HSK 4Lesson 56
New technology is everywhere, from the kitchen to the classroom. In this lesson Liu Ming asks Teacher Wang what science and technology are, two roommates try out a new kitchen machine, Anne admires a solar lamp at a school exhibition, and Bai Jiayue talks with her teacher about life before and after phones.
You will learn to talk about new technology: the difference between science and technology, what a machine is used for, what a device produces or provides, and how technology changes daily life.
Part 1 · 16 new words
Contains 3 words
technology; technique
science and technology
science; scientific
Contains 5 words
to use
to be used for
Contains 5 words
to produce; to give rise to
to give off (sound, light, smell)
Contains 3 words
to cause; to attract (attention)
to appear; to emerge
Part 2 · 9 phrases
科学是想知道为什么，技术是想知道怎么做。
Science wants to know why; technology wants to know how to do it.
这笔钱只能用于买书，不能用来买别的东西。
This money can only go toward buying books, not other things.
小问题不解决，就会产生大问题。
If you don't solve small problems, big problems will come out of them.
现有的办法都不行，我们得想新办法。
None of the existing methods work; we have to think of a new one.
夜里手机发出的光，会让人睡不好。
The light a phone gives off at night can keep people from sleeping well.
到国外学习，改变了我对世界的看法。
Studying abroad changed my view of the world.
Part 3 · 4 conversations
After class Liu Ming asks Teacher Wang how science and technology differ, and she gives the class a homework task about a new technology.
刘明Liu Ming
王老师，科学和技术有什么不一样？
Teacher Wang, what's the difference between science and technology?
王老师Teacher Wang
简单地说，科学回答“为什么”，技术回答“怎么做”。
Put simply, science answers 'why', and technology answers 'how to do it'.
to be used to (do)
to change; a change
to change; to alter; to correct
to provide; to supply
existing; currently available
to obtain; to get
to have (an effect); to play (a role)
路口突然出现一辆车，我马上停住了。
A car suddenly appeared at the intersection and I stopped right away.
需要资料的话，我可以给你提供。
If you need materials, I can provide them for you.
这本书对我学汉语起到了很大的作用。
This book played a big part in helping me learn Chinese.
刘明Liu Ming
那我们常说的“科技”呢？
Then what about the word kējì that we often use?
王老师Teacher Wang
“科技”是科学和技术的意思。先有了电的知识，后来才有了做手机的技术。
It means science and technology. First there was knowledge about electricity, and only later the technology to make phones.
刘明Liu Ming
所以大家常说“科技改变生活”，对吧？
So that's why people say 'science and technology change our lives', right?
王老师Teacher Wang
对。这周的作业是：找一个最近十年出现的新技术，说说它怎么改变了我们的生活。
Right. This week's homework: find a new technology that has appeared in the last ten years and explain how it has changed our lives.
刘明Liu Ming
好，我就写用手机付钱吧。
Okay, I'll write about paying with your phone.
Roommates Li Wen and Liu Ming try out a new kitchen machine, read the manual, adjust the baking time and worry about a noise and a smell.
李文Li Wen
这个新东西是我妈送的，你知道怎么使用吗？
My mom gave me this new machine. Do you know how to use it?
刘明Liu Ming
我看看说明书……它主要用于做饭，也可以用来烤面包。
Let me look at the manual... It's mainly used for cooking, and it can also be used to bake bread.
李文Li Wen
太好了，那我们今天就烤一个试试。说明书上写要烤多长时间？
Great, then let's bake one today and see. How long does the manual say to bake it?
刘明Liu Ming
写的是三十分钟，可是我们的面包很小。
It says thirty minutes, but our loaf is small.
李文Li Wen
那就把时间改短一点儿，二十分钟吧。……等一下，它怎么发出这么大的声音？还有一点儿味道。
Then let's shorten the time a bit, to twenty minutes... Wait, why is it making such a loud noise? And there's a bit of a smell.
刘明Liu Ming
别担心，说明书上说，第一次使用的时候声音会大一点儿，也会产生一点儿味道，这很正常。
Don't worry. The manual says it's a bit loud the first time you use it and gives off a slight smell; that's normal.
李文Li Wen
那就好。二十分钟以后我们就能尝尝自己烤的面包了！
Good. In twenty minutes we'll get to taste our own bread!
At the school exhibition Anne admires the solar lamp Liu Xiaoxue's group has built, and Xiaoxue explains how it works, what it cost and who it could help.
安妮Anne
小雪，这个灯是你们小组做的吗？发出的光真亮！
Xiaoxue, did your group make this lamp? The light it gives off is really bright!
刘小雪Liu Xiaoxue
对。它白天用太阳光产生电，晚上就能自己亮，不用家里的电。
Yes. In the daytime it makes electricity from sunlight, so at night it lights up by itself without any power from the mains.
安妮Anne
做这个要花很多钱吧？
It must have cost a lot to make, right?
刘小雪Liu Xiaoxue
没花多少钱。材料是学校提供的，我们用的都是现有的东西，没买新的。
It didn't cost much. The school provided the materials, and we only used things we already had. We didn't buy anything new.
安妮Anne
又便宜又有用！你们的灯引起了很多人的注意，一直有人过来问。
Cheap and useful! Your lamp has caught a lot of people's attention; people keep coming over to ask about it.
刘小雪Liu Xiaoxue
老师说，这种灯在没有电的地方能起到很大的作用。
Our teacher says a lamp like this could make a big difference in places without electricity.
安妮Anne
那你们可以多做一些，送给那些地方的孩子。
Then you could make more and give them to the children in those places.
Bai Jiayue asks Teacher Wang how people found information before phones; they talk about what phones have changed, the problems they cause, and Jiayue's own habit.
白家月Bai Jiayue
王老师，您上学的时候没有手机，怎么查资料呢？
Teacher Wang, there were no phones when you were at school. How did you look things up?
王老师Teacher Wang
去图书馆找书。手机出现以后，我们的生活改变了很多。
We went to the library to find books. Since phones appeared, our lives have changed a lot.
白家月Bai Jiayue
是啊，现在通过手机获取信息又快又方便。
Yes, getting information through a phone is fast and convenient now.
王老师Teacher Wang
可是手机用得太多，也会引起很多问题，比如眼睛不好、睡觉太晚。
But using a phone too much can also cause lots of problems, like bad eyesight and going to bed too late.
白家月Bai Jiayue
我也有这个问题，每天晚上玩到十二点。
I have that problem too. I'm on it until midnight every night.
王老师Teacher Wang
那你得改一改这个习惯。手机用得好，在学习上能起到很大的作用。
Then you need to change that habit. Used well, a phone can be a big help with studying.
白家月Bai Jiayue
好，从今天开始，十点以后我就不看手机了。
Okay. Starting today, I won't look at my phone after ten.
