ÈÕÖ¾
´óѧӢÓï3 further listening
|
Uint1
VI. Further Listening and Speaking
Task1: The Role Memory Plays in Our Life
Script
Since memory plays a significant role
in our life, scrientists are increasingly interested in research on how to
improver memory, Here are some factors they believe to be important to
expanding memory capacity.
To begin with, you must take special
care in your daily life. Food for example, is very important. Some vitamins are
essential foe your memory to work properly. They are found in bread, cereal, vegetables
and fruits. Some experts say that synthesizes vitamins improve memory, but
others have doubts about this, arguing that the studies have not confirmed they
do work. Another essential factor is water. It helps to maintain the memory
systems, especially in older persons. According to Dr. Roswell, lack of water
in the body has an immediate and strong effect on memory; it can cause
confusion and other thought difficulties. Sleep also plays a significant role.
To be able to have a goof memory, we must allow the brain to have plenty of
rest. While sleeping, the brain no longer controls the senses, and starts to revise
and store the information one has receives. Lack of sleep would make one feel
exhausted and would weaken one¡¯s ability to concentrate. Also, one¡¯ ability to
store information would be affected.
1.
What is the passage
mainly about?
2.
Why are foods
important in promoting memory according to the passage?
3.
To whom is water
especially important in maintaining the memory system?
4.
What problem can a
lack of water cause?
5.
Why is sleep
important to memory?
Keys: 1.A 2.B 3.D 4.D 5.C
Task 2: Where did the professor go?
Script
This is a true
story, while happened to friends of ours in a small town in South Africa. They
were a hospitable couple who often entertained
their neighbors for drinks, tea or dinner. On this particular
spring night, they have invited a retired
professor to super. During the evening, it began to pour
with rain, and the heavens really opened. Because
he had walked there, they offered to put him up for the night. They pointed out
that by staying overnight, he did not need to go to
out in the bad weather. He agreed on the soundness of that idea,
thanked his hosts profusely, and the matter seemed to be settled. But while they
were washing the dishes after supper, the forgetful
professor disappeared. No one could find him anywhere. Eventually,
after40 minutes, the front door bell rang. There was the professor, soaked to the
skin. When he was asked what on earth he has been dong in the rain, he replied
that because he was going to stay there overnight,
he had gone home to get his pajamas and toothbrush.
Task3: How to Remember Names
Script
You just called the TV
repair shop, and the voice on the other end of the line tells you, ¡°This is Don
Smith¡±.
About 5 minutes later you
tell your wife that ¡°this guy¡±will be out to fix the TV in the morning. You can¡¯t
think of his mane although you know he mentioned it on the phone.
This happens all the time
to just about any of us unless we have learned to concentrate and implant a
name in our memory, right at the time we hear it. To do this, you must make a
habit of repeating the name back to the person. This action will remind you to
store the name in your ¡°memory bank¡± each time you hear someone¡¯s name, and
within a short time the ¡°repeating¡± process can be discontinued
When you meet someone in
person, use the same procedure, and in addition, visualize something different,
unusual or ridiculous about hid or her appearance, position, or actions that ¡°ties
in ¡°with his or her name. Later, you may write the descriptive information on one
side of a card and the name in the other side. Look at it repeatedly, see the ¡°picture¡±
in your mind¡¯s eye as you look at the
name; or when you see he name, visualize the ¡°picture¡± you have assigned to the
name.
Getting this system to work
will require changes in your thinking, and it may take several days or several
weeks to become proficient.
Uint2
VI. Further Listening and Speaking
Task1: The Role Memory Plays in Our Life
Script
Since memory plays a significant role
in our life, scrientists are increasingly interested in research on how to
improver memory, Here are some factors they believe to be important to
expanding memory capacity.
To begin with, you must take special
care in your daily life. Food for example, is very important. Some vitamins are
essential foe your memory to work properly. They are found in bread, cereal, vegetables
and fruits. Some experts say that synthesizes vitamins improve memory, but
others have doubts about this, arguing that the studies have not confirmed they
do work. Another essential factor is water. It helps to maintain the memory
systems, especially in older persons. According to Dr. Roswell, lack of water
in the body has an immediate and strong effect on memory; it can cause
confusion and other thought difficulties. Sleep also plays a significant role.
