Before you Read
What do you think these phrasal verbs/words means? When you read try to guess the meaning
Do you have a smart phone or tablet computer?
Have you read the recent news about how phones can follow you?
What is your feeling about having your personal information known by companies and being sold to other people?
Cell Phone Security
A recent issue that has become a hot potato in Korea is WiFi security. And according to U.S. newspapers, how phones are keeping track of your movements is sending shock waves through the private and tech community. You may have read the news about concerns that Apple and Android smart phones are collecting information on where we are. Many people think this highlights a security issue and an invasion of privacy. Just what are they using this information for? Can we trust them with our personal information? As yet I haven’t heard much from Apple and Google about why they need to allow our phones to follow us. It seems they are keeping tight-lipped about this and this is adding to distrust.
In another related issue, Osama Bin Laden was discovered through the monitoring of his courier’s cell phone. The CIA was able to follow his courier by tracking his whereabouts when he turned his cell phone on.
Technology is a two edged sword in that it has given us more freedom, but in other ways we find that corporations and governments can now follow us. It is good that criminals can be found, but bad in that we can never escape it. We always have a cell phone or some other technology that is connected to the Internet and this means marketing companies can invade our personal space. My feeling is that this information is used so that our phone companies can sell information about us to marketing companies. What’s your opinion?
Guessing Meaning From Context
Now, match the letters of the phrasal verbs/words with the closest numbered meaning in the right column. The answers are at the bottom.
|
hot potato |
A |
1 |
Information that is surprising and worrying people |
|
keeping track |
B |
2 |
Watching something or someone |
|
sending shock waves |
C |
3 |
Something that many people are talking about at the moment |
|
highlights |
D |
4 |
Where someone is |
|
keeping tight-lipped |
E |
5 |
Not saying anything |
|
monitoring |
F |
6 |
Break into our privacy |
|
whereabouts |
G |
7 |
Something that is both good and bad |
|
a two edged sword |
H |
8 |
Following, recording where we go and what we do |
|
invade our personal space |
I |
9 |
Something obvious easy to see, very noticeable |
A=3, B=8, C=1, D=9, E=5, F=2, G=4, H=7, I=6
Some Questions to help you use the new words/phrases
Are there some hot potato issues in Korean government, business or society you would like to describe?
How do you feel about your wife/husband/girl or boyfriend etc keeping track of your whereabouts?
Can you name a big news issue that sent shock waves through the world or your country?
What problems do you think this story highlights?
If someone tells you a secret, are you good at keeping tight lipped about it?
How do you feel about marketing companies monitoring where you go?
Describe a two edged sword situation.
When you are on the subway, what do you find bothers you or invades your personal space?
Some example sentences using the new words/phrases
What entertainers do seems to be a real hot potato issue.
If you are very busy then it is important to keep track of time.
The 2008 financial crisis sent shock waves through the financial and banking industry.
The tsunami in Japan highlighted the dangers of nuclear energy and the Japanese government has been very unpopular in Japan because they stay tight lipped about what is really happening.
Some people are not happy that there are so many cameras monitoring us.
One of the good things about cell phones is that parents can monitor the whereabouts of their children.
For me the Internet is a two edged sword, I can do much more, but also I can waste a lot of time instead of meeting people.
One of the problems of the Internet is that there is a lot of spam invading out personal space.
ECK Education
