________________________________

Taiwan's Giant Trees Need Help

On a mountain in Taiwan, a scientist climbs a giant tree. It is 67 meters
tall. That's as tall as a 20-story building!
在台灣的山上，科學家正在攀爬一棵巨大的樹。這棵樹有 67 公尺高，就像 20
層樓那麼高!

Giant trees don't grow in many places. But many giant trees grew in Taiwan.
Mountain forests were full of giant trees. But for a long time, people cut
them down for wood. Now they cannot cut them.
台灣的深山裡有很多世界稀有的巨大樹木，很久以前，人們會把樹木砍掉作木材，現在不能這麼做。

There are about one thousand giant trees now. But some of these trees are
dying!
台灣大概有 1000 棵巨大樹木，但有一些已經快死掉了!

Having fewer trees is bad news for everyone. Trees help keep the air clean.
They help cool the Earth!
樹變少對大家是不好的，樹幫助我們保持空氣乾淨，也讓地球更涼爽!

Now scientists are studying the trees. They climb up the trees. They see if
the trees are growing bigger. But they don't climb all the giant trees! They
also use radar and drones.
科學家會爬到樹上檢查樹木的狀況，但他們並不是爬上所有的大樹！他們還會使用雷達跟無人機來協助。

Scientists think climate change is making some of these trees die. Trees are
strong. But climate change is happening too fast for them.
科學家認為氣候快速的變遷，讓很多樹木死亡。

These giant trees need our help. How can we help? We need to slow down
climate change. Then these trees can keep growing for many more years!

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Vocabulary
台灣有很多巨大的老樹，要靠你我來保護。

1. tall 高的。
Look at that tree! 你看那棵樹。
It's so tall, you'd feel it could touch the sky!
它好高，感覺碰到了天空。Imagine the view up there. 想像一下上面的景觀。

2. climb up 往上爬。
Yeah, you would be able to see the ocean. 是啊，應該可以看到海。
I'd like to climb up there.我想爬上去。
It'll take forever. 會需要很長的時間。

3. cut down 砍掉。
Too bad so many trees got cut down.真可惜好多樹被砍了。
I think the government is growing new ones.我想政府正在種新的。

4. forest 森林。
Good luck with that! 祝它好運。
It takes at least 50 years to grow a forest of these trees.
培養這樣的森林至少要五十年呢。

你喜歡爬樹嗎? 跟我一起讀單字。
tall高的 climb up 往上爬 cut down 砍掉 forest 森林

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Quiz

1. How tall is the tree the scientist is climbing?
a. 66 meters
b. 67 meters
c. 76 meters

2. What do scientists use to study the trees?
a. Books
b. Drones
c. Helicopters

3. Why are some of Taiwan's giant trees dying?
a. Radar
b. Wood
c. Climate change

Answers
1. b
2. b
3. c
 

________________________________

Where Millions of Tons of Plastic Waste Go

Plastic makes our lives easier. We use a lot... and we throw away a lot.
我們使用很多塑膠產品，也扔掉很多。

Some goes into water or on land. Scientists looked at this kind of plastic
waste. They say there's 57 million tons of it every year. They found where it
goes.
每年有5700萬噸，會跑到水裡或是留在地面！

This plastic goes everywhere on Earth. Then it becomes microplastics. They
are very small. Most are too small to see. They are in the air, our food, our
water, and our bodies!
它們到處都是，會變成小到幾乎看不見的塑膠微粒，跑進空氣、食物、水，甚至我們的身體裡！

Taiwan is good about recycling plastic. But we use lots of plastic too.
Taiwan says everybody here uses 700 plastic bags every year!
雖然台灣塑膠回收做得很好，但我們每一個人一年會用 700 個塑膠袋。

Plastic and microplastics hurt us and the Earth. We know this. But we keep
using plastic and throwing it away. So more plastic is made. Now more than
400 million tons is made. Twenty-five years from now, more than one billion
tons will be made!
因為我們用完就丟，所以塑膠生產量一直增加。現在世界每年製造超過 4 億噸塑膠，25
年後，會超過十億噸！

We can help the Earth. Let's use less plastic and recycle more. That's good
for us too!
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Vocabulary
雖然大家回收很多塑膠製品，流落在外面的還是太多。

1) water 水。
Yuck, so many cups in the water! 好噁，水裡那麼多杯子!
People are so careless. 大家太粗心了。
Yeah, they drank up their drinks, 對啊，他們把冷飲喝完，
and just threw the cups into the river. 就把杯子扔進河裡。

2) recycle 回收。
Somebody should invent cups that fish can eat.應該有人發明魚會吃的杯子。
Everybody should bring the cups home and recycle them.
應該每個人把杯子帶回家回收。

