1

A life spent making

mistakes is not only more
honorable,but more useful
than a life spent doing
nothing

George Bernard-Shaw

MAY 2016

WELCOME to
MESSMedea

English

Students

Magazine
Medea University, Id like to thank the many individuals, teams,

e are here!! Yes, MESSMedea English Students

and so many others who have shown such tremendous help

Magazine has finally seen the light! Its spring,

and support in transforming MESS magazine from just an idea

the time of year when flowers and trees are bloom-

to an amazing reality. A special thanks for the editorial assis-

ing and MESS Magazine signals that its time to em-

tants for their work and successful management. We all hope

brace the change for our continuous improvement

you will find the magazine enjoyable and thought-provoking.

as foreign language students at university. A change

Happy reading!

which we believe helps us grow and achieve our goals.

This premiere issue of MESS Magazine sets the stage

M. A.

for different ideas and stories to be told in the future

EDITOR

by students of English at Medea University. Our goal

is to broaden students perspectives and knowledge,
to make them see the world around them from different lenses and a new outlook. This issue covers different topics ranging from studies, culture and more.
MESS Magazine was born out of an idea in the classroom; an idea that was strongly cherished from the first
moment it reached our ears. It was amazing how many
students responded and took it upon themselves to
spread the idea, meet, and plan for its success. In spite
of the challenges, collaboration, hard work and commitment allowed the students of English at Medea University to produce a magazine that we are all proud of.
On behalf of the entire English students and teachers of

At university, where different English students from different places meet, it came the idea of creating a club and providing
students with a space in which they can improve their intellectual and communication skills. Medea Speak Out Club was created in
2015 by the English teacher Mr. Ayoub Boukhatem. This club offers English Students the opportunity to express themselves and share
their ideas through in different activities at university, such as debating. Medea Speak Out Club consists of 4 brunches namely; writing, reading, debate and theatre. Each brunch is run by an initiator, the initiators follow a regular timetable to have one session a week.
Writing is among the most
important

approaches

that

students need to take in order to

develop their English language
skills. Indeed, the writing club
encourages students to express
their internals creatively through
their pens. In addition to writing,
reading is another prominent
activity that the club consists of.
The reading club

allows stu-

dents to meet and discuss

dif-

ferent pieces of writing that they

read, in order to share

differ-

ent interpretations and enlarge

their vocabulary.
This club encourages students to be active and persistent readers. To let students voice be heard, the debate club is the suitable
space for them to defend their ideas. This club attempts to empower students skills of refuting and defending each others arguments
professionally and in an appropriate way. To practice the English language artistically , the theatre club gives students the chance to
show their acting and mimicking abilities through writing and performing plays. Medea Speak Out club aims to move forward and
reach further levels. It shoots for evolving students communication abilities and letting them experience new activities. If you are not
a member, it is time for you to join us .MSO club welcomes you warm-heartedly.

written by
B.Amina

Tips & STUDY

skills

You want to read more ?

READ QUICK !

One of the most common issues among people, especially students,

is how to read many books in a short period of time. Well, I have to admit
that I was myself a slower reader, but now, Im no longer anymore! Are you
curious about the secret? Thanks to some simple tips Im able to read and
finish more books than I used to do. In order to read more, read quickly by
following the steps which are going to be mentioned below, with the advantage of taking benefit of each book. So you wont only read many books
in a short while, but also focus just on what is important in your reading.
First, read often and try challenging materials. Elizabeth Shoter, a professor and researcher at the University of San Diego, expressed that the
range of reading speeds that almost all skilled readers fall between is
200-400 wpm (words-per-minute). A super reader has to have experience in reading, large vocabulary and background knowledge. Making reading a habit helps increase your reading speed. So read a lot!
Second, reduce boredom and day dreaming by creating an interest link
between what you like and the book you want to read. You can try finding a better comfortable place where to read. Third, prime your mind, i.e.,
pre-read. Look at different chapters, headings, the table of content and
the glossary of terms. Fourth, use the pseudo skimming technique. Find
out the main ideas and important words, etc. In order to achieve that, pay
a close attention to the first and last sentences of each paragraph when
youre skimming. Focus also on note formatting bold and italic text, bullet lists and pay attention to what you have learned from your pre-reading.

skimming, its not that helpful in some cases. We skim when we dont have enough
time or when an assignment is not too difficult. We read when we know well later
be tested on the material. To some extent, there is an aspect of innate ability that is
related to reading speed such as being good at the language, being used to reading
and fast mental processing.
Finally, reading is a skill that needs to be taken care of and it takes time to
be improved. Reading faster is many peoples concern .So, in order to make
it easy for everyone I introduced to you five tips that can make it possible for
you to read as many books as you want in a short time. Make reading your
habit and your motivation should be getting information and knowledge.

The last step is a bit contradictory. You shouldnt focus on the speed of your
reading! Thats right, because focusing on your reading speed can
frame and narrow the process of acquiring knowledge.

actually

The same thing for

written by Khadidja khelifi. L2

HOW
ACCENT
LEARN

TO ANY

Being understood when speaking English is very important for us as for-

eign speakers. The ability to convey our ideas and transmit the thoughts that
we would like to transmit is a shared aspiration. Although, it is considered
lass important in the process of communication, but having a good accent is
also a good skill, to influence the listeners in a presentation, in a debate and
even outside. Maintaining a good accent can offer you many benefits, from
pronouncing well the words to understand the native speakers. We all want
to sound like natives, yet, many students and learners struggle when learning a foreign accent, especially when it goes to English, with its two major
accents, the British and the American accents. I would like to share with you
a few successful tips that can help you learn any accent you desire to learn.

1. Be fascinated:
The first important tip which helps you acquire a foreign accent is to be
fascinated with it, pick up the accent that you most like to enjoy learning, and relish the moments during learning that accent. Be fascinated

4. Practice while reading:

by the people who speak and enjoy their vocal sounds. Otherwise, you

Practicing while reading is a useful tip to enhance your accent, in that way, you

will not succeed because learning any skill without fascination leads to

can double up the things reading, and learning an accent and the same time!

boredom and frustration. Have a good desire to learn your target accent.

