现代大学英语听力2 原文及答案

Unit 1

Task 1

【答案】

A.

1) She wanted to see St. Paul’s Cathedral.

2) She was so surprised because she saw so many Englishmen who looked alike.

3) They were all wearing dark suits and bowler hats, carrying umbrellas and newspapers.

4) Because she had often read about them and seen photographs of them, who all looked as if they were wearing a uniform.

5) No, he didn’t.

6) He used the English saying “It takes all kinds to make a world” to prove his opinion.

B.

If all the seas were one sea, what a great sea it would be! And if all the trees were one tree, what a great tree it would be! And if this tree were to fall in the sea, what a great splash there would be!

【原文】

Yesterday morning Gretel went to the City of London. She wanted to see St. Paul's Cathedral. She was surprised to see so many Englishmen who looked alike. They were all wearing dark suits and bowler hats. They were all carrying umbrellas and newspapers. When she returned home she asked Mr clark about these strange creatures. "They must be typical English gentlemen," she said." I have often read about them and seen photographs of them. They all look as if they are wearing a uniform. Does the typical English gentleman still exist?"

Mr. Clark laughed. "I've never thought about it," he answered." It's true that many of the men who work in the City of London still wear bowler hate and I suppose they are typical Englishmen. But look at this." Mr. Clark picked up a magazine and pointed at a photo of a young man. "He's just as typical, perhaps. It seems as if there is no such thing as a 'typical' Englishman. Do you know the English saying 'It takes all kinds to make a world'? That's true of all countries-including England."

“Oh, just like the poem ‘If All the Seas Were One Sea’,” Gretel began to hum happily. If all the seas were one sea, what a great sea that would be! If all the trees were one tree, what a great tree that would be! And if this tree were to fall in the sea, w hat a great splash that would be!”

Task 2

【答案】

A.

1) people were much busier

2) colder than England; minus thirty degrees; last longer

3) much more mountainous; much higher and much more rocky; more beautiful

4) tend to be more crowded

5) the houses; smaller

B.

1) T 2) T 3) F 4) F 5) F

【原文】

John is British but has worked in Japan. Etsuko is Japanese from Osaka, but she is studying in Britain. In the following passage you are going to hear, they are comparing life as they see it in the two countries. But before listening to it, think of the two countries and try to answer the following pre-listening questions.

John: I found that living in Japan, people were busier. They seem to work the whole day.

Etsuko: Yes, that’s right. We work from Monday through Saturday, even in summer. You know, summer in Japan is just horrible. It’s very, very humid and hot, and you need to shower three times a day.

John: So you find it cooler in England?

Etsuko: Yes, that’s right.

John: Where I was living in Japan, in the North, it was much colder than England, especially in winter, minus thirty degrees centigrade. Does the winter in Osaka last longer than the winter in England?

Etsuko: No, I don’t think so. December, January, February, March.

John: Yes. It’s a little bit shorter if anything.

Etsuko: Ever since I came here, I noticed that the countryside here in England is very beautiful.

John: It’s much flatter than in Japan.

Etsuko: Yes. Japan is a mountainous country and our cities are full of people. There are lots of people in a limited flat area.

John: Yes, I found Japan much more mountainous than Britain, especially in the north. The mountains are much higher and much more rocky. I found it more beautiful than Britain, I think.

Etsuko: Yes, if you like mountains.

John: And therefore the towns and villages tend to be more crowded.

Etsuko: Yes, that’s right.

John: Yes. So because the cities are more crowded, the houses tend to be smaller, don’t they?

Etsuko: Yes, they are very compact, and we don’t have a lot of space. In big cities we have a lot of taller buildings now.

John: Is this a problem because there are more earthquakes in Japan?

Etsuko: Yes, that’s right and…

Task 3

【答案】

A.

1) In the US, people usually dance just to enjoy themselves; they don’t invite other people to watch them.

2)Usually eight people dance together.

3)Because people form a square in dancing with a man and a woman on each side of

the square.

4) He usually makes it into a song.

5) They wear old-fashioned clothes.

B.

1) F 2) T 3) F 4) F 5) T

C.

1) eight people form a square; on each side of the square

2) what they should do; makes it into a song; sings it

3) don’t have much time to think

4) old-fashioned clothes

【原文】

Rosa: Why don’t you have folk dances in the United States? Most countries have special dances that the people have done for many years. The dancers wear clothes from the old days. Everyone likes to watch them dance.

