新视界大学英语2Unit 5 Active reading

1、Warming uWarming up pSkimmingSkimmingDiggingDiggingCritical thinkingCritical thinkingLanguage in useLanguage in useUnfamiliar wordsUnfamiliar wordsInterpretingInterpretingTalking pointTalking point Leisure inactivities or how to relax and do nothingWarming up Listen and underline any words or expres

2、sions which are different from what you hear.A: I didnt see you in class this morning.B: I wasnt there. I had a rough night, and was a bit too tired to come.A: Thats because you spend too much time partying. B: Not exactly, but I took some time off. I thought Id go running in the woods behind campus

3、, you know. A: Sounds like an interesting thing to do.A: I didnt see you in class this morning.B: I wasnt there. I had a rough night, and was a bit too tired to come.A: Thats because you spend too much time partying. B: Not exactly, but I took some time off. I thought Id go running in the woods behi

4、nd campus, you know. A: Sounds like an interesting thing to do.Warming upB: Well, it is, especially at this time of year. You never know what you might see or hear. Thats why I took my camera and started waiting, and because you have to be quiet I got down under a tree and, er A: Something happened?

5、B: I must have fallen down a hole. The next thing I knew it was five oclock in the morning and all the birds were singing. The problem with hobbies like mine is that theyre too dangerous. I need to do something more relaxing, like kung fu or mountain climbing B: Well, it is, especially at this time

6、of year. You never know what you might see or hear. Thats why I took my camera and started waiting, and because you have to be quiet I got down under a tree and, er A: Something happened?B: I must have fallen down a hole. The next thing I knew it was five oclock in the morning and all the birds were

7、 singing. The problem with hobbies like mine is that theyre too dangerous. I need to do something more relaxing, like kung fu or mountain climbing Warming upNow listen again and correct the information.Answer:1)partying studying2) running bird-watching3) camera type recorder4) down a hole asleep5) d

8、angerous stressfulWarming upWhats your idea of: Work in pairs and discuss the questions. 2 an exciting hobby3 a boring hobby1 having a good time4 an unusual hobbyWarming upWatch the video of how a Western botanist found Shangri-La. How do you spend your leisure time, do you also like traveling? Shar

9、e your experience with the whole class.Warming up Look at the title of the passage and answer the questions.1 What kind of activities do you expect the passage to talk about? 2 What kind of style do you expect it will be written in?Now read the passage and check your answers.Skimming Browse the pass

10、age within 8 minutes to get a rough idea about it.Answer the questions of Activity 2 and 3 on page 74.TaskTaskSkimming Choose the best definition.A couch potato is someone who _. (a) doesnt like sports but is active in other ways(b) takes no exercise, and spends their leisure time doing very little(

11、c) enjoys doing energetic activities, but only at home(d) enjoys growing vegetables indoorsNow think of definitions for these things: 1 a leisure inactivity 2 a mouse potato 3 telly belly 4 mouse milesbAnswer: A leisure inactivity seems to be something you do in your free time which involves as litt

12、le energy as possible, eg sleeping or being a couch potato. If one thinks of a computer mouse, the expression mouse potato becomes easy to understand one who is always in front of the computer surfing the Net or playing games. The nicely rhyming telly belly refers to the result of being a television

13、 addict who also has a large stomach. Mouse miles refer to the miles of movements which a mouse moves on the table and indicates how much time youve spent on the computer and how many activities youve had with your computer.SkimmingSkimming Choose the best way to complete the sentences.1 In the 19th

14、 century, British people had more time off than in earlier times and _. (a) they wanted to play more sports (b) they didnt want to do anything useful (c) they wanted to do something useful and feel fulfilled (d) they didnt want to do anything newcSkimming2 Leisure inactivities usually involve _. (a)

15、 very little contact with other people or physical activity (b) watching sport on TV (c) taking a day off work and staying at home (d) excessive amounts of time in front of a computer3 For a couch potato getting interested in a TV programme is unwise because _. (a) you wont use the remote control en

16、ough (b) you may run out of snacks and drinks (c) it may be your only day off in the week (d) you may make too much intellectual effortadSkimming4 The risks of being a couch potato are _. (a) minimal because potatoes are healthy (b) minimal because you are in your own home (c) real because you might

