1 HOUR OF English Reading Understanding Practice

29,468 views ・ 2023-07-28

JForrest English


Please double-click on the English subtitles below to play the video.

00:00
Welcome to this one hour English lesson.
0
49
2661
00:02
Today you're going to learn English with the news.
1
2710
3460
00:06
We're going to read two different news articles together so you can learn a lot of advanced
2
6170
6180
00:12
vocabulary, complex grammar and correct pronunciation.
3
12350
5019
00:17
Let's get started.
4
17369
1181
00:18
First, I'll read the headline.
5
18550
2270
00:20
A 12 year old girl from Ottawa is making history as Canada's youngest ever university graduate.
6
20820
8890
00:29
This is an inspiring story about this young lady.
7
29710
4310
00:34
Now Ottawa is Canada's capital city, Ottawa and she is the youngest ever university graduate.
8
34020
10620
00:44
Notice here how they added ever here ever is simply used to emphasize because you could
9
44640
7360
00:52
get rid of it and say she's making history as Canada's youngest university graduate.
10
52000
7289
00:59
When you add ever, it really just emphasizes it.
11
59289
4111
01:03
Youngest ever, university graduate.
12
63400
3649
01:07
Another example, She was the first woman ever to win a prize again without ever.
13
67049
6011
01:13
The sentence still makes sense.
14
73060
1460
01:14
She was the first woman to win a prize, the first woman ever to win a prize.
15
74520
8459
01:22
So you can add that to emphasize and notice here a 12 year old, 12 year old.
16
82979
7941
01:30
You may notice that there is no S on year because this is functioning as an adjective
17
90920
6960
01:37
and adjectives don't have a singular or plural form.
18
97880
3840
01:41
And that's why if you're stating her age, you need to add the S You would say she is
19
101720
8730
01:50
12 years old.
20
110450
2930
01:53
So you absolutely need to add that S on years when you're stating someone's age.
21
113380
5840
01:59
But here is being used as an adjective to describe what type of girl she is.
22
119220
6009
02:05
A girl from Ottawa, A 12 year old girl.
23
125229
3841
02:09
It gives more information to our noun.
24
129070
4200
02:13
Let's continue.
25
133270
2010
02:15
And this is the adorable genius 12 year old girl Atheo Grace Patricia Dennis.
26
135280
9130
02:24
That's her name.
27
144410
1180
02:25
Atheo Grace Patricia Dennis is not your typical 12 year old again.
28
145590
6860
02:32
This is an adjective.
29
152450
1920
02:34
So there is no S She's not your typical 12 year old.
30
154370
6009
02:40
She's a child prodigy who's about to become the youngest Canadian to ever graduate from
31
160379
6791
02:47
university.
32
167170
1000
02:48
Again, you could say to graduate from university, but here ever to emphasize, ever graduate
33
168170
8160
02:56
from university with a bachelor's degree in Biomedical Science.
34
176330
5579
03:01
So this is her degree.
35
181909
1470
03:03
Biomedical Science.
36
183379
2261
03:05
And notice you have a degree in something Degree in Biomedical Science.
37
185640
8489
03:14
If you're listing the subject, you might say I have a Bachelor of Arts.
38
194129
9860
03:23
This is the title of it Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science.
39
203989
7591
03:31
But they're being more specific.
40
211580
1600
03:33
They're listing the field here.
41
213180
2729
03:35
Biomedical Science.
42
215909
1571
03:37
She doesn't have a Bachelor of Biomedical Science.
43
217480
4089
03:41
She has a Bachelor of Science.
44
221569
2730
03:44
But then biomedical science is her field.
45
224299
3140
03:47
So you can use in when you state more information.
46
227439
4940
03:52
This is the category science.
47
232379
1991
03:54
But then this is the specific field within science.
48
234370
3770
03:58
So in Biomedical science, let's continue.
49
238140
6239
04:04
She started the program when she was 9 here.
50
244379
5001
04:09
This is not an adjective.
51
249380
2290
04:11
She was 9.
52
251670
2989
04:14
But if you were to write this, you can say she was nine years old because there are two
53
254659
9151
04:23
correct ways in English to say age.
54
263810
3460
04:27
You can simply say she was 9.
55
267270
3950
04:31
This is correct.
56
271220
1310
04:32
She was nine years old.
57
272530
2000
04:34
This is correct.
58
274530
1000
04:35
How about this?
59
275530
1000
04:36
She was nine years.
60
276530
4440
04:40
Is this an option?
61
280970
1110
04:42
What do you think?
62
282080
3370
04:45
This is not correct.
63
285450
1200
04:46
So I'm going to put a :( This is not correct because you can't end on years.
64
286650
5730
04:52
You have to add old if you want to use years.
65
292380
4860
04:57
Or you can drop both and just end on the number.
66
297240
4220
05:01
So she was nine years with an S, she was 9 and those are your only two options.
67
301460
6280
05:07
This is not an option, so I'll put an X beside it as well, so you know this is not an option.
68
307740
8080
05:15
She started the program when she was nine or nine years old, at a time when most of
69
315820
7260
05:23
her peers were playing games at recess.
70
323080
4200
05:27
Let's look at peers.
71
327280
2100
05:29
This is a noun right now.
72
329380
1471
05:30
You can see it is in plural form, Peers.
73
330851
4829
05:35
Her peers are people who are her same age, people who are in the same school as her for
74
335680
10420
05:46
a typical 9 year old.
75
346100
3430
05:49
So her peers are not university students because that is not typical, the group of people a
76
349530
10240
05:59
nine year old would typically interact with.
77
359770
3640
06:03
So your peers are a group of people who you would typically interact with, either in a
78
363410
7580
06:10
social context, a family context, or a business context as well.
79
370990
5850
06:16
You can have one peer and it can be singular, or you can have peers with an *** which represents
80
376840
7100
06:23
a group.
81
383940
1030
06:24
As an example, a parent might say are you inviting your peers to your party?
82
384970
5430
06:30
Maybe it's your birthday party and then a typical 9 year old.
83
390400
4880
06:35
Her peers would be the other students in her class, or maybe her friends from her dance
84
395280
7840
06:43
club or from her her soccer club, a group that she belongs to.
85
403120
7410
06:50
So you can say peers.
