Welcome to learning English, a daily thirty minutes program from the voice of America . I'm Johnathan Evans and I'm Ashley Thompson. This program is aimed at English learners, so we speak a little slower. And we use words and phrases especially written for people learning English. Today on the program, you'll hear from Mario Ritter Jr, Susan Shand, John Russell and Jill Robbins. Later we will present our American history series-THE MAKING OF A NATION. But first, here is Mario Ritter Jr .
1.Fishing Limits Raise Hard Questions for Maryland Company
釣魚限制引發馬裡蘭公司的嚴峻問題
By Mario Ritter Jr.
20 February 2020
American George Ball thinks he has one of the best-paying jobs available in the Chesapeake Bay area.
The Chesapeake Bay stretches over 300 kilometers from Maryland to southeastern Virginia before its waters finally reach the Atlantic Ocean.
2020年2月20日，美國人喬治·鮑爾（George Ball）認為他擁有切薩皮克灣地區薪水最高的工作之一。切薩皮克灣從馬裡蘭州一直延伸到維吉尼亞東南部300多公裡，之後水域才最終到達大西洋。
George Ball catches a fish called the Atlantic menhaden. Ball says that, in the area where he lives, there are not too many good jobs like his. His ancestors also were fisherman, so he does not want to change jobs. "Starting over would be treacherous," he told The Associated Press.
喬治·鮑爾（George Ball）釣到一條叫做大西洋猛禽的大魚。鮑爾說，在他居住的地區，沒有像他這樣的好工作。他的祖先也是漁夫，所以他不想換工作。他對美聯社說：「從頭開始是危險的。」
Ball works for a business called Omega Protein. It processes his menhaden catch to make fish oil pills and feed for farm-raised salmon. But the company is facing increasing restrictions on fishing. Critics say it could be harming the Chesapeake Bay by overfishing.
Ball為一家名為Omega Protein的公司工作。它加工他的男子捕撈的魚，製成魚油丸和農場飼養的鮭魚的飼料。但是該公司正面臨越來越多的捕魚限制。批評人士說，過度捕撈可能會損害切薩皮克灣。
Last year, Omega Protein caught 30 percent more fish than legal catch limits in the Chesapeake. As a result, the federal government is threatening to place a temporary ban on menhaden fishing in Virginia's waters.
去年，歐米茄蛋白質的捕獲量比切薩皮克群島的法定捕獲量高出30％。結果，聯邦政府威脅要暫時禁止在維吉尼亞州水域的捕撈垂釣者。
The Marine Stewardship Council, a not-for-profit environmental group, is reconsidering the company's certification for sustainability. Environmental groups, sport fisherman and some state lawmakers are calling for restrictions on the company's fishing operations.
非營利性環保組織海洋管理委員會（Marine Stewardship Council）正在重新考慮該公司的可持續性認證。環保團體，運動漁民和一些州議員呼籲對公司的捕魚活動進行限制。
The harvest limit that Omega Protein did not obey was put in place to protect the Chesapeake Bay area. The bay is America's largest estuary, a place where fresh water and sea water mix. Many animals, including striped bass and humpback whales, depend on the Atlantic menhaden for food.
為保護切薩皮克灣地區，制定了歐米茄蛋白質不遵守的收成限制規定。海灣是美國最大的河口，是淡水和海水混合的地方。許多動物，包括條紋鱸魚和座頭鯨，都依靠大西洋鯡魚來覓食。
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission sets rules for fishing. The group set the fishing limits as a precautionary measure while it learns more about the menhaden population.
大西洋國家海洋漁業委員會制定了捕魚規則。該小組在了解更多有關鯡魚種群的同時，將捕魚限制作為一項預防措施。
Omega Protein has promised to obey the catch limits in the future. But it also says there is no scientific evidence that the fish are being overharvested or that the area is being harmed.
歐米茄蛋白質已承諾將來會遵守捕獲量限制。但它也說，沒有科學證據表明魚類被過度捕撈或該地區受到了損害。
Omega Protein is important to the local economy. A 2017 study found that the business added $88 million to the state's economy. It also said that the company's closure would cut the local county's earnings by 14 percent and employment by eight percent.
