Shadowing Practice: Listening Test 3. Part 4: Microplastics - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Part 4.
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You will hear part of an environmental science lecture about microplastics.
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First, you have some time to look at questions 31 to 40.
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Now listen carefully and answer questions 31 to 40.
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In today's lecture, I'm going to be talking about microplastics.
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Microplastics are tiny pieces of plastic smaller than 5 mm in size.
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Recently, there's been a greater awareness that there are large quantities of plastic waste, big and small, in the environment.
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The amount of plastic waste in the oceans has received widespread attention,
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but far less is known about the effects of microplastics in freshwater and particularly in soil oil.
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Microplastics can enter the environment via a number of different sources.
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Threads and microfibres detach from synthetic clothing every time they're put in a washing machine,
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and these find their way into the water system.
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Other sources include big pieces of plastic waste that are already in the environment,
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and these break down into microscopic particles over a period of time.
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On a larger scale, factory waste is another route, as our tyres, which wear down as cars,
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lorries and so on, travel along road surfaces.
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We already understand some of the impacts of microplastics from studies involving fish and other animals.
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There is evidence that microplastics harm small creatures in a variety of ways, such as by damaging their mouths,
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or by impairing their ability to feed, for example when microplastics get lodged in their digestive system.
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Surprisingly, perhaps, it is likely that humans consume microplastics, as these have been detected in a wide range of food and drink products,
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including bottled water, as well as in water that comes direct from the tap.
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What's more, salt and many kinds of seafood have also been found to contain microplastics.
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However, it's important to underline that there is not yet conclusive proof that microplastics cause significant harm to people.
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In many countries, including here in the UK, there is legislation which prevents manufacturers from adding plastic microbeads to shower gels,
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facial cleansers and toothpaste.
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It is very difficult to accurately estimate the total amount of
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microplastic particles in the soil as they can be hard to detect
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but we do know they are carried in the air and deposited in the soil by rain.
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What's more many of the fertilizers used by both farmers and gardeners contain microplastics.
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A team from the Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge has carried
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out a study of the effects of microplastics on the digestive tracts of earthworms.
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These worms, which live in topsoil, are an essential component of our agricultural system.
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By feeding on soil, they mix nutrients into it, thereby making it more fertile.
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The researchers set out to discover whether the introduction of microplastics into the soil
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and the subsequent ingestion of these by earthworms would impact soil quality and ultimately inhibit plant growth.
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The short answer was yes, it did.
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After placing three different types of microplastic particles into the soil, they planted perennial ryegrass.
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The particles of microplastic, which included biodegradable PLA and conventional high-density polyethylene,
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or HTPE, were then ingested by the earthworms in the soil.
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The result was that the worms lost weight rapidly.
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What's more, a lower percentage than normal of the ryegrass seeds germinated, and the researchers concluded
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that this was a direct result of the earthworms being unable to fulfil their normal role in making soil more fertile.
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The team also discovered that there was an increase in the amount of acid found in the soil,
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and this was attributed mainly to the microplastic particles from conventional HDPE plastic.
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The conclusions of the study make for very interesting reading.
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I've included the reference in the notes to give you at the end of this session.
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To summarise, the authors proposed the idea that we need to regard soil as we would regard any other process in nature.
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This means we should accept the implications of soil being dependent on decaying
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and dead matter constantly being passed through the bodies of earthworms.
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That is, when soil becomes impoverished by the presence of microplastics,
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not only ecosystems but also the whole of society are negatively impacted.
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That is the end of part four.
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Thank you.
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Vocabulario y notas de pronunciación para esta lección

Esta lección de conversación de nivel C1 se basa en el vídeo “Listening Test 3. Part 4: Microplastics”. Las palabras que más se repiten: microplastic, soil, plastic, earthworms, particles. Este vídeo tiene 53 frases y 698 palabras para practicar shadowing. La parte hablada dura 5:39. El hablante mantiene un ritmo constante de unas 124 palabras por minuto, cómodo para el shadowing. Solo el 77 % de las palabras está entre las 3.000 más comunes del inglés, por lo que el vocabulario es exigente.

