节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2012-08-18
难易度:Medium
关键字:procedure, scratch, insurance, in the long run, double vision, contact
solution
Welcome back, everybody.
I hope you had a great break.
Well, it's an unfortunate part of our human condition.
Our eyes will not provide perfect vision for our entire life.
So probably at some point, whether you're 16, 46 or 76 years old, you'll ask the
question:
How can I improve my vision?
Our lesson gives us three options - glasses, contacts or surgery?
Is one better than the other?
Let's wrap up Karen and Sue's conversation now on line 6.
(Music).
Glasses, Contacts or Surgery?
Yeah, but they're more comfortable than glasses, and lots of people say you can
see better.
You can also wear them while you're playing sports.
But after eye surgery, you can play sports without contacts.
Besides, buying contact lenses and contact solution gets expensive.
Laser surgery is even more expensive!
And insurance doesn't usually pay for it.
It may cost a lot at first, but I think it's worthwhile in the long run.
Maybe.
Be sure to ask the doctor every question you can think of.
Don't worry. I will.
That's really why I'm here.
Well, let me know what you decide.
(Music).
Friends, have you had laser eye surgery?
Well, whether you have or not, you should know there could be some risks
involved.
But Karen is saying, well, there are risks involved with contact lenses too.
That's right.
There are risks of infection.
They can scratch you eye, and there are other kinds of uncomfortable problems.
Now right before the break I said I had a story of an uncomfortable contact.
Well, any of us who wear contacts know that any given day, they could hurt.
But once I had a contact actually scratch my eye.
Something got stuck on the lens.
And it scratched my eye, and I had an infection.
So what happened?
Well, I had to go to the doctor.
And one doctor told me that I would not be able to wear contacts again.
But I went to another doctor, and he gave me this goo... this ointment to put in
my eye at night, and I had to wear glasses for a whole month.
It was just uncomfortable and inconvenient.
OK. So that sounds pretty uncomfortable.
But here, Kaylah, Karen says contact lenses are more comfortable than glasses.
Would you think that's correct?
I absolutely do think that is correct.
I like not having something on my face all the time.
I like wearing my contacts.
OK. Cool.
Well, she says also lots of people say that you can actually see better with
contacts.
I kind of agree with this.
When I have my contacts in, I can see all over, no matter where I look.
But if you have glasses, and you look to the side and there is not a lens there,
you can not see.
So I kind of agree with this.
And you also can't move too quickly when you're wearing glasses.
That is how you can wear contacts while you're also playing sports.
That's right.
Also, a lot of sports don't let you wear glasses when you're competiting because
you could hurt someone or hurt yourself if you hit each other.
So you need to have... you need to have contacts to play some of these sports.
OK. Well, Sue goes on to say: But after eye surgery, you can still play sports
without the contacts too.
That's a good point.
And besides, buying contact lenses and contact solution gets expensive.
I think my parents would agree with this.
They have three daughters who all wear contacts.
Ooh, OK.
So you have to buy the contact lenses and they usually don't last very long each
time, and so that can get expensive.
But you also need to use contact solution.
Now solution refers to some sort of liquid combination of chemicals.
Now "contact solution" is also referred to as saline solution.
It's what is man-made, but very similar to your tears.
So it's what you can clean and keep your contacts wet with.
Yeah. And you need to keep the contacts wet because if they are dry, it's going
to be extremely painful.
That's right.
They're uncomfortable.
They can hurt your eyes.
And we said you always, always need to keep your contacts clean.
That's what contact solution is for.
Exactly. OK.
So it can be expensive to wear contact lenses.
But Karen says laser surgery is even more expensive.
That's true.
Having any kind of surgery can be extremely expensive.
It can cost you a lot of money.
And she makes a point here that insurance doesn't usually pay for laser surgery.
OK. Friends, "insurance" is when you pay a company money and they will help pay
for costs for what you need,
usually if something bad happens but also for medicine and surgery.
