TEXT FOR ORAL EXAM

A) HEALTH :
1) The big picture
- Two-thirds of American adults = overweight (BMI > 25)
 Alarmingly : 36% of adults / 17% of children = obese (BMI >30)
 If current trends carry on => by 2030, nearly half of American adults could be obese
- 16% of children in the world suffer from malnourishment
- For women : high BMI is now the third-largest driver of illness

B) VIOLENCE AND CRIMINALITY :

 « Nearly 30% of American high school have firearms »
 « In america, a teenager is 15 times more likely to be murdered than an adult »

1) INFLECTION OR REFLECTION
- Texas in 2000 : executions were at the rate of almost one a week
 Reviews of death cases never took more than 15 minutes => they didn’t care about the
gravity of the situation
 Today (2007) : there has been a slump (-50%) in executions all over the USA (including
Texas)
- There were many ways to improve the death of the convicts : electrocutions, gas chambers,
lethal injections (= painful, slowness of the effects)
- Many jurors would prefer a death penalty than a life sentence because the prisoners could
kill again on parole
- Due to DNA, we learned that 200 prison sentences (15 of them were sentenced to death)
were innocent/harmless

2) TOO MANY AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL ARE USING POLICE OFFICERS

- By 2007 an estimated 19,000 school policemen
- Most American public high schools now have a permanent police precense
- There was a police officer at Columbine High School during its slaughter (13 people were
murdered)
- Of 260,000 pupils referred to the police in 2011-2012 school year, 27% were black, though
blacks represented only 16% of the student population

C) THE ENVIRONMENT :
1) How climate change is behind the surge of migrants to Europe
- The drought lead to relocation to urban areas
- Agricultural land is turning to desert and heat waves are killing of crops
- Secretary of State John Kerry warned that climate change could creat a new class of
migrants : « climate refugees »

2) Where gadgets go to die

- Electronic waste can contain up 60 elements from the periodic table
- Only 15% of hazardous waste in America are recycled / the rest is incenerated or buried in
landfills (can cauce cancer + reproductive disorders + numerous other health problems)
- USA : the only developed country that has refused to ratify the 1989 Basel Convention (an
international treaty controlling the export of hazardous waste from wealthy countries to
poorer ones)

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- A medical researcher found concentrations of lead in the blood of Chinese children (on
average 49% over the maximum safe level)

3) LET US BREATH. Polution is becoming a political issue

- Tianjin : an « eco-city » taking shape in China (began in 2007)
 Some characteristics : lake, energy-efficient buildings, electric buses, public litter bins
equipped with solar lighting
 Opened in 2012 ; 10 000 residents -> 350 000 residents by 2030
- China made several attempts at building eco-cities that failed :
 2009 : a city was set to attract half a million residents by 2020 (it was too far away)
 Shanghai also experienced a failure decades ago because of corruption
 Government is supportive Tianjin : In 2006, China overtook the USA in terms of carbone
emission (+smog) and now it pollutes almost twice as much as America

D) NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND THE WORKPLACE

1) SLAVES TO THE SMARTPHONE
- Advantages of smart devices : they are empowering : easy access to information, work from
home (parents may have flexible hours)
- Disadvantages : free time is constantly invaded by bosses, dangerous for mental health
- The sound of a vibrating phone affects people powerfully (came in third place in Lindstorm’s
study)
- Solutions : Digital dieting : being more disciplined about one’s browsing habits (for instance :
no more browsing before breakfast, no texting at weekends)
 It can only work if done together
- 60% teenagers / 37% adults are highly addicted to them

2) EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY : CATCHING ON AT LAST

- The text deals with the new technologies can become efficient in order to learn things to
children
- For instance : Reading Eggs, a computer software that teaches children to read with an
human invervention (teachers) helps the pupils learn faster
 Teachers can spend more time teaching and less marking
 More accurate performance records of each child (with the collected data)
- The news machines (to learn) are more adapted for each child because it can see quickly the
shortcomings
- Uploading videos now cost 2 cents while it was 400$ in 1990s
- The American government invests in new technologies for public schools
- However, the proof of those learning techniques aren’t fully known yet
- Fears : the combinaison of technology and less qualified manpower could replace teachers

3) REGULATING THE INTERNET GIANTS

- Vast flows of data give increasingly power for some firms (Amazon, Google, Facebook, Apple,
Microsoft) = the five most valuable listed firms in the world
 Many of their services are free
- The control of date give them an enormous power
- Whether you are going for a run, watching TV or even just sitting in traffic, every virtually
activity creates a digital trace

