Copper托福听力原文翻译及问题答案

Copper托福听力原文翻译及问题答案

一、Copper托福听力原文：

NARRATOR:Listen to part of a lecture in a materials science class.

MALE PROFESSOR:So what's the first thing that comes to mind when we talk about uses for copper?Tammy?

FEMALE STUDENT:The penny?It's made of copper…

MALE PROFESSOR:Okay,good one…but what’s a one-cent coin worth these days?You might get back change,like if you go to the store and give the cashier five dollars for something that costs four dollars ninety-eight cents,you'll get two cents back…but two cents doesn't buy much.The value of the penny in terms of what it'll buy has gotten so low that there's actually a move afoot to eliminate the coin from U.S.currency.But there's more to it.

As Tammy implied,the penny looks like it's solid copper.It's reddish orange,with a bright metallic luster when it's new;but that's just the copper plating.The penny's not solid copper;in actuality,it's almost 98 percent zinc.

But,um,given the rising value of both these metals,each penny now costs about 1.7 cents to produce…so it generates what’s called negative seigniorage.

Negative seigniorage is when the cost of minting a coin is more than the coin’s face value.Even though the penny generates quite a bit of negative seigniorage,there’s concern that if it is eliminated,we’ll need more nickels—because more merchants might start setting prices in five-cent increments…four dollars ninety-five cents,and so on.So we need a trusty five-cent piece that can be minted economically.But the nickel’s negative seigniorage is even worse than the penny’s…each nickel costs the U.S.Mint ten cents to produce!

Also,some of us are pretty attached to pennies for whatever reason…nostalgia,and then there's collectors…and people,if they see a penny on the sidewalk,they'll pick it up and think,“It's my lucky day.”

Another scenario is that without pennies,merchants,instead of charging four-ninety-eight,might round up the price to an even five dollars.So consumer goods would become slightly more expensive.But,on the other hand,some cash transactions would be more convenient for consumers.And,as I said,the government would save money if pennies were eliminated.

FEMALE STUDENT:But wouldn't the copper industry suffer financially if the U.S.government stopped buying copper to make pennies?

MALE PROFESSOR:But how much copper do pennies actually contain?

FEMALE STUDENT:How much…Oh,got it… right.

MALE PROFESSOR:So,what else comes to mind when you think about copper?What else is copper used for?

FEMALE STUDENT:I know that copper can be shaped into all sorts of things:sheets...tubing....My cousin’s house has a copper roof.

MALE PROFESSOR:Yes,like gold and silver,copper’s extremely malleable,but it’s not a precious metal;it’s far less expensive than gold or silver.It's also a superb conductor of electricity,so you can stretch it into wires,which go into appliances and even car motors.

Copper also has superior alloying properties—it's,y'know,when it's combined with other metals.

For instance,how many of you play a brass instrument,like a trumpet or trombone?

Well,brass is an alloy of copper and zinc.If your trombone was made of pure copper or pure zinc,it wouldn't sound nearly as beautiful as a brass trombone.

Another alloy,a combination of copper and nickel,resists corrosion…it doesn't rust,even with prolonged exposure to water.

FEMALE STUDENT:But what about the Statue of Liberty,in New York Harbor?It's made of pure copper,but it turned green.Isn't that a sign of corrosion?

MALE PROFESSOR:Indirectly.If copper's exposed to damp air,its color changes from reddish orange to reddish brown.

But,in time,a green film called a“patina”forms,and the patina actually serves to halt any further corrosion.It's one reason that ship hulls are made of copper-nickel alloys.These alloys are also hard for barnacles to stick to.If these little shellfish adhere to the hull of a ship,it produces drag,slowing the vessel down.

Copper's also a key material used in solar-heating units and in water-desalination plants,which are playing increasingly important roles in society.

Bottom line?If you're a copper miner,you won't lose any sleep should the penny get—if you'll excuse the expression—pinched out of existence.

二、Copper托福听力中文翻译：

旁白：在材料科学课上听讲座的一部分。

男教授：那么，当我们谈论铜的用途时，首先想到的是什么？塔米？

女学生：便士？它是铜做的…

男教授：好的，很好……但是现在一分钱的硬币值多少钱呢？你可能会拿回零钱，比如如果你去商店给收银员5美元买一件4美元98美分的东西，你会拿回2美分……但2美分买不了多少。按购买金额计算，一便士的价值已变得如此之低，以至于实际上正在采取行动，从美国货币中消除该硬币。但还有更多。