17、 put on a lot of weight (d) not as serious as the Oxford English Dictionary claims5 A mouse potato _. (a) spends a lot of time travelling the world (b) can exchange mouse miles for potato chips (c) replaces traditional leisure activities with computer- based entertainment (d) spends all their time i

18、nsulting people in Internet chat roomsccLeisure inactivities or how to relax and do nothing译文译文Digging1 Centuries ago people didnt have much free time, because everyone was working too hard. In Britain in the 19th century, people had more free time, but the Victorians thought relaxing and doing noth

19、ing was a sin. So to avoid temptation, they invented football and cricket. People took up more gentle leisure activities like bird-watching, and gardening, and it was even possible simply to watch a sport and be satisfied that you were actually doing something useful.2 One instance of this is cricke

20、t, which is a peculiar game with weird rules, where nothing happens for five days, at the end of which the players often decide to call it a draw. And everyone playing or watching feels perfectly fulfilled by this non-event. Its a good example of what we now call a leisure inactivity.Digging3 Gradua

21、lly over the years, leisure inactivities have involved even less interaction. In the 1990s a new leisure creature evolved, one who thinks that lying on the sofa watching sport or DVDs on the television is the most exciting inactivity they can manage. This is the couch potato. 译文译文Digging4 So who wan

22、ts to be a couch potato? Well, as a matter of fact, many people do, and for very good reasons. Maybe its your one day off in the week, maybe you just got back from work or school. Maybe youre tired and just want to chill. For the couch potato, every activity is too much trouble, and being idle is an

23、 art form.译文译文Digging5 How do you become a couch potato? Its easy. Sit down in a comfortable place, such as a nice soft chair, or . you knew it was coming . a couch. Dont sit on a potato. Make sure you have everything you need, things to eat (especially potato chips no serious couch potato would eat

24、 anything else), drinks, magazines and a telly.译文译文Digging6 The most important piece of equipment is of course, the remote control. Without the freedom to change channels without moving from the couch, no couch potato would be worthy of the name. In fact, watching TV without a remote control becomes

25、 dangerously like physical exercise, and probably should be avoided.译文译文Digging7 Now just start watching the telly. Change channels every ten seconds, and then move on. Try your best to lose concentration quickly, in order to maintain your status as a couch potato. (Remember that you also have the a

26、ttention span of a potato.) Finally, ask other people to do things for you, like get more food, or rent a movie. But be nice to them! If you arent nice, youll probably have to do it yourself.译文译文Digging8 But with every new trend, theres a reaction. British farmers were recently reported by the BBC t

27、o be angry at the use of the expression couch potato, because it gave the vegetable a negative image. Potatoes are inherently healthy, says the British Potato Council, and is organizing protests to demand the removal of couch potato from the Oxford English Dictionary.9 So there you are! Couch potato

28、es are healthy.译文译文Digging10 Of course, for the true couch potato, there are inherent risks. Perhaps the greatest of these results from the lack of exercise, and is referred to by professional couch potatoes as telly belly. Some, however, see their telly belly as a mark of their commitment to their

29、leisure inactivity, and wear it proudly over the top of their trousers. (Interestingly, this is a highly fashionable style known as a muffin top. Find out why next time youre in Starbucks.)译文译文Digging11 But time moves on, and in the 21st century we now have a version of the couch potato specially fo

30、r the online activities on the computer. This is called the mouse potato. A mouse potato spends excessive amounts of time in front of a computer monitor, with the same absence of interest in the outside world as their older cousin, the couch potato. Mouse potatoes are hooked on online games with oth

31、er fellow potatoes around the world. 译文译文DiggingIn fact, leaving the computer not only lacks purpose but also risks a threat by some rival or more skilful mouse potato in a brighter time zone across the world. For time off, their routine includes performing extensive Internet searches or participati

32、ng in online chat rooms, leaving ill-informed and badly spelt opinions around the virtual world, causing offence or generally insulting ones intelligence.译文译文Digging12 For mouse potatoes with an aspiration for adventure, you can even travel the world and visit countries you might otherwise never see

33、 by going to CouchP. You can also find out how much time you spend on your computer by logging the distance your mouse travels. These are called mouse miles, and who knows, maybe one day you can exchange them for more potato chips at all good computer stores.译文译文Digging13 So with a minimum of effort

