Unit Eight: 为何样样失灵？（为何什么都没用？）
根据著名学者摩非所发明的法则，“任何东西如果有坏的可能，它就一定会坏掉。”摩非法则的推论为劣质商品问题提供了依据：任何东西如果可能会失效，它就一定会失效；任何东西如果可能解体，它就一定会解体；任何东西如果可能停止运转，它就会停止运转。虽然摩非定律永远不会被推翻，但是它的效应通常却是可以被延缓的。人类生存多半想能确保物品出厂后相当一段时间内不会坏掉、解体、失效或停止运转。要想预防摩非法则对产品产生效应需要智慧、技术和承诺。如果这些人为的输入得到专门的质量监控仪器、机械和科学的抽样工序的辅助，那就更好了。然而，单单是质量监控仪和抽样调查将永远不能制胜，因为这些物件也受制于摩非法则。质检仪器需要维修；计量器也会出故障；X光和雷射光束需要调整。无论技术如何先进，保持高质量需要智慧、活跃的思想和行动。
回忆一下史前和工业化前人类的物质文化也许有助于说明我的意思。博物馆里展览着简单的工业化前的社会所用的手工物品，只参观一次就足于打消质量得依赖技术这种观点。手工物品也许设计简单甚至原始，但其制作意图却是要终生耐用。我们敬慕“手工制作”的标签并愿意多花钱购买当今数量递减的手工艺人推出的珠宝、毛衣和手袋，就是承认了这一点。
波摩印地安人的篮子编得如此紧密，以至于用它来盛开水而滴水不漏；爱斯基摩人的皮船具有一系列无与伦比的综合优点，既轻巧结实又经得起风浪。这些东西的质量源泉是什么？仅仅因为它们是手工制作的吗？我认为并非如此。不熟练不经意的手做出来的篮子或船只也会和机器制的篮子或船一样迅速分崩离析。我宁可认为我们之所以敬慕“手工制作”的标签，是因为它让人联想起的不是生产者和产品之间的技术关系，而是一种生产者和消费者之间的社会关系。贯穿史前时期，保证产品最高程度的耐用性和持久性的是这一个事实：生产者和消费者不是同一个人就是同样的个体或是近亲。男人们制作自己的长矛、弓、箭以及抛掷尖物；女人们编制自己的篮子和网兜，用动物皮毛、树皮或纤维做自己的衣服。后来随着技术的发展以及物质文化变得更复杂，族人或村子里的不同成员采用技艺分工，如制陶术、编蓝术或制船术。尽管许多物品是通过实物交易获得，生产者于消费者之间的关系仍然是亲密持久充满关爱的。
男人不可能为自己做一把飞到一半尖头就会脱落的长矛；女人也不会用烂草编织自己用的篮子。同样一个妻子缝制的毛皮风雪大衣是给丈夫在零下60度的温度下出去为家人打猎穿的，那么针针线线都会密密细缝、十分牢固。如果造船的人是开船人的叔伯、父亲，他当然会利用当时的一切技术，制造出最经得起大风大浪的船只。
相比之下，人们很难去关怀陌生人或给陌生人使用的产品。在我们这个工业批量生产和批量营销的时代，质量是个不断出现的问题，因为那种曾经使我们对彼此负责、对产品负责的亲密情感和个人关系已经消亡，并被金钱关系所取代。不只是生产者与消费者素不相识，从事生产和分配各阶段工作的男男女女---- 从管理人员到生产线上的工人，从办公室助理人员到销售人员，彼此都互不相识。在较大的公司也许有成千上万的人全都在为同一产品工作，却从不对面相遇或知道对方的名字。公司越大，劳动分工就越复杂，漠不关心的关系就越严重，因此摩非法则的效应也就越大。公司的发展使得工资单上的行政官、工头、工程师、生产工人和销售人员层层增加。由于每个新雇员为整个生产程序所负责的分额在减少，他们与公司及其产品的疏远就可能增加，同时还以来可能忽视或甚至故意破坏其质量标准。
Unit Nine: 新闻将我们引向何方
不久前我应邀参加了一次有关美国报业的作用的公众研讨会。还有另外两个嘉宾也出席了。一位是知名的电视节目主持人，另一位是美国一家主要报纸的编辑，他是一位彻头彻尾的新闻工作者---- 在据实报道的方式上坚忍不拔、积极进取且见识过人。
据我所知本次研讨旨在审查传媒的义务，并提出实现那些义务的最佳途径。
在公开讨论时，观众席中的一位男士向两位嘉宾提问，“为什么报纸和电视新闻节目都充斥灾难？为什么新闻界的男男女女对悲剧、暴力、和失败是如此关注？”
主持人和编辑作出了回答，好像是自己应该为坏消息的存在而受到谴责一样。他们说，新闻工作者只负责报道新闻，而不负责制造或修改新闻。
我不认为这两位新闻工作者回答了这个问题。提出这个问题的先生并没有因为世上的歪曲报道而谴责他们。他只是想知道为什么报道得最多的是歪曲的事件。新闻媒体的运作理念似乎是凡是新闻皆坏事。为什么呢？是不是着重报道负面新闻是一种传统——是新闻工作者所习以为常的对日常事件作出的反应方式？
在此或许分析一下我们如何定义“新闻”一词会有所帮助，因为这是问题的起因。新闻应该是报道过去十二小时，最迟二十四小时内所发生的事情。然而，突发事件往往具有爆炸性的：一名狙击手枪杀了几名行人，一名恐怖分子劫持了飞机上250名人质，欧佩克石油组织宣布原油价格上涨25%，英国货币又贬值10%，一辆载有放射性废料的卡车与一架水泥搅拌车相撞。
然而，一味聚焦这些报道，则是失真的画面。人类文明成果远远多于灾难总和。每种文明中最重要的成分就是进步。但进步不会立即发生，也没有爆发性。一般来说，它是一点一滴逐步发展的，在某个特定时刻是微不足察的。但是所有微小的进步都参与了历史性的巨变的实现，使社会更加美好。
就是这类活生生的历史，绝大多数的新闻媒体没有予以充分的反映，结果导致我们对社会的正面发展了解不足，对灾难却知之甚多，这又使人产生失败和绝望的情绪，而这些情绪易于阻碍社会进步。爆发性新闻大餐另人忧心忡忡，大大削减了自由社会所需的动力，绝望和偾世的情绪使人没有动力迎接严峻的考验。
我并非暗示可以编造“积极”的新闻来抵消头版上灾难报道的作用。也没有把青年基督会作用的深刻报道定义为“正面”新闻。我要传递的观点是，新闻媒体的职责是搜寻并报道重大事件，无论它们是否有关冲突、对抗或灾难。这个世界是天堂和地狱的绝妙结合，两个方面都需要关注和观察。
我希望新闻界人士能从更宽广的角度审视自己的职责。是时候认识到人类事件中可以作为新闻报道的范围领域是极其宽广的。例如，有几篇新闻文章报道过固氮作用——植物通过这一过程能固定氮肥，由此减低了肥料需求量？全世界的科学家都在为这一前景而努力，希望借此解决饥荒。对远东地区水稻产量提高的巨大进步又了解多少？事实上，世界上还有许多类似的重要发展，这些都值得做重要的新闻综合报道。
主持人和编辑说得对，新闻工作者并没有责任来塑造世界，但是他们有责任影响我们的态度。我们认为自己是怎样的，那我们就是怎样的。我们只能实现那些我们自己敢于设想的目标。新闻工作者为我们提供我们对自身以及这个世界认知的写照——这种写照最好是逼真的肖像，而不是扭曲的漫画像。因为我们就是根据这一写照来做决定，筹划未来的。
按照华特.里普曼的说法，新闻记者是大众的哲学家。他曾经写道？“后天习得的文化并非由基因遗传，美好社会的甜美的生活虽然可得，但却不是一旦拥有就永远不失去。如果美好生活中的智慧没有被传下来，所得一切也将化为乌有。”
有了对美好社会中美好生活的准确报道，我们可以采用伯纳德.德.查维斯建议我们的利用历史的方式，并以此来利用新闻——在我们的经验之上提高自己。因此，使他们能“像坐
在巨人肩上的矮子，比前人看得更高更远。”
Unit Ten 物品：一次性社会
