川农专硕研究生特供 21世纪大学新英语读写译教程4课堂ppt(含答案)Unit2

Unit2ScienceorSuperstitionProverbsandQuotationsThefullareaofignoranceisnotmapped:Weareatpresentonlyexploringitsfringes.

[Br.]JohnD.Bernal

无知的全部疆域并没有画成地图：目前我们只是在探索其边缘。

[英]

约翰·伯纳尔 Twinkle,twinkle,littlestar,HowIwanderwhatyouare!Upabovetheworldsohigh,Likeadiamondinthesky. [Br.]JaneTaylor小星星，亮晶晶，你是啥，我搞不清！你在天空高高站，好像一颗金刚钻。

[英]简

·

泰勒 OutlineTeachingObjectivesPart1Lead-inPart2ReadingFocus—TextAPart3IntegratedExercisesPart4ReadingFocus—TextBPart5IntranetAssignmentsTeachingObjectives1.Wehumanbeingstakegreatinterestsinourownoriginandalsointheouterspace.Uptonow,manyexpertsinvariousfieldshavedoneagreatmanyjobstoexplorewhattheyhavenoclearknowledgeof.Hencetherehavebeenalotofaccountsaboutsomemysteriousphenomena,likeUFOstories.Effortsarealsotakentostudythepositionsofcelestialbodiesinthebeliefthattheyhaveaninfluenceonthecourseofnaturalearthlyoccurrences,whichisthoughtbysomeassuperstition.Inthisunit,you’regoingtoreadtwotexts.FromTextAweknowthattheflightofUFOsingeneralislinkedtohumanimagination,eccentricbutinquisitive.TextBsaysthatsuperstitionsproliferatewildlyfortheyhaverisenfromadepthofhuman’simaginativemind,whetherintheformofVainObservancesorIdolatry.

2.Bylearningthisunitstudentswillbeabletograspthemainideaandstructureofthetexts,masterthekeylanguagepoints,newwords,grammaticalstructuresandtranslationskills.Andstudentswillalsobeabletoimprovetheiroralcommunicationskillsandreadingcompetencethroughperformingtherelevanttasks.

3.WritingFocusinthisunitexplainshowtowriteaneffectiveparagraphfromtwoaspects—unityandcoherence.

A.Lookatthepictureanddiscusswithyourpartneronthefollowingquestions.Lead-in1.Doyoulikesciencefiction?Giveyourreasons.2.Itissaidthatsciencemakesmananaggressiveexploreroftheunknownbutnotacaringmaintaineroftheknown.What’syourview?3.Doyoubelievethatscientificdevelopmentmaybeoutofcontrolinthefuture?Lead-inB.ListeningPractice

Listentotheshortpassageabout“ApolloMission:ATraveltoDiscoverOurselves”.Pre-listeningTaskHowdoyouviewthemeaningofthefirstApollomission?Discusswithyourpartnerandgiveyouropinions.Lead-inB.ListeningPracticePost-listeningtaskAnswerthefollowingquestions.1.Accordingtothespeaker,whichmadethecrewofApollo8feelwonderful,theEarthortheMoon?2.WhatisthesurprisingtruthaboutApollomissions?TheyhavegivenpeopleabetterunderstandingoftheEarth.________________________________________________TheEarth._________3.HowhastheApollomissioninfluencedhumanbeings?4.WhendidtheEarthDaystart?5.Whatkindofpoliticaleffecthavethelunarlandingsbroughtus?Theyhavebroughtusaboominglobalization._____________________________________【Script】Ithasbroughtusashiftinourthoughtsandalsochangesinenvironmentalprotectionandpolitics.____________________________________________________________________________In1970.______ApolloMission:ATraveltoDiscoverOurselves

2009isthe40thanniversaryofthefirstlunarlandingin1969.WhenthecrewofApollo8becamethefirsthumanstoleavetheEarth,theirrealwonderwasnotatthedeadgreymoonbeneaththem,butattheblueplanetinthedistance.Seeinganearthrisefromanotherplanetmadethemfeelquiteexcited.ThesurprisingtruthabouttheApollomissionisthatitwasnotabouttheMoon.ThetravelhasgivenpeopleadeeperunderstandingoftheEarth.Ithasbroughtchangesinthefollowingthreeaspects.