3) everywhere 到處。
Who would do something like that? 誰會那麼做?
I would. 我會。
Not me. I would toss the cups right away. 我可不。我會把馬上把杯子扔掉。
No wonder there's garbage everywhere.難怪到處都是垃圾。
Hey, that's unfair. 這麼講不公平。

Do you recycle plastics? 請跟我一起複習單字
water水 recycle回收 everywhere到處

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Quiz

1. How much plastic goes in water and on land every year?
a. 57 tons
b. 57 million tons
c. One billion tons

2. What does plastic in water and on land become?
a. Microplastics
b. Hard plastics
c. Burned plastic

3. How many plastic bags a year does each person use in Taiwan?
a. 7 bags
b. 70 bags
c. 700 bags

Answers:
1. b
2. a
3. c
 

________________________________

As Glaciers Melt, Submarine Looks at Mud Piles
 

In Greenland, big, slow ice rivers are melting. These are glaciers. Climate change is melting them.

在冰島，因為氣候快速變遷，巨大的冰川正在融化。

Water from melting glaciers makes oceans rise. Rising oceans can flood cities near them! One billion people live in these cities!

融化的冰川讓海平面升高，可能會淹沒海邊的城市！有十億個人住在這些城市裡。

Scientists are studying piles in front of glaciers. They are made of mud and rocks. Maybe they keep warm ocean water away from glaciers. Maybe they make glaciers melt more slowly!

科學家正在研究冰川前的堆積物，它們是由泥土和岩石組成。也許能把溫暖的海水擋在冰川外面，讓冰川融化得慢一點!

But it’s too dangerous for people to go to the piles! Big pieces of ice can fall! So scientists sent a robot submarine. They moved it with a video game controller!

但是，親自調查那些堆積物很危險，隨時會有冰塊掉落！所以科學家們派了一艘機器潛水艇，並用遙控器控制！

The scientists got information about the piles! Maybe it will help them make glaciers melt more slowly. Maybe one day walls will be put in front of glaciers!

科學家現在更加了解那些堆積物，也許有一天，冰川前面會有一道高牆來保護它們!

Then the oceans will rise more slowly. Cities will have more time to become safe from floods!

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Vocabulary

科學家想要更了解冰河，希望減緩它的融解速度。

1. ice 冰。

Have you ever seen glaciers?你有看過冰河嗎?

Yeah, in Iceland. 有，在冰島。

What are they like? 它們是什麼樣子?

More like a big, long piece of dirty ice. 比較像一塊很大很長的，髒髒的冰塊。 

1. slowly 慢的。

So it doesn’t look like a river? 所以看起來不像河流?

No, not at all.一點也不像。

It moves so slowly you’d think it just stays there.它移動得很慢，慢到你以為它就待在那裏。

1. made of 做成。

Did you touch it? 你有碰到它嗎?

Yeah, it’s cold. 有，是冷的。

After all, it’s made of ice. 它畢竟是由冰塊組成的。

1. melt 融化。

Does a glacier melt in summer time? 夏天的時候冰河會不會融化?

I believe it does, but not much.我想會，但是融的不多。 

你想要拜訪冰河嗎?

ice冰    slowly慢的    made of做成    melt融化 

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Quiz

1. What happens when glaciers melt?

a. Rivers get dry

b. Oceans rise

c. Rain falls

2. What did scientists use to study the piles?

a. A helicopter

b. A microscope

c. A submarine

3. What do the piles do for the glacier?

a. Keep warm water away

b. Bring warm water to it

c. Make the glacier bigger

Answers

1. b

2. c

3. a

________________________________

Electric YouBikes Are Here!

YouBikes are shared bicycles. They are great! They are cheap and easy to use.
They are easy to find!
YouBike 是共享腳踏車，它們不只便宜又超方便，是大家的最愛!

YouBikes are better now. Some YouBikes are e-bikes. E-bikes are electric
bikes. They have motors.
現在，有一些 YouBike 升級了，變成 E-bike ，也就是電動腳踏車。

YouBike e-bikes are on the streets now. They are in many cities, from Taipei
to Pingtung! YouBikes with no motors are yellow. YouBike e-bikes are orange.
They are heavier than the yellow bikes. That's because they have a motor and
a battery.
E-bike 現在從台北到屏東都有! 它們是橘色的，因為它們有電池跟馬達，所以比一般
YouBike 還要重。

The e-bikes need help. People have to push the pedals with their feet. That's
okay. Pedaling a bike is good exercise. But the e-bikes make pedaling easier.
That's great on windy days. It's great when you are riding up a hill too!
E-bike 還是需要人們踩踏板，不過變得更輕鬆，在騎上坡或是風大的時候都很好用!

The YouBike e-bikes can't go as fast as cars or scooters. They can go up to
twenty kilometers an hour. But then the electric power stops! That's okay.
Twenty kilometers an hour is fast on a bike!
E-bike 沒辦法像機車一樣快，騎到時速 20
公里後，電池就會停止運作，不過還是比一般腳踏車快多了!