芭比，一个12英寸的塑料少女型娃娃，可算是历史上最出名最畅销的玩偶了。自从1959年问世以来，全世界的芭比娃娃销量总数已经达到1200万个，比洛杉矶、伦敦或巴黎的人口还多。因为这种娃娃形象逼真，有可以梳妆打扮的特点，所以小姑娘无人不爱。它的制造商马特尔公司还出售娃娃的全套服装，包括平时白天的穿戴，出席正式晚会的礼服以及游泳衣和滑雪服。
最近，马特尔公司又宣布生产了经过改进的芭比玩偶。新的式样体型更苗条，有“真正”的眼睫毛，有扭摆自如的腰肢，因此比过去更具人性化。马特尔公司还第一次推出了以旧换新的折价活动，宣布小姑娘们想买新芭比的，可以用旧娃娃折价来换。
但是，有一件事马特尔公司没有宣布，那就是：通过折价换取技术上改良后的新款娃娃，今天的小姑娘（也就是明天超工业化社会的公民）可以学到有关这个新社会知识的重要一课，人与物之间的关系变得越来越短暂了。
在我们周围的人造物品的大海洋背后，有一个比它更大的天然物品的海洋，但是这些用新技术创造出来的环境正越来越多地影响着每一个人。塑料或水泥结构、街灯下汽车的彩虹色反光、喷气飞机窗外看到的令人眼花缭乱的城市景象----这些都是人们生活中熟悉的景象。人造物品进入了人的意识并对其加以渲染。和天然环境相比，人造物质的绝对数量和相对数量都是以爆炸性的威力在不断地猛涨。这种情况今天如此，在未来的超工业社会里将益发如此。
提到物品的重要性，反物质主义者总不免要嘲笑一番。但物品的确是非常重要的。这不仅是因为物品有着实际用途，而且还因为物品有心理上的影响。我们在发展与物品的关系。物品影响着我们的连续感和不中断感。物品在情境结构中起着作用；缩短了我们和物品联系的时间，就会加快我们的生活的节奏。
不仅如此，我们对物质的态度还反映了判断价值观念的基本能力。旧式的姑娘，一如她们的妈妈、奶奶，有一个娃娃就爱不释手，不到日久破烂了，是绝不肯丢掉的。新派小姑娘不一样。有了经过改进的新娃娃，她们就会高高兴兴交出旧娃娃。这两类小姑娘有着天渊之别。这种区别比什么东西都更令人注目。这种差别体现了过去与将来、持久耐用与短暂速成的新旧社会之间的对比。
人与物之间关系变得越来越短暂了。观察、研究一下折价换娃娃的小姑娘周围的文化就可以看清这种情况。她们很小就懂得，生活中很快出现又很快消失的物品，绝不只是芭比娃娃一个。尿片、围嘴、纸餐巾、手纸、纸巾、不回收的汽水瓶---- 这些东西在她们家里全都快速用完，然后无情地加以清除。小松饼买来时是装在烘罐里的，罐子用一次就扔掉了。菠菜就装在塑料袋里，在开水锅里烫过后，袋子也扔了。电视烹饪节目在一次性盘子上烹调并经常它们盛菜。们的家就像一个庞大的加工机器，物品从这个机器流人流出，而且进出的速度越来越快。她们出生以来，就被包围在一种用完就扔的文化中，无法自拔。
一件东西用过一次或用过很短一段时间就换掉，这种主意同社会的本质以及具有贫困传统观念的人是背道而驰的（格格不入的）。不久以前，专为法国广告业进行市场研究的尤里尔罗尼告诉我们，“法国的家庭主妇不习惯于用完就扔。她们喜欢保存东西，连旧东西也保存着，舍不得丢掉。我们曾为一家想推出一种一次性塑料窗帘。我们为此作了一次市场调查，结果发现阻力很大。”不过，在整个发达世界里，这种阻力正在日见消失。
一位名叫爱德华梅兹的作家指出，１９５０年初期，很多到瑞典访问的美国人，看到这个国家那么干净，感到非常惊讶，“美国路边到处都是啤酒瓶和软饮料瓶的确令人感到害羞。瑞典却一点也没有，看到这种情况，我们真肃然起敬。可是你瞧，到了６０年代，瑞典的公路上也突然冒出很多瓶子来。到底是这么一回事？瑞典也变成一个买了就用，用完就扔
的社会，学起美国的样子来了。”今天，日本的纸巾非常普及，因而人们认为布手帕非但不卫生，而且也不时髦。在英国，花６便士就可买到一把一次性牙刷，上面涂了一层够刷一次的牙膏。甚至在法国，用完就扔的打火机也很普遍。短期使用或仅用一次的产品，从纸质牛奶盒到作为发射太空飞行器的火箭越来越多地制造出来，越来越多地决定着我们的生活方式。
近来发明的纸质和类似纸质的服装把一次性处理的潮流又向前推进了一步。时装店和廉价的服装店雨后春笋般开辟出五彩缤纷设计新颖的纸制衣服专卖部。时装杂志展出各种各样的纸制长袍、大衣、睡衣甚至结婚礼服。在一本杂志的图片中有一个新娘穿着一条白色拖地长裙，披着一长串纸制花边。图片说明写道，这些花边在婚礼过后大可改作及棒的厨房窗帘。
纸质衣服尤其适合儿童。一位时装专家写道：“不久小姑娘们就可以洒冰淇淋洒在衣服上画画，或在上面剪出图案，而她们的妈妈会在一旁对于她们的这些创新给予亲切的微笑。”成年人如果想要表现自己的创造性，可以买一套配有画笔的“自己上色的服装”，价钱不过两美圆。
当然价格是纸制品激增的关键因素。因此，有的百货商店专售一种简便的A字型连衣裙。这种连衣裙是用一种叫“魔鬼也会动心的人造纤维尼龙混纺布料”裁制的，每件只要1.29美圆。顾客买一件这种衣服穿完后丢掉要比把一件普通的衣服拿到洗衣店洗还便宜。这种裙子很快就会上市。但这涉及到的不仅是价格的问题，因为延伸“用完就扔”的文化在心理上也起着重要作用啊。
我们发展“用完就扔”的思想是为了适应“用完就扔”的产品。这种思想影响了很多方面，其中之一就是产生一套急剧变化了的财产价值观念。但是对商品随意处理的能力在社会上－普及，又意味着人与物之间的持续时间缩短了。我们不再在较长的时间内和单一的物品发生联系，而是在短期内和一连串取代该物品的其他物品发生联系。
Unit 10 Agriculture Farming for the Future [1] Every year, more people face poverty and hunger and more of the earth's resources are ruined. The problems are enormous, but many experts believe that the situation is not hopeless. The solution will require big changes in how we think about agriculture, food, and our planet. [2] First of all, farmers everywhere need to develop methods that are less destructive to the environment. The change from single crop farming to a mixed crop system would be one important step. The planting of several different crops improves the soil and helps prevent erosion. Erosion could also be prevented by planting trees to protect the fields from the wind. Another way farmers could improve the soil is