To be able to have a goof memory, we must allow the brain to have plenty of
rest. While sleeping, the brain no longer controls the senses, and starts to revise
and store the information one has receives. Lack of sleep would make one feel
exhausted and would weaken one¡¯s ability to concentrate. Also, one¡¯ ability to
store information would be affected.
6.
What is the passage
mainly about?
7.
Why are foods
important in promoting memory according to the passage?
8.
To whom is water
especially important in maintaining the memory system?
9.
What problem can a
lack of water cause?
10.
Why is sleep
important to memory?
Keys: 1.A 2.B 3.D 4.D 5.C
Task 2: Where did the professor go?
Script
This is a true
story, while happened to friends of ours in a small town in South Africa. They
were a hospitable couple who often entertained
their neighbors for drinks, tea or dinner. On this particular
spring night, they have invited a retired
professor to super. During the evening, it began to pour
with rain, and the heavens really opened. Because
he had walked there, they offered to put him up for the night. They pointed out
that by staying overnight, he did not need to go to
out in the bad weather. He agreed on the soundness of that idea,
thanked his hosts profusely, and the matter seemed to be settled. But while they
were washing the dishes after supper, the forgetful
professor disappeared. No one could find him anywhere. Eventually,
after40 minutes, the front door bell rang. There was the professor, soaked to the
skin. When he was asked what on earth he has been dong in the rain, he replied
that because he was going to stay there overnight,
he had gone home to get his pajamas and toothbrush.
Task3: How to Remember Names
Script
You just called the TV
repair shop, and the voice on the other end of the line tells you, ¡°This is Don
Smith¡±.
About 5 minutes later you
tell your wife that ¡°this guy¡±will be out to fix the TV in the morning. You can¡¯t
think of his mane although you know he mentioned it on the phone.
This happens all the time
to just about any of us unless we have learned to concentrate and implant a
name in our memory, right at the time we hear it. To do this, you must make a
habit of repeating the name back to the person. This action will remind you to
store the name in your ¡°memory bank¡± each time you hear someone¡¯s name, and
within a short time the ¡°repeating¡± process can be discontinued
When you meet someone in
person, use the same procedure, and in addition, visualize something different,
unusual or ridiculous about hid or her appearance, position, or actions that ¡°ties
in ¡°with his or her name. Later, you may write the descriptive information on one
side of a card and the name in the other side. Look at it repeatedly, see the ¡°picture¡±
in your mind¡¯s eye as you look at the
name; or when you see he name, visualize the ¡°picture¡± you have assigned to the
name.
Getting this system to work
will require changes in your thinking, and it may take several days or several
weeks to become proficient.
Uint3
VI. Further Listening and Speaking
Task1: Early Marriage
Script
At the age of 12, Lisa has
been married for three years to a young man she met just after finishing
secondary school. He treated her well. She almost died during the birth of
their first child, born a year after their marriage. The second child, born 18
months later, was also a girl. Lately she and her husband quarrel frequently.
She wants to go to vocational school to learn skills to add to the family
income, but his mother insists she stay home and produce a son.
This example is by no means
exceptional. Early marriage is common in many parts of the world. Early
marriage leads to early motherhood. In some developing countries, 20 percent or
over half of the women give birth to their first child before the age of
18.Expectations from parents, in-laws and society are to produce a child as
soon as possible. Many young wives feel pressure to bear son. This typically results
in early and frequent pregnancies.
In developing countries,
more than half a million women die every year from causes related to pregnancy.
There are four important reasons for these deaths. Birth are either ¡°too soon,
too close, too many, or to late¡±. According to statistics, it is young women
who most die during pregnancy.
1.
At what age did Lisa
give birth to her first child?
2.
What does Lisa want?
3.
Why do women in some
developing countries have babies early?
4.
What are the reasons
women die from childbirth?
5.
What is the main
idea of the passage?
