Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Baccalaureate

English Grammar

Verb Tenses

Past Tense Transformations

• Present Simple (eats/eat) → Past Simple (ate)
• Don't/Doesn't → Didn't
• Present Continuous (am, is, are + v ing) → Past Continuous (was, were + v ing)
• Past Simple (-ed or irregular) → Past Perfect (had + past participle)
• Present Perfect (have, has + past participle) → Past Perfect
• Past Perfect (had + past participle) → Past Perfect
• Past Continuous (was, were + v ing) → Past Perfect Continuous (had + been + v ing)
• Present Perfect Continuous → Past Perfect Continuous
• Past Perfect Continuous → Past Perfect Continuous
• Future: Will + infinitive → Would + infinitive
• Can → Could + infinitive
• Must/Have to → Had to + infinitive
• May → Might + infinitive

Changes in Reported Speech

• Now → Then
• Today

... Continue reading "English Grammar and Vocabulary Guide" »

Tutorial 1 If you get a positive value times a number, You need to shift the decimal to the right as many times as the number specified. If negative, move it to the right. Simple interest formula = S = FV = P(1 + iK) Compound interest formula = Sk = P(1 + i)^k Sn = P(1 + I/T)^n where I is interest T is frequency of compounding per year K is the number of years N is the total number of periods - K T or TK Depreciation Formula = Vo or P = Initial value, Vk = P(1 - d)^k

Tutorial 2 1. 5 years 1 + r = (FV/PV)^(1/5) (i) r = 10.38% (ii) r = 10.47% (iii) r = 10.51% (iv) r = 10.52% (v) r = 10.52% 2. 1 + r = (1 + 0.06/12)^8 ∙ (1 + 0.072/12)^4 1 + r = (1.005)^8 ∙ (1.006)^4 1 + r = (1.0407) ∙ (1.0242) = 1.06591 r = 6.59% For an initial outlay of $1000, the net return is

... Continue reading "Understanding Financial Formulas and Calculations" »

Macrostructure

Theme: This is the topic sentence that summarizes the main idea. Usually at the beginning.

Rheme: Arguments that support the theme. In the middle.

Thesis Statement: Restatement of the initial idea. Normally at the end.

Microstructure

Lexicon

• Formal or informal language (e.g., Provides, expand).
• Attributive adjectives such as “logically and psychologically satisfying conclusion”.
• Semantic fields (Campos semánticos).
• Elements that are not formal (Common words like 'too' instead of 'moreover'; 'quite' similar). The combination of formal register with more accessible language suggests that this is an informative text.
• Main statements (topic sentences and thesis statements) use the copulative verb 'to be' which indicates that the statement

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Distinctive Feature Theory

Distinctive Feature Theory challenges Phoneme Theory (PT) by focusing on the features that compose phonemes, rather than the phonemes themselves. This approach questions the validity of the phoneme concept, arguing that speech is not simply a series of discrete sounds.

Natural Class: A set of sounds sharing phonetic features, affected by the same environment, and having the same effect on surrounding sounds.

Major Class Features

• Vowels: [+SYLLABIC], [+SONORANT], [-CONSONANTAL] - form the syllable nucleus.
• Glides: [-SYLLABIC], [+SONORANT], [-CONSONANTAL].
• Sonorant Consonants (nasals and liquids): [+/-SYLLABIC], [+SONORANT], [+CONSONANTAL].
• Obstruents: [-SYLLABIC], [-SONORANT], [+CONSONANTAL].

Consonant Features

• Voice: [+/-VOICE]

... Continue reading "Phonetics and Phonology: Distinctive Features and Vowel Sounds" »

Fundamental Economic Concepts

• Consumers: People who buy goods and services.
• Trade-off: The act of giving up one goal to achieve another.
• Balance of Trade: A nation that exports more than it imports.
• Interest: A signal of upcoming changes in the economy.
• Price Index: A comparison of the general price level.
• Civilian Labor Force: All people aged 16 and older.
• Demand Schedule: A table showing the amount of a good or service demanded.
• Demand: The amount of a good or service consumers are willing to buy.
• Cartel: A group that acts together to control a market.
• Business Cycles: Fluctuations in economic activity, excluding depressions.
• Principle of Diminishing Utility: As consumers acquire more, satisfaction decreases.
• Product Differentiation: When a business

... Continue reading "Essential Economics Glossary: Key Terms and Definitions" »

Core Electrical Terminology and Definitions

This comprehensive glossary provides clear definitions for key terms used in electrical work, covering components, measurements, safety regulations, and professional qualifications.

