ESP, Business, Marketing, Environmental & Sports Vocabulary – Lecture Review

A comprehensive set of 90 Question-and-Answer flashcards covering ESP fundamentals, business and marketing vocabulary, key environmental science terms, climate & pollution concepts, waste management, remediation techniques, and common sports idioms/verbs relevant to the lecture notes for Weeks 1–5 and beyond.

What does the acronym ESP stand for?

English for Specific Purposes

Why is ESP increasingly important in education and training?

Globalization requires English at work, more people pursue vocational training, and learners progress from general English to ESP earlier.

Name the four main language skills emphasized in ESP.

Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing

What is a needs analysis in ESP?

A process that identifies each learner’s specific goals and language requirements so courses can be tailored effectively.

Define ‘telesales / telemarketing’.

Selling products or services over the phone.

What is ‘cold-calling’?

Contacting potential customers without any prior request or appointment.

Explain a ‘hard sell’.

An aggressive, high-pressure sales approach.

What is ‘inertia selling’?

Supplying goods or services without the customer’s active consent, hoping they will accept and pay.

Define ‘confusion marketing’.

Deliberately making product choices or pricing unclear to discourage comparison shopping.

What is a ‘loss leader’?

A product sold at a very low price (often below cost) to attract customers who then buy other items.

Explain ‘niche market’.

A small, specialized segment of a larger market with distinct needs.

What does ‘brand loyalty’ mean?

Customers’ tendency to continue buying the same brand repeatedly.

What does it mean to ‘shop around’?

Compare prices and offers from different sellers before purchasing.

If something is bought ‘on approval’, what can the buyer do?

Return it without penalty if not satisfied.

What does ‘under the hammer’ mean in business?

Sold at auction.

A ‘lucrative’ business opportunity is one that…

Generates a lot of profit.

Define ‘red tape’.

Excessive bureaucratic rules and paperwork that delay action.

What is a company ‘merger’?

When two companies combine to form one entity.

Who is an ‘entrepreneur’?

A person who starts and runs their own business, taking financial risks.

Give a brief definition of ‘capital assets’.

Valuable long-term items a company owns, such as buildings and machinery.

What does it mean to ‘put in / submit a tender’?

Offer a price proposal for a project or contract.

What happens when you ‘win a tender’?

Your bid is accepted and you are awarded the contract.

To ‘meet a deadline’ means…

Finish a task on or before the agreed time.

What is a ‘penalty clause’?

A contract condition that imposes a fine if obligations are not met.

Define ‘outstanding account’.

An invoice or bill that has not yet been paid.

What does ‘default on a payment’ mean?

Fail to pay money owed by the due date.

To ‘acknowledge receipt’ is to…

Confirm that goods or documents have been received.

What does it mean to ‘ship an order’?

Dispatch products to the customer.

When does a contract ‘expire’?

At the date or time when it officially ends.

What is a ‘sales promotion’?

A short-term incentive (discount, coupon, etc.) designed to increase sales.

Define ‘advertising campaign’.

A planned series of advertisements with a common objective and theme.

What is ‘viral marketing’?

Promotional content that spreads rapidly online through user sharing.

Explain the ‘comparative-parity method’.

Setting an advertising budget equal to what competitors spend.

Define ‘word-of-mouth’ marketing.

Product information shared by customers through personal conversation.

What are ‘point-of-sale displays’?

Promotional materials placed where the customer makes the purchase decision.

Who are ‘target customers’?

The specific group a company aims to sell its product to.

What is a ‘media plan’?

A schedule that specifies where, when and how often ads will appear.

Differentiate Marketing vs. Advertising in one sentence.

Marketing is the overall long-term process of satisfying customer needs and building a brand, while advertising is the paid, short-term promotional component of marketing.

State the 4 Ps of the marketing mix.

Product, Price, Place, Promotion

In the 4 Ps, what does ‘Product’ refer to?

The item or service offered, including its design, features and benefits.

Give two common pricing strategies.

Discount pricing and premium pricing (others: competitive pricing, etc.).

In the marketing mix, what does ‘Place’ involve?

Distribution channels and locations where the product is made available to customers.

Provide two examples of ‘Promotion’ tools.

Advertising, sales promotions, social media campaigns, public relations, etc.

What is ‘RfD (Reference Dose)’?

Estimated daily exposure level to a chemical considered safe for humans.

Define ‘LOEL (Lowest Observed Effect Level)’.

The smallest dose of a substance that produces a detectable effect in studies.

What does ‘NOAEL’ stand for?

No Observed Adverse Effect Level – highest dose with no harmful effects detected.

