The Hump Effect

The Hump Effect is related to the idea that Wednesdays are considered days of hard work and making it through to the middle of the work week is just as getting "over the hump."



The Hump Effect, mentioned in Edward de Bono's book "The Happiness Purpose", is explained as getting people to do things which seem to go against their best interests at the moment. It may be a matter of preventing someone from doing something which is tempting, or making someone do something which is unpleasant, but eventually, this less attractive 'road" opens out into a wider one, with more, beneficial opportunities. A simple example would be the one about going to the gym. It may seem hard and/or boring, but if you succeed in constantly going, it will better your health and looks, which may prove exactly what you wanted for yourself in the beginning.

Spelling Bee

If you think you're good at spelling, try this preliminary test. I scored 17 and missed 3 because I didn't check the words at the end, so make sure you do that!

The Hole in the Elephant's Bottom

The funniest thing you may have heard :)



Jeremy Irons - The Hole in the Elephant's Bottom

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Proficient in English

If you are able to correctly solve this word - formation exercise, then your English has reached a proficiency level :)

For many people Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) is the most (0) influential (INFLUENCE) figure in the history of western classical music. His (1) ..... (ORDINARY) talent was already clearly evident as a young man, (2) ..... (MERCY) surviving a somewhat unconventional(3) ..... (BRING) during which his eccentric father would often force him to take music lessons in the middle of the night.

The young Beethoven's ability won him the admiration of the leading contemporary musical figures. Throughout the 1790s he worked hard to secure the interest of wealthy patrons. Such patronage (4) .....(ABLE) him to concentrate on becoming a successful composer.

Whatever his awe-inspiring musical (5) .....(ACHIEVE), however, his personal life was something of a disaster. His day-to-day (6) ..... (RELATE)with people invariably turned out to be rather turbulent. Although he apparently fell in love with a number of society women, the identity of the girl who lay closest to his heart remains (7) ..... (ELUDE)to this day.

However, just at the point when Beethoven was beginning to reap the rewards of his early endeavours, he had to come to terms with the crushing (8) ..... (REALISE)that his increasing deafness was (9) ..... .(CURE) From that point on, his music displayed a (10) ..... (STRIKE) change in style, becoming both heavier in tone and larger in scale.