News For Kids ICRT

I want to buy a new sweater. But I don’t want to buy a cotton one. Cotton needs chemicals to grow faster. It needs chemicals that kill bugs. These chemicals are bad for the Earth.
我想買新的毛衣，但我不要棉花做的。棉花需要化學物質才能除蟲、長得快，可是化學物質對地球有害。
Should I buy one made from polyester? No, thanks! Polyester makes microplastics. They're bad for the Earth… and us.
那要買聚酯纖維做的嗎？也不行! 因為聚酯纖維會製造塑膠微粒，對地球跟我們也有害。
How about a sweater made of … human hair!? It sounds gross, but I heard it feels very soft!
那用人類頭髮做的毛衣呢？感覺有一點噁心，但是聽說摸起來好柔軟。
We take care of our hair every day. Some of us spend lots of money on our hair. But when we get haircuts, we don't want the hair that's cut off. Thousands of tons of hair become waste! But now, one company wants this hair!
我們每天都會保養頭髮，有一些人還會花很多錢保養。但是當我們把頭髮剪了，就不會想留下來。上千噸的頭髮變成垃圾，現在有一間公司卻想要這些頭髮。
A Dutch woman's company makes cloth from human hair. Her company gets hair from hair salons and washes it. The company makes yarn from the hair. It can color the yarn almost any color. It makes cloth from the yarn.
一位荷蘭女士開了一間用頭髮做衣服的公司。她的公司從髮廊收集頭髮，並且清洗乾淨做成各種顏色的毛線，再織成布料。
Hair doesn't need water, land, or chemicals. Using it cuts waste.
頭髮不需要水、土壤或化學物質，使用它可以減少垃圾做環保。
Maybe one day we'll be wearing clothes made from our own hair!
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Vocabulary
用人類頭髮來做衣服，原料取之不盡用之不竭。
1. haircut 剪髮
I really need to get a haircut. 我真的得去剪頭髮。
It looks fine to me. Soft and shiny. 我看它很好啊。又軟又亮。
2. take care of 照顧
But taking care of it every day is too much trouble.但是每天照顧頭髮好麻煩。
I get it. So you want to cut it short? 我懂，所以你想剪短?
3. grow 生長
Yeah, much shorter.對，短很多。
My hair grows fast. 我的頭髮長很快。
Pretty soon it’ll become long again. 沒多久又變長了。
4. company 公司
You can sell your hair to a fashion company, you know. 你可以把頭髮賣給時尚公司，你知道吧。
And a wig company, too! 還有假髮公司呢。
Great idea. 好主意!
How often do you get a haircut?
haircut剪髮
take care of照顧
grow生長
company公司
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Quiz
1. How does the sweater made of human hair feel?
a. Rough
b. Soft
c. Bad
2. Where does the company get human hair?
a. Hair salons
b. Fashion companies
c. Yarn shops
3. What is true about clothes made of human hair?
a. They’re bad for the Earth.
b. They can be almost any color.
c. They make lots of waste.