Keys: 1.B 2.D3.A 4.D 5.C
Task 2: Nuclear Family Living Patterns
Script
A nuclear family is typical in high-industrialized societies.
Beginning in the early 20th century, the two-parent family known as the nuclear family was the predominant
American family type. Generally children
live with their parents until they go away to a college or university, or until
they acquire their own jobs and move into
their own apartment or home.
In the early mid-20th
century, the family typically was the sole wage earner, and the mother
was the children¡¯s principle care giver.
Today, often both parents hold jobs. Dual-earner
families are the predominant type for families with children in the United
States. Increasingly, one of the parents has a non-standard shift;
that is, a shift that does not start in the morning and end in later afternoon.
In these families, one of the parents manages the children while the other
works.
Prior to school, adequate day care of children is necessary for dual-earner
families. In recent years, many private companies and home-based day
care centers have sprung up fulfill this need. Increasingly, a company¡¯s arrangement of day care as well as government
assistance to parents requiring day care is occurring.
Task3: They are coming for Christmas,
Script
A man in Phoenix calls his son
in New York the day before Christmas and says, ¡°I hate to ruin your day, but I
have to tell you that your mom and I are divorcing, Forty-five years of misery
is enough..¡±
¡°Dad, what are you talking
about?¡± the son screams.
¡°We can¡¯t stand the sight
of each other any longer,¡± the father says. ¡°We¡¯re sick of each other, and I¡¯m
sick of talking about this, so you call your sister in Chicago and tell her.¡±
Frantic, the son calls his sister,
who explodes on the phone.
¡°Oh, heck, they¡¯re getting
divorced,¡± she shouts. ¡°I¡¯ll take care of this.¡± Losing no time, she call her
father and screams at him, ¡°You are not getting divorced. Don¡¯t do a single
thing until I get there. I¡¯m calling my brother back, and we¡¯ll both be there
tomorrow. Until then, don¡¯t do anything! DO YOU HEAR ME?¡± Then she quickly
hangs up.
The old man hangs up his
phone and heaves a sigh of relief. He turns to his wife and says merrily, ¡°Okay,
they are coming back for Christmas and paying their own way.¡±
For Reference:
1. He and the boy¡¯s mother
are divorcing.
2. Forty-five years of misery is
enough. They can¡¯t stand the sight of each other any longer. They¡¯re sick of
each other.
3. He gets frantic and
calls his sister.
4. They will come back home and
stop the parents from divorcing.
5. He is happy, for his son and
daughter will come back for Christmas and pave their own way.
Uint4
VI.
Further Listening and Speaking
Task1: The Role Memory Plays in Our Life
Script
Your resume, or CV in British English,
has one mission and one mission only: to get you a job interview. Your resume
is usually the first impression an employer has of you. And as ¡°you never get a
second chance to make a first impression¡±, you¡®d better get it right firs time.
Here¡¯re some suggestions that may be of use in preparing a resume. First, use a
design that demands attention. Employers don¡¯t have time to read through each
of your job descriptions to know if you have the skills they need. The design of
your resume must do it for them. Your resume should be concise, well-organized
and relevant. It should emphasized the most important and relevant points about
your experience, skills and education.
Second, put important information
first. List important information at the beginning of your job descriptions.
Put statements in your resume in order of importance and relevance to the job
you want. A powerful statement with exact numbers influences every statement
that follows.
Third, target the job. You will have
more success if you adjust your resume and cover letter for the specific skills
another job. In other words, you need to ¡°re-package¡± yourself. In that way, an
employer will see immediately that you correspond to the job description. It is
not dishonest to ¡°re-package¡± yourself. You are simply pressing yourself and
your skills in the best light for a particular employer. This will help you to
get more interviews and allow you to apply for a wider range o jobs.
1.
Why does the speaker
say the resume is important?
2.
According to the
passage, why should you emphasize the most important point about yourself?
3.
Where does the
speaker advise putting the important information in your job description?
4.
How many resumes
would the speaker advise you to write if you applied for three jobs?
5. Which of the following makes a good
title for the passage?
