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Word + Quiz: expatiate

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Word + Quiz: expatiate

1. add details, such as to an account or idea

2. clarify the meaning of and discourse in a learned way, usually in writing

_________

The word expatiate has appeared in seven articles on NYTimes.com in the past six years, including on May 11, 2014, in the Bookends column “Do Critics Make Good Novelists?” in which Daniel Mendelsohn writes:

At the beginning of “In America,” Susan Sontag’s novelization of the life of a 19th-century Polish actress, the suspiciously Susan Sontag-esque American narrator takes a break from her Mitteleuropäisch milieu to talk about — well, Susan Sontag. Eavesdropping on some characters speaking Polish, she’s amazed to find she understands every word:

“I, with my command only of Romance languages (I dabble in German, know the names of 20 kinds of fish in Japanese, have soaked up a splash of Bosnian, and understand barely a word of the language of the country in which this room is to be found), I, as I’ve said, somehow did manage to understand most of what they were saying.”

If I had more space, I’d happily expatiate on what’s wrong with this mortifying passage. But two things leap out right away: the gratuitous humblebrag about the speaker’s fancy expertises (sashimi!), and the labored, self-conscious explanation of her narrative context. The author of this tortured self-advertisement wasn’t a born novelist.

_________

How Much Do You Trust Online Reviews?

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How Much Do You Trust Online Reviews?

Have you ever been burned by a bad online review? Have you ever made a fantastic discovery from a review you read online?

Do you find yourself swayed by the wisdom of crowds? Or do you fear “groupthink” and trust your own instincts?

The internet has democratized the ability to review. No longer do we have to wait for a select group of experts to give their stamp of approval. Instead, anybody can write what he or she thinks online. But who exactly is writing the reviews we read? How reliable are they? And what do they really mean when they give something five or zero stars?

In “Do Not Trust That Stranger’s 5-Star Review,” Joanne Chen, a senior writer at Wirecutter, The New York Times’s product review website, writes:

Last Saturday, I was desperate for Mozart sheet music. It had to be for piano, and it had to be easy to play. Out of 84 options on Amazon, a book with 4.7 stars caught my eye — good enough for a 9-year-old’s music-class presentation. Later that afternoon, I needed to book a hotel for our summer vacation and I trusted the 1,310 reviewers on TripAdvisor who gave my pick an average of four stars, along with a good number of “fantastics” and “wonderfuls.”

Dinner was a 4.5 star meatloaf recipe. And this weekend, with Memorial Day sales in full swing, I will turn to an army of online reviewers who will help me bite the bullet and replace a toilet that has mysteriously begun flushing of its own accord. Someone else will have put the time in at Home Depot so I don’t have to.

But which someone? Who are these reviewers I’m trusting with my purchasing decision, big and small? I don’t know for sure, and yet I feel completely stalled until I’ve scrolled through everything they have to say.

The Opinion essay continues:

According to a 2016 Pew Research Center report, 82 percent of Americans say they read online reviews at least some of the time. But only about 50 percent of online shoppers say they sometimes leave a review for a product or a service, and that number dwindles to 43 percent for restaurants. Only one in 10 people reports “nearly always” leaving a review.

Alex Haefner, who oversees content at Yelp, said the most prolific reviewers are “superpassionate about their local business experience, and they make it their hobby to write about them.” What else do we know about these “super-passionate” people who are shaping so much of how we spend our money?

Panagiotis Stamolampros, a lecturer on business analytics at the Center for Decision Research at the University of Leeds in England, said that research on reviewers is limited, but “what we know for sure is that extroverted and open individuals tend to engage more in social media, and they are also expected to be more involved with online reviews.”

That’s certainly not me. I usually roll my eyes when people in my social network share too much online, and I can’t fathom who would have the extra minutes in the day to write a thoughtful review. And yet I invite people from all over the country to have a say in virtually every aspect of my life.

