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Hello. This is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I’m Neil. And I’m Beth.
你好。这里是BBC英语六分钟。我是尼尔。我是贝丝。
“Plastic is fantastic!”This phrase was used a lot in the 1950s when mass- produced plastic items started to become part of our everyday lives.
“塑料太棒了!”这个短语在20世纪50年代被大量使用，当时大量生产的塑料制品开始成为我们日常生活的一部分。
The following decades saw a revolution as plastic became the most commonly used material in modern life, found in everything from cars to furniture to packaging.
接下来的几十年见证了一场革命，塑料成为现代生活中最常用的材料，从汽车到家具再到包装，无处不在。
Take a quick look around and you’ll soon see how many everyday items contain plastic.
环顾四周，你很快就会发现有多少日常用品含有塑料。
But now our love of plastic is being questioned, mostly thanks to climate change and pollution caused by single-use plastics – plastic products which are designed to be used just once before being thrown away.
但现在，我们对塑料的热爱正受到质疑，这主要是由于气候变化和一次性塑料造成的污染——一次性塑料产品被设计成只使用一次就被扔掉。
11 million tonnes of plastic waste are dumped into our oceans every year.
每年有1100万吨塑料垃圾被倾倒入海洋。
It’s believed that single-use plastics make up 40% of all plastic pollution globally.
据信，一次性塑料占全球塑料污染总量的40%。
What’s more, it’s not just land and water being polluted – tiny plastic pieces known as microbeads have even been found inside the human body, and can be passed from mother to child through breast milk.
更重要的是，被污染的不仅仅是土地和水——被称为微珠的微小塑料碎片甚至在人体内被发现，并且可以通过母乳从母亲传给孩子。
And because plastic comes from fossil fuels, the process of making it creates problems at every stage, from burning coal, to transportation, to recycling.
而且由于塑料来自化石燃料，制造塑料的过程在每个阶段都会产生问题，从燃烧煤炭到运输，再到回收。
In this programme, we’ll be asking: is it time to live without plastic?
在本期节目中，我们要问的问题是:是时候放弃塑料了吗?
And, as usual, we’ll be learning some useful new vocabulary as well.
和往常一样，我们也会学到一些有用的新词汇。
But first I have a question for you, Beth.
但首先我有个问题要问你，贝丝。
One reason why plastic became so popular is that it’s a very flexible material.
塑料如此受欢迎的一个原因是它是一种非常柔韧的材料。
It can be formed into different shapes, making it useful for keeping food fresh, or holding liquid.
它可以形成不同的形状，这使得它在保持食物新鲜或保存液体方面很有用。
Originally, plastic was invented to replace the decreasing supply of natural materials like metal, wood and glass.
最初，人们发明塑料是为了取代日益减少的金属、木材和玻璃等天然材料。
So which items did plastic first replace?
那么塑料首先取代了哪些物品呢?
Was it: a) snooker balls? b) shopping bags? or, c) hairbrushes?
是a)斯诺克球? b)购物袋? 还是c)发刷?
Hmm, I guess the first thing to be made of plastic was a hairbrush.
嗯，我猜第一个用塑料做的东西是梳子。
OK, Beth, I’ll reveal the answer later in the programme.
好的，贝丝，稍后我会在节目中揭晓答案。
Dr Sherri Mason is Professor of Chemistry at Penn State University in the US, and a specialist in plastic pollution.
雪莉·梅森博士是美国宾夕法尼亚州立大学的化学教授，也是塑料污染方面的专家。
Her award-winning 2017 research into microplastics in rivers led to the US Congress banning microbeads.
在2017年她对河流中微塑料的研究获奖，这导致美国国会禁止全国使用塑料微珠。
Here, she explains the problem of plastics to BBC World Service programme, The Real Story:
以下是她在BBC全球服务节目《真实故事》中解释的塑料问题:
Plastic is synthetic and, as a consequence of that, nature doesn't really know what to do with it.
塑料是合成的，因此，大自然并不知道如何处理它。
Like, a paper bag that's sitting on the side of the road - it's unsightly but within weeks there are organisms in the soil that can use that paper bag as a food source, right… they have evolved to basically chew up that paper bag and turn it back into soil, turn it back into carbon and nitrogen and oxygen.
就像放在路边的纸袋，很不雅观，但几周后，土壤中的微生物就会把纸袋当作食物来源，它们已经进化到基本上可以分解纸袋，把它变成土壤，把它变成碳、氮和氧。
But with regard to plastic because it is a synthetic material you don't have that evolution.