Keys: 1.C 2.A 3.A 4.C 5.B
Task 2: Two Essential Factors in an Interview
Script
When applying for a job, especially a
job you really want. It¡¯s not usually to feel nervous
and anxious. Sometimes it¡¯s this anxiety, not our qualifications,
that keeps us from obtaining our dream job.
So you must overcome your nervousness
and build up confidence. This often involves two
factors: one mental and the other physical.
Mentally, it¡¯s important to prepare yourself for the interview without
obsessing over it. Remember, it might be your dream
job, but it won¡¯t be the end of the world if you don¡¯t get it. Tell yourself
that the company would be lucky to get you; and if they choose someone else, it
will be their loss. In essence, you need to build your self-confidence. Your ability to answer all questions without hesitation will
certainly impress the interviewer.
Now that you are mentally ready for any
question that might be thrown your way, it¡¯s time to work on your physical
presentation. No matter what position you are
applying for, your physical appearance at the interview will be a big factor in
the final determination. It¡¯s always a good idea to wear a suit; it
doesn¡¯t have to be a designer suit, but something plain and conservative. Do
not dress too informally. For example, don¡¯t wear a red fashionable jacket for
your interview. Make sure, too, that it is clean and pressed. This may seem
like common sense, but you¡¯d be surprised how careless some applicants are.
While it¡¯s not necessary to visit the beauty salon
before your interview, make sure that your nail are well-manicured,
and your hair is styled carefully and neatly.
Task3: An Interview That Upsets the Boss
Script
John was in a terrible
accident at work and lost both of his ears. Since he was permanently
disfigured, he settled with the company for a fairly large compensation and
decided to invest the money in a small but growing telecom business. After
weeks of negotiations, he bought the company. Then he realized that he knew
nothing about running such a business and quickly set out to hire someone who
could do that for him.
So he set up three job
interviewers. The first guy was great. He knew everything the company needed and
was very interesting. At the end of the interview, John asked him, ¡±Do you
notice anything different about me?¡± And the gentleman answered, ¡°Why yes, I
couldn¡¯t help notice you have no ears.¡± John got very upset and threw him out.
The second interview was
with a woman, and she was even better than the first guy. He asked her the same
question, ¡°Do you notice anything usually about me?¡± and the she replied, ¡°Well,
you have no ears.¡± Again John got furious and tossed her out.
The third and the last
interview was the best of all three. It was with a very young man who was fresh
out of college. He was smart and handsome. And he seemed to be a better
businessman than the firs two put together. John was anxious to employ him, but
asked him the same question, ¡°Do you notice anything different about me?¡±
And to his surprise, the
young man answered, ¡°Yes, you wear contact lenses.¡±
John was amazed, and said, ¡°What
an incredibly observant young man! How in the world did you know that?¡±
The young man laughed and
replied, ¡°Well, it¡¯s pretty hard to wear glasses with no ears!¡±
For Reference
1.
He lost
both of his ears.
2.
Because
he realized that he knew nothing about running the business after he bought it.
3.
Because
the interviewee said he noticed that John had no ears, and John got upset.
4.
He said
he noticed John wore contact lenses.
5.
He
thought it was pretty difficult to wear glasses with no ears.
Uint5
VI.
Further Listening and Speaking
Task1: Hot Business Ideas
Script
Business ideas are all around you. Many
business ideas come from a careful analysis of market and consumer needs. If you
are interested in starting a business, but don¡¯t know what product or service
you might sell, here are some ways that may help you find one.
First of all, you should study how to
value to an existing product. The difference raw wood and finished wooden
products is a good example of putting a product through an additional process
that increases its value.
But additional processes are not the
only way value can be added. You might also add services, or combine one
product with other products. For instance, a local farm which sells produce can
also offer a vegetable delivery service¡ªfor a free.
What business ideas can you develop
along these lines? Focus on what products you might buy, and what you might do
to them or with them to create a profitable business.
Some people have another way of making
profit. They improve an existing products or service. We all know that the
person who can build a better mousetrap will make a lot of money. That person
could be you! A local entrepreneur has created an improved version of the hula
hoop. It¡¯s bigger and heavier, so hula-hoopers can control it more easily and
do more tricks. How did she come up with this business idea? She thought hula hooping
would be a fun thing to do with her daughter, but found the commercially
available product too flimsy.
