VOA慢速英语20060607b

EXPLORATIONS - Above Ground but Under the Sea: Visiting Some Popular AquariumsBy Nancy Steinbach

Broadcast: Wednesday, June 07, 2006

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VOICE ONE:

I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:


The glass dome³ of the Monterey Aquarium¹ is filled with anchovies⁴

And I'm Barbara Klein with EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. For thousands of years, people have wanted to explore the world under the sea. Such activity was not possible until modern times. Today, divers⁵ can survive for hours underwater and photograph fish and other sea creatures.

Not everyone can swim with fish in the ocean. But they can enjoy underwater life in another way -- by visiting an aquarium.

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VOICE ONE:

Experts do not really know when people began keeping fish as pets. But they say that people have been interested in fish for thousands of years. Some say the ancient Sumerians were the first civilization to keep fish in ponds more than four thousand years ago. The Chinese kept and studied carp and goldfish more than one thousand years ago. The ancient Romans kept eels⁶ as pets. And the Greek philosopher Aristotle made what is believed to be the first known study of sea life, including sharks and dolphins.

Experts say that keeping fish at home in small water tanks called aquariums² is extremely popular today. And everyone seems to enjoy visiting huge public aquariums that have opened around the world.

VOICE TWO:

By the middle of the eighteen hundreds, science had shown that plants, fish and other sea creatures could survive together under water. So it was no longer necessary to change the water in a tank for fish to live there. This led to the building of the first public aquariums.

`The first one opened in London, England in eighteen fifty-three. In the next fifteen years, other aquariums opened in Europe and the United States. By nineteen twenty-eight, there were about forty-five public aquariums.

Today, millions of people visit aquariums around the world. Jane Valentine is an official with the American Zoo and Aquarium Association. She says the United States has more than seventy-five public aquariums. And she says that about forty-seven million people visit these places each year.

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VOICE ONE:

One of the most famous aquariums is in Monterey, California. Officials say the Monterey Bay Aquarium has been recognized as the finest aquarium in the United States. It is in a building that used to be a kind of factory called a cannery. This was where workers prepared fish and placed them in cans to be sold.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium shows visitors the underwater life in the bay. Scientists at the aquarium also study the animals and work to help many survive.

For example, the Monterey Bay Aquarium cared for nineteen penguins⁷ from New Orleans, Louisiana. They were rescued after hurricane Katrina struck the area in two thousand five. These penguins were kept until they were ready to be returned to the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas.

VOICE TWO:

The Monterrey Bay Aquarium also works to save the sea otter⁸. Aquarium workers rescue lost or hurt young sea otters⁹ and prepare them to survive in the wild. The ones that cannot be released are kept in the aquarium and entertain visitors by swimming quickly and playing tricks in the water.

Visitors especially enjoy watching them play with objects in the water. When sea otters find new objects, they smell them, hold them, play with them and hit them against other hard objects. The otters hit their toys against the walls of the tank in front of the happy visitors.

VOICE ONE:

At the center of the Monterey Bay Aquarium is a huge tank more than eight meters high. It is one of the tallest aquarium exhibits in the world.

The tank holds more than one million liters of seawater and many different kinds of fish. It also holds more than one hundred kinds of plants. Officials say the tank was built in the center of the aquarium because it would get the most sunlight each day. All this sun helps the plants grow -- about ten centimeters every day. An official says the Monterey Bay Aquarium was the first aquarium in the world to show a living kelp forest.

A kelp forest is a kind of ecosystem¹⁰ established around colonies of a
A leopard¹¹ shark swimming among kelp plants

seaweed plant called kelp. Kelp can extend between two and thirty meters or more from the sea floor to the surface of the water. These plants provide homes to many fish and other sea animals.

The aquarium is also an education center. Workers help visitors and especially children understand sea creatures and their importance in the world. Children and adults can see many sea creatures being fed and watch a movie about underwater life. They can even touch some of these creatures in small tide pools. Workers make sure visitors touch the rays, crabs¹² and sea stars very carefully.

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VOICE TWO:

One extremely large public aquarium opened in Atlanta, Georgia in two thousand five. The Georgia Aquarium says it is the largest in the world. It has more than one hundred thousand sea animals in thirty million liters of water. These include two whale sharks -- the world's largest fish.


A whale shark at the Georgia Aquarium

The Georgia Aquarium is divided into sixty different environments called habitats. The largest holds more than twenty-two million liters of water. It was especially designed for the whale sharks and the thousands of other animals that live in the ocean. The second largest habitat was designed to copy the natural environment of beluga whales.

Building large public aquariums is very costly¹³. Most of the money to build the Georgia Aquarium was provided by businessman Bernard Marcus. He and his wife gave two hundred fifty million dollars to help pay for the building. The total cost was two hundred ninety million dollars. Reports said that more than one million people visited the Georgia Aquarium in the first six months that it was open.

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VOICE ONE:

Another aquarium re-opened in two thousand five in Camden, New Jersey¹⁴. The Adventure Aquarium first opened in nineteen ninety-two. It spent about fifty million dollars to expand its building and improve its exhibits.