86
410530
1319
06:51
You could also say classmates to your party because in this case a nine year old's classmates
87
411849
7491
06:59
are her peers.
88
419340
1780
07:01
It's the group of people she would normally interact with and recess.
89
421120
5880
07:07
Recess is a break you get in between classes and generally during recess.
90
427000
8039
07:15
You go outside and your physical.
91
435039
2991
07:18
You play, you run around and you play.
92
438030
3540
07:21
It is a kids favorite part of the day is recess.
93
441570
5189
07:26
So you might have your classes in the morning.
94
446759
3771
07:30
You have math, science, geography, and then you get a 15 minute recess or a break and
95
450530
7740
07:38
then you get to go outside and play.
96
458270
2220
07:40
So for kids in school, they call it recess.
97
460490
4070
07:44
For adults in the workplace, we generally call it a break, a break.
98
464560
4889
07:49
We don't use the term recess.
99
469449
2521
07:51
So this is a break for kids.
100
471970
2780
07:54
A break for kids in school during the school day, A break for kids in school during the
101
474750
7400
08:02
school day.
102
482150
1030
08:03
Favorite part of the day?
103
483180
3049
08:06
Recess.
104
486229
1241
08:07
Let's continue.
105
487470
1670
08:09
Being a preteen in an intensive university program has come with a unique set of challenges.
106
489140
8340
08:17
OKA Preteen.
107
497480
1950
08:19
Do you know who they're describing?
108
499430
1620
08:21
A preteen?
109
501050
1280
08:22
Well, they're describing her because she graduated or is going to graduate at 12 years old, a
110
502330
11940
08:34
teenager, teen.
111
514270
2540
08:36
Teen is when you become 1313.
112
516810
2599
08:39
OK, so 13 to 19.
113
519409
6081
08:45
You're a teenager, teenager because your age ends in teen 13/14/19.
114
525490
10539
08:56
So preteen is right before you become a teenager.
115
536029
6311
09:02
So when you're 12, you're a preteen.
116
542340
3560
09:05
You're almost a teenager.
117
545900
2610
09:08
So most likely it would be 11 to 12 years old.
118
548510
3690
09:12
Eleven to 12, you're a preteen.
119
552200
3560
09:15
And then once you hit 13, you're not a preteen, you're a teenager, a teenager.
120
555760
7710
09:23
So being a preteen, and then in an intensive university program, has come with a unique
121
563470
6500
09:29
set of challenges.
122
569970
2470
09:32
Patricia Dennis has dealt with preconceived notions, Preconceived.
123
572440
8060
09:40
Preconceived means that it was conceived formed too early, too early because there wasn't
124
580500
6839
09:47
enough thought or knowledge to form your opinion or your idea.
125
587339
7611
09:54
So the notion here a preconceived notion.
126
594950
2920
09:57
In this case, this is an expression.
127
597870
1980
09:59
A preconceived notion and notion represents an idea or an opinion, an idea or opinion
128
599850
7200
10:07
that was formed too early.
129
607050
2360
10:09
So you didn't take enough time, you didn't have enough knowledge, you didn't do enough
130
609410
4429
10:13
research to form that opinion.
131
613839
2981
10:16
So notion represents idea or opinion.
132
616820
5310
10:22
So this young lady, this 12 year old, this preteen in university is dealing with a lot
133
622130
7130
10:29
of people who have preconceived notions.
134
629260
3240
10:32
So you can imagine if you were 2022 and you were walking down the hallway and you saw
135
632500
8190
10:40
a 12 year old in a university.
136
640690
3399
10:44
Most likely you instantly have an opinion about that because you didn't take enough
137
644089
5940
10:50
time to think about it or really consider it.
138
650029
3031
10:53
So that might be your preconceived notion and expectations from others about how she
139
653060
7090
11:00
is going to look, talk and act based on her age.
140
660150
6090
11:06
Now, this is something that non-native speakers have to deal with a lot, other people having
141
666240
6120
11:12
preconceived notions about their skills or abilities simply because they might have an
142
672360
5270
11:17
accent or they might make a grammar mistake, right?
143
677630
4170
11:21
Let's continue my advice.
144
681800
2840
11:24
This is coming from Patricia Dennis, the young lady.
145
684640
4699
11:29
My advice for people who are also young, gifted, smart, talented.
146
689339
5901
11:35
Don't let other people's expectations bring you down.
147
695240
5250
11:40
When something brings you down, it's bringing down your emotions.
148
700490
6830
11:47
So it's taking you from positive emotions to more negative emotions.
149
707320
8470
11:55
And in this case, the something is other people's expectations.
150
715790
4660
12:00
So Patricia Dennis is excited to be in school.
151
720450
3680
12:04
She's happy, so she has positive emotion, but then she has to deal with these expectations
152
724130
7230
12:11
and preconceived notions from her peers who really aren't her peers because they're 22
153
731360
10300
12:21
and she's 12, right?
154
741660
2390
12:24
But they are her peers because they're in the same class, but it's a different situation
155
744050
7039
12:31
and that is bringing her down.
156
751089
2690
12:33
So taking her from excited and happy to not as happy.
157
753779
6391
12:40
So this happens a lot.
158
760170
2260
12:42
When something brings you down, you might say don't let that grammar mistake bring you
159
762430
9700
12:52
down.
160
772130
2180
12:54
So you might be really enthusiastic about studying English, feeling really good about
161
774310
4839
12:59
your English level, and then you make a grammar mistake and your enthusiasm or your positive
162
779149
6061
13:05
feelings go down.
163
785210
2040
13:07
Or you're trying to have a conversation with someone and you're really excited and they
164
787250
4550
13:11
say, I'm sorry, I can't understand you, and that comment brings you down.
165
791800
8080
13:19
Or you're watching a movie and you were feeling really happy.
166
799880
3110
13:22
But then the movie was sad and the movie brought you down.
167
802990
5030
13:28
So took your emotions from positive to negative.
168
808020
4290
13:32
That's when something brings you down.
169
812310
2829
13:35
Let me write that.
170
815139
1621
13:36
So something brings you down, something brings you down.
171
816760
6050
13:42
The something takes you from positive to negative.
172
822810
6250
13:49
And I'll put emotion because this really is about how you feel your emotions.
173
829060
5020
13:54
All right, let's continue on.
174
834080
3080
13:57
The highlight of her university career so far was completing a 40 page thesis.