Riding a YouBike e-bike is cheap and easy. And it's good exercise! Let's go!
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Vocabulary
電動腳踏車很好騎，吸引越來越多使用者。

1. ride 騎。
Hey, you look happy!你看起來很開心!
Going somewhere fun? 要去哪裡玩嗎?
Yeah, I'm riding to the Riverside Park.對，我要騎到河濱公園。

2. windy 多風的。
Isn't it too windy there now? 那裡現在會不會風太大?
It should be okay. 應該還好。
This coat is windproof.這件外套是防風的。

3. use 使用。
I really wish I could join you. 我真希望能跟你一起。
But I've never used a YouBike before. 但是我從來沒用過YouBike。

4. easy 容易的。
Oh, it's super easy! 超簡單的。
You just swipe your Easy Card… 你只要刷一下悠遊卡，
get the bike out and off you go. 把腳踏車拿出來就可以騎走了!

Do you ride a bike to school every day? 我們來讀今天的單字。

ride騎 windy多風的 use使用 easy容易的
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Quiz

1. What color are the electric YouBikes?
a. Yellow
b. Red
c. Orange

2. What makes orange YouBikes heavier than yellow YouBikes?
a. The motor
b. The pedals
c. E-bikes

3. What makes the electric power stop on YouBikes?
a. Going up a hill
b. Going too fast
c. Riding on windy days

Answers:
1. c
2. a
3. b
 

________________________________

Parks and Indigenous People Help Taiwan's Salmon

Taiwan has its own salmon! You can see them on the $2,000 Taiwan dollar bill.
台灣有種特別的鮭魚，叫做櫻花鉤吻鮭，你可以在兩千元鈔票上找到牠們。

The Formosan landlocked salmon are from the Ice Age! They live in mountain
rivers. They cannot go to the ocean. That means they're landlocked.?
櫻花鉤吻鮭從冰河時期就存在！因為牠們只生存在陸地的高山河川裡，不能游到大海，所以牠們被稱為陸封鮭魚。

They're endangered too. Thirty years ago, there were 200 of these salmon!
Their rivers were dirty. The dirty water was killing them!
這些鮭魚瀕臨絕種，三十年前只有兩百隻，當時的河水非常髒，所以鮭魚很難生存。

But... in 2023, there were 18,630 salmon! What happened?
不過在2023年，櫻花鉤吻鮭竟然增加到一萬八千六百三十隻，這中間發生了什麼事呢?

Shei-Pa National Park helps the fish. It cleaned the water in the rivers. It
took things out of them too. Salmon can swim far now.
雪霸國家公園一直在幫忙這些魚繁殖，清除掉水中的垃圾跟障礙物，現在魚群可以在乾淨的水裡游很遠!

People help too. Many are Indigenous. They look for changes in the rivers.
They keep these fish safe. They move baby salmon to higher, cooler rivers.
Why? Climate change is making rivers too warm for salmon.
當地的原住民也有幫忙，他們觀察河水的變化、保護魚群安全，還把鮭魚寶寶移到水溫更低的河流，避免太溫暖的水傷害鮭魚。

Taroko National Park also helps. Now salmon swim in two rivers there!
太魯閣國家公園也加入這項工作，現在櫻花鉤吻鮭可以在兩座國家公園生活。

National parks and Indigenous people are working hard. They're saving
Taiwan's endangered salmon!
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Vocabulary
櫻花鉤吻鮭是國寶魚，在高山溪流中可以見到。

1. river 河流。
There's fish in the river! 河裡面有魚!
Yeah, they are salmon. 沒錯，是鮭魚。
Wow, salmon in Taiwan? 哇，台灣有鮭魚?
Yeah, isn't it wonderful? 是啊，很棒吧?

2. swim 游泳。
Do you know what I'm thinking? 你知道我在想什麼嗎?
You want to eat the fish. 你想要吃魚。
Spot on! 答對了!
You can't. They swim fast. 你吃不到，牠們游很快。

3. Ice Age 冰河時期。
They're from the Ice Age, you know. 你要知道牠們來自冰河時期。
Well, I prefer to eat hot, cooked fish. 我喜歡吃煮熟的，熱的魚。

4. go to 去。
Let's go to the eatery over there. 我們去那裡的小吃店吧。
They should have hot, cooked noodles.他們應該有煮熟的熱麵條。
Have you ever seen Formosan salmon?

river河流 swim游泳 Ice Age冰河時期 go to去
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Quiz

1. Why are these salmon landlocked?
a. They cannot go to the ocean.
b. They live on land.
c. They live in the ocean.

2. How many salmon were there thirty years ago?
a. 100
b. 200
c. 500

3. What is one way Indigenous people help these salmon?
a. Eat fewer salmon
b. Put things in rivers
c. Move baby salmon

Answers:
1. a
2. b
3. c