Smartphones: A Splendid Way to Improve Your English

Doing things the digital way certainly makes learning a whole lot easier these days. At your disposal, any time, anywhere are convenient devices for staying in touch with others and getting work accomplished. Smartphones are finding increasing use as tools for obtaining information and gaining knowledge on diverse topics.

No longer are mobile phones simply devices for making and receiving phone calls. No longer are the plethora of personal digital assistants only for organizing data, and hence your life. Today, smartphones combine the best features of both these devices and then add much more.

Volcanoes

Volcanoes have been in the news a lot recently, one volcano in particular located in Iceland at the Eyjafjallajökull glacier, which brought Europe's air travel to a halt.  But what is a volcano?  I'm going to try and explain them, but don't forget I'm not a volcanologist.  Volcanology is the study of volcanoes.

The first thing you have to understand is the structure of the earth, there are three layers:-

1. The Crust: The crust is the outer layer of Earth. It is made up of plates about 18 miles thick, these plates sometimes move. It is the bit we live on.
2. The Mantle: The second layer is called the mantle. It is about 1,800 miles thick.
3. The Core: The inner layer is called the core.

Between the Earth's crust and the mantle is a substance called magma which is made of rock and gases.  When plates on the surface collide, one plate slides on top of the other, the one beneath is pushed down.  Magma is squeezed up between the plates.

An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor, or temblor) is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves.  At the Earth's surface, earthquakes manifest themselves by shaking and sometimes displacing the ground.  Any activity within the earth that creates vibrations can be called an earthquake, whether it's a natural phenomenon or an event caused by humans — something that generates seismic waves.  Earthquakes are caused mostly by the rupture of geological faults, but also by volcanic activity, landslides, mine blasts, and nuclear experiments.  Earthquakes send waves through the earth and this means that places many miles from the centre of an earthquake can be affected by these waves.

Obesity

What is obesity?

Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on a person's health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems.   In other words, it means to be dangerously overweight.

Obesity is a leading preventable cause of death worldwide, with increasing prevalence in adults and children, and authorities view it as one of the most serious public health problems of the 21st century.

E-Books

What is an e-book?

E-books, also written as Ebook, EBook, eBook, or ebook, stands for electronic book.  According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, an e-book is "an electronic version of a printed book which can be read on a personal computer or hand-held device designed specifically for this purpose".

Smartphones

Unfortunately smart-phones don't bestow some increased IQ upon the user.  Something I was profoundly disappointed in when I realised it.  In fact there is no industry standard to define what is and what isn't a smart-phone.  For some, it's a phone that runs complete operating system software providing a standardized interface and platform for application developers.  For others, a smart-phone is simply a phone with advanced features like e-mail, and access to the Internet.

Even the definition of what a smart-phone is has changed over time.  According to David Wood, EVP at Symbian Ltd., "Smart phones differ from ordinary mobile phones in two fundamental ways: how they are built and what they can do."