VOA慢速英语-AMERICAN MOSAIC - Culture and Science Mix at This Ye

Also: A question from Brazil about the composer and band leader John Philip Sousa. His music is popular on the Fourth of July -- America's Independence Day. Transcript¹ of radio broadcast:
03 July 2008

HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC² in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

I'm Doug Johnson.

Today, we play some music by a very famous composer in honor of America's Independence Day …

And we visit the Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

(MUSIC)

Smithsonian Folklife Festival

HOST:

Every summer since nineteen sixty-seven, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. organizes a special outdoor event. The Smithsonian Folklife Festival celebrates American and international cultures and traditions. This year, the festival is highlighting the cultures of Bhutan, Texas and outer space. Bob Doughty³ has more.

BOB DOUGHTY:

(SOUND)
　

A Bhutanese temple at the Folklife Festival

As you walk through the area about Bhutan at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, it is easy to forget you are in Washington. There are Bhutanese people walking around in traditional costumes and tall prayer flags waving in the wind. There is even a Bhutanese religious center where you can watch dances and performances. Some of the traditional dances date back to the sixteenth century. Bhutan's rich culture has been carefully protected because it is generally removed from outside influences.

There are many tented areas where you can learn more about this small Buddhist⁴ country in the Himalayan mountains. You might learn that Bhutan's national sport is archery. Or that the Bhutanese government has a policy of measuring the Gross Domestic Happiness in the country.

One area teaches visitors about Bhutan's postage stamps. Since the nineteen sixties, the country has developed unusual stamps including metal stamps and stamps that smell.
　

A Bhutanese artisan

Many booths teach visitors about Bhutanese artistic⁵ traditions like wood-carving, painting and cloth-making. At one booth, you can listen to a demonstration⁶ about the culture of drinking.

SPEAKER: The name for Bhutan in Bhutanese is druk…D-R-U-K. And Druk is a thunder dragon. This session is on how the dragon drinks. What do we drink? We drink alcohol. Then we drink tea!

The speaker gave a careful explanation of the respectful way to drink tea when you are invited to visit a Bhutanese home. If listening to this makes you thirsty, you can try Bhutanese drinks -- or food.

We tried the national dish of Bhutan, Ema Datsi. It is made from chilies⁷ and cheese and served with red rice. It was very spicy⁸ hot, but very delicious.

(MUSIC)
　

Fiddlin' Frenchie Burke gets an audience member to help him play the fiddle9

A few steps away, festival visitors enter a whole other world, the culture of the southwestern American state of Texas. Known as the "Lone¹⁰ Star State," Texas has a rich culture and history. The festival has two performance stages for Texas music. You can hear the fast playing of Fiddlin' Frenchie Burke. He can play his fiddle backwards¹¹, forwards and upside down.

Or you can hear cowboy songs performed by the Gillette Brothers from Crockett, Texas.

(MUSIC)

There are also bands playing Tejano, Creole, mariachi, and polka music.

The Texas area of the Folklife Festival also has a booth where you can learn about wine made in the state. And, there is a stage where experts talk about the state's many food traditions. For example, you can learn about the influences of cowboy, Mexican and Vietnamese cooking. Then you can taste examples at one of the festival's three Texas food sellers.

The festival's third subject is not one you might expect at a folklife event. Faith Lapidus tells us about it.

FAITH LAPIDUS:
　

Part of the NASA exhibit on the Mall

The United States space agency is also represented at the Folklife Festival. NASA is celebrating its fiftieth anniversary this year. Space exploration may not seem to fit with the themes of folklife in Bhutan or Texas. NASA says the people who work at the agency usually discover new things rather than preserve old traditions. But the culture of engineers and scientists represents a community with special work skills that are an important part of American life.

About two hundred scientists, educators, engineers and astronauts are taking part in the NASA exhibit at the festival. They give talks, answer visitors' questions, demonstrate current space technology and suggest future developments.

In one discussion at the main tent called Exploration Stage, experts talk about the reasons we explore space. Steven Dick is chief historian for NASA. He was joined by chief NASA scientist, James Garvin, and curator of the National Air and Space Museum, Roger Launius. They discuss how space science has taught us about events in the distant past like the formation of the moon's surface. They offer reasons why it is important to return to the moon. And they make some predictions about the next fifty years.
　

Issa Nesnas, right, and Jeffrey Edlund of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory show visitors the inside of the exploration robot Axel

One popular talk is about the space shuttle, the only reusable spaceship ever made. Former astronaut Carl Walz describes what it was like to experience a shuttle launch. He says nothing prepares first time astronauts for the sudden, shaking force of the powerful rocket engines.

