人教版高中英语必修5各单元课文原文

Un it 1 Great scie ntists

JOHH SHOW DEFEATS' KING CHOLER”

Joh n Snow was a famous doctor in London - so expert, in deed, that he atte nded Quee n Victoria as her pers onal physicia n. But he became in spired when he thought about help ing ordinary people exposed to cholera. This was the deadly disease of its day. Neither its cause nor its cure was understood. So many thousands of terrified people died every time there was an outbreak. Joh n Snow wan ted to face the challe nge and solve this problem. He knew that cholera would n ever be con trolled un til its cause was found.

He became in terested in two theories that possibly expla ined how cholera killed people. The first suggested that cholera multiplied in the air. A cloud of dangerous gas floated around until it found its victims. The second suggested that people absorbed this disease in to their bodies with their meals. From the stomach the disease quickly attacked the body and soon the affected pers on died.

John Snow suspected that the second theory was correct but he needed evidenee. So when another outbreak hit London in 1854, he was ready to begin his enquiry. As the disease spread quickly through poor n eighbourhoods, he bega n to gather in formati on. In two particular streets, the cholera outbreak was so severe that more tha n 500 people died in ten days. He was determ ined to find out why.

First he marked on a map the exact places where all the dead people had lived. This gave him a valuable clue about the cause of the disease. Many of the deaths were near the water pump in Broad Street (especially numbers 16, 37, 38 and 40). He also no ticed that some houses (such as 20 and 21 Broad Street and 8 and 9 Cambridge Street) had had no deaths. He had not foreseen this, so he made further investigations. He discovered that these people worked in the pub at 7 Cambridge Street. They had bee n give n free beer and so had not drunk the water from the pump. It seemed that the water was to blame.

Next, Joh n Snow looked into the source of the water for these two streets.

He found that it came from the river polluted by the dirty water from London. He immediately told the ast oni shed people in Broad Street to remove the han dle from the pump so that it could not be used. Soon afterwards the disease slowed dow n. He had show n that cholera was spread by germs and not in a cloud of gas.

In another part of London, he found supporting evidenee from two other deaths that were lin ked to the Broad Street outbreak. A woma n, who had moved away from Broad Street, liked the water from the pump so much that she had it delivered to her house every day. Both she and her daughter died of cholera after drinking the water. With this extra evide nee Joh n Snow was able to announce with certa inty that polluted water carried the virus.

To preve nt this from happe ning aga in, Joh n Snow suggested that the source of all the water supplies be exam in ed. The water compa nies were in structed not to expose people to polluted water any more. Fin ally "King Cholera" was defeated.

COPERNICUS REVOLUTIONRRY THEORY

Nicolaus Coper ni cus was frighte ned and his mi nd was con fused. Although he had tried to ignore them, all his mathematical calculations led to the same conclusion: that the earth was not the centre of the solar system. Only if you put the sun there did the moveme nts of the other pla nets in the sky make sen se. Yet he could not tell anyone about his theory as the powerful Christia n Church would have puni shed him for even suggesting such an idea. They believed God had made the world and for that reas on the earth was special and must be the centre of the solar system.

The problem arose because astro no mers had no ticed that some pla nets in the sky seemed to stop, move backward and the n go forward in a loop. Others appeared brighter at times and less bright at others. This was very strange if the earth was the centre of the solar system and all planets went round it.

Coper ni cus had thought long and hard about these problems and tried to find an answer. He had collected observations of the stars and used all his mathematical kno wledge to explai n them. But only his new theory could do that. So betwee n 1510 and 1514 he worked on it, gradually improving his theory until he felt it was complete.

In 1514 he showed it privately to his frie nds. The cha nges he made to the old theory were revoluti on ary. He placed a fixed sun at the centre of the solar system with the planets going round it and only the moon still going round the earth. He also suggested that the earth was spinning as it went round the sun and this expla ined cha nges in the moveme nt of the pla nets and in the bright ness of the stars. His frie nds were en thusiastic and en couraged him to publish his ideas, but Coper ni cus was cautious. He did not want to be attacked by the Christian Church, so he only published it as he lay dying in 1543.

