全新大学英语综合教程第二课文原文单元

全新版大学英语综合教程第二版课文原文(--单元)~＿....-,,,-· --~＿

一．一刁．

·『一·＿-＿--=-.a-=-.a

．————————————————————————————————作者：————————————————————————————————日期：2Unit1TheideaofbecomingawriterhadcometomeoffandonsincemychildhoodinBelleville,butitwasn'tuntilmyyearinhighschoolthatthepossibilitytookhold.UntilthenI'dbeenboredbyeverythingassociatedwithEnglishcourses.Ifound English grammar dull and difficult. I hated theassignmentstoturnoutlong,lifelessparagraphsthatwereagonyforteacherstoreadandformetowrite.WhenourclasswasassignedtoMr.Fleagleforthird-yearEnglishIanticipatedanothercheerlessyearinthatmosttediousofsubjects.Mr.Fleaglehadareputationamongstudentsfordullnessandinabilitytoinspire.Hewassaidtobeveryformal,rigidandhopelesslyoutofdate.Tomehelookedtobesixtyorseventyandexcessivelyprim.Heworeprimlysevereeyeglasses,hiswavyhairwasprimlycutandprimlycombed.Heworeprimsuitswithnecktiessetprimlyagainstthecollarbuttonsofhiswhiteshirts.Hehadaprimlypointedjaw,aprimlystraightnose,and a prim manner of speaking that was so correct, sogentlemanly,thatheseemedacomicantique.IpreparedforanunfruitfulyearwithMr.Fleagleandforalongtimewasnotdisappointed.Lateintheyearwetackled3informal essay.Mr.Fleagle distributed a homework sheetofferingusachoiceoftopics.Nonewasquitesosimple-mindedas"WhatIDidonMySummerVacation,"butmostseemed bealmostasdull.Itookthelisthomeanddidnothinguntilthenightbeforetheessaywasdue.Lyingonthesofa,Ifinallyfaceduptotheunwelcometask,tookthelistoutofmynotebook,andscannedit.Thetopiconwhichmyeyestoppedwas"TheArtofEatingSpaghetti."Thistitleproducedanextraordinarysequenceofmentalimages.VividmemoriescamefloodingbackofanightinBellevillewhenallofuswereseatedaroundthesuppertable—UncleAllen,mymother,UncleCharlie,Doris,UncleHal—andAuntPatservedspaghettiforsupper.Spaghettiwasstillalittleknownforeigndishinthosedays.NeitherDorisnorIhadevereatenspaghetti,andnoneoftheadultshadenoughexperiencetobegoodatit.AllthegoodhumorofUncleAllen'shousereawokeinmymindasIrecalledthelaughingargumentswehadthatnightaboutthesociallyrespectablemethodformovingspaghettifromplatetomouth.SuddenlyIwantedtowriteaboutthat,aboutthewarmthandgoodfeelingofit,butIwantedtoputitdownsimplyforownjoy,notforMr.Fleagle.ItwasamomentIwantedto4recaptureandholdformyself.Iwantedtorelivethepleasureofthatevening.TowriteitasIwanted,however,wouldviolatealltherulesofformalcompositionI'dlearnedinschool,andFleaglewouldsurelygiveitafailinggrade.Nevermind.IwouldwritesomethingelseforMr.Fleagleafter Ihadwrittenthisthingformyself.WhenIfinisheditthenightwashalfgoneandtherewasnotimelefttocomposeaproper,respectableessayforMr.Fleagle.TherewasnochoicenextmorningbuttoturninmytaleoftheBellevillesupper.TwodayspassedbeforeMr.Fleaglereturnedthegradedpapers,andhereturnedeveryone'sbutmine.Iwaspreparing myselfforacommand