EnglishPod 192 - Natural Disasters
Summary
TLDRThis podcast episode focuses on extreme weather events such as avalanches, blizzards, droughts, and more. Hosts Marco and Catherine discuss the meaning of Armageddon and explain meteorological events in detail. They cover real-world examples like a blizzard in the U.S., an earthquake in Chile, and a drought in Ecuador. Additionally, the episode delves into terms like 'hydroelectric power plants' and 'tsunamis' and highlights the importance of monitoring seismic activity. The hosts also share personal experiences with earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, adding context to the discussion.
Takeaways
- 🌩️ The lesson focuses on extreme weather conditions, not just rain or sunshine.
- 🌪️ The word 'Armageddon' refers to the end of the world due to catastrophic events, often mentioned in the Bible.
- 🏔️ An avalanche is a dangerous meteorological event involving snow breaking off a mountain and rushing down.
- ❄️ A blizzard refers to a heavy snowstorm where visibility is severely reduced due to snow coming down from the sky.
- 🌵 A drought is a long period of no rain, causing dry land and problems like food shortages and power outages from hydroelectric plants.
- 🌊 Seismic activity refers to movements of the Earth's plates, leading to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
- 🌋 A volcano erupts when lava from beneath the Earth's surface violently escapes, often causing landslides and floods.
- 📉 The Richter Scale measures the magnitude of earthquakes, ranging from 0 to 10, with severe earthquakes usually being above 6.0.
- 🌊 A tsunami is a massive tidal wave, often caused by undersea seismic activity, capable of widespread destruction.
- 🌏 Modern meteorological and seismic equipment help scientists predict weather events like volcano eruptions and earthquakes.
Q & A
What is the main focus of the lesson in this script?
-The lesson focuses on extreme weather events, particularly unusual and sometimes devastating meteorological phenomena, beyond typical rain or sunshine.
What is the meaning of the word 'Armageddon' as discussed in the lesson?
-Armageddon refers to the end of the world, typically due to a great catastrophe or disaster. It originates from the Bible and is often used to describe apocalyptic scenarios.
What extreme weather events were reported in the international weather report segment of the script?
-The weather report mentioned an avalanche in Switzerland, a blizzard in the U.S. Midwest, a six-month drought in Ecuador, an earthquake in Chile, a volcanic eruption in Mexico, and Hurricane Liliana affecting Mexico's coast, with a potential tsunami threatening Central America.
What is an avalanche, and why is it dangerous?
-An avalanche occurs when a large mass of snow breaks off and rolls down a mountain. It is dangerous because it can bury people under the snow and cause destruction in its path.
How is a blizzard different from an avalanche?
-A blizzard is a storm with heavy snowfall and strong winds, reducing visibility to almost nothing, while an avalanche is the movement of snow down a slope without necessarily any snow falling from the sky.
What is a drought, and why can it be harmful?
-A drought is a prolonged period with no rain, causing the land to become very dry. It is harmful because it affects farming, limits water supply, and can lead to food shortages and power outages in regions reliant on hydroelectric power.
What does the term 'hydroelectric' mean, and how does it relate to the weather events in Ecuador?
-'Hydroelectric' refers to generating electricity using the energy of flowing water. In Ecuador, the six-month drought led to the closure of a hydroelectric power plant because there was no water to generate electricity.
What is the Richter Scale, and why is it important?
-The Richter Scale measures the strength of earthquakes, ranging from 0 to 10. It is important for understanding the severity of an earthquake, with higher numbers indicating more powerful and destructive earthquakes.
What is seismic activity, and how does it relate to tsunamis?
-Seismic activity refers to movements of the Earth's plates beneath the surface, often leading to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Tsunamis can occur as a result of this seismic activity, especially after underwater earthquakes that displace large amounts of water.
What is a tsunami, and where does the word come from?
-A tsunami is a giant tidal wave that can cause widespread destruction when it reaches land. The word 'tsunami' comes from Japanese, and it refers to the large ocean waves often triggered by seismic events like earthquakes.
