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Humans are natural travelers. We evolved into modern humans almost 200,000 years ago. When did we evolve into modern humans? We evolved into modern humans almost 200,000 years ago. In the last 50,000 years we have traveled across the earth and now live almost everywhere except for Antarctica. Where do humans not live? Humans do not live in Antarctica. If environmental problems on earth continue to increase, one day we may need to find a new home in space. Why will we one day have to find a new home in space? We will one day have to find a new home in space because of environmental problems. Do you think environmental problems will continue to increase? Long distance space travel has become more of a possibility now that we can grow vegetables in space. What can we grow in space? We can now grow vegetables in space. Do you think that space vegetables would taste differently? Do you think they would be less healthy? Russian scientists on the International Space Station have succeeded in growing peas, leafy greens, and wheat in

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greenhouses. What kind of vegetables did they grow in space? They grew peas, leafy greens and wheat in space. While food is only one of many technological problems of space travel, there is a bigger problem that could stop space travel completely. Humans have not only polluted the ground, air and water of the earth. But now we have quickly spread our trash into space! Have humans polluted the ground? Yes, humans have polluted the ground? Have humans polluted the air? Yes, humans have polluted the air. What else have humans polluted? Humans have also polluted the water and space. We increasingly use space satellites for television, communication, weather reports and navigation.

Speaking Fluency #95 Space Junk - Speaking Fluency #95 Here are the questions with answers. Pause the recording and speak out loud. You dont have to be perfect. Just speak quickly and have fun. Remember, if you want to improve your speaking, you have to speak a lot.

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What do we use satellites for? We use satellites for television, communication, weather reports and navigation. In the last 50 years, there have been 5,000 space launches of satellites. How many satellites have been launched into space? 5,000 satellites have been launched into space. Almost 4,000 of these satellites are now broken. Are there many broken satellites in space? Yes, there are many broken satellites in space. There are 4,000 broken satellites. These satellites sometimes break apart and hit each other, causing even more pieces of space junk. There are now 22,000 pieces of junk circling the earth. And these are just the large pieces. How many large pieces of junk are there circling the earth? There are 22,000 large pieces of junk circling the earth. There are hundreds of thousands of smaller pieces of trash. This space junk is creating a

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growing problem for our plans of space travel. Is this problem growing or increasing? This problem is growing. Will this become a problem for space travel? Yes, this will become a problem for space travel. In 2009, a Russian satellite and a US satellite traveling 42,000 km per hour hit each other. How fast were the satellites traveling? The satellites were traveling 42,000 km per hour. This caused an explosion that created 2,000 smaller pieces of trash. According to one NASA scientist, a piece of space trash the size of a baseball can create an explosion that equals 7 kg of TNT. Can a small piece of space trash be dangerous? Yes, a small piece of space trash can be very dangerous. Astronauts on the International Space Station have twice prepared to escape the space station to avoid space junk.

http://deepenglish.com Speaking Fluency #95

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What were the astronauts afraid of? They were afraid of space junk hurting the space station. Both times the danger was avoided, but these problems will continue to increase. Did the space junk hit the space station? No, the space junk didn't hit the space station. The danger was avoided. In 1978, a NASA scientist named Kessler predicted this problem. He said that the increase of space junk will make space travel and the use of satellites impossible in the future. What did Kessler say will become impossible? He said that the use of satellites and space travel will become impossible. There are many ideas on how to clean up space junk. The Japanese are planning to launch a 700-meter magnetic net into space to catch space junk and bring it back to Earth. What are the Japanese planning? They are planning a magnetic net to catch space junk. The Swiss are planning a robotic arm that will be a space janitor, grabbing pieces of trash. What are the Swiss planning? The Swiss are planning a robotic arm that will clean up space. These plans will cost a lot of money. Will these plans be cheap? No, these plans won't be cheap. They will cost a lot of money. Who should pay to clean up space junk? Some people say that the US, Russia, and China have put the most junk into space and should pay for more of the cleanup costs. What countries have created the most space junk? The US, Russia and China have created the most space junk. Do you think they should pay more for cleaning up space junk? Other people think that the only practical plan would be to tax future satellite launches, and use this tax money to pay for cleanup. Do you think taxing future satellite launches is a good idea? This is an immediate problem. Is this a problem that can wait? No, this isn't a problem that can wait. This is an immediate problem. At least five to ten large pieces of space junk must be removed every year if we want to continue using and exploring space. How much space junk must be removed every year if we want to continue using and exploring space? Five to ten large pieces of space junk must be removed every year if we want to continue using and exploring space.

http://deepenglish.com Speaking Fluency #95

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What do you think about this problem? Will we one day travel beyond this planet for a new home in space?

photo by NASA: http://orbitaldebris.jsc.nasa.gov/photogallery/beehives.html