

English Learning for Curious Minds
Leonardo English
Are you looking for a more interesting way to learn English?
English Learning for Curious Minds is a podcast for intermediate-advanced English learners.
Learn weird and wonderful things about the world at the same time as improving your English.
Every episode comes with an interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary and is spoken at a speed you can understand.
Join listeners from 189 countries and discover a more interesting way of improving your English.
Find the bonus episodes, interactive transcripts, subtitles, key vocabulary, and more at www.leonardoenglish.com
English Learning for Curious Minds is a podcast for intermediate-advanced English learners.
Learn weird and wonderful things about the world at the same time as improving your English.
Every episode comes with an interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary and is spoken at a speed you can understand.
Join listeners from 189 countries and discover a more interesting way of improving your English.
Find the bonus episodes, interactive transcripts, subtitles, key vocabulary, and more at www.leonardoenglish.com
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jun 10, 2021 • 23min
#166: Theranos: When Blood Testing Goes Bad
It was a revolutionary idea: being able to conduct fast, cheap, and effective blood tests with only a tiny drop of blood.But it turned out that the company behind it was one, huge fraud. This is the fascinating story of how a Stanford dropout went from the youngest self-made female billionaire in history to facing 20 years in prison.Background of Elizabeth HolmesProblem with blood testingDropping out of StanfordTelling a fantastic storyThe atmosphere inside TheranosWas there any technology really being developed?Attracting influential investors and board membersToo much pressure for scientists within the companyThe public launch of TheranosBecoming the youngest self-made female billionaire in historyIdolising Steve JobsThe arrival of John CarreyrouThings starting to unravel for TheranosDropping to zeroElizabeth Holmes todayReflecting on what went wrongFull interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/theranos
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Jun 3, 2021 • 23min
#164: The Rise And Fall Of WeWork
It is the coworking company that was once valued at over $50 billion, but then came spectacularly crashing down.In this episode, we'll learn about the amazing rise and fall of the company that tried to make office space cool.The questions that WeWork gets us thinking aboutWeWork at its peakThe founding of WeWork in 2010Who was Adam Neumann?Who was Miguel McKelveyHow WeWork as a business workedMaking office space coolWeWork attracting billions of dollars in investmentMeeting Mayoshi SonThe vision continues to grow, and The We Company is bornWas WeWork a tech company?Burning through moneyThings start to go wrongLooking under the hoodThe collapse of WeWorkThe phoenix to rise from the flames?Full interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/wework
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May 27, 2021 • 26min
#162: The Genius of William Shakespeare
He is the most famous playwright in history and has been translated into every major living language.In this episode, you'll learn about this fantastic man's life, his works, and why he is still called "the world's greatest living playwright".An exhibition celebrating Shakespeare's 450th birthdayThe two most common questions people have about Shakespeare“He was not of an age, but for all time"“The words of a dead man/are modified in the guts of the living.”Shakespeare's universalityThe life of William ShakespeareDid Shakespeare really write the plays (and does it even matter)?Shakespeare's global influenceBardolators: ultra-keen Shakespeare fansWhy Shakespeare is responsible for bringing starlings to North AmericaShakespeare's contribution to the English languageHow Shakespeare created wordsHow Shakespeare workedShakespeare's group of actorsWhy women didn't actBoys playing women charactersTwelfth Night & ideas of genderKing Lear in RomaniaJulius Caesar in Trump's AmericaThe Globe Theatre in LondonFull interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/shakespeare
---You might like:🔓 Unlock bonus episodes, interactive transcripts, subtitles & vocabulary lists✨ 5 Powerful Tips for Learning English with Podcasts (Faster & Effectively!) [YouTube]📹 A look inside Leonardo English membership 📧 Join our FREE weekly newsletter---Keywords: Learn English, vocabulary, lessons, idioms, aprende inglés, idiomas, aprender inglês, apprendre l'anglais, imparare l’inglese, ingilizce öğren,英語を習う, تعلم الإنجليزية

May 20, 2021 • 26min
#160: Politics & The Olympic Games
The Olympics are meant to be a politics-free zone. But is this ever really possible? In this episode, we'll learn about the history of The Olympics, and analyse five times politics was at the heart of the games.History of The Ancient OlympicsWhen The Olympics were banned by the RomansRevival of Olympics in 19th centuryBaron Pierre de Coubertin & The first modern Olympics in 18961936 Olympics in Berlin1972 Olympics in Mexico City1976 Olympics in Montreal1980 Olympics in Moscow2014 Winter Olympics in SochiPolitics and The Olympics in the age of social mediaCan politics ever be kept out of the games?Sport: War, minus the shootingFull interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/politics-and-olympics
---You might like:🔓 Unlock bonus episodes, interactive transcripts, subtitles & vocabulary lists✨ 5 Powerful Tips for Learning English with Podcasts (Faster & Effectively!) [YouTube]📹 A look inside Leonardo English membership 📧 Join our FREE weekly newsletter---Keywords: Learn English, vocabulary, lessons, idioms, aprende inglés, idiomas, aprender inglês, apprendre l'anglais, imparare l’inglese, ingilizce öğren,英語を習う, تعلم الإنجليزية