There are also many demonstrations¹² of space technology at the NASA exhibit -- from rocket engines to spacesuits. A team from the California Institute of Technology and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory show a robot. It is designed to be lowered from a lander, like the Mars rover, into craters¹³ to gather soil and take pictures.

There is so much at the NASA exhibit that it is impossible to describe it all here. But the NASA employees who have come to the Folklife Festival are showing their special culture of discovery and adventure.

(MUSIC)

John Philip Sousa

HOST:
　

John Philip Sousa

Our listener question this week comes from Brazil. Tino Therezo likes the music of American composer John Philip Sousa and asks if he was of Portuguese¹⁴ ancestry¹⁵.

Indeed, he was. John Philip Sousa was born in Washington, D.C., in eighteen fifty-four. His father was born in Spain of Portuguese parents. His mother was Bavarian.

John was six when he began learning to play the violin and write music. His father was a musician in the United States Marine¹⁶ Band. John joined him in the Marine Corps¹⁷ as a special "apprentice¹⁸" or learning musician when he was just thirteen. He remained in the band until he was twenty.

In eighteen eighty, Sousa became leader of the Marine Band. He wrote this song, "Semper Fidelis," a few years later in honor of the officers and men of the Marine Corps. It is the official march of the Marine Corps.

(MUSIC)

In eighteen eighty-nine, the Washington Post newspaper asked Sousa to write a march for a contest the paper was having. "The Washington Post March" is still popular today. The song led to Sousa's nickname as the "March King." He wrote more than one hundred thirty marches in all.

(MUSIC)

Friday is a special day in the United States. On July fourth Americans celebrate Independence Day. People around the country celebrate the holiday with picnics, fireworks, parades and music. We leave you with "The Stars and Stripes Forever," the official march of the United States, written by John Philip Sousa.

(MUSIC)

HOST:

I'm Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program today.

It was written by Caty Weaver¹⁹, Mario Ritter and Dana Demange, who was also our producer. To read the text of this program and download audio, go to our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com.

Send your questions about American life to [email protected]. And please include your full name and where you are from. Or write to American Mosaic, VOA Special English, Washington, D.C., two-zero-two-three-seven, U.S.A.

Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA's radio magazine in Special English.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 mosaic   

n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的

参考例句：

• The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
• The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。

3 doughty   

adj.勇猛的，坚强的

参考例句：

• Most of successful men have the characteristics of contumacy and doughty.绝大多数成功人士都有共同的特质：脾气倔强，性格刚强。
• The doughty old man battled his illness with fierce determination.坚强的老人用巨大毅力与疾病作斗争。

4 Buddhist   

adj./n.佛教的，佛教徒

参考例句：

• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。
• In the eye of the Buddhist,every worldly affair is vain.在佛教徒的眼里，人世上一切事情都是空的。

5 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

6 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

7 chilies   

n.红辣椒( chili的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Some people like to harvest the plants, when the chilies are green. 一些人喜欢在辣椒长成绿色的时候就采摘。 来自互联网
• Sprinkle with scallions and sliced chilies and served hot. 洒上葱粒、辣椒丝，趁热上桌。 来自互联网

8 spicy   

adj.加香料的；辛辣的，有风味的

参考例句：

• The soup tasted mildly spicy.汤尝起来略有点辣。
• Very spicy food doesn't suit her stomach.太辣的东西她吃了胃不舒服。

9 fiddle   

n.小提琴；vi.拉提琴；不停拨弄，乱动

参考例句：

• She plays the fiddle well.她小提琴拉得好。
• Don't fiddle with the typewriter.不要摆弄那架打字机了。

10 lone   

adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的

参考例句：

• A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。
• She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。

11 backwards   

adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地

参考例句：

• He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
• All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。

12 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

13 craters   

n.火山口( crater的名词复数 )；弹坑等

参考例句：

• Small meteorites have left impact craters all over the planet's surface. 这个行星的表面布满了小块陨石留下的撞击坑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The battlefield was full of craters made by exploding shells. 战场上布满弹坑。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

14 Portuguese   

n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语

参考例句：

• They styled their house in the Portuguese manner.他们仿照葡萄牙的风格设计自己的房子。
• Her family is Portuguese in origin.她的家族是葡萄牙血统。

15 ancestry   

n.祖先，家世

参考例句：

• Their ancestry settled the land in 1856.他们的祖辈1856年在这块土地上定居下来。
• He is an American of French ancestry.他是法国血统的美国人。

16 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

17 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

18 apprentice   

n.学徒，徒弟

参考例句：

• My son is an apprentice in a furniture maker's workshop.我的儿子在一家家具厂做学徒。
• The apprentice is not yet out of his time.这徒工还没有出徒。

19 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。