VOA慢速英语2014 AS IT IS 2014-04-25 Bangladesh Building Collapse Leads to Safety Measures 孟加拉国改进建筑物的安全措施

 

AS IT IS 2014-04-25 Bangladesh Building Collapse¹ Leads to Safety Measures 孟加拉国改进建筑物的安全措施

Hello and welcome back to the program that helps you learn and improve your American English.  I’m Jim Tedder² in Washington.  Today we return to Bangladesh, one year after a terrible accident. How have things changed since many people lost their lives?

Then we’re off to New York City for an international automobile⁴ show that features electric-powered cars that are made to be more environment  friendly.

Let’s get started!

It has been one year since a deadly building collapse in Bangladesh.  More than 1,100 factory workers were killed in the collapse of the Rana Plaza⁵ building, near the capital, Dhaka.  Since then, efforts to improve safety have begun.  But many families of victims are in need of financial help.  And hundreds of survivors⁶ remain unemployed⁷. 

Jonathan Evans has more on the story. 

Rezwan Selim is the owner of the Softex Sweater plant.  For 15 years, his company manufactured clothing in a rented building in Dhaka.  But in March, production halted when international inspectors⁸ told him to stop work because the factory was not structurally¹⁰ safe.

The closure is a result of an agreement called the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh.  One hundred fifty retail¹¹ businesses signed the accord after the building collapse last year.  Many of the companies are based in Europe. 

The Rana Plaza had structural⁹ problems, with cracks appearing in the building.  But garment workers were told to continue making clothing.  Hundreds were crushed to death or injured when the building collapsed¹². 

The disaster put pressure on clothing retailers¹³ to make sure that the garment factories making their products are safe.  The accord led to measures designed to protect garment workers.  Inspectors have examined about 300 of the 1,500 buildings they plan to inspect by September.  Eight have been completely or partially¹⁴ closed in an effort to prevent another Rana Plaza-like accident.

The accord is not the only effort to improve building safety. More than 20 American and Canadian retailers are leading a similar effort.  And the group has ordered one factory to close. 

Rob Wayss is the executive director of the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh.  He says the factory closures are a sign that change is taking place.  But he admits that there has been some resistance. 

“I think in some ways, in many ways, though it is unfortunate, the requirement that suspension of production and evacuation of factory buildings is another indicator¹⁵ that progress is being made.  There is a price tag on the fixes, and so there has been, I think, a little bit of anxiety and a little bit of an effort to try to push it back or slow it down.”

Bangladesh is the second largest supplier of clothing in the world.  Critics warned last year that retailers would reduce their presence in Bangladesh because of the disaster.  But activists¹⁶ say this has not happened, and business expanded over the past year.  The activists are calling on garment factory owners to do more to improve the industry.

The attention since the building collapse has put pressure on the government to improve working conditions for garment workers.  The lowest monthly wage has been raised from $36 to $68.  And Bangladesh has passed a law enabling workers to form labor¹⁷ unions.

However, many people feel that the condition of those who were working in Rana Plaza has been overlooked.  The question is whether the Rana Plaza disaster will become a turning point for the garment industry, or will it be business as usual? 

I’m Jonathan Evans.

Electric Cars on Display at Big Auto³ Show

The 2014 New York International Auto Show is underway at New York’s Jacob Javits Convention Center.  This year, many automakers are demonstrating electric-powered or hybrid¹⁸ vehicles to meet a growing demand for cars that are friendly to the environment.  Experts believe more people will want these new kinds of transportation, but there are still some technological¹⁹ problems to solve.  Steve Ember, who just loves cars, joins us with more.

 

The Japanese automaker Toyota manufactures a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle.  The car is said to start quickly, offer a smooth ride and produce no carbon monoxide gas.  Wade Hoyt works for Toyota Motors.

We think that hydrogen is the future of electric vehicles because they’re so much more convenient.  And the way it works is the hydrogen wants to combine with the oxygen in the air.  It forms H2O, which is water vapor²⁰, is the only exhaust, so it’s a true zero emissions²¹ vehicle.  And you get electricity out of that combination.”

Few automakers are producing electric and hybrid vehicles.  Hybrids²² depend on at least two power sources, like electricity and traditional fuel.  At the auto show, Ford²³ demonstrated an all-electric powered Ford Focus.  Chevrolet spoke²⁴ about the environment-friendly qualities of its Volt²⁵. 

Electric cars are easy on the environment.  And they can also offer strong performance.  Tesla Motors showed a car that can go from zero to about 100 kilometers an hour in 3.7 seconds.  The car has a top speed of just over 200 kilometers an hour.