Practice while reading would be a helpful activity, because it is a little bit hard to

2. Listen and look:

practice while speaking. When doing so, people are waiting for the information
to come out and you cannot stop and repeat again your words because you im-

Listen as much as you can to podcasts, radio, films, news. Focus on the visual

pede your verbal communication. There are many ways you can practice; while

resources, and then you will have a large input and records in your mind. Besides,

reading a novel, a newspaper article or you may begin with this article! If you are

the melody of the accent will be registered in your brain. But merely listening

a student, you can practice while revising. Moreover, during reading highlight or

is a passive way to learn a foreign accent, it just gives you the ability to recog-

underline any words that you are not sure of their pronunciation and check them

nize the kind of the accent that is being heard, but to breakdown the accent,

up in the dictionary. Pronounce these words several times, then after finishing

you need to look at how do people shape their mouths and watch the articula-

the article or the chapter, read again to retain the non-well pronounced words.

tors. Pay attention to cheeks, jaws and lips. For instance, the British move their

With this in mind, dedicating a few minutes every day to listen and practice will

lips forward a lot, while the Americans often round their lips, and the Cockneys

undoubtedly make you able to sound more natural and have a good accent.

(i.e. Londoners) take the sounds inside their mouths. Another point is to choose
the specific accent that you want to acquire. By saying that you want to learn

These are some good resources to learn accents:

the British accent, what do you mean exactly? There are more than 50 accents

For British Accent:

across Britain, the point is to pick the right accent that you want to have; oth-

1- http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/

erwise, you will mix up with varieties of accents. Moreover, the melody is also

(in this website, you will find a lot of materials, especially the section called:

crucial to sound like a native speaker. Give thoughts to how do natives speak in a

Listen and Watch).

statement, a question, when surprised or afraid. Each accent has its own melody.

2-https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGqLRl0qnQQvrILkrm2VwLQ

3. Be a good mimic:

(This is a good resource of podcasts with a general British accent).

3-http://www.dialectsarchive.com/

Only listening is not sufficient to absorb a desired accent. You need to be

(this website contains plenty of English accents and dialects)

a good imitator and imitate what native speakers do and say, including

4-http://www.21accents.com/

what I have mentioned so far. You can look at the articulators, repeat what
you listen and record yourself, then, compare your recording to the native one. Make yourself as an actor and do the same as the native does, including the frequency, the quality and even the intensity of the sounds.

(here is also a good website to learn any accent with Amy. Amy has a funny
way to teach and present her videos).
Written by Younes L1

Is justice promoted ?
Entrance Examination instead of the Current
Algerian University System of Admission.
Many Algerian students are studying in faculties they
did not choose to be students in. A considerable number of
them are competent in what they want to study, but the uni-

These two examples proved that the procedures of

admission are unfair for Billel, Meriem and many other students in different faculties of Algerian universities. In order
to put an end to that, administrators and policy makers need
to consider replacing these procedures with others to pro-

versities admission system did not allow them to do so. For

this category of students, this system is unfair, that is why an
Entrance Exam System of Admission should replace the one
used in Algerian universities. I will exemplify the inequitable current system of admission and argue why taking entrance exams is the suitable way to be fair with those students.
It is difficult to study in a field you do not like and you did
not choose in the first place, that is what any student may say.
What about the ones who really deserve to study in a given faculty but were not admitted, what would they say? It is the case
of many students in the Faculty of Letters and Languages at Medea University. Billel Skanderi is a student enrolled in the Foreign
Language department with its two sections French and English.
He did not choose to study French and although he is excellent
in the English language, his baccalaureate average did not allow
him to join the English section. He proved his good language
proficiency to his friends through participation and communication in a forum he joined but not to the facultys administration
which did not give him the opportunity to prove his capabilities.
Billel chose to carry on his studies in the French section of the
foreign language department, unlike Meriem Ahmed Khoudja, an
American girl from Algerian origins. When she was 12 years old,
her family decided to come and live in Algeria. However, when
she entered Algerian middle school, she found many difficulties
because she could not understand the Arabic language. Studying English at university was the only solution for her. When she

vide these students with places in the faculties they opted for.
As an alternative to the current system of admission, Entrance examination is suggested. Entrance exams are tests
that one may take to be accepted in a school, college, university, etc., in which he can prove his qualities and competence in a particular field. So this kind of admission systems gives students the opportunity to prove themselves
and provides the faculties with qualified students only.
To sum up, Billel and Meriem represent a category of
students who are marginalized in Algerian universities. Replacing the current system of admission with a new one
will undoubtedly guarantee all the students right and enable them to study in the field they are capable in, thus ensuring efficiency and excellence to the Algerian faculties.

got her baccalaureate exam last year, and because of the current system of admission, Meriem had to study sociology, she
made recourse but it was not successful. Unable to fulfill her
dream, she left university and gave up her studies altogether.

Written by Ghada L2

KAFIL-EL-YATIM
Nowadays, there are many
charities and organizations that
take care of poor people and help
them in their lives. One of these
charities is KAFIL EL YATIM. It is
a charity of a social nature and its
aim is to help and support orphans
by providing them with social and
health protection, following them
in order to make them feel that
they are like the other children,
and to make them more opened
up to the society. What is more, the
charity does not neglect the side
of knowledge. It seeks to ensure
special configuration for orphans
and their mothers to help them
earn a living by teaching them
sewing, embroidery, and makrami,
etc.
they go on trips and join the different
cultural entertainment activities to
make them happy. In Islam, it is the
right of a child to be protected, taken
care of physically, psychologically
and emotionally. And these rights
of course dont change when its the
case of being an orphan. Many orphans have no source of income or a
supervisor to take care of them. This
is when
Muslims as a community have to step in and help them
even if the mother is still alive. The
prophet Muhammad peace be upon
him, has said who joins an orphan
among Muslims in his food and drink
until he gets enough, hes assured to
go to heaven, reported by Al-Albani.

