AMERICAN MOSAIC - Where Do Martians Go When They're in Seatt

AMERICAN MOSAIC¹ - Where Do Martians Go When They're in Seattle?
By Brianna Blake and Dana Demange

Broadcast: Friday, June 24, 2005

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HOST: Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC, in VOA Special English.

I'm Doug Johnson. On our show this week:

Music from Les Paul …

A question from a listener about where Americans spend their holiday …

And a report about the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame.

Science Fiction Hall of Fame and Museum

Martian invasion: Detail from "War of the Worlds Endpaper #1," a 2000 painting by Thomas Kidd. The work is part of an exhibit on the continued popularity of "The War of the Worlds," written by H.G. Wells and first published in 1898.

 
Most museums present information about the past. One museum takes visitors into the future. Well, at least people's ideas about the future. The Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame in Seattle, Washington, combines the real and imaginary of science. Gwen Outen tells us more.
GWEN OUTEN: Could space creatures be real? Will visitors from another planet come to Earth? A visit to the Science Fiction Museum offers a chance to explore theories about the future. The museum also explains the influence science fiction has had on our modern beliefs about the world. The museum shows that while science fiction was unpopular eighty years ago, it is now at the center of our culture.

The museum's exhibits include rare science fiction books and interesting objects from films.

The collection is organized into different areas such as weapons, space creatures, and the future. Visitors can see objects from famous science fiction films and television shows. These include guns from the popular television show "Star Trek³." Clothes worn by actors in the nineteen eighty-two film, "Blade Runner" share an exhibit with clothes worn by real astronauts. The exhibit called "The Changing Face of Mars" examines the past, present and future of the "Martians" and their Red Planet.

In a separate area, the Science Fiction Hall of Fame honors the lives and work of science fiction's greatest creators. Four new members were added this year. They include American filmmakers Steven Spielberg and Ray Harryhausen. Mister Spielberg is well known for his films including "E.T.:The Extra-Terrestrial," "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence" and "Jurassic Park." Mister Harryhausen created memorable⁴ films including "The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad," and "Clash of the Titans."

Among other Hall of Fame members is Mary Shelley, who wrote the book "Frankenstein" in the year eighteen eighteen.

In past years, only writers had been honored in the Hall of Fame. This year, the awards were expanded to include other professions. There are now forty members in the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. Each member is honored with his or her image on a wall, personal objects and professional works.

Americans on the Move

 
 
HOST: In their free time, Americans love to travel. A middle school student in China asks where Americans like to go when they travel.

Although the cost of travel is rising, Americans will be traveling in record numbers this summer. Studies show that Americans' holiday travel will increase two percent this summer, compared to last summer. The Travel Industry Association of America completed the recent study.

Three out of four Americans plan to visit friends and family this summer. Seventy percent will go to a beach or lake. And sixty-four percent will visit small towns or farming areas. Others will visit big cities, national or state parks or historic areas. Still others will go camping or fishing or visit museums or amusement parks.

Public opinion studies found that travelers would most like to visit the states of Florida, California, Nevada and New York this summer.

One study said these are the top ten places Americans would like to visit: The Grand Canyon⁵, The Statue of Liberty, Yellowstone National Park and the White House and monuments in Washington, D.C. Other places on the list are Niagara Falls, the Hawaiian Islands, Mount Rushmore, the Redwood Forest, the Glaciers⁶ and the Fjords of Alaska and the Rocky Mountains.

All of the top ten places show the natural beauty or history of the United States.

When Americans travel, they often like to see something new, or get away from their usual surroundings. This year, three hundred twenty-eight million Americans are expected to travel more than eighty kilometers from their home.

Of those who will travel on holiday this year, about two-thirds said they will leave their state. About twenty percent will leave the country.

Travel spending by people in the United States also continues to rise. American travel spending is expected to reach more than five hundred fifty thousand million dollars.

However, high prices will be a consideration for travelers. Many will look for places to stay that do not cost as much, while others will take shorter trips.

Les Paul

 
 
HOST: What would rock and roll music sound like if you could not hear the guitar? For Les Paul, the inventor of the solid-body electric guitar, this was an important concern. Faith Lapidus tells us about him.

FAITH LAPIDUS: Les Paul was a young musician in the late nineteen twenties. He decided⁷ that the acoustic⁸ guitar was not loud enough for playing outside or in front of large groups of people. After years of experimenting, Les Paul created a guitar that could be powered by electricity and produce a much louder sound. This invention helped change the history of popular music.

The National Inventors Hall of Fame in Akron, Ohio recently added Les Paul to its list of important American inventors. Les Paul did not only create the solid-body electric guitar. He also invented new methods of recording⁹ music. He was one of the first musicians to combine several different recordings¹⁰ into one song.

In some of his music, he had as many as six recordings of himself playing different musical instruments. Here is an example of such a song. It is called "Brazil".

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Les Paul and his wife Mary Ford¹¹ made many records together. Les Paul wrote the songs and played the guitar while Mary Ford sang. Here is one of their hits from nineteen fifty-one called "How High the Moon".

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Les Paul is now ninety years old and still playing his guitar! We leave you with another number one hit by Les Paul and Mary Ford called "Vaya Con² Dios".

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HOST: I'm Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program.

Our show was written by Brianna Blake and Dana Demange. Caty Weaver¹² was our producer.

Send your questions about American life to [email protected]. Please include your full name and mailing address. 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 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。

2 con   

n.反对的观点，反对者，反对票，肺病；vt.精读，学习，默记；adv.反对地，从反面；adj.欺诈的

参考例句：

• We must be fair and consider the reason pro and con.我们必须公平考虑赞成和反对的理由。
• The motion is adopted non con.因无人投反对票，协议被通过。

3 trek   

vi.作长途艰辛的旅行；n.长途艰苦的旅行

参考例句：

• We often go pony-trek in the summer.夏季我们经常骑马旅行。
• It took us the whole day to trek across the rocky terrain.我们花了一整天的时间艰难地穿过那片遍布岩石的地带。

4 memorable   

adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的

参考例句：

• This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
• The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。

5 canyon   

n.峡谷，溪谷

参考例句：

• The Grand Canyon in the USA is 1900 metres deep.美国的大峡谷1900米深。
• The canyon is famous for producing echoes.这个峡谷以回声而闻名。

6 glaciers   

冰河，冰川( glacier的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Glaciers gouged out valleys from the hills. 冰川把丘陵地带冲出一条条山谷。
• It has ice and snow glaciers, rainforests and beautiful mountains. 既有冰川，又有雨林和秀丽的山峰。 来自英语晨读30分（高一）

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 acoustic   

adj.听觉的，声音的；(乐器)原声的

参考例句：

• The hall has a fine acoustic.这个大厅的传音效果很好。
• Animals use a whole rang of acoustic, visual,and chemical signals in their systems of communication.动物利用各种各样的听觉、视觉和化学信号来进行交流。

9 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

10 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐

11 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

12 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。