toreporttoMr.immediatelyafterschoolfordisciplinewhenIsawhimliftmypaperfromhisdeskandknockfortheclass'sattention."Now,boys,"hesaid."Iwanttoreadyouanessay.Thisistitled,'TheArtofEatingSpaghetti.'"Andhestartedtoread.Mywords!Hewasreadingmyoutloudtotheentireclass.What'smore,theentireclasslistening.Listeningattentively.Thensomebodylaughed,theentireclasswaslaughing,andnotincontemptandridicule,butwithopen-heartedenjoyment.EvenMr.Fleaglestoppedtwoorthreetimestoholdbackasmallprimsmile.5Ididmybesttoavoidshowingpleasure,butwhatIwasfeelingwaspuredelightatthisdemonstrationthatmywordshadthepowertomakepeoplelaugh.Intheeleventhgrade,ateleventhhourasitwere,Ihaddiscoveredacalling.Itwasthehappiestmomentofmyentireschoolcareer.WhenMr.Fleaglefinishedheputthefinalsealonmyhappinessbysaying,"Nowthat,boys,isanessay,don'tyousee.It's—don'tyousee—it'softheveryessenceoftheessay,don'tyousee.Congratulations,Mr.Baker."(797words)Unit2HemusthavebeencompletelylostinsomethinghewasreadingbecauseIhadtotaponthewindshieldtogethisattention."Isyourcabavailable?"IaskedwhenhefinallylookedupatHenodded,thensaidapologeticallyasIsettledintothebackseat,"I'msorry,butIwasreadingaletter."Hesoundedasifhehadacoldorsomething."I'minnohurry,"Itoldhim."Goaheadandfinishyourletter."Heshookhishead."I'vereaditseveraltimesalready.IguessIalmostknowitbyheart.""Lettersfromhomealwaysmeanalot,"Isaid."AtleasttheydowithmebecauseI'montheroadsomuch."Then,estimating6hewas60or70yearsold,Iguessed:"Fromachildormaybegrandchild?""Thisisn'tfamily,"hereplied."Although,"hewenton,"comethinkofit",itmightjustaswellhavebeenfamily.OldEdwasmyoldestfriend.Infact,weusedtocalleachother'OldFriend'—whenwe'dmeet,thatis.I'mnotmuchofahandatwriting.""Idon'tthinkanyofuskeepupourcorrespondencetoowell,"said."IknowIdon't.ButItakeithe'ssomeoneyou'veknownquiteawhile?""Allmylife,practically.Wewerekidstogether,sowegoback.""Wenttoschooltogether?""Allthewaythroughhighschool.Wewereinthesameclass,fact,throughbothgradeandhighschool.""Therearenottoomanypeoplewho'vehadsuchalongfriendship,"Isaid."Actually,"thedriverwenton,"Ihadn'tseenhimmorethanonceortwiceayearoverthepast25or30yearsbecausemovedawayfromtheoldneighborhoodandyoukindoflosetoucheventhoughyouneverforget.Hewasagreatguy.""Yousaid'was'.Doesthatmean—?"Henodded."Diedacoupleofweeksago."7"I'msorry,"Isaid."It'snofuntoloseanyfriend—andlosingrealoldoneiseventougher."Hedidn'treplytothat,andwerodeoninsilenceforafewminutes.ButIrealizedthatOldEdwasstillonhismindwhenhespokeagain,almostmoretohimselfthantome:"Ishouldhavekeptintouch.Yes,"herepeated,"Ishouldhavekepttouch.""Well,"Iagreed,"weshouldallkeepintouchwitholdfriendsmorethanwedo.Butthingscomeupandwejustdon'tseemfindthetime."Heshrugged."Weusedtofindthetime,"hesaid."That'sevenmentionedintheletter."Hehandeditovertome."Takealook.""Thanks,"Isaid,"butIdon'twanttoreadyourmail.That'sprettypersonal."Thedrivershrugged."OldEd'sdead.There'snothingpersonalnow.Goahead,"heurgedme.Theletterwaswritteninpencil.Itbeganwiththegreeting"OldFriend,"andthefirstsentenceremindedmeofmyself.I'vebeenmeaningtowriteforsometime,butI'vealwayspostponedit.Itthenwentontosaythatheoftenthoughtaboutthegoodtimesthey had