Questões de Concursos Professor de Inglês

By Justin St. P. Walsh and Alice Gorman, The Conversation | Published: August 15, 2024 | Last updated on August 20, 2024

New results from the first archaeological fieldwork conducted in space show the International Space Station is a rich cultural landscape where crew create their own "gravity" to replace Earth's, and adapt module spaces to suit their needs.

Archaeology is usually thought of as the study of the distant past, but it's ideally suited for revealing how people adapt to long-duration spaceflight.

In the SQuARE experiment described in our new paper in PLOS ONE, we re-imagined a standard archaeological method for use in space, and got astronauts to carry it out for us.

The International Space Station is the first permanent human settlement in space. Close to 280 people have visited it in the past 23 years.

Our team has studied displays of photos, religious icons and artworks made by crew members from different countries, observed the cargo that is returned to Earth, and used NASA's historic photo archive to examine the relationships between crew members who serve together.

We've also studied the simple technologies, such as Velcro and resealable plastic bags, which astronauts use to recreate the Earthly effect of gravity in the microgravity environment − to keep things where you left them, so they don't float away.

Most recently, we collected data about how crew used objects inside the space station by adapting one of the most traditional archaeological techniques, the "shovel test pit".

On Earth, after an archaeological site has been identified, a grid of one-metre squares is laid out, and some of these are excavated as "test pits". These samples give a sense of the site as a whole.

In January 2022, we asked the space station crew to lay out five roughly square sample areas. We chose the square locations to encompass zones of work, science, exercise and leisure. The crew also selected a sixth area based on their own idea of what might be interesting to observe. Our study was sponsored by the International Space Station National Laboratory.

Then, for 60 days, the crew photographed each square every day to document the objects within its boundaries. Everything in space culture has an acronym, so we called this activity the Sampling Quadrangle Assemblages Research Experiment, or SQuARE.

The resulting photos show the richness of the space station's cultural landscape, while also revealing how far life in space is from images of sci-fi imagination.

The space station is cluttered and chaotic, cramped and dirty. There are no boundaries between where the crew works and where they rest. There is little to no privacy. There isn't even a shower.

Now we can present results from the analysis of the first two squares. One was located in the US Node 2 module, where there are four crew berths, and connections to the European and Japanese labs. Visiting spacecraft often dock here. Our target was a wall where the Maintenance Work Area, or MWA, is located. There's a blue metal panel with 40 velcro squares on it, and a table below for fixing equipment or doing experiments.

NASA intended the area to be used for maintenance. However, we saw hardly any evidence of maintenance there, and only a handful of science activities. In fact, for 50 of the 60 days covered by our survey, the square was only used for storing items, which may not even have been used there.

The amount of velcro here made it a perfect location for ad hoc storage. Close to half of all items recorded (44%) were related to holding other items in place.

The other square we've completed was in the US Node 3 module, where there are exercise machines and the toilet. It's also a passageway to the crew's favourite part of the space station, the seven-sided cupola window, and to storage modules.

This wall had no designated function, so it was used for eclectic purposes, such as storing a laptop, an antibacterial experiment and resealable bags. And for 52 days during SQuARE, it was also the location where one crew member kept their toiletry kit.

It makes a kind of sense to put one's toiletries near the toilet and the exercise machines that each astronaut uses for hours every day. But this is a highly public space, where others are constantly passing by. The placement of the toiletry kit shows how inadequate the facilities are for hygiene and privacy.

Our analysis of Squares 03 and 05 helped us understand how restraints such as velcro create a sort of transient gravity.

Restraints used to hold an object form a patch of active gravity, while those not in use represent potential gravity. The artefact analysis shows us how much potential gravity is available at each location.

The main focus of the space station is scientific work. To make this happen, astronauts have to deploy large numbers of objects. Square 03 shows how they turned a surface intended for maintenance into a halfway house for various items on their journeys around the station. Professor de Inglês - 1 1

Our data suggests that designers of future space stations, such as the commercial ones currently planned for low Earth orbit, or the Gateway station being built for lunar orbit, might need to make storage a higher priority.

Square 05 shows how a public wall space was claimed for personal storage by an unknown crew member. We already know there is less-than-ideal provision for privacy, but the persistence of the toiletry bag at this location shows how crew adapt spaces to make up for this.

What makes our conclusions significant is that they are evidence-based. The analysis of the first two squares suggests the data from all six will offer further insights into humanity's longest surviving space habitat.