Firstly,ithasbroughtashiftinourthoughts.Asamatteroffact,everyApolloastronautcamebackwithadeepsenseoftheEarth’sweakness.Whenweseeourselvesinthisbiggerperspectivefromanotherplanet,westarttothinkquitedifferently.【Script】Secondly,Apollohadexercisedadeepandlong-lastingeffectonmanyenvironmentalists.ThediscoverygaveabigboosttotheGreenMovement.AnorganizationcalledFriendsoftheEarthwasfoundedinthesameyearthatmanfirstwalkedontheMoon.TheEarthDaywasstartedayearlater.Thirdly,politicaleffectcannotbeignored,either.TheEarthfromspacelooksjustlikeamapwithoutthenationalborders.Inspiredbythelanding,thephrase“Thinkglobally,actlocally”hasbecomepopular.ThesuccessoftheApollomissionalsomarksaboominglobalization.TheveryessenceoftheApollomissioncanbesummedupinthefollowing:thatitisn’taboutwhereyou’regoing,it’saboutwhoyouare.Thatiswhythegreatestreasontocelebratethis40thanniversaryisnotonlyscientificorenvironmentalorpoliticalbutalsopersonal.ReadingFocus-TextAFirstReadingReadthetextandthenanswerthequestionsintheleftmargin.UFO1:anUndeniablyFading

ObsessionBenMacintyre〔Note1〕UFO:Unidentifiedflyingobject（不明飞行物）,commonlyabbreviated

asUFOorU.F.O.,isthepopulartermforanyaerialphenomenonwhosecausecannotbeeasilyorimmediatelyidentifiedbytheobserver.TheUnitedStatesAirForce,whichcoinedthetermin1952,initiallydefinedUFOsasthoseobjectsthatremainunidentifiedafterscrutinybyexpertinvestigators,thoughthetermUFOisoftenusedmoregenerallytodescribeanysightingunidentifiabletothereportingobservers.PopularculturefrequentlytakesthetermUFOasasynonymforalienspacecraft.〔Chinese〕不明飞行物：必将消退的迷恋In1985amanwrotetotheMinistryofDefence,politelyexplainingthathehadbeenincontactwithalienssincetheageof7.HehadvisitedalienbasesinCheshire2andWirral3,befriended

acharmingaliencalledAlgarandseenaUFOshotdownnexttoWallaseyTownHall4asifdonebyaninvisibleentity.ThewriterdescribedhowhehadarrangedforhisalienfriendtomeetrepresentativesoftheGovernment,butsadlyAlgarwaskilledbyrivalaliensbeforethemeetingcouldtakeplace.1〔Note2〕Cheshire（柴郡）isaceremonialcountyinNorthWestEngland.ApartfromthelargetownsalongtheRiverMerseyandthehistoriccityofChester,itismostlyrural,withanumberofsmalltownsandvillagesthatsupportanagriculturalindustry.ItishistoricallyfamousfortheproductionofCheshirecheese,salt,bulkchemicalsandtheweavingofsilk.〔Note3〕Wirral（威罗）isametropolitanboroughinMerseyside,NorthWestEngland,whichoccupiesthenorthernpartoftheWirralPeninsula,morecommonlyknownasWirral.WirralMetropolitanBoroughhasapopulationofabout311,235(2004estimate)inanareaof155km2.〔Note4〕WallaseyTownHall（沃拉西市政厅大楼）isamagnificentrenaissance-stylebuildinginbrickwithDarleyDalestonecladding.TheFoundationstonewaslaidintopositionbymeansofelectricity,byKingGeorgeVin1914.ItwasadaptedasamilitaryhospitalinWorldWarIandsufferedadirecthitinWorldWarII.WallaseybecamepartoftheMetropolitanBoroughofWirralin1974andcouncilmeetingsareheldhere.〔LanguagePoint〕“In1985amanwrotetotheMinistryofDefence,politelyexplainingthat...”Inthissentence,thepresentparticipleclause“politelyexplainingthat...”actsasadverbialsofaccompanyingcircumstances.ThepresentparticipleinEnglishhasthesameformasthegerund,butthegerundactsasanounratherthanaverboramodifier.e.g.Weadmiredthechoir’ssinging.(gerund)