Written by Wissem L1

Kafil El Yatim is located only about

100 meters away from Bachens bakery in Medea City. It was established
in 2012, and its slogan says With
your contribution, we wipe their
tears and draw a smile on their faces. Now it has 700 widows and 2000
orphans registered. Besides, more
than 200 volunteers are engaged in
the work. There are plenty of events
that provide different benefits
throughout the year and in all religious events. The charity also provides food and school supplies and
clothing and financial subsidies. In
the month of Ramadhan, there are
two food supplies which are bags
that contain all what the orphans
and widows need for alimentation.

The first bag is given in the first

half of the sacred month and
the other in the second half
of the month. In addition, the
charity supplies Eid clothing
for children under the age of
18. It contributes to the success
of the orphans in their studies
by helping them and providing them with extra lessons for
free. Moreover, they reward the
excellent students and the perfect widow in a festive ceremony. Furthermore, there are two
psychologists that take care of
them psychologically because
it is really important from the
side of behaving with others
in our society, and ensures that

10

THE OUTDOOR SMALL LIBRARIES

Bring the Joy of Reading to your Neighbourhood

Many countries worldwide have witnessed an initiative known as the Little Free Libraries. This movement
aims at raising literacy and most importantly to build
friendly Neighbourhood and bring people together.
The idea behind this movement is, as initiators describes it, To promote literacy and the love of reading by
building free book exchanges worldwide and to build a
sense of community as we share skills, creativity and wisdom across generations. There are over 36,000 Little Free
Library book exchanges around the world, bringing curbside literacy home and sharing millions of books annually.
As you walk down the street, you can grab a book for

ally built near a chair so that people can sit and enjoy

free and read it. The idea is welcomed heartily in dif-

reading their books. This enables people to meet and

ferent parts of the world because readers dont have

exchange their ideas. A woman who uses the library

to buy books. If you are a bookworm, you have also

said that I just met a grandmother that brings her 7

a limited budget and cannot afford buying books,

grandchildren to get books every week. She said that

then, these outdoor libraries are certainly for you.

the kids will say grandma, lets go to the library today.

However, if you plan to take the book, then replace it

The design of the small libraries is very creative

with another one for someone else who would be inter-

with endless shapes and patterns. The titles and

ested in reading just like you. Just dont leave the library

types of books are numerous too ranging from sci-

empty, because there are many book lovers out there.

ence to romance!! The choice is completely yours.

This initiative does not only encourage reading but also

The concept is simple, the idea is very inter-

builds a sense of community by connecting readers.

esting! Im sure you will be enamoured with

The small libraries in the form of a little booth are usu-

it. Incredible if you build one where you live.

Build an outdoor library and share your read.
For further information read the related article at:
https://littlefreelibrary.org/

Written by Asma Mel

IMIGRATION REASONS
A phenomenon that is widely
expanded in the world is the increasing number of immigrants. In the present time, it becomes the picture that
covers the world, whereas in the past,
immigration was less known. Immigration is the process when an individual or a group leaves their country
and move to another one for the sake
of better life conditions or home land
security. Studies have shown that the
percentage of immigration rose to
41% in the last 4 years, and perhaps it
is going to continue its rising. So how
can we explain the reasons behind the
immigration phenomenon? What

leads people to leave their country?

There are many reasons behind the
rise of immigration, but the main reason that pushes people to leave their
lands is economic. Poverty and low
salaries that workers get force people to look for a better life, especially
those who live in the line of the undeveloped countries. These people
tend to move to the developed ones,
where there is economic stability, and
where they can find better job opportunities with high income. Mr. Milton
Friedman (American economist) argued that there is one reason behind
immigration which is getting jobs,

thus, believing immigration to be the

product of economic reasons. Yet it
could be argued that the increased
rate of immigration is the product of
political reasons as well.
Another type of reasons is that one
which focuses precisely on political

issues. As most people know, the

undeveloped countries are suffering
from crisis on the political level. In
addition, the civil wars and struggles
between citizens will probably lead to
the lack of peace. Consequently, people will be obliged to travel abroad
and look for a country that offers
peace and safe shelters. As a case in
point, what is happening nowadays
in the Arabian countries or what is
known as the Arab spring obliges
millions of people to run away from
their countries and migrate to several
other countries that provide the conditions that were mentioned before.

The third type of reasons is totally

different from the previous ones, as
it has a relation with the educational
side. People are looking for better
educational opportunities and high
levels of teaching in different degrees,
especially at universities. Mr. Marcelo
Suarez (professor of globalization
and education in New York University) argued that the higher level of
teaching is what is attracting millions
of people to cross international and
cultural boundaries. Foreign universities in different places of the world
offer their best services for students
and provide them with almost all their

needs. According to the 2012 annual

report of international migration, the
USA is the first destination for students who left their homes for educational purposes. Many seek these
opportunities because it is a common
belief that studying overseas and obtaining higher degrees can enhance
job opportunities.
It is difficult to offer a comprehensive explanation for the growing
trend of
immigration.
Yet as discussed previously, immigration is caused by economic, political
and educational reasons. It is even
more difficult to find solutions to the
problems that might ameliorate due
to illegal immigration. Such problems
will continue to increase unless some
solutions are suggested. Problems
and challenges of illegal immigration are universal, and for that reason,
governments in different countries
should step in to solve this issue that
has been dogging several countries
for many years.

