环球英语 — 392：Listener Mail 96

　　Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight¹. I'm Liz Waid.
Voice 2
And I'm Joshua Leo. 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
Star Trek². Big ideas and small businesses. What makes us happy? Crazy English. People from all around the world have written to us about these Spotlight programs in the last month. Today we answer some of your emails and read some of your comments about these programs.
Voice 2
We begin today with a comment from areej. He left a comment on our website on the program "What Makes Us Happy?" Many people believe that what makes us happy is getting what we want. But that is not always true. Even people who have everything can be unhappy. In our program we looked at some things that really do make people happy. Areej had one idea about what makes people happy too.
Voice 3
"I would say that worshipping God by praising and prayers also makes us feel happy."
Voice 1
Areej, we are happy that you have shared your opinions with us! For many people, worshipping God is really important. It is a great calm and comfort. We can understand and know that God is always there for us. Thanks for sharing your opinions!
Voice 2
Another Spotlight program where things were not what they seemed was called "Big Ideas and Small Businesses." Many people believe that the most successful businesses are the businesses that produce or sell the most. But one world business competition sees things differently. Our program told about this competition. It awards prizes for businesses that help their local communities. Patricia shared her ideas about this program.
Voice 4
"I completely agree with this idea about business. It's better to have a small or medium business with all your customers happy than a big business without quality. It's a greater business that practices social responsibility than a big one who gains money only for themselves."
Voice 1
Thanks for your comments Patricia. We hope you are able to listen to the next program about the World Challenge competition too. We will release³ this program in autumn. And we will tell about a few of 2009's finalists.
Voice 2
Our next comment comes from foga12. Foga12 heard our program about the television program called Star Trek. This program showed people what life might be like in the future. In our program, we told about how Star Trek has encouraged many people. But it has also influenced popular culture. Foga12 writes:
Voice 3
"One month ago I heard the phrase ‘Beam⁴ me up Scotty.' This is the TV program Star Trek. Now, I know about it. Thanks."
Voice 1
We are happy we could help! You are right that this saying comes from Star Trek. In fact, it is very popular! Scotty was one of the characters on Star Trek. He operated the transporter. This device⁵ could transport a person from one place to another place very far away very quickly. When Captain Kirk wanted to get out of a terrible situation quickly, he would call on Scotty to "beam him up!"
Voice 2
It seems that many common sayings come from popular entertainment. A saying may become popular if it makes people laugh or think. It may become popular if the program uses it a lot! Star Trek is the origin for a few common English sayings. In fact, we will look at a few of these common sayings in today's Hodgepodge!
Voice 1
Have you ever heard the saying "to boldly⁶ go where no one has gone before"? To go "boldly" means to go with courage. This saying is in the beginning of two Star Trek versions⁷. And we included this line in our program about Star Trek. In Star Trek, this saying means that the Starship Enterprise⁸ will explore space with courage - even if they may not know what they will find there.
Voice 2
"To boldly go where no one has gone before" is a very well-known saying in English. People may say it when they are entering a situation or issue they have not experienced⁹ before.
Voice 1
Our last Star Trek saying in today's Hodgepodge is a kind of blessing¹⁰. It is: "Live long, and prosper¹¹." A person who is prospering¹² is experiencing success. This blessing comes from one alien race on Star Trek - the Vulcans. But many people think it is a beautiful blessing that anyone can use. In fact, we have told about this saying before, in an earlier listener mail program! We will provide a link to that program on the script¹³ page for this program. There, you can find more information about this interesting saying!
Voice 2
Are there sayings from popular culture in your language? You can share them with us by emailing us at Radio @ English . net. Or you can leave a comment on the script page of this program! That's all for today's Hodgepodge!
Voice 1
Our last comments today are about something many of our listeners will be very interested in - learning¹⁴ English. In fact, they are about crazy English! In our program "Crazy English" we told about an English teacher in China - Li Yang. Li Yang has an interesting way of learning English. And he is using his method to teach other Chinese people.
Voice 2
People learning English with Li Yang's method gather in a large group. The leader says a word or phrase. Then everyone repeats the words by shouting! The main purpose of this method is to feel comfortable saying words in a different language. Christian¹⁵, from Ecuador writes:
Voice 4
"I think that Li Yang's Crazy English is wonderful because he used a better method to speak English in a better way... I need to speak more because I cannot speak very well."
Voice 2
Christian says that he would like to speak like Li Yang and possibly to use his method to learn.
Voice 1
Well, Christian, you may want to join chanmonchannon - a person who commented on the script page for Crazy English. Chanmonchannon writes:
Voice 3
"It's a very great topic for me because I am always thinking how to speak, how to read, and how to write like a native English speaker. I will be trying this method for several months. After that, I will inform you how this method worked for me."
Voice 2
Chanmonchannon, we are very excited to hear your results! Many people in China have had success learning English with this method. We hope you will find it a helpful method too! Please keep us informed!
Voice 1
Listeners, if you would like to make your voice heard you can leave comments and questions on our website. Commenting is easy! But you must create a Spotlight account. Then, when you log¹⁶ in, you can have your say about any of the programs Spotlight offers. We hope you visit us soon!
 