Steve: We have folk dances, too. A lot of people belong to folk dancing groups. But when they dance, they usually do it just to enjoy themselves. They don’t invite other people to watch them.

Rosa: Is there a folk dancing group here?

Steve: I think so. There must be. There’s one in almost every city, and some big cities have several.

Rosa: What are the dances like?

Steve: Usually eight people dance together, four men and four women. When they start, they form a square, with a man and a woman on each side of the square. That’s why it’s called square dancing.Then there’s a man who tells the dancers what they should do. He usually makes it into a song. He sings it while they dance.

Rosa: Oh, that should make the dances easy!

Steve: Yes, but they are very fast. They don’t have much time to think. I like to watch them, though. The dancers wear old-fashioned clothes. That makes the dances pretty to watch.

Rosa: I’d like to watch a group dance.

Steve: I’ll take you sometime.

Task 4

【答案】

1) It was a time to celebrate the end of winter and the beginning of spring.

2) They burned the picture of their kitchen god to bring good luck.

3) The custom said the brides must wear “something old, something new, something

borrowed, and something blue” to bring good luck.

4)Because they could not eat meat, eggs or dairy products during Lent, so they

tried to use up these things before Lent began.

5)It was a straw man made by children in Czech; it was a figure of death.

6)People brought their animals to church. And before the animals went into the

church people dressed them up in flowers and ribbons.

【原文】

1) On the evening of February 3rd, people in Japanese families took one dried bean for each year of their age and threw the beans on the floor, shouting "Good luck in! Evil spirits out!" This was known as "Setsubun", a time to celebrate the end of winter and the beginning of spring.

2) Before the Chinese Lunar New Year in the old days, many Chinese families burned the picture of their kitchen god to bring good luck. When Lunar New Year's Day came, they put ancw picture of the kitchen god on the wall.

3) When American women got married, they sometimes followed an old custom in choosing what to wear on their wedding day. The custom said the bride must wear "something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue". This was to bring good luck.

4) Before Lent (a time on the Christian calendar), the people of Ponti, Italy ate an omelet made with 1,000 eggs. People could not eat meat, eggs or dairy products during Lent, so they tried to use up these things before Lent began.

5) When winter ended in Czech, the children made a straw man called "Smrt", which was a figure of death. They burned it or threw it in the river. After they destroyed it, they carried flowers home to show the arrival of spring.

6) January 17th was St. Anthony's Day in Mexico. It was a day when people brought their animals to church. But before the animals went into the church, the people dressed them up in flowers and ribbons. This ceremony was to protect people's animals.

Task 5

【答案】

A.

1) F 2) T 3) F 4) T 5) F 6) T 7) T

B.

【原文】

Man: Well, I think life used to be much more fun than it is now. I mean, look at the Victorians. They had lots of servants to do all the work; they never had to do any cooking or cleaning; they just wore those beautiful dresses and went to tea parties.

Woman: You must be joking! Their clothes were terribly uncomfortable and their tea parties were very formal and boring. They used to wear their hats and long

gloves even when they were eating cakes and biscuits. And men were not usually invited.

Man: Really? Weren't they?

Woman: And think of the poor servants. What a terrible life — just cleaning and cooking for other people all the time!

Man: But you hate housework!

Woman: Yes, I know, but there are lots of machines now to help you with the housework.

People don't need servants.

Man: Maybe they don't, but life then was much slower than it is now-people nowadays are always rushing, and they never have time to stop and enjoy themselves. Woman: Life then was fine for the rich, but it was dreadful for the poor. There was much more illness. They didn't have the money to pay doctors, and they often used to die of illnesses that don't exist in England now.

Man: Maybe. But people used to talk to each other, play the piano or play cards together. Nowadays people just sit in front of the television for hours and never talk to each other.

Woman: I agree with you about television; but what about their children? They left their Children with the servants all day. Children hardly ever saw their parents! And the clothes they had to wear! Horrible, tight, uncomfortable, grown-up clothes. Children have a much better life now than they used to, and schools and education are much better too.

Man: I hate school.

Woman: And look at opportunities for women. In those days, women used to stay at home, play the piano, change their clothes several times a day and have tea parties. What a life! They didn't have any freedom at all. I'm very happy living now. I can work, have a career, do what I want to.

Man: You mean you can work hard all your life like a Victorian servant. Woman: Life isn't all tea parties, you know.

Task 6

【答案】

A.

1) b 2) a 3) c 4) a

B.