Stars beget sales. According to an often mentioned Harvard Business School working paper that studied restaurant reviews on Yelp, each added star is associated with a 5 percent to 9 percent increase in revenue. Not surprisingly, then, new businesses have sprung up to exploit the rating system to the seller’s or the platform’s advantage.

In the case of both sellers and platforms, more is more. “Most providers and platforms just want to encourage more reviews,” said June Cotte, a professor of marketing at Western University in Canada. “More reviews signal quality, and it also mutes any bad reviews.”

The tactics to make this happen often lead to rendering the star-rating scale useless. I’m not even talking about asking friends or relatives or paying firms to crank out five-star reviews. (The Federal Trade Commission is cracking down on dishonest practices, while some platforms, like Yelp and Amazon, have designed automated software to combat this, albeit to varying degrees of success.) I’m referring to usually perfectly legit methods, like asking loyal customers to write reviews.

Even if businesses don’t interfere at all, a five-star filter’s usefulness could eventually fizzle out anyway. That’s because in the star-rated universe, the wisdom of the crowd can morph into something more like “the madness of the crowd,” said Matthew Salganik, the author of “Bit by Bit: Social Research in the Digital Age” and a professor of sociology at Princeton.

Students, read the entire article, then tell us:

— Do you read online reviews to help you make decisions — about movies, books, stores or music? Which kinds of reviews do you trust most? What kinds of reviews make you skeptical?

— Tell us about a memorable experience with online reviews, good or bad. Why did you follow the reviewers’ advice? How did the reviews compare with your actual experience of the product or service? What did you learn about reviews from this episode?

— Do you ever write online reviews yourself? If so, why?

— Do you think you will change any of your consumer behavior based on Ms. Chen’s article? Which of her tips on finding the right product or service do you find most helpful? What strategies do you employ to effectively use and filter online reviews?

— Ms. Chen writes:

“Knowing more about what other people are doing and thinking can help us all find the best things faster, but it can also lead to stronger fads where people are following people who are following people who are following people,” he said. “At a certain point, popularity can become separated from how good something actually is.”

Do you believe in the “wisdom of crowds” or do you tend to fear the “madness of the crowd”? Have you ever fallen for a fad because of online reviews? How much should we be worried about the growing power of online reviews?

— Do you think that companies or the Federal Trade Commission should take more steps to combat deceptive reviews on the internet?

Learning With: ‘‘‘It Was Like a Zoo”: Death on an Unruly, Overcrowded Everest’

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Learning With: ‘‘‘It Was Like a Zoo”: Death on an Unruly, Overcrowded Everest’

5. How have insurance and mountaineering companies along with the government of Nepal sought to commercialize Mount Everest? How has the Nepalese government responded to charges that it is providing too many permits to climbers?

6. How has the profile of the typical Everest climber changed over the last 20 years? How has this change contributed to the dangers on the mountain?

7. Rizza Alee, an 18-year-old climber from Kashmir, said:

“I saw some people like they had no emotions,” he said. “I asked people for water and no one gave me any. People are really obsessed with the summit. They are ready to kill themselves for the summit.”

What is your reaction to Mr. Alee’s claim? Why do you think people were willing to risk death to reach the top of Mount Everest? How do you view the ambitions of people like Mr. Dohring who wish to get to the top of the highest mountain in the world?

Finally, tell us more about what you think:

— The authors write:

Nepal has no strict rules about who can climb Everest, and veteran climbers say that is a recipe for disaster.

“You have to qualify to do the Ironman,” said Alan Arnette, a prominent Everest chronicler and climber. “But you don’t have to qualify to climb the highest mountain in the world? What’s wrong with this picture?”

What rules or regulations do you think the government of Nepal should create to ensure greater safety for climbers on Mount Everest? What responsibility do the climbers themselves have for improving safety on the mountain?

— The article describes the situation of Fatima Deryan, an experienced Lebanese mountaineer, as she made her way to the summit when less experienced climbers started collapsing in front of her:

Temperatures were dropping to -30 Celsius. Oxygen tanks were running low. And roughly 150 people were packed together, clipped to the same safety line.

