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The Loneliness Crisis 孤獨危機-空中英語教室
2025/05/10 16:08
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The Loneliness Crisis 孤獨危機(上)
空中英語教室 20250509 
(使用CapCut 自動字幕功能)
只要修正英文文法，保留原文，同時將簡體中文修改為繁體中文
Hello, friends.
My name is Anne Marie, and today is a great day to learn something new.
So let’s do that together. I’m David, and this is Studio Classroom.
Thank you so much for joining us today, friends.
We are starting off today with a question.
Are you ready? I’m ready. Here we go:
What type of conversation makes you feel more connected to others—online or face-to-face?
I think it would have to be face-to-face, right?
I mean, there are some people that I can only talk to online, so I just take that and make it as meaningful as I can.
But nothing really beats a face-to-face conversation over a cup of tea or coffee.
I totally agree. I am very thankful that we can talk to friends and family online,
since I live on a different continent than most of my family.
But for me, face-to-face conversation is so much better than conversation even on the phone or online.
Alright, friends, we’re going to talk more about this topic in our lesson today.
It’s called The Loneliness Crisis. Let’s get right into it.
The Loneliness Crisis
“No man is an island.” — John Donne, 17th-century English poet
If you’ve ever felt lonely, you’re not the only one.
In a poll taken late last year in the U.S., 20% of adults reported feeling lonely.
And this feeling is not limited to the U.S.
Hi everyone, welcome to Language Lab. I’m Jack.
首先來看crisis這個名詞，它的意思是「危機」。
例如：
This community’s housing crisis is due to the shortage of affordable homes, not the lack of housing itself.
這個社區的住房危機是因為缺乏經濟適用房，而不是缺乏住房。
或者：
When Jasmine missed work, lost weight, and withdrew from friends and family, it was clear she was experiencing a mental health crisis.
當 Jasmine 曠職、體重下降、與朋友和家人疏遠時，很明顯她正經歷心理健康危機。
或者：
People with strong faith and supportive communities often cope better during a crisis.
擁有堅定信仰和支援性群體的人，往往能在危機期間更好地應對。
Alright, friends, we are starting off our lesson today with a quote.
This is a very famous quote by John Donne:
“No man is an island.”
Now, what this means, friends, is that no one is self-reliant.
We all need other people. We need to rely on others.
That’s right. Maybe you could even use this phrase in your daily life.
Perhaps a teacher, for example, might encourage their students with this phrase, saying:
“No man is an island. I want you all to work together on this project.”
That’s a great example.
Now we read on here, friends:
If you’ve ever felt lonely, you’re not the only one.
As you might have guessed, friends, our lesson today is going to be all about loneliness.
So before we get into it, let’s define what this word “lonely” actually means.
If you feel lonely, it means that you feel sad or like you’re missing something when you’re alone.
This feeling of loneliness is a very important part of what makes us human, because we are made for community.
I know I’ve definitely felt lonely at certain times in my life, friends.
So you really aren’t alone.
What about you, Dave? Have you ever felt lonely before?
Absolutely. I’m more of an introverted person, so I don’t mind spending time alone.
But I always know when I’m spending too much time alone because I start to feel a little bit of emptiness in my heart.
That feeling is loneliness. I think we’ve all felt it before.
Friends, what about you?
This is a great thing for you to think about and talk about in English.
But we read on here:
In a poll taken late last year in the U.S., 20% of adults reported feeling lonely.
Let’s stop there for a minute and talk about the idea of taking a poll.
Sometimes this happens during, for example, elections,
or when people are trying to figure out some type of information from a large group of people.
A poll is a record of a vote or opinion about something.
A poll could also just be a teacher taking a poll in her classroom to see how many of her students prefer cats over dogs.
That’s right. And then that vote is recorded, and you have results and statistics that you can analyze later.
But this is pretty intense—it says 20% of adults reported feeling lonely.
Yeah, and this feeling is not limited to the U.S.
So this is a worldwide thing, something that affects people all over the world.
That’s right. We’re going to talk about how exactly loneliness affects people all over the world.
So let’s get right into our next reading.
The Loneliness Crisis (continued)
According to the World Health Organization (WHO),
the world is in the midst of a global health crisis: loneliness.
In 2023, the then U.S. Surgeon General stated that the effects are as bad for people’s health
as smoking 15 cigarettes per day, and worse than risks associated with obesity and lack of exercise.