175
837160
6920
14:04
So here we have again 40 page.
176
844080
2259
14:06
But this is functioning as an adjective.
177
846339
3610
14:09
So we don't have an S What if you took this information and you wrote it in a way that
178
849949
8211
14:18
40 page was not an adjective and it in fact had an S?
179
858160
6370
14:24
How would you change those?
180
864530
2680
14:27
Hmm.
181
867210
1410
14:28
So I might say she completed.
182
868620
3959
14:32
That's our verb here.
183
872579
1430
14:34
She completed a thesis that was 40 pages, 40 pages.
184
874009
10541
14:44
Or simply you could say her thesis was 40 pages.
185
884550
5830
14:50
Her thesis was 40 pages long, just like you would say my book that you're reading.
186
890380
7550
14:57
My book is 200 pages long.
187
897930
4099
15:02
My book is 200 pages long.
188
902029
5791
15:07
So in this case, this is not an adjective, it's a noun.
189
907820
4890
15:12
So you add the S, the highlight.
190
912710
3489
15:16
This is the most memorable, the most important part, the highlight of something.
191
916199
8401
15:24
So here's a fun for an expression you can complete.
192
924600
5179
15:29
The highlight of my last vacation was and then you can share the highlight.
193
929779
10571
15:40
But notice here what do you have was and then.
194
940350
4620
15:44
This is a verb in ING.
195
944970
2170
15:47
So you might say was seeing, was meeting, was climbing, maybe you climbed a mountain,
196
947140
7420
15:54
was eating, was what was taking.
197
954560
7820
16:02
So notice our verb in ING.
198
962380
2899
16:05
So this is a fun expression.
199
965279
1971
16:07
Finish that in the comments below and I can't wait to hear what your highlight was of your
200
967250
6260
16:13
last vacation.
201
973510
1569
16:15
And if you haven't been on a vacation in a long time, you can change this to weekend.
202
975079
5291
16:20
The highlight of my weekend was, so feel free to change that if vacation is not relevant
203
980370
7149
16:27
to you.
204
987519
1171
16:28
So highlight most important or most memorable part, I'll write that for you.
205
988690
6319
16:35
Most important.
206
995009
1541
16:36
Memorable.
207
996550
1550
16:38
Important.
208
998100
1549
16:39
Memorable.
209
999649
1550
16:41
And remember the structure, the highlight of, and then whatever It is my last vacation.
210
1001199
8940
16:50
Let's continue The highlight of her university career so far was completing a 40 page thesis
211
1010139
8260
16:58
on the relationship between handedness and functional activity in the cerebellum.
212
1018399
7871
17:06
The cerebellum is a part of your brain.
213
1026270
3789
17:10
I'll be honest, I don't know where the cerebellum is.
214
1030059
3351
17:13
It's somewhere.
215
1033410
1299
17:14
If you know where it is, you can share that in the comments.
216
1034709
4481
17:19
Or if you know what the cerebellum does, I'm not exactly sure because I am not a bioscientist
217
1039190
7070
17:26
like this, 12 year old is.
218
1046260
3430
17:29
But that's what she wrote her thesis on.
219
1049690
2390
17:32
Very advanced topic, isn't it?
220
1052080
2770
17:34
The paper concluded that connectivity between the brain and hand is significantly different
221
1054850
7770
17:42
for people who are righthanded versus those who are lefthanded.
222
1062620
6830
17:49
That's very interesting because I am lefthanded.
223
1069450
3900
17:53
You may not have known that about me, but I am lefthanded.
224
1073350
4340
17:57
What about you?
225
1077690
1000
17:58
Are you righthanded or lefthanded?
226
1078690
4479
18:03
Most likely you're righthanded.
227
1083169
1221
18:04
Most people are.
228
1084390
1000
18:05
But where are my fellow lefties out there?
229
1085390
2789
18:08
Share in the comments and notice I am righthanded.
230
1088179
5581
18:13
I am lefthanded.
231
1093760
2210
18:15
I am righthanded.
232
1095970
1310
18:17
So that's what you can say.
233
1097280
1000
18:18
I am righthanded.
234
1098280
4620
18:22
I am lefthanded.
235
1102900
2810
18:25
You can also say I'm a lefty.
236
1105710
3110
18:28
This is the casual way of saying lefthanded.
237
1108820
2720
18:31
I'm a lefty.
238
1111540
1009
18:32
It's a very casual way of saying it's not slang.
239
1112549
2971
18:35
It's just casual.
240
1115520
1460
18:36
I'm a lefty.
241
1116980
2330
18:39
Or I guess you can say I'm a righty.
242
1119310
3180
18:42
I've never said that because I'm not a righty.
243
1122490
2100
18:44
I'm a lefty.
244
1124590
1000
18:45
I'm a righty.
245
1125590
1130
18:46
I'm a lefty.
246
1126720
1820
18:48
What about you?
247
1128540
1000
18:49
Are you a righty or a lefty?
248
1129540
1999
18:51
You can put that in the comments.
249
1131539
2351
18:53
All right, righthanded and left-handed.
250
1133890
7970
19:01
When she's not researching or writing about the brain, Patricia Dennis is a very good
251
1141860
6780
19:08
violinist, her mom said.
252
1148640
2370
19:11
Wow, she's also a violinist.
253
1151010
2740
19:13
That's impressive.
254
1153750
1230
19:14
She also loves playing with her cats and binge watching TV shows.
255
1154980
7110
19:22
Binge binge binge watching, Binge watching.
256
1162090
4390
19:26
When you binge watch, it means you watch many, many, many episodes at one time.
257
1166480
6510
19:32
So you don't just watch one episode.
258
1172990
3370
19:36
You watch 10 episodes or five episodes.
259
1176360
4640
19:41
You binge watch.
260
1181000
1059
19:42
You watch many watch many.
261
1182059
2921
19:44
So do you ever binge watch my lessons instead of just watching one lesson and then you go
262
1184980
5760
19:50
do something else?
263
1190740
1130
19:51
Or do you sit here and watch again and another lesson and a different lesson and another
264
1191870
5400
19:57
lesson?
265
1197270
1000
19:58
Do you binge watch the lessons?
266
1198270
3330
20:01
That would be a compliment.
267
1201600
1199
20:02
If you do so, let me know.
