Shadowing Practice: Why do we hiccup? - John Cameron - Learn English Speaking with YouTube

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Charles Osborne began to hiccup in 1922,
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after a hog fell on top of him.
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He wasn't cured until 68 years later,
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and is now listed by Guinness as the world record holder for hiccup longevity.
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Meanwhile, Florida teen Jennifer Mee may hold the record for the most frequent hiccups,
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50 times per minute for more than four weeks in 2007.
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So what causes hiccups?
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Doctors point out that a round of hiccups often follows from stimuli that stretch the stomach,
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like swallowing air or too rapid eating or drinking.
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Others associate hiccups with intense emotions or our response to them— laughing,
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sobbing, anxiety, and excitement.
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Let's look at what happens when we hiccup.
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It begins with an involuntary spasm,
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or sudden contraction, of the diaphragm,
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the large dome-shaped muscle below our lungs that we use to inhale air.
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This is followed almost immediately by the sudden closure of the vocal cords and the opening between them,
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which is called the glottis.
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The movement of the diaphragm initiates a sudden intake of air,
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but the closure of the vocal cords stops it from entering the windpipe and reaching the lungs.
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It also creates the characteristic sound.
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Hiccups!
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To date, there is no known function for hiccups.
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don't seem to provide any medical or physiological advantage.
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Why begin to inhale air only to suddenly stop it from actually entering the lungs?
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Anatomical structures or physiological mechanisms with no apparent purpose present challenges to evolutionary biologists.
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Do such structures serve some hidden function that hasn't yet been discovered?
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Or are they relics of our evolutionary past,
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having once served some important purpose,
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only to persist into the present as vestigial remnants.
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One idea is that hiccups began many millions of years before the appearance of humans.
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The lung is thought to have evolved as a structure to allow early fish,
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many of which lived in warm,
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stagnant water with little oxygen,
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to take advantage of the abundant oxygen in the air overhead.
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When descendants of these animals later moved on to land,
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they moved from gill-based ventilation to air-breathing with lungs.
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That's similar to the much more rapid changes faced by frogs
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today as they transition from tadpoles with gills to adults with lungs.
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This hypothesis suggests that the hiccup is a relic of the ancient transition from water to land,
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an inhalation that could move water over gills,
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followed by a rapid closure of the glottis preventing water from entering the lungs.
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That's supported by evidence which suggests
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that the neural patterning involved in generating a hiccup is almost identical to that responsible for respiration in amphibians.
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Another group of scientists believe that the reflex is retained in us today because it actually provides an important advantage.
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They point out that true hiccups are found only in mammals and that they're not retained in birds,
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lizards, turtles, or any other exclusively air-breathing animals.
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Further, hiccups appear in human babies long before birth and are far more common in infants than adults.
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Their explanation for this involves the uniquely mammalian activity of nursing.
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The ancient hiccup reflex may have been adapted by mammals to
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help remove air from the stomach as a sort of glorified burp.
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The sudden expansion of the diaphragm would raise air from the stomach,
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while a closure of the glottis would prevent milk from entering the lungs.
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Sometimes a bout of hiccups will go on and on.
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And we try home remedies,
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sipping continuously from a glass of cold water,
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holding one's breath, a mouthful of honey or peanut butter,
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breathing into a paper bag, or being suddenly frightened.
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Unfortunately, scientists have yet to verify that any one cure works better or more consistently than others than others.
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However, we do know one thing that definitely doesn't work.

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Why practice speaking with this video?

Understanding the fascinating subject of hiccups can provide an engaging context for your English speaking practice. By discussing quirky topics like this, you can enhance your conversational skills and delve into scientific explanations. Using the shadowing technique, a powerful method where you mimic the speaker's delivery, you can improve your fluency and pronunciation. Engaging with this content not only builds your vocabulary but also helps you practice articulation and intonation, crucial for achieving a natural speech rhythm. This is especially beneficial for scenarios like the IELTS speaking practice, where clarity and coherence are key.

Grammar & Expressions in Context

As you listen to the explanation of hiccups, pay attention to several key grammatical structures and expressions that can enrich your own speaking abilities:

  • Involuntary spasm: This phrase can be broken down to illustrate an adjective-noun combination that describes muscle contractions that happen without conscious control. Try using similar structures to describe other biological processes.
  • There is no known function: This is a great example of using "there is" constructions to indicate existence. Practice forming sentences about things you find fascinating, using this structure, to enhance your descriptive skills.
  • It also creates the characteristic sound: This phrase highlights the use of "it" as a subject, which is often helpful in English. Experiment by creating your own sentences to describe sounds or effects in everyday life.

Common Pronunciation Traps

In the video, the speaker uses several terms that may pose pronunciation challenges for English learners. Here are some to focus on:

  • Hiccups: The initial 'hic' sound can be tricky; ensure you pronounce it distinctly to avoid confusion.
  • Diaphragm: This word contains the 'ph' sound which should be articulated clearly. Breaking it down into syllables can help: dia-phragm.
  • Glottis: Make sure to emphasize the 'gl' sound at the beginning as this can be hard for non-native speakers.

Using the shadowspeak method can help you master these pronunciation patterns effectively, allowing you to integrate them into your English speaking practice. Focused repetition will solidify your grasp of these tricky sounds.

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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