新通用大学英语听力文本

第一章第一课

Part 4 Passages

Passage 1 How Casual Is Too Casual?

Listen to the passages and check each statement True or False.

1. F

2. T

3. T

4. F

5. T

Script

How Casual Is Too Casual?

Thirty years ago, most people in the United States, Canada, and Europe didn’t think about what to wear to work in an office. Men always wore suits and ties. Women wore suits or conservative skirt outfits. But in the 1990s, that started to change.

It began with ―casual Fridays‖. During the summer, some companies invited their employees to ―dress down‖ or wear more casual clothes to work on Fridays. The policy quickly became popular with employees. After this, it didn’t take long for employees to start dressing more casually every day of the week.

Many employees welcomed the new dress policy and the more comfortable work environment that came with it. Etiquette had definitely changed, and suits and ties were rarely seen in many offices. Some employees went as far as wearing jeans, T-shirt, and sneakers to the office.

Then some people began to change their minds about casual dress at work. Many managers felt that casual dress had led to casual attitudes towards work. Now the etiquette for dress in many companies is beginning to change back again.

Passage 2The Origin of Salute

Listen to the passage twice and fill in the blanks with the missing information.

1. uncertain

2. in late Roman times

3. his right hand raised

4. weapon

5. a way of showing respect

6. touching the hat

Script

The origin of the hand salute is uncertain. Some historians believe it began in late Roman times when assassinations were common. A citizen who wanted to see a public official had to approach with his right hand raised to show that he did not hold a weapon. Knights in armor raised visors with the right hand when meeting a comrade. The practice gradually became a way of showing respect and, in early American history, sometimes involved removing the hat. By 1820, the motion was modified to touching the hat, and since then it has become the hand salute used today.

Passage 3 Cultural Misinterpretations

Listen to the passage. Then answer the following questions.

1. Because he was most concerned about the index number.

2. The Canadian takes the great concern as distrust.

3. Because he assumed unconsciously that the Canadian was more similar to his

Chinese employees.

Script

Mr. Wang, the Chairman of Board of Directors of a Chinese firm, told a story on CCTV program "Dialogue" of how he once almost lost a valuable Canadian employee working for him in Vancouver. He emailed every day to the Canadian, inquiring for the index number he was most concerned about. To his great astonishment, his Canadian employee turned in his resignation after a week. Mr. Wang was puzzled how he could do that to him as he gave such great attention to his job. A Chinese employee would have been more than happy if his or her boss had showed such great concern for him or her. He then found out that, unlike Chinese employees, the Canadian took what meant great concern to Chinese as distrust. But Mr. Wang assumed unconsciously that the Canadian was more similar to his Chinese employees than he actually was and treated him just as he treated any Chinese employee.

第二课

Part 3 Nonverbal Communications

Passage 1 Right on Time

Listen to the passage. Check True, False or No Information with tick（√）.

Key: 1. False 2.False 3. True 4. True 5. No information 6.False

Script

Everyone knows that different cultures have different ideas about punctuality. But one country – Ecuador – is trying something new.

A group called Citizens’ Participation has found that being late costs the country about $724 million each year. They report that more than half of all public events, as well as many government appointments and social activities, begin late. The group is trying to make people aware of punctuality and reminding them to be on time. The government, including the Ecuadorian president, is supporting the effort.

Hundreds of Ecuadorian organizations and companies have signed agreements to be on time. Posters have been put up that remind people: ―If you’re late, someone else is waiting.‖ One newspaper prints a list of government officials who arrive to events late.

The campaign has generally been well-received by the Ecuadorian people and it seems to be working. Many businesses have reported that more meetings are now beginning on time.

Passage 2 Seating Arrangement

Listen to the passage. Fill in the blanks with the missing information. You may use what you hear or summarize it based on your understanding.

1. seated or stand beside them

2. at the ends of the table

3. as if they are on trial

Script

Culture influences the manner and meaning in seating arrangements.

In the United States, they tend to talk with those opposite them rather than those seated or stand beside them. This pattern also influences how they select leaders when in groups: in most instances, the person sitting at the head of the table is chosen as the leader. Leaders usually are accustomed to being somewhat removed physically from the rest of the group and consequently choose chairs at the ends of the table.

In China, seating arrangements take on different meanings. The Chinese often experience uneasiness when they face someone directly or sit on opposite side of a desk or table from someone. It makes them feel as if they are on trial.

Passage 3 Eye Contact Is Also a Language

Listen to the passage, and answer the following questions.

1. If a person tries to avoid eye contact in a conversation, the other person may think that person is dishonest.

2. In some Asian cultures such as Japan, students will often avoid making eye contact with their instructors as a sign of respect.

3. No

4. Japan, China and Indonesia

Script

The study of communications sent by the eyes is also a way of communication. What the eyes communicate often depends on the culture. In the United States, it is usual for people to maintain eye contact. If a person tries to avoid eye contact in a conversation, the other person may think that person is dishonest. In some Asian cultures such as Japan, students will often avoid making eye contact with their instructors as a sign of respect.

