节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2013-08-15
难易度:High
关键字:transaction, predictable, distinctive, arguably, GDP [gross domestic
product]


























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We are on the second day of our article Dollars, Euros and Funny Hats: The Rise
of Unusual Currencies.
And today we are talking about online currencies like the bitcoin.
Now bitcoins are mined by computer programs that are very complex at a limited,
predictable rate so that there aren't too many of them.
And you can use to buy them... you can use them to buy all sorts of things
online.
Now there are other alternative currencies online that we're going to talk
about.
So let's start the next part of our reading.
(Music).
Dollars, Euros and Funny Hats: The Rise of Unusual Currencies.
Other Internet users exchange stranger things, like hats from the video game
Team Fortress 2.
The hats were originally intended to make characters look distinctive.
But players must pay for chances to find hats, and some unique ones are very
rare.
Thus, players trade hats among themselves for money, bitcoins or in-game items.
Since people agree on the hats' value and trade them for other things, they
arguably count as currency.
By one estimate, items traded within the game are worth a total of US$22
million.
That equals almost 60 percent of island nation Tuvalu's GDP!
Alternative currencies probably won't replace official ones, but they are
changing society and economics.
(Music).
They certainly are changing society and economics.
Well, in this part of our lesson, we finally get to the idea presented in our
title - Dollars, Euros and Funny Hats, right?
OK. So at the beginning of this section we read:
Other Internet users exchange stranger things, like hats from the video game
Team Fortress 2.
I've never played Team Fortress 2, but I guess there are lots of cool hats in
that video game.
Well, there are many, many different kinds of hats all through out the game for
different characters.
And apparently, they are being used as a type of currency online.
But before we get into that too much, we need to join Steve and Ken in the
Information Cloud to talk about the word Internet.
Here's a question for you, friends.
The word "Internet," should it be capitalized or not?
Well, it's a place that people visit.
And since place names are proper nouns, it should be capitalized, right?
You would think.
But now some writers are taking a different view of the word.
They're saying the Internet has become so common that it no longer warrants the
capital I.
Some prestigious publications like The Economist and The Times of London have
already demoted the word "Internet" from proper noun to common noun,
now spelling it with a lower case i.
So how would we know when we should do the same?
When stylebooks tell us.
Stylebooks are the accepted standard for proper English writing.
They uphold conventional usage, yet they're flexible, too, as is reflected in
their annual updates and edits.
Part dictionary, part encyclopedia and part textbook, stylebooks tell us things
like the difference between a robbery and a burglary,
which words are politically incorrect, and when you should spell out numbers.
Check a bookstore or the Internet for English style guides like the Chicago
Manual of Style or The Associated Press Stylebook.
If you're serious about English writing, they're essential.
(Chinese).
Wow, English certainly is changing all the time.
Stay tuned here at Studio Classroom if you want to stay up-to-date.
Well, we continue learning about these hats and other strange things that are
used online as alternative currencies. OK.
The hats were originally intended to make characters look distinctive.
So they had an original purpose.
It wasn't to be a currency online, it was just to make characters look
distinctive.
And that is a great word from our Word Bank.
And it just means to make something look different, to stand out so that it is
easier to see.
I might say: Gabe, you know, that shirt makes you look very distinctive because
it has that nice pattern. It's very unique.
Nice. Thank you.
I will take that as a compliment.
Actually, you could take that kind of comment as a compliment.
You could say something looks distinctive or makes you look distinctive.
There's a similar word "distinct." We don't have time to talk about the
differences here.
They're quite different.
You use them differently.
But they can be confusing.
Look that up in a dictionary sometime the word distinct.
And of course here we see the word "distinctive." These characters look
distinctive.
But these hats are not just for making characters look distinctive, right,
Carolyn?
Not anymore.
And we learn in the next sentence why these hats are considered to be so
valuable.
But players must pay for chances to find hats, and some unique ones are very
rare.
So you actually have to pay money for the chance to find one of these hats.
And some of them can be very difficult to get.
That's right.
So if something is rare, that means it's hard to find.
They might be difficult.
That makes me think some of these hats must be worth a lot of money.
They're really valuable.
Do you think any of these hats are worth a lot of money, Carolyn?
