外研版英语必修四课文原文资料讲解

高中英语课本必修四重点课文英汉对照高效辅导—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————Module 6 Unexplained Mysteries of the Natural World - The Monster of Lake Tianchi 天池里的怪物The “Monster of Lake Tianchi” in the Changbai Mountains in Jilin province, northeast China, is back in the news after several recent sightings.近几次露面后，中国东北吉林省长白山的“天池怪物”又成了新闻。

The director of a local tourist office, Meng Fanying, said the monster, which seemed to be black in colour, was ten metres from the edge of the lake during the most recent sighting.据当地的旅游办公室主任孟凡介绍，最近有人看见怪物就在离湖面十米的地方，怪物的颜色似乎是黑色的。

“It jumped out of the water like a weal –about 200 people on Changbai’s western peak saw it,” he said.他说；“大约有两百多人从长白山的西峰看见过怪物，他像海豹一样跃出水面。

”Although no one really got a clear look at the mysterious creature, Xue Junlin, a local photographer, claimed that its head looked like a horse.尽管谁也没有看清楚这种怪物的真面目，但当地一位摄影师薛俊林声称；怪物的头看起来像马头。

---------------------------------------------------------------最新资料推荐------------------------------------------------------外研社版必修4课文必修 4 Module 1 Life in the Future The City of the Future What will the city of the future look like? No one knows for sure, and making predictions is a risky business. But one thing is certain they are going to get bigger before they get smaller. In the future, care for the environment will become very important as earths natural resources run out. We will use lots of recycled materials, such as plastic, aluminum, steel, glass, wood and paper, and we will waste fewer natural resources. We will also have to rely more on alternative energy, such as solar and wind power. All this seems certain, but there are plenty of things about city life in the future which are not certain. To find out what young people think about the future of urban life, a teacher at a university in Texas in the United States asked his students to think how they would run a city of 50,000 people in the year 2025. Here are some of the ideas they had: Garbage ships To get rid of garbage problems, the city will load huge spaceships with waste materials and send them towards the sun, preventing landfill and environmental problems. Batman Nets Police will arrest criminals by firing nets instead of guns. Forget1 / 17smoking No smoking will be allowed within a future citys limits. Smoking will be possible only outside cities, and outdoors. Forget the malls In the future all shopping will be done online, and catalogues will have voice commandsto place orders. Telephones for life Everyone will be given a telephone number at birth that will never change no matter where they live. Recreation All forms of recreation, such as cinemas, bowling, softball, concerts and others, will be provided free of charge by the city. Cars All cars will be powered by electricity, solar energy or wind, and it will be possible to change the colour of cars at the flickof a switch. Telesurgery Distance surgery will become common as doctors carry out operations from thousands of miles away, with each city having its own telesurgery outpatient clinic. Holidays at home Senior citizens and people with disabilities will be able to go anywhere in the world using high-tech cameras attached to their head. Space travel Travellling in space by ordinary citizens will be common. Each city will have its own spaceport. Famous Last Words Not all predictions come true. Many of them are wrong, and some are very wrong. Here are just a few of the bad predictions people madein the twentieth century about the twenty-first century:---------------------------------------------------------------最新资料推荐------------------------------------------------------ AIRPLANES No flying machine will ever fly from New York to Paris. Orville Wright, 1908. COMPUTERS I think there is a world marketfor maybe five computers Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1 943 CLOTHES Thirty years from now people will be wearing clothes made of paper which they will be able to throw away after wearing them two or three times. Changing Times Magazine, 1957 MEN ON THE MOON With the first moon colonies predicted for the 1970s, work is now in progress on the types of building required for men to stay in when theyre on the moon. Arnold B,Barach in The Changes to Come, 1962. THE BEATLES We dont like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out. Decca Recording Co. rejecting the Beatles, 1 962. ROBOTS IN THE HOUSE By the year 2019, housewives will probably have a robot shaped like a box with one large eye on the top, several arms and hands, and long narrow pads on the side for moving about. New York Times, 1 966 KEYS By the mid-1 980s no one will ever need to hide a key under the doormat again, because there wont be any keys. Computer scientist Christopher Evans, The Micro Millennium, 1 979. Module 2 Traffic J am Getting Around in Beijing Taxis Taxis are on the streets 24hours a day. Simply raise your hand, anda taxi appears in no time. They are usually red, and they display3 / 17the price per kilometer on the window. You should check the cab has a business permit, and make sure you ask for a receipt. Buses and trolleybuses Public transport provides a cheap way to get around in Beijing. There are 20,000 buses and trolleybuses in Beijing, but they can get very crowded. Its a good idea to avoid public transport during the rush hour (6:30 am 8:00 am and 5:00 pm 6:30 pm). Fares are cheap, starting at 1 yuan. Air-conditioned buses cost more. Buses numbered 1 to 1 00 are limited to travel within the city centre. Higher numbers have destinations in the suburbs. Tourists shouldnt miss the 103 bus which offers one of the most impressive routes, past the Forbidden City and the White Pagoda in Beihai Park. If you get on a double-decker bus, make sure you sit upstairs. Youll have a good view of the rapidly changing city. Most buses run from about 5:00 am to midnight. However, there is also a night bus service, provided by buses with a number in the 200s. Minibuses Minibuses with seats for 12 passengers offer an alternative to expensive taxis and crowded public transport in some areas. They run regular services and follow the same routes as large public buses. And in a minibus you always get a seat even in rush hours. Underground There are four underground lines in Beijing, and several lines are under construction.---------------------------------------------------------------最新资料推荐------------------------------------------------------ Trains are fast and convenient, but rush hours can be terrible.A one-way trip costs 3 yuan. Station names are marked in pinyin. The underground is open from 5:00 am to 11 :00 pm. Pedicabs Tourists like these human-pedalled tricycle taxis, but they can be expensive. You should talk to the driver, and make sure you know the price before you begin the journey, for example, if it is per person, single or return. Tricycles are worth using if you want to explore the narrow alleys (hutong) of old Beijing. The London Congestion Charge Beijing isnt the only city with traffic problems. You can get stuck in a traffic jam anywhere in the world. The worst problems occur in cities which are growing fast, such as Sao Paolo in Brazil and Lagos in Nigeria. But even cities in developed countries such as the US suffer. Los Angeles, which was built with the motor car in mind, and is famous for its six-lane highways, is now the USAs most congested city. In Europe most capital cities were planned and built before cars, and city centre traffic jams have been part of daily life for a long time. The situation in central London, where drivers spent fifty percent of their time in queues, became so bad that the local government decided to do something about it. In February 2003 the Mayor of London, Ken5 / 17Livingstone, introduced a congestion charge a tax for cars entering the centre of the city. The idea is simple: every car coming into the centre has to pay $5 a day. Drivers can pay the charge at any of 10,000 pay points in the capital before 10 pm. As the cars come into the centre, video cameras record their registration numbers, and these are checked with a list of drivers who have paid the charge for that day. People who do not pay the charge will face a fine of $80. Most Londoners are not happy with the idea. They agree that London has a traffic problem, but the congestion charge is expensive, and limits their freedom But does the congestion charge work? A survey carried out at the end of 2003 suggests it does. After only six months, traffic coming into central London was reduced by about 30 percent. More people used public transport to get to work, and bicycles were suddenly very popular. Whats more, central London shops did not lose business even though there were fewer cars. But there are a few people who think the charge should be much higher, for example rich businessmen who work in the city centre and can easily afford it. This would keep even more cars out of central London, and the roads would be nearly empty. However, there are no plans to increase the charge. Module 3 Body Language and Non-verbal Com m unication---------------------------------------------------------------最新资料推荐------------------------------------------------------If you say the word communication, most people think of wordsand sentences. Although these are very important, we communicate with more than just spoken and written words. Indeed, body positions are part of what we call body language.We see examples of unconscious body language very often, yet there is also learned body language, which varies from cultureto culture. We use learned body language when we are introduced to strangers. Like other animals, we are on guarduntil we know it is safe to relax. So every culture has developeda formal way to greet strangers, to show them we are not aggressive. Traditionally, Europeans and Americans shake hands. They do this with the right hand the strongest hand for most people. If our right hand is busy greeting someone, it cannotbe holding a weapon. So the gesture is saying, I trust you look,Im not carrying a threatening weapon. If you shake hands with someone, you show y trust them: we shake hands when we make a deal. It means, We agree and we trust each other. Greetings in Asian countries do not involve touching the other person, but they always involve the hands. Traditionally in China, when we greet someone, we put the right hand over theleft and bow slightly. Muslims give a salaam, where they touch7 / 17their heart, mouth and forehead. Hindus join their hands and bow their heads in respect. In all of these examples, the hands are busy with the greeting and cannot hold a weapon. Even today, when some people have very informal styles of greeting, they still use their hands as a gesture of trust. American youths often greet each other with the expression, Give me five! One person then holds up his hand, palm outwards and five fingers spread. The other person raises his hand and slaps the others open hand above the head in a high five. Nowadays, it is quite a common greeting. Body language is fascinating for anyone to study. People give away much more by their gestures than by their words. Look at your friends and family and see if you are a mind reader! Clapping Why do we clap? To show we like something, of course. But we dont clap at the end of a television programme or a book, however good they are. We clap at the end of a live performance, such as a play, or a concert, to say thank you to the performers. First they give, and then we give. Without us the audience the performance would not be complete. The custom of clapping has early beginnings. In classical Athens, applause meant judgement and taking part. Plays were often in competition with each other, and prolonged clapping helped a play to win. The theatre was---------------------------------------------------------------最新资料推荐------------------------------------------------------large it could hold 1 4,000 people, half the adult male population of the city, which meant that the audience could makea lot of noise. Applause was a