环球英语 — 372：Listener Mail 95

　　Voice 1
Hello and welcome to Spotlight¹. I'm Marina Santee.
Voice 2
And I'm Ruby² Jones. 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
Welcome to our listener³ mail programme! Thanks to all of you who wrote letters and e-mails. Hello to Mariluz in Ecuador, listening on radio HCJB Guayaquil 102.5 FM.
Voice 2
And hello to Elif in Turkey, Mohammed in Egypt, and Le Van Hung in Vietnam⁴. Thanks for sending your greetings to Spotlight!
Voice 1
Our first request comes from Ecuador:
Voice 3
‘Please send me something about Indian culture!'
Voice 1
Thanks for your request. At Spotlight we make many programmes about different cultures. We have programmes about marriage ceremonies in India and what Indian women wear. We also have a programme about the Tzeltal Indians from Mexico. Which Indian culture interests you? You can search the programmes on our website. Go to the listen and read page and click⁵ on ‘archive.'
Spotlight on the internet: radio.english.net
Voice 2
Our next letter comes from Tanit in Spain. He writes:
Voice 3
‘I am studying English. I use your website to listen and to talk on subjects. I find the subjects interesting and clear. But I want to ask you something. Would you record the same programme at a faster speed?'
Voice 2
Thanks for your comments - and thanks to Mercedes and Ana for the same suggestion. Lots of people ask us to make faster programmes! But we are only a small organisation⁶. And our special area of interest is making slow speed programmes. However, in today's programme our hodgepodge will include English at a faster speed! Listen out for it later in the programme!
Voice 1
Several listeners⁷ wrote in about a recent Spotlight program on food taboos⁹. In every culture, there are things that people think are taboo⁸ - things that should be not be permitted¹⁰. This could be because of traditional, religious¹¹ or social reasons. But what some cultures see as taboo, other cultures may accept without question. A taboo can be an act, a word, a place - or a food!
Voice 2
One of the foods in our Food Taboo programme was kutti pi. This food is popular in some parts of India. But some people consider kutti pi a taboo food. This is because it is made from a foetus. A foetus is an unborn animal, taken from the body of its mother. Usually, people make kutti pi using a sheep foetus. Eating it is supposed to help pregnant¹² women stay healthy. Santiago is from Ecuador. After hearing the programme, he wrote to Spotlight:
Voice 4
"Many of the meals on the script¹³ belong to different cultures. But they are similar to some traditional meals from Ecuador... But there is something really great for me: the kutti pi from India. This meal is in my country too, and its supposed effects are the same. I thought it was only in Ecuador...
"In Ecuador, kutti pi is called ‘guagua mama'. These two words come from a native language - Quechua. ‘Guagua' means¹⁴ baby and ‘mama' means mother. And you say the two words as if they are one word. I think this food belongs to the culture of people from the Andes Mountains. And they suggest that pregnant women eat it."
Voice 2
Thank you for telling us about guaguamama, Santiago. The countries of Ecuador and India are very far from each other. It is interesting that they share some similar cultural attitudes. I wonder, is kutti pi found in any other countries? And is eating such a food taboo in your country?
Voice 1
The Food Taboos programme also interested Abdellatif. He left this comment on the script page of our website:
Voice 5
"Thank you very much for the programme about food and taboos. Many people do not eat the meat of pigs because of their religion - especially Muslims. But some people do not eat pigs' meat because some scientific research confirms¹⁵ that pigs' meat is bad for our health."
Voice 1
Today, many people decide what they will and will not eat for health reasons alone. Over the last thirty years, scientists have studied how different kinds of foods affect the human body. And their discoveries have influenced people's diets - maybe even more so than social and religious traditions. Is this true where you live? Write and tell us! Our e-mail address is radio at English dot net. Or visit our website to leave a comment.
Voice 2
And soon, it will be even easier for you to comment on anything about Spotlight that captures¹⁶ your imagination!
The message boards on our website are now open. So you can write about any issue¹⁷ that interests you - and discuss your opinions with listeners around the world!
Spotlight on the internet: radio.english.net
And now for our Spotlight language hodgepodge. We had several requests for faster programmes this month! So, let us look at rates of speech.
Voice 1
Horse racing¹⁸ announcers²⁰ often speak very fast. English is my first language. And I cannot understand every word. That announcer¹⁹ was speaking at almost three hundred words a minute! Most people speak much slower - on average about two hundred words a minute.
Voice 2
People speak at different rates depending on what they are doing! For example, at Spotlight we speak at a slower than average speed - we speak at about ninety words a minute.
Voice 1
But the average reading rate is much faster: about two to three hundred words a minute.
Voice 2
And a lot depends on where a person was born! In some areas, people speak much faster.
Voice 1
Most people seem to agree on one thing - women speak faster than men! Is this true in your country? Why is that?!
Voice 2
Well, that is all that we have time for today. We hope that you can join us again for our next listener mail programme!
 

