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每日聽力內容來自BBC英語六分鐘，版權歸BBC所有，僅供學習交流如有侵權也請後臺聯繫。該節目英式英語，每日更新，和實際生活密切相關。每個聽力文件6分鐘，而且每次都有聽力題目，可以用來備考四六級等各種英語考試考試。
聽力方法：1. 聽3-5遍以上，2. 對照文本聽2遍，並查5-10個單詞 3. 盲聽5遍以上。4. 留言處寫下問題的答案。只要你留言，我就給你上牆，留言格式：暱稱+天數，e.g 愛醬-Day 4，
We use plastic in every part of our lives so could we live without it? Rob and Neil discuss the dilemma of going plastic free and hear why Britain's shopping culture makes it hard to do. Listen to 6 Minute English and learn some useful vocabulary along the way.
This week's question:
The first synthetic plastic – that's plastic made entirely from man-made materials - was created over 100 years ago. Do you know what its brand name was? Was it…
a) Bakelite
b) Lucite
c) Formica
Listen to the programme to find out the answer.
Transcript
Note: This is not a word for word transcript
NeilHello, and welcome to 6 Minute English. I'm Neil.
RobAnd hello, I'm Rob.
NeilToday we're talking about plastic.
RobYes, it's our addiction to plastic that is of concern because this material doesn't decay very quickly, so once we've used it, it hangs around for a very long time.
Neil
It is a problem – and decay, by the way, describes the natural process of something being destroyed or breaking down into small particles. We hear so much about the consequences of having too much waste plastic around, don't we?
RobIndeed. Not only does it cause a mess - wildlife, particularly marine animals, are at risk when they become entangled in plastic waste, or ingest it. It's an issue that needs tackling – or dealing with. And that's what we'll be discussing today and finding out what could be done to solve this plastic crisis.
Neil
OK, first, let's challenge you to answer a question about plastic, Rob. The first synthetic plastic – that's plastic made entirely from man-made materials - was created over 100 years ago. Do you know what its brand name was? Was it…
a) Bakelite,
b) Lucite or
c) Formica?
RobI'm no expert, so I'll say c) Formica.
NeilWell, we'll reveal the answer at the end of the programme. Now let's talk more about plastic. This man-made substance is everywhere - from clothing to crisp packets, and bottles to buckets.
Rob
But the problem is that most of it isn'tbiodegradable– that's a word that describes something that can decay naturally without harming anything. Each year, 400 million tonnes of plastic is produced and 40% of that is single-use. So why don't we stop using it?
NeilIt's not that easy, Rob, and it's something Lucy Siegle, a BBC reporter and author, has been talking about. She was speaking in a discussion on the Costing the Earth programme on BBC Radio 4, and explained the issue we have with quitting plastic but also how our attitude is changing…
Lucy Siegle, BBC reporter and author
We have this weird psychological attachmentto this material that's been around and it's like a push and pull. At the one time, we're so horrified by what we're seeing – the whales dying, the oceans vomiting plastic, beaming in from all over the world, and at the same time we're being told we can't live without it, so that creates apsychological dissonance–which I think is the barrier to behavioural change but I'm finding now awareness has peaked and it's going over intoactivism.
Rob
She mentioned the word psychological– that's something that affects or involves our mind – so here,psychological attachmentmeans that in our mind we feel we have to use plastic – we're addicted.
Neil
But we also see the negative impact of plastic – like whales dying – and in our mind we're also thinking we must stop! This has created what Lucy says is a 'psychological dissonance' - dissonancemeans a disagreement between two opposing ideas – so we're having an argument in our head about the right thing to do – this is the 'push and pull' of thoughts she referred to.
Rob
And this dissonance has been the barrier to us trying to solve the plastic issue – but now we're starting to do something about it – we're taking action to reduce our plastic waste – we're turning to activism. That's taking action to change something – it could be social or political change, or a change in our behaviour or attitude.
Neil
Of course there has been abig push– that means people have been strongly encouraged – to recycle.
RobMaybe in an ideal world the best thing to do is go plastic-free – but that isn't easy, is it?