sign of being part of the community, and of equality between actors and audience. The important thing was to make the noise together, to add ones own small handclap to others. Clapping is social, like laughter:you dont very often clap or laugh out loud alone. It is like laughter in another way, too: it is infectious, and spreads very quickly. Clapping at concerts and theatres is a universal habit.But some occasions on which people clap change from one countryto another. For example, in Britain people clap at wedding,but in Italy they sometimes clap at a funeral. Module 4 Great Scientists The Student Who Asked Questions In a hungry worldrice is a staple food and China is the worlds largest producer.Rice is also grown in many other Asian countries, and in some European countries like Italy. In the rice-growing world, the Chinese scientist, Yuan Longping, is a leading figure. Yuan Longping was born and brought up in China. As a boy he was educated in many schools and was given the nickname, the studentwho ask questions. From an early age he was interested in plants. He studied agriculture in college and as a young teacher9 / 17he began experiments in crop breeding. He thought that the key to feeding people was to have more rice and to produce it more quickly. He thought there was only one way to do this by crossing different species of rice plant, and then he could produce a new plant which could give a higher yield than either of the original plants. First Yuan Longping experimented with different types of rice. The results of his experiments were published in China in 1 966. then he began his search for a special type of rice plant. It had to be male. It had to be sterile. Finally, in 1 970 a naturally sterile male rice plant was discovered. This was the breakthrough. Researchers were brought in from all over China to develop the new system. The research was supported by the government. As a result of Yuan Longpings discoveries Chinese rice production rose by 47.5 percent in the 1 990s. There were other advantages too. 50 thousand square kilometers of rice fields were converted to growing vegetables and other cash crops. Following this, Yuan Longpings rice was exported to other countries, such as Pakistan and the Philippines. In Pakistan rice is the second most important crop after wheat and will be grown in many parts of the country. The new hybrid rice has been developed by the Yuan Longping High-tech Agricultural Company of China.---------------------------------------------------------------最新资料推荐------------------------------------------------------ Its yield is much greater than the yield of other types of rice grown in Pakistan. Rockets Today rockets are very advanced machines which we can use to send astronauts into space. They are also used in firework displays to celebrate great events, such as the end of the Olympic Games or the beginning of the new millennium in the year 2019. Rockets were probably invented by accident about 2,000 years ago. The Chinese had a form of gunpowder which was put in bamboo tubes and thrown into fires to make explosions during festivals. Perhaps some of the tubes jumped out of the fire instead of exploding in it. The Chinese discovered that the gas escaping from the tube could lift it into the air. The idea of the rocket was born. The first military use of rockets was in 1 232. The Song Dynasty was at war with the Mongols. During the battle of Kaifeng, the Song army shot arrows of flying fire. The tubes were attached to a long stick which helped keep the rocket moving in a straight direction. Soon the Mongols learned how to make rockets themselves and it is possible that they introduced them to Europe. Between the 13th and 1 5th centuries there were many rocket experiments in England, France and Italy. They were used for military purposes. One Italian scientist even invented a11 / 17rocket which could travel over the surface of water and hit an enemy ship. But not everybody wanted to use rockets in battles. Wan Hu, a Chinese government official, invented a flying chair. He attached two big kites to the chair, and 47 rockets to the kites. The rockets were lit, there was a huge explosion and clouds of thick smoke. When the smoke cleared WanHu and his chair had disappeared. No one knows what happened.Did Wan Hu die in the explosion? Or was he carried miles into space, becoming the worlds first astronaut? Module 5 A Trip Along the Three Gorges A Trip Along the Three Gorges In August1 996, Peter Hessler, a young American teacher of English, arrived in the town of Fuling on the Yangtze River. He and a colleague were to spend two years there teaching English at a teacher training college. They were the only foreigners in the town. The first semester finished at the end of January and theyhad four weeks off for the Spring Festival. They could go anywhere they wished. They decided to take a boat downstream. We decided to buy tickets for the Jiangyou boat. Our colleagues said, You shouldnt go on those ships. They are very crowded. They are mainly for goods and people trading along the river. They dont stop at the temples and there wont be any other foreigners. That sounded fine to me. We just had to show our---------------------------------------------------------------最新资料推荐------------------------------------------------------ passports and they let us get on the boat. We left the docks on a beautiful afternoon. The sun was shining brightly as we sailed downstream through a hilly region. Men rode bamboo rafts along the rivers edge and coal boats went past. As the sun set we docked at Fengdu. We could see the sun setting behind the white pagoda. It was beautiful. We slept through the first gorge, which is called the Qutang Gorge. The gorge narrows to 350 feet as the river rushes through the tow-mile-high mountains. Oh, well, my friend said, at least we have two more left. At Wushan we made a detour up the Daning River to see some of the smaller gorges. The next day we went through the ig gorges on the Yangtze River. It was a lovely morning as we went through the Wu Gorge. We passed the Xiang River, home of Qu Yuan, the 3rd century BC poet. There was so much history long the Yangtze River. Every rock looked like a person or animal, every stream that joined the great river carried its legends, every hill was heavy with the past. As we came out of the third gorge, the Xiling Gorge, we sailed into the construction site of the dam. All the passengers came on deck. We took pictures and pointed at the site, but we werent allowed to get off the boat. The Chinese flag was blowing in the wind.13 / 17On a distant mountain was a sign in 20-foot characters. Build the Three Gorges Dam, Exploit the Yangtze River, it said. Postcards to Myself In 50 years of travelling Colin McCorquodale has visited every country in the world, except three. And everywhere he goes, he sends himself a postcard with a beautiful view, and sticks on an interesting stamp. Usually he writes just a short message to himself. His latest one, from the Malvinas islands, reads Good fishing. On a wall in his home in London there is large map of the world. There are hundreds of little red pins stuck in it. its good to get a pin in the map, says Mr McCorquodale, but I follow the rules. Im allowed to stick one in only if Ive been in a place for more than 24 hours. Naturally, Mr McCorquodale has his favourite places. New Zealand he describes as wonderful. In Europe, Italy is a favourite place. Theres a saying in the travel trade that all tourists are ripped off. Well, at least the Italians rip you off with a smile. Of China he says, This is one country in the world which is completely different. Theres no European influence. Its been around for 6,000 years, yet its a country of the future. Wherever he goes, Mr McCorquodale takes with him a photo of his wife, a candle, a torch, a shirt with a secret pocket, and a pen for writing his---------------------------------------------------------------最新资料推荐------------------------------------------------------ postcards. So why does he do it? For the postcards or the travel? Mr McCorquodale laughs. I do it for the journey, he says.I get a kick out of traveling. And all the planning. Module6 Unexplained Mysteries of the Natural World The Monster of Lake Tianchi The Monster of Lake Tianchi in the Changbai Mountains in Jilin province, northeast China, is back in the news after several recent sightings. The director of a local tourist office, Meng Fanying, said the monster, which seemed to be black in colour, was ten metres from the edge of the lake during the most recent sighting. It jumped out of the water like a weal about 200 people on Changbais western peak saw it, he said. Although no one really got a clear look at the mysterious creature, Xue Junlin, a local photographer, claimed that its head looked like a horse. In another recent sighting, a group of soldiers claim they saw an animal moving on the surface of the water. The soldiers, who were walking along the side of the lake, watched the creature swimming for about two minutes. It was greenish-black and had a round head with 1 0-centimetre horns, one of the soldiers said. A third report came from Li Xiaohe, who was visiting the lake with his family. He claims to have seen a round black creature moving quickly through the15 / 17water. After three or four hundred metres it dived into the water. Ten minutes later the monster appeared again and repeated the action. Mr Li Xiaohe said that he and his familywere able to see the monster clearly because the weather wasfine and the lake was calm. There have been reports of monsters in Lake Tianchi since the beginning the of last century, although no one has seen one close up. Some photos have beentaken but they are not clear because it was too far away. Many people think the monster may be a distant cousin of the LochNess monster in Scotland. They also think that there might be similar creatures in other lakes around the world. Scientists, however, are skeptical. They say that the low-temperature lakeis unlikely to be able to support such large living creatures. Lake Tianchi is the highest volcanic lake in the world. It is2,1 89 metres high and covers an area of about ten square kilometers. In places it is more than 370 metres deep. The Universal Dragon Dragons can be friendly or fierce, they canbring good luck or cause death and destruction, but one thingis sure people talk about them almost everywhere in the world.For a creature that doesnt actually exist, thats quite something. In Chinese culture, dragons are generous and wise, although they can be unpredictable. The dragon was---------------------------------------------------------------最新资料推荐------------------------------------------------------ closely connected to the royal family: the emperors robes have a symbol of a gold dragon with five claws. Other members of the royal family were allowed to wear dragon symbols, too, but with fewer claws and of a different colour. According to popular belief, if you were born in the year of the dragon, you are intelligent, brave, and a natural leader. But in the west, dragons had a different reputation. The very first text in English, the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf, tells the story of a Scandinavian hero, Beowulf, who fights and kills a dangerous dragon but is himself killed in the fight. However, across the border in Wales, the red dragon which appears on the Welsh flag is a positive symbol, indicating strength and a sense of national identity. Why should the dragon have a different character in different parts of the world? Some experts believe it is due to the animals the myths grew out of. In the west, the idea of the dragon probably came from the snake an animal which people hated and were afraid of. But in China, the idea of the dragon may have come from the alligator a shy animal which lives in rivers, but which is usually only seen when there is plenty of water a good sign for agriculture. So the Chinese dragon was a bringer of good fortune.17 / 17。