There are very few products or services
that can¡¯t be improved. Start generating business ideas by looking at the
products and services you use and brainstorming ideas as to how they could be
better.
1.
What is the first
way the speaker mentions that helps you produce a business idea?
2.
Which of the
following methods does the speaker NOT mention?
3.
Why does the speaker
mention the mousetrap?
4.
Which of the
following is true according to the passage?
5.
Which of the
following can be the best title for the passage?
Keys: 1.C 2.B 3.B 4.A 5.D
Task 2: What do you know about business?
Script
Historically, the term business
referred to activities or interests. By
extension, the word became, as recently as the 18th century, synonymous
with ¡°an individual commercial enterprise¡±.
When referring to activities, the terms business and
industry sometimes appear interchangeable. Thus a fisherman might
say either that he is in the ¡°fishing business¡±, which is a bit colloquial or
that he works in the ¡°fishing industry¡±, which
sounds somewhat formal. The word ¡°trade¡± may serve as an equivalent of both ¡°business¡± and ¡°industry¡±.
People establish business in order to perform economic activities. With some exceptions, such as non-profit organizations and
institutions of the government, businesses exist to product profit. In other
words, the owners and operators of a business have
receiving or generating a financial return for their time, effort and capital
as one of their main objectives.
One can classify businesses
in many different ways. In recent
years, service businesses have become increasingly popular. They offer intangible products
and typically have different, usually smaller, capital requirements than
manufacturers. Distributors need smaller funds than manufacturers.
Most laws specify the forms
that a business can take, and a body of commercial law has been developed for
each type. Some common types include
partnerships, corporations, also called limited liability companies, and sole
ownerships.
Task3: An office boy or a billionaire?
A jobless man applied for
the position of ¡°office boy¡± at Microsoft. The human resource manger
interviewed him, and gave him a test: clean the floor.
¡°You are engaged,¡± he said,
¡°give me your email address, and I¡¯ll send you the application form to fill and
tell you when you will start.¡± The man replied, ¡°I don¡¯t have a computer or an
email.¡±
¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± said the HR
manager, ¡°if you don¡¯t have an email, that means you don¡¯t exist. And whoever
doesn¡¯t exist can¡¯t have the job!¡±
The man left with no hope
at all. He didn¡¯t know what to do, with only 10 dollars in his pocket. He then
decided to go to the supermarket and buy a crate of tomatoes. He sold the
tomatoes in a door-to door round. In less than two hours, he succeeded in
doubling his capital. He repeated the operation three times, and returned home
with 60 dollars. The man realizes that he could survive this way, and started
to go out early and returned late every day.
Thus, his money doubled or
tripled every day. A little later, he bought a cart, then a trunk, then he has
his own fleet of delivery vehicles. Five years later, the man was one of the
biggest food retailers in the United States. He started to plan his family¡¯
future, and decided to buy life insurance. He called an insurance broker, and
chose a protection plan. Before the conversation was concluded, the broker asked
him for his email address. The man replied,¡± I have no email.¡±
The broker replied,¡± You
don¡¯t have an email, and yet have succeeded in building an empire! Can you
imagine what you could have been you had an email.¡±
The man replied, ¡° An
office boy at Microsoft!¡±
For Reference
1.
¡°If you
don¡¯t have an email that means you don¡¯t exist. And whoever doesn¡¯t exist can¡¯t
have the job!¡±
2.
He sold
the tomatoes in a door-to door round. In less than two hours, he succeeded in
doubling his capital. He repeated the operation three times, and returned home
with 60 dollars.
3.
He bought
a cart, then a trunk, then he has his own fleet of delivery vehicles. Five
years later, the man was one of the biggest food retailers in the United
States.
4.
He
started to plan his family¡¯ future, and decided to buy life insurance. He
called an insurance broker, and chose a protection plan.
He thought that with an email
, he would have become an office boy at Microsoft.
Unit
6
VI.
