In this video, we tackle the exact Academic Talk format you will face on test day! The modern TOEFL Listening section features two modules, giving you a realistic look at how these lectures appear under actual exam conditions.
Today, we are diving deep into two highly common TOEFL academic topics: Archaeology and Astronomy. You will listen to two brand-new, 2026-style practice lectures and answer 6 realistic questions after each talk.
What you will master in this lesson:
✅ Smart Note-Taking Hacks: How to organize your page and capture key details without missing what the professor says.
✅ Question-Solving Strategies: Step-by-step methods to eliminate trap choices for every question type.
✅ Common Mistakes to Avoid: Tips and tricks to keep you focused, beat the clock, and protect your score.
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| 2026 TOEFL Listening |
The Permian Extinction
Let's talk about the end of the Permian period, roughly 250 million years ago. It’s known as the "Great Dying" because it wiped out over 90% of marine life and 70% of terrestrial life. Today, we're focusing on a possible cause of this catastrophic Permian extinction.
Now, if you open your textbooks, you'll see a heavy emphasis on a decline in seawater oxygen levels—anoxia—triggered by massive volcanic eruptions in what is now Siberia. Another theory for the the Permian Extinction, as in the text book, was caused by a decline in sea water oxygen levels. But don't forget the textbook makes it very clear that's only a theory. It’s an established hypothesis,
but geology is constantly evolving. In recent years, researchers began looking for alternative triggers. Specifically, they wondered if an asteroid impact could have initiated the crisis. Why? Well, because the theory that an asteroid caused the later dinosaur extinction gained widespread acceptance. Scientists naturally wondered if a similar cosmic impact could explain the even larger Permian event.
The search led scientists to Wilkes Land in Antarctica. Beneath kilometers of ice, researchers noticed something fascinating using satellite gravity mapping: a massive circular ridge with a giant "mascon" right in the center. A mascon is a concentration of mass, a place where the Earth's crust is unusually dense.
Think of it like getting a bump on the head. When you get struck by a blunt object, your tissue swells and creates a hard, dense lump. Similarly, when a massive asteroid impacts the Earth, the violent shockwave causes the dense mantle layer beneath the crust to well upward, freezing into a permanent, highly dense plug. This creates relatively high gravity measurements right in the center of the circular impact ridge.
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| TOEFL Listening |
To tie this Wilkes Land mascon to the Permian era, scientists needed matching physical rock samples. Because drilling through Antarctic ice is incredibly difficult, geologists looked at the Bedout High, an underwater geological structure off the coast of northwestern Australia. During the Permian period, Australia and Antarctica were fused together as part of the Pangea supercontinent, meaning Bedout High was quite close to Wilkes Land.
Rock samples recovered from Bedout High show signs of exposure to extreme heat and pressure, including shocked quartz and melted glass—features commonly associated with large asteroid impacts. Even more compelling, these rocks appear to date to approximately 250 million years ago, the same time as the Permian mass extinction, providing possible evidence linking the impact to that catastrophic event.
Question 1 of 6
What does the professor mainly discuss?
A.New evidence about what happened to dinosaurs
B.New methods for gathering evidence about mass extinctions
C.The link between two mascons from the Permian period
D.A possible cause of the Permian extinction
Question 2 of 6
According to the professor, why did researchers begin looking for evidence that an asteroid may have caused the Permian extinction?
A.They discovered that mascons on the Moon were caused by asteroid impacts.
B.They found rock samples in Wilkes Land that appeared to be 250 million years old.
C.The theory that an asteroid caused the dinosaur extinction gained acceptance.
D.They theory about a decline in seawater oxygen levels proved to be false.
Question 3 of 6
Why does the professor mention getting a bump on the head?
A.To help students understand an explanation of how a mascon forms
B.To illustrate a theory about how the supercontinent broke apart
C.To show the relationship between an asteroid and the dinosaur extinction
D.To compare the dinosaur extinction to the Pemian extinction
Question 4 of 6
What did researchers notice that could be evidence of an asteroid impact in Wilkes Land?
A.A ring of ice containing a high concentration of oxygen
B.A portion of Earth’s crust that is less dense than normal
C.Extraterrestrial rock fragments lying below the ice
D.Relatively high gravity measurements in the center of a circular ridge
Question 5 of 6
What does the professor emphasize about some of the rock samples taken from the Bedout High near Australia?
A.They are similar to the samples from the Yucatán peninsula in Mexico.
B.They are from the same time period as the Permian extinction
C.They have been exposed to extreme temperatures and pressure.
D.They contain fossils of many species that are now extinct.
Question 6 of 6
What can be inferred about the role of Pangea in this research?
