雅思听力

🎧 Listening Transcript

Good morning, class. Today we're discussing the history of the bicycle. While many people credit the 19th-century French inventors with its creation, recent research suggests that a similar two-wheeled device appeared in ancient Egypt around 1400 BC. However, it wasn't used for transportation but for religious ceremonies. The modern pedal-driven bicycle emerged in the 1860s in France, and by the 1890s, it had become a popular mode of transport across Europe. Interestingly, the safety bicycle, with equal-sized wheels and a chain drive, was introduced in 1885 and is the direct ancestor of today's bicycles.