34、 you too can have your own leisure inactivity. Become a couch potato! Earn that telly belly! Train hard as a mouse potato, and earn mouse miles. Get started today. Theres so much time, and so little to do. 译文译文DiggingMain idea of the text1. but the Victorians thought relaxing and doing nothing was a

35、 sin. (Line 4, Para 1)The work ethic was very strong in 19th-century England probably in response to the Industrial Revolution and dramatic increase in the British economy. Religion was also very strong, teaching that mans duty was to work and any wasted moments would have to be accounted for (作出解释，

36、说明) to God. Difficult sentences Difficult sentences 2. Maybe its your one day off in the week, (Line 3, Para 4)one day off: a day without work, or a day away from workDifficult sentences 3. Maybe youre tired and just want to chill. (Line 5, Para 4)Here, the informal use of the word “chill” is adopte

37、d to relax. The metaphor is that while work and being under stress is hot, relaxation is cool.Difficult sentences 4. For the couch potato, every activity is too much trouble, and being idle is an art form. (Line 6, Para 4)The writer is being ironic and comparing the couch potato to a master of a dif

38、ficult art, eg a dancer or opera singer etc.Difficult sentences 5. Sit down in a comfortable place, such as a nice soft chair, or you knew it was coming a couch. (Line 2, Para 5)Of course, a couch potato sits on a couch. You could predict the writer will say that before he does. you knew it was comi

39、ng: This expression is used in light-hearted contexts when we state the obvious. Difficult sentences 6. Without the freedom to change channels without moving from the couch, no couch potato would be worthy of the name. In fact, watching TV without a remote control becomes dangerously like physical e

40、xercise, and probably should be avoided. (Line 2, Para 6)The writer creates an ironic effect through the use of exaggeration. The true couch potato is not supposed to move from the couch. So getting up, as people once had to do, to go over to the television to change channels would be against the en

41、tire couch potato lifestyle. It might even be too energetic for them and cause problems. Difficult sentences 7. Remember that you also have the attention span of a potato. (Line 5, Para 7)A potato, of course, does not have an attention span. The writer is saying that a person who wants to be a couch

42、 potato must not concentrate on anything for long.Difficult sentences 8. But with every new trend, theres a reaction. (Line 1, Para 8)The writer is referring to the Third Law of Motion by Newton: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. So for every new trend or fashion, there is an

43、 objection or counter movement.Difficult sentences 9. Some, however, see their telly belly as a mark of their commitment to their leisure inactivity, and wear it proudly over the top of their trousers. (Line 5, Para 10)The couch potato wears a bulging stomach as proof of his inactive lifestyle, and

44、even feels proud of it, just like one might proudly wear a team or university T-shirt.Difficult sentences 10. Interestingly, this is a highly fashionable style known as a muffin top. Find out why next time youre in Starbucks. (Line 8, Para 10)Peoples stomachs bulge over the tops of their trousers ju

45、st as the edge of the muffin bulges over the top of the cake. The writer suggests anyone who does not understand what he means should go to a Starbucks and compare a man with a telly belly and muffins to understand. Difficult sentences 11. Mouse potatoes are hooked on online games with other fellow

46、potatoes around the world. (Line 8, Para 11)If you are hooked on something, you enjoy it very much and you want to do it as often as possible. The metaphor comes from the situation where a fish caught on a hook was unable to swim away.be hooked on: be addicted to somethingDifficult sentences 12. In

47、fact, leaving the computer not only lacks purpose but also risks a threat by some rival or more skilful mouse potato in a brighter time zone across the world. (Line 10, Para 11)These computer addicts have no reason to leave the computer as they have no other interests. It is difficult for them even

48、to leave their computers at night, because the online games mouse potatoes played are international. By leaving the game and going to bed the player risks losing his position to players in other countries, for whom it is now morning. Difficult sentences 13. For time off, their routine includes leavi

49、ng ill-formed and badly spelt opinions around the virtual world, causing offence or generally insulting ones intelligence. (Line 14, Para 11)The things they write are insulting to some groups of people, or so obviously untrue that the one who makes it must think the people who read it are stupid.Dif

