Fabiana - My favorite room

The room in my house where I cook and eat is my kitchen. Perhaps the kitchen is the most important room in many houses, but in my house, the most important room is my bedroom, because it’s the place where I spend most of my time doing daily activities.

My favorite things are there: computer, books, TV, CD player, wardrobe with my purple clothes. I love purple, it’s a beautiful color! I have many purple things, like my curtain, the sheets and pillows of my bed, my wall and my chair. It’s fantastic! I have so many happy memories of times I spend here: When my friends visit me, we watch movies and TV series, play cards and use the computer to see funny videos.

Sometimes my best friend sleeps and we make a mess in my bedroom: eat chocolate, drink juice, talk about our boyfriends and we gossip about everything. It’s fun! I have studied a lot here, I spend hours sitting at my desk, reading and writing about subjects of university. My room is the most comfortable place in my house. I love to sleep in my bed and rest. Undoubtedly, some of the happiest times of my life have been spent in my bedroom.

Junior - Pros and Cons

Having a university degree

Most of the young people have the wish to enter College. However, they don't know what the world will expect of them with or without university degree.

First of all, having a university degree is much more than having a well-paid job or being intellectual. You must want to change everyday your little world, use what you learned for this. Many kinds of Graduate Student Oath refer “...execute the job with honesty and dignity, respecting your professional code and justice...”. By the way, this is the most important beyond gaining status or being recognized by people.

University life has many disadvantages, mainly it comes to liability, because there your parents don't help you anymore. In college, it seems that universe conspires against you. Having a social life is very improbable, professors ask a lot of homework, projects and tests, you have to manage your free time (if possible).

One huge advantage is that you can live several types of experiences. Try the ability of time management, meeting different people, learning new things etc. Another interesting point is that the student won't have a limit. It's possible to succeed in an academic career as grad student. Despite all bad things above mentioned, in my opinion, having a university degree is wonderful because by being somebody much better, you could live a bit better and build a bit better world.

In conclusion, to get a university degree is to try to improve as human being both intellectually and personally. We have to understand that entering a place where thoughts are wherever you lookis an opportunity for changing your thinking and making the difference in whatever you do.

Patricia - Pros and Cons

Having a university degree: pros and cons. One of the most important questions after high school is: “Should I go to college?” The answer depends on many different factors, but in most cases the answer is: “Yes, I need to go to college”. Nowadays there are many jobs that require a college degree, especially in the medical and engineering fields. Certainly having a degree is important, but just having a college degree doesn’t guarantee you a good job. In fact, there are many graduated people who are unemployed. In my opinion, having a college degree is important because more options are opened up to you in the job market. You will have a better chance to make money and, in addition, college helps to create a well-rounded person with better social and academic skills. Some of the cons I can mention are that the college fee is very expensive, you also don’t have the chance to earn money right after coming out of high school, you are constantly exposed to a highly competitive atmosphere, you are always exposed to high stress, you are not able to eat correctly and you don't get too much sleep. Finally, when deciding if college education is required or not, the student must weigh up all the pros and cons as well as other more personal reasons. Going to the university allows a student not only to become an expert in the chosen field, but also to become a conscious and political citizen, a person who really thinks and acts ethically.

Glauber - Complaint letter

Gláuber Wampo

Rua Prestes Silva, 1242.

02332-003

Dear Fulaneto,

I am a little upset with you because I’ve worked hard every day. Yet, you don’t give me my money.

I know that you have always paid me on time. I think that you have some problems that's you haven't paid me yet. However, I need the money. I have to pay the rent and my mother is hospitalized and the hospital is very expensive.

So I ask you to pay my salary today. Sorry about being as forward as that. I can’t stand doing it, but I am really in need. I really expect that you are not upset with me.

Yours sincerely,

Mr. Camponogara.

Fabiana - Complaint letter

Second Composition

Mr. Wilson,

I am writing this letter to express my dissatisfaction about the salary delay. In the first place, it isn’t correct to delay the salary of people that are working for you. People need to receive their payment at the end of the month. Nobody works for free in this life.

Day in day out, I have always done my work rightly: deliver activities on time, I´m never late, I do a good work and everyone in the company likes my job including you, so I don’t understand the reasons that caused this terrible situation.

Nowadays, my family needs my financial help to live. My salary is used to pay all the bills of the month. I have a little sister and I pay her school, buy clothes, toys, dolls, food, medicine, etc. She really needs me. You have a family too, and probably your salary is used for the benefit of them, so I hope that you understand my words.

I apologize if I was rude in this letter, but I am very worried. I believe that in life, we must do our best for people, and unfortunately you didn’t act this way. I wish you paid my salary as soon. My life is driven by honesty and I hope yours too.

