Welcome to English as a Second Language podcast number 581, Reading a World Map.
This is English as a Second Language podcast episode 581.
Visit our website at eslpod.com Download a learning guide for this episode.
The learning guides contain all of the vocabulary definitions, sample sentences, additional definitions, cultural notes, comprehension questions and a complete transcript of every.
This episode is called Reading a World Map.
We're going to talk about vocabulary related to maps.
This is a dialogue between Greg and Juliana.
Let's get started.
What are you doing with that map and that globe?
I'm trying to keep track of Carmen as she travels from country to country.
I just got another postcard from her today.
I'm not sure I like the idea of my daughter traveling around the world with a group of people for three months.
It's not safe.
She can take care of herself.
You know she's the adventurous type.
Give her a compass and she can find her way around anywhere.
Help me find Naoru on this map.
I don't even know what continent it's on.
I was never any good at geography.
All right.
You look above the equator and I'll look below it.
But couldn't you just look it up on the internet?
It would be easy to find the latitude and longitude of this place.
This is more fun.
I sort of feel like I'm on an adventure myself.
I can't make heads or tails of this map.
It's not to scale, and this legend is all wrong.
It doesn't matter.
We just need to find the place name, and then I can put a pin in this map showing where she's been.
I have a better idea.
I'll look it up on the internet and get you all of the vital statistics you'd want, like its location, okay.
Forget it.
Sometimes it's more fun doing things the hard way.
Greg begins by asking Juliana or Juliana, I think she prefers Juliana.
What are you doing with that map and that globe?
A map is a piece of paper with drawings on it that shows the location of places, and Map actually has a couple of different meanings in English, however.
To find those, take a look at our learning guide for this episode.
A globe, G-L-O-B-E, is a round ball that has a special stand and it goes around.
And on this ball is a map of the world.
Greg says, Juliana says, I'm trying to keep track of Carmen as she travels from country to country.
I just got another postcard from her today.
A postcard one word is a small rectangular, typically piece of paper that you send through the mail.
It usually has a picture of the place you are visiting and on the back you write a message, something like wish you were here, meaning I wish that you could be with me.
Usually not, though.
Usually you don't really want other people with you on vacation, but you say that, right?
Julianna says Greg says So Greg and Juliana have a daughter who is going around the world with a group of people.
Juliana says she can take care of herself.
You know she's the adventurous type.
Someone who is adventurous is someone who is always looking for excitement, wanting to do new and unusual things.
I am not the adventurous type.
I prefer to sit in my chair, drink some tea, and read my book.
I'm kind of a boring person, basically.
Juliana says, give her, meaning give Carmen, a compass and she can find her way around anywhere.
A compass, C-O-M-P-A-S-S, is a small, flat, round device that has an arrow in it.
And the arrow always points north. no matter which way you hold it.
It's something that a traveler would use to know what direction they should go in, especially if you are, for example, out in the woods or away from anything.
That would give you a good indication of which direction was north.
At nighttime, for example.
She says that Carmen can find her way around anywhere with a compass.
She then says to Greg, help me find Nauru on this map.
I don't even know what continent it's on.
Nauru, of course, is a country.
A continent... is one of the seven large areas of land in the world.
We talk about seven continents in the U.S.
We talk about Africa, Asia, Antarctica, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America.
In some places they talk about five continents.
But in the United States, we have seven, or at least that's what we say.
Juliana is trying to find what continent the country of Nauru is on.
She says, I was never any good at geography.
Geography is the study of the surface or the area of somewhere on Earth, especially where things like countries and cities are located.
That's part of geography.
Greg says, all right, okay.
You look above the equator and I'll look below it.
The equator is an imaginary line around the middle of our planet, Earth.
It separates the north half from the south half.
We call these halves hemispheres.
So there's the northern hemisphere where I live, and the southern hemisphere where perhaps you live.
That's what the equator is.
So Greg is going to look in the northern hemisphere, and Juliana will look in the southern one.
He says, couldn't you just look it up on the internet?
Greg says, it would be easy to find the latitude and longitude of this place.
Latitude refers to imaginary lines that go around the Earth from east to west, you might say.
