Listening Comprehension Advanced: The Dark Side of Happiness

Instructions: Listen to the talk on the dark side of happiness and answer the following questions.

Video Link: http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/TEDxCambridge-June-Gruber-on-th

1. According to the speaker, what is going on in the pop culture media?


2. Why does the writer mention the pharmaceutical industry? How does this relate to the topic of her talk?


3. According to psychologists, why might positive emotions and happiness be good for us?


4. What three themes does the speaker focus on in discussing the dark side of happiness?
 
5. What are some negative consequences of extreme degrees of happiness?


6. What two examples does the speaker give to support the idea that there may be a wrong time for happiness?

7. According to the speaker, what is ingrained in Americans?


8. According to the speaker, should we always be pursuing happiness? Why or Why not?


9. What did John Stuart Mill say about happiness?

10. In accordance with many Buddhist traditions, what does the speaker advise us to accept?

Transition Devices- Intermediate

Instructions: Use the following transition devices to connect the pairs of sentences below. Remember to add commas where necessary.

For example                                               In other words
After that/Then                                           In fact
Therefore                                                   In addition
However                                                    Otherwise
On the other hand                                      Consequently

1. The students took the final exam. _______________ they went to the movies.
2. Your GPA is lower than 1.0. _______________ you will have to repeat the level next session.
3. My mother does not like fish. ___________ she does not like any kind of fish.
4. Study hard. ______________ you will fail.
5. When you cook chicken, you can use different types of seasoning. _____________ you can use salt and pepper.
6. John likes broccoli. _______________ his sister does not.
7. Teacher, I can't do my homework. I don't have a textbook. ______________ I don't have a pen. :(
8. I don't have enough money for a vacation. ______________ I can't take a vacation this year.
9. We have no money in our bank account. _______________ we are broke.
10. It is going to rain this weekend, so we won't be able to do anything outside. We could go to the movies.
__________________ we could just stay home and watch TV.