Intro
1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.
2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.
The world’s transportation system is in crisis. Traffic and pollution are major problems. Arcimoto is part of the solution.
When you think about it, cars are often overkill. You don’t need a five-seat car to go to work or the grocery store. Arcimoto is developing a small, light, electric vehicle that is perfect for city driving.
They are building this new machine from the ground up. While they are working on making it perfect, the excitement is growing. Arcimoto was a Cleantech Open finalist and has been getting a lot of attention in the green business community. Everyone wants to try the car that is easy to drive and park and doesn’t use any gasoline. One of the stars of the TV show Castle recently took one for a drive.
We asked Arcimoto CEO Mark Frohnmayer to show us his prototype and tell us about some of the vocabulary his team needed to build it.
3. Watch - Watch the video without reading the dialog.
Dialog
1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.
2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.
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![]() Mark |
Jason: Welcome to another business English lesson. We are here with Mark Frohnmayer, CEO of Arcimoto.
Mark: Glad to be here.
Jason: Tell us about this vehicle here.
Mark: This is a prototype electric vehicle. We’re not in the marketplace yet, so we’re still developing the product. This one’s getting very close to the final product.
Jason: Well, let’s take it for a spin.
Mark: It’s a pure electric vehicle, so it’s not a hybrid. In the world of electric vehicles, there are pure electric vehicles that only run on electricity, and then there are hybrid electric vehicles that run on electricity some of the time and run on gasoline some of the time.
Jason: What is a prototype?
Mark: A prototype is a concept or an idea of what the final thing will be, but it’s not finished. It’s sort of a sketch or a test of the ideas of what will go into the final product.
Jason: You built this from the ground up. Can you tell us about that term?
Mark: We didn’t start with an existing car. In this case we made up the whole design, where all the mechanical bits and pieces go.
Jason: What is “green”?
Mark: In business, the term “green” is synonymous with clean or good for the environment. A green business is one whose mission includes doing good for the planet at the same time as doing well as a business concern. We want to make the world’s most environmentally efficient solution for daily driving.
Jason: Why did you start Arcimoto?
Mark: When I sold my computer game company, I went looking for an electric vehicle that I could use to drive around town. I wanted something that was very efficient. I wanted something that was affordable. I just couldn’t find the product that I wanted, so I decided to find some people to help me make it. Our target price is $17,500.
Jason: Thanks so much for the ride and for teaching us all these interesting terms.
Mark: Thanks for having me.
Grammar Point
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Discussion
Mark Frohnmayer and his company Arcimoto have built a prototype for an electric car. It is not a hybrid car because it does not use any gasoline. It only uses electricity, which means it is the greenest kind of car.
The Arcimoto team built the car from the ground up, which means they started with the smallest pieces possible. They’re still working on the design, but it should be in the marketplace soon.
Would you like to have an electric car? Do you think it’s important for companies to be green?
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