VOA慢速英语 2008 0321b

AMERICAN MOSAIC¹ - Jumping, Climbing and Running: Nothing Stands in the Way of Parkour
Also: The Environmental Film Festival in Washington. And music by the British band the Chemical Brothers. Transcript² of radio broadcast:
20 March 2008

 

HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC in VOA Special English. I’m Doug Johnson. On our show this week:

Music from the Chemical Brothers …

A question from Indonesia about the artful exercise of parkour …

And a look at Washington's Environmental Film Festival.

(MUSIC)

Environmental Film Festival

HOST:

For sixteen years, the Environmental Film Festival in Washington, D.C., has been showing movies that raise awareness³ about environmental issues. This year, the twelve-day festival is showing one hundred fifteen movies from thirty countries. Faith Lapidus has our story.

FAITH LAPIDUS:

Flo Stone created the Environmental Film Festival in Washington in nineteen ninety-three. She believed it was important for people to be able to see high-quality films about the environment and discuss them together. She felt the subject of the environment, examined with the artistry of filmmakers, could be an influential⁵ source of learning.

People can see these films in embassies⁶, movie theaters and museums around the nation's capital.
　

A scene from ''Edge of Eden: Living With Grizzlies7''

Some movies star wild animals. This year, in "Edge of Eden: Living With Grizzlies," Canadian filmmakers Jeff and Sue⁴ Turner explore the work of bear expert Charlie Russell. For over ten years Mister Russell worked to raise rescued baby bears in a protected area of eastern Russia.

"Edge of Eden" shows him playing with the bears, feeding them and even protecting them from larger wild bears. The movie makes a powerful statement about the need to protect these animals before they disappear from the wild.

In "Animals in Love" French director Laurent Charbonnier looks at the movements, songs and dances that eighty kinds of animals use in order to find a mate.

Some movies explore economic issues. One Kenyan movie examines the lives of people struggling to survive in the Kibera part of Nairobi. About a million people live in poverty in this area.
　

A scene from ''The Price of Sugar''

Another movie, "All in This Tea," looks at the way modern life has changed the traditions of the tea trade in China.

The movie "The Price of Sugar" examines the difficult life of Haitian immigrants working for sugar companies in the Dominican Republic.

And several movies at the festival are old favorites. These include the nineteen thirty-seven film "The River," a history of the Mississippi River by American director Pare Lorentz.

The Environmental Film Festival ends on Saturday, which is also World Water Day. All day around Washington, people can see movies about this most important of natural resources.

(MUSIC)

Parkour

HOST:
　

David Belle8 watches as John Rosenberg performs parkour

Our VOA listener question this week comes from Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Widi Nugroho wants to know about the activity called parkour. The aim in parkour is to jump, climb or run over and around any wall, staircase⁹, or fence blocking your path. Usually, this is done in a city environment. If you have seen the beginning of the James Bond movie "Casino Royale," then you have seen an excellent example of parkour.

The name comes from the French word parcours, which means route or path. A man who performs parkour is called a traceur. A woman is a traceuse.

A young Frenchman, David Belle, developed parkour in the nineteen nineties. His father’s stories of being a fireman as well as an acrobat¹⁰ influenced him. His childhood friend, Sebastien Foucan, is the actor shown in the “Casino Royale” movie. Foucan is considered to have developed free-running, which is a more artistic¹¹ and expressive¹² version of parkour.
　

David Belle

David Belle traveled to India and says one way he trained was by watching monkeys jump from tree to tree. But for Belle and others, parkour is as much a mental exercise as a physical one. The aim is to become so skillful, it is almost unnecessary to think about the different actions in running through a path full of barriers.

Parkour is not exactly a sport. It was not developed for competition. It is more about learning to control mind and body in difficult situations.

There are many basic movements in parkour. One example is where traceurs swing through the narrow space between two bars while keeping their body level with the ground. This is called the underbar. Other movements are the tic-tac and the kong vault¹³ jump.

Skillful traceurs seem to go against the laws of gravity.