Kind regards,

Fabiana

Pricila - Complaint letter

São Paulo , October 05.

Mrs. Brian Evans

I'm writing to inform you about a very strange situation. It has been already twenty days that I haven’t been paid. At first, I thought it was a mistake but after I observed that many employees hadn’t been paid too!! The employees of this factory chose me to represent them, and try to solve this problem!!

I know the factory is going through financial difficulty, but we need to pay the bills of our homes. Nobody was informed about the late payment and it is very serious!! We are ready to make a deal, and looking for a good solution for both parties!! If you don't pronounce about it, we will be obliged to go on strike!! I hope it will not be necessary and that all will be resolved peacefully.

Respectfully yours,

Pricila Barbosa

Patricia - Complaint letter

1524, Prof. Lineu Prestes Avenue

Butantã - São Paulo/SP - Brazil
Postcode: 05508-900

Phone: 555-3850

28 September 2011

Mr. Thomas Gray

The Administrative Officer
Alpha Enterprises
343, Alvarenga Avenue
Butantã - São Paulo/SP - Brazil
Postcode: 05578-900

Dear Mr. Thomas

I am writing to inform you of my dissatisfaction with the delayed payment of the employees this month. Every month the payment is made on the 5^th day, but this month there was a big delay that affected our bank accounts. This error put me in a difficult position, I particularly got into debt and I felt very embarrassed because I wasn´t able to fulfill my commitments.

To resolve this problem I would appreciate you could make the current payment with an additional sum, in order to correct my bank situation. I also suggest that the payment could be made through bank transfers instead of receiving cash at the department.

I'm afraid that if these conditions are not met, I may be forced to take legal action to receive the total amount of money with interest rates.

I look forward to your reply soon with a good explanation and proposal. I didn’t want things to be like that, but I have to demand my rights. Please contact me at the above address or by phone.

Yours sincerely,

Patrícia E. (Sales manager)

Rafael - Inventions

Biribol... What is it?

Biribol is a water sport similar to volleyball but played in a swimming pool. It was invented in the city of Birigui -that´s why the name is Biribol- by the teacher and undertaker Dario Miguel Pedro. Around 1950, Dario met with friends on weekends and looked for a way to have fun. Then he had the idea of to use the swimming pool of his house with two friends, and with a ball they started to play imagining a line that divided the swimming pool. With time the sport developed. And in 1968 the game was created with rules, official measures of the swimming pool and, of course, volleyball net. There are four players on each side.

This sport is very good for our health because it helps in our fitness and in keeping us fit. Moreover, it is very good for having fun in a hot summer day. However, Biribol is not very practiced in the winter unless in a heated swimming pool.

So, Biribol is an authentic Brazilian sport and nowadays there are some competitions around the state of São Paulo. Who knows one day Biribol can be in the Olympic Games?

Rodrigo - Inventions

One of the most important inventions of the 20th century was the internet, that was invented in the 60's by the U.S.A. military. It was during the cold war, witch divided the world in two parts: one capitalist, the Americans and other socialist, the Russians. The Americans were afraid of an imminent attack by the russians at their information base, and because of this, after much research, the internet was invented.

The internet changed the way we live, currently almost everyone is connected almost all the time. The number and the speed that the information comes to us is almost unbelievable. With the internet we can do a lot of things in the comfort of our home. With the social networks like facebook, myspace, orkut, we find a lot of old friends, we make new friends, we are always in contact with our friends and family. With the webcam and programs like skype we can see and speak with everyone, everywhere.

Of course not everything is perfect in the internet's world. The internet, like anything, has a limit for use it. Some people get addicted and forget how to live in the reality. Nowadays we often send an email to people that are in the other side of the aisle instead of go there and talk face to face with the person . Another problem is the sedentary, more and more the internet facilitates our lives and because of this we do not have to leave our homes to do anything, everything you want, you can ask by the internet and comes home, without you leaving your chair.

So, in my opinion the internet revolutionized the world, after its invention the life style of all people has changed, and like every invention, the internet should be used for the good of the people, and with no exaggeration.

Marcelo - Inventions

The Phone

Many people say "Alexander Graham Bell invented the phone", but it is not true, who invented the telephone was Antonio Meucci in 1860. Meucci was Italian. He invented it because he needed to talk to his wife, who was sick and she always stood upstairs in their house.

The main benefit of the phone is to talk with other people in real time, even if the person is in the other side of the world, and talk by the phone is cheap.

The downside is that people talk a lot on the phone and they don't visit their friends and family, so people became more impersonal.

