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Mythic Mandarin

Reading: how shared bikes changed a city

HSK 6 Unit 4: Causes and consequences · Lesson 5 of 5 · About 28 minutes

Preview version — Chinese review in progress.

Your mission: By the end of this lesson, you can follow a short report that explains causes, results and responses, using this unit's patterns.

Warm-up: do you remember?

Two quick questions from earlier lessons. Recalling before you learn makes the new material stick.

  1. Meaning

    What does 防止 mean?

    1. small town
    2. to prevent
    3. earthquake
    Show the answer

    Answer: B, to prevent.

    防止 (fángzhǐ) means to prevent.

  2. Characters

    Which word means “flustered, panicky”?

    1. 内心
    2. 满足
    3. 慌
    Show the answer

    Answer: C, 慌.

    “flustered, panicky” is 慌 (huāng).

  3. Listening

    From an earlier unit. Listen. What does the word mean?

    Cannot listen? Read it instead

    趋势 qūshì

    1. trend
    2. inner heart, deep down
    3. would rather
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, trend.

    You heard 趋势 (qūshì): trend.

New words

  • 共享gòngxiǎngto share, shared
  • 单车dānchēbicycle
  • 乱luànmessy, at random
  • 规范guīfànto regulate, standard
  • 便利biànlìconvenient, convenience
  • 押金yājīndeposit

Reading a report on a social change

A report on a social change often follows this order: what happened, why (之所以, 原因在于), what problems followed (以至于, 以致), and what was done (以免, 与此同时).

  • 共享单车之所以发展得这么快，原因在于它非常便利。

    Gòngxiǎng dānchē zhīsuǒyǐ fāzhǎn de zhème kuài, yuányīn zàiyú tā fēicháng biànlì.

    The reason shared bikes spread so fast is that they are very convenient.

Characters

Open a character to see how it is written, stroke by stroke, with its meanings and words.

The bike boom

A short report from a city newspaper.

Listen first

Play the whole text and answer the questions before you open it.

Helpful words: 角落 jiǎoluò corner; 到处 dàochù everywhere; 扫码 sǎomǎ to scan a code; 人行道 rénxíngdào pavement; 停车点 tíngchēdiǎn parking spot; 罚款 fákuǎn fine, to fine; 一夜之间 yí yè zhī jiān overnight

  1. Listening

    Listen first. Why were shared bikes so popular?

    1. they were completely free
    2. they were new and fashionable
    3. they were very convenient
    Show the answer

    Answer: C, they were very convenient.

    原因在于它非常便利.

  2. Listening

    What problem followed?

    1. the bikes kept breaking down
    2. the price of a ride went up
    3. bikes covered the pavements
    Show the answer

    Answer: C, bikes covered the pavements.

    人行道上到处都是单车.

  3. Listening

    What did the government do?

    1. marked parking spots and fined people
    2. banned the bikes from the city
    3. built new roads just for bikes
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, marked parking spots and fined people.

    在路边画了停车点.

Show the text
Pinyin
Translation

  1. 几Jǐ年nián前qián，共享gòngxiǎng单车dānchē好像hǎoxiàng一夜之间yí yè zhī jiān出现chūxiàn在zài城市chéngshì的de每měi个gè角落jiǎoluò。

    A few years ago, shared bikes seemed to appear overnight on every corner of the city.

  2. 共享Gòngxiǎng单车dānchē之所以zhīsuǒyǐ这么zhème受shòu欢迎huānyíng，原因yuányīn在于zàiyú它tā非常fēicháng便利biànlì：用yòng手机shǒujī扫码sǎomǎ就jiù能néng骑qí，不bú用yòng的de时候shíhou随时suíshí还huán。

    The reason shared bikes were so popular is that they were very convenient: scan a code with your phone to ride, and return the bike whenever you like.

  3. 可是Kěshì很hěn多duō人rén骑qí完wán就jiù乱luàn停tíng，以至于yǐzhìyú人行道rénxíngdào上shàng到处dàochù都dōu是shì单车dānchē。

    But many people left the bikes anywhere after riding, so that pavements were covered with them.

  4. 有的Yǒude公司gōngsī收shōu了le押金yājīn却què没有méiyǒu好hǎo好hǎo管理guǎnlǐ，以致yǐzhì出现chūxiàn了le很hěn多duō问题wèntí。

    Some companies took deposits but did not manage the bikes well, which led to many problems.

  5. 后来Hòulái，政府zhèngfǔ开始kāishǐ规范guīfàn管理guǎnlǐ，在zài路边lùbiān画huà了le停车点tíngchēdiǎn，以免yǐmiǎn单车dānchē影响yǐngxiǎng行人xíngrén。

    Later, the government began to regulate the system and marked parking spots by the road, so the bikes would not get in pedestrians' way.

  6. 与此同时Yǔ cǐ tóngshí，乱luàn停车tíngchē的de人rén会huì被bèi罚款fákuǎn。

    At the same time, people who parked anywhere would be fined.