Module 1 ReadingThe City of the FutureWhat will the city of the future look like? No one knowsfor sure， and making predictions is a risky business. But onething is certain—they are going to get bigger before they getsmaller。

In the future，care for the environment will become very important as earth’s natural resources run out. We will use lots of recycled materials， such as plastic， aluminium, steel, glass, wood and paper, and we will waste fewer natural resources. We will also have to rely more on alternative energy, such as solar and wind power。

All this seems certain, but there are plenty of things about city life in the future which are not certain.To find out what young people think about the future of urban life, a teacher at a university in Texas in the United States asked his students to think how they would run a city of 50,000 people in the year 2025。

高中英语课本必修四重点课文英汉对照高效辅导—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————Module 2 T raffic Jam——Getting Around in Beijing 行在北京T axis 出租车Taxis are on the streets 24 hours a day. 北京大街上的出租车时24小时服务的。

Simply raise your hand, and a taxi appears in no time.只要你招招手，立刻就有出租车。

They are usually red, and they dis play the price per kilometer on the window. 他们通常都是红色车身，并且在车窗上显示每公里的路价。

Y ou should check the cab has a business permit, and make sure you ask for a receipt.你要做的就是确定司机有营运执照并且索要发票。

Buses and trolleybuses 公交车和电车Public transport provides a cheap way to get around in Beijing. 公共交通为人们游览北京提供了低价位的出行方式。

There are 20,000 buses and trolleybuses in Beijing, but they can get very crowded. 北京大约有2万多辆公交车和电车。

It’s a good idea to avoid public transport during the rush hour (6:30 am – 8:00 am and 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm).但是，它们有时候会很挤，最明智的做法就是避免高峰期（上午6：30---8:00 下午5:00---6:30）乘坐公交车和电车。

Module 1未来的城市未来的城市将会是什么样子呢？没有人确切地了解，预测也是一件很冒险的事。

但有一件事是可以肯定的——它们将会先变大，然后再变小。

在未来，爱护环境将会很重要，因为地球的资源将濒临枯竭。

我们将会使用大量的可回收材料，例如，塑料、银、钢铁、玻璃、木头和纸。

我们浪费自然资源的程度将会有所减弱。

我们也将不得不更多地依赖其他能源。

例如，太阳能和风能。

所有的这些似乎是肯定的，但是还有许多关于城市生活的事情仍是未知的。

为了获知年轻人对未来城市生活的想法，美国得克萨斯州的一位大学老师让他的学生们思考如何管理一个在2025年拥有5万人口的城市，下面是他们的一些构想：垃圾船：为了摆脱垃圾问题的困扰，城市将会用巨型宇宙飞船装载废弃材料，朝太阳发射，这样做防止了垃圾填埋和环境问题。

