【一起听英语】沉默是金？

部分人的工作是长期暴露在噪音中的，像迪厅的DJ，机场的工作人员。长期处于这样的工作环境，是否会对听力造成影响？

Rob: Hello I’m Rob and this is 6 Minute English. With me today is Finn. Hello Finn.

Finn: Hello Rob.

Rob: We’re talking about noise today – and looking at some of the words and phrases

associated with noise and its opposite: peace and quiet. But, as always, let’s

start with a question. A new survey in the UK has identified the ten jobs where

people are most exposed to noise – noise that can cause serious damage to

someone’s hearing. Which one of these three jobs has the most exposure to

noise?

a) A nightclub worker

b) A classical musician

c) An airport ground staff worker

Finn: I think it’s got to be c) the person who works in the airport. Planes are very

noisy aren’t they Rob?

Rob: That’s true, very noisy. OK, we’ll find out if you’re right at the end of the

programme. But now, let’s make some noise! Or at least hear some noise. This

is a typical cacophony¹ of sound you can hear on a busy street in London. A

cacophony is a mix of loud sounds…. Have a listen.

(Mix of sounds from a busy London street)

Finn: So we heard drills, and buses and church bells in there as well, didn’t we Rob?

It’s a real din² – or bad noise – but people in urban areas all around the world

have to live with that sort of noise all the time.

Rob: Yes but I guess they get used to it and it's all part of city life but it does mean it

can be difficult to hear yourself think! And I think you’ll agree the world is

becoming noisier?

6 Minute English © bbclearningenglish.com 2013

Page 2 of 4

Finn: It is. So let’s hear from Doctor Stephen Dance who went to discover how bad the

noise in London really is. How does he describe the noise for pedestrians³?

Dr Stephen Dance. South Bank University:

We’re here looking at the London soundscape, and as ever there is a fire engine going by, just

as I’m talking. That is just as loud as it would be on a motorway⁴ but we’re on a side street, so

it’s quite deafening⁵ for the pedestrians.

Rob: That’s Stephen Dance experiencing a typical London soundscape – a soundscape

is a mix of sounds heard in a particular location. And one of the sounds was that

of a fire engine which was very loud!

Finn: It was – he described it as deafening for pedestrians – so, extremely loud and

possibly causing deafness. But how would we know a fire engine was on its way

to an emergency without such a sound?

Rob: It’s a good point. Sometimes a loud noise is needed so it can be heard over

other noises. And in other situations we sometimes make more noise to drown

out – or cover up – the sounds we don’t want to hear. So we turn our music up

to drown out the sound of the washing machine for example!

Finn: But of course if everyone turns up their own music the noise becomes even

greater. So, Rob, what is the solution?

Rob: Maybe we should all take a vow⁶ of silence! Just like a monk⁷, we make a

promise not to talk.

Finn: I think that would be impossible for you Rob! Anyway, what rich people used to

do in history was move out of the city to the relative tranquillity⁸ of the

countryside, but then there the silence was deafening!

Rob: And when you’re in the country, you sometimes tune⁹ in to the smallest sounds,

like a bird singing, and that can become just as irritating. But you have to admit

those sounds are a lot more calming than the constant noise of city life?

Finn: Well you can sometimes hear birdsong in the city but it’s the buildings that cause

these natural sounds to be drowned out. 

6 Minute English © bbclearningenglish.com 2013

Page 3 of 4

Rob: High rise buildings cause the sound to reflect off – or bounce off - each other

causing the sound to be amplified¹⁰ – made louder. And buildings made of glass

are even more reflective.

Finn: So there’s not really a solution to reducing noise in the city – we’re just going to

have put on our headphones and listen to our own noise – heavy metal maybe,

that would be good, wouldn’t it Rob?

Rob: Hmm, well, listening to the tinny sound of music coming from you headphones

whilst on a train can be really annoying.

