First year - 1ºC - Tuesday 9 March 2010

Summary of the class:

- Correction of exams.

- Speaking practice: Did you go anywhere last weekend?

- Page 56. Reading: Girls' Night Out

- Grammar: Past simple irregular verbs. (Pages 130 and 131)

- Page 57. Speaking: A Night Out

HDR (High Dynamic Range) is probably a misnomer and should be called CDR

As you can see here if you enlarge it I have used the trick of combining three exposures with +/- 2 f stops difference using a technique called tone mapping found in photoshop and Photomatix (shown here).  This is a very useful technique. However, lots of people are referring to this technique as HDR, or high dynamic range photography. I think this is probably wrong and should be referred to as Compressed Dynamic Range or CDR imaging, when presented on limited dynamic range screens, papers, printings etc.

The reason I am so sure about this is from my experience with music recording, some of it linked here in 640 plus posts about microphones. (in case you are remotely interested). In that field, the recording device is capable of recording a dynamic range far exceeding the playback equipment.  Audio clipping - the same concept as white clipping - creates a very harsh and unpleasant sound in the digital environment.  That's where gain leveling and finally the dark art of music mastering come in - so the music will fit in the "channel".  Same as the paper, screen or printed page, the channel is limited, sometimes severely, such as an MP3, or Sirius downlink.

Compressed Dynamic Range

Anyway, CDR is what is shown, above. Just an open garage on a sunny day. CDR can look pleasant and reasonably natural, eliminating the clipped highs (except on the left car) and the all-black detail-less shadows. I think CDR is going to be a standard feature in fast, burst shooting point and shoot cameras very soon, but they will still call it HDR.

It Was All A Dream...

When I 1st feel in love with Hip/Hop is when I first bought "Ready 2 Die".. The album was dirty and rauncy and I actually got in trouble for buying but back when I was growing up Frank White was everything I aspired to be.. Flashy, Dapper, Had all the chicks and wore all the fancy clothes.. Yeah he to me is what people like T.I, Jeezy, and Sad but true Waka Flocka is to the new generation of young people...


I remember getting excited when The "Big Poppa" video came on and expecting to see everybody from Busta Rhymes to Mary J. Blige getting it crunk in the video... back then you anticipated the who's who among hip hops elite and them coming through and showing love..

He will always be remembered as a talent gone away to soon and my favorite MC of all time...

My "Top" 5 Favorite Biggie Joints..

1. 10 Crack Commandants
2. Warning
3. One More Change (remix)
4. Skies The Limit
5. One More Chance (Original)

And Various Countless Others...

R.I.P BIG.

First year - 1ºB - Monday 8 March 2010

Summary of the class:

- Correction of exams.

- Speaking practice: revision

- Page 53. Speaking practice: Top people in Spain.

- Speaking practice: Sylvia and James.

Fourth year - 4ºA - Monday 8 March 2010

Summary of the class:

- Correction of tests.

- Common mistakes. Correct the mistakes in the sentences taken from your written exercises. Click here to see the document.

- Vocabulary: good - bad - thing. Click here to see the exercises.

Congrats 2 MO'nique and Her Homage 2 Hattie McDaniel..

Congrats to Mo'nique for winning Best Supporting Actress following in the footsteps of the one person you connected with last night.. Ms. Hattie McDaniel.... Good Look Mo..

Fourth year - Listening: Acupuncture

Listen to the following article and say whether the statements below are TRUE or FALSE.






1. William Osler is a medical doctor.
2. He thinks drugs are the best way to treat illness.
3. Reflexology is an alternative medical treatment.
4. The author is scared of needles.
5. The author's experience of acupuncture was a good one.
6. An acupuncturist inserts needles in body organs.
7. Henry Kissinger had his appendix removed in China.
8. A lot of doctors believed that acupuncture doesn't work.
9. Acupuncture does work for some medical problems.
10. Acupuncture is only used to treat people who are ill.
11. Tony Blair uses acupuncture to relieve stress.
12. The Queen of England uses alternative medicine.


Click here to read the script and check your answers.