勤务兵网：警察逮捕罪犯时，将会向罪犯射出网状物而不是用枪。

戒烟：在未来城市范围内将禁止吸烟。

只有在郊区和户外才允许吸烟。

告别商厦：将来所有的购物将会在网上进行，商品目录将会有语音指令来排序。

电话人生：每个人一出生就会给予一个电话号码，将来无论他们居住在哪儿，这个电话号码都不会更改。

娱乐：所有的娱乐形式，例如，电影院、保龄球、垒球、音乐会和其他等等都将由该市政府免费提供。

汽车：所有的汽车都将由电能、太阳能或风能提供动力，并且只要轻轻按一下开关就能够改变汽车的颜色。

远程手术：随着每个城市拥有自己的远程手术门诊部，医生将能在数千里以外实施手术，远程手术将会变得十分普通。

居家度假：年长的市民和残疾人通过使用绑在头上的髙新技术相机可以周游世界。

太空遨游：普通市民遨游太空将会变得很平常，每个城市都将有自己的太空港。

Module 2 行在北京出租车北京大街上的出租车是24小时服务的。

只要你招招手，立刻就会有出租车。

它们通常都是红色车身，并且在车窗上显示每公里的路价。

你要做的，就是确认司机有营运照，并且索要发票。

公交车和电车公共交通为人们游览北京提供了低价位的出行方式。

The City of the FutureWhat will the city of the future look like? No one knows for sure, and making predictions is a risky business. But one thing is certain-they are going to get bigger before they get smaller. In the future, care for the environment will become very important as earth’s natural resources run out. We will use lots of recycled materials, such as plastic, aluminum, steel, glass, wood and paper, and we will waste fewer natural resources. We will also have to rely more on alternative energy, such as solar and wind power. All this seems certain, but there are plenty of things about city life in the future which are not certain.To find out what young people think about the future of urban life, a teacher at a university in Texas in the United States asked his students to think how they would run a city of 50000 people in the year 2025. Here are some of the ideas they had:Garbage ships To get rid of garbage problems, the city will load huge spaceships with waste materials and send them towards the sun, preventing landfill and environmental problems.Batman Nets Police will arrest criminals by firing nets instead of guns.Forget the malls In the future all shopping will be done online, and catalogues will have voice commands to place orders.Telephones for life Everyone will be given a telephone number at birth that will never change no matter where they live.Recreation all forms of recreation, such as cinemas, bowling, softball, concerts and others, will be provided free of charge by the city.Cars All cars will be powered by electricity, solar energy or wind, and it will be possible to change the colour of cars at the flick of a switch.Telesurgery Distance surgery will become common as doctors carry out operations from thousands of miles away, with each city having its own telesurgery outpatient clinic.Holidays at home Senior citizens and people with disabilities will be able to go anywhere in the world using high-tech cameras attached to their head.Space travel Travelling in space by ordinary citizens will be common. Each city will have its own spaceport.Getting Around in BeijingTaxisTaxis are on the streets 24 hours a day. Simply raise your hand, and a taxi appears in no time. They are usually red, and they display the price per kilometer on the window. You should check the cab has a business permit, and make sure you ask for a receipt.Buses and trolleybusesPublic transport provides a cheap way to get around in Beijing . There are 20000 buses and trolleybuses in Beijing, but they can get very crowded. It’s a good idea to avoid public transport during the rush hour. Fares are cheap, staring at 1 yuan. Air-conditioned buses cost more.Buses numbered 1 to 100 are limited to travel within the city centre. Higher numbers have destinations in the suburbs. Tourists shouldn’t miss the 103 bus which offers one of the most impressive routes, past the Forbidden City and the White Pagoda in Beihai Park. If you get on a double-decker bus, make sure you sit upstairs. You’ll have a good view of the rapidly changing city.Most buses run from about 5:00 am to midnight. However, there is also a night bus service, provided by buses with a number in the 200s.MinibusesMinibuses with seats for 12 passengers offer an alternative to expensive taxis and crowded public transport in some areas. They run regular services and follow the same routes as large public buses. And in a minibus you always get a seat even in rush hours.UndergroundThere are four underground lines in Beijing, and several lines are under construction. Trains are fast and convenient, but rush hours can be terrible. A one-way trip costs 3 yuan. Station names are marked in pinyin. The underground is open from 5:00 am to 11:00 pm.PedicabsTourists like these human-pedalled “tricycle taxis”, but they can be expensive. You should talk to the driver, and make sure you know the price before you begin the journey, for example, if it is per person, single or return. Tricycles are worth using if you want to explore the narrow alleys (hutong) of old Beijing.Body Language and Non-verbal CommunicationIf you say the word “communication”, most people think of words and sentences. Although these are very important, we communicate with more than just spoken and written words. Indeed, body positions are part of what we call “body language”. We see examples of unconscious body language very often, yet there is also “learned”body language, which varies from culture to culture.We use “learned” body language when we are introduced to strangers. Like other animals, we are on guard until we know it is safe to relax. So every culture has developed a formal way to greet strangers, to show them we are not aggressive. Traditionally, Europeans and Americans shake hands. They do this with the right hand—the strongest hand for most people. If our right hand is busy greeting someone, it cannot be holding a weapon. So the gesture is saying, “I trust you. Look , I’m not carrying a threatening weapon.” If you shake hands with someone, you show you trust them. We shake hands when we make a deal. It means, “We agree and we trust each other.”Greetings in Asian countries do not involve touching the other person, but they always involve the hands. Traditionally in China, when we greet someone, we put the right hand over the left and bow slightly. Muslims give a “salaam”, where they touch their heart, mouth and forehead. Hindus join their hands and bow their heads in respect. In all of these examples, the hands are busy with the greeting and cannot hold a weapon.Even today, when some people have very informal styles of greeting, they still use their hands as a gesture of trust. American youths often greet each other with the expression, “Give me five!” One person then holds up his hand, palm outwards and five fingers spread. The other person raises his fingers spread. The other person raises his hand and slaps the other’s open hand above the head in a “high five”. Nowadays, it is quite a common greeting.Body language is fascinating for anyone to study. People give away much more by their gestures than by their words. Look at your friends and family and see if you are a mind reader!The Student Who Asked QuestionsIn a hungry world rice is a staple food and China is the world’s largest producer. Rice is also grown in many other Asian countries, and in some European countries like Italy. In the rice-growing world, the Chinese scientist, Y uan Longping, is a leading figure.Yuan Longping was born and brought up in China. As a boy he was educated in many schools and was given the nickname, “the student who asks questions”.From an early age he was interested in plants. He studied agriculture in college and as a young teacher he began experiments in crop breeding. He thought that the key to feeding people was to have more rice and to produce it more quickly. He thought there was only one way to do this—by crossing different species of rice plant, and then he could produce a new plant which could give a higher yield than either of the original plants.First Yuan Longping experimented with different types of rice. The results of his experiments were published in China in 1966. then he began his search for a special type of rice plant. It had to be male. It had to be sterile. Finally, in 1970 a naturally sterile male rice plant was discovered. This was the breakthrough. Researchers were brought in from all over China to develop the new system. the research was supported by the government.As a result of Yuan Longping’s discoveries Chinese rice production rose by 47.5 percent in the 1990’s. There were other advantages too. 50 thousand square kilometres of rice fields were converted to growing vegetables and other countries, such as Pakistan and the Philippines.In Pakistan rice is the second most important crop after wheat and will be grown in many parts of the country. Thenew hybrid rice has been developed by the Yuan Longping Hightech Agricultural Company of China. Its yield is much greater than the yield of other types of rice grown in Pakistan.A Trip Along the Three GorgesIn August 1996, Peter Hessler, a young American teacher of English, arrived in the town of Fuling on the Yangtze River. He and a colleague were to spend two years there teaching English at a teacher training college. They were the only foreigners in the town. The first semester finished at the end of January and they had four weeks off for the Spring Festival. They could go anywhere they wished. They decided to take a boat downstream.We decided to buy tickets for the Jiangyou boat. Our colleagues said, “You shouldn’t go on those ships. They are very crowded. They are mainly for goods and people trading along the river. They don’t stop at the temples and there won’t be any other foreigners.” That sounded fine to me. We just had to show our passports and they let us get on the boat.We left the docks on a beautiful afternoon. The sun was shining brightly as we sailed downstream through a hilly region. Men rode a bamboo rafts along the river’s edge and coal boats went past. As the sun setting behind the white pagoda. It was beautiful.We slept through the first gorge, which is called the Qutang Gorge. The gorge narrows to 350 feet as the river rushes through the two-mile –high mountains. “Oh,well,” my friend said, “at least we have two more left.”At Wushan we made a detour up the Daning River to see some of the smaller gorges. The next day we went through the big gorges on the Yangtze River,home of Qu Yuan, the 3rd century BC poet. There was so much history along the Yangtze River. Every rock looked like a person or animal, every stream that joined the great river carried its legends, every hill was heavy with the past.As we came out of the third gorge, the Xiling Gorge, we sailed into the construction site of the dam. All the passengers came on deck. We took pictures and pointed at the site, but we weren’t allowed to get off the boat. The Chinese flag was blowing in the wind. In a distant mountain was a sign in 20-foot characters. “Build the Three Gorges Dam, Exploit the Yangtze River,” It said.The Monster of Lake TianchiThe “Monster of Lake Tianchi” in the Changbai Mountains in Jilin province, northeast China , is back in the news after several recent sightings. The director of a local tourist office, ,Meng Fanying, said the monster, which seemed to be black in colour, was ten metres from the edge of the lake during the most recent sighting. “Tt jumped out of the water like a seal—about 200 people on Changbai’s western peak saw it,” he said, Although no one really got a clear look at the mysterious creature, Xue Junlin, a local photographer, claimed that its head looked like a horse.In another recent sighting, a group of soldiers claim they saw an animal moving on the surface of the water. The soldiers, who were walking along the side of the lake, watched the creature swimming for about two minutes. “It was greenish—black and had a round head with 10—centimetre horns”, one of the soldiers said.A third report came from Li Xiaohe, who was visiting the lake with his family. He claims to have seen a round black creature moving quickly through the water. After three or four hundred meters it dived into the water. Ten minutes later the monster appeared again and repeated the action. Mr Li Xiaohe said that he and his family were able to see the monster clearly because the weather was fine and the lake was calm.There have been reports of monsters in Lake Tianchi since the beginning of the last century, although no one has seen one close up. Some photos have been taken but they are not clear because it was too far away. Many people think the monster may be a distant cousin of the Loch Ness monster in Scotland. They also think that there might be similar creatures in other lakes around the world. Scientists, however, are skeptical. They say that the low-temperature lake is unlikely to be able to support such large living creatures.Lake Tianchi is the highest volcanic lake in the world. It is 2189 metres high and covers an area of about ten square kilometres. In places it is more than 370 metres deep.。

