Upper-Intermediate - Exchange Rates (D0410) 人民币这一年升值得真快！我手里的美金都贬值好多了！ rénmínbì zhèyīnián shēngzhí de zhēn kuài ！wǒ shǒu lǐ de měijīn dōu biǎnzhí hǎoduō le ！ The Chinese yuan has gone up really quickly this year! My American dollars have depreciated a lot! 谁叫你不早换人民币？现在吃亏了吧！ shéi jiào nǐ bù zǎo huàn rénmínbì ？xiànzài chīkuī le ba ！ Nobody stopped you from exchanging them for Chinese yuan sooner. Now you’ll have to take your losses! 嗯，不过汇率变动很难说，我哪料得到啊？而且我觉得人民币和美金这种强势货币还是比较稳定的。 én ，bùguò huìlǜ biàndòng hěn nán shuō ，wǒ nǎ liàodedào ā ？érqiě wǒ juéde rénmínbì hé měijīn zhèzhǒng qiángshì huòbì hái shì bǐjiào wěndìng de 。 Yeah, but exchange rate fluctuations are hard to predict, how could I have known? Plus, I think that these kinds of major currencies, such as the Chinese yuan and American dollar, are still relatively stable. 有道理。哎，你知道现在一欧元兑换多少人民币吗？ yǒu dàolǐ 。āi ，nǐ zhīdào xiànzài yī Oūyuán duìhuàn duōshao rénmínbì ma ？ That makes sense. Hey, do you know the conversion for one euro into Chinese yuan now? 大概十块多一点。这一年里也涨了好多。 dàgài shí kuài duō yīdiǎn 。zhèyīnián lǐ yě zhǎng le hǎoduō 。 Roughly 10 point something. It’s gone up this year a lot too. 那港币呢？ nà gǎngbì ne ？ What about the Hong Kong dollar? 现在和人民币已经差不多了。所以好多人去香港购物都用银联卡，因为是按当日汇率结算。这样一来，可以避免买入和卖出造成的损失。 xiànzài hé rénmínbì yǐjīng chà bu duō le 。suǒyǐ hǎo duō rén qù Xiānggǎng gòuwù dōu yòng yínlián kǎ ，yīnwèi shì àn dāngrì huìlǜ jiésuàn 。zhèyàngyīlái ，kěyǐ bìmiǎn mǎirù hé màichū zàochéng de sǔnshī 。 It’s about the same as the Chinese yuan now. So a lot of people that go shopping in Hong Kong use a China Union Pay bank card, because it calculates according to that day’s exchange rate. This way they can avoid losses buying and selling the currency. 哎，汇率变动这东西真是让人头疼。特别是对做外汇投资理财的人来说，细微的涨跌都关系重大啊。换成是我，我的心脏可受不了这样的压力。 āi ，huìlǜ biàndòng zhè dōngxi zhēnshì ràng rén tóuténg 。tèbiéshì duì zuò wàihuì tóuzī lǐcái de rén láishuō ，xìwēi de zhǎngdiē dōu guānxì zhòngdà ā 。huànchéng shì wǒ ，wǒ de xīnzàng kě shòu bu liǎo zhèyàng de yālì 。 Yikes, these currency fluctuations really are a headache. Especially for those in foreign investment banking, slight fluctuations have a significant effect. If it were me, my heart couldn’t take that kind of pressure. 我看你是没有理财头脑。其实这里面可是商机无限啊。 wǒ kàn nǐ shì méiyǒu lǐcái tóunǎo 。qíshí zhè lǐmiàn kěshì shāngjī wúxiàn ā 。 I can see you don’t have a mind for financial management. Actually, there are limitless business opportunities in this field. Vocabulary 升值 shēngzhí appreciate 贬值 biǎnzhí to become devaluated 吃亏 chīkuī suffer loss 汇率 huìlǜ exchange rate 兑换 duìhuàn to exchange 银联卡 yínlián kǎ China “UnionPay” bank card 结算 jiésuàn calculate 细微 xìwēi slight 外汇 wàihuì foreign exchange 及时 jíshí timely 付出 fùchū pay out 预料 yùliào expect, predict 自动提款机 zìdòng tíkuǎn jī ATM 机构 jīgòu organization 网络 wǎngluò network 管理钱财 guǎnlǐ qiáncái manage finances Upper-Intermediate - Black Market Gun Deal (D0428) 想买家伙吗？ xiǎng mǎi jiāhuo ma ？ Wanna buy a piece? 废话，到这儿来就是为了这个。你有吗？ fèihuà ，dào zhèr5 lái jiùshì wéile zhège 。nǐ yǒu ma ？ What do you think—that’s what people come here for. Got any? 要什么有什么。现在就可以看，都是现货。 yào shénme yǒu shénme 。xiànzài jiù kěyǐ kàn ，dōu shì xiànhuò 。 You want it, we got it. You can take a look now. Everything’s in stock. 安全吗？ ānquán ma ？ Is it safe? 放心吧。跟我走。 fàngxīn ba 。gēn wǒ zǒu 。 Relax. Come with me. 哇，你这儿真是什么都有。 wā ，nǐ zhèr5 zhēnshì shénme dōu yǒu 。 Whoa! You really have everything here. 怎么样，长见识了吧！ zěnmeyàng ，zhǎng jiànshi le ba ！ That’s what I told you, right? 这些都是什么枪？ zhèxiē dōu shì shénme qiāng ？ What kind of guns are these? 这把是五四式手枪。那把是冲锋枪，从俄罗斯走私进来的。质量绝对一流！ zhè bǎ shì wǔsì shì shǒuqiāng 。nà bǎ shì chōngfēngqiāng ，cóng éluósī zǒusī jìnlái de 。zhìliàng juéduì yīliú ！ This one is a Type 54 handgun. That one is a submachine gun, smuggled in from Russia. The quality is totally top-notch. 看来，你胆子可不小啊！连这种东西都敢放在家里。 kànlai ，nǐ dǎnzi kě bù xiǎo ā ！lián zhèzhǒng dōngxi dōu gǎn fàng zài jiālǐ 。 Seems you’ve got a lot of nerve! You even keep this kind of thing in your home. 