VOA标准英语2010年-Underwater Explorer Jacques Cousteau R

Legendary¹ underwater explorer and filmmaker Jacques-Yves Cousteau was born 100 years ago this month (June 11, 1910). To celebrate Cousteau's remarkable² life and legacy³, National Geographic⁴ Books is publishing a memoir⁵ by his eldest⁶ son Jean-Michel, founder⁷ and president of the Ocean Futures⁸ Society.

Growing up with an adventurous⁹ father who loved to explore the world beneath the waves was exciting.

"As a kid, when I first put a tank on my back, I was seven years of age. My late brother was four and half. And we went and we started exploring the Mediterranean¹⁰ Sea," said Jean-Michel Cousteau.

Early on, Jean-Michel Cousteau says he started to learn from his father.

"He was telling us, not only our family, but more and more the public, 'Don't use the ocean as a garbage can, as a universal sewer¹¹ because it's a life support system.

In his memoir, My Father, The Captain, Cousteau examines his relationship with the pioneering explorer.

"My dad was my father, of course, he was a friend in many ways and he was also my boss when we were working. And so I had to juggle¹² that all the time," he said.

Jean-Michel Cousteau explains how Jacques Cousteau became fascinated with the ocean, and how curiosity and determination was the driving force behind his achievements.  Jacques-Yves Cousteau had always wanted to see more and deeper, and to stay longer underwater.  He created what was required to do that, from the Aqua-Lung, better known by the acronym¹³ scuba¹⁴, to submersibles.

"That gave him the freedom to swim like a fish with a camera and be able to record what he was seeing," noted¹⁵ Jean-Michel Cousteau.  "Because of that, over time he realized that we were abusing the ocean, but people up there didn't know that because they had never seen what was underwater."

Jean-Michel Cousteau says that's when his father realized he had a mission.

"The mission was to communicate with people more and more and more about what was there and he used to tell me all the time - and I quote him, 'People protect what they love.' So it's a matter of exposing people and making them care and love and want to protect," he added.

Jacques Cousteau exposed people to the undersea world through dozens of films and documentaries.  He won three Academy Awards, including best documentary in 1956 for "The Silent World," and again in 1964 for "World Without Sun." 

As an environmentalist and a filmmaker, Jean-Michel Cousteau is continuing his father's mission. His upcoming TV project deals with the massive oil spill in the Gulf¹⁶ of Mexico.

"It's going to affect the marine¹⁷ life.  It's not only the fishing industry, the tourism industry, the hotel industry, the restaurants, the gift shops, transportation, taxis and so on… All of that is being affected¹⁸ right now.  So it's a major, not only an environmental, but human catastrophe," he noted.

Jean-Michel Cousteau is working to ensure that his father's legacy will inspire more people around the world to learn about our oceans, seas and rivers, care about them and protect them.

 

1 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

2 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

3 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

4 geographic   

adj.地理学的，地理的

参考例句：

• The city's success owes much to its geographic position. 这座城市的成功很大程度上归功于它的地理位置。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Environmental problems pay no heed to these geographic lines. 环境问题并不理会这些地理界限。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

5 memoir   

n.[pl.]回忆录，自传；记事录

参考例句：

• He has just published a memoir in honour of his captain.他刚刚出了一本传记来纪念他的队长。
• In her memoir,the actress wrote about the bittersweet memories of her first love.在那个女演员的自传中，她写到了自己苦乐掺半的初恋。

6 eldest   

adj.最年长的，最年老的

参考例句：

• The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
• The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。

7 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。

8 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

9 adventurous   

adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的　

参考例句：

• I was filled with envy at their adventurous lifestyle.我很羨慕他们敢于冒险的生活方式。
• He was predestined to lead an adventurous life.他注定要过冒险的生活。

10 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

11 sewer   

n.排水沟，下水道

参考例句：

• They are tearing up the street to repair a sewer. 他们正挖开马路修下水道。
• The boy kicked a stone into the sewer. 那个男孩把一石子踢进了下水道。

12 juggle   

v.变戏法，纂改，欺骗，同时做；n.玩杂耍，纂改，花招

参考例句：

• If you juggle with your accounts,you'll get into trouble.你要是在帐目上做手脚，你可要遇到麻烦了。
• She had to juggle her job and her children.她得同时兼顾工作和孩子。

13 acronym   

n.首字母简略词，简称

参考例句：

• That's a mouthful of an acronym for a very simple technology.对于一项非常简单的技术来说，这是一个很绕口的缩写词。
• TSDF is an acronym for Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities.TSDF是处理，储存和处置设施的一个缩写。

14 scuba   

n.水中呼吸器

参考例句：

• I first got hooked on scuba diving when I was twelve.12岁时我开始迷上了带水中呼吸器潜水。
• While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。

15 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

16 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

17 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。

18 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。