The history of coffee shops - 6 Minute English

English from BBC learning english hello I'm Catherine welcome to 6 minute

English where we engage in some lively debate and discuss six stimulating items

of vocabulary and let's start here's your cup of coffee Rob ah thanks but

what took you so long Catherine oh sorry Rob I bumped into someone I

knew in the cafe and we stopped for a chat

okay well that fits well with today's show where we're talking about cafes or

coffee houses did you know Catherine that coffee houses were originally a

meeting place for lively debate and intellectual discussion really I didn't

know that Rob and a debate by the way means a discussion that a lot of people

take part in so how long ago was this debate in society well the first coffee

house was set up in Oxford in 1650 but they quickly became popular and soon

they were all over London - you paid a penny to get in and this included access

to newspapers and stimulating conversation if something is stimulating

it encourages ideas and enthusiasm and I expect the coffee held without a bit did

it no it certainly helps me first thing in the morning which brings me on to

today's question Rob how many cups of coffee do we consume in coffee shops or

stores in the UK every year consumed by the way is another word for eat or drink

so is the answer a 2.3 million B 23 million Oh C 23 billion mmm oh I don't

mean oh but it's got to be a lot so I'm gonna go for C 23 billion that sounds

like a lot of coffee but I buy several cups a week and I expect you do -

Catherine I do indeed but I have to say while I was getting our coffees earlier

there was nobody as in the cafe talking except me my friend

everybody else was sitting on their own tapping away on their laptops let's

listen now to Douglas Fraser BBC Scotland's business and economy editor

describing the vibe or atmosphere in a typical 21st century cafe

ten or so in the morning the cafe has five people at tables with their backs

to the wall each staring into a screen plugged in ears plugged the flow of

bytes through this coffee shops free Wi-Fi is transporting these customers to

diverse destinations far from the person beside them collaborative working

research grant application a potential blockbuster novel and inevitably someone

distracted by kitten pictures on social media so the spirit of those 17th

century coffee houses had disappeared then no more lively debate and

intellectual discussion seems so Rob as Douglas Frazer says many people sit

alone plugged into their laptops and they're all doing different things

working writing messing about on social media and I think the cafe owners should

turn off the free Wi-Fi and force these cafe squatters to move on I don't think

people should be allowed to sit all day using the internet hogging tables and

not talking to anybody especially when some of them don't even buy coffee

that's a bit extreme Rob cafe owners need customers and they encourage people

to stay by having comfy sofas and newspapers to read and the free Wi-Fi a

squatter by the way is someone who lives in an empty building without paying rent

and if you hog something you use most or all of it in a selfish way I suppose

you're right Katherine now how about telling us the answer to today's

question then okay so I asked how many cups of coffee do we consume in cafes or

stores in the UK every year is it a 2.3 million be 23 million Oh see 23

billion like hooch in a cafe using their free Wi-Fi to search the answer but I

had a guess and I say 23 billion well you didn't need that free Wi-Fi Rob

because you were absolutely right ah 23 billion coffees per year works out on

average at forty five cups per adult in the UK okay I think it's time we look

back at the words we learned today our first word is debate a discussion that a

lot of people take part in forex I took part in a number of stimulating

debates at school number two if something is stimulating it encourages

new ideas and enthusiasm for example it's hard to have a stimulating

conversation with someone who's looking at their phone all the time

that's very true let me just slide my phone in my pocket our next word is

consume another word for eating or drinking but it can also mean to use for

example my car consumes a lot of petrol or how do I calculate my car's fuel

consumption so consumption there is the noun number four is vibe which means the

mood or atmosphere in a place for example Oxford is a city but it has a

small-town vibe well I'm getting bad vibes from our next word which is

squatter that's someone who lives in an empty building without paying rent the

building is called a squat so for example I lived in a squat for two years

really you squatted in a squat Rob no no no it's just an example I am NOT a

squatter oh so you've never squat it's no I now look we're wasting time here we

need to move on to our final word hog if you hog something you use all or most of

it in a selfish way for example Rob you've hugged the only comfy chair

that's so selfish I admit it Katherine I'm a chair hog that's the noun okay

well before we head off for another cup of coffee please remember to check out

our Facebook Twitter and YouTube pages bye bye bye

six weeks English from BBC learning english