Shadowing Practice: How big is the ocean? - Scott Gass - Learn English Speaking with YouTube

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Imagine yourself standing on a beach, looking out over the ocean, waves crashing against the shore, blue as far as your eyes can see.
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Imagine yourself standing on a beach, looking out over the ocean, waves crashing against the shore, blue as far as your eyes can see.
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Let it really sink in, the sheer scope and size of it all.
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Now, ask yourself, "How big is it?
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How big is the ocean?" First thing, we need to understand that there really is only one ocean, consisting of five component basins that we call the Pacific, the Atlantic, the Indian, the Arctic, and the Southern.
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Each of these five, while generally referred to as oceans in and of themselves, are really and truly a part of a single, massive body of water, one ocean, which defines the very face of planet Earth.
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The ocean covers roughly 71% of our planet's surface, some 360 million square kilometers, an area in excess of the size of 36 USAs.
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It’s such a vast spread, when viewed from space, the ocean is, by far, the dominant feature of our planet.
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Speaking of space, the ocean currently holds over 1.3 billion— that’s billion with a “b”— cubic kilometers of water.
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Put another way, that’s enough water to immerse the entire United States under a body of salt water over 132 kilometers tall— a height well beyond the reach of the highest clouds and extending deep into the upper atmosphere.
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With all that volume, the ocean represents 97% of Earth’s total water content.
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On top of all that, the ocean contains upwards of 99% of the world’s biosphere, that is, the spaces and places where life exists.
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Now let that sink in for a second.
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The immediate world as we know it, indeed the totality of all the living space encompassed by the continents themselves, all of that represents only 1% of the biosphere— 1%!
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The ocean is everything else.
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So, the ocean is physically massive.
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It's importance to life is practically unparalleled.
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It also happens to hold the greatest geological features of our planet.
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Quickly, here are four of the most notable.
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The ocean contains the world's largest mountain range, the mid-ocean ridge.
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At roughly 65,000 kilometers long, this underwater range is some 10 times longer than the longest mountain chain found purely on dry land— the Andes.
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Beneath the Denmark Strait exists the world’s largest waterfall.
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This massive cataract carries roughly 116 times more water per second over its edge than the Congo River’s Inga Falls, the largest waterfall by volume on land.
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The world's tallest mountain is actually found in the ocean, hiding in plain sight.
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While 4,200 meters of Hawaii’s Mauna Kea sit above sea level, its sides plummet beneath the waves for another 5,800 meters.
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From its snow-covered top to it’s silt-covered bottom, then, this Hawaiian mountain is roughly 10,000 meters in height, dwarfing tiny Everest’s paltry peak by well over a kilometer.
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And, since we’re picking on poor Everest, let's consider the world's deepest canyon, the Challenger Deep: existing 11 kilometers below the ocean's surface, some six times deeper than the Grand Canyon.
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That's deep enough to sink Mount Everest into and still have over 2.1 kilometers of water sitting atop its newly submerged peak.
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Put another way, the depth of the Challenger Deep is roughly the same height that commercial airliners travel.
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So, pretty much however you choose to slice it, the ocean is capital B, capital I, capital G— BIG!
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It defines our planet, home to the greatest geological features, comprises the largest living space, and accordingly, is home to the greatest numbers and forms of life on Earth.
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It is practically incomprehensible in scope.
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But it is not so big, so vast, so extraordinary as to be untouchable.
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In fact, with roughly 50% of the world's population living within 100 kilometers of a coastline, and with most of the remainder living close enough to lakes, rivers, or swamps, all of which ultimately lead to the ocean, virtually every single person on the planet has the opportunity to influence the general health and nature of the world ocean.
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Evidence of human influence is seen in every part of the ocean, no matter how deep, no matter how distant.
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The ocean defines our planet, but, in a very real sense, we define the ocean.

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Why practice speaking with this video?

This video titled "How big is the ocean? - Scott Gass" provides an engaging context for English speaking practice. By exploring a fascinating subject like the ocean's size and significance, learners can enhance their vocabulary while discussing globally relevant themes. Engaging with the content allows for immersive English speaking practice through the technique of shadowing. You imitate the speaker’s intonation and rhythm, improving not just fluency but also comprehension. This kind of practice is beneficial for test-takers preparing for the IELTS speaking practice, as it helps develop the nuanced delivery often required in high-stakes speaking exams.

Grammar & Expressions in Context

1. “There really is only one ocean”: This phrase emphasizes the uniqueness of the ocean while using a simple present tense to assert a fact. It invites learners to explore similar grammatical structures that convey certainty.

2. “The ocean contains upwards of 99% of the world’s biosphere”: Here, the phrase “upwards of” is an interesting prepositional phrase useful for expressing approximations, which can be effectively used in academic and conversational contexts alike.

3. “Let that sink in”: This metaphorical expression can enhance English proficiency by expanding learners’ ability to use idiomatic expressions effectively in conversation.

By identifying these phrases during your shadowing practice, you can reinforce your understanding and usage of English grammatical structures.

Common Pronunciation Traps

In this video, there are several tricky words and phrases that might pose pronunciation challenges:

  • “Challenger Deep”: Pay attention to the stress on the second syllable of ‘Challenger’ and the blend in ‘Deep’. Practicing this segment through shadowspeak can help you sound more fluent.
  • “biosphere”: Don’t rush this word. Break it down into syllables: bi-o-sphere. Using shadowing techniques will help you get comfortable with its rhythm.
  • “mountain range”: The stress in this phrase is on ‘mountain‘. Practicing with a focus on syllable emphasis can improve clarity in speech.

Focusing on these pronunciation traps while utilizing effective shadowing methods can significantly enhance your ability to convey ideas clearly and confidently in English.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

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