IhaveafriendlivinginLondon.(presentparticiple)〔Chinese〕1985年，有人给国防部写了一封信，在信中他很有礼貌的说明他从七岁开始就一直跟外星人有接触。他曾经参观了外星人在柴郡和威罗的基地，还跟一个名叫阿尔加的有趣的外星人交了朋友。他曾目睹了一架飞碟在沃拉西大会堂附近被击落，似乎是由一个隐形物体所致。写信人描述了他怎样安排他的外星朋友跟政府代表会晤，可是很不幸，阿尔加在会面开始前就被敌对的外星人杀害了。

Hehadbeenincontactwithalienssincetheageof7.HehadvisitedalienCheshireandWirral,befriendedacharmingaliencalledAlgarandseenaUFOshotdownnexttoWallaseyTownHallasifdonebyaninvisibleentity.ThewriterdescribedhowhehadarrangedforhisalienfriendtomeetrepresentativesoftheGovernment,butsadlyAlgarwaskilledbyrivalaliensbeforethemeetingcouldtakeplace.

WhatdidthemantelltheMinistryofDefenceinhisletter?

Thematter-of-facttoneiswhatmakesthisparticularlettersotouching,andsorepresentativeofthehundredsofsimilaralienandUFOsightings

reportedtotheMoDandnowmadepublicforthefirsttime.2〔Chinese〕正是这种纪实的语气使得这封特别的信如此动人、如此典型，它代表了成百上千个类似的有关外星人和不明飞行物的目击事件。如今国防部首次将这些他们接收到的报告公布于世。

No.

ItisrepresentativeofthehundredsofsimilaralienandUFOsightingsreportedtotheMoD

IstheletterreportingthesightingofUFOunique?

ThestoryofAlgarismoredramaticthanmostUFOsightings.ThevastmajorityofUFOspotters,asrevealedintheMoDfiles,arenotfantasists,butordinarypeoplewhothoughttheysawsomethingextraordinaryinthesky.Thespacecrafttendtocomeinfamiliarforms,withsaucerandcigarshapesthebestfavourites.5Colouredlightsarealsopopular.(Whydoaliens,whoclearlyhavenowishtomakecontact,stilltendtoturnupherewithalltheirlightsflashing?Perhaps,likeus,theyjustforgettoturntheheadlightsofffromtimetotime.)3〔Note5〕Thespacecrafttendtocomeinfamiliarforms,withsaucerandcigarshapesthebestfavourites:MostoftheshapesofthespacecraftsreportedinMoDarefamiliartous,themostpopularofwhichisthatofsaucerorcigar.〔LanguagePoint〕Here“somethingextraordinary”isattributivepostposition.Whenadjectivesfunctionasattributive,andwhentheymodifyindefinitepronoun,suchassomething,anything,nothing,somebody,anybody,nobody,andetc,theyusuallyarepostponed.e.g.Thereisnothingimportantintoday’snewspaper.

Hewantedtogetsomeonereliabletohelpinthiswork.〔Chinese〕阿尔加的故事比起大多数的不明飞行物目击事件更加具有戏剧性。正如国防部的档案中所披露的，绝大多数不明飞行物的目击者，并不是幻想家，而是普通百姓，他们认为自己看到了一些奇特的东西出现在空中。飞行物往往是以人们熟悉的形状出没的，最常见的是碟形或圆形。五颜六色的灯光也较为普遍。（很显然外星人毫无意愿跟地球人接触，那为什么他们出现时却灯火通明呢？也许，他们跟我们一样，只是有时会忘记关掉汽车前灯吧。）