In my opinion, the phone helps a lot, the benefits are better than the downsides, but I think that the internet is going to replace the phone, the internet is easier to use and cheaper too.

Silvia - Inventions

Composition: An important invention. (final version)

I used to think that the telephone was invented by Alexander Graham Bell but after a little research, we can see that many scientists dispute the credit for this invention. But as usual the Americans Elisa Gray and A. Graham Bell have become the best known.

The telephone emerged from the creation of the electrical telegraph. Though the early researches of the telegraph were from the fourteenth century, in the seventeenth century many scientists in many countries were searching for other ways of sending multiple telegraph messages simultaneously over a single telegraph wire by using different modulated audio frequencies for each message and these efforts led directly to the invention of the telephone, or 'the speaking telegraph'.

The invention of the telephone made people closer at a time when transports had not been developed yet. At the beginning, they were heavy and the sound was not so clear. In the course of time, they became much lighter and achieved a better performance.

The disadvantage of the telephone is that it needs wires to connect people. That’s why nowadays we may have much more cell phones than telephones. Another disadvantage is that it is not so secure. If somebody wants, he can hear our conversation without our awareness.

I chose to tell you about the telephone because in my opinion it can be considered one of the most important invention in the whole telecommunication development process.

Pricila - Inventions

The invention of the computer.

There is not just one inventor of the computer, as the ideas of many scientists and engineers led to its invention. These ideas were developed in the 1930s and 1940s, mostly in an independent way, in Germany, Great Britain and the USA, and were turned into a working machine. In Germany, Konrad Zuse hit upon the idea of building a program-controlled calculating machine, when he had to deal with extensive calculations in statistics. In 1935, he began to design a program-controlled calculating machine in his parents' home in Berlin. This was the grandfather of our computers.

In modern times, the computer is very important. It’s used both for leisure and for work! We can know the world using the computer and have fun! We can store photos, music, work, etc.

The disadvantage of the computer is that sometimes people don't go out and have fun to use the computer. The computer is a technology that is always moving forward, we have new computers every year, with new programs and types. Thus, the computers we buy today is will probably be outdated in a few months. In my opinion, the computer is very important to most people in the world! One of the most usefull tools developed for the computer is the internet, it helps us to communicate with people, make friends, have fun, etc. I could not live without the computer.

Patricia - Inventions

The refrigerator: a useful and interesting invention of the modern world. One of the most notable inventions we use daily at our homes is the refrigerator, also called fridge. Its history is very interesting but a little bit confusing, because there are a lot of people involved in the creation of this household appliance. The first known artificial refrigeration system was demonstrated by William Cullen at the University of Glasgow in 1748.However, he didn´t use his discovery for anything. In 1805, an American inventor called Oliver Evans, designed the first vapor-compression refrigeration machine, but only in 1834, Jacob Perkins modified Evans' original design, building the world's first refrigerator and filing the first legal patent for refrigeration using vapor-compression. In 1918, William C. Durant started the Frigidaire Company in order to begin the first mass production of refrigerators. Until then, the refrigerating system needed to use some flammable and toxic gases and only on 1980s more efficient refrigerators were developed providing a safer and low-toxic device. The great advantage of having a fridge at home is the reduction of spoilage of foodstuff. It permits people to eat more fruits, vegetables and meat that can be stored for longer periods. Keeping the food and drinks in the fridge is healthy and hygienic because it decreases the reproduction rate of bacteria. Another advantage we can mention is the duration of the product. Some fridges can last for more than 10 years with a good performance. A disadvantage of fridges, nowadays, is the great energy expenditure because it needs to be plugged 24hs a day. Despite some modern models being equipped with a thermostat that can control the temperature and turn off the freezing system, it is still very expensive to maintain a refrigerator. Finally, the refrigerator is such a miracle of the modern world that we sometimes don´t give it the deserved recognition. In my opinion, every the little thing that can make our life easier and healthier must be valued. The fridge can be a common and silly thing for many people, but try to live without one to see how difficult it is.

Caroline - Inventions

Cell phone – the most important invention.

I think that the most important invention is the cell phone. It was invented by Bell Labory in the USA in 1947, but it was impractical comparing to what is considered a portable handset today. The cell phone weighed 80 pounds (36 kg), and the AT&T service, basically a massive party line, cost US$30 per month (equal to $337.33 today) plus 30–40 cents per local call, equal to $3.37 to $4.5 today.

Nowadays, you don`t need to ask me why the cell phone is so fantastic because everybody uses it to talk with somebody, play games, listen to music, take pictures, surf the web, in other words, to do everything.