Further Listening and Speaking
Task1: Held Back Because I Speak Spanish
Script
I was raised speaking English, but I also
spoke Spanish at home. When I went to school for the first time, I was enrolled
in ESL classes¡ªclasses of English as a Second Language. I was also put in the
Limited English Proficiency Program. In all these classes, I always got the
highest grades. I was the best reader and speaker. There as no reason for me to
be in any of those classes.
When my parents discovered that I was
in those classes instead of in regular classes with other English-speaking
students, they went to the school administration to complain about the
discrimination. The school had nothing to say. My parents tried to get me out
of the ESL classes, but the school fought it very hard to keep me there. And
then we found out why¡ªfor every student the school had in the ESL and Limited
English Proficiency Program, they would receive$400. This was pretty
devastating. The school¡¯s only excuse for keeping me there was because I lived
in a Spanish-speaking household, and that I was influenced by the way my
parents spoke. My parents were outraged, but I remained in the ESL and Limited English
Proficiency Program until I was in the fifth grade.
Then parents transferred me to another
school where they had friends. The new school gave me an English proficiency
test. I aced it. SO I didn¡¯t have to attend those programs for non-native
English speakers. I was finally on the right track and back at the head of the
class. The first school I had would have never let me out of those programs or
even let me take the test. I was too ¡°Spanish¡± for tem.
1.
What kind of class
does the speaker think he should attend?
2.
What was the real
reason the speaker was placed in a Limited English Proficiency class?
3.
What was the excuse
the school used to put the speaker in an ESL class?
4.
How did the speaker
perform in the regular English class?
5.
When the speaker
described his first school, what were his feeling?
Keys: 1.C 2.D 3.A 4.B 5.A
Task 2: Drinking, Gambling and Golf
Script
A man was walking in the
city when he was accosted by a particularly dirty-looking bum, who asked him for a couple of dollars for dinner.
The man took out his wallet,
extracted two dollars and asked, ¡°If I give you this money, will you take it
and buy whiskey?¡±
¡°No, I stopped drinking
years ago,¡± the bum said.
¡°Will you use it to gamble?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t gamble. I need
everything I can get just to stay alive?¡±
¡°Will you spend the money
on green fees at a golf
course?¡±
¡±Are you nuts? I haven¡¯t played golf for 20 years!¡±
The mad said, ¡°Well, I¡¯m
not going to give you two dollars. Instead,
I¡¯ m going to take you to my home for a terrific dinner cooked by my wife.¡±
The bum was surprised, ¡°Won¡¯t your wife be furious with you for doing that? I know I ¡®m dirty, and I probably smell pretty bad.¡±
The man replied, ¡°That¡¯s
OK. I just want her to see what a man
looks like who¡¯d given up drinking, gambling, and golf.¡±
Task3: Why buy lottery tickets?
Script
Charles: Did you
hear? Next week¡¯s lottery will be 28 million dollars! You got your ticket yet?
Joan: I didn¡¯t buy lottery tickets, and I don¡¯t
gamble on other ways, either. Lottery tickets ate just another way of taxing
the poor.
Charles: What do
you mean by that?
Joan: Many of the big spenders on lottery tickets
ate poor. They are spending money they can¡¯t afford to spend.
Charles: I just
buy lottery tickets for fun. You know¡the first prize is a huge amount, and if
would be exciting.
Joan: But you don¡¯t need the money to enjoy life, so for you it¡¯s a
game. But when the poor buy lottery tickets, it is often out of desperation.
Charles: You
must be right. Casinos are opening everywhere, and many people go on gambling
holiday¡ªyou can even take a gambling cruise.
Joan: Imagine being on an ocean cruise and
spending all your time indoors bent over a card table or a roulette wheel.
Charles: Maybe
there should be some programs to help people overcome their gambling addictions
something similar to Alcoholics Anonymous.
Joan: There¡¯s indeed an online program that can
help. But nobody can force gamblers to join it. They must first want to be
cured themselves.
For Reference
1.
She
thinks many (of the) big spenders on lottery are poor, spending money they can¡¯t
afford to spend.
2.
He just buys
lottery tickets foe fun. He thinks if he won a huge amount, it would be
exciting.
