节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2014-01-23
难易度:High
关键字:specialize, corporate, robust, supplement, heavyweight
In our lesson today, we've been focusing on the changes occurring in specialty
travel.
Gone are the days when you need to use a travel agent to plan a good vacation.
Now people can get online and book exciting adventures, luxury trips or even get
a more local experience by renting a space in someone else's house.
We've also just started to talk about 3-D printers and their impact on small
businesses.
Let's continue learning about this advancing industry as well as Health and
Wellness in the next part of our reading.
Then we'll join Michelle in the Language Lab.
Get your magazines ready as we continue our lesson.
(Music).
Industries to Watch.
NASA, for example, plans to put a 3-D printer on the International Space
Station.
And with corporate heavyweights like General Electric, UPS and Staples throwing
their support behind the technology - 3-D printing is an industry to watch.
Health and Wellness.
An important part of living a high-quality life comes from being healthy.
As a result, businesses that focus on providing products and services that
promote health and wellness are booming.
More importantly, the industry is proving to be very robust - it even thrived
during the economic downturn.
It's also very versatile with everything from health clubs to supplements to
fitness apps prospering.
(Music).
All right.
(Chinese).
And now let's see what our teachers are up to.
Thank you, Michelle.
Well, we're continuing to learn about 3-D printers.
And we learned in this section that NASA plans to put one of these machines on
the International Space Station.
And as we have learned before, NASA is pronounced as one single word.
So you don't read each letter individually, N-A-S-A.
That's right. It's NASA.
And it is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration run by the U.S.
government.
Wow, talk about support for a piece of technology!
NASA could really change the way that 3-D printers are used.
They could make quality replacement parts for space equipment or even be used to
construct the scientific equipment itself.
That's right, Carolyn.
There are a lot of possibilities when it comes to 3-D printing.
There sure are.
You can make just about anything.
All you need is the design for the printer to read and the material for it to
print with.
So what sort of things can you make?
Well, you can make anything from musical instruments like guitars to clothes to
phone cases to cups to 3-D models...
Whoa! Well, Carolyn, that sounds like a lot.
There sure is a lot you can do here.
No wonder NASA isn't the only one supporting this industry.
You're right.
There are also the corporate heavyweights like General Electric, UPS and Staples
that support 3-D printers.
Well, it's interesting that the article calls these companies "heavyweights."
Does that mean that they are very heavy?
No. Here it means that they are very powerful, large, or have a lot of
influence.
So they can really impact the progress of 3-D printers.
I see.
Well, with the last sentence in this section, we find our Grammar Tip of the
day.
Let's join Liz in the Grammar Gym.
(Music).
Hi there, friends.
My name is Liz. And thanks for joining me here at the Grammar Gym.
In today's lesson, here is our Grammar Tip sentence:
And with corporate heavyweights like General Electric, UPS and Staples throwing
their support behind the technology - 3-D printing is an industry to watch.
Basically it just means because there are corporate heavyweights like General
Electric, UPS and Staples throwing their support behind the technology of 3-D
printing,
3-D printing is definitely an industry to watch.
Notice the sentence pattern in today's Grammar Tip sentence:
With [noun 1] like [examples of noun 1] — [subject] + [verb].
There are basically two parts to the sentence pattern.
Part 1: We mention a situation, and then we list some examples.
Part 2: This is the main sentence itself, and basically it means part 2 is
because of part 1.
Put the two parts together and add an emdash and we have the sentence pattern
for today.
Here's a look at some example sentence.
With children-friendly dishes like chicken nuggets and pizza — this restaurant
is sure to please young picky eaters.
Or: With classic songs such as "Amazing Grace" and "Silent Night" — the choir's
performance this evening well certainly delight the audience.
So give this pattern a try.
And that's it for today.
Be sure to check out today's Grammar Tip section in your magazine.
This is Liz from the Grammar Gym.
See you next time.
Thank you, Liz.
Well, we're moving right along in the article to the next section on Health and
Wellness.
If we want to live high-quality lives, it's important to stay healthy.
That's right. I couldn't agree more.
And I like the word used here, high-quality.
Usually I see this word used to describe something like, uh, food, or furniture.
But that's not the way it's used here.
You're right.
Here it's used to talk about the quality of someone's life.
If you live a high-quality life, that means that you are able to enjoy it fully
and are comfortable.