Students in a business communication class at a Mid-South university were asked to test the concept of gaze and eye contact in the United States by maintaining steady eye contact with a person in the car next to them when they stopped at a traffic light. Responses varied from obscene gestures to making faces to returning the gaze. Students concluded that US persons are very uncomfortable with prolonged eye contact.

In other cultures, there is little direct eye contact. The Japanese direct their gaze below the chin; they are uncomfortable with maintaining direct eye contact throughout the conversation. People in China and Indonesia also lower the eyes as a sign of respect, feeling that prolonged eye contact shows bad manners.

第二章第一课

Part IV Disease and Treatment

Passage 1 Parkinson’s Disease

Listen and circle the right answer to each question.

1. D

2. B

Script

Parkinson’s disease is a progressively disabling disease marked by trembling and increasing stiffness of the muscles. The onset of this disease is gradual, which makes it difficult to diagnose in its early stage. Trembling usually begins in one or both hands; eventually the thumb and forefinger may show a rapid repetitive movement. In addition to muscular rigidity, other symptoms include slow body movement, poor coordination, and unbalance. A shortening of muscles along the front of the neck tends to bend the head and spine forward, while the lack of animation in the face creates a mask like expression.

As these symptoms worsen, chronic fatigue, mental confusion, and speech impairment may develop and the person with Parkinson’s may find it impossible to walk unassisted ly.

Passage 2 Laughter Is the Best Medicine

Fill in the blanks with the information you hear.

1. heart attacks

2. disease

3. average

4. oxygen

5. estimated

6. Laughter can even help improve your memory.

7. Just read something humorous or watch a funny video.

Script

There’s a saying in English: ―Laughter is the best medicine.‖ Now studies suggest that this saying might really be true.

Everyone knows that stress is bad for your health. It can give you headaches. It can cause heart attacks and other serious medical problems. When we laugh, our stress is reduced. Then the body is able to fight disease better.

People who laugh a lot have lower blood pressure than the average person. When a person laughs, his or her blood pressure goes down. When this happens, breathing becomes deeper, sending more oxygen and nutrients throughout the body. Also, laughter pushes out more air from the lungs than it takes in, which helps to clean out the lungs.

Laughter is good exercise, too! Some doctors have estimated that a person can burn as many calories by laughing as by riding an exercise bike for several minutes.

Laughter can even help improve your memory. When you laugh, your muscles relax and psychological stress is reduced. This keeps the brain alert and allows you to remember more information.

Some doctors are beginning to prescribe laughter along with certain medications and a healthy diet. It’s easy to include laughter in your daily schedule. Just read something humorous or watch a funny video. And who knows — it might save your life!

Passage 3 Race and Disease

Listen to the passage. Then check the following statements True or False.

1. False

2. False

3. False

4. True

Script

Researchers have found more evidence that suggests a relationship between race and rates of lung cancer among smokers. A new study shows that black people and native Hawaiians are more likely to develop lung cancer from smoking. It compared their risk to whites, Japanese-Americans and Latinos.

The study, however, found almost no racial or ethnic differences among the heaviest smokers. These were people who smoked more than thirty cigarettes each day.

Other comparisons have shown that black people are more likely than whites to get lung cancer from smoking. But the scientists say few studies have compared the risks among native Hawaiians, Asians and Latinos.

Researchers at the University of Southern California and the University of Hawaii did the new study. The New England Journal of Medicine published the findings.

The eight-year study involved more than one hundred and eighty thousand people. They provided details about their tobacco use and their diet as well as other information. They included current and former smokers and people who never smoked. Almost two thousand people in the study developed lung cancer.

Researchers say genetics might help explain the racial and ethnic differences. There could be differences in how people's bodies react to smoke. But environmental influences, including the way people smoke, could also make a difference.

Last June, the United States Food and Drug Administration approved a drug designed to treat heart failure in black patients. The name is BiDil. The agency called it "a step toward the promise of personalized medicine."

第二课

Part 3 Get to Know Some Health Matters

Passage 1 The Sleep Problems in America

Listen to the passage about sleeplessness in America. Then circle the correct answers.

1. C

2. B

3. B

4. A

Script

A new report says an estimated fifty million to seventy million Americans have sleep problems. It says many more are suffering from lack of sleep.

A group of sleep research organizations asked the Institute of Medicine to study the problem. The institute is part of America's National Academy of Sciences. The study examined why we need sleep, the effects of sleep loss and other sleep disorders. A fourteen-member committee carried out the study. The Institute of Medicine reported their findings earlier this month.

Harvey Colten of Columbia University in New York City led the study. He says sleep disorders are not recognized enough by the general public and the medical community.

The report says too few researchers are studying sleep disorders. It also says too few health care workers are trained to identify and treat the problem.