268
1202799
3351
20:06
And she's interested in continuing her research on functional activity in the cerebellum somewhere
269
1206150
7220
20:13
in the brain.
270
1213370
1679
20:15
And notice here to be.
271
1215049
2951
20:18
Interested in this is such a common expression in English, but I still see so many mistakes
272
1218000
7980
20:25
with this from my advanced students.
273
1225980
2069
20:28
They either forget the fact that there is the verb to be with this expression, or they
274
1228049
6281
20:34
put interesting instead of interested, or they forget the preposition in, and if you
275
1234330
8510
20:42
have a verb that follows it, the verb needs to be an ING.
276
1242840
3709
20:46
So let's take a moment to practice this, because it's such a common expression in English to
277
1246549
6240
20:52
be interested in.
278
1252789
2520
20:55
And then you can have a noun or a gerund you might say.
279
1255309
7481
21:02
What's something that you're interested in.
280
1262790
1769
21:04
Share that in the comments.
281
1264559
1981
21:06
I'm interested in finding out where this cerebellum is.
282
1266540
9780
21:16
I'm interested in learning more about the cerebellum.
283
1276320
3910
21:20
I'm going to say that in learning more about the cerebellum to be, this is my verb to be
284
1280230
8970
21:29
interested always with Ed.
285
1289200
3050
21:32
This does not change in and then because I have a verb.
286
1292250
5179
21:37
It's ING now.
287
1297429
2230
21:39
Maybe this was two years ago.
288
1299659
1991
21:41
02 years ago I was interested in learning more about the cerebellum because your verb
289
1301650
6630
21:48
to be is now in the past, but notice nothing else changes.
290
1308280
5460
21:53
So to take some time, share something that you're interested in in the comments below
291
1313740
5020
21:58
because I see so many mistakes with this very common expression, let's continue.
292
1318760
8000
22:06
I'll probably pick it back up when I have my own lab and I can get people to also do
293
1326760
6460
22:13
it with me because I'll be in charge, she said.
294
1333220
4420
22:17
Now when you have quotations, you know it is a person talking and they're reporting
295
1337640
6390
22:24
that person's speech.
296
1344030
1800
22:25
So these are the words of our 12 year old college graduate.
297
1345830
5990
22:31
I'll probably probably means 80% sure, definitely is more 100%.
298
1351820
8070
22:39
I'll absolutely 100% but probably is 80%, maybe is 50%.
299
1359890
8600
22:48
So this is about 80 percent, 80% certain.
300
1368490
3520
22:52
I'll probably pick it back up.
301
1372010
3940
22:55
When you pick it back up, it means you continue, you continue doing something you previously
302
1375950
8520
23:04
did.
303
1384470
1000
23:05
Now, we generally use this for activities, sports, hobbies, and in this case, a research
304
1385470
10090
23:15
interest.
305
1395560
1390
23:16
Because she's talking about her research, I'll pick it back up, which implies she's
306
1396950
6010
23:22
not doing the research right now, but she's going to start doing it again.
307
1402960
6310
23:29
So when you continue doing something you previously did, so you do something, there's a break,
308
1409270
6009
23:35
you don't do it, and then you do it again, that's pick it back up, Okay.
309
1415279
6280
23:41
So let's say, let me write this first.
310
1421559
6131
23:47
Start doing something again that you previously did.
311
1427690
8390
23:56
So let's say you played guitar or soccer, whatever you'd like when you were 16.
312
1436080
10920
24:07
OK, 16 maybe to 18 years old and then 18 to 22, no activities.
313
1447000
15590
24:22
You were focused on your school and you didn't do any activities other than your school.
314
1462590
7130
24:29
But then 22, you graduate, so 23.
315
1469720
3120
24:32
Now you can say I think I'll pick guitar back up again or I think I'll pick soccer back
316
1472840
10350
24:43
up again, back up again.
317
1483190
6210
24:49
So you're just going to continue doing it.
318
1489400
2800
24:52
I'll probably pick it back up when I have my own lab.
319
1492200
4150
24:56
So what about you?
320
1496350
1000
24:57
Is there an activity you did?
321
1497350
1640
24:58
It could be a sports, it could be a hobby, maybe learning a language other than English
322
1498990
6780
25:05
as well.
323
1505770
1000
25:06
And then you did it for a while, you stopped and now is there anything that you're considering
324
1506770
4550
25:11
picking back up, starting to do again?
325
1511320
4020
25:15
Share that in the comments as well.
326
1515340
2100
25:17
I'll probably pick it back up when I have my own lab and I can get people to also do
327
1517440
5800
25:23
it with me because I'll be in charge, she said.
328
1523240
4880
25:28
12 years old and already wanting to be the boss.
329
1528120
4320
25:32
I like that I'll be in charge.
330
1532440
3130
25:35
To be in charge means that you're in control, you're responsible.
331
1535570
6760
25:42
So you could say I'm in charge of this project.
332
1542330
5750
25:48
So you're in control.
333
1548080
3200
25:51
It's your responsibility.
334
1551280
2350
25:53
And sometimes you might call a store because you had a bad experience, a bad customer experience.
335
1553630
7669
26:01
And you say, I want to talk to someone who's in charge, who's in charge here, You want
336
1561299
6260
26:07
to talk to the manager, the person responsible.
337
1567559
3161
26:10
So you might say that who's in charge of this store or this project And then someone might
338
1570720
8000
26:18
say I'm in charge, how can I help you Sir?
339
1578720
4030
26:22
And hopefully there won't be too much of an issue and that's the end of our article.
340
1582750
5950
26:28
Very inspiring to hear about a 12 year old university graduate.
341
1588700
4589
26:33
So now what I'll do is I will go to the top and I'll read the article from start to finish
342
1593289
5630
26:38
and this time you can focus on my pronunciation.
343
1598919
3471
26:42
A 12 year old girl from Ottawa is making history as Canada's youngest ever university graduate.
344
1602390
7440
26:49
Athea Grace Patricia Dennis is not your typical 12 year old.
345
1609830
5860
26:55
She's a child prodigy who's about to become the youngest Canadian to ever graduate from
346
1615690
5450
27:01
university.
347
1621140
1000
27:02
With a bachelor's degree in Biomedical Science.
348
1622140
5130
27:07
She started the program when she was 9, at a time when most of her peers were playing
349
1627270
5230
27:12
games at recess.