The popularity¹⁴ has spread largely because of parkour videos and communities on the Internet. To see David Belle at work, you can search for his name on YouTube -- his last name is spelled B-E-L-L-E. Parkour is P-A-R-K-O-U-R.

And if you search on the Web, you might even find parkour groups performing their skills near you.

(MUSIC)

The Chemical Brothers

HOST:

The Chemical Brothers are a Grammy-winning British band. Their electronic music combines different influences such as hip-hop, rock and techno. Their songs are layers of sounds and sometimes voices, often sampling from other groups. Barbara Klein has more.

(MUSIC)

BARBARA KLEIN:
　

The Chemical Brothers

That was "Song to the Siren," one of the early tracks by the Chemical Brothers that helped introduce their music to the dance club scene in London.

Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons started performing together in nineteen ninety-two. They started as the Dust Brothers, but later changed the name.

Their first full-length album "Exit Planet Dust" came out in nineteen ninety-five. Here is "Life is Sweet".

(MUSIC)

The second album by the Chemical Brothers was "Dig Your Own Hole." It included "Block Rockin’ Beats" which became a number one hit in Britain. In the United States, it also earned the two musicians a Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental¹⁵.

(MUSIC)

Over the years, the Chemical Brothers have continued making albums while also performing in concerts and dance halls.

Their most recent album is called "We Are the Night." Last month, it won a Grammy for Best Electronic/Dance Album. And from that album, we leave you with the Chemical Brothers and "Do It Again."

(MUSIC)

HOST:

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

It was written and produced by Dana Demange. For transcripts¹⁶, MP3s and podcasts of our programs, go to voaspecialenglish.com.

Send your questions about American life to [email protected]. And 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 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

4 sue   

vt.控告，起诉；vi.请求，追求，起诉

参考例句：

• If you don't pay me the money,I'll sue you.如果你不付给我钱，我就告你。
• The war criminals sue for peace.战犯求和。

5 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

6 embassies   

n.大使馆( embassy的名词复数 )；大使馆全体成员

参考例句：

• The representatives of other countries have their embassies there. 许多国家都在此设有大使馆。 来自英语晨读30分（高二）
• Demonstrators protested outside the country's embassies all over Europe. 该国驻欧洲各国的大使馆外都有群众进行示威抗议。 来自辞典例句

7 grizzlies   

北美洲灰熊( grizzly的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Suns beat the Memphis Grizzlies 127-113 earlier Tuesday night. 在周二晚上早些时候，太阳以127：113击败孟菲斯灰熊。
• Whatever you do, do not blink.They're like grizzlies. 无论你做什么，别眨眼。他们跟熊有点相象。

8 belle   

n.靓女

参考例句：

• She was the belle of her Sunday School class.在主日学校她是她们班的班花。
• She was the belle of the ball.她是那个舞会中的美女。

9 staircase   

n.楼梯，楼梯间

参考例句：

• Footsteps on the staircase interrupted his train of thought.楼梯上传来脚步声，打断了他的思路。
• I crossed the staircase landing,and entered the room she indicated.我经过一个楼梯平台，走进她说的那个房间。

10 acrobat   

n.特技演员，杂技演员

参考例句：

• The acrobat balanced a long pole on his left shoulder.杂技演员让一根长杆在他的左肩上保持平衡。
• The acrobat could bend himself into a hoop.这个杂技演员可以把身体蜷曲成圆形。

11 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

12 expressive   

adj.表现的，表达…的，富于表情的

参考例句：

• Black English can be more expressive than standard English.黑人所使用的英语可能比正式英语更有表现力。
• He had a mobile,expressive,animated face.他有一张多变的，富于表情的，生动活泼的脸。

13 vault   

n.拱形圆顶，地窖，地下室

参考例句：

• The vault of this cathedral is very high.这座天主教堂的拱顶非常高。
• The old patrician was buried in the family vault.这位老贵族埋在家族的墓地里。

14 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

15 instrumental   

adj.仪器的，器械的，乐器的，起作用的，有帮助的

参考例句：

• It is an instrumental work.这是一部可以用乐器演奏的作品。
• He was instrumental in catching the criminal.在捉拿那个罪犯的过程中，他起了作用。

16 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句