英语每日一听 | 每天少于5分钟

Business meetings are, arguably, a necessary part of any organisation where people work collectively to accomplish a goal. But badly managed, meetings can be unproductive, boring and feel like a complete waste of time. In a recent survey conducted by governance technology firm eShare, it was found that the average UK employee spends over 10 hours weekly preparing for and attend...

The noble tree house – all natural materials, sturdy construction, aloof from the troubles of the world. In a more dangerous time in human history, their position above the ground would protect the dweller against environmental difficulties and possible predators. As modern construction has improved, these arboreal residences have become less of a practical dwelling&n...

By now, most of us will have heard of GMOs. In case you haven't, GMO stands for genetically-modified organism. This basically means that an organism has had a foreign genetic sequence introduced into it. In theory, this gives the organism certain advantages – it may become hardier by developing a resistance to disease, or in the case of GM food, may be bigger and...

If you asked me to dance, I'd probably freeze on the spot. I lack rhythm and coordination and some people say I have two left feet! But with some persuasion and Dutch courage I can be tempted to take to the dance floor and shake some moves – and that, apparently, is only natural. 如果你让我跳舞，我可能会当场僵住。我缺乏节奏和协调，有人说我有两只左脚！但...

It's good to have friends that we can talk to and share our thoughts and opinions with. More importantly, they're people we can ask for help or advice. But recently it seems, many of us are developing a new relationship with a mystery person that we'll never meet! 有朋友可以交谈并分享我们的想法和意见是很好的。更重要的是，他们是我们可以寻求帮助或建议的人。但最近似乎，我们中的许多人正在与一个我们永...

The first thing sold online was a CD. It sold in 1994 for $12.48. In 1995, Amazon launched its online bookshop, and later that year the online auction site that would become eBay sold its first item. Fast-forward to the modern day and online shopping is huge business. In contrast to the recent UK announcements that many high-profile retail chains and department stores&nbsp...

Whether it’s studying for exams, working on a project or struggling with a dissertation, we’ve all been under immense stress at some point. When it gets a bit overwhelming, we can reach a level of exhaustion that is unprecedented – the dreaded burnout. However, that feeling of exhaustion is not just physical; it can be mental as well. 无论是准备考试、做项目还是写论文，我们都曾在某些时候承受过巨大...

We all know what a dog means when it wags its tail – it means they’re happy, right? Well, maybe not according to leading animal psychologists who analyse what a dog may be or may not be feeling.  There may be more of a tale in the movements of a dog’s tail than most of us think. 我们都知道狗摇尾巴意味着什么——这意味着它们很高兴，对吧？好吧，也许不是根据分析狗可能是或可能不是感觉的主要动物心理...

Have you ever wondered if you see the same colours as other people? Most people know what blue is when they see it.  It’s the colour of sea, sky and sapphires. They see the colour and call it ‘blue’ because they were taught the word and associated it with what they saw. But how do you know what you see as blue isn’t someone else’s red, and vice versa? 你有没有想过你是否看到和其他人一样的颜色...

Have you ever watched one of the many TV shows set during the apocalypse - a dystopian future where life as we know it is over and people are only focussed on survival? If it’s not zombies, it’s viruses or natural disasters. One thing that seems to be a quintessential part of these series is survivors searching for food and resources. Is that why people stockpile food when things go bad? 你有没有...

You can’t cross the same river twice, the popular saying goes. This wisdom reminds us that everything changes - expecting to relive your bygone days of success in the same way is unrealistic. But, apparently, this doesn’t apply to music. Over the last decade or so, for one reason or another, a number of high-profile bands have decided to stop resting on their laurels and have reunited. But why? 俗...

Do you sometimes find yourself drawing random patterns and designs during meetings and lectures? Some people believe it shows you aren’t listening or paying attention. However, there are studies which claim the opposite, and that doodling might actually be beneficial. 您有时会发现自己在会议和讲座中随意绘制图案和设计吗？有些人认为这表明你没有倾听或注意。然而，也有研究声称相反，涂鸦实际上可能是有益...

2020 is a leap year, and as we all know leap years happen every four years, right? Wrong. That extra day in February is designed to keep the Earth in sync with the astrological or seasonal year. But, what you might not realise is that the maths isn’t that simple and occasionally we have to wait eight years. 2020年是闰年，众所周知，闰年每四年发生一次，对吧？错误的。2 月额外的一天旨在使地球与占星术...