歐米茄蛋白質對當地經濟很重要。2017年的一項研究發現，該業務為該州的經濟增加了8,800萬美元。它還說，該公司的關閉將使當地縣的收入減少14％，將就業減少8％。
I'm Mario Ritter, Jr.
Ben Finley reported this story for The Associated Press. Mario Ritter Jr. adapted it for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
___________________________________________________________
Words in This Story
treacherous – adj. very dangerous and difficult to deal with
pill – n. a small medicinal or dietary preparation
certification – n. official approval of something
sustainability – n. the ability of some product or resource to be used over a long period of time without being used up
precautionary – adj. something that is done to prevent possible harm in the future
income – n. earnings
custody – n. the legal right to take care of the child
Tips
George Ball:喬治·保爾
Chesapeake Bay:切薩皮克灣
Maryland:馬裡蘭州
Virginia:維吉尼亞州
Atlantic Ocean:大西洋
Atlantic menhaden:大西洋鯡魚
The Associated Press:(略作 A.P.)美國聯合通訊社;美聯社
Omega Protein:（公司）歐米加蛋白食品
salmon:大馬哈魚
Marine Stewardship Council:海洋管理委員會
striped bass:鱸魚
humpback whales:座頭鯨
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:大西洋州海洋漁業委員會
2.Songs to Heal: Yazidi Refugees Celebrate 7,000-Year-Old Musical Culture
治癒之歌：亞茲底族難民慶祝具有7,000年歷史的音樂文化
By Susan Shand
20 February 2020
When the Islamic State (IS) group moved across northern Iraq in 2014, its forces tried to destroy the Yazidi people.
當伊斯蘭國（IS）團體2014年穿越伊拉克北部時，其部隊試圖摧毀亞茲底族。
Yazidis are an ethnic minority in Iraq. They had lived in the mountains of Kurdistan for a thousand years.
Yazidis是伊拉克的少數民族。他們已經在庫德斯坦山區生活了一千年。
IS fighters killed thousands of Yazidis and enslaved many women and girls. The Yazidi culture was threatened with genocide.
IS戰鬥人員殺死了數千名Yazidis，並奴役了許多婦女和女童。Yazidi文化受到種族滅絕的威脅。
Now, the British-based AMAR foundation is leading a project that aims to teach young Yazidis the ancient music of their ancestors. The aid group also hopes to create a permanent record of their culture.
現在，總部位於英國的AMAR基金會正在領導一個旨在向年輕的Yazidis傳授其祖先古代音樂的項目。援助小組還希望為他們的文化創造一個永久的記錄。
The British government is providing financial support to the project.
英國政府正在為該項目提供財政支持。
Yazidi music is thought to be between 5,000 and 7,000 years old. However, it has never been written down or recorded. Traditional Yazidi musicians hand down the music from one generation to the next. Musicians memorize up to 500 individual pieces of music.
Yazidi音樂被認為具有5,000至7,000年的歷史。但是，從未記錄或記錄過。傳統的Yazidi音樂家將音樂從一代傳給下一代。音樂家最多可記憶500首音樂。
There are three kinds of music: traditional folk music, which is linked to agriculture, ceremonial music, and religious music.
音樂分為三種：與農業相關的傳統民間音樂，禮儀音樂和宗教音樂。
Now, these sounds are being heard far beyond the homeland in northern Iraq. British violinist Michael Bochmann is leading the AMAR program. This month he invited the musicians to perform at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London.
現在，這些聲音正在伊拉克北部祖國以外的地方被傳播。英國小提琴家Michael Bochmann領導AMAR計劃。本月，他邀請音樂家在倫敦三一拉班音樂舞蹈學院演出。
"The music of the Yazidi people is...essential to their culture," he told VOA. Only a small group of people, the Qawals caste, are permitted to sing the music. "There are only 16 of them left," Bochmann added. He said he knew it was important to record the music for future generations.