350
1632500
2540
27:15
Being a preteen in an intensive university program has come with a unique set of challenges.
351
1635040
7119
27:22
Patricia Dennis has dealt with preconceived notions and expectations from others about
352
1642159
6510
27:28
how she is going to look, talk and act based on her age.
353
1648669
4931
27:33
My advice for people who are also young, gifted, smart, talented, don't let other people's
354
1653600
6030
27:39
expectations bring you down, she said.
355
1659630
3970
27:43
The highlight of her university career so far was completing a 40 page thesis on the
356
1663600
5980
27:49
relationship between handedness and functional activity in the cerebellum.
357
1669580
5959
27:55
The paper concluded that connectivity between the brain and hand is significantly different
358
1675539
5291
28:00
for people who are righthanded versus those who are lefthanded.
359
1680830
5000
28:05
When she's not researching or writing about the brain, Patricia Dennis is a very good
360
1685830
5010
28:10
violinist, her mom said.
361
1690840
2579
28:13
She also loves playing with her cats and binge watching TV shows with her family, and she's
362
1693419
5681
28:19
interested in continuing her research on functional activity in the cerebellum.
363
1699100
5640
28:24
I'll probably pick it back up when I have my own lab and I can get people to also do
364
1704740
5230
28:29
it with me because I'll be in charge, she said.
365
1709970
3600
28:33
Amazing job with that article.
366
1713570
3040
28:36
Now we're going to move on to the next article.
367
1716610
2939
28:39
Feel free to take a pause, get a cup of tea if you like and let's continue on 1st.
368
1719549
6600
28:46
I'll read the headline.
369
1726149
1530
28:47
Ben Robert Smith.
370
1727679
1571
28:49
How decorated soldiers defamation case has rocked Australia.
371
1729250
5049
28:54
So this man is Ben.
372
1734299
2491
28:56
Robert Smith.
373
1736790
1859
28:58
Notice this.
374
1738649
1010
28:59
His name ends in an S Roberts, but the second part of his last name starts in an S So in
375
1739659
9062
29:08
this case you only pronounce 1 S Robert Smith, Robert Smith.
376
1748721
6139
29:14
If it were just Roberts, you would pronounce the S or just Smith, of course S but together.
377
1754860
6920
29:21
Robert Smith.
378
1761780
1480
29:23
Ben Robert Smith.
379
1763260
2260
29:25
This man is Ben Robert Smith.
380
1765520
2620
29:28
Notice these medals on his suit jacket.
381
1768140
4550
29:32
This is what it means by decorated soldier.
382
1772690
3780
29:36
If you say that a soldier is decorated, it means that they have been awarded medals for
383
1776470
7870
29:44
various reasons.
384
1784340
2219
29:46
So that's what decorated means.
385
1786559
2051
29:48
It's really used in a military context.
386
1788610
4559
29:53
Now, what is a defamation case?
387
1793169
4071
29:57
We're talking about a legal case.
388
1797240
3810
30:01
Defamation is the action of damaging someone's reputation, and that's done by either writing
389
1801050
6920
30:07
or saying bad things about that person.
390
1807970
3569
30:11
But the important thing is that those things are not true.
391
1811539
5531
30:17
So apparently the media said bad things about Ben Robert Smith and they ruined his reputation.
392
1817070
9530
30:26
So he's suing them.
393
1826600
1590
30:28
So someone said bad things about Ben Robert Smith that damaged his reputation, but those
394
1828190
6609
30:34
things are not true, so he is suing them.
395
1834799
3421
30:38
I'm suing you for defamation.
396
1838220
3210
30:41
So if you said Jennifer is the worst teacher in the entire world and that ruined my reputation,
397
1841430
8620
30:50
I could sue you for defamation.
398
1850050
2810
30:52
So don't say that.
399
1852860
1480
30:54
Hopefully you don't think that.
400
1854340
2780
30:57
Now how this defamation case has rocked Australia.
401
1857120
6740
31:03
What does it mean to rock Australia?
402
1863860
3260
31:07
When something rocks someone or a group such as the population of Australia, it means it
403
1867120
9220
31:16
shocks them.
404
1876340
1569
31:17
So this defamation case has shocked Australia.
405
1877909
5181
31:23
Let's continue on and find out why this case has rocked Australia for months on end.
406
1883090
6689
31:29
Australia's most decorated living soldier.
407
1889779
4241
31:34
So remember I said decorated represents these medals.
408
1894020
4289
31:38
So he has the most medals of any living soldier.
409
1898309
5681
31:43
So he sat stoically in a Sydney courtroom.
410
1903990
4330
31:48
Let's stop here because there are a few things I want to review.
411
1908320
2780
31:51
Let's take a look at this for months on end, four months.
412
1911100
4380
31:55
Now we could just say four months and it would be completely correct.
413
1915480
4350
31:59
When you add on end, it simply stresses the continuation.
414
1919830
5280
32:05
So to emphasize or to stress continuation, emphasize continuation.
415
1925110
7750
32:12
So let's say I've been having issues with my computer.
416
1932860
2919
32:15
I could say my computer has been freezing for months on end.
417
1935779
6510
32:22
When I add on end, it just lets you know it didn't just happen once or twice.
418
1942289
5520
32:27
It's been happening continuously.
419
1947809
2730
32:30
So you can add that for months, for days, for weeks, for hours, whatever time reference
420
1950539
10880
32:41
you would like.
421
1961419
1201
32:42
And notice because we have 4:00 and then our time reference.
422
1962620
4210
32:46
This is a keyword for the present perfect or the present perfect continuous for months
423
1966830
5990
32:52
on end.
424
1972820
1020
32:53
Australia's most decorated living soldier sat stoically.
425
1973840
5299
32:59
This is a great adverb and it means without showing your feelings, especially when something
426
1979139
8140
33:07
bad happens to you.
427
1987279
2721
33:10
So let's say that someone delivers some terrible news to me and as they delivered the news,
428
1990000
8179
33:18
I just OK, thank you for sharing.
429
1998179
5361
33:23
I understand that would be a stoic reaction.
430
2003540
3830
33:27
I reacted stoically.
431
2007370
2490
33:29
But if I went, no.
432
2009860
2440
33:32
Why?
433
2012300
1000
33:33
Why, why why?
