The London Tube

Yvonne: This is 6 Minute English, I'm Yvonne Archer¹ and Alice has kindly² joined me
for today's programme. Hello Alice.
Alice: Hi Yvonne.
Yvonne: Now Alice, how do you get around London?
Alice: Ooh – by bus, bicycle and usually the Tube.
Yvonne: Aha, and most people would agree that the London Underground – ‘the Tube’ -
is the best way to get around this city. But many people have a love-hate
relationship with the underground – we either love it or hate it.
Insert 1: Tube announcement
(Ladies and gentlemen)…because of earlier signal failure, the Metropolitan³ Line has
severe delays and Hammersmith & City, Circle and Victoria Lines are all operating
with minor⁴ delays. We have a good service and operation on all of our other London
Underground lines (baby crying).
Alice: Oh dear, more delays – that's when the Tube is running late and doesn't come
along when we expect it to. And that makes it unreliable.
Yvonne: And the thing I hate most is that on a crowded carriage – or compartment⁵ - I
always have to stand under someone's armpit – and they don't always smell
very nice!
Alice: Oh, Yvonne – you poor thing. It's probably because you're not that tall, right?
Yvonne: Anyway, there is a lot to love about the Tube as well. It’s reasonably fast, it
covers a wide area and it has a long history. Now, it’s time for today's question,
Alice. During the last financial year, how many kilometres did Tube trains
travel? Was it about equal to:
a) 72 trips to the moon and back
b) 85 trips to the moon and back or
c) 90 trips to the moon and back
Alice: Oh, I've got no idea, so I'm going to guess and go for the big one. 90 trips to
the moon and back.
Yvonne: Mmmm – a very brave guess! But we’ll find out whether you've given us the
right answer or not later on. Now, if you live or work in London, or even if
you’ve only ever used the Tube once as a visitor to Britain, you’ll probably
have an opinion on it.
Alice: Yes, tourists and visitors to London who I’ve spoken to say they find it quite
simple to use and that the map is very good. It's difficult to get lost
underground.
Yvonne: Hmm, it is. When our colleague Natalie first arrived in London from Northern
Ireland, one thing about the Tube really surprised her.
Insert 2: Natalie
Nobody speaks to each other on the Tube; nobody looks at each other either most of the
time. And at first, it was strange being that close to strangers, but you just have to get on
with it or you'll not get on the Tube.
Yvonne: So Natalie found it strange to be standing⁶ so close to people she didn't know –
strangers – because the Tube was so crowded.
Alice: She soon realised that if she didn't 'get on with it', squeeze⁷ into a carriage and
travel in cramped⁸ conditions at rush hour, she might never go anywhere.
Yvonne: Mm, Natalie was most surprised that people don’t really speak to each other on
the Tube. And do you know, it's true. We do avoid eye contact with other
people, but I’m not sure why? But I'm a Londoner, and of course, I think lots
of us are quite friendly.
Alice: I think it happens in all big cities. When there are lots of people in small,
public places, people avoid eye contact or talking to each other.
Yvonne: Now let’s hear from Wang Fei, another of our colleagues. He's from China, but
has a much more romantic view of the Tube. Let’s listen to part of this rather
poetic⁹ piece he created about the sounds we hear underground:
Insert 3: Wang Fei
I hear a rumbling¹⁰ noise begin quietly, then grow louder and louder, building up to a
noise explosion¹¹ as the train comes into the station. (This is South Kensington…). I hear
the beeping sound and the doors open and close. I hear the clacking sound of the
track, a constant soundtrack to people silently reading newspapers and books on the
train.
Yvonne: Aw, Alice, that might certainly make us feel a little differently about the Tube,
don't you think?
Alice: Yes, it often takes fresh eyes to look at something we take for granted¹².
Yvonne: That’s true. So Wang Fei used quite a few adjectives¹³ to describe some of the
sounds we heard there as we travel on the Tube. Alice, remind us of a few
please.
Alice: Sure. Wang Fei describes the sudden, loud sound that we hear as the train
arrives at a station as 'a noise explosion'. But first, the train makes a quiet,
rumbling noise that grows louder and louder.
Yvonne: Mmm, that was lovely, because it's the same word we use to describe the
sound our stomachs make when we're hungry. Our stomachs rumble¹⁴. They
make a rumbling sound.
Alice: Then there was 'beeping' - that's the sound we hear as the doors open and close
on the carriages. And this beeping's really important for blind or visually
impaired¹⁵ people to know when the doors are open or shut.
Yvonne: Yes, because the beeping sound lets them know when it's safe to get on and off
the train.
Alice: We also heard about the 'clacking' sound – which Wang Fei says is a
continuous¹⁶ sound that we hear in the background. So it's like the music in a
film; he calls it 'a constant soundtrack'.
Yvonne: 'A constant soundtrack'. Well, I hope we'll both think about all those things
next time we're stuck on a Tube train, Alice.
Alice: I hope so.
Yvonne: And before we go, our question! I asked you Alice: during the last financial
year, how many kilometres did Tube trains travel, in terms of trips to the moon
and back? And your answer was?
Alice: I think I said 90.
Yvonne: Yes, 90 trips to the moon and back.
Alice: Amazing!
Yvonne: Thanks Alice, that was fun! Do join us again soon for more "6 Minute English".
Both: Bye!

