Breaking News English ESL Lesson Plan on Noses

The human nose has a new role – as a secret weapon in the fight against terrorism. British scientists have worked out that our noses may be a better way of identifying people than fingerprints or iris scans. Dr Adrian Evans of the University of Bath, who conducted the research, said scanning noses will be an important tool in the battle against crime, illegal immigration and terrorism. The new system works by photographing the nose from different angles using a software programme called PhotoFace. This analyzes the shape of the nose and where it fits on the face. It places the image into one of six basic nose shapes shared by all humans: Roman, Greek, Nubian, Hawk, Snub and Turn-up. This method of recognizing humans is part of the science known as biometrics.

Dr Evans told reporters that the nose could be very useful for crime-fighting agencies: "Noses are prominent facial features, and yet their use as a biometric has been largely unexplored. We wanted to find out how good they could be at recognizing individuals from a database,” he said. Dr. Evans explained that noses could be better to work with than irises or fingerprints, saying: “Noses are much easier to photograph and are harder to conceal, so a system that recognizes noses would work better with an uncooperative subject or for [undercover] surveillance." Nose recognition is not new. Dog breeders have used “nose prints” for years to identify their dogs. The Canadian Kennel Club has used nose prints to prove a dog’s identity since 1938.

WARM-UPS

1. NOSES: Walk around the class and talk to other students about noses. Change partners often. Sit with your first partner(s) and share your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words from the article are most interesting and which are most boring.

human nose / secret weapons / terrorism / immigration / software / biometrics / reporters / crime fighting / database / fingerprints / proof of identity / dog breeders

Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.

3. CRIME FIGHTING: What do you know about it? Complete this table. Share what you wrote with your partner(s). Change partners and share what you heard.

	What I know about these things	What I want to know
fingerprints
iris recognition
DNA
handwriting
gait
nose scanning

4. DETECTION: Students A strongly believe police will solve more crimes in the future; Students B strongly believe criminals will outwit police more often in the future. Change partners again and talk about your conversations.

5. SECRET WEAPONS: How could these be used as secret weapons to fight terrorism? Talk about this with your partner(s). Change partners and share your ratings again.

the human nose
pens
sandwiches
movie stars

the English language
books
songs
water

6. SCANNING: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word ‘scanning’. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

a.	Special spies are being trained to smell terrorists at airports.	T / F
b.	Scientists said our nose better identifies us than fingerprints.	T / F
c.	There are six basic types of human nose.	T / F
d.	The science of analyzing noses to recognize humans is called nosology.	T / F
e.	Police have used noses extensively to fight crime for many years.	T / F
f.	A doctor said irises are better to work with than fingerprints.	T / F
g.	The doctor said noses are useful because they are hard to hide.	T / F
h.	A Canadian dog association uses nose prints to prove dogs’ identities.	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.

1.	role	a.	carried out
2	identifying	b.	establish
3.	conducted	c.	hide
4.	places	d.	characteristics
5.	basic	e.	fundamental
6.	prominent	f.	recognizing
7.	features	g.	observation
8.	conceal	h.	puts
9.	surveillance	i.	function
10.	prove	j.	major

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

1.	a secret weapon in the	a.	the battle against crime
2	a better way of	b.	subject
3.	an important tool in	c.	known as biometrics
4.	This analyzes	d.	features
5.	part of the science	e.	identity
6.	crime-	f.	fight against terrorism
7.	prominent facial	g.	been largely unexplored
8.	their use as a biometric has	h.	the shape of the nose
9.	work better with an uncooperative	i.	identifying people
10.	prove a dog’s	j.	fighting agencies

WHILE READING / LISTENING

GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.

The human nose has a new role – as a ____________ weapon in the fight against terrorism. British scientists have ____________ out that our noses may be a better way of identifying people than fingerprints or iris scans. Dr Adrian Evans of the University of Bath, who ____________ the research, said scanning noses will be an important tool in the ____________ against crime, illegal immigration and terrorism. The new system works by photographing the nose from different ____________ using a software programme called PhotoFace. This analyzes the shape of the nose and where it ____________ on the face. It places the image into one of six ____________ nose shapes shared by all humans: Roman, Greek, Nubian, Hawk, Snub and Turn-up. This method of recognizing humans is part of the science ____________ as biometrics.

