Margarita Salas, Spain's leading female scientist, dies aged 80

 Click here to read about this inspiring woman's death.

How to talk about people you admire

I. Watch the video and answer the questions. Check your answers in "comments".

1. Who is A.P. Giannini?
2. Why is he the person the speaker admires the most?
3. What did A.P. Giannini do when he was on the board of a bank called Columbus Savings and Loans?
4. What did he do when there was a big fire in San Francisco?
5. How did people consider Walt Disney before A.P. Giannini financed him?
6. What big construction did he support?
7. Why is A.P. his favourite entrepreneur?

II. Watch the video and answer the questions. Check your answers in "comments".

1. Why doesn't she recommend talking about a famous person in the exam?

2. Why should you talk about someone you know?

3. Why does she like talking about her mum?

4. When did her mum start her family?

5. What opportunity did she miss?

6. What do women usually do these days?

7. When did her mum decide to go back to university?

8. What did the speaker do?

9. How does the speaker describe this situation?

10. Did her mum continue studying?

11. What does she have a bachelor's in?

12. What does her mum do now?

III. Watch a video with an example of someone talking about a famous person she admires. Watch out, there are some mistakes in the transcription.

Jocelyn Bell Burnell

Watch the video and answer the questions. Check your answers in "comments".

1. What was very clear to her?

2. What other two things did she find interesting? Why?

3. What does smart economy recognize?

4. Who inspired her? Why?

5. What happens in the English-speaking world according to her?

6. How is this different in other countries?

7. How does she describe science?

8. What did she want to be? When did she know it?

9. What’s her piece of advice?

My hero

Click here to do a listening activity about inspiring people. Do the preparation exercise before you listen and then the rest of the activities to check your understanding.