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VOA慢速英语2013 南非青少年抗击艾滋病

时间:2013-12-20 14:45:39

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AS IT IS 2013-12-19 South Africa Teens Fight HIV 南非青少年抗击艾滋病

Hello again, and welcome.  I’m Jim Tedder1 in Washington.  On today’s program …something serious, and then something fun.  First we travel to South Africa to examine  the fight against HIV and AIDS in young people.  The latest research shows that some developments are good, while others are not so good.  We will hear from several  experts who will give us their opinions on what needs to be done.

Then, as we approach the end of the year, we look back to one of our very first As It Is programs, and hear from some of our friendly, furry2, friends who have been  trained to do something special.

Listen carefully, and before you realize it, you have improved your American English by listening to As It Is.

There is good news to report from recent research on efforts to reduce new HIV infections among South African teens: The efforts are working. But there is also some  bad news from the research, as well: girls between the ages of 15 to 24 are three times more likely than boys to get HIV.   The South African government says more people are getting tested for HIV because of a government campaign that urges teens to, in its words, “Get wise, get tested,  get circumcised.”

President Jacob Zuma supported the campaign when he was publicly tested for HIV in 2010. He did not have the virus.

The United Nations says more than 6 million people in South Africa are living with HIV. But the Human Science Research Council of South Africa says HIV infections in  people 15 to 24 years old has dropped from over 10 percent in 2005 to 7 percent in 2012.

Scott Burnett is a Senior Executive3 Manager at LoveLife. The organization is trying to eliminate HIV. He says the government’s campaigns have caused the decline4 in  the HIV infection rate.

“Sex is far most spoken about, condoms are generally available, and people are beginning to realize that open, honest and early discussion about sex and sexuality don ’t predispose young people to all the risk -- they actually help them to avoid risk.”

But girls remain more at risk than boys for being infected. The United Nations Childrens Fund says HIV infections among girls is at 13.6 percent. For boys it is 4.5  percent.

Matebogo Mampani is a training specialist at SoulCity. She knows why the infection rate is different. She blames it on the lack of HIV awareness5 messages targeted to  young girls.

“Sometimes you find that in the schools people wanna say abstain6 (from sex) -- abstain when basically there are children in the same school who are pregnant7, there  are condoms that are used lying around in the schools.”

Nineteen-year-old Portia Munguambe is a Lovelife peer8 educator. She says there are other pressures that girls must face. She says girls living in poverty are having  sex with older men because the men give them gifts, money and even food. These older men are called “sugar daddies.”

“Basically we have the issue of sugar mammies and sugar daddies.  You know, as teens we wanna fit into the lifestyle of having fancy things, for example having my  hair done, having those heels (high heel shoes).”

Portia Munguambe says increasing the self-esteem and confidence of young girls will help solve the problem. But she says girls must be responsible for their own  health.

“Be safe, condomize and do everything with your powers to protect yourself.”

Ms. Munguambe says teenagers must be trained to give HIV information to their fellow teens. She says unless that happens, it will be a long time before the rate of HIV  infections among young girls declines9.

That Is One Smart Doggie!

It has been almost one year since the first As It Is program was broadcast and put on the Internet.  One story in particular has gotten a lot of response from people  around the world.  So just for old time’s sake, we thought you might like to hear it again.

This dog is on a treasure hunt.  And I think he has just found something.

“Yes! Yes, you found it.  Yeah! Yeah! Always trust your dog.”

But what he has found (his name is “Boston”; he is a black Labrador) is not gold, or silver, or diamonds.  What he has found is a white truffle, and he found it by  using his nose.

Truffles are a kind of mushroom.  They are used by the chief cooks in expensive restaurants.  Food made with truffles usually costs a lot.  In France, some people use  pigs to search for truffles.  While the truffles are in the ground, often near the roots of trees, they are hard for a human to smell.  But pigs …and now dogs…seem  to be especially good at finding them.

“Find it.”