他告訴美國之音說：「雅茲迪人的音樂對他們的文化至關重要。」只有一小部分人，即卡瓦爾人種姓，可以唱歌。「只剩下16個了，」博赫曼補充說。他認為，為後代錄製音樂很重要。
AMAR has made over 100 recordings in northern Iraq. Some were produced at Lalish, the 4,000-year-old spiritual home of the Yazidi. Sound engineers and musicians are also visiting refugee camps, where tens of thousands of Yazidi people still live after the IS campaign.
AMAR已在伊拉克北部錄製了100多個唱片。其中一些是在Yalishdi具有4000年歷史的精神之家Lalish生產的。音響工程師和音樂家也正在訪問難民營，在IS運動之後，仍有成千上萬的Yazidi人居住。
Hundreds of young Yazidis are learning to play the instruments of their culture. They include a stringed instrument known as a tabor, and a kind of drum known as the daf.
數百名年輕的Yazidis正在學習演奏其文化的樂器。它們包括一種稱為塔博爾的弦樂器和一種稱為daf的鼓。
Among the Yazidis visiting London were several women who had been held captive by Islamic State. Among them was Renas, who was only 14 when IS forces captured her village. She says she faced abuse every day. Renas was later released after her family paid money. She was forced to leave behind the daughter she gave birth to while held captive.
在前往倫敦的Yazidis中，有幾名被伊斯蘭國俘虜的婦女。其中包括雷納斯（Renas），她在IS部隊佔領她的村莊時只有14歲。她說她每天都遭受虐待。蕾娜絲（Renas）在家人付錢後被釋放並且她被迫離開被俘虜時生下的女兒。
Renas says the music project helps her forget the past.
雷納斯說，音樂項目幫助她忘記了過去。
"I want this support to continue. Thanks to this project, our people did not lose hope. And if they will continue to help us, we will not give up," she told VOA.
她告訴美國之音：「我希望這種支持繼續下去。因為這個項目，我們的人民沒有失去希望。如果他們繼續幫助我們，我們將不會放棄。」
I'm Susan Shand.
VOA's Henry Ridgwell reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
Write to us in the Comments Section or on 51VOA.COM.
______________________________________________________________
Words in This Story
folk – adj. a of or relating to the common people of a country or region
beyond – adj. on or to the farther part or side
violinist – n. one who plays the violin, which is a small stringed instrument
essential – adj. important
caste – n. a division of society based upon differences of wealth, rank, or occupation
drum – n. a musical instrument that is made with a thin layer of skin or plastic stretched over the end of a round frame and that is played by hitting the skin or plastic with sticks or with your hands
Tips
Islamic State:伊斯蘭國
Iraq:伊拉克
Yazidi:雅茲迪（教派）
Kurdistan:庫德斯坦
AMAR foundation:AMAR基金會（慈善組織）
Michael Bochmann:麥可·博赫曼
Trinity Laban Conservatoire:三一拉邦藝術學院
the Qawals caste:Qawals階級
Lalish:拉裡什
tabor:塔波鼓
daf:daf鼓
Renas:麗納
3.Is Grammar Cool?
By John Russell
20 February 2020
In the American film Pulp Fiction, actor Samuel L. Jackson challenges two criminals. They are trying to take money from all of the people in a restaurant.
Jackson plays the part of a former criminal who used to carry out targeted killings. He wants to change his life and does not want to hurt people anymore. But he does not want to give his money to criminals either.
Jackson asks one of the criminals to use an adjective. He asks her to describe Fonzie, a character from the old American television show Happy Days.
"Nobody's gonna hurt anybody. We're all gonna be like three little Fonzies here. And what's Fonzie like? Come on, Yalonda, what's Fonzie like?
"Cool."
"What?"
"Cool."
"Correctamundo! And that is what we are going to be – we're gonna be cool."
Today, we will explore the term that Jackson wanted to hear: cool, a word that has both formal and casual uses. The casual, everyday uses of cool will be our topic of discussion.
