________________________________

Teaching Robots How to Laugh

Hi students! Today I'm gonna start with a joke… are you ready?

Why can't elephants use computers?

Because they are afraid of the mouse!

Do you get it?
你懂嗎？

"Mouse" has two meanings. It can mean a small animal, but it also means a
computer mouse!
Mouse 有兩個意思，老鼠跟滑鼠！

If you are a human, you should be able to understand that joke. But for a
robot, a joke like that is super hard to understand!
我們人類聽得懂笑話，但是機器人可能很難聽懂。

In the future, scientists say people will use robots for many things. Robots
will even be our friends and help take care of us.

So, scientists are teaching robots how to laugh... at the right things!
現在，科學家在教機器人怎麼笑，還有甚麼時候可以笑！

This isn't easy! But scientists say that one-day robots will be able to learn
to laugh at the right time and that robots will be able to have fun, funny,
and interesting conversations with people.
但是科學家說，有一天機器人會學會笑，也可以跟人類聊有趣、好玩的東西！

Okay, before we go, one last joke: What kind of witch likes to go to the
beach?

A SAND-wich!

Get it? Witches and sandwiches are completely different, but they both have
the same sound at the end... so that's why the joke is funny.

A "sand" witch!

Do you think a robot could understand the sand-wich joke? Hmmm… maybe not
now… but one day they will!
________________________________

Vocabulary
能夠聽懂笑話並且還會講笑話，這樣的機器人可有趣了。

1. joke 笑話
I want a robot that can tell jokes. 我想要個會講笑話的機器人。
Then I won't feel bored all the time.這樣我就不會總是覺得無聊。
I can tell you jokes. 我可以講給你聽。

2. understand 了解
I also want my robot to understand my jokes. 我也想要機器人聽懂我的笑話。
That would be hard. 這就有點難了。
Even I don't get your jokes sometimes. 連我有時候都聽不懂你的笑話。

3. laugh 笑
You don't have to. 你不用懂啊。
You just laugh. 你只要笑就好了。
Yeah, maybe I'll laugh at you. 好，也許我就嘲笑你。

4. take care of 照顧
Could you take care of my dogs for one day? 你能幫我照顧狗狗一天嗎？
Sure. 當然。

Do you like to tell jokes?
joke 笑話
understand 了解
laugh 笑
take care of 照顧
________________________________

Quiz

1. What are scientists teaching robots?
A: How to laugh at the right things
B: How to eat elephants
C: How to do your homework

2. Why is it hard to understand jokes?
A: Because words have many different meanings
B: Because sandwiches are yummy
C: Because the chicken crossed the road

3. What will robots be in the future?
A: Our food
B: Our friends and helpers
C: They will be witches

Answers
1. A
2. A
3. B
 

________________________________

Too Much Space Junk

3… 2… 1… Lift off…

Yep! Another rocket is going into space!

Did you know that humans have been putting rockets into space for about 65
years?

We send rockets into space, but many times, after they go up, pieces of them
never come back down! We call these things "space junk."
很多火箭飛出去後，火箭的某一些部份永遠不會回來，變成了太空垃圾。

Space junk is a big problem - one of these pieces could hit a spaceship!
太空垃圾可能會撞到太空船。

And, in space, everything moves super, super fast. So when one piece of space
junk hits another piece of space junk... it's a huge crash!
太空中，東西移動的速度都很快。當太空垃圾撞到別的太空垃圾，形成巨大的碰撞。

And the crash makes even more space junk! The pieces get even smaller! And
then they keep flying around the earth.
它們撞成碎片後，繼續繞著地球飛行！

Wow! People are sometimes really messy! We even make messes in space!

Maybe someday special robots can go into space and help clean up space junk.
也許有一天，機器人能去外太空幫忙清這些垃圾。

It's not going to be easy, but if the whole world works together, we can find
a way to do it. But, the first thing we should do is stop putting any more
junk into space, right?
但還是要先停止讓更多垃圾到太空去！
________________________________

Vocabulary
太空垃圾過多，對未來的太空旅行可能會造成危險。

1. spaceship 太空船
Look, a spaceship! 你看，太空船 !
I think that's a satellite, Paz. 我覺得那是一顆人造衛星。
It could be a spaceship. 也有可能是太空船。

2. junk 垃圾
You may be right. 你也許說對了。
But even if it's a spaceship, it could become space junk someday.
不過就算是太空船，有一天它也會變成太空垃圾。
Is there a lot of junk in space? 太空裡有很多垃圾嗎？
Yeah, a lot. 是，有很多。

3. mess 混亂
What a mess you have here! 你這裡真是一團亂！
Sorry. We had a party last night. 真抱歉，我們昨天開派對。
Let me clean it up. 讓我來清理一下。

