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Date: Dec 26, 2005
Level: Harder (Try the easier lesson.)
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Audio: (1:49 - 214.3 KB - 16kbps)
 
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THE ARTICLE

South Korea’s most esteemed scientist Dr. Hwang Woo-Suk quit under a cloud of controversy on December 23rd after fabricating results in a landmark paper on stem cell research. His career and reputation now lay in tatters following his cheating. He could also face prosecution after investigators found that he had intentionally made up the results. His misdemeanor has shocked the science world and has badly tarnished the image of Seoul National University. It said his was a “major misconduct that undermines the fundamentals of science”. In a televised apology, the disgraced Dr. Hwang expressed his remorse and made clear his intentions of quitting his position. He said: “I am stepping down…to apologize for causing such big shocks and disappointment.”

Dr. Hwang shot to the forefront of his field in May 2005 for his work on the world’s first cloned dog, an Afghan hound called Snuppy (an acronym from ‘Seoul National University’ and ‘puppy’). He co-authored a paper on embryonic stem cells, which are able to develop into any kind of human tissue. The paper was hailed by scientists in the heart of the battle against Parkinson’s disease and other debilitating spinal cord injuries. Dr Hwang had become a national hero and was showered with honors, awards and substantial research funding. However, it all came undone when younger scientists smelled a rat and accused him of manipulating data. A remorseful Dr. Hwang maintains: “Patient-tailored embryonic stem cells remain the proud technology of our nation.”

WARM-UPS

1. I’M A PROFESSOR: You are now a professor. Spend a moment or two deciding what your area of research is. Talk to the other “professors” in the class. Ask them about their work and research. What are the best and worst things about being a professor? What do you thing of professors who cheat?

2. CHEATING: Do you think all cheating is bad? Do / Would you ever cheat? In pairs / groups, talk about how bad each of the following is:

  • Fabricating results in a science paper
  • Using hidden notes in an exam
  • Beefing up your resume
  • Claim more expenses from your boss
  • Call the ball out when it was in
  • Look at your partners’ cards
  • Have two lovers at the same time
  • Other ______________________

3. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words are most interesting and which are most boring.

South Korea / scientists / clouds / controversy / stem cell research / careers / ruins / reputations / cheats / science / apologies / cloning / heroes / smelling rats / data

Have a chat about the topics you liked. For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently.

4. FIELDS: Which of the following fields of research are highly important? With your partner(s), discuss how important the research below is. How might it change your world?

  1. Stem cell research
  2. Hurricane and catastrophic weather conditions research
  3. Accounting methods used in the coal and steel industries in the 19th Century
  4. Research into second language acquisition
  5. Nuclear technology
  6. Research into what causes gum disease
  7. Longevity – how to increase our life span by 50 percent
  8. English vocabulary development

5. CHEATING OPINIONS: How far do you agree with these opinions?

  1. Nobody is 100 percent honest.
  2. Cheating is how most people get to the top.
  3. It needs great intelligence to be a successful cheat.
  4. The world would be a better place if people stopped cheating.
  5. The biggest cheats are those in positions of power.
  6. I have never cheated in my life.
  7. Anyone who admonishes another person for cheating is a hypocrite.
  8. Even George W. Bush may have cheated once in his life.

6. CHEAT: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word “cheat”. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.

South Korea’s most steamed scientist quit because he was so angry.

T / F

b.

The scientist’s career and reputation is now in tatters.

T / F

c.

His university said he had undermined the fundamentals of science.

T / F

d.

In a televised apology, he said he’d step up and cause fewer shocks.

T / F

e.

“Snuppy” is the name of a cloned Afghan hound and an acronym.

T / F

f.

Embryonic stem cells can develop into any kind of human tissue.

T / F

g.

The scientist was showered with substantial amounts of bunting.

T / F

h.

Rats in the scientist’s lab smelled particularly bad.

T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

a.

esteemed

contrite

b.

landmark

transgression

c.

tatters

became suspicious

d.

misdemeanor

essence

e.

fundamentals

revered

f.

forefront

deluged

g.

debilitating

ruins

h.

showered

incapacitating

i.

smelled a rat

milestone

j.

remorseful

vanguard

3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):

a.

quit under a cloud

on embryonic stem cells

b.

fabricating results in a landmark

the fundamentals of science

c.

His career and reputation now lay

to the forefront of his field

d.

misconduct that undermines

in tatters

e.

stepping down to apologize for

a rat and accused him of…

f.

