite sport.

7) as APPOSITIVE. The noun is placed after another noun to identify or define it.
    Examples:  My confidant, God, never lets me down.
                       Her favorite English teacher, Miss Sicuya was among her guest.  
 

#noun #directobject #complement #appositive #subject #nominative #English101 #grammar             

English 101: Characteristic of Verbs (series 1.C2)

Determining what transitive and intransitive verbs are is just one of the students' difficulties in studying English subjects. And this topic would easily enable them to understand another difficulty, identifying the active and passive voice of a verb. 

For previous topics in this series, click the link below:
Parts of Speech
A. Nouns/Kinds of Nouns
     1. Singular and Plural Nouns
B. Pronouns/Kinds of Pronouns
C. Verbs/Kinds of Verbs

Transitive and Intransitive Verbs

image credit to teachers. onlineenglishexpert.com

A verb is transitive when a person or thing directs the action toward someone or something. The receiver of the action is the object of the verb.

Examples;

1) He composed an emotional song. (the action 'composed' is directed toward something which is 'song')
2) Mother bakes my birthday cake. (the action 'bakes' is directed toward something which is 'cake')
3) She helped the old man in crossing the street. (the action 'helped' is directed toward someone which is the old man)
4) The AFP send their military men to Basilan. (the action 'send' is directed toward someone which is the military men)

A verb is intransitive when the doer of the action does not direct the action toward someone or something.

Examples:

1) The sky darkened in the east.
2) Father already left from his office.
3) The glass broke.
4) Tinay fell.

CLICK HERE for Exercises

Active and Passive Voice

Voice tells whether the subject of the sentence is the doer or the receiver of the action.

The verb is in the active voice if the subject performs the action.

Examples:
1) Mother gave me a new dress. (the subject 'mother' performs the action 'gave')
2) He played the basketball game fair and square.

The verb is in the passive voice if the subject receives the action.

image credit to grammar.about.com

Examples:
1) I was given a new dress by Mother. (the action 'given' is received by the subject 'Mother')
2) The basketball game was played fair and square by the team. (the action 'played' is received by the subject 'team')
3) The messenger was sent to the office.

CLICK HERE for Exercises



            

Leonardo DiCaprio: The Actor, The Environmentalist

And the OSCAR for Best Actor goes to...Leonardo DiCaprio!

     As the winner was announced by Julianne Moore on the Oscar Awards night, friends and colleagues of  Leonardo DiCaprio and his fans all over the world screamed for joy, that finally, the long-delayed and most coveted award is already his. Though anticipated for his acting performance in the movie The Revenant, the Oscar awards had bypassed him for four performances which most of his colleagues and fans believe he deserved to be. Imagine, a highly paid actor with box-office hits and mostly recognized by other award-giving bodies but continuously snubbed by OSCAR. Thus, numerous memes emerge on social media for non-winning of the said award (he could have won an award for the most number of memes of all time).
        In 1994, he was nominated for best actor in a supporting role as a mentally challenged younger brother of Johnny Depp in What's Eating Gilbert Grape?; best performance by an actor in a leading role for the movie The Aviator in 2005; two (2) years after he was nominated again for the same category for Blood Diamond; in 2007 he has been nominated again for the movie The Wolf of Wall Street, and finally, the prestigious OSCAR award recognized his performance in his latest movie The Revenant. He was a runner-up in those (4) movies toppled by Tommy Lee Jones (The Fugitive), Jamie Foxx (Ray); Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland); and Matthew McConaughey (Dallas' Buyers Club), respectively. He had won many awards from other award-giving bodies in his other movies as well as his latest one, The Revenant.

         I may have reacted to some of his movies for which he didn't win an award or get nominated for his acting. He is not only a good-looking actor, he can really act and gives justice to whatever role he was given with. Since his movie Titanic started his full stardom (though he had other movies back then), people noticed not only the handsome face he has been carrying but his charisma and how he reprises each role given to him. I have been able to watch most of his movies, from a doomed lover in a cruise ship to a medieval king with a twin, to an American backpack adventurer, to a con-man, to a filmmaker and aviator, to a police undercover agent, to a gunrunner and diamond smuggler, to a CIA agent hunting down a powerful terrorist leader, to an unheroic cowardly husband, to a corporate spy who uses subconscious infiltration through shared dreams, to a plantation and slave owner during 1850s, to a mysterious millionaire longing for his already married ex-girlfriend, to a Wall Street stockbroker millionaire, and recently to a crew trapper/frontiersman survivor. DiCaprio is also one of the highest-paid actors in the world and all his movies are earning well and well.
      Now, Leonardo DiCaprio on his advocacy for wildlands conservation, ecological biodiversity, ocean conservation, and climate change made him love even more by fans who admire him for his looks and movies. A fan like me who does not only support but practices what the Greenpeace Movement holds for, in its effort to make this place a better place to live in by our children's children, will really have his hands up for these undertakings from famous people. True to his words, he has solar panels installed in his home, he owns an electric Tesla Roadster, a Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid, and a Toyota Prius. In 2007, he produced, co-written, and narrated a documentary film about the problems facing the earth's ecosystem. The documentary entitled The 11th Hour addresses the problem of global warming, deforestation, mass species extinction, and depletion of the ocean's habitat. The 11th Hour documentary also proposes potential solutions to these problems. His winning moment during the OSCAR night was staged by an unusual speech to a call about global warming which catches the attention of all the celebrities, fans, and bashers alike.

