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第一段
1 .Good morning everyone. So today we’re going to look at an important creative activity and that’s hand knitting.
大家早上好。所以今天我们要看看一个重要的创意活动，那就是手工编织。
2 .Ancient knitted garments have been found in many different countries, showing that knitting is a global activity with a long history.
古代针织服装在许多不同的国家都有发现，说明针织是一项具有悠久历史的全球性活动。
3 .When someone says the word ‘knitting’ we might well picture an elderly person – a grandmother perhaps – sitting by the fire knitting garments for themselves or other members of the family.
当有人说“编织”这个词时，我们很可能会想象一个老年人——可能是祖母——坐在火炉旁为自己或家里的其他成员编织衣服。
4 .It’s a homely image, but one that may lead you to feel that knitting is an activity of the past – and, indeed, during the previous decade, it was one of the skills that was predicted to vanish from everyday life.
这是一个朴实的形象，但它可能会让你觉得编织是一种过去的活动——事实上，在过去的十年里，编织是一种预计会从日常生活中消失的技能。
5 .For although humans have sewn and knitted their own clothing for a very long time, many of these craft-based skills went into decline when industrial machines took over – mainly because they were no longer passed down from one generation to another.
因为尽管人类缝制和编织自己的衣服已经有很长一段时间了，但当工业机器接管后，许多这种以工艺为基础的技能开始衰退——这主要是因为它们不再是一代一代传下来的。
6 .However, that’s all changing and interest in knitting classes in many countries is actually rising, as more and more people are seeking formal instruction in the skill.With that trend, we’re also seeing an increase in the sales figures for knitting equipment.
然而，这一切都在改变，许多国家对针织课的兴趣实际上在上升，因为越来越多的人在寻求这种技能的正式指导。随着这一趋势，我们也看到针织设备的销售数字在增加。
7 .So why do people want to be taught to knit at a time when a machine can readily do the job for them?The answer is that knitting, as a handicraft, has numerous benefits for those doing it.
那么，为什么人们希望在机器可以随时为他们完成工作的时候被教会编织呢？答案是编织作为一种工艺品，对做这件事的人有很多好处。
8 .Let’s consider what some of these might be.
让我们考虑一下其中的一些可能是什么。
9 .While many people knitted garments in the past because they couldn’t afford to buy clothes, it’s still true today that knitting can be helpful if you’re experiencing economic hardship.
虽然过去很多人因为买不起衣服而编织衣服，但今天仍然是真的，如果你正在经历经济困难，编织是有帮助的。
10 .If you have several children who all need warm winter clothes, knitting may save you a lot of money.
如果你有几个孩子都需要保暖的冬衣，编织可能会为你节省很多钱。
11 .And the results of knitting your own clothes can be very rewarding, even though the skills you need to get going are really quite basic and the financial outlay is minimal.
而且自己编织衣服的结果会很有收获，尽管你需要掌握的技能真的很基本，财务支出也很少。
12 .But the more significant benefits in today’s world are to do with well-being.
但当今世界更重要的好处是与福祉有关。
13 .In a world where it’s estimated that we spend up to nine hours a day online, doing something with our hands that is craft-based makes us feel good. It releases us from the stress of a technological, fast-paced life.
在一个估计我们每天花九个小时上网的世界里，用手工做一些事情让我们感觉很好。它让我们从科技、快节奏的生活中解脱出来。
14 .Now, let’s look back a bit to early knitting activities.
现在，让我们回顾一下早期的针织活动。
15 .In fact, no one really knows when knitting first began, but archaeological remains have disclosed plenty of information for us to think about.
事实上，没有人真正知道针织最初是什么时候开始的，但考古遗迹已经披露了大量的信息供我们思考。
16 .One of the interesting things about knitting is that the earliest pieces of clothing that have been found suggest that most of the items produced were round rather than flat.
针织有一件有趣的事情是，已经发现的最早的衣服表明生产的大多数物品都是圆的而不是平的。
17 .Discoveries from the 3rd and 4th centuries in Egypt show that things like socks and gloves, that were needed to keep hands and feet warm, were knitted in one piece using four or five needles.
埃及3世纪和4世纪的发现表明，用来保暖手脚的袜子和手套之类的东西是用四五根针织成一件的。
18 .That’s very different from most knitting patterns today, which only require two.
这与现在大多数针织图案有很大的不同，只需要两种。
19 .What’s more, the very first needles people used were hand carved out of wood and other natural materials, like bone, whereas today’s needles are largely made of steel or plastic and make that characteristic clicking sound when someone’s using them.
更重要的是，人们使用的第一批针是用木头和其他天然材料(比如骨头)手工雕刻而成的，而今天的针大部分是用钢或塑料制成的，当有人使用时会发出那种特有的滴答声。
20 .Ancient people knitted using yarns made from linen, hemp, cotton and wool, and these were often very rough on the skin.
古代人使用亚麻、大麻、棉花和羊毛制成的纱线编织，这些纱线在皮肤上往往非常粗糙。
21 .The spinning wheel, which allowed people to make finer yarns and produce much greater quantities of them, led to the dominance of wool in the knitting industry – often favoured for its warmth.
纺车让人们可以制造更细的纱线，生产出更多的纱线，这导致了羊毛在针织行业中的主导地位——通常因其保暖而受到青睐。
22 .Another interesting fact about knitting is that because it was practised in so many parts of the world for so many purposes, regional differences in style developed.
针织的另一个有趣的事实是，由于针织在世界上这么多地方被用于这么多目的，所以风格上的地区差异就形成了。
23 .This visual identity has allowed researchers to match bits of knitted clothing that have been unearthed over time to the region from which the wearer came or the job that he or she did.
这种可视的特征使研究人员能够将随着时间推移出土的针织服装碎片与穿着者来自的地区或从事的工作相匹配。
24 .As I’ve mentioned, knitting offered people from poor communities a way of making extra money while doing other tasks.
正如我所提到的，编织为来自贫困社区的人们提供了一种在做其他工作的同时赚外快的方式。
25 .For many centuries, it seems, men, women and children took every opportunity to knit, for example, while watching over sheep, walking to market or riding in boats.
许多世纪以来，男人、女人和孩子似乎都抓住一切机会编织，比如，一边放羊，一边步行去市场或乘船。
26 .So, let’s move on to take a …
所以，让我们继续来一个…