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Microwaves
Microwaves

Learn English with this kitchen appliances English lesson

Date: Dec 24 2019

Themes: Food, Health

Grammar: Adverbs

Intro

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2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

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When you’re hungry and in a hurry, what do you do? You can stop at a restaurant, or buy something at a grocery store. You can grab some fruit or vegetables from the kitchen, or a handful of cookies. But if you want something hot to eat at home, you need to find a way to cook food quickly. The best household appliance for this task is a microwave.

When people started using microwaves, safety and health risks were a concern. Today’s microwaves are definitely safe, however. It’s not possible to get sick from using a microwave, or even standing in front of one. So if you are looking for something convenient to use to reheat yesterday’s pizza, go for it! It may not taste exactly the same as before, but you won’t wait long.

Do Rafael and Marni agree about using microwaves? Read this English lesson to find out.

Dialog

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Marni

Marni

Rafael

Rafael

Marni:  Rafael, it took me twenty minutes just to reheat my dinner the other night because I had to do it on a stove top.

Rafael:  That’s why you should get a microwave, Marni.

Marni:  No way. They are far too dangerous. I get that they’re convenient when you’re in a hurry and you want to reheat something, but I just think we just don’t know what all of those microwaves are doing to us.

Rafael:  Well, I’ll tell you one thing. What it does, to me, is give me quick meals.

Marni:  OK, so you’re saying they’re handy. But what about the health risks involved?

Rafael:  When you can reheat something so easily, you don’t think about the health risk. You just appreciate it.

Marni:  Do you just have a lot of frozen dinners, or…?

Rafael:  I have frozen dinners, reheated leftovers, you name it. If you can eat it, I can stick it in the microwave.

Marni:  I spend a lot of time making everything on the stove top, but I think it’s worth it for the safety factor. I certainly hope you’re OK, and don’t stand too close to your microwave.

Rafael:  Well, OK then.

 

Grammar Point

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Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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Discussion

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Marni might be a little old-fashioned. She uses pots and pans on her stove to reheat her leftovers. Rafael prefers using his microwave. It’s much faster and convenient, and he can use the extra time to do something else.

The two friends disagree about the safety of microwaves. Marni believes there are health risks to think about, but Rafael says that he’s not worried. Getting his food cooked quickly is more important than anything else. Sometimes, when he’s in a hurry, having a microwave is truly handy.

What’s your opinion about microwaves? Do you believe they’re dangerous to your health?

 

Comments

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luciferted

China

I think the mircowaves should be tested many times in lab before promoted to the market.


So read and follow operation instructions before using mircowaves is OK. Also, don’t stand too close to it.

07:38 AM Dec 29 2019 |

jnain

jnain

Saudi Arabia

I hate micowaves m, no tase and also has more health risk  

06:01 AM Dec 25 2019 |

La Princesse de la vie

Egypt

I’m obsessed with safety measurements, so if there’s a small percentage of health risks to something I won’t use it disregarding its advantages. However, everything can turn to a risk if it’s misused.


09:42 PM Jan 23 2018 |

omar saidi

omar saidi

Tanzania, United Republic Of

Every thing in this world has advantages and disadvantages no matter what , but my opinion using microwaves has more advantages because it save the time and it’s easy and quickly servises . 


By other hand I prefer to use our traditional ways .

07:52 PM Jan 23 2018 |

1 person likes this

Kenn7

Kenn7

Hong Kong

i seldom use microwave today, because it’s quite dangerous and unstablized. i just remember i almost blew up the microwave few years ago, no metal was used,just some bread , almost scared me to death==’’ so now i use electric ceramic hobs to reheat everything, it’s quite handy as well


don’t stand too close to your microwave!=]

01:09 PM Dec 26 2013 |

ahmet55

ahmet55

Germany

It can be drawn from several influential investigations that microwaves are not so perilous kitchen appliance if we utilize them from time to time. In addition to, it gives me a lot of spare time to do my other activities especially when i’m burned out, busy and in a hurry mood. Moreover, i think it’s so good for me to avoid of cooking bcz i’m not fond of this. On the other hand as long as it’s handy and fast i don’t mind its dangerious effects. In my opinion there are a lot of other items which have so risky impacts on human health rather than microwaves that we need to tend them.

07:36 AM Dec 25 2013 |

ghost.w0506

Germany

microwave = dangerous or not


science can say “at the moment, we don t see any risk”, but no one knows, what will happen 10 years later. For all things one rule is very important


don t use things too long


special cellphones, microwaves, tv


because  No one knows what will happen with x rays


or other rays



02:46 PM Dec 24 2013 |

ghost.w0506

Germany

microwave = dangerous or not


science can say “at the moment, we don t see any risk”, but no one knows, what will happen 10 years later. For all things one rule is very important


don t use things too long


special cellphones, microwaves, tv


because  No one knows what will happen with x rays


or other rays



02:46 PM Dec 24 2013 |

Ivana_1997

Bulgaria

I know it’s weird but I don’t have a microwave at home. But I don’t think that they are dangeroius and there is some kind of risk if we use the them.

