【英语趣味课堂】月球-The Moon

Todd: Ebony, we were looking at the internet and we saw that the U.S. is going to try to put people on the moon, again, in a few years. What do you think about that?

 

Ebony: OK, about people on the moon, I think it's really cool! I say that as a natural reaction, but I know they've tried it before. I think it would be maybe a good idea economically, but then again not.

 

Todd: Sure

 

Ebony: I mean, because first of all, how are we finacially in the US? What are they doing? I think they are trying to pick up spirits or distract¹ right now with all the other underlying² issues³!

 

Todd: Yeah!

 

Ebony: Honestly, when I heard that, I was like, is this some kind of propoganda, some kind of billboard⁴ distraction⁵ in my opinion, I mean, it's an awesome⁶ idea though if you really think behind it, but I don't know if that's what we should be looking at right now.

 

Todd: Sure, so do you think it is a waste of money or do you think it helps science?

 

Ebony: I think eventually it's a great thing, and it does help, and I think it's a wonderful thing to be paying attention to, but I don't know whether it's the right moment for it. But either way, they're doing it, so I think it would be really neat, I mean I've always wanted to say to my, you know, one day my kids, "Ok, let's go to vacation on the moon...I feel like going out to the suite⁷ hotel you know.Let's go look at the stars" you know a few meteors passing by, wouldn't that be neat..to say that and really be able to do that someday.

 

Todd: Gosh, it must be really, really beautiful on the moon. Well, actually, you are very young. I think 20! 20 years old?

 

Ebony: Yes.

 

Todd: So, do you think that is going to be possible, that...

 

Ebony: Yeah! Yeah!

 

Todd: Really?

 

Ebony: Since I was 10. Since I was 10 years old my father would always say to me, you know, he's about 62 right now, and so, he said, I've seen everybody go from cars to everything and all the advances in technology is so fast, he said, 'I can't imagine when your are my agewhat's it's going to be like for you at the rate technology is advancing.

 

Todd: Yeah!

 

Ebony: So I thought, "Wow, that's really cool!" I'll be able to do that and I always did. I always thought that and so, in a way too I'm saying, "What took you so long guys?"

 

Todd: Wow, so that's amazing. You could actually be going for vacation to the moon in forty years

 

Ebony: Wouldn't that not be cool!

 

Todd: Yeah!

 

Ebony: Just sit there.

 

Todd: Or Mars⁸.

 

Ebony: Mars.

 

Todd: Yeah! Lot of rocks.

 

Ebony: The red planet⁹. I don't know about mars. I think the moon sounds kind of cooler not as far.

 

Todd: Yeah!

 

Ebony: It depends on what they do with travel.

 

Todd: Yeah. You definitely¹⁰ would need a round-trip ticket.

 

Ebony: OK, thanks a lot Ebony

 

学习内容：

 

Learn Vocabulary from the lesson

pick up spirits

 

They are trying to pick up spirits.

 

To 'pick up someone's spirits' is to make him feel happier if he is sad or angry.  Notice the following:

 

Shopping really picks up my spirits.

Just having her here will pick up your spirits.

underlying

 

All the other underlying issues.

 

'Underlying' issues are problems that are not really obvious at first look, but exist in a hidden way.  If someone had a bad experience with dogs when she was younger she may have underlying issues about being close to dogs.  Notice the following:

 

She had a lot of underlying issues from her time working in that school.

Some people don't know what their underlying issues are until they are in an uncomfortable situation.

billboard distraction

 

Is this some kind of billboard distraction?

 

In this case 'billboard distraction' is used as a metaphor¹¹. A 'distraction' is something that attracts our attention and makes us stop thinking about what is happening. Literally¹² a billboard is a big advertisement on the side of the road that attracts our attention when we are driving. Notice the following:

 

All of the community service is just billboard distraction from what the company really does.

You can lose your focus¹³ really easily with all of the billboard distraction.

awesome

 

It's an awesome idea.

 

An 'awesome' idea is a very very good idea.  Notice the following:

 

We had an awesome night at the concert yesterday.

His mother is interesting and awesome.

round-trip

 

You definitely would need a round-trip ticket.

 

A 'round-trip' ticket is a ticket to a place and then a ticket to return, like a complete circle.  Notice the following:

 

They bought round-trip ticket in case they decided¹⁴ to come home.

The drive is about 2 hours round-trip.

1 distract   

vt.分散注意力，转移注意力，使分心

参考例句：

• Don't distract my attention.不要分散我的注意力。
• It was all a ploy to distract attention from his real aims.那纯粹是障眼法,用以分散人们对他真正意图的注意力。

2 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

3 issues   

（水等的）流出( issue的名词复数 )； 出口； 放出； （特别重要或大众关注的）问题

参考例句：

• Let's start with the more easily addressable issues. 我们先从较容易处理的问题着手。
• Employment and taxation are the bread-and-butter issues of politics. 就业和征税是很重要的政治问题。

4 billboard   

n.布告板，揭示栏，广告牌

参考例句：

• He ploughed his energies into his father's billboard business.他把精力投入到父亲的广告牌业务中。
• Billboard spreads will be simpler and more eye-catching.广告牌广告会比较简单且更引人注目。

5 distraction   

n.精神涣散，精神不集中，消遣，娱乐

参考例句：

• Total concentration is required with no distractions.要全神贯注，不能有丝毫分神。
• Their national distraction is going to the disco.他们的全民消遣就是去蹦迪。

6 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

7 suite   

n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员

参考例句：

• She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。
• That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。

8 Mars   

n.火星，战争

参考例句：

• As of now we don't know much about Mars.目前我们对火星还知之甚少。
• He contended that there must be life on Mars.他坚信火星上面一定有生物。

9 planet   

n.行星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun. 海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. 然而, 垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。

10 definitely   

adv.一定地，肯定地；明确地，确切地

参考例句：

• The team will definitely lose if he doesn't play.如果他不参加比赛，这个队肯定会输。
• I shall definitely be home before six o'clock.6点以前，我一定回家。

11 metaphor   

n.隐喻，暗喻

参考例句：

• Using metaphor,we say that computers have senses and a memory.打个比方，我们可以说计算机有感觉和记忆力。
• In poetry the rose is often a metaphor for love.玫瑰在诗中通常作为爱的象征。

12 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

13 focus   

n.焦点，焦距；vi.聚焦，注视；vt.使聚焦，调焦，集中

参考例句：

• She was the focus of everyone's attention.她是大家注意的焦点。
• The noise made it hard for me to focus on work.噪音让我无法集中注意力工作。

14 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。