VOA慢速英语2010年-American Mosaic_ US Groups Working to

DOUG JOHNSON:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC¹ in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

I'm Doug Johnson.

Today on our program, we listen to music from some of this week's Grammy winners ...

And we tell about the teams competing in the championship game of American football ...

But first, we talk about some small groups and individuals in the United States who are helping² the people of Haiti.

(MUSIC)

Help for Haiti

DOUG JOHNSON:

The International Red Cross, MercyCorps and Doctors without Borders are big aid organizations helping the people of Haiti after the earthquake last month.

In the United States, many people are also giving their time and energy to collect money and goods for the earthquake victims. Faith Lapidus tells about some of these projects.

FAITH LAPIDUS:

At Jordan Catholic³ School in Rock Island, Illinois, students set up a money supply for Haiti. The money came mostly from the weekly pay the children get from their parents for good behavior or work around the house. Some children who do not get such allowances⁴ found money from other sources. For example, some sixth graders made and sold jewelry⁵

Sandy Carlsten is the assistant principal at the school. Miz Carlsten set up a big glass container in the front office of the school. She sent letters asking the children to donate what they could.

Miz Carlsten says the children loved to watch the big glass jar fill up quickly. She found an envelope in the jar with the message: "I hope this money will help you and your family in these rough times."

Sandy Carlsten says the children raised more than one thousand four hundred fifty dollars. They are giving it to Catholic Relief Services to help the people of Haiti. She says sharing and caring for others is a big part of Catholic school education.

Even victims who were not seriously hurt in the earthquake January twelfth are in need of the most basic supplies. College students in Sierra Vista⁶, Arizona are trying to help meet those needs. The Cochise College Social Concerns Club has organized a campaign to collect simple medical care equipment and personal cleanliness supplies.

In Virginia, employees of the Alexandria Sheriff's Office donated seven thousand dollars to help school children in Haiti. Harry⁷ Covert⁸ is the spokesman⁹ for the sheriff's office. He is also a leader of a humanitarian¹⁰ aid organization that has been supporting a school in Haiti for years. The school was destroyed in the earthquake but all one hundred fifty students survived.

Harry Covert says the key to re-building the school, and all of Haiti, is to make sure the work is done right. He says he was shocked by the way poor people in Port-au-Prince lived when he first visited in nineteen eighty-one. In two later trips he saw no improvement. Now, he says, people must not permit Haiti's poorest citizens to return to the terrible conditions that existed even before the earthquake.

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Super Bowl

DOUG JOHNSON:

Last week we answered a listener question about Americans' favorite winter sport to watch. Experts say American professional football is most popular. Sunday is the most important day for football fans. The National Football League holds its championship game.

The New Orleans Saints¹¹ from Louisiana will play the Indianapolis Colts from Indiana in Super Bowl Forty-Four. They will play at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. This is the home stadium of the Miami Dolphins.

Gregg Easterbrook writes a weekly piece called "Tuesday Morning Quarterback" for E.S.P.N.com. He expects this Super Bowl to be an especially exciting one. He notes the very different styles of the competing teams. He writes that the Colts are very careful, well organized and predictable players. But, New Orleans, he writes, is like "watching an outdoor cocktail¹² party play football." The team is wild, fun and loves to use trick plays.

The Super Bowl is historic¹³ for the New Orleans Saints. The team was established in nineteen sixty-seven. But it has never made it to the championship game until now. It has come close several times. In two thousand six, the year after Hurricane Katrina, the Saints returned to play at the repaired Superdome in New Orleans. The team performed well all season and came within one game of Super Bowl competition. This year, Saints fans are especially excited to see their team playing in the Super Bowl. Their city is still recovering from the hurricane.

The Indianapolis Colts have a longer history than the Saints. The team was officially established in nineteen fifty-three as the Baltimore Colts. The Colts left Baltimore for Indianapolis in nineteen eighty-four. The Indianapolis Colts have been to one Super Bowl since then, in two thousand seven. The Colts defeated the Chicago Bears for the N.F.L. championship.

On Sunday, millions of people in the United States and several other countries will watch the big game with friends and family. They will watch a half-time performance by the British rock band the Who. And they will enjoy the funny advertisements that are always broadcast during the Super Bowl. It is one of the biggest nights for American television. Last year, about one hundred million people in the United States watched the Super Bowl.

