VOA英语教学：美语训练班129（在线收听）

美语训练班129

 　　B: Welcome to American English Mosaic, I'm Mike Bond!

　　A: And I'm Lin Yang.

　　B: Getting a visa can be frustrating, but there are some ways to smooth out the process. We will offer you some tips in today's business etiquette.

　　A: 新版 iPhone的指纹识别是不是会带来更多商机? 我们在下面的节目中为你介绍。

　　B: And in words and idioms, we will learn what "swim against the tide" and "have the upper hand" means!

　　A: All coming up on this edition of American English Mosaic!

　　B: Now let's go into our first segment, Learn a word!

　　Learn A Word 1857 fingerprint

　　今天我们要学的词是 fingerprint. Fingerprint is spelled f-i-n-g-e-r-p-r-i-n-t, fingerprint. Fingerprint 是指纹的意思。The most noticeable new feature of the new iPhone 5S is its Touch ID, a fingerprint censor. 苹果5S最大的新功能是指纹识别。Apple says Touch ID can support up to five fingerprints. 苹果公司说，每部手机的指纹识别器最多能支持五个指纹。Industry experts say the fingerprint sensor could open doors for expanded use of mobile payment services. 业内专家说，指纹识别可以为更多的手机支付服务项目打开大门。好的，今天我们学习的词是 fingerprint, fingerprint, fingerprint...

　　A: It would be really cool if we could use our fingerprint to make bank payments! That way no one can forge your identity since everyone's fingerprints are unique.

　　B: Technology is indeed fascinating. Nowadays I can go out with only my smartphone, I can use it as a phone, as a wallet, as a camera, as a GPS...the sky is the limit!

　　A: True, true. But sometimes I do feel that we are overly connected with our smart devices. The first thing I do every morning is check my email and facebook messages, I'm pretty sure that's not healthy.

　　B: Maybe every once in a while you could swim against the tide by giving yourself a tech-free day!

　　A: Ha, good idea! And you mentioned a good idiom: swim against the tide. Let's listen to today's words and idioms and check it out!

　　Words and Idioms 881 Swim Against the Tide

　　美国习惯用语第 881 讲

　　在当今这个社交网站满天飞，所有人都忙着更新状态的时代，我朋友 Laurie 却全然不为所动，绝不随大流。这也让我想起一个可以跟大家分享的习惯用语，叫：

　　M: Swim against the tide. Swim is spelled s-w-i-m, and tide; t-i-d-e. Swim-against-the-tide.

　　大家都知道，swim 意思是游泳;tide 意思是潮流。to swim against the tide 顾名思义，就是逆着潮流而行。我朋友 Laurie 就是这个习惯用语的化身。别人都在忙于上网社交的时候，她却我行我素，She is swimming against the tide. 逆着潮流而行。在下面的例子里，一些部门经理开会不拿手提电脑，而是返朴归真，重新拿起笔记本。我们一起听。

　　M: "There's no shortage of laptops at business meetings. But more than a few of us are starting to SWIM AGAINST THE TIDE. We're using old-fashioned notebooks instead. Not only are they easier to access, but they also don't require batteries."

　　这段话是说：商业会议上，到处都是手提电脑，但是也有象我这样的一些人却反潮流而进，回去使用老式的笔记本，笔记本不仅更加方便携带，而且还不需要电池。

　　我也听人说起过现在的这种趋势。这些商业管理人员其实不并是反对科技进步，但是他们意识到，其实笔记本真的要比手提电脑更好用。好的，让我们再来听听上面那段话。

　　M: "There's no shortage of laptops at business meetings. But more than a few of us are starting to SWIM AGAINST THE TIDE. We're using old-fashioned notebooks instead. Not only are they easier to access, but they also don't require batteries."

　　在英语里，有一个词，专门用来形容反对科技进步的人，叫 luddite, luddite is spelled l-u-d-d-i-t-e. 1811年到1816年期间，一群英国工人发生暴动，捣毁了很多纺织机器，因为他们觉得，机械进步会减少就业机会。Luddite 这个词后来专门用来指反对技术进步的人。

　　美国前几年房地产市场火爆，很多新开发的房子都属于豪宅一类，有人觉得，这种房子其实并不实用。让我们听听下面例子里这个人是怎么说的：

　　M: "My friends have all bought bigger homes featuring master bedroom suites, gourmet kitchens, formal dining rooms, and lots of bathrooms. My wife and I would rather have a modest house that doesn't cost a lot to furnish and maintain. We realize we're SWIMMING AGAINST THE TIDE and that's fine with us."

