英语听力—环球英语 1113 Bamboo: Crop of the Future

 　　Voice 1

 

　　Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Ryan Geertsma.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　And I’m Liz Waid. 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

 

　　A group of six buildings stands in two lines. It is the village of Noh Bo in Thailand. The buildings are made of a light brown wood. There are swings attached² with ropes to the front of the houses. Children move back and forth³ on the swings. At night, the children climb up into the wooden house. They sleep on an upper floor that is cool and dry.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　The local people say that the houses look like houses for butterflies. But they are houses for children! The children are orphans⁴. They do not have parents to care for them. So they live together in an orphanage⁵. And now they have good houses to live in.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　The houses the children stay in are strong. They keep out water and heat. And they are built with local materials. The main building material is a plant - light brown bamboo.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Bamboo is a common woody plant. It grows tall and thin. It looks almost like a tree! It grows about twenty five metres tall. It is about fifteen centimetres wide. Bamboo looks like it is made of many small pieces. Thick lines divide it into small segments⁶. And the inside of bamboo is empty. But it is hard and very strong. Today’s Spotlight is on how and why people use bamboo. Is it the crop of the future?

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Many people think bamboo is a tree. But it is not - it is a kind of grass. It grows mainly in East and South East Asia. It also grows in Latin⁷ America, India and parts of Africa and Australia. Bamboo grows extremely⁸ fast and spreads very quickly. There are 1500 different kinds of bamboo. People all over the world use it. And people are planting more of it. Some people call bamboo ‘the crop of the future.’ They have many good reasons to plant bamboo.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　There are over one thousand uses for bamboo! Here are just a few:

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　People in the past used bamboo for many things. They made musical instruments and weapons with bamboo. Artists used it for paintbrushes⁹ and paper. Fishermen used it to make equipment for catching¹⁰ fish. Some people even made boats from bamboo!

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　In China and India, doctors use bamboo in traditional medicine. Bamboo is also very useful for cooking. People put food inside the empty bamboo plant. This is a good container for cooking soup, rice or tea. But people also eat bamboo as a healthy food. People eat the soft part, or shoot, of the bamboo in many ways. Most Asian countries have special foods made from bamboo shoots.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Bamboo has been used in traditional buildings. But builders also use it today! The village of Noh Bo is just one example.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　There are many modern uses for bamboo. In 1879 Thomas Edison created the first light bulb. He made it with treated bamboo!

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　People also use bamboo to make cloth. Beauty products sometimes contain bamboo. It is even in some water filters¹¹, to clean water! People have even designed vehicles¹² and airplanes out of bamboo. In Ghana, people even make two wheeled bicycles from bamboo. In the Philippines, people make electricity from bamboo! Buildings, bicycles, light bulbs and even electricity: bamboo is an amazing plant.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　These are just a few of the many ways people use bamboo. But bamboo is useful for a much more important reason. It is useful while it grows! Growing bamboo helps the environment in many ways. Bamboo provides oxygen, which improves air quality. It also reduces harmful carbon¹³ dioxide¹⁴ in the air. It does this more quickly than trees. Bamboo also provides shade and shelter¹⁵ from the sun.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　In many places, hardwood trees are cut down for fuel or for building. This causes problems for the earth, animals, plants and air. To keep a good environment, people must replace the trees. But it takes a very long time for most trees to reach their full size. Many hardwood trees take fifty years to grow!

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Bamboo is ready to use in only three years. Bamboo is the fastest growing woody plant in the world. It can grow about 60 centimeters in only one day. The bamboo plant grows to its full size in just three or four months. Some kinds of bamboo then become dry and hard. In three years, it is strong enough to harvest and use. And bamboo grows again when it is cut down. People can harvest it year after year.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Some people are sure that bamboo is ‘the crop of the future’. For example, Nicaragua has many hardwood forests. But people are cutting down three percent of the forests every year. One organization, Eco-planet Bamboo, is trying to replace these trees with bamboo. Troy Wiseman is a businessman with Eco-planet Bamboo. He explains their goals:

 

　　Voice 3

 

　　“My hope is that bamboo will replace hardwood timber¹⁶. That way people can stop cutting down the forest. Bamboo is a resource¹⁷ that keeps growing. You can plant it on land that you cannot grow crops on. Bamboo is, in my opinion, the best replacement¹⁸ for hardwood.”

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Eco-Planet Bamboo planted a large bamboo farm. Through this farm, Eco-Planet Bamboo hopes to improve the environment. They also hope to improve life for local people. Maribelle Urbina works¹⁹ on the bamboo farm. She told the BBC²⁰:

 

　　Voice 4

 

　　“I am very thankful that now I have a job. I am a single mother. I have five children. Before, I used to have very serious problems.  Now I have enough money to care for my children.”

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Bamboo is helping²¹ to reduce poverty²² in Nicaragua. John Vogel is the manager of the bamboo farm. He showed the BBC the town near the bamboo farm. Vogel explains:

 

　　Voice 5

 

　　“You can see more stores, more business, more activity. And the people are buying better houses. They are wearing better clothes. We are helping them also with health programs. You can see building activities. People are painting the houses.”

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　In Nicaragua, bamboo is providing jobs. Around the world, it is improving the environment and the economy²³. It is easy to see why people call bamboo the ‘crop of the future.’

