VOA慢速英语 2007 1001b

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Shirley Griffith. This week on our program, we take you to the East Coast for a boat trip on the Chesapeake Bay.

(SOUND)

VOICE ONE:

Ten passengers ease themselves carefully from the wooden dock¹ into the sightseeing boat. They have come to learn about the bay, or maybe just to enjoy an afternoon on the water under a bright blue sky.

The Chesapeake Bay is about three hundred twenty kilometers long. It passes through Maryland and Virginia. These along with four other states and the District of Columbia all have rivers and other bodies of water that flow into the bay.

 
Floodwaters from the Susquehanna River have sent trees, branches, road barriers and tires into the upper Chesapeake Bay.
VOICE TWO:                             

The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary² in the United States, and one of the largest in the world. An estuary is a coastal³ area that has one part that opens to the ocean and contains both saltwater tides and freshwater. The Chesapeake opens into the Atlantic Ocean in Virginia.

Some of the rivers that feed the bay have American Indian names like Potomac, Susquehanna and Rappahannock. The bay supported native societies for thousands of years. The name Chesapeake comes from an Algonquin Indian word often defined⁴ as "great shellfish bay."

VOICE ONE:

The sightseeing boat this afternoon is called Sharp’s Island. The captain is Mike Richards. As he pilots the boat away from Tilghman Island in Maryland, it glides⁵ by beautiful homes near the water. Some of the homes have yachts⁶ and other very nice boats tied a short walk from their back door.

The sun is warm but the water is cool. A young man laughs as he leans over the side of the boat into the wind and gets wet.

PASSENGER: "Just one, just one wave got me!"

The boat is moving quickly now. The wind, the motor and the sounds of the water against the sides are loud but also calming.

Ducks and Canada geese call out. Cormorants⁷ and blue herons raise their wings against the afternoon sky, then settle on wooden posts in the water. Some of these large birds are ready for a meal. Rockfish hang from their mouths.

VOICE TWO:

Someone on the boat comments that these are the same waters that Captain John Smith sailed long ago. Next year will be the four hundredth anniversary of when the British explorer mapped this bay.

The first mate for today's trip, Kate Richards, daughter of the captain, points at a long, empty piece of land. She identifies it as Poplar Island. Several passengers say they cannot see any poplars -- or any trees.

The passengers listen carefully as she explains that the island had been falling into the bay. Wind, storms and tides destroyed it.

KATE RICHARDS: "You will notice that there are no trees on Poplar Island at all. And that’s because this is brand-new."

VOICE ONE:

In nineteen ninety-six, government agencies approved a twenty-five-year project to save the island. An agreement directed the Baltimore District of the Army Corps⁸ of Engineers to rebuild Poplar Island. Many other agencies and the state of Maryland are also taking part. So are many volunteers. 

The project is costing hundreds of millions of dollars. The federal government agreed to pay seventy-five percent of the costs.

To rebuild the island, workers bring sand and other dredge material from the bottom of ship channels leading to the Port of Baltimore. The entrances to the port are being deepened⁹, so heavier ships can come and go.

 
A Osprey flies off with a fish from the Chesapeake Bay 
Today, Poplar Island is home to turtles and birds. The island has gained new life as a wildlife refuge¹⁰. Eagles, herons, osprey and egrets have their young there.

VOICE TWO:

Poplar Island has a colorful history. A settler named Daniel Cugley is said to have kept pigs on the island in sixteen thirty-two. Five years later, Indians killed the family of another settler, Richard Thompson. He was away at the time, traveling to trade fur.

The early eighteen hundreds were comparatively quiet, although British troops occupied the island during the War of Eighteen Twelve.

Next to occupy the island were black cats. In eighteen forty-four, a man bought the island to keep one thousand cats there. Historical records say he wanted to trade in black cat fur. Happily for the animals, the bay froze over in December. The cats escaped to the mainland.