had together when they both lived in the 8neighborhood.Ithadreferencestothingsthatprobablymeantsomethingtothedriver,suchasthetimeTimSheabrokewindow,theHalloweenthatwetiedOldMr.Parker'sgate,andwhenMrs.Culverusedtokeepusafterschool."Youmusthavespentalotoftimetogether,"Isaidtohim."Likeitsaysthere,"heanswered,"aboutallwehadtospendthosedayswastime."Heshookhishead:"Time."Ithoughtthenextparagraphoftheletterwasalittlesad:Ibegantheletterwith"OldFriend"becausethat'swhatwe'veovertheyears—oldfriends.Andtherearen'tmanyofusleft."Youknow,"Isaidtohim,"whenitsaysherethattherearen'tmanyofusleft,that'sabsolutelyright.EverytimeIgotoaclassreunion,forexample,therearefewerandfewerstillaround.""Timegoesby,"thedriversaid."Didyoutwoworkatthesameplace?"Iaskedhim."No,butwehungoutonthesamecornerwhenweweresingle.Andthen,whenweweremarried,weusedtogotoeachother'shouseeverynowandthen.Butforthelast20or30yearsit'sbeenmostlyjustChristmascards.Ofcoursethere'dbealwaysanotewe'deachaddtothecards—usuallysomenewsaboutourfamilies,youknow,whatthekidsweredoing,whomovedwhere,anewgrandchild,thingslikethat—butnevera9letteroranythinglikethat.""Thisisagoodparthere,"Isaid."WhereitsaysYourfriendshipovertheyearshasmeantanawfullottome,morethanIcansaybecauseI'mnotgoodatsayingthingslikethat."Ifoundmyselfnoddinginagreement."Thatmusthavemadeyoufeeldidn'tit?"ThedriversaidsomethingthatIcouldn'tunderstandbecauseseemedtobeallchokedup,soIcontinued:"IknowI'dliketoreceivealetterlikethatfrommyoldestfriend."WeweregettingclosetoourdestinationsoIskippedtothelastparagraph.SoIthoughtyou'dliketoknowthatIwasthinkingyou.Anditwassigned，YourOldFriend,Tom.Ihandedbacktheletteraswestoppedatmyhotel."Enjoyedtalkingwithyou,"IsaidasItookmysuitcaseoutoftheTom?TheletterwassignedTom?"Ithoughtyourfriend'snamewasEd,"Isaid."WhydidheitTom?""TheletterwasnotfromEdtome,"heexplained."I'mTom.It'saletterIwrotetohimbeforeIknewhe'ddied.SoInevermailedit."Helookedsortofsorrowful,orasifheweretryingtoseesomethinginthedistance."IguessIshouldhavewritten10sooner."WhenIgottomyhotelroomIdidn'tunpackrightaway.Firsthadtowritealetter—andmailit.(1093words)Unit3Whetherwelikeitornot,theworldweliveinhaschangedagreatdealinthelasthundredyears,anditislikelytochangeevenmoreinthenexthundred.Somepeoplewouldliketostopthesechangesandgobacktowhattheyseeasapurerandsimpler age. But as history shows, the past was not wonderful.Itwasnotsobadforaprivilegedminority,eventheyhadtodowithoutmodernmedicine,andchildbirthwashighlyriskyforwomen.Butforthevastmajorityofthepopulation,lifewasnasty,brutish,andshort.Anyway,evenifonewantedto,onecouldn'tputtheclockbacktoanearlierage.Knowledgeandtechniquescan'tjustforgotten.Norcanonepreventfurtheradvancesinthefuture.Evenifallgovernmentmoneyforresearchwerecutoff(andthepresentgovernmentisdoingits best),theforceofcompetitionwouldstillbringaboutadvancesintechnology.Moreover,onecannotstopinquiringmindsfromthinkingaboutbasicscience,whetherornottheyarepaidforit.Theonlywaytoprevent11furtherdevelopmentswouldbeaglobalstatethatsuppressedanythingnew,andhumaninitiative