Answers:
1. b
2. a
3. b

NASA is the space agency of the U.S. It wants to do many things in space. It looks for ideas to help.
美國太空總署NASA想要在太空做不同的事，NASA也會收集各種好主意來解決問題。
Many scientists have good ideas about doing things in space. Some ideas can help NASA. Scientists make these ideas better. NASA will use the best ideas in space!
許多科學家對於在太空中做事有很多好的想法。有一些可以幫到 NASA。科學家們把想法變得更好。 NASA會將最好的創意運用到太空！
NASA will send people to the moon. They need buildings to live and work in. NASA will use moon rocks to make buildings. So one idea is using robot carts on the moon. They can carry heavy rocks!
NASA未來會派人到月球，這些人需要房子住跟工作的地方。NASA會用月球上的石頭蓋房子，就有人想到可以用機械推車來運送石頭。
The robot carts have magnets, so they float over a track. They don't have wheels or legs. They don't touch the ground, so moon dust can't stop them.
這種機械推車有磁鐵，讓它懸浮在軌道上，不需要輪子或是雙腿，這樣月球上的灰塵就阻止不了它。
The track pushes the carts. They can move thirty meters in one minute.
軌道會推動推車前進，一分鐘可以跑30公尺。
Like toy tracks, the robot cart tracks can be moved. They can be rolled out on the ground. Then they can be rolled up and put away!
跟玩具軌道一樣，推車的軌道可以隨意移動，也可以收起來。
Robot carts are a great idea. But there are many great ideas. Will we see these robot carts on the moon one day?
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Vocabulary
有了月球推車，建造月球基地不再是空想。
1. do 做
I’m so tired! 我累死了!
I want a robot to do all things for me! 我想要機器人來替我做所有的事情。
What things? 什麼事呢?
Shopping, cooking, taking out the garbage….買東西、煮飯、倒垃圾…
2. carry 帶著、拿著
He can also carry my bag and go to work with me. 他也可以拿我的包包，跟我去上班。
And do your job and share your pay? 並且做你的工作，分你的薪水?
3. help 幫忙
Do my job, yes, 做我的工作，對，share my pay, no. 分我的薪水，不行。
I also want him to help buy my lunch. 我還要他幫忙買中飯。
4. many 很多
You have so many good ideas about how to use a robot! 你對怎麼用機器人，好主意真不少!
今天的單字都很短，卻很常用。
do做
carry帶著、拿著
help幫忙
many很多
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Quiz
1. What is NASA?
a. The U.S. space agency
b. A U.K. robot company
c. People living on the moon
2. What can robot carts do?
a. Make houses
b. Look for ideas
c. Carry rocks
3. What can the robot cart tracks do?
a. Float
b. Use toys
c. Roll up











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Answers:
1. a
2. c
3. c

Oh boy, it's so hot. Let's go for a drive to cool down.
天啊，真的好熱。我們去開車兜風。
Ugh. There are so many cars on the road. Hey, we need to get some gas!
路上有好多車，而且我們還需要加油！
Summers are hot in Taiwan. We turn on air conditioners to cool down. Maybe we go for drives and use gas. When we do these things, we use fossil fuels.
台灣的夏天真的很熱，我們都會開冷氣或是開車出去兜風，都會用到化石燃料。
What happens if our fossil fuel use doesn’t change? Climate change will make Taiwan's summers hotter and longer.
如果我們不減少化石燃料的使用，氣候變遷會讓台灣的夏天又長又熱。
By the year 2100, our summers will be 210 days long! Noooooo! Do you like 36-degree days? There will be 75 more!
到了2100年，台灣的夏天會長達210天！36度的天氣會多75天喔！
Climate change will also bring more heavy rain. More floods will happen. There will be fewer typhoons. But… they'll be stronger!
氣候變遷還會帶來強降雨，就會更常淹水。颱風雖然會變少，但是颱風的強度會更強。
Longer, hotter summers, more floods, and stronger typhoons will make life harder for everyone.
又長又熱的夏天、很多的水災以及強颱都會讓我們的日子不好過。

We need to do more to slow down climate change. We don’t want longer, hotter summers, right? Let's find ways to use less fossil fuels. Seven months of summer is too long!
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Vocabulary
又熱又潮濕的夏天，讓人很難受，而這種日子以後會更多。
1. longer 比較長的
Working late today? 今天晚下班?
I’m not working. 我沒有在工作。
I just want to stay at the office longer. 我只想在辦公室待久一點。
2. hotter 比較熱的
To enjoy air conditioning? 享受冷氣嗎?
Exactly! 正是!
It’s too hot at home. 家裡太熱了。
It feels like every summer is hotter than the last. 感覺起來每年夏天都比以前熱。
3. harder 更困難
That’s so true! 真的是那樣!
And when it rains, it makes daily life harder. 下雨時也讓日常生活更麻煩。
4. change 改變
I used to love summer a lot. 我以前很喜歡夏天。
Not anymore. 現在不了。
Because summer has changed. 因為夏天變了。
Yeah, it has. 對啊，是變了。
Summertime is getting longer… 來一起讀單字。
longer比較長的
hotter比較熱的
harder更困難
change改變
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Quiz
1. If our fossil fuel use doesn't change, how long will Taiwan's summers be?
a. 7 months
b. 9 months
c. 12 months
2. When will summers become that long?
a. 2075
b. 2100
c. 2121
3. How will typhoons change?
a. They'll be weaker.
b. They'll be shorter.
c. They'll be stronger.











