Food and Drink (5)
of 6 Minute English down to? No, what's that, Rob? Your great knowledge of different subjects
and skill as a presenter and communicator. Well, that's very kind of you but I still don't have
time to explain what a legume is. In fact, now it's time to wrap up this edition of 6
Minute English. We look forward to your company again soon. In the meantime, check us out in all
the usual places online and on social media. We are BBC learning English. Bye for now. Goodbye.
6 Minute English from BBClearningenglish.com.
Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English. I'm Neil. And I'm Rob. Now, Rob, you look like you enjoy a
good meal. Well ,I do like eating out and I like to think I know a good meal when I have one.
Well that should give you an advantage with today's quiz. In 2016, which is the last year
we have statistics for, how many restaurants and mobile food services were there in the UK?
Was it a) about 75,000 b) about 83,000 or c) about 93,000? Well, I know there are a lot, so I'm going
gonna say 93,000, but that is just a guess. I'll reveal the answer a little later in the programme.
Today, we're talking about being a foodie. Rob, what is a foodie? Well, I would describe a foodie
as someone who has a strong interest in food. They like preparing it, as well as eating it.
They like using good ingredients and they're probably not fans of fast food. Angela Hartnett
is one of Britain's top chefs. In the BBC podcast, The Bottom Line, she talks about this topic.
In this first clip, how does she describe people who say they are foodies?
I think people who say they're foodies, buy the books, watch tv and we'll cook a little bit. She's
saying that people who say they are foodies may not actually know that much about food. They buy
books and watch cookery programs on tv and will cook a little bit. A little bit is a common phrase
that means a small amount. And if you do something a little bit, it means you don't do it a lot.
You could just say a little but adding 'bit' to the phrase makes it very natural. Well, we
heard a little bit of Angela Hartnett there, let's hear more now. What's her description of a foodie?
My idea of a foodie is the very European idea that people go and shop every day. They understand one
end of a pig from another. They, um, that's a bit romantic but I look at my mother and I look at my
grandmother. In our background, you know, they made food ,they knew about what was expensive,
they knew about quality and stuff like that. Rob, do you know one end of a pig from another? Well,
I hope so, but the point Angela Hartnett is making is that a true foodie has a good understanding,
for example, of the different parts of an animal that are used in cooking and what they're used
for. She says that idea might be a bit romantic. We normally think of the word romantic when we're
talking about love and relationships but that's not what it means here, is it? No,
romantic can also describe a pleasant idea - an imaginary perfect way of life that forgets about
the difficult things of everyday existence. Let's hear some more from chef, Angela Hartnett. Now,
what is she worried about? I think we think we're foodies but I think food is expensive in
this country, I don't think it's affordable for lots of people and I think we are in danger of
not knowing you know how to cook anymore, how to make a meal for a family of four for five pounds.
So, Rob what is Angela Hartnett worried about? She commented that food was very expensive here
in Britain. Many people don't have enough money to buy it. As she said it's not
affordable - she thinks we might be in danger of not being able to feed our families cheaply.
Can you say a bit more about the phrase 'in danger of'? Sure. The phrase to be in danger of
is followed by a gerund and it means that there is the possibility of something bad happening - it's
not happened yet but it could happen. Thanks, Rob. Right, well, we're in danger of running
out of time, so let's get to the answer to the question I asked at the start of the program.
I asked how many restaurants or mobile food services there were in the UK in 2016. And I said,
it was a guess, 93,000 but was I right? I'm afraid you're 10,000 out. The answer is approximately
83,000. Right, well, I've still got a few more to get to before I can tick them all off my list.
Me too! Well, before we go, let's recap the words and phrases we talked about today.
The first was foodie. Yes, foodie is a modern word to describe someone who is very interested
in all aspects of food, from buying, preparing and cooking to eating. And someone who may or
may not know which end of a pig is which. Well, I think you're being a little bit silly there,
aren't you? Well, a little bit was our next phrase, wasn't it? Yes, a little bit - a very
simple but a very natural conversational phrase that means a small amount. The next word was the
adjective romantic - not used in the context of love here, though, was it? No, it wasn't.
A romantic idea here is one that is not realistic but is an imagined perfect situation. For example,
we have a very romantic view of our childhoods - when every Christmas was a white Christmas and
every summer holiday was baking hot and spent on the beach. Of course, it wasn't like that at all.
In reality, both Christmas and summer were cold and rainy. Then, we had the adjective affordable
for something we have enough money to buy. Finally, the phrase to be in danger of. Yes,
meaning the possibility of something bad happening. Well, that's it for this program.