“A lot of people were panicking, worrying about themselves — and nobody thinks about those who are collapsing,” Ms. Deryan said.

“It is a question of ethics,” she said. “We are all on oxygen. You figure out that if you help, you are going to die.”

She offered to help some of the sick people, she said, but then calculated she was beginning to endanger herself and kept going to the summit, which is currently measured at 29,029 feet. On the way back down, she had to fight her way again through the crowds.

“It was terrible,” she said.

What would you have done if you were Ms. Deryan? Would you have stopped to help other climbers, and perhaps risk your own life? What if your choice to help another would have jeopardized your lifelong dream to reach Everest’s summit?

— How adventurous are you? If so, what is it about adventure that entices you? If not, why not? What is the most adventurous or greatest physical challenge you have ever endured? What inspired you to attempt it? Was it worth it?

— Would you ever consider climbing Mount Everest? Why or why not?

Further Learning Network Resources:

Film Club: What if He Falls?

Student Opinion: Is It Selfish to Pursue Risky Sports Like Extreme Mountain Climbing?

Picture Prompt: One Last Adventure

Jack-of-all-trades

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Jack-of-all-trades

Would you consider yourself a specialist or a generalist? In other words, have you focused your talents on one area in particular? Or are you more of a “jack-of-all-trades” — someone who does a lot of different things and has many different interests?

Which do you think is the better approach to life? Is it better to focus on one thing early on and get really good at it? Or to pursue many different interests, hobbies and careers over a lifetime? Why do you think the way you do?

Tell us in the comments, then read the related Book Review to find out one author’s thoughts.

Find many more ways to use our Picture Prompt feature in this lesson plan.

Word + Quiz: rostrum

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Word + Quiz: rostrum

1. a platform raised above the surrounding level to give prominence to the person on it

2. beak-like projection of the anterior part of the head of certain insects such as weevils

_________

The word rostrum has appeared in 17 articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on March 11 in “Real Madrid Rehires Zinedine Zidane as Its Coach” by Rory Smith:

Just 284 days after he left Madrid — after three Champions League titles in three years — after claiming that both he and the club needed a “change,” Zidane walked back into the media suite at the Santiago Bernabéu flanked by his wife, Veronique, Pérez, and a phalanx of Real legends.

… Little wonder, then, that Zidane — just as he did when he left Madrid, five days after lifting the third of those Champions Leagues — took to the rostrum once again speaking of the need for change. “This club is what had to and has to change,” he said. “Things have to change, in every way. We have to change for next season.”

_________

What Do You Plan to Catch Up On This Summer?

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What Do You Plan to Catch Up On This Summer?

Summer is just around the corner. Tell us how you would like to spend your time off from school, including the names of books, movies, television shows, albums, dance performances, plays and concerts you would like to check out.

In the introduction to “A Season to Catch Up on Reading,” John Williams writes:

Most years around this time, we ask The Times’s staff book critics what they’ll be reading over the summer. But book critics, when not reading, also spend the summer like the rest of us do: taking in movies, plays, ballets and the sun. So we’ve asked our book critics to tell us what other cultural offerings they’re looking forward to this season. And we’ve saved the “what you’re planning to read” question for The Times’s esteemed critics in other disciplines, bookish types all.

James Poniewozik, chief television critic, writes:

Having just finished writing a book that required a ton of nonfiction reading, I’m glad to read fiction again. First, I’m going to punch one of the remaining holes on my Nerd Card by finally reading “Watchmen,” the dark superhero alternative history by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, held to be one of the greatest graphic novels. It’s also the jumping-off point for an HBO series later this year, so I’m still reading for work as well as fun. But, baby steps.

