Shadowing Practice: Maths’ Future Takes Shape: Fields Medallist Envisions Asia as a New Global Hub - Learn English Speaking with Video
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39 sentences
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1
I think it was specifically the sixth grade.
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I was in some elementary school, very relaxed, but my father was worried about my knowledge in mathematics.
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He decided to move me out of that school and try to get me back on track with the school of mathematics.
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And I failed the exam, entered the exam for the first time, which upset me very much, and I decided I would study mathematics more.
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So my parents got me books, a lot of problems, I tried to solve them.
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I felt I was getting better every day and that was how I got hooked up with mathematics.
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The Langlands program is the extraordinary vision of Canadian mathematicians, the name Robert Langlands.
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Langlands had this extraordinary vision.
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He draws abstract but very large pictures but there's a very precise relation between these different continents of mathematics.
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In addition to his vision, his conjectures, a lot of questions, he developed some strategy to solve these questions, to prove them.
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After a long elaboration, he reduced some very specific identities, certain integrals according to others.
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That's what he called the fundamental lemma.
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He made a lot of calculations that give evidence for his conjectures.
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But he was not able to prove them in generalities.
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And many of his students and followers tried to solve them.
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When I was a PhD student, and after that there is a new approach to the Langlands program, the geometricization of the Langlands program.
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I was a part of that.
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From the very beginning, I was very interested to prove the fundamental lemma using this geometric method.
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And my work was to discover these geometric structures, geometric shapes that explain the fundamental lemma.
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And eventually that allowed me to prove and that is probably my best achievement or contribution to mathematics so far.
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And at some point I remember vividly I just came up with some very simple and basic thing about matrices,
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you know, some very elementary statement.
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But I was surprised that people didn't see it before and with that I could actually reformulate the whole problem of Langlands,
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fundamental learning, the whole new setting which become clearer.
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And actually that allowed me to ask questions that Langland couldn't ask
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because he doesn't have all these geometric shapes and these geometric structures in the game.
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I come to the age and I actually feel more happy in Asia, in the Asian vibe.
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And for professional reasons, I started believing that Asia will be the future,
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the centre of science and mathematics.
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And there's great opportunities to develop mathematics in China and Asia and broader.
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And I really want to be a part of that development.
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I got seven offers, even at the University of Hong Kong.
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They're all very good offers, but at the end I thought Hong Kong was probably the next chapters of my life.
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Hong Kong has a great department of mathematics.
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Some of my colleagues are really very well known and world class mathematicians.
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HKU leadership reassures me that they have an ambition to grow the math department, to become a world class center of mathematics.
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I'm really eager to be a part of that effort.
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I really want to develop more bonds, you know, mathematical bonds in Asia, across Asia.
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Hong Kong is going to be the best place to build up this kind of Asian vision of mathematics.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 39 sentences and 567 words to shadow. The speech runs for 4:02. The speaker talks at a steady 140 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 78% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 less common words from the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
- mathematics /mæθ(.ə)ˈmæt.ɪks/ (noun) — An abstract representational system studying numbers, shapes, structures, quantitative change and relationships between them.
- geometric /ˌd͡ʒiː.əʊˈmɛt.ɹɪk/ (adjective) — Of or relating to geometry.
- fundamental /ˌfʌn.dəˈmɛn.təl/ (adjective) — Related to a foundation, base, or basis; serving as a foundation.
- solve /sɒlv/ (verb) — To find an answer or solution to a problem or question; to work out.
- extraordinary /ɪksˈtɹɔːrdɪn(ə)ɹi/ (adjective) — Out of the ordinary; exceptional; unusual.
- elementary /ˌɛləˈmɛntəɹi/ (adjective) — Relating to the basic, essential or fundamental part of something.
- examination /ɪɡˌzæm.ɪˈneɪ.ʃən/ (noun) — The act of examining.
- discover /dɪˈskʌvə/ (verb) — To find or learn something for the first time.
- sixth /sɪksθ/ (adjective) — The ordinal form of the number six.
- hook /hʊk/ (noun) — A rod bent into a curved shape, typically with one end free and the other end secured to a rope or other attachment.
- achievement /əˈt͡ʃiːv.mənt/ (noun) — The act of achieving or performing; a successful performance; accomplishment.
- contribution /ˌkɑntɹɪˈbjuʃən/ (noun) — Something given or offered that adds to a larger whole.
- relation /ɹɪˈleɪʃ(ə)n/ (noun) — The manner in which two things may be associated.
- relax /ɹɪˈlæks/ (verb) — To make something loose.
- abstract /ˈæbˌstɹækt/ (noun) — An abridgement or summary of a longer publication.
Phrasal verbs you will hear
- build up (verb) — To erect; to construct.
- come up with (verb) — To manage to produce, deliver, or present (something) by inventing, creating, thinking of, or obtaining it.
- track with (verb) — To associate or go out with.
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 5 contractions and reduced forms, such as couldn't, didn't, doesn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: mathematics /mæθ(.ə)ˈmæt.ɪks/, sixth /sɪksθ/, mathematical /ˌmæθ(.ə)ˈmæt.ɪ.kəl/, mathematician /ˌmæθ.(ə.)məˈtɪʃ.ən/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: examination /ɪɡˌzæm.ɪˈneɪ.ʃən/, contribution /ˌkɑntɹɪˈbjuʃən/, relation /ɹɪˈleɪʃ(ə)n/, ambition /æmˈbɪʃ.ən/, calculation /ˌkælkjuˈleɪʃn̩/
- Long words — get the stress right: mathematics /mæθ(.ə)ˈmæt.ɪks/, geometric /ˌd͡ʒiː.əʊˈmɛt.ɹɪk/, fundamental /ˌfʌn.dəˈmɛn.təl/, extraordinary /ɪksˈtɹɔːrdɪn(ə)ɹi/, elementary /ˌɛləˈmɛntəɹi/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like mathematics, geometric, fundamental.
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.