外研版高中英语必修4module4课文翻译（带要点）第一篇：外研版高中英语必修4 module 4 课文翻译(带要点) 高中英语课本必修四重点课文英汉对照高效辅导—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————Module 4 Great Scientists-The Student Who Asked Questions问问题的学生In a hungry world rice is a staple food and China is the world’s largest producer.在当前的世界，水稻是主要食粮。

中国是世界上最大的水稻产地。

Rice is also grown in many other Asian countries, and in some European countries like Italy.亚洲其他国家和一些欧洲国家比如意大利等，都种植水稻。

In the rice-growing world, the Chinese scientist, Yuan Longping, is a leading figure.在水稻种植界，中国科学家袁隆平是一位重要人士。

Yuan Longping was born and brought up in China.As a boy he was educated in many schools and was given the nickname, “the student who ask questions”.袁隆平生长在中国。

小时候，他在愈多学校读过书，得了个“问问题的学生”的绰号。

From an early age he was interested in plants.袁隆平从小就对植物感兴趣。

He studied agriculture in college and as a young teacher he began experiments in crop breeding.他在大学里研究农学。

必修四module 1一、重点词组：1.for sure确定，肯定地sure enough果然，的的确确to be sure诚然be sure that从句/of/about sth./doing sth./to domake sure 弄清楚，查明白make sure of/about sth./that从句be sure of/about或be sure that的主语是人，表示主语对某事有把握，确信be sure to do主语可以使人也可以是物，表示说话人的推测一定，必然会，而非主语的推测，不能用it is sure that----句型，但可以用it is certain that----句型2.run out用完，用光，give out不及物动词短语，主语通常表示时间、金钱、食物、耐心、精力等名词run out of用完，use up及物动词短语，表主动含义，主语为人。