Boston, and fifteen other dogs, are learning how to find truffles on a farm in the northwestern state of Oregon.  Their owners have paid 600 dollars for the class.   That may seem like a lot of money.  But truffles can sell for hundreds of dollars per kilogram in markets. If you do not have a dog, or a pig, you can search for truffles by yourself.  Some people gently dig around in the forest with a rake.  But this sometimes brings up a  truffle that is not ready. “By the time you disturb them, if they aren’t ripe, you can’t put them back.  They are just never going to ripen10, and that’s just kind of how that is.” So the trainers say it is best to teach your dog to find truffles, even if it does take up to a year for some dogs to learn how to do it right.

“It’s easy to teach a dog the truffle scent11 and to find it.  The hard part is teaching the dog to tell you when he’s found it, not to eat it when he’s found it, to  keep working for an hour or two.” And once he or she has found it, what does a truffle smell like, or taste like?  Well, it’s hard to say.  It may taste like a nut, or smell like a pine tree.  Others  say it tastes like a pineapple, or chocolate, or even …dirt.

Truffle experts think the northwestern United States is great place to search for these expensive and unusual foods.  And where there are truffles, there is a growing  need for …you know who!


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1 tedder 2833afc4f8252d8dc9f8cd73b24db55d     
n.(干草)翻晒者,翻晒机
参考例句:
  • Jim Tedder has more. 吉姆?特德将给我们做更多的介绍。 来自互联网
  • Jim Tedder tells us more. 吉姆?泰德给我们带来更详细的报道。 来自互联网
2 furry Rssz2D     
adj.毛皮的;似毛皮的;毛皮制的
参考例句:
  • This furry material will make a warm coat for the winter.这件毛皮料在冬天会是一件保暖的大衣。
  • Mugsy is a big furry brown dog,who wiggles when she is happy.马格斯是一只棕色大长毛狗,当她高兴得时候她会摇尾巴。
3 executive Ymlxs     
adj.执行的,行政的;n.执行者,行政官,经理
参考例句:
  • A good executive usually gets on well with people.一个好的高级管理人员通常与人们相处得很好。
  • He is a man of great executive ability.他是个具有极高管理能力的人。
4 decline K9gyw     
n.衰微,跌落,下降;vt.使降低,婉谢;vi.下降,衰落,偏斜
参考例句:
  • I must decline to show favour to any of the candidates.我必须拒绝偏袒任何一位候选人。
  • The birthrate is on the decline.出生率在下降。
5 awareness 4yWzdW     
n.意识,觉悟,懂事,明智
参考例句:
  • There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
  • Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。
6 abstain SVUzq     
v.自制,戒绝,弃权,避免
参考例句:
  • His doctor ordered him to abstain from beer and wine.他的医生嘱咐他戒酒。
  • Three Conservative MPs abstained in the vote.三位保守党下院议员投了弃权票。
7 pregnant IP3xP     
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。
8 peer mLExX     
n.同辈,同等地位的人,伙伴,贵族;vi.仔细看,费力地看
参考例句:
  • Children are easily influenced by their peer.孩子很容易受同辈影响。
  • He is a peer.他是一个贵族。
9 declines 79fbe6bd91acacaf8aaa032a590f3157     
辞谢,谢绝(邀请等)( decline的第三人称单数 ); (道路、物体等)下倾; (太阳)落下; (在品格、价值上)降低
参考例句:
  • As one grows older one's memory declines. 一个人的记忆力随着年老而衰退。
  • Hearing sensitivity declines with age. 听觉因年老而衰退。
10 ripen ph3yq     
vt.使成熟;vi.成熟
参考例句:
  • I'm waiting for the apples to ripen.我正在等待苹果成熟。
  • You can ripen the tomatoes on a sunny windowsill.把西红柿放在有阳光的窗台上可以让它们成熟。
11 scent WThzs     
n.气味,香味,香水,线索,嗅觉;v.嗅,发觉
参考例句:
  • The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
  • The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

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