　　这个人说：我朋友买的都是大房子，里面有主卧室，讲究的厨房，正式餐厅，还有好多洗手间。我和妻子更愿意要一个简单得多的房子，不需要太多钱去装修和保养。我们知道，这么做是在逆潮流而动，不过我们觉得这挺好。

　　跟 swim against the tide 相反的，是 swim with the tide 意思是随大流，顺着潮流而进。就我个人而言，我大多数时候都是 swim with the tide, 不过有时候，如果是我认准了的事情，我也一定会坚持自己的立场 swim against the tide。好，我们再来听一下上面那个例句。

　　M: "My friends have all bought bigger homes featuring master bedroom suites, gourmet kitchens, formal dining rooms, and lots of bathrooms. My wife and I would rather have a modest house that doesn't cost a lot to furnish and maintain. We realize we're SWIMMING AGAINST THE TIDE and that's fine with us."

　　在整个历史长河中，多少思想家、发明家、探险家，都是因为敢于挑战主流思想，换句话说，他们就是敢于 swim against the tide, 才最终推动了人类的进步。

　　好的，这次美国习惯用语就到此结束了。

　　M: Until next time.

　　下次节目再见。

　　M: This has been Words and Idioms.

　　A: I think a cozy home full of love is way better than a luxury house with no family quality time!

　　B: I completely agree. It's not about how many things you have in life, it's about who you can share them with.

　　A: That reminds me, I should probably pay a visit home...

　　B: Not without renewing your visa...

　　A: Right. My visa is expired. Thank you for reminding me.

　　B: And we will talk about this exact topic in today's business etiquette!

　　A: 如果你要去申请签证，赶快来听听如何应对签证官的问题吧!

　　礼节美语 Applying for a Visa I

　　王小姐到美国使馆签证，签证官 Bob Jones 受理她的申请。

　　B: Hello miss. Can I see your ticket number?

　　W: Sure, here you are. And here are my application forms as well.

　　B: Thank you miss...Wang. I'm Bob Jones and I'll be handling your application.

　　W: Nice to meet you Mr. Jones.

　　B: The first step is to determine your eligibility for a U.S. visa. Let's see here...you're applying for a special business visa. Why is that?

　　W: Well, my first order of business will be attending a conference in Seattle, but after that I intend to spend two weeks visiting my friends. I assumed a business visa would be required.

　　签证官Bob说，首先要决定，王小姐是否符合申请美国签证的标准，eligibility is spelled e-l-i-g-i-b-i-l-i-t-y, eligibility 是符合标准的意思。签证官问王小姐为什么要申请一种特殊商务签证，a special business visa.。王小姐解释说，她是先到西雅图开会，first order of business 意思是第一件要处理的事情，然后还准备去看朋友。

　　B: I think a regular visitor's visa should suffice. With this visa, you can stay in the United States for up to 90 days.

　　W: So I can attend conferences and do business on that visa?

　　B: Yes. You are free to do temporary business with this visa. If you were planning on setting up a new business in the U.S. you might need to apply for a long-term visa.

　　W: Oh, I see. I think 90 days is more than enough time.

　　签证官觉得，王小姐申请一般的旅游签证 a regular visitor's visa 就可以了，suffice is spelled s-u-f-f-i-c-e, suffice 是足够的意思，她凭旅游签证能在美国停留90天，而且也可以做生意。王小姐说，90天的时间已经足够了。

　　B: You said you plan to attend a conference. May I see your official invitation letter?

　　W: Of course...I've also attached two reference letters from my senior management who can confirm my itinerary.

　　B: I see. Your passport has quite a few international stamps in it. You do a lot of business traveling?

　　W: I'm out of the country almost half a year. I'm a Chinese antiquities consultant and advisor. Our company has an office in Zurich.

　　王小姐把会议方的邀请函 the official invitation letter 交给签证官，还附加了两份公司主管的信，证明她的行程，itinerary. 她说自己 I'm out of the country almost half a year. 每年几乎有半年的时间不在国内，签证官说王小姐护照上有 quite a few international stamps, 这里所说的 international stamps 是指入出境时在护照上盖的章。原来，王小姐是中国古迹专家，她所在的公司在苏黎世有办公处。

　　A: 王小姐申请赴美签证，签证官要确定她的eligibility, 是否符合标准。她要申请 regular visitor's visa, 普通旅游签证，需要提供official invitation letter, 官方邀请信。签证官说，王小姐的护照上有quite a few international stamps， 有很多出入境纪录。

　　B: It definitely helps if you have some travel records showing that you have complied with the terms of the visa.