But first, we begin with a little history.
History
Cool has its roots in the Old English term "col," meaning "not warm," notes the Online Etymology Dictionary.
Google Ngram has evidence of cool being used as far back as the 16th century.
In other words, cool has a long history. The writer William Shakespeare even used the term in many of his plays, including Othello and Much Ado About Nothing.
But cool's meanings have changed over time.
By the 20th century, among its other meanings, cool eventually came to suggest a kind of effortlessness.
Fonzie, the character you heard about at the beginning of this report, gives you one example of the idea. He does humorous, wonderful things without seeming to try very hard.
Yet Fonzie did not invent cool. Some people claim this effortless, stylish way of acting is a product of African-American art.
Joel Dinerstein wrote a book called The Origins of Cool in Postwar America. He says cool came from an artistic movement led primarily by black musicians. Lester Young, a saxophone player, is said to have made the term popular in jazz music circles in the 1930s and 1940s.
"To be cool," Dinerstein noted, "meant you carried personal authority through a stylish mask of stoicism." In other words, cool meant you endured hardship, but did not express it outwardly.
Modern uses – adjective and adverb
Over time, cool lost its connection with artistic movements and became more common in everyday speech. It still carries many meanings – as a verb, noun, adjective and adverb.
However, in casual situations, Americans often use cool as an adjective or as an adverb.
Adjective
As an adjective, cool generally has three meanings. It can describe something as appealing in a way that people like – especially young people. For example, Americans often say things like "cool sunglasses" or "cool clothes."
Cool can show approval in a very general way. Imagine you introduce one of your friends to your father. After the meeting, your friend might say,
"Your dad is so cool."
Cool also can show acceptance, agreement, or understanding.
Consider this situation. You are running late to a meeting with a friend. You send a text message to apologize for your delay. Your friend might respond with the following message:
"That's cool – no worries."
The Amazon television show Patriot used cool in this way. The main character, a spy named John Lakeman, often gets terrible news. He shows acceptance by saying "cool."
"Cool... that's cool."
Adverb
As an adverb, cool generally means in a calm manner. Two of the most common uses might be in the terms "act cool" and "play it cool."
Imagine two children were playing around and accidentally broke something. Perhaps they broke a lamp or a dish in the house. Then, they hear one of their parents opening the door of their house. One child might say to the other:
"When dad walks in, just act cool – don't say anything!"
or
"When mom comes in, we have to play it cool, or she will start to suspect something!"
A word of caution
Finally, a word of warning.
Americans generally describe other people with the adjective cool. They do not use it to describe themselves.
This is where culture and grammar meet. An American would consider a statement such as "I am cool" to be strange - even if it is grammatically correct.
So, when speaking with friends, feel free to use the term cool. Although informal, it has a good, positive meaning.
But you should think of cool as a gift you can give to others. If you give that gift to yourself, well, that's just not cool.
I'm Jill Robbins.
And I'm John Russell.
John Russell wrote this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
______________________________________________________________
Words in This Story
challenge – v. to invite someone to take part in a competition; to compete against an opponent
character – n. a person in a play, movie or television show
formal – adj. done in an official way; relating to an important or ceremonial event
casual – adj. unofficial; done without much thought
topic – n. subject
etymology – n. an explanation of where a word came from : the history of a word
stoicism – n. the quality or behavior of a person who accepts what happens without protesting or showing emotion
introduce – v. to bring into use or operation; to make someone known to another person
grammar – n. the system and structure of a language
dad – n. someone's father
Tips
Pulp Fiction:(電影)低俗小說
Samuel L. Jackson：塞繆爾·傑克遜
Happy Days:（電視劇）歡樂時光
Fonzie:方茲
William Shakespeare:威廉·莎士比亞
Othello:奧賽羅
Much Ado About Nothing:無事生非
Joel Dinerstein:喬爾·迪納斯坦
The Origins of Cool in Postwar America:（書名）二戰後美國「Cool」的起源
Lester Young:李斯特楊
Patriot:（電視劇）愛國者
John Lakeman:約翰·萊克曼
4.American History: Calvin Coolidge Wins in Election of 1924
By David Jarmul
2011-1-26
BOB DOUGHTY: Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English.