Well, I think to maybe people who play this game (Team Fortress 2) that the hat
could be very valuable to them,
because they think that it is a great thing to have that it'll make their
character look very distintivce.
And they might be willing to pay a lot of money for it.
Interesting.
Well, we continue.
Thus, players trade hats among themselves for money, bitcoins or in-game items.
All right.
So they're using this currency and just buying all sorts of things within the
game, their in-game items.
That's right.
So it's not expanding to other games or other parts of the Internet.
It is only within this game.
And they do trade them for real money or even bitcoins that we talked about
earlier.
Now since people agree on the hats' value and trade them for other things, they
arguably count as currency.
Interesting.
They arguably count as currency, a kind of currency.
Let's take a look at our word from the Word Bank here.
It is "arguably." If something is arguable or if you can do something arguably,
that means you can argue about it.
You can argue about whether something is one way or not.
For example, Brad Pitt.
I like Brad Pitt a lot.
Brad Pitt is arguably the best actor out there.
Many people think he's a great actor.
You can argue about this.
Is he the best actor or not?
It's arguable that he is the best actor.
But it is also arguable that he is not, so you can discuss it.
Now, so we're looking at these hats and talking about them.
And since they are traded in the game and even for real money that people use
that... that's issued by actual governments, then it... arguably counts as
currency.
Now by one estimate, items traded within the game are worth a total of US$22
million.
Wow! That is a lot of hats.
That is certainly a lot of hats.
That's a lot of money.
Things within this game are worth a lot of money.
That is one estimate.
OK. So we see that word "estimate." It's here as a noun.
But you can also use it as a verb.
You could say they estimated that these hats are worth a total of $22 million,
or other things in this game are worth that much money.
And we see an interesting comparison here.
OK, compare to the gross domestic product of Tuvalu. OK.
This next sentence says: That equals almost 60 percent of island nation Tuvalu's
GDP.
And it's quite interesting that... that you can get so much money from something
online.
That's right.
And Team Fortress 2, of course, is not the first game to have this type of
situation occur.
But it is on such a big scale, with US$22 million, that it's a big deal, and it
could count as a currency.
Now alternative currencies probably won't replace official ones, but they are
changing society and economics.
It's true.
It seems like they are.
And of course, alternative and official, those two words are... are a little bit
different here.
So an alternative currency is something other.
It's something different.
It's not common or usual, and certainly it is not official.
Of course we have official currencies like the dollar and the euro.
Well, it's time for us to enjoy a review skit right now.
And then we'll join Michelle in the Language Lab.
May I help you?
Yes. I want to open a bank account.
All right.
How many dollars do you want to deposit?
Oh, I don't have dollars.
I have Makkies.
Makkies?
Yes! Makkies are an alternative currency.
Hey, I can't accept these.
Why not?
Uh, the government doesn't back these.
Well, they should.
People earn Makkies for doing good deeds.
You approve of good deeds, don't you?
Well, yes, but...
People use Makkies for library subscriptions and movie tickets and other things.
Yes, but...
People even pay each other using Makkies.
That's nice.
But we don't accept them.
Well, never mind.
I'll open an account using bitcoins.
Oh, we don't accept those, either.
But the bitcoin is used by over 100,000 people for online transactions.
Well, that's nice, but...
People can buy video games, books and even socks!
We don't accept them.
Any online company... can choose to accept them.
But we're a bank, and we choose not to.
So you don't accept Makkies or bitcoins.
That's correct.
We do not.
Well, what do you accept?
Cash! Now come back when you have some.
(Chinese).
Well, let's get back to our lesson now.
Well, this has been an interesting article learning about alternative currencies
like Makkies, bitcoins, and yes, funny hats online that you can trade.
And I wonder if you would be interested in using one of these kinds of
currencies.
Carolyn?
Well, I think it would be pretty interesting to try maybe something like the
Makkie where you go out into your community,
and you perform helpful tasks just trying to make it a better place to live.
I think that would be a pretty good system.
And I know that things like Team Fortress 2 and the hats that they have on that
video game,
some people make a lot of money selling them for actual official currency.
That is really interesting.
This... this is a creative way to make money if you get involved in games like
this.
Well, what about you?
Would you consider using alternative currencies, or maybe you do already?
Thank you for joining us today.
And of course we will see you next time right here on Studio Classroom.
See you then.