英语听力—环球英语 459：The Future of Cars

　　Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Joshua Leo.
Voice 2
And I’m Marina Santee. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Cars. There are around 700 million of them on the planet². And every year around 50 million new cars are produced. Almost all of them are powered by oil. Most use petrol, that is — gasoline³, some use diesel⁴. But experts say this needs to change. They are worried that there could soon not be enough oil in the world. Also, environmental experts think that the large amount of cars is helping⁵ to cause climate change. So, does something need to change? Today’s Spotlight looks at the future of the car.
Voice 2
October the first 1908 marked a key event in the history of car production. It was the first day that people could buy the Model T Ford⁶. The Model T Ford was the first car to be produced in huge numbers. And, it was extremely popular. Now, one hundred years later, cars could soon face a new key event. Oil could soon be replaced by a new kind of fuel. But what fuel will that be? How will the cars of tomorrow be powered?
Voice 1
Currently⁷ no one knows the answer to that question. One of the most popular ideas is to use hydrogen⁸ fuel cells. These use hydrogen gas that is stored in the car. This mixes with oxygen to create electric power. One car company working on a hydrogen fuel cell car is Honda, in Japan. Honda claims:
Voice 3
‘Vehicles that use hydrogen with fuel cell technology are the cleanest around. This is because they release⁹ only water into the air. These cars simply do not pollute.’
Voice 2
However, hydrogen powered cars are not as perfect a solution as some people think. Burning hydrogen is friendly to the environment, but making hydrogen is not. You put much more energy into making hydrogen than the car can get out of it. This is one reason why making hydrogen is costly¹⁰. Another problem is how people would refuel their cars. Petrol stations would have to provide new hydrogen tanks and pumps. This could cost thousands of millions of dollars.
Voice 1
Another way to power cars is through storing electricity in batteries. This may seem like a new idea, but it is not. One hundred years ago, many cars were powered by electricity. But then cars powered by oil became much more popular. This was because electric cars were slower and could not travel as far.
Voice 2
Electric cars carry batteries to store the electricity. One advantage of this is that people can repower them at home. However, they cannot go as far as normal cars before they need re—powering, and the batteries are heavy. But a number of car companies believe there is a future for electric cars. One of these companies is Phoenix¹¹ Motorcars. Their chief engineer is W. Jeff Ulrich. He says,
Voice 4
‘I believe it is possible to make and sell a fully-working electric vehicle. My goal at Phoenix Motorcars is this: to provide an electric vehicle that is every bit as useful and fun to drive as any current vehicle.’
Voice 1
You could say that electric cars do not produce gases that harm the environment. But the power stations that produce the electricity often do damage the environment. In the future, electricity could be created through cleaner methods. At that time, electric vehicles could have a more real advantage than they do now.
Voice 2
Biodiesel is another possible fuel for the cars of the future. Biodiesel is made from crops that can be made into fuel. The National Biodiesel Board is an American organisation¹². It encourages the use of biodiesel for fuel. It says:
Voice 5
‘Biodiesel can be used in many normal engines with few or no changes. It is simple to use... and non-poisonous.’
Voice 1
But people are now saying that there are different problems with biodiesel. Another Spotlight programme described these problems. The programme was called ‘Biofuels: Growing Trouble?’. It describes how growing crops for fuel is not always good. Sometimes they do more damage to the environment than good. Many experts are also worried about crops being used for fuel instead of food. They think it is making food cost more.
Voice 2
It is clear that there are no easy solutions to the problem of powering cars. At present, the best way seems to be a compromise¹³ between the different ideas. Cars can use different kinds of power at the same time. Such cars are called hybrid¹⁴ cars. One of the first hybrid cars was the Toyota Prius. The heads of the Toyota car company think that hybrid cars could be the future. The Japanese car company says:
Voice 6
‘One of the problems of building more environmentally friendly cars is the demands of the people that buy them. They want it to be more environmentally friendly — but they do not want the cars to lose anything. They still want to keep the quality, the power and the price of the car... This is something that we have managed to do.’
Voice 1
Hybrid cars could be far more popular in the future. They use two or more kinds of power. This normally¹⁵ involves electricity and a kind of fuel, normally petrol. Hybrid cars bring together the best qualities of different kinds of power. But they are still not a perfect solution. They still require the use of oil. And tests have shown that they do not always use less fuel than some more normal cars.
Voice 2
So the arguments will continue over how best to power cars in the future. But is there another, simpler solution? A solution that would be much better for the environment than all other suggestions?
Voice 1
The World Carfree Network is an international organisation. Its members think people depend on their cars too much. They encourage person-power. They want people to walk and ride bicycles more often. Members of the World Carfree Network also think people should use public transport more often. Every year the organisation has a special day to encourage people to use their car less - September 22nd. They call this day World Car Free Day. They hope that on this day people will not use their cars.
Voice 2
The future of cars remains¹⁶ unclear. No one knows how they will change over the next century. Will people still use cars in a hundred years time? How will they be powered? Our environment could depend on people finding¹⁷ the right answers.
Voice 1
The writer and producer of today’s programme was Steve Myersco. The voices you heard were from the United Kingdom and the United States. All quotations¹⁸ were adapted and voiced by Spotlight.
 

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 planet   

n.行星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun. 海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. 然而, 垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。

3 gasoline   

n.(美)汽油

参考例句：

• This car runs 5 miles on a gallon of gasoline.这部汽车一加仑汽油可以行驶五英里。
• There is still some gasoline left in the tank.油箱里还剩下一些汽油。

4 diesel   

n.柴油发动机，内燃机

参考例句：

• We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
• My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。

5 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

6 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。

7 currently   

adv.通常地，普遍地，当前

参考例句：

• Currently it is not possible to reconcile this conflicting evidence.当前还未有可能去解释这一矛盾的例证。
• Our contracts are currently under review.我们的合同正在复查。

8 hydrogen   

n.氢元素，氢气

参考例句：

• Water is made up of atoms of hydrogen and oxygen.水由氢和氧的原子构成。
• A chemist can isolate the oxygen from the hydrogen in water.一个化学家能把水中的氧和氢分解。

9 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。

10 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。

11 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

12 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。

13 compromise   

n.妥协；妥协方案；vt.损害；vi.妥协，让步

参考例句：

• The spokesman made it clear that no compromise was yet in sight.发言人表明，目前还不会妥协。
• The probable outcome of the talks is a compromise.会谈的结果很可能是妥协。

14 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。

15 normally   

adv.正常地，通常地

参考例句：

• I normally do all my shopping on Saturdays.我通常在星期六买东西。
• My pulse beats normally.我脉搏正常。

16 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

17 finding   

n.发现，发现物；调查的结果

参考例句：

• The finding makes some sense.该发现具有一定的意义。
• That's an encouraging finding.这是一个鼓舞人心的发现。

18 quotations   

n.引用( quotation的名词复数 )；[商业]行情（报告）；（货物或股票的）市价；时价

参考例句：

• The insurance company requires three quotations for repairs to the car. 保险公司要修理这辆汽车的三家修理厂的报价单。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• These quotations cannot readily be traced to their sources. 这些引语很难查出出自何处。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》