Electric cars can start up quickly on the road because their motors offer more torque than comparable gasoline engines.  Torque is a turning or twisting force in the engine. 

But the move from gasoline to electric cars is a slow process, says James Bell of General Motors.

“I think the mistake that many people in the industry and in the media maybe thought was that – you know, when the Nissan Leaf came out or the Chevrolet Volt – was that suddenly people would drop their gasoline powered cars and rush for them.  No, it’s not that way.  This is going to be a slow evolution, but it’s also a ‘Pandora’s Box’ moment.  It’s not going to go back in.  Electrified vehicles are the way to meet those emissions in the future.” 

More than 60 million cars are produced worldwide each year.  But only one million of them are electric vehicles or hybrids.  But last year, the number of such cars rose 100 percent.

Automakers still do not earn a profit on electric cars because of the high cost of battery technology.  For example, Tesla’s battery costs $50,000.  That represents about half of the vehicle’s total selling price.  But manufacturers pay the costs because they believe electric vehicles are an important part of the industry’s future.

Matt Miller²⁶ is a reporter for Bloomberg News.  He says a mixture of old and new technology is a winning combination.

“Really, the key for the future, I think, is hybrid technology, so rather than having a car like a Tesla, that’s completely electric power, you have a car like the BMW I-3 or I-8, which has a small gasoline motor to help charge the battery when it’s needed and electric motors to drive.”

The issue is to produce a car with a long, low-cost battery life.  This will enable the driver to travel a long way before having to add more electricity.  Automakers expect many millions of Americans will then decide to move from a traditional car to an electric or hybrid vehicle. I’m Steve Ember.

1 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

2 tedder   

n.（干草）翻晒者，翻晒机

参考例句：

• Jim Tedder has more. 吉姆？特德将给我们做更多的介绍。 来自互联网
• Jim Tedder tells us more. 吉姆？泰德给我们带来更详细的报道。 来自互联网

3 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

4 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

5 plaza   

n.广场，市场

参考例句：

• They designated the new shopping centre York Plaza.他们给这个新购物中心定名为约克购物中心。
• The plaza is teeming with undercover policemen.这个广场上布满了便衣警察。

6 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

7 unemployed   

adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的

参考例句：

• There are now over four million unemployed workers in this country.这个国家现有四百万失业人员。
• The unemployed hunger for jobs.失业者渴望得到工作。

8 inspectors   

n.检查员( inspector的名词复数 )；（英国公共汽车或火车上的）查票员；（警察）巡官；检阅官

参考例句：

• They got into the school in the guise of inspectors. 他们假装成视察员进了学校。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Inspectors checked that there was adequate ventilation. 检查员已检查过，通风良好。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 structural   

adj.构造的，组织的，建筑（用）的

参考例句：

• The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

10 structurally   

在结构上

参考例句：

• The house roof was (structurally) unsound. 这屋顶（结构）不牢固。
• Pinhole on shot-hole damage is never structurally significant. 针孔和蛀洞所造成的危害对结构的影响不大。

11 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

12 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

13 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

14 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

15 indicator   

n.指标；指示物，指示者；指示器

参考例句：

• Gold prices are often seen as an indicator of inflation.黃金价格常常被看作是通货膨胀的指标。
• His left-hand indicator is flashing.他左手边的转向灯正在闪亮。

16 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

18 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

19 technological   

adj.技术的；工艺的

参考例句：

• A successful company must keep up with the pace of technological change.一家成功的公司必须得跟上技术变革的步伐。
• Today,the pace of life is increasing with technological advancements.当今， 随着科技进步，生活节奏不断增快。

20 vapor   

n.蒸汽，雾气

参考例句：

• The cold wind condenses vapor into rain.冷风使水蒸气凝结成雨。
• This new machine sometimes transpires a lot of hot vapor.这部机器有时排出大量的热气。

21 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

22 hybrids   

n.杂交生成的生物体( hybrid的名词复数 )；杂交植物（或动物）；杂种；（不同事物的）混合物

参考例句：

• All these brightly coloured hybrids are so lovely in the garden. 花园里所有这些色彩鲜艳的杂交花真美丽。 来自辞典例句
• The notion that interspecific hybrids are rare is ill-founded. 有一种看法认为种间杂种是罕见的，这种看法是无根据的。 来自辞典例句

23 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

24 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

25 volt   

n.伏特，伏

参考例句：

• You may use 100 and 110 volt appliances in your room.您可以在房间使用100及110伏特的电器。
• The common service voltage of electric power in our country is 220/380 volt.我国普通供电电压为220/380伏。

26 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。