May 13, 2021 • 26min
#158: George Orwell
For many, he is the greatest writer in the history of the English language. Outside the UK, he is known as the author of two of the most important political fiction books in history: Animal Farm & 1984.Learn about the amazing life of this fantastic man and the events that shaped his worldview.Reasons to learn about George OrwellThe statue of George Orwell outside the headquarters of the BBCOrwell's honesty & genius with languageThe early life of George OrwellSeeing the injustices of The British EmpireDiscovering for himself how ordinary people livedA description of cooking a steak in a Parisian restaurantThe Spanish Civil WarWriting Animal FarmRetreating to a Scottish island and writing 1984The legacy of 1984The relevance of 1984 todayThe “The People Will Believe What the Media Tells Them They Believe” memeWhat George Orwell teaches us about the English languageThree curious facts about George OrwellFull interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/george-orwell
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May 6, 2021 • 23min
#156: The Grand Tour
“A man who has not been in Italy, is always conscious of an inferiority, from his not having seen what it is expected a man should see.”It was the trip of a lifetime, where young, aristocratic British men would travel across Europe and open their eyes to new worlds. Discover why these men would do this, how they travelled, what they got up to, and what it tells us about our relationship with tourism today.Reasons to learn about The Grand Tour nowWho went on The Grand Tour?Where did they go?Italy: The place to not be missedUnderstanding the classicsThe role of The Cicerone (personal guide)Collecting works of art as souvenirsThomas Howard: "The Collector Earl"Canaletto selling paintings to the travellersNon-cultural reasons for travelling: gambling, sex, and drinkingInfluence of classical world on the British imaginationPracticalities of travel during The Grand TourPartying in Naples with Lady HamiltonThe Napoleonic Wars stopping The Grand Tour (and the consequences for British tourism)Influences of The Grand TourReflections on modern tourismFull interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/the-grand-tour
---You might like:🔓 Unlock bonus episodes, interactive transcripts, subtitles & vocabulary lists✨ 5 Powerful Tips for Learning English with Podcasts (Faster & Effectively!) [YouTube]📹 A look inside Leonardo English membership 📧 Join our FREE weekly newsletter---Keywords: Learn English, vocabulary, lessons, idioms, aprende inglés, idiomas, aprender inglês, apprendre l'anglais, imparare l’inglese, ingilizce öğren,英語を習う, تعلم الإنجليزية

Apr 29, 2021 • 21min
#154: Las Vegas
It's the world's Sin City, where fortunes and made and lost. In this episode, you'll learn about the history of this unlikely city, from its early days as a desert oasis to its links with the Mafia, from eccentric entrepreneurs right through to atomic bombs.Geographic location of Las VegasDiscovering Las Vegas ("The Meadows")1905: A sleepy railway townConstruction begins on The Hoover DamProviding entertainment for construction workers1930s and 1940s: Bugsy Siegel and The Mafia arriveBugsy Siegel's early lifeBuilding The FlamingoPost World War II: "cheap luxury"Watching atomic bombs explodeHoward Hughes arrives and never leavesPushing the mafia out of town1980s: Las Vegas revivalLas Vegas todayFull interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/las-vegas
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Apr 22, 2021 • 28min
#152: The French Revolution
It is the most famous revolution in Europe and saw the continent's most populous country execute its monarch and restructure its society.From guillotines to out of touch queens, the French Revolution is the story of how France became the country of "liberté, égalité, and fraternité".French society before the revolutionLouis XVI & Marie AntoinetteRaising taxes & The Estates GeneralThe impact of Enlightenment ideas on FranceBeing "intoxicated with liberty and enthusiasm"The storming of The BastilleDeclaration of The Rights of Man and The CitizenRobespierreLouis XVI trying to escapeWar with AustriaThe abolition of the French monarch & execution of Louis XVIMarie Antoinette & "Let them eat cake"The Reign of TerrorThe arrival of Napoleon Bonaparte and the end of the revolutionImpact of The French Revolution on FranceImpact of The French Revolution on the worldA tale of two French families and their reactions on Bastille DayFull interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/french-revolution
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Apr 15, 2021 • 26min
#150: The Industrial Revolution
It was the period in the mid-18th century where Britain experienced a radical transformation.The Industrial Revolution saw huge improvements in manufacturing, millions of people move to the cities and the fabric of British society change forever.Evolution or Revolution?Pre-industrial life in BritainThe inventions in The Industrial RevolutionJames Watt's Steam EngineThe textile industryThe canal systemThe productivity increases: 500 times betterChanges in British family lifeUrbanisation in BritainPopulation increases & The Malthusian CatastropheInfant mortality improvementsChild labourStatus of womenWhy did it happen in Britain?Impact on our modern worldFull interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/industrial-revolution
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Apr 8, 2021 • 21min
#148: Tax
"In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes"Tax might not sound interesting or exciting to most people, but it affects all of us.In this episode, we explore what paying taxes actually means, and how it affects our relationship with the government and society.And we'll do all of this through the story of two pen-pals, Arlette from Paris, France, and John from Austin, Texas.A very brief history of taxFocussing on income taxExample #1: John in Austin, TexasExample #2: Arlette in Paris, FranceThe real cost of employing someone in FranceWhat lower/higher taxes mean in terms of government expectationsTexas winter storm in 2021The social safety net in FranceThe Gilet JaunesThomas Piketty & the idea of a wealth taxFull interactive transcript, subtitles and key vocabulary available on the website: https://www.leonardoenglish.com/podcasts/tax
---You might like:🔓 Unlock bonus episodes, interactive transcripts, subtitles & vocabulary lists✨ 5 Powerful Tips for Learning English with Podcasts (Faster & Effectively!) [YouTube]📹 A look inside Leonardo English membership 📧 Join our FREE weekly newsletter---Keywords: Learn English, vocabulary, lessons, idioms, aprende inglés, idiomas, aprender inglês, apprendre l'anglais, imparare l’inglese, ingilizce öğren,英語を習う, تعلم الإنجليزية