Unit 1: News Review
How to use the language from the latest news stories
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Session 40
The scientists who made mRNA Covid vaccines possible have won the Nobel Prize for Medicine. Beth and Phil talk about the language in the headlines about this story.
Sessions in this unit
Session 40 score
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- 0 / 3Activity 1
Activity 1
News Review
Covid vaccine scientists win Nobel
The scientists who made mRNA Covid vaccines possible have won the Nobel Prize for Medicine.
Watch the video and complete the activity

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(Images:Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP, Mandel Ngan/AFP, Mark Makela via Getty)
The story
The scientists whose research made some of the Covid vaccines possible have won the Nobel prize for medicine.
Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman's research means that something called mRNA can be used to make vaccinations.
Kariko had previously been criticised by fellow academics who felt that her approach would not work.
Key words and phrases
laid foundation
made something possible
- This study laid the foundation for some important discoveries.
- Getting the products exactly right laid the foundation for our business.
maverick
like no one else
- She's such a maverick; you never know what she's going to do next.
- Mavericks can sometimes get great results, but they're hard to work with.
spurred
encourage to happen
- The criticism spurred him to work harder.
- The decision to get rid of staff was spurred by the company's losses.
To do
Try our quiz to test yourself on today's language.
News Review quiz
3 Questions
Now you've watched the video, try to answer these questions about the language in the news.
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Activity
Now you've watched the video, try to answer these questions about the language in the news.
Hint
What word do we use for something that supports everything else?Question 1 of 3
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Activity
Now you've watched the video, try to answer these questions about the language in the news.
Hint
Which word means 'like no-one else'?Question 2 of 3
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Activity
Now you've watched the video, try to answer these questions about the language in the news.
Hint
What means 'encouraged' or 'made'?Question 3 of 3
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