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　The writer and producer of this program was Rena Dam. The voices you heard were from the United²⁴ States. All quotes²⁵ were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at http://www.radioenglish.net This .program is called, ‘Bamboo: Crop of the Future’.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　You can also leave your comments on our website. Or you can email us at radio at radioenglish dot net. You can also find us on Facebook - just search for spotlightradio. We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye.

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 attached   

附加的

参考例句：

• The lease entitles the holder to use the buildings and any land attached thereto.本租约持有人有权使用此建筑物以及所附属的土地。

3 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

4 orphans   

孤儿( orphan的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The poor orphans were kept on short commons. 贫苦的孤儿们吃不饱饭。
• Their uncle was declared guardian to the orphans. 这些孤儿的叔父成为他们的监护人。

5 orphanage   

n.孤儿院

参考例句：

• They dispensed new clothes to the children in the orphanage.他们把新衣服发给孤儿院的小孩们。
• They gave the proceeds of the sale to the orphanage.他们把销售的收入给了这家孤儿院。

6 segments   

部分( segment的名词复数 )； 瓣； [计算机]（字符等的）分段； [动物学]节片

参考例句：

• He is eating oranges in segments. 他正在一瓣瓣地吃橘子。
• Gene cloning provides a means of purifying and propagating specific DNA segments. 基因克隆化提供了一种纯化和扩增特定DNA片段的方法。

7 Latin   

adj.拉丁的，拉丁语的，拉丁人的；n.拉丁语

参考例句：

• She learned Latin without a master.她无师自通学会了拉丁语。
• Please use only Latin characters.请仅使用拉丁文字符。

8 extremely   

adv.极其，非常，极度

参考例句：

• The film is extremely good,I just cannot miss it.这部电影太精彩了，我非看不可。
• The old man was extremely difficult to get along with.这个老人极难相与。

9 paintbrushes   

画笔

参考例句：

• Paintbrushes and watercolors bring out the memories of childhood. 画笔和水彩将我带回到童年时代。
• Tie the paintbrushes up into bundles and put them away carefully. 把这些油刷子捆起一捆，小心放在一边。

10 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

11 filters   

过滤( filter的名词复数 )； 滤光器； （香烟头上的）过滤嘴； 交通红灯指示不得直行的同时

参考例句：

• Filters do not remove all contaminants from water. 过滤器无法过滤掉水中的所有污染物。
• A liquid filters through a strainer,into the receptacle beneath. 液体经过过滤器流入下面的容器。

12 vehicles   

n.运载工具；传播媒介；（为展露演员才华而）特意编写的一出戏（或电影等）；[画]展色剂；交通工具( vehicle的名词复数 )；车辆；传播媒介；手段

参考例句：

• There is not much clearance for vehicles passing under this bridge. 车辆在这座桥下通过时没有多少余隙。
• to carry out random spot checks on vehicles 对车辆进行抽检

13 carbon   

n.碳元素

参考例句：

• Diamonds are pure carbon.钻石是纯净的碳。
• Carbon is an element,while carbon dioxide is a compound.碳是一种(化学)元素，而二氧化碳则是一种化合物。

14 dioxide   

n.二氧化物

参考例句：

• The oxygen and the carbon combine to form carbon dioxide.氧和碳化合，形成二氧化碳。
• Carbon dioxide is the largest contributor to the greenhouse effect.二氧化碳太多是道致温室效应的最主要原因。

15 shelter   

n.掩蔽，掩蔽处，避身处；庇护所，避难所，庇护；vt.庇护，保护，隐匿；vi.躲避

参考例句：

• We took shelter from the rain in a cave.我们在一个山洞里避雨。
• Trees are a shelter from the sun.树木可以遮挡阳光。

16 timber   

n.木材，原木，大木料，栋木

参考例句：

• These trees need more time to grow into useful timber.这些树不够年头，还没成材呢。
• The timber is graded according to its thickness.木材按厚度分级。

17 resource   

n.资源，财力

参考例句：

• All pollution is simply an unused resource.所有的污染只不过是一种未被利用的资源。
• He is full of resource in any emergency.他富有随机应变的才能。

18 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

19 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

20 BBC   

abbr.（=British Broadcasting Corporation）英国广播公司

参考例句：

• She works for the BBC.她为英国广播公司工作。
• The BBC was founded in 1922.英国广播公司建于1922年。

21 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。

22 poverty   

n.贫穷， 贫困， 贫乏， 缺少

参考例句：

• We must continue to war against poverty and disease.我们一定要继续同贫穷和疾病作斗争。
• He showed his poverty in his knowledge of agriculture.他表现出缺乏对农业知识的了解。

23 economy   

n.经济；节俭；秩序；机体

参考例句：

• We must do our best to develop the national economy.我们必须努力发展国民经济。
• The country's economy is not very healthy.国家的经济不很景气。

24 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

25 quotes   

v.引用，援引( quote的第三人称单数 )；报价；引述；为（股票、黄金或外汇）报价

参考例句：

• He quotes a few verses from Tennyson in his paper. 他在论文中引用了英国诗人丁尼生的几行诗句。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He quotes (from) the Bible to support his beliefs. 他引用圣经来支持自己的信念。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》