VOA慢速英语:Ghana Bamboo Bikes Gain Worldwide Attention

From VOA Learning English, this is the Technology Report.
来自美国之音慢速英语，这里是科技报道。
Bicycle frames are usually made out of materials like carbon fiber, steel or aluminum. But in rural Ghana, a businessman has developed another way to make bicycles from a natural product -- bamboo.
自行车车架通常都选自碳纤维、钢或铝之类的材料。但在加纳农村地区，一位商人发明了另一种办法，用竹子这种自然产物来造自行车。

Bamboo does not get much respect in Ghana. Farmers think of bamboo as an unwanted plant that needs to be cleared from their land. Construction workers use it to support buildings while they are being built.
竹子在加纳并不受重视。农民们认为竹子是一种有害的植物，需要把它们从地里铲除。建筑工人造房子时用竹子做支撑物。

But Kwabena Danso thinks bamboo is much more valuable. He operates a business called Booomers International. His company makes bicycle frames out of bamboo. The wooden bike parts are sent from Mr. Danso's village to other countries, including Germany, the Netherlands and Australia.
但是Kwabena Danso认为竹子更有价值。他经营了一家名为Booomers International的公司。该公司用竹子制造自行车车架。这种竹制自行车零件从丹索的村子发往包括德国、荷兰以及澳大利亚在内的其它国家。

Kwabena Danso says bamboo can help a country like Ghana in many ways. He says he wants to, in his words, "get the people to know that there's a great advantage to bamboo."
Kwabena Danso称，竹子对加纳这种国家在很多方面都有帮助。用他的话来说，他想让人们知道竹子有很大的优势。

Young men from nearby villages come to work at Booomers International. They sand, glue and connect the bamboo frames. The company makes about 50 of the bicycle frames each month. The bamboo is grown locally. The glue to hold the parts together is made of flour from the cassava plant.
邻近村庄的年轻人都到Booomers International公司来工作。他们把竹子打磨后用胶水粘合成竹制车架。该公司每月能生产大约50个自行车车架。竹子是当地种植的，粘合剂是用木薯粉制成的。

Mr. Danso says Booomers International provides good jobs to young men like Abdul Razak. He serves as a foreman or supervisor for the company. Mr. Razak says that without this job, he would still be living at home with his parents. He adds that the job helps him a lot.
Danso先生称，Booomers International公司为Abdul Razak这类年轻人提供了很好的工作机会。Razak先生称是该公司总监。他说，如果没有这份工作，他大概还跟父母住在一起。他补充说，这份工作给了他很大帮助。

Kwabena Danso has sold only a few of his bamboo bicycle frames within Ghana. Walter Kudzodzi is one of his customers. He bought a bicycle earlier this year. Mr. Kudzodzi says his bike gets a lot of attention when he rides around his neighborhood.
丹索在加纳国内只售出了少量的自行车车架。Walter Kudzodzi是他的客户之一。他今年早些时候购买了一辆自行车。肯加西先生表示，当他在附近骑车时，吸引了很多人关注。

"For example on Saturday, I rode about five kilometers around my neighborhood and everywhere I went, people were just looking at me. And once and a while you hear the exclamation, ‘Hey, it's made out of bamboo, hey, that's the bamboo bicycle,' yeah know, and anytime I stopped to take a breather, people come close to me and say, ‘Wow, we heard about this, but this is the first time we've seen it. Is it functional?' Does it work? I say yeah, try it."
“比如周六，我在附近骑了5公里左右。到哪人们都会看着我。偶尔还会听到有人惊呼，”嘿，这是竹子做的，嘿，看那辆竹制自行车。'每次我停下来休息一段时间，人们就会过来说，‘哇，我们听过这种自行车，但还是第一次看到实车。这车实用吗？好骑吗？’我说是的，你试试吧？”

Mr. Danso's business has received lots of orders for his bicycles. He says Booomers is ready for expansion. He hopes to have more of his bamboo frames not just in foreign countries, but also on the roads of Ghana.
Danso先生的公司已经收到了很多这种自行车订单。他准备扩张。他希望有更多的竹制车架出现在加纳的路上，而不仅仅是在国外。