1) family unit; process; change; used to be; the extended; the nuclear

2) job patterns; progressed; agricultural; industrial; forced; job opportunities; split up

3) traditional; family; expanded; other living arrangements

C.

1) mother, father, children, and some other relatives, such as grandparents, living in the same house or nearby

2)only the parents and the children

3)previously married men and women marry again and combine the children from former

marriages into a new family

【原文】

The American family unit is in the process of change. There used to be mainly two types of

families: the extended and the nuclear. The extended family most often included mother, father, children, and some other relatives, such as grandparents, living in the same house or nearby. Then as job patterns changed and the economy progressed from agricultural to industrial, people were forced to move to different parts of the country for job opportunities. These moves split up the extended family. The nuclear family became more prevalent; this consisted of only the parents and the children. Now besides these two types of traditional groupings, the word "family" is being expanded to include a variety of other living arrangements.

Today's family can be made up of diverse combinations. With the divorce rate nearly one in two, there is an increase in single parent homes: a father or mother living with one or more children. "Blended families" occur when previously married men and women marry again and combine the children from former marriages into a new family. On the other hand, some couples are deciding not to have any children at all, so there is an increase in childless families. There are also more people who live alone: single, widowed, divorced. Now one in five Americans lives alone.

Task 7

【答案】

A.

B.

1) c 2) c 3) a 4) b 5) c 6) c 7) c

【原文】

In Japan both men and women go to university and both men and women study the

arts such as history or English. But very few women study science, medicine or engineering. In engineering classes of thirty or forty students, there may be only one or two women. Men and women both go to university in order to get good jobs: men want to work for a big company, be successful, earn a lot of money and support a family; women, on the other hand, want to work for a big company because they have a better chance of meeting a successful man and getting married. This is changing, however, as Japanese women begin to think about their own careers. They have began to take jobs which they like rather than jobs in order to find a husband.

Men work for their whole lives and usually stay with the same company. A woman may work up to ten years, but after that she usually gets married. Most women are married by the age of twenty seven, then they stay at home and look after the children.

A man does not cook or look after the children. When he comes home, his meal must be ready. The woman may go out in the afternoon, shopping with her friends or having a chat, but she must go back home by four o'clock to prepare the meal. Then she may have to wait a long time for her husband to come home. Often he has to go out for a drink after work: if he doesn't he may not rise very high in the company. After her children grow up, a woman can go back to work, but it is not easy. If her former company takes older women back, she might be lucky. But most women find it difficult to find a job when they are older.

Task 8

【答案】

A.

1) a 2) c 3) b 4) c 5) c 6) b 7) c 8) b

B.

1) T 2) T 3) F 4) F 5) T 6) F 7) F 8) F 9) T 10) F

【原文】

Matthew: Geth, how do people set about getting married in England?

Geth: I suppose the most common way is still for people to go home. For example, people who live in London now will go back to their homes in the provinces where they'll meet all their relatives and their parents, and they'll get married in a church, with the bride wearing white, the traditional white.

Then they'll go off and have a booze-up with their relatives and friends and a jolly good time will be had by all. Otherwise you can get married in

a registry office, which means you turn up with your bride-to-be or

bridegroom-to-be with two witnesses only. The ceremony takes about five

minutes, I suppose. You sign the form and that's it.

Matthew: There are many today who say that marriage is a complete waste of time.

What's your view of marriage in the twentieth century?

Goth: Well, I live in London as you know. I think in London, the tendency is to...

for a... boy and girl, man or woman to live together before marriage and often to live together without any prospect of marriage at all. I think this probably is... is true of London and the other big cities than elsewhere, because after all people in London are living in a big place where home ties

are obviously less restrictive. They can do more or less as they please and

I think this is the pattern.

Matthew: But do you think it helps for people to live together before taking their vows?

Geth: I think in a sense the habit of living together before marriage may, in

a strange sort of way, make marriage stronger, because after all the people

will know each other better when they do get married and it might be suggested that divorce would be less likely between such a couple.

Matthew: Sue, you've been married for two or three years now. How's it working out? Sue: I think it's a successful marriage. It's... I mean, it's difficult to say why, because we basically suit each other very much. We have a good friendship, apart from anything else, and, you know, we just go together very well because we respect each other's freedom and individuality, but on the other hand we really need each other, you know, it's... Matthew: What about.., have you thought of having children?