正如塔米暗示的那样，这枚硬币看起来像是纯铜。它是红橙色的，新的时候有明亮的金属光泽；但那只是镀铜而已。便士不是纯铜；实际上，锌含量几乎为98%。

但是，嗯，考虑到这两种金属的价值都在上升，现在每一分钱的生产成本约为1.7美分……因此产生了所谓的负铸币税。

负铸币税是指铸币成本高于面值的情况。尽管一分钱会产生相当多的负铸币税，但有人担心，如果取消，我们将需要更多的五分钱，因为更多的商家可能会开始以五美分的增量定价……四美元九十五美分，依此类推。因此，我们需要一个可靠的5美分硬币，可以经济地铸造。但镍的负铸币税甚至比一便士的还要糟糕……每一枚镍的生产成本都是美国造币厂的10美分！

此外，我们中的一些人无论出于什么原因都非常喜欢便士……怀旧，还有收藏家……人们，如果他们在人行道上看到一便士，就会捡起它并想，“这是我的幸运日。”

另一种情况是，如果没有便士，商家可能会将价格提高到甚至5美元，而不是收取498美元。因此，消费品将变得稍微贵一些。但是，另一方面，一些现金交易会更方便消费者。而且，正如我所说的，如果不使用硬币，政府将节省资金。

女学生：但是如果美国政府停止购买铜来制造硬币，铜产业不会在财政上受到影响吗？

男教授：但是一便士实际上含有多少铜呢？

女生：多少钱……哦，明白了；正当

男教授：那么，当你想到铜的时候，你还会想到什么？铜还有什么用途？

女学生：我知道铜可以做成各种各样的东西：薄片。。。油管。。。。我堂兄的房子有一个铜屋顶。

男教授：是的，就像金和银一样，铜的延展性很强，但它不是贵金属；它比黄金或白银便宜得多。它也是一种极好的电导体，所以你可以把它拉伸成电线，电线可以连接到电器甚至汽车发动机上。

铜还具有优异的合金化性能，你知道，当它与其他金属结合时。

例如，你们中有多少人会演奏铜管乐器，比如小号或长号？

黄铜是铜和锌的合金。如果你的长号是用纯铜或纯锌做的，听起来就没有黄铜长号那么漂亮了。

另一种合金是铜和镍的混合物，耐腐蚀……即使长时间暴露在水中也不会生锈。

女学生：但是纽约港的自由女神像呢？它是纯铜做的，但它变绿了。这不是腐蚀的迹象吗？

男教授：间接。如果铜暴露在潮湿的空气中，其颜色会从红橙色变为红棕色。

但是，随着时间的推移，一种称为“铜绿”的绿色薄膜形成了，这种铜绿实际上可以阻止任何进一步的腐蚀。这是船体由铜镍合金制成的原因之一。这些合金对藤壶来说也很难附着。如果这些小贝类附着在船体上，就会产生阻力，使船只减速。

铜也是用于太阳能加热装置和海水淡化厂的关键材料，在社会中发挥着越来越重要的作用。

要旨如果你是一个铜矿工人，如果你能原谅这个被掐死的表情，那么如果你得到一分钱，你就不会失眠。

三、Copper托福听力问题：

Q1:1.What does the professor mainly discuss?[Click on 2 answers.]

A.Reasons for fluctuations in the price of copper

B.Some important attributes of copper

C.The production of coins from copper and zinc

D.The possible future of the United States penny

Q2:2.What arguments in favor of keeping the penny in circulation does the professor emphasize?[Click on 2 answers.]

A.Some people are emotionally attached to pennies.

B.Pennies cost very little to produce.

C.The price of consumer goods could rise.

D.The copper industry's profits depend on the production of pennies.

Q3:3.What does the professor say about the negative seigniorage of the nickel?

A.The United States government is looking for ways to reduce it.

B.It is significantly greater than that of the penny.

C.It is less of a problem than some people believe it to be.

D.Merchants benefit from it more than consumers do.

Q4:4.Why does the professor mention the trumpet and trombone?

A.To compare the sound-generating properties of copper with those of zinc

B.To exemplify the benefits of mixing copper with other metals

C.To point out that copper can be shaped into a variety of forms

D.To point out that objects containing copper can shine like gold

Q5:5.What does the professor imply about the green patina that sometimes appears on copper?

A.It is difficult to remove by conventional means.

B.It adds to the beauty of objects made of copper.

C.It serves a useful function.

D.It reduces the conductivity of copper.

Q6:6.Why does the professor say this:

A.He wants the woman to realize her own mistake.

B.He wants the woman to support her point with precise numbers.

C.He realizes he neglected to mention an important detail.

D.He shares the woman’s concern about the copper industry.

四、Copper托福听力答案：

A1:正确答案：BD

A2:正确答案：AC

A3:正确答案：B

A4:正确答案：B

A5:正确答案：C

A6:正确答案：A

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