英语听力—环球英语 713 Dancing Bears

　　Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Robin² Basselin
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
December 18, 2009. In Bangalore, India, Raju is set free. Raju is a sloth³ bear. This large, hairy, black animal has white marks across his chest in the shape of the English letter “V”. He has spent his life performing as a dancing bear. But today, he is free. He is one of more than six hundred rescued bears. Today’s Spotlight is on the dancing bears of India, and a new project to give them a better life.
Voice 2
Sloth bears live in family groups in the forest. They eat ants and other insects that live in the ground. But thousands of bears have been captured⁵ or killed by humans. Some are killed to make traditional medicine. Traditional healers make this medicine from the bears’ organs, such as the gall⁶ bladder. Other bears become trained dancing bears.
Voice 1
These bears start life in the wild forest. People capture⁴ them when the bears are only three weeks old. Often, they kill the mother bear. Many of the baby bears do not survive without their mother. If they do survive, then they begin training. They learn to perform tricks and move in special ways. But this training is often painful. The trainers pull out the bear’s teeth, and they put a hole through the bear’s nose. Then, they pull a rope through the bear’s nose. By pulling on the rope, the trainer can control the bear. He forces the bear to dance and perform for money.
Voice 2
Many people and organizations been trying to put an end to dancing bears. It causes pain to the animal because of the rope through its nose. Sometimes the training of the bear is also painful. Trainers may beat the bear with a rope and stick. They may not give the bear enough food. The bears also have to walk for long distances. Sometimes they walk in a very polluted environment. Often, trainers tie the bears to a short rope. The bears have a very small area to move in. Many of them die of diseases⁷ or infected wounds. For all these reasons, people who are concerned about animals and the environment have been working to stop the practice of dancing bears.
Voice 1
The killing⁸ of bears is a big problem for India. Many people are worried because the numbers of sloth bears is decreasing. Soon there may be very few of them left. So, in 1972, the government passed a law to make bear dancing illegal. But it continued. This is because the bears were part of a traditional way of life for the Kalandar people. The Kalandar are a minority group in India. The business passed from parents to children. The Kalandar performed with the dancing bears on the streets or at special events. Then they were given money. This was the way they supported their families. This tradition has been going on in India for about four hundred years.
Voice 2
Some Kalandar perform with other animals or do tricks to make money. But they believe that the dancing bears are the best animal for performing. The bear is full of power. The sloth bear can weigh up to one hundred and forty five kilograms. The bear also has a position of respect in Indian culture. In the Ramayana, a Hindu holy book, the bear tribe⁹ helps the Lord¹⁰ Rama. Many Indians believe that the hair of the bear has power to protect humans. But the custom of dancing bears does not honour the bears. It causes much suffering. The Kalandar needed a way to make money but the bears also needed to be free.
Voice 1
Two people found a solution to the problem. In 1997, the condition of the dancing bears greatly affected¹¹ Kartick Satyanarayan and Geeta Seshamani. They spent one and a half years researching the dancing bears. Based on this research, they began Wildlife SOS. Other organizations from France, Australia and the United Kingdom also joined them. Together they began a project to rescue the bears.
Voice 2
The Wildlife SOS Agra Bear Rescue Facility opened in 2002. Since then, workers have rescued over 600 bears. They cannot return the bears to the wild. They were taken away from the forest as young baby cubs¹². They do not know how to feed or defend themselves. So the rescue centres provide a natural environment where humans still feed and care for the animals. The workers remove the ropes from the bears’ noses. The bears can move around without being tied up. Wildlife SOS gives them an environment where they can enjoy life without pain.
Voice 1
And the Kalandars were not forgotten either. Wildlife SOS gives them training in new skills. This way, they can make money for their families without the bears. Some make clothes or cook food to sell. The Kalandar children are also going to school. The future of the Kalandar looks brighter.
Voice 2
The Wildlife SOS Agra Bear Rescue Facility is only one of many places that have been set up to help the bears. Mary Hutton is the founder¹³ of Free the Bears Fund¹⁴ of Australia. This is one of the organizations that helped to set up the project. She says
Voice 3
“We are so happy at the success of this project. We will make sure that the bears are never again forced to dance on the streets of India. There is still much work to be done to provide the bears with the best possible quality of life.”
Voice 1
This is an example of how humans can help take care of animals. Christians¹⁵ believe that this is part of our purpose. Though human behaviour caused this problem, humans have also tried to make it better. In India there is now a solution. Only a few dancing bears remain. And people do not see these bears on the street anymore. Many bears are safe and the Kalandar people have better opportunities.
Voice 2
Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-Founder of Wildlife SOS, said:
Voice 4
“This event is of huge historic¹⁶ importance in India and cause for real celebration. No longer will India be shamed by the shocking¹⁷ picture of captured bears being beaten on the roadside or pulled sadly through the traffic and dust by a rope through their noses. It is time for everyone who has supported this project to celebrate what we have achieved.”

