Shadowing Practice: What Actual Aliens Might Look Like - Learn English Speaking with Video
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What do real aliens look like?
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We know that life on Earth is incredibly diverse and exists in the strangest and most extreme places.
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From blue dragon sea slugs to aye-ayes, or Chrysomallon snails with shells of iron.
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Or whatever this is supposed to be.
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Let's use our imagination and real science to travel to three possible worlds, each more alien than the next.
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Put on your future-science suit, and enter the portal to witness wonders never seen before.
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This is the red dwarf star Oculus.
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Five times smaller than our Sun and a lot less bright.
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A bit larger than Earth but orbiting its star 20 times closer, you see the ice hell of the planet Ipa.
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It's tidally locked, so one side experiences a never-ending night and the other an eternal day, lit by the star's dim glow.
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In the region facing the dim star directly, temperatures are warm and pleasant.
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The hell of ice has melted into a shallow black ocean: the Eye of Ipa.
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About the size of Europe, barely 200 meters at its deepest points, churned by a never-ending storm where hot air meets the frigid winds from the icy outskirts.
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But below this inhospitable chaos we find calm stability, an ecosystem in almost perfect balance.
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Let's dive in.
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Instead of meeting open water we splash into a floating underwater jungle.
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We know places like this at home: kelp forests made from seaweeds up to 65 meters long, sheltering countless smaller creatures.
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On Earth we get abundant white sunlight so our plants evolved to be green, absorbing the most useful red wavelengths for photosynthesis and reflecting away the rest.
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But Oculus shines not nearly as bright and its dim rays are even further dulled by the storm.
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So here plants are a deep black to make use of the weak infrared leftovers.
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Which also gives the Eye of Ipa its striking black color.
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Over billions of years, the jungle has occupied all possible space in the Eye.
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Its roots extend deep into the seabed mud, anchoring them and providing access to nutrients.
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They drop their seeds in the few free spaces in the mud.
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Only death makes room for new life.
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Big and streamlined teardrop-shaped creatures push through the dark water.
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They kind of look like… fish?
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Just like many sea creatures on Earth, their shape is optimized for the lowest drag when traveling through water.
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Like underwater cattle, they lazily swim through the forest, grazing on leaves in peace.
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Suddenly, a patch of strange looking leaves begins to move and wraps around a distracted grazer, dragging it down into hungry jaws.
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A predator that's had eons to adapt its camouflage to fool its prey.
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But not only by imitating leaves.
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Both hunter and prey never evolved eyes in this dark underwater murk.
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Instead, they do battle with sounds and textures.
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Listen. There's a whole cacophony down here.
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Countless species are singing to each other, sending warnings or invitations, forming a collective song.
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Like the noisy jungles of Earth, except Howler Monkeys and screaming pihas are replaced by chattering Seed-Eaters poking at the mud with snapping pincers, squeaking Spike-Bulbs loaded with poison, and the flailing fins of starfish-shaped Grabbers hunting small prey.
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Beautiful! And unsettling.
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In this stable and never-changing ecosystem, their music will never end for billions of years.
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You seem to have been noticed and Blind Creepers are crawling towards you.
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You want to explore this world, not become part of it.
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So it's time to leave.
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You're immersed in the blinding light of the B type star Caeruleus, shining hot and blue, orbited by a dozen lava planets burned to a crisp.
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But we'll visit the last planet: Nimbus, a gas giant very much like Neptune in size and composition, except there's a lot more water and seething hot Caeruleus showers it with 900 times more light than Neptune.
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So its atmosphere is warm enough for gigantic white clouds the size of countries, to be lofted upward by titanic warm updrafts rising from the hazy depths.
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Millions of years ago, and astonishingly quickly, life emerged and evolved inside tiny water droplets deeper down in the planet.
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Like extremophile microbes on Earth, they found ways of breathing methane and using exotic enzymes to harvest sulfur and nitrogen compounds from the air.
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As Caeruleus grew hotter and brighter, the higher altitudes of Nimbus became habitable and life spread.
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Let's dive into to the gigantic white clouds to meet it.
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Up here live quadrillions of tiny beings, a kind of cloud plankton so small they're carried on the gentlest air currents.
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The most common type resembles flat four-legged spiders barely a millimeter wide, tinted yellow by the sulfur they consume.