Written by Mohamed Amine L2

12

The importance of
learning foreign
languages

Did you know that there are over

other. Moreover, as cultures and languages are bounded, learning a new language

6500 languages all over the world? Did

gives you the ability to step inside the

you think once of how is it important to

mind and context of that other culture.

learn another language except your own

By studying other languages, you can

one? Learning news languages offers

gain also knowledge an understanding of

numerous opportunities to people. There

the cultures that use these languages. For

are 3 main reasons why you should learn

instance, in the French language the word

a foreign language. Learning another

moon is used to refer to a woman that is

language is important for better op-

very ugly; however, in Arabic, it is used

portunities of work, to gain awareness of

to refer to a womans beauty. Moreover,

others cultures and understand their way

it is helpful to know a language not only

of thinking which is very substantial to

to understand others way of thinking

travel.

but also to avoid their evil. Indeed our

Firstly, learning foreign languages

prophet peace be upon him advised us

opens the door for many opportuni-

to do so. He said that learning a nations

the natives is the language barrier? So

ties to better work positions. Nowadays,

language is a protection from their evil.

many people end up being separated and

most international companies look for

The third and last reason why I think

stay attached to the communities where

candidates with good foreign languages

people should study a foreign language is

their own language is spoken.

skills. These companies expanding into

that if someone plans to go abroad or to

Overall, the more you languages you

different worldwide markets hire em-

immigrate. One of the first things that he

learn the more you are close to the world.

ployees who can easily and effectively

or she should do is to learn the language

As Frank Smith says one language sets

communicate and give their companies

of that country for many reasons. Travel-

you in a corridor for life two languages

more advantages. According to Ryan Mc-

lers can have a better and fascinating ex-

open every door along the way.

Munn, language expert and CEO of BRIC

perience when speaking the language of

Although research show that it is easier

Language Systems, I never would have

the country they are visiting for they can

for children to learn and pick up a second

been successful in China had I not learned

speak freely with the locals. This will help

language, but its not difficult for adults

how to speak Mandarin. By learning a

also widen their perspective of the cul-

either. Different courses are offered

second language, I had an opportunity to

tures and the people they encounter and

nowadays for those with the desire to

develop relationships with Chinese execu-

immerse more deeply into their journeys.

improve their foreign language skills. You

tives and conduct business in ways that

Learning languages can help also immi-

have just to choose the right one and stay

otherwise would not have been possible.

grants and open many doors for them. I

committed.

think the main reason behind the lack of

Secondly, learning new languages

is helpful because cultures and ways of

thinking differ from one language to an-

integration between the immigrants and

Written by Zemirline. R

13

Come back inspiration

I hate it when I want to express myself and utter the unspoken words but expressions betray me and deceive me. It feels like
Im prevented from breathing, suffocating or barely able to breathe.
Sometimes, I feel the urge to speak what have been kept inside for
ages. I have to burn this atmosphere while screaming out the words,
the words which are no longer words but turned to be sharp knives.
This fire, yes I believe that this fire will burst out sooner or later. I just
miss the ink inside my heart, the one I used to write my words, the
one which used to give a smell to my papers, the papers that Ive
abandoned long years ago. Im just nostalgic to my papers, to my
pen, to my writings. Come back inspiration please come back.

Drown inside my book

The voices of my mind crossed the sound of the book
and now ... now its just the ink which is sinking, and you just cant
stop rolling in that book once you start reading. The silence remains swirling and you remain reading, its just deafening but the
echo of the beats still rise like a sound of a huge crowd. You always
feel this way, those precious expressions of a book just open your
eyes wider to another part of the world, its like the mind of the
writer and yours meeting at an eccentric moment, and you want
to strip from all what is surrounding you and go where words
can take you. Youre just born again each time you finish a book.

INTROSPECTION
So three nights ago, I decided to remove unwanted contacts off
my phone. I have never really done that before. Because first of all, I dont
really have much contacts. Secondly, it just didnt matter much. But there I
was, scrolling down the list, and came to a point where I felt almost culpable. It did matter. It does matter. Theres always a voice in my head that
keeps telling me how much it mattered. How much they mattered. And
there were numerous of times I felt like just clicking on their names, to just
text them and see how is it going with them. Are they happy? I hope they
are. I cant do that. I cant always want to know. And thats when I decided
to remove them all. It didnt and doesnt feel alright. Its like you have this
lovable pillow that you sleep with every night and now its up the spout. Its
removing something thats familiar. It doesnt feel good. Its necessary but it
doesnt feel good.

10

Written by Wally L1

Written by Karima L1

41

Welcome to university
Welcome to diversity
A world with no pity
Welcome to none creativity

MY SOUL

From all the things that I did,

My love to you was the best.
I dreamt with you like a kid,
With you I passed more than a test.

No one cares about the coming years

No one sees what behind our tears
No one tries to upgrade the level
Though everyones talking about the level

Its not easy to become,

The only man in your life,
Not even easy passing time,
Alone without a caring wife.

They tell you study to get a work

Actually studying is the hard work
Youve to be wise
Youve to be cruel
To get the diploma
By filling up the fuel

A thousand books arent enough,

To say to you what I feel.
I see the life in your laugh.
My soul you are, and the heal

I tell you what

Just follow your dreams
Just make a start
And sooner itll be released

Written by THE MAK

Never lose hope

I tell you why

Rather you see it unbelievable
But its your right
So you can be exceptional

Never lose hope

Never stop dreaming
Its not time to escape
It is the time of self-esteeming

Written by#Ayoub #O.B.A

Life is a strict coach

And youre a weak body
It can squeeze you like a roach
Because it considers you candy
Just try to achieve your goals
By doing efforts and making plans
Destroy the drawback walls
Thats where your life begins
Always trust your creator
Because youll win and thats official
Deep down youre an innovator
So let go of your potential
You are smart and creative
Draw a map of success
By designing what is impressive
And that is the best process

Written by Abir. G
11

My mother

My mother is a flower
But she has the power
I love her so much
With her Ive found

Ive found the happiness

Ive found the love

These words are not enough

So what I want to say is that

in the world and dream

of all of us in a team

but she loves me more

what Im looking for
Ive found the care
Ive found the dare
for expressing my love to her is pretty tough
my life has no meaning without you mom

Written by #Dado

15

I- Idioms :

II- Tongue-twister :

Note : Idioms are a group of words whose meanings is

Note: A tongue-twister is a word or phrase that is difficult to

different from the meanings of the individual words.

say quickly or correctly.

If a dog chews shoes, whose shoes does he choose.

Instance : Sorry for not coming yesterday. I was a bit

If Kitty can tie a tie and untie a tie. Why cant I tie a tie

under the weather.

and untie a tie!

Under the weather : meaning ill.

Weep buckets : To cry a lot.