The report says American businesses lose more than one hundred thousand million dollars a year because of tired workers. Some employees are too tired to report for work. They have accidents or are less productive at work. Other costs included increased visits to doctors.

The study found that twenty percent of injuries caused by serious car accidents are linked to sleepy drivers. Alcoholic drinks were not linked to the accidents. Other studies have linked poor sleep to an increased risk of health problems like heart disease, depression and unhealthy amounts of body fat. Researchers say the reason for this link is unclear.

Many experts say a good amount of sleep is as important to health as diet and exercise. They say most people need seven to nine hours of sleep each night. Less than that can interfere with mental and physical abilities. It can lead to more serious problems, including severe sleeplessness. People with this condition temporarily stop breathing while they sleep.

Researchers involved in the study are suggesting a number of steps to help prevent sleep disorders. They suggest a campaign to inform the public about the problem. They want increased education and training among health care workers. And they are calling for new technology to identify and cure sleep problems.

Passage 2 The Chronic Desease

Listen to a passage about chronic diseases. Answer the following questions briefly.

1. cancer and lung disorders

2. two-thirds

3. poorer, wealthier ones

4. medical treatment and lost productivity

5. alcohol and tobacco to young people

Script

Chronic diseases are the leading cause of death in the world. Yet health experts say these conditions are often the most preventable. Chronic diseases include heart disease, stroke, cancer and lung disorders.

The World Health Organization says chronic diseases lead to about seventeen million early deaths each year. The United Nations agency expects more than three hundred and eighty million people to die of chronic diseases by the year two thousand fifteen. It says about eighty percent of the deaths will happen in developing nations.

The W.H.O. says chronic diseases now cause two-thirds of all deaths in the Asia-Pacific area. In ten years it could be almost three-fourths. People are getting sick in their most economically productive years. In fact, experts say chronic diseases are killing more middle-aged people in poorer countries than in wealthier ones.

The W.H.O. estimates that chronic diseases will cost China alone more than five hundred thousand million dollars in the next ten years. That estimate represents the costs of medical treatment and lost productivity. Russia and India are also expected to face huge economic losses. It says deaths from chronic diseases have increased largely as the result of economic gains in many countries.

Health officials say as many as eighty percent of deaths from chronic diseases could be prevented. They say an important tool for governments is to restrict the marketing of alcohol and tobacco to young people. Also, more programs are needed to urge healthy eating and more physical activity.

U.N. officials aim through international action to reduce chronic-disease deaths by two percent each year through two thousand fifteen. They say meeting that target could save thirty-six million lives. That includes twenty-five million in Asia and the Pacific.

Passage 3 Anesthesia in Operation

Listen to the passage about Anesthesia, and then check True or False.

1. False

2. False

3. True

4. False

Script

Anesthesia is used during operations and other medical procedures to block pain signals from traveling through the nervous system. The kind of anesthesia that patients receive depends on their condition and the kind of procedure they need.

Local anesthesia is used to make a small area of the body lose feeling. Usually, local anesthesia is for minor procedures, like fixing a tooth or closing a wound. The person remains fully awake.

General anesthesia makes a person fall asleep. This is known as being "put under". The drugs are injected into the blood or breathed as gas. General anesthesia also blocks memory.

People are not supposed to remember an operation when they wake up. In rare cases, they do. The Mayo Clinic says patients may have a sense of their surroundings during about one-fifth of one percent of all operations. It says they generally do not feel pain, but may wish to talk to a mental health provider if the memories trouble them.

An anesthesiologist is a doctor specially trained to give anesthesia. During an operation, the anesthesiologist will observe the patient's heart rate, blood pressure and amount of oxygen in the blood. A breathing tube may be put into the person's windpipe to aid breathing.

There are, of course, risks to anesthesia. People can have different reactions to the drugs. Mistakes can happen. But medical experts say the safety of anesthesia has greatly improved.

第三章第一课

Part 4 Passages

Passage 1 Paoding Carves up a Cow

Complete the sentences. Circle the correct answers.

1. Dao

2. the skeletal structure

3. neither hacked nor chopped

Script

One time, a butcher named Paoding was commissioned to butcher a cow for King Hui. As he worked, his movements were graceful and faultless. The sound of the knife between the bones was like a whisper in the night. When Paoding was finished, the cow didn’t even know it was dead. The king said ―Your skill is amazing‖. Paoding said: ―It was nothing really. When I butcher a cow, it’s not skill that I use, it is the Dao. When I first took up the bu tcher’s trade, what I saw was the whole cow. But after I had been at it for a few years and butchered a good number of cows, what I saw was no longer the whole cow, but just its skeletal structure. Ever since then, I stopped using my eyes and used my mind instead, to intuit my way around the cow. The good cook changes knives every year, because he merely chops but doesn’t hack. Because I neither hack nor chop, I have used this same knife for 19 years, and it’s still like new. My knife glides in and out betw een the bone joints, moving as it pleases; so, the cow suffers no pain and in the end, doesn’t even know it is dead.‖ The king was enlightened. He understood the good way of living one’s life. The complexities of life are like the skeletal structure of the cow, and those who don’t

understand how to approach them end up running around in circles, wasting all their energy.