嗨，人在江湖身不由己。做我们这种买卖就是要担风险的。你想买什么枪？ hāi ，rén zài jiānghú shēnbùyóujǐ 。zuò wǒmen zhèzhǒng mǎimài jiùshì yào dān fēngxiǎn de 。nǐ xiǎng mǎi shénme qiāng ？ Hey, people in this line of work have no choice. When you do this kind of business you have to take risks. Which gun do you wanna buy? 用来防身的。小口径手枪就行。 yònglái fángshēn de 。xiǎo kǒujìng shǒuqiāng jiù xíng 。 It’s for self-protection. A small caliber handgun would be fine. 你看看这把怎么样？ nǐ kànkan zhè bǎ zěnmeyàng ？ What do you think of this one? 不许动！举起手来！你已经被特警部队包围了。 bùxǔ dòng ！jǔqǐ shǒu lái ！nǐ yǐjīng bèi tèjǐng bùduì bāowéi le 。 Don’t move! Put up your hands! You’ve been surrounded by the special forces police unit! 你非法买卖枪支，我们现在拘捕你。 nǐ fēifǎ mǎimài qiāngzhī ，wǒmen xiànzài jūbǔ nǐ 。 You’re illegally trafficking in firearms. You are now under arrest. 什么？你是卧底！ shénme ？nǐ shì wòdǐ ！ What? You’re an undercover agent! Vocabulary 冲锋枪 chōngfēngqiāng submachine gun 现货 xiànhuò in stock 长见识 zhǎng jiànshi to have gained experience 走私 zǒusī to smuggle 一流 yīliú top-grade 人在江湖身不由己 rén zài jiānghú shēnbùyóujǐ people in this line of work have no choice 风险 fēngxiǎn risk 防身 fángshēn self-protection 小口径 xiǎo kǒujìng small-caliber 拘捕 jūbǔ to arrest 卧底 wòdǐ undercover agent; undercover 代号 dàihào codename 学术 xuéshù learning, academia 亲身经历 qīnshén jīnglì personal experience 增长 zēngzhǎng increase; grow 长个子 zhǎng gèzi get taller 大批量 dà pīliàng large quantity 机枪 jīqiāng machine gun 俗话 súhuà common saying; proverb 合法 héfǎ lawful 大侠 dàxiá knight-errant 武功 wǔgōng gest 黑社会 hēishèhuì criminal underworld 承担 chéngdān bear; undertake 戏剧性 xìjùxìng dramatic 警匪片 jǐngfěipiàn cop and robber movie Upper-Intermediate - Recognizing an Employee (D0438) 今天会议的主要内容就是总结和评估过去一年的工作。首先，我要代表公司感谢大家去年的努力和为公司做出的贡献。特别是小王，表现非常突出。希望大家都能向他学习。 jīntiān huìyì de zhǔyào nèiróng jiùshì zǒngjié hé pínggū guòqù yī nián de gōngzuò 。shǒuxiān ，wǒ yào dàibiǎo gōngsī gǎnxiè dàjiā qùnián de nǔlì hé wèi gōngsī zuòchū de gòngxiàn 。tèbié shì Xiǎo Wáng ，biǎoxiàn fēicháng tūchū 。xīwàng dàjiā dōu néng xiàng tā xuéxí 。 The main content of today’s meeting is to summarize and evaluate the past year’s work. First, on behalf of the company I want to thank everyone for their hard work and the contributions they’ve made to the company in the past year. In particular, Mr. Wang has performed outstandingly. I hope that everyone can learn from him. 谢谢经理，您过奖了。其实各位同事都给了我很大的帮助。这是我们整个团队努力的结果，不是我个人的。 xièxie jīnglǐ ，nín guòjiǎng le 。qíshí gè wèi tóngshì dōu gěi le wǒ hěn dà de bāngzhù 。zhè shì wǒmen zhěnggè tuánduì nǔlì de jiéguǒ ，bù shì wǒ gèrén de 。 Thank you, director; you flatter me. Actually, every one of my colleagues has given me a lot of help. This is the result of our entire team’s hard work, not only my own. 嗯，说得很好，大家的努力我也都看到了。我在这里再次感谢大家了。好，散会。小王，你单独到我办公室来一下。 én ，shuō de hěn hǎo ，dàjiā de nǔlì wǒ yě dōu kàndào le 。wǒ zài zhèlǐ zàicì gǎnxiè dàjiā le 。hǎo ，sànhuì 。Xiǎo Wáng ，nǐ dāndú dào wǒ bàngōngshì lái yīxià 。 Uh-huh, you are right. I have also noticed everyone’s hard work. I am here to thank everyone once again. All right, this meeting is adjourned. Mr. Wang, please come on your own to my office for a moment. 好。经理，真是谢谢您的鼓励。我只是做了分内的事，但能得到公司和您的赏识，我真的觉得非常幸运。您放心，我会继续努力，表现得更好。 hǎo 。jīnglǐ ，zhēnshì xièxie nín de gǔlì 。wǒ zhǐshì zuò le fènnèi de shì ，dàn néng dédào gōngsī hé nín de shǎngshí ，wǒ zhēnde juéde fēicháng xìngyùn 。nín fàngxīn ，wǒ huì jìxù nǔlì ，biǎoxiàn de gèng hǎo 。 OK. Director, I really want to thank you for your encouragement. I am just doing my job, but I feel truly fortunate to be able to receive the company’s and your recognition. Be assured that I will continue to work hard and to perform even better. 嗯，我就欣赏你这种态度。敬业、专业、自信但不骄傲。 én ，wǒ jiù xīnshǎng nǐ zhèzhǒng tàidu 。jìngyè 、zhuānyè 、zìxìn dàn bù jiāoào 。 Hmm, I really appreciate your attitude: hard-working, professional, confident – yet not arrogant. 您再说我都不好意思了。我还有很多地方要向您和各位同事学习呢。 nín zài shuō wǒ dōu bùhǎoyìsi le 。wǒ hái yǒu hěn duō dìfang yào xiàng nín hé gè wèi tóngshì xuéxí ne 。 