Wunwun was a racehorse, Tutu was one too, Wunwun

Instance : Lucy wept buckets for the loss of her uncle.

won one race, Tutu won one too.

Jack-of-all-trades : said about someone who is able

If two witches wish a wish, which witch would wish

to do many things.

which wish.

Instance : Lucien can play the piano, act, and cook ; He is

a real Jack-of-all-trades.

NEW LEXIC:

Talk through ones hat : to talk nonsense.

Instance : He was talking through his hat. I couldnt

She sells seashells by the sea shore.

Seashell: the shell of a small creature that lives in the

sea, often found empty.

understand anything.
-

Pull somebodys leg : to tease or fool someone

when trying to convince them to believe something

which is not true.
Instance : Are you pulling my leg ? Is it really your car ?

III- Did you know? :

-

The most common name in the world is Mohammed.

Jellyfish evaporate in the sun. Theyre %98 water.

There are only two countries in the world that do not sell Coca Cola- North Korea and Cuba.

The moon is rather egg-shaped than round.

China has more English-speaking people than the USA.

12

IDEA: Group 4.

16

FOOTBALL
TOP 3 TRANSFER TALK STORIES
MAHREZ ON EUROPES GIANTS RADAR.
It looks like that the Algerian footballer Riyad Mahrezs latest shows has
started to seduce Europes finest clubs. After his latest performances in the EPL,
the international Algerian has received many enquiries from different teams in
England, Spain, and France. Teams like, FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Arsenal, and
PSG seem very interested in sealing a deal with Leicester City, Mahrezs team. Although Claudio Ranieri, Leicesters head coach has made it clear to the interested
clubs that Mahrez is not for sale, that didnt stop them from sending offers. FC
Barcelona sent an offer of 20M to snap up Mahrez. The offer was immediately
rejected by the English club, for being too skinny first, and their intention to keep
the player most importantly. Mahrez has contributed in 26 goals so far, scoring 15
and assisting 11. Mahrez is the seasons MVP according to most football fanatics
in Britain. For the record, Mahrez was signed from Le Havre (his former team) for
850K and now the price tag of the player has reached the 40M according to
Foot Mercato, a reliable source when it comes to transfer-talk.

EDEN HAZARD TO REAL MADRID?

It looks like Real Madrids intentions in signing the young Belgian star havent
changed a bit. Despite the players poor level this season, the Spanish giants
seem as excited as ever to bring in Eden Hazard, a twenty-five years old player
who scored few goals for a first-team player. Chelsea FC (Hazards team), and despite his low form, do not seem as enthusiastic as Real Madrid when it comes to
letting their top-notch go , thus, they set a buy-out clause at 100M if the Spanish team is to move for Hazard. Eden Hazard scored 2 goals and assisted 4 this
season in more than 30 games he was involved in which begs the question of
whether Hazard really worth all this intention? And most importantly is he worth
a 100m? I guess we have to wait and see then.

FALCAO LINKED WITH A SHOKING MOVE

TO CHINA:
If you ask anyone about the most tragic story he has ever heard, seen, or
witnessed, probably, the answer will be Titanic Movie. However, football
fans will say it is Radamel Garcia Falcao, a two time FIFA Best Striker in the
World winner and many more collective and individual prizes. The striker
has moved from a worldwide star to a normal footballer wanted in lowerclass competitions. Hebei, the interested team, offered Falcao 14M salary a
year with many other bonuses that make any player in the world want to go
on foot to China in order to get that money. Falcao is said to have declined
the offer claiming that he wants to enjoy football in the higher-class level
and will do anything to get back his shape.
Written by Abdelkader

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Nadjib ALI KHOUDJA, L1

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MEDEA

History of the city:

This world is full of marvellous places and beautiful regions, among

these is our beloved city called Medea. Many people have not given much
notice to it. Online, only little information is available about it. Also, a few
people in Algeria and out of Algeria have enough knowledge about Medea. For that reason, it occurred to my mind to provide some information
about Medea, in order to make our nice city more known to the people
who do not know it. Im going to give an overview about this Algerian city.

Medea has an undeniable history. The city is more than 1000 years old and its
history dates back to the 10th century AD. Medea has received a lot of different nations and cultures that are worthwhile to mention. At first, the Romans
came to the city in the first century of the Common Era (i.e. Christian era or AD).
They came to the city giving it the name of Lambadia, which-some historians think of it as the origin name of Medea. The Romans also left a big impact
in Medea and on its traditions such as Elhamam. Roman baths are well known

Many historians have talked about Medea like Ibn Khaldun and Abu Ubaida
El-Keberi. A few years later, the Islamic expansion took over Algeria led by Okba Ibn
Nafii and Musa Ibn Nusair in the beginning of the 700 C.E. Medea city was ruled by
the Rustamids from about 787 to 902 C.E. Then, by the Fatimids, specifically by Ziri
Ben Menad in 960 BC who made the city under the tutelage of his son Bouloughin.
In that period, Medea became more developed culturally and socially. Centuries
after, the Ottoman Empire came to the city in 1548 labelling it as Titteri Baylek. In
that period, the Ottomans faced a strong resistance from the Berbers who refused to
be ruled by the Ottomans. This latter ruled the city until the arriving of the French.
During the colonial period, Medea didnt fall under the rule of the French until 1850
as there were a lot of wars in the city that made it stand against the French. Medea
was the capital of the fourth area during the Algerian Revolution. It had given more
than 15000 martyrs (such as Mahmoud Bachen, Abdelkrim Benkortbi, Othmane
Belhadj and many other martyrs who honoured the province) for the sake of liberation of Algeria. After the independence, the city became a state named Medea.

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Costumes and traditions:

The majority of people in Medea are conservative and still
maintain their old traditions, they are also a bit calm and peaceful. Besides, Medeans are very generous and welcome everyone
that comes to the city. The majority of people in Medea work in
business and crafts with shoe making taking the lead. It is a city
of traditions and costumes that havent died, and are still practiced by the locals.

