【一起听英语】安全防备
国民的安危是政府首先需要关注的问题........
Jennifer: Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I'm
Jennifer and with me today is Neil.
Neil: Hi Jennifer!
Jennifer: Today's story is about providing protection during the Olympic Games in
London. The UK government is going to place missile at six sites around the
capital. And it has been controversial.
Neil: Yes, people have very different opinions about the issue and they don't shy
away from expressing them and arguing. I'm not surprised. If I had some
powerful explosives sitting just a few metres above my head I wouldn't feel
safe at all.
Jennifer: Well, but the authorities might have a point when they say they are
concerned about threats to security in London. Since the London Underground
bombings in 2005, threat levels in the city have been high and the Olympics
will be watched by millions around the world.
Neil: Indeed, it is a high profile event.
Jennifer: Let's make the Olympic Movement the theme for our traditional quiz today
before we talk further about these weapons – the missiles. The question for
our listeners is: What inspired the creation of the Paralympic Games? Was it:
a) A tradition from Ancient Olympia,
b) The Crimean War
c) World War II
Neil: I know this one. The answer is…
Jennifer: No! Please don't Neil. I know you know this one and we have to give our
listeners a chance to guess. So this time, you keep quiet.
Neil: Not easy, I'm bursting to tell everybody as we have been getting loads of
information about these fascinating games here in Britain. But I'll be good to
Jennifer: And meanwhile let's get back to our story about the missiles. Listen out for
who is particularly unhappy about the missiles. This is a report by the BBC
correspondent Rob Broomby.
6 Minute English © British Broadcasting Corporation 2012
Page 2 of 4
bbclearningenglish.com
BBC correspondent Rob Broomby
The surface-to-air missiles would be placed at six sites around London including in a public
park and the most controversial – on top of a residential 2 tower block. The intention is to
boost London's existing air defences and send a signal to the public, and would-be plotters,
that the Olympic sites will be protected. But the residents of the 117 apartments in one
affected 3 block say it imposes what they called a 'high explosive missile salvo' on the roof,
which puts their lives at risk.
Neil: The people who live in a residential tower block.
Jennifer: Tall buildings full of apartments were one of the choices to place the weapons.
The authorities want to send a signal to the public that they will be protected!
Neil: The signal sent to me – the message – was not exactly of protection…
Jennifer: But the signal goes also to would-be plotters …
Neil: People who might be making terrorist plans like in 2005.
Jennifer: But the BBC reporter points out that the 117 residents feel a bit like you in
this case. They think that the missiles have been imposed on them and that
their presence on their roof could put their lives at risk.
Neil: It is a government decision and they feel they have no choice in the matter.
They feel that they can't say: no, thanks!
Jennifer: And they've got themselves a solicitor 4. Let's hear what he has to say about
this 'imposition'.
Resident's solicitor
''These tenants 5 are not used to having soldiers coming in and out their front door, going up
and down their lifts, having soldiers with high velocity 6 missiles on top of the roof. That really
does affect their private life, their family life and their home. That's a fundamental right and
they had a right to be consulted about that before such a move was taken.''
Neil: A person that is a professional specialised in defending people's rights says
that there is a fundamental right that hasn't been upheld.
Jennifer: A right that is basic, one that is part of the most immediate 7 rights a person
can have.
Neil: The right to be consulted about a matter of such importance!
Jennifer: They wanted to be asked about that – to have had an opportunity to have
their opinion heard.
Neil: And will they be listened to now?
Jennifer: You'll have to listen to the BBC's correspondent Rob Broomby.
6 Minute English © British Broadcasting Corporation 2012
Page 3 of 4
bbclearningenglish.com
BBC correspondent Rob Broomby
The Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said the ground-to-air defence systems were just
one part of what he called a 'comprehensive, multi-layered air security plan' intended to
both reassure 8 and deter 9. He said the deployment 10 would go ahead despite objections from
what he called a ‘small number of activists 12'.
Jennifer: Oh, no, it doesn't look like it. The Defence Secretary said that the plan has
been devised to deter.
Neil: To prevent - or deter - the would-be plotters.
Jennifer: And will go ahead in spite of the complaints of what he calls activists.
Neil: He says the residents are people involved in causes rather than ones acting 13
just on a case-by-case basis.
Jennifer: Well I'm sure the controversy 14 will not stop there. We are running out of time
but let's go back to our quiz. The question for you and our listeners is: What
inspired the creation of the Paralympic Games? Was it:
a) A tradition from Ancient Olympia,
b) The Crimean War
c) World War II
Neil: Let me tell them! Let me tell them! It is c) World War II!
Jennifer: It is indeed and it was created by Sir Ludwig Guttmann. He was brought to
Oxford 15 as a refugee fleeing Nazi 16 Germany and from there he was asked to run
the spinal 17 injuries unit at Stoke Mandeville, here in Britain, for injured soldiers
returning from World War II. He started the competition! And before we say
goodbye, let's remind you of some of the words we've heard today.
Neil: They were:
controversial
missiles
tower block
send a signal
would-be plotters
to impose
fundamental
consulted
to deter
Jennifer: Do join us again for more 6 Minute English and for more help with any aspects
of your English language studies go to our website BBCLearningEnglish.com.
Bye for now!
Neil: Bye!
- The suspense was unbearable.这样提心吊胆的状况实在叫人受不了。
- The director used ingenious devices to keep the audience in suspense.导演用巧妙手法引起观众的悬念。
- The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
- The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。
- 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。
- The solicitor's advice gave me food for thought.律师的指点值得我深思。
- The solicitor moved for an adjournment of the case.律师请求将这个案件的诉讼延期。
- A number of tenants have been evicted for not paying the rent. 许多房客因不付房租被赶了出来。
- Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。
- Einstein's theory links energy with mass and velocity of light.爱因斯坦的理论把能量同质量和光速联系起来。
- The velocity of light is about 300000 kilometres per second.光速约为每秒300000公里。
- His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
- We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。
- This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
- The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。
- Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
- Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。
- He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
- Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。
- He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
- He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。
- His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
- Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
- During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。
- That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
- We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。
- At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
- This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。