4/16 (Wed.) 〜 4/18 (Fri.)

実践ビジネス英語　　　Wednesday, April 16

1) Umemura describes his business trip to Singapore, during which he looked into the practice of vertical farming. He explains that Singapore is very densely populated and has to import almost all of its food. A local entrepreneur realized people would pay more for fresh, locally grown food and introduced vertical farming due to the lack of arable land. Umemura says he visited a facility that resembled a Ferris wheel.

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Vertical Farming (1)

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2) I'll bet: I'm sure this is the case. It's very likely this is the case, like Pearson is confident enough to bet money on it. You could say, "I can't find my train pass. 'I'll bet' I dropped it at the station." Or "'I'll bet' they announce our new boss at tomorrow's meeting."

3) to be sure: Certainly, of course, Umemura means. Imagine, someone says, "Our sales are still too low." You might reply, "Yes, 'to be sure.' But they've improved over the last six months."

4) make one's mark: When we "make our mark," we do something so people will notice us or so we have an important influence on something. Things like, "He's 'made his mark' as a daring entrepreneur." Or "She's 'made her mark' as a human-rights lawyer."

5) A similar expression is "make a name for oneself," which is to attain distinction, become well-known. "She's 'made a name for herself' as a tough negotiator," for example. Or "He's 'made a name for himself' as an animal-rights activist."

6) strictly speaking: Speaking with complete accuracy, in other words, such as, "'Strictly speaking,' the merger hasn't been approved yet. But it will be soon." Or "He is not a professor. 'Strictly speaking,' he is an instructor at the university."

7) pay a premium for: In this case, "premium" means a price that is higher than standard. People will pay extra, in other words, for fresh, locally grown food. You could also say things like: "Customers will 'pay a premium' for a same-day delivery." Or "Parents will 'pay a premium for a house near a good school."

8) densely crowded: Umemura means thickly crowded, a lot of people packed into one area. We also use "dense" to mean slow to understand, thick-headed, like someone's thick brain won't let things in. I might say, "I was pretty 'dense' today. I didn't catch my boss's hints to stop talking."

9) Ferris wheel: I haven't been on one of these in a long time. A revolving wheel with seats or compartments on it. "Ferris" is always uppercase because it refers to the engineer, George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. He designed the first Ferris wheel for a world's fair in Chicago in 1893.

10) take up: In this case, "take up" means occupy, consume, use up. For example, "The staff meeting 'took up' the entire morning. I couldn't do anything else." Or "We need a smaller conference table. This one 'takes up too much of the room."

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実践ビジネス英語　　　Thursday, April 17

1) Umemura says that the trays of soil and vegetables at the vertical farm he visited rotate to get equal exposure to the sun. The farm recycles the water it uses to irrigate the plants and composts the organic waste. McMillan says he was favorably impressed by the vertical farm produce he had when he visited Singapore last year. And Pearson says he recently looked into vertical farming in Chicago.

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Vertical Farming (2)

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2) rotate: Umemura is talking about literally revolving in a circle. However, "rotate" can also mean take turns or proceed in succession, things like, "Our staff 'rotate' between departments every two years or so."

3) exposure to the sun: In this case "exposure" and the verb "expose" mean subject to some action, influence or condition. For example, "Skin doctors tell us to limit our sun 'exposure,' how much we subject our skin to the sun's rays." Or "It's important to 'expose' children to books from an early age."

4) ecologically sustainable: Pearson means, "Can you keep doing something without totally using up a resource or permanently damaging that resource?” So sustainable fishing ensures that there will continue to be fish every season. Likewise, sustainable agriculture doesn't completely deplete the resources in the soil.

5) be composted and recycled: "Compost" is a verb here, it can also be a noun, such as "She makes 'compost' out of her kitchen scraps and uses it in her garden. Umemura talks about recycling organic waste, in other words, reusing a tangible thing. We also talk about recycling ideas. For example, "This marketing campaign doesn't contain anything new. It just 'recycles' last year's approach."

6) take farming to the next lever: McMillan's making a pun here. He is referring to actually rising higher with vertical farming, but "take something to the next level" often means make it bigger, better, more advanced in some way. For example, "She is 'taking her business to the next level' by opening an online store." Or "This model 'takes smartphone photography to the next level' with more features and much better
resolution."

7) tasty: It "tasted" good. It was delicious, McMillan means. "Tasty" can also refer to things that are attractive to us that make us feel, you know, "Hmm, nice!" such as, "She got a 'tasty' raise with her new job."

8) no fewer than: Umemura is using this expression to mean this large striking number. You can say things like, "She traveled to 'no fewer than' ten countries on business last year." Or "Company X makes 'no fewer than' five of the top selling models."

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実践ビジネス英語　　　Friday, April 18

1) Person says the world's biggest indoor vertical farm is in Chicago and combines aquaculture with hydroponics. He says some experts doubt the long-term commercial viability of vertical farms, but that H&B needs to stay on top of new developments so their competitors don't get a jump on them. According to Pearson, a growing number of people want to eat food produced locally.

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Vertical Farming (3)

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2) aquaponics: "Aqua" refers to water, so an aquarium is a container of water where we keep fish and other aquatic life. In ancient times, water was transported by bridge-like structures called aqueducts.

3) conventional aquaculture: In this case, "conventional" means standard, usual, what's commonly expected or done in a certain situation. We also use it to mean lacking in originality or individuality, something like, "It's a very 'conventional' advertising campaign, completely predictable."

4) hydroponics: In this case, "hydro" refers to water, liquid so "hydroelectric" power is using water to generate electricity. If you are dehydrated, your body doesn't have enough fluids in it, so you need to hydrate yourself.

5) the jury is still out on: This means something hasn't been decided yet or the answer isn't known yet, like a jury in a trial hasn't reached the verdict yet. So you could say, "'The jury is still out on' whether these stimulus measures will be effective." Or "'The jury is still out on' whether our new model will catch on with consumers."

6) commercial viability: "Viability" is the noun, the adjective would be viable, and they refer to being capable of success, capable of working or developing sufficiently. For example, you might say in a meeting, "This isn't a 'viable' idea. It's too expensive and it will require too much time."

7) steal a march on: This is to do something ahead of someone else, move before someone else who has the same goal. This appears to be mainly British English. A similar American expression is "get a jump on." And this is doing something before others or before something happens to get an advantage. For example, "She want to 'get a jump on' her taxes, so she started preparing two months early." Or "They 'got a jump on their competition by using social media before anyone else."

8) variable in the equation: A "variable" is a factor in a math equation that can change and influence the outcome. So we say this about changeable factors in daily life too that influence a situation, how it turns out. You might say, "The most important 'variable in the equation' for me is salary. I need to make this much money or I can't take the job."

9) source: In this case, "source" is a verb meaning obtain from some source, a company a place whatever. For example, "That restaurant chain 'sources' all its beef from overseas." Or "This clothing store sells ethically 'sourced' items.

【原稿チェック：Hiromi, Hiroko, Cecile】
【ディクテーション： Sanae】