to avoid deep plowing. In fact, only a slight plowing is necessary if proper methods are used. [3] If the soil were treated better, farmers would not need to use chemical fertilizers. They could use natural animal and vegetable products instead. With mixed crops, farmers would need fewer toxic chemical insecticides. They could use biological methods of controlling insects and disease. [4] Farmers could also help save the earth's precious supplies of water and petroleum. To save water, they could plant more water-efficient plants instead of the standard types of wheat or corn. They could also use watering systems that are much less wasteful. To save petroleum, farmers could make use of bio-gas generators which could be fueled by the vegetable and animal wastes of the farms. In less-developed countries, bio-gas generators could reduce the need for firewood and so help save forests, as well. [5] In less-developed countries, the small farmers need help. They need to learn more about crops that are better suited to local conditions. They need to learn how to limit erosion and make the best use of their resources. These farmers will never be successful without land and economic reform. This should be the aim of governments and international agencies. The current industrial and cash crop policies are only making the situation worse. [6] Industrialized countries could use their economic resources to help bring about these changes. They could make some changes in their own policies. At present, much food is wasted in these countries for political reasons. In Europe and in North America, tons of fruit and dairy products are thrown away every year. Eating habits, too, could be changed in these countries. For example, people often eat foods from distant places instead of local foods. The transportation of the imported foods adds to the global pollution problem. People in industrialized countries also eat a lot of meat, especially beef.
一、 1、当我知道详细情况时，我意识到我不该在办公室发脾气。 When I knew the details ,I realized that I shouldn’t have lost the temper at the office. 2、我和鲍勃不是很熟，不过我们偶尔出去喝一杯。 I don’t know Bob very well ,but we go out for a drink occasionally. 3、会议应该在周二召开，但我们不得不推迟。 The meeting is supposed to be held on Tuesday, but we have to put it off. 4、我国政府采取行动使那个国家的所以中国人回到了祖国。 Our government took action to get all the Chinese back to homeland in that country. 5、包括周末在内，仅仅还有12天时间可以用来买圣诞礼物。 Including the weekend ,there is only 12days to buy Charismas presents. 6、如不立即采取行动，许多野生动物就会因饥饿而死亡。 Without taking action immediately ,many kinds of wild animals would die from hunger. 三、 1、除非你有经验，否则你得不到这份工作。 You won’t got this job unless you have got the experience. 2、我把大部分时间都花在研究中美文化差异上了。 Most of my time is spent studying the differences between Chinese and American culture. 3、这句话意思很清楚，绝不会引起误会。 This sentence is so clear that it can’t cause any misunderstanding. 4、他希望能给予她比现在更多的帮助。 He hopes he could give her more help than he does. 5、要记得邀请她来参加生日晚会，不然她会抱怨的。 Remember to invite her to the birthday party ,or she would complain. 