Outlines
🌦️ Introduction to Extreme Weather and Armageddon
The hosts, Marco and Catherine, introduce a lesson focused on extreme weather events, discussing various dangerous weather phenomena beyond the usual rain or sunshine. They also introduce the word 'Armageddon,' explaining it as a reference to the end of the world due to a catastrophic event. The segment prepares listeners for the upcoming dialogue, which will explore such disasters further.
🌍 Global Weather Disasters in the News
A mock international weather report highlights several extreme weather events around the globe. In Switzerland, an avalanche occurs, though no one is harmed. The U.S. Midwest is hit by a blizzard, leading to school closures. Ecuador faces a severe drought that impacts farming and shuts down a hydroelectric plant, while Chile suffers a 7.5 earthquake. In Mexico, a volcanic eruption leads to floods and landslides, and Hurricane Liliana strikes its coast, with fears of a tsunami affecting Central America.
🌀 Discussion on Meteorological Events and Vocabulary
Marco and Catherine delve into weather-related vocabulary. They explain the meaning of a 'meteorological event' and how it relates to weather phenomena. Key terms include 'avalanche' (a dangerous fall of snow from a mountain) and 'blizzard' (a snowstorm with heavy snow and limited visibility). They also touch on 'drought,' the dangers it poses to farming and electricity generation, and the importance of hydroelectric power, which relies on water flow to generate electricity.
🌋 Understanding Natural Disasters: Volcanoes, Earthquakes, and Seismic Activity
This section focuses on terms related to geological disasters. The hosts discuss the Richter scale, which measures earthquake severity, explaining that anything above 7.0 is considered severe. The term 'volcano' is introduced, along with the verb 'erupt,' describing how volcanoes release lava and gases. They also cover 'landslides,' where large amounts of land slide down hills or mountains, often as a result of volcanic or seismic activity.
🌊 Tsunamis, Seismic Activity, and More Vocabulary
The hosts define 'seismic activity,' which refers to the movement of Earth's plates, often resulting in earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. They introduce the word 'tsunami,' explaining it as a giant tidal wave, often caused by underwater earthquakes, and reference the devastating 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia. The conversation emphasizes how natural disasters can have chain reactions, like earthquakes triggering tsunamis.
🌍 Real-Life Experiences with Natural Disasters
Catherine shares her personal experiences of living through several earthquakes and witnessing volcanic eruptions in Ecuador. Marco adds that modern meteorological and seismic equipment helps predict such events, reducing their potential impact. They also mention historical disasters, such as the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in Italy, which preserved ancient cities under volcanic ash. The hosts invite listeners to share their own experiences with natural disasters.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Armageddon
💡Meteorological event
💡Avalanche
💡Blizzard
💡Drought
💡Hydroelectric power plant
💡Richter Scale
💡Volcano
💡Seismic activity
💡Tsunami
Highlights
Introduction to the topic of extreme weather events beyond just rain or sunshine.
Vocabulary preview of the word 'Armageddon', referring to the end of the world due to great disaster or catastrophe.
Weather report discussing various global meteorological events, starting with an avalanche in Switzerland.
Blizzard hits the U.S. Midwest, leading to school and university closures.
Ecuador experiences a six-month drought, impacting farming and causing the shutdown of a hydroelectric power plant.
A 7.5 magnitude earthquake strikes southern Chile, with losses reported in the billions.
Mexico faces a volcanic eruption, causing floods and landslides, and is also hit by Hurricane Liliana.
Officials warn of a possible tsunami affecting Honduras, Guatemala, and Panama due to ongoing seismic activity.
Explanation of meteorological terms like 'meteorological event,' 'blizzard,' and 'drought' with detailed examples.
Discussion on hydroelectric power and how droughts can impact such power generation.
Explanation of the Richter Scale for measuring earthquakes, noting that 10 on the scale is nearly impossible.
Definition of volcanic eruptions and their connection to floods and landslides.
Introduction of the term 'seismic activity' related to movements under the Earth's crust and its connection to earthquakes and volcanoes.
Discussion on tsunamis, explaining how seismic activity in the ocean can create giant tidal waves.
Personal anecdotes from the hosts about experiencing earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, emphasizing the reality of these events.
