A New Lease of Life

重获新生

Alice和Finn今天和大家说说一个关于改变人生的惊人的科学成果——人工心脏。

本期问题：

哪些生物有最慢的心跳率呢？

a) 大象

b) 人类

c) 狗

让我们一起听BBC 6分钟英语找答案吧！

听力内容：

A new lease of life

NB: This is not a word for word transcript

Alice: Hello, I'm Alice.

Finn: And I'm Finn.

Alice: And this is 6 Minute English! This week we’re talking about an amazing scientific achievement – it’s called a total artificial heart.

Finn: That’s a heart that’s made completely artificially – in fact it’s made of plastic. Something artificial is something that isn’t real.

Alice: This total artificial heart has given a new lease of life to a patient in the United States – so before we find out more, Finn, I have a question for you. Which of these creatures has the slowest heartbeat? Ready?

Finn: OK, I’m ready!

Alice: A, an elephant, b, a human being or c, a dog.

Finn: Hmm – I’m really not sure about that. Do different size dogs have different heartbeats I wonder, Alice?

Alice: I don’t know! I only know which of them has the slowest heartbeat and I’ll give you the answer at the end of the programme. So let’s find out more about this total artificial heart. Here’s heart doctor, cardiologist Dr Doug Horstmanshof talking about his patient, Troy Golden, a pastor from the United States who was born with a serious heart condition.

Insert 1: Dr Doug Horstmanshof

He suffers from a disease called Marfan's syndrome that he was born with. Physically. He wasn't even able to get out of bed anymore, could barely bear weights, could barely breathe comfortably. Emotionally, mentally, spiritually - he had reached a point so low that most of us can't even imagine.

Alice: Dr Doug Horstmanshof says his patient suffered badly from his disease. He had reached a point so low that most of us can’t even imagine.

Finn: A point so low – a condition that is so bad you can’t imagine things getting any worse.

Alice: Troy Golden was physically, emotionally, spiritually and mentally exhausted. He had been put on a list for a heart transplant in January 2010 but couldn’t find a donor.

Finn: A donor – somebody who gives you something, in this case a human heart. Somebody who donates a heart or a liver or kidney is called an organ donor.

Alice: And Troy’s heart was in such a bad condition a normal heart pump wouldn’t work for him, so Dr Horstmanshof decided to do something incredible in September 2010. He removed his patient’s heart completely and replaced it with a plastic heart – the total artificial heart. It contains valves, a pump and also batteries to keep it powered.

Finn: So that was September 2010 – Troy Golden has had his new heart for several months now. How has it been functioning?

Alice: Let’s hear what he says.

Insert 2: Troy Golden

Yeah, I really have got to the point that I don't even really notice it, other than it's loud. So... I think for my wife it feels, to her, she can hear it beating so she knows I'm alive, so it's very comforting to her.

Alice: Troy Golden says his wife can hear the heart beating, and she finds the sound very comforting.

Finn: Comforting – it makes her feel safe and secure.

Alice: And Troy Golden says he’s got to a point where he doesn’t really notice his new heart.

Finn: He’s got to a point where he doesn’t notice his new heart, which means he’s got used to it.

Alice: Another doctor, Dr Kevin Fong, a Consultant Anaesthetist at University College Hospital in London, says the total artificial heart is almost unbelievable – he calls it mind-blowing.

Insert 3: Dr Kevin Fong

It's mind-blowing to think that where he once had a heart, there's now a mechanical device; that it's been replaced with plastic and tubes attached to a pneumatic pump inside the rucksack on his back.

Alice: Dr Kevin Fong, a Consultant Anaesthetist from University College Hospital in London, describing the mechanical device which is keeping Troy Golden alive.

Finn: A pneumatic pump – now, a pneumatic pump is an air pump, and this one is kept in a rucksack on the patient’s back.

Alice: Troy Golden carries the rucksack on his back, and he says it’s great to know his heart is pumping. He says it’s wonderful to feel alive again.

Insert 4: Troy Golden

It is great to know that my… that the heart is pumping, that my heart is pumping. I guess it's not mine, but it is wonderful to feel alive again.

Alice: Troy Golden who has been given a new lease of life with his total artificial heart.

Finn: A new lease of life – that’s new energy and a new sense of happiness.

Alice: So, before we go today, Finn – have you had a chance to think about my question about the heart rates of different creatures.

Finn: Well, I think the bigger the animal the slower the heartbeat, so I’m going to go for elephant.

Alice: Ah, well done – very good! Apparently an elephant’s heart beats only 25 times a minute, a human being, usually between about 60 and 90 times a minute, and a dog, between 100 and 150 heartbeats every minute!

Finn: There you go.

Alice: Yes. So, a chance to hear some of the words and phrases. Finn, would you mind?

Finn: artificial

a new lease of life

heartbeat

comforting

got to a point

mind-blowing

pneumatic

rucksack

Alice: Thanks for that, Finn.

Finn: You’re welcome.

Alice: Well that’s all we have time for today, and we’ll have more "6 Minute English" next time.

Finn: Bye for now!

Alice: Bye!

词汇学习：

1. artificial 人工的，仿真的

2. a new lease of life 重获新生

3. heartbeat 心跳

4. comforting 安慰

5. got to a point 在每一点上；到一点上

6. mind-blowing 使兴奋的；引起幻觉的

7. pneumatic气动的，充气的

8. rucksack背囊