If you keep talking like this I will feel embarrassed. I still have many things to learn from you and each of my colleagues. 总之你好好干，公司一定会给你应得的奖励。 zǒngzhī nǐ hǎohāo gàn ，gōngsī yīdìng huì gěi nǐ yīngdé de jiǎnglì 。 Put it this way: if you keep it up, the company will certainly give you the reward you deserve. Vocabulary 总结 zǒngjié to summarize 评估 pínggū to evaluate 突出 tūchū to stand out 散会 sànhuì meeting adjourned 单独 dāndú alone 分内 fènnèi one 赏识 shǎngshí appreciation 敬业 jìngyè work ethic, respect for work 骄傲 jiāoào arrogant; arrogance 表扬员工 biǎoyáng yuángōng praise an employee 现实 xiànshí real, realistic 管理 guǎnlǐ manage 鼓励 gǔlì encourage 评价 píngjià appraise; evaluate 口头上面的 kǒutóu shàngmian de oral 细致 xìzhì careful, meticulous 无私 wúsī unselfish 团队精神 tuánduì jīngshén team spirit 本分 běnfèn one’s duty 分外 fènwài not one’s duty; particularly 格外 géwài especially 专注于 zhuānzhù yú give sole attention to 平衡 pínghéng balance 文化上的差异 wénhuà shang de chāyì differences in culture Upper-Intermediate - Closing a Meeting (D0452) 我的介绍就到这里。 wǒ de jièshào jiù dào zhèlǐ 。 This brings my introduction to an end. 再次感谢各位领导邀请我参加本次会议。 zàicì gǎnxiè gèwèi lǐngdǎo yāoqǐng wǒ cānjiā běncì huìyì 。 I would like to again thank all the leaders for inviting me to attend this meeting. 这段时间虽然短暂，却让我进一步了解了中国，同时大会也给了我一个非常宝贵的机会来介绍我们公司的服务。 zhè duàn shíjiān suīrán duǎnzàn ，què ràng wǒ jìnyībù liǎojiě le Zhōngguó ，tóngshí dàhuì yě gěi le wǒ yī ge fēicháng bǎoguì de jīhuì lái jièshào wǒmen gōngsī de fúwù 。 Although the time has been short, I have been able to further acquaint myself with China. At the same time, this conference has given me a very precious opportunity to introduce our company’s services to you. 随着中国和世界各国之间的接触越来越紧密，我想这样的国际合作对双方都是十分有利的。 suízhe Zhōngguó hé shìjiègèguó zhījiān de jiēchù yuèláiyuè jǐnmì ，wǒ xiǎng zhèyàngde guójìhézuò duì shuāngfāng dōu shì shífēn yǒulì de 。 As contact between China and all the countries of the world becomes closer and closer, I think that this type of international cooperation is extremely advantageous to both sides. 此外，我们团队中的所有成员都会尽最大的努力把这个项目做好。 cǐwài ，wǒmen tuánduì zhōng de suǒyǒu chéngyuán dōuhuì jìn zuìdà de nǔlì bǎ zhège xiàngmù zuò hǎo 。 Moreover, every member of our team will do his utmost to bring this project to completion. 我也代表公司管理层感谢各位给予的支持。 wǒ yě dàibiǎo gōngsī guǎnlǐcéng gǎnxiè gè wèi jǐyǔ de zhīchí 。 On behalf of the management of our company, I would like to thank all of you for your support. 最后，衷心地祝愿我们这次的合作能够顺利，我希望并相信今后还会有更多这样的合作！ zuìhòu ，zhōngxīnde zhùyuàn wǒmen zhècì de hézuò nénggòu shùnlì ，wǒ xīwàng bìng xiāngxìn jīnhòu hái huì yǒu gèngduō zhèyàngde hézuò ！ Finally, I wholeheartedly wish our collaboration success. I hope and believe that henceforth there will be much more of this kind of cooperation. Vocabulary 本 běn this 短暂 duǎnzàn short 进一步 jìnyībù to go a step further 宝贵 bǎoguì precious 接触 jiēchù contact 紧密 jǐnmì inseparably close 尽 jìn to put forth 给予 jǐyǔ to render 衷心 zhōngxīn wholeheartedly 模式化 móshìhuà to routinize 不如 bùrú it would be better to 更加了解 gèngjiā liǎojiě understand more 搭配 dāpèi collocation, combination 发生 fāshēng to happen 一串 yīchuàn a string, a cluster 除此之外 chúcǐzhīwài in addition 队伍 duìwu team 全部的力量 quánbù de lìliang whole strength 接受 jiēshòu to receive 所有的诚心 suǒyǒu de chéngxīn whole-hearted sincerity 忠心耿耿 zhōngxīngěnggěng loyal and devoted 发自内心 fāzì nèixīn to come from one’s heart 并列 bìngliè to stand side by side 实用 shíyòng practical Upper-Intermediate - Chinese Identity (D0466) 有时候我真不知道自己属于哪里。 yǒushíhou wǒ zhēn bù zhīdào zìjǐ shǔyú nǎli 。 Sometimes I really don’t know where I belong. 怎么说？ zěnme shuō ？ What do you mean? 虽然我在美国长大，但是我们是那种特别传统的华人家庭。我一直都和爸妈住在一起。他们比美国的父母严厉多了。所以我不像美国朋友那么自由。但是，我和爸妈的关系还是很亲密的。 suīrán wǒ zài Měiguó zhǎngdà ，dànshì wǒmen shì nàzhǒng tèbié chuántǒng de huárén jiātíng 。wǒ yīzhí dōu hé bàmā zhù yīqǐ 。tāmen bǐ Měiguó de fùmǔ yánlì duō le 。suǒyǐ wǒ bù xiàng Měiguó péngyou nàme zìyóu 。dànshì ，wǒ hé bàmā de guānxi hái shì hěn qīnmì de 。 