Jennifer Szalai, book critic, writes:

My horror-movie-watching habits are seasonal: While I hesitate to watch anything with zombies in the winter (feeling trapped indoors by the weather makes for too much verisimilitude), I’m generally game to be terrified in the summer. Jim Jarmusch’s “The Dead Don’t Die” is billed as a “zombie comedy” — the trailer makes it look more funny than scary, and the cast (including Tilda Swinton as a swordswoman-mortician) is a big draw for me. I was thinking that one of the shuffling, decaying figures looked suspiciously like Iggy Pop — and sure enough, it is.

The fifth season of “Black Mirror” is coming in June — brilliant and unsettling technological dystopia that’s so close to our present moment that I can only bear to consume a single episode at a time. I’m also looking forward to “I must create a Master Piece to pay the Rent,” the first museum survey of work by the Los Angeles artist Julie Becker, who died in 2016.

Students, read the entire article, then tell us:

— Are there any recommendations you just read about that interest you? If so, which?

— If you were asked to contribute an item for the same article, what would you recommend? Why?

— Have a look at The Times’s 75 recommendations for summer reading. What is your favorite genre or genres? What selections look interesting to you?

— What do you hope to accomplish and enjoy over the next few months in terms of reading, watching, listening, museum-going or otherwise engaging with creative works?

Students 13 and older are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

Learning With: ‘European Parliament Elections: 5 Biggest Takeaways’

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Learning With: ‘European Parliament Elections: 5 Biggest Takeaways’

Before reading the article:

What have you heard, seen or read about the European parliamentary elections that took place throughout Europe in recent days?

Look at the photo above. Why do you think predicting the political parties that would gain and lose seats in advance of the elections was such a topic of interest? How does this compare to the focus of congressional election predictions in the United States at the state and national level?

Now, read the article, “European Parliament Elections: 5 Biggest Takeaways,” and answer the following questions:

1. The article begins: “The most prominent takeaways from the results of the elections for the European Parliament are fragmentation and polarization.” What evidence do the writers provide to back this claim?

2. How did voter turnout compare with recent previous elections? Who is Martin Selmayr? How did he characterize many citizens’ reasons for voting in this election?

3. What percentage of Parliament seats were secured by members of populist parties? How did this compare with the predicted “populist wave” that many expected? Where in Europe did populist candidates seem to have better results? Why, according to the article, might populist victories not lead to “influence on the European level” in Parliament?

4. Members of what sort of parties have run European Parliament for decades? Why has their influence weakened? What, according to the article, must happen in order to create a “working majority”?

5. What party in Britain took an estimated 31 percent of the vote? What is that party’s goal? Who leads it? How might not taking a stand on Brexit have affected the votes some candidates received? What parties do they represent?

6. What group will decide whether Britain will leave the European Union? When will this decision be made?

7. What are the goals and concerns of the Green Party? Where did this party see its greatest successes in the election?

Finally, tell us more about what you think:

The related article “European Election Results Show Growing Split Over Union’s Future” states:

The one thing the varying populists do agree on is disrupting the system, and they are bound to make consensus more difficult on future European budgets and legislation. This European Parliament will simply be messier and harder to control than before.

Read the entire article, identifying what the elected populists care most about in each nation mentioned. How do you think members of Parliament who are from centrist parties will respond? Explain why you think that.

Amusement Park

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Amusement Park

Do you like amusement parks? If so, what are your favorite rides and why? If not, why not?

What’s your most memorable experience at a theme park?

Tell us in the comments, then read the related article to see more photos from New York’s hometown park, Coney Island.

Find many more ways to use our Picture Prompt feature in this lesson plan.

Day in the life of an architect

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Day in the life of an architect

What could be more stimulating than bringing to life a physical structure, straight out of your mind’s eye? That’s what draws architects to their craft – the ability to create something both imaginative and utilitarian, that real people can use and be inspired by. According to the Australian Institute of Architects, “A career in architecture offers opportunities to shape, perhaps even transform the environment in which we live.”

