I.

INTRODUCTION
1. Which of these methods of communication do you use most frequently? Put them in order,
starting with the most frequent.
emai face­to­face communication internet webcam (Skype)
social networking (Facebook, Twitter etc.) telephone (landline or mobile)
text messaging
2. For people in your country, how important are the means of non-verbal communication
shown in these photographs?
3. Discuss these questions in pairs in relation to people in your country.
a. Do people use frequent gestures when they are talking?
b. Is eye contact important when people are talking to each other?
c. Have you noticed people of other nationalities behaving differently with regard to gestures and
eye contact?

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II. READING AND USE OF ENGLISH
1. Look at the expressions on these faces and think of words which best describe the
emotions expressed. Discuss your answers in pairs.

2. Try to copy each expression in the photographs. How easy do you find this? Are there any
expressions you find difficult to make?
Gapped text
3. You are going to read an article about a project to classify human facial expressions. Six
sentences have been removed from the article. Choose from the sentences A-G the one which
fits each gap (1-6). There is one extra sentence which you do not need to use.
A Any other method of showing all 412 emotions, such as words, would have been far less
effective.
B He said that the expression of these feelings was universal and recognizable by anyone, from
any culture.
C Research has also been done to find out which areas of the brain read emotional expression.
D These are particularly difficult to control, and few people can do it by choice.
E These can be combined into more than 10,000 visible facial shapes.
F They decided that it was a mental state that could be preceded by 'I feel ' or 'he looks ' or 'she
sounds'.
G It is as if they are programmed into the brains of 'normal humans' wherever they are and
whatever their race.
I know just how you feel

Do you feel sad? Happy? Angry? You may think that the way you show these emotions is
unique. WelL think again. Even the expression of the most personal feelings can be classified,
according to Mind Reading , a DVD displaying every possible human emotion. It demonstrates
412 distinct ways in which we feel: the first visual dictionary of the human heart.

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 Attempts to classify expressions began in the mid­1800s, when Darwin divided the emotions into
six types ­ anger, fear, sadness, disgust, surprise and enjoyment.(1)__________.
Every other feeling was thought to derive from Darwin's small group. More complex expressions
of emotion were probably learned and therefore more specific to each culture. But now it is
believed that many more facial expressions are shared worldwide. (2) __________ The Mind
Reading DVD is a systematic visual record of these expressions.
The project was conceived by a Cambridge professor as an aid for people with autism, who have
difficulty both reading and expressing emotions. But it quickly became apparent that it had
broader uses. Actors and teachers: for example, need to understand a wide range of expressions.
The professor and his research team first had to define an 'emotion'. (3) __________ Using this
definition, 1,512 emotion terms were identified and discussed. This list was eventually reduced
to 412, from 'afraid' to 'wanting '.
Once these emotions were defined and classified , a DVD seemed the clearest and most efficient
way to display them. In Mind Reading , each expression is acted out by six different actors in
three seconds.
(4) __________The explanation for this is simple: we may find it difficultto describe emotions
using words, but we instantly recognize one when we see it on someone 's face. ' It was really
clear when the actors had got it right,' says Cathy Collis, who directed the DVD. 'Although they
were given some direction,' says Ms Collis, 'the actors were not told which facial muscles they
should move. We thought of trying to describe each emotion, but it would have been almost
impossible to make clear rules for this.' For example, when someone feels contempt, you can't
say for certain that their eyebrows always go down.
Someone who has tried to establish such rules is the Ame rican, Professor Paul Ekman, who has
built a database of how the face moves for every emotion . The face can make 43 distinct muscle
movements called 'action units'. (5) __________ Ekman has written out a pattern of facial
muscular movements to represent each emotion. Fear, for example, uses six simultaneous 'action
units' including stretching the lips and dropping the jaw.
Ekman has also found that although it is possible to classify and describe the natural expression
of emotions, it may not be possible for people to reproduce them artificially. According to
Ekman, we can't decide to be happy or sad; it simply happens to us. Apparently, the most
difficult expression to reproduce is so the smile. Ekman says a smile isn't only about stretching
the lips, but tightening the tiny muscles around the eyes. (6) __________ If we learned to
recognize whether someone was using their eye muscles when they smiled , we would be able to
distinguish true enjoyment from false.
This finding is of great interest to police authorities who are seeking Ekman's help in interpreting
even the tiniest 'microexpressions' ­ lasting only one twenty­fifth of a second – to detect whether
or not someone is lying.
4. Discuss these questions with a partner.
a How easy or difficult do you find reading other people's emotions?
b Do you find it easy to recognize when someone is 'really' smiling?
c How useful do you think the results of this project are?
5. With a partner describe in detail how one of the expressions shown in the photographs is
being made.

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III. VOCABULARY
1. Read this extract from an email. Why do you think the writer objected to the word his
friend used to describe him?

To: Matt
Date: 05 June
Subject: Re: Hi!
Hi Matt,
Thanks for the email. Glad you're enjoying your holiday. I'm fine . I've been trying to get fit for
the marathon next month . I have to lose a couple of kilos by then, so I'm watching my diet.
While I was out running the other day I saw Eddie. He said he didn't recognize me because I
looked so skinny. I'm sure he meant it as a compliment, but I wish he'd called me slim or even
thin.
Do you still play tennis regularly? I remember the last time we played . It must have been three
or four years ago ­ you beat me easily.
2. The story in the email shows that the words people choose can communicate positive or
negative ideas. The two words in italics in sentences a-i have related meanings. Which of the
words conveys a more negative idea?
a I've just bought a(n) cheap / inexpensive second car.
b To succeed in business you have to be determined / ruthless.
c My brother's a well-built/ fat man in his mid­thirties.
d Is your coat made of fake / imitation leather?
e My neighbour spends all her time chatting / gossiping to friends.
f The football fans were excited / hysterical when their team scored.
g We had dinner at a(n) expensive/ pricey restaurant last night.
h John smiles/ sneers whenever he sees me.
i. The old/ elderly man next door takes his dog for a walk every day.
3. Which of these words would you prefer people used to describe you, for example in a
reference for a job?
a cold / reserved
b easy­going I lazy
c curious / nosey
d cowardly I shy
e self­satisfied / self­confident
f serious / dull
g chatty / outgoing
h intelligent / clever
4. There is a well-known English saying: 'Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words
can never hurt me: Can you remember an occasion when you have been hurt by words or
when you have used words to hurt another person?

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