　　A: You are lucky that you have an American passport. You don't need a visa to go to most of the places in the world.

　　B: Except the one place I really want to go...China!

　　A: Ha, that's true. Alright, 我们接着来听听签证官还需要什么东西吧

　　礼节美语 Applying for a Visa II

　　王小姐到美国使馆签证，签证官 Bob Jones 受理她的申请，Bob 得知王小姐是研究古迹的专家后，觉得这个行业很有意思。

　　B: Wow, that sounds like an interesting line of work. I see here you are a citizen of People's Republic of China.

　　W: That's correct.

　　B: According to United States law, I'm required to ask you some reasonably personal questions. Please understand that these are formalities and are required of everyone.

　　W: No problem. Ask away.

　　B: Do you have proof of your financial stability? I'll need to see a bank statement.

　　W: Yes. I remembered to bring my bankbook. Here you are.

　　签证官Bob说，王小姐从事的行业似乎很有意思，line of work 指的是工作，行业。签证官Bob说，他要问王小姐一些个人问题，these are formalities. formalities 意思是必要的形式。首先，签证申请人要证明自己的 financial stability 经济实力。

　　B: Have you ever been involved with terrorism or groups that support terrorism?

　　W: Absolutely not.

　　B: Do you have a criminal record in China?

　　W: No. Not even a parking ticket.

　　B: Ok...now I'm going to ask you sign a statement that affirms everything you just told me. If you sign this document, it's legally considered the same as swearing an oath in court. Do you affirm that everything you just told me is the truth?

　　W: I do.

　　签证官问王小姐是否参与过恐怖活动，be involved with 意思是参与，涉及。签证官又问，do you have a criminal record in China? 在中国有没有犯罪记录。王小姐回答说，她连违章停车的罚单都没吃过，违章停车的罚单在英语里叫 parking ticket. 签证官最后让王小姐在一份文件上签字，保证自己所说的一切属实。

　　B: Then please sign here. Thank you. Now I must inform you that anyone applying for a visa to the United States is required to have their fingerprints taken.

　　W: That's not a problem. So...how long before I'll know if my visa is approved.

　　B: The processing time is usually about 5 days. If there is some problem, you'll get a call or an email.

　　W: Excellent. Thank you for your assistance Mr. Jones, you've been a great help.

　　B: Not at all...just doing my job. Enjoy your trip to the United States.

　　W: I certainly will!

　　王小姐签好字，还要做指纹取样，按签证官说的，anyone applying for a visa to the United States is required to have fingerprints taken. 凡是申请入境美国签证的人，都要提取指纹。王小姐问签证申请几天才会有结果，签证官回答说，The processing time is about 5 days. 办理签证大约要五天的时间，如果有问题，会电话或是电邮通知申请人，签证官最后还预祝王小姐去美国旅程顺利。

　　A: 签证官还问了王小姐一些私人问题，比如有没有参加过恐怖组织，有没有犯罪记录，他解释说these are formalities, 这是必要的形式。王小姐还要证明她的financial stability, 经济实力，最后她在文件上签名，it equals to an oath in court, 在法律意义上就像是在法庭上发誓，保证自己所说的一切属实。

　　B: Submitting a visa application is a complicated process, but it's necessary. It can prevent illegal immigration and protects the local economy.

　　A: True. I have a friend who is a visa officer. He said after dealing with 20,000 visa applications, he could tell whether he would give the green light to an applicant just by seeing how he walks towards him!

　　B: Ha, that's like a walking lie detector! Alright, enough about visas, let's go ahead with our class.

　　A: Let's listen to another learn a word!

　　Learn A Word 1855 toss

　　今天我们要学的词是 toss. Toss is spelled t-o-s-s, toss. Toss 动词，是丢掉，扔掉的意思。Defense lawyers wanted the defendant's confession to be tossed out of court. 辩护律师希望法庭不考虑被告的认罪书。The fans were tossed out of the stadium for fighting. 这些球迷因为打架被驱逐出球场。A family was tossed out of Universal Studios because the dad wore a T-shirt with the word "police" on it. 一家人被环球影城赶了出去，因为父亲穿着的T恤衫上写这“警察”的字眼。好的，今天我们学习的词是 toss, toss, toss...

