Chicago's Legacy of Architecture

From its skyscrapers to its bridges, amazing feats of engineering have made the  skyline of Chicago immediately identifiable and completely unforgettable. Watch and listen to CNN's Richard Quest on the legacy of architecture in the Windy City in this CNN segment of "Future Cities". 

      

VOCABULARY

- Stunning: extremely beautiful or attractive: 

- Becknoning a future: if something beckons to you, it is very attractive and you feel you have to do something to get it. A bright future beckoned.

- Backbone:  the determination and strong personality that you need in order to do what is right or deal with a difficult situation. They wouldn’t have the backbone to disagree with him.

- Groundbreaking: using new methods, or achieving new results. A groundbreaking study of plant diversity.

- Stare: to look directly at someone or something for a long time. Don’t stare at people.

- The talk of the town: idle gossip or rumor; "there has been talk about you lately".

- Blank canvas: the term "blank canvas" can refer to a number of different things, both literal and metaphorical. However, all meanings have in common the idea of an empty starting point

- Accomplish to do or finish something successfully; achieve something. 

- Set the tone: if something someone says or does sets the tone for an event or activity, it establishes the way that event or activity will continue, especially the mood of the people involved (often + for ) He was furious when she arrived late, and that set the tone for the whole evening.

- At full throttle: as fast as possible. When the horse reached the back stretch he was at full throttle. 

 - Set the stage: Fig. to prepare something for some activity. The initial meeting set the stage for further negotiations.