Text 1
Eating in the Past
In the past, people didn’t always eat what we eat today. Unlike diners weaned on
a typically western diet, our ancestors would hunt ants, small mice and gather
birds’ eggs, roots and tubers. Once the hunter-gathers settled down, they
consumed livestock such as pigs, goats and sheep. They also planted wheat,
barley and millet, and ground and baked them into bread. Thousands of years
ago, bread already became a staple food. Another difference with now is that
food could take on a symbolic meaning. For instance lettuce was believed by the
ancient Egyptians to bring hope, associated with the beginning of spring. They
also believed fish improved their fertility. Today, symbolic foods are most usually
reserved for holiday meals. Another big difference is that food in the past wasn’t
always flavoured in the way that we do. The Phoenicians were probably the first
people who salted their foods.
Question: Is this text comparing or contrasting?
Text 2
Read the following and notice the similarities and differences.
Bike Lanes
Bike lanes aren’t seen in every country. There are still plenty of countries where
cars and bicycles share the same road, which is a predictable cause of cyclists
being “mowed down” by vehicles. Other countries do have bike lanes — the ones
in Copenhagen even have railings for when you want to hold your balance or push
off your feet. But so many cyclists use them, that they get congested and people
have to use their elbows to push through. Some tourists are so scared by the
aggressive cyclists that they’d rather take a tram or bus. In another bicyclefriendly city such as Amsterdam, you also need to keep your eyes open as a
pedestrian, because cyclists can run into you in unexpected places. In some cities
such as Munich, New York and Tel Aviv, there are beautiful, but inconvenient bike
lanes that are placed right next to a sidewalk. Unfortunately some people with
short-term memory deficit aren’t always clear on which space is reserved for
which kind of transport. Again, this can be a case of dithering, with possible
dangerous repercussions.
Question: What kind of text is this? Does this text compare or contrast?
Text 3
Left-Handed vs. Right-Handed
One in about nine people are left-handed. In the past, left-handedness was
believed to be from the devil, so for instance at school, left-handed pupils were
forced to use the other hand. Several myths still circulate about lefties: that
they’re more creative, die at a younger age and that being left-handed is a
Darwinian survival strategy. However, left handers are just as creative as righthanded people. Whereas it can seem at first sight as if there are an awful lot of
left-handed famous guitarists, such as Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain and Paul
McCartney, one should mention the other 90 right-handed artists who are just as
capable. Left-handed people don’t die earlier than right-handed people; however,
more left handers suffer from autism, schizophrenia and dyslexia. It isn’t true
either that left-handedness is a survival skill. It was thought until recently that
having a south paw would have a surprise effect in battle, and this would lead to
relatively high numbers of left handers in the population. However, a new study
in Papua-New Guinea, where conflicts were until recently still resolved through
physical fights, only 3.6 percent of the population is left-handed, much less than
the average. It’s true, though, that left handedness is hereditary. Two righthanded parents have a 10 percent chance of giving birth to a left-handed child,
whereas with two left handers this chance will rise to 26 percent.
Now you fill in the table:
Statement
Statement
Comparison or Contrast?
An old superstition says
that right handers are good
people
Comparison
Right handers don’t die
later then left handers
Left handers suffer more
from certain conditions
Contrast
Compare and Contrast
Week 5: Class 2
Decorating the Body
Piercings and tattoos are body decorations that were already popular in ancient
times and with different peoples. Tattoos are designs on the skin that are made
with a needle and coloured ink. A tattoo is meant to last forever. You can only
remove them by certain uncomfortable treatments, of which lasers are the most
common. Body piercing involves making a hole in the skin to insert jewellery.
Earrings are a form of piercing, but other body parts may be used too. In contrast
to tattoos, piercings usually close up once the wearer removes the jewellery.
There are a number of health risks attached to both tattoos and piercings. They
can trigger allergic reactions. A type of scar tissue can form, either during the
placing or removal, called keloids. Certain infections can occur, such as hepatitis.
These risks can be avoided by choosing a reputable facility, which executes proper
sterilisation of equipment.
Now you fill in the table:
Statement
Statement
Comparison or Contrast
Same with tattoos
Body piercings close up
once you remove the
jewellery.
Comparison
Text 2:
In the quest for academic skills, schools world-wide aim to improve math and
reading skills. However, problem solving is another skill that students need to
master. For that reson the OECD ranks the results of the problem solving test
alongside the traditional academic accomplishments. It’s been known that the US
has been lagging in the results of school tests, sinking below the average among
developed countries. Japan and Finland always command the highest rankings in
all the three skills. However, a country’s average score doesn’t necessarily reflect
the mean capabilities of all the students in the country. In a huge country such as
the US, there are gaps between the lowest-performing and the top students. In a
small country, such as the Netherlands, which ranks high in the academic scores,
there may be regional differences, but on the whole the results are spread evenly.
A last factor that is noteworthy is that students whose parents are collegeeducated did much better in the tests. However, having college-educated parents
is less significant in other countries besides the US.
Complete the table for this text:
Statement
Statement
The US has been lagging in
academic tests.
In a small country such as
the Netherlands results are
spread evenly.
Comparison or Contrast
Contrast