Groundbreaking ideas

C1 preparation course
Lead-in

 Read the definition of a trailblazer:

 Someone who is an innovator in their field, who may develop a new
method of doing something or a new approach which brings about
(causes) change; often someone who opens the path forward.
 Do you know any trailblazers in the field of science/arts/social
reform? Who? What did that person do?
 What five qualities a trailblazer needs?
 Read the article in the next slide. How many of the qualities you
identified are mentioned?
  Replace the words in bold with similar words from the article and make any
necessary changes.
1. Her election as a prime minister had major consequences the girls’
expectations. (paragraph A)
2. This person is a pioneer in the field of social networking websites. (p.A)
3. In this period, the shared knowledge was that the world was flat (p. B)
Vocabulary 4. This stone-age invention was groundbreaking for travel. (p.B)
5. His election brought about a fundamental change in thinking regarding
political campaigns. (p.C)
6. Its destruction in 1989 started a series of events that transformed the world. (p.
D)
7. Scientists are carrying out initial studies to see if this could replace fossil fuels.
(p.G)
 Complete the collocations of the article! Put them into
two lists: adjective-noun and noun-noun collocations!
• major
• game
• profound
Collocations • paradigm
• pilot
• conventional

Try to pronounce these words! Where is the word

stress?
 allow construct dedicate develop go make participate study swim

 Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verbs in the box
(ing or to infinitive)!

Grammar 1. His innovative design involved _____ floating barriers which would
collect debris for recycling whilst ____ sea life ____ underneath.
2. The idea represented a paradigm shift, but had a long way ___
before achieving recognition.
3. My sincere thanks go out to to the crews for ____ this crazy idea a
reality.
4. After school he went on ___ aereo-engineering, but quit after six
months, as he was increasingly committed to ___ the clean-up
project and ready ___ all his time to it.
  Dazzle: I admire him for ____ (try) something so radical and I’m impressed that
he’s capable of ___ (do) so much so young, I’ve never had that sort of drive; I’ll
probably end up ____ (do) something more ordinary with my life.
 D2R2: It’s hard to imagine him ____ (live) a normal life. He seems_____ (do)
something extraordinary.
 May95: I can’t help _____ (wonder) what they’re going to do with all the plastic
they take out of the ocean. After going to such great lengths _____ (gather) it
together, I’d hope there’s no need _____ (come up with) another invention to deal
Grammar with the result.
 Sunny1: There’s simply too much garbage ____ (remove) . It’s impractical and it
isn’t worth _____ (fund) projects like this. I think our aim should be _____ (stop)
the pollution at source.
 Sonar: He’s doing this ____ (make) a difference, not for the money. Some
trailblazers do things with a view to ____ (get) rich, but he’s not like that. Nothing
wrong with wanting money, but I’m inclined ____ (see) people like this guy in a
different light.
  Complete the questions with adding a verb phrase! It can be
anything. You ask one question, then I ask one question.
 Are you able to concentrate while…?
 Can you imagine yourself…?
 To what lengths would you go…?
Produce 

Do you think it’s worth…?
Are you inclined…?
 Do you think that, when you get old, you’ll end up…
 In a life or death situation, are you capable of…?
 Is one of your aims in life…?
 Has it ever happened to you that you couldn’t help…?
 Complete the article with the correct form of the verbs in brackets!

I’d like to think that my main motivation for doing this is ____ (make) a difference
to people’s life. But I suppose ____ (come) here was about _____ (try) something
new that would really test me in terms of my ability. My role is ___ (identify) wild
seed varieties. These are used ___ (create) genetically strengthened crop forms that
will survive drought or flood conditions. Collectors go to great lengths ____ (gather)
the seed. One of the biggest challenges is securing financial support for projects.
Hw While many people want to donate to charities for life-threatening illnesses, they
don’t seem to think it’s worth ____ (fund) the kind of things we do. Fortunately,
there are a number of grants available that enable us ____ (continue) our research
whilst ____ (teach) interns ____ (analyze) raw data from the experiments. Initially, I
was a bit overwhelmed by the level of ability here. Some of the graduates are
capable of ____ (do) things that many scientists will never achieve in a lifetime. It’s
game-changing stuff. Working with such an amazing team of committed
professionals can’t fail ____ (make) an impression. To be honest, it’s hard to
imagine myself ___ (do) anything other than this.
  Add letters to complete the phrases in the sentences!
1. The results of the election s__ in m___ a chain of events which altered the nature of politics.
2. The university research team was pleased to announce a m___ b____ in their studies of the
human genome.
3. She was considered a p___ withing ecology studies – very few people initially shared her
views on environmental protection.
4. C___ w____ in politics says that anyone younger than thirty is unlikely to be given a decisive
Hw 5.
role in the government.
Their new design was potentially g___ - c_____. Up to that point, few people had used
grapene in building design.
6. Innovations in 3D printing had a p____ i_____ on the way design companies could deliver
prototypes to the market.
7. Researchers are conducting p____ s____ into ways of storing solar energy within wearable
devices.
8. The publication of their results led to a p____ s____ in ways of assessing and calculating life
expectancy.
  Choose a problem below that interests you:
 garbage in the streets
 water scarcity
 youth unemployment
 the increasing gap between the rich and the poor
Hw 

care of elderly
the isolation of young mothers
 the health system under stress because of Covid19
 noise and air pollution
 (Do research) and try to come up with the leading causes of the problem and its
possible solution.
Self-study