Sue: Well, obviously, like most young couples, we have thought about it, but, you know, we both feel rather, sort of, loath to lose our freedom just yet.

I think we'll probably wait another few years.

Matthew: Is it easy in England today to people to get divorced, or is that quite difficult?

Chris: I think technically it's probably fairly easy, I think, because I'm not English but, I think technically it's fairly easy to be... to get divorced.

But it's not just the technicality of it which is the problem. Divorce is...

is a social stigma which people can probably Cope with to varying degrees, but it's also a lot easier for the man because the woman, after she is divorced is, in fact, frowned upon by... by a lot of people in society. She is... is...

at a... a much more difficult social position in terms of... of meeting other men, or whatever, simply because she is a divorcee.

Task 9

【原文】

Social customs and ways of behaving change. But they do not necessarily always change for the better. Things which were considered impolite many years ago are now acceptable. Just a few years ago, it was considered impolite behaviour for a man to smoke on the street. No man who thought of himself as being a gentleman would make a fool of himself by smoking when a lady was in the room.

The important thing to remember about social customs is not to do anything that might make other people feel uncomfortable — especially if they are your guests. There is a story about a rich nobleman who had a very formal dinner party. When the food was served, one of the guests started to eat his peas with a knife. Other guests were amused or shocked, but the nobleman calmly picked up his knife and began eating in the same way. It would have been bad manners to make his guest feel foolish or uncomfortable.

Unit 2

Task 1

【答案】

1) b 2) a 3) d

【原文】

Texas was the biggest state before Alaska became the forty-ninth state in 1959. One good way to understand the size of Texas is to learn about its weather. Different parts of the state have very different kinds of weather.

Laredo is one of the hottest cities in the United States in summer. The best time to visit Laredo is in winter, when it is pleasantly warm.

Amarillo gets very cold in winter. Sometimes there is more snow in Amarillo than in New York, which is a northern city. Summers are better, but sometimes it gets quite hot. The best time to visit Amarillo is in the autumn when it is cool.

If anyone asks you about the weather in Texas, ask him, “What part of Texas do you mean？”

Task 2

【答案】

A.

1)T 2) F 3) F

B.

1) d 2) c 3) c

C.

climate, reputation, extraordinary, unreliable, dry, wet, clear, dull, hot, cold, bad, mild

【原文】

Our friend, Nick, whose English gets better and better, declared solemnly the other day that he thought that the British climate was wonderful, but the British weather was terrible. He went on to explain by pointing out that the British climate was a temperate one. This meant, he said, "that you could always be certain that the weather would never be extreme —at any rate not for any length of time —never very hot and never very cold." He quite rightly pointed out that the rainfall in Britain, according to the statistics, was not very heavy. "Why then," he asked, "has the British climate such a bad reputation?" He answered by saying it was because of the extraordinary, unreliable weather. There was no part of the year at which you could be certain that the weather would be dry or wet, clear or dull, hot or cold. A bad day in July could be as cold as a mild day in January. Indeed you could feel cold at almost any time of the year. Nick blamed drafty British houses for this, but agreed you could also blame the small amount of sunshine and a great amount of dampness. He advised every student coming to Britain to bring an umbrella and to understand the meaning of that splendid word "drizzle".

Task 3

【答案】

the country; Trees, grass, lakes and steams

II.

A.

1. concrete, iron, steel

2. take in the heat during the day and throw off heat into the air at night

B. Warmer winters, car engines; electrical appliance

Ⅲ.

A. air pollution may stop sunlight from reaching the earth

B.

1. Ice near the North and South poles to melt

2. to be slowly flooded and people living in these cities to move to higher land 【原文】

Cities change the climate around you. In the country, there are trees, grass, lakes, and streams. In hot weather, the trees and grass cool the area around them. Lakes and rivers also cool the area around them.

But cities are not cooled in these natural ways. Cities are built of asphalt, concrete, iron, and

steel. There are few trees and usually not much grass. Rain falls onto the streets and into the sewers.

When the summer sun shines, streets and buildings take in the heat; after the sun sets, the streets and buildings throw off heat into the street. Once the sun sets, the countryside cools off, but a city may stay hot all night.

Cities are hotter than the countryside in winter, too. Standing near a car with its motor running, winter or summer, you will feel the heat thrown off by the engine. The heat comes from the gasoline burned by the engine. This heat warms the air and the ground around the car. Thousands of running cars are almost like thousands of small fires burning.

