一起聽英語 37 爬樹（1）

童年時，好多小朋友都有過爬樹的經(jīng)歷....

Dan: Hello and welcome to this week’s 6 Minute English. I’m Dan Walker Smith

and today I’m joined by Kate.

Now in today’s programme and in next week’s programme we’re talking about

tree climbing. So I want to ask you Kate when was the last time you climbed a

tree?

Kate: Ooh I think it was quite a few years ago now actually; probably when I was a

child, around 10 years old. We used to live in the countryside and I remember

climbing a tree in the garden with my brother. But it’s been a long long time; I

haven’t climbed a tree for years.

Dan: Exactly, climbing trees is usually an activity that’s associated with childhood.

But these days it’s also a growing sport for adults as well. And there are

professional tree climbers, and competitions and tree climbing centres across

the world.

So this week's question for you Kate is: In what year was the first ever

International Tree Climbing Championship held? Was it:

a) 1964

b) 1971

c) 1976

Kate: Well I’m going to guess that this is quite a recent sport. So I’m going to go for

the latest date, which is c) 1976.

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Dan: OK, well we’ll see if you’re right at the end of the programme. Now the

benefits of climbing are well-documented; it’s great exercise in the open air,

and gives you a sense of attachment to the natural environment.

Let’s listen to the professional tree climber James Aldred, as he explains how

he developed his love for climbing. Where did he live as a child, and how did

it help him decide to start climbing trees?

Extract 1

Well I’ve been into climbing from a very early age. And I was never into rocks or

mountaineering; it was always trees. I grew up in a forest, and if I was going to climb

anything, by default it was always going to be trees.

Kate: OK, so James grew up in a forest. To grow up is to change from being a child

to being an adult. So, because he spent his early years surrounded by trees, by

default, he learnt to climb them. The phrase by default here means that there

were no alternative choices or competitors, so trees were the natural things to

climb.

Dan: And what did he mean there Kate when he said he’d ‘been into’ climbing from

an early age?

Kate: Well, to be into something is a slang way of saying you’re interested in

something or that you’re a fan of it. For example, you could be into football or

into watching tennis.

Dan: OK well, let’s have a listen to James again as he describes his first experience

of climbing a tree. He says he was terrified, which means he was extremely

frightened or scared. And he also uses the word scampered – he says that his

friends ‘scampered like squirrels’ up the tree. What does he mean here Kate?

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Kate: Well, to scamper means to run with quick short steps. It’s a term that’s usually

used to describe animals. So when James says his friends scampered like

squirrels he means they were moving quickly, like the furry-tailed little

animals that live in trees.

Dan: So have a listen to the next extract; how long did James stay on the lower

branches of the tree?

Extract 2:

I was absolutely terrified the first time I climbed this tree. And the two friends I was

with, they just scampered up like squirrels, went right to the top, and left me on the

lowest branches for about two hours, absolutely terrified.

Kate: Well James said that he stayed in the lowest branches for around two hours. A

tree’s branches are the woody arms that grow from the trunk. And the trunk

is the name of the central part of the tree.

Dan: Now before we listen to the final extract, I just want to talk about the different

parts of a tree. You mentioned there the trunk and the branches, and I want to

know what the other parts of a tree are?

Kate: Well the parts below the ground are called the roots, which keep the tree in

place and absorb water and nutrients. Above the roots you have the trunk, as

we said, and at the end of the branches you have leaves. A leaf is the flat green

part of a plant.

You also have bark, which is the outer covering of a tree. And the thick sweet

liquid you find inside the trunk is called sap or resin.

Dan: OK, let’s have a listen to the final extract for today. This is tree expert Tony

Russell, describing the fragrance of a tree, that is the smell or the aroma. He

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uses some quite complicated words here Kate, so could you please explain

some of them?

Kate: Of course.

Dan: What does he mean by the foliage and cones, for example?

Kate: Well foliage is the term for the leaves or the green parts of a plant. And the

cones here are the hard woody fruits of a pine tree.

Dan: Also listen out for the word resinous, which he uses to describe the aroma

from the tree; what particular part of the tree does this refer to?

Extract 3

It has this great fragrance to it as well, which comes off the bark, but it also comes off

the foliage and off the cones. And on a really warm day you get this tremendous

fragrance which is sort of resinous.

Kate: By resinous, he means it smells like resin or sap.

Dan: OK Kate, well we’re almost out of time for this week, so let’s go over some of

the vocabulary we’ve come across today:

to grow up

to choose something by default

to be into something

to scamper

trunk

branch

roots

leaf

bark

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sap or resin

foliage

cones

Kate: Wow, that’s a lot of words we’ve had this week, but all very useful when

talking about trees.

Dan: Exactly, and we’re coming back to this topic next week for the second part of

our tree climbing programme.

Kate: Oh good, I can’t wait.

Dan: Exactly. And there’s just time as well for today's question. I asked you Kate; in

what year was the first ever International Tree Climbing Championship?

Kate: And I went for the latest date, which was 1976.

Dan: Exactly, 1976. It was set up by the Californian businessman Dick Alvarez to

make sure that people in his tree surgery business had the skills to prepare

them for tough climbs. The competition grew, until it’s now a worldwide

event.

Kate: Gosh that’s very interesting. I had no idea people took this sport so seriously.

Dan: Well it’s a growing sport, and I think it’s one which is becoming more popular

as the years go by.

But we’ll hear more about it next week. For this week, from all of us here at

BBC Learning English, thanks for listening, and goodbye!

Kate: Goodbye!