英国中学自然科学教育排世界第十五、研究海豹的水中生活
UK ranked 15th for school science education, study about seals
Today’s news stories are:
今日提要：
UK ranked 15th for school science education
英国中学自然科学教育排名世界第十五
Researchers to uncover secret life of seals
研究人员即将揭开海豹水中生活的秘密
Here the words and phrases for you to learn
下面是你可以学习的单词和短语
keeping up
跟上
up close
近距离地，靠近地
Simple science, but today a wider lesson for the UK: technology is changing the world but our schools aren’t keeping up with the best.
这些学生正在课堂上学习基本的科学知识，但今天发布的一则消息给英国人上了一堂意义深远的课：科技正改变世界，但英国的学校却没能给学生提供世界最高标准的科学教育。
keeping up: progressing at the same rate as something else
跟上
Simple science, but today a wider lesson for the UK: technology is changing the world but our schools aren’t keeping up with the best.
这些学生正在课堂上学习基本的科学知识，但今天发布的一则消息给英国人上了一堂意义深远的课：科技正改变世界，但英国的学校却没能给学生提供世界最高标准的科学教育。
Ministers around the UK say they need more time.
英国的部长们说，他们需要更多的时间来改变这一状况。
For schools in England a shortage of science teachers - year on year not enough are starting training.
英格兰地区的中学普遍缺少教授自然科学的老师，而参加这类教师培训的人数连年不足。
And without enough teachers some fear we'll never catch up.
有些人士担心在教师不足的情况下，英国将永远无法与其它国家并驾齐驱。
Above the waves their lives are well understood.
虽然我们对英国灰海豹在岸上的生活颇为了解
But beneath, Britain’s grey seals are more of a mystery.
但它们在海洋中的活动却充满了更多的神秘。
They spend two-thirds of their time in the water but until now they’ve been little studied.
灰海豹一生中三分之二的时间都在水中生活，然而到目前为止，几乎没有针对它们在水中活动的研究。
If you want to study these incredible animals up close you do have to get into the water.
如果你想近距离地仔细研究这群奇妙的动物，的确需要下到水里去。
up close: very near something
近距离地，靠近地
Above the waves their lives are well understood.
虽然我们对英国灰海豹在岸上的生活颇为了解
But beneath, Britain’s grey seals are more of a mystery.
但它们在海洋中的活动却充满了更多的神秘。
They spend two-thirds of their time in the water but until now they’ve been little studied.
灰海豹一生中三分之二的时间都在水中生活，然而到目前为止，几乎没有针对它们在水中活动的研究。
If you want to study these incredible animals up close you do have to get into the water.
如果你想近距离地仔细研究这群奇妙的动物，的确需要下到水里去。
Around the coast of the UK nearly 40% of the world’s grey seals live here and there are 5,000 of them here, in the Farne Islands.
世界上约有40％的灰海豹栖居于英国沿岸，其中有5000只生活在法恩群岛附近。
This is Ben Burville.
这是本·博韦尔（Ben Burville）。
He’s been diving with seals for decades.
他在海豹的陪伴下潜龄已有好几十年。
Now he’s capturing them on camera working with Newcastle University to record behaviour that surprisingly has never been seen before.
现在，他正和英国纽卡斯尔大学合作，利用摄像机捕捉海豹的影像，并意外地记录了下了这群动物从未被人见过的行为。