英语角-圆桌会议 RoundTable0501 - 中国富人为什么喜欢洋别墅

 Topic1-Kindergarten teacher caught abusing childrenYesterday was the International Spank¹ Out Day. All parents, guardians², and caregivers are encouraged to refrain from hitting children on this day.

Spank Out Day was initiated³ by Center for Effective Discipline in the US in 1998. The aim is to give widespread attention to the need to end corporal punishment of children and to promote non-violent ways of teaching children appropriate behaviors.

Just in the same week, a kindergarten teacher in Beijing has been caught kicking and beating students in security camera footage. Of course this has caused public outrage⁴ and concern over the safety of children in kindergartens.

What happened this time? Is this an individual case? Is there a general problem?

Topic2 Dubbing⁵ movies and TV playsCBM Film and Television Translation Agency told journalists that it would handle the translation of American sitcom⁶ The Big Bang Theory but it did not know whether the show will be broadcast on China Central Television (CCTV). Also the company says it will help produce a "healthy" version of the popular show.

This leads many to question whether after watching the original English version for so many seasons, people will get used to the dubbed⁷ version.

Topic3 Relief Goods RottenPiles of relief goods meant for victims of the Sichuan earthquake six years ago have been found rotting in a storage room, sparking anger at a local party chief who has been accused of trying to cover up the find.

Who should be responsible?

Topic4 No apartment No happinessA recent report conducted by University of International Business and Economics proves the importance of owning an apartment to young people in Beijing.

According to the report, about 94% of respondents believe apartment influences one's sense of happiness; nearly 85% of young women can't accept the idea of "never buy an apartment and live in rental⁸ apartment forever."The report interviews over 4,320 persons who were born after 1980, are currently working in Beijing and received college education(including diploma 大专).

What do young people think?

Topic5 Why China's rich want to live in McMansions and fake ch?teauxAs China's economy has boomed, so has the rise of the "McMansion" – oversized, mass-produced expensive villas⁹. Over the past decade, wealthy locals have moved into gated compounds that mimic¹⁰ the west. Designs range from the tacky (such as recreations of Versailles and the White House) to the tasteful.

Why do Chinese like villas?

1 spank   

v.打，拍打(在屁股上)

参考例句：

• Be careful.If you don't work hard,I'll spank your bottom.你再不好好学习，小心被打屁股。
• He does it very often.I really get mad.I can't help spank him sometimes.他经常这样做。我很气愤。有时候我忍不住打他的屁股。

2 guardians   

监护人( guardian的名词复数 )； 保护者，维护者

参考例句：

• Farmers should be guardians of the countryside. 农民应是乡村的保卫者。
• The police are guardians of law and order. 警察是法律和秩序的护卫者。

3 initiated   

n. 创始人 adj. 新加入的 vt. 开始，创始，启蒙，介绍加入

参考例句：

• He has not yet been thoroughly initiated into the mysteries of computers. 他对计算机的奥秘尚未入门。
• The artist initiated the girl into the art world in France. 这个艺术家介绍这个女孩加入巴黎艺术界。

4 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

5 dubbing   

n.配音v.给…起绰号( dub的现在分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• There are mainly two forms of film translation: dubbing and subtitling. 电影翻译通常主要表现为两种形式：配音和字幕翻译。 来自互联网
• Its auspices, dubbing the program has won national awards in China. 其主持配音的节目多次获得中国全国奖项。 来自互联网

6 sitcom   

n.情景喜剧，（广播、电视的）系列幽默剧

参考例句：

• This sitcom is produced in cooperation with Hong Kong TV.这部连续剧是同香港电视台联合制作的。
• I heard that a new sitcom is coming out next season.我听说下一季会推出一个新的情境喜剧。

7 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 rental   

n.租赁，出租，出租业

参考例句：

• The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。
• We can organise car rental from Chicago O'Hare Airport.我们可以安排提供从芝加哥奥黑尔机场出发的租车服务。

9 villas   

别墅，公馆( villa的名词复数 )； （城郊）住宅

参考例句：

• Magnificent villas are found throughout Italy. 在意大利到处可看到豪华的别墅。
• Rich men came down from wealthy Rome to build sea-side villas. 有钱人从富有的罗马来到这儿建造海滨别墅。

10 mimic   

v.模仿，戏弄；n.模仿他人言行的人

参考例句：

• A parrot can mimic a person's voice.鹦鹉能学人的声音。
• He used to mimic speech peculiarities of another.他过去总是模仿别人讲话的特点。