【一起听英语】海豹探测器（在线收听）

澳大利亚的大堡礁世界闻名，科学家要利用海豹去探测海底的秘密，这是根据什么呢？

Callum: Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English, I'm Callum Robertson and with me today

is Kate, hello Kate.

Kate: Hello Callum.

Callum: Today we're going 'down under' - Kate, where's that, where's 'down under'?

Kate: 'Down under' means Australia.

Callum: And have you ever been there?

Kate: I have. My brother lives there and I've been to visit him twice.

Callum: Ah well, I hope that gives you a good chance of getting today's question right.

Today's question is about Australia and a part of Australia called the Great Barrier

Reef. Off which part of Australia is the reef? Is it …

a: North-east coast?

b: South coast?

c: North-west coast?

Kate: Well I've been to the Great Barrier Reef so I should know this, but let me get this

right. It's on the north-east coast, a:

Callum: We'll find out if you're right later on.

The Great Barrier Reef is perhaps one of the natural wonders of the world but it is

in danger from various environmental factors. Scientists are using elephant seals in 

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the Southern Ocean to help them understand what might be going to happen to the

reef. Now the Southern Ocean is the ocean south of Australia which includes the

Antarctic. So why are they using seals? Here's Phil Mercer, the BBC's reporter in

Australia.

Phil Mercer

The elephant seals of the Southern Ocean have been recruited by Australian scientists because of

their diving skills.

Callum: Kate, why are they using seals?

Kate: Well he said they were being used because of their diving skills.

Callum: And I can confirm they are excellent divers. I'm a keen scuba diver myself and a

few years ago I was lucky enough to go diving with seals, not in Australia, but in

the UK, and it was fantastic. They are very inquisitive animals. They follow you

around underwater and play with you and they are indeed fantastic divers.

We're going to hear more about what the seals are doing but first we need to cover

some useful vocabulary. In the next part of the report we hear about 'sensors'. Kate,

what's a 'sensor'?

Kate: Well a 'sensor' is a small electronic device that is used for taking measurements.

Callum: And another word we're going to hear is 'salinity'. 'Salinity'. What's that?

Kate: 'Salinity' is a noun for the level of salt in a liquid. The salinity of the sea is very

important, particularly to coral. If the salinity changes – which means if the level

of salt changes – it can damage or even destroy coral reefs.

Callum: Right, let's get back to the seals. Here's Phil Mercer with more about how they are

being used. How do the seals get information and how does that information get to

the scientists? 

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Phil Mercer

They spend much of the winter foraging for fish and squid under the sea ice. Small sensors glued

to the animals' heads, that measure salinity and temperature, are providing a rare glimpse into the

world beneath the waves. When the seals return to the surface the information is transmitted back

to Tasmania by satellite.

Callum: How do the seals get the information that scientists need?

Kate: Well as part of their normal behaviour they dive down under the ice, looking for

food. They have sensors stuck on their heads and these collect the information

about the salinity and temperature of the water. This information is then sent back

to the scientists in Tasmania by satellite when the seals surface, which means

when they come back from being underwater.

Callum: He says the seals are giving them 'a rare glimpse into the world beneath the waves'

– what does he mean by 'a rare glimpse'?

Kate: Well something that is rare, is unusual, it's not common and a glimpse is a word

for a quick look at something. So 'a rare glimpse into the world beneath the waves'

is a way to describe the special view the scientists are getting of what is happening

under the water.

Callum: Let's listen again.

Phil Mercer

They spend much of the winter foraging for fish and squid under the sea ice. Small sensors glued

to the animals' heads, that measure salinity and temperature, are providing a rare glimpse into the

world beneath the waves. When the seals return to the surface the information is transmitted back

to Tasmania by satellite.

Callum: So how is this information being gathered under the ice of Antarctica and sent to

Tasmania of use in predicting what is going to happen to the Great Barrier Reef?

Here's Phil Mercer again. 

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Phil Mercer

Government researchers in the state capital Hobart believe that changes off Antarctica are a

precursor to future events in the Great Barrier Reef.

Callum: Kate?

Kate: Scientists believe that what happens in Antarctica is a 'precursor to future events in

the Great Barrier Reef.' 'A precursor to' – this phrase means that they believe that

there is a connection between what is happening now in Antarctica and what will

happen in the future in the Great Barrier Reef.

Callum: Let's listen again.

Phil Mercer

Government researchers in the state capital Hobart believe that changes off Antarctica are a

precursor to future events in the Great Barrier Reef.

Callum: Phil Mercer there. Now just time to give the answer to this week's question which

was about the location of the Great Barrier Reef. Off which part of Australia is the

reef? Kate, you said …?

Kate: I said a: the north-east coast

Callum: And that's exactly the right answer, well done. Well that's all for today but do join

us again next time for more 6 Minute English. Goodbye.

Kate: Goodbye.