For more, you can find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and our Youtube pages and, of course,
our website: BBClearningenglish.com, where you can find all kinds of videos and audio programs and
activities to help you improve your English. Thanks for joining us and goodbye. Bye-bye.
Well, I have to say I'm a little bit hungry and if i don't get some food soon,
I'm in danger of getting very grumpy. You're always grumpy,
Neil, but there is a very affordable cafe around the corner. Let's head over there now, shall we?
Hello, this is 6 Minute English from BBC learning English. I'm Neil. And I'm Georgina.
Last November, NASA launched a very unusual home delivery service - a rocket carrying four tons of
supplies to the ISS - the International Space Station. Among the scientific equipment were
12 bottles of red wine from the famous Bordeaux region of France. The astronauts might have wanted
a glass of wine with dinner but the real purpose of the bottles was to explore the possibility
of producing food and drink in space. Not for astronauts but for people back on Earth.
In today's programme, we'll be finding out how growing plants in space can develop crops which
are more productive and more resistant to climate change here on Earth. And we'll hear how plants
can grow in environments with little or no natural light. But first, today's quiz question: What was
the first food grown in space? Was it a) potatoes, b) lettuce or c) tomatoes? Well, in the film,
The Martian, a stranded astronaut grows potatoes on Mars. I know it's only a film but I'll say a)
potatoes. Okay, we'll find out the answer later. Now, you might be wondering how it's possible to
grow plants without natural light. British company Vertical Future has been working on this problem
by developing indoor farming methods in partnership with NASA. Here's their head
of research Jen Bromley explaining the process to BBC World Service program The Food Chain.
Basically, we use LED lighting and we use LED lights that are tuned to specific wavelengths. So,
if you imagine what the rainbow looks like, the reason a plant looks green is because it's not
using all the green light. It actually reflects a lot of that back. So the reason why it looks pink
in here is because we're actually only using red light and blue light to grow the plants.
And that essentially tailors the light diet so that the plants look kind of
black when you look at them because they're not reflecting any light. They're being
super efficient - they're using up every photon that hits them. The lack of natural
light in space means that plants are grown using LED lights. LED is an abbreviation of
light emitting diode - an electronic device that lights up when electricity is passed through it.
On Earth, plants look green because they reflect back any light traveling at a certain
wavelength - the distance between two waves of light, which makes things appear to us in the
various colors of the rainbow. But when scientists control the wavelengths being fed. plants are able
to absorb every photon - particle of light energy - making them appear black. Each particle of light
that hits the leaves is absorbed and through photosynthesis is converted into plant food.
NASA found that different color combinations or light recipes can change a plant's shape, size and
even flavour. But the lack of natural light isn't the biggest obstacle to growing food in space.
Here's Gioia Massa, chief plant scientist at the kennedy space center in florida to explain
Microgravity is really challenging but plants are amazing! They can adapt to so many different
environments – we call this plasticity because they can turn on or off their genes to really
adapt to all sorts of conditions and that's why you see plants growing in
different areas on Earth - the same type of plant may look very
different because it's adapting to the environment in that specific location.
On Earth, plants use gravity to position themselves – shoots grow up,
roots grow down. But this doesn't apply in space because of microgravity - the
weaker pull of gravity making things float and seem weightless.
Plants can only survive in these conditions due to their plasticity – the ability of living organisms
to adapt and cope with changes in the environment by changing their biological structure.
Plants adapt themselves to being in space by manipulating their genes - chemicals and DNA
in the cells of plants and animals which control their development and behaviour.
In the low-gravity atmosphere of space, plants become stressed but they adapt genetically.
And as a result they're stronger and more resilient to other,
less stressful events when they return home to Earth.
Like those bottles of red wine orbiting Earth as we speak.
The effects of microgravity on the wine's organic composition will be studied
and could hopefully offer solutions for growing food in Earth's changing climate.
So, Neil, if it wasn't red grapes, what was the first food grown in space?
Ah yes, in today's quiz question I asked what the first plant grown in space was.
I said, a) potatoes.
But, in fact, it was… b) lettuce - grown over fifteen months on the ISS,
then eaten in fifteen minutes in the first ever space salad.
Today we've been discussing the possibilities of growing plants in space
using LED lights – devices that use electricity to produce light.
The energy needed for plants to grow is contained in photons – or light particles, travelling at
different wavelengths – distances between light waves which make things look different colours.
Plants have evolved over millennia using the strong gravity on Earth.
But this changes in space because of microgravity – the weaker gravitational
pull making things in space float and seem weightless.
