Making Work Fun: The Levity Effect (Step 2)
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ReadOasis Step 2 A manager at a company was interviewing a job candidate. The manager said, “We need a very responsible person for this job. We need someone who can take charge.” The candidate’s eyes lit up, and he answered with great confidence. “Sir, your search ends here! I’m... Read more
ReadOasis Step 5 "Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster." This is the... Read more
ReadOasis Step 3 Winston is an editor. Every day he works with words. His hands are soft, and he is not strong. He does not do hard physical labor. But his job is challenging and even dangerous. He works for the government of Oceania. Every day, he rewrites history.... Read more
Culture of Innovation (Step 3)
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ReadOasis Step 3 (Part 1) It was 5 o’clock on a warm summer evening in July 2008. In a busy part of Tokyo, people were leaving their places of work. Some were going home, and others were going out to enjoy the nightlife. It was an ordinary night. But... Read more
ReadOasis Step 2 An old man was fishing alone in a small boat. He was off the coast of Cuba near the town of Cabanas. He hooked a marlin, a great fish with a long, sharp spear for a nose. The powerful fish pulled the small boat out to... Read more
Unforgettable Communication
B1-IntermediateBNC LevelsCEFR LevelsListen!ProtectedStep 3StoriesStyles 1
ReadOasis Step 3 You are in class. The teacher is speaking, but you only hear noise, like hot air and wind. We often hear, and sadly speak, boring ideas. But can we learn to communicate successful and unforgettable ideas? Authors Chip and Dan Heath wrote the book, “Made to... Read more
ReadOasis Step 3 (Part 1) I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. Charles Dickens (1786-1851) Most people know Charles Dickens for his famous ghost story: A Christmas Carol. But many people don’t realize that Dickens was the most notable English author of the... Read more
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
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ReadOasis Step 3 We are far into "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" when Albus Dumbledore says, "Dark and difficult times lie ahead." But they lie behind us too. And these dark and difficult times have caught our imagination since the beginning of Harry Potter. But this fourth... Read more
ReadOasis Step 2 Viktor had just married Tilly. She was the love of his life. He was a young doctor in Vienna, Austria. And Viktor and Tilly should have expected a bright future together. But Nazi Germany was in control of Austria, and Viktor and Tilly were Jewish. In... Read more
How to Know if a Book’s Level is Right for You
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By Randall Short ReadOasis Step 1 At ReadOasis, you can read lots of short stories. Short stories are great because you can read to the end without stopping. You may keep on reading even if the words are difficult and the story is hard to understand. You know that... Read more
Playing Global Business on a Level Field
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ReadOasis Step 3 A Review of The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century By Thomas L. Friedman. We are entering a new era where the world is one massive marketplace. Old powers had the advantage, but the playing field is leveling now. New powers are... Read more
ReadOasis Step 3 (Part 1) George turned over in bed and covered his head with a pillow. The alarm clock had been ringing on and off for a long time. It was noisy. The neighbors could hear it through the walls. George finally opened his eyes and looked at... Read more
Making Work Fun: The Levity Effect (Step 3)
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ReadOasis Step 3 A manager at a company was interviewing a job candidate. The manager said, “We need a very responsible person for this job. We need someone who can take charge.” The candidate’s eyes lit up, and he responded with great enthusiasm. “Sir, your search ends here! I’m... Read more
ReadOasis Step 3 I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it. Pablo Picasso, Artist. It is a basic secret of success. To get skill, we need to do new things. Depending on the task, doing something new can... Read more
The Rules of Elite Success
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ReadOasis Step 2 (Part 1) The computer sat in a funny little room at the Lakeside School in Seattle. It was a gift from the Mother’s Club. Costing $3,000, it was expensive at the time. But the mothers wanted the students to have a computer so they could have... Read more
ReadOasis Step 3 (Part 2) A Christmas Carol is full of dramatic, appealing, or memorable personalities: Tiny Tim, the Christmas Ghosts, and Ebenezer Scrooge. These characters have become classic images in Western literature and culture. The story shows the powerful emotions that Christmas can bring. But it was written... Read more
ReadOasis Step 3 (Part 2) In fact, Americans actually spend more money on music than on medicine. (They also spend more money on music than on sex.) This is why a famous brain scientist has written a book with the following title: This Is Your Brain on Music: The... Read more
ReadOasis Step 3 (Part 3) Levitin recorded these people singing. Then he played the recordings along with the original songs. The people sounded like they were singing along with the original. The point is this. Over time, memories generally break down. They become unfocused and unclear. But in this... Read more
Music as Medicine
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ReadOasis Step 3 (Part 4) Popular groups or performers create special tone color. This makes them unique. Therefore, we can quickly identify their songs when we hear just a few notes. Human beings are good at hearing differences in tone color. We can tell people apart just by their... Read more
Culture of Innovation (Step 3)
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ReadOasis Step 3 (Part 2) Honda's Asimo Robot Innovation is hard work. An innovator could easily stop creating new things. Many people and companies rest on their past successes. But how can we keep innovating? Can we learn techniques and styles to improve our ability to innovate? For one... Read more
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