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  Google can see what people search for, Facebook what they share, Amazon what they
buy
 They have a « God’s eye view » : they can see which product is attractive (to copy it or
simply buy the startup before she expands).
 For instance, Facebook purchased whatsapp in 2014 for 22 billion => to elimine potential
rivals
- The access to data also protects companies from rivals
- If governments don’t want a data economy directed by a few companies, they should act
immediately

E) COMPANY PRESENTATION

1) INDITEX : FASHION FORWARD

- INIDITEX : one of the biggest cothes makers of the world
- Zara = the main brand of the Spanish company (concurrence with Swedish HM)
 observes what consumers are buying and reproduce the trend
 two main challenges : going global + the appearance of a potential competitor
 depends on the European market that accounts for 70% of its sales in 2011
- The new chairman (Pablo Isla) is trying to move to Asia : in 2011, the majority of newly
opened shops were located in China (156/176)
- Bershka, one of Inditex other brands launched in 1998, is the most successful, following Zara

2) MADE IN CHINA
- China has transformed its economy and that of the world by becoming the biggest exporting
country
 China’s global output accounts for almost 25% (2015)
- While facing economic struggles like excess supply, growing debt and a very low growth rate
in 2015 (7%), China keeps 3 advantages which will save its economy in the long run
 Low-cost manufacturing
 Cheap workforce
 Booming demand in the domestic market

3) HOW TO START A BUSINESS : A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE

- This text deals with all the steps we need to take into consideration in order to create or
company
- Brainstorm ideas : there’s maybe something you are really knowledgeable about. If you think
your idea can offer something other companies don’t, you must have a good idea
- Build a business plan : purpose of the business ? How will I fund the start-up costs ?
 What the strategy and tactis to reach my objectives
- Assess your finances : Maybe I have to borrow money
- Determine your legal business structure : sole proprietorship / partnership (two people of
more are responsible for the company) / corporations : separate your personal liability from
your company’s liability
- Select your technology
- Choose your partner : defining roles and responsibility of everyone
- Brand yourself and advertise : create an attractive logo, use social media to spread the word
- Grow your business : collaborate with other brands is a great way to expand

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USEFUL VOCABULARY :
HEALTH :
- City-dwellers
- An issue = a problem
- Concern = worry, anxiety
- To fit = to correspond
- Slender = slim, thin
- To swap = to exchange
- Tap water : l’eau du robinet
- To cram : s’entasser
- Edible : comestible
- Scarce : rare
- To lower = to decrease = to drop
- Childhood mortality
- It is plain that = it is clear that
- Cautiously = carefully
- Waistline : tour de taille
- Cost effective : rentable, économique
Violence and criminality :
- The principal = the
headmaster : le président
- The slaughter = the carnage
- Round the clock : 24h/day
- Accustomed to : habitué à
- The rampage = the violence
- The survey
- To own = to possess
- Assault-weapons
- The ban = the interdiction
- To outlaw = to make illegal
The environment :
- To curb pollution = to limit pollution
- The depletion : l’épuisement
- A nuclear power plant : un centrale
nucléaire
- Renewable energy
- A windmill : une éolienne
- Water-stressed ares : région en
pénurie d’eau
NEW TECH AND THE WORKPLACE
- To be addicted to = to be hooked up
on
- Convenient : commode, pratique
- To be useful >< to come in handy
- Broad = wide
- Living standard
- Communicable = contagious
- A commitment to : un engagement
envers
- The smuggling : la contrebande
- Retirement benefits
- A resume : un CV
- Helplessness : détresse
- Hopelessness = despair : désespoir
- Unfair l’abour practices : pratiques
injustes de travail
- A (trade) union
- Easier said than done
- A compensation claim : une demande
d’indemnisation
- The licence = the permit
- The rifle : le fusil
- Conviced = declared guilty
- The capital punishment = the death
penalty
- The convict = the prisoner
- To be sentenced to death
- On parole : en liberté conditionnelle
- The ruling = the decision, the verdict
- The eagerness : l’impatience
- An offender : un délinquant
- To allocate (time, money) to :
attribuer à
- To flow from the tap
- Thirsty places
- Weather patterns : les tendances
climatiques
- A lack of
- The backing = the support
- To intrude on : s’immiscer (dans les
affaires des autres)
- Millennials : generation Y (1982-2004)
- To be computer-savvy
- To be AT risk of (a disease)
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