Visitors can watch a hippopotamus¹⁵ in the West African River Experience area of the Adventure Aquarium. Reports say the Adventure Aquarium is the only one in the country that has two hippos.

One exciting area of the aquarium is the shark tunnel. Visitors can watch twenty-six dangerous creatures up close without fear. The tunnel is suspended in the middle of the shark tank.

Even more exciting for visitors is the chance to get in the water and swim with the sharks! Swimmers wear special clothes and must follow a few rules. For example, they must not make the sharks angry or make any quick movements. Swimming with the sharks costs more than one hundred dollars.

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VOICE TWO:

Another aquarium that provides education and adventures with sharks is the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland. The Baltimore Aquarium has more than ten thousand sea animals. It opened in nineteen eighty-one.

Its shark adventure includes a tour with an expert to learn about these ancient creatures and how the aquarium workers feed and care for them. Children can even sleep near the sharks overnight. Children sleep in the viewing area as sharks sleep nearby, behind protective glass.

The National Aquarium in Baltimore also presents a dolphin show. It shows how young dolphins learn and develop the skills they need to survive.

VOICE ONE:

Aquariums provide the public with many chances to experience life under the sea. These fun and educational places can be found in most areas of the world. Visiting an aquarium is a good way for children to learn about sea creatures. They might even want to start an aquarium at home and join the millions of people around the world who keep fish as pets.

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VOICE TWO:

This program was written by Nancy Steinbach. It was produced by Mario Ritter. I'm Barbara Klein.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Steve Ember. Join us again next week for EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English.

1 aquarium   

n.水族馆，养鱼池，玻璃缸

参考例句：

• The first time I saw seals was in an aquarium.我第一次看见海豹是在水族馆里。
• I'm going to the aquarium with my parents this Sunday.这个星期天，我要和父母一起到水族馆去。

2 aquariums   

n.养鱼缸，水族馆( aquarium的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Biotope aquariums represent the natural environments of ornamental fish. 生态鱼缸表现出观赏鱼的自然生活环境。 来自互联网
• There are aquariums in many cities in the world. 世界上好多城市有水族馆。 来自互联网

3 dome   

n.圆屋顶，拱顶

参考例句：

• The dome was supported by white marble columns.圆顶由白色大理石柱支撑着。
• They formed the dome with the tree's branches.他们用树枝搭成圆屋顶。

4 anchovies   

n. 鯷鱼，凤尾鱼

参考例句：

• a pizza topped with cheese and anchovies 奶酪鳀鱼比萨饼
• Pesto, mozzarella, parma ham, sun dried tomatoes, egg, anchovies. 核桃香蒜，马苏里拉，巴马火腿，干番茄，鸡蛋，咸鱼。

5 divers   

adj.不同的；种种的

参考例句：

• He chose divers of them,who were asked to accompany him.他选择他们当中的几个人，要他们和他作伴。
• Two divers work together while a standby diver remains on the surface.两名潜水员协同工作，同时有一名候补潜水员留在水面上。

6 eels   

abbr. 电子发射器定位系统（=electronic emitter location system）

参考例句：

• Eels have been on the feed in the Lower Thames. 鳗鱼在泰晤士河下游寻食。
• She bought some eels for dinner. 她买回一些鳗鱼做晚餐。

7 penguins   

n.企鹅( penguin的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Why can penguins live in cold environment? 为什么企鹅能生活在寒冷的环境中？ 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Whales, seals, penguins, and turtles have flippers. 鲸、海豹，企鹅和海龟均有鳍形肢。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

8 otter   

n.水獭

参考例句：

• The economists say the competition otter to the brink of extinction.经济学家们说，竞争把海獭推到了灭绝的边缘。
• She collared my black wool coat with otter pelts.她把我的黑呢上衣镶上了水獭领。

9 otters   

n.（水）獭( otter的名词复数 )；獭皮

参考例句：

• An attempt is being made to entice otters back to the river. 人们正试图把水獭引诱回河里去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Otters are believed to have been on Earth for 90 million years. 水獭被认为存活在地球上已经9千多万年。 来自互联网

10 ecosystem   

n.生态系统

参考例句：

• This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
• We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。

11 leopard   

n.豹

参考例句：

• I saw a man in a leopard skin yesterday.我昨天看见一个穿着豹皮的男人。
• The leopard's skin is marked with black spots.豹皮上有黑色斑点。

12 crabs   

n.蟹( crab的名词复数 )；阴虱寄生病；蟹肉v.捕蟹( crab的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• As we walked along the seashore we saw lots of tiny crabs. 我们在海岸上散步时看到很多小蟹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The fish and crabs scavenge for decaying tissue. 鱼和蟹搜寻腐烂的组织为食。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

14 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

15 hippopotamus   

n.河马

参考例句：

• The children enjoyed watching the hippopotamus wallowing in the mud.孩子们真喜观看河马在泥中打滚。
• A hippopotamus surfs the waves off the coast of Gabon.一头河马在加蓬的海岸附近冲浪。