Passage 2 The Beginning of Stamps

Listen to the passage and fill in the blanks with the missing information.

1. put forward

2. postage

3. nearby

4. envelopes

5. seals

6. collect

7. deliver

Script

Rowland Hill, a schoolmaster in England, was the first to put forward a proposal to use stamps. He thought it would be much easier for people to use stamps to cover postage. They could go to the nearby post office to buy stamps and put them on envelops before they sent the letters. The post office could simply put seals on the stamps so that people could not use the stamps again. In this way, the post office did not need to send postmen to collect postage. It only needed to send postmen to deliver letters. That was a good idea and the government finally accepted it.

Passage 3 “Dry” Cleaning

Listen and check each statement True or False.

1. False

2. False

3. False

4. True

5. True

6. True

7. False

Script

Despite its name, dry cleaning is actually not a dry process. Clothes are washed in liquid chemicals, but without water, and that is why the process became known as dry cleaning. But who came up with this idea, and how did it happen?

The invention of dry cleaning was an accident. In 1855, a Frenchman named Jean Baptiste Jolly made a discovery: a lamp filled with kerosene fell on a greasy cloth in his home. Kerosene is a type of oil that burns well. When the kerosene dried, the cloth was cleaner where the liquid had been.

Based on this discovery, people began to use chemicals to clean clothes. But most of these chemicals, such as kerosene and gasoline, could easily catch on fire, so dry cleaning was very dangerous.

In the 1930s, people started to use a new chemical called perchloroethylene, or perc for short. This chemical didn’t catch on fire easily, so it was much safer than the earlier ones. It is still used today by most dry cleaners.

第二课

Part 3 Passages

Passage 1 Book of the Month

Listen and then match each sentence beginning to the correct ending. You will not use all of the sentence endings.

1. g

2. i

3. a

4. f

5. d

6. c

Script

Home and Family magazine talked to Pamela Darby, author of the new book Time

Management. Here’s some of the advice that she gives:

Make time for special treatments and things you enjoy is important. You make time for a lot of things that you don't enjoy, like work and housecleaning. Choose something that you really like to have done, make an appointment, and go. You could get your nails done or have someone massage your back. The important thing is to choose something that you enjoy having done.

Accept offers of help. People are so used to doing things on their own, that they don’t think abou t letting people help them. If someone asks, ―How can I help?‖ tell them what you need done! For example, if you’re planning a class party for one of your children, get some of the other parents to bring food. When someone offers to watch the kids, let them do it.

But, you don't have to wait for people to offer to help. Assign responsibilities to other family members. Have your spouse drop off the dry cleaning on the way to work. Get your kids to help around the house. Even young children can be responsible for certain tasks, such as putting away their toys or setting the table.

Passage 2 The Beginnings of Mass Production

Listen to the passage and then complete each sentence by filling no more than two words from the passage you hear in each blank.

1. scientific management

2. tasks

3. item

4. car manufacturer

Script

Until the early twentieth century, the normal method of manufacturing was that one person produced a whole item. This system was transformed by Frederick W. Taylor, an American engineer who developed the theory of scientific management. His aim was to make factory work as fast and efficient as possible: increasing workers' productivity in this way would mean that large quantities of goods could be manufactured cheaply.

Taylor recommended that the manufacturing process should be broken down into tasks, and that workers should specialize in particular tasks, instead of making the whole item. Through this division of labor, each worker would become very good at certain activities. Henry Ford, the American car manufacturer, was the first industrialist to base production on Taylor's ideas. Although this approach keeps production costs to a minimum, it has been blamed for making factory work boring.

Passage 3 Lost Luggage

Fill in the blanks with the missing information.

1. destination

2.passengers

3. inconvenience

4. resign

5. unlikely

6. identification

7. enclosed

8. colored

9. bargain 10. leftovers

Script

Approximately one airline passenger in every thousand arrives at their destination to find that some or all of their baggage has not arrived with them. For many passengers this means a wait of hours or days, with all the associated inconvenience, whilst the missing item is being located and forwarded. Others, less fortunate still, have to resign themselves

to the fact that their bags are actually lost and, as the days turn into weeks, face the fact that they are unlikely ever to see them again.

To prevent loss, or at least assist recovery, passengers are urged to make sure that identification tags are secure and up-to-date, an itinerary with addresses is enclosed and that bags are distinguishable from others of the same make. Airlines recommend the use of colored tape or large elasticated straps made specifically for this purpose.

Lost or delayed luggage actually costs the world's airlines over ￡6 billion per year. They get some of this back, however, by selling off those lost items which are never claimed by their rightful owners. After months of intensive tracking, airlines send hopelessly lost luggage to companies which sort the contents and then put them on sale at bargain prices. At one such company in Alabama, the leftovers of flying are laid out in a vast store, which has itself now become an attraction for tourists from all over the world. Who knows, they may even come across some of their own stuff.