Current plans are to bring the space station down from orbit in 2031, so this experiment may be the only chance we have to gather archaeological data.

https://www.astronomy.com/space-exploration/archaeologists-conduct-fi rst-space-excavation-on-international-space-station/

O texto III refere-se à questão.

TEXTO III - How the Minnesota Shootings Suspect Was Caught12

After an intense two-day manhunt, Minnesota police captured Vance Boelter, 57, the suspect accused of shooting two state lawmakers and their spouses. The arrest took place on Sunday evening in a rural field near Minneapolis. Despite being armed at the time, Mr. Boelter was taken into custody without the use of force, according to official reports.

The case began early Saturday morning when police responded to a shooting at the home of State Senator John Hoffman. Concerned that the suspect might target other political figures, officers quickly went to the residence of Representative Melissa Hortman. Upon their arrival, Mr. Boelter opened fire on them before escaping on foot through a golf course located behind the house. This incident marked the beginning of what authorities called the largest manhunt in Minnesota's history.

Throughout the weekend, more than 100 officers and nearly 20 SWAT teams were deployed across Sibley County, a largely rural area southwest of Minneapolis. Law enforcement agencies worked together, setting up a temporary command center in a nearby parking lot to coordinate search operations.

The breakthrough in the search came on Sunday afternoon when officers discovered Mr. Boelter’s car and hat abandoned on a remote stretch of road. This discovery significantly narrowed the search area. Later, an officer reported seeing someone, believed to be the suspect, running into a wooded area nearby.

Further confirmation came when a local resident provided footage from a trail camera installed on private property. The image captured on the camera showed a person matching Mr. Boelter’s description. Acting on this evidence, police established a one-square-mile perimeter, deploying drones and police dogs to assist in tracking the suspect’s movements.

Using aerial surveillance, officers spotted Mr. Boelter crawling through thick shrubs. Drones tracked him from above, allowing SWAT teams to converge on his location without engaging in a violent confrontation. Authorities emphasized that despite the suspect being armed, the arrest was made peacefully and without incident.

Following the capture, a photo was released showing Mr. Boelter standing in the field where he was apprehended. The image was edited to obscure the faces of the arresting officers for privacy and security reasons. At the command center, law enforcement officials celebrated the successful end to the operation.

Investigators later praised the rapid response and coordination among different police departments. Officials noted that the quick decision by Brooklyn Park officers to check Representative Hortman’s home shortly after the first shooting may have prevented further violence and shortened the duration of the manhunt.

1 Fonte: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/16/us/minnesota-shooting-suspect-caught-how.html

2 (Adapted from: "How the Minnesota Shootings Suspect Was Caught", The New York Times, June 16, 2025)

Something in the water? Why we love shark films

From the Steven Spielberg classic Jaws, to predators stalking the Seine in Under Paris, there is no shortage of shark films.

Hollywood and audiences love them, seemingly never tiring of the suspense, gore and terror.

There are prehistoric giant sharks in The Meg, genetically engineered ones in Deep Blue Sea, and sharks high on cocaine in the ingeniously named Cocaine Shark.

Even Donald Trump is a fan – he was reportedly due to play the US president in a Sharknado film, before becoming the actual president.

I became hooked on them after watching James Bond film Thunderball, where the villain keeps sharks in his swimming pool.

It led to a lifelong interest in shark films, as well as an irrational fear of swimming pools, even ones filled with chlorine inside leisure centres.

Hayley Easton Street is the British director behind a new shark film, Something in the Water, which tells the story of a group of women stranded at sea.

She explains that, as fan of shark films herself, she “absolutely wanted” to make the movie.

So why are shark movies so popular? “It's the fear of what could be going on with the unknown of [the sea]” she tells BBC News.

“Just being stuck in the middle of the ocean is scary enough. You're trapped in something else's world and anything could happen.”

But despite Street's love of shark films, she did not want the ones in hers to be portrayed as marine serial killers.

“We kill 100 million sharks every year” she notes.

The director was also aware that the release of Jaws led to a huge rise in the hunting of sharks, partly because they had been portrayed as merciless killers.

“As much as I love shark films, I love sharks.”

“I was really conscious of that, because it's easy for people to start seeing them as killing machines... or monsters, which they are not.”

She adds: “I feel it's more scary to have the realistic theme of it, that, you know, if you are out in the ocean and there are sharks and they do mistake you for something else, they will kill you.”

Despite the huge success of Jaws, Spielberg has said he “truly regrets the decimation of the shark population because of the book and the film”.

