On August 21, 2021, an article in The Economist discussed the application of 3D printing technology in the construction industry. This article is very valuable and contains many expressions worth learning. Today, I will share some of them with you:
1. Expressions Indicating Product Popularity
The article begins by discussing the rapid sales of 3D printed houses in California:
A batch of new houses across California is selling unusually fast. In the past two months, 82 have been snapped up, and the waiting list is 1,000 long.A batch of new houses in California is selling unusually fast. In the past two months, 82 houses have been snapped up, and the waiting list has reached 1,000.
a batch of is a quantifier meaning “a batch,” for example, The new batch of vaccines is running out. The new batch of vaccines is running out. Another example is during the summer, which is peak season for graduates looking for jobs; we can say: Each summer a new batch of students tries to find work. Note that to express “XX is selling well,” use the active voice:XX sells well/fast. snap up has multiple meanings. For example, when a typhoon hits, many trees may be snapped in half:
Some trees were snapped, and others were uprooted.Some trees were snapped in half, while others were uprooted.
In Li Jiaqi’s live stream, products are often snapped up, which can be expressed as:
Products were soon being snapped up.Products were quickly sold out.
Thus, snap up has also developed a new meaning: when indicating that someone is in high demand or popular, this term can be used, for example:
He is so talented that he has been snapped up by Huawei before his graduation.He is so talented that he was snapped up by Huawei before he graduated.
the waiting list is XX long means: the waiting list is XX long. This paragraph contains three expressions that reflect product popularity:1) be selling fast2) be snapped up3) the waiting list is XX long In Lesson 52 of New Concept English, there is also an expression that reflects product popularity:
He loved to be told that one of his imaginary products was temporarily out of stock and he would faithfully promise to call again at some future date, but of course he never did.He loved to hear the salesperson say that one of his imaginary products was temporarily out of stock, and he would solemnly promise to come back another day. Of course, he never did.
be out of stock: out of stock.Let’s accumulate these four expressions together.
2. Two Expressions for “Constructing”
When we think of “constructing,” we first think of build or construct. Let’s see what words The Economist used:
While it can take weeks to put up a conventional bricks-and-mortar dwelling, Palari Homes and Mighty Buildings, the collaborators behind these houses, are able to erect one in less than 24 hours.Building a traditional brick-and-mortar house may take weeks, while Palari Homes and Mighty Buildings (the collaborators behind these houses) can erect one in less than 24 hours.
put up has many meanings, but they all stem from its literal meaning of “to raise” or “to support,” which here means “to build (a house).” brick refers to “brick,” and mortar is “mortar,” so bricks-and-mortar dwelling refers to a traditional “brick house.” The term for “physical stores” is also expressed with this term: bricks-and-mortar shops or physical shops, in contrast to online shops. erect as a verb means to build, for example, erect a church means to build a church, and when camping, you need to erect a tent. The police will erect barriers to set up roadblocks. put up and erect can replace our familiar build and construct to mean “to construct.”
3. “Birth/Appearance” and “Development”
Expressions for “birth/appearance” and “development” are common in writing, such as “with the emergence of social media” or “with the development of artificial intelligence.” Let’s see how The Economist expresses this:
Three-dimensional (3D) printing has been around since the early 1980s, but is now gathering steam.Three-dimensional (3D) printing has been around since the early 1980s, but is now developing rapidly.
When we express the concept of “appearance or birth,” we often think of be born, appear, emerge, etc. The article uses be around, which is very simple, so let’s accumulate it. Here’s a sentence we can create:
With social media being around, people can express their views in an easier way.With social media being around, people can express their views more easily.
Additionally, we can use the noun the birth of… to express this. When we express the concept of “development,” we first think of with the development of…, which is a phrase that has become very common, while the article uses gather steam.steam literally means “steam,” and after entering the steam age, steam became the main driving force for human production activities, so steam has become synonymous with “power.” gather/gain steam means “to gain power,” which means “to develop faster and gain momentum.” We can also replace steam with momentum, which means “driving force” or “momentum,” and gather/gain momentum also means “to develop faster and gain momentum.”Here’s a sentence we can create:
With 5G and artificial intelligence gaining steam, human lives have been changed dramatically.With 5G and artificial intelligence developing rapidly, human lives have changed dramatically.