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They gain lift with wispy electrostatic threads, thinner than spider silk, pulling on the charge differences between the top and bottom of the cloud oceans.
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A technique Xysticus crab spiders use to travel great distances on Earth.
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You're just in time for mating season.
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Billions of cloud plankton gather to join their threads into huge parachutes that ride updrafts for hundreds of kilometers.
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Here in the hot heights, they hatch their eggs before their life comes to an end.
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Other tiny creatures latch on, most of them predators looking to feast on fresh younglings.
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But not all life on Nimbus is tiny.
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The other way to stay up in the sky forever is to become a living balloon.
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Like the enormous Sky Whales, taller than a skyscraper, almost completely made of a wafer thin membrane.
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They heat up trapped gases, making them less dense than the air around them, giving them buoyancy.
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The bigger their gas envelope, the more lift it produces, so Sky Whales evolved to be as large as possible.
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Only a lumpy car-sized spherical bag of organs hangs at its bottom.
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Heating up all this gas requires a lot of energy, so it is time to feed.
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The spherical body opens up, unfolding and lowering a huge sticky net into the white clouds.
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On Earth the largest animals to ever exist, blue whales, feed by filtering millions of tiny krill each day.
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Similarly, the Sky Whales of Nimbus filter sky plankton out of the clouds.
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Most is consumed right away and burned in specialized glands to generate heat.
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The rest is converted into an orange and energy dense nectar for later.
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This nectar is the most valuable resource on Nimbus.
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Numerous predators are looking for it, but none so hungrily as the frog sized Jet Squids, evolutionary cousins of the whales.
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Several of them trail each Sky Whale waiting for it to be distracted or sleepy after a succulent meal.
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Jet Squids are far less efficient floaters.
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But they are able to superheat and expel gases in short bursts, like a rocket.
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Like vampiric hummingbirds, their long and pointy beaks try to pierce their prey and lap up some of the nectar inside.
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Unlike in the stable Eye Ipa, life on Nimbus is doomed.
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B Type stars like Caeruleus live for a few hundred million years at most and this time is coming to its end.
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Soon it will be burning through its fuel at an astounding rate and violently burn our gas giant.
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Life on Nimbus is only 600 million years old and has barely ten million years left.
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Is this tragic?
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Or is this unique ecosystem lucky to have existed in the first place?
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Something to ponder as you move on before your jetpack runs out of fuel.
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Orsted is a Y-class brown dwarf 13 times more massive than Jupiter and with a magnetic field 60 times stronger.
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It belongs to yellow star Sturgeon, which is about to disappear behind Orsted’s shadow.
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But you are interested in Monnier, one of Orsted’s many moons.
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It should get as much sunlight as our Earth, but its 3 hour orbit around the brown dwarf means its days are extremely short.
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Gravity here is a mere 5% of Earth’s, so the moon can only hold onto a thin carbon dioxide atmosphere that doesn’t retain much heat.
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So, its average temperature is far below freezing.
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As its cold night begins, a chill descends on Monnier and dry ice snows from the sky.
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A green, blue and red aurora illuminates the landscape, made from star plasma caught in Orsted’s magnetic field and striking Monnier’s atmosphere.
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The Sturgeon system was born from a nebula saturated with metals, so iron and lead are abundant.
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In this frigid cold, chock-full of toxic minerals, life found unique ways to make the best of a bad situation: by using ammonia instead of water, which would freeze in the short nights.
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And by incorporating magnetized minerals and Orsted’s magnetic field into its biology.
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On Earth species like lobsters or bees have learnt to sense magnetic fields, but life on Monnier takes it to a whole other level.
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As Sturgeon rises and its red rays filter through Orsted’s crescent, a yellow glow rushes over the horizon.
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The snowfall stops and temperatures quickly rise.
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The ground creaks and multi-colored liquids trickle out from fissures all around you: cryovolcanism just like on Jupiter’s moon Europa.
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Brittle-seeming bundles start to unspool and climb off the ground, towards the bright star.
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Like Arctic flowers on Earth sprouting in the short summer, these plants don’t have a minute of daytime to waste.
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Their blossoms are saturated with magnetic minerals, making use of the extreme magnetism and low gravity to levitate, reaching up to a kilometer into the sky.
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Extending the sunset for as long as possible.
