英语听力—环球英语 1447 Traveling with Mobile Telephones

 　　Voice 1

　　Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Robin² Basselin.

　　Voice 2

　　And I’m Colin Lowther. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

　　Voice 1

　　A group of friends are visiting the city of Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil. They are walking along a path near a sand beach of the ocean. The path is made of many small stones.  These stones are many different colors and sizes.  And together they create designs. In Rio de Janeiro, it is common to see mosaics⁴ like this in paths.

　　Voice 2

　　As the friends walk, they notice an unusual mosaic³. It is a square shaped design. And the stones are only two colors - black and white. This may be an unusual mosaic.  But one of the friends clearly recognizes the design.  He takes out his mobile⁵ telephone. He holds the telephone’s camera over the square mosaic. And a special program on his telephone reads the black and white design. Information appears on his telephone. It is information about the beach they are visiting. The mosaic in the path is a QR code⁶. Today’s Spotlight is on how the travel industry is using QR codes⁷ to improve visitor experiences.

　　Voice 1

　　Every year, 2 to 3 million people from around the world visit Rio de Janeiro. Visitors travel to Rio de Janeiro to experience new things and learn about Brazil’s history and culture. But many people do not speak the local language. This can affect their experience. It can be difficult for them to read signs.  And this can make it difficult for them to learn about and enjoy the places they are visiting.

　　Voice 2

　　For a long time, visitors have traveled with guide books.  They read these books and learn information about the places they visit. Other travelers go to visitor centers.  These buildings have a lot of information about an area.  And often, there are workers that speak many different languages.  For many travelers, these resources work fine.  But they are not always easy to find or use.

　　Voice 1

　　So, in 2013, Rio de Janeiro decided⁸ to try something new.  They began using Quick Response codes - or QR codes. This technology lets the city share lots of information with its visitors.  And they can do it quickly, at a low cost and in the traveler’s own language.  Rio de Janeiro is not the only city that has started to use QR codes.  Cities in many countries, like England, Wales, and Korea, have also begun using QR codes to help travelers.

　　Voice 2

　　QR codes are square images made of two opposite colors - usually black and white. There is one large square image with four smaller squares in it.  The smaller squares are in the four different corners of the QR code image. The rest of the large square contains many even smaller squares or dots. Every QR code design is unique or different.  And the designs are organized to store information - like words, numbers or links to Internet websites.

　　Voice 1

　　To read a QR code, a person needs a mobile telephone with a camera. The camera can scan⁹ or read any QR code. And a special program on the telephone translates the information stored in the code. Then, the information appears on the telephone.

　　Voice 2

　　Cities are placing these QR codes in areas that are popular with visitors.  They hope that travelers can learn more about the famous and important parts of their cities. QR codes store a lot of information. So, they can give visitors more information than a normal sign.

　　Voice 1

　　And using QR codes costs the cities very little money.  In many cases, cities can develop QR codes for free. The main cost is for making the QR code signs.  Cities must pay for materials and for workers to place the signs at the popular visitor areas.

　　Voice 2

　　Gibraltar is another place that uses QR code technology to help visitors. Millions of people visit the British territory of Gibraltar every year.  They come to see the great “Rock of Gibraltar.”  They want to learn all about the long history of this natural wonder.   However, many visitors to Gibraltar do not know the local languages - English and Spanish. So Gibraltar uses their QR codes to offer visitors information in many languages. Roger Bamkin helped Gibraltar with its QR code project. He talked to the BBC news organization.  He explained how this technology helps foreign visitors.

　　Voice 3

　　"By scanning¹⁰ QR codes around them, visitors will be able to learn about the place they are visiting.  The description will be written in their own language. And it will be a description written by someone who speaks that language.”

　　Voice 1

　　In Rio de Janeiro, the city placed its first QR code at Arpoador. This large rock is at the end of the famous Ipanema Beach. When a visitor uses their telephone to scan the Arpoador QR code, it takes their telephone to an Internet website. The website shows them a map of the area. They can also read about how the Arpoador rock got its name. And they can learn many other interesting facts about the beach.