run after追赶，追求run into sb./sth.遇到/撞上某人/某物run for竞选run across偶然遇见，发现run away逃走run around/round到处跑in the long run从长远来看3.rely on sb.to do sth.指望/相信某人做某事rely on sb./sth. for---指望某人/某物---以获得---rely on it that---相信---，指望---depend on sb.to do sth.依靠别人做某事depend on sb. for sth.指望某人做某事4.plenty of许多，大量的既可以修饰可数名词复数，修饰不可数名词，通常用于肯定句，在否定句和疑问句中常用enougha large amount of+不可数名词+单数large amounts of+不可数名词+复数quantities of复数a lot of /lots of/plenty of+可数名词复数+复数/不可数名词+单数many/a great/good many /a large number of+可数名词复数+复数much/ a great deal of+不可数名词+单数5.think about考虑think of想起think highly of赞赏think badly of认为---不好think much of对---评价很高think nothing of把---视为平常think of ---as认为---是think over 仔细考虑think aloud自言自语6.get rid of摆脱，除去rid ---of---使---摆脱--- break awayfron,free---from—7.be loaded with充满，装满，负担有---a load of/loads of很多，许多take a load off one’s mind解除某人的思想负担，使某人如释重负8.prevent/discourage /stop/keep---from doing 阻止---做---protect---from/against保护---免受--- save---from---使---免遭--- 9.beyond/over the limit超出限度within/without limits适度地；有节制地，无节制地set a limit of对---规定限度limit---to---把---限制在---内be limited to局限于---10.c ommand ab. to do sth.命令某人做某事command that---(should)do命令---have a good command of对---运用自如，精通at one’scommand听某人的吩咐in/under the command of sb.由某人控制/指挥in command of控制，指挥take command of 开始指挥，控制11.f ree of charge免费in charge of负责，掌管，照料（人）in the chargeof由---管理（物）take charge of掌管，控制，负责charge---for---对---收费---charge sb. some money for sb.因某事/某物收某人钱charge sb. with sth./accuse sb. of sth.因某事控告某人12.take power掌权come to/into power得势in power掌权的，执政的out of power下台，丧失权力beyond /out of one’s power，某人不能胜任13.a t the flick of轻轻一按at the sight of一看到----at the thought of一想到14.s witch on 打开，接通switch off关掉，关上switch over转换，交换位置15.b e attached to附属于，依恋attach ----to----将---系在或附在----attach importance to重视，认为----重要attach oneself to sb.参加，和---在一起attach to sb./sth.与---有联系on attachment受派遣16.l ook out小心，注意look ahead向前看，为将来打算look back回顾look down upon鄙视，看不起look forward to期待look into观察，调查look on观看，旁观look over检查，查看look through仔细检查look up 仰视，查阅look up to赞赏，尊敬look out for警惕17.g et stuck围住，陷入---之中get lost迷路get drunk喝醉get engaged订婚get dressed穿衣get changed换衣服get tired of厌倦get used to习惯于get pleased感到满意get surprised感到吃惊18.r ead through仔细核对，认真通读get through结束，完成，接通电话go through经历，遭受think through想透talk through仔细讨论，彻底讨论see through识破，看透pass through经过，路过put through接通电话break through突破live through渡过，经历过cut through从---穿过19.f or a start/ to start with首先，第一from start to finish从头到尾witha start猛地，吃惊地from the start从开始at the very start一开始20.o n the way out即将被淘汰，即将过时all the way自始至终by way of经过by the way顺便说一下in a/one/some way在某种程度上in no way绝不in the way妨碍make one’s way前往，行进under way在进行中give way让步，屈服on one’s way to在某人去---的途中21.i n progress在进行中make progress取得进展，进步make progresstowards朝着---前进22.i n shape在形状中stay in shape保持体型in the shape of呈---的形状in good shape体型好out of shape变形，走样in any shape/form 以任何形式shape---into---把---做成---形状be shaped like形状像take shape形成，初具规模23.g et away from避免，离开，逃离get away with做某事不受惩罚getacross使被理解get down to开始着手做get over克服get through 通过，完成，接通电话24.l oad sb./sth. with让某人拿东西，用---装---load sth. into/onto sth.把---装载到---里面be loaded with充满---，装满---a load of/loads of很多，许多take a load off one’s mind使某人如释重负二、语法：1.表目的：to do /in order to do/so as to do(不用于句首)in orderthat/so that后面的句子多含有情态动词2.将来进行时shall/will be doing表示将来某一时间正在进行的动作，现在正在进行的动作，但这个动作会延续到将来，表示预定的将来的动作或对将来的预测与将来时的区别；表将来意义的现在进行时表示一种事先经过考虑的、将来要发生的动作，而将来进行时通常表示在一般情况下会发生的动作eg.i am visiting the adviser tomorrow. I will be visiting the adviser tomorrow.现在进行时必须有确定的时间3.一般将来时的用法：be+to do表示该动作来自约定、协议或要求、命令4.not与all,both，every以及由every构成的不定代词连用时，无论not在句子中什么位置都表示部分否定，不都，并非都；完全否定用neither，none，no one或nobody5.too---to do sth.太---而不能做某事too---to---和never,not等否定副词连用，表示无论---也不过分，越---越好6.there’s no alternative---别无选择an alternative to---的替代品,别无选择只好做某事have no alternative but to do sth./have no choice but to do sth./can’t help but do/can’t choose but do sth./can donothing but do7.with+宾语+doing，with+宾语+done,with+宾语+to do三、词义辨析：1.provide提供物品或信息，supply提供物品offer主动提供物品或帮助2.charge费用，要价，尤指给予服务后索要的费用，充电，指控，负责，掌管cost原价，成本，包括对某物所付出的一切费用及时间、劳动等的代价price价格指商品出售时所定的价钱expense费用，花费常用复数，尤指大量的花费支出3.power侧重于职权、权力或动力energy人的精力或自然界的能量strength人的力气或物的强度force武力或军事力量4.blame责备charge起诉，控诉，和with搭配accuse控诉，和of搭配scold斥责5.eventually最后，终于definitely确定地，无疑地predict预言，预料optimistic乐观的risky危险的，冒险的limited有限的urban城市的flick 轻打，轻弹module 2一、重点词组1.get around四处走动，消息传开(get round,get about) get on/alongwith与人相处，事情进展get across被理解，使通过get down记下，写下get in收获，插话get off下车，出发get out of摆脱，从----中出来get over恢复健康，克服get away with做错事而未被惩罚get away摆脱，脱身get through打通电话，完成get down to着手做2.be connected to强调实际的连接be connected with事物之间的联系have something to do with与---有关系be related to beconnected by由---连接3.in no time马上，一会儿at the same time同时in time及时，迟早on time准时at no time（倒装）从不，决不at a time每次，一次at one time曾经，一度ahead of time提前all the time一直at times 有时from time to time偶尔kill time打发时间take one’s time别着急，慢慢来4.impress sth. on/upon sb.使某人意识到某事be impressed by/with留下深刻印象impress sth. on one’s mind让某人牢记某事/某物have a good/bad impression on sb.给某人留下一个好的/坏的印象5.under repair在修理中under discussion在讨论中under way在进行中under construction正在建设中under consideration在考虑中under attack遭受攻击under examination在检查或调查中under study在研究中under +n.表示进行、被动=进行时的被动语态6.in progress在进行中in action在运转in sight看得见in store贮藏着7.on fire在燃烧on trial在试用on display/on show/on exhibition在展出8.be convenient to do sth.做某事很方便convenient stores便利店atone’s convenience在某人方便的时候for convenience为方便起见（不能以人为主语It is convenient for/to sb. to do sth.;when it isconvenient to/for you）9.be worth +n.值----只能接表示钱数或代价、价值等词；doing值得做（主动表被动）be worthy后接of being done和to be done,不能接表示钱数的词10.i n the point of sb.在某人看来have a good/high opinion of=thinkmuch/highly of对---评价好/高have a bad/low opinion of=thinkbadly/little of be against one’s opinion反对某人的观点11.r eact to产生反应；回应react on/upon对---给予反应，影响，起作用react with发生化学反应react against反抗，对抗reaction to对---的反应12.t he answer/reply to----的答案the entrance to-----的入口thedamage to,the letter to,the key to—的答案the access to—的通道/机会the approach to----的途径/方法13.i n a -----mood有----的心情be/feel in the mood for sth.有意做某事，有做某事的心情be in no mood for sth./to do sth.不想做某事，没心情做某事14.k eep out of使---不进入keep out挡住，不让进来keep away远离keep on继续keep back忍住，隐瞒keep to遵守，信守keep off使远离，避免吃某物keep up持续不变，熬夜，维持keep up with跟上15.a sk for permission请求许可without permission未经许可with sb.’spermission在某人许可的情况下16.p rovide sth. for sb.=provide sb. with sth.向某人提供某物provide for赡养，养活provide against预防，防备provided/providing that---假如---，倘若---17.b e trapped in/be caught in被困在---stick to遵守，坚持stick out伸出，突出18.T here is a limit to---是有限度的within the limits of---在---范围之内without limit无限地over/beyond the limit超量，超出限度set a limit to---对---规定限度limit---to---把---限定在---19.b eyond compare无可比拟beyond description难以形容beyonddoubt 毫无疑问beyond suspicion无可怀疑20.s tick sth. on把---贴在---上stick sth. into把---插入stick up for支持，为---辩护二、语法1.第二人称祈使句表示向对方提出请求、命令，主语一般不用，加强语气在动词原形前+do；否定祈使句，在谓语动词前加donot/don’t/never;let’s,let sb.+动词原形，祈使句可以是第三人称，必须表示出来，为了明确指出向谁发出命令或提出要求等委婉的祈使句：why not+v. would you mind+doingwill/would/can/could you please+v.祈使句为肯定句，反义疑问句可以用won’t；否定句，will you let’s，shall we祈使句，祈使句，请求，命令或建议；主语是you 常省去，动词原形开头记。