andinventivenessaresuchthateventhiswouldn'tsucceed.Allitwoulddoisslowtherateofchange.Ifweacceptthatwecannotpreventscienceandtechnologyfromchangingourworld,wecanatleasttrytoensurethatthechangestheymakeareintherightdirections.Inademocraticsociety,this means thatthe public needs to have a basicunderstandingofscience,sothatitcanmakeinformeddecisionsandnotleavetheminthehandsofexperts.Atthemoment,thepublicisintwomindsaboutscience.Ithascometoexpectthesteadyincreaseinthestandardoflivingthatnewdevelopmentsinscienceandtechnologyhavebroughttocontinue,butitalsodistrustssciencebecauseitdoesn'tunderstandit.ThisdistrustisevidentinthecartoonfigureofthemadscientistworkinginhislaboratorytoproduceaFrankenstein.ItisalsoanimportantelementbehindsupportfortheGreenparties.Butthepublicalsohasagreatinterestinscience,particularlyastronomy,asshownbythelargeaudiencesfortelevisionseriessuchasTheSkyatNightandforsciencefiction.Whatcanbedonetoharnessthisinterestandgivethepublicthescientificbackgrounditneedstomakeinformeddecisions12subjectslikeacidrain,thegreenhouseeffect,nuclearweapons,andgeneticengineering?Clearly,thebasismustlieinwhatistaughtinschools.Butinschoolsscienceisoftenpresentedinadryanduninterestingmanner.Childrenlearnitbyrotetopassexaminations,andtheydon'tseeitsrelevancetotheworldaroundthem.Moreover,scienceisoftentaughtintermsofequations.Althoughequationsareabriefandaccuratewayofdescribingmathematicalideas,theyfrightenmostpeople.WhenIwroteapopularbook recently,IwasadvisedthatequationIincludedwouldhalvethesales.Iincludedoneequation,Einstein'sfamousequation,E=mc2.MaybeIwouldhavesoldtwiceasmanycopieswithoutit.Scientistsandengineerstendtoexpresstheirideasintheformofequationsbecausetheyneedtoknowtheprecisevaluesquantities.Butfortherestofus,aqualitativegraspofscientificconceptsissufficient,andthiscanbeconveyedbywordsanddiagrams,withouttheuseofequations.The science people learn in school can provide the framework.Buttherateofscientificprogressisnowsorapidthattherearealwaysnewdevelopmentsthathaveoccurredsinceonewasatschooloruniversity.Ineverlearnedaboutmolecularbiologyortransistorsatschool,butgeneticengineering13computersaretwoofthedevelopmentsmostlikelytochangethewayweliveinthefuture.Popularbooksandmagazinearticlesaboutsciencecanhelptoputacrossnewdevelopments,buteventhemostsuccessfulpopularbookisreadbyonlysmallproportionofthepopulation.Onlytelevisioncanreachatruly mass audience. There are some very good scienceprogrammesonbutotherspresentscientificwonderssimplyasmagic,withoutexplainingthemorshowinghowtheyfitintothe framework of scientific ideas. Producers of televisionscience programmes should realize that they have responsibilitytoeducatethepublic,notjustentertainit.Theworldtodayisfilledwithdangers,hencethesickjokethatthereasonwehavenotbeencontactedbyanaliencivilizationisthatcivilizationstendtodestroythemselveswhentheyreachstage.ButIhavesufficientfaithinthegoodsenseofthepublictobelievethatwemightprovethiswrong.