Shownotes Transcript
Hello everybody, and welcome to a new episode of News Bites!
I'm Ryan Drillsma…
And I'm Nancy Sun.
In today's news:
Mask-free running in the Taipei Marathon, an oil spill of the U.S. coast, and a big star postpones a tour.
All that and more, coming up next.
跑台北馬拉松不用戴口罩 Taipei Marathon Runners to Go Mask Free
Ready, set, go!
That's the sound of the start of the Taipei marathon.
A marathon (馬拉松) is a running event which is 42.195 kilometers long.
Taipei has hosted a marathon every year since 2001.
This year, many runners were worried the marathon might not happen because of the COVID-19 situation in Taiwan.
But luckily, domestic infections (本土案例) have stayed low, so the event is going to take place on December 19th.
And what's better news for runners is they don't have to wear masks.
Taipei's Department of Sports announced (宣布) on October 4th, that people can run the marathon mask-free.
However, there are some rules to make sure everyone stays safe.
Racers need proof they have been vaccinated against COVID-19, or they need proof that they recently tested negative for the disease.
They can also show proof they have recovered from it.
選手需要提供疫苗接種卡、或檢驗陰性證明、或者是曾經罹患COVID-19但已經痊癒的證明，才可以參加馬拉松。
Racers will also need to wear a mask before the race starts, and after they cross the finish line (終點線).
Some research does say running with a mask can improve your performance because it makes you use less oxygen.
一些研究指出，戴口罩跑步會讓人表現更好，因為它訓練跑者用更少的氧氣來跑。
But some research also says it could make you slower. 不過也有研究說，口罩會讓跑者速度變慢。
One thing is for sure - it takes most people over four hours to finish a marathon, and running for that long with a mask is bound to be uncomfortable (一定很不舒服)!
People can register (登記) to take part in the Taipei Marathon until October 27th.
Do you think you could ever run a marathon?
加州海岸 漏油汙染災難 Major Oil Spill off U.S. Coast
There has been a major oil spill off the coast of California and experts are worried it could threaten wildlife (損害生態).
An oil spill is how it sounds; a ship has accidentally (意外的) let oil go into the ocean.
Experts think the anchor from the ship hit an underwater pipe which carries oil to the land.
專家認為那艘船的錨，撞破了海床上鋪設的運油的油管，造成漏油。
573 thousand litres of oil have been spilled (漏) into the ocean in total.
And pictures taken in California show some of it has washed up onto beaches.
In some places, people have seen dead birds and dead fish wash up (被沖上岸).
But why does oil kill animals?
Mammals that live in the water, like sea otters (海獺), have a special kind of fur that keeps them warm.
But oil stops this ability (能力) once the fur gets covered. 要是海獺的皮毛被油汙覆蓋，牠就沒辦法保暖了。
And many birds' feathers are water-resistant (能夠防水).
But this also stops if the feathers get covered in oil.
Once these animals are covered in oil, they can become cold and die from hypothermia (失溫).
Fish may inhale (吸引) the oil, too, and this can poison them.
The California oil spill seems to have reached a place called Talbert Marsh.
A marsh is an area of land that is covered with water, where special kinds of plants grow and animals live.
Talbert Marsh is home to many kinds of birds.
A person that works for the local government there said the oil has done "irreversible" (不可逆轉) damage.
But people are trying to help.
The local government has put barriers in the ocean to stop the oil spreading.
And divers are trying to find out why it happened.
地方官員說漏油造成難以回復的損害，不過他們儘量做能做的，在海面上放置攔油索，防止油汙持續擴散。另外潛水員也在幫忙尋找事故的原因。
艾爾頓·強告別巡演又被延後 Elton John Farewell Tour Postponed
A big-name star has postponed his final tour.
Elton John was supposed to launch (開始) his farewell tour this year.
It had already been delayed one year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, it is now being pushed back by another year.
艾爾頓·強的告別巡演已經應為疫情被延後一年，現在又要被延後一年。
This new delay is because Elton recently hurt himself.
He fell and injured his hip, causing a lot of pain.
Elton says therapy (醫療) has not helped, and he will require surgery (開刀).
This means his tour will have to wait until 2022.
艾爾頓傷到胯部，需要開刀治療。
So, in today's News Bites:
The Taipei Marathon will take place on December 19th.
Racers don't have to wear masks while they are running.
But they must put them on once they cross the finish line.
And,
There was a major oil spill off the coast of California.
It's causing major damage to the environment.
But people are trying to help.
And,
Elton John has postponed his final tour.
He fell and injured his hip, causing a lot of pain.
This means his tour will have to wait until 2022.
And that's today's episode of News Bites!