Even though I grew up in the States, ours is a very traditional Chinese family. I’ve always lived with my mother and father. They’re a lot stricter than other American parents, so I’m not as free as my American friends. Still, I’m really close to my parents. 那你来中国学中文是你自己的决定还是他们叫你来的？ nà nǐ lái Zhōngguó xué Zhōngwén shì nǐ zìjǐ de juédìng hái shì tāmen jiào nǐ lái de ？ Then was coming to China to learn Chinese your own decision, or did they tell you to do it? 是他们叫我来的。其实一开始，我并不情愿离开加州，我觉得那是世界上最好的地方。但是现在我反而更享受这里的自由。我可以独立地生活、学习、交朋友。 shì tāmen jiào wǒ lái de 。qíshí yī kāishǐ ，wǒ bìng bù qíngyuàn líkāi Jiāzhōu ，wǒ juéde nà shì shìjiè shàng zuìhǎo de dìfang 。dànshì xiànzài wǒ fǎnér gèng xiǎngshòu zhèlǐ de zìyóu 。wǒ kěyǐ dúlì de shēnghuó 、xuéxí 、jiāo péngyou 。 They told me to do it. Actually, I wasn’t at all eager to leave California at first. I felt it was the best place in the world. Now, though, I really appreciate my freedom here. I can live independently, study, make friends. 这不是很好吗？ zhè bù shì hěn hǎo ma ？ So isn’t that good? 可是我对自己的身份很困惑。在这儿，大家都把我当成中国人，这让我很有压力。其实我的很多想法和做法都美国化了，所以从这方面来说，我并不是一个中国人。 kěshì wǒ duì zìjǐ de shēnfèn hěn kùnhuò 。zài zhèr5 ，dàjiā dōu bǎ wǒ dāngchéng zhōngguórén ，zhè ràng wǒ hěnyǒu yālì 。qíshí wǒ de hěn duō xiǎngfǎ hé zuòfǎ dōu měiguóhuà le ，suǒyǐ cóng zhè fāngmiàn láishuō ，wǒ bìng bù shì yī ge zhōngguórén 。 But I feel confused about my own identity. Here, everyone treats me like a Chinese person, and that gives me a lot of pressure. In reality, a lot of my ideas and habits are very American, so in that regard I’m really not Chinese at all. 你当然是，只不过你在美国长大。 nǐ dāngrán shì ，zhǐ bùguò nǐ zài Měiguó zhǎngdà 。 Of course you’re Chinese. You just grew up in the USA. 哎，这就是矛盾的地方。我常常问自己到底是哪国人？我既不完全是美国人，又不完全是中国人。还有一个大问题，就是我的未来。我男朋友是个土生土长的中国人。我们感情很好。但是他家希望我做个完美的中国太太。可是我的性格太独立了，没办法接受他们的想法。我甚至都不想要孩子。哎，现在我的脑子一片迷茫。谁能告诉我到底该怎么办呢？ āi ，zhè jiùshì máodùn de dìfang 。wǒ chángcháng wèn zìjǐ dàodǐ shì nǎ guó rén ？wǒ jì bù wánquán shì měiguórén ，yòu bù wánquán shì zhōngguórén 。hái yǒu yī ge dà wèntí ，jiùshì wǒ de wèilái 。wǒ nánpéngyou shì ge tǔshēngtǔzhǎng de zhōngguórén 。wǒmen gǎnqíng hěn hǎo 。dànshì tā jiā xīwàng wǒ zuò ge wánměi de Zhōngguó tàitai 。kěshì wǒ de xìnggé tài dúlì le ，méi bànfǎ jiēshòu tāmen de xiǎngfǎ 。wǒ shènzhì dōu bù xiǎngyào háizi 。āi ，xiànzài wǒ de nǎozi yīpiàn mímáng 。shéi néng gàosu wǒ dàodǐ gāi zěnme bàn ne ？ (sigh) That’s where the contradiction lies. I often ask myself: where am I really from? I’m not completely American, but not totally Chinese either. And there’s another big question: my future. My boyfriend is a local Chinese guy. We are really happy together, but his family wants me to be a perfect Chinese wife. My personality is too independent; I just can’t accept their ideas. I don’t even want children. (sigh) My thoughts are such a mess. Who can possibly tell me what I’m supposed to do? 其实你也不用想这么多。顺其自然吧。 qíshí nǐ yě bùyòng xiǎng zhème duō 。shùnqízìrán ba 。 Actually, you don’t need to overanalyze it. Just do what comes naturally. Vocabulary 属于 shǔyú to belong to 传统 chuántǒng traditional 华人 huárén Chinese 严厉 yánlì strict 并不情愿 bìng bù qíngyuàn not willing to 反而 fǎnér instead 困惑 kùnhuò confused 当成 dāngchéng as 矛盾 máodùn contradiction 土生土长 tǔshēngtǔzhǎng locally born and bred 完美的 wánměi de perfect 甚至 shènzhì even 到底 dàodǐ in the end 迷茫 mímáng perplexed 顺其自然 shùnqízìrán let something happen naturally 认同 rèntóng identity 华裔 Huáyì ethnic Chinese 美籍华人 Měijíhuárén American-Chinese 宁愿 nìngyuàn would rather 迷惑 míhuo to puzzle 误解 wùjiě misunderstanding 贡献 gòngxiàn to contribute 老套 lǎotào old things 一片景象 yīpiàn jǐngxiàng piece 一片空白 yīpiàn kòngbái blank space 顺应 shùnyìng comply with 情绪 qíngxù sentiment Upper-Intermediate - State-Owned and Privately-Owned Enterprises (D0479) 中国企业的类型实在太多了，害得我怎么也搞不清楚。 Zhōngguó qǐyè de lèixíng shízài tài duō le ，hài de wǒ zěnme yě gǎo bu qīngchu 。 There are just too many different types of enterprises in China. How can I ever keep them straight? 是啊。