A. It allows scientists to use evidence from one location to investigate events that may have occurred in another nearby location.
B. It proves that Australia and Antarctica experienced identical geological histories.
C. It suggests that asteroid impacts occurred more frequently during the Permian period.
D. It explains why shocked quartz can only be found in Australia.
Explanations
Question 1: Main Idea
What does the professor mainly discuss?
Focus: A hypothesis explaining the Permian extinction (not dinosaurs).
Key idea: An asteroid impact may have caused this mass extinction.
A is incorrect: Dinosaurs are mentioned only as background, not the main topic.
B is incorrect: Methods are briefly mentioned, not the focus.
C is incorrect: No discussion of links between two mascons.
D is correct: The lecture centers on a possible cause of the Permian extinction.
Question 2: Why Researchers Considered an Asteroid
Why did researchers begin looking for asteroid evidence?
Key reason: Success of the dinosaur extinction asteroid theory.
A is incorrect: Moon mascons are background information only.
B is incorrect: Rock samples were discovered later.
C is correct: Acceptance of the dinosaur-impact theory inspired similar research.
D is incorrect: Oxygen decline theory was not disproven.
Question 3: “Bump on the Head” Analogy
Why does the professor mention this?
Purpose: To explain how a mascon forms after an impact.
Analogy: Impact causes dense material to rise, like a bump.
A is correct: Helps students understand mascon formation.
B is incorrect: Not related to continental breakup.
C is incorrect: Not about dinosaurs.
D is incorrect: Not comparing extinctions.
Question 4: Evidence in Wilkes Land
What suggests an asteroid impact?
Key evidence: High gravity readings in a circular ridge.
Interpretation: Indicates a mascon, often linked to impact craters.
A is incorrect: No oxygen concentration mentioned.
B is incorrect: Area is more dense, not less.
C is incorrect: No extraterrestrial rocks discussed.
D is correct: High gravity measurements support impact theory.
question 5: Rock Samples (Bedout High)
What does the professor emphasize?
Key point 1: Rocks date to ~250 million years ago (Permian period).
Key point 2: Rocks show extreme heat and pressure (impact evidence).
A is incorrect: No comparison to Yucatán samples.
B is correct: Same time as the extinction.
C is correct: Signs of impact conditions.
D is incorrect: No fossils mentioned.
Question 6: Role of Pangea
What can be inferred?
Key concept: Australia and Antarctica were connected in Pangea.
Implication: Evidence in Australia can help explain events in Antarctica.
A is correct: One location can be used to study another nearby (in the past).
B is incorrect: Does not prove identical histories.
C is incorrect: No mention of impact frequency.
D is incorrect: Shocked quartz is not exclusive to Australia.
TOEFL Listening
Gas Giant Formation
In today's astronomy lecture, we’re exploring the cosmos to discuss competing theories about the formation of gas planets—giants like Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
Before we look at the gas giants, let's briefly review the formation of rocky planets, like Earth and Mars. Why? Because I want to use this information as the basis for another topic of discussion; understanding how rocky worlds form helps us contrast the two very different planetary models astronomers argue over today.
Rocky planets form through a process called core accretion. In a young solar system, a star is surrounded by a disk of dust and gas. Over millions of years, tiny dust grains collide and stick together, slowly building up into larger rocks, pebbles, and eventually planetesimals. These planetesimals gravitationally pull in more solid debris until a rocky core is formed.
Now, when we move out past the "frost line"—the distance from the sun where temperatures are cold enough for volatile compounds to freeze—the building blocks change. Out here, solid forms of water and ammonia were highly abundant. The solid forms of water and ammonia may have contributed significantly to the formation of the gas giants because these frozen materials provided a massive amount of extra solid mass. This allowed cosmic debris to build planet cores much faster and larger than what was possible in the warm, dry inner solar system.
Once a core out past the frost line reaches about ten times the mass of the Earth, its gravity becomes strong enough to rapidly pull in surrounding hydrogen and helium gas from the solar nebula before that gas dissipates. This is the traditional Core Accretion Model for gas giants.
However, there is a competing theory called the Disk Instability Model. Instead of a slow, step-by-step accumulation of dust and ice over millions of years, this model suggests that parts of the gas disk were so massive and cold that they became gravitationally unstable. The disk simply collapsed under its own weight in a matter of just a few thousand years, forming gas giant planets rapidly in large clumps. Astronomers are still intensely debating which process dominantely shaped our outer solar system.I personally think that the Disk Instability Model offers a stronger explanation because it avoids the problem of having to form giant planets before the gas in the disk disappears. Observations suggest that the gas in protoplanetary disks may last only a few million years, which does not leave much time for a planet to slowly build a massive core and then attract enormous amounts of gas.