However, you can ask me why I chose the cell phone to write about, since we have a lot of good inventions like the car, the subway and the internet, etc. I `ll tell you. The cell phone connects people and the world. We use it to study, work or just relax. You can see people with cell phones in all the places: streets, parks, subways, cars, schools, even, in other countries! Cell phones are cheap! Everyone has one, it`s accessible and portable! You can write a quick text message if you need to say something but you can`t make a call. This is very common in the cinema, a meeting or in the traffic.

The best of everything is: The scientists couldn`t produce any evidence that the cell phone is dangerous to the health. The only thing that we need to concern about it is the addiction in teenagers that use the cell phone to everything during all the day, but this is a surmountable problem, as parents tend to put limits on cell phone bills. Now I need to ask you. Do you thing it`s possible to use the cell phone for a short time? Consider how many functions it has. Can you imagine the world without the cell phone?

Fabiana - Inventions

A great discovery was the invention of the lamp. The lamp was invented by Thomas Edison in the USA in 1879.The inventor made numerous tries to conclude that carbonized cotton could produce light for 40 consecutive hours.

This invention brought benefits to all humanity. Before, people depended on the candles to survive: the candle has a short lifetime and the light that is produced by it is weaker than that of the lamp. Nowadays people can have nightlife, they can go out more comfortably to have fun, they can read a book or study until the wee hours. The invention of the lamp was a milestone in History.

Unfortunately, lately people aren’t using the electricity wisely. They squander the light overly, forget lamps lit and aren’t looking for new sources of energy. It takes a lot of money to produce this energy.

In my opinion, the invention of the lamp was fantastic! I can’t see my life without lamps. When the power goes out from my home, it is terrible! Depending on candles to perform my daily activities, would be really awful! So it is necessary for people to save energy because one day this energy can end.

Junior - Inventions

The air conditioner.

Willis Carrier invented a mechanical system to condition the air in Syracuse, New York, in 1902. He was a 25-year-old engineer who was called to solve a problem at the textile company Sackett-Wilhelms Lithography and Publishing Co. In wet and hot days the paper absorbed humidity and this dilated the paper, so the colored lines weren’t aligned with those painted in cold and dry days in winter. Willis knew laws of Physics; he thought about taking the humidity out of the factory by decreasing the air temperature with pipes artificially cooled, this was the first process like an air conditioner.

The air conditioner is a way in which the humans can adapt themselves to the environment; it shows as the human being can make good things for everyone. In fact, it is a machine used everywhere and wherever you go. The thermal comfort is the most important sensation preferred by people. Another essential characteristic provided by air conditioning is food conservation. The global population increases everyday, so that it’s necessary more food and, consequently, it needs to store it properly as well.

Thermal machines release an exorbitant quantity of heat by system of heat exchanging. Therefore, systems of air conditioning bring many problems to society, like the employment of energy and the efficiency loss. Few years ago systems of air conditioner released Chlorofluorocarbon, which damaged the ozone layer. However, fortunately nowadays, this gas cannot be released anymore, an international law prohibited it.

According to ideas above, this invention is very important for society and economy, but we have to prepare ourselves for fast changes soon, adaptation and mitigation are necessary because the great use of energy becomes more and more dangerous for Earth life. In my hometown, Fortaleza, I needed this invention so much because there it is very hot and for people to work indoors , air conditioners must be turned on.

Ika - Inventions

BICYCLE INVENTION

I know the bicycle isn´t a current invention, but it was an important one and it can be a good alternative to help the environment.

The bicycle was first ridden in Europe in the 18th century, but it was drawn by Gian Giacomo Caprotti, a pupil of Leonardo da Vinci, in 1493, and it was certified by some researcher.

In 1862, some exclusive ways in Paris were opened, in the city parks, for bicycles. And in 1875, Michaux Company produced the first bicycle of Europe.

In 1868 in Paris, there was the first racing bike, but the winner was an Englishman.

In 1898, bicycles arrived in Brazil coming from France but just in 1948 it was produced by Caloy and Monark.Currently, Brazil is the third biggest bicycle producer of the world.

When I ride a bike, I can feel the wind on my face and it gives me a sensation of freedom.

Bicycles don’t pollute, and they are cheaper than another kind of transportation and I can do exercise.

I rarely ride a bike in SP because I´m afraid of the traffic and the safety of doing it.

My husband likes it very much and he rides his bike on weekends. I need to have courage to do the same because now I have one bike lane near my house on Sundays.

When we went to Paris and Amsterdam last June, we rode bicycles a lot, but there I felt happy and safe because since the 18th century there are permanent bike lanes .