英音听力｜BBC & 经济学人等

Dancing for the brain Neil Hello. This is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I'm Neil. Beth And I'm Beth. Neil Do you love to boogie on down, strut your stuff and throw shapes, Beth? What I mean is: do you like dancing? Beth Yes! I love to dance, just listening to the music and letting it move my body. What about you, Neil, do you often hit the dance floor? Neil Sometimes, but I'm not a great dancer. To be honest, I get a bit embarrassed. But maybe I shouldn't, because it's been proved that dancing has many physical and mental health benefits, including releasing stress, boosting your mood, or just enjoying a fun night out. Beth In this programme, we'll be hearing how dancing can benefit our brains and emotions at every stage of life. And, as usual, we'll be learning some useful new vocabulary as well. Neil Of course, another great thing about dance is that there are so many different styles, from ballet and ballroom dancing to tap, hip hop and jazz. But my question is about a very unusual style, a traditional English folk dance where performers wearing black hats and colourful waistcoats hit sticks together while moving in patterns. But do you know the name of this unusual dance, Beth? Is it: a) The Highland fling? b) Flamenco? or, c) Morris dancing? Beth I think the answer is Morris dancing. Neil OK, we'll find out later in the programme. Besides Beth, someone else who loves to dance is Julia Ravey, presenter of BBC Radio programme, Mental Muscle. Here, Julia tells us exactly why she loves dancing so much: Julia Ravey I love nothing more than a night or a day out where I can just dance like no one's business. To me, it's just such a release and it's something that I definitely rely on to get the stress out of my body. And I now absolutely love to move. Any chance I get, I'll dance. Now, I know everyone is not a fan, 'cause some people can find dancing to be awkward or uncomfortable… and I've seen people who just avoid the dance floor at all costs, but dancing is so good for us and potentially our brains. Beth Julia can dance like nobody's business, an idiom meaning very well, or very quickly. For her, dancing is a release, a way of freeing emotions, feelings or tension from her body. Neil Not everyone is the same as Julia though, and if, like me, the thought of dancing makes you uncomfortable, you might avoid the dance floor at all costs, no matter what happens. Beth That's a pity, Neil, because the benefits of dancing are huge – just ask Dr Peter Lovatt, also known as, Dr Dance. Over four decades, he's studied how dancing helps improve brain function in everyone from children and adults to older people living with diseases like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Dr Lovatt's dance therapy involves spontaneous movements, closing your eyes and letting the music move you. It promotes divergent thinking leading to happier, more creative brains. Neil So how can we get more people dancing? That's exactly what Julia Ravey asked Dr Lovatt for BBC Radio programme, Mental Muscle: Julia Ravey What would you say to the person listening who maybe doesn't dance at all right now, maybe would like to dance a bit more, maybe for them they're still a little bit on the fence about whether they want to dance? How can everyone get a little bit more movement into their daily life? Dr Lovatt OK, so the very first thing to do, I would suggest, is to lay on your bed with your eyes closed, and to find a piece of music that you like… close your eyes and then just hear the beat and feel the rhythm, so think about where in your body do you feel a twitch? Neil Julia mentions people who are sitting on the fence, who still haven't decided if they will do something or not, in this case, dance. Dr Lovatt's advice is simple – get comfortable, close your eyes and listen to some music. Soon, you'll feel a twitch, a small sudden and involuntary movement somewhere in your body. From there, it's only a few steps to dancing! Beth It seems a dance a day keeps the doctor away! So what do you reckon, Neil, are you ready to give it a go. Neil Hmm, maybe after I've revealed the answer to my