434
2013300
1220
33:34
And I reacted very emotionally.
435
2014520
2070
33:36
That's the opposite of stoically.
436
2016590
3719
33:40
So he sat stoically in a Sydney courtroom as dozens of witnesses accused him of war
437
2020309
8511
33:48
crimes, bullying peers and assaulting his mistress.
438
2028820
5859
33:54
OK, so different people.
439
2034679
3401
33:58
Dozens of.
440
2038080
1000
33:59
So of course, one dozen is 12/12.
441
2039080
4300
34:03
I hope you know that one dozen equals 12.
442
2043380
6850
34:10
It's a very common measurement because things like eggs come in a dozen, a dozen eggs, 12
443
2050230
7520
34:17
eggs, a dozen buns, 12 buns.
444
2057750
4119
34:21
So it's a common quantity, a dozen.
445
2061869
3550
34:25
So this is dozens of so it would be 24 or 36.
446
2065419
8391
34:33
Just more than 12.
447
2073810
2300
34:36
So a lot of people, a lot of people accused him, this decorated soldier, of these terrible
448
2076110
9130
34:45
things, war crimes, bullying peers and assaulting his mistress.
449
2085240
4360
34:49
But Ben, Robert Smith was not the one on trial, so he was not officially accused of these
450
2089600
9840
34:59
crimes.
451
2099440
1000
35:00
Because remember, in the headline he This man was actually suing someone else for defamation.
452
2100440
10610
35:11
But instead, now people are accusing him of all of these crimes.
453
2111050
6190
35:17
And that probably explains why this case has rocked Australia.
454
2117240
8109
35:25
Now you can download the lesson PDF that summarizes all the notes from this lesson.
455
2125349
5181
35:30
Just look in the description below or in the comments section for the link to download
456
2130530
4310
35:34
it.
457
2134840
1320
35:36
Let's continue.
458
2136160
1000
35:37
The 44 year old had brought the case, so notice the past perfect.
459
2137160
7280
35:44
He had brought the case before he was accused of war crimes.
460
2144440
7040
35:51
So remember the past perfect is used for a past action before another past action, past
461
2151480
7859
35:59
action before another past action.
462
2159339
4901
36:04
So I'll write out that full sentence he had.
463
2164240
6150
36:10
He had brought the case.
464
2170390
2530
36:12
When you bring a case to the criminal justice system, it just means you start or initiate
465
2172920
7550
36:20
a legal process.
466
2180470
1649
36:22
He had brought the case, the defamation case, before he was accused of war crimes.
467
2182119
9990
36:32
So remember we have the past perfect, past perfect, and then this is the older action
468
2192109
7470
36:39
and then we have the past simple for the newer action.
469
2199579
4521
36:44
But they are both past actions.
470
2204100
2860
36:46
The 44 year old had brought the case, suing 3 Australian newspapers over a series of articles
471
2206960
8060
36:55
in 2018 which he says defamed him.
472
2215020
4300
36:59
So this is the verb form.
473
2219320
2570
37:01
Remember before we had defamation, which is a noun.
474
2221890
3939
37:05
But here to defame someone, that's the verb form.
475
2225829
6321
37:12
So the verb form is to defame someone to defame.
476
2232150
5969
37:18
So the media defamed him.
477
2238119
3211
37:21
You defamed me when you said I was the world's worst teacher.
478
2241330
4700
37:26
So I'm suing you.
479
2246030
1700
37:27
Don't worry, I won't do that, he argues.
480
2247730
4280
37:32
They ruined his life by painting him as a callous man.
481
2252010
6880
37:38
So you can paint someone as something.
482
2258890
5050
37:43
And that's just another way of saying to describe someone as she described me as the world's
483
2263940
7620
37:51
best teacher.
484
2271560
1019
37:52
Oh, I thank you so much.
485
2272579
2571
37:55
She painted me as the world's best teacher.
486
2275150
4490
37:59
So when you paint someone, as, you don't just say Jennifer's the world's best teacher, you
487
2279640
6131
38:05
usually give examples.
488
2285771
2838
38:08
You tell a story.
489
2288609
2541
38:11
Just like when you paint a picture, you don't just put one BLOB, You put a lot of detail
490
2291150
6959
38:18
on that picture.
491
2298109
1381
38:19
So you provide details, informations, examples, a story to describe someone.
492
2299490
7470
38:26
So the media painted him as a callous man.
493
2306960
4270
38:31
What is this adjective callous?
494
2311230
3710
38:34
He's very callous.
495
2314940
2330
38:37
When someone is callous, it means they are unkind, cruel, and they don't have any sympathy
496
2317270
6559
38:43
or feelings for others.
497
2323829
1631
38:45
So it's a negative adjective.
498
2325460
2880
38:48
So let's say I shared some very bad news with you.
499
2328340
3220
38:51
I told you that a family member died and you said, let's get some pizza, I might say.
500
2331560
8370
38:59
Well, that was very callous.
501
2339930
2090
39:02
That was very unkind.
502
2342020
1900
39:03
You didn't even offer any sympathy to this.
503
2343920
3199
39:07
You just wanted pizza.
504
2347119
2571
39:09
So that was very callous.
505
2349690
2270
39:11
He's so callous.
506
2351960
2909
39:14
So the media painted him as a callous man who had broken the moral and legal rules of
507
2354869
7901
39:22
war.
508
2362770
1400
39:24
Notice our past Perfect again, a past action before another past action.
509
2364170
8649
39:32
So maybe this is the older past action.
510
2372819
3641
39:36
So the newer past action could have been.
511
2376460
3200
39:39
He had broken the legal rules of war before he met Queen Elizabeth, because up here they
512
2379660
10430
39:50
have him with Queen Elizabeth.
513
2390090
2600
39:52
So this is a past action.
514
2392690
1480
39:54
It's already in the past, but we're talking about a past action before this, this past
515
2394170
6990
40:01
action.
516
2401160
1790
40:02
So he had.
517
2402950
1000
40:03
I'll write that again for you so you can practice.
518
2403950
3320
40:07
He had broken the moral rules of war before he met Queen Elizabeth.
519
2407270
10390
40:17
So remember this is the older action and this is the newer action, but they are both past.
520
2417660
7900
40:25
Actions.
521
2425560
1810
40:27
Disgracing his country in the process.