Transcripts
foreign
[Music]
and welcome back to English pod my name
is Marco my name is Catherine and today
we have a very weather focused lesson
it's all about all the horrible things
that can happen to you with the weather
exactly so as you know there are many
different types of weather and not only
rain or Sunshine but many other
phenomena so we're going to take a look
at some of those but before we go into
it let's take a look at one word on
vocabulary preview
vocabulary preview
okay so we're talking about extreme
weather today that's not rain or drizzle
or Sunshine we're talking about really
interesting unique and sometimes
devastating things that can happen so
today's vocabulary word is Armageddon
all right so Armageddon now you've
probably seen the movie Armageddon so
what does this word mean
okay so this word is a reference to the
end of the world it means the time when
the world will end because of a great
catastrophe or a great disaster okay so
everyone talks about Armageddon it's
mentioned in the Bible and as you say
it's when the world stops existing
exactly so think about that one as we
listen to today's dialogue we will be
back in a minute to talk about what's
going on
[Music]
foreign
those are the headlines for today and
now for the international weather report
with Mike Sanderson
thank you Bob this past week has been
the beginning of Armageddon for many as
a series of unprecedented meteorological
events occurred around the world in
Switzerland a major Avalanche was
reported in the Alps fortunately no one
was injured due to the extreme cold this
winter a blizzard has struck the U.S
Midwest causing classes in schools and
universities to be temporarily canceled
moving on to Latin America Ecuador has
suffered a six-month drought that has
not only affected farming but has also
forced the closure of the hydroelectric
power plant that provides electricity
for the entire country in Chile a major
earthquake that registered 7.5 on the
Richter Scale struck the southern region
losses are reported to be in the
billions authorities have not yet
released an official statement
not a great week for the world any good
news I'm afraid not Bob one of the major
volcanoes in Mexico has erupted causing
major floods and landslides in the
region meanwhile Mexico's Coast has been
hit by Hurricane Liliana and officials
say that all the seismic activity leads
them to believe that a tsunami made hit
Central America affecting Honduras
Guatemala and Panama that's all the news
we have for today but stay tuned for
updates on the six o'clock news back to
you Bob
foreign
[Music]
we're back and while this weather report
is not really far from the truth I mean
this kind of stuff happens every day all
over the world right that's correct and
unfortunately it's been happening very
frequently in the past couple months
we've heard of a lot of earthquakes and
volcanoes and things like that so this
is very valuable stuff when you're
trying to talk about current events as
well okay so why don't we start now
analyzing a couple of different words
and phrases on language takeaway
language takeaway
well the first vocabulary item we have
here is meteorological event it's a real
mouthful it's a long word meteorological
so for example meteorological means
having to do with the weather something
that's related to the weather so a
meteorological event could be rain snow
okay so it has to do with meteorology
meteorology is the study of the weather
and someone who does this is a
meteorologist so usually the weathermen
that you see on TV they're
meteorologists so let's go now to Marco
our resident meteorologist very good our
resident meteorologist right okay so
meteorological events now moving on one
of the first events that we're going to
look at is an avalanche Avalanche and
Avalanche has to do with snow this means
that when a mountain that has a lot of
snow on it
um maybe part of that snow breaks off
and starts to roll down you have a wall
of snow that comes down that's an
avalanche that's a naval
when the snow comes down and it's
actually very dangerous because people
can get buried under the snow yeah
exactly all right so another event that
has to do with snow is a blizzard okay a
blizzard is different from an avalanche
because an avalanche maybe it's not
snowing the snow just Falls
but in a blizzard you're talking about a
storm of snow but it's like a lot of
snow coming down from the sky so much
snow that you probably can't see
anything there's just white everywhere
okay
all right so that's a blizzard a lot of
lot of snow coming down from the sky now
moving on the opposite of snow and
things being wet is we have a drought
yeah this is the opposite of wet
actually so there's no rain in a drought
a drought means that things are very dry
the land is very dry okay so it's a
period of time that there's no snow
there's no water there's no rain there's
nothing it's very very dry we're going
through a drought correct and the
problem with the drought is very
dangerous is because people cannot grow
