1.1 Blue Zones

Actividad de lectura

What do the following areas have in common: Sardinia, Italy; Loma Linda, California; Costa Rica; Ikaria, Greece; and Okinawa, Japan? If you know that it’s they are all famous for the longevity of their inhabitants, well done! They are all Blue Zones, a phrase coined by Michel Boulain in his 2012 book The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who've Lived the Longest.

 

You are going to hear an interview with Doctor Philippa Cantrell, an expert on longevity and geriatric medicine at St Barts Hospital, London.

Listen and answer the questions.

1.What exactly is a Blue Zone, according to Boulain’s book?

2. Why aren't places like Georgia and Russia in the Blue Zones?

3.On Ikaria, what percentage of people live to the age of 90 or over?

4.What exercise do they do?

5. Did the Okinawans who moved to Brazil have the same longevity? What conclusions can we make about genetics as a result?

6.What information is given about the types of food and drink recommended?

7.Why are the people in Loma Linda considered as having a family?

 

 

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QUESTION TAGS

Look at these expressions from the dialogue:

They eat healthily, don't they?

It's genetic, isn't it?

There aren't a lot of them, are there?

They can still move around OK, can't they?

 

We use question tags at the end of a phrase when we want to check information or ask for approval

To add a question tag:

i) we add a comma

ii) If the original sentence is affirmative, the question tag is negative:   He is tall, isn't he?

If the original sentence is negative, the question tag is affirmative:       She doesn't like chocolate, does she?

iii) the word order is the same as for a question. If the first verb is a modal or auxilary, we use it to make the tag:

He can swim, can't he?  He has been to London, hasn't he?

If the verb is in present  or past tense we use do/does/did: He didn't come, did he?

iv) the subject of the question tag is always a personal pronoun: Juan is from Spain, isn't he? This is easy, isn't it?

Exception: there: There are a lot of old people on Ikaria, aren't there?

Rellenar huecos

Complete the question tags for these sentences.

 

1. You live in London, ?

2. We were in the gym, ?

3. Peter wrote a letter, ?

4. You have been to Spain, ?

5. Mary didn't talk to Mike, ?

6. Gary isn't going to the cinema, ?

7. Tom and Sam will come later, ?

8. Sally doesn't eat meat, ?

9. You were watching TV, ?

10. The plane leaves at 5 o'clock, ?

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