3.
They buy
lottery tickets out of desperation. And the thrill of a win, of something for nothing,
is addictive.
4.
Casinos
are opening everywhere, many people go on gambling holidays, and one can even take
a gambling cruise.
5.
It will
be helpful to habitual gamblers only when they want to be cured themselves.
Uint7
VI.
Further Listening and Speaking
Task1: Thick Cloud of Pollution Covering Southern Asia
Script
A United Nations study says that a
thick cloud of pollution covering southern Asia threatens the lives of millions
of people. Scientists say the pollution could increase lung disease and cause
early deaths. The cloud is also damaging agriculture and affecting rainfall
levels. It has affected many countries in southern Asia. The pollution cloud is
three kilometers high. Scientists say it can move halfway around the world in a
week.
The cloud is the result of forest
fires, the burning of agricultural waste, and huge increases in the burning of
fuels by vehicles, industries and power stations.
Pollution from millions of bad cooking
stoves hs made the problem worse. Many poor people burn of fuels wood and
animal waste in such stoves.
Scientists say this combination could
be changing winter rainfall levels in Asia. They say rainfall has increased
over the eastern coast of Asia. But it has dropped sharply over parts of
northwestern Asia. The report says the cloud could reduce rainfall over northwestern
Pakistan, Afghanistan, and western China by up to forty percent.
Harmful chemicals from the cloud are
mixing with rainfall. This acid rain damages crops and trees and threatens
public health. Scientists are concerned that the pollution will intensify
during the next thirty years as the population of Asia increase to an Estimated
5,000 million people.
1.
What is the true of
the cloud of pollution?
2.
What is NOT the
cause of the cloud of pollution?
3.
What does the cloud
of pollution bring about?
4.
Why will the pollution
intensify in the next 30 years, according to the passage?
5.
What do you think is
the best title for the passage?
Keys: 1.D 2.B 3.A 4.C 5.C
Task 2: Mountain regions face a number of dangers.
Script
Mountain people around the
world are in great danger of the negative effects of the worsening environment, according to a UN report.
As global warming and
deforestation accelerate and technology makes wilder places more accessible, environmental
and social pressures on the world¡¯s remotest regions increases.
The UN has found that many mountainous regions¡ªinhabited
by one out of five of the world¡¯s people¡ªare barely recognizable
when they are compared to what they ere like 60 years ago. This is mostly because
forests were cut to make way for cattle grazing and agriculture.
The authors of the UN study
expect 98 percent of its mountain
areas to experience severe climate change by 2055. Biological losses are expected to be heavy. The mountains of
Europe, part of California and the northwest Andes in South America are among
the most threatened mountain areas in the world and should be given priority in
conservation.
The UN is anxious to raise
awareness of the problem facing mountain areas because they are inhabited by some of the most vulnerable people.
These people could lose their culture and their livelihood with even the
smallest shifts in climate.
At the same time, many
mountain regions are losing people. Thousands of villages in Europe are deserted most of the year. In other areas like Nepal, people are drifting to the cities in
search of work.
Task3: Digging a Hole
Script
A fellow stopped at a rural
gas station and, after filling his tank, he bought a soft drink. He stood by
his car to drink his cola ad watched two men working along the roadside.
One worker would dig a hole
two or three feet deep and then move on. The other worker came along behind and
filled in the hole. While one was digging a new hole, the other was about 25
feet behind filling in the old hole.
¡°Hold it, hold it,¡± the
fellow said to the men. ¡°Can you tell me what¡¯s going on here with this
digging?¡±
¡°Well, we work for the
country government,¡± one of the men said.
¡°But one of you is digging
a hole and the other is filling it up. You¡¯re not accomplishing anything. Aren¡¯t
you wasting the country¡¯s money?¡±
¡°You don¡¯t understand,
mister,¡± one of the men said, learning on his shovel and wiping his brow. ¡°Normally,
there¡¯s three of us, me, Joe, and Mike. I dig the hole, Joe sticks in the tree and
Mike here puts the dirt back.¡±
¡°Yeah,¡± piped up Mike. ¡°Now
Joe is sick but that doesn¡¯t mean we can¡¯t work, does it?¡±
For Reference
1.