SomeUFOspottershavereasontoberesentful,liketheelderlyHampshire6fishermantakenonatourofaspaceshipbylittlemeningreenoveralls

butthenrejectedasacaptive

humanspecimenbecausehewastooold:anotorious

exampleofspace-ageism.Someareunwillingtobelievetheirowneyes,liketheWoking7policemenwhosawawhitelightdescendinginHorsell.84〔Note6〕Hampshire（汉普郡）isacountyonthesouthcoastofEngland.Hampshireisapopularholidayarea,withtouristattractionsincludingitsmanyseasideresorts.Itisblessedwithsomeofthemostbeautifulcountrysideandaccessiblecoastline,offeringawidevarietyofsportingfacilitiesandleisureactivities.〔Note7〕Woking（沃金）isalargetownandcivilparishthatsharesitsnamewiththesurroundinglocalgovernmentdistrict,locatedinthewestofSurrey,England.ItisadormitorytownintheLondoncommuterbeltandislocated23milessouthwestofCharingCrossincentralLondon.〔Note8〕Horsell（霍塞尔）inSurreyisanancientvillagenearbytothemoremodern19thcenturyWoking,probablybestknownbecauseofitsassociationwiththestoryTheWaroftheWorlds,writtenbyH.G.Wells.〔Chinese〕一些不明飞行物的目击者有理由义愤填膺？例如在这样一桩臭名昭著的太空老年歧视案中：汉普郡的一个老渔民，被穿着绿色防护服的小矮人们带上飞船转了一圈，但是后来由于他年事已高，作为俘获的人类样品不合格而惨遭抛弃。还有一些目击者不愿相信他们自己的眼睛，例如那位沃金的警察，他曾看见一束白光在霍塞尔下降。

Afewsightingsaregenuinelycompelling

andintriguing,andsomearesweetlyboring:likethealienspacecraftrambling

alongtheA839toLairg9atasteadyandlaw-abiding

30mph.10Butmostareperfectlystraightforward,eachwritten

up

onadeterminedlyundramaticformbyMoDbureaucrats:time,date,angleofflight,backgroundofinformant,etc.5〔Note9〕Lairg（莱瑞）isavillageinSutherland,Highland,Scotland.Situatedatthesouth-easternendofLochShin,itisunusual,ifnotunique,inthenorthernHighlandsinbeingasizeablesettlementthatisnotsituatedonthecoast.〔Note10〕Afewsightingsaregenuinelycompellingandintriguing,andsomearesweetlyboring:likethealienspacecraftramblingalongtheA839toLairgatasteadyandlaw-abiding30mph:SomereportingsoftheUFOareveryinteresting,whileothersareveryboring.Forexample,analienspacecraftwasreportedflyingalongtheroadA839toLairgatasteadyspeedof30milesperhour,whichwaspermittedbythehumanlaw.〔LanguagePoint〕“andsomearesweetlyboring”.Here“sweetly”isusedasanintensifierbeforeanadjectiveorafteraverb,meaning“inahighdegree,extremely”.e.g.Ittookhimsweetlymuchtimetofinish.

Heearnssweetlyperyear.〔Chinese〕有些目击事件真的是情节曲折、引人入胜，但有些却是无聊至极：例如一架外星人飞船正沿着去莱瑞的A839号公路闲庭漫步，以法律规定的30英里每小时的速度稳步前行。但是大多数的事件都是非常简单明了，每一个都按照国防部官员规定的平铺直叙的格式详尽记录：时间、地点、飞行角度、报告者的背景等。

Mostareperfectlystraightforward,eachwrittenuponadeterminedlyndramaticformbyMoDbureaucrats:time,date,angleofflight,backgroundofinformant,etc.

Whataremostreportsofthesightinglike?