Carefully put your hand near a light bulb or television set. As you can see, electricity creates a lot of heat. This heat from electricity warms the house and the outside air.

The heat given off by cities can affect the climate. Some experts even believe that cities can change the climate of the whole world. They think that air pollution may stop sunlight from reaching the earth. If less sunshine reaches the earth, the earth may become cooler.

Still other experts think the world will get warmer. If the world did get warmer, great changes would occur. Ice near the North and South poles would melt. This would make the oceans rise. Cities near oceans — like Los Angeles, Boston, and Miami —would slowly be flooded. People living in these cities would have to move to higher land.

Task 4

【答案】

A.

1) b 2) c

B. night, delight; morning, warning; gray, way, red, head

C.

1) F 2) T 3) F

【原文】

A red sky at either dusk or dawn is one of the spectacular and beautiful weather predictors we have in nature. By closely observing this phenomenon, you can achieve short-range accuracy of the weather as good as, or better than your local weatherman. In the Bible, Jesus in Matthew 16, 2-3 is quoted as saying, “When it is evening, it will be fair weather: for the sky is red. And in the morning it will be foul weather today: for the sky is red” when speaking to the Pharisees. An old English weather proverb based on this passage is:

Red sky at night, sailors delight.

Red sky at morning, sailors take warning.

Or

Evening red and morning gray,

Sends the traveler on his way.

Evening gray, morning red,

Brings the rain down on his head.

At dusk, a red sky indicates that dry weather is on the way. This is due to the sun shining through dust particles being pushed ahead of a high pressure system bringing in dry air. A red sky in the morning is due to the sun again shining through dust. In this case however, the dust is being pushed on by an approaching low reassure system bringing in moisture. Don't confuse a red sky in the morning with a red sun in the morning. If the sun itself is red and the sky is a normal color, the day will be fair.

Task 5

【答案】

1) c 2) b 3) d 4) c 5) c

【原文】

Mark: I am an avid fly fisherman and frequently find myself on the river in a raft during lightning storms. We always have a debate at these

times on where we are safest —pulling into shore or staying on the

water. Since I have heard one is safe in a car when lightning strikes

I wonder if the raft floating on the water is insulated, and therefore

the safest place to be.

Meteorologist A: We spoke with some scientists about your question, and they all agreed that under no circumstances should you remain on the water

during a lightning storm. If your raft is made of rubber, you might

feel that you're .well insulated, but don't kid yourself. Typical

lightning flashes travel 10 to 15 kilometers and can deliver as much

as 100,000 amps of current. In comparison, a toaster uses about 10

amps of current. If lightning strikes the water near you, it will

have no trouble traveling through a few extra centimeters of rubber. Meteorologist B: So, if you're on the water and a thunderstorm approaches, get to

the shore and seek shelter on land. Try a building or car. If neither

is available, look for a cave, cliff, wall, or a group of trees. Never

take shelter under an isolated tree-it's also a good target for

lightning.

Task 6

【答案】A.

1) F 2) T 3) F 4) T 5) F 6) T

B.

Incredible, one minute, one kilometer, destroyed, lifted up, carried away, killed, injured

【原文】

Every spring and summer many inland areas are hit by tornados. A tornado is a kind of storm. It's a revolving, funnel-shaped column of air that moves through the sky at very high speeds. A tornado looks like a huge, black ice cream cone whirling through the sky. The speed of a tornado is very fast-it is believed to be between 200 and 700 kilometers per hour.

Tornados form under very special weather conditions, and these special weather conditions occur most often in inland areas, such as the central United States. A tornado forms when a layer of warm, dry air is on top of a layer of cooler, moist air. This combination of dry, warm air above wet, cool air creates a condition that causes the lower layer of air to lift up. As the lower air rises, both layers of air begin to rotate, to turn around and around. The air begins to rotate faster and faster because of centrifugal force. The tornado has a center called an “eye” and the air rotates quickly around this eye.

As the air begins to rotate faster and faster, the tornado cloud begins to grow downward; that is, it begins to form a funnel or cone, and this cone goes down toward the ground.

The cone of air is dark because it develops from a dark rain cloud. As the cloud gets longer, as the cloud gets closer to the ground, it begins to pull up dirt from the ground. Then the funnel of

rotating air becomes very dark because of the dirt in it. As the tornado funnel gets longer, it begins to drag along the ground.