Humans have fairly long lifespans, and scientists agree that being sociable is a major factor.
But today, many live isolated lives.
People used to belong to a variety of social clubs where they met face to face.
Whereas now, life seems to have shifted online—
where people shop, hold work meetings, date, play games, etc.
In fact, American adults spend 30% less time socializing face to face than they did 20 years ago.
Adults in other countries are no better.
今天的 Usage Tip 要來看 a + as + 形容詞 + as + b 的句型。
最終 a + b 動詞 + as + 形容詞 + as + b 的比較結構表示 a 和 b 兩者在該形容詞的特質上具有相同的程度。
譬如課文這句：
The effects are as bad for people’s health as smoking 15 cigarettes per day.
就是指孤獨對於人們健康的影響與每天抽 15 支煙同樣有害。
如果要表達 a 與 b 兩者在執行某動作上具有相同的狀態，結構則要改為：
a + 動詞 + as + 副詞 + as + b。
來看一個例句：
The new software processes data as efficiently as the previous version.
新軟體處理資料的效率與舊版本相同。
All right, friends,
We read on here: According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the world is in the midst of a global health crisis.
This crisis is loneliness.
Now first, we need to talk about what it means to be in the midst of something.
This just means that we’re involved in it, and this could be something that’s generally unpleasant or something that you really don’t want to have to handle—but you do.
That’s right. In the midst of can also refer to just being in the middle of something.
For example:
Mark was in the midst of an important discussion with his boss when his phone rang.
Oh, that would be awkward.
That would be very awkward.
So we’re in the midst of this global health crisis—all about loneliness.
And in 2023, the then U.S. Surgeon General stated that the effects are as bad for people’s health as smoking.
This is crazy, friends—loneliness really is bad for you.
Now, you saw this term already—as bad for people’s health as—in your Usage Tip already.
So let’s keep reading the rest of this sentence.
Yeah, I’m not entirely sure how they measure this kind of thing,
but apparently, it’s as bad for people’s health as smoking 15 cigarettes per day,
and worse than risks associated with obesity and lack of exercise.
These are all things that could really take you out. Really.
And we see that obesity is one of our “more information” words here.
Can you define that for us, Dave?
Yeah. Obesity refers to the condition of being overly heavy—excessively overweight.
Here’s an example of how you might use obesity in a sentence:
He’s struggled with obesity the last few years due to his disease.
Now, we read on here:
Humans have fairly long lifespans.
Let’s take a pause there for a minute and talk about this word: lifespans.
This is the length of time for which a person or animal lives.
Or for something that’s not alive, it’s talking about the length of time that something can function.
That’s right. Some people would say that the lifespan of older iPhones actually was reduced by software updates.
That was a big thing—we’ll talk about that in some future SE articles.
Very interesting.
So we see that humans have long lifespans,
and scientists agree that being sociable is a major factor.
What does this mean?
Well, if you’re sociable, it means that you enjoy the company of others—
you seek community and connection with other people.
Here’s how you could use sociable in a sentence:
Let’s go to the party tonight—I feel like being sociable.
But how does our lesson continue?
We see that today, many live isolated lives.
People used to belong to a variety of social clubs where they met face to face.
Whereas now, life seems to have shifted online.
Wow, so what we’re seeing here is that people’s lifestyles have generally changed.
It used to be that people would meet in person for things.
But I have a question for you, friends:
How many of you attend a class or a club or a group discussion online every week?
Quite a bit of us do.
Yeah, especially during the pandemic—a lot of weekly book clubs and things like that all shifted online.
That’s right. Now we see this word whereas in this sentence here, friends.
And whereas just means that there is a contrast happening.
So oftentimes, you’ll see this in the middle of a sentence—
one thing is stated, then there’s the word whereas, and the opposite thing is said.
That’s right.
For example:
Jenny loves reading, whereas her brother loves watching TV.
So those two things are in contrast to each other.
Now we read on:
American adults spend 30% less time socializing face to face than they did twenty years ago.
We already saw that word sociable, but what does socializing mean?
Socializing is just interacting with others to build relationships—
having conversations, spending time together—these kinds of interactions.
Do you enjoy socializing, friends?
Do you like having interactions with your friends and family?
I know I do.
All right, well, we have more to learn in just a moment—right after we go to today’s Info Cloud.