6、主任说，你必须把购置设备的2500美元加到成本中去。 The Director said ,you have to add 2500 dollars for equipment purchase to the cost. 7、了解自己的长处、弱点以及所处的环境很重要。 It’s important to be aware of your strengths, weaknesses and the environment you are in. 8、如果你继续对大家这么粗鲁，不久你就会发现自己什么朋友都没有了。 You will find yourself without any friends at all if you keep on being so rude to everyone. 四、 1、做出贡献的人太多了，无法一一提及。 The individuals who have contributed are far too many to mention. 2、半夜里，嘈杂声把我们吵醒了。 The noise woke us up in the middle of the night. 3、他不应该对我说的话感到生气，那仅仅是个玩笑而已。 He shouldn’t have been angry at what I said, it was nothing more than a joke. 4、我们邀请了所以的朋友去野餐，但是由于下雨只来了其中5位。 We invited all our friends to the picnic ,but it rained and only 5 of them showed up. 5、婚姻被视为一件严肃的事。 Marriage is viewed as a serious matter. 6、令我失望的是，这部电影并不像我期待得那么好。 To my disappointment ,the movie didn’t live up to my expectations. 七、
Reading comprehension 1略 2 BDCAC AADBB Vocabulary 1. 1) A. entertaining B. entertainment C. entertained D. entertainer 2) A. recognizable B. recognized C. recognition 3) A. tempting B. temptation C. tempt 4) A. reasoned B. reasoning C. reasonable D. reason 5) A. analyzed B. analytical C. analyst D. analysis 6) A. valuable B. valuation C. valued/values D. values 7) A. humorist B. humor C. humorous D. humorless 8) A. understandable B. understanding C. understand D. misunderstood 2. 1) a sense of responsibility 2) a sense of safety/security 3) a sense of inferiority 4) a sense of superiority 5) a sense of rhythm 6) a sense of justice 7) a sense of shame 8) a sense of helplessness 9) a sense of direction 10) a sense of urgency 3. 1) Lively behavior is normal 2) Fast cars appeal to 3) diverse arguments 4) I asked my boss for clarification 5) sensitive to light 6) Mutual encouragement 7) made fun of him 8) persists in his opinion/viewpoint 9) to be the focus/center of attention 10) we buy our tickets in advance 4. 1）certain/sure 2) involved 3) end 4) behavior 5) disciplining 6) agreed 7) individually 8) first 9) response 10) question 11) attempt 12) voice 13) directly 14) followed 15) trouble Unit 2 便笺的力量 Reading comprehension 1略 2 FFTFTFTFTTFTFT Vocabulary 1. Creating Compound Words
Unit Nine: 新闻将我们引向何方 不久前我应邀参加了一次有关美国报业的作用的公众研讨会。还有另外两个嘉宾也出席了。一位是知名的电视节目主持人，另一位是美国一家主要报纸的编辑，他是一位彻头彻尾的新闻工作者---- 在据实报道的方式上坚忍不拔、积极进取且见识过人。 据我所知本次研讨旨在审查传媒的义务，并提出实现那些义务的最佳途径。 在公开讨论时，观众席中的一位男士向两位嘉宾提问，“为什么报纸和电视新闻节目都充斥灾难？为什么新闻界的男男女女对悲剧、暴力、和失败是如此关注？” 主持人和编辑作出了回答，好像是自己应该为坏消息的存在而受到谴责一样。他们说，新闻工作者只负责报道新闻，而不负责制造或修改新闻。 我不认为这两位新闻工作者回答了这个问题。提出这个问题的先生并没有因为世上的歪曲报道而谴责他们。他只是想知道为什么报道得最多的是歪曲的事件。新闻媒体的运作理念似乎是凡是新闻皆坏事。为什么呢？是不是着重报道负面新闻是一种传统——是新闻工作者所习以为常的对日常事件作出的反应方式？ 在此或许分析一下我们如何定义“新闻”一词会有所帮助，因为这是问题的起因。新闻应该是报道过去十二小时，最迟二十四小时内所发生的事情。然而，突发事件往往具有爆炸性的：一名狙击手枪杀了几名行人，一名恐怖分子劫持了飞机上250名人质，欧佩克石油组织宣布原油价格上涨25%，英国货币又贬值10%，一辆载有放射性废料的卡车与一架水泥搅拌车相撞。 然而，一味聚焦这些报道，则是失真的画面。人类文明成果远远多于灾难总和。每种文明中最重要的成分就是进步。但进步不会立即发生，也没有爆发性。一般来说，它是一点一滴逐步发展的，在某个特定时刻是微不足察的。但是所有微小的进步都参与了历史性的巨变的实现，使社会更加美好。 就是这类活生生的历史，绝大多数的新闻媒体没有予以充分的反映，结果导致我们对社会的正面发展了解不足，对灾难却知之甚多，这又使人产生失败和绝望的情绪，而这些情绪易于阻碍社会进步。