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 ruby   

n.红宝石，红宝石色

参考例句：

• She is wearing a small ruby earring.她戴着一枚红宝石小耳环。
• On the handle of his sword sat the biggest ruby in the world.他的剑柄上镶有一颗世上最大的红宝石。

3 listener   

n.听众；收听者

参考例句：

• I'm a regular listener to her show.我经常收听她的节目。
• She became an attentive listener.她变成了一个专心致志的聆听者。

4 Vietnam   

n.越南

参考例句：

• Vietnam is suffering from food shortage.越南正遭受食物短缺之苦。
• Laos is on the west of Vietnam.老挝在越南西面。

5 click   

n.点击，滴答声，拍答声；v.点击，作滴答声，使...作拍答声

参考例句：

• Click the Allow button on the yellow bar.点击黄色栏中的允许按钮。
• Click on the links for each city for a detailed map.点击连接看城市地区详细地图。

6 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

7 listeners   

n.倾听者，收听者( listener的名词复数 )；听众

参考例句：

• the demographics of radio listeners 电台听众统计数据
• The singer's high notes jarred on the ears of her listeners. 那位歌手的高音让听众们觉得刺耳。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 taboo   

n.禁忌，禁止接近，禁止使用；adj.禁忌的；v.禁忌，禁制，禁止

参考例句：

• The rude words are taboo in ordinary conversation.这些粗野的字眼在日常谈话中是禁忌的。
• Is there a taboo against sex before marriage in your society?在你们的社会里，婚前的性行为犯禁吗？

9 taboos   

禁忌( taboo的名词复数 )； 忌讳； 戒律； 禁忌的事物（或行为）

参考例句：

• She was unhorsed by fences, laws and alien taboos. 她被藩蓠、法律及外来的戒律赶下了马。
• His mind was charged with taboos. 他头脑里忌讳很多。

10 permitted   

允许( permit的过去式和过去分词 )； 许可； 许用

参考例句：

• Radios are not permitted in the library. 图书馆内不许使用收音机。
• Entrance is permitted only on production of a ticket. 出示门票才可进入。

11 religious   

adj.宗教性的，虔诚的，宗教上的；n.修道士，出家人

参考例句：

• She is very religious person who goes to church every Sunday.她十分虔诚，每个星期天都上教堂。
• It is hard for me to reject religious beliefs.要我抛弃自己的宗教信仰是困难的。

12 pregnant   

adj.怀孕的，怀胎的

参考例句：

• She is a pregnant woman.她是一名孕妇。
• She is pregnant with her first child.她怀了第一胎。

13 script   

n.剧本，广播稿；文字体系；笔迹，手迹

参考例句：

• It's easy to identify his script.他的笔迹容易辨认。
• The script is massaged into final form.这篇稿子经过修改已定稿。

14 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

15 confirms   

vt.确定；批准；确认；（基督教中）给…行按手礼v.批准( confirm的第三人称单数 )；证实；使有效；使巩固

参考例句：

• This information confirms me in the belief that he is to blame. 这一消息使我坚信他该受到责备。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The latest information confirms my belief that he is to blame. 最新的消息更增强了我觉得他该受责备的念头。 来自辞典例句

16 captures   

俘获( capture的第三人称单数 )； 夺取； 夺得； 引起（注意、想像、兴趣）

参考例句：

• King Arthur himself captures the beast and cuts off its head. 亚瑟王亲自捉住怪物，并砍下它的头。
• His book captures exactly the ethos of Elizabethan England. 他的书准确地描绘了英国伊丽莎白时代的风土人情。

17 issue   

n.出版，发行，（报刊等）期、号，论点，问题，结果， （水，血等的）流出；vt.使流出，放出，发行（钞票等），发布（命令），出版（书等）发给；vi.发行，流出，造成...结果，进行辩护，传下

参考例句：

• I bought the book the day after its issue.这书出版后的第一天，我就去买了它。
• I'll support her down the line on that issue.在那个问题上我将全力支持她。

18 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

19 announcer   

n.宣布者；电(视)台播音员，报幕员

参考例句：

• The radio announcer said it was nine o'clock.电台播音员报时9点整。
• The announcer tells the listeners what programme comes next.广播员告诉听众下一个是什么节目。

20 announcers   

n.宣告者( announcer的名词复数 )；播音员；（戏剧的）报幕员；（比赛的）解说员

参考例句：

• There are two announcers of this concert, a female and a male. 这场音乐会有两个报幕员，一位女士和一位男士。 来自互联网
• Some persons objected that announcers' articulation was too meticulous to be natural. 有人反对播音员的发音过于规范，这样就显得很不自然。 来自互联网