I am hearing "puedan" again (!) and it seems that it should be that although I'm less sure here. What I'm thinking is that it should be in the subjunctive as there is a doubt as to whether or not there is a volcano (that's the context - Travelogue 6.5) that beginners could indeed climb.
¿Cuál es el que los principiantes pueden escalar?
Steven-W15
December 10, 2019
Liss-Rocket-Languages-Tutor
December 17, 2019
¡Hola Steven-W15!
Thanks for your question!
I've had a listen to the audio and they are saying pueden here, though it is quite easy to mix these two verb forms up. One tactic you might use when listening for this vowel difference is making sure that you're wearing headphones and turning the volume up a little higher than you might usually have it. Then, you can play the track a few times over. Closing your eyes while you listen might also be helpful. This helps to isolate the audio and lets you focus on it a bit more than you might otherwise be able to. Another thing you can do is to listen to a phrase that does contain puedan, and then compare the two. Here is a sentence with puedan from the course:
Thanks for your question!
I've had a listen to the audio and they are saying pueden here, though it is quite easy to mix these two verb forms up. One tactic you might use when listening for this vowel difference is making sure that you're wearing headphones and turning the volume up a little higher than you might usually have it. Then, you can play the track a few times over. Closing your eyes while you listen might also be helpful. This helps to isolate the audio and lets you focus on it a bit more than you might otherwise be able to. Another thing you can do is to listen to a phrase that does contain puedan, and then compare the two. Here is a sentence with puedan from the course:
Hola, qué bueno que puedan acompañarnos nuevamente.
Hi, how nice that (you) can join us again.
As for whether poder should be in the subjunctive or in the indicative here, both versions are possible. If Miguel were to use the subjunctive, then it would be as you say: he would be indicating that he isn't sure whether or not there is a volcano that beginners can climb. Since he uses the indicative, though, he is certain that such a volcano exists - perhaps because he saw it in the tour shop advertisements that María mentions.
I hope that that is helpful! Do let me know if you have any more questions.
¡Hasta la próxima!
Liss
Steven-W15
December 20, 2019
Thanks Liss! Very clear explanation and it jives with what I suspected (hoped): that both were possible where the meaning changes accordingly.
I am amazed that people don't take more advantage of the forum now that you're here answering our questions. I'll keep them coming...
I am amazed that people don't take more advantage of the forum now that you're here answering our questions. I'll keep them coming...
Liss-Rocket-Languages-Tutor
January 7, 2020
¡De nada, Steven-W15!
And do keep the questions coming! :)
And do keep the questions coming! :)
JonW27
February 26, 2021
so somebody is amazed that the forum is not used more frequently. I'm 79, becoming denser as i age, and, am poor with the computer. I am unclear as to how to contact you readily, easily, without effort, not having to click multiple buttons, readily visible icons, not being given instructions that are incomprehensible because they contain terms that are opaque to me, like address bar, icons that are not readily visible, or, invisible, or too small and indistinct, or unknown, or in the language and diction of computorismo. thank you. jw
JonW27
February 26, 2021
the earphones hurt my ears, is there a way to reduce the volume of the microphone on the computer?
Liss-Rocket-Languages-Tutor
March 1, 2021
¡Hola JonW27!
Thanks for getting in touch with us!
You can contact us directly with any and all questions that you might have by sending an email to support@rocketlanguages.com. Our Customer Support team would be happy to help you out!
Just mention in your message as you've done here that you're not very familiar with computers and computer terms like “address bar,” and they'll answer you with that in mind. You can also ask the Customer Support team to include screenshots (i.e. pictures of what they see on their computer screen) as they give you directions, so that you can easily see what they're talking about.
As for your earphones, you can reduce their volume by reducing the volume on your computer. If you're on a Windows machine, you can do this by selecting the little picture of a speaker in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. If you're on an Apple computer, you should see the picture of a speaker in the upper right-hand corner of your screen. If these instructions haven't helped, just let our Customer Service team know what kind of computer you're using and they can give you more details.
Saludos,
Liss