Reality Television/ Kalpana Chawla

 

Broadcast: Feb 14, 2003
By Cynthia Kirk and Nancy Steinbach

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC¹ -- VOA's radio magazine in Special English.
 
This is Doug Johnson. On our program today,

We play some music for Valentine's Day...

Answer a question about American astronaut1 Kalpana Chawla...

And tell about a new kind of popular Amerian television program.

Reality Television

HOST:

Many Americans have been watching a new kind of entertainment. It is called "reality television." There are many kinds of reality television programs. Each week, people who are not famous compete in unusual situations. Some try to win money by answering questions on game shows. Others compete to see who is the best singer. Still others try to meet someone to marry. Jim Tedder² has more.

ANNCR:

One of the most popular reality television shows right now is called "American Idol³." The program searches for the best young singers of popular songs. Three entertainment professionals2 judge the young singers. One judge on the program gives sharp criticism⁴ or high praise. The winning singer receives a recording⁵ agreement and becomes famous.

Another popular reality show is called "Survivor⁶." It observes people as they struggle through severe conditions in different areas of the world. A new series of "Survivor" started this week. One team of women and one team of men were taken to the Amazon jungle in South America.

They face dangers from nature and from the other competitors. They get little food or sleep. One-by-one, those declared the weakest are forced to leave. The last one to remain wins one-million dollars. Producer Mark Barnett says twenty-million people watch "Survivor." He says people in one-hundred countries have seen the show and it is influencing popular culture.

A popular reality game show is called "Who Wants to be a Millionaire." The competitors answer a series of questions with the goal of winning one-million dollars. "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" is seen in one-hundred countries.

Some reality shows have been criticized3. One of these is called "Joe Millionaire." A group of young women competed on this show to win the love of a young man. They were told that the man had been given fifty-million dollars by his family. The women did not know that the man is not really rich. He is worker who earns low pay.

Television critics are not sure why these programs are so popular. Some say the viewers want to know what happens each week to people who are just like them. Some critics say reality television may lose popularity⁷ as one show copies another. But producers say that more reality television shows are likely to be made as long as the demand for them continues.

Kalpana Chawla

HOST:

Our VOA listener question this week comes from India. Sampath asks about Kalpana Chawla, the Indian-born American astronaut who was one of the seven people killed on the space shuttle Columbia.

Kalpana Chawla was responsible for more than twelve scientific experiments on the sixteen-day flight of the Columbia. It was her second trip into space. She first flew on a space shuttle in nineteen-ninety-seven. She described earth as very beautiful, and said she wished everyone could see it as she had.

Kalpana Chawla was born forty-one years ago in Karnal, about one-hundred-thirty kilometers north of New Delhi. Her friends say she always wanted to fly. She moved to the United States in the nineteen-eighties, after graduating from Punjab Engineering⁸ College. She continued to study aeronautical4 engineering at the University of Texas in Arlington and the University of Colorado at Boulder⁹. She became an astronaut in nineteen-ninety-four.

After Mizz Chawla became an American citizen, she continued to communicate with students at her school in her hometown. Every year, she invited two of them to visit her at the American space agency¹⁰. Students say she told them to follow their dreams, and that she would help them if their dreams could not come true in India.

Hundreds of students had gathered at the school when the Columbia astronauts were expected to return to Earth. They prayed together when they learned¹¹ the news that the shuttle had broken apart.

Kalpana Chawla was the first Indian-born woman in space. But she told Indian reporters that she did not feel Indian when flying. She said that looking at the stars made her feel that she was from the solar system, not from one area of land on Earth.

Millions of people in India, the United States and other nations mourned the loss of Kalpana Chawla and the other six Columbia astronauts. President Bush spoke¹² about their lives and their work at a memorial service last week in Texas. He said the American space program would continue so that their scientific work would not be lost.

Valentine's Day Music

HOST:

Today, February fourteenth, is Valentine's Day in the United States. The holiday is named for Saint¹³ Valentine, an early Christian¹⁴ churchman who reportedly helped young lovers¹⁵. Valentine was executed¹⁶ for his beliefs on February fourteenth, more than one-thousand-seven-hundred years ago. The ancient Romans also celebrated¹⁷ a holiday for lovers more than two-thousand years ago. So Valentine's Day has been a special day for people in love for a very long time.