第四章第一课

Part 4 Some Tips on How to Choose a Career

Passage 1 Job Advertisement (Workbook P41, item 20需录音)

Listen to the job advertisement. Check the qualities that are important for the job.

□ artistic talent

√ management skills

√ good communication skills

√ experience in a similar position

√ organizational ability

√ computer skills

□ mathematical

□ compassion

√ common sense

□ manual dexterity

Script

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT TO DIRECTOR

This is an exciting opportunity for a talented individual. The successful candidate will work with high-level individuals in the company. Responsibilities include managing the director’s calendar and commitments, managing special projects, serving as the director’s representative to other offices and individuals, and supervising the administrative staff. This position requires 5+years in a senior-level executive/administrative position. Experience and strong knowledge in a variety of computer software applications is also required. The successful candidate will be quick-thinking, flexible, and have common sense. He/She will have strong organizational skills and attention to detail. He/She should also have excellent oral and written communication, problem-solving and

project-management skills.

Passage 2 Improving Your Interview (需要录音)

Listen to the passage and match the correct response to each question. You will

1. a

2. e

3. d

4. c

Script

Congratulations! You have a job interview. Here’s how to do your best:

Prepare

Before the interview, read the job description and think about how your skills, abilities, and experience match the requirements of the position. Decide how you’ll explain that information.

Dress the part

Although employees of many companies wear casual clothes to work, you should dress formally for an interview. Always wear a suit to look professional.

Arrive on time

Make sure to arrive on time or a few minutes early. Most interviewers agree: There’s no excuse for being late.

Don’t be too friendly

An interview is a professional meeting. You should be energetic and enthusiastic, but not informal.

Use good communication skills

Listen to questions carefully. Before you give your answer, make sure that it’s a correct response to the question.

Ask questions

It’s important to ask questions in an interview. It shows your interest in the position and in the company. Listen to what is said during the interview and ask for additional information later.

Maintain the three C’s

It’s OK to feel nervous — inside. But on the outside, you need to stay C ool, C alm, and

C onfident. Remember, you can do the job; make sure the interviewer knows it, too.

Passage 3 A Baseball Player

Listen, and check each statement True or False.

1. False

2. True

3.False

4. True

Script

Cal Junior played all his years in the major leagues with just one team.

Cal junior played for the Baltimore Orioles from nineteen eighty-one to two thousand and one. He played shortstop for most of his career and later moved to third base.

He played in nineteen All-Star Games and was named the most valuable player in two of them. Also, he was the American League's most valuable player in nineteen eighty-three when Baltimore won the World Series.

But baseball history may best remember him for playing two thousand six hundred and thirty-two consecutive games. The city of Baltimore celebrated in nineteen ninety-five when he broke the record set by Lou Gehrig for not missing any games. That record had stood for fifty-six years. Cal Junior became known as the "Iron Man" of baseball.

第二课

Part 3 Life and Responsibility

Passage 1 Women’s Responsibility

Listen to the passage and fill in the blanks with the information you hear.（需录音）1. as if 2.office work 3. promote 4. Where there is a will 5. questioned

6. working part time

7. asserted

8. in terms of

Script

Society places high emphasis that the modern woman should have knowledge in every field, as if she is some kind of a wonder woman. She is expected to know everything from daily kitchen chores to office work and more. This enabled the modern woman to promote herself to taking on tasks that were done by men alone during the past few decades.

Where there is a will, there is a way, holds exactly true in the case of women who prefer marriage to career or vice versa. When a student at Howard University in Washington D.C. was questioned about her future married life, she said that she would prefer working part time and devote more time and effort to her family. She felt that a woman's first responsibility is towards her home rather than work. She asserted that women should work only if financially demanding situations arise. A graduate now settled in the US feels that it is the responsibility of both the husband and the wife to help each other out in terms of household chores and shopping needs. She completed her Masters in Economics after her marriage and asserted that it is difficult to combine marriage, education and work.

Passage 2Political Career

Listen to a passage about Martin Luther King and check each statement True or False.

1. False

2. False

3. False

4. True

5. False

Script

Martin Luther King Junior was born on January fifteenth, nineteen twenty-nine in the southern city of Atlanta, Georgia. His father was a minister of a Christian Baptist Church.

At that time, laws in the American south kept black people separate from white people. The laws forced African-Americans to attend separate schools and live in separate areas of cities. They did not have the same civil rights as white people.

Martin Luther King Junior attended Morehouse College in Atlanta. There he studied the ideas of India's spiritual leader Mahatma Gandhi. He also studied American philosopher Henry David Thoreau. Both Gandhi and Thoreau wrote about ways to fight injustice. They urged people to disobey unjust laws, but not to use violence.

Martin Luther King Junior wanted to spread these ideas about peaceful protest. He became a Baptist minister like his father. In nineteen sixty–three, He gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech to two hundred thousand people in Washington, D.C. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in nineteen-sixty four. He was shot and killed four years later while visiting Memphis, Tennessee.

