英语口语畅谈世界文化之南非74:Diamonds钻石mp3

英语口语畅谈世界文化

之南非

74 Diamonds 钻石

P: Paris         N: Nicole
P:帕里斯       N:尼科尔

P: Nicole,  look at this !
P：尼科尔，看看这个！ 

N: Is that your engagement ring?
N：是你的订婚戒指吗？

P: Yes, it's a South African diamond.
 P：对，是南非钻戒。 

N: I think those are the best in che world, it must have cost your boyfriend an arm and a leg.
N：我认为这是世界上最好的钻石，一定花了你男朋友很多钱。   

P: You're night! It all started when in 1867 a pretty pebble found near the Orange River, in the wilds of South Afiica, was identified as a 21-carat diamond.
P：你说得没错！1867年，一颗漂亮的小石头在南非奥兰治河附近的荒野中被发现，后来被鉴定为21克拉的钻石。

N: That's bigger than yours, bur not the biggest. Placer diamonds were found between the Vaal and Orange Rivers later in the year, and in March 1869 an 83-carat diamond tumed up.
N：那比你的这颗要大，但不是最大的。1867年下半年，在瓦尔河和奥兰治河交界的地方找到了钻石砂矿，1869年3月发现了一颗83克拉的钻石一，

P: So that must have been the start of the diamond rush. By the end of 1871 two well-defined areas were recognized as the source areas. or "pipes", for the diamonds. Four pipes were discovered all together at the town of Kiinberley.
P：所以这一定是引起钻石潮的原因。到1871年末，有两个地区被明确认定为钻石区或管状矿脉：在金伯利城共发现了4个管状矿脉。

N: So many people worked there. In 1872 the pipes were giant open quames worked by 2500 miners and 10, 000 hired laborers neighbours.
N:所以很多人都到那里工作，，1872年各矿脉都成为巨大的露天采掘场，有2500名矿工，还有1万名雇佣工人。

N: That’s huge! But , as they went deeper, the more difficult it got. The number of claim owners in the Kimberley pit dropped dramatically as people bought out their neighbours.
P:真够大的！可是后来这T作越来越难做了。而且，随着有些人买下他们邻居的土地所有权，金伯利矿坑产权拥有者人数也急剧下降。

P: Yes, but then the Diamond Trade Act allowed the companies to set up  "searching-houses" in a system of routine surveillance, searching, and strippmg by company police.
N:是这样，而且当时出台的《钻石贸易法案》允许各公司在例行的日常监督体制下设立 “搜身事”，由公司警察对工人进行搜杏和脱衣服检查。

P: The companies were forced by strikes to be more lenient to their white worken than to blacks. So. I guess this was the first apartheid.
P:由于罢丁，公司不得不对他们的白人T人比对待黑人工人更宽大些。因此，我想这就是第一次种族隔离的出现，

N: Unfortunately, yes. The methods were successful. however. After De Beers set up its "searching-houses" in March 1883,its diamond production rose significantly, showing that there had been a hemorrhage of diamonds from the workings.
N：非常遗憾，确实是这样。不过，这种方法的确奏效。1883年3月，德•比尔斯公司设立自己的“搜身室”之后，该公司的钻石产量大大增加，这表明工作过程中一直存在钻石大量流失现象。

P: The De Becn I think my 2lth  birthday present was by De Beers. Lord Rothschild, probably one of the most famous rich men in the world.
P:德•比尔斯公司？我记得我21岁的生日礼物就是这家公司出产的。是罗恩柴尔德‘勋爵，他可能是世界上最富有的人之一

N: It probably was. You know who headed De beers?Lord Rothschild, probably one of the most famous rich men in the world.
N:噢，所以这就是为什么我爸爸经常说：“你以为我是谁，罗恩柴尔德吗？”

P: Oh, so that's why my dad always says. "Who do you think I am, Rorhschild?"
P:可能是吧。你知道德•比尔斯公司的领导是谁？

N: I'm going ro have their pale pinkish yellow diamond, called "Champagne"  for my engagement ring.
N:我想买个订婚戒指，就是他们生产的浅粉红色又带点黄色的钻石，叫做“香槟色”。

P: Good choice. After all, a diamond is for ever!
P：眼光不错。毕竟钻石是恒久不变的嘛。

【单词词组】
engagemem ring订婚戒指
diamond ring钻石潮
drop dnnutially急剧下降
an arm and a leg非常高的价格
claim owner产权拥有者
buy out买下所有权

【背景介绍】
俄罗斯钻石即立方氧化锆。 这是专门制造出来作为钻石代用品或冒充品的人造化合物，没有天然对应物。
人工合成的立方氧化锆是一种坚硬、无色及光学上无瑕的结晶。因为其成本低廉，耐用而外观与钻石相似，故此在1976年起至今都是最主要的钻石（金刚石）的代替品。近年开始亦有用性质更为接近钻石的人工培养碳化硅（Silicon Carbide）与立方氧化锆竞争代替钻石。

钻石是指经过琢磨的金刚石，金刚石是一种天然矿物，是钻石的原石。简单地讲，钻石是在地球深部高压、高温条件下形成的一种由碳元素组成的单质晶体。人类文明虽有几千年的历史，但人们发现和初步认识钻石却只有几百年，而真正揭开钻石内部奥秘的时间则更短。在此之前，伴随它的只是神话般具有宗教色彩的崇拜和畏惧的传说，同时把它视为勇敢、权力、地位和尊贵的象征。如今，钻石不再神秘莫测，更不是只有皇室贵族才能享用的珍品。它已成为百姓们都可拥有、佩戴的大众宝石。钻石的文化源远流长，今天人们更多地把它看成是爱情和忠贞的象征。