A-C: Current, Components, and Connections

• AC (Alternating Current) (Abbreviation): Electrical current that periodically reverses direction.
• Adaptor (Noun): A device for connecting several electric plugs to one socket.
• Amp (Noun): The measure of electrical current (short for Ampere).
• Appliance (Noun): A device or piece of equipment designed for a specific task.
• Cable (Noun): Thick insulated wire used for the fixed wiring of electrical systems.
• Circuit (Noun): The complete path followed by electricity, usually along a wire.
• Conductor

... Continue reading "Essential Electrical Vocabulary: Definitions for Wiring and Safety" »

Camilo José Cela and the Post-War Narrative

The biggest challenge for Camilo José Cela was achieving a minimum of unity in a story that would overcome the lack of a traditional plot. He used a specific setting, the Café de Doña Rosa, where many characters converge, most notably Martín Marco. Following this work, he wrote countless novels, some more successful than others.

The Rural and Provincial World of Miguel Delibes

Focusing on rural life and the mentality of the middle classes in provincial capitals, Miguel Delibes (1920) wrote a series of novels characterized by simple plots and a sober style that incorporates many regional terms. These elements create characters as deep as they are human. Notable stories include:

• The Road (1950)
• Rats

... Continue reading "Spanish Post-War Literature and the Voice of Exile" »

Orden of adjectives: O(opinion), S(size), SH(shape), A(age), C(colour), O(origin).
____________________________________________________
FUTURE:
-Will: Predictions, opinions, spontaneous, decisions.
-Be going to: plans for the future, intention of future, predictions with evidence.
-Present continuous: Arrangements(preparativos), dates(fechas).
-Future continuous: S+WILL+BE+GERUND. Finished action in the future.
-Future perfect: S+WILL+HAVE+PAST PART. Completed action in the future
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Such...that / So...that:
Such + (a/an [singular]) + adjective + noun + that
It was such a cramped street that we couldn't walk.
So + adjective + that
The street was so cramped that we couldn't walk.

Conditional sentences:

First... Continue reading "Orden of adjectives, future, conditional sentences and wishes and regrets in English" »

The play begins with the death of Bernarda's husband. After the Mass for the dead, the whole town goes to the widow's house, where women enter the room who have previously prepared and cleaned the maids. While men are chatting in the courtyard.
Already in the house, Bernarda makes all the neighbors whispering with his comments on whether their daughters deserve to men of that town, then they all begin to pray.
When everyone leaves, Bernarda's daughters begin to talk about the legacy his father left them. The one that takes the best part is the eldest daughter, Sorrows. The other sisters discuss the fate of Sorrows, as well as the heritage, the handsome-looking boy of the village, wants to marry her.
Then Adela begins to mourn for them imposed... Continue reading "Book Summary: The House of Bernarda Alba" »

Simón Bolívar had assumed command of the Puerto Cabello Square on May 4, 1812. A month later, on 6 June, it fell to the royalists. Faced with this loss and after signing the capitulation, Bolivar got through to Curacao and then to New Granada. There, the government recognized the rank of colonel and allowed their participation in the Campaign of Magdalena. On December 15, 1812 wrote his first document sets out the causes which led to the loss of the First Republic and warns neogranadinos on the need to unite to defeat the enemy. These causes by Bolivar were:
1. The tolerance scheme followed by the Republican authorities to consider how weak and ineffectual. He criticized the attitude of the government of Venezuela against Coro, claiming

... Continue reading "Analysis of the Cartagena Manifesto" »