Listening / Note Taking Text Today our lecture will be about Amelia

Listening / Note Taking Text Today our lecture will be about Amelia

Listening / Note Taking Text
Today our lecture will be about Amelia Earhart, who is an important American in the
history of flying. She was born at the end of the 19th century. Unlike most American children
at that time, she lived in many different places as a child since her father was a railroad
worker. Her family had to move frequently to be near the place where the latest railway was
being built.
In 1917, Amelia Earhart was only 19 years old, and she traveled to Canada to
volunteer as a nurse’s assistant at a military hospital. She worked with soldiers who were
injured in World War I. She volunteered there because she was hoping to become a doctor.
However, she changed her mind. Most of the patients were military pilots, and they told
Earhart about many of their adventures in the war. At that time she decided that she, also,
would become a pilot.
Immediately after the war, Earhart started taking flying lessons from someone called Neta
Snook, who was one of the first women flight instructors. Eventually Earhart managed to buy
a small biplane of her own. She attempted to break the record for the greatest height that a
woman had ever flown. Amazingly, she succeeded in this and flew nearly 3500 meters high,
despite the small size of her plane. A short time later, she flew across the Atlantic Ocean as a
passenger. Later she flew across on her own and became the first woman to ever fly solo
across the Atlantic Ocean. She then decided to fly from Hawaii to California, crossing a large
part of the Pacific Ocean. 10 pilots had died trying to do this, and no person, man or woman,
had ever completed this flight. However, Earhart succeeded on her first try.
We’ve talked about Earhart’s early success in her career; now let’s look at how her marriage
led to further success. In 1931, Earhart married a businessman called George Putnam. He
became his wife’s manager and was very effective at promoting her career. People loved to
hear Earhart speak, and she was as comfortable in front of an audience as she was in the
pilot’s seat. Putnam was able to publish her books and get her contracts with many different
advertisers. In addition, Putnam arranged for speaking tours. Earhart talked not only about
flying but also about many other issues such as women’s rights and world peace. Earhart
earned money from her books, her advertisements and her speeches, and she needed this cash,
because she was always trying to buy and maintain a large number of airplanes.
Earhart had always dreamed of flying around the world, and she finally got her chance in
1937. She began in California and flew across the United States. At every place she stopped
in the United States, Europe and Asia, large crowds gathered; her flight was getting
worldwide interest. On the morning of July 2, she took off with a co-pilot on the most difficult
flight in her journey. This was a 4000-kilometer trip over the Pacific Ocean from the island of
New Guinea to the island of Howland. Twenty hours into the flight she sent a radio message
saying that her fuel was almost gone, and she never reached Howland Island. Rescuers didn’t
find any clue of Earhart or her plane, despite the fact that they searched for many days.
Amelia Earhart’s disappearance remained a mystery for more than 50 years. Finally, in 1992
some searchers on Nikumaroro Island, which is an island near Howland, found a shoe that
probably belonged to Earhart. They also found some metal that may have been part of her
plane. This small island has no drinkable water and is often flooded, sometimes remaining
under water for many weeks. Đf Earhart and her co-pilot crashed there, they could only have
survived for a few day. So this place may be where Earhart’s adventurous life came to an end.
However, we will never be sure.
NOTE-TAKING GUIDE
Take notes under the headings below while listening to the lecture about Amelia Earhart. You
will hear the lecture two times.
Amelia Earhart’s Childhood
Earhart’s time in Canada
Earhart’s First Flights and First Records
Neta Snook
Earhart’s Marriage to George Putnam
Earhart’s Trip Around the World
the island of New Guinea
the island of Howland
Solving the Mystery of Earhart’s Final Flight
Nikumaroro Island
LISTENING
Answer the questions using your notes from the lecture about Amelia Earhart.
1. Amelia Earhart was different from most American children of her day because she _____.
A) moved frequently as a child
B) often rode on trains
C) learned about flying from her father
D) lived in a house that her family built
2. In 1917, Earhart traveled to Canada to _____.
A) meet a famous woman pilot
B) celebrate her 19th birthday with Canadian relatives
C) volunteer at a military hospital
D) become part of the Canadian army
3. The first record that Earhart broke was flying _____ that a woman had ever flown.
A) the longest time
B) the most miles
C) the greatest height
D) the fastest speed
4. Before Earhart succeeded, 10 people had died trying to _____.
A) take a small plane across the Atlantic Ocean
B) make a solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean
C) fly nonstop from Asia to North America
D) fly from Hawaii to California
5. George Putnam showed that he was _____.
A) an excellent manager
C) a capable co-pilot
B) a successful public speaker
D) a strong women’s rights supporter
6. After her marriage to George Putnam, Earhart made money in all of the following ways
EXCEPT _____.
A) writing books
C) being in advertisements
B) designing airplanes
D) giving speeches
7. During her trip around the world, Earhart _____.
A) stopped in Canada
B) avoided flying through Europe
C) flew 6000 kilometers in one flight
D) never arrived at Howland Island
8. The first clues explaining Earhart’s disappearance were found _____.
A) on June 1, 1937
B) on July 2, 1937
C) exactly 50 years after Earhart’s final flight
D) in 1992
Answers:
1. A 2. C
3. C
4. D 5. A 6. B
7. D 8. D