(812words)Unit4HecamefromarockyfarminItaly,somewheresouthofRome.HoworwhenhegottoAmerica,Idon'tknow.Butoneeveningfoundhimstandinginthedriveway,behindmygarage.Hewasaboutfive-foot-sevenoreight,andthin.14"Imowyourlawn,"hesaid.ItwashardtocomprehendhisbrokenEnglish.Iaskedhimhisname."TonyTrivisonno,"hereplied."Iyourlawn."ItoldTonythatIcouldn'taffordagardener."Imowyourlawn,"hesaidagain,thenwalkedaway.Iwentintomyhouseunhappy.Yes,theseDepressiondaysweredifficult,buthowcouldItoturnawayapersonwhohadcometomeforhelp?WhenIgothomefromworkthenextevening,thelawnbeenmowed,thegardenweeded,andthewalksswept.Iaskedmywifewhathadhappened."Amangotthelawnmoweroutofthegarageandworkedonyard,"sheanswered."Iassumedyouhadhiredhim."Itoldherofmyexperiencethenightbefore.Wethoughtstrangethathehadnotaskedforpay.Thenexttwodayswerebusy,andIforgotaboutTony.Weweretryingtorebuildourbusinessandbringsomeofourworkersbacktotheplants.ButonFriday,returninghomealittleearly,IsawTonyagain,behindthegarage.Icomplimentedhimontheworkhehaddone."Imowyourlawn,"hesaid.Imanagedtoworkoutsomekindofsmallweeklypay,andeach15dayTonycleaneduptheyardandtookcareofanylittletasks.Mywifesaidhewasveryhelpfulwhenevertherewereheavyobjectstoliftorthingstofix.Summerpassedintofall,andwindsblewcold."Mr.Craw,snowprettysoon,"Tonytoldmeoneevening."Whenwinteryougivemejobclearingsnowatthefactory."Well,whatdoyoudowithsuchdeterminationandhope?course,Tonygothisjobatthefactory.Themonthspassed.Iaskedthepersonneldepartmentforreport.TheysaidTonywasaverygoodworker.OnedayIfoundTonyatourmeetingplacebehindthegarage.wanttobe'prentice,"hesaid.Wehadaprettygoodapprenticeschoolthattrainedlaborers.ButIdoubtedwhetherTonyhadthecapacitytoreadblueprintsandmicrometersordoprecisionwork.Still,howcouldIhimdown?Tonytookacutinpaytobecomeanapprentice.Monthslater,Igotareportthathehadgraduatedasaskilledgrinder.Hehadlearnedtoreadthemillionthsofaninchonthemicrometerandtoshapethegrindingwheelwithaninstrumentsetwithdiamond.MywifeandIweredelightedwithwhatwefeltwasasatisfyingendofthestory.16Ayearortwopassed,andagainIfoundTonyinhiswaitingplace.Wetalkedabouthiswork,andIaskedhimwhathewanted."Mr.Craw,"hesaid,"Ilikeabuyahouse."Ontheedgeofhehadfoundahouseforsale,acompletewreck.Icalledonabankerfriend."Doyoueverloanmoneycharacter?"Iasked."No,"hesaid."Wecan'taffordto.Nosale.""Now,waitaminute,"Ireplied."Hereisahard-workingman,amanofcharacter,Icanpromiseyouthat.He'sgotagoodjob.You'renotgettingadamnthingfromyourlot.Itwillstayforyears.Atleasthewillpayyourinterest."Reluctantly,thebankerwroteamortgagefor$2,000andTonythehousewithnodownpayment.Tonywasdelighted.Fromthenon,itwasinterestingtoseethatanydiscardedoddsandendsaroundourplace—abrokenscreen,abitofhardware,boardsfrompacking—Tonywouldgatherandtakehome.Afterabouttwoyears,IfoundTonyinourfamiliarmeetingHeseemedtostandalittlestraighter.Hewasheavier.Hehadalookofconfidence."Mr.Craw,Isellmyhouse!"hesaidwithpride."Igot$8,000."Iwasam