节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2013-07-29
难易度:High
关键字:evoke, habitat, elusive, scar, forage, squid, sucker
Today we are talking about whales, the giants of the sea.
And we have just learned a little bit about these elusive creatures and some
things that we really don't know about them.
There's so much we can learn about whales.
We can learn more about what they are like in their natural habitat and what
sort of emotions or images are evoked when you think of whales.
Well, we're going to continue on reading about what researchers have to say
about these animals.
(Music).
Whales: The Giants of the Sea.
Researchers have discovered that sperm whales are the largest toothed animal,
reaching 18 meters, and that they have the largest brain of any animal.
It is believed that while foraging they can dive to a depth of 3200 meters and
stay underwater for at least 90 minutes.
Squid is their favorite food, and sperm whales have been known to fight fierce
battles with giant squid.
Battle scars in the form of permanent squid sucker marks provide the evidence of
deep-sea battles.
OK. We're continuing to learn here about the sperm whale.
Of course we learned before the break that this creature is quite elusive.
That's why we don't know much about this creature in the sea.
Now researchers have discovered that sperm whales are the largest toothed
animal, reaching 18 meters, and that they have the largest brain of any animal.
OK. So at least we know that about the sperm whale: the largest toothed animal.
Carolyn, usually I use the word "tooth" as a noun, but it's an adjective here.
That's right.
So here they're using it to describe a type of animal because not all animals
have teeth.
So here the sperm whale is the largest animal that has teeth.
It is the largest toothed animal.
And it also has the largest brain, which is very interesting since we've been
talking about Mysteries of the Mind this month as well.
That's right.
Well, this is an interesting fact - the largest brain of any animal.
And of course you saw how long it is, 18 meters, or they can reach 18 meters.
Well, we continue learning about this sperm whale.
It is believed that while foraging they can dive to a depth of 3,200 meters and
stay underwater for at least 90 minutes.
OK. Well, this giant of the sea sounds pretty impressive to me, Carolyn.
It does.
It can hold its breath for a very long time while it forages for food.
And if it is foraging for food, that means it is looking for it.
It is not easily found.
It has to search for it and try to find it.
And they dive very, very far down into the ocean, 3,200 meters.
And they hold their breath for up to 90 minutes.
So this whale is very impressive.
It doesn't have to come to the surface too often.
That's right.
Now at the beginning of this sentence, we saw three words: it is believed.
"It is believed that something..." when you see this, that means people don't
know for sure about something.
That means that many people believe this, but we don't know for sure.
We don't know all of the facts for sure.
Anyhow, Liz does want to share something with us in the Grammar Gym.
So let's join her now.
Hi there, friends.
Welcome to the Grammar Gym.
My name is Liz.
In today's article we see this sentence:
"... while foraging they can dive to a depth of 3200 meters... " That's our
Grammar Tip sentence.
This sentence just means while sperm whales are foraging, they can dive to a
depth of 3200 meters.
But that's longer and wordier than what we have for today's Grammar Tip
sentence.
So when you have a subject that is doing something while in the middle of
another activity, consider this sentence pattern:
While + verb 1-ing (comma) subject + verb 2.
For example: While shopping for grocery, Betsy looks for discounts.
Or: While cleaning the house, Sam keeps his TV on.
If you'd like to see some more example sentences, then please take a look at
today's Grammar Tip section in your Studio Classroom magazine.
And that's it for today.
This is Liz from the Grammar Gym.
See you next time.
Bye-bye.
Continuing on with our article we learn a little bit more about these sperm
whales.
Squid is their favorite food, and sperm whales have been known to fight fierce
battles with giant squid.
So they are very large animals themselves being up to 18 meters, and they love
to eat squid.
And they are also giant squid, Gabe.
Yeah. Well, I have something in common with sperm whales, Carolyn.
I, too, enjoy eating squid.
But usually the squid that I eat is small and it's barbecued on a stick, and I
can buy it at the night market.
That's a little bit different, I think, than the squid that the sperm whales
might be eating, and especially the giant squid that they are fighting.
This sounds like an intense battle.
It does.
And we see this phrase that "it has been known," so have been known to fight
fierce battles.
To be known to do something means that it's knowledgeable, like we have the
knowledge that this does happen but maybe not all the time.
That's right.
For instance, you could say Milton's been known to eat a whole watermelon in
under two minutes.
Or you could say he's been known to have a bad temper.
My friend has been known to have a bad temper.
So everybody knows this about that person.
It's been known for something.
Or he has been known to be a good project leader, so I would recommend him to be
in charge.
So they... these sperm whales have been known to fight fierce battles with giant
squid.
And we find out what this battle results in.
Battle scars in the form of permanent squid sucker marks provide evidence of
these deep-sea battles.
So that's how we know that they occur because there are battle scars.
And "scar" is one of the words from our Word Bank.
Gabe, what is a scar?
Ooh, it's not a good thing.
Usually if you get injured, you might have a wound and it will heal.
But sometimes, sometimes it leaves a scar.
That's a mark on your skin.
And a lot of people have scars for the rest of their life. OK.
These scars never go away.
And so that's what we're talking about here.
Now I like battle scars because this implies that you're on an adventure.
Sometimes if you fall down when you're having fun and you get a wound, that can
be called a battle scar.
That's right.
And here the battle scars result from an actual battle, from a fight with this
giant squid.
And the scars are in the shape of squid sucker marks.
And squids have suckers on them that they use to attach themselves to the sperm
whale while they are fighting.
And these deep-sea battles occur.
And this is the evidence we have of the deep-sea battles.
That's right.
Of course if you have a scar on your body, that's evidence that something
happened to you.
Someone might ask: Hey, how did that happen?
Of course it's evidence that you can't ignore.
All right. So we have evidence here that these sperm whales also flight with
other underwater creatures.
Let's continue learning something now with Michelle in the Language Lab.
OK.
(Chinese).
And let's see what the other teachers are doing now.
Well, we've been talking about Whales: The Giants of the Sea today.
And we learned about one kind of whale, the sperm whale.
And I do wonder... I mean, there are many kinds of whales out there.
I wonder about you, if you would like to see one of these whales up close and
personal.
Carolyn, what about you?
Well, you know how much I love animals, Gabe.
So of course I would want to see a whale up close.
I think it would be very, very cool to go out on a boat into the middle of the
ocean and look for whales, to go on a whale-watching trip.
I think, oh, that would be such a great vacation.
Maybe that's what I will do for my next vacation.
That's a good idea.
You know, I'm interested in seeing whales up close as well.
I think it would be fun, at a safe distance of course, to see one of these sperm
whales and giant squid fight each other.
Of course I would want to make sure that I was safe.
But so much goes on in the ocean, it is fascinating.
Well, we have more to learn about whales in our next few lessons here at Studio
Classroom.
So we'll see you next time.
See you then.