And being healthy, of course, is an important part of having that type of life.
Before we continue on in this section, though, Steve and Ken have something that
they would like to share with us in the Information Cloud.
Let's join them and learn a little bit about the words a and an.
Some of the rules we're taught in language class are sometimes not rules at all.
They're somebody's preference.
That's right.
Other times the rules we learn are overly simplistic, like the rule about when
to use the indefinite articles a and an.
The overly simplistic version is this:
Put an "a" before words that start with consonants.
Put an "an" before words that start with vowels.
But, to be more accurate, the rule should be:
Put an "a" before words that start with a consonant sound, and an "an" before
words that start with a vowel sound.
As an example, let's look at the sentence: She has an MBA but she wants to be a
medical doctor.
Here the first indefinite article is "an" even though the M in MBA is a
consonant because the M is pronounced with an initial vowel sound e-m.
The next indefinite article also precedes the letter M, but this time it's an
"a." Why?
Because here the letter M, which begins the word medical, is pronounced with an
initial consonant sound, m, medical.
Once again, proving that it's the sound, not the letter that determines which
indefinite article you use.
(Chinese).
Thank you, gentlemen.
Now let's continue learning about changes in the health and wellness industry.
Because being healthy is so important, businesses that focus on health-related
products and services are booming.
They're booming.
That means they are very successful.
Not only are they successful, though, but they're also very robust.
Even during the economic downturn when other industries were suffering, the
health and wellness industry was doing well.
Well, let's talk about that phrase for a moment: economic downturn.
What does that mean, Carolyn?
Well, if there is an economic downturn, that means that the economy is not doing
well.
People are spending less money, there are fewer jobs available, and it could be
very difficult to buy or afford to buy certain things.
OK. So it's sort of like a mini depression.
I remember Steve and Ken telling us about the Great Depression earlier this
month.
Right. But a depression is much more serious because it lasts for a long time.
An economic downturn is still difficult, but it isn't that severe.
Right. And if the wellness industry wasn't affected by the downturn,
that means even when people stopped spending money on other things, they were
still spending money on health and wellness products.
Right. And there are a lot of products out there, everything from health clubs
to supplements to fitness apps.
And those are great products and some great words.
Supplement is another word that many Americans use to mean the same thing as a
vitamin pill... or vitamin.
They do.
And we will actually be learning more about that in tomorrow's lesson.
But for now, let's enjoy a review skit.
And then we'll join Linda for the Editor's Summary.
Oh, the economy... it's so bad.
Yes. But there are unmistakable bright spots in our economy.
Bright spots? Like where?
Well, there are five industries worth watching.
Five? What are they?
Well, first, wearable computers.
Wearable computers?
Yes. Computers and smartphones have steadily evolved into smaller, more portable
devices.
Well, that's true.
So, digital accessories are becoming increasingly common.
Yeah! Oh, like Google Glasses and sensors in shoes.
Exactly.
Another industry to watch for is online education.
It's skyrocketing.
Online classes?
They're not equivalent to real courses.
Well, that's changing.
There's a new focus on skills rather than credentials.
Oh! Well, I'll watch for that.
The travel industry is also growing.
Well, I've noticed travelers are drawn to high-quality experiences.
That's right.
So look out for companies that specialize in luxury or adventure travel.
Yeah. I'll keep my eyes open.
Another industry with a big impact on business is 3-D printing.
3-D printing.
Yes. Companies are throwing their support behind this technology.
I'll pay close attention.
What else?
Well, health and wellness industries.
They're an important part of a high-quality life.
Even during an economic downturn?
Yes. Businesses that focus on promoting health are booming.
Well, all right.
I'm going to keep my eyes on those five industries.
I just wish I had more eyes.
(Music).
Another industry to watch is the travel industry.
It has been changing rapidly in the last few years and will likely continue to
do so as a lot of their business is moving online and being personalized.
And we also learned how 3-D printing is impacting specialized work.
Big corporations are supporting this technology.
And last we looked at the industry of health.
This industry stayed robust even during the hard economic times that occurred.
So keep a watch out for these industries in the future.
The past two days we've covered five industries that you should watch.
Carolyn, which one are you most interested in following?
I think I'm most interested in keeping an eye on the changes in online
education.
What about you?
What industry are you going to keep watching?
Well, thank you for joining us today on Studio Classroom.
And of course, we'll see you next time.