Module 1 ReadingThe City of the FutureWhat will the city of the future look like? No one knowsfor sure, and making predictions is a risky business. But onething is certain—they are going to get bigger before they getsmaller. In the future, care for the environment will becomevery important as earth's natural resources run out. We will use lots of recycled materials, such as plastic, aluminium, steel, glass, wood and paper, and we will waste fewer natural resources. We will also have to rely more on alternative energy, such as solar and wind power. All this seems certain, but there are plenty of things about city life in the future which are not certain.To find out what young people think about the future of urban life, a teacher at a university in Texas in the United States asked his students to think how they would run a city of 50,000 people in the year 2025. Here are some of the ideasthey had:Garbage ships To get rid of garbage problems, the city willload huge spaceships with waste materials and send them towardsthe sun, preventing landfill and environmental problems.Batman Nets Police will arrest criminals by firing nets instead of guns.Forget smoking No smoking will be allowed within a future city's limits. Smoking will be possible only outside cities, and outdoors.Forget the malls In the future all shopping will be done online, and catalogues will have voice commands to place orders.Telephones for life Everyone will be given a telephone number at birth that will never change no matter where they live.Recreation All forms of recreation, such as cinemas, bowling, softball, concerts and others, will be provided free of charge by the city.Cars All cars will be powered by electricity, solar energy or wind, and it will be possible to change the colour of cars at the flick of a switch.Telesurgery Distance surgery will become common as doctors carry out operations from thousands of miles away, with each city having its own telesurgery outpatient clinic.Holidays at home Senior citizens and people with disabilities will be able to go anywhere in the world using high-tech cameras attached to their head.Space travel Travelling in space by ordinary citizens will be common. Each city will have its own spaceport.Cultural CornerFamous Last WordsNot all predictions come true. Many of them are wrong, and some are very wrong. Here are just a few of the bad predictions people made in the twentieth century about the twenty-first century:AIRPLANES"No flying machine will ever fly from New York to Paris."Orville Wright, 1908. COMPUTERS"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers."Thomas Waston, chairman of IBM, 1943.CLOTHES"Thirty years from now people will be wearing clothes made of paper which they will be able to throw away after wearing them two or three times."Changing Times Magazine, 1957. MEN ON THE MOON"With the first moon colonies predicted for the 1970's, work is now in progress on the types of building required for men to stay in when they're on the moon."Arnold B. Barach in The Changes to Come, 1962. THE BEATLES"We don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out."Decca Recording Co. rejecting the Beatles, 1962. ROBOTS IN THE HOUSE"By the year 2000, housewives will probably have a robot shaped like a box with one large eye on the top, several arms and hands, and long narrow pads on the side for moving about."New York Times, 1966.KEYS"By the mid-1980's no one will ever need to hide a keyunder the doormat again, because there won't be anykeys."Computer scientist Christopher Evans,The Micro Millennium, 1979.Module 2 ReadingGetting Around in BeijingTaxisTaxis are on the streets 24 hours a day. Simply raise yourhand, and a taxi appears in no time. They are usually red, andthey display the price per kilometre on the window. Youshould check the cab has a business permit, and make sure you ask for a receipt.Buses and trolleybusesPublic transport provides a cheap way to get around in Beijing. There are 20,000 buses and trolleybuses in Beijing, but they can get very crowded. It's a good idea to avoid public transport during the rush hour (6:30 a.m.–8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.–6:30 p.m.). Fares are cheap, starting at 1 yuan. Air-conditioned buses cost more.Buses numbered 1 to 100 are limited to travel within the city centre. Higher numbers have destinations in the suburbs. Tourists shouldn't miss the 103 bus which offers one of the most impressive routes, past the Forbidden City and the White Pagoda in Beihai Park. If you get on a double-decker bus, make sure you sit upstairs. You'll have a good view of the rapidly changing city.Most buses run from about 5:00 a.m. to midnight. However, there is also a night bus service, provided by buses with a number in the 200s.MinibusesMinibuses with seats for 12 passengers offer an alternative to expensive taxis and crowded public transport in some areas. They run regular services and follow the same routes as large public buses. And in a minibus you always get a seat even in rush hours. UndergroundThere are four underground lines in Beijing, and several lines are under construction. Trains are fast and convenient, but rush hours can be terrible. A one-way trip costs 3 yuan. Station names are marked in pinyin. The underground is open from 5:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.PedicabsTourists like these human-pedalled "tricycle taxis", but they can be expensive. You should talk to the driver, and make sure you know the price before you begin the journey, for example, if it is per person, single or return. Tricycles are worth using if you want to explore the narrow alleys (hutong) of old Beijing.Cultural CornerThe London Congestion ChargeBeijing isn't the only city with traffic problems. You can get stuck in a traffic jam anywhere in the world. The worst problems occur in cities which are growing fast, such as Sao Paolo in Brazil and Lagos in Nigeria. But even cities in developed countries such as the US suffer. Los Angeles, which was built with the motor car in mind, and is famous for its six-lane highways, is now theUSA's most congested city.In Europe most capital cities were planned and builtbefore cars, and city centre traffic jams have been part ofdaily life for a long time. The situation in central London,where drivers spent fifty percent of their time in queues, became so bad that the localgovernment decided to do something about it. In February 2003 the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, introduced a "congestion charge"—a tax for cars entering the centre of the city.The idea is simple: every car coming into the centre has to pay £5 a day. Drivers can pay the charge at any of 10,000 pay points in the capital before 10 p.m. As the cars come into the centre, video cameras record their registration numbers, and these are checked with a list of drivers who have paid the charge for that day. People who do not pay the charge will face a fine of £80.Most Londoners are not happy with the idea. They agree that London has a traffic problem, but the congestion charge is expensive, and limits their freedom ...But does the congestion charge work? A survey carried out at the end of 2003 suggests it does. After only six months, traffic coming into central London was reduced by about 30 percent, and journey times by 15 percent. More people used public transport to get to work, and bicycles were suddenly very popular. What's more, central London shops did not lose business even though there were fewer cars.But there are a few people who think the charge should be much higher, for example rich businessmen who work in the city centre and can easily afford it. This would keep even more cars out of central London, and the roads would be nearly empty. However, there are no plans to increase the charge.Module 3 ReadingGreetings Around the WorldIf you say the word "communication", most people thinkof words and sentences. Although these are very important,we communicate with more than just spoken and writtenwords. Indeed, body positions are part of what we call "body language". We see examples of unconscious body language very often, yet there is also "learned" body language, which varies from culture to culture.We use "learned" body language when we are introduced to strangers. Like other animals, we are on guard until we know it is safe to relax. So every culture has developed a formal way to greet strangers, to show them we are not aggressive. Traditionally, Europeans and Americans shake hands. They do this with the right hand—the strongest hand for most people. If our right hand is busy greeting someone, it cannot be holding a weapon. So the gesture is saying, "I trust you. Look, I'm not carrying a threatening weapon." If you shake hands with someone, you show you trust them. We shake hands when we make a deal. It means, "We agree and we trust each other."Greetings in Asian countries do not involve touching the other person, but they always involve the hands. Traditionally in China, when we greet someone, we put the right hand over the left and bow slightly. Muslims give a "salaam", where they touch their heart, mouth and forehead. Hindus join their hands and bow their heads in respect. In all of these examples, the hands are busy with the greeting and cannot hold a weapon.Even today, when some people have very informal styles of greeting, they still use their hands as a gesture of trust. American youths often greet each other with the expression, "Give me five!" One person then holds up his hand, palm outwards and five fingers spread. The other person raises his hand and slaps the other's open hand above the head in a "high five". Nowadays, it is quite a common greeting.Body language is fascinating for anyone to study. People give away much more by their gestures than by their words. Look at your friends and family and see if you are a mind reader!Cultural CornerClappingWhy do we clap? To show we like something, of course. But we don't clap at the end of a television programme or a book, however good they are. We clap at the end of a live performance, such as a play, or a concert, to say thank you to the performers. First they give, and then we give. Without us—the audience—the performance would not be complete.The custom of clapping has early beginnings. In classical Athens, applause meant judgement and taking part. Plays were often in competition with each other, and prolonged clapping helped a play to win. The theatre was large—it could hold 14,000 people, half the adult male population of the city, which meant that the audience could make a lot of noise.Applause was a sign of being part of the community, andof equality between actors and audience. The important thingwas to make the noise together, to add one's own smallhandclap to others. Clapping is social, like laughter: you don'tvery often clap or laugh out loud alone. It is like laughter inanother way, too: it is infectious, and spreads very quickly. Clapping at concerts and theatres is a universal habit. But some occasions on which people clap change from one country to another. For