Vocabulario clave de este vídeo

Las 15 palabras más avanzadas del vídeo, con su pronunciación y significado:

PalabraPronunciaciónSignificado
microplastic sustantivomicroplástico
earthworm sustantivo/ˈɜː(ɹ)θˌwɜː(ɹ)m/lombriz de tierra, gusano de tierra
particle sustantivo/ˈpɑɹtək(ə)l/partícula
digestive adjetivo/daɪˈdʒɛstɪv/digestivo
ryegrass sustantivoraigrás, césped inglés
fertile adjetivo/ˈfɝːtəl/fértil, feraz
worm sustantivo/wɝm/gusano, lombriz
researcher sustantivo/ˈɹiˌsɝ.t͡ʃɚ/investigador, investigadora
detect verbo/dɪˈtɛkt/detectar
biodegradable adjetivo/(ˌ)baɪoʊdəˈɡɹeɪdəbl̩/biodegradable
conclusive adjetivo/kənˈkluːsɪv/concluyente, conclusivo
detach verbo/dɪˈtæt͡ʃ/desacoplar, desprender
germinate verbo/ˈd͡ʒɜː(ɹ)mɪneɪt/germinar
impair verbo/ɪmˈpɛɹ/deteriorar, empeorar
impoverish verbo/ɪmˈpɒv(ə)ɹɪʃ/empobrecer, depauperar

Phrasal verbs que vas a escuchar

PalabraSignificado
pass through verboatravesar
wear down verbodesgastar

Gramática en este vídeo

Las estructuras que más usa el hablante, con las palabras exactas del vídeo:

EstructuraEn el vídeo
Voz pasiva be + participio pasado — importa lo que ocurre, no quién lo haceis known · have been detected · been found
Present perfect have/has + participio pasado — una acción pasada que sigue importando ahorahas received · have been detected · have also been found

Pronunciación a tener en cuenta

El hablante usa 3 contracciones y formas reducidas, como I'm, I've, they're. Dilas en su forma corta, tal como las oyes.

  • Los sonidos de “th”: earthworm /ˈɜː(ɹ)θˌwɜː(ɹ)m/, toothpaste /ˈtuθpeɪst/, synthetic /sɪnˈθɛtɪk/, thereby /ðɛɹˈbaɪ/
  • Los sonidos de “sh” y “zh”: impoverish /ɪmˈpɒv(ə)ɹɪʃ/, freshwater /ˈfɹɛʃˌwɔːtə(ɹ)/, implication /ˌɪmpləˈkeɪʃən/
  • Palabras largas — cuida el acento: biodegradable /(ˌ)baɪoʊdəˈɡɹeɪdəbl̩/, impoverish /ɪmˈpɒv(ə)ɹɪʃ/, microscopic /ˌmaɪ.kɹəˈskɑ.pɪk/, implication /ˌɪmpləˈkeɪʃən/, ecosystem /ˈikoʊˌsɪstəm/

Sonidos difíciles para hispanohablantes:

  • /v/ — no es /b/: los dientes tocan el labio inferior: digestive /daɪˈdʒɛstɪv/, conclusive /kənˈkluːsɪv/, impoverish /ɪmˈpɒv(ə)ɹɪʃ/
  • /z/ — sonora, no /s/: summarize /ˈsʌməˌɹaɪz/, propose /pɹəˈpəʊz/, surprisingly /səˈpɹaɪzɪŋli/
  • /dʒ/ — no es la “y” ni la “ch”: digestive /daɪˈdʒɛstɪv/, germinate /ˈd͡ʒɜː(ɹ)mɪneɪt/, ingest /ɪnˈd͡ʒɛst/, ingestion /ɪnˈd͡ʒɛst͡ʃən/, gel /d͡ʒɛl/

Cómo practicar con este vídeo

  1. Escucha el vídeo entero una vez sin hablar y anota las palabras que no conoces.
  2. Haz shadowing frase por frase a velocidad normal, repitiendo cada una hasta que tu ritmo coincida con el del hablante.
  3. Grábate y compara con el original, prestando atención a palabras como microplastic, earthworm, particle.

¿Qué es la Técnica de Shadowing?

Shadowing es una técnica de aprendizaje de idiomas respaldada por la ciencia, desarrollada originalmente para la formación de intérpretes profesionales y popularizada por el políglota Dr. Alexander Arguelles. El método es simple pero poderoso: escuchas audio en inglés nativo y lo repites en voz alta de inmediato, como una sombra que sigue al hablante con solo 1-2 segundos de retraso. A diferencia de la escucha pasiva o los ejercicios de gramática, el shadowing obliga a tu cerebro y músculos de la boca a procesar y reproducir simultáneamente patrones de habla reales. Las investigaciones muestran que mejora significativamente la precisión de la pronunciación, la entonación, el ritmo, el habla conectada, la comprensión auditiva y la fluidez al hablar, convirtiéndola en una de las metodologías más efectivas para la preparación del IELTS Speaking y la comunicación en inglés en el mundo real.

Técnica de shadowing: lee la guía completa paso a paso →