04:34 PM Dec 22 2013 |

zoleikha

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

it is so wonderful

03:39 PM Dec 21 2013 |

bettyliu

Taiwan

I like what Mukh said “if we want to use things to facilitate our life we should spend some efforts to understand how it woks”. The problem is we know too little about the health risk about these appliances like mobile phone, mocrowaves, etc.  I don’t if microwave is so risky like Marni said.  Who should be accountable to tell us the safty standerd of this appliances?

01:21 PM Dec 21 2013 |

Sandara_Dada

Thailand

I don’t think Microvaves it will be dangerous for us and I agree that cooked quickly is most important. Becuase sometimes we are just too busy to waste a lote of time to uses pots or pans on the stove then cooked. it will take too long.


that’s just my opinion by the way.

07:50 AM Dec 21 2013 |

1 person likes this

shv_2005

shv_2005

India

Microvaves are safe for uses. NO Medical Consultant declare about this issue that Microwave is not safe. 

04:19 AM Dec 21 2013 |

1 person likes this

mukh

mukh

Jordan

Rafael said  “When you can reheat something so easily, you don’t think about the health risk. You just appreciate it”, I am totally against him, because I do not feel comfortable with anything make the life so easy without understanding it at least if we want to use things to facilitate our life we should spend some efforts to understand how it works.

07:11 PM Dec 20 2013 |

1 person likes this

habiba 18

habiba 18

Tunisia

microwaves r dangerous???!!!! how come ! O.o !! i think microwaves r a bless :D

06:21 PM Dec 20 2013 |

Jasonlongo

Jasonlongo

Congo, Democratic Republic Of The

Microwave is more important in this new society, despite I don’t use for some personal reasons.


I’m stuck with this old-fashioned thing of stove, but I’ll use it !

05:25 PM Dec 20 2013 |

2 people like this

snoopyboy

snoopyboy

Antarctica


 Interesting topic and comments .I have to say that I’m a bit on the fence on the debate over the possible health risk associated with the use of microwave.


     For years, I have been an avid microwaves user I’d spent more time around them than the average cockroach would ;). It didn’t matter whether it was processed canned food, or some good healthy grandmother’s leftover, some instant tea, virtually nothing would go down my digestive tract without undergoing the microwave rite of passage :). I was so addicted to instant cooking that even the prospect of saving more doing my own cooking didn’t deter me from popping my canned goods into my trusty microwave. The lure? I thought that time saving, adding to the fact that I have no culinary skills whatsoever, was worth the unnecessary stress I put on my financial budget every week. Two years ago, if you were to ask me to list the items I’d take with me to a deserted island, an assorted truckload of frozen ,canned goods and a microwave would have easily topped that list. Now, I have had a change of heart about what I want to put into my stomach after I’ve read so many unsavory articles about processed foods. I consume them on very rare occasions, which eventually cut down the amount of times I spend using this otherwise convenient device: my microwave is primarily used as a heating rather than a cooking device nowadays. Although I still haven’t acquired any formidable cooking skills yet, I really had grown to endorse that stove cooking is somewhat healthier and a more economical option than microwave cooking :). Plus, cooking on stove incites more craft and intimacy, I mean you’ve got to cry when you dice your onions how cool is that! :D


    I remain a skeptic of claims that standing in front of a microwave will increase my chance on contracting a disease, my grandmother will be the first to remind of that and always encourages to at least cover up anything I reheat in a microwave, like that will buffer the impact of the “disease-carrying” radiation that’s being emitted :). Maybe she and all who allege that microwave usage is a potential health risk are right, but to me, this should be only a secondary concern after ensuring that what we consume have indeed a clean bill of health. More often than not, we’re consuming genetically modified and fertilizer-soaked foods anyway, I’m just saying :D.


04:33 PM Dec 20 2013 |

ttsuka

ttsuka

Japan

Some people use macrowave for everything, including hot water. I kind of find it objectionable. For example, I don’t like tea made with microwaved water in which a tea bag floats. I am also saddened by the apparent popularity of macrowavable frozen vegetables here in the US.  On the other hand, macrowave was handy when I had to dry socks quckly. Talking of which, please don’t macrowave popcorn at work. The baby vomit-like smell hovers in the office for hours!  

12:51 PM Dec 20 2013 |

 julito

julito

Argentina

I prefer to use an electric grill , not that i am against microwaves ,I dunno  how risky is the use of it  ,the same with cells phones  ,the info that  we get is that they  pose a serious  health risk ,nonetheless they have come  a body part of us, so to speak ,   to the extent that  people as a whole can not  live without  it .

12:41 PM Dec 20 2013 |

Seiyf_khawas

Turkey

Everything has a price ..using microwaves,too..


it can have some health risks as other useful machines .every day we hear about alot of convenient machines are harmful for our health..for exp, TVs,mobiles,Ipods,computer screens..on the other hand ,they make our life easier and confort.


ı have a microwave for 19 years ..smtm ı use it .


life is a sum of our choices..:)))

11:33 AM Dec 20 2013 |

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