从大的方面来说，中国企业可以分成内资、港澳台资和外商投资这几大类。其中每一大类又可以被细分成很多小的类型。 shì a 。cóng dà de fāngmiàn láishuō ，Zhōngguó qǐyè kěyǐ fēnchéng nèizī ，gǎng ào tái zī hé wàishāng tóuzī zhè jǐ dàlèi 。qízhōng měiyī dàlèi yòu kěyǐ bèi xìfēn chéng hěn duō xiǎo de lèixíng 。 Exactly. Speaking about the larger ones, Chinese enterprises can be broken up into these categories: domestically invested, Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan invested, and foreign invested—any of these major categories. Each of these major categories can also be further divided up into many smaller categories. 哎哟，你先别细分了，还是从头开始给我讲吧。我们先来说说内资企业，怎么样？ āiyō ，nǐ xiān bié xìfēn le ，háishì cóngtóukāishǐ gěi wǒ jiǎng ba 。wǒmen xiān lái shuōshuo nèizīqǐyè ，zěnmeyàng ？ Yikes, don’t break them down yet. How about you start from the beginning again and explain them to me. Let’s first talk about domestically invested enterprises, how about that? 好的。说到内资企业，其实我们经常听到的国有企业、私营企业就属于这一类。对了，你知道什么叫国有企业吗？ hǎode 。shuōdào nèizīqǐyè ，qíshí wǒmen jīngcháng tīngdào de guóyǒuqǐyè ，sīyíngqǐyè jiù shǔyú zhè yī lèi 。duìle ，nǐ zhīdào shénme jiào guóyǒuqǐyè ma ？ All right. Speaking of domestically invested enterprises, actually the state-owned enterprises and privately-owned enterprises we frequently hear about belong to this category. Oh, do you know what state-owned enterprises refer to? 不是很清楚，不过我倒是常常听到关于国有企业改革的消息。 bù shì hěn qīngchu ，bùguò wǒ dàoshì chángcháng tīngdào guānyú guóyǒuqǐyè gǎigé de xiāoxi 。 I’m not really clear on that, but I do often hear news about state-owned enterprise reform. 那我就给你说说什么叫国有企业吧。国有企业是指企业全部资产归国家所有的经济组织。 nà wǒ jiù gěi nǐ shuōshuo shénme jiào guóyǒuqǐyè ba 。guóyǒuqǐyè shì zhǐ qǐyè quánbù zīchǎn guī guójiā suǒyǒu de jīngjì zǔzhī 。 Then I will explain for you what state-owned enterprise refers to. A state-owned enterprise is just a business where all the capital belongs to the state economic system. 原来是这样，明白了，明白了。那私营企业呢？ yuánlái shì zhèyàng ，míngbai le ，míngbai le 。nà sīyíngqǐyè ne ？ Oh, so that’s how it is. I see, I see. So, what about privately-owned enterprises then? 它是指由公民投资设立或控股，以雇佣劳动为基础的营利性经济组织。 tā shì zhǐ yóu gōngmín tóuzī shèlì huò kònggǔ ，yǐ gùyōng láodòng wéi jīchǔ de yínglìxìng jīngjì zǔzhī 。 That refers to enterprises established and invested in by citizens, or held by citizens, which are based on wage labor profit-earning economic organization. 那么在中国国有企业和私营企业相比，哪一种更多呢？ nàme zài Zhōngguó guóyǒuqǐyè hé sīyíngqǐyè xiāngbǐ ，nǎ yī zhǒng gèngduō ne ？ So in China, in comparison which are there more of: state-owned enterprises or privately-owned enterprises? 现在应该差不多。但是以前中国的企业几乎都是国有的。近十几年来，随着中国经济体制改革的深入，私营企业越来越多了。同时国家大力推动国企改革，国企的数量呈大幅度减少，可是质量和实力却提高了很多。 xiànzài yīnggāi chàbuduō 。dànshì yǐqián Zhōngguó de qǐyè jīhū dōu shì guóyǒu de 。jìn shíjǐ nián lái ，suízhe Zhōngguó jīngjì tǐzhì gǎigé de shēnrù ，sīyíngqǐyè yuèláiyuè duō le 。tóngshí guójiā dàlì tuīdòng guóqǐ gǎigé ，guóqǐ de shùliàng chéng dàfúdù jiǎnshǎo ，kěshì zhìliàng hé shílì què tígāo le hěn duō 。 Now it’s about the same. But, in the past, China’s enterprises were almost all state-owned. In the last ten years or so, in the wake of China entering into economic system reform, there have been more and more privately-owned enterprises. Meanwhile, as the state has been vigorously pushing for state-owned enterprise reform, the number of state-owned enterprises has presented to a great extent a decrease. However, their quality and actual strength have, on the other hand, gone up a lot. 这一点我也听说过，能够进入财富500强的中国企业都是国有企业。不过我也挺看好中国的私营企业的。这些年私营企业不仅发展迅速，而且在不同的领域都很有作为。 zhè yī diǎn wǒ yě tīngshuōguo ，nénggòu jìnrù cáifù wǔbǎi qiáng de Zhōngguó qǐyè dōu shì guóyǒuqǐyè 。bùguò wǒ yě tǐng kànhǎo Zhōngguó de sīyíngqǐyè de 。zhèxiēnián sīyíngqǐyè bùjǐn fāzhǎn xùnsù ，érqiě zài bùtóng de lǐngyù dōu hěn yǒu zuòwéi 。 This point I’ve heard before. Those Chinese enterprises that have been able to become Fortune 500 companies are all state-owned enterprises. But I also anticipate great things from China’s privately-owned enterprises. These past few years, privately-owned enterprises have not only developed rapidly, but have also been able to make outstanding achievements in different fields. 