ThesoleinterestoftheMoDinUFOreportsisnottoestablishwhethertheyrevealanythingofdefenceinterest.Instead,theyrevealsomethingmuchmoreinteresting:apassionatefascinationwiththemysteriesofspacethattranscendsgender,age,classandgeography,andanurgentdesiretobelieveinotherworldsthatamounts

to

asortofsecular

spiritualism.11Eventhemostsceptical

reportscomewithatouchofawe.6〔Note11〕...andanurgentdesiretobelieveinotherworldsthatamountstoasortofsecularspiritualism:Peoplestronglyhopethattherearesomeotherworldsintheouterspace,sothattheycouldescapefromtheuncertaintiesoftheearth.〔LanguagePoint〕“ThesoleinterestoftheMoDinUFOreportsisnottoestablishwhethertheyrevealanythingofdefenceinterest.”Inthissentence,theinfinitiveclause“toestablishwhethertheyrevealanythingofdefenceinterest”servesasthepredicativeinthesentence,explainingthecontentofthesubject.e.g.Thefirststepwillbetogetajobinsomeoffice.

MyplanwastogofromCornwalltoGlasgow.〔Chinese〕国防部对不明飞行物报告的唯一兴趣并不在于证实它们是否具有国防意义。相反，它们揭示了一些更让人感兴趣的东西：一种对于宇宙秘密的无比向往，它超越了性别、年龄、阶级和地理位置；和一股相信还有地球以外的世界存在的强烈的愿望，它相当于一种世俗的精神寄托。即使是最可疑的报告也带着一种让人敬畏的神秘感。

Thesheerscaleofthealieninvasionisremarkable.TheBritishX-Files12containmorethen7,000separatesightings,150filesinall,ofwhichjusteighthavebeenreleasedsofar.TheflightoftheUFOisataledeeplyembedded

inourculturalDNA13,apartofmodernfolklore

butalsoanancientportent,reflectingthegripoftheouterspaceunknownonhumanimaginationdowntheages.147〔Note12〕TheX-Files（《X档案》）isaCanadian/AmericansciencefictiontelevisionseriesandapartofTheX-Filesfranchise,createdbyscreenwriterChrisCarter.ItfirstairedinSeptember1993andendedinMay2002.TheshowwasahitfortheFoxnetwork,anditscharactersandslogansbecamepopculturetouchstonesinthe1990s.Seenasadefiningseriesofitsera,TheX-Filestappedintopublicmistrustofgovernmentsandlargeinstitutions,andembracedconspiracytheoriesandspiritualityasitcentredoneffortstouncovertheexistenceofextraterrestriallife.〔Note13〕DNA:Deoxyribonucleicacid（脱氧核糖核酸）isanucleicacidthatcontainsthegeneticinstructionsusedinthedevelopmentandfunctioningofallknown

livingorganismsandsomeviruses.ThemainroleofDNAmoleculesisthelong-termstorageofinformation.TheDNAsegmentsthatcarrythisgeneticinformationarecalledgenes,butotherDNAsequenceshavestructuralpurposes,orareinvolvedinregulatingtheuseofthisgeneticinformation.〔Note14〕TheflightoftheUFOisataledeeplyembeddedinourculturalDNA,apartofmodernfolklorebutalsoanancientportent,reflectingthegripoftheouterspaceunknownonhumanimaginationdowntheages:ThefantasiesoftheUFOareenrootedprofoundlyinourculture.Althoughtheyemergeinmoderntimes,theydemonstratehowhumansponderovertheworldbeyondtheearthandbeyondourimaginationthroughoutthehistory.〔LanguagePoint〕“TheBritishX-Filescontainmorethen7,000separatesightings,ofwhichjusteighthavebeenreleasedsofar.”Itisanon-restrictiverelativeclause.Itisgenerallyseparatedfromtheheadbyaclearbreakinspeechorbyacommainwriting.Restrictiveclausesformanindispensablepartofthenounphrase,whileifanon-restrictiverelativeclauseistakenaway,theantecedentcanstillbeidentifiedasthespecificobject.e.g.Thewayinwhichyouansweredthequestionwasadmirable.