example, in Britain people clap at a wedding, but in Italy they sometimes clap at a funeral.Module 4 ReadingThe Student Who Asked QuestionsIn a hungry world rice is a staple food and China is theworld's largest producer. Rice is also grown in many otherAsian countries, and in some European countries like Italy. Inthe rice-growing world, the Chinese scientist, Yuan Longping,is a leading figure.Yuan Longping was born and brought up in China. As a boy he was educated in many schools and was given the nickname, "the student who asks questions".From an early age he was interested in plants. He studied agriculture in college and as a young teacher he began experiments in crop breeding. He thought that the key to feeding people was to have more rice and to produce it more quickly. He thought there was only one way to do this—by crossing different species of rice plant, and then he could produce a new plant which could give a higher yield than either of the original plants.First Yuan Longping experimented with different types of rice. The results of his experiments were published in China in 1966. Then he began his search for a special type of rice plant. It had to be male. It had to be sterile. Finally, in 1970 a naturally sterile male rice plant was discovered. This was the breakthrough. Researchers were brought in from all over China to develop the new system. The research was supported by the government.As a result of Yuan Longping's discoveries Chinese rice production rose by 47.5 percent in the 1990's. There were other advantages too. 50 thousand square kilometres of rice fields were converted to growing vegetables and other cash crops. Following this, Yuan Longping's rice was exported to other countries, such as Pakistan and the Philippines.In Pakistan rice is the second most important crop after wheat and will be grown in many parts of the country. The new hybrid rice has been developed by the YuanLongping Hightech Agricultural Company of China. Its yield is much greater than the yield of other types of rice grown in Pakistan.Cultural CornerRocketsToday rockets are very advanced machines which we can use to send astronauts into space. They are also used in firework displays to celebrate great events, such as the end of the Olympic Games or the beginning of the new millennium in the year 2000.Rockets were probably invented by accident about 2,000 years ago. The Chinese had a form of gunpowder which was put in bamboo tubes and thrown into fires to make explosions during festivals. Perhaps some of the tubes jumped out of the fire instead of exploding in it. The Chinese discovered that the gas escaping from the tube could lift it into the air. The idea of the rocket was born.The first military use of rockets was in 1232. The Song Dynasty was at war with the Mongols. During the battle of Kaifeng, the Song army shot "arrows of flying fire". The tubes were attached to a long stick which helped keep the rocket moving in a straight direction. Soon the Mongols learned how to make rockets themselves and it is possible that they introduced them to Europe. Between the 13th and 15th centuries there were many rocket experiments in England, France and Italy. They were used for military purposes. One Italian scientist even invented a rocket which could travel over the surface of water and hit an enemy ship.But not everybody wanted to use rockets in battles. Wan Hu, a Chinese government official, invented a flying chair. He attached two big kites to the chair, and 47 rockets to the kites. The rockets were lit, there was a huge explosion and clouds of thick smoke. When the smoke cleared Wan Hu and his chair had disappeared. No oneknows what happened. Did Wan Hu die in the explosion? Or was he carried miles into space, becoming the world's first astronaut?Module 5 ReadingA Trip Along the Three GorgesIn August 1996, Peter Hessler, a young American teacher of English, arrived in the town of Fuling on the Yangtze River. He and a colleague were to spend two years there teaching English at a teacher training college. They were the only foreigners in the town. The first semester finished at the end of January and they had four weeks off for the Spring Festival. They could go anywhere they wished. They decided to take a boat downstream.We decided to buy tickets for the Jiangyou boat. Our colleagues said, "You shouldn't go on those ships. They are very crowded. They are mainly for goods and people trading along the river. They don't stop at the temples and there won't be any other foreigners." That sounded fine to me. We just had to show our passports and they let us get on the boat.We left the docks on a beautiful afternoon. The sun was shining brightly as we sailed downstream through a hilly region. Men rode bamboo rafts along the river's edge and coal boats went past. As the sun set we docked at Fengdu. We could see the sun setting behind the white pagoda. It was beautiful.We slept through the first gorge, which is called the Qutang Gorge. The gorge narrows to 350 feet as the river rushes through the two-mile-high mountains. "Oh, well," my friend said, "at least we have two more left."At Wushan we made a detour up the Daning River to see some of the smaller gorges. The next day we went through the big gorges on the Yangtze River. It was a lovely morning as we went through the Wu Gorge. We passed the Xiang River, home of Qu Yuan, the 3rd century BC poet. There was so much history along the Yangtze River. Every rock looked like a person or animal, every stream that joined the great river carried its legends, every hill was heavy with the past.As we came out of the third gorge, the Xiling Gorge, we sailed into the construction site of the dam. All the passengers came on deck. We took pictures and pointed at the site, but we weren't allowed to get off the boat. The Chinese flag was blowing in the wind. On a distant mountain was a sign in 20-foot characters. "Build the Three Gorges Dam, Exploit the Yangtze River," it said.Cultural CornerPostcards to MyselfIn 50 years of travelling Colin McCorquodale has visitedevery country in the world, except three. And everywhere hegoes, he sends himself a postcard. He always chooses apostcard with a beautiful view, and sticks on an interestingstamp. Usually he writes just a short message to himself. Hislatest one, from the Malvinas islands, reads Good fishing.On a wall in his home in London there is a large map of the world. There are hundreds of little red pins stuck in it. "It's good to get a pin in the map," says Mr McCorquodale, "but I follow the rules. I'm allowed to stick one in only if I've been in a place for more than 24 hours." Naturally, Mr McCorquodale has his favourite places. New Zealand he describes as "wonderful". In Europe, Italy is a favourite place. "There's a saying in the travel trade that all tourists are ripped off. Well, at least the Italians rip you off with a smile." Of China he says,"This is one country in the world which is completely different. There's no European influence. It's been around for 6,000 years, yet it's a country of the future."Wherever he goes, Mr McCorquodale takes with him aphoto of his wife, a candle, a torch, a shirt with a secretpocket, and a pen for writing his postcards.So why does he do it? For the postcards or the travel? MrMcCorquodale laughs. "I do it for the journey," he says. "Iget a kick out of travelling. And all the planning."Module 6 ReadingThe Monster of Lake TianchiThe "Monster of Lake Tianchi" in the Changbai Mountains in Jilin province, northeast China, is back in the news after several recent sightings. The director of alocal tourist office, Meng Fanying, said the monster, which seemed to be black in colour, was ten metres from the edge of the lake during the most recent sighting. "It jumped out of the water like a seal—about 200 people on Changbai's western peak saw it," he said. Although no one really got a clear look at the mysterious creature, Xue Junlin, a local photographer, claimed that its head looked like a horse.In another recent sighting, a group of soldiers claim theysaw an animal moving on the surface of the water. Thesoldiers, who were walking along the side of the lake,watched the creature swimming for about two minutes. "Itwas greenish-black and had a round head with 10-centimetrehorns", one of the soldiers said.A third report came from Li Xiaohe, who was visiting the lake with his family. He claims to have seen a round black creature moving quickly through the water. After three or four hundred metres it dived into the water. Ten minutes later the monster appeared again and repeated the action. Mr Li Xiaohe said that he and his family were able to see the monster clearly because the weather was fine and the lake was calm.There have been reports of monsters in Lake Tianchi since the beginning of the last century, although no one has seen one close up. Some photos have been taken but they are not clear because it was too far away. Many people think the monster may be a distant cousin of the Loch Ness monster in Scotland. They also think that there might be similar creatures in other lakes around the world. Scientists, however, are sceptical. They say that the low-temperature lake is unlikely to be able to support such large living creatures.Lake Tianchi is the highest volcanic lake in the world. It is 2,189 metres high and covers an area of about ten square kilometres. In places it is more than 370 metres deep.Cultural CornerThe Universal DragonDragons can be friendly or fierce, they can bring goodluck or cause death and destruction, but one thing is sure—people talk about them almost everywhere in the world. For acreature that doesn't actually exist, that's quite something.In Chinese culture, dragons are generous and wise, although they can be unpredictable. The dragon was closely connected to the royal family: the emperor's robes have a symbol of a gold dragon with five claws. Other members of the royal family were allowed to wear dragon symbols, too, but with fewer claws and of a different colour. According to popular belief, if you were born in the year of the dragon, you are intelligent, brave, and a natural leader.But in the west, dragons had a different reputation. The very first text in English, the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf, tells the story of a Scandinavian hero, Beowulf, who fights and kills a dangerous dragon but is himself killed in the fight. However, across the border in Wales, the red dragon which appears on the Welsh flag is a positivesymbol, indicating strength and a sense of national identity.Why should the dragon have a different character indifferent parts of the world? Some experts believe it is due tothe animals the myths grew out of. In the west, the idea of thedragon probably came from the snake—an animal which people hated and were afraid of.But in China, the idea of the dragon may have come from the alligator—a shy animal which lives in rivers, but which is usually only seen when there is plenty of water—a good sign for agriculture. So the Chinese dragon was a bringer of good fortune.。