522
2427370
3550
40:30
Let's take a look at disgrace.
523
2430920
2370
40:33
This is a verb, and this is when you make people stop respecting you or your family
524
2433290
9940
40:43
team, your company, by doing something very bad or wrong.
525
2443230
8450
40:51
So remember, before this case he was a beloved decorated soldier in Australia.
526
2451680
8899
41:00
But then it came to light that he had done all these terrible things, so now he has embarrassed
527
2460579
8260
41:08
his country.
528
2468839
1000
41:09
He's disgraced his country, disgracing his country in the process.
529
2469839
6171
41:16
Before we move on, I just want to see if you're enjoying this lesson and if you enjoy learning
530
2476010
4890
41:20
advanced vocabulary and grammar in this very natural way.
531
2480900
4120
41:25
If you do, then I want to tell you about the Finally Fluent Academy.
532
2485020
3960
41:28
This is my premium training program where we study native English speakers in the real
533
2488980
5910
41:34
world, TV, movies, YouTube and the news so you can improve your listening skills.
534
2494890
5530
41:40
Add advanced vocabulary, advanced grammar, correct pronunciation to your speech to help
535
2500420
5380
41:45
you become fluent in only 90 days and you'll have me as your personal coach so you can
536
2505800
5309
41:51
look in the description below for information on how to join.
537
2511109
4321
41:55
Now let's continue.
538
2515430
2899
41:58
But the media outlets say they reported the truth and have set out to prove it.
539
2518329
7290
42:05
Let's take a look at this.
540
2525619
1131
42:06
To set out to do something, in this case to prove it.
541
2526750
6150
42:12
What's the int?
542
2532900
1949
42:14
Remember that It is that this decorated soldier did commit all these things that they said.
543
2534849
10031
42:24
So there is no defamation because it's true.
544
2544880
3979
42:28
That's what they want to set out to prove.
545
2548859
3831
42:32
And this simply means that they're going to start trying to do that specific thing.
546
2552690
5360
42:38
So in this case, they're going to start trying to prove that he committed those crimes.
547
2558050
6900
42:44
So you might say I've set out, I've set out to improve my English speaking skills.
548
2564950
11360
42:56
Does this describe you?
549
2576310
2000
42:58
Are you going to start trying to improve your English speaking skills?
550
2578310
4360
43:02
If this describes you, put it in the comments.
551
2582670
1909
43:04
I've set out to improve my English speaking skills and notice to set out.
552
2584579
5901
43:10
This is in the present perfect.
553
2590480
2900
43:13
Let's continue on.
554
2593380
1459
43:14
It is the first time in history any court has been tasked with assessing allegations
555
2594839
7780
43:22
of war crimes by Australian forces.
556
2602619
4881
43:27
An allegation is a claim that someone has done something wrong without evidence, OK,
557
2607500
10640
43:38
without evidence.
558
2618140
1320
43:39
So at this point is just a claim.
559
2619460
2070
43:41
A claim that someone has done something wrong.
560
2621530
5130
43:46
Like the war hero, the soldier who committed war crimes, but at this point is just an allegation
561
2626660
10140
43:56
without without evidence or proof.
562
2636800
6080
44:02
So the media wants to explain that there is evidence, there is proof.
563
2642880
5620
44:08
So it's not in fact an allegation, it's the truth.
564
2648500
4099
44:12
So again, it's not defamation.
565
2652599
2861
44:15
And notice this sentence structure.
566
2655460
1750
44:17
To be tasked with something and then not something is either a noun or a verb in ING.
567
2657210
9720
44:26
So let me give you an example.
568
2666930
2480
44:29
I've been tasked with helping my students improve their speaking skills.
569
2669410
11949
44:41
So of course a task is something that you need to do, but if I've been tasked with it,
570
2681359
6381
44:47
it sounds like someone else is giving me the task.
571
2687740
3560
44:51
So maybe it's just my students who constantly say Jennifer, can you help me improve my speaking
572
2691300
6590
44:57
spill skills so I can say I've been tasked with and then notice the verb with ING let's
573
2697890
8460
45:06
continue lasting 110 days and costing up to an estimated 25 million Australian dollars.
574
2706350
9940
45:16
Now in this context, the A Strat stands for Australian simply because this article is
575
2716290
6430
45:22
for a worldwide audience and when you see the dollar sign you assume it's American dollars,
576
2722720
7149
45:29
so they put the aid to represent Australian dollars.
577
2729869
3331
45:33
Of course, if this is a newspaper in Australia, they wouldn't put that because for them that
578
2733200
7030
45:40
is the currency.
579
2740230
1850
45:42
This is just for an international audience, so we understand its Australian dollars.
580
2742080
4720
45:46
The trial has heard extraordinary and at times bizarre evidence about every facet of Mr.
581
2746800
8009
45:54
Robert Smith's life.
582
2754809
2531
45:57
Bizarre is an adjective that means very strange and unusual.
583
2757340
5310
46:02
So at times strange and unusual evidence.
584
2762650
4000
46:06
Now I'm curious, what is this bizarre evidence?
585
2766650
5949
46:12
You could use this because it's an adjective.
586
2772599
2411
46:15
You could say her behavior was very bizarre.
587
2775010
6099
46:21
It was very strange and unusual.
588
2781109
3781
46:24
Bizarre.
589
2784890
1000
46:25
Her behavior was very bizarre.
590
2785890
2560
46:28
Or the movie was very bizarre.
591
2788450
2690
46:31
You could use that as well.
592
2791140
2459
46:33
The movie was very bizarre.
593
2793599
2501
46:36
It was strange.
594
2796100
1249
46:37
It was unusual.
595
2797349
1480
46:38
It was bizarre.
596
2798829
2540
46:41
Every facet of facet is a way to say every part of every element of every piece of.
597
2801369
11701
46:53
I'll write that out for you.
598
2813070
1270
46:54
So every part, element, aspect, piece, these are all synonyms that you can use.
599
2814340
10269
47:04
Piece of.
600
2824609
1781
47:06
So of course he has different parts of his life.
601
2826390
3510
47:09
He has his his family life, his friends, his hobbies, his sports, his work, his community.
602
2829900
8900
47:18
Those are the facets of his life, the aspects, the pieces of his life.
603
2838800
7539
47:26
So this evidence is about every facet of so not just his work or his family, also how
604
2846339
8191
47:34
he acts in the community or the hobbies he enjoys every facet of his life.