没错。正是因为国有和私营企业的蓬勃发展，中国的经济才会这么繁荣。 méicuò 。zhèngshì yīnwèi guóyǒu hé sīyíngqǐyè de péngbó fāzhǎn ，Zhōngguó de jīngjì cái huì zhème fánróng 。 That’s right. It’s precisely because of state-owned and privately-owned enterprises’ vigorous development, that China’s economy has become so prosperous. Vocabulary 内资 nèizī domestic capital 港澳台资 gǎng ào tái zī Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan capital 外商投资 wàishāng tóuzī foreign business capital 细分 xìfēn to divide up 资产 zīchǎn capital 归 guī to belong to 国有企业 guóyǒuqǐyè state-owned enterprise 私营企业 sīyíngqǐyè privately-owned enterprise 控股 kònggǔ to control shares 设立 shèlì to set up 雇佣 gùyōng employment 营利性 yínglìxìng for-profit 经济体制 jīngjì tǐzhì economic system 深入 shēnrù to penetrate into, to go deep into 大力 dàlì vigorously 呈 chéng to emerge 作为 zuòwéi achievement 蓬勃 péngbó flourishing 三资企业 sānzīqǐyè foreign, private, and joint ventures 参股 cāngǔ purchase of shares in enterprises 并购 bìnggòu mergers and acquisitions 产权 chǎnquán property rights 振兴 zhènxīng to develop vigorously 改制 gǎizhì to reform a system 产业 chǎnyè property 龙头企业 lóngtóu qǐyè key enterprises Upper-Intermediate - Chinese Geography (D0483) 我最近看了好多地理方面的资料。现在，我对我们国家的地理情况一清二楚！ wǒ zuìjìn kàn le hǎo duō dìlǐ fāngmiàn de zīliào 。xiànzài ，wǒ duì wǒmen guójiā de dìlǐ qíngkuàng yīqīngèrchǔ ！ Lately I've read a lot of material about geography. Now, I am very clear about our country's geography! 真的还是假的？ zhēn de háishi jiǎ de ？ Is that really true, or are you making it up? 不信我说给你听呀！我们国家有四大高原、四大平原和三大盆地。 bù xìn wǒ shuō gěi nǐ tīng yā ！wǒmen guójiā yǒu sì dà gāoyuán 、sì dà píngyuán hé sān dà péndì 。 If you don't believe me I'll tell you about it. Our country has four main plateaus, four main plains, and three main basins. 等会儿、等会儿。第一句话就不对！应该是四大高原、三大平原和四大盆地。 děnghuìr5 、děnghuìr5 。dìyī jù huà jiù bù duì ！yīnggāi shì sì dà gāoyuán 、sān dà píngyuán hé sì dà péndi 。 Wait a second, wait a second. The first thing you said is already wrong. It should be four main plateaus, three main plains and four main basins. 你确定？ nǐ quèdìng ？ Are you sure? 当然咯。高考的时候，背这个就像背顺口溜。 dāngrán lo 。gāokǎo de shíhou ，bèi zhège jiù xiàng bēi shùnkǒuliū 。 Of course. When I was taking my university entrance exams, I memorized this just as if I was memorizing a jingle. 啊呀，反正三和四都差不多。你再听我说，中国是个多山的国家。青藏高原是世界上海拔最高的高原，平均海拔在8000米以上。 āyā ，fǎnzhèng sān hé sì dōu chà bu duō 。nǐ zài tīng wǒ shuō ，Zhōngguó shì ge duō shān de guójiā 。Qīngzàng gāoyuán shì shìjiè shàng hǎibá zuìgāo de gāoyuán ，píngjūn hǎibá zài bāqiān mǐ yǐshàng 。 Oh my, well anyways, three or four, it's more or less the same. Listen, I'll tell you more: China is a mountainous country. The Tibetan plateau is the plateau with the highest elevation in the world, with an average elevation of more than 8,000 meters. 什么？你听听，又错了。那是珠穆朗玛峰！去年国家重新测量了珠峰的高度，是8800多米。而青藏高原的平均海拔是4000米。 shénme ？nǐ tīngting ，yòu cuò le 。nà shì Zhūmùlǎngmǎ fēng ！qùnián guójiā chóngxīn cèliáng le Zhū fēng de gāodù ，shì bāqiān bābǎi duō mǐ 。ér Qīngzàng gāoyuán de píngjūn hǎibá shì sìqiān mǐ 。 What? Listen, you're wrong again. That is Mount Everest! Last year the government measured the altitude of Mount Everest again--it's over 8,800 meters. Furthermore, the average elevation of the Tibetan plateau is 4,000 meters. 是吗？你怎么样样都知道？ shì ma ？nǐ zěnme yàngyàng dōu zhīdào ？ Is it? How do you know all of this? 去年青藏铁路通车，媒体上天天都是这些消息。 qùnián Qīngzàng tiělù tōngchē ，méitǐ shàng tiāntiān dōu shì zhèxiē xiāoxi 。 Last year when the Tibetan Railway opened for service, this kind of information was in the media every day. 你哪来那么多闲工夫看报纸？哎，你再听我说下一句。这句话绝对没错：新疆是沙漠最集中的地区。 nǐ nǎ lái nàme duō xián gōngfu kàn bàozhǐ ？āi ，nǐ zài tīng wǒ shuō xià yī jù 。zhè jù huà juéduì méicuò ：Xīnjiāng shì shāmò zuì jízhōng de dìqū 。 