c1 · expert-consultation

C1 Expert-Consultation Part 6: Expert Consultation

Lesson 106 of 10 in this unit.

📖 Reading Passage

Native audio

A single bite of madeleine famously unlocked a novel for Proust because smell and taste bypass the usual gates of memory. Odours travel straight to the amygdala and hippocampus, the brain’s alarm and archive, while sights detour through thalamus relays. That shortcut explains why bread crust can summon a grandmother’s kitchen decades after her voice fades. Food companies exploit the wiring with signature scents pumped through stores. Yet the same wiring heals: dementia wards use familiar spices to coax appetite and calm. Taste, the most social sense, remembers who fed us long after it forgets what we ate. The system is also social. Meals eaten with others are remembered more vividly than identical meals eaten alone, and the aromas of a shared kitchen become cues for belonging rather than for nutrition. Anthropologists note that every culture ties particular dishes to particular occasions, so a festival without its food feels incomplete in a way that words cannot repair. That is why migrants describe homesickness as hunger for something specific, and why restaurants succeed when they serve memory as much as flavour. Manufacturers know this, which is why familiar smells are added to products that have never been near a kitchen. The trick works, but it cannot manufacture the company that made the original meal matter.

📘 Vocabulary

20 words from this lesson

spontaneous: Self-directed; happening or acting without external cause or instigation; proceeding from natural feeling, temperament, or momentary impulse.; “They discussed spontaneous during the lesson.”
starred: Having a star or stars.; “They discussed starred during the lesson.”
stationed: That is or which has been stationed; placed in a particular location in order to perform a task.; “They discussed stationed during the lesson.”
sticker: Something or someone that sticks (pierces, or adheres).; “They discussed sticker during the lesson.”
stove: A heater, a closed apparatus to burn fuel for the warming of a room.; “They discussed stove during the lesson.”
tactic: A maneuver, or action calculated to achieve some end.; “They discussed tactic during the lesson.”
template: A physical object whose shape is used as a guide to make other objects.; “They discussed template during the lesson.”
teresa: A type of light lady's kerchief in the late eighteenth century.; “They discussed teresa during the lesson.”
texting: The use of a mobile phone to send text messages.; “They discussed texting during the lesson.”
theorem: A mathematical statement of some importance that has been proven to be true. Minor theorems are often called propositions. Theorems which are not very interesting in themselves but are an essential part of a bigger theorem's proof are called lemmas.; “They discussed theorem during the lesson.”
tn: Trillion.; “They discussed tn during the lesson.”
tore: Hard, difficult; wearisome, tedious.; “There are few bookstores in this area.”
tract: An area or expanse.; “They discussed tract during the lesson.”
tri: triathlon; “In most of the countries in Europe, cars have to keep to the right.”
tribune: An elected official in Ancient Rome, a tribune of the plebs.; “They discussed tribune during the lesson.”
unexpectedly: In an unexpected manner.; “They discussed unexpectedly during the lesson.”
upward: In a direction from lower to higher; toward a higher place; in a course toward the source or origin.; “They discussed upward during the lesson.”
vera: A skin .; “They discussed vera during the lesson.”
vista: A distant view or prospect, especially one seen through some opening, avenue or passage.; “They discussed vista during the lesson.”
vogue: The prevailing fashion or style.; “They discussed vogue during the lesson.”

📐 Grammar Notes

This lesson practices clear paragraph structure: one main idea per paragraph, stated first, supported with two concrete details, and closed with a linking sentence. Prefer active verbs and precise nouns. Connect ideas with however for contrast, furthermore for addition, and therefore for consequence. Keep sentences under twenty-five words so each claim stays traceable to its evidence. Practice by labeling each sentence in the reading: underline the main verb, circle the time marker, and check that every they and it points to a named noun. Rewrite any three sentences in your own words while keeping tense and meaning intact. Theme: expert consultation. Reading: Taste and Memory.

Practice Exercises

Work through each exercise to complete this lesson.

Some coun___es have stopped whaling in the face of international criticism.

What does 'spontaneous' mean?

What does 'starred' mean?

What does 'stationed' mean?

What does 'sticker' mean?

What does 'stove' mean?

What does 'tactic' mean?

What does 'template' mean?

Write a sentence using 'spontaneous'.

Summarize the passage in two sentences.

Discussion (0)

No comments yet. Ask a question or share what helped you.

C1 Expert-Consultation Part 5: Expert Consultation C1 Expert-Consultation Part 7: Expert Consultation