时间:2019-01-11 作者:英语课 分类:VOA慢速英语2009年(十)月


英语课

HOST:


Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC 1 in VOA Special English.


(MUSIC)


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


We play new music by young movie star Scarlett Johansson and guitarist Pete Yorn …


And answer a question about the American automobile 2 company General Motors …


But first, a report on a new mystery novel that is breaking sales records in adult fiction.


"The Lost Symbol"


HOST:


American writer Dan Brown has another mystery in the bookstores and people are buying the new novel in record numbers. "The Lost Symbol" takes place in Washington, D.C. over a period of just twelve hours. The mystery is linked to the Freemasons, a secret men's group with an estimated five million members around the world. Faith Lapidus has more.


FAITH LAPIDUS:
 
Dan Brown


Dan Brown's earlier novel, "The Da Vinci Code," was a very popular book.


Knopf Doubleday Publishing group released the book in two thousand three. It has since sold eighty million copies in forty-four languages. It was made into a popular movie. All in all, "The Da Vinci Code" made Dan Brown a very successful writer.


What that novel did not do, however, was sell one million copies the day of its release. That honor goes to Mister Brown's third book, "The Lost Symbol," released on September fifteenth. By the end of its first week on the market it had sold two million copies. The record-breaking sales made "The Lost Symbol" the fastest-selling adult novel in history. The book entered The New York Times Best Sellers list at the number one position on September twenty-fifth.


The novel re-visits the character of Robert Langdon, the Harvard University professor from Brown's first two books. Langdon is an expert on symbols. In this mystery, he is presented with a symbol tattooed 3 on a hand. The symbol itself might not be so unusual. But the hand has been recently disconnected from its body.


So begins the novel that takes Langdon hunting and hurrying around Washington, D.C., through museums, monuments and government buildings. The professor has a vicious 4 enemy to defeat, central intelligence agents to outsmart and a friend to save.


That friend is Peter Solomon, the secretary of the Smithsonian and a Freemason. The Freemasons are a secret society hundreds of years old with a whole set of mysterious symbols that only they know.


Book critics have been mixed in their reviews of "The Lost Symbol." But, the Web site Internet Movie Database 6 reports that the book is already "in development" to be a movie.


You can learn more about other popular authors who spoke 7 at the National Book Festival on the Special English program "This is America" on Monday.


General Motors


HOST:


Our question this week comes from China. Li Zhiwei wants to know more about the American automobile company General Motors.
 
General Motors hopes its partly electric powered car, the Chevy Volt 8, will help drive up sales


General Motors sold more than eight million cars and trucks last year. The company does business in one hundred forty countries. It sells most of its cars in the United States. Other large markets are China, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia and Germany. General Motors was the world's largest automaker from nineteen thirty-one until two thousand eight.


William Durant established the company in nineteen hundred eight in Flint, Michigan. Mister Durant had a new idea for a car company that produced many different kinds of cars. He wanted to offer different kinds of cars for rich people as well as middle-income people.


He used his stock in General Motors to buy other automobile companies. Within a few years he had brought together more than twenty different automobile and parts companies under the General Motors name. Many of the companies were small, weak and in debt.


By nineteen hundred ten General Motors had fallen into financial trouble. Bankers were forced to step in to save the company from financial ruin and Mister Durant was removed from control.


Over the years, General Motors grew and expanded. The company developed new and better production methods. And, it continued to improve its designs, offering customers many kinds of cars.


General Motors became the first automaker to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. And it was the first company to make more than a billion dollars in a year.


But last year, increasing gas prices and decreasing sales forced the company to seek billions of dollars in government aid in an attempt to avoid failure. In June, General Motors filed for chapter eleven bankruptcy 9. It sought protection from its creditors 10 while continuing operations. GM was one hundred seventy-two billion dollars in debt.


The company is currently 11 reorganizing. It has sold off its less profitable 12 kinds of cars, closed factories, cut jobs and closed sales centers.


GM is continuing to produce its four main brands - Cadillac, Chevrolet, Buick and GMC. The company is mostly owned by the United States government which has invested billions of dollars. And Toyota Motors now is the world's largest automaker.


Pete Yorn and Scarlett Johansson


HOST:


Actress Scarlett Johansson has gained widespread praise for her roles in movies. She has been nominated 13 for four Golden Globe Awards and has won all kinds of honors. Now, she has another starring role, only this time it is not on the big screen. Steve Ember has more.


(MUSIC)


STEVE EMBER:


"Relator" is the first song from the new CD "Break Up." Singer and songwriter Pete Yorn plays Scarlett Johansson's leading man in this musical story about love gone bad. It is Johansson's second album. She made her first album, "Anywhere I Lay My Head," last year.


Pete Yorn is the artistic 14 force behind the "Break Up" CD. His music first gained attention when his song "Strange Condition" was used in the soundtrack for the movie "Me, Myself and Irene."