When the tornado touches the ground, it does incredible damage. It usually touches the ground for only about one minute, and it usually travels along the ground for only about one kilometer, but during that one minute, buildings are destroyed, trees are lifted up out of the ground, small objects are carried away, and sometimes people are injured or killed.

Task 7

【答案】

A.

1) b 2) a 3) b

B.

1) It has been nice weather during the day, but it is going to change at night.

2) Fine weather in southern Europe and not so nice in northern Europe

For today

Southeast England---26 degrees Celsius by mid-afternoon

Southern Scotland---Maximum temperatures of around 21 degrees

Brighton---15 hours of lovely sunshine

Midlands---23 degrees Celsius by early afternoon

Northwest of Scotland---Light showers around midday

For the weekend

Spain---34 degrees Celsius

Greece---32 degrees Celsius

France---Cloudy with rain, maximum temperatures of 22 degrees

Northern Ireland---Heavy rain, 17 degrees Celsius

Most of England---Cloudy but mainly dry with sunny periods, 23 degrees Celsius 【原文】

Radio Announcer: You’re listening to Radio Metro. It’s two minutes to nine, and time for the latest weather for cast from Dan Francis at the London Weather Centre. Francis: Hello. It's been another warm and fine day for most of us. Temperatures in southeast England reached 26 degrees Celsius by mid-afternoon, and Brighton had 15 hours of lovely sunshine. Further north it was a little cooler with maximum temperatures of around 21 degrees in southern Scotland, and in the far northwest of Scotland there were some light showers around midday. But the rest of the country, as I said, has been warm and dry with temperatures in the Midlands reaching 23 degrees Celsius by early afternoon though it was a little cooler along the west coast and in Northern Ireland. But already the weather is beginning to change, I'm afraid, and during the night showers will slowly move in from the Atlantic to reach south-west England and the southern coast of Wales by early morning.

The rest of the country will have a very mild, dry night with minimum temperatures no lower than 15 degrees in the south, a little cooler — 11degrees or so —in the north. Any remaining showers in northwest Scotland will pass quickly to leave a mild, dry night there too.

And now the outlook for Friday and the weekend. Well, southern Europe will, once again, get the best of the weekend weather, and if your holiday starts this weekend, then southern Spain is the place to go, with temperatures of 34 degrees along the Mediterranean coast. At the eastern end of the Med, too, you can expect uninterrupted sunshine and temperatures of up to 32 degrees Celsius in Greece and southeast Italy, but further north the weather's not so settled. Much of France, Belgium and the Netherlands will be cloudy with occasional rain, and maximum temperatures will be around 22 degrees — very disappointing for this time of the year.

Scotland and Northern Ireland will have heavy rain for much of the weekend and temperatures will drop to a cool 17 degrees. Across most of England the weather will be cloudy but mainly dry with sunny periods. And when the sun does come out, temperatures could rise to a maximum of 23 degrees.

Task 8

【答案】

【原文】

As the air pressure around you either rises or falls, many changes in nature occur. Most of these are very obvious changes while others are of a more subtle nature.

Mountains and other far away objects will appear to be much closer and more sharply focused as wet weather approaches and the air pressure drops. The dust particles in the air begin to settle to the ground and the air clears, allowing you to see more details of faraway objects. As a high pressure front approaches and the air becomes “thicker,” more dust particles become suspended in air and things take on their normal somewhat hazy appearance.

“Sharp horns on the moon threaten bad weather.” This and a bright, clear moo n are good indicators that wet weather is on the way. As the air clears of dust particles ahead of a low pressure system, the moon appears to come closer and be more sharply focused due to the lack of dust.

Sound also becomes sharper and more focused prior to stormy weather. Instead of traveling upward and outward into the atmosphere sound waves are bent back to the earth and their range extended. Bird calls sound sharper, and, at my house, we can hear the blowing of the train horn as it rumbles through the valley below.

If you find yourself out in a marsh or swamp and the air really seems to stink more than normal, expect rainy weather. This happens when the pressure drops and the methane trapped on the bottom of the swamp is released in greater quantities. In reverse, as fair weather approaches and the pressure rises, things won't smell quite so strong.

Birds and bats have a tendency to fly much lower to the ground right before a rain due to the “thinning” of the air. They prefer to fly where the air is the most dense and they can get greater lift with their wings. With high pressure and

dry air, the atmosphere becomes denser and they can easily fly at higher altitudes.

Smoke rising straight into the air means fair weather and smoke hanging low means rain is on the way. This is pretty much the same as with the birds and methane in the swamp. When high pressure approaches, smoke will rise whereas with low pressure it can't rise and tends to lay low.