Longitude are lines that are perpendicular.
They're at a right angle to latitude lines.
Longitude lines go, if you will, from north to south.
If you know the latitude...
If you know how far north or south something is and longitude, how far east or west something is, then you can find a place.
Every place on Earth has a specific latitude and longitude.
Latitudes are sometimes called parallels.
So we talk about the 45th parallel.
These latitude lines are sometimes used, for example, in dividing countries or areas.
Juliana says this is more fun.
I sort of feel like I'm on an adventure myself.
I sort of means I somewhat, I kind of, to a certain extent.
I sort of don't want to go and see my brother-in-law.
I sort of don't want to go.
I kind of, it's not something that I love to do.
I'm not completely against the idea, but I sort of don't want to go.
Well, Juliana says she sort of feels like she's on an adventure.
Greg says, I can't make heads or tails of this map.
The expression to make heads or tails T-A-I-L-S of something means to be able to understand something.
The word heads and tails comes from a coin.
There are two sides, a front of a coin we call the head and the back of the coin called the tail.
So the expression to make heads or tails of means to be able to understand.
We use it in talking about anything that seems very confusing to us.
Greg says, Greg is saying that the map is not to scale.
To scale means that the actual distance on the map between two points between say, one city and another city, the distance on the map is the same in proportion to the actual distance.
That is, if you look at a map on the United States that is to scale, you'll see that the 500 miles from Los Angeles to the north is perhaps two inches.
Well, two inches on anywhere in the map equals 500 miles.
That's a map that is drawn to scale.
A legend.
Sometimes called the key K-E-Y is a small box on a map that explains what the different colors or symbols mean on that particular map.
They often also tell you what the scale is.
One inch equals one mile or one inch equals 200 miles.
Juliana says it doesn't matter.
It's not important if it's not to scale and the legend is all wrong.
We just need to find the place name.
The place name is the word on a map that indicates the country or city or other place where this thing is.
Then she says, I can put a pin on this map showing where she's been.
A pin is a small piece of metal like a small little stick, but you use it to attach say, a piece of paper to the wall.
Greg says, I have a better idea.
I'll look it up on the internet and give you all the vital statistics you'd want, like its location okay,
Vital, V-I-T-A-L, statistics, in this case means detailed information, numerical information.
Technically, it usually refers to how many people are born, how many people die, coming from the Latin vita, referring to life.
But here it just means the specific details.
Juliana doesn't want to look it up on the internet, however.
She says, forget it.
Sometimes it's more fun doing things the hard way, doing things in the most difficult way possible.
Where is Nauru?
Well, I looked it up on the Internet.
I didn't look on a map or a globe.
It's actually a small island nation in the South Pacific.
Maybe I'll go there one day and visit.
Now let's listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.
What are you doing with that map and that globe?
I'm trying to keep track of Carmen as she travels from country to country.
I just got another postcard from her today.
I'm not sure I like the idea of my daughter traveling around the world with a group of people for three months.
It's not safe.
She can take care of herself.
You know she's the adventurous type.
Give her a compass and she can find her way around anywhere.
Help me find Nauru on this map.
I don't even know what continent it's on.
I was never any good at geography.
All right.
You look above the equator and I'll look below it.
But couldn't you just look it up on the internet?
It would be easy to find the latitude and longitude of this place.
This is more fun.
I sort of feel like I'm on an adventure myself.
I can't make heads or tails of this map.
It's not to scale, and this legend is all wrong.
It doesn't matter.
We just need to find the place name, and then I can put a pin in this map showing where she's been.
I have a better idea.
I'll look it up on the internet and get you all of the vital statistics you'd want, like its location, okay.
Forget it.
Sometimes it's more fun doing things the hard way.
The script writer for this episode is an adventurous type, Dr. Lucy Say.
From Los Angeles, California, I'm Jeff McQuillan.
Thank you for listening.
Come back and listen to us next time on ESL Podcasts.
English as a Second Language podcast is written and produced by Dr Lucy Say, hosted by Dr Jeff McQuillan.
Copyright 2010 by the Center for Educational Development.