food in a drought and so lots of people
starve when this happens okay so I gotta
watch out for a drought now in this case
it not only affected farming but also we
have a hydroelectric power plant that
can't work obviously because there's no
water so Hydro means water
hydroelectric means electricity that is
generated by flowing water and so for
example a mill something that turns
water on a river is a way to get power
from water but a hydroelectric project
that can give you electricity is maybe
like a dam or an electric Mill right so
usually you have these on rivers and
they just take advantage of the flowing
of water to turn some huge turbines and
generate power so that's all we have for
now why don't we listen to the dialogue
again and we'll be back shortly to take
a look at some more words
foreign
those are the headlines for today and
now for the international weather report
with Mike Sanderson thank you Bob this
past week has been the beginning of
Armageddon for many as a series of
unprecedented meteorological events
occurred around the world in Switzerland
a major Avalanche was reported in the
Alps fortunately no one was injured due
to the extreme cold this winter a
blizzard has struck the U.S Midwest
causing classes in schools and
universities to be temporarily canceled
moving on to Latin America Ecuador has
suffered a six-month drought that has
not only affected farming but has also
forced the closure of the hydroelectric
power plant that provides electricity
for the entire country in Chile a major
earthquake that registered 7.5 on the
Richter Scale struck the southern region
losses are reported to be in the
billions authorities have not yet
released an official statement not a
great week for the world any good news
I'm afraid not Bob one of the major
volcanoes in Mexico has erupted causing
major floods and Landscape in the region
meanwhile Mexico's Coast has been hit by
Hurricane Liliana and officials say that
all the seismic activity leads them to
believe that a tsunami may hit Central
America affecting Honduras Guatemala and
Panama that's all the news we have for
today but stay tuned for updates on the
six o'clock news back to you Bob
[Music]
well a word that many people are
unfortunately familiar with is Richter
or Richter scale and now this is
something that a lot of people are
talking about right now because of the
earthquake in Sichuan China last year
and the earthquake in Haiti very
recently and so the Richter Scale that's
a big r because it's a proper name is a
way for us to determine how severe how
big the earthquake was right so people
talk about a 6.0 a 7.1 so that's on the
Richter Scale the lowest is zero and the
highest is ten correct right but 10 is
like impossible apparently apparently
and a lot of them are actually
underwater but the very serious ones are
maybe
8.07.0 all right so Richter Scale now we
talked about earthquakes we talk about
snowing now let's talk about a volcano a
volcano in Mexico has erupted Okay so
we've got two words here volcano a
volcano is a mountain that has an
opening in the center where lava from
the middle of the Earth the center of
the earth can come out so it's very
dangerous obviously because it's very
hot right but a volcano doesn't open it
erupts so the verb here that we use
without volcano is to erupt okay so it
doesn't explode a volcano erupts that
means to open violently very quickly
okay so when this happens obviously you
have a lot of lava you have maybe snow
that melts and you have floods and
landslides
okay land slides a landslide is one word
but it's made up of two words that you
probably already know so land obviously
it's the ground and things like that the
Earth but a slide is to move down across
the ground and so a landslide happens
when you've got something
um
like lava or water that's pushing all of
the Earth all of the ground down and
it's destroying houses and trees and
land and it's very very destructive
right so usually see this that happens
um on the side of mountains or on the
side of Hills where all that land starts
to slide down or to go down and it's
very similar to an avalanche right but
instead of snow falling down it's a mud
and land yeah all right so we have a
landslide and because of all the
eruptions and the earthquakes they said
that they have a lot of seismic activity
this word seismic is something that I've
heard a lot recently in movies like
2012. yeah um so seismic means um having
to do with the movement of the plates
under the Earth's crust so you know the
Earth is is not everything that we see
it's also activity things happening
underneath the ground and so underneath
the ground we have these big plates and
seismic activity is what happens when
these kind of things start to move
activity is movement and so seismic
activity refers to
earthquakes and volcanoes things that
are changing under the ground that will
affect us okay so that's seismic
activity it's pronounced seismic right
seismic seismic okay and uh because of