Each year, Americans celebrate Martin Luther King Junior's life and work on the Monday closest to his birthday. Schools and government offices are closed. Cities and towns hold special ceremonies to honor him.

Passage 3 Life Changes

Listen to the passage. Then choose the correct answer to each question from the three given choices.

1. A

2. A

3. B

4. C

Script

When his wife died, Fauja Singh left India to live with his son in Great Britain. He often felt bored and lonely with his new life, so he started running, a hobby he had given up 53 years earlier. In 2000 Singh participated in his first marathon at age 89, completing it in six hours and 54 minutes. He holds the world record for his age group. In 2004, Singh signed an advertising deal with the sports company Adidas. Singh gives the money he earns to charity. ―After all,‖ he says, ―you can’t take it with you.‖

第五章第一课

Part 4 Holiday Celebration

Passage 1 Wedding Ring (Workbook, p52)

Listen to the passage. Then circle the correct answer to each question.

1. B

2. C

3. B

4. C

Script

At weddings in many parts of the world, brides and grooms give each other wedding rings. These rings remind them of the commitment they made to each other when they got

married. They are also a sign to others that they are married.

No one knows for sure how this tradition started, but there is evidence that it began long ago in ancient Egypt. Coins at that time had a hole in the center. An Egyptian groom used to place a coin on his bride’s finger to show that he would provide for and take care of her.

In many ancient cultures, including Egypt, the circle is a symbol of eternity. The wedding ring has come to symbolize endless love and commitment.

Wedding rings have almost always been worn on the fourth finger, because the ancient Egyptians believed the vein of this finger went directly to the heart. But the hand it’s worn on depends o n where you live. In some cultures, people wear their rings on the left hand, and in others, they wear them on the right.

How the wedding ring fits is important. Some people think that the perfect fit of the rings represents a perfect fit between the couple: a tight ring can indicate jealousy, and a loose ring can show carelessness.

Passage 2Descriptions of Holidays (Listening Comprehension, Students’ book, p52)

Listen carefully to the descriptions of holidays. Write the type of holidays and what people do to celebrate them.

Script (Teacher’s book, T52, T55)

M: There are Mardi Gras celebrations in many places in the world, but the Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans in the United States are world-famous. Mardi Gras means ―fat Tuesday,‖ and usually occurs in February. It began as a religious holiday in which people could really enjoy themselves before the more solemn Catholic celebration of Lent. Now it’s considered to be ―the biggest party in the world,‖ and people travel from all over to enjoy the celebrations. On this day, people wear really

wild costumes and dance in a huge parade to New Orleans’ famous jazz music.

Along the parade route, people in the parade throw purple, green and gold colored necklaces, candy, and other things to the people who are watching.

F: Celebrated on July 14th, Bastille Day is France’s most important national holiday. It celebrates the attack on the hated Bastille prison, which marked the beginning of the French Revolution that led to modern France. It’s a joyous holiday in which people celebrate being French. You can see people dancing in the streets together and eating all kinds of food. Usually in the morning there are military parades with French flags flying all over. And in the evening, fireworks are set off and families sit together to watch them.

M: Tsagaan Sar — or White Month — is a celebration of the lunar new year in Mongolia.

It’s held for three days in February or March. Before the first day of the celebration, families clean every corner of their house. During this time, people wear new clothes — usually traditional Mongolian clothing — and they make lots of traditional foods.

They also give each other gifts, and especially enjoy giving gifts to their children.

One of the ways Mongolians really enjoy themselves during this holiday is to watch wrestling matches and horse races. All these activities symbolize starting the new year clean, rich, and happy.

Passage 3 Thanksgiving Day

Listen and check each statement True or False.

1. True

2. True

3. False

4. True

Script

This Thursday is Thanksgiving Day. This is the one hundred and forty-third official observance of the holiday. But the tradition is much older. Thanksgiving is an autumn harvest festival like those found in many cultures.

Today the holiday is a time of family reunions, parades and watching football games on television. And, oh yes, food. For millions of Americans, Thanksgiving is a day spent cooking, eating and talking.

Thanksgiving is what the social scientists call a civil holiday. It is not religious but it does have spiritual meaning. For some families, Thanksgiving may be the only time of year when everyone gets together. The government says the Sunday after Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the year for long-distance travel as people return from gatherings.

Thanksgiving is also when thoughts start to turn to other kinds of gifts. The Friday after Thanksgiving is the traditional start of the shopping season for Christmas and the other winter holidays.

第二课

Part 3 Some Holidays to Celebrate

Passage 1 Children’s Day (Workbook, P50, 此部分已改编需录音)

Listen to the passage. Circle the correct answers.

1. B

2. A

3. C

4. C

5. A

Script

Children’s Day is celebrated in many countries, on different days and in different ways.