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Hey, don’t touch them!
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With a loud crack, the skyflower detaches itself from the ground and drifts out of reach.
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Suddenly you are surrounded.
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Hundreds of shiny critters zoom by.
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They look like ice-skating snails and can circle Monnier faster than the sunset.
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From their head they extend two long stalks that are electrically-conductive and merge up top.
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A magnetic kite that drags them along the surface at breathtaking speeds.
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The Skaters formed a symbiotic relationship with photosynthetic purple microorganisms that live in their shells.
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These biological solar panels produce sugars that they share with the skaters in exchange for continuous starlight.
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If the skaters ever stop they risk their partners freezing and death by starvation.
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The harmonic scenery is violently interrupted as the ground splinters open and a spiked metal claw grabs a Skater and crushes it.
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It belongs to an animal that looks like a cross between a sea-lion and a beetle.
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As it devours its prey, it gets covered in pink and sparkly fluids.
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These Ambushers hide in the crystalline ground, spreading an array of electrically sensitive whiskers that they use to detect their prey and strike just as they zoom by.
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Like living landmines that could be buried everywhere.
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Maybe you should end your stroll.
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The darkness will return soon.
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It's time to return home.
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Earth, warm and pleasant.
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It's good to be home, in the environment you and all other life that's not made up evolved in.
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But, who knows, if you look up at the countless flickering lights there may be countless strange worlds home to life stranger than anything you've seen.
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Scientific speculation is fun but also useful, giving us ideas about what we should look out for and, who knows, maybe in a few thousand years our descendants may actually visit exotic oceans, fly over white clouds the size of continents or pet metallic animals.
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And maybe, just maybe, even talk to others like us who are also marveling at all the strange life in our universe.
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Want to go beyond imagining aliens and start uncovering real secrets of the cosmos?
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Our friends of Brilliant can hand you the keys to unlocking new insights, right from the comfort of your planet.
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You'll not only gain knowledge of key concepts, you'll learn to apply them to real world situations, helping you put the intelligent in intelligent life.
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We also partnered with Brilliant to create a series of lessons to take your scientific knowledge to the next level.
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Brilliant has a huge library of other lessons to explore, with new lessons added each month.
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And unlike waiting thousands of years to discover alien species, Brilliant helps you learn something new in just minutes.
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Spending just a little time learning on Brilliant each day helps you see the world in new ways, build powerful problem solving skills and end every day a little smarter.
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We'll first add some more mass to this protostar.
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More. A bit more.
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A star with 10 times the mass of our Sun.
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Let's now add a couple of million years and see what happens.
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A supernova!
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Breathtaking!
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And look, it leaves behind a black hole.
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Fascinating stuff.
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Now we record our findings.
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Woordenschat en spreektips bij deze les
Deze spreekles op niveau C1 is gebaseerd op de video “What Actual Aliens Might Look Like”. Deze video bevat 160 zinnen en 2432 woorden om na te spreken. Het gesproken deel duurt 15:43. De spreker praat in een natuurlijk tempo van ongeveer 155 woorden per minuut, dicht bij een alledaags gesprek. Slechts 72% van de woorden hoort bij de 3.000 meest gebruikte Engelse woorden, dus de woordenschat is pittig.
Belangrijke woorden in deze video
De 15 moeilijkste woorden uit de video, met uitspraak en betekenis:
| Woord | Uitspraak | Betekenis |
|---|---|---|
| prey zelfstandig naamwoord | /pɹeɪ/ | prooi |
| evolve werkwoord | /ɪˈvɑlv/ | ontwikkelen |
| whale zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈweɪl/ | walvis |
| countless bijvoeglijk naamwoord | /ˈkaʊntləs/ | ontelbaar, talloos |
| nectar zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈnɛk.təɹ/ | nectar, nektar |
| skater zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈskeɪ.tə(ɹ)/ | schaatser, skater |
| ecosystem zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈikoʊˌsɪstəm/ | ecosysteem |
| underwater bijvoeglijk naamwoord | /ʌndɚˈwɔtəɹ/ | onderwater, onderwater- |
| mineral zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈmɪn.ə.ɹəl/ | delfstof, mineraal |
| spherical bijvoeglijk naamwoord | /ˈsfɛɹɪkəl/ | bolvormig |
| sulfur zelfstandig naamwoord | /ˈsʌl.fə/ | zwavel |
| updraft zelfstandig naamwoord | opwind | |
| breathtaking bijvoeglijk naamwoord | /ˈbɹɛθˌteɪ.kɪŋ/ | adembenemend |
| violently bijwoord | /ˈvaɪ(ə)ləntli/ | gewelddadig |
| gigantic bijvoeglijk naamwoord | /d͡ʒaɪˈɡæntɪk/ | gigantisch |
Phrasal verbs die je zult horen
| Woord | Betekenis |
|---|---|
| get off werkwoord | van ... afgaan |
| leave behind werkwoord | achterlaten |
Zinnen om te herhalen
Korte, volledige zinnen uit de video die je in alledaagse gesprekken kunt gebruiken:
- You're just in time for mating season.