question. Beth Right. You asked for the name of the traditional English folk dance where dancers wear colourful waistcoats and hit sticks, and I guessed it was Morris dancing… Neil Well, that was… the correct answer, Beth! Morris dancing is the name of the unusual English folk dance, not flamenco which of course is Spanish, or the Highland fling which comes from Scotland. OK, let's recap the vocabulary we've learned starting with boogie, strut your stuff, throw shapes and hit the dance floor, all modern idioms meaning to dance. Beth If you do something like nobody's business, you do it very well, or very quickly. Neil A release is the act of freeing emotions, feelings or tension from the body. 📝字数限制，完整文本、词汇表、翻译及pdf见公众号【琐简英语】，回复1可加入【打卡交流群】

What makes a city a capital? Think of the UK and you'll probably think of London. Picture France and you'll no doubt conjure up images of Paris and its iconic Eiffel Tower. To many, capital cities define a country. They're often the seat of power, the economic and political hub and sometimes the home to royalty - along with millions of city dwellers. For a place with so much influence, it's important to get its location right. Sometimes we have to look into history to find the reasons why a capital city ended up where it did. The site of what is now London was by the river: easy to settle, easy for trading and easy to defend. However, it's not located in the country's centre and there's often criticism from far-flung corners of the nation that they are forgotten by the decision makers in the capital. Other countries have taken a different approach by establishing their capitals in the geographical centre so they can exert control and project unity, like Madrid in Spain for example. Occasionally, there have been reasons to relocate a capital. St Petersburg, founded by Peter the Great in 1703, was Russia's capital from 1712-1918, before the government changed it to Moscow. This was partly because Moscow was more central, and the government decided it was less likely to be invaded by another country. And now in Indonesia, there are plans to move its capital, Jakarta. Its new location is yet to be decided, but the reason for the move is that this megacity is sinking at one of the fastest rates in the world. It's been built on very swampy land and isn't helped by lots of groundwater being extracted to use for drinking water and washing. The city is overcrowded too and roads are often gridlocked. Of course, if you can't move your capital city, why not construct a brand new one? Brazil moved its capital from coastal, crowded Rio de Janeiro to inland Brasilia in 1961 - the idea being to build a brand new capital "to bring progress to the interior of Brazil", as architect Oscar Niemeyer described it. And more recently, Nay Pyi Taw was built in 2005 as Myanmar's new capital. This remote city is four times the size of London and has huge roads, golf courses and a zoo – but few people. 词汇表 conjure up [ˈkʌndʒə] 使浮现于脑海，使想起 iconic [aɪˈkɒnɪk] adj. 标志性的，象征性的 seat of power 权力中心，统治中心，政府所在地 hub [hʌb] n. 中心，枢纽 royalty [ˈrɔɪəlti] n. 王室，皇族 dweller [ˈdwelə(r)] n. 居民，居住者 far-flung corners [ˌfɑːˈflʌŋ] 边远地区，偏远角落 geographical centre [ˌdʒiːəˈɡræfɪkl] 地理中心 exert control [ɪɡˈzɜːt] 施加控制，实施管控 project unity [prəˈdʒekt ˈjuːnəti] 展现团结，彰显统一 relocate [ˌriːləʊˈkeɪt] vt. 迁移，搬迁，重新安置 invade [ɪnˈveɪd] vt. 入侵，侵略 megacity [ˈmeɡəsɪti] n. （人口超1000万的）特大城市，巨型都市 swampy [ˈswɒmpi] adj. （土地）湿软的，沼泽的 groundwater [ˈɡraʊndwɔːtə(r)] n. 地下水 extract [ɪkˈstrækt] vt. 提取，抽取 gridlocked [ˈɡrɪdlɒkt] adj. 交通堵塞的，拥堵不堪的 construct [kənˈstrʌkt] vt. 建造，修建 coastal [ˈkəʊstl] adj. 沿海的，海岸的 inland [ˈɪnlænd] adj. 内陆的，内地的 interior [ɪnˈtɪəriə(r)] n. 内陆，内地 golf course [ɡɒlf] 高尔夫球场 📖 翻译、pdf见公众号【琐简英语】，回复"1"可进【打卡交流群】