basic
worked
battle
fits
secret
known
conducted
angles

Dr Evans told reporters that the nose could be very ____________ for crime-fighting agencies: "Noses are prominent ____________ features, and yet their use as a biometric has been ____________ unexplored. We wanted to find out how good they could be at recognizing ____________ from a database,” he said. Dr. Evans explained that noses could be better to work with than irises or fingerprints, saying: “Noses are much easier to photograph and are harder to ____________, so a system that recognizes noses would work better with an uncooperative ____________ or for [undercover] surveillance." Nose recognition is not new. Dog breeders have used “nose prints” for years to ____________ their dogs. The Canadian Kennel Club has used nose prints to ____________ a dog’s identity since 1938.

subject
facial
prove
individuals
useful
largely
identify
conceal

LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

The human nose __________________ – as a secret weapon in the fight against terrorism. British scientists have worked out that __________________ better way of identifying people than fingerprints or iris scans. Dr Adrian Evans of the University of Bath, who conducted the research, said scanning noses will be an important tool __________________ crime, illegal immigration and terrorism. The new system works by photographing the nose __________________ using a software programme called PhotoFace. This analyzes the shape of the nose and where it fits on the face. It places the image __________________ nose shapes shared by all humans: Roman, Greek, Nubian, Hawk, Snub and Turn-up. This method of recognizing humans is part of __________________ biometrics.

Dr Evans told reporters that the nose could be very useful for crime-fighting agencies: "Noses __________________ features, and yet their use as a biometric has been largely unexplored. We wanted __________________ good they could be at recognizing individuals from a database,” he said. Dr. Evans explained that noses could be better __________________ irises or fingerprints, saying: “Noses are much easier to photograph and are harder to conceal, __________________ recognizes noses would work better with an uncooperative subject or for [undercover] surveillance." Nose recognition is not new. Dog breeders have used “nose prints” __________________ their dogs. The Canadian Kennel Club has used nose prints __________________ identity since 1938.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘nose’ and ‘print’.

nose

print

Share your findings with your partners.

Make questions using the words you found.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

role
worked
tool
angles
fits
part

useful
largely
database
system
new
prove

STUDENT NOSES SURVEY

Write five GOOD questions about noses in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper.

When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

	STUDENT 1 _____________	STUDENT 2 _____________	STUDENT 3 _____________
Q.1.
Q.2.
Q.3.
Q.4.
Q.5.

Now return to your original partner and share and talk about what you found out. Change partners often.
Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

NOSES DISCUSSION

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

a)	What did you think when you read the headline?
b)	What springs to mind when you hear the word ‘nose’?
c)	Do you think nose scanning is a good idea?
d)	How effective do you think this will be to reduce crime?
e)	Do you like your nose?
f)	How would you describe your nose?
g)	On a scale of one to ten (ten being most beautiful) where would you rate the beauty of noses?
h)	What do you know about biometrics?
i)	How do you think this will work?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

a)	Did you like reading this article?
b)	Would you like to change your nose?
c)	How could crime-fighters deal with people who have nose jobs (cosmetic surgery)?
d)	Do you really think noses are more useful than fingerprints and irises in solving and fighting crimes?
e)	What three adjectives would you use to describe this article (and why)?
f)	Would you object to the police photographing your nose and putting it in a database?
g)	What kind of a day do you think a nose scanner might have?
h)	Why do you think scientists have only just realized this?
i)	What questions would you like to ask Dr Adrian Evans?

LANGUAGE – MULTIPLE CHOICE

The human nose has a new (1) ____ – as a secret weapon in the fight against terrorism. British scientists have worked out that our noses may be a better way of identifying people than fingerprints or iris (2) ____. Dr Adrian Evans of the University of Bath, who conducted the research, said scanning noses will be an important (3) ____ in the battle against crime, illegal immigration and terrorism. The new system works by photographing the nose from different (4) ____ using a software programme called PhotoFace. This analyzes the shape of the nose and where it (5) ____ on the face. It places the image into one of six basic nose shapes shared by all humans: Roman, Greek, Nubian, Hawk, Snub and Turn-up. This method of recognizing humans is part of the science known (6) ____ biometrics.