Finn: Rob, maybe you should join a noise abatement¹¹ group - these are groups of

people who campaign to control levels of noise. They try to restrict planes flying

over residential¹² areas at night and encourage people not to disturb their

neighbours by playing music too loudly. Maybe the big question really is what is

noise? Some people may call a sound just noise whereas others may say it’s

music to their ears – a beautiful sound.

Rob: Well Finn, some people say that the best noise is no noise at all – or silence is

golden.

Finn: Actually Rob, when you say ‘silence is golden’ it actually means it’s often better

to say nothing at all than say something stupid – so maybe it’s time for us to

stop making any more noise and just get out of here?

Rob: Not before I’ve given you the answer to today’s question. Earlier, I said a new

survey in the UK has identified the ten jobs where people are most exposed to

noise. I asked which of these three jobs has the most exposure to noise?

Finn: And I said c) an airport ground staff worker. Was I right?

Rob: You were absolutely right. The answer is an airport ground staff worker. People

who direct jet engines in landing and take-off and are subjected to 140 decibels¹³

of sound in one go. It’s important to cover your ears with ear muffs in a job like

that! OK, that’s all we have time for today but please join us again soon for more

6 Minute English from BBC Learning English.

Both: Bye

1 cacophony   

n.刺耳的声音

参考例句：

• All around was bubbling a cacophony of voices.周围人声嘈杂。
• The drivers behind him honked,and the cacophony grew louder.后面的司机还在按喇叭，且那刺耳的声音越来越大。

2 din   

n.喧闹声，嘈杂声

参考例句：

• The bustle and din gradually faded to silence as night advanced.随着夜越来越深，喧闹声逐渐沉寂。
• They tried to make themselves heard over the din of the crowd.他们力图让自己的声音盖过人群的喧闹声。

3 pedestrians   

n.步行者( pedestrian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Several pedestrians had come to grief on the icy pavement. 几个行人在结冰的人行道上滑倒了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Pedestrians keep to the sidewalk [footpath]! 行人走便道。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 motorway   

n.高速公路，快车道

参考例句：

• Our car had a breakdown on the motorway.我们的汽车在高速公路上抛锚了。
• A maniac driver sped 35 miles along the wrong side of a motorway at 110 mph.一个疯狂的司机以每小时110英里的速度在高速公路上逆行飙车35英里。

5 deafening   

adj. 振耳欲聋的, 极喧闹的 动词deafen的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The noise of the siren was deafening her. 汽笛声震得她耳朵都快聋了。
• The noise of the machine was deafening. 机器的轰鸣声震耳欲聋。

6 vow   

n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓

参考例句：

• My parents are under a vow to go to church every Sunday.我父母许愿，每星期日都去做礼拜。
• I am under a vow to drink no wine.我已立誓戒酒。

7 monk   

n.和尚，僧侣，修道士

参考例句：

• The man was a monk from Emei Mountain.那人是峨眉山下来的和尚。
• Buddhist monk sat with folded palms.和尚合掌打坐。

8 tranquillity   

n. 平静, 安静

参考例句：

• The phenomenon was so striking and disturbing that his philosophical tranquillity vanished. 这个令人惶惑不安的现象，扰乱了他的旷达宁静的心境。
• My value for domestic tranquillity should much exceed theirs. 我应该远比他们重视家庭的平静生活。

9 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

10 amplified   

放大，扩大( amplify的过去式和过去分词 )； 增强； 详述

参考例句：

• He amplified on his remarks with drawings and figures. 他用图表详细地解释了他的话。
• He amplified the whole course of the incident. 他详述了事件的全过程。

11 abatement   

n.减(免)税，打折扣，冲销

参考例句：

• A bag filter for dust abatement at the discharge point should be provided.在卸料地点应该装设袋滤器以消除粉尘。
• The abatement of the headache gave him a moment of rest.头痛减轻给他片刻的休息。

12 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

13 decibels   

n.分贝( decibel的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The typical lawn mower makes about 90 decibels of noise. 典型的割草机发出的声响约为90分贝。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A normal conversation reaches 55 decibels. 普通的谈话即可达55分贝。 来自《简明英汉词典》