4. messy 凌亂的
How could you sleep in this messy room? 你怎麼能睡在這個亂七八糟的房間？
Easy. I didn't sleep. 很簡單，我沒睡。
We talked, laughed and danced all night. 我們整晚聊天說笑，還跳舞。

今天的單字你可記住了？
spaceship 太空船
junk 垃圾
mess 混亂
messy 凌亂的
________________________________

Quiz

1. What is "space junk?"
A: Pieces of rockets
B: Kitchen garbage
C: Dirty socks and shoes

2. What happens when space junk crashes?
A: It eats ice cream
B: It gets smaller
C: Nothing

3. How fast does space junk fly around the earth?
A: As fast as a running horse
B: Not very fast
C: Super fast

Answers
1. A
2. B
3. C
 

________________________________

Rocket Hits Asteroid

Hi students! Today I want to talk about asteroids. An asteroid is a big rock
in space.
我們今天來聊聊小行星！

Scientists worry that an asteroid might hit Earth in the future. What would
happen if an asteroid did hit Earth? If it were big enough, it would cause
lots of trouble!
學家擔心小行星未來會撞到地球。如果小行星太大，我們就有麻煩了！

Remember the dinosaurs? Scientists think an asteroid hit the earth about 66
million years ago and killed them.
科學家認為有一顆小行星在六千六百萬年前撞到地球，把恐龍殺死了。

Right now, scientists don't think any asteroids will hit our planet soon. But
what about in the future?
現在沒有小行星會撞到地球，但是以後呢？

I don't want to scare you guys, but an asteroid might hit us one day. But,
here's the good news! NASA sent a rocket to hit an asteroid in space as a
test.
不用擔心，美國太空總署 NASA 測試了用火箭撞擊小行星。

It took 10 months for the rocket to hit the asteroid. The rocket blew up, but
the asteroid didn't. The purpose of the test was to hit the asteroid to
change its direction.
花了 10
個月的時間火箭才擊中小行星，而且爆炸了，但小行星沒有。測試的目的是要撞擊小行星，改變他的方向。

NASA scientists wanted to see if they could hit the asteroid. That way, if an
asteroid is coming right at Earth, we can hit it with a rocket. The rocket
can make the asteroid miss Earth.

Whew! Now, I feel safer!
________________________________

Vocabulary
這個實驗很像電影吧？故意用火箭去碰撞小行星，好讓它不要跟地球相撞。

1. hit 打到，撞擊
One of those stars may hit us someday. 那些星星有一顆可能會撞到我們。
And you're worried? 你很擔心嗎？
Not really. But I hope I can see it. 不會，不過我希望能看到。

2. earth 地球
You want to see a star hit the earth, our Earth?
你想看到一顆星撞上地球，我們的地球？
Yeah, it would be interesting to watch. 對啊，會很有趣吧。

3. kill 殺死
The last time it happened, all the dinosaurs were killed.
上回發生這種事的時候，所有的恐龍都完蛋了。
I know. But we're not a dinosaurs. 我知道，不過我們不是恐龍。
We won't be killed. 我們不會完蛋。

4. future 未來
I'm not sure about that. 這我可不確定。
I hope scientists can save us in the future. 我希望未來科學家能救我們一命。

今天的單字你記住了嗎？
hit 打到，撞擊
earth 地球
kill 殺死
future 未來
________________________________

Quiz

1. What is an asteroid?
A: A type of rocket
B: A big rock in space
C: A kind of bomb

2. How long did it take the rocket to hit the asteroid?
A: 10 days
B: 10 weeks
C: 10 months

3. What happened when the rocket hit the asteroid?
A: The rocket exploded.
B: The asteroid exploded.
C: The asteroid almost hit Earth.

Answers
1. B
2. C
3. A
 

________________________________

First Fully Biodegradable Shoe

Ahhh, the beach is so nice.

The sun, the ocean, the shoes….what?? Shoes?

Why are there shoes floating in the water?

海裡怎麼會有鞋子飄著呢？

How can they be floating in the ocean for so long, and still look almost
new??!

鞋子為甚麼能在海上漂這麼久，看起來還這麼新？

It's because they are not biodegradable!

"Biodegradable" means something that turns back into nature after time.

因為它不能被生物分解！生物分解就是東西會隨著時間回歸大自然。

So, wood is biodegradable, many clothes are biodegradable, and even some
kinds of metal are biodegradable.

木頭是會被分解的，有一些衣服也是，甚至有一些金屬也會被分解的。

Things that are not biodegradable can take hundreds and hundreds of years to
break down into tiny pieces, and that's bad for the earth!