Medea sights and attractions:

As I mentioned so far, Medea is a beautiful place and a picturesque area, as it joins many archaeological and historical sites,
in addition to the precious landscapes. These are some of the
attractive areas in the city of Medea:

1-El-Hamdania:

1-Handicrafts:
Many handicrafts are found in the city, including: leather industry, ceramics, and porcelain, etc. These handicrafts are present
in many part of the city; in Medea, Kasr El- Boukhari, Tablat, and
other provinces. Moreover, in houses, Medean people still have
the trend of practicing handicrafts -particularly for women- like
weaving, sewing, and traditional clothes such as Chbika, Qachabia, and Bernous.

2-Feasts:
Feasts in Medea are chock-full. In many provinces of the city,
like Hannacha, Sidi Ben Aissa, and El Galb-Kbir, Medeans organize feast and occasions or Waadat, in which people invite each
other, also, in these feasts, equestrian games can be seen in
addition to other activities. Further, there are many other feasts
like grape feast in Ben Chikaou, and spring feast that is common
in almost all the parts of the city. Another typical feast in Medea
is Yennayer or (the beginning of the agricultural year) which is
widespread among locals. Yet, each cultural group has its own
specific foods, the same idea is present in Medea. In addition to
common Algerian traditional dishes, Medea has its own special
traditional foods, like Balbul, Barkoukes, Rechta, Couscous and
Tchekhchouka, also, traditional sweets like Makrout, Baghrir, and
grape sweet. Finally, Medean people are renowned of going to
mineral baths which are considered as places for healing from
diseases, in that case Medeans apply the proverb Ask an experimenter, not a doctor.

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El-Hamdania is one of the beautiful places in Medea. It is a

small town with charming landscapes. El-Hamdania is located
within the Atlas mountains, it enjoys plenty of rivers, green
spaces and it has a lot of undiscovered places and views. It is a
magical place that really deserves a visit, visitors of Medea and
El-Hamdania more specifically can enjoy the gorgeous green
landscape and the Machwi sold in its well- known shops. They
wont leave empty handed either, traditional ornaments and
handmade clay pottery, decorated in an authentic beautiful
Berber style, is widely sold in El-Hamdania.

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2- Rabidiom
Rabidiom is a historical city situated in Djawab, 80 Km East of Medea
city. It was one of the most important cities for the Romans when they
settled there. It was there when Takfarinas fought the Romans. Rabidiom is strategically located, thus, many nations and cultures inhabited
the place like the Romans, Berbers and the Kohoz. Today, Rabidiom is
an attractive area for archaeologists and researchers, also for tourists
who come constantly to visit this historical place.

3-Ashir
Ashir is another cultural heritage in Medea, it was built in 936 A.D
by Ziri Ben Menad. It was built before the three significant Algerian cities: Medea, Msila, and Algiers. Yashir was culturally and
socially developed city, thus it was a destination for scientists and
scholars like Ibn Khaldun and Mahdi Ibn Tumart. Achir is located in
El-Kef Lakhdar, on the outskirt of Challalat El Adhaoura. It is considered an archaeological monument, and it is protected by fences
for preservation and regeneration. It is a stupendous landscape
for tourists, researchers, and all people who like to discover new
places.

4-Dhaya Lake
Dhaya is the highest lake in Algeria.It is located at an altitude of 1200 meters, situated between Medea and Blida. El Dhaya
is a fantastic area. It is chock-full of breathtaking sights, and full of livestock and botanical wealth. From Dhaya, you can see
different other places, like Metidja valley, Bouroumi and Harbil. The stunning feature of El-Dhaya Lake is that it doesnt dry
at all, even in severe drought times. The area is a destination for many people who gather there in weekends and holidays.
However, the place needs some care, and attention to make it much better for tourists. Further, there are many places in
Dhaya that havent been discovered yet. It is, in few words, heaven on earth.

To it round up, Medea is a wonderful city, due to its historical and cultural fortune. It is utterly a nice place for a visit. I hope
that this overview have provided some knowledge about it. Medea is such a fabulous city that is not known for many people, it just needs a bit of care and appreciation.

Written by Younes L1 and Amel L2

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Inside the living body

The immune system

These latter have to make the decision of

whether they call an army of Bacteria killers or Antivirus forces. Also, they order the T helper cells to join
the army. Then, these touch each other and as a conseEver wondered what goes on inside your body when you get quence, the T cells start to duplicate themselves thousick? A fierce battle and its ground lies just inside your body! sands of time. Some turn to memory cells while others
travel to the battle field to help out and a third group

goes on to travel to the center of the lymph node to
Nasty bacteria and viruses can easily penetrate
activate powerful weapons known as the B cells. The B
the human body and can be transmitted from
cells work very hard to produce millions of little weapone individual to another easily though direct
ons. Consequently, they get tiresome and gradually
contact, i.e. touching, sneezing and even shardie, here the helper T cells stimulate and tell them Do
ing food. But the body has a natural defense that
not die yet we still need you. Keep going. The weapfights these strangers and protects it from diseases
ons produced by the B cells are the antibodies which
and infections. This defense system is called the
are little proteins attached to the surface of the invadimmune system. So how does this system work?
ers. In the other side, the situation gets dire. The invadThe immune systems soldiers are various types of
ers are increasingly growing, thus hurting the body.
cells. They are able to recognize, respond and re-

member any threats. As soon as these latter enter

the body, their number increases drastically every
twenty minutes. At this point, the immune system
has to stop them as fast as possible. First, the human
body starts to produce different types of fighters. The
first type is called the Guard cells which are formed
in the lymph node. These cells recognize the bacteria as non-self cells, also they fight as much as they
can, but they start getting tired after long fighting.
Therefore, they call other cells known as the N cells
whose function is to kill the enemies. However, if
they are not enough to stop the invasion, the Guard
cells call upon other soldiers which are the D cells.

