节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2013-06-12
难易度:Medium
关键字:paddle, steer, globe, give rise to, keep time, teak, federation
Today we're learning about how dragon boating is conquering the world.
People all over the world enjoy this sport.
And our author has done a very good job of describing for us, giving us a
picture of what it looks like to be in a dragon boat race.
You have 20 people who are paddling the boat.
You have someone in the front keeping time with a big drum, and someone in the
back who is steering.
And of course all across the globe, this sport is becoming more and more
popular.
We're going to find out how in the next section.
(Music).
Dragon Boating Conquers the World.
The world outside Asia was formally introduced to dragon boating in 1976.
That year the Hong Kong Tourism Association had a plan to increase tourism.
Their first step was inviting a Japanese team to compete in the first Hong Kong
International Dragon Boat Races.
The media sent pictures around the world, increasing international interest in
the sport.
Their next step was sending teak dragon boats to cities in North America and
Europe.
Whether their plan helped tourism or not, it did give rise to dragon boat clubs
in many countries.
By the time the International Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF) was founded in 1991,
dragon boating had truly become an international sport.
It does sound like dragon boating has become an international sport.
Now in this section we are learning a little bit about the history of dragon
boating.
We see that the world outside Asia was formally introduced to dragon boating in
1976.
Well, it's been quite a few years since we were first introduced to dragon
boating, Gabe.
That's right, quite a few years, actually many decades, or several decades,
since 1976.
That's when it was formally introduced.
Do you ever formally introduce one friend to another?
Maybe you've seen someone before, but you haven't been introduced.
Well, your friend can formally introduce you to.
He might say: Hey, meet so-and-so.
That's formally introducing somebody.
That's right.
Well, dragon boating was formally introduced in 1976 to the rest of the world.
That year the Hong Kong Tourism Association had a plan to increase tourism.
So they wanted to do something special to encourage people to visit Hong Kong.
What did they do to try to meet this goal, Gabe?
Well, that's right.
Their first step was inviting a Japanese team to compete in the first Hong Kong
International Dragon Boat Races.
So they took a small step.
They invited people from a country that's relatively nearby - Japan.
They came over first, and they competed in this first dragon boat race, this
first International Dragon Boat Race in Hong Kong.
That's right.
And then they did something else.
The media sent pictures around the world, increasing international interest in
the sport.
So they invited a team from Japan to join them in this first race for
international teams.
And then they took lots of pictures and sent them around the world.
Well, I think this is very interesting and very smart on Hong Kong's part.
They want to increase tourism and interest for what they do.
And so one way to do that is to take pictures and send these things around the
world.
That's one way to increase interest in something.
Take good pictures.
And in 1976, it would not have been quite as easy as it is now that we have the
Internet and all of these different types of social media that make sharing and
sharing interest in things so much more convenient.
It was a little bit more of a challenge in the 1970s.
All right.
Well, they are increasing international interest.
And their next step was sending teak dragon boats to cities in North America and
Europe.
Carolyn, what is teak?
Well, a teak dragon boat would be a dragon boat made out of wood.
And teak is a very hard type of wood that a lot of people like to use to make
very nice furniture.
Interesting. OK.
So they're making these boats from teak.
And we continue.
Whether their plan helped tourism or not, it did give rise to dragon boat clubs
in many countries.
Interesting.
Well, I... I hope it did help tourism.
And we know that it gave rise to dragon boat clubs.
But let's talk about this phrase here, OK.
Whether it did something or not.
So let's use this in another way.
I'm going, whether you come with me or not.
You could also say: Whether or not you come with me, I'm going.
So you can use this phrase in different ways.
So it just shows that it doesn't really matter what the initial thing was, the
result is still something else.
It's still going to happen.
You might say whether his plan worked or not, it was still very well accepted.
So maybe it didn't turn out the way he thought it would, but it was still a good
plan anyway.
Well, there's also another phrase in there: give rise to something.
And that one is in our Word Bank today.
What does it mean if something gives rise to?
Well, I think that it gave a cause for something, or it was the reason why
something happened.
Maybe it was one of the main reasons something happened.
So this dragon boating and sending teak boats around the world, that gave rise
to dragon boat clubs in many countries.
You might use this phrase in another way.
I could say low pay gave rise to many complaints from the employees.
So employees are complaining because of their low pay.
It gave rise to their complaints.
That's right.
Well, talking about dragon boats:
By the time the International Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF) was founded in 1991,
dragon boating had truly become an international sport.
That's right.
And what's a federation?
Well, it's a group for a common action of some kind.
And you can find out more about the IDBF on page 26 of your magazine.
Do check that out.
Right now it's time for us to learn something different with Michelle in the
Language Lab.
OK.
(Chinese).
And now let's see what the other teachers are doing.
Today we've learned a lot about dragon boating and its history and its
increasing popularity around the world.
Now I know that it started in Hong Kong when they wanted to increase tourism,
and it has since then gained so much popularity in other countries.
And it kind of makes me wonder why do you think so many countries around the
world have embraced this sport.
Gabe, what do you think?
Well, one reason I think is simply because it's a sport.
It's good exercise, and it is a team sport.
And so many people are working together for one goal.
It promotes unity.
I think there are many reasons why this is becoming popular around the world.
I think you are right.
It is also a very interesting sport with an interesting cultural history.
And I think that makes countries very encouraged and want to learn more about
it.
Well, we hope that you've learned a lot today here on Studio Classroom, and that
you will join us again next time.
See you then.