Certa in ly he was right to be careful. The Christia n Church rejected his theory, saying it was against God's idea and people who supported it would be attacked. Yet Coper ni cus' theory is now the basis on which all our ideas of the uni verse are built. His theory replaced the Christian idea of gravity, which said things fell to earth because God created the earth as the centre of the uni verse. Coper ni cus showed this was obviously wrong. Now people can see that there is a direct link between his theory and the work of Isaac Newt on, Albert Ein ste in and Stephe n Hawki ng.

Unit 2 The United Kingdom

People may wonder why different words are used to describe these four coun tries: En gla nd, Wales, Scotia nd and Northern Irela nd. You can clarify this questi on if you study British history.

First there was England. Wales was linked to it in the thirteenth century. Now whe n people refer to En gla nd you find Wales in cluded as well. Next En gla nd and Wales were joined to Scotla nd in the seve ntee nth cen tury and the n ame was cha nged to "Great Brita in". Happily this was accomplished without con flict whe n Ki ng Jamesof Scotla nd became King of En gla nd and Wales as well. Fin ally the En glish gover nment tried in the early twentieth century to form the United Kingdom by getting Ireland connected in the same peaceful way. However, the southern part of Ireland was unwilling and broke away to form its own government. So only Northern Ireland joined with En gla nd, Wales and Scotla nd to become the Un ited Kin gdom and this was show n to the world in a new flag called the Union Jack.

To their credit the four coun tries do work together in some areas (eg, the currency and international relations), but they still have very different institutions. For example, Northern Ireland, England and Scotland have different educati onal and legal systems as well as differe nt football teams for competiti ons like the World Cup!

England is the largest of the four countries, and for convenience it is divided roughly into three zones. The zone nearest France is called the South of En gla nd, the middle zone is called the Midla nds and the one n earest to Scotla nd is known as the North. You find most of the population settled in the south, but most of the in dustrial cities in the Midla nds and the North of En gla nd. Although, n ati on wide, these cities are not as large as those in China, they have wofamous football teams and some of them eve n have two! It is a pity that the in dustrial cities built in the nin etee nth cen tury do not attract visitors. For historical architecture you have to go to older but smaller tow ns built by the Roma ns. There you will find out more about British history and culture.

The greatest historical treasure of all is London with its museums, art collect ions, theatres, parks and buildi ngs. It is the centre of n ati onal gover nment and its admi nistrati on .It has the oldest port built by the Roma ns in the first cen tury AD, the oldest build ing beg un by the An glo-Sax ons in the 1060s and the oldest castle constructed by later Norman rulers in 1066. There has been four sets of invaders of En gla nd. The first inv aders, the Roma ns, left their tow ns and roads. The sec ond, the An glo-Sax on s, left their Ian guage and their gover nment. The third, the Vikin gs, in flue need the vocabulary and placenames of the North of En gla nd, and the fourth, the Norma ns, left castles and in troduced new words for food.

If you look around the British countryside you will find evidence of all these invaders. You must keep your eyes open if you are going to make your trip to the United Kin gdom enjo yable and worthwhile.

SIGHTSEEING IN LONDON

Worried about the time available, Zhang Pingyu had made a list of the sites she wan ted to see in London. Her first delight was going to the Tower. It was built long ago by the Norman invaders of AD 1066. Fancy! This solid stone, square tower had rema ined sta nding for one thousa nd years.Although the buildi ngs had expa nded around it, it rema ined part of a royal palace and pris on comb in ed. To her great surprise, Zhang Pin gyu found the Quee n's jewels guarded by special royal soldiers who, on special occasions, still wore the four-hundred-year-old uniform of the time of Queen Elizabeth I.

There followed St Paul's Cathedral built after the terrible fire of London in 1666. It looked splendid when first built! Westminster Abbey, too, was very interesting. It contained statues in memory of dead poets and writers, such as Shakespeare. Then just as she came out of the abbey, Pin gyu heard the famous sound of the clock, Big Ben, ringing out the hour. She finished the day by looking at the outside of Buck in gham Palace, the Quee n's house in London. Oh, she had so much to tell her frien ds!

The second day the girl visited Greenwich and saw its old ships and famous clock that sets the world time. What in terested her most was the Ion gitude lin e. It is an imaginary line dividing the eastern and western halves of the world and is very useful for navigation. It passes through Greenwich, so Pingyu had a photo taken standing on either side of the line.