NeilNo, it isn't, and it's something Lucy Siegle spoke about. Getting rid of plastic in our lives is a gradual process. But where does she think we can make the biggest difference?
Lucy Siegle, BBC reporter and authorI really think that to concentrate on stopping the flow of plastics into your life is easier and more effective in the long term, than trying to go plastic-free from the outset. We are in the UK, a supermarket culture, so a lot of the tips and tricks to decreasing the flow of plastic are getting round supermarket culture.
Rob
She says we have a supermarket culture in the UK. Culture here describes a way of life – or a way that we generally behave – and in terms of food shopping, we tend to do that in supermarkets.
Neil
So, for example, customers can make a big difference by putting pressure on supermarkets to use less plastic packaging. It does seem that the future of plastic is in our hands – we need to be more careful about how and when we use it – and use our collective power to force change if it's needed.
Rob
But there's no doubt plastic is useful for many things so it will be a long time before it disappears altogether.
Neil
And earlier I asked you what was the name of the first synthetic plastic, invented over a 100 years ago. Was it…
a) Bakelite,
b) Lucite or
c) Formica?
Rob
And I said c) Formica. Was I right?
NeilFormica is a type of hard plastic used for covering tables and working areas in kitchens – but it's not the oldest type. That was Bakelite.
Rob
I may have got that wrong but hopefully I'll have more success recapping some of today's vocabulary – starting with decay, which describes the natural process of something being destroyed or breaking down into small particles – which plastic takes a long time to do.
Neil
Next we had biodegradable– that's a word to describe something that can decay naturally without harming anything.
Rob
Then we had psychological– that's something that affects or involves your mind.
Neil
Next up, we had dissonance, which describes a disagreement between two opposing ideas.
Rob
And then we mentioned activism- that's taking action to change something. We also mentioned the phraseabig pushwhich means people are strongly encouraged or persuaded to do something, usefully by force.
Neil
And finally we had culture. In our context ofsupermarket culture, it describes a way of life – or a way that we generally behave.
RobThanks, Neil. Now, remember you can find more learning English programmes and materials on our website at bbclearningenglish.com. That's it for now but please join us next time for 6 Minute English. Goodbye.
NeilGoodbye.
Vocabulary
decaythe natural process of something being destroyed or breaking down into small particles
biodegradable
something that can decay naturally without harming anything
psychological
something that affects or involves our mind
dissonance
disagreement between two opposing ideas
activism
taking action to change something – it could be social or political change, or a change in our behaviour or attitude
a big push
people are strongly encouraged or persuaded to do something, usefully by force
CatherineHello. Welcome to 6 Minute English, I'm Catherine.
RobAnd hello, I'm Rob.
CatherineNow Rob, do you ever buy things at a charity shop?
RobYes I do. They are a great place to pick up a bargain and I also donate items to charity shops too. And a charity shop, by the way, is a shop where people take their unwanted items and then the shop sells them and makes money and the money goes to charity.
Catherine
Exactly that's good to hear, Rob, because donating– that's giving money or goods to an organisation – helps charities raise money. And you might be interested to know that dressing up in second-hand clothes is back in fashion – well sort of. And that's what we're discussing today – is looking like you're dressing in charity shop clothes a new fashion statement?
RobIt should be interesting. But first, Catherine, aren't you going to set me a question to answer? And not a second-hand one, please!
CatherineIt's a brand new question today, Rob, for you and the listeners at home – do you know when the first official charity shop opened its doors in the UK? Was it in…
a) 1928
b) 1948, or
c) 1968?
RobI'll go for 1948.
Catherine
OK, and we'll find out the answer later. But now back to our discussion about charity shops and fashion. And there's a new look in town, which some people are calling 'scumbro'.Scumbrocombines the word 'scummy' which means 'dirty and messy' with the word 'bro', which is an informal way of referring to a boy or man. Soscumbrois a fashion for men – but women can adopt it too.
Rob
It's a bit of an insulting name and here's the odd thing about this new fashion style: being scumbro is about buying expensive designer brands that look like they are from a charity shop. Very odd!