Pete Yorn says the idea for the album was based on the songs of French entertainer Serge Gainsbourg and actress Brigitte Bardot. Listen to the nineteen sixties sound of "Search Your Heart."


(MUSIC)


Pete Yorn wrote eight of the nine songs on the "Break Up" CD. It was recorded three years ago. But he was busy performing. And Johansson was busy working on her movie career. Then she took time out to record her solo 5 CD. Then she got married to Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds. And Yorn got to work on another album. Finally, the "Break Up" CD arrived in stores last month. We leave you with "I Don't Know What To Do" from Pete Yorn and Scarlett Johansson.


(MUSIC)


HOST:


I'm Doug Johnson. Our program was written by June Simms and Caty Weaver 15 who was also the producer. For transcripts 16, 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 mosaic@voanews.comand we may answer it on this show.


Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA's radio magazine in Special English.



n./adj.镶嵌细工的,镶嵌工艺品的,嵌花式的
  • 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。
n.汽车,机动车
  • He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
  • The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。
v.刺青,文身( tattoo的过去式和过去分词 );连续有节奏地敲击;作连续有节奏的敲击
  • He had tattooed his wife's name on his upper arm. 他把妻子的名字刺在上臂上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The sailor had a heart tattooed on his arm. 那水兵在手臂上刺上一颗心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
adj.恶毒的,恶意的,凶残的,剧烈的,严重的
  • He gave the dog a vicious blow with his stick.他朝着那只狗狠狠地打了一棍子。
  • The author portrayed his father as a vicious drunkard.作者把他父亲描绘成一个可恶的酒鬼。
n.独奏,独唱;adj.单独的;adv.单独地;v.放单飞,单独表演
  • Tara is currently working on a solo album.塔拉眼下正忙着制作个人专辑。
  • There's wonderfully lyrical flute solo in the middle of this symphony.在交响乐中间有一段奇妙的抒情长笛独奏。
n.数据库 (=databank)
  • I discovered some new information in the database.我在资料库里发现了一些新信息。
  • We planned to build an online database.我们计划建一个联机数据库。
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
n.伏特,伏
  • You may use 100 and 110 volt appliances in your room.您可以在房间使用100及110伏特的电器。
  • The common service voltage of electric power in our country is 220/380 volt.我国普通供电电压为220/380伏。
n.破产;无偿付能力
  • You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产,就必须节省开支。
  • His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。
n.债权人,债主( creditor的名词复数 )
  • They agreed to repay their creditors over a period of three years. 他们同意3年内向债主还清欠款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》
adv.通常地,普遍地,当前
  • 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。
adj.有益的,能带来利益的,有利可图的
  • That business became profitable last year.那项生意去年变得很赚钱。
  • The convention business is very profitable for the hotel industry.承办会议业务能给旅馆业带来很高的利润。
adj.艺术(家)的,美术(家)的;善于艺术创作的
  • 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。
n.织布工;编织者
  • 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。
n.抄本( transcript的名词复数 );转写本;文字本;副本
  • 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
学英语单词
Ac flo
al ula
allotriomorphic
angleton
antenna array factor
apartheidized
articular sclerite
assisted take-off rocket
autolatinas
autoloaded
babbitted
ball diffuser
bediademed
Berlepsch's tinamou
bet one's bottom dollar
Bogoslovskite
Bond and Wang theory
cell attribute
chatou
circuit loading
co-pay
come to someone's ear
concessionaries
contract of marine insurance
Cowan screen
culicoides (culicoides) sumatrae
cuprometry
current information
daylight visibility
demilitarisations
draught indicating system
dromaeosaurine
earun
euxiphydria pseudoruficeps
evozine
fabric-reinforced seal
family Hexanchidae
farandine
fingerbreadth(s)
fixed review cycle
floor covers
forming-tool
fulling
gave the glad hand
gives in to
gravity dumper
hypothesize and test
ICI154129
interex
jading
Keep Britain Tidy
kernel of a morphism
Leptomyxida
light globe
long branch routine
Luanda
manahan
Merlucciinae
mucro sterni
musculus peroneus longus
Myosotis sparsiflora
navigation mesh
needle force
nitrogen 14 beam
observation and recording device
patellar dislocation
paucispiral
penetrant material
people-on-street
perithallia
phosphoenoloxaloacetic acid
placement treatment
plouviez
presbytiss
Project OXYGEN
propheticality
protective import duty
psammosarcoma
pseudolikelihoods
punch function
reorganization
roundnose tool
safety of civil aviation
sandries
Sasanguasaponin
saums
scamming
Septoria dianthi
simple effect
stasis-field
stimulus isolator
subordinate unit
suggestion-box
sweet bells
Taysider
traffic recorder machine
transient condition
travel ring
try engine
under ground economic
variabilis
vegetable wharf