all this activity uh people say that
they may have a tsunami well this
doesn't sound very English does it I
know tsunami and actually if you see the
spelling it's with a t t s right I think
it's a Japanese word but I'm not
positive I think so too tsunami is the
name that we give to a giant tidal wave
so that's a wave of water in the ocean
that's very very dangerous because it
can get to 100 200 feet tall and this
means that when it comes down it can
destroy houses cities cars things like
that right and um there was a very very
famous tsunami in Southeast Asia in
2004. remember that yeah in Indonesia
right that's right in Indonesia and
Thailand yeah it was it was intense it
was big and it was also because of an
earthquake right I think so all these
earthquakes they move the Earth around
and then all of a sudden the the
reaction is that there's water that
moves and the water then yeah it turns
into a wave yeah just imagine what
happens with you have if you have a
bucket of water and then you start
moving the bucket just a little bit and
just you see how it just water starts to
Splat all over the place that's right
all right so tsunami was our last word
for today when we listened to our
dialogue again and we'll be back shortly
laughs
[Music]
those are the headlines for today and
now for the international weather report
with Mike Sanderson
thank you Bob this past week has been
the beginning of Armageddon for many as
a series of unprecedented meteorological
events occurred around the world in
Switzerland a major Avalanche was
reported in the Alps fortunately no one
was injured due to the extreme cold this
winter a blizzard has struck the U.S
Midwest causing classes in schools and
universities to be temporarily canceled
moving on to Latin America Ecuador has
suffered a six-month drought that has
not only affected farming but has also
forced the closure of the hydroelectric
power plant that provides electricity
for the entire country in Chile a major
earthquake that registered 7.5 on the
Richter Scale struck the southern region
losses are reported to be in the
billions authorities have not yet
released an official statement
not a great week for the world any good
news I'm afraid not Bob one of the major
volcanoes in Mexico has erupted causing
major floods and landslides in the
region meanwhile Mexico's Coast has been
hit by Hurricane Liliana and officials
say that all the seismic activity leads
them to believe that a tsunami made hit
Central America affecting Honduras
Guatemala and Panama that's all the news
we have for today but stay tuned for
updates on the six o'clock news back to
you Bob
foreign
[Music]
these are all pretty terrifying have you
ever experienced a meteorological event
like one of the ones that we talked
about today I've uh I've actually lived
it through like three earthquakes like
pretty big ones plus because you used to
live in Los Angeles
so we get them all the time in LA
um apart from that I actually I've seen
a volcano erupt a couple of times
because you know Ecuador is a is is part
of the volcano alley right and it's all
the Andes mountains and it's part of the
circle of fire what they call so we have
a couple of different active volcanoes
and from time to time they will start to
smoke or to spew some lava but nothing
major like there hasn't been a major
catastrophe with the volcanoes hopefully
it won't either well and these days they
have a lot of equipment uh seismic
equipment and meteorological equipment
that can help meteorologists to
determine when things will happen like
when a volcano channel will erupt or if
there will be an earthquake because they
can study the Tremors in the ground
right yeah and I think probably the most
uh famous
um volcano is I think it was in Italy
right Mount Vesuvius that's right so
you've got Mount Vesuvius in Naples
which famously destroyed a number of
cities in this ancient civilization in
ancient
it was and what's amazing is that they
still have a lot of the the buildings
underground under the ash because when
all the ash settled it preserved the
bodies like a mummy and so you can see
the bodies and the things that they you
know their jewelry and their money and
it's fascinating because it's this
horrible horrible natural disaster
actually helped us in the future learn
about this old civilization yeah it's
crazy actually in uh in Ecuador you can
see a huge hole that has like a lake in
the middle and you're like oh wow that's
beautiful but that's actually caused
because the entire Mountain just kind of
blew the top off like the cone because
of this major eruption so you can just
imagine how powerful these eruptions are
I can just imagine what it would have
been like Mount Vesuvius but anyway on a
brighter note if you have any questions
any comments or any stories of your own
maybe you've us you've lived through a
typhoon a hurricane or tornado
um you can come to our website
englishpod.com we hope to see you there
all right bye guys
[Music]
thank you
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