How do you find so much free time to read the newspaper? Hey, listen to something else I can tell you. This is definitely not incorrect: Xinjiang is the region with the most desert. 嗯，这句倒是没什么问题。 ng4 ，zhè jù dàoshì méi shénme wèntí 。 Uh-huh. There is nothing wrong with that statement. 还有，黄河是中国最长的河流。中国......。 háiyǒu ，Huánghé shì Zhōngguó zuìcháng de héliú 。Zhōngguó ......。 Also, the Yellow River is China's longest river. China... 停！最长的应该是长江吧。你怎么连这个都说错？ tíng ！zuìcháng de yīnggāi shì Chángjiāng ba 。nǐ zěnme lián zhège dōu shuō cuò ？ Stop! The longest must be the Yangtze River. How can you get even that wrong? 哎，我这是口误。你别老插嘴，行不行？中国东部沿海的人口比较多。上海、北京、重庆和广州是拥有千万人口的超大型城市，其中上海的人口最多……。 āi ，wǒ zhè shì kǒuwù 。nǐ bié lǎo chāzuǐ ，xíng bu xíng ？Zhōngguó dōngbù yánhǎi de rénkǒu bǐjiào duō 。Shànghǎi 、Běijīng 、Chóngqìng hé Guǎngzhōu shì yōngyǒu qiānwàn rénkǒu de chāo dàxíng chéngshì ，qízhōng Shànghǎi de rénkǒu zuìduō ......。 Hey, that was a slip of the tongue. Don't keep on interrupting me, all right? The population of the eastern coast of China is comparatively higher. Shanghai, Beijing, Chongqing and Guangzhou are super-sized cities with populations in the tens of millions. Amongst them, Shanghai's population is the largest... 重庆最多。行了、行了，一大堆错误。你看的是什么资料？ Chóngqìng zuìduō 。xíng le 、xíng le ，yīdàduī cuòwù 。nǐ kàn de shì shénme zīliào ？ Chongqing is the largest. All right already! A huge pile of mistakes. What material did you look at? 都是网上找的。这网络还真是坑人，害得我脸都丢大了！ dōu shì wǎngshàng zhǎo de 。zhè wǎngluò hái zhēnshì kēngrén ，hài de wǒ liǎn dōu diū dà le ！ I found it all on the internet. The internet is really misleading. It's made me lose a lot of face! Vocabulary 一清二楚 yīqīngèrchǔ very clearly 顺口溜 shùnkǒuliū jingle 海拔 hǎibá elevation 通车 tōngchē to be open for traffic 口误 kǒuwù slip of the tongue 插嘴 chāzuǐ to interrupt 坑人 kēngrén to mislead people; to scam 丘陵 qiūlíng hilly terrain 沼泽 zhǎozé marsh, swamp, bog 热带雨林 rèdàiyǔlín tropical rain forest 植被 zhíbèi vegetation 岛屿 dǎoyǔ island 海岸线 hǎi'ànxiàn coastline 国界 guójiè border; national boundary 热带 rèdài the tropics 亚热带 yàrèdài the subtropics 温带 wēndài temperate zone 寒带 hándài frigid zone Upper-Intermediate - Chinese Onomatopoeia (D0491) 啪, 砰, 轰, 哄 pā , pēng , hōng , hōng smack, bang, boom, roar (of a crowd) 咔哒, 咔嚓, 咯噔 kādā , kāchā , gēdēng clack, click, thump 哐 kuāng sound of a gong 咕噜, 稀里呼噜, 嘀嗒, 哗哗, 稀里哗啦 gūlū , xīlihūlū , dīdā , huāhuā , xīlihuālā gurgling sound, slurping sound, dripping sound, sound of flowing water, sound of the patter of rain 哈哈, 嘻嘻, 嘿嘿, 呵呵, 哼哼 hāhā , xīxī , hēihēi , hēhē , hēnghēng ha ha, hee hee, heh heh, huh huh, hum (hmph) 咣 guāng slam (of a large door) 叽叽喳喳 jījizhāzhā sound of birds chirping 咻 xiū whoosh Vocabulary 啪 pā smack 砰 pēng bang 轰 hōng boom 哄 hōng roar (of a crowd) 咔哒 kādā clack 咔嚓 kāchā click 咯噔 gēdēng thump 哐 kuāng clang 咕噜 gūlū gurgling sound 稀里呼噜 xīlihūlū slurping sound 嘀嗒 dīdā dripping sound 哗哗 huāhuā sound of flowing water 稀里哗啦 xīlihuālā sound of patter of rain 哈哈 hāhā ha ha 嘻嘻 xīxī hee hee 嘿嘿 hēihēi heh heh 呵呵 hēhē huh huh 哼哼 hēnghēng hum, hmph 咣 guāng slam 叽叽喳喳 jījizhāzhā chirping sound of birds 咻 xiū whoosh 哗啦 huālā sound of rustling/crashing/etc. 象声词 xiàngshēngcí onomatopoeia 模仿 mófǎng to imitate 惟妙惟肖 wéimiàowéixiào imitate to perfection; remarkably true to life 一模一样 yīmúyīyàng be exactly alike 生动 shēngdòng lively Upper-Intermediate - Capital Punishment (D0496) 现在有些人胆子真大，为了一点小事就去抢劫、杀人。还好我们有死刑。 xiànzài yǒuxiē rén dǎnzi zhēn dà ，wèile yīdiǎn xiǎoshì jiù qù qiǎngjié 、shārén 。háihǎo wǒmen yǒu sǐxíng 。 Nowadays, some people have a lot of nerve. Over some trifle they will commit robbery or murder. Good thing we have the death penalty. 你怎么能这么说？死刑多么残酷！这种古老的刑罚，一点也不适合现在的社会，早该被废除了。其实大多数发达国家都在某种程度上废除了死刑，中国也该这样。 nǐ zěnme néng zhème shuō ？sǐxíng duōme cánkù ！zhèzhǒng gǔlǎo de xíngfá ，yīdiǎn yě bù shìhé xiànzài de shèhuì ，zǎo gāi bèi fèichú le 。qíshí dàduōshù fādáguójiā dōu zài mǒuzhǒng chéngdù shàng fèichú le sǐxíng ，Zhōngguó yě gāi zhèyàng 。 