爆发性新闻大餐另人忧心忡忡，大大削减了自由社会所需的动力，绝望和偾世的情绪使人没有动力迎接严峻的考验。 我并非暗示可以编造“积极”的新闻来抵消头版上灾难报道的作用。也没有把青年基督会作用的深刻报道定义为“正面”新闻。我要传递的观点是，新闻媒体的职责是搜寻并报道重大事件，无论它们是否有关冲突、对抗或灾难。这个世界是天堂和地狱的绝妙结合，两个方面都需要关注和观察。 我希望新闻界人士能从更宽广的角度审视自己的职责。是时候认识到人类事件中可以作为新闻报道的范围领域是极其宽广的。例如，有几篇新闻文章报道过固氮作用——植物通过这一过程能固定氮肥，由此减低了肥料需求量？全世界的科学家都在为这一前景而努力，希望借此解决饥荒。对远东地区水稻产量提高的巨大进步又了解多少？事实上，世界上还有许多类似的重要发展，这些都值得做重要的新闻综合报道。 主持人和编辑说得对，新闻工作者并没有责任来塑造世界，但是他们有责任影响我们的态度。我们认为自己是怎样的，那我们就是怎样的。我们只能实现那些我们自己敢于设想的目标。新闻工作者为我们提供我们对自身以及这个世界认知的写照——这种写照最好是逼真的肖像，而不是扭曲的漫画像。因为我们就是根据这一写照来做决定，筹划未来的。 按照华特.里普曼的说法，新闻记者是大众的哲学家。他曾经写道？“后天习得的文化并非由基因遗传，美好社会的甜美的生活虽然可得，但却不是一旦拥有就永远不失去。如果美好生活中的智慧没有被传下来，所得一切也将化为乌有。” 有了对美好社会中美好生活的准确报道，我们可以采用伯纳德.德.查维斯建议我们的利
Unit 6 A World of Mystery The Bermuda Triangle [1] On 5th December 1945, Flight 19, which consisted of five US Navy planes, took off from Fort Lauderdale, Florida in fine weather. There was a total of fourteen men on board the planes. The planes were in good condition; they had the best equipment on board including compasses and radios, and they also carried life rafts. The planes could float on water for ninety seconds. One and a half hours after the take-off, a radio message from one of the planes was heard at the control tower at Fort Lauderdale. [2] "I don't know where we are." [3] After that the planes could no longer speak to the control tower, but they could speak to and hear each other, and the control tower could hear them. [4] "The magnetic compass is going crazy." [5] "We're completely lost." [6] No other messages were heard after that. Nobody else heard from the planes or saw them again. Three hundred planes and many boats searched the area, but not one trace of Flight 19 was found. Then one of the planes that was sent to look for them also disappeared completely. [7] These planes had disappeared in a very mysterious part of the world in the western Atlantic Ocean where lots of strange events have taken place. The mystery started long before 1945, and since that year many other ships and planes have also disappeared in this area. It is called the Bermuda Triangle. It is a large, triangular area of the ocean with the island of Bermuda at its northern tip. [8] Planes and ships disappear in other parts of the world, but there are more disappearances in the Triangle than in other areas. For years now scientists and others have been puzzled by this mystery. There have been many attempts to explain why people, planes and ships disappear in such high numbers here . [9] One writer, John Spencer, believes that the ships and planes have been carried off from the sea and sky by flying saucers or UFOs from another planet. Since there are millions of other planets in the universe, Spencer believes there must be other intelligent creatures somewhere in the universe. These creatures are interested in collecting humans and their equipment so that they can examine them carefully. [10] Another theory is that the geography of the area is responsible for the disappearances of the ships and planes. Bermuda lies on an earthquake belt. Underwater earthquakes result in large waves appearing suddenly. These waves are so big that they can break a ship into pieces. In the air, a similar thing can happen to airplanes because of