Explain ‘bioconcentration’.

The accumulation of chemicals in living organisms from their environment.

What is a ‘hazard index’?

A numerical value indicating the potential risk posed by exposure to a chemical.

Define ‘risk assessment’.

Systematic process of identifying and evaluating potential hazards.

What is meant by ‘uncertainty factor’?

Safety margin applied when data are incomplete or uncertain.

Give a simple definition of ‘deforestation’.

Cutting down large areas of forest.

Explain ‘sustainability’.

Using resources in ways that do not compromise future generations’ needs.

Differentiate ‘primary’ vs. ‘secondary’ salinity.

Primary salinity is naturally occurring soil salt; secondary salinity is caused by human activities.

What is ‘desertification’?

The process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically due to drought, deforestation or unsuitable farming.

Define ‘eutrophication’.

Excess nutrients in water causing algae blooms and oxygen depletion.

How does ‘cultural eutrophication’ differ from natural eutrophication?

It is accelerated by human inputs such as sewage, detergents and fertilizers.

What is ‘deoxygenation’ in aquatic systems?

A drop in dissolved oxygen levels, threatening aquatic life.

Describe a ‘contaminant plume’.

A zone of polluted groundwater spreading from a source.

Explain ‘temperature inversion’.

Atmospheric condition where warm air traps cooler air (and pollutants) near the ground.

What are ‘point source’ and ‘nonpoint source’ water pollution?

Point source comes from a single identifiable location; nonpoint source is diffuse, from many small areas.

Define ‘greenhouse effect’.

Trapping of heat by gases like CO₂ in Earth’s atmosphere.

What is a ‘tipping point’ in climate change?

A critical threshold after which rapid, irreversible environmental changes occur.

State the purpose of the Kyoto Protocol.

International agreement aimed at reducing greenhouse-gas emissions.

What does ‘bioremediation’ mean?

Using microorganisms to break down or remove pollutants from the environment.

Define ‘phytoremediation’.

Using plants to absorb or detoxify contaminants in soil or water.

Explain ‘waste-to-energy incinerator’.

Facility that burns waste to generate electricity or heat.

What is an ‘open dump’?

Uncontrolled site where garbage is simply piled up without environmental safeguards.

Describe a ‘sanitary landfill’.

Engineered site where municipal waste is buried with protective liners and daily soil cover to minimize pollution.

What is ‘methane recovery’ in landfills?

Capturing methane gas produced by decomposing waste for energy use.

Define ‘hazardous waste’.

Waste that poses substantial or potential threats to public health or the environment.

Explain the term ‘urban heat island’.

Urban area significantly warmer than its rural surroundings due to human activities and surfaces that retain heat.

What does ‘organic farming’ avoid?

The use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers.

What is the opposite agricultural practice to ‘monoculture’?

Intercropping or polyculture (growing multiple crops together).

Give one environmentally friendly travel option besides driving alone.

Using mass transit, carpooling, biking or walking.

Define ‘species diversity’.

The number of different species present in an ecosystem.

What is a ‘mass extinction’?

A period when many species worldwide die out in a relatively short time.

Explain ‘background extinction’.

The normal, gradual rate of species loss over geological time.

What does ‘Holocene extinction’ refer to?

The current human-driven wave of species extinctions.

Meaning of sports idiom ‘hit / knock someone for six’.

To shock or surprise someone greatly.

In sports idioms, what does ‘below par’ mean?

Performing worse than normal; substandard.

Use ‘move the goalposts’ in business terms.

Changing rules or targets unfairly during a project or negotiation.

What does the idiom ‘neck and neck’ describe?

Two competitors being very close to each other in a race or contest.

Explain the phrasal verb ‘throw in the towel’.

To give up or quit an effort.

Define ‘set the ball rolling’.

To start an activity or process.

What does ‘on the ball’ mean about a worker?

Alert, quick and competent.

In soccer, where is the ‘penalty spot’?

The mark inside the penalty area from which penalty kicks are taken.

Name the tallest player role in basketball and its main job.

Center; protects the rim, blocks shots, and rebounds.

In volleyball, how many hits (excluding a block) is a team allowed before returning the ball?

Three hits.

During tennis scoring, what comes after 30?

40

What is ‘ISCO’ in environmental remediation?

In-Situ Chemical Oxidation – injecting oxidants to break down pollutants.

Purpose of ‘pump and treat’ technology.

Pump out contaminated groundwater, clean it, then discharge or reinject it.

Define ‘vitrification’ in soil cleanup.

Using intense heat to fuse soil into glass-like material, immobilizing contaminants.