Hello, everyone. Welcome to Info Cloud.
Oh man, what a day.
It seems like nothing is going right.
You too? I’ve had the worst day so far.
I didn’t sleep well, I forgot to buy breakfast,
and on the way to work, I hit every single red light.
Oh man, I’ve had all of those things happen before.
I’m glad I’m not the only one having a bad day.
You know what they say—misery loves company.
Well, Let’s stop thinking about all the things that are going wrong and talk about that phrase—that sounds good.
The phrase misery loves company suggests that people who are unhappy or miserable enjoy being around other people who feel the same way.
Yeah, although being around someone who’s happy when you’re miserable can sometimes help you feel better, often it’s just frustrating.
You feel like other people who are also having a bad day understand you better.
Complaining about things can even make you feel better—or at least understood.
But even though it might feel good to complain about your problems, it doesn’t actually fix them.
So I’m going to look ahead and not behind. The rest of this day will be better.

misery loves company 同病相憐
不知道你們是否發現，悲傷的人很喜歡和悲傷的人在一起。
西方人稱呼這種現象為 misery loves company，字面上的意思是「痛苦喜歡有同伴」，也就是「同病相憐」的意思。
當人們感到不快樂或痛苦的時候，他們會想與同樣感受的人在一起，互相取暖，互相理解，心情也許會因此好一點。
雖然「misery loves company」這句話有它的道理和作用，但它並不能真正解決問題。
所以與其糾結於過去，不如展望未來，積極面對生活。
這就是今天的 Info Cloud，下次雲端見！

The Loneliness Crisis
Mental health experts say that even though there is digital connectedness, loneliness among young adults is high,
because despite those connections being easily accessible, their interactions are usually superficial.
Clinical psychologist Haikel Jameel says online connections tend to focus on brief, surface-level exchanges—
such as likes, comments, and short messages—rather than supportive conversations.
接下來看形容詞 superficial，意思是「膚淺的、表面的」。
例句：
Some people take longer to move from superficial relationships into deep friendships.
有些人需要更長的時間才能從膚淺的關係發展為深厚的友誼。
或是：
The doctor confirmed that it was only a superficial wound.
醫生確認這只是一個皮外傷。
Superficial 的名詞是 superficiality，意思是「膚淺」。
例如：
Hollywood, known for its superficiality in the movie industry, is lonely for actors wanting to make meaningful connections.
好萊塢在電影業以膚淺聞名，對希望建立深入關係的演員來說，是一個孤獨的地方。
All right, thank you so much, Jack.
Well friends, we read on in our lesson here:
Mental health experts say that even though there is digital connectedness, loneliness among young adults is high,
because despite those connections being easily accessible, their interactions are usually superficial.
Okay, before we get into some of these vocabulary words, let’s talk about what this means.
The idea here is that we are actually more connected than ever to each other because of online interactions and things like social media.
That’s right—we have all sorts of different ways of communicating because of how easily data can move between devices.
However, what we’ve lost is the value of face-to-face communication.
If I send you a picture, Anne Marie, and I say, “Oh, this is me at the beach,” nowadays you don’t even know whether or not I was really at that beach.
And even if I was there, that’s just a picture that I put online showing people smiling.
But that’s different from what actually happened that day,
or from the experience of being with someone at the beach, in that place.
We spend a lot of time creating these online virtual identities,
but it’s not the same as really spending time with people.
This is a really good point, friends.
Because think about it: if you’re liking your friends’ pictures online, or commenting on them, that might be social interaction,
but that’s totally different from having a conversation with someone—getting to know them, or hearing about how they’re really doing.
This is a good thing to think about.
Now we have a few words that we want to talk about, and the first one is this word: accessible.
This just means that something is able to be reached.
That’s right. Accessible—you might see that word on a sign, for example.
You’re going into a building and there’s a main door, and then you see that the accessible entrance is on the side.
It will be a ramp that a wheelchair could go up, which makes it easier for people who can’t walk to get into the building.
It makes that building accessible.
So we might say: That building is wheelchair accessible.
Now in this next part, we have another word we want to look at, and this is the word: interactions.
How would you explain this word, Dave?
Interactions are any kind of exchange or communication between people—and that could be online or offline.
Here’s an example:
I haven’t had any pleasant interactions with her today. She must be in a bad mood.
That means every time we’ve talked or seen each other, she doesn’t seem very happy.