Spielberg is not the only person concerned about Hollywood's portrayal of sharks and the impact it continues to have.

US marine biologist Andriana Fragola dedicates herself to educating people about sharks, often sharing videos of her diving with them.

She says they are “misunderstood predators” that have been harmed by movies and the media.

Andriana tells me that she has watched Netflix's new shark film, Under Paris, and was not impressed.

“Their whole thing was it's about conservation, about studying them, but then the sharks are still eating people.”

“So it's giving a little bit more of a rounded education and a little bit more depth to the story, it's not just people swimming at the beach and getting attacked and eaten.”

“But the bottom line and what people can draw from the movie is that sharks are still really dangerous to people and they're just going to continuously hunt and eat people.”

“If that was true, we would be reduced as a human species. Everyone who goes to the beach, they would be threatened.”

Andriana says the perception of sharks causes a real issue for conservation.

“It's a huge problem because people don't want to protect something that they're scared of.”

“The perception from people is that they're dangerous to humans so we should eradicate them, and that's obviously a huge problem for conservation and getting people to want to empathise or sympathise with sharks and wanting to actually protect them.”

“It's unfortunate because 100 million sharks are killed every year, and globally sharks kill fewer than 10 people every year.”

“We're really focused on the sharks being the monsters and them being out to get us. In reality it's the opposite.”

It is unlikely that Hollywood will stop making shark films, or we will stop watching them.

But the figures show that far from being the serial killers of the sea, sharks are actually much more likely to be the victims of humans.

Global warming is nearing a critical point, as 2024 became the first calendar year with an average temperature of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, according to The European Copernicus Climate Service.

While it doesn’t mean the Paris Agreement target of keeping the long-term average below 1.5°C has been breached, it highlights how close we are to exceeding it. The rise in global temperatures is primarily caused by fossil fuel emissions, which continue to increase despite international agreements.

Climate scientist Ella Gilbert emphasized the devastating effects of global warming, pointing to events like the Los Angeles wildfires and the floods in Valencia. These disasters are a clear example of extreme weather becoming more frequent and dangerous.

However, she stressed it was not too late to act. Every reduction in emissions and degree of warming can significantly decrease the impact of future disasters. Action must come from governments, businesses, and individuals alike.

Fonte: Adaptado de BBC News. Disponível em: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd7575x8yq5o Acesso em: 15 jan 2025.

Global warming is nearing a critical point, as 2024 became the first calendar year with an average temperature of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, according to The European Copernicus Climate Service.

While it doesn’t mean the Paris Agreement target of keeping the long-term average below 1.5°C has been breached, it highlights how close we are to exceeding it. The rise in global temperatures is primarily caused by fossil fuel emissions, which continue to increase despite international agreements.

Climate scientist Ella Gilbert emphasized the devastating effects of global warming, pointing to events like the Los Angeles wildfires and the floods in Valencia. These disasters are a clear example of extreme weather becoming more frequent and dangerous.

However, she stressed it was not too late to act. Every reduction in emissions and degree of warming can significantly decrease the impact of future disasters. Action must come from governments, businesses, and individuals alike.

Fonte: Adaptado de BBC News. Disponível em: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd7575x8yq5o Acesso em: 15 jan 2025.

This study intended to investigate the language learning strategies used by learners of English as a foreign language, aiming to find the amount of strategies and the domain differences of the strategies used; to reveal the link between strategy use and success levels; and to find out the difference in strategy use between genders and its influence on their achievement in English. 257 (153 male, 104 female) students from Atılım University English Preparatory School participated in the study. At the time of the study all the participants were in the same proficiency level, and were distributed to different classes of the same level. The data were gathered through strategy inventory for language learning (SILL) of Oxford (1990), which was translated to Turkish by Cesur and Fer (2007). The instrument, based on Oxford’s (1990)classification of the language learning strategies, is composed of 50 items in six subscales. The participants responded to the inventory before the end of the level they were in. The data were analyzed through SPSS (15.0) to find the relationship of language learning strategies, gender and achievement in learning the target language. To reveal the interconnections between these factors, independent t-tests and an ANOVA test, along with post hoc procedures were performed on the gathered data. The findings of the study revealed that use of language learning strategies are positively effective in success in English, that females were significantly more successful than males in terms of achievement tests, and that they used more language learning strategies in learning English. Depending on the statistical results, it is discovered that there is a significant connection between gender, language learning strategies and achievement in English.

Available at: https://open.metu.edu.tr/handle/11511/18929 (adapted)