VOICE ONE:

In the nineteen twenties, during the Prohibition¹¹ era, the United States banned alcohol. Poplar Island was used to produce it illegally. But this did not last. A local lawman poured the alcohol into the bay.

By this time, a lot of Poplar Island had dropped into the bay. The erosion¹² formed a small island that was named Jefferson Island. A clubhouse was built there. During the nineteen thirties it became a favorite weekend place for Democratic Party politicians and businessmen. The clubhouse burned down in nineteen forty-six.

The visitors to Jefferson Island included presidents Franklin Roosevelt and Harry¹³ Truman.

(SOUND)

VOICE TWO:

A passenger on the sightseeing boat catches sight of something floating in the distance. It looks huge and bright orange. A sea monster, someone jokes. No, a ship. When the ship is close enough, the sightseers read the company name: Wallenius Wilhelmsen. Captain Richards confirms it.

CAPTAIN RICHARDS: "Yeah, Wallenius Wilhelmsen. The ship is designed specifically for carrying automobiles¹⁴. That ramp¹⁵ falls down and they drive them off six cars abreast¹⁶."

So thousands of shiny new cars are on their way to the Port of Baltimore. And the ten passengers on the sightseeing boat are on their way to see more of the Chesapeake Bay.

VOICE ONE:

They get close looks at several lighthouses. One of them, within a kilometer and a half of shore, is called Bloody¹⁷ Point Bar Light. It was first lit on October first of eighteen eighty-two. Very soon, however, it began to lean to one side. Repeated attempts were made to balance it.

In eighteen eighty-five, for example, workers dropped hundreds of tons of stone around the tower. But even today, it looks a little like Italy’s leaning Tower of Pisa.

VOICE TWO:

In nineteen sixty a fire at the lighthouse nearly killed two members of the Coast Guard. They escaped. But the whole structure exploded. The fire began in an equipment area and reached the gas tank for the light.

Later, the light was redesigned to operate by itself. It still shines without the need for a human keeper. In the winter, it also sounds a horn to warn about fog, so ships do not get too close to the shore.

Over the years, time and nature have made changes to the lines of the Chesapeake shore. Humans also had an influence on the bay as Indian settlements grew into the cities of today. Pollution from farms and factories also found its way to the great Chesapeake.                 

VOICE ONE:

 
Traffic moves along the Chesapeake Bay Bridge 
From the water, the steel of the bridge over the Chesapeake Bay near Annapolis, Maryland, glows like silver in the sunlight. The bridge is officially named the William Preston Lane Junior Memorial Bridge, after a former Maryland governor. But most people call it the Bay Bridge.

It joins the eastern and western shores of Maryland. The bridge is about seven kilometers long. It was the largest continuous over-water steel structure in the world when it opened in nineteen fifty-two.

VOICE TWO:

The Chesapeake Bay is also known for something that the sightseers this afternoon will not be able to see unless they dive into the water.

The bay is famous for its fish and shellfish, including oysters¹⁸ and blue crabs¹⁹. People come from far away to enjoy it fresh. Scientists come to study the rich marine²⁰ environment. The bay has three hundred fifty kinds of fish alone.

But pollution and too much fishing have led to restrictions²¹ on the watermen who work on the Chesapeake. They are still known as watermen even though they include women.

Many people are interested in the future of the Chesapeake, and not just the watermen. A big program is working to clean up the bay.

VOICE ONE:

Last spring, twelve history fans set out to repeat much of John Smith’s travels on the Chesapeake four centuries ago. Their four-month trip took place in an open wooden boat like Captain Smith’s.

The hope is that in another four hundred years, the bay will still be beautiful and productive²². That means future generations will still be able to enjoy an afternoon of sightseeing on the Chesapeake.  

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Caty Weaver²³. I'm Shirley Griffith.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Steve Ember.