　　A: I think it's fair that the father was tossed out. Wearing a T-shirt that says "Police" could lead to other people having false perceptions of you.

　　B: True, but it is also important to protect a person's right to freedom of expression.

　　A: 没错! 好啦，我们来听今天的最后一个单元，学学 have the upper hand 这个短语是什么意思!

　　Words and Idioms 882 to have the upper hand

　　美国习惯用语第 882 讲

　　每年春天，我们几家人都会出去野餐，一个传统项目就是老少对阵的足球赛。父母一队，孩子一队，以前每年都是父母赢，可今年不知道为什么，孩子们好象突然间都长大了，大人根本追不上他们。这也让我想起一个习惯用语，叫：

　　M: To have the upper hand. Upper is spelled u-p-p-e-r. Upper. Hand is spelled h-a-n-d. Hand. To have the upper hand.

　　大家都知道，upper 是上面的;hand 是手。to have the upper hand 意思就是占优势，占上风。就好比我们两代人的足球赛，以前是父母人高马大，we had the upper hand. 如今孩子们个头追上我们了，速度又比我们快，因此 they have the upper hand. 他们开始占上风了。to have the upper hand 除了可以用来说人外，还可以用来指情绪。比如说，His feelings got the upper hand. 意思是他的情绪失去了控制。在今天的房地产市场中，买方还是卖方占据优势呢?我们一起听。

　　M: "Now that the housing market has slowed down, the buyers HAVE THE UPPER HAND. With fewer buyers in the market, the sellers are being forced to cut their prices."

　　这段话意思是：如今，房地产市场的成长速度开始放缓，买方开始占据优势，因为买房子的人比以前少了，所以卖房子的人不得不降价出售。

　　尽管如此，现在的房子还是贵得要命。

　　昨天看比赛，到中场的时候，我支持的队似乎还在占据优势，At half time, our team seemed to have the upper hand. 可谁知道，Our arch-rival gained the upper hand in the second half and beat us on our home turf. 我们的死对头下半场开始占上风，最后我们在自己的地盘上输掉了比赛。好的，让我们再来听听上面那段话。

　　M: "Now that the housing market has slowed down, the buyers HAVE THE UPPER HAND. With fewer buyers in the market, the sellers are being forced to cut their prices."

　　To have the upper hand 这个习惯用语源于一种古老的比赛。大家从下到上，一个接一个地轮流把手放在一根木棍上，谁的手落在最上面，谁就是比赛的赢家，或者说 the winner was the player with the upper hand. 在下面这个例子中，一群雇员要告自己的公司。让我们一起听听律师是怎么说的。

　　M: "The corporation really HAS THE UPPER HAND here. The employees can't dispute the corporation's settlement because they can't afford to stay out of work. The corporation therefore can offer them a ridiculously small amount."

　　这位律师说：在这种情况下，占上风的一方是公司。雇员因为无法承担不去工作的经济负担，所以不会质疑公司的解决方案，公司只要给他们少得可笑的一笔小钱就可以了事了。

　　这倒是真的。大多数情况下，个人跟大公司打官司，确实是大公司占优势，但这并不意味着公司一定会赢。比如说，美国生产万宝路牌香烟的菲利普?莫里斯公司就经常败诉。

　　再举个例子，最近，我们家用的电话公司为了跟对手争夺用户，推出了很多新的服务项目，结果市场份额大大地增加。It looks like they have the upper hand now. 现在看来，他们似乎占据了优势。好，我们再来听一下上面那个例句。

　　M: "The corporation really HAS THE UPPER HAND here. The employees can't dispute the corporation's settlement because they can't afford to stay out of work. The corporation therefore can offer them a ridiculously small amount."

　　好的，这次美国习惯用语就到此结束了。

　　M: Until next time.

　　下次节目再见。

　　M: This has been Words and Idioms.

　　A: Aw, Mike it's so cute how you think you always have the upper hand in our conversations.

　　B: Hmmmmm, well, as the old saying goes "I would challenge you to a battle of wits, but I see you are unarmed!"

　　A: 好了同学们，这次节目时间就到这里了。

　　B: Tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

　　A: See you next time!