20180420: 美国之音(voa)慢速英语 30分钟

Original littleflute 漂泊者乐园 2021-10-05

收录于话题 #美国 987个内容

美国之音(voa)慢速英语 30分钟

内容：

1_From Refugee Camp, Young Somali Hopes to Attend Princeton

2_Phrasal Verbs with 'Take'

3_ the Making of a Nation （无文本）

<1>文本：

From Refugee Camp, Young Somali Hopes to Attend Princeton

Asad Hussein tweeted this photo "I have been accepted to @Princeton (Class of 2022) and it feels surreal. Many people, in Dadaab and beyond, made this possible and I am indebted to all, but it was my sister Maryan who first let me dream and tended to my life as one would for a seedling. Thank you, Maryan."

Asad Hussein is a 22-year-old refugee. Last August, he got onto the back of a truck in Dabaab, Kenya. He sat down with other passengers among food supplies being driven to Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital.

The truck went across the desert and deep into an area controlled by supporters of the al-Shabab extremist group. On his way to Mogadishu, Hussein got the chance to see where his father grew up.

The New York Times newspaper published his story about the ride.

Now, Asad Hussein is preparing for another trip. He was recently accepted at one of the world’s most famous schools. He is making plans to attend Princeton University in the United States.

Life in a refugee camp

Asad Hussein was born in Dadaab, one of the world’s largest refugee camps, in 1996. His parents and older sister had fled the unrest in Somalia five years earlier in search of a new life. Dadaab was meant to be a temporary stop, but became the family’s home.

In 2005, Hussein’s sister, Maryan, immigrated to the United States with her husband and son. It took 11 years for her and her brother to reunite.

Hussein told VOA’s Somali service that the life in Dadaab is “basically stranded.” You are not permitted to work or to do anything as a refugee, “and the word ‘refugee’ comes with so many restrictions,” he said.

Even with those limitations, Hussein said, people had to make lives for themselves. They had escaped war, and they were prepared to keep on going.

People told Hussein that one way to a better life was education. He kept the words in mind, and has been trying to get into a university for three years after finished high school in 2014.

From left, Feisal Saney Zuber, Elisa Elisama Mangu, Safiyo Noor Hassan and Stella Poni Vuni are students at Illeys Elementary School who wrote letters to fifth grade students at Valley Peaks Elementary School in Boulder, Colorado. (Carey Wagner/CARE)

Princeton has been among the U.S. colleges and universities trying to increase the number of students from different ethnic groups. That includes welcoming students with good grades who, like Hussein, may not have enough money to pay for college. Hussein said he has been offered a full scholarship of $70,010 from the university for the next school year.

In Princeton’s Class of 2021, 13 percent of the students are from outside the United States. They include representatives of 11 African nations.

Last month, Princeton’s president, Christopher L. Eisgruber, wrote a letter to the university community. He wrote that the school has depended on “the talent and contributions of newcomers to this country” since it was founded in 1746.

Last week, Princeton joined 30 other U.S. colleges and universities in questioning the Trump administration's declaration to restrict immigration from several Muslim-majority countries.

A news release said the university gave documents to the U.S. Supreme Court to support the state of Hawaii’s case against the restrictions.

Somali refugee boys recite the Koran at a Madrassa, or Islamic religious school, at Dadaab refugee camp, Dec. 19, 2017.

An ‘incredible achievement’

Ty McCormick is a former Africa editor at Foreign Policy. He invited Hussein to write about President Donald Trump’s travel ban after reading his work in The Times.

McCormick told VOA Hussein is “an extraordinary young man.” He wrote that he has learned more things from Hussein “than he has from me.” Hussein overcame major barriers to get to where he is while most people can’t fully understand these difficulties.

“My hat is off to him,” McCormick said.

Refugees stand outside their tent at the Ifo Extension refugee camp in Dadaab, near the Kenya-Somalia border, Oct. 19, 2011. Ahmed Warsame, the new UNHCR director for global emergencies has led UNHCR operations in Dadaab.

‘People who can do something’

Hussein wrote about his feelings about living in a refugee camp for Foreign Policyearly last year. “The words I write may travel all around the world, but I am confinedto the refugee camp where I was born. I can’t move freely in Kenya; I need a permit to leave Dadaab. My whole life, it seems, I’ve been living the American dream. I just don’t know how much longer I can bear to live it outside of America.”

Hussein hopes his success will change people’s minds about what refugees can do.

“When we hear of refugees, we always think of people who want something,” he told VOA. “So I’m glad that my story shows that refugees are actually people who can do something.”

Now, Hussein will be going to the same U.S. school that produced theoretical physicist Richard Feynman, former President Woodrow Wilson and first lady Michelle Obama.

Hussein says he wants to study English and history. And, for the first time since he was nine years old, he will live in the same country as his parents and sister.

I'm Susan Shand.

