©(Forrest Collman/Allen Institute via AP)
Pre-reading questions:
I will read each question. Then, please answer them.
講師がそれぞれの質問を読むので答えましょう。
- Do you enjoy watching science fiction movies?
- Do you think scientists can learn something important by studying animals?
Vocabulary:
I will read the words, meanings, and sample sentences. Then, repeat after me.
単語、意味、例文を読みます。講師に続いて音読しましょう。
- video clip /VID-ee-oh klip/
- scene /seen/
- directly /dih-REKT-lee/
- advanced /ad-VANST/
- powerful /POU-er-fuhl/
[noun] – a short video
The teacher showed video clips of different animals to help students learn about wildlife.
[noun] – a part of a movie, play, or book in which a particular action or activity occurs
Some scenes in the documentary were so emotional that many people cried.
[adverb] – in a straight or immediate way, without anything or anyone in between
She answered the question directly, without hesitation.
[adjective] – highly developed or complex
The new phone uses advanced technology to recognize your face.
[adjective] – having a high level of capability or performance
The team used a powerful telescope to observe distant galaxies in high detail.
Article reading:
Please read the whole article. Then, I will check your pronunciation and intonation.
記事を音読しましょう。講師はあなたの発音とイントネーションを確認します。
In an important discovery published on April 10, 2025, researchers have created the most detailed brain activity map ever. Scientists at Baylor College of Medicine carried out an experiment using a specially engineered mouse. As it watched various video clips—including scenes from the movie The Matrix—the mouse’s neurons would glow whenever active, enabling researchers to observe brain activity directly. To investigate further, the team took a tiny brain sample, only as big as a poppy seed. Advanced imaging techniques revealed more than 84,000 neurons and about 500 million connections between them, demonstrating the brain’s complexity. Over 150 scientists from leading institutions such as the Allen Institute and Princeton University collaborated on this project, sharing the data online for researchers worldwide. Using powerful electron microscopes and artificial intelligence, the scientists built a 3D digital model resembling tangled spaghetti, clearly illustrating how signals travel through the brain. This breakthrough could significantly advance studies of brain disorders like Alzheimer’s and autism. Princeton neuroscientist Sebastian Seung believes their new tools could even help identify abnormal brain patterns.
True or False:
Read the sentences and identify if they are true or false based on the article.
文章を読んで、記事に基づいて正誤を答えましょう。
- The experiment was done using a human brain.
- The mouse watched cartoons only.
- Scientists studied a very big piece of the mouse’s brain.
- The brain sample was the size of an apple seed.
- The scientists created a simple drawing of the brain by hand.
Fill in the blanks:
Choose the correct word from the table, then fill in the blanks.
適切な言葉を選んで空欄を埋めましょう。
video clips | scenes | directly | advanced | powerful |
- This course is designed for students with ______ math skills.
- The director decided to cut several ______ from the film to keep it shorter.
- During the training, we watched ______ of real emergency situations to understand proper responses.
- With the help of a ______ computer, the engineers simulated complex weather patterns to predict future storms.
- The manager spoke ______ to the staff about the upcoming changes.