 

1 archer   

n.射手，弓箭手

参考例句：

• The archer strung his bow and aimed an arrow at the target.弓箭手拉紧弓弦将箭瞄准靶子。
• The archer's shot was a perfect bull's-eye.射手的那一箭正中靶心。

2 kindly   

adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地

参考例句：

• Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
• A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。

3 metropolitan   

adj.大城市的，大都会的

参考例句：

• Metropolitan buildings become taller than ever.大城市的建筑变得比以前更高。
• Metropolitan residents are used to fast rhythm.大都市的居民习惯于快节奏。

4 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

5 compartment   

n.卧车包房，隔间；分隔的空间

参考例句：

• We were glad to have the whole compartment to ourselves.真高兴，整个客车隔间由我们独享。
• The batteries are safely enclosed in a watertight compartment.电池被安全地置于一个防水的隔间里。

6 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

7 squeeze   

vt.硬塞，硬挤；挤压；n.榨；经济困难；拮据

参考例句：

• This machine helps you to squeeze more juice out.这台机器能挤出更多的果汁。
• It was a tight squeeze in the crowded bus.公共汽车上载客太多，挤得很。

8 cramped   

a.狭窄的

参考例句：

• The house was terribly small and cramped, but the agent described it as a bijou residence. 房子十分狭小拥挤，但经纪人却把它说成是小巧别致的住宅。
• working in cramped conditions 在拥挤的环境里工作

9 poetic   

adj.富有诗意的，有诗人气质的，善于抒情的

参考例句：

• His poetic idiom is stamped with expressions describing group feeling and thought.他的诗中的措辞往往带有描写群体感情和思想的印记。
• His poetic novels have gone through three different historical stages.他的诗情小说创作经历了三个不同的历史阶段。

10 rumbling   

n. 隆隆声, 辘辘声 adj. 隆隆响的 动词rumble的现在分词

参考例句：

• The earthquake began with a deep [low] rumbling sound. 地震开始时发出低沉的隆隆声。
• The crane made rumbling sound. 吊车发出隆隆的响声。

11 explosion   

n.爆发，发出，爆炸

参考例句：

• The police arrived right at the moment of the explosion.警察就在爆炸的那个时候赶到了。
• The shock of the explosion was felt far away.爆炸引起的震动很远都可感觉到。

12 granted   

conj.假定，就算v.（退一步）承认( grant的过去式和过去分词 )；（尤指正式地或法律上）同意；准许；让渡

参考例句：

• The president granted a general amnesty for all political prisoners. 总统大赦了所有的政治犯。
• She feared she would not be granted re-entry into Britain. 她担心不会获准再次踏足英伦。

13 adjectives   

n.形容词( adjective的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We can form nouns from adjectives. 我们可以用形容词来构成名词。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Attributive adjectives precede the noun. 定语形容词位于名词前。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 rumble   

n.隆隆声；吵嚷；v.隆隆响；低沉地说

参考例句：

• I hear the rumble of thunder in the distance.我听到远处雷声隆隆。
• We could tell from the rumble of the thunder that rain was coming.我们根据雷的轰隆声可断定，天要下雨了。

15 impaired   

adj.受损的；出毛病的；有（身体或智力）缺陷的v.损害，削弱( impair的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Much reading has impaired his vision. 大量读书损害了他的视力。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• His hearing is somewhat impaired. 他的听觉已受到一定程度的损害。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 continuous   

adj.继续的，连续的，持续的，延伸的

参考例句：

• She finally got in after 10 years'continuous effort.坚持不懈地努力了十年后，她终于当选了。
• We must be continuous to study.我们必须不断学习。