An architect’s process

It’s more than creativity that architects need in their skill set – they must gather skills in design, environmental awareness, technology and science to influence the way people live and interact with the built environment. They begin with the logistics like budget, and the client’s expectations, in order to create a brief. From there, it’s through to the design phase to unleash creativity, as well as analyse the conditions of the site. The design must be further developed to finalise technical detail and gain approvals, until finally, construction begins and the vision is realised. It’s a long process that can take years, but the satisfaction gained can be immense.

Joe’s brilliant career

We chatted about the architecture industry with Joe Toscano of DP Toscano Architects, who focuses on the residential and small commercial market. “The building industry is quite a technical industry – we need to know about design and running the business, but we also need a fairly strong understanding of building construction.”

Joe Toscano drawing plans

Joe Toscano – Architect in Melbourne

For those looking to get into architecture, Joe recommends getting on a building site to witness the end goal coming to fruition. “It gives people the opportunity to understand [what it takes] to transition from drawings to the actual built form.”

The demand for architects in Australia

Professional architects are expected to be in high demand in Australia leading up to 2020, according to figures from the Australian Government’s Job Outlook initiative. Architects currently have a lower than average rate of unemployment, and Job Outlook’s figures also show that architecture is a large occupation, with 24,500 practitioners actively employed in November 2015.

Architecture graduates have a wide array of career opportunities, including work in private practice or government. Some will also specialise in heritage, sustainable design or commercial projects. There are many possibilities to pursue a passion outside of mainstream architecture practice – such as project management, urban planning, construction law, interior design, disaster relief.

Study architecture online

While in theory, anyone can design a building, there’s a lot of study involved with gaining the title ‘architect’, explains Steven Feast – who is the Online Coordinator for Architecture and Interior Architecture at Curtin University. A career in architecture starts with a 3 year undergraduate degree, such as the Bachelor of Applied Science (Architectural Science) from Curtin University through Open Universities Australia (OUA).

This course covers the design of buildings, the technical aspects of building construction, and how architecture relates to the way people live. Feast describes it as a broad-focus degree where students work through increasingly complex projects each year. It leads to employability in architectural building design firms and development companies in areas such as urban design, environmental research, building conservation, heritage matters or community development.

For those looking to study at Postgraduate level, Curtin University also providers the Master of Architecture. It features two years of advanced studies in design project work, architectural history, theory and research, management, law and professional practice. Given the course’s online nature, students can be working in the industry while completing advanced design projects, analysing urban contexts, and considering urban design and place-making – putting their new skills to use immediately.

We’re excited to provide a number of online courses in architecture, planning and construction – offering a level of study for anyone.

If you’d like to chat about your career goals, fill out the form on this page, and we’ll put you in touch with a friendly student advisor. 

Coursera Extends East Coast Reach with New York City Office

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Coursera Extends East Coast Reach with New York City Office

Today we’re excited to announce the opening of our New York City office to support the expansion of Coursera’s fastest growing business line, Coursera for Business. The new Manhattan location will serve our rapidly expanding customer base in North America and on the East Coast, with particular emphasis on the financial and professional services verticals. The office will be led by Stéphanie Durand, who built our EMEA enterprise hub from the ground up and will now be focused on scaling the enterprise team and customer network stateside.

Coursera for Business is growing at an exponential rate in North America as more companies realize that talent transformation is mission-critical in the changing economy. In the last year, Coursera for Business saw 300 percent year-over-year customer growth. To date, we have helped over 1,800 companies and governments worldwide achieve their talent transformation goals, including more than 60 companies in the Fortune 500.

The new office will serve key East Coast verticals, including financial and professional services. With disruptors like blockchain and AI, we see great demand among these industries to train employees in technical skills and transform into data-driven organizations. Coursera’s Global Skills Index, for example, found that critical data science skills like machine learning and data management are increasingly popular in finance. We look forward to partnering with these companies to offer our transformative learning solution and equip them with the skills needed to compete.

Want to join our team and transform lives through education? We’re growing fast, so check out our open roles in our new New York City office.

 

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