The Guard
and N cells are tired
and need to sleep.
Again, the T cells order them to be more
aggressive and stay
alive for a long time.
Yet, without help
they cannot overwhelm the enemy.
During this process,
a new line of fighters arrives. Billions
of antibodies flow
to the battle field,
and manage to stick
to the surface of the
strangers. These antibodies successfully
kill them or make them useless. Through collaboration now, the balanced shifts and the infection decreases. At this point, most immune cells are helpless
and gradually decrease. However, some stay behind;
they are the memory cells which have an immediate
response that if the body encounters the same enemy ever again they will be ready to kill it. This is the
way our body keeps us from being sick and helps us
to stay healthy. Isnt it amazing how we are created?

Written by Nachida Babchikh

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21

THE POSSIBILITY OF LIFE ON

THE RED PLANET
Scientists suggest that it would be possible
today to live on the red planet Mars.

Since the finding of water in the soil of Mars by

NASA through the landing of the spacecraft PHOENIX on the last 25th of May, the spacecraft started
studying the soil of Mars by means of its chemical
laboratory known as TEGA. This discovery has in reality some serious signs regarding some potential that
might seem imaginary (fictious), but is not totally excluded about the possibility of man living on MARS.
Mars is not the dry and arid planet that we thought of
in the past, said Jim Green Director of Planetary Science for NASA. The climate of Mars helped scientists
discover that this planet and Earth have some features

in common; however, Mars is much colder than the

Earth in a large part due to its greater distance from
the sun. The average temperature is about minus 80
degrees Fahrenheit, minus 60 degrees Celsius. In addition to supporting life, the presence of liquid water
could make things easier for astronauts visiting or
living on Mars, Water could be used for drinking and
creating oxygen and rocket fuel. At the end, as there
are some missions that are prepared by scientists to
send people to the moon, people have already demanded buying tickets. It is true that NASAs goal is to
send humans to the red planet in 2030, then, we can
leave the Earth and go to live on the surface of Mars!
Thats what science will unveil to us in the short term.
Written by Bleu Net

18

VIRUSES and related diseases

Many students abhor science just because they did not get the opportunity
to learn the basics or to review it from scratch. Well I have to acknowledge the fact
that scientific information should be simplified for any student. Therefore I will try
my best to inform you and to show you the way so you can eventually get access
to some scientific information about the mystery of the smallest living organisms
on our planet. We will have to start with one of the most essential discoveries of all
times that saved and changed peoples lives

Discovery of VIRUSES

The Influenza Pandemic of 1918

Between 1918 and 1919, the influenza pandemic has killed

over 20 million people which had exceeded the number of
casualties of world war one in the early twentieth century
in addition to its massive expansion in a single year which
outpaced the spread of the black death bubonic plague
from 1347 to 1351,that is why it is considered as the most
devastating epidemic in recorded world history.

Are virus microbes or molecules ? In a word , are they

alive?
The viruses are viruses ...
(Andre Lwoff - Nobel Prize in
1970)
No virus can produce its own
proteins. No virus can generate
its own energy.
They cannot multiply themselves. In fact the cell in which
they have introduced their genome multiplies the viruses.
The virus is an infectious agent of small size and simple composition that can
multiply only in living cells of animals, plants, or bacteria. The name is from a
Latin word meaning slimy liquid or poison.
Spain Flu (1918-1922): 20 million deaths in the world.

Spain Flu (1918-1922): 20 million deaths in

the world:

Size of the virus compare to

bacteria and human cell:

the abysmal repercussion of the influenza epidemic had

decreased the US life expectancy by 10 years .it had a serious virulence with a mortality rate at 2.5% compared to the
previous influenza epidemics, which were less than 0.1%. In
1918 influenza and pneumonia had killed many young people between 15 and 34 years old therefore the death scale
was 20 times higher than the previous year which is abrupt
since it used to kill juvenile, elderly, or already weakened
patients solely

Transmission of the virus:

Discovery of the virus:

Charles Chamberland, an assistant of Louis
Pasteur, who seeks to improve the bacteriological quality of water distributed in Paris.
He invented (in 1884) a porcelain filter (also
called the filter Chamberland ) . This filter
removes all bacteria. But the water remained
still not totally clean. Therefore it was a
suspicion of particular infectious agents
that pass through the Chamberland filter.
In 1881, Pasteur showed that the infectious
agent responsible for rabies is invisible under a light microscope and it is impossible
to isolate it on artificial culture media. Pastor cultivates the infectious agent, from a
mash brain from a dog infected with rabies,
and inoculated dog brain mash enraged that
inoculated on the surface of the brain of a
rabbit trepan Viruses can multiply only in-

19

side a host cell. They are obligate intracellular parasites, they may use the producer of
energy (ATP), transfer RNA and ribosome of
the cell and any small molecules necessary
for their multiplication.
After penetration into the cell, the virus
brings only the genetic information necessary for the manufacture of constituent
molecules. It is first replicated into new genomes which are subsequently transcribed
into RNA messengers themselves translated
into structural proteins. These macromolecules are assembled to form new virions are
released into the external environment.
The virus must ride on the metabolic pathways of the cell more or less completely decreasing the cellular synthesis:
thus, certain viral proteins may inhibit transcription and RNA translation prevent cellular messengers.

Viruses are capable of infecting different

living cells:
-Vegetal:
Tobacco
mosaic
(1898).
-Animal: Foot and Mouth Disease (1898).
-Monkey and man: Yellow fever (1903).
-Man:
Polio
(1909).
-Bacteria:
Bacteriophage
(1915).
Thus, all living cells can be infected by a specific virus and the identical properties of the
three classes of viruses can be recognized
: plant viruses, animal viruses and bacteria
viruses. Viruses spread in many ways: Viruses in plants: insects that feed on plant and
sap such as aphids transmit it plant to plant
viruses in animals can be carried by bloodsucking insects. These disease-bearing organisms are known as vectors. Influenza viruses are spread by coughing and sneezing.

