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English as a Second Language Podcast

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ENGLISH CAFÉ – 85

TOPICS

U.S. census, driving while texting, as well as versus as long as, change versus

alter versus modify versus transform

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GLOSSARY

census – the process of finding out how many people live in a country, and

getting information about those people

* The United States has a census at least once every 10 years.

household – the people living together in a single home; one family

* Jannette’s household consists of her, her husband, her two children, and her

mother.

questionnaire – a list of questions that many people are asked to answer to get

information about something

* The company created a questionnaire to learn what kinds of things people look

for when they buy a toothbrush.

gender – sex; male or female

* Many forms ask for your gender, asking you to mark “M” for male or “F” for

female.

privacy – the condition of something being hidden from other people who don’t

need to or shouldn’t see it, usually because it is personal

* It’s a good idea to read a website’s privacy policy before sharing your personal

information or bank account number.

Driving while Texting (DWT) – driving a car while typing text messages on a

cell phone or wireless email device like a Blackberry

* Driving while texting is very dangerous, because the drivers concentrate on

typing more than on driving.

Driving while Intoxicated (DWI) – driving a car after drinking alcohol; driving a

car while being drunk

* In many states, you will lose your driver’s license if a police officer sees you

driving while intoxicated.

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ENGLISH CAFÉ – 85

drunk – unable to think, walk, or talk well because one has drunk too much

alcohol; under the influence of alcohol

* Smaller people get drunk more easily than people who are big and tall.

crackdown – a sudden or strong government or police action against a crime,

especially if many people are involved

* The school principal has started a crackdown against students smoking

between classes.

to multitask – to do many things at once; to do more than one thing at a time

* Laura multitasks very well. She can answer emails, talk on the phone, and do

paperwork all at the same time.

as well as – in addition to; and; including; used to add or include something

else, often at the end of a list

* This store sells soups as well as sandwiches.

as long as – if a condition (situation or fact) is there, then something else will

happen or I will agree to do something; used in a situation when something will

happen only if another condition or circumstance occurs or already exists

* As long as you go to class each day and read the textbook, you will pass the

test.

to change – to make something different from what it is right now; to make

something different from what it was; to make any kind of difference

* Justin changed a lot while he was studying in Asia last spring.

to alter – to change something in a small way; to make something different in a

small way

* Do you know who altered the group’s travel plans to return at 9:00 instead of

8:00?

to modify – to change something in a small way, usually to improve it; to make a

small difference to make something better

* The report is okay, but please modify the text in the introduction to make it

easier to understand.

to transform – to change in a very big way; to make a huge difference in

something; to change something completely

* They bought an old, dirty, cheap house and completely transformed it into a

beautiful, expensive home.

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these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

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ENGLISH CAFÉ – 85

WHAT INSIDERS KNOW

U.S. Prohibition

A “prohibition” is a law that “prevents” (doesn’t allow) people from making,

transporting, or selling “alcoholic beverages,” or drinks with alcohol in them, such

as beer and wine. The word “prohibition” can also refer to a period of time when

a country had prohibition laws. Prohibition in the United States lasted from 1920

to 1933. It began because “Protestants,” a group of Christians, didn’t like people

drinking alcohol.

Prohibition made it “illegal,” or against the law to make or sell alcohol, but many

people did these things anyway. Many people started making alcohol in their

own homes. They used very cheap “ingredients” (the things that food and drinks

are made from) and mixed them together in large containers. Sometimes they

made the alcohol in bathtubs, so the alcohol became known as “bathtub gin.”

Bathtub gin had poor quality and didn’t taste very good, but people drank it

because other types of alcohol weren’t available.

When alcohol was made illegal, the people who “smuggled” (illegally transported)

alcohol were known as “bootleggers.” When alcohol is transported illegally, it is

called “bootlegging.”