Dr Evans told reporters that the nose could be very useful (7) ____ crime-fighting agencies: "Noses are prominent facial features, and yet their use as a biometric has been (8) ____ unexplored. We wanted to find out how good they could be at recognizing individuals from a database,” he said. Dr. Evans explained that noses could be better to work (9) ____ than irises or fingerprints, saying: “Noses are much easier to photograph and are harder to (10) ____, so a system that recognizes noses would work better with an uncooperative subject or for [undercover] surveillance." Nose recognition is not new. Dog breeders have used “nose prints” for (11) ____ to identify their dogs. The Canadian Kennel Club has used nose prints to (12) ____ a dog’s identity since 1938.

Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.

1.	(a)	reel	(b)	roll	(c)	real	(d)	role
2.	(a)	scans	(b)	spans	(c)	swans	(d)	spams
3.	(a)	equipment	(b)	tool	(c)	kit	(d)	utensil
4.	(a)	angular	(b)	angled	(c)	angles	(d)	angle
5.	(a)	places	(b)	puts	(c)	fits	(d)	joins
6.	(a)	was	(b)	as	(c)	has	(d)	whereas
7.	(a)	by	(b)	from	(c)	of	(d)	for
8.	(a)	largely	(b)	big	(c)	huge	(d)	smallish
9.	(a)	for	(b)	with	(c)	up	(d)	over
10.	(a)	reveal	(b)	congeal	(c)	reseal	(d)	conceal
11.	(a)	annual	(b)	yearly	(c)	years	(d)	year
12.	(a)	prove	(b)	proof	(c)	improve	(d)	proofread

WRITING

Write about noses for 10 minutes. Correct your partner’s paper.

_____________________________________________________________________________

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about noses. Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. CRIME FIGHTING: Make a poster about crime fighting. Include what your country does well. Show your work to your classmates in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. CRIME FIGHTER: Write a magazine article about a crime fighter. Include an imaginary interview with him/her.

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).

5. LETTER: Write a letter to Dr Evans. Ask him three questions about his research and noses. Tell him three possible problems with the nose scans. Read your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your questions.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

SYNONYM MATCH:

1.	role	a.	function
2	identifying	b.	recognizing
3.	conducted	c.	carried out
4.	places	d.	puts
5.	basic	e.	fundamental
6.	prominent	f.	major
7.	features	g.	characteristics
8.	conceal	h.	hide
9.	surveillance	i.	observation
10.	prove	j.	establish

PHRASE MATCH:

1.	a secret weapon in the	a.	fight against terrorism
2	a better way of	b.	identifying people
3.	an important tool in	c.	the battle against crime
4.	This analyzes	d.	the shape of the nose
5.	part of the science	e.	known as biometrics
6.	crime-	f.	fighting agencies
7.	prominent facial	g.	features
8.	their use as a biometric has	h.	been largely unexplored
9.	work better with an uncooperative	i.	subject
10.	prove a dog’s	j.	identity

GAP FILL:

Noses to be used in fight against terrorism

The human nose has a new role – as a secret weapon in the fight against terrorism. British scientists have worked out that our noses may be a better way of identifying people than fingerprints or iris scans. Dr Adrian Evans of the University of Bath, who conducted the research, said scanning noses will be an important tool in the battle against crime, illegal immigration and terrorism. The new system works by photographing the nose from different angles using a software programme called PhotoFace. This analyzes the shape of the nose and where it fits on the face. It places the image into one of six basic nose shapes shared by all humans: Roman, Greek, Nubian, Hawk, Snub and Turn-up. This method of recognizing humans is part of the science known as biometrics.

Dr Evans told reporters that the nose could be very useful for crime-fighting agencies: "Noses are prominent facial features, and yet their use as a biometric has been largely unexplored. We wanted to find out how good they could be at recognizing individuals from a database,” he said. Dr. Evans explained that noses could be better to work with than irises or fingerprints, saying: “Noses are much easier to photograph and are harder to conceal, so a system that recognizes noses would work better with an uncooperative subject or for [undercover] surveillance." Nose recognition is not new. Dog breeders have used “nose prints” for years to identify their dogs. The Canadian Kennel Club has used nose prints to prove a dog’s identity since 1938.

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - d

2 - a

3 - b

4 - c

5 - c

6 - b

7 - d

8 - a

9 - b

10 - d

11 - c

12 - a

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Breaking News English

March 3, 2010

Noses To Be Used In Fight Against Terrorism