Question 1 of 6
What is the main purpose of the lecture?
A.To describe two new theories about the formation of rocky planets
B.To discuss competing theories about the formation of gas planets
C.To compare the composition of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune
D.To explain why young stars are often surrounded by disks of gas and dust
Question 2 of 6
Why does the professor review the formation of rocky planets?
A.To contrast it with the formation of the Sun
B.To correct a common misunderstanding about accretion
C.To use the information as the basis for another topic of discussion
D.To introduce recent discoveries about rocky planets in other solar systems
Question 3 of 6
What point does the professor emphasize when he mentions water and ammonia?
A.Solid forms of water and ammonia may have contributed to the formation of the gas giants.
B.Water and ammonia were not common substances in the outer accretion disk.
C.Water and ammonia are pulled in by the gravity of protoplanets more readily than other substances are.
D.Most substances found in the core of rocky planets are also found in the core of gas planets.
Question 4 of 6
According to the professor, what could have occurred when a protoplanet in the outer accretion disk reached a mass of ten Earths?
A.It started to shed grains of rock and metal into the solar system.
B.Its gravity began to pull in huge amounts of the surrounding gas.
C.Its gravity caused clumps to form in the surrounding gas.
D.It collided with smaller protoplanets.
Question 5 of 6
According to the professor, what are two claims of the disk-instability theory?
A.Gas planet formation did not begin with a solid core.
B.Gas planets cannot form in extremely cold temperatures.
C.Gas planet formation can occur anywhere in the accretion disk.
D.Gas planets form over a relatively short time.
Question 6 of 6
What is the professor's opinion about the disk-instability theory?
A.It differs from the core-accretion theory in relatively insignificant ways.
B.It does not take into account the amount of time needed for gas planets to form.
C.It is more applicable to star formation than the core-accretion theory is.
D.It is more plausible than the core-accretion theory for the formation of gas planets.
Explanations
Question 1: Main Purpose
What is the main purpose of the lecture?
The lecture discusses two competing theories for how gas planets like Jupiter and Saturn formed.
The two theories are core accretion and disk instability.
A is incorrect: rocky planet formation is only reviewed briefly as background.
B is correct: the main focus is the competing theories about gas planet formation.
C is incorrect: the professor does not compare the composition of specific planets.
D is incorrect: the lecture is not mainly about why young stars have gas-and-dust discs.
Question 2: Rocky Planets
Why does the professor review the formation of rocky planets?
The professor reviews rocky planet formation to give students background knowledge.
This background helps prepare for the main topic: gas planet formation.
A is incorrect: the professor is not contrasting rocky planets with the sun.
B is incorrect: there is no correction of a misunderstanding about accretion.
C is correct: the review serves as a foundation for the next topic.
D is incorrect: no recent discoveries about rocky planets are discussed.
Question 3: Water and Ammonia
What point does the professor emphasize when he mentions water and ammonia?
The professor explains that water and ammonia can exist as frozen solids in the outer accretion disc.
These frozen materials may have helped form the cores of gas giants.
A is correct: solid water and ammonia may have contributed to gas planet formation.
B is incorrect: the professor says these substances were present in the outer disc.
C is incorrect: no special gravitational pull of these substances is discussed.
D is incorrect: the professor does not compare rocky and gas planet cores here.
Question 4: Mass of 5 to 10 Earths
What could have occurred when a protoplanet reached 5 to 10 Earth masses?
At this point, the protoplanet’s gravity would become strong enough to pull in gas rapidly.
This helps the object grow into a gas giant.
A is incorrect: no shedding of rock or metal is mentioned.
B is correct: the protoplanet begins pulling in huge amounts of gas.
C is incorrect: gas clumping belongs to the disk instability theory.
D is incorrect: collisions with smaller protoplanets are not mentioned.
Question 5: Disc Instability Theory
What are two claims of the disc instability theory?
The theory says gas planets can form without a solid core.
It also says formation can happen very quickly, before the gas disc disappears.
A is correct: no solid core is needed at the start.
B is incorrect: temperature limits are not part of the theory here.
C is incorrect: the professor does not say gas planets form anywhere in the disc.
D is correct: gas planets form over a relatively short time.
Question 6: Professor’s Opinion
What is the professor's opinion about the disc instability theory?
The professor finds the disc instability theory more plausible.
The main reason is that it solves the time problem in gas planet formation.
A is incorrect: the differences are presented as important.
B is incorrect: timing is actually a major strength of the theory.
C is incorrect: the discussion is about gas planets, not star formation.
D is correct: the professor sees disc instability as more plausible than core accretion.
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