Vice President Calvin Coolidge became president in 1923 following the death of President Warren Harding. Coolidge quickly gained the trust of most Americans by investigating the crimes of Harding's top officials. The conservative economic policies of the new president also won wide support.
Coolidge had one year to prove his abilities to the American people before the election of 1924.
This week in our series, Kay Gallant and Harry Monroe tell us about that election.
(MUSIC)
KAY GALLANT: Coolidge was a quiet man who believed in limited government policies. But his silence hid a fighting political spirit. Coolidge had worked for many years to gain the White House. He would not give it up without a struggle.
Coolidge moved quickly after becoming president to gain control of the Republican Party. He named his own advisers to important jobs. And he replaced a number of officials with people whose loyalty he could trust.
Most Republicans liked Coolidge. They felt his popular policies would make him a strong candidate in the presidential election. For this reason, Coolidge faced only one serious opponent for the Republican presidential nomination in 1924.
Coolidge's opponent was the great automobile manufacturer, Henry Ford of Michigan. Ford had been a candidate for Congress in 1918. He lost that election. But after the election, some people in his company began to call for Ford to be the Republican presidential nominee in 1924.
HARRY MONROE: Ford was one of history's greatest inventors and manufacturers. But he had limited skills in politics. Ford was poorly educated. He had extreme opinions about a number of groups. He hated labor unions, the stock market, dancing, smoking, and drinking alcohol. But most of all, Ford hated Jews. He produced a number of publications accusing the Jewish people of organizing international plots.
At first, Ford appeared to be a strong opponent to Coolidge. But soon, he realized that Coolidge was too strong politically. His economic policies were popular among the people. And the nation was at peace. The party could not deny Coolidge's nomination. Ford himself put an end to his chances by telling the nation that it was "perfectly safe with Coolidge."
Calvin Coolidge won the presidential nomination easily at the 1924 Republican convention in Cleveland, Ohio. The Republican delegates chose Charles Dawes of Illinois to run with him as the vice presidential candidate.
KAY GALLANT: The Democratic Party was much more divided. Many of the groups that traditionally supported Democratic candidates now were fighting against each other. For example, many farmers did not agree on policies with people living in cities. The educated did not agree with uneducated people. And many Protestant workers felt divided from Roman Catholic and Jewish workers.
These differences made it hard for the Democratic Party to choose a national candidate. There was little spirit of compromise.
Two main candidates campaigned for the Democratic nomination. The first was former Treasury Secretary William McAdoo. McAdoo had the support of many Democrats because of his strong administration of the railroads during the world war. Democratic voters in Southern and Western states liked him because of his conservative racial policies and his opposition to alcohol.
The second main candidate was Alfred Smith, the governor of New York. Smith was a Roman Catholic. He was very popular with people in the Eastern cities, Roman Catholics, and supporters of legal alcohol. But many rural delegates to the convention did not trust him.
HARRY MONROE: The Democratic Party convention met in New York City. It quickly became a battle between the more liberal delegates from the cities and the more conservative delegates from rural areas.
It was July. The heat was intense. Speaker after speaker appealed to the delegates for votes. One day passed. Then another. For nine days, the nation listened on the radio as the delegates argued about the nomination.
The delegates voted ninety-five times without success. Finally, McAdoo and Smith agreed to withdraw from the race. Even then, the delegates had to vote eight more times before they finally agreed on compromise candidates.
The Democratic delegates finally chose John Davis to be their presidential nominee. Davis was a lawyer for a major bank. He had served briefly under President Wilson as ambassador to Britain. The delegates also chose Charles Bryan to be the vice presidential candidate. Bryan was the younger brother of the famous Democrat and populist leader, William Jennings Bryan.
