DICTATIONS FIRST SENIORS (19,20,21)

Mazes

  

         Mazes hold a mystic spell that cannot be described.  What exactly is a maze?  It is a labyrinth, surrounded by walls or hedges of vegetation. They can be entered, but it is difficult to find an exit. Other materials to make mazes include bricks, logs, concrete, stone, and gravel. Also, while not all mazes are high, which permits people to find their way out more easily, there are some that are over-eye level.

 

         The origin of mazes is rather vague. There are traces of mazes that go back to pre-history, usually in the form of spirals. An early maze existed in a temple in Egypt, and it had 3000 rooms and a forest of pillars that made it impossible for people to go in and out of the temple.

 

         For some people, mazes are an enjoyable challenge, but for others, it is a waste of time.  

The Dirty Truth About Smoking 

     

                      There are many reasons not to smoke. Smoking stinks—literally! It makes breath, hair and clothes smell like smoke. It's expensive. It dulls your sense of taste and smell. It raises blood pressure and causes shortness of breath. Some smokers can't stop coughing. And it kills. Each year, about half a million Americans die from smoking-related illnesses. Cigarettes contain nicotine, a highly addictive drug. Nicotine is also a poison! Arsenic, formaldehyde, hydrogen cyanide, tar and carbon monoxide are some of the other poisons found in cigarettes. No wonder smoking is linked to heart disease and cancer.  What did anti-smoking activists Wayne McLaren and David McLean have in common? They were former “Marlboro Men,” the rugged cowboys in ads that helped make Marlboro the world's best-selling cigarette. Both died of lung cancer in the 1990s.

   

Condorito         

    

         Condorito is a famous Chilean cartoon character, a personification of a funny condor living in a fictitious town named Pelotillehue, a setting typical of many small Chilean provincial towns. Contrary to popular belief, he is meant to be a representation of the Chilean people exclusively.

 

         Condorito was created by the Chilean cartoonist René Ríos, known as ‘Pepo’.  In spite of his Chilean origin, Condorito is very popular in several Latin American countries, in which the character is considered part of the general popular culture. Condorito and his friends are also featured monthly in a magazine that carries his name.     

   

         One peculiar characteristic of this cartoon is that, at the end of almost every strip, the character that  goes through an embarassing moment always falls backwards to the floor, accompanied by the PLOP! sound effect. Sometimes this effect is replaced by the victim saying, ‘ I demand an explanation!’