by Nick Noorani

a well-known authority on the successful integration of immigrants in Canada.  He’s originally from Mumbai, India.  His book, Arrival Survival Canada, is a best seller among immigrants to this country.

First, preview the vocabulary below.  Then click the exercise below, read a question and then listen for the answer.  When you hear the answer, pause the video and answer the question.  Then read the next question and do the same thing.  If you get the answer wrong, then go back to where the answer is given and listen again.

Vocabulary:

founder:  the person who starts an organization or business
author:  writer
resources:  the things that are necessary
guide:  source of information
flip burgers:  have a low paying job
faced with:  have something in front of you
my take:  my understanding
gleaned from:  learned from
qualified:  able to do the job
invaluable:  very expensive
value:  importance
brushing up: practicing, learning (idiom)
skills: abilities
embrace:  take into your heart
resume:  information about yourself that helps you get a job
take a deep breath:  relax (idiom)
positive:  hopeful for a better future
been there:  I’ve had that same experience (idiom)
sociable:  friendly
network:  large group of people you know and who they know
negativity:  hopelessness
risks:  things that you’re afraid to do
play safe:  not take any risks (idiom)
volunteering:  working for no money

© 2014 Ambien Malecot

by Marco Tempest
a Swiss magician who lives in New York City.  He is known for his multimedia magic and use of interactive technology and computer graphics in his presentations.  He stars in the eight part television series “The Virtual Magician,” which has been broadcast in over 50 countries.

Preview the vocabulary below, and then do the exercise by first reading a single question and then listening for the answer.  When you hear the answer, pause the video and answer the question.  Then read the next question and do the same thing.

Vocabulary:

illusion:  something that is not real
data:  information
cyber:  using technology
symbols:  pictures that represent things
interpreted:  understood
lunar:  of the moon
tide:  the level of the ocean
coincidence:  two things that are the same for no reason
total:  add together
mischief:  playful action
pogo stick:  a toy that jumps you up and down
exaggeration:  saying that something is better than it really is
evil:  very bad
supernatural:  not natural
odds:  chances that something will happen
© 2014 Ambien Malecot

by Michael Pollan (illustrations by Kerry Hyndman)

an American author, journalist, activist, and professor of journalism at the University of California Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.

First, preview the vocabulary below.  Then click the exercise below, read a question and then listen for the answer.  When you hear the answer, pause the video and answer the question.  Then read the next question and do the same thing.  If you get the answer wrong, then go back to where the answer is given and listen again.

Vocabulary:

nutrition:  the process of taking in food
nutrients:  food
consuming:  eating
calorie:  a unit of energy in food
diet:  the food you eat
corporation:  big business
vast amounts:  a lot
ingredients:  things you mix with other things
addictive:  forcing you into a habit
press our buttons:  make us feel good (idiom)
cravings:  food that we feel we must eat often
food industry:  all the companies that sell food
labor intensive:  requiring lots of work
spatter: hit with tiny drops of grease
it’s a pain:  it’s hard to do (idiom)
special occasion:  birthdays, anniversaries, graduations
© 2014 Ambien Malecot

by Apollo Robbins.

an American sleight-of-hand artist, security consultant and deception specialist.  He is considered the best in the world at what he does.  In his Las Vegas shows he takes things from people’s jackets, pants, purses, wrists, fingers and necks and then returns them at the end.  People don’t notice what he does.

First preview the vocabulary below.  Then do the exercise by first reading a single question and then listening for the answer.  When you hear the answer, pause the video and answer the question.  Then read the next question and do the same thing.  If you get the answer wrong, then go back to where the answer is given and listen again.

Vocabulary:

pickpocket:  a person who takes things from other people’s pockets.
attention:  when your eyes and mind are on the same thing.
predicting:  saying what something will be in the future.
misdirection:  looking at the wrong thing.
icon:  little picture that identifies a computer program (app).
perceptions:  things that you see or hear and understand
process:  think about
data:  information

© 2014 Ambien Malecot

Aimee Mullins learned to walk on artificial legs and then run.  She broke records at the Paralympic Games in 1996.   She is a model, actor, and supporter of women and sports.

First preview the vocabulary below.  Then do the exercise by first reading a single question and then listening for the answer.  When you hear the answer, pause the video and answer the question.  Then read the next question and do the same thing.  If you get the answer wrong, then go back to where the answer is given and listen again.

Vocabulary:

curious:  wanting to know
influences:  teaches indirectly
unruly:  without order, too excited
disabled:  unable to do normal things like walking
potential:  possibilities
attendees:  people who attend a conference
decade:  a period of ten years
form:  the shape of something
function:  what something does
aesthetics:  the beauty of something
numerous:  a large number, many
prosthetic:  an artificial body part
stunning:  very beautiful
transform:  change
polyurethane: a kind of plastic
door jams:  the top of doors
profoundly: very much
augmentation:  becoming better than normal

© 2014 Ambien Malecot