The interactions were not good.
We move on here, and we see clinical psychologist Haikel Jameel says:
Online connections tend to focus on brief, surface-level exchanges.
This is so true. You go online, on Facebook, whatever—you like a photo, and that’s it.
You’re not really having a conversation about it.
That’s right—it’s just a comment or a short message.
And while these things are good—and people can really benefit from having these online communities—
they’re not the same as these supportive conversations that you could have with people you love close by.
That’s right. Now we see this term: supportive conversations.
If something or someone is supportive, it means they are providing encouragement, or usually some type of emotional help.
Right. For example:
Nancy’s family was supportive of her decision to become a musician.
Okay, friends, we’ve talked a little bit about loneliness, and we’re not done.
We’re going to be talking more about loneliness tomorrow.
For right now, let’s do something fun—it’s time for us to go to today’s Fun Fact!
Hello, fact friends!
I am Detective Ernest Finder, and I have a fun fact for you today:
Did you know that someone who likes to be alone or is often alone is called a loner?
It’s true! Many animals, including pandas, are loners.
So if you’re alone, I guess you’re in good company—the pandas are with you.
And that is today’s fun alone fact!
Okay friends, as we finish out our article today, we want to talk about it together.
Here’s the question: Have you ever experienced loneliness? What did you do?
Well, when I first moved to Taipei, I experienced some loneliness because I was away from my family—very far away for the first time.
So what I did was I just tried really hard to make friends and make connections in my school where I was going,
and even in my neighborhood—other people who I met in the park, who maybe were also students,
or just people that I met who reached out to me.
I tried to make those connections and build relationships so that I wouldn’t feel so alone.
That’s a really good tip.
It’s a really good idea that if you personally feel lonely, to reach out to others around you.
They might be feeling lonely as well.
We have more tips for you tomorrow, friends.
But for now, that’s all the time we have.
My name is Anne Marie—
And I’m David—
And we’ll see you next time, right here on Studio Classroom.


The Loneliness Crisis 孤獨危機(下)
空中英語教室 20250510 
(使用CapCut 自動字幕功能)
只要修正英文文法，保留原文，同時將簡體中文修改為繁體中文
Friends, my name is Anne Marie,
and today is a great day to learn something new.
So let’s do that together. I’m David,
and this is Studio Classroom.
Thank you so much for joining us today, friends.
You’re just in time for Day Two of our article called
"The Loneliness Crisis."
What did we talk about yesterday?
Dave, I think the thing that sticks out to me
the most that we talked about
yesterday was this idea of interactions and communication
online.
There are many ways that you can interact with people—
through likes, comments, and short messages—
but it’s not the same as
interacting with someone in a face-to-face
conversation.
That’s so true.
And as humans, most of us will experience
loneliness at some point.
So what can we do? Well,
our lesson is going to give us some suggestions.
So let’s get started with our first reading right now.
The Loneliness Crisis
In Singapore, the trend is for people
to believe that they need to be self-sufficient
and manage their emotions by themselves.
Psychologists agree this can be healthy; however,
Mr. Jamil cautions that excessive self-reliance is dangerous
if people don’t connect with others
because they view it as being weak.
This, coupled with a culture of saving face,
means people don’t share personal struggles,
sacrificing meaningful social connections.
Hi everyone, welcome to Language Lab. I’m Jack.
我們先來看 excessive 這個形容詞，重音在第二音節，唸成 excessive，意思是過多或過度的。來看例句：
Susan has such an excessive wardrobe that she has decided to sell some dresses online.
蘇珊的衣櫥裡有太多衣服，她決定在網上賣掉一些洋裝。
或者是：
As the only grandchild, Michael gets an excessive number of gifts from his grandparents.
作為唯一的孫子，Michael 從祖父母那裡得到過多的禮物。
excessive 去掉字尾的 -ive 就會變成名詞 excess，重音也是在第二音節，唸成 excess，
excess 是指過量或多餘。
譬如：
The appliance outlet sells excess from other stores at half price.
這家電器專賣店以半價出售其他商店多餘的產品。
Alright, thank you so much, Jack. Well,
let’s get into our lesson, friends.
In Singapore, the trend is for people to believe
that they need to be
self-sufficient
and manage their emotions
by themselves.
So you see here that we’ve already
mentioned a specific place
in the world, friends.