過了好幾百年都不會被分解的東西，對環境不好！

But now you can buy a new kind of shoe that is 100% biodegradable!

When you throw them away, they become part of the earth again in just one
year!

但現在你能買得到百分百可以被生物分解的鞋子，他們被丟掉後，一年就會被分解！

We all need to think about what we buy and ask "Is this biodegradable?"

Ok, let me get those shoes out of the ocean.
________________________________

Vocabulary

可以生物分解的鞋子，能減少垃圾量。

1. shoes 鞋子。
I need a pair of sports shoes. 我需要一雙運動鞋。
There's this shoe store that sells biodegradable shoes.
有一家鞋店賣可以生物分解的鞋子.

2. break down 分解。
I've heard about them. 我有聽說過。
But they break down easily, right? 但是它們很容易分解，對嗎?
Yeah, they usually break down in a year. 對，通常一年之內就會分解

3. throw away 扔掉。
You can then just throw them away. 然後你就可以把它扔掉。
But I don't want that to happen when I'm climbing mountains.
但是我可不想在爬山時發生那種事。

4. earth 地球。
Well, look at the bright side. 要看好的一面。
Your shoes will become part of the earth again. 你的鞋子又變回地球的一部份了。

你今天學到哪些英文單字?

shoes鞋子
break down分解
throw away扔掉
earth地球
________________________________

Quiz

1. What is "biodegradable"?
A: Something that becomes part of nature
B: Something that lives for 400 years
C: Something for dogs

2. What can you buy now?
A: 100% biodegradable shoes!
B: Shoes for fish!
C: 100% plastic shoes!

3. When do biodegradable shoes go back to nature?
A: In one year
B: In 500 years
C: In ten years










Answers
1. A
2. A
3. A
 

________________________________

Lettuce Grown Right in Supermarket

I love fresh vegetables. Especially lettuce, it's so crunchy and green.
我喜歡新鮮蔬菜，尤其是萵苣。

Fresh lettuce is best. We all want newly picked lettuce.
新鮮的萵苣最棒了。

That means the lettuce farm should be close to the market. In fact, the
freshest lettuce is the kind you pick with your own hands.
所以萵苣農場最好要靠近超市。如果能親手摘就更新鮮了。

So what if the lettuce grew right inside the supermarket? That's what one
supermarket in Egypt is doing.

They plant lettuce in a fridge and use a special light to make it grow.
在埃及，有一家超市在店裡面種萵苣！萵苣在冰箱裡面，用特殊的燈照它們，讓它們成長。

When people go shopping, they can pick the lettuce themselves. "Ooo! So
fresh!"
客人可以買自己摘的菜。

But won't growing vegetables in the store be dirty? Actually, the supermarket
doesn't use any dirt to grow this lettuce. They plant it directly in the
water. That's called "hydroponics".
但是在超市種菜不會髒嗎？其實他們不用泥土，他們直接把萵苣種在水裡。這叫做水耕。

The water is very healthy, and the plants like it. What's more, this way can
save lots of water. Hydroponics uses 90% less water.
而且水耕用到的水減少了百分之九十。

Next time you go to the store, you might be able to pick fresh lettuce by
yourself.
________________________________

Vocabulary
在超市裡採摘蔬菜帶回家，沒有比這更新鮮的了。

1. sandwich 三明治
What would you like for lunch? 你中飯想吃什麼？
I'm not hungry. I'll just have a salad. 我不餓，就吃個沙拉。
Then I'll get a sandwich. 那我買個三明治。

2. vegetable 蔬菜
Let's buy our food here. 我們在這裡買食物吧。
They use very fresh vegetables in their salad. 他們的沙拉用很新鮮的蔬菜。
You're right. The veggies look so green and clean!
你說對了，這些菜看起來又綠又乾淨！

3. grow 種植
I think this store grows its lettuce in water. 我想這家店用水種生菜。
What a good idea! 真是個好主意！

4. dirt 泥土
I still grow my tomatoes in dirt. 我仍然在泥土裡種番茄。
It's okay. Your tomatoes taste wonderful! 那沒關係。你種的番茄很好吃。

來讀讀單字吧。
sandwich 三明治
vegetable 蔬菜
grow 種植
dirt 泥土
________________________________

Quiz

1. Where does this supermarket get their lettuce?
A: It grows in a garden.
B: It grows on a farm.
C: It grows inside the supermarket.

2. What is it called when plants grow with no soil, only water?
A: Hydroponics
B: Supersonic
C: Electronic

3. What is good about hydroponics?
A: It can make light.
B: It can save water.
C: It's more dirty.

Answers
1. C
2. A
3. B