ANNCR:

Americans celebrate Valentine's Day by sending cards and gifts such as flowers and candy. Men and women may go out to a restaurant for a special meal. Sometimes a man will propose¹⁸ marriage to the woman he loves on Valentine's Day. Some people plan to have their weddings on Valentine's Day.

The music of love is important on Valentine's Day. Here is a song that attempts to describe the feeling. It is called "Love Is A Many Splendored5 Thing." It is sung by Andy Williams.

(MUSIC)

This next famous love song is sung by rock and roll great Elvis Presley. It is called "Love Me Tender¹⁹."

(MUSIC)

We leave you now with another love song popular on Valentine's Day. "My Funny Valentine" was written by Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart. Ella Fitzgerald sings it.

(MUSIC)

HOST:

This is Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program today. And I hope you will join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC--VOA's radio magazine in Special English.

This AMERICAN MOSAIC program was written by Cynthia Kirk and Nancy Steinbach. Our studio engineer was Glen Matlock. And our producer was Paul Thompson.
1. astronaut [5AstrEnC:t] n. 太空人，宇航员
2. professional [prE5feFEnl] adj.专业的，职业的
3. criticize [5krItIsaIz] v. 批评，责备
4. aeronautical [7ZErE5nC:tIkEl] adj. 航空学的
5. splendor [5splendE] n. 光彩，杰出

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 tedder   

n.（干草）翻晒者，翻晒机

参考例句：

• Jim Tedder has more. 吉姆？特德将给我们做更多的介绍。 来自互联网
• Jim Tedder tells us more. 吉姆？泰德给我们带来更详细的报道。 来自互联网

3 idol   

n.偶像，红人，宠儿

参考例句：

• As an only child he was the idol of his parents.作为独子，他是父母的宠儿。
• Blind worship of this idol must be ended.对这个偶像的盲目崇拜应该结束了。

4 criticism   

n.批评，批判，指责；评论，评论文章

参考例句：

• Some youth today do not allow any criticism at all.现在有些年轻人根本指责不得。
• It is wrong to turn a deaf ear to other's criticism.对别人的批评充耳不闻是错误的。

5 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。

6 survivor   

n.生存者，残存者，幸存者

参考例句：

• The sole survivor of the crash was an infant.这次撞车的惟一幸存者是一个婴儿。
• There was only one survivor of the plane crash.这次飞机失事中只有一名幸存者。

7 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

8 engineering   

n.工程，工程学，管理，操纵

参考例句：

• The science of engineering began as soon as man learned to use tools. 人类一学会使用工具,工程科学就开始了。
• It was the first great engineering works in the world. 这是世界上第一家大型的工程工厂。

9 boulder   

n.巨砾；卵石，圆石

参考例句：

• We all heaved together and removed the boulder.大家一齐用劲，把大石头搬开了。
• He stepped clear of the boulder.他从大石头后面走了出来。

10 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。

11 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

12 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

13 saint   

n.圣徒；基督教徒；vt.成为圣徒，把...视为圣徒

参考例句：

• He was made a saint.他被封为圣人。
• The saint had a lowly heart.圣人有谦诚之心。

14 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

15 lovers   

爱好者( lover的名词复数 )； 情人； 情夫； 情侣

参考例句：

• They were off-screen lovers. 他们是真实生活中的情侣。
• Shakespeare's star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet 罗密欧和朱丽叶这一对莎士比亚笔下命运多舛的恋人

16 executed   

v.执行（法令）( execute的过去式和过去分词 )；（按计划或设计）作成；履行；演（戏）

参考例句：

• He was executed for treason. 他因叛国罪被处死。
• He was executed in 1887for plotting to assassinate the tsar. 他因密谋暗杀沙皇在1887年被判处极刑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

18 propose   

v.提出，建议；提名，推荐

参考例句：

• Did he propose marriage to you?他向你求婚了吗？
• I propose resting for an hour.我建议休息一小时。

19 tender   

adj.嫩的，柔软的；脆弱的，纤细的；温柔的

参考例句：

• At the tender age of seventeen I left home.早在十七岁的小小年纪，我就离开了家。
• We were sent to boarding school at a tender age.很小的时候我们就被送到了寄宿学校。