VOA慢速英语20060922b

AMERICAN MOSAIC¹ - For Americans, New Passports Hold Memories of the Electronic KindBy Brianna Blake and Dana Demange

Broadcast: Friday, September 22, 2006

HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC, in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

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

We answer a question about American actor Kirk Cameron ...

Play some music from Susan Cagle ...

And report about a new kind of American passport.

New Passport

The United States has begun providing new, electronic passports for its citizens. State Department officials say the new passports are designed to improve border security and travel. Mario Ritter has more.

MARIO RITTER:


New electronic passport

The new electronic passport is the same as the traditional United States passport except that it contains a small computer chip in the back cover. The chip holds the same information as normal, paper passports. This includes the person's name, birth date, and place of birth. The State Department says the information contained on the chip can only be read using a special device at airports.

The chip also stores a computerized version of the passport photograph. This will help border security workers to identify the person pictured on the passport. Officials say the information stored on the chip will make it more difficult to illegally change information on the passport. The chip in the passport uses technology that is already commonly used in credit cards and other secure documents.

However, some privacy² groups are concerned about the security of the electronic information stored in the chips. Last month, a German security expert showed how information on the passport could be copied and moved to another device.

But State Department officials say the electronic passport provides a higher level of security than the old version. They say the new passport contains materials that prevent information from being easily read off the chip.

The United States passport agency in the state of Colorado is producing the new electronic passports. Other agencies throughout the country will produce them in the coming months. However, Americans who still have the old passports will be able to use them until they are no longer in effect.

Kirk Cameron


Kirk Cameron

Our VOA listener question this week comes from China. Jin Yan asks about American actor Kirk Cameron.

Kirk Cameron is best known for the part he played on the popular television show, Growing Pains. The show was broadcast from nineteen eighty-five to nineteen ninety-two. Kirk began acting³ at age nine. He was just fourteen years old when the television series began. On the show, he played Mike Seaver, a young man who kept people laughing with his jokes and by getting into trouble.

Since then, Kirk Cameron's life has taken a different path. He appeared in some films, including two Growing Pains movies. He also acted in movies based on the popular Christian⁴ Left Behind books. Cameron's work is now centered on his religion.

While working as a child television actor, Cameron says he and his family did not attend religious services. He did not believe in God. But when he was sixteen years old, a friend invited Cameron to a church service. He says the message spoken that day got him thinking more about his life. He became interested in reading the Christian holy book, the Bible. Cameron says his life felt empty even though he was a famous actor and had more money than most people his age. But he says things began to change after he became a Christian.

Kirk Cameron currently⁵ leads a ministry⁶, an organization that works to help bring people to the Christian religion. The ministry is called The Way of the Master. It helps young people share their beliefs with others. The ministry creates books and teaching materials. It also has a Web site. Cameron does not have any formal training in religion, but says he feels he is doing important work.

Kirk Cameron now travels around the country speaking at schools, churches, and community events. He also produces and appears on a television and radio program called The Way of the Master. The program won the National Religious Broadcaster's award for Best Program of the Year in two thousand five.

Susan Cagle

HOST:

In big American cities you can often see musicians playing on street corners,
'Susan

in parks or even in public transportation areas. But not many artists become famous this way. Susan Cagle is an interesting exception. She has become successful playing her lively music in New York City underground train stations. Now, she has made a new album with a major record company. Faith Lapidus tells us about her and plays some of her music.

(MUSIC)

FAITH LAPIDUS:

If you listened carefully to that song, Shakespeare, you might have heard the sounds of an underground train. That is because Susan Cagle's album was recorded among the trains and tunnels of New York City's subway system. Not surprisingly, the album is called The Subway Recordings⁷.

Susan Cagle has been playing music most of her life. As a child, her parents and nine brothers and sisters traveled around the world giving street performances. They traveled to spread news about their religious group. Susan learned to sing by the age of four. By age seven she could play the guitar. When Susan grew up, she decided⁸ to separate from the religious group. She also started to perform alone.

Here is Manhattan Cowboy. It is about finding love in New York.

(MUSIC)

Susan Cagle began playing in the New York City subway five years ago. She soon became very popular and large crowds gathered to listen to her. She sold thousands of CD recordings she made herself. Cagle says she loves the way her music sounds late at night as it expands and echoes⁹ off the subway walls.

But she says performing there is not always easy. To play music legally in the New York City subway, Cagle had to get a permit from the city. Also, subway performers can become aggressive as they compete for popular stations that have large crowds. We leave you now with Stay. Susan Cagle sings about deciding to make New York City her home.

(MUSIC)

HOST:

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

Our show was written by Brianna Blake and Dana Demange. Caty Weaver¹⁰ was our producer. To read the text of this program and download audio, go to our Web site, www.unsv.com.

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 privacy   

n.私人权利，个人自由，隐私权

参考例句：

• In such matters,privacy is impossible.在这类事情中，保密是不可能的。
• She wept in the privacy of her own room.她在自己房内暗暗落泪。

3 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

4 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

5 currently   

adv.通常地，普遍地，当前

参考例句：

• Currently it is not possible to reconcile this conflicting evidence.当前还未有可能去解释这一矛盾的例证。
• Our contracts are currently under review.我们的合同正在复查。

6 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

7 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

8 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。

9 echoes   

回声，共鸣( echo的名词复数 )； （言语、作风、思想等的）重复； 重复者； [无线电]回波

参考例句：

• The sound echoes back from the walls. 这声音从墙壁发出回声。
• I could hear the echoes in this temple. 我在这座庙里能听到回声。

10 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。