KAY GALLANT: There also was a third party in the 1924 election. Many of the old progressive supporters of Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson opposed the choices of the Republicans and Democrats. They thought the country needed another candidate to keep alive the spirit of reform.
Progressive candidates had done well in the congressional election of 1922. But following the election, communists had gained influence in one of the major progressive parties. Most progressives did not want to join with communists. So, they formed a new progressive party. The new party named Senator Robert LaFollette of Wisconsin to be its presidential candidate.
LaFollette campaigned for increased taxes on the rich and public ownership of water power. He called for an end to child labor and limits on the power of the courts to interfere in labor disputes. And LaFollette warned the nation about the dangers of single, large companies gaining control of important industries.
HARRY MONROE: Coolidge won the 1924 election easily. He won the electoral votes of thirty-five states to just twelve for Davis of the Democrats. LaFollette won only Wisconsin, his home state. Coolidge also won more popular votes than the other two candidates together.
The American people voted for Coolidge partly to thank him for bringing back honesty and trust to the White House following the crimes of the Harding administration. But the main reason was that they liked his conservative economic policies and his support of business.
KAY GALLANT: LaFollette's Progressive Party died following the 1924 election. Most of his supporters later joined the Democrats. But the reform spirit of their movement remained alive through the next four years.
They were difficult years for Progressives. Conservatives in Congress passed laws reducing taxes for corporations and richer Americans.
HARRY MONROE: Progressives fought for reforms in national agriculture policies. Most farmers did not share in the general economic growth of the 1920s. Instead, their costs increased while the price of their products fell. Many farmers lost their farms.
Farmers and progressives wanted the federal government to create a system to control prices and the total supply of food produced. They said the government should buy and keep any extra food that farmers produced. And they called for officials to help them export food.
Coolidge and most Republicans rejected these ideas. They said it was not the business of a free government to fix farm prices. And they feared the high costs of creating a major new government department and developing export markets.
Coolidge vetoed three major farm reform bills following his election.
KAY GALLANT: The debate over farm policy was, in many ways, like the debate over taxes or public controls on power companies. There was a basic difference of opinion about the proper actions of government.
More conservative Americans believed the purpose of government was to support private business, not to control it. But more liberal Americans believed that government needed to do more to make sure that citizens of all kinds could share the nation's wealth more equally.
Coolidge and the Republicans were in control in the 1920s. For this reason, the nation generally stayed on a conservative path. The Democrats and Progressives would have to wait until later to put many of their more liberal ideas into action.
(MUSIC)
BOB DOUGHTY: Our program was written by David Jarmul. The narrators were Kay Gallant and Harry Monroe. You can find our series online with pictures, transcripts, MP3s and podcasts at 51voa.com. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter at VOA Learning English. Join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION -- an American history series in VOA Special English.
___
This is program #173
And that is our program for today. Listen again tomorrow to learn English through stories from around the world. I'm Johnathan Evans, and I'm Ashley Thompson.
Tips
Calvin Coolidge:卡爾文·柯立芝
Warren Harding:沃倫·哈定
The Republican Party:共和黨
The Democratic Party:民主黨
Henry Ford:亨利·福特
Michigan:密西根州
Jews:猶太人
Cleveland:克利夫蘭（俄亥俄州城市）
Ohio:俄亥俄州
Charles Dawes:查爾斯·達維斯
Illinois:伊利諾州
Protestant:新教教徒
Roman Catholic:天主教徒
Jewish:猶太教徒
Treasury Secretary:財政部長
William McAdoo:威廉·麥卡杜
Alfred Smith:阿爾·史密斯
New York：紐約州
John Davis:約翰·戴維斯
President Wilson:威爾遜總統
Charles Bryan:查爾斯·布萊恩
William Jennings Bryan:威廉·詹寧斯·布萊恩
Theodore Roosevelt:西奧多·羅斯福
Woodrow Wilson:伍德羅·威爾遜
Robert LaFollette:羅伯特·拉弗利特
Wisconsin:威斯康星州
整理：小R
翻譯：Harper
校對&Tips：qqqqqqwqqqqqq