What are books that everyone should read in high school?
These are my favourites and I recommend these to everyone. These books are quite simple to read.The Kite Runner by Khaled HosseiniA Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled HosseiniAnd The Mountains Echoed by Khaled HosseiniAll the above three books would make you appreciate the things you have in your life. Two precious gifts: the freedom to be yourself and the will to do as you wish.The Book Thief by Markus ZusakA Fraction of the Whole by Steve ToltzA Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger [ This is a must for high school students. You would understand your Angst, more specifically Teen-age Angst ]Zero to One by Peter Thiel [ This will give you an idea about how important it’s to stand-out to thrive. Unlike the past generation, the next generation would be dominated by technology and to create an identity it’s imperative to not be copy-cat.]8. 1984 by George Orwell9. Animal Farm by George Orwell [ This book will help you understand the world is selfish and it’s good to be a little selfish sometimes. Keeping yourself above others isn’t bad as long as it doesn’t hurt anybody. Sometimes it’s better to do things just for others].Except the first three all are classics. Well, they are classics for a reason.
In what ways is Russian higher education outdated?
Answers from Russian students here give more than enough color on Russia's archaic higher educationCurriculum that changed too little in the last 20-30 years (using old books is not necessarily a problem, but not developing new courses and new topics is a problem)Infrastructure that has not been updated for the lack of fundingAmazing bureaucracyMany professors whose research and skills are outdated; of course there are also professors who are doing fine or at least are trying hard to improveMetrics, incentives and publicity that focus on extremes rather than the bulk/average; there is also quite a bit of exaggeration and slapping oneself on the back (such as picking up the most favorable rankings and citing only those)The question refers to Russian higher education as a whole, not necessarily top universities that are far ahead of the next 10-20. Nevetheless, the issues above still apply to top universities, just to a lesser degree. By the way, the top five are (IMHO) - Moscow State, Higher School of Economics (Moscow), Novosibirsk State, MIPT (not a university, but still counts) and St.Peterburg State.It is also important to account for the competition. Russian universities are more modern than, say, most universities in Africa. However, if you compare their current standing to where they were in the 1960s-1980s relative to the US, Japan and Western Europe, they fell very very far behind. This is mostly because everyone else improved faster, but also because of the brain drain and because of stagnation/underfunding. Moreover, China and India weren't much of a competition back then. Today, half of US graduate students come from China and India (top European schools show similar trends). Russian students do apply, but few get in (of course, Russia does not produce nearly as many students as China and India).
How and where can you get current audiobooks for free?
So you’re looking for the best place to download free audio books!Now downloading free audiobooks sounds great, however, some people would recommend using torrent websites… Which I highly advise against.Only there are potentially some major security implications from using these free websites. Let me explain!Torrent websites are a prime target for hackers and other cyber criminals to gain data from people who are downloading what they think are just audiobooks. Therefore, I heavily suggest against using torrent websites to download your audiobooks, as you’re leaving yourself extremely vulnerable.Instead, I would suggest using a well-known, reputable audiobook provider such as audiobooks.com.As you can see, the company have over 125,000 audiobooks from best-sellers, classics, award-winners and plenty more for you to choose from. They also have free apps available for IOS and Android devices, so that you can download you audiobooks and take them wherever you go.They are currently offering a 30-day free trial for new users. This is only for a limited period.If you’re interested in getting more information about this audiobook service, take a look at their website: audiobooks.com
'Propaganda was more effective than terror in Stalin's control over the soviet people.'?
Good question. Propaganda and terror often coincide but not always. Propaganda works by bombarding people who don't know any better with your version of things so that's all they know and you being a trusted source must be right. People will be live what they are told by anyone reputable especially if its repeated. For example I saw a study that showed that most people didn't know the national anthem but could recite the "Big Mac" song word for word. As far as being more effective than terror im not quite sure about that. I think that propaganda was preferred over terror and terror was used as a back up. When appealing to the loyalty of a mass amount of people it is often better to coerce them rather than threaten them. Especially when trying for power in over a people known for violent overthrow of the government. Basically "If you want a clean plate dont poop where your about to eat"
Should I continue learning Esperanto?
Saluton! Bona demando! Mi parolas Esperanton iomete. Mi komencis lerni la lingvon antau ĉirkaŭ 5 monatoj.(Hello! Good question! I speak a little Esperanto. I began learning the language about five months ago.)Don’t stop learning Esperanto just because of the similarities to Newspeak! To be honest, Newspeak was probably actually a pretty good idea at the beginning—having a simplified language that everybody can speak easily, with rules and no exceptions, is undeniably a positive thing. The problem in 1984 is the government and how Newspeak is controlled. I’m currently reading 1984, as well, and it did strike me how similar the two languages are!Newspeak:Good = goodUn-good = badPlus-good = greatEsperanto:Bona = goodMalbona = badTre bona = greatIn Newspeak, the prefix “un-” always means the opposite of; in Esperanto, the opposite of is always, always indicated by “mal”. Like in Newspeak, the root form of the word does not change. The word “good” exists through all the variations, as does “bona”. In English, however, the word “good” sort of disappears through other forms—bad, great, etc. Those don’t all have the word “good” in them, although wouldn’t it make so much sense if they did? The Esperanto and Newspeak forms do have the word present throughout all the forms.Do not stop learning Esperanto just because you’re a little creeped out. Honestly, the fact that the two languages are similar is probably a good thing. It means that the idea of a simple, universal language is a positive one and people are willing to make it as easy as possible. Newspeak and Esperanto have similar rules because, well, they’re good rules and the simplest, easiest rules possible.In my opinion, you should definitely keep learning Esperanto. It’s a valuable skill to have. I’m an Esperanto beginner myself (like I said above) and I love it. It’s fun and it’s very useful! To me, the Esperanto-Newspeak similarities are very cool—tre mojosa!—rather than creepy. It shows the languages are smart and special.Dankon kaj ĝis poste! (Thank you and goodbye!)