Speak: listen, record, compare

Listen to each model, record yourself, then play both and compare: the rhythm, the tones, the vowels. No automatic score: your ear is the judge.

  • 几年前，共享单车好像一夜之间出现在城市的每个角落。

    Jǐ nián qián, gòngxiǎng dānchē hǎoxiàng yí yè zhī jiān chūxiàn zài chéngshì de měi gè jiǎoluò.

    A few years ago, shared bikes seemed to appear overnight on every corner of the city.

  • 可是很多人骑完就乱停，以至于人行道上到处都是单车。

    Kěshì hěn duō rén qí wán jiù luàn tíng, yǐzhìyú rénxíngdào shàng dàochù dōu shì dānchē.

    But many people left the bikes anywhere after riding, so that pavements were covered with them.

  • 后来，政府开始规范管理，在路边画了停车点，以免单车影响行人。

    Hòulái, zhèngfǔ kāishǐ guīfàn guǎnlǐ, zài lùbiān huà le tíngchēdiǎn, yǐmiǎn dānchē yǐngxiǎng xíngrén.

    Later, the government began to regulate the system and marked parking spots by the road, so the bikes would not get in pedestrians' way.

Practice

  1. Meaning

    What does 共享 mean?

    1. Chinese (language)
    2. river
    3. to share, shared
    Show the answer

    Answer: C, to share, shared.

    共享 (gòngxiǎng) means to share, shared.

  2. Characters

    Which word means “bicycle”?

    1. 单车
    2. 缓解
    3. 共享
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, 单车.

    “bicycle” is 单车 (dānchē).

  3. Pinyin

    How do you read 乱 (messy, at random)?

    1. luán
    2. luàn
    3. luǎn
    Show the answer

    Answer: B, luàn.

    乱 is read luàn. Check the tone mark on every syllable.

  4. Listening

    Listen. What does the word mean?

    Cannot listen? Read it instead

    规范 guīfàn

    1. to regulate, standard
    2. how (+ adjective)
    3. to investigate, survey
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, to regulate, standard.

    You heard 规范 (guīfàn): to regulate, standard.

  5. Your turn

    Recall: type the Chinese for “convenient, convenience” (characters or pinyin).

    Show the answer

    Answer: 便利

    “convenient, convenience” is 便利 (biànlì).

  6. Listening

    Listen. Which sentence did you hear?

    Cannot listen? Read it instead

    与此同时，乱停车的人会被罚款。 Yǔ cǐ tóngshí, luàn tíngchē de rén huì bèi fákuǎn.

    1. Some companies took deposits but did not manage the bikes well, which led to many problems.
    2. Later, the government began to regulate the system and marked parking spots by the road, so the bikes would not get in pedestrians' way.
    3. At the same time, people who parked anywhere would be fined.
    Show the answer

    Answer: C, At the same time, people who parked anywhere would be fined..

    You heard 与此同时，乱停车的人会被罚款。 (Yǔ cǐ tóngshí, luàn tíngchē de rén huì bèi fákuǎn.): At the same time, people who parked anywhere would be fined.

  7. Reading

    Read: 由于很多人乱停单车，以至于行人走路都很困难。 What was the result of people parking bikes anywhere?

    1. it was hard for pedestrians to walk
    2. many bikes broke down
    3. bikes became cheaper to buy
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, it was hard for pedestrians to walk.

    以至于行人走路都很困难.

  8. Grammar

    Which connector fits? 请把单车停在停车点，＿＿影响别人。

    1. 以免
    2. 以至于
    3. 与此同时
    Show the answer

    Answer: A, 以免.

    以免: so as not to.

  9. In context

    You pay some money before you rent a flat, and you get it back when you leave. What is it?

    1. 规范
    2. 单车
    3. 押金
    Show the answer

    Answer: C, 押金.

    押金: deposit.

  10. Your turn

    Type the Chinese for convenient

    Show the answer

    Answer: 便利

    便利: convenient.

A change in your city

Report out loud on a change in your town or city, in eight sentences. Record it.

  1. What changed, and why, with 之所以…原因在于.
  2. A problem that followed, with 以至于 or 以致.
  3. What was done about it, with 以免.
  4. One more thing happening at the same time, with 与此同时.

Sentence frames

  • ＿＿之所以＿＿，原因在于＿＿。

    ＿＿ zhīsuǒyǐ ＿＿, yuányīn zàiyú ＿＿.

    The reason ... is ...

  • 与此同时，＿＿。

    Yǔ cǐ tóngshí, ＿＿.

    At the same time, ...

Record your attempt (three and a half minutes at most) and listen back:

Review and finish

Can you do this? If a line feels shaky, go back to that part before you move on.

  • I can follow a report that explains causes, results and responses.
  • I can use 之所以, 以至于, 以致, 以免 and 与此同时 in one report.

Review works best spaced out: answer these exercises again tomorrow, then after a few days. Your progress is saved in this browser.

Completing records that you finished the lesson. Mastery is separate: it grows as reviews bring the exercises back and you answer them correctly.

Next: HSK 6 Unit 5: Degrees and limits, where you say how much, how little and how far.