The sad truth is that happy sounds are infectious. Now…
Read the text aloud.
The sad truth is that happy sounds are infectious. Now comes research that at least partly explains why? It was published this week in the journal of neuroscience. A British research team played various sounds including laughter to people who are having their brain scanned by a functional MRI machine. All the sounds activated the premotor cortical region of the brain, that area prepares facial muscles to move.
Opens question #010329 in the RealPTE practice screen.
How to read it
The sad truth is|that happy sounds are infectious.‖Now comes research|that at least partly explains why.‖It was published this week in the Journal of Neuroscience.‖A British research team played various sounds|including laughter|to people who were having their brains scanned|by a functional MRI machine.‖All the sounds activated the premotor cortical region of the brain,‖that area prepares facial muscles to move.
| short pause ‖ breathe
Words to stress correctly
| neuroscience | NEU·ro·sci·ence | /ˈnjʊroʊsaɪəns/ |
| infectious | in·FEC·tious | /ɪnˈfɛkʃəs/ |
| including | in·CLUD·ing | /ɪnˈkludɪŋ/ |
| activated | AC·ti·vat·ed | /ˈæktəveɪtɪd/ |
| functional | FUNC·tion·al | /ˈfʌŋkʃənəl/ |
| research | re·SEARCH | /riˈsɝtʃ/ |
68 words, aim for 26–31 seconds. Say MRI letter by letter: "em-ar-eye". Breathe after infectious., why., Neuroscience., machine. and brain,; short pauses after is, research, sounds, laughter and scanned.
Where marks are usually lost
Stress in·FEC·tious, re·SEARCH, NEU·ro·sci·ence, AC·ti·vat·ed and FUNC·tion·al correctly. Don't stall at premotor cortical or MRI. Keep -s in sounds, comes, explains, brains, prepares, muscles and -ed in published, played, scanned, activated.
General tip: Five short sentences means five chances to drop your pitch and reset; use each full stop, but don't let the pause stretch into silence.
What it means: 中文 · हिन्दी · नेपाली · Tiếng Việt
中文: 令人伤感的事实是,快乐的声音是会传染的。现在有研究至少部分解释了原因。该研究于本周发表在《神经科学杂志》上。一个英国研究团队向正在接受功能性核磁共振扫描的人播放了包括笑声在内的各种声音。所有声音都激活了大脑的前运动皮层区域,该区域负责让面部肌肉准备运动。
हिन्दी: दुखद सच यह है कि खुशी की आवाज़ें संक्रामक होती हैं। अब ऐसा शोध आया है जो कम से कम आंशिक रूप से इसका कारण बताता है। यह इस सप्ताह जर्नल ऑफ़ न्यूरोसाइंस में प्रकाशित हुआ। एक ब्रिटिश शोध दल ने ऐसे लोगों को हँसी समेत विभिन्न आवाज़ें सुनाईं जिनके मस्तिष्क का फ़ंक्शनल MRI मशीन से स्कैन हो रहा था। सभी आवाज़ों ने मस्तिष्क के प्रीमोटर कॉर्टिकल क्षेत्र को सक्रिय किया; यही क्षेत्र चेहरे की मांसपेशियों को हिलने के लिए तैयार करता है।
नेपाली: दुःखद सत्य यो हो कि खुसीका आवाजहरू सङ्क्रामक हुन्छन्। अब यस्तो अनुसन्धान आएको छ जसले कम्तीमा आंशिक रूपमा यसको कारण बताउँछ। यो यस हप्ता जर्नल अफ न्युरोसाइन्समा प्रकाशित भयो। एउटा ब्रिटिश अनुसन्धान टोलीले फङ्सनल MRI मेसिनले मस्तिष्क स्क्यान गरिरहेका मानिसहरूलाई हाँसोसहित विभिन्न आवाजहरू सुनायो। सबै आवाजहरूले मस्तिष्कको प्रिमोटर कर्टिकल क्षेत्रलाई सक्रिय बनाए; त्यही क्षेत्र अनुहारका मांसपेशीहरूलाई चल्न तयार पार्छ।
Tiếng Việt: Sự thật đáng buồn là những âm thanh vui vẻ có tính lan truyền. Giờ đây một nghiên cứu đã giải thích được ít nhất một phần lý do. Nó được công bố tuần này trên tạp chí Journal of Neuroscience. Một nhóm nghiên cứu Anh đã cho những người đang được chụp não bằng máy MRI chức năng nghe nhiều âm thanh khác nhau, trong đó có tiếng cười. Tất cả các âm thanh đều kích hoạt vùng vỏ não tiền vận động, khu vực chuẩn bị cho các cơ mặt chuyển động.
More Read Aloud questions
Read Aloud format (Pearson)
| Prompt | Text up to 60 words |
|---|---|
| Preparation | 30–40 seconds |
| Time to answer | Depends on the length of the text |
| Skills assessed | Speaking |
| Scored on | Content; Pronunciation; Oral fluency |
How it is scored
- Content is scored by counting the correct words in your response.
- If you stay silent for more than 3 seconds, the recording stops.
- You can record your response only once.
Source: Pearson, PTE Academic & UKVI test format, Part 1: Speaking & Writing, checked 9 October 2026.