VOA慢速英语2009年-AMERICAN MOSAIC - And the Winner Is: Netfl

HOST:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC¹ in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

I'm Doug Johnson. This week on our program:

We listen to music by several bluegrass award nominees³ …

And answer three listener questions about the United States.

But first, we tell about a million dollar software competition.

(MUSIC)

HOST:

Netflix is the world’s largest online movie rental⁴ service. It started in nineteen ninety-eight. It now has ten million paying members in the United States. This week it named the winners of a million dollar competition to improve its system for suggesting movies to its members. Jim Tedder⁵ tells about the company and the unusual competition.

JIM TEDDER:

Netflix was a simple idea that took off like a wildfire. A person pays a monthly fee to become a member. Members can order a certain number of movies from the Netflix Web site.

The DVDs are sent and returned through the mail very quickly. Netflix members do not have to go to the video store to get movies or to return them. And they can keep their movies for as long as they want. But, they cannot order new ones until they return the ones they have. Members can also watch some movies and television shows directly on their computers or televisions.

The Netflix Web site has almost any movie or television series members could want to see. If they have trouble choosing, the Web site has a built-in suggestion system. Members can note how much they liked a movie they just watched. Netflix then suggests other movies based on those ratings. It does so by comparing the movies the member has rated with all the movies on the site.

But several years ago, Netflix officials decided⁶ they were not satisfied with the system for suggesting movies. So they decided on an unusual way to improve the system. They announced a prize of one million dollars to a team who could design computer software that did a better job of predicting which movies members would like.

That was in October of two thousand six. More than forty thousand teams from almost one hundred ninety countries competed.

On September twenty-first, a team called BellKor’s Pragmatic Chaos⁷ was named the winner of the Netflix Prize. The seven team members are from Austria, Canada, Israel and the United States. They include computer engineers, statisticians and machine-learning experts. At one point in the competition the team members had been opponents, but they joined forces to increase their chances of winning.

Netflix founder⁸ Reed Hastings praised the winners and competitors. He said the contest was as exciting as a movie. And, minutes after awarding the prize, Netflix announced a second one million dollar competition to improve the system even more.

(MUSIC)

HOST:

This week we answer three listener questions. Maggie Chen in Taiwan wants to know about fraternities in the United States. Fraternities and sororities are social organizations for undergraduate college students. The words are based on the Latin words for brother and sister.

In general, fraternities are for men, while sororities are for women. These groups are known as Greek letter societies or as being part of the Greek system. This is because most fraternities and sororities are named after a series of Greek letters, such as Alpha Delta⁹ Pi or Sigma Phi. Some of these groups date back to the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Each group has a set of traditions about how new people become official members.

Often, members of a fraternity or sorority live together in a large house on campus. But they are also part of a national network of members. Different groups have different goals. These include community service, academic excellence¹⁰ or -- having parties.
　
A detail of a recruiting poster used during World War One

Our second question comes from Somalia. Abdiaziz wants to know about the term “G.I.” There are several answers to this question. The abbreviation is most commonly used to mean an American soldier. This began around World War Two. But before this time, G.I. was an unofficial military term for describing army supplies made out of galvanized iron. This term was soon used to describe army supplies in general that were government issue.

Our last question is from Brazil. Romulo Veloso wants to know about the imaginary man known as “Uncle Sam.” The name is used to represent the federal government of the United States. Uncle Sam is pictured as a serious old man with white hair who is dressed in America’s colors of red, white and blue.

The most common answer historians give is that the name came from Samuel Wilson. He supplied meat to the American Army during the War of Eighteen Twelve. The meat came in containers with “U.S.” written on them, which was short for the United States. Mister Wilson’s workers said the letters really meant their employer, “Uncle Sam.”

Soon, an imaginary Uncle Sam began to appear in cartoons to represent the government. Images of Uncle Sam were also used on signs during World Wars One and Two to persuade Americans to join the Army.

(MUSIC)

HOST:

Next week, the International Bluegrass Music Association will hold its twentieth yearly awards ceremony at the Ryman Auditorium¹¹ in Nashville, Tennessee. The event on October first will honor some of the biggest names in bluegrass music. Shirley Griffith plays music from some of this year’s nominees.

(MUSIC)

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH:
　
Alecia Nugent

That was the song “Hillbilly Goddess” by Alecia Nugent. This Louisiana native is a nominee² for Female Vocalist of the Year. She has been playing music since she was a little girl. Her songs combine the sounds of bluegrass and country music.

Dan Tyminski is a singer and guitarist with Alison Krauss and her Union Station band. But he recently put together his own group, the Dan Tyminski Band, and recorded his own album, “Wheels.”

The album has received nine International Bluegrass Music Award nominations¹² — not bad for a side project. Tyminski and his album are nominated for awards including Album of the Year, Entertainer of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year. Here is the song “Wheels.”

(MUSIC)

Actor and writer Steve Martin is another nominee who is taking a break from his main jobs to make music. His album of banjo music, “The Crow,” has received six International Bluegrass Music Award nominations. Here Martin plays “Late for School.”

(MUSIC)

We leave you with a song by Danny Paisley and the Southern Grass. “Don’t Throw Mama’s Flowers Away” is nominated for Song of the Year.

(MUSIC)

HOST:

I'm Doug Johnson. Our program was written by Caty Weaver¹³ and Dana Demange, who was also the producer. For transcripts¹⁴, MP3s and podcasts of our programs, go to voaspecialenglish.com. You can also comment on our programs.

Do you have a question about people, places or things in America? You can send it to [email protected] and we may answer it on this show. 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 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

3 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

4 rental   

n.租赁，出租，出租业

参考例句：

• The yearly rental of her house is 2400 yuan.她这房子年租金是2400元。
• We can organise car rental from Chicago O'Hare Airport.我们可以安排提供从芝加哥奥黑尔机场出发的租车服务。

5 tedder   

n.（干草）翻晒者，翻晒机

参考例句：

• Jim Tedder has more. 吉姆？特德将给我们做更多的介绍。 来自互联网
• Jim Tedder tells us more. 吉姆？泰德给我们带来更详细的报道。 来自互联网

6 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。

7 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

8 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

9 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

10 excellence   

n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德

参考例句：

• His art has reached a high degree of excellence.他的艺术已达到炉火纯青的地步。
• My performance is far below excellence.我的表演离优秀还差得远呢。

11 auditorium   

n.观众席，听众席；会堂，礼堂

参考例句：

• The teacher gathered all the pupils in the auditorium.老师把全体同学集合在礼堂内。
• The stage is thrust forward into the auditorium.舞台向前突出，伸入观众席。

12 nominations   

n.提名，任命( nomination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nominations are invited for the post of party chairman. 为党主席职位征集候选人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Much coverage surrounded his abortive bids for the 1960,1964, and 1968 Republican Presidential nominations. 许多消息报道都围绕着1960年、1964年和1968年他为争取提名为共和党总统候选人所做努力的失败。 来自辞典例句

13 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。

14 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