节目资讯
刊物:空中英語教室
日期:2012-04-11
难易度:Low
关键字:iceberg, more (to somebody/something) than meets the eye, melt, bubble
Hi, everybody. Welcome to Studio Classroom Worldwide.
Thanks for joining us.
My name is Steve.
The 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic is coming up.
In fact, this Friday we have a lesson about how it all "went down." Now do you
remember what it was that caused the Titanic to go under?
That's right.
It was an iceberg.
Icebergs are certainly dangerous, but they're also very fascinating.
Let's begin this month's SCIENCE lesson by looking below the surface of the
ocean to learn more about these giant islands of ice on page 22.
Secrets of the Iceberg.
Look below the surface to learn about these giant islands of ice.
What does the word iceberg make you think of?
Do you think of a large block of ice in a cold northern ocean?
Or do you think of something that ships can crash into?
While these are both correct, in truth there's far more to icebergs than meets
the eye.
According to scientists, only the largest blocks of ice count as icebergs.
They must rise at least 5 meters above the water and be 15 meters wide at the
water line.
But only about 10 percent of an iceberg can be seen.
The rest lies hidden beneath the water.
(Music).
Hello, friends.
Thank you so much for joining us here in the studio.
My name is Kaylah.
And my name is Brandon.
Today we have our SCIENCE article, and we are talking about icebergs.
That's right, icebergs.
Now maybe you've heard of icebergs before.
But today we're going to talk about some interesting facts and secrets of the
iceberg that you might not know.
Well, first of all, an "iceberg" is a large area of frozen ice... floating in
the sea.
And today we're going to learn some secrets about them.
That's right.
They're huge floating blocks of ice.
Now we're going to talk about what makes it an iceberg and really some of the
science before... about how they work.
Well, our deck reads:
Look below the surface of... and to learn about these giant islands of ice.
That's an interesting term, island of ice.
That's right.
It's so huge that it's like an island.
Of course, you know what an island is - an area of land surrounded by water.
But this... these blocks of ice are massive.
They are huge, and so it's like an island of ice.
That's right.
We could take a look below the surface.
Now this is a play on words with a very common English idiom.
We say "below the surface," if we're talking about a person, Brandon,
that would mean we're talking about who they are, what their personality is
like, maybe what's going on inside as opposed to outside.
But these are icebergs, so what does that mean?
That's right.
Well, you look at the surface of the water, and you see the ice.
But you have to go below the surface of the water - the surface is the top part
- you have to go down under the water.
So we're not only looking a little deeper into what they mean and what they are,
but we're also going underneath the water to look at what icebergs are made of
and where they come from.
And we begin the article with a question: What does the word iceberg make you
think of?
Kaylah, what does the word iceberg make you think of?
I would say the first thing it makes me think of something very cold.
And um... probably the second thing would have to be Titanic.
Wow! Yes, very good point.
Of course we think of something cold because it's ice.
And we think of Titanic because it hit an iceberg, right?
And so those are two common things you would think of.
Well, do you think of a large block of ice in a cold northern ocean?
Or do you think of something that ships can crash into?
I think we kind of just explained that.
That's right. I think of both.
Not only do I imagine a large, cold block of ice, but I also imagine a ship
hitting it, specifically the Titanic, which we'll talk about later this month.
Well, of course, these are both correct.
While these are both correct, in truth there's far more to iceberg than meets
the eye.
We have this phrase "in truth" here.
That means it is true, something is true; there's far more here than meets the
eye.
That's right.
And this phrase, "more than meets the eye," this is a good English idiom to use
when you're talking about something.
It means when you look at something, there's more going on than what you just
see.
So it's kind of like looking below the surface.
You're looking for something more than what your eyes first imagine, first
catch.
That's right.
If you see something, you may think about it.
But there may be more to it than what you're thinking about.
That's right.
Now we say that about people, but here we're learning more information about
icebergs.
Well, according to scientists, only the largest blocks of ice count as icebergs.
That's right, only the largest blocks of ice actually count as icebergs, or are
called icebergs.
They have to be a certain size in order to be recognized as an iceberg.
OK. So they have to be a certain size, they have to fit a certain measurement.
Well, let's see what those are.
It says the icebergs to be called an iceberg, they must rise at least 5 meters
above the water.
So to rise above the water means they sit at least 5 meters tall over the water
line, over that surface line.
That's really tall when you think about it floating.
That's true. It is really tall.
And we also see it must also be 15 meters wide at the water line.
OK. So at the water line is an interesting way of saying that where the water
hits the iceberg, there it needs to be 15 meters wide.
But only about 10 percent of an iceberg can be seen.
Wow, only 10 percent, Kaylah.
I know, Brandon.
That means 90 percent of the iceberg is under water, which makes these really
big if you know what you're talking about.
That's right.
And that's why we have to look below the surface.
We talked about that earlier today because the rest lies hidden beneath the
water.
That's right.
So they're 5 meters tall, 15 meters across and 90 percent of it is underwater.
That means what's underwater is very large and makes it very dangerous.
It is very dangerous.
Of course, when ships run into that, it could be bad news for them, actually.
Absolutely. Icebergs can be very dangerous.
But they're more than just dangerous.
They're very impressive pieces of science.
So we're going to talk today and tomorrow about what makes them so interesting
and what makes them very special.
And I want to know what you think about this.
What do you think about icebergs?
Probably not something you think about every day.
But maybe when you watch the movie Titanic, or maybe if you've ever been on a
cruise, maybe this has come to mind.
Maybe you have thought about an iceberg.
For example, if you go on an Alaskan cruise, that's something you may want to
think about.
That's right.
When you cruise in the cold waters, be aware of large pieces of floating ice
that we call icebergs.
Well, we're going to talk more about how they're made.
But first, we want to visit the Chat Room.
Hi, Ken.
Oh. Hi, Bryan.
Hold on a minute.
I have just the thing for you.
Oh yeah? What's that?
An English workshop for people who are studying English as a second language.
It'll be held here at the library next weekend.
Wow! This looks interesting.
So who's coming?
Lots of foreign students.
And the teacher is really outstanding.
But I don't know any of the people.
Don't worry.
There's going to be an icebreaker at the beginning to help everyone get
acquainted.
An icebreaker? Isn't that a type of ship that breaks the ice on the ocean?
Yes, but that's not what I'm talking about.
Why don't we go to Doris for an explanation.
Oh, OK.
When you're with someone you don't know, you might feel certain unfriendliness,
which can be described as an icy feeling.
There's no interaction.
However, if one of you makes an attempt to be friendly, like initiate a
conversation, we call that breaking the ice.
So an icebreaker is something that helps people who don't know each other
interact in a fun and lighthearted way.
Oh. So an icebreaker is an activity that gets people talking to one another?
Yep, that's it.
So are you coming?
Yeah. It sounds like fun, especially if the ice can be broken at the workshop.
Trust me, Ken. It will.
This guy is really good at conducting icebreakers.
OK, I'm there.
Thanks, Bryan.
You bet.