Dr. Hwang shot

debilitating spinal cord injuries

g.

He co-authored a paper

of controversy

h.

Parkinson’s disease and other

embryonic stem cells

i.

younger scientists smelled

causing such big shocks

j.

Patient-tailored

paper on stem cell research

WHILE READING / LISTENING

WORD ORDER: Put the words in the column on the right into the gaps in the text.

Disgraced Korean stem cell hero quits

South Korea’s most esteemed scientist Dr. Hwang Woo-Suk cloud under a controversy of quit on December 23rd after fabricating results in a landmark paper on stem cell research. His career tatters in lay reputation now and following his cheating. He could also face prosecution after investigators found that he had intentionally made up the results. His world shocked the misdemeanor has science and has badly tarnished the image of Seoul National University. It said his was a “major misconduct that the science of undermines fundamentals”. In a televised apology, the disgraced Dr. Hwang expressed his remorse and made clear his intentions of quitting his position. He said: “I am to apologize down stepping for causing such big shocks and disappointment.”

Dr. Hwang of the field his forefront shot to in May 2005 for his work on the world’s first cloned dog, an Afghan hound called Snuppy (an acronym from ‘Seoul National University’ and ‘puppy’). He cells stem paper on a co-authored embryonic, which are able to develop into any kind of human tissue. The paper was hailed by scientists in the heart of the battle against Parkinson’s disease and cord other spinal debilitating injuries. Dr Hwang had become a national hero and was showered with honors, awards and substantial research funding. However, it all came undone when a younger rat smelled scientists and accused him of manipulating data. A remorseful Dr. Hwang maintains: “Patient-tailored embryonic stem cells our technology nation of the proud remain.”

LISTENING

Listen and fill in the spaces.

Disgraced Korean stem cell hero quits

South Korea’s most esteemed scientist Dr. Hwang Woo-Suk quit under a _______ of controversy on December 23rd after fabricating results in a _________ paper on stem cell research. His career and reputation now lay in _________ following his cheating. He could also face prosecution after investigators found that he had intentionally made up the results. His _____________ has shocked the science world and has badly __________ the image of Seoul National University. It said his was a “major misconduct that __________ the fundamentals of science”. In a televised apology, the disgraced Dr. Hwang expressed his __________ and made clear his intentions of quitting his position. He said: “I am stepping down…to apologize for causing such big shocks and disappointment.”

Dr. Hwang shot to the __________ of his field in May 2005 for his work on the world’s first cloned dog, an Afghan hound called Snuppy (an __________ from ‘Seoul National University’ and ‘puppy’). He co-__________ a paper on embryonic stem cells, which are able to develop into any kind of human tissue. The paper was __________ by scientists in the heart of the battle against Parkinson’s disease and other debilitating spinal ______ injuries. Dr Hwang had become a national hero and was ___________ with honors, awards and substantial research funding. However, it all came undone when younger scientists smelled a rat and accused him of manipulating data. A ___________ Dr. Hwang maintains: “Patient-tailored embryonic stem cells remain the proud technology of our nation.”

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘stem’ and ‘cell’.

  • Share your findings with your partners.
  • Make questions using the words you found.
  • Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

  • Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
  • Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. WORD ORDER: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise.

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. STUDENT “CHEATING” SURVEY: In pairs / groups, write down questions about cheating.

  • Ask other classmates your questions and note down their answers.
  • Go back to your original partner / group and compare your findings.
  • Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

6. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall exactly how these were used in the text:

  • esteemed
  • tatters
  • tarnished
  • fundamentals
  • remorse
  • stepping
  • shot
  • acronym
  • tissue
  • cord
  • showered
  • proud

DISCUSSION

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

  1. Did the headline make you want to read the article?
  2. What do you know about stem cells?
  3. What do you think about people who cheat?
  4. What do you think about top scientists, sports stars or politicians who cheat?
  5. Have you ever cheated?
  6. What is your image of scientists?
  7. Has this scandal changed your image of scientists?
  8. How do you think Dr. Hwang will pick himself and his ruined career up?
  9. Do you feel sorry for Dr. Hwang?
  10. Have you ever had to make a public apology?

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

  1. Did you like reading this article?
  2. What do you think about what you read?
  3. Do you think Dr. Hwang should go to prison?
  4. Do you think it’s really such a big shock to the science world?
  5. How would you be feeling now if you were a colleague of Dr. Hwang at the Seoul National University?
  6. What do you think of cloned dogs?
  7. Do you think cures for debilitating illnesses will eventually be found?
  8. Have you ever smelled a rat?
  9. Would you like to be showered with awards, honors and money?
  10. Did you like this discussion?