Unit 7 The Joy of Travel Transformative Travel Twenty-five years ago I felt like a wreck. Although I was just 23, my life already seemed over. The future appeared as much like a wasteland as the emptiness I could see while looking back to the past. I felt lost, without choices, without hope. I was stuck in a job I hated and trapped in an engagement with a woman I didn't love. At the time, both commitments seemed like a good idea, but I suppose it was the fantasy of being a successful, married businessman that appealed to me far more than the reality. I decided to take a class just for the entertainment value. It happened to be an introductory counseling course, one that involved personal sharing in the group. We were challenged to make commitments publicly about things we would like to change in our lives, and in a moment of pure impulsiveness, I declared that by the next class meeting I was going to quit my job and end my engagement. A few days later I found myself unemployed and unattached, excited by the freedom, yet terrified about what to do next. I needed some kind of transition from my old life to a new one, a sort of ritual that would help me to transform myself from one person into another. So I did something just as impulsive as my previous actions: I booked a trip for a week in Aruba. In spite of what others might have thought, I was not running away from something but to something. I wanted a clean break, and I knew I needed to get away from my usual environment and influences so as to think clearly about where I was headed. Once settled into my room on the little island of Aruba, I began my process of self-change. I really could have been anywhere as long as nobody could reach me by phone and I had the peace and quiet to think about what I wanted to do. I spent the mornings going for long walks on the beach, the afternoons sitting under my favorite tree, reading books and listening to tapes. Probably most important of all, I forced myself to get out of my room and go to meet people. Ordinarily shy, I now decided that I was someone who was perfectly capable of having a conversation with anyone I chose. Since nobody knew the "real" me, the way I had always been, I felt free to be completely different. It took me almost a year to pay off that trip, but I am convinced that my single week in Aruba was worth three years in therapy. That trip started a number of processes that helped me to transform myself. This is how I did it: I created a mindset that made me ready for change. I expected that big things were
