Transcript Lesson 3 At War with the Planet

Lesson 3 At War with the Planet
I.
1.
Preparation:
Author: Barry Commoner (1917-)
•
born May 28, 1917, Brooklyn, N.Y. U.S.
biologist and educator. He studied at
Harvard University and taught at
Washington University and Queens
College.
• His warnings, since the 1950s, of the
environmental threats posed by modern
technology (including nuclear weapons, use
of pesticides and other toxic chemicals, and
ineffective waste management) in such
works as his classic Science and Survival
(1966) made him one of the foremost
environmentalist spokesmen of his time. He
was a third-party candidate for U.S.
president in 1980.
• Commoner's activist career can be defined as
an attempt to weave together a larger vision of
social justice. Since the 1960s, he has called
attention to parallels between the
environmental, civil rights, labor, and peace
movements, and connected environmental
decline