"Climate change is real, it is happening right now. It is the most urgent threat facing our entire species and we need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating. We need to support leaders around the world who do not speak for the big polluters, but who speak for all of humanity, for the indigenous people of the world, for the billions and billions of underprivileged people out there who would be most affected by this. For our children's children, and for those people out there whose voices have been drowned out by the politics of greed." ~ DiCaprio, Oscar 2016

The many faces of Leonardo DiCaprio

Everyday Spices to Grow Indoors

     

     Lack of soil in the city, spices, and vegetables aren't getting any cheaper, the cravings for more spices and veggies push me to make research edible plants that we can grow indoors even if we don't have enough soil or none at all. I have been hearing about hydro phonics before and become interested in it. I need a thorough study on hydro phonics but then I stumbled upon some sites stating varieties of edible plants we can grow on a pot, sacks, hanging baskets, and bags.  I have made some research on the plants which we need every day in our kitchen - ginger, onion, garlic,  and. bell pepper.

In preparation, you will need these materials: a clean knife, cutting board, and starter pot with potting soil, a plastic bottle of soda or mineral water will do.

GINGER

1) Put a chunk of ginger in a container with soil. Make sure the freshest-looking buds are faced up.
2) Place the container in an area that receives indirect sunlight and wait for new growth to sprout out of the soil. Keep the soil consistently moist.
3) To harvest, pull the entire plan out of the soil.


ONIONS

1) Slice off the onion bottom with all the roots still intact, with the onion meat of 1.5 to2 inches. The more of a bottom you slice off the better.
2) Allow drying for a few hours or two days in a shaded and ventilated area, depending on how the cut portions are already dried.
3) Fill your container 10 inches in depth of the soil (for a 5-gallon bucket). Be sure the container has holes 3 inches apart. For the best result, use well-drained loamy soil with a neutral pH. Enrich the soil with compost before planting.
4) Dig in to create a cradle for each onion's bottoms to allow good contact with the soil. Depending on the diameter of the container, you can accommodate 3 to 4 onions in the container, however, 3 inches distance from each and the container's side is needed to grow them fully.
5) Cover with  1 to 2 inches of soil. Water as needed.
6) To have green onions, harvest the stalks before the bulb matures or it reaches 6-8 inches.
7) The bulb is ready to harvest when the tops begin to yellow and fall over. Bend the tops down. Once it turns brown, pull each bulb carefully.

* Onions need more water when grown in containers. Be aware that onions may look healthy even when they need water.


GARLIC

1) An 8-inches deep wider pot is needed to plant garlic. Mix soil with gardening sand with a 3 to 1 ratio of soil to sand.
2) Place garlic bulbs with the pointed end facing up, and the flat end to the soil. Push the bulb 4 to 6 inches deep into the soil. Do not cover with soil but the bulb should have (1) inch space from the top of the soil. Each bulb should be 4 inches apart from each and away from the container's side.
3) Direct sunlight for 8 hours is needed every day. Water the soil by sprinkling water evenly. The soil must be kept moist, but not very wet.
4) As the garlic begins to have left, wait for the flower to sprout. Cut the flower at its base so that the energy comes and makes the bulb bigger.
5) When the leaves begin to turn brown and fall out. Harvest the garlic by pulling them out. Hand to dry.