Why should I avoid showering after a workout? After an intense and sweaty workout, the first thing most of us want to do is jump into the shower to relax our muscles and wash off the sweat. However, that's not actually the best idea. Showering too soon after a workout can have harmful effects on our health. Really? Like what? When you work up a sweat, your heart rate accelerates and blood circulation increases. At the end of a workout, your body temperature can easily end up upwards of 37 degrees. If you then immediately hop in the shower, you're not giving your body time to recover and get back to its normal temperature. There can be an impact on blood pressure as you may contract your dilated blood vessels too quickly. There's even a risk of thermal shock if the shower is too cold. It's really important to wait for the heart rate and body temperature to return to normal before taking a shower. The ideal waiting time varies from person to person, but 20 to 30 minutes is a good rough guideline. The main thing is that your body has to stop sweating first. So enjoy that post-workout endorphin high while it lasts, rehydrate by drinking plenty of water, and maybe spend the time transitioning to a gentler exercise or stretching routine. Is it better to take a hot or cold shower? There are pros and cons to both. It mostly comes down to personal preference and needs. A lot of people aren't aware of the benefits of each type, so let's get into them. Some of the key benefits of taking a hot shower include helping with muscle relaxation, opening up the pores of your skin to clean out trapped dirt and oil, and providing relief when you have a cold. That's because a hot shower helps with opening up the airways and clearing out the nasal passages. Meanwhile, the benefits of a cold shower include calming itchy skin, boosting blood circulation, waking you up and helping with muscle soreness. Taking a cold shower isn't the best thing to do if you're already feeling cold. For example, if it's winter and you're feeling under the weather. There you have it! 词汇表 intense [ɪnˈtens] adj. 强烈的，剧烈的 sweaty [ˈsweti] adj. 出汗的，满是汗的，大汗淋漓的 work up a sweat 出一身汗，大汗淋漓 blood circulation [ˌsɜːkjəˈleɪʃ(ə)n] 血液循环 hop in the shower [hɒp] 快速冲个澡，立即冲澡 contract [kənˈtrækt] v. （使）收缩，缩小 dilated blood vessels [daɪˈleɪtɪd blʌd ˈves(ə)lz] 扩张的血管 thermal shock [ˈθɜːm(ə)l] 热休克（温度突然变化对生物体、细胞产生的影响） rough guideline [rʌf ˈɡaɪdlaɪn] 大致参考，粗略指南 post-workup endorphin high [enˈdɔːfɪn] 运动后的内啡肽带来的愉悦感，运动后的内啡肽快感 rehydrate [ˌriːhaɪˈdreɪt] v. 补充水分，喝水 stretching routine [ˈstretʃɪŋ ruːˈtiːn] 拉伸练习，常规拉伸 pros and cons [prəʊz ənd kɒnz] 利弊，优缺点 pore [pɔː(r)] n. （皮肤的）毛孔 trapped dirt and oil [træpt] 堵塞的污垢和油脂 airway [ˈeəweɪ] n. 气道，呼吸道 nasal passages [ˈneɪz(ə)l ˈpæsɪdʒɪz] 鼻腔通道，鼻道 itchy [ˈɪtʃi] adj. 发痒的，瘙痒的 soreness [ˈsɔːnəs] n. 酸痛，疼痛 under the weather 身体不适，不舒服 🪴翻译和pdf见公众号【琐简英语】，回复"1"可进入【打卡交流群】

Success on your terms In our societies, we use the word "success" a lot, and we think we know just what it means: money, status, fame, and power. But take a look in the dictionary and things start to look, thankfully, a lot more complicated. Because success is, in truth, rather more neutral and less value-laden then we tend to assume. It just means doing anything well, excelling at something and that might encompass a lot of different activity: running 100 meters, for sure, selling your app for a lot of money, okay, but also stranger, less heralded things like: Listening a lot, very attentively, to a child, or being extremely kind to strangers, or filling your mind with interesting ideas and associations, or knowing just when to put an arm around someone when it's too much for them. People who triumph here are also big success stories. No one can be successful at everything, whatever they tell us, it's almost impossible to succeed with a career and a family, or with popularity and integrity, there are always sacrifices. It's great to be successful. It's even better to make sure you followed your own distinctive and, not necessarily, always obvious path to the success that can truly fulfill you. 词汇表 neutral [ˈnjuːtrəl] adj. 中性的，中立的，不偏不倚的 value-laden [ˈvæljuː leɪdn] adj. 充满价值判断的，带有价值观色彩的 excel at [ɪkˈsel] 擅长，在…方面表现出色 encompass [ɪnˈkʌmpəs] vt. 包含，包括，涵盖 herald [ˈherəld] vt. 推崇，宣扬；宣布，预示 attentively [əˈtentɪvli] adv. 专注地，全神贯注地 association [əˌsəʊʃiˈeɪʃn] n. 联想；联系，关联 put an arm around someone 搂住某人，拥抱某人（以示安慰） triumph [ˈtraɪʌmf] vi. 获胜，成功，取得胜利 popularity [ˌpɒpjuˈlærəti] n. 受欢迎，人气，声望 integrity [ɪnˈteɡrəti] n. 正直，诚实，完整 sacrifice [ˈsækrɪfaɪs] n. 牺牲，舍弃 distinctive [dɪˈstɪŋktɪv] adj. 独特的，与众不同的 🏫翻译，视频和pdf见公众号【琐简英语】，回复"1"可进入【打卡交流群】