50、ficult sentences 14. These are called mouse miles, and who knows, maybe one day you can exchange them for more potato chips at all good computer stores. (Line 7, Para 12)The reference of mouse mile is to air miles which you can earn when you buy an airline ticket. Its aim is to encourage you to be l

51、oyal to one airline and accumulate enough miles to get a free ticket or gift. leisure释义释义1a. (only before noun) relating to activities you do to relax or enjoy yourself (有关) 消遣娱乐的 例句例句The hotel offers a wide range of leisure facilities. 这家旅馆提供有各式各样的娱乐设施。 翻译翻译WordsWords例句例句The football match is just

52、a leisure activity, dont take it too seriously. 这个足球比赛不过是个娱乐活动，不要太当真。 翻译翻译 All in all, however, childrens leisure time dropped from 40% of the day in 1981 to 25%. (Jun. 2003, CET-4, Reading Comprehension)真题真题释义释义2n. U activities you do to relax or enjoy yourself 消遣；娱乐例句例句My busy schedule leaves litt

53、le time for leisure. 我的日程安排太繁忙，没什么时间消遣。 翻译翻译WordsWords例句例句You need to strike a proper balance between work and leisure. 你需要做到劳逸结合。 翻译翻译leisureinactivity释义释义n. U the state of not doing anything, not moving, or not working 不做任何事；不活动；不工作例句例句It was good to be home again after the enforced inactivity of

54、the hospital bed. 以前我被迫躺在医院病床上不能活动，现在回到家里感觉真好。 翻译翻译WordsWords例句例句The job entailed long periods of inactivity. 做这份工作需要长时间呆着不动。 翻译翻译Cats can afford to have long periods of inactivity because they spend little time eating and are unlikely to be attacked while they sleep. (Jan. 1994, CET-4, Reading Comp

55、rehension)真题真题释义释义例句例句I think its a sin to waste good food. 我觉得浪费美食是一种罪过。翻译翻译WordsWords n. C, U an action, thought, or way of behaving that is wrong according to religious laws (宗教上的)罪，罪孽sin 例句例句Youve only got one life and its a sin to waste it. 人的生命只有一次，浪费生命就是犯罪。 翻译翻译peculiar释义释义1a. strange, often

56、in an unpleasant way 古怪的；怪异的例句例句 A peculiar sound caught my attention.一个奇怪的声音引起了我的注意。翻译翻译WordsWords例句例句翻译翻译This meat tastes peculiar. 这肉味道很古怪。 释义释义2a. especially true or typical of a particular person, thing, or situation 特别的；独特的例句例句翻译翻译WordsWords例句例句This custom is peculiar to Scotland. 翻译翻译这个习俗是苏格兰

57、特有的。 Water holds a peculiar fascination for children. 水对儿童来说有着一种特别的吸引力。 真题真题But if one man gives another man a 3-second-plus stare, he signals, “I know you”, “I am interested in you,” or “You look peculiar and I am curious about you.” (Jun. 1996, CET-4, Reading comprehension )peculiarweird 释义释义a. st

58、range and unusual, sometimes in a way that upsets you 奇怪的；古怪的例句例句He has some weird ideas about things. 他对事情有一些怪异的想法。 翻译翻译WordsWords例句例句Some of their clothes were really weird. 他们有些衣服很怪异。 翻译翻译couch potato 释义释义n. C someone who spends a lot of time sitting at home watching TV 终日泡在电视机前的人例句例句A lot of kid

59、s today are overweight couch potatoes. 今天的许多孩子都体重超标，终日泡在电视机前。 翻译翻译WordsWordschill 释义释义1vi. (infml) to relax and stop being angry or nervous 放松一下例句例句Im just going to chill this weekend. 我这个周末就去放松一下。 翻译翻译WordsWords例句例句Chill out, Dad if we miss this train theres always another one. 别担心，爸爸。如果误了这趟火车，总还有其

60、他车。 翻译翻译释义释义2 v. if you chill food or drink or it chills, it becomes cold enough to be ready to eat or drink (使)变冷；冰镇例句例句I want this wine to chill. 我想把这葡萄酒冰一下。翻译翻译WordsWords例句例句 Chill the fruit salad until serving time. 翻译翻译把水果沙拉冰镇一下，吃的时候再拿出来。chill creature 释义释义1n. C a person described in a particul