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**
Answers:
1. a
2. b
3. c

Do you like stories about magic? How about stories about superheroes? These stories are fiction. Fiction means the stories are NOT real. But they're exciting! You can use your imagination!
你喜歡關於魔法的故事嗎？或是關於超級英雄呢？這些故事都是虛構的，不是真的。但是閱讀它們很令人興奮，因為可以運用你的想像力。
One girl loves fiction. She likes adventure stories. She likes stories about magic. But she LOVES fairy tales…
有個女孩很喜歡閱讀小說，像是冒險故事、魔法故事。她還特別喜歡童話故事。
Once upon a time, the girl had a question … Is reading fiction good for the brain?
有一天她想到一個問題，看故事對大腦有益處嗎？
One day, some scientists gave her the answer. They said reading fiction helps the brain in many ways!
有一些科學家給了她答案，說閱讀小說對大腦有不同的好處！
Fiction readers understand other people's feelings better. They think more clearly. They solve problems better. They're good at understanding ideas and things they can't see or touch.
小說的讀者可以更容易理解別人的感受，也更容易解決事情，他們把事情想得更清楚。擅長理解看不到、摸不到的東西或想法。
The scientists looked at studies on people who read fiction and people who watch fiction. They said reading fiction was more helpful for the brain!
科學家研究常看故事的讀者以及看虛構故事的觀眾的大腦，發現閱讀真的對大腦有益！
The girl is very happy! Now she knows - reading fiction is good for the brain in many ways! Now you know too. So everyone can live happily ever after! The End!
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Vocabulary
科學家說，讀小說對腦部發展大有益處呢!
1. fiction 小說
What’s your favorite type of story? 你最喜歡哪種故事?
Fiction. Only fiction can take me into another world. 小說，只有小說能帶我進入另外一個世界。
2. read 閱讀
Like* A Game of Thrones*? 就像《權力遊戲》嗎?
Yeah, it’s a wonderful story. 對啊，它是很奇妙的故事。
I love reading it.我很喜歡看。
3. fairy tale 童話
It’s full of dragons, castles, kings and queens. 故事裡有龍，有古堡，國王跟王后。
Sounds like a fairy tale. 聽起來像童話。
No, good people die in that story. 不像，那個故事裡好人會死。
4. superhero 大英雄
And the superhero is a person with dwarfism. 而且大英雄是侏儒。
You didn’t watch the TV series? 你都沒看電視影集?
No.沒有。
Do you like fiction?
fiction小說
read閱讀
fairy tale童話
superhero大英雄
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Quiz
1. What kind of story is fiction?
a. Not real
b. News
c. Real
2. What does reading fiction help?
a. Scientists
b. The brain
c. Fairy tales
3. What did the scientists say about fiction readers?
a. They're better at sports.
b. They don't think clearly.
c. They solve problems better.












Answers:
1. a
2. b
3. c

Do you help clean your home? Maybe you vacuum dust from your floor.
你會打掃家裡嗎？像是用吸塵器吸家裡地板。
Hmmm… What can we do to help clean the Earth, everyone's home? The Earth's air has too much carbon dioxide. This is bad. Carbon dioxide makes the Earth warmer. It comes from cars, factories, and us! We breathe out carbon dioxide.
那我們該怎麼打掃我們的家園地球呢？空氣裡有太多二氧化碳讓地球更熱。汽車、工廠甚至是我們都會產生二氧化碳。
Well, we can't stop breathing! How about vacuuming? Some companies are vacuuming carbon dioxide from the air!
我們不能不呼吸，那如果把它吸走呢？有一些公司把二氧化碳從空氣中吸走。
These vacuums are VERY big. They cost a lot to make and use.
這種吸塵器很龐大，而且需要很高的成本製作跟使用。
The biggest vacuum now is in Iceland. Every day, it vacuums one hundred tons of carbon dioxide. Then the carbon dioxide goes down, down, down into the Earth. It becomes rock there! And it's there forever! This is good!
最大的吸塵器在冰島，每天會吸一百噸的二氧化碳到地底下變成岩石。
But… that's not very much carbon dioxide! Eight thousand cars make this much carbon dioxide. The air has a lot more carbon dioxide.
但是吸走的二氧化碳還不夠，8000台車就可以產生一百噸的二氧化碳。