For me, it was bacon. There I was, standing in the streets of Medellin, Colombia, looking hungrily at a delicious empanada. The sign read 'queso y tocino'. Because I'd got my tongue round some essential Spanish vocabulary, I knew that 'queso' was cheese. But 'tocino'? I typed it into my smartphone translation app. What came back? 'Tocino'. I later learned that means 'bacon' in the local lingo. 对...

If you’re in a job performing tedious tasks, you might think that a robot could do the work instead. But perhaps we underestimate how much technology already helps with the activities that we would otherwise have to do.  And as artificial intelligence progresses we might find it replaces us in the workplace altogether. 如果您的工作是执行繁琐的任务，您可能会认为机器人可以代替您完成这项工作。但...

One of the problems damaging our planet is the number of things we throw away. Rubbish of all kinds is piling up in landfill and polluting our rivers and oceans. A more recent addition to the list of things we chuck away is e-waste – electronic items that are broken and not recycled. Now solutions are being found to give this stuff a new life. 破坏我们星球的问题之一是我们扔掉的东西的数量。各种垃圾...

Have you ever eaten kosher food? That's food which conforms to the Jewish dietary regulations of kashrut. These regulations forbid consuming pork or shellfish of any kind, for example. Meat from other animals, such as cows and lamb, are OK provided restrictions are met. But they must be slaughtered according to set guidelines. All kosher rulings are overseen by trained rabbis from a kosher certifi...

How are you feeling today? Often when we ask people that question, they reply ‘not bad’, or ‘could be worse’. But what would make us feel ‘perfect’? Maybe we could live better by being healthier, less stressed, more motivated – but how? 你今天感觉如何？通常当我们问人们这个问题时，他们会回答“还不错”，或者“可能会更糟”。但是什么会让我们感觉“完美”呢？也许我们可以通过变得更健康、压力更小、更有动力来生...

Grimy coffee cups, dirty clothes all over the floor and uninvited guests – and they're not even yours! These are the joys of flatsharing. So why do we do it? Well, for many, buying a house or flat is just too expensive. In fact, according to the Guardian, the total amount of rent paid by tenants in Britain in 2017 rose to more than £50 billion – more than double the level of ten years prior. And f...

There’s no place like home. It’s the place where we’re surrounded by our possessions and creature comforts. We purchase things to give our homes a personal touch and create a certain ambience. And one thing we’re buying more of is houseplants. But are these ‘living’ additions to our homes good for us and the environment? 金窝银窝不如自己家里的狗窝。这是我们被我们的财产和物质享受所包围的地方。我们...

It's the most popular drink worldwide. According to the British Coffee Association, approximately two billion cups of coffee are consumed every day. But after the beans have been picked, roasted and brewed, the grounds are often disposed of as waste. With the environment and resource consumption such hot topics at the moment, wouldn't it be great if we could reuse this waste to make something usef...

What did you want to be when you were growing up? A doctor, an engineer - or maybe a footballer or actor? We all had big plans for our futures and believed there was a dream job waiting for us – one that would pay well and give great job satisfaction. But how realistic was that? 你长大后想成为什么样的人？医生、工程师——或者可能是足球运动员或演员？我们都为自己的未来制定了宏伟的计划，并相信有一份梦想...

Have you ever woken up with a sore throat and blocked nose and wondered if you should take the day off work? Some of us just soldier on, hoping the office environment and banter with work colleagues will perk us up. Others will make a hot drink, return to bed and have a ‘duvet day’. But what is the right approach to take? 您是否曾经因喉咙痛和鼻塞而醒来，想知道您是否应该请假一天？我们中的一些人只是...

If you go to work, you’re probably familiar with the routine of travelling to the office, hunting for an available desk, completing your tasks and then enduring your commute home. In many ways, it seems like an outdated working practice. And maybe that’s why more and more of us are now choosing to work from home. 如果你去上班，你可能很熟悉去办公室旅行、寻找可用办公桌、完成任务然后通勤回家的例行公...

It's a touchy subject. Talking socially about money can make people feel uncomfortable. But at work, have a conversation about how much people earn, and things can not only get awkward, but, in some cases, it can get you sacked. 这是一个敏感的话题。在社交场合谈论金钱会让人们感到不舒服。但是在工作中，谈论人们挣多少钱，事情不仅会变得尴尬，而且在某些情况下，它可能会让你被解雇。 According to a survey...