4. allow + comparative adjective
The article discusses the positive effects of 3D printing technology on the construction industry:
Not only does 3D-printing allow greater versatility and faster construction, it also promises lower cost.3D printing not only allows for greater versatility and faster construction, but it also promises lower costs.
versatility derives from its adjective form: versatile, meaning “having many different uses,” for example:
Never before has the 5G technology been so versatile.5G technology has never been so versatile as it is now.
versatility means “multifunctionality or wide applicability.” allow here does not mean “to permit,” but rather “to make something possible,” which is a very idiomatic usage.allow greater versatility literally means “to make more functionality possible,” which can be more smoothly expressed as “to achieve more uses.” allow faster construction literally means “to make faster construction possible,” which can be more smoothly expressed as “to accelerate construction progress.” The structure allow + comparative adjective + noun is a very useful collocation. In writing, we can use it to express the function of something, for example:
Social media allow easier and quicker expression of people’s views.Social media make it easier and quicker for people to express their views.
Instant-messaging apps allow easier interpersonal communication.Instant messaging applications make interpersonal communication easier.
In Chinese to English translation, the concept of “promoting” can also be expressed using allow + comparative adjective. For example, a measure can promote economic growth; previously, we would translate it as: XX promotes economic growth, now we can translate it as: XX allows faster economic growth.
5. How to Say “Reduce Costs”
Before looking at the sentence, think about how we would say “reduce costs”? The answer is simple: reduce the cost. Let’s see how it is expressed in the article:
Automation brings huge cost savings.Automation can significantly reduce costs.
The article states bring cost savings, which reflects a different thought process. This expression better reflects English thinking habits, so let’s accumulate it. Next time when expressing “XX reduces/increases YY,” we can use XX brings YY, for example, this method increases costs; previously, we would say: The approach increases the expenses, now we can say: The approach brings greater expenses.
6. Expressions for “Environmental Protection”
Besides being cheap and quick, 14Trees says this process is green as well.In addition to being cheap and fast, 14Trees (a 3D construction company) states that this process is also very environmentally friendly.
When we think of “environmental protection,” our first reaction is environmentally friendly (or environment-friendly), while the article uses a very common word: green, which means “environmentally friendly.” Let’s look at a few other words or expressions related to “environmental protection”:
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eco-friendly products
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green products/technology/energy
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clean fuel/energy
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renewable energy
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sustainable farming/lifestyle/development
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carbon-neutral company/building/city
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low-carbon economy/electricity
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low-energy light bulb/building
This article may not be a recent hot topic, but I feel that 3D printing technology has the potential to bring about revolutionary changes in people’s production and life, similar to the past impact of the internet. This is also the reason I chose this article.Imagine that through 3D printing technology, housing costs can be significantly reduced, and construction speed can be increased. For ordinary people, houses will become cheaper; for construction workers, there may be a large number of job losses, so they need to learn new skills in advance and be prepared to change careers at any time; for the government, it should allocate part of the budget to subsidize future unemployed construction workers and prepare for retraining; the government can also provide affordable housing for more low-income families at a lower cost and faster speed, solving the housing problems of impoverished families; for investors, they can pay attention to some publicly listed companies related to 3D printing technology and buy in at the right time.From different perspectives, one article can yield different insights.Sometimes, after seeing too many hot topics, people can become restless and superficial. We need to read a few truly meaningful articles to calm our minds and think deeply. For those interested in this article, you can scan the QR code below to read for free. We will provide the original text + machine translation + audio + long-press word lookup function:
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(If prompted to log in after scanning, please log in and scan again.)That’s all for today. I hope this article is helpful to you. Thank you for reading!
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