AFTER DISCUSSION: Join another partner / group and tell them what you talked about.

  1. What was the most interesting thing you heard?
  2. Was there a question you didn’t like?
  3. Was there something you totally disagreed with?
  4. What did you like talking about?
  5. Which was the most difficult question?

SPEAKING

BIG CHEATS: In pairs / groups, decide on who is the biggest cheat. Put one of these numbers in the appropriate boxes in the “1-5” column. Agree on a score from 1 (not a cheat at all) to 100 (an absolute, complete, total and utter huge cheat) in the “Score” column.

5 = He / She should be thrown in jail to rot for the rest of his/ her life.
4 = What he / did is inexcusable but life goes on.
3 = I can turn a blind eye to that.
2 = Hey… We all do it.
1 = That’s a perfectly OK thing to do.

 

CHEAT

1 - 5

SCORE
 

1.

A scientist fakes test data in a research paper.

 

 

2.

An intelligence officer lies about the existence of chemical weapons in another country and causes a war.

 

 

3.

A husband or wife has a secret lover.

 

 

4.

A politician puts the name of an elite university that he didn’t attend on his resume.

 

 

5.

An athlete takes steroids and wins the 100-meter Olympic gold medal.

 

 

6.

A student illegally downloads music into his/her portable audio player.

 

 

7.

An architect fakes the safety records on apartment buildings. The apartments are in serious danger of collapsing.

 

 

8.

A company employee claims for more expenses for a business trip than he/she actually spent

 

 

Change partners and tell you new partner(s) the scores you decided with your old partner(s).

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find more information on Dr. Hwang Woo-Suk. Share your findings with your class in the next lesson. Did you all find out similar things?

3. MY CHEATING HISTORY: Write about some times when you cheated. Show what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar ideas for cures?

4. CHEATING: Write a short essay on the part cheating plays in your culture. Do you think this is a good or bad thing? Show what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Did everyone write about similar things?

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

a. F

b. T

c. T

d. F

e. T

f. T

g. F

h. F

SYNONYM MATCH:

a.

esteemed

revered

b.

landmark

milestone

c.

tatters

ruins

d.

misdemeanor

transgression

e.

fundamentals

essence

f.

forefront

vanguard

g.

debilitating

incapacitating

h.

showered

deluged

i.

smelled a rat

became suspicious

j.

remorseful

contrite

PHRASE MATCH:

a.

quit under a cloud

of controversy

b.

fabricating results in a landmark

paper on stem cell research

c.

His career and reputation now lay

in tatters

d.

misconduct that undermines

the fundamentals of science

e.

stepping down to apologize for

causing such big shocks

f.

Dr. Hwang shot

to the forefront of his field

g.

He co-authored a paper

on embryonic stem cells

h.

Parkinson’s disease and other

debilitating spinal cord injuries

i.

younger scientists smelled

a rat and accused him of…

j.

Patient-tailored

embryonic stem cells

WORD ORDER:

Disgraced Korean stem cell hero quits

South Korea’s most esteemed scientist Dr. Hwang Woo-Suk quit under a cloud of controversy on December 23rd after fabricating results in a landmark paper on stem cell research. His career and reputation now lay in tatters following his cheating. He could also face prosecution after investigators found that he had intentionally made up the results. His misdemeanor has shocked the science world and has badly tarnished the image of Seoul National University. It said his was a “major misconduct that undermines the fundamentals of science”. In a televised apology, the disgraced Dr. Hwang expressed his remorse and made clear his intentions of quitting his position. He said: “I am stepping down…to apologize for causing such big shocks and disappointment.”

Dr. Hwang shot to the forefront of his field in May 2005 for his work on the world’s first cloned dog, an Afghan hound called Snuppy (an acronym from ‘Seoul National University’ and ‘puppy’). He co-authored a paper on embryonic stem cells, which are able to develop into any kind of human tissue. The paper was hailed by scientists in the heart of the battle against Parkinson’s disease and other debilitating spinal cord injuries. Dr Hwang had become a national hero and was showered with honors, awards and substantial research funding. However, it all came undone when younger scientists smelled a rat and accused him of manipulating data. A remorseful Dr. Hwang maintains: “Patient-tailored embryonic stem cells remain the proud technology of our nation.”

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