美国有线新闻 CNN 刚果钴矿开采业使用童工引关注

 

This show is centered on an in-depth report that concerns child labor¹, a large African country and the element of cobalt. We're explaining how all those things are tied together.

First, the issue of child labor. The United Nations defines this as work done by children that puts them in danger or at?? a disadvantage. It might include slavery. It might include employing children who are too young to do a certain kind of work. It requires them to work instead of going to school or in addition to it. And child labor is against international law.

Despite that, a recent CNN investigation² found that child labor is used in mining cobalt. This was uncovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the DRC.

The Central African nation is the second largest country on the continent. It's home to about half of the cobalt in the world and in recent decades, the DRC has struggled with instability and conflict that may factor into why some of the cobalt that comes from there is mined from children.

Cobalt is a metallic³ element, atomic number 27 in the periodic table. It's used to make everything from paint and jet engines to steel, from gas and tile to batteries, especially the rechargeable kind. It's not just electric cars that utilize⁴ significant amounts of cobalt, though carmakers including Daimler, BMW and Volkswagen are all saying they're taking steps to insure their electric vehicles don't use cobalt that's mined by children.

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

3 metallic   

adj.金属的；金属制的；含金属的；产金属的；像金属的

参考例句：

• A sharp metallic note coming from the outside frightened me.外面传来尖锐铿锵的声音吓了我一跳。
• He picked up a metallic ring last night.昨夜他捡了一个金属戒指。

4 utilize   

vt.使用，利用

参考例句：

• The cook will utilize the leftover ham bone to make soup.厨师要用吃剩的猪腿骨做汤。
• You must utilize all available resources.你必须利用一切可以得到的资源。