美語情景對話 第692期:Saving Energy 節約能源
Jeff: So, you are pretty in tune with global warming. You are pretty in tune with the environment — conscious, environmentally conscious. What do you do to do your part for help protecting the environment?
傑夫：你非常認同全球變暖這個說法。你有環保意識。在保護環境方面你做了哪些努力？Tim: Yeah, well, I think I do quite a bit. I grew up in an area that's really environmentally conscious. Oregon is pretty environmentally conscious, so I recycle. It's pretty easy to recycle in Oregon. They just pick it right up at your house. You don't have to separate it. They separate it for you, so I recycle as much as I possibly can.
蒂姆：嗯，我想我付出了很多努力。我在一個環保意識非常強的地區長大。俄勒岡州的環保意識非常強，我會進行一些循環利用。在俄勒岡州回收利用很容易。會有人去你家裏收垃圾，你不用進行垃圾分類。會有人幫你進行分類，所以我們儘可能地進行回收利用。Jeff: But maybe those are traditional things. Do you do anything sort of more advanced or more modern than just recycling? Is there anything in your life that's more more modern?
傑夫：不過這些都是傳統的事情。你有沒有做過比回收利用更先進的事情？你在生活中有沒有做過更現代的事情？
Tim: Well, one thing: I recently bought a hybrid car.
蒂姆：有一件事：我最近買了一輛混合動力車。Jeff: A hybrid car.
傑夫：混合動力車。Tim: Yeah.
蒂姆：對。Jeff: What's a hybrid car?
傑夫：什麼是混合動力車？Tim: So it is a car that basically gets better gas mileage cause what my car does is I have to put gas in it. I have to put gas in it but when I break it takes the energy created by the heat from the breaking and it charges the battery, and then the battery can help power the car, so it's half gasoline, half — just electric energy from the battery.
蒂姆：這種車更省油，當然也要加油。混合動力車也要加油，不過在剎車時它能利用剎車所創造出來的熱量，爲電池充電，這樣電池就能輔助爲汽車提供動力，所以這種車是一半用汽油，一半用電池提供的電能。Jeff: Really. Electric and gas.
傑夫：真的嗎？電能和汽油。Tim: Yeah.
蒂姆：對。Jeff: Really interesting. So do you have to charge the car at night? Do you have to plug it in or anything like that?
傑夫：真有意思。那你晚上要給汽車充電嗎？你是要連上電源還是怎樣做？Tim: No, my car just by breaking it charges the battery completely. Occasionally, I've heard of some people that if they leave their car for like a year or something they have to go back and they'll have to plug in the battery and it will charge up, but for the most part I don't have to do very much at all.
蒂姆：不用，我的汽車完全通過剎車創造的熱量爲電池充電。我曾聽別人說過，如果他們的車一年沒有開，那就要重新連上電源充電，不過基本上我不用做太多事情。Jeff: So that is a fancy watch you're wearing as well. Is that environmentally friendly at all?
傑夫：你戴的表也不錯。這塊手錶也是環保的嗎？Tim: Oh, yeah. This watch actually doesn't take batteries. It's solar powered and so it just gets energy from the sun.
蒂姆：對。這塊手錶不用電池。這是太陽能手錶，用的是太陽的能量。Jeff: Wow. So you pretty environmentally conscious dude.
傑夫：哇。你真是個環保意識很強的人。Tim: I try.
蒂姆：我努力這樣做。
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重點講解：
1. in tune with 一致；贊同；
例句：His ideas were in tune with mine.
他的意見同我的一致。
2. plug in （將插頭插入插座）給…接通（電源）；
例句：They plugged in their tape-recorders.
他們給錄音機接上了電源。
3. charge up 給（電池）充電；
例句：There was nothing in the brochure about having to drive the car every day to charge up the battery.
手冊裏隻字沒提這車要天天開，以給電池充電。
4. for the most part 大部分；多半；通常；
例句：We've had a few problems, but everything's been fine for the most part.
我們有個別幾個問題，但大部分還是挺順利的。
