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VOA慢速英语2013 国家动物园的大熊猫宝宝健康、活跃

时间:2013-12-01 14:31:56

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National Zoo's Baby Panda Healthy, Active 国家动物园的大熊猫宝宝健康、活跃

Welcome to American Mosaic1 from VOA Learning English.

I’m -------------------June Simms.

On the show today, we play music you can find in a special online sales event.

We also tell about a training program to help former women prisoners re-enter society.

But first, a report on the cute, furry2 baby at the National Zoo.

Baby Panda Still NamelessA panda born at the National Zoo in Washington will turn 100 days old on December 1. It is an important day for the young animal. Chinese tradition celebrates 100 days of life with a naming ceremony. And zoo officials plan to follow the custom. Kelly Jean Kelly has more about the little panda, the newest addition to the effort to keep and protect the endangered animal.

Only a few visitors are at the National Zoo on a cold, gray day earlier this week. But bright holiday decorations are already in place — some of them feature giant pandas.

One panda has been the center of international attention. She is a little female who still does not have a name.

The cub3 was born to giant panda Mei Xiang on August 23. More than two million people have watched her grow on broadcasts from the zoo’s “panda cam.”

She was pink, hairless and weighed only 136 grams at first. Now she is covered in black and white fur. She weighs almost 4.7 kilograms and she can crawl.

Brandie Smith is the curator of the Giant Pandas exhibit. She says the cub is helping4 the public learn the importance of saving these animals.

“Giant pandas are an endangered species and every single additional panda in the world makes a difference.”

Ms. Smith says the zoo workers have been trying to get the cub used to their voices. This relationship makes caring for her easier.

“We have a training language with them so that we can interact and we can do the necessary things we do to keep them healthy and safe.”

Older pandas mostly eat bamboo. But, animal keeper Nicole MacCorkle says right now mother Mei Xiang is the cub’s only source of food.

“Eventually, when the cub is about six months old – so about three months from now – she’ll start sampling some bamboo, but she’ll still be drinking milk until she is about a year and a half, or even closer to two years old.”

The Giant Panda is also about to receive her name. Since November 5, more than 100,000 people have voted on the National Zoo website to choose a name. There are five possibilities. Bao Bao means precious or treasure; Ling Hua is darling or delicate flower and Long Yun means dragon and charming and is a sign of good luck.

The other two possibilities are Mulan, after a famed fifth century Chinese warrior5 and Zhen Bao which means treasure or valuable.

The voting ended November 22.  The zoo will hold a special ceremony on December 1 to give the cub her name.

On this morning at the zoo, children from a nearby elementary school are crowding the path to the panda area. One of the students, Calvin, explains why he and his friends voted for the name Mulan.

“You know I liked the name because (she’s) a brave woman warrior. I really like the name because out in the wild by itself, it has to brave.”

The cub will remain separated from the public until January. At the age of four she will be returned to China to find a mate and start her own family.

Baking for a New LifeMany doors close when an individual is jailed for a crime. It can be difficult for former prisoners to reenter society. A number of training programs are aimed at reopening doors for these men and women. “Together We Bake” teaches cooking and marketing6 skills to women who have spent time in prison so they can start new lives. Kelly Jean Kelly has more.

“Together We Bake” is a 10-week program. It teaches women how to bake and sell chocolate chip cookies and granola. Two friends, Tricia Sabatini and Stephanie Wright, created the program. Ms. Wright explains how.

“I have a background in social work and she is an amazing baker7. We decided8 to combine forces and we discovered that this population of women, returning from prison or jail into the community, there aren’t a lot of resources for them. So we thought we could combine our passions and develop this job as a training program.”

Stephanie Wright says they launched the program earlier this year.

“We had two classes so far that have graduated. This is our third class. We have eight women currently in this class. We’ve 16 women graduated in the first two teams.”

Forty-five year old Terry Garredt is one of the graduates.

“I know that I’m able to work with a team and successfully complete a project.”

She says the program helped her turn her life around. Next she hopes to complete her high school studies. She is also working for Together We Bake to help other women follow the path she took.

“I see it as empowering because they’re focusing on something they can achieve; start with something small, work with it to something big, in five years you should be there.”

That makes sense to Regina Byrd who joined Together We Bake just a few weeks ago. The 50-year-old hopes to open her own restaurant someday. She says she could not have even dreamed of such a thing when she got of jail last year.