Salem Solomon and Falastine Iman reported this story for VOANews.com. Xiaotong Zhou adapted their report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

Words in This Story

basically – adj. at the simplest level

strand – v. to leave in a strange place

scholarship – n. financial assistance

editor – n. someone who changes or amends a written work

extraordinary – adj. very unusual or different

confine – v. to keep within limits

<2> Phrasal Verbs with 'Take'

In past Everyday Grammar programs, we have told you about phrasal verbs. A phrasal verb is a group of words that act as a verb. It is made from a verb and a preposition, adverb or both.

In the 1957 calypso song “Angelique-O,” American singer, actor and activist Harry Belafonte sings about colonization:

Angelique-O, Angelique-O

Your mama got to take you back

Angelique-O, Angelique-O

Give you all the things you lack

He uses the phrasal verb take back in the line: Your mama got to take you back. In this line, the verb means “to accept or receive someone or something again.”

Phrasal verbs make up a large part of everyday spoken and written English. This means they can easily be found in news, music, film and so many other places.

On today’s program, we will talk about phrasal verbs that include the word take – one of the most widely used verbs in English. There are more than a dozen phrasal verbs with take – and some of them have more than one meaning.

Take back

Let’s start by taking another look at take back. Like some other phrasal verbs, take back has many meanings. We will not learn all of them today.

Here is the line again from “Angelique-O:” Your mama got to take you back.

Notice that the words take and back are separated by the object pronoun “you.” Some phrasal verbs are separable – meaning they can be separated by the object. But some are not. The verb take back is separable.

In addition, with some phrasal verbs, such as take back, you always separate them when using the object pronouns me, you, her, him and it. For example, we could not say: Your mama got to take back you. The “you” must go between “take” and “back.”

Take after

Now, let’s move to take after. This is a quick and easy one, because it has just one meaning: to look like or be like someone, especially a parent or other family member. Listen to an example:

Everyone tells me that I take after my grandmother. But, I don’t think we are that much alike.

Take after is not separable. You cannot say, for example, “I take my grandmother after.”

Take over

Our next verb is take over. One of its meanings is “to take control of something.”

Listen to pop singer Kelly Rowland sing about love taking control of a person in the song “When Love Takes Over.”*

When love takes over yeah

You know you can't deny

When love takes over yeah

Because something's here tonight

Take over is separable. In the song, the line implies that love is taking over you. Here’s how you might say those: "When love takes you over" or "When love takes overyou."

Like many phrasal verbs, take over can also function as noun. When this happens, it becomes one word. For instance, you could say, “The company takeover happened last August.”

Take off

Now, let’s talk about take off. According to the Merriam Webster dictionary, it has 10 meanings. For this program, we will look at two of them.

One meaning is useful when traveling. It means “to begin to fly.” For this meaning, the verb is inseparable. For example, in an airplane, you might hear this:

Be sure your seat belts are fastened. We will be taking off in a few minutes.

“Take off” can also act as a noun. When this happens, it also becomes one word. For example, you might hear the pilot say, “Flight attendants, prepare for takeoff.”

Another meaning of take off is “to remove something.” For this meaning, English speakers actually use take off far more often than the verb remove.

In a song by American hip hop group Outkast and singer Norah Jones, Jones tells her partner to be his true self instead of trying to be “cool”:

Baby, take off your cool

I wanna see you, I wanna see you

Because this meaning of take off is separable, the line could have also been said this way: “Baby take your cool off.”

Take out

Our last verb for today is take out. One meaning of this verb is “to go with someone to an event, restaurant or some other place or activity and pay for the bill.”

The words take and out are usually separated for this meaning. For example: "My sister took me out for dinner for my birthday."

This usage of take out can also mean that two people who are romantically interested in each other are going out somewhere.

Listen: "He took me out to a wine festival. We had an amazing time!"

Takeout, as one word, is the noun form. It means food that you buy from a restaurant and take home to eat.

What can you do?

There are hundreds of English phrasal verbs. So, it's not very effective to try to memorize all of them from a long list.

But there are methods you can use.

Music is one of the best ways to learn a language. If you want to try to learn phrasal verbs through music, first decide which ones you’d like to learn. Then, search for them on a music lyrics website, such as Lyrics.com. Next, choose and listen to the songs.

Another method is to write a short story using some of the verbs you want to remember. For example, “My father is a great cook. He says I take after him because everybody loves my food. So, he asked me take over the family restaurant. I do like cooking. But, I prefer when my family takes me out to eat.”

Afterward, you can record your story on your mobile phone and listen to it as often as you like.

Join us again soon for more phrasal verbs.

I’m Alice Bryant.

Alice Bryant wrote this story for Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor.

What are some ways that you can use these phrasal verbs in your life? Write to us in the Comments section using the verbs you just learned! And visit our Facebook page.

*Song by DJ Guetta featuring Kelly Rowland

_______________________________________________________________