Audio
Time: 4 min 57 sec
Level:
Upper-intermediate
Vocabulary: To help learners fully understand the audio
and transcript, most vocabulary that might be unknown for this lesson’s level is
provided. Vocab in bold
is more useful for learners at the lesson’s target level. Try to choose 8
to 10 new words to learn from the story (in general, it’s best to try to learn
no more than 8-10 new words a day).
Definitions
are written with the help of various sources including Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary
Yeast: a type of
fungus that is used in making alcoholic drinks (such as beer and wine) and in
baking to help make dough rise.
Hormone: a natural
substance that is produced in the body and that influences the way the body
grows or develops.
Notable: 1. unusual
and worth noticing; remarkable. 2. Very successful or respected.
Pump:
1. a
device that forces liquid, air, or gas into or out of something. 2. The act of
pumping something.
Poll: an
activity in which several or many people are asked a question or a series of
questions in order to get information about what most people think about
something
Poll-taker:
Someone
who conducts a poll.
Tension: a feeling
of nervousness that makes you unable to relax.
Friction:
1. Disagreement
or tension between people or groups of people. 2. the act of rubbing one thing
against another; the force that causes a moving object to slow down when it is
touching another object.
Short run:
a
short period of time.
Grind: to crush
or break (something) into very small pieces by rubbing it against a rough
surface or using a special machine.
Grind on:
to
continue for a long time — used to describe something unpleasant
Tolerate:
1.
to allow (something that is bad, unpleasant, etc.) to exist, happen, or be done.
2. to experience (something harmful or unpleasant) without being harmed.
Chirp: to
make a short high-pitched sound.
Forebears:
A member of your family in the past; ancestor.
Infectious:
Something
(usually a disease) that can be spread to other people by germs.
Mount up:
to
increase.
Eden: A place
in the creation story of the Bible where God made the first people, Adam and
Eve.
Malleable:
capable
of being stretched or bent into different shapes; capable of being easily
changed or influenced.
Irretrievable:
impossible to recover or get back.
Fine-tuned: Small changes that have been made to something to
improve the way it works or make it exactly right.
All the conditions of the experiment had to be fined-tuned to
get the proper result.
It was a fine-tuned watch, which always gave the exact time.
Circumstance:
a
condition or fact that affects a situation; the way something happens; the
specific details of an event
Inevitable: Something
that will definitely happen.
Discussion
questions:
1. What’s the difference between healthy and unhealthy stress
according to the story?
2. Do you have enough healthy stress in your life?
3. Do you have too much unhealthy stress in your life?
4. What can we do to cope with unhealthy stress in our lives?
5. What kinds of challenges in our life can give us healthy
stress?