BELL PEPPER

1) Soak the seeds in warm water for up to 8 hours until they sink to the bottom.
2) Prepare a sterilized, loose-draining potting mix in a plastic cup. One seed for each plastic cup,
3) Poke a hole of 1/4 inch deep to bury the seed and loosely cover it with soil.
4) Place them in a warm sunny location. Keep the seeds moist by spraying water. Do not drench and allow it to dry out.
5) Once the seedlings sprouted 2 fully grown leaves, transfer to a larger pot with a loose, well-draining soil with high content of organic matter. Depending on the size of the pot you may combine multiple plants in a single pot.
6) Dig a small hole in the potting soil the same size as in the plastic cup. For multiple plants, it should be 2 inches apart.
7) Carefully cut the plastic cup on the side and place them in a hole. Pack the soil to become firm and stable.
8) Keep the plants warm and well-lit. Fluorescent light 3 inches from the top of the plant, 14 to 16 hours a day is much better.
9) Water the plants consistently. Soak them every few days and dry in between.
10) To increase yield, pollinate the plant when they flower, by using a cotton swab; rub the pollen from the anthers on a male flower and swab the pollen into a female flower called stigma.
11) Harvest them when they reach a usable size and appropriate colors by using shears leaving (1) inch stem to the plants.
* Bell pepper leaves can also be used in other dishes such as chicken and corn soup.

English 101: The VERB (series 1.C1)

     This is my 6th writing about Parts of Speech in English 101, the Verb. This is the third part of the speech that is being discussed here, after Nouns and Pronoun. A verb is a word that expresses an action or state of being. Action verb denotes an action word such as clap, tap, walk, dance, talk, jump, etc. The linking verb denotes a state of being such as am, is, was, are, or we. We also have what we call the helping verb used with the main verb to form verb phrases.

*credit image to tes.com lessons

Action Verbs > show either a physical or mental action.
    Examples: His plane landed at NAIA two hours ago. (physical action)
                      She always hopes for the best in us. (mental action)

Linking Verbs > used to connect the subject of a sentence with a noun or an adjective identifies or describes the noun or pronoun.

Helping verbs:  be, been                 have, has, had        
                          do, does, did         will, would
                          shall, should         can, could
                          may, might           must

* some words seem to look like an action verb but are used in a sentence as a linking verb.
        Examples:
               appear       get        remain     sound
               become     grow     seem        stay
               feel            look      smell       taste

How do distinguish action words used as linking verbs?
>> Try to replace the word with the actual linking verb, if the thought of the sentence does not lose its sense, it means it is a linking verb,

Examples:  The baby feels agitated when he arrived.
          *The baby is agitated when he arrived.
                 (the word 'feels' is a linking verb)

                   The baby feels the drop of water on his face that made him laugh.
           *The baby is the drop of water on his face that made him laugh.
                      (the word 'feels' is an action verb here since when we replace the actual linking verb, it does lose its sense)

The Real "Hampaslupa"

     Hampaslupa is a word that we mostly hear from our television soap operas when someone who has been in Alta-Sociedad (high society) belittles another person who is not equally the same with their social status. Hampaslupa, Pega la Tierra, is a derogatory remark originating from Spaniards which means "hits the ground" probably arises during the agrarian division between the haciendas and the rural folks tilling the land. It can also be associated with another Filipino expression of  "isang kahig, isang tuka" (one scratch, one peck-as what a chicken does), for hitting the ground one would be able to feed himself or his family. Until today, it has been widely used for insulting someone and in Senorita memes for humor.

     Hampaslupa used to describe our Filipino farmers, as pitiful, doing dirty work, considered a poor man's job. In contrast to other countries, farming/farmers are highly regarded. In China, Confucian ideology considered farmers as next to scholars, in Thailand, they taught their young in school that farmers are the backbone of the nation, in the United States, farming/farmers are particularly valued and mostly successful, even France and Germany shared the same view that farmers are an important factor in maintaining the equilibrium in the society's structure.
     So it is not really demeaning to be a farmer, even in the United States, they have the 'No Farm, No Food Movement' giving importance to farming as their source of food and income. Hampaslupa is the farmers who feed us, they plant and put their harvest on our table. We are the consumers of their products, therefore we are participating in farming and affirming the value and role of farmers. We contribute to tilling the soil by the choice of food we eat. Collectively and individually, we are hampaslupa. For this, we are encouraging everyone to make a pledge of securing the food on our table, encouraging farmers as well. Read the pledges and  Challenge yourself.

Read more:
Importance of Agriculture

No Farms, No Food

Beware of Mosquito-Borne Virus

     Seven years ago, my son contracted a mosquito-borne viral infection, the dengue virus. Three days of high to low fever, had me suspected of dengue fever. On the fourth day, I have seen that he had bleeding gums, right then I decided to take him to a hospital since I know how fatal dengue is. It pays to be informed of every disease that could snatch out the ones we love. Though he survived that fatal disease, it leaves a traumatic experience for him due to intermittent blood extraction to check on his platelets. I have come to know through doctors that there are four (4) strains of dengue infection in which you cannot be immune if you have had the other one. My son had strain I (DEN-1) and strain IV (DEN-4), meaning he is still not immune to strain II and III.