Companies are building bigger vacuums! But we can't put vacuums everywhere! We have to make less carbon dioxide too!
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Vocabulary
把空氣中的二氧化碳收集起來打進地底下，是不是很神奇?
1. too much 太多
Do you know that new bus terminal? 你知道那個新的公車總站嗎?
Yes, what about it? 知道啊，它怎麼了?
It’s pumping out too much CO2! 它製造太多二氧化碳!
2. breathe 呼吸
How do you know it’s too much? 你怎麼知道太多?
Because I can hardly breathe every time I pass it. 因為我每次經過幾乎都不能呼吸。
3. air 空氣
That’s not good. 那不好。
That’s very bad! 那很糟糕!
I want to tell the city government about the bad air.我要去告訴市政府空氣太壞。
4. everyone 每個人
Do you think the city will do something? 你覺得市政府會做什麼嗎?
Yes, if everyone complains. 會，要是大家都抱怨的話。
Do you mean me? 你是說我嗎?
Yes! 對!
Do you think there’s too much CO2 around?
too much太多
breathe呼吸
air空氣
everyone每個人
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Quiz
1. Why is too much carbon dioxide bad for the Earth?
a. The Earth gets bigger.
b. The Earth gets cooler.
c. The Earth gets warmer.
2. Where is the biggest vacuum now?
a. Ireland
b. Iceland
c. Greenland
3. What does the carbon dioxide go into?
a. Space
b. The ocean
c. The Earth











**
**
Answers:
1. c
2. b
3. c

Plastic garbage is a very big problem. We put lots of plastic in the ground with other garbage. This is bad for our Earth.
塑膠垃圾是一個很嚴重的問題，我們把塑膠跟其他的垃圾丟在一起，這樣很不環保。
There's also lots of plastic in our oceans. It breaks down into small pieces there. Ocean animals eat this plastic. It's bad for them. And many ocean animals die when they get trapped in plastic.
大海裡也有很多塑膠垃圾，它們被分解成小碎片，很多海生動物把碎片吃下肚，有的還會被塑膠纏住而死亡。
Plastic can take hundreds of years to break down. The pieces become too small to see. But they never go away…
塑膠需要花上百年才能被分解，雖然我們肉眼看不到碎片，但是它並沒有消失。
Now American scientists have made a new plastic. It's soft and lasts a long time. It can be used in shoes, pillows, and foam products. After the product is thrown away, the plastic goes away in about five months!
現在美國科學家研發新的一種塑膠，它是軟的，而且耐用，可以用來做鞋子、枕頭跟泡綿產品。這種塑膠只需要五個月就會被分解掉。
How does it go away? It’s made with… bacteria! They're alive! They don’t do anything in the plastic for a long time. After the plastic is thrown away, hot, wet garbage makes the bacteria grow. Then the bacteria eat the plastic!
這種塑膠裡有細菌，平常不會發揮什麼作用，但是被丟在悶熱潮濕的環境就會開始生長吃塑膠。
If companies can make and use this plastic, we’ll have less plastic waste. Our Earth can be a cleaner place!
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Vocabulary
有一種可以消耗自己的塑膠製品，可能是未來的方向。
1. waste 廢物
Did you see all that plastic waste in the park? 你看到公園裡那些塑膠垃圾了嗎?
Yeah, it’s crazy! 對啊，真是瘋了!
2. go away 走開、離開
And they’re always there. 而且總是在那裏。
They just don’t go away. 都不走呢。
That’s because people throw in new ones. 那是因為有人丟來新的。
3. use 使用
For me, I use plastic bags all the time. 我自己很常用塑膠袋。
But I try my best to recycle them. 但是我儘量回收。
Me too. I can’t imagine not using plastic bags. 我也是，無法想像不用塑膠袋。
4. break down 分解
Someone should invent plastic bags that break down fast. 應該有人發明可以很快分解的塑膠袋。
But I hope they won’t break down in my hand. 希望它們不會在我手裡分解。
請跟我一起讀單字。
waste廢物
go away走開、離開
use使用
break down分解
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Quiz
1. How long does the new plastic take to go away?
a. Five days
b. Five months
c. Five years
2. When does the bacteria eat the plastic?
a. When it's hungry
b. When it's in shoes
c. When it's in the garbage
3. How can the new plastic help our Earth?
a. People will use less plastic.
b. Our Earth will be cleaner.
c. The plastic is soft.











**
**
Answers:
1. b
2. c
3. b