Written by Oumouna Amira L1

23

BIOGRAPHY OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD

(PEACE BE UPON HIM)
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was born in the spring season, the
1st year of Am-ul-Feel. It was Friday the 22nd April 570 AD, the 12th
Rabi-ul-awwal in the city of Mecca, a part of modern day Saudi Arabia
. His father was Abdullah, who died few months before his birth and
his mother was Aminah Bint-e-Wahb, who died when he was six years
old. His grandfather Abd al-Muttalib - who was the respected head of
the clan of Hashim and the tribe of Quraysh, became his guardian and
Quraysh used to be in charge of the sacred Kaba. The Orphan Muhammad then, lost his grandfather at the age of eight .After that , one of
Abd al-Muttalibs sons Abu Talib became the guardian of his orphan
nephew and he started teaching him trade.
When Muhammad (pbuh) was twenty five years old, he was hired
by a woman called Khadija (ra) to take her merchandize to Syria. Khadija, a widow fifteen years Muhammads senior, later proposed marriage

the house under Divine protection taking refuge in a cave near Mecca.

to him, which he agreed to. They lived together for almost a quarter of

After three days his enemies, having looked everywhere, gave up hope of

a century, Khadijah (ra) and Muhammad (pbuh) were the parents of six

capturing him returned to Mecca. The Prophet left the cave and set out

children, two sons: Qasim and Abdullah and four daughters: Zainab,

for Yathrib.

Ruqayyah, Umm Kulthum, and Fatimah.

Muhammad (pbuh) was deeply interested in matters beyond the

The people of Yathrib, whose leaders had already accepted the message

mundane life that was lived by the locals. He used to frequent a cave

of the Prophet (pbuh) and sworn allegiance to him, welcomed him with

that became known as Hira on the Mountain of Nur (light) for

open arms and placed their lives and property at his disposal. But, he

contemplation. It was in that cave in 610 AD, at the age of forty that

formed a small Islamic community Mosque where he wanted to stay.

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) received from Allah the first verses of the

Many battles took place between the Muslims, the Arab polytheists and

Quran by the Angel Gabriel. Then and there, the history of Arabia and

the Jews. The Muslims were victorious in most of those battles. In all the

the whole world had changed. The Quran continued to be revealed

major conflicts such as the battles of Badr, Uhud, Khandaq, Khaybar, Hu-

in fragments to Prophet Muhammad over the following twenty two

nayn, etc., the Prophet (pbuh) was personally present on the battle scene.

years of this life.

After several years, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and his followers were

In the first three years after the revelation, the Prophet (pbuh)

able to return to Mecca peacefully, where they forgave their enemies.

preached Islam secretly to individuals whom he trusted. When he

In the tenth year of the hijra, the Prophet (pbuh) decided to go for hajj

started calling people to Islam publicly, the new religion gradually

(Pilgrimage). He invited Muslims to join him and be acquainted with the

attracted more people but, not surprisingly, also increasing hostility

hajj rituals. Over a hundred thousand Muslims joined him in the hajj. Al-

from Quraysh. The Prophet (pbuh) was subjected to harassment and

though this was the first and the last hajj of the Prophet, it is known as

abuse. However, armed with patience, resilience and he was protected

Hajjatu l-wida the Last Pilgrimage. He seized the opportunity of the

by his uncle Abu Taleeb.

unprecedented gathering to remind the Muslims of many important val-

Soon afterward, the Prophet (pbuh) lost his wife Khadija (ra). Mat-

ues of Islam.

ters got worse quickly with the death of his uncle and protector. Thus,

After ten years of staying in Medina, the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) fell

Muhammad (pbuh) started to suffer more from the disbelievers. Fur-

ill and died on 8th June 632 after a few days of illness. According to exist-

ther, the idol-worshippers of Mecca devised a secret plan to kill the

ing traditions, the last words on his lips were advice concerning slaves

Prophet (pbuh). At night they surrounded his house with the intent

and women.

of forcing themselves in the house at the end of the night and cutting
him to pieces while he was in bed. But Almighty Allah informed him of
the plan and commanded him to leave for Yathrib and later called AlMadina al-Munawwara (the illuminated city). The Prophet asked Al
bin Abi Talib (his cousin) to sleep in his bed so that the enemy would
not detect his absence; Al readily agreed to sacrifice his life for the
Prophet and slept in the Prophets bed. Then the Prophet (pbuh) left

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Written by Abir. G

42

THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY

A young man sells his soul in exchange for eternal youth, and along the way he gets pulled down
into a world of corruption and debauchery. This is how the story of The Picture of Dorian Gray begins. The novel
is written by the famous playwright and poet Oscar Wilde, in which he uses his elegant style of writing and
wit to capture the readers attention and keep them interested throughout this story that took place in 1890,
London England.
It all started when an artist named Basil Hallward made a portrait of the main character Dorian Gray. The
painting was so beautiful that the artist considered it to be his masterpiece. He showed the portrait to his
friend Lord Henry, and with
no surprise he was very fond
of it. Therefore, he was determined to meet the person
that inspired this work.
Lord Henry was known for his
witty and persuasive way in
talking to others. In fact, when
he met Dorian for the first
time, he managed to leave a
big influence in Dorians
mind. And one of the ideas
that he talked about, was
about the painting and how it
will always remain young
and beautiful unlike Dorian
himself. In addition, he said
that youth is too important
to be wasted and that one
must pursue what he desires in
life. And this particular idea
affected Dorian immensely, to
the point where he would
give anything to stay young,
even if it meant losing the
good side of his self.
Personally, I liked most
of the characters that are
mentioned in the novel,
because each one is unique
and offers something new
to the story, but my favourite
one was Lord Henry because even though his ideas
were different from others,
he was never afraid to express
himself. As for the themes,
the novel talked about the society during the Victorian
era and how it valued appearances too much, which
someone could argue that its
still the case for todays society. Moreover, it shows how
a person could be easily
manipulated into wrong doing, when hes under a bad influence. Finally, what I loved the most about this piece of literature is the language
used in it. Its filled with epigrams and ideas that have a philosophical element to them, which often makes the
reader pause in wonder trying to carefully grasp the full meaning behind them. And this is what makes this
novel beautiful, seeing that it challenges the minds of its readers.
To sum it up, whether its Oscar Wildes witty expressions or the personalities of the characters that he created,
I can honestly say that I had a marvelous time reading this novel and I sincerely hope that this review will encourage others to do the same.

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Written by Rafik Bendali, L1

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