     After five years, I contracted another mosquito-borne viral infection. Fever, headache, and massive joint pains which I suspected then as dengue. I am taking chances with my life then before seeking the doctor's help, if my gum bleeds that was it. Joint pains is unbearable for me then because I was not able to walk, so I consulted my doctor and was diagnosed having the chikungunya virus. Though this one is not fatal, the extreme pain of the symptoms as well as taking antibiotics was hard for me. 

     The onset of another mosquito-borne virus is in our news nowadays, the zika virus urges me to do some research on the four most known mosquito-borne viral infections aside from malaria, yellow fever, dengue, chikungunya, and zika virus.

Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes. 

• Incubation is 3-6 days. 
• The 1st acute phase occurs with fever, muscle pain with prominent backache, headache, shivers, loss of appetite, nausea, and vomiting. 
• The 2nd phase, the more toxic phase, high fever returns, and several body systems are affected.
• Jaundice, abdominal pains, vomiting, and bleeding can occur from the mouth, nose, eyes, and stomach.
• Blood also appears in the vomit and feces. Kidney function deteriorates. Patients who enter the toxic phase die within 10 - 14 days. 
• Vaccines are available. 
• No specific treatment but can be treated with antibiotics.

Dengue Virus is transmitted by a female mosquito of the species Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. The former is usually widespread in tropical and subtropical countries in Asia while the latter is in cooler temperate regions of Europe. 

• Aedes aegypti is a day mosquito that bites early in the morning and before dusk in the evening. 
• Incubation is 4-10 days.
• A high fever of up to 40°C/104°F, headache, pain behind the eyes and muscle pains, nausea and vomiting, swollen glands, rashes, and bleeding gums are the symptoms but not necessarily all of them.
• Complications that can be deadly are plasma leaking, organ impairment, severe bleeding, respiratory diseases, or fluid accumulation which may occur 3-7 days after the 1st symptoms. 
• Infected persons are the carriers of the disease. 
• No specific treatment but maintenance of the patient's body fluid is critical for its treatment.
• Vaccine is now available 

Chikungunya Virus is also transmitted to humans by infected mosquitoes, the most common are the Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. The name chikungunya is derived from the Kimakonde language in Africa, "to become contorted" since the patient appears stooped due to joint pains.

• The virus is transmitted from person to person by infected female mosquitoes. 
• Sudden onset of fever accompanied by joint pains are the primary symptoms.
• Onset of illness occurs in 4 to 8 days or 2 to 12 days.
• Headache, nausea, vomiting, muscle pain, fatigue, and rash are the common symptoms.
• Joint pain can be debilitating and can last for weeks, months, or even years.
• Symptoms can be the same as in dengue and can be sometimes misdiagnosed in some regions.
• No specific treatment or cure but treatment is focused on relieving the symptoms.

Zika Virus is transmitted to a person through the bite of an infected mosquito, Aedes aegypti, the same mosquito that transmits dengue, chikungunya, and yellow fever.

• incubation period is not clear
• symptoms include mild fever, rash, and conjunctivitis which lasts for 2 to 7 days.
• some symptoms are similar to other mosquito-borne diseases, including muscle, and joint pains, malaise, and headache.
• no specific treatment and vaccines available

** Zika Virus is reportedly associated with a birth defect of microcephaly due to an increase in several babies born with it in  Brazil. Regarding the matter, World Health Organization (WHO) just released a news statement associating neurological birth defects with the zika virus.

** As we have noticed, the same mosquitoes and symptoms can be observed in all of these diseases. They only differ in the kinds of virus and strain the mosquitoes are carrying and transmitting to humans.

Definition of Terms:

* incubation period - from the time of exposure to the onset of symptoms

* microcephaly - a type of birth or congenital defect wherein the infant's head is significantly smaller due to incomplete brain development.

* plasma leakage - leakage of blood plasma out of the capillaries.

PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE

FOR MORE INFORMATION, LINKS ARE PROVIDED BELOW FOR DISSEMINATION:

*Question and Answers: Zika and Pregnancy

*WHO(World Health Organization) statement on the first meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) Emergency Committee on Zika virus and observed increase in neurological disorders and neonatal malformations

*WHO Director-General Summarizes the Outcome of the Emergency Committee on Zika

#zikavirus #chikingunya #dengue #yellowfever #aedesaegypti #microcephaly