How can you say such a thing? The death penalty is so brutal. This kind of archaic punishment doesn't fit in at all with society today. It should have been abolished a long time ago. Actually, the vast majority of developed countries have to some extent abolished capital punishment--China should too. 荒唐！美国、日本还不保留着死刑？没有死刑，那些杀人放火的坏人就更无法无天了。到时候社会还有什么安定？老百姓还怎么过日子？ huāngtang ！Měiguó 、Rìběn hái bù bǎoliú zhe sǐxíng ？méiyǒu sǐxíng ，nàxiē shārén fànghuǒ de huàirén jiù gèng wúfǎwútiān le 。dào shíhou shèhuì hái yǒu shénme āndìng ？lǎobǎixìng hái zěnme guò rìzi ？ That's absurd. The United States and Japan still have capital punishment, don't they? Without the death penalty, those evildoers committing murder and arson would be even more lawless. When that happens what stability will there be in society? How will the average citizen be able to live? 话也不能这么说。我看过好多研究统计，都说死刑与犯罪的升降并不具有必然的关系。好多人犯罪是迫不得已，再说碰到冤案怎么办？白白死一个无辜的人？ huà yě bùnéng zhème shuō 。wǒ kàn guo hǎo duō yánjiū tǒngjì ，dōu shuō sǐxíng yǔ fànzuì de shēngjiàng bìngbù jùyǒu bìrán de guānxi 。hǎo duō rén fànzuì shì pòbùdéyǐ ，zàishuō pèngdào yuān'àn zěnme bàn ？báibái sǐ yī ge wúgū de rén ？ You can't say that. I've seen a lot of research statistics, and they all say that the death penalty isn't necessarily related to the crime rate. A lot of people commit crimes because they are compelled to. Furthermore, what about when you run into a mistaken conviction? Kill an innocent person for nothing? 你懂什么？惩罚特别严重的犯罪，死刑是无法替代的。对于那些特别严重的犯罪行为，冷血杀手不受到法律的惩罚，这公平吗？ nǐ dǒng shénme ？chéngfá tèbié yánzhòng de fànzuì ，sǐxíng shì wúfǎ tìdài de 。duìyú nàxiē tèbié yánzhòng de fànzuì xíngwéi ，lěngxiě shāshǒu bù shòudào fǎlǜ de chéngfá ，zhè gōngpíng ma ？ What do you know? For offenses with especially serious penalties, the death penalty is irreplaceable. With regard to those especially grave crimes, if cold-blooded killers don't receive the punishment of the law, is that just? 我们不能用这种报复的观念去看问题。所有的生命都是宝贵的，死刑违反人道主义原则。 wǒmen bùnéng yòng zhèzhǒng bàofù de guānniàn qù kàn wèntí 。suǒyǒu de shēngmìng dōu shì bǎoguì de ，sǐxíng wéifǎn réndàozhǔyì yuánzé 。 We can't look at this problem using that kind of a concept of retaliation. All life is precious--the death penalty violates the principles of humanitarianism. 你这是自相矛盾。被害人的生命也是宝贵的，凭什么被杀呢？再说了，中国这几年已经控制和减少死刑了，也改革了死刑的执行。这些还不够尊重生命？ nǐ zhè shì zìxiāngmáodùn 。bèihàirén de shēngmìng yě shì bǎoguì de ，píng shénme bèi shā ne ？zàishuō le ，Zhōngguó zhè jǐ nián yǐjīng kòngzhì hé jiǎnshǎo sǐxíng le ，yě gǎigé le sǐxíng de zhíxíng 。zhèxiē hái bùgòu zūnzhòng shēngmìng ？ You are contradicting yourself. The life of the victim is also precious, and he or she was killed for what? Besides, in the past few years China has already controlled and reduced the use of the death penalty, and has also reformed the implementation of the death penalty. Isn't this showing enough respect for life? 我们应该彻底废除死刑，这样也能让社会大众体会到关爱生命的原则。 wǒmen yīnggāi chèdǐ fèichú sǐxíng ，zhèyàng yě néng ràng shèhuì dàzhòng tǐhuì dào guān'ài shēngmìng de yuánzé 。 We should completely abolish the death penalty, in this way allowing society as a whole to appreciate the principles of concern and the value for life. 你少在这儿胡说八道。等哪天杀人放火的事发生在自己身上，你就知道死刑的必要了。 nǐ shǎo zài zhèr5 húshuōbādào 。děng nǎ tiān shārén fànghuǒ de shì fāshēng zài zìjǐ shēnshàng ，nǐ jiù zhīdào sǐxíng de bìyào le 。 You should talk a little less if you don't know what you're talking about. Wait until the day comes when murder or arson affects you personally, then you will realize the necessity of capital punishment. Vocabulary 抢劫 qiǎngjié to rob 残酷 cánkù cruel 废除 fèichú to abolish 荒唐 huāngtang absurd 无法无天 wúfǎwútiān lawless 迫不得已 pòbùdéyǐ to have no choice 无辜 wúgū innocent 惩罚 chéngfá punishment 自相矛盾 zìxiāngmáodùn to contradict oneself 胡说八道 húshuōbādào to talk nonsense 剥夺 bōduó to deprive 监禁 jiānjìn to take into custody; to jail 坐牢 zuòláo imprisoned 释放 shìfàng to release 冤枉 yuānwang to wrong someone 减刑 jiǎnxíng to reduce a sentence 死缓 sǐhuǎn stay of execution 无期徒刑 wúqītúxíng life imprisonment 有期徒刑 yǒuqītúxíng fixed term of imprisonment