The last day she visited Karl Marx's statue in Highgate Cemetery. It seemed stra nge that the man who had developed com munism should have lived and died in London. Not only that, but he had worked in the famous read ing room of the Library of the British Museum. Sadly the library had moved from its original place into another build ing and the old read ing room was gone. But she was thrilled by so many won derful treasures from differe nt cultures displayed in the museum. When she saw many visitors enjoying look ing at the beautiful old Chin ese pots and other objects on show, she felt very proud of her coun try.

The n ext day Pin gyu was leav ing London for Win dsor Castle. "Perhaps I will see the Quee n?" she won dered as she fell asleep.

Un it 3 Life in the future

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Spacemall: liqia ng299A@GreatAdve ntureSpaceStati on .com 15/11/3008 (Earthtime) Dear Mum and Dad,

I still cannot believe that I am taking up this prize that I won last year. I have to remind myself constantly that I am really in AD 3008. Worried about the journey, I was unsettled for the first few days. As a result, I suffered from “ Timdag ” This is similar to the “jet lag you get from flying, but it seems you keep getting flashbacks from your previous time period. So I was very nervous and uncertain at first. However, my frie nd and guide, Wang Ping, was very un dersta nding and gave me some gree n tablets which helped a lot. Well-k nown for their expertise, his pare nts' compa ny, called "Future Tours", tran sported me safely into the future in a time capsule.

I can still remember the moment when the space stewardess called us all to the capsule and we climbed in through a small ope ning. The seats were comfortable and after a cal ming drink, we felt sleepy and closed our eyes. The capsule bega n swinging gently sideways as we lay relaxed and dreaming. A few minutes later, the jour ney was completed and we had arrived. I was still on the earth but one thousa nd years in the future. What would I find?

At first my new surroundings were difficult to tolerate. The air seemed thin, as though its comb in ati on of gases had little oxyge n left. Hit by a lack of fresh air, my head ached. Just as I tried to make the n ecessary adjustme nt to this new situati on, Wang Pi ng appeared. "Put on this mask," he advised. "It'll make you feel much better." He handed it to me and immediately hurried me through to a small room nearby for a rest. I felt better in no time. Soon I was back on my feet again and follow ing him to collect a hoveri ng carriage drive n by computer. These carriages float above the ground and by bending or press ing dow n in your seat, you can move swiftly. Wang Ping faste ned my safety belt and showed me how to use it. Soon I could fly as fast as him. However, I lost sight of Wang Pi ng whe n we reached what looked like a large market because of too many carriages flyi ng by in all direct ions. He was swept up into the centre of them. Just at that moment I had a "time lag" flashback and saw the area aga in as it had bee n in the year AD 2008. I realized that I had bee n tran sported into the future of what was still my hometow n! Then I caught sight of Wang Ping aga in and flew after him.

Arriv ing at a stra ng&look ing house, he showed me into a large, bright clea n room. It had a green wall, a brown floor and soft lighting. Suddenly the wall moved -it was made of trees! I found later that their leaves provided the room with much-needed oxygen. Then Wang Ping flashed a switch on a computer screen, and a table and some chairs rose from under the floor as if by magic. "Why not sit down and eat a little?" he said. "You may find this difficult as it is your first time travel trip. Just relax, since there is nothing planned on the timetable today. Tomorrow you'll be ready for some visits." Having said this, he spread some food on the table, and produced a bed from the floor. After he left, I had a brief meal and a hot bath. Exhausted, I slid into bed and fell fast asleep.

More n ews later from your loving son,

Li Qiang

My first visit was to a space station considered the most modem in space. Described as an enormous round plate, it spins slowly in space to imitate the pull of the earth's gravity .In side was an exhibiti on of the most upo-date inven ti ons of the 31 st cen tury. A guide (G) showed us around along a moveable path.

G: Good morni ng to all our visitors from 2008. First we're going to exam ine one of the latest forms of com muni cati on among our space citize ns. No more typists working on a typewriter or computer! No more postage or postcodes! Messagescan now be sent using a "thoughtpad". You place the metal band over your head, clear your mind, press the sending butt on, think your messagea nd the n ext in sta nt it's sen t. It's stored on the "thoughtpad" of the receiver. It's quick, efficie nt and environmen tally friendly. The only limitation is if the user does not think his or her message clearly, an un clear message may be sent. But we cannot blame the tools for the faults of the user, can we?