但是对于塑料来说，因为它是一种合成材料，你没有这种进化。
There are some organisms that can use it as a food source, but they're few and far between, especially when you're talking about water systems, aquatic systems and the temperatures that exist, and so they can't really use it as a food source so plastic doesn't biodegrade…
有一些生物可以把它作为食物来源，但它们数量稀少，尤其是提及水系统、水生系统和现有温度时，它们不能真正把塑料作为食物来源，所以塑料不能生物降解……
Plastic is a synthetic material, meaning that it’s made by combining man-made chemicals, instead of existing naturally.
塑料是一种合成材料，这意味着它是由人造化学物质混合而成，而不是自然存在的。
Natural materials like paper decay and harmlessly turn back into soil – they biodegrade.
像纸这样的天然材料会腐烂并无害地回到土壤中——它们是生物降解的。
But plastic is not like this.
但塑料不是这样的。
It doesn’t decay and get broken down by microbes and bacteria.
它不会腐烂，也不会被微生物和细菌分解。
In fact, some plastic-eating microbes and bacteria do exist, but these are few and far between, they’re rare, and don’t happen very often.
事实上，一些食用塑料的微生物和细菌确实存在，但它们就像凤毛麟角，很罕见，不常分解。
It’s the fact that plastic doesn’t decay which is responsible for the waste we see in the environment, waste which is often unsightly, meaning ugly and unpleasant to look at.
事实上，塑料不会腐烂，这就是我们在自然环境中看到垃圾的原因，这些垃圾通常是不雅观的，意思是丑陋和令人不愉快的。
Fortunately, help is at hand.
幸运的是，帮助已经到位。
The plastic-eating microbes Neil mentioned, especially one called Rhodococcus ruber, have been tested by scientists and seem capable of breaking down plastic into its basic components.
尼尔提到过食用塑料的微生物，尤其是一种叫做橡胶红球菌的微生物，经过科学家的测试，似乎能够将塑料分解成基本成分。
What’s also needed is an emphasis on reducing plastic production, especially packaging and other single-use products, rather than simply recycling.
我们还需要强调减少塑料生产，尤其是包装和其他一次性产品，而不是简单地回收利用。
Action like this should help plastic achieve its original purpose – to help preserve, not pollute, our natural resources.
这样的行动应该有助于塑料实现其最初的目的——帮助保存而不是污染我们的自然资源。
And speaking of the origins of plastic, isn’t it time to reveal the answer to your question, Neil?
说到塑料的起源，是不是该揭晓你问题的答案了，尼尔?
Right. I asked you which object made of natural materials was the first to be replaced by plastic.
对。我问你哪件由天然材料制成的物品是最先被塑料取代的。
You said it was a hairbrush which was… the wrong answer I'm afraid, Beth.
你说那是梳子，恐怕你答错了，贝丝。
In fact the first plastic-moulding machine was used in 1872 to produce snooker balls.
事实上，第一台注塑成型机是在1872年用来生产斯诺克球的。
OK let's recap the vocabulary we've learned from this programme starting with single-use plastics - plastic products which are designed to be used just once before being thrown away.
好的，让我们回顾一下在节目中学到的词汇，从一次性塑料开始，一次性塑料产品是指在被扔掉之前只使用一次的塑料产品。
Microbeads are tiny plastic particles found in products like toothpastes and body scrubs which can enter and pollute rivers, seas, and the human body.
微珠是牙膏和身体磨砂膏等产品中发现的微小塑料颗粒，它们可以进入并污染河流、海洋和人体。
The adjective synthetic describes a non-natural material made by combining chemicals.
合成的这个形容词描述的是一种由化学物质混合而成的非天然材料。
To biodegrade means to decay naturally, in a way that is not harmful to the environment.
生物降解意味着以一种对环境无害的方式自然腐烂。
The phrase few and far between means very rare or not happening very often.
短语凤毛麟角的意思是非常罕见或不经常发生。
And finally, if something is described as unsightly, it’s ugly and unpleasant to look at.
最后，如果某物被描述为不雅观，意思是它看起来很丑，令人不愉快。
Once again our six minutes are up.
我们的六分钟又到了。
Join us next time for more trending topics and useful vocabulary here at 6 Minute English.
下次加入我们，在六分钟英语中获得更多热门话题和有用词汇。
Goodbye for now! Goodbye!
再见了! 拜拜!
