CROSSROADS Language Studio’s Newsletter, March 2008
Food or Fuel?
Theincreasingly
highdemand for both food andbiofuels
willbringfoodshortages to the world. Recent
expectations are focusing on
bioethanol to greatly decrease
our dependency on crude oil.
Bioethanol
isanalcohol
madebyfermenting materials,
suchascorn,sugarcane, wheat andrice. According to a
study, vehicles driven bybioethanol emit less carbon dioxide into the air.
Because of global warming and (the need for)alternative energy, researchers have been trying
to improve bioethanol-;fuelled cars. Of course,
bioethanol-based fuels are an environmentallyfriendly idea. The rapidly growing demand forbioethanol is raising sugarcane and corn prices,
so farmers have been trying to produce more ofthese products as they have to adapt to theglobal market in order to survive.
But using foodstuffs
for energy is a sensitive
issue. It creates anotherproblem. Sugarcane andcorn are staple andreliable food resources
for poor people. But,
because of rising prices, poor people can’t buy
these agricultural products for food. And to makematters worse, deforestation to make way forsugarcane and corn farming accelerates globalwarming. This is a completely vicious circle.
Do you have any goodideas for solving thisproblem?

Chinese Problems Related to Water
China has become a major player on theglobal economic stage. They also have big events
happening this year, with the Olympics being aprime example. However, despite economic
improvements, there are still many problems toface related to water.
Water shortage is a big problem. The existing
population and the modernization of Chinese
capital cities have resulted in huge amounts ofwater being utilized. Especially during theOlympic Games, many people from othercountries, including the athletes, will need a lot ofclean water. Drinking water will not be available
for people who live close to the Olympic Village
because reserves from the neighboring regions
have to be used for the Olympics.
On the other hand, China has another water
related problem to worry about. According to
the news, there is a plan to fire rockets into thesky to scatter any rain clouds to ensure perfectweather while the Olympic Games are inprogress. China has already guaranteed perfectweather during this exciting time.

- Articles from Kenji in A1
NET LESSONS: Are you too busy to come toCROSSROADS?.... Try our lessons on the Internet!
It’s CROSSROADS in your home or office! You get
CROSSROADS’ great teachers, teaching programs,
even classmates, on-line! Call for details: 089 9217595

NET SITE OF THE MONTH:
Check out the ‘You-Tube’ videos on bio-fuels here:
http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/technology/biofuels/

NET NOTEBOOK: Don’t forget to take a look atthe Internet activity notebook in our open-house.
You’ll find games, news and English learning sites.

Joshua Says: This month we have the pleasure of welcoming our new teacher,Owen, to Crossroads. Owen hails from England and you can find out a little about
him on our school notice-board, here in our newsletter’s notice-board on P3, or justtalk to him when you see him in the Open House. Welcome aboard, Owen! It’s
great to have you with us here in Matsuyama, and on our teaching staff.

Junko Says: About 100 years ago a book called “A Wonderer in the Spirit Lands”,written by “the spirit author” Franchezzo, was transcribed by Farnese and published inEnglish. This book is now experiencing a quiet “boom” in Japan. Believe it or not,Franchezzo is a spirit wondering about in the spirit world, describing his experiences andwhat he sees there! I find it most interesting that Franchezzo’s descriptions (100 yearsago) have much in common with the pitch blackness we see from space probes today!

Michael Says: So much change! I recently moved into a new apartment; Iain

has moved to Okinawa; Owen has come to us from Great Britain; and many
new students have joined the school! Not to mention, Spring is coming!
Isn’t Spring a symbol of change? Of growth? Of birth and rebirth? Iremember my father told me when I was young that the only thing that
doesn’t change is change itself. This is a good time of year.

Owen Says: Wow! My first week in Matsuyama has flown by. It has
been wonderful meeting my new work colleagues and students. It is so
nice to be in a city with such beautiful surroundings. I went up to thecastle recently, and could see snow capped peaks in the distance. Arecastles haunted in Japan? It seems every castle in England has at leastone ghost. Thankfully I haven’t seen one… yet.

Sheri Says: Well, my time here at Crossroads is coming to an end. I am
leaving soon for an ashram in India and after one month or so, I'll bereturning to Canada. Although I have only been teaching here for a shorttime, I am sad to leave! There is such a nice feeling at this school and I
enjoyed meeting each and every one of my students. I hope we meet again
someday! Take care everyone, Sheri.

Greg Says: Here are some questions to ponder: Why do we press harder on the remote control
when we know the batteries are flat? Why do people go up in tall buildings and then put money inbinoculars to look at things back down on the ground? Why is it that when you blow in a dog’s face
he gets angry but when you take him for a drive he sticks his head out the window? Why do people
believe you when you say there are 4 billion stars but they check when you say the paint is wet?

Meet our new teacher
GE OWEN NORTH DF
Owen is from Devon in England.
He has a diverse background in theArts. At various times he has
worked as an illustrator, a sculptor, afire performer, and as an actor.
Following in the footsteps ofHoudini, he once attempted toescape from 126 metres of redtape... he failed. Thankfully someone
had brought along a pair of scissors.

Lead Articles for
our Newsletter!

The new format for ournewsletter relies on you, ourstudents, to come forth witharticles for the front page.
We will edit them and thebest ones will appear on thecover page every month.
Short articles, long articles,
any subject, all are welcome.
So, come on! Ask yourteachers for details, and let’s
see how interesting ournewsletter can really get!!

There is a great chance toreally put the English you
study at Crossroads togood use. Overseas
study and home-stayhave never been easier!
And cheaper!! Greatteachers, great deals.
Check out your options withJunko in our office, today!!!

G E N E R A L ( ジェネラル) コース
英語+実践練習６０分 x ２ 回 /週：
1学期-４ヶ月毎にレベルが上がる
クロスローズのメインプログラム
９０分x 1回/週：
忙しい方のための週１レッスン
プライベート(個人)
月２回からレッスン回数自由選択
セミプライベート(セミ個人)：
月３回からレッスン回数自由選択'Hello, my name is Dominic.
I live in Canada. My favorite
things to do are eating and playing.
My father makes excellent bread.
Oh! And I love my toys... on thisphoto, you can see me playing with all
my toys. Sometimes, I'm so excitedthat I don't know which one to playwith. I'm going to be 10 months old on
the 7th of March! My mom will send aDVD so you can see me play guitar!'

His main focus, however, has beenon the creative process anddirecting.
As well as working in the Arts,Owen has held a number ofpositions, some of which weremanagerial. Formerly he was a
director of a health care and fitness
company.
Owen is also CELTA certified as an
English teacher. His intention is tocontinue in this profession whilst
drawing from his wealth of previous
experience.

N E T (ネット) レッスン
COSMOPOLITAN (コスモポリタン) コース グループOR プライベート

英語+実技を通した実用練習、だから誰でも分かる、自然に上達する。
英語でギターを習う
レッスン料￥4,725/月～
英語で歌う
詳細はお問合せ下さい
英語で料理
英語でマジックK I D S ’ (キッズ) クラス
ピアノグループOR プライベート
英語劇
ヨガ
MOTHER & CHILD(マザー&チャイルド)クロスローズで学べるその他の外国語グループOR プライベート
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Phone: 0120-21-7594
Tel: (089) 921-7595
Fax: (089) 921-7319
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