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 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

3 sloth   

n.[动]树懒；懒惰，懒散

参考例句：

• Absence of competition makes for sloth.没有竞争会导致懒惰。
• The sloth spends most of its time hanging upside down from the branches.大部分时间里树懒都是倒挂在树枝上。

4 capture   

vt.捕获，俘获；占领，夺得；n.抓住，捕获

参考例句：

• The company is out to capture the European market.这家公司希望占据欧洲市场。
• With the capture of the escaped tiger,everyone felt relieved.逃出来的老虎被捕获后，大家都松了一口气。

5 captured   

俘获( capture的过去式和过去分词 )； 夺取； 夺得； 引起（注意、想像、兴趣）

参考例句：

• Allied troops captured over 300 enemy soldiers. 盟军俘虏了300多名敌方士兵。
• Most of the rebels were captured and disarmed. 大部分叛乱分子被俘获并解除了武装。

6 gall   

v.使烦恼，使焦躁，难堪；n.磨难

参考例句：

• It galled him to have to ask for a loan.必须向人借钱使他感到难堪。
• No gall,no glory.没有磨难，何来荣耀。

7 diseases   

n.疾病( disease的名词复数 )；弊端；恶疾；痼疾

参考例句：

• Smoking is a causative factor in several major diseases. 抽烟是引起几种严重疾病的病因。
• The illness frequently coexists with other chronic diseases. 这种病往往与其他慢性病同时存在。

8 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

9 tribe   

n.部落，种族，一伙人

参考例句：

• This is a subject tribe.这是个受他人统治的部落。
• Many of the tribe's customs and rituals are as old as the hills.这部落的许多风俗、仪式都极其古老。

10 lord   

n.上帝，主；主人，长官；君主，贵族

参考例句：

• I know the Lord will look after him.我知道上帝会眷顾他的。
• How good of the Lord not to level it beyond repair!上帝多么仁慈啊，竟没有让这所房子损毁得不可收拾！

11 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

12 cubs   

n.幼小的兽，不懂规矩的年轻人( cub的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lioness guarding her cubs 守护幼崽的母狮
• Lion cubs depend on their mother to feed them. 狮子的幼仔依靠母狮喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

14 fund   

n.基金，资金，存款，财源，贮藏；vt.提供资金，积累

参考例句：

• They decided to set up a fund for this purpose.他们决定为此专立一项基金。
• This fund may not be drawn on without permission.这笔钱非经批准不得动用。

15 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

16 historic   

adj.历史上著名的，具有历史意义的

参考例句：

• This is a historic occasion.这是具有重大历史意义的时刻。
• We are living in a great historic era.我们正处在一个伟大的历史时代。

17 shocking   

adj.令人气愤的；令人震惊的

参考例句：

• His attitude was shocking to her.他的态度令她感到震惊。
• Such behaviour is really shocking.这种行为真不像话。