During the expla nati on I looked at the pair of small objects called "thoughtpads" on a table. They just looked like metal ribb ons. So ordi nary but so powerful! While I was observ ing them, the path moved us on.

G: And now ladies and gentlemen, we are in the "environment area". People used to collect waste in dustbins. Then the rubbish was sent to be buried or burned, am I fight? (We no dded.) Well, now there's a system where the waste is disposed of using the principles of ecology. A giant machine, always greedy for more, swallows all the waste available. The rubbish is turned into several grades of useful material, such as "fertilizer" for the fields and "soil" for deserts. Nothing is wasted, and everythi ng, eve n plastic bags, is recycled. A great idea, is n't' it?

I stared at the moving model of the waste machine, absorbed by its efficiency. But aga in we moved on.

G: Our third stop shows the cha nges that have happe ned to work practices. Manu facturi ng no Ion ger takes place on the earth but on space stati ons like this one. A group of engin eers programme robots to perform tasks in space. The robots produce goods such as drugs, clothes, furn iture, hoveri ng carriages, etc. There is no waste, no pollution and no environmental damage! However, the companies have to train their represe ntatives to live and work in space settleme nts. They have to mon itor the robots and the producti on. When the goods are ready they're tran sported by in dustrial spaceship back to earth.

My mind bega n to wan der. What job would I do? My motivati on in creased as I thought of the won derful world of the future.

Un it 4 Making the n ews

MY FIRST WORK ASSIGNMENT

"Un forgettable", says new journalist

Never will Zhou Yang (ZY) forget his first assig nment at the office of a popular En glish n ewspaper. His discussi on with his new boss, Hu Xin (HX), was to stro ngly in flue nee his life as a journalist.

HX: Welcome. We're delighted you're coming to work with us. Your first job here will be an assista nt jour nalist. Do you have any questi ons?

ZY: Can I go out on a story immediately?

HX: (laughi ng) That' s admirable, but r m afraid it would be unu sual ! Wait till you' re more experie need. First we'll put you as an assista nt to an experie need journalist. Later you can cover a story and submit the article yourself.

ZY: Won derful. What do I n eed to take with me? I already have a no tebook and

camera.

HX: No n eed for a camera. You'll have a professi onal photographer with you to take photographs. You'll find your colleagues very eager to assist you, so you may be able to concen trate on photography later if you' re in terested.

ZY: Thank you. Not only am I in terested in photography, but I took an amateur

course at uni versity to update my skills.

HX: Good.

ZY: What do I n eed to remember whe n I go out to cover a story?

HX: You need to be curious. Only if you ask many different questions will you acquire all the in formatio n you n eed to know. We say a good journalist must have a good "no se" for a story. That means you must be able to assess whe n people are not telling the whole troth and then try to discover it. They must use research to inform themselves of the missing parts of the story.

ZY: What should I keep in mind?

HX: Here comes my list of dos and don 'ts: don't miss your deadli ne, don't be

rode, don't talk too much, but make sure you listen to the interviewee carefully.

ZY: Why is liste ning so importa nt?

HX: Well, you have to listen for detailed facts. Meanwhile you have to prepare the n ext questi on depe nding on what the pers on says.

ZY: But how can I liste n carefully while tak ing no tes?

HX: This is a trick of the trade, If the interviewee agrees, you can use a recorder to get the facts straight. It's also useful if a pers on wants to challe nge you. You have the evide nee to support your story.

ZY: I see! Have you ever had a case where some one accused your journ alists of

getti ng the wrong end of the stick?

HX: Yes, but it was a long time ago. This is how the story goes. A footballer was accused of tak ing money for deliberately not scori ng goals so as to let the other team wi n. We went to in terview him. He denied tak ing money but we were sceptical. So we arran ged an in terview betwee n the footballer and the man supposed to bribe him. When we saw them together we guessed from the footballer's body Ian guage that he was not telling the truth. So we wrote an article suggesting he was guilty. It was a dilemma

because the footballer could have dema nded damages if we were wrong. He tried to stop us publish ing it but later we were proved right.