(restrictiveclause)

Hisspeech,whichboredeveryone,wentonandon.(non-

restrictiveclause)〔Chinese〕光是外星人侵扰的程度就非比寻常。英国的X档案中总共包含了超过7,000起的独立的目击案件和150个档案。到目前为止，只有其中的八个被公布。不明飞行物是一个深深植根于我们文化基因中的传说，它是现代民间传闻中的一部分，也是古老的征兆，反映了从古至今人们始终为超乎其想象力之外的外太空而深深吸引。

TheBritishX-Filescontainmorethen7,000separatesightings,150filesinall,ofwhichjusteighthavebeenreleasedsofar.

HowmanysightingsofalieninvasionarecontainedintheBritishX-Files?

TheUFOstoryhasevolvedovertime,butthefundamentalsremainthesame.Theuncertaintiesofwarandrapidtechnologicaladvancestendtobreed

UFOsinlargenumbers.“Whatdoesallthisstuff

aboutflyingsaucersamountto?”WinstonChurchill15wonderedin1951.“Whatcanitmean?”8〔Note15〕WinstonChurchill:SirWinstonLeonardSpencer-Churchill(30November1874-24January1965)wasaBritishpoliticianknownchieflyforhisleadershipoftheUnitedKingdomduringWorldWarII.HeservedasPrimeMinisterfrom1940to1945andagainfrom1951to1955.Anotedstatesmanandorator,ChurchillwasalsoanofficerintheBritishArmy,historian,writer,andartist.HewastheonlyBritishPrimeMinistertohavereceivedtheNobelPrizeinLiteratureandthefirstpersontoberecognisedasanHonoraryCitizenoftheUnitedStates.〔Chinese〕不明飞行物故事的发展已历经历史长河，但是基本原则还是保持不变。战争引起的动乱和科技的快速发展往往滋生了大量的不明飞行物。“这些关于飞碟的玩意儿到底有什么用？”温斯顿·丘吉尔在1951年曾问道，“这些到底意味着什么？”

Spacetravelbroughtotherplanetsclosertoearth,andarapidincreaseinalienvisitation,butinterestinUFOshaswaxed

and

waned,oftenpropelled

bypopularculture.ThenumberofBritishUFOsightingsalmostdoubledafterthereleaseofCloseEncountersoftheThirdKind16in1977.9〔Note16〕CloseEncountersoftheThirdKind(《第三类接触》）isa1977sciencefictionfilmwrittenanddirectedbyStevenSpielberg.IttellsthestoryofRoyNeary,anIndianaelectricallineman,whoselifechangesafterhehasanencounterwithanunidentifiedflyingobject.However,theUnitedStatesgovernmentisalsoawareoftheUFOsasateamofinternationalscientificresearchers.〔LanguagePoint〕“butinterestinUFOshaswaxedandwaned,oftenpropelledbypopularculture.”Inthissentence,thepastparticipateclause“propelledbypopularculture”servesasanadverbial,modifyingthepredicate.e.g.Hesoonfeltasleep,exhaustedbythejourney.

Tomcouldsaynothing,horrifiedatwhathehadseen.〔Chinese〕太空航行拉近了地球和其他星球的距离，也使得外星人出现的事件激增。然而通常在通俗文化的驱使下，人们对于不明飞行物的兴趣也是几度潮起潮落。1977年，在《第三类接触》这本书发行之后，英国不明飞行物出现的数量几乎翻了一倍。

Soonafter,theMoDfeltobligedtodismissufology

as“claptrap”.17Somepsychologistsbelievealienabduction

canbediagnosedasasyndrome

oftemporarysleepparalysis.UFOsightingshavevariouslybeenput

down

towishfulthinking,credulity

andtoomuchbeer.18Butatroot,thephenomenonreflectssomethingmoreprofound:asortofantidote

