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Benjamin: Excuse me, what’s the screen near your steering wheel for?
Taxi driver: It’s a portable TV. It’s a popular thing now.
Benjamin: Oh, that’s new to me. So what’s on everyday?
Taxi driver: News about current affairs, documentaries, music, movies, noncommercial ads and so on.
Benjamin: Is there anything interesting?
Taxi driver: Yes, there are something good and informative. I think that many people underestimate the value of TV in education.
Benjamin: I agree. Are there any commercials on the TV?
Taxi driver: Of course. Because the TV stations need to make money from commercials between the programs.
Benjamin: That makes a lot of sense. Does the TV work well?
Taxi driver: Not always. It depends on the transmission of the satellite signals.
Benjamin: I got it. Do you pay for the programs?
Taxi driver: Yes, 50 Yuan per month.
Benjamin: It is a little bit expensive, but it’s worth it.
Taxi driver: Yeah. You know driving is boring. TV can get me out of the fatigue of driving.
Benjamin: It can also entertain your passengers like me.
Taxi driver: That’s the point.
聽(tīng)看學(xué)
本杰明：不好意思，請(qǐng)問(wèn)一下，你方向盤旁邊的那個(gè)屏幕是干什么的啊?
出租車司機(jī)：這是個(gè)移動(dòng)電視，現(xiàn)在非常流行。
本杰明：對(duì)我來(lái)說(shuō)這真是個(gè)新鮮事物。那每天這上面都在播放什么節(jié)目呢?
出租車司機(jī)：實(shí)事新聞、紀(jì)錄片、音樂(lè)、電影和公益廣告等等。
本杰明：有有趣的節(jié)目嗎?
出租車司機(jī)：有啊，這上面有些東西非常好，而且信息量也非常大。我認(rèn)為很多人都低估了電視在教育方面的價(jià)值。
本杰明：我同意。那這種電視上有商業(yè)廣告嗎?
出租車司機(jī)：當(dāng)然有啊。因?yàn)殡娨暸_(tái)需要從節(jié)目中間插播的廣告賺取利潤(rùn)。
本杰明：似乎是這樣。那這個(gè)電視運(yùn)作得正常嗎?
出租車司機(jī)：不是一直都好。這取決于衛(wèi)星信號(hào)傳輸?shù)暮脡摹?/p>
本杰明：我懂了。那你需要付費(fèi)嗎?
出租車司機(jī)：要付費(fèi)的。一個(gè)月50塊錢。
本杰明：費(fèi)用有點(diǎn)貴，但是卻很值。
出租車司機(jī)：是啊，你知道，駕駛是非常乏味的。電視可以解除我開(kāi)車的疲勞。
本杰明：而且它還能給像我一樣的乘客帶來(lái)快樂(lè)。
出租車司機(jī)：你說(shuō)對(duì)了。
Recitation 經(jīng)典背誦
Benjamin: I found that there was a small screen near the taxi driver’s steering wheel. The taxi driver told me that was a portable TV. And news about current affairs, documentaries, music, movies, noncommercial ads were shown on it. Also he had to pay 50 Yuan per month for the programs.
生詞小結(jié)
steering wheel 方向盤
portable adj. 輕便的
current adj. 目前的
informative adj. 提供豐富資料的
commercial n. 商業(yè)廣告
transmission n. 傳輸
satellite n. 衛(wèi)星
fatigue n. 疲倦，疲勞
entertain vt. 娛樂(lè)
語(yǔ)素 Material
NYC Taxi Cabs
Taxi cabs are both loved and hated by New Yorkers. They serve as a quick and easy means of transportation across Manhattan, a route not amply served by the subways. The downside with having an abundance of cabs is the traffic that results. Most traffic-jams in mid-town are speckled with many of the 12,o53 yellow cabs that serve the city.
紐約的出租車
對(duì)于出租車，紐約的市民是又愛(ài)又恨。出租車在曼哈頓是一種快捷的交通工具，在這一地區(qū)地鐵不是很普遍。而大量的出租車的弊端就是導(dǎo)致交通問(wèn)題。在市中心，大部分交通堵塞都是因?yàn)榉?wù)城市的12053輛黃色出租車部分擁堵在一起造成的。
Taxi Fares in New York
Cabs are cash only and it’s a good idea to have small bills because the cabbies can’t usually break anything higher than $20. While cabs are relatively expensive for a single person, it can actually be a bargain with 3 or more riders. The rates for taxicabs are as follows:
Initial fare: $2.00
Each 1/5 mile (4 blocks): $0.30
Each 1 minute idle: $0.20
Night surcharge: $0.50(after 8 p.m. until 6 a.m.)
Additional riders: FREE
紐約出租車費(fèi)
打出租車需要付現(xiàn)金。因?yàn)槌鲎廛囁緳C(jī)通常無(wú)法換開(kāi)多于20美金的錢，所以說(shuō)隨身準(zhǔn)備零鈔是必要的。但是對(duì)于個(gè)人來(lái)說(shuō)，打出租車比較貴，與其他三個(gè)或是更多的人一起搭乘一輛車比較合算。費(fèi)用如下：
起步費(fèi)：2.00美元
每0.2英里(4個(gè)街區(qū))：0.30美元
每等待一分鐘：0.20美元
晚上行車要加收：0.50美元(晚上8點(diǎn)到第二天早上6點(diǎn))
其他的乘客：免費(fèi)