In Japan, Children’s Day is May 5, originally a holiday to celebrate only boys. Families with sons often hang paper decorations and display figures that look like warriors, or fighters, because they hope their boys will grow up to be strong and healthy, like warriors. They also display carp decorations, since carp is fish that symbolizes success in life.

In Korea, Children’s Day is a national holiday, celebrated on May 5. Many parents don’t work and spend the day with their children. Families often visit parks, zoos, and movie theaters because they’re free for children on this day. Parents traditionally give their children gifts and money.

In Turkey, Children’s Day fall on April 23. I t was established by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Turkish Republic. On that day, people enjoy festivals and performances by children. Children replace the president, prime minister, members of the Grand National Assembly, and other officials for o ne day. They address children’s and educational issues.

Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India, deeply loved children. His birthday, November 14, became Children’s Day in India. Schools celebrate by having cultural programs and handing out treats and snacks. There are competitions and games of all kinds.

Passage 2 Halloween

Listen carefully to the following passage, and answer the following questions.

1. Halloween means ―holy evening’.

2. Before Christianity, people in Europe believed that on Oct. 31 ghosts of dead people came back. To scare the ghosts, people dressed like devils and were very noisy. They also made big fires to keep the ghosts away.

3. The jack-o’-lantern is to scare the ghosts.

4. Children wear masks and special costumes.

5. When people give nothing, the children sometimes play tricks on them.

Script

On Oct. 31, Americans celebrate Halloween. Halloween means ―holy evening’. This is the evening before the Christian holy day of All Saints’ Day. On All Saints’ Day, Christians remember the saints. But Halloween is even older than Christianity.

Before Christianity, people in Europe believed that on Oct. 31 ghosts of dead people came back. T o scare the ghosts, people dressed like devils and were very noisy. They also made big fires to keep the ghosts away. Later, people did not believe in ghosts, but they kept the day of Halloween for fun.

Immigrants came from Europe to America and brought with them the custom of

Halloween. Halloween has some strange symbols. One symbol is the jack-o’-lantern in the window. The jack-o’-lantern is to scare the ghosts. People cut the pumpkin, throw away all of the inside, and cut a face in it. Then they put a candle inside of it. Jack-o’-lanterns usually look scary, too!

Today, in the United States, Halloween is very popular with children. They wear masks and special costumes. They want to look like skeletons and ghosts. Then they go from house to house and say, ―Trick or treat!‖ People give them candies, cookies or fruit. When people give nothing, the children sometimes play tricks on them.

Passage 3 St. Valentine's Day (此部分为课外材料，需重新录音)

Listen carefully to the following passage, and fill in the blanks with the information you hear.

1. a young boy with bow and arrow

2. his teachings of Christianity

3. he secretly married couples

4. sweethearts

5. candy, roses

Script

St. Valentine's Day has roots in several different legends that have found their way to us through the ages. One of the earliest popular symbols of the day is Cupid, the Roman god of love, who is represented by the image of a young boy with bow and arrow.

Three hundred years after the death of Jesus Christ, the Roman emperors still demanded that everyone believe in the Roman gods. Valentine, a Christian priest, had been thrown in prison for his teachings of Christianity. On February 14, Valentine was beheaded. The night before he was executed, he wrote the jailer's daughter a farewell letter, signing it "From Your Valentine."

Another Valentine was an Italian bishop who lived at about the same time, AD 200. He was imprisoned because he secretly married couples, contrary to the laws of the Roman emperor. Some legends say he was burned at the stake.

Whatever the odd mixture of origins, St. Valentine's Day is now a day for sweethearts. It is the day that you show your friend or loved one that you care. You can send candy to someone you think is special. Or you can send roses — the flower of love.

第六章第一课

Part IV Disasters and Emergencies

Passage 1 Facts about Earthquakes

Listen to the passage and fill in the blanks.

1. 1831 B.C.

2. 9.5

3. 1556

4. 250,000

Script

The earliest recorded evidence of an earthquake has been traced back to 1831 BC in the Shandong province of China, but there is a fairly complete record starting in 780 BC during the Zhou Dynasty in China.

The largest recorded earthquake in the world was a magnitude 9.5 (Mw) in Chile on May 22, 1960. The magnitude of an earthquake is a measured value of the earthquake size. The magnitude is the same no matter where you are, or how strong or weak the shaking was in various locations.

It is estimated that there are 500,000 detectable earthquakes in the world each year. 100,000 of those can be felt, and 100 of them cause damage. The world's deadliest recorded earthquake occurred in 1556 in central China. It struck a region where most people lived in caves carved from soft rock. These dwellings collapsed during the earthquake, killing an estimated 830,000 people. In 1976 another deadly earthquake struck in Tangshan, China, where more than 250,000 people were killed.

Passage 2 An Amazing Story of Survival

Listen to the passage about one true survival experience. Then check true, false, or not mentioned for each question.