One
worker would dig a hole two or three feet deep and then move on. The other
worker came along behind and filled in the hole.
2.
He asked them, ¡°Can you tell me what¡¯s going on here with this digging?¡±/He
asked them what was going on there with that digging.
1.
Because
one of them was digging a hole and the other was filling it up. They were not
accomplishing anything.
2.
Normally
there were three of them, the worker who answered him, Joe and Mike. The first
man dug the hole, Joe stuck in the tree, and Mike put the dirt back.
UNIT
8 Flying there is not half the fun
VI.
Further Listening and Speaking
Task1:An Overview
of Airlines
Script
An airline is an organization which
provides aviation services for passengers and cargo. It owns or leases
airliners to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with
other airlines for reasons of mutual benefits.
The scale and scope of airline
companies range from those with a single airplane carrying mail or cargo, to
full-service international airlines operating many hundreds of airplanes of
various types. Airline services can be categorized as intercontinental, intra-continental,
regional or domestic and may be operated as scheduled services or charters. These
variations in the types of airline companies, their operating scope, and the
routes they serve, make analysis of the airline industry complex. But one thing
is certain: The industry is heavily influenced by the market now. In the past
50 years or so, the general trend of ownership has gone from government-owned
or government-supported to independent, for-profit companies. This is a result
of the government permit greater freedom. This trend is not yet consistent
across all airlines in all regions. The demand for air travel services depends
on other things: needs for cargo transportation, business passenger demand,
leisure passenger demand, which are all influenced by macroeconomic activity in
the market. These trends are highly seasonal, and often depend on day-of-week,
or time-of-day. The industry is cyclical. Four or five years of poor
performance are followed by five or six years of gradual improvement in performance.
1.D 2 C 3.D
4.A 5.B
Task2:Results of
Damage Testing
Script:
Birds often cause accidents when they strike aircraft. To date no reliable method of avoiding birds has been discovered. But scientists at
the NASA space center have developed a gun built to launch
dead chickens at the windshields of airliners,
military jets and the space shuttle, all traveling
at their top speed. The idea is to reproduce the
frequent incidents of collisions with birds to test the
strength of the windshields.
Trains sometimes encounter similar
problems with birds. It was not surprising that when
British engineers heard about the gun, they were eager to test it on the
windshields of their new high-speed trains.
Arrangements were made to borrow the
gun. It was flown across the Atlantic and set up with
great care near London. But when the gun was fired, the engineers stood
shocked as the chicken flew into the shield, smashed it, went through the
engineer's chair, and landed on the back of the car.
Horrified, the British sent NASA the
results of the disastrous experiment, along with the designs of the new windshield.
They begged the U.S. scientists to send them their suggestions for avoiding smashed
windshields. NASA reviewed the test thoroughly and had
one recommendation: "Thaw the chicken.¡±
Task3: Funny
Flight Announcements
Script:
Occasionally, airline crews try to make
their announcements entertaining. Here are some examples that have been
reported. One pilot delivered this welcome message: "We are pleased to
have some of the best flight attendants in the industry. Unfortunately none of
them are on this flight."
One pilot said, "Folks, we have
reached our cruising altitude now, so I'm going to switch the seatbelt sign
off. Feel free to move about as you wish, but please stay inside the plane till
we land. It's a bit cold outside, and if you walk on the wings, it affects the
flight pattern."
A Southwest Airlines employee said,
"In the event of a sudden loss of cabin pressure, oxygen masks will
descend from the ceiling. Stop screaming, grab the mask, and pull it over your
face. If you have small children traveling with you, secure your mask before
assisting with theirs. If you are traveling with two small children, decide now
which one you love more."
Another flight attendant's comment on a
less than perfect landing goes like this: "We ask you to please remain seated
as Captain Kangaroo bounces us to the terminal."
Still another attendant said, ¡°As you
exit the plane, please be sure to gather all of your belongings. Anything left behind
will be distributed evenly among the flight attendants. Please do not leave
children or spouses. Last one off the plane must clean it.¡±
