Lesson 34 English Small Talk Topics: What is ok and what is not?

慎選英語閑聊話題

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"Everybody complains about the weather, but nobody ever does anything about it," so goes an old saying. Perhaps the safest of all small talk topics is the weather. Whether good or bad, a comment about the temperature or sky condition (sunny day, cloudy day, rainy day, etc. ) never offends. Commenting on the crowded traffic or the late bus, or high prices in the department store (immediate conditions) is also always appropriate. Similarly, most people do not mind talking about their work, family, or school life, either, since for most people these are experiences held in common. Even so, asking whether someone is married or not crosses over into personal information and therefore should be avoided. If the speaker happens to mention that he or she has children or is married, however, it is all right to pursue the topic.

Asking such questions as "How much do you weigh? How old are you?" or "How much do you earn?" are taboo in English, at least as starters for conversation. Only when friends are close would they ask such questions of each other. Likewise, for most people, religious or political convictions or exual mores are considered private matters. These should not be discussed until one speaker offers his opinion first. It is not necessary, though, to respond in kind. The other speaker can change the subject to show that this is a taboo subject.

Foreigners are usually "forgiven" the "indiscretion" of asking others offending questions. Still, it is not a good idea to wear out one’s welcome. When a subject has been turned down, only a tactless person would pursue it. Being sensitive to others’ feelings and sense of privacy will win more friends and influence more people than a reckless line of questioning. When curiosity seems to be getting the upper hand, remember that "Silence is golden."

Lesson 35 Hot Aminals around the World: The Panda

Some countries have adopted an animal as a kind of national mascot. The bald eagle is often thought of as representing the United States, for example. New Zealanders proudly display their kiwi, a native flightless bird. Australians cannot seem to make up their minds whether the koala or the kangaroo should represent them. China also has two animals which often stand out in everyone’s mind: the dragon and the giant panda. As the dragon is a mythological animal, that leaves the giant panda as the only real animal representative of China.

Although dragons have been associated with China for thousands of years, the panda’s inclusion into the Chinese psyche is far more recent. The giant panda was not even discovered until 1869; it was already a rare animal at that time, living in the high bamboo forests of Sichuan province and neighboring parts of Tibet.Its more plentiful cousin, the lesser panda, is also referred to as the cat bear or bear cat; however, zoologically speaking, it is neither. The lesser panda is a member of the raccoon family, whereas the giant panda’s classification is still a dilemma: some authorities consider it a member of the bear family while others maintain that it belongs to the raccoon family, too.

The giant panda is well named. Reaching a length of 1.5 meters and 160 kilograms, this gentle omnivore is among the largest land animals of China. Subsisting on a diet of bamboo and other plants, and even small animals, it can consume as much as 30 kilograms of food a day. Now that’s a giant appetite! Its distinctive markings--broad, white bands of fur alternating with black, and small black circles around the eyes--have endeared the giant panda to animal lovers everywhere.

People may want to hug this huge "teddy bear," but giant pandas prefer to live a solitary life. This may account for their scarcity; these pandas are on all official lists of endangered animals. Estimates of the wild panda population are difficult due to the rugged terrain they live in, but most experts agree that fewer than 1000 remain free. As they give birth to only one or two cubs when mating is successful,the giant panda’s survival in the wild is anything but a foregone conclusion. The Chinese government has set aside 11 nature preserves where pandas are known to exist, hoping to protect them from the rapid encroachment of man. Though poaching is still a problem, strict laws have reduced this senseless carnage.

Pandas in captivity number less than 100, the largest share, of course, in China. Those in Western zoos are treated as royalty and are the object of intense scientific interest and care. Recently, veterinarians have given male giant pandas Viagra, hoping to increase the animals’ reproductive efficiency. Results are thus far inconclusive. Though births have been reported, they are few and far between it. It seems the panda’s chance of survival is razor-thin.

Its extinction would be a sad day for all of mankind. These playful and gentle creatures never fail to amuse adults and children alike lucky enough to observe them in zoos. Every plant and animal that leaves the world due to human intervention and encroachment of habitat diminishes the world we live in. The richness of the Earth’s original biodiversity is being attacked. Will future generations of humanity be left with only a few species of food plants, and zoos exhibiting cockroaches and rats?

Hopefully, men will learn the excesses of their ways and strive to protect the remaining natural habitats as an investment not only in the flora and fauna remaining but in the quality of life present and future, of all those on this planet. "Extinction is forever" and "There is only one world" need no longer be heard if everyone becomes conscious of preserving the beauty of the natural world around us.

Lesson 36 Vancouver: Asia’s Newest City

溫哥佛---亞洲的新都市

What? Wait a minute! Did I read that right? I thought Vancouver was in Canada, not in Aisa. Why is the title of this article "Vancouver: Asia’s Newest City"?

Relax, everyone. yes, Vancouver is still in Canada, North America’s largest country, not in Asia. Over the past twenty years, however, Asians from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines, and other countries across the ocean have flocked into this largest city on Canada’s Pacific coast. By some accounts, as many as 30% of households in Vancouver speak Mandarin or Cantonese, making the Chinese there the largest minority by far. Just what is the attraction of this English-speaking city, however?

A visit to Vancouver quickly reveals her charms. Situated on the ocean and possessing a fine, deepwater port, British Columbia’s largest city faces Vancouver Island to the west and mountains to the east and north. Most of the city is relatively new, having been rebuilt after a great fire in 1886. The completion of the Panama Canal in 1915 during World War I helped spur growth all along the West Coast of North America, as products from the western states of the United States and the western provinces of Canada could be profitably shipped to Europe. By the 1930s Vancouver had become Canada’s third-largest city, a position it maintains today. Lumber from the extensive forested areas within the province, minerals, seafood, and assorted industries. including tourism, give the million-plus residents of metropolitan Vancouver a high standard of living.

The city itself is comfortable and attractive. A large central park called Stanley Park includes a zoo, gardens, arboretum, and aquarium! The University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University are located in the greater Vancouver area, as are many small and quaint farming and fishing villages within a few hours’ drive. Scenic, unpolluted, and prosperous: who could ask for anything more?

Certainly not the Chinese. Although limited immigration from the Far East began as early as the 19th century, it was not until the 1970s that immigration to both Canada and the United States began to increase significantly. By the 1980s, the steady stream had become a flood. Today, Vancouver’s Chinatown is said to be North America’s second largest. Given the large numbers of Chinese living in the much larger cities of New York, Toronto, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, that represents astonomical growth.

Vancouver’s Chinatown is located within walking distance of the downtown area, as are most Chinatowns in North America. Here one can find both traditional Chinese herbal stores and fresh food markets as well as small retail and service businesses. From mid-May to September, Friday to Sunday evenings from 6:30 to 11:30, both Chinese and "foreign" visitors to this area might mistake themselves as being in Shanghai or Hong Kong. For daytime visitors, the Dr. Sun Yat-sen Classical Chinese Gardens is a must, offering beautifully landscaped floral gardens. The nearby Chinese Cultural Center conducts walking tours of the historic district and even a slide show revealing the historic development of the area.

Of course, Vancouver has much more ot offer its residents and out-of-town and overseas visitors. Though--or perhaps because--it lacks the manic energy of East Coast cities of North America or those of modern Aisa, Vancouver continues to attract new residents with its serene, safe, and, well, sane lifestyle.