　　Voice 2

　　Diego Fortunato is a 25 year old visitor to Ipanema Beach.  After scanning the QR code with his telephone, he told the Associated Press,

　　Voice 4

　　“Look, there is a little map. It even shows you where we are. Rio does not always have information for those who do not know the city. It is something the city needs. It is something the city has been lacking."

　　Voice 1

　　Rio de Janeiro has worked hard to combine this new technology with old tradition. By creating the QR codes in paths, they honor¹¹ the local tradition of path mosaics. By the end of 2013, Rio de Janeiro plans to have 30 QR codes throughout the city. It hopes that this will help visitors learn and enjoy the city even more.

　　Voice 2

　　Fabricia Rosa works¹² with the Rio de Janeiro QR code project.  She believes the QR code is not just good for visitors, but also for the people of the city. She told the Epoch¹³ Times,

　　Voice 5

　　“It is a gift to the city that will last a long time. It is not only for visitors so that they can understand a little about the important memorials of the city. But it is also for the citizens of Rio.  They may not know the history of that place. And this way, they can learn about it right there, very fast. With the new technology, everyone has a way of getting information.”

　　Voice 1

　　The writer of this program was Courtney Schutt. The producer was Mark Drenth. The voices you heard were from the the United Kingdom and the United States. All quotes were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this program again and read it on the Internet at http://www.radioenglish.net This .program is called, “Traveling with Mobile Telephones.”

　　Voice 2

　　We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye.

　　- See more at: http://spotlightenglish.com/listen/traveling-with-mobile-telephones#sthash.RIx3CZBy.dpuf

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

3 mosaic   

n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的

参考例句：

• The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
• The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。

4 mosaics   

n.马赛克( mosaic的名词复数 )；镶嵌；镶嵌工艺；镶嵌图案

参考例句：

• The panel shows marked similarities with mosaics found elsewhere. 这块嵌板和在其他地方找到的镶嵌图案有明显的相似之处。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The unsullied and shining floor was paved with white mosaics. 干净明亮的地上镶嵌着白色图案。 来自辞典例句

5 mobile   

adj.可移动的，易变的，机动的；n.运动物体

参考例句：

• The old lady sits on a mobile chair every morning.那位老妇人每天上午坐在一把可携带使用的椅子上。
• She's much more mobile now that she's bought a car.自从她买了汽车后，活动量就大多了。

6 code   

n.代码，代号，密码；法典，法规，规划

参考例句：

• What's the code for Tianjin?天津的代号是多少？
• Remember to use postal code.勿忘使用邮政编码。

7 codes   

n.[计算机]编码( code的名词复数 )；代号；密码；法典

参考例句：

• A generation ago genetic codes were certainly unknown. 遗传密码在上一代确实很少有人知道。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• So, sometimes, authors adopt Flasm to write low level p-codes to add efficiency. 所以，设计者采用Flasm来编写低级的p-codes以提高效率。 来自互联网

8 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。

9 scan   

n.审视，浏览，扫描，押韵，细查；vt.细看，浏览，扫描，详细调查，信件扫描（指BBS处理直递邮件或会议邮件时，对所有或特定信区做检查的动作）

参考例句：

• The first scan was bad, so I had to do it again.第一次扫描不好，所以我得重做。
• A scan determines the position of the baby in the womb.扫描可以确定胎儿在子宮中的位置。

10 scanning   

v.扫描

参考例句：

• He turns the bicycle about scanning the hand brakes. 他把一辆自行车转过来转过去，仔细研究那手刹车。 来自辞典例句
• Scanning was first used in the transmission of pictures by telegraph. 最先应用扫描法是用电报传播图像。 来自辞典例句

11 honor   

n.光荣；敬意；荣幸；vt.给…以荣誉；尊敬

参考例句：

• I take your visit as a great honor.您的来访是我莫大的光荣。
• It is a great honor to receive that prize.能拿到那个奖是无上的光荣。

12 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

13 epoch   

n.(新)时代；历元

参考例句：

• The epoch of revolution creates great figures.革命时代造就伟大的人物。
• We're at the end of the historical epoch,and at the dawn of another.我们正处在一个历史时代的末期，另一个历史时代的开端。