Unit One Hit the nail on the head恰到好处 你见过一个笨手笨脚的男人往箱子上钉钉子吗？只见他左敲敲，右敲敲，说不准还会将整个钉子锤翻，结果敲来敲去到头来只敲进了半截。而娴熟的木匠就不这么干。他每敲一下都会坚实巧妙地正对着钉头落下去，一钉到底。语言也是如此。一位优秀的艺术家谴词造句上力求准确而有力地表达自己的观点。差不多的词，不准确的短语，摸棱两可的表达，含糊不清的修饰，都无法使一位追求纯真英语的作家满意。他会一直思考，直至找到那个能准确表达他的意思的词。 法国人有一个很贴切的短语来表达这样一个意思，即“le mot juste”, 恰到好处的词。有很多关于精益求精的作家的名人轶事，比如福楼拜常花几天的时间力求使一两个句子在表达上准确无误。在浩瀚的词海中，词与词之间有着微妙的区别，要找到能恰如其分表达我们意思的词绝非易事。这不仅仅是扎实的语言功底和相当大的词汇量的问题，还需要人们绞尽脑汁，要观察敏锐。选词是认识过程的一个步骤，也是详细描述我们的思想感情并表达出来使自己以及听众和读者深刻理解的一个环节。有人说：“在我思想未成文之前，我怎么知道自己的想法？”这听起来似乎很离谱，但它确实很有道理。 寻找恰如其分的词的确是件不容易的事。一旦找到了那个词，我们就会感到很欣慰：辛劳得到了回报。准确地用语言有助于我们深入了解我们描述的事物。例如，当有人问你：“某某是怎么样的人？”你回答说：“恩，我想他是个不错的家伙，但他非常……”接着你犹豫了，试图找到一个词或短语来说明他到底讨厌在哪里。当你找到一个恰当的短语的时候，你发觉自己对他的看法更清楚，也更精确了。 一些英语词汇词根相同而意义却截然不同。例如human 和humane,二者的词根相同，词义也相关，但用法完全不同。“human action (人类行为)”和“humane action ( 人道行为)”完全是两码事。我们不能说“人道权力宣言”，而是说“人权宣言”。有一种屠杀工具叫“humane killer ( 麻醉屠宰机)，而不是human killer ( 杀人机器)。 语言中的坏手艺的例子在我们身边随处可见。有人邀请一名学生去吃饭，他写信给予回复。请看他的信是这样结尾的：“我将很高兴赴约并满怀不安（anxiety ）期待着那个日子的到来。”“Anxiety”含有烦恼和恐惧的意味。作者想表达的很可能是一种翘首期盼的心情。“Anxiety”跟热切期盼有一定的关联，但在这个场合是不能等同的。 乌干达一政党领袖给新闻界的一封信中有一句这样写道： 让我们打破这自私、投机、怯懦和无知充斥的乌干达，代之以真理，刚毅，坚定和奇异的精神。 这一激动人心的呼吁被最后一个词“奇异（singularity）”的误用破坏掉了。我猜想作者真正要表达的意思是思想的专一，即抱定一个信念永不改变，咬定青山不放松，不被次要的目的干扰。而singularity 指的是古怪，特性，是将一个人从众多人中区分出来的那种东西。 即使没有出现词语误用，这词仍可能不是符合作者意图的恰如其分的词。一名记者在一篇有关圣诞节的社论中这样引出狄更斯的话： 任何有关圣诞节的想法和文字已经被禁锢(imprisoned )在这句话中……“Imprisonment”暗示着强迫，威逼，这么一来似乎意思是有悖其初衷的。用“包含(contained )”或“归结（summed up ）”就要好些。“概括（epitomized）”也行，尽管听起来有点僵硬。稍微再用点心我们就能准确地找到“mot juste (恰倒好处的词) ”，那就是“distilled”.它比包含和归结语气更强。“Distillation (提炼)”意味得到本质（essence）的东西。因此我们可以进一步把这个句子修改为： 所有有关圣诞节的想法和文字的精华都被提炼到这句话之中。 英语词汇丰富，运用灵活。一个意思有很多种表达方式。但是无论意思上如何相近的词总是存在着些许区别。作为学生就要敏感地意识到这些区别。通过查字典，尤其是通过阅读，
Book 3 Unit 1 Personality The Misery of Shyness Shyness is the cause of much unhappiness for a great many people. All kinds of people describe themselves as shy: short, tall, dull, intelligent, young, old, slim, overweight. Shy people are anxious and self-conscious; that is, they are excessively concerned with their own appearance and actions. Worrisome thoughts are constantly swirling in their minds: What kind of impression am I making? Do they like me? Do I sound stupid? I'm ugly. I'm wearing unattractive clothes. It is obvious that such uncomfortable feelings must affect people adversely. A person's self-concept is reflected in the way he or she behaves, and the way a person behaves affects other people's reactions. In general, the way people think about themselves has a profound effect on all areas of their lives. For instance, people who have a positive sense of self-worth or high self-esteem usually act with confidence. Because they have self-assurance, they do not need constant praise and encouragement from others to feel good about themselves. Self-confident people participate in life enthusiastically and spontaneously. They are not affected by what others think they "should" do. People with high self-esteem are not hurt by criticism; they do not regard criticism as a personal attack. Instead, they view a criticism as a suggestion for improvement. In contrast, shy people, having low self-esteem, are likely to be passive and easily influenced by others. They need reassurance that they are doing "the right thing". Shy people are very sensitive to criticism; they feel