“It was very hard for me to get a job because I had a felony. I had a very low self-esteem and depression.”

The program includes classes in which the women talk about their experiences and learn communication and job skills. Thirty-six-year-old Jamie Whitehead spent three years in jail. She found those meeting were very helpful.

“I learned how to open up a little more because I’m not alone, there are others out there. I made a mistake and moved past it. I’m just trying to better myself.”

Together We Bake co-founder Tricia Sabatini says gaining new skills helps each women feel better about herself.

“Just to enforce that everyone deserves a second chance, that you will never know by looking at someone what they’re going through and the power they have to change themselves.”

The program also includes sales. The women sell their baked goods at local farmer markets every weekend.

“My family loves the granola. It’s so fresh, and we eat it every day with our breakfast.”

Karyn Moran often buys products from the women.

“We are very community minded and we’re so proud of the work that Together We Bake is doing in the community to give women a second chance. We’re here mostly to support Together We Bake, that’s why we come and buy our granola here.”

That kind of support helps the former prisoners know that their work is worth it. They learn that they have what it takes to succeed.

Black Friday for Music TooIn the United States, the day after Thanksgiving is traditionally the start of the shopping period for the holidays in December.  On Black Friday, as the day is known, stores open earlier and offer cuts in prices.

Katherine Cole tells us how the organizers of the Record Store Day are joining in this year. Shoppers will be able to buy some very special music without leaving home.

Nick Lowe’s future holiday classic “Christmas at the Airport” can be found on his new release “Quality Street.” It is available on CD and digital download. But for the Record Store Day’s Black Friday event, it is being made available as a vinyl LP picture disc. Picture discs are records with images printed in the vinyl. Lady Gaga has a picture disc out for the season. It contains remixes of her song “Applause.”

A group of independent record stores organize “Record Store Day.” It is held each April. The yearly event has added to the surprising popularity of a return to vinyl records. Sales of music CDs have been falling for years. But sales of old-time vinyl records have been growing.

Among the Record Store Day specials for Black Friday are live recordings9 by the Dave Matthews Band and the Rolling Stones. And there are rare works from the former British band The Clash.

Vanguard Records has two specials. It is releasing tribute albums for famed guitarist John Fahey and for the former poet, songwriter, illustrator and author Shel Silverstein. The tribute to Shel Silverstein includes tracks by Kris Kristofferson, John Prine and the group My Morning Jacket. It performs Silverstein’s“26 Second Song.”

A complete list of all Black Friday specials is available of the Record Day Store website.

I’m June Simms. Our program was written and produced by Caty Weaver10. Katherine Cole, Faiza ElMasry and Dave Byrd contributed.


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 mosaic CEExS     
n./adj.镶嵌细工的,镶嵌工艺品的,嵌花式的
参考例句:
  • The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
  • The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。
2 furry Rssz2D     
adj.毛皮的;似毛皮的;毛皮制的
参考例句:
  • This furry material will make a warm coat for the winter.这件毛皮料在冬天会是一件保暖的大衣。
  • Mugsy is a big furry brown dog,who wiggles when she is happy.马格斯是一只棕色大长毛狗,当她高兴得时候她会摇尾巴。
3 cub ny5xt     
n.幼兽,年轻无经验的人
参考例句:
  • The lion cub's mother was hunting for what she needs. 这只幼师的母亲正在捕猎。
  • The cub licked the milk from its mother's breast. 这头幼兽吸吮着它妈妈的奶水。
4 helping 2rGzDc     
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的
参考例句:
  • The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
  • By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
5 warrior YgPww     
n.勇士,武士,斗士
参考例句:
  • The young man is a bold warrior.这个年轻人是个很英勇的武士。
  • A true warrior values glory and honor above life.一个真正的勇士珍视荣誉胜过生命。
6 marketing Boez7e     
n.行销,在市场的买卖,买东西
参考例句:
  • They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
  • He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。
7 baker wyTz62     
n.面包师
参考例句:
  • The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
  • The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。
8 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
9 recordings 22f9946cd05973582e73e4e3c0239bb7     
n.记录( recording的名词复数 );录音;录像;唱片
参考例句:
  • a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
  • old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐
10 weaver LgWwd     
n.织布工;编织者
参考例句:
  • She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快,而且布的质量很好。
  • The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

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