- Let's conduct a few stellar experiments.
- We'll first add some more mass to this protostar.
Grammatica in deze video
De structuren die de spreker het meest gebruikt, met de exacte woorden uit de video:
| Structuur | In de video |
|---|---|
| Lijdende vorm be + voltooid deelwoord — het gaat om wat er gebeurt, niet om wie het doet | is optimized · are replaced · have been noticed |
| Present perfect have/has + voltooid deelwoord — iets uit het verleden dat nu nog telt | has melted · has occupied · have learnt |
Uitspraak om op te letten
De spreker gebruikt 14 samentrekkingen en verkorte vormen, zoals you'll, don't, we'll. Spreek ze kort uit, zoals je ze hoort.
- De klanken “sh” en “zh”: specialize /ˈspɛʃəˌlaɪz/, speculation /ˌspɛk.jəˈleɪ.ʃən/, shallow /ˈʃæloʊ/, subscription /səbˈskɹɪpʃən/
- Lange woorden — let op de klemtoon: ecosystem /ˈikoʊˌsɪstəm/, underwater /ʌndɚˈwɔtəɹ/, electrically /ɪˈlɛk.tɹɪk.li/, violently /ˈvaɪ(ə)ləntli/, speculation /ˌspɛk.jəˈleɪ.ʃən/
Klanken die Nederlandstaligen lastig vinden:
- Stemhebbende eindmedeklinker — /b/, /d/, /g/, /z/, /v/ niet verscherpen: evolve /ɪˈvɑlv/, frigid /ˈfɹɪd͡ʒɪd/, specialize /ˈspɛʃəˌlaɪz/, surround /səˈɹaʊnd/, emerge /ɪˈmɝd͡ʒ/
- /æ/ — opener dan de Nederlandse “e”: plankton /ˈplæŋ(k).tən/, gigantic /d͡ʒaɪˈɡæntɪk/, distract /dɪˈstɹækt/, fascinate /ˈfæsɪneɪt/, adapt /əˈdæpt/
- /g/ — een harde plofklank, geen Nederlandse “g”: gigantic /d͡ʒaɪˈɡæntɪk/, glow /ɡloʊ/, exotic /ɪɡˈzɑtɪk/
Zo oefen je met deze video
- Luister de hele video één keer zonder te spreken en noteer de woorden die je niet kent.
- Begin op 0,75× snelheid, spreek zin voor zin na en ga terug naar normale snelheid zodra het makkelijk gaat.
- Neem jezelf op en vergelijk met het origineel; let daarbij op woorden als prey, evolve, whale.
Wat is de Shadowing-techniek?
Shadowing is een wetenschappelijk onderbouwde taalleermethode die oorspronkelijk is ontwikkeld voor professionele tolkentraining en gepopulariseerd door polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. De methode is eenvoudig maar krachtig: je luistert naar native Engelse audio en herhaalt het onmiddellijk hardop — als een schaduw die de spreker volgt met slechts 1–2 seconden vertraging. In tegenstelling tot passief luisteren of grammaticadrills, dwingt shadowing je hersenen en mondspieren om echte spraakpatronen tegelijkertijd te verwerken en te reproduceren. Onderzoek toont aan dat het de uitspraaknauwkeurigheid, intonatie, ritme, verbonden spraak, luisterbegrip en spreekvaardigheid aanzienlijk verbetert — waardoor het een van de meest effectieve methoden is voor IELTS Speaking-voorbereiding en echte Engelse communicatie.