We’re going to look at a few different places in the world
and talk about how they specifically deal with loneliness.
But first, let’s define this word:
self-sufficient.
This means that you don’t need any outside
help. It means that you are emotionally and intellectually
independent. Not only that,
it can also be used to describe someone’s living situation.
Maybe you have someone who has a
self-sufficient farm
in the country.
That would mean that they grow their own food,
and they maybe use something like
solar panels for electricity.
Exactly. That farm doesn’t need any outside help.
So this is the culture in Singapore.
Psychologists agree that this can be healthy. However,
Mr. Jamil cautions that excessive self-reliance
is dangerous if people don’t connect with others.
Let’s stop there
for just a moment and talk about this idea of self-reliance.
If you are self-reliant,
it means that you are
independent and able to rely on yourself
for emotional support and whatever else.
But it can be dangerous
because even if you can make that
work for yourself for a while,
there’s something about us—from what we learned yesterday—
where even on a health level,
we need connection with others.
Exactly. Now,
here’s an example of
how you can use self-reliance in a sentence, friends:
He needs to work on his self-reliance
instead of going to his parents for everything.
Now, self-reliance can be a good thing,
but it can be dangerous if people don’t connect with others
because they view it as being
weak. So this is the point here: how do we view needing others?
Do we view it as something that’s normal and natural?
Or do we view it as a weakness?
That’s right.
Now we see that this issue, coupled with a culture of
saving face—we have two words right there—
maybe we should stop and look at those.
Okay, let’s talk about what it means to be coupled with
something or someone.
This means to join or combine something with something
else.
That’s right.
Maybe a business fails because of high prices coupled with
poor service.
Okay.
Now we also see something else in this
phrase, and that is the idea of
saving face. Can you explain this for us, Dave?
Saving face, quite
simply, is just trying to maintain your reputation.
Okay.
So here’s an example of how you could use
saving face in a sentence:
After losing his job,
the man struggled to save face with his family.
He felt that his reputation was at stake,
or he didn’t have a good reputation anymore.
That’s right.
Now, this definitive sentence—
This, coupled with a culture of saving face,
means people don’t share personal struggles,
sacrificing meaningful social connections.
So we see this word
sacrificing here, friends. And if you sacrifice something,
it means that you are giving something up,
but it’s because you want something else.
So you’re giving up one thing to gain another thing.
For example:
Tilly sacrifices her free time to volunteer at a
shelter.
That’s a great example.
We have more to learn, friends,
so let’s get right on with the next reading for today.
The Loneliness Crisis
The issue of loneliness in South Korea
has attracted national attention,
as young people are spending more time at home
by themselves—
for months at a time.
An epidemic of loneliness
has been noted because people in South Korea
define themselves in relation to those around them.
Feeling inadequate in this achievement-oriented culture
prompts people to feel lonely.
接下來看形容詞inadequate意思是不足的。
例如：
Overconfidence in the Titanic’s invincibility led to inadequate safety preparations, resulting in a tragic loss of life.
對鐵達尼號無堅不摧的過度自信，導致安全準備不足，造成了慘痛的生命損失。
inadequate的相反詞是adequate，意思就是足夠的。
比如：
Bring adequate water, a first aid kit, and snacks for your hike.
徒步旅行時要攜帶足夠的水、急救箱和零食。
inadequate的名詞是inadequacy，是指不夠好或是信心不足。
譬如：
Jeff struggles with feelings of inadequacy despite being capable and successful.
儘管 Jeff 很能幹也很成功，但他還是覺得自己不夠好。
Okay, friends,
we’ve already talked about the issue of loneliness
and how it is viewed in Singapore.
Now we are traveling to South Korea.
How does our lesson continue?
The issue of loneliness in South Korea has attracted national attention.
Okay, so we see this word issue here,
and it’s a good one for you to know.
An issue is an important topic or a problem,
and usually this topic or problem is open
for discussion.
It’s something that people are trying to solve.
That’s right. For example:
The issue of climate change needs immediate attention and action.
Now, there’s something else in this sentence
that we want to talk about,
and this is the idea of attracting attention.
What does that mean?
Simply, it means to draw interest or be noticed.
So for example:
Wearing that bright color will certainly attract attention.
You will definitely be noticed.
That’s right.
Now here we see that the whole nation is paying attention.
We see that this issue has attracted national attention,
as young people are spending more time at home
by themselves—for months at a time.