it confirms their inferiority. They also find it difficult to be pleased by compliments because they believe they are unworthy of praise. A shy person may respond to a compliment with a statement like this one: "You're just saying that to make me feel good. I know it's not true." It is clear that, while self-awareness is a healthy quality, overdoing it is detrimental, or harmful. Can shyness be completely eliminated, or at least reduced? Fortunately, people can overcome shyness with determined and patient effort in building self-confidence. Since shyness goes hand in hand with lack of self-esteem, it is important for people to accept their weaknesses as well as their strengths. For example, most people would like to be "A" students in every subject. It is not fair for them to label themselves as inferior because they have difficulty in some areas. People's expectations of themselves must be realistic. Dwelling on the impossible leads to a sense of inadequacy, and even feelings of envy, or jealousy. We
Book 1 Translation Exercises Unit 1 Translation 1) 我累了。昨晚我不该那么晚睡觉。(should not + 动词完成式) 2) 我和鲍勃不是很熟，不过我们偶尔一起出去喝一杯。(occasional) 3) 我们应该到火车站接她。(be supposed to) 4) 你可以清楚地看到有人快要淹死, 而你却没有采取行动救他们。(drown, take action) 5) 包括周末在内，仅仅还有12天时间可以用来买圣诞礼物。(including) 6) 如果不立即采取行动，许多种野生动物就会因饥饿而死亡。(without, hunger) I’m tired. I shouldn’t have gone to bed so late last night. I don’t/didn’t know Bob very well, but we go/went out for an occasional drink together. We’re supposed to meet her at the train station. You could clearly see people drowning, but/and yet you took no action to save them. Including weekends, there are only twelve more days to buy Christmas presents. Without immediate action, many kinds of wild animals would die from hunger. Unit 2 Translation 1) 那首歌总是使她回想起在芝加哥度过的那个夜晚。(remind…of…) 2) 街角处刚巧有一位警察，我便向他问路。(happen to, corner) 3) 由于天气恶劣，今天所有去纽约的航班都延误了。(delay) 4) 谁有责任谁就必须赔偿损失。(whoever, responsible) 5) 我找不到我的支票簿。我准是把它留在家里了。(checkbook, must have) 6) 到足球比赛快开始时，暴风雨已经停了。(by the time) That song always reminded her of the night spent in Chicago. There happened to be a policeman on the corner, so I asked him the way. All flights to New York today are/were delayed because of the bad weather. Whoever is responsible will have to pay for the damage. I can’t find my checkbook. I must have left it at home. By the time the football match was going to start, the storm had already stopped. Unit 3 Translation 1) 除非你有经验，否则你得不到这份工作。(unless) 2) 我把大部分时间花在研究中美文化的差异上了。(spend) 3) 这句话意思极清楚，决不会引起误解。(so…that) 4) 他希望能够给予她比现在更多的帮助。(more than) 5) 穿上外套，否则你会感冒的。(or) 6) 她的收藏品中增加了一张毕加索(Picasso)的画。(add…to…) 7) 我没意识到以前曾来过这儿。(be aware of) 8) 如果你继续对每个人这么粗鲁，你很快就会发现自己什么朋友都没有了。(find oneself without) 1）You won’t get the job unless you’ve got the experience. 2) Most of my time is spent studying the differences between Chinese and American culture. The statement/sentence is so clear that it can’t cause any misunderstanding. He wishes that he could give her more help than he does. She has added a Picasso to his collection.