1. False

2. True

3. False

4. Not Mentioned

5. True

Script

In August of 1914, Irish-born explorer Ernest Shackleton and twenty-seven men began a journey across Antarctica. But the journey soon became a disaster, and the men had to fight for survival.

In January 1915, the ice of the Weddell Sea closed around Shack leton’s boat, Endurance. Because the ship was completely frozen in the ice, the men had to wait for the ice to melt before they could continue on their journey. But after ten months, there was an emergency: the ship was being crushed by the ice and was starting to sink. The men escaped with three lifeboats and spent the next five months living on a large piece of ice. They didn’t have many supplies, so they ate penguins and burned fat from seals.

When the men were finally able to leave, they sailed on the lifeboats through freezing, stormy water to solid land, which they soon learned was a deserted island.

Since this deserted island had no supplies, Shackleton and five of his men left the island in a tiny lifeboat and traveled 1,280 km through freezing water with waves over eighteen meters high. After a month, they finally arrived at a second island. Shackleton and his men almost died trying to cross the mountains on this island. But three days later they found signs of civilization, and they organized a rescue for the rest of the men on the first island.

Amazingly, all of the men arrived home safely. This is a true story of survivors.

Passage 3 Hurricane Katrina

Listen to the passage, and fill in the blanks with the missing information you hear.

1. 2000 people.

2. Dogs.

3. The black.

4. They were unable to find even where their houses had stood.

Script

At the end of August, Hurricane Katrina hit states along the Gulf Coast, in the southeastern United States. Louisiana suffered the greatest losses. More than one thousand people were killed in that state. About two thousand people are still listed officially as missing, although many are believed to be alive. Louisiana's medical examiner says the missing include several hundred in New Orleans. More than five hundred and fifty people are known to have died in New Orleans. A new search for bodies in the wreckage started earlier this month, using dogs to smell for remains. Estimates differ, but the current population of New Orleans seems to be around two hundred thousand. Many people have resettled, at least temporarily. Many are in Houston, Texas, and Baton Rouge, the Louisiana capital. New Orleans was almost seventy percent black before the storm. So far, many of the African-Americans who left have not returned.

Fewer families mean fewer children. Most of the public schools in New Orleans remain closed. Some people who went home briefly had a terrible shock. They were unable to find even where their houses had stood. They said the damage looked like a huge bomb had exploded.

Hurricane Katrina produced winds of two hundred eighty kilometers per hour or stronger. But in some areas, the winds alone did not do as much damage as expected. Then came the deadly floods. Soon, most of the city was underwater.

第二课

Part 3 Natural Disaters

Passage 1 The Earthquake Alarm System

Listen to the passage about earthquake alarm system. Circle the correct answers.

1. B

2. C

3. B

4. B

Script

Scientists in the United States have developed a computer program that they say could provide an early warning of major earthquakes. The new system is designed to give a warning seconds before an earthquake strikes.

Richard Allen of the University of Wisconsin and Hiroo Kanamori of the California Institute of Technology developed the program. They call it the Earthquake Alarm System.

The system uses a mathematical program to measure information. Southern

California already has more than one hundred and fifty stations that measure movements within the ground. The information they collect is sent to a high-speed computer.

The two scientists are still developing their system. But Professor Allen says it could be put in place in other areas after testing is completed.

An earthquake shakes the ground with two kinds of waves. The new system uses information from a low-energy wave that moves quickly but causes little damage. Experts call this the P-wave. The slower but stronger S-wave is the main threat to life and property.

Japan already has a system based on P-waves. There, the warnings are used to slow down high-speed bullet trains. Other countries have warning systems that measure S-waves.

The new system is designed to estimate the strength of the earthquake once the shaking starts. Areas directly above the center of the earthquake would have the least warning. Distant places might have as long as forty seconds.

The scientists are still testing their proposed system in the Los Angeles area. Professor Allen admits that it still has the problem of the possibility of false alarms.

Passage 2 Our Planet

Listen to the passage, and fill in the blanks with the missing information.

1. frightening

2. seventy thousand

3. homeless

4. taken from

5. permanent

6. in motion

7. float

Script

Volcanoes and earthquakes are among the most frightening events that nature can produce. The major earthquake in South Asia in October of two thousand and five, for example, killed more than seventy thousand people. More than three million people were made homeless because of the earthquake. At times like these, we remember that the ground is not as solid and unchanging as people might like to think.

The first picture of Earth taken from space showed a solid ball covered by brown and green land and blue-green oceans. It appeared as if the Earth had always looked that way — and always would. Scientists now know, however, that the surface of the Earth is not as permanent as had been thought.

Scientists explain that the surface of our planet is always in motion. Continents move about the Earth like huge ships at sea. They float on pieces of the Earth's outer skin, or crust. New crust is created as melted rock pushes up from inside the planet. Old crust is destroyed as it rolls down into the hot area and melts again.

Passage 3 Reducing Disaster Risk

Listen to the passage about reducing disaster risk. Then check true or false.

1.False

2. False

3. False

4. False

Script