【B1-Listening】02 A student discussion-学生讨论
【B1-Listening】02 A student discussion-学生讨论
Listen to two students comparing Mars and Earth to practise and improve your listening skills.听两位学生比较火星和地球，以练习和提高您的听力技巧。
Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.先做好准备工作。然后听音频并做练习。
Preparation
A student discussion – preparation
Put the words and phrases in the correct group.
- Question
both while but similar to share to have in common whereas
Words and phrases for talking about difference
Words and phrases for talking about things that are the same
- Answer
Words and phrases for talking about difference
while whereas but
Words and phrases for talking about things that are the same
similar both to share to have in common
Transcript
English
Teacher: So you’ve got a few minutes to discuss with your partner.
Student 1: So, as far as I know, the main similarity between Mars and Earth is that they can both support human life.
Student 2: Yeah, but do we know that’s actually true? I mean, Mars is much colder than Earth, isn’t it? It says here it’s about minus 55 degrees most of the time, whereas on Earth only places like Antarctica get that cold.
Student 1: True. Well then, I suppose you could say both planets are a similar distance from the Sun?
Student 2: No way! Mars is much further away! It says here it’s about 228 million kilometres, while Earth is about 150 million.
Student 1: Yes, but in space that’s not that far. Jupiter is, like, almost 780 million kilometres. That’s why we use astronomical units when we talk about distances in space. Earth is 1 astronomical unit from the Sun and Mars is 1.3. The difference doesn’t sound so big when you look at it that way.
Student 2: I see what you mean. Jupiter is 5.2 astronomical units so I guess you’re right. What other similarities are there between the two planets?
Student 1: Let’s see … not the colour, obviously!
Student 2: Yeah! Earth is called the blue planet and Mars is called the red planet for pretty obvious reasons!
Student 1: Their sizes are pretty different. Mars is about half the size of Earth.
Student 2: What about this? It looks like the days on both planets are almost the same length. Earth’s day is 24 hours but Mars’s is about half an hour longer.
Student 1: You’re right. OK, any other things they both share?
Student 2: I suppose you could say they have water in common.
Student 1: Could you? How?
Student 2: Well, Earth is 70 per cent water and Mars probably had huge oceans in the past. It’s just that most of the water there now is probably frozen.
Student 1: Ah, I see. I don’t think we can say the air is the same, though. Most of Earth’s air is nitrogen and oxygen, but Mars …?
Student 2: Mars doesn’t really have air, not compared with Earth. It’s got about one per cent as much air as Earth.
Student 1: Right, and it’s mostly carbon dioxide.
Student 2: Gravity is another difference. I didn’t know this, but Mars has higher gravity than the Moon. But it’s much less than on Earth, of course.
Student 1: Oh, yes. It says Mars has about 38 per cent of Earth’s gravity.
