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B2-C1

Megan McArthur: A NASA astronaut's lessons on fear, confidence and preparing for spaceflight | TED

TED

80K views 5 years ago

Warm-up Questions

The title mentions fear and confidence. What kinds of situations make people feel fear but also excitement?
What do you think “preparing for spaceflight” involves besides physical fitness?
What lessons do you think an astronaut could learn that would be useful in everyday life?

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Megan McArthur: A NASA astronaut's lessons on fear, confidence and preparing for spaceflight | TED

Launch day emotions and fear as helplessness (00:00 – 03:08)

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1. What was the speaker most focused on preparing for launch day?

Learning how to operate the rocket systems
Making sure her son was ready to watch the launch
Training to become the chief astronaut
Writing a speech for the media

2. How does the speaker describe her emotions during the liftoff moment?

Crying, laughing, and shaking
Sleepy and distracted
Angry and disappointed
Mostly calm and analytical

3. According to the speaker, where does her fear mainly come from?

Being unfamiliar with launch procedures
Feeling helpless and unable to impact the situation
Disliking being in crowds
Not trusting the engineering

Megan McArthur: A NASA astronaut's lessons on fear, confidence and preparing for spaceflight | TED

Family, role models, and training for risk (03:08 – 07:10)

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1. What was the child’s first response to hearing that the speaker would go into space?

He asked how fast the rocket would be
He didn’t react at all
He said he wanted to go too
He said, “No, mommy, you can’t go.”

2. What idea did the speaker mention to help her child cope while she is away?

A daily phone call at the same time
A new video game for every week
A jar filled with chocolate kisses—one per day
A calendar where he crosses off each day

3. Why do instructors create many “broken system” scenarios during training?

To entertain the trainees
To test who should be removed from the crew
Because they expect those exact failures to happen in flight
To build confidence and problem-solving ability for unexpected situations

Megan McArthur: A NASA astronaut's lessons on fear, confidence and preparing for spaceflight | TED

Learning by doing and the life-changing view of Earth (07:10 – 10:57)

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1. What job situation did the speaker describe as being “voluntold” to do?

Joining a rescue craft mission
Taking an assistant directorship job
Leading the construction of the space station
Becoming a teacher for new astronauts

2. At first, why didn’t the speaker spend much time looking out the window after launch?

She was very busy turning the spacecraft into an orbiting platform
The windows were covered
She was asleep after liftoff
She felt too scared to look

3. What realization did the speaker have while observing Earth from space?

Earth looks exactly like a static photo
Earth is a real living system and the atmosphere looks impossibly thin
Space is brighter than Earth
Earth’s oceans are completely calm from above

Megan McArthur: A NASA astronaut's lessons on fear, confidence and preparing for spaceflight | TED

Transcript will load here…

1. What central idea does the speaker connect to reducing fear?

Avoiding teamwork
Ignoring risks completely
Relying only on luck
Having control, input, and preparation

2. What does the speaker suggest training is designed to build?

Memorization of one perfect script
A belief that nothing will go wrong
Competition between crew members
Confidence and adaptable problem-solving skills

3. How does seeing Earth from space affect the speaker’s perspective?

It makes her feel detached from life on Earth
It creates a strong urge to protect a fragile, shared home
It makes her feel Earth is not worth protecting
It convinces her exploration should stop

Discussion Questions

Discuss the ideas from this video

Megan McArthur: A NASA astronaut's lessons on fear, confidence and preparing for spaceflight | TED

Do you agree that fear often comes from helplessness? Can you give an example from your own life?
What are some ways people can gain “input” or influence in a situation that makes them anxious (school, work, health, travel)?
The speaker says being ready can mean “being ready to learn quickly while doing.” When is that good advice, and when might it be risky?
How might seeing Earth from space change a person’s priorities or values? Why?