Remember a grandparent talking about how their corns, bunions, or joints ached right before a rain? Again, this is due to the decreasing atmospheric pressure allowing the gas in our bodies to expand.

Task 9

【答案】

A. Statements 3, 6, 7 are true.

B.

f—c—a—d—b—e

C.

1) F 2) T 3) F 4) F

D.

1) d 2) b

【原文】

It was 1974. Richard Nixon was still president. Kidnapped heiress Patty Hearst was still missing. In Xenia, a pretty spot of 25,000 people amid fields of soybeans and corn, American Graffiti was held over at the Cinema. The Xenia Hotel offered a chicken and dumpling dinner for $2.25, but everyone flocked to the A&W drive-in for burgers and root beer floats. That's where five of the bodies were found after the storm.

In all, 33 people died in Xenia's tornado, the deadliest of 148 storms that raged through 13 states during the infamous "Super Outbreak'' of tornadoes April 3 to 4, 1974. In 16 hours and 10 minutes, 330 people were killed and nearly 5,550 were injured from Illinois to Georgia.

Though the Xenia death toll has been matched by other killer storms, the degree of devastation makes the city's tornado among U.S. history's most destructive. The storm still is studied in colleges by aspiring meteorologists, a textbook case of a rare Category F-5, the most intense of tornadoes.

On that fateful day, I was a young boy of 8 years old. We lived in the Arrowhead Subdivision. That afternoon I was around the corner playing with some neighbor kids.

I thought I could hear my father calling me, so I ran back to the house. Thinking back now, there is no way I would have been able to hear him. I was too far away for a voice to have traveled in the afternoon noise. Besides, Dad had a very bad case of tonsillitis that day. Like I was saying, I went back home and got through the door just in time to answer the ringing phone. On the other end of the phone was my Mother. Mom was working. She told me she heard a bad storm was on the way. She told me to make sure the garage door was shut and to stay inside. After I hung up the phone, I settled down to watch The Dennis Show. To this day I can vividly remember the electricity going out. I looked out the large window in the living room and didn't have a clue as to what I was looking at.

Dad was asleep on the couch, so I woke him up to look. Dad looked and said to get into the bathroom. We sat on the floor. Dad had his back to the door and his feet pushing against the wall opposite the door. I remember that as soon as we sat down, the windows broke. Glass blew under the door, and the sound was tremendous.

I know it really didn’t take too long for the tornado to go past, but I do remember the conversation we had in the process. I could feel the cool air rushing under the floor through the crawlspace vents. I asked if we were flying. He said he wasn't sure, but he didn't think we were. He said the house was tearing apart. I asked him how he knew. He said he just knew it was.

When things calmed down, we opened the door. The odd feeling I had, looking up the street from inside what once was my hallway, is still with me today.

I think back often to that day. I think back and wonder what would have happened if my Dad hadn't been sick that day. Like a lot of kids, I stayed home by myself after school back then. I seriously doubt I would be able to tell you my story, if I had been alone that day. I still live in Xenia and wouldn’t trade this town for any other.

Task 10

【原文】

Undoubtedly, Tibet is one of the harshest places for human existence. It is cool in summer but freezing cold in winter. In Lhasa, the mildest city temperature may exceed 29C in summer while plummeting to -16C in winter! Sun radiation is extremely strong in Tibet. The sunlight in Lhasa is so intense that the city is called Sunlight City. The thin air can neither block off nor retain heat so that the temperature extremes can be met in daytime and the same night respectively in Tibet. However it is not impossible to visit the holy snow land. April to October is the best time to visit Tibet, out of the coldest months, which are from December to February usually. The average temperature in north Tibet is subzero and winter arrives in October until the following May or June. July and August are the best time to visit the area, enjoying warm temperature, intense sunshine, beautiful scenery and festive events. May, June and September is the tourist season in east Tibet. In winter, roads are all blocked by heavy snow. Landslides and rock falls frequently occur, which will make travel difficult.

Unit 3

Task 1

【答案】

A.

1) Stress on the job costs American companies as much as $150 billion a year in lower productivity, unnecessary employee sick leave, and higher medical costs.

2) The most stressful professions are those that involve danger and extreme pressure and those that carry a lot of responsibility without much control.

3) The best way to deal with stress is through relaxation, but sometimes the only answer is to fight back or walk away.

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