During Prohibition, alcohol was sold illegally in bars and restaurants known as

“speakeasies.” “To speak easy” means to speak freely, without being afraid that

other people will hear what one says, so a bar where it was safe to order alcohol

was called a “speakeasy.” Sometimes the word “speakeasy” also refers to the

places where the bootleggers lived. “Speakeasies” were often in the “basement”

(below ground) level in a building, or in another place that is not easy for the

police to find.

These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2007). Posting of

these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

English as a Second Language Podcast

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ENGLISH CAFÉ – 85

COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT

You're listening to ESL Podcast's English Café number 85.

This is English as a Second Language Podcast’s English Café episode 85. I'm

your host, Dr. Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational

Development in beautiful Los Angeles, California.

On this Café, we're going to talk about the United States census, what it is and

how it is done. We're also going to talk about an article I saw recently called

Driving While Texting, about a problem in some American cities with people who

are driving their cars and trying to use their cell phone at the same time. And as

always, we'll answer a few of your questions. Let's get started!

Our first topic today is something called the “census” (census). A census is a

way that a government tries to get information about everyone who is in the

country. We would say they try to get information about every member or person

in a population (population). A “population” refers to a group of people, usually

everyone in a certain country or a certain part of a country; in the U.S., in a

certain state.

In the U.S., when you hear about the census, or the population census, usually

they're talking about what happens in the U.S. every ten years – in 2000, 2010,

2020, 2030, and so forth – where the government will try to find out how many

people live in each state, in each city, and get some basic information about

them.

We do a national census every ten years, and every household, that is every

apartment and house – place where people live – has to fill out, or complete, a

census form. The government mails you the form; you put the information down

and you send it back.

Now, some people are lazy, and don't want to send the census form back, so the

government finds out who did not return their form and they send a person out to

your house. We call that person a “census taker” (taker). A “census taker” is

someone who goes to a house or an apartment, knocks on the door, and asks

the questions that are in the survey.

Now, the reason the census is so important in the United States is because the

representatives in our national government – the House of Representatives,

which is one of the legislative bodies, that is, one of the groups of people that

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these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

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ENGLISH CAFÉ – 85

make decisions about laws in the United States. The House of Representatives

has 435 members. Each member represents a certain number of people in a

state. So, a state such as California has many representatives because it has a

large population. A state – a small state such as Rhode Island or Connecticut

has very few representatives because they have a small population. Every state

gets at least one representative, and there are some states that have only one

representative because their population isn't very big. So we use these, what we

would call, “counts” (counts), or numbers of people who are counted, to

determine how many representatives that state gets. Each representative

represents approximately the same number of people.

Another reason why the census is important is because the money that

government – the federal government – gives states and cities often depends on

the population – the number of people who live there. So it's very important for

them to have an accurate count.

The questionnaire, which is the same as the survey – a questionnaire

(questionnaire), usually has a small number of questions for most people. I think

there are six or seven questions; they ask your name, your age, your address –

where you live, how many people live in your household. Remember, the word

“household” refers to anyone who lives in a certain place – an apartment or a

house. You could have a family of five people in one household, or you could

have just one person in the household.

The census form asks for information about everyone in the household. They

also ask the gender (gender), which is the same as the sex – are you male or are

you female, or something else. It also asks the ages of all the people, and it asks

the race or ethnicity: are you black – African American, are you Asian American,

are you Native American, or American Indian; are you white, and so forth. We

have a special category for those that are Hispanic or Latino, people whose

families originally came from Latin America. All of these are questions that you

answer. It doesn't take very long, maybe 10-15 minutes to fill out, or complete,

the questionnaire, and then you mail it back.

The census information is supposed to be secret, or private. The Census

Bureau, which is the organization that takes care of and organizes the census for

the federal government, we call it the “Census Bureau” (bureau). They have to

keep the information private. Some people are worried that the Census Bureau

will give other parts of the government that information. Legally, they are not

supposed to do that. However, there has been a case where the Census Bureau

did give information about people to other parts of the government, so some

These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2007). Posting of

these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

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