节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2012-07-12
难易度:Low
关键字:protect, economy, recycle, litter
Hi, everybody.
Welcome to Studio Classroom Worldwide.
Thanks for joining us.
I'm Steve.
It's been said that we know more about the distant galaxies in outer space than
we do about what's in our own planet's oceans.
Well, today we hope to fix that imbalance with a feature about coral reefs -
those amazing worlds of animal and plant life just under the surface of the
ocean.
Now yesterday we learned a little about what a coral reef is.
Today we'll discover that as big as they are, coral reefs are still pretty
fragile.
Knowing this, let's learn why humans should do more to protect these rain
forests of the sea on page 26.
Our Coral Reefs.
Coral reefs have a lot to offer humans.
They help protect the shore from the impact of storms and large waves.
They provide food and medicine for people.
And reefs bring in billions of dollars to local economies through jobs and
tourism.
Reefs at risk.
But coral reefs need help from people.
Scientists estimate that about two-thirds of coral reefs are at risk of dying.
Humans play a big part in that risk.
Pollution, poison and overfishing all hurt the reefs.
By 2040, a third of the world's reefs could die because of damage caused by
humans.
Hello, friends.
Thank you so much for joining us right here in the studio.
My name is Kaylah.
And my name is Ryan.
And we're back in our OCEANS article.
We've been talking about coral reefs and the beautiful and the fantastic
ecosystems of all the fish and animals that live there.
That's right. We learned they grow in shallow water so the sunlight can reach
the algae that the coral is eating and growing off of.
So we've seen that coral reefs have a very important part in helping the ocean
stay healthy.
It protects... it helps provide life for 25 percent of ocean creatures.
Now what more can the coral reefs do?
We know what they can do for animals.
Well, what else can they do?
All right. Well, let's learn about that today.
We see that coral reefs actually have a lot to offer humans, us.
Which is strange because we don't usually think about that.
We think they're just beautiful, and they can survive on their own.
But really they help protect us from all kinds of things.
Yeah. I didn't realize that.
They protect the shoreline, which is where the ocean actually meets the land -
and you might call that the beach, the shore - from impact of storms.
That's right.
They help protect that.
Now to "protect" means to guard it, to keep it safe, to help it not be damaged,
lost or injured.
So the coral reefs are protecting or keeping it safe from being damaged.
And we know when a large storm or those giant waves that we call tsunamis hit,
they take out part of land.
And it really is very harmful to humans and animals on land.
OK, so how can these coral reefs actually protect the shore from these types of
things?
Well, Ryan, we know that they form a very hard rock-like texture.
Once they have died, then the generations underneath are strong.
So they help keep the waves back.
They can take that impact.
They can take the storm.
They can take those large waves and not just melt away like the dirt does on the
land.
OK. So they actually stop those waves.
I think that's what we're getting out of this, so.
They also do some other things.
What else, Kaylah?
Well, they provide food and medicine for people.
So there are different kinds of coral and different kinds of plants and animals
that are living in the coral reefs that you can take from the ocean,
and it is good for medicine.
OK. So I bet you're wondering about that.
How would you really want to eat coral or use it for medicine?
Well, they can.
Sometimes they can crash it and grind it up and make medicine or even food.
And it's not just the coral; it's all the other animals and plants in the coral
reef that can be used.
Exactly. Now reefs... coral reefs actually bring in billions of dollars to local
economies through jobs and tourism.
That's right.
They're a major tourist attraction.
As a tourist, someone traveling, you want to go visit a beautiful place.
You would like to go in the water.
Maybe you like snorkeling; or do you scuba dive?
This would help the tourism.
OK. Now and it helps the "economies" too.
We talked about something that is economic last month.
And now we're looking at the word "economy," which is the noun form.
That means the system of trade used in a certain country help people buy things
and trade things.
So if we visit somewhere and we buy their... their products, or we visit their
places and we paid a visit, we help their local economy.
So coral reefs help us in many ways.
That's right.
Yesterday I said I really wanted to go visit these coral reefs.
And that means I would have to go pay a lot of money, maybe go scuba diving.
Go dive under the water to see all of these reefs.
That would give them money.
That's right.
Now even though reefs are important, and we enjoy them and we like visiting
them, they are at risk.
That's right.
Now if something is at risk, that means it is in danger, or it could be in
danger of being damaged or hurt.
That's right.
Coral reefs need help from people.
We think, you know, they're part of nature, we can just leave them alone.
But they do need our help.
That's right.
Now scientists actually estimate that about two-thirds of coral reefs are at
risk of dying.
That is extremely sad considering they're only 1 percent of the ocean floor, and
two-thirds of them could die soon.
OK. And we're going to see how that happens.
Humans play a big part in that risk.
That means we are a big problem.
That's right.
We pollute the water, so pollution and poisoning and overfishing all hurt the
reefs.
So we need to be aware of what we're putting in the water.
We need to recycle.
And we should not overfish these reefs.
Yeah. They think that in about 30 years, one-third of the world's reefs could
die because of damage caused by us.
That's right.
So what can we do?
We need to be aware of this.
This is extremely sad knowing that only 1 percent of the ocean floor is coral
reefs, and a third of that could die soon.
That's right. We have to do something.
And we're going to find out what we can do right after the skit.
Coral reefs have a lot to offer people.
Really? What do we do?
We protect the shore from the impact of storms and waves.
Oh. That is important.
And we provide food and medicine.
That's important too.
And we bring in billions of dollars through jobs and tourism.
Hooray! We're rich.
Well, no. We don't get to keep the money.
It goes to local economies.
We're not rich.
Well, at least we're happy and healthy.
Maybe we're happy, but we're not healthy.
We are dying.
We are dying? Why?
We're at risk because of humans, pollution, poison and overfishing.
Oh, no.
We could die because of the damage!
Oh, no! People, please help us.
What can they do?
Recycle and save water.
Reduce the waste in the ocean.
People, please help us.
What else can they do?
Travel by buses and bikes.
Lower air pollution.
People, help us.
Anything else?
Pick up litter and keep the water clean.
People, please help us.
Remember, healthy coral reefs mean a healthy ocean and a healthy Earth. (Save
us!).
Save the ocean.
Save the Earth.
Save us...