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 trek   

vi.作长途艰辛的旅行；n.长途艰苦的旅行

参考例句：

• We often go pony-trek in the summer.夏季我们经常骑马旅行。
• It took us the whole day to trek across the rocky terrain.我们花了一整天的时间艰难地穿过那片遍布岩石的地带。

3 release   

vt.发布，发表，发行；释放，放开

参考例句：

• After my examination I had a feeling of release.考完试后我有如释重负之感。
• This medicine will give you release from pain.这药吃后会解除你的疼痛。

4 beam   

n.横梁；光束；vi.发光，发热

参考例句：

• The load on this beam is more than it will bear.横梁上的负荷比它能承受的要大得多。
• I could see the beam of his flashlight waving around in the dark.我可以看到他的手电筒光在黑暗中上下舞动。

5 device   

n.器械，装置；计划，策略，诡计

参考例句：

• The device will be in production by the end of the year.该装置将于年底投入生产。
• The device will save much time and effort for us.这种装置会使我们节省大量时间和气力。

6 boldly   

adv.大胆地，显眼地；冒

参考例句：

• Everyone admires his spirit of doing boldly what is righteous. 人人都赞美他这种见义勇为的精神。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Do boldly what is righteous. 见义勇为。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 versions   

n.译本( version的名词复数 )；版本；（个人对事件的）描述；（原物的）变体

参考例句：

• There are two versions of the game, a long one and a short one. 这游戏有两个版本，一长一短。
• When both versions of the story were collated,major discrepancies were found. 在将这个故事的两个版本对照后，找出了主要的不符之处。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 enterprise   

n.企业单位，商业公司，事业，计划

参考例句：

• They are determined to carry forward the enterprise.他们决心把事业进行下去。
• The enterprise has excellent prospects.这家企业的远景极其美好。

9 experienced   

adj.有经验的；经验丰富的，熟练的

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• Perhaps you and I had better change over;you are more experienced.也许我们的工作还是对换一下好，你比我更有经验。

10 blessing   

n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿

参考例句：

• The blessing was said in Hebrew.祷告用了希伯来语。
• A double blessing has descended upon the house.双喜临门。

11 prosper   

v.成功，兴隆，昌盛；使成功，使昌隆，繁荣

参考例句：

• With her at the wheel,the company began to prosper.有了她当主管，公司开始兴旺起来。
• It is my earnest wish that this company will continue to prosper.我真诚希望这家公司会继续兴旺发达。

12 prospering   

成功，兴旺( prosper的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Our country is thriving and prospering day by day. 祖国日益繁荣昌盛。
• His business is prospering. 他生意兴隆。

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 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

15 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

16 log   

n.记录，圆木，日志；v.伐木，切，航行

参考例句：

• They log for a living.他们以伐木为生。
• And then what do you do with that log?然后你要拿那些记录做什么呢？