Okay, so at the end of this sentence, we see "at a time."
This means that these are separate groups of time.
That’s right.
You could also use it when you want something to happen
one at a time. For example:
The teacher asked the students to speak one at a time to avoid confusion.
They shouldn’t speak at the same time; they should all take turns.
That’s right.
Okay, so we also see in this next sentence
this word epidemic:
An epidemic of loneliness has been noted because people in South Korea define themselves in relation to those around them.
What is an epidemic?
An epidemic is a widespread or very large situation
involving a disease, a sickness, or an issue—
which, in this case, is loneliness.
Okay, so for example:
A flu epidemic has been sweeping through the nation’s preschools.
All the preschoolers are getting the flu.
Oh no, terrible!
Now we see something else too in this sentence, friends,
and this is the idea of defining yourself.
Now, when I think about defining myself,
I think about my self-identity.
And this is how you see yourself as an individual,
especially in a social context.
Yeah, in fact, in social contexts,
many people define themselves through their careers or hobbies.
A lot of times,
you go to a party or meet someone at a café,
and they tell you their name and
what they do or what they like to do.
Exactly.
Feeling inadequate in this achievement-oriented culture prompts people to feel lonely.
So let’s summarize here for a minute.
We’re talking about loneliness culture in South Korea.
That’s right.
And this loneliness culture
seems to be largely motivated by
kind of a desire to save face, right?
They don’t feel good enough to spend time with others,
so they end up spending more time alone.
And that causes them to be
less likely to spend time with others
because they feel even worse about themselves.
This is really, really sad, friends. And like
we said, we will talk about some solutions here.
So make sure you don’t go anywhere.
We’ll be back right after today’s Info Cloud.
Hello, friends! Welcome to Info Cloud.
Hey, Rex, today I heard someone say “you can’t have your cake and eat it too.”
Are you familiar with that saying?
Hey, Garrett, that’s a classic, but it can be a bit confusing.
I mean, isn’t the point of having cake to eat it?
Yes, I think it’s confusing because we often describe
eating something as having that thing.
For example, you might say “I’m eating ham for dinner” or
“I’m having ham for dinner.”
Good point.
But the phrase isn’t really about cake—
it’s about wanting two things that can’t happen at the same time, right?
Yes. For example,
someone can’t spend all their money on a big vacation
and also save up for a house. Those goals are in conflict.
Choosing one means giving up on the other.
That makes sense. So where did this saying come from?
It actually goes back to the 1500s,
but it was originally a bit different.
An early version said “you can’t eat your cake and have it too.”
Right—because if you eat it,
it’s gone, so you can’t still have it.
That wording actually makes a lot more sense than the modern version.
You’re right.
But even if the modern saying is a bit confusing,
we still use it in all sorts of contexts.
We use it when talking about goals, business,
love, and free time. For example,
if someone wants a high-paying job
but also wants to work only a few hours a week,
that’s a “can’t have your cake and eat it too” situation for sure.

You can’t eat your cake and have it too. 
魚與熊掌無法兼得
今天要跟大家分享一個很有趣的用語：
You can’t eat your cake and have it too.
字面上是你不能夠吃掉蛋糕又擁有它，
意思就是吃掉和保留蛋糕，你必須做出一個選擇。
You can’t eat your cake and have it too 就是在表達你不能夠同時擁有兩樣互相矛盾的東西。
例如：你不能把所有的錢都花在一次豪華的度假上，同時又想存錢買房子。
這兩個目標是相互衝突的，選擇一個就意味著放棄另一個。
這就是今天的 Info Cloud，下次雲端見！

The Loneliness Crisis
How can we combat this crisis?
A U.S. study found that when people
like what they do every day,
whether work or a hobby,
their chances of experiencing loneliness diminish.
Additionally, exercising, taking a class, or playing sports
helps people feel active and productive,
giving them the mental energy needed to interact with others,
thus improving their own mental health.
And interacting with family,
friends, and co-workers in person
is one of the most important aspects
of a person’s social well-being.
The conquest of loneliness isn’t easy,
but reaching out to others is a good place to start.