CatherineWell, it's something Amber Graafland knows about. She is the Fashion & Beauty Director for the Daily Mirror newspaper and she's been telling BBC Radio 4's You and Yours programme all about it. So, how did this trend start?
Amber Graafland, Fashion & Beauty Director, Daily Mirror
Well I think the name came from a Vanity Fair article, and I think Justin Bieber, the likes of Jonah Hill to thank for this look, Pete Davidson, who's actually the fiancée of Ariana Grande – he's definitely one of the founding fathersof scumbro. And I think, like most of these trends, they're started by celebrities and then, I mean look, it's been picked up by everybodyby the sounds of things.
RobOK, so the fashion magazine Vanity Fair invented the name but the trend has spread because celebrities have been dressing in this style.
Catherine
Yes and Amber mentioned a number of celebrities who are the founding fathersof the trend – that's a term used to describe people who start an idea or an organisation.
Rob
Yes, the trend has been picked up – or copied - by people who you might describe as fashion victims– people who have to follow the latest fashion trends.
Catherine
Well Rob, I'm no fashion victim– but I say, maybe, one day, I might want to lookscumbro – or maybe scumsis! So how exactly should I dress?
RobOK, well let's hear from Amber Graafland again. How does she describe the characteristics of this fashion trend?
Amber Graafland, Fashion & Beauty Director, Daily Mirror
It's all about wearing these oversized clothes that are overpriced and I think it's not just about looking like you've rummagedin a teenager's dressing up box. These are very, very expensive items – you mentioned the labels Prada, Versace, Gucci, Supreme – while it's basically about lookingsimultaneouslylike you've made no effort, but the underlying thing is you do need to see the effort has gone in there.
Rob
Wow, this fashion trend does involve a lot of effort! It's not just about looking messy – like you've rummagedin a teenager's dressing up box.Rummaging is when you search for something that's mixed up with lots of other things.
Catherine
No don't be rummaging! The trick seems to be to look like you've not made any effort but at the same time, you're show you have made an effort! And that's the meaning of the word simultaneously– doing one thing at the same time as another thing.
RobAnd I guess by showing you've made an effort, you wear designer labels – showing you've paid lots of money.
CatherineThe issue here is clothes from charity shops are supposed to be cheap. Some people even buy these clothes because it is all they can afford – but the irony here is some people are choosing to pay lots and lots of money to look like they're wearing second-hand clothes – and the charity shops aren't making any money from it.
RobWell if you're a fashion victim it's something you have to do.
CatherineAnd there's one thing I have to do now and that's give you the answer to today's quiz question. So I asked you earlier when the first official charity shop opened its doors in the UK?
RobAnd I said 1948.
CatherineAnd you are correct this week, Rob. Well done! The very first shop, run by the charity Oxfam, opened its doors in Oxford in 1948, as a direct result of an appeal launched to help post-war Greece.
Rob
Very interesting. Right, let's remind ourselves of some of today's vocabulary, starting with the word donating which means 'giving goods or money to an organisation or charity'.
Catherine
Then we mentioned founding fathers- a term used to describe people who start an idea or an organisation.
Rob
We also mentioned that Catherine was no fashion victim– a person who has to follow the latest fashion trends.
Catherine
Rummagingwas a word that described searching for something that's mixed up with lots of other things. And then we hadsimultaneouslywhich means 'doing one thing at the same time as doing something else'.
RobWell you can simultaneously listen to this programme and look at our website if you like. The web address is bbclearningenglish.com.
CatherineBut that’s all we have time for now. Join us again next time. Goodbye.
RobBye!
Vocabulary
donatinggiving goods or money to an organisation or charity
founding fatherspeople who start an idea or an organisation
fashion victimperson who has to follow the latest fashion trends
rummagingsearching for something that's mixed up with lots of other things
simultaneouslydoing one thing at the same time as doing something else
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聽力方法：
1. 聽3-5遍以上
2. 對照文本聽2遍，並查5-10個單詞
3. 盲聽5遍以上。
4. 留言處寫下問題的答案以及聽寫的兩至三個句子。
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