1 dock   

n.码头；被告席；vt.使(船)进港；扣；vi.进港

参考例句：

• We took the children to the dock to see the ships.我们带孩子们到码头去看轮船。
• The corrupt official stood in the dock.那贪官站在被告席上。

2 estuary   

n.河口，江口

参考例句：

• We live near the Thames estuary.我们的住处靠近泰晤士河入海口。
• The ship has touched bottom.The estuary must be shallower than we thought.船搁浅了。这河口的水比我们想像的要浅。

3 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

4 defined   

adj 定义的; 清晰的

参考例句：

• These categories are not well defined. 这些类别划分得不太明确。
• The powers of a judge are defined by law. 法官的权限是由法律规定的。

5 glides   

n.滑行( glide的名词复数 )；滑音；音渡；过渡音v.滑动( glide的第三人称单数 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔

参考例句：

• The new dance consists of a series of glides. 这种新舞蹈中有一连串的滑步。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The stately swan glides gracefully on the pond. 天鹅在池面上优美地游动。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 yachts   

n.快艇，帆船，游艇( yacht的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They have yachts available for charter. 他们有供包租的游艇。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We still sighted nine yachts. 我们还是看见了9艘游艇。 来自辞典例句

7 cormorants   

鸬鹚，贪婪的人( cormorant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The birds are trained cormorants. 那些鸟是受过训练的鸬鹚。
• The cormorants swim down and catch the fish, and bring them back the raft. 鸬鹚又下去捉住鱼，再返回竹筏。

8 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

9 deepened   

v.变深，加深( deepen的过去式和过去分词 )；加浓

参考例句：

• Their friendship soon deepened into love. 他们的友谊很快发展成为爱情。
• The gloom deepened as the election results came in. 选举结果陆续传来，失败的情绪越来越重。

10 refuge   

n.避难（处），庇护（所）；v.庇护，避难（所）

参考例句：

• They took refuge in a cave yesterday.他们昨天是在一个洞里避难的。
• We took refuge in the lee of the wall.我们在墙的背风处暂避。

11 prohibition   

n.禁止；禁令，禁律

参考例句：

• The prohibition against drunken driving will save many lives.禁止酒后开车将会减少许多死亡事故。
• They voted in favour of the prohibition of smoking in public areas.他们投票赞成禁止在公共场所吸烟。

12 erosion   

n.腐蚀，侵蚀，磨损，削弱，减少

参考例句：

• The erosion of beach here is serious.这里海岸的腐蚀很严重。
• Drought and soil erosion had long been a major problem.干旱和水土流失一直是个老大难问题。

13 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

14 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

15 ramp   

n.暴怒，斜坡，坡道；vi.作恐吓姿势，暴怒，加速；vt.加速

参考例句：

• That driver drove the car up the ramp.那司机将车开上了斜坡。
• The factory don't have that capacity to ramp up.这家工厂没有能力加速生产。

16 abreast   

adv.并排地；跟上(时代)的步伐，与…并进地

参考例句：

• She kept abreast with the flood of communications that had poured in.她及时回复如雪片般飞来的大批信件。
• We can't keep abreast of the developing situation unless we study harder.我们如果不加强学习，就会跟不上形势。

17 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

18 oysters   

牡蛎( oyster的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We don't have oysters tonight, but the crayfish are very good. 我们今晚没有牡蛎供应。但小龙虾是非常好。
• She carried a piping hot grill of oysters and bacon. 她端出一盘滚烫的烤牡蛎和咸肉。

19 crabs   

n.蟹( crab的名词复数 )；阴虱寄生病；蟹肉v.捕蟹( crab的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• As we walked along the seashore we saw lots of tiny crabs. 我们在海岸上散步时看到很多小蟹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The fish and crabs scavenge for decaying tissue. 鱼和蟹搜寻腐烂的组织为食。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

21 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

22 productive   

adj.能生产的，有生产价值的，多产的

参考例句：

• We had a productive meeting that solved some problems.我们开了一个富有成效的会议，解决了一些问题。
• Science and technology are part of the productive forces.科学技术是生产力。

23 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。