今天的 Usage Tip 要介紹thus + 現在分詞 的用法。
Thus 是副詞，意思是「因此」、「所以」，常用來表示兩個句子的因果關係。
基本的句構是：主詞 + 動詞。句點。Thus, 主詞 + 動詞。
但是如果 thus 前後兩個句子的主詞一致的話，後面那個主詞可以省略，動詞則需改為現在分詞。而且 thus 的前面是逗號，而不是句點。
來看個例句：
Excessive fossil fuel use increases carbon emissions, thus worsening global warming.
過度使用化石燃料會增加碳排放量，加劇全球暖化。
So what do we do about feeling lonely, friends?
We’re going to find out in this section.
Can you read it for us, Dave?
Absolutely.
How can we combat this crisis?
A U.S. study found
that when people
like what they do every day—whether work or a hobby—
their chances of experiencing loneliness diminish.
Let’s go back to that last word: combat.
Okay, so if you’re going to combat something,
you’re going to take action
to reduce or prevent something bad from happening.
That’s right. It’s different from physical combat.
So for example:
Many social media companies are working hard to combat the spread of fake news.
That’s a great example.
Now we see something else here at the end of this sentence—
that word diminish. Let’s talk about it.
That’s right. If you diminish something,
then you’re reducing the size or the effect of that thing.
So for example:
He tried to diminish her success by spreading rumors about her.
So this is one way, friends, that we can combat loneliness—
when you like what you do,
whether it’s work or a hobby,
you won’t feel as lonely.
That’s right.
Additionally, exercising, taking a class, or
playing sports helps people feel active and productive,
giving them the mental energy needed to interact with others,
thus improving their own mental health.
Productive is a very good word.
It is a great word. Here’s what it means:
It means to achieve a significant result.
That’s right. For example:
The team had a very productive meeting about the new product design.
Now we have another great tip in the next sentence, friends,
for how to combat loneliness:
Interacting with family, friends, and co-workers in person
is one of the most important aspects of a person’s social well-being.
Let’s talk about that word aspects.
An aspect of something is just a
part or a feature of that thing.
Okay, so for example:
What aspect of your job do you like the most?
How does our article end here?
The conquest of loneliness isn’t easy,
but reaching out to others is a good place to start.
Conquest is a great word for you to know, friends.
This means to conquer something.
That’s right. For example:
The conquest of the mountain took weeks of preparation.
Okay, now we also see something else in this sentence:
the idea of reaching out.
Yes, if you’re reaching out to others,
it means that you’re trying to communicate or connect with them.
For example:
It’s been a long time since we’ve talked—thanks for reaching out.
Now, I really like this as the tip that our lesson gives us at the end,
because for me, in my experience,
times in my life when I have felt lonely
have often been because I was focusing too much on myself.
So I’m thinking about my problems,
and I’m thinking about how
bad things were happening to me,
but I was really ignoring people around me.
The same thing has happened to me, Anne Marie.
Sometimes your eyes are so focused inward—
inside on things that you’re not happy about—
that you forget that there are
all these people that you could
reach out to and connect with.
That would not only help you feel better about yourself,
but you could help them too and encourage them.
That’s right.
And one way you can reach out to others is just by being more
active, getting out of your house,
taking a class,
having some new experiences.
There are often lots of new
people at these places that you can meet along the way.
We have more to talk about in just a minute,
so don’t go anywhere.
Right now, let’s hear today’s Fun Fact!
Hello, fact friends!
I am Detective Ernest Finder,
and I have a fun fact for you today.
I can’t see you!
Did you know that having friends does not mean a person isn’t lonely?
It’s true.
Now, now, now—
it is good to have friends who can talk to you and understand you.
And that is today’s Fun Fact:
Talk to your friends!
Well Dave,
I thought our lesson offered some really great ideas
for how we can combat loneliness in our own lives.
Do you have any other tips that you could share?
Certainly!
I think that volunteering is a really great way to combat loneliness—
and even depression.
Finding a need within your community,
whether it’s your neighborhood
or just someone in your family or your friends who need help—
and just volunteering to help out
is a really great way to feel better.
I totally agree. I think that’s true in my own life as well.
Helping others always makes me feel better about myself.
I also like the tip that our article shared
about finding a hobby that you enjoy. What do you think?
Oh, finding a hobby is great—
because finding a hobby you enjoy
can also lead to finding a community
around that hobby that you can connect with.
Alright friends,
that’s all the time we have for today.
My name is Anne Marie.
And I’m David.
And we’ll see you next time, right here on Studio Classroom.
Bye!


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