Teacher: OK, let’s see what you’ve found …
English-Chinese
Teacher: So you’ve got a few minutes to discuss with your partner.老师：那么你有几分钟时间与你的搭档讨论。
Student 1: So, as far as I know, the main similarity between Mars and Earth is that they can both support human life.学生 1：据我所知，火星和地球的主要相似之处在于它们都可以支持人类生命。
Student 2: Yeah, but do we know that’s actually true? I mean, Mars is much colder than Earth, isn’t it? It says here it’s about minus 55 degrees most of the time, whereas on Earth only places like Antarctica get that cold.学生 2：是的，但我们知道这是真的吗？我的意思是，火星比地球冷得多，不是吗？据说这里大部分时间的气温约为负55度，而在地球上只有像南极洲这样的地方才会这么冷。
Student 1: True. Well then, I suppose you could say both planets are a similar distance from the Sun?学生 1：是的。那么，我想你可以说两颗行星到太阳的距离相似？
Student 2: No way! Mars is much further away! It says here it’s about 228 million kilometres, while Earth is about 150 million.学生 2：不可能！火星还远着呢！它说这里大约有2.28亿公里，而地球大约有1.5亿公里。
Student 1: Yes, but in space that’s not that far. Jupiter is, like, almost 780 million kilometres. That’s why we use astronomical units when we talk about distances in space. Earth is 1 astronomical unit from the Sun and Mars is 1.3. The difference doesn’t sound so big when you look at it that way.学生 1：是的，但在太空中并没有那么远。木星大约有 7.8 亿公里。这就是为什么我们在谈论太空距离时使用天文单位。地球距太阳 1 个天文单位，火星距太阳 1.3 个天文单位。当你这样看时，差异听起来并没有那么大。
Student 2: I see what you mean. Jupiter is 5.2 astronomical units so I guess you’re right. What other similarities are there between the two planets?学生 2：我明白你的意思。木星是 5.2 个天文单位，所以我想你是对的。这两颗行星之间还有哪些相似之处？
Student 1: Let’s see … not the colour, obviously!学生 1：让我们看看……显然不是颜色！
Student 2: Yeah! Earth is called the blue planet and Mars is called the red planet for pretty obvious reasons!学生 2：是啊！地球被称为蓝色星球，火星被称为红色星球，原因非常明显！
Student 1: Their sizes are pretty different. Mars is about half the size of Earth.学生 1：它们的尺寸差别很大。火星的大小约为地球的一半。
Student 2: What about this? It looks like the days on both planets are almost the same length. Earth’s day is 24 hours but Mars’s is about half an hour longer.学生 2：这个怎么样？看起来两个行星上的白天几乎一样长。地球的一天是24小时，但火星的一天大约长半小时。
Student 1: You’re right. OK, any other things they both share?学生 1：你说得对。好吧，他们还有其他共同点吗？
Student 2: I suppose you could say they have water in common.学生 2：我想你可以说它们有水的共同点。
Student 1: Could you? How?学生 1：你可以吗？如何？
Student 2: Well, Earth is 70 per cent water and Mars probably had huge oceans in the past. It’s just that most of the water there now is probably frozen.学生 2：嗯，地球 70% 是水，火星过去可能有巨大的海洋。只是现在那里的水估计大部分都结冰了。
Student 1: Ah, I see. I don’t think we can say the air is the same, though. Most of Earth’s air is nitrogen and oxygen, but Mars …?学生 1：啊，我明白了。但我认为我们不能说空气是一样的。地球上的空气大部分是氮气和氧气，但火星……？
Student 2: Mars doesn’t really have air, not compared with Earth. It’s got about one per cent as much air as Earth.学生 2：与地球相比，火星实际上并没有空气。它的空气含量大约是地球的百分之一。
Student 1: Right, and it’s mostly carbon dioxide.学生 1：是的，主要是二氧化碳。
Student 2: Gravity is another difference. I didn’t know this, but Mars has higher gravity than the Moon. But it’s much less than on Earth, of course.学生 2：重力是另一个区别。我不知道，但火星的引力比月球大。但当然，它比地球上要少得多。
Student 1: Oh, yes. It says Mars has about 38 per cent of Earth’s gravity.学生 1：哦，是的。据称，火星的重力约为地球的 38%。
Teacher: OK, let’s see what you’ve found …老师：好吧，让我们看看你发现了什么……
Task 1
A student discussion – 1
Put the characteristics in the correct group.
- Question
Has more nitrogen
Is 50 per cent smaller
Is closer to the Sun
Has more air
Has stronger gravity
Used to have water and oxygen than carbon dioxide
Has a longer day
Is colder
Earth Mars
- Answer
a
b
Task 2
Question
frozen same Gravity nitrogen support astronomical
- Most people think Mars can [] human life.
- We measure distances in space using [] units.
- The two planets aren’t the [] color.
- Most of the water on Mars is probably [].
- The air on Earth is mostly made up of [].
- [] on Mars is just over one third as strong as on Earth.
Answer
Discussion 讨论
Do you think people will live on Mars one day?你认为有一天人们会在火星上生活吗？