605
2854530
8030
47:42
It sparked a media frenzy.
606
2862560
2540
47:45
So this verb to spark it simply means that it created.
607
2865100
5460
47:50
The media frenzy was created because of this trial, so it created.
608
2870560
8519
47:59
So the frenzy wouldn't have existed without this.
609
2879079
4311
48:03
It created created.
610
2883390
2709
48:06
Now what is frenzy?
611
2886099
4010
48:10
Frenzy simply means uncontrolled or really excited.
612
2890109
5101
48:15
Uncontrolled, excited.
613
2895210
3190
48:18
So if you say there was a media frenzy when Brad Pitt arrived, so Brad Pitt arrived, and
614
2898400
6540
48:24
there are tons and tons of different people taking pictures, asking questions.
615
2904940
6860
48:31
Nobody is controlled.
616
2911800
2030
48:33
Nobody is respecting Brad Pitt's personal space.
617
2913830
3210
48:37
Oh, Brad Pitt, Brad Pitt.
618
2917040
1880
48:38
They're putting a microphone, a camera in his face, and everyone is very excited.
619
2918920
4640
48:43
That would be a frenzy, captured national attention and has made Mr.
620
2923560
6560
48:50
Robert Smith the public face of accusations of Australian war crimes in Afghanistan after
621
2930120
8719
48:58
sifting through.
622
2938839
2041
49:00
When you sift through something, it means you go through something or review something
623
2940880
7750
49:08
in a lot of detail.
624
2948630
2800
49:11
So if I have all these different pages in a notebook and I read each and every page
625
2951430
6270
49:17
very, very carefully, I sifted through the notebook.
626
2957700
6720
49:24
So let me write that for you.
627
2964420
2340
49:26
So to review information very carefully, to review information carefully.
628
2966760
7510
49:34
And you're doing that so you can determine what's useful or what's not useful.
629
2974270
6349
49:40
After sifting through volumes of evidence this week, a judge is due to hand down a decision.
630
2980619
7700
49:48
When you hand down a decision is simply means that you make your decision public.
631
2988319
5760
49:54
But it's used with authorities because the judge, Once the judge decides that is a legally
632
2994079
8240
50:02
binding decision.
633
3002319
1451
50:03
Yes, he can appeal the decision, but until he appeals the decision, that decision is
634
3003770
7079
50:10
legally binding.
635
3010849
2950
50:13
So if your boss hands down a decision because your boss has authority to make decisions,
636
3013799
7851
50:21
if you don't like the decision, unfortunately there probably isn't a lot you can do.
637
3021650
6060
50:27
So we use hand down a decision when it's someone in a position of authority who makes a decision.
638
3027710
8619
50:36
So when the judge is due to hand down a decision, so I'll just write that note for you to make
639
3036329
8611
50:44
a decision.
640
3044940
1030
50:45
So the judge is due to make a decision, and I'll just know, only used when the decision
641
3045970
7629
50:53
is made by someone with authority.
642
3053599
5391
50:58
So when that person shares the decision, that decision is final.
643
3058990
6000
51:04
But remember, every decision can be appealed or there are official processes that you can
644
3064990
6589
51:11
follow.
645
3071579
1000
51:12
If you don't agree with a decision, even if it is made by someone with authority, even
646
3072579
6351
51:18
if that decision is handed down, the judge is due to hand down a decision in the historic
647
3078930
8230
51:27
case.
648
3087160
1020
51:28
So soon we will find out.
649
3088180
2790
51:30
This week we will find out what that decision is.
650
3090970
3720
51:34
Now that's the end of the story.
651
3094690
3159
51:37
So what I'll do now is I'll go to the top and I'll read the article from start to finish.
652
3097849
4010
51:41
And this time you can focus on my pronunciation.
653
3101859
2811
51:44
Ben.
654
3104670
1090
51:45
Robert Smith How decorated soldiers defamation case has rocked Australia For months on end
655
3105760
9160
51:54
Australia's most decorated living soldiers sat stoically in a Sydney courtroom as dozens
656
3114920
6780
52:01
of witnesses accused him of war crimes, bullying peers and assaulting his mistress.
657
3121700
7389
52:09
But Ben Robert Smith was not the one on trial.
658
3129089
4260
52:13
The 44 year old had brought the case, suing 3 Australian newspapers over a series of articles
659
3133349
7541
52:20
in 2018 which he says defamed him.
660
3140890
4110
52:25
He argues they ruined his life by painting him as a callous man who had broken the moral
661
3145000
6859
52:31
and legal rules of war, disgracing his country in the process.
662
3151859
5631
52:37
But the media outlets say they reported the truth and have set out to prove it.
663
3157490
5930
52:43
It is the first time in history any court has been tasked with assessing allegations
664
3163420
5730
52:49
of war crimes by Australian forces.
665
3169150
3969
52:53
Lasting 110 days and costing up to an estimated 25 million Australian dollars, the trial has
666
3173119
8521
53:01
heard extraordinary and at times bizarre evidence about every facet of Mr.
667
3181640
6250
53:07
Robert Smith's life.
668
3187890
2150
53:10
It sparked a media frenzy, captured national attention and has made Mr.
669
3190040
5579
53:15
Robert Smith the public face of accusations of Australian war crimes in Afghanistan.
670
3195619
6721
53:22
After sifting through volumes of evidence this week, a judge is due to hand down a decision
671
3202340
6400
53:28
in the historic case.
672
3208740
1940
53:30
Amazing job with this lesson if you're up for it, I have another lesson right here that
673
3210680
7340
53:38
I know you're going to love.
674
3218020
2039
53:40
And make sure you get your free speaking guide where I share 6 tips on how to speak English
675
3220059
4581
53:44
fluently and confidently.
676
3224640
2010
53:46
You can get it from my website right here.
677
3226650
2640
53:49
And when you're ready, get started with your next lesson.
678
3229290
2979
About this website

This site will introduce you to YouTube videos that are useful for learning English. You will see English lessons taught by top-notch teachers from around the world. Double-click on the English subtitles displayed on each video page to play the video from there. The subtitles scroll in sync with the video playback. If you have any comments or requests, please contact us using this contact form.

https://forms.gle/WvT1wiN1qDtmnspy7