Now insurance does cover contacts, but it doesn't always cover laser surgery.
OK. And here that's what she's saying.
Laser surgery is not usually something that insurance will help you pay for.
So you actually have to pay more money.
Sue comes back and says: It may cost a lot at first - "it" being the surgery -
but I think it's worthwhile in the long run.
OK. So she says: Yeah, it costs a lot of money at first, but in the long run, it
might cost less than contacts.
The phrase "in the long run" means after a long time or in the end.
Or a time that is in the future.
So if you think about it, if you pay a lot of money right now to pay for your
surgery, over time, you will not need to buy contacts or contact solution.
So maybe it will be cheaper in the long run because you're not always paying
these expenses every month or every year.
OK. So it sounds like laser surgery might be uncomfortable at first and it might
be expensive at first, but in the long run, it will be beneficial.
Well, Karen says: OK, maybe that's true, but be sure to ask the doctor every
question you can think of.
Friends, this is a piece of advice that you should always use with any doctor.
If you have any questions, don't be scared to ask.
Ask everything before you leave a doctor's office.
That's right.
This is your body, and it's your job to take care of it.
Don't let the doctor make all of the decisions for you.
Be informed.
Well, Sue says: Don't worry. I will.
That's really why I'm here.
The whole reason she came for her checkup today was to ask about the surgery to
get all of her questions answered.
All right.
And Karen wants to know: Let me know what you decide.
And friends, what would you decide if you want to wear glasses, contacts or have
surgery?
Write to us at letters@StudioClassroom and let us know which one you prefer.
Or visit us on Facebook and tell us there.
Thank you so much for joining our debate today.
Now go join the Chat Room.
So are you going to have that picnic this weekend?
Oh, don't even ask.
We decided to cancel the picnic because everyone is sick.
Besides, the forecast calls for rain.
Beside the forecast?
What's beside the forecast?
No, Ken, not "beside." I said "besides," with an S.
Oh, besides.
So it's like moreover.
In some ways, yes.
Both words are used as a transition from one point to another.
As for their difference, why don't we have Studio Classroom's Editor-in-Chief
Doris explain it for us.
OK.
The main difference between besides and moreover is that with "besides," the
statement after it argues the same thing as the statement before it,
whereas "moreover" is often an introduction of a new point or statement.
Hmm, I think I know what she means.
Can you give me an example, Bryan?
Sure.
I just said the picnic is canceled because everyone is sick.
Besides, the forecast calls for rain.
So both statements argue that the picnic should be canceled.
Right.
The second statement that "besides" introduces serves to support or strengthen
the first statement.
OK.
What about "moreover"?
"Moreover" is simply an introduction of a new point, which may or may not argue
the same thing as the first statement.
For instance, we can say the government is telling people to save electricity.
Moreover, it's promoting the use of solar energy.
So this is a case where "besides" doesn't work.
Right.
The two statements argue different things.
The first one is about saving electricity; and the second one is about promoting
solar energy.
So can I say we can use "moreover" in almost all cases but we can only use
"besides" in certain cases?
Yes, you can.
Good observation, Ken.
Thanks.
Well, I hope people won't be sick for too long.
Me too.
I want to have that picnic soon.
(Chinese).
Hi, everyone. I'm Michelle.
(Chinese).
And I guess that's all the time we have for today.
I'll see you soon.
Bye-bye.
Thank you, Michelle.
So glasses are easy to deal with.
You just put them on and you take them off.
But they can fog up, they're easy to lose and break, and they can get
uncomfortable at times.
Contacts are more comfortable than glasses.
And you can wear them while playing sports.
But they can cause infection, scratch your eyes, and they can get expensive too.
Eye surgery is the most expensive of the three options.
That's kind of scary and it runs the risk of creating other problems.
But once it's done, it's done.
Friends, visit our Chat Room and weigh in with your viewpoint about glasses,
contacts and eye surgery.
And then have a greatweekend! Take care.