(MUSIC)

Grammy Awards

DOUG JOHNSON:

Every year, members of the Recording¹⁴ Academy choose their favorite songs, albums and musicians to receive Grammy Awards. The academy held its Grammy Awards ceremony last Sunday in Los Angeles, California. Shirley Griffith plays music from some of the winners.

SHIRLEY GRIFFTH:

Singer Beyonce had a huge night at the Grammy Awards. She won six, a record for a female performer. Three of the awards were for this hit song, "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)."

(MUSIC)

Country singer Taylor Swift also had a big night. She received her first Grammy and three more, including the Album of the Year award. Here she performs, "White Horse," from the album, "Fearless." Swift won the Grammy for best country vocal¹⁵ performance for the song.

(MUSIC)

During the past year, American Mosaic has played music from many of the performers who won Grammys Sunday night. They include the band Kings of Leon and musician Bela Fleck¹⁶, performers Lady Gaga and Lady Antebellum. But here is one we did not play. The French band Phoenix¹⁷ won a Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album. Here is the song, "1901" from the album "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix."

(MUSIC)

More than one hundred Grammy Awards are presented every year. There are awards for all kinds of music and spoken word recordings¹⁸. We leave you with singer Renee Fleming. She won the Grammy for Best Classical Vocal Performance for the album, "Verismo." Here she performs, "Flammen, Perdonami" from Pietro Mascagni's opera, "Lodoletta."

(MUSIC)

DOUG JOHNSON:

I'm Doug Johnson. Our program was written and produced by Caty Weaver¹⁹.

Do you have a question about people, places or things in America? Send it to www.unsv.com and we may answer it on this show.

Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA's radio magazine in Special English.

1 mosaic   

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 helping   

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。

3 catholic   

adj.天主教的；n.天主教徒

参考例句：

• The Pope is the supreme leader of the Roman Catholic Church.教皇是罗马天主教的最高领袖。
• She was a devoutly Catholic.她是一个虔诚地天主教徒。

4 allowances   

津贴( allowance的名词复数 )； 补助； 1 限额； 定量 2 免税额

参考例句：

• Government officials who travel on business are given traveling allowances. 因公出差的政府官员享有出差补贴。
• The court was asked to make allowances for his age. 人们要求法庭考虑他的年龄。

5 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

6 vista   

n.远景，深景，展望，回想

参考例句：

• From my bedroom window I looked out on a crowded vista of hills and rooftops.我从卧室窗口望去，远处尽是连绵的山峦和屋顶。
• These uprisings come from desperation and a vista of a future without hope.发生这些暴动是因为人们被逼上了绝路，未来看不到一点儿希望。

7 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

8 covert   

adj.隐藏的；暗地里的

参考例句：

• We should learn to fight with enemy in an overt and covert way.我们应学会同敌人做公开和隐蔽的斗争。
• The army carried out covert surveillance of the building for several months.军队对这座建筑物进行了数月的秘密监视。

9 spokesman   

n.发言人，代言人

参考例句：

• The government spokesman gave a quick briefing to the reporters.政府发言人向记者们作了情况简介。
• They drew lots to decide who should be their spokesman.他们抽签决定谁是他们的发言人。

10 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

11 saints   

圣人般的人（指特别善良、仁爱或有耐性的人）( saint的名词复数 )； 圣…（冠于人名、地名之前）； （因其生死言行而被基督教会追封的）圣人； 圣徒

参考例句：

• The children were all named after saints. 这些孩子都取了圣徒的名字。
• In 1461, the bishop of Saints, Louis de Rochechouart, saw only a plain wall. 1461年Saints主教，LouisdeRochechouart主教看到只剩一堵朴质的墙。

12 cocktail   

n.鸡尾酒；餐前开胃小吃；混合物

参考例句：

• We invited some foreign friends for a cocktail party.我们邀请了一些外国朋友参加鸡尾酒会。
• At a cocktail party in Hollywood,I was introduced to Charlie Chaplin.在好莱坞的一次鸡尾酒会上，人家把我介绍给查理·卓别林。

13 historic   

adj.历史上著名的，具有历史意义的

参考例句：

• This is a historic occasion.这是具有重大历史意义的时刻。
• We are living in a great historic era.我们正处在一个伟大的历史时代。

14 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

15 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

16 fleck   

n.斑点，微粒 vt.使有斑点，使成斑驳

参考例句：

• The garlic moss has no the yellow fleck and other virus. 蒜苔无黄斑点及其它病毒。
• His coat is blue with a grey fleck.他的上衣是蓝色的，上面带有灰色的斑点。

17 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

18 recordings   

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

19 weaver   

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。