tocosmicloneliness,theage-oldurgetopeerintothedarkandwonderwhatorwhomightbeoutthere.1910〔Note17〕Soonafter,theMoDfeltobligedtodismissufologyas“claptrap”:AftertherapidincreaseinthenumberofUFOsightings,theMinistryofDefensewascompelledtodeclarethestudyofUFOasworthlessandmeaningless.〔Note18〕UFOsightingshavevariouslybeenputdowntowishfulthinking,credulityandtoomuchbeer:Ondifferentoccasions,UFOsightingsweredespisedasimaginaryideas,fabricatedliesordrunkenwords.〔Note19〕Butatroot,thephenomenonreflectssomethingmoreprofound:asortofantidotetocosmicloneliness,theage-oldurgetopeerintothedarkandwonderwhatorwhomightbethere.:Fundamentally,suchaphenomenonshowsussomethingmorefar-reaching’inthattheyserveasaneffectivewaytorelievehumans’lonelinessintheuniverse,andsignifyalong-termdesiretodiscoverintelligentlifeintheouterspace.〔Chinese〕不久之后，国防部感到有责任把不明飞行物学贬为“空谈”。一些心理学家认为被外星人劫持的这种说法能够被诊断为一种暂时性昏睡麻痹综合症。不明飞行物目击事件已经被不一而足的驳斥为妄想、轻信和酒后胡言。但是归根结底，这种现象揭示了更为深远的意义：一种对抗宇宙孤独感的手段；一项古老的本能，当我们凝望夜空，猜想可能会有什么东西或者什么人在那里。

Soonafter,theMoDfeltobligedtodismissufologyas“claptrap”.Somepsychologistsbelievealienabductioncanbediagnosedasasyndromeoftemporarysleepparalysis.UFOsightingshavevariouslybeenputdowntowishfulthinking,credulityandtoomuchbeer.

Howhavepeoplechangedtheirattitudetowardufology?

Youdonothavetobelieveinflyingsaucerstobelieveintheflightsofimaginationtheyinspire.ManyofthepeoplereportingUFOssimplysawsomethingunexpectedandwondered,likeChurchill,whatitcouldmean.11〔LanguagePoint〕“believein”.When“believe”functionsasanintransitiveverb,followedbyapreposition“in”,itmeans“tohavefirmfaith”,e.g.:Ibelieveinyourabilitytosolvetheproblem.Asatransitiveverb,“believe”means“toacceptastrueorreal”.e.g.Doyoubelievethenewsstories?〔Chinese〕你可以不必相信飞碟本身的存在，但是你却不能不信飞碟所激起的想象力的迸发。许多报告不明飞行物的人仅仅是看到了一些出人意料的东西，然后，就像丘吉尔一样，疑惑那到底意味着什么。

Wewonderstill,butarenotlikewhatweusedtodo.ForthelastdecadeUFOsightingshavesteadilydeclined.TheBritishFlyingSaucerBureauclosedin2003.ThenumberofUFOsdipped

withtheinventionofthecolourtelevisionandplunged

withtheadvent

oftheinternet.Perhapsinacomplexanduncertainsociety,peoplehavemorepracticalconcerns.12〔Chinese〕我们仍然疑惑，但是跟以前不一样。因为近十年以来，不明飞行物的目击事件已经逐步下降。英国飞碟局在2003年被撤消。不明飞行物的数量在彩色电视出现后有所下降，而在网络面世后急转直下。也许在这个错综复杂、纷纷扰扰的社会，人们有更多切乎实际的担忧吧。〔LanguagePoint〕Andevenifwedid,withthespreadoflightpollution,itwouldtakeaspaceshipwithverybrightlightstobespottedatall.Inthissentence,“evenif”introducesanadverbialclauseofconcession.Concessiveclausesareusedtoconcedeagivenpointinanargument.

ForthelastdecadeUFOsightingshavesteadilydeclined.

WhathashappenedtoUFOsightingsforthelastdecade?

WenolongerlookintotheskyandponderoverthechancesofanythingcomingfromMars.Andevenifwedid,withthespreadoflightpollution,itwouldtakeaspaceshipwithverybrightlightstobespottedatall.13Theprincipleconcessiveconjunctionsintroducingaconcessiveclauseare:though,although,eventhough,while,andevenif.e.g.Althougheveryoneplayedwell,theylostthegame.

HeisanhonestmaneventhoughIhaveopposedhim.〔Chinese〕我们不再眺望天空，不再觊觎任何从火星来的生物。而且即便我们这样做了，随着灯光污染的扩散，一架飞船可能需要极其明亮的灯光才能被发现。

ThedeclineinUFOsightingsmayreflectahealthyscepticism,butaworldwithoutextraterrestrials

wouldbedullindeed.TheBritishX-Filesrevealapeoplealerttothesky,imaginative,eccentric,slightlyembarrassedandaboveallinquisitive.Perhapsthisnewproofofourformerfascinationwiththemysteriesofspacewillrekindle

thecuriosity.Morelikely,ourremainingsenseofwonderwilldiminishstillfurther;theflyingobjectsofthefuturewillbenotonlyunidentifiedbutunnoticed.Andthat,ofcourse,willbethat.2014〔Note20〕Andthat,ofcourse,willbethat:Andthereisnodoubtthatsuchwillbethetrendirreversible.〔LanguagePoint〕“TheBritishX-Filesrevealapeoplealerttothesky,”Herewhen“people”servesasacountablenoun,itmeans“allthepersonsbelongingtoa(nation,race,tribeorcommunity)”.e.g.TheSpanishwereawarlikepeople.〔Chinese〕不明飞行物目击事件的下降也许反映了一种健全的怀疑论，但是一个没有外星人的世界岂非乏味。英国的X档案揭露了一种人，他们密切关注太空，想象力丰富、行为怪异、轻度害羞，而且最重要的是，爱刨根问底。也许这个我们过去对于宇宙秘密着迷的新证据将会重新点燃我们的好奇心。而更有可能的是，我们剩余的好奇感将会进一步逐渐消失；未来的飞行物将不单单是不明来路的，而且是不被察觉的。那么，当然，就这样吧。ReadingFocus-TextANewWordsandExpressions（标注*的为四级词汇；标注▲的为六级词汇,其余为超纲词汇。）*fade/feId/v.

todisappeargradually;vanish逐渐消失

Thelightsandmusicfadedaswesetsailfromtheharbour.Allmemoryofthepasthasfaded.textobsession/Eb5seFEn/n.

compulsivepreoccupationwithafixedideaoranunwantedfeelingoremotion,oftenaccompaniedbysymptomsofanxiety不由自主地被某一定式的想法或某种不想要的感情困扰，常伴有焦虑的症状

Theyoungmanwasunderanobsessionofinheritingagreatsumofmoneyfromhisuncle.hesufferedfromanobsessionofbecomingagreatballetdancer.befriend/bI5frend/v.

tobehaveasafriendto像朋友一样对待……

Theybefriendedtheyounggirl,providingwithherfoodandshelter.Nicholaswasamanwhowouldalwaysbefriendme.texttextentity/5entItI/n.

sth.thatexistsasaparticularanddiscreteunit实体

Personsandcorporationsareequivalententitiesunderthelaw.Acompanyisaseparateeconomicandlegalentity.sightingn.

theactofcatchingsightofsth.,especiallysth.unusualorsearchedfor看见某物的动作，尤指见到不寻常或正在寻找的东西Somefishersdescribedasightingofawhaleintheharbour.HelaughedatareportedsightingofUFOonthenewspaper.spotter/5spCtE/n.

personwholooksforandwritesdowndetailsofaspecifictypeofthingoraperson,asahobbyorjob寻找某事物或某人并作记录的人（作为嗜好或职业）anaircraftspotteratrain-spotteratalent-spottertexttexttextresentful/rI5zentfUl/a.

fullof,characterizedby,orinclinedtofeelindignantillwill充满愤恨的

Hewasdeeplyresentfulofherinterference.Shegavearesentfulstareatthesculpture.*overall/5EUvErR:l/n.

aloose-fittingprotectiveoutergarment;asmock防护服，罩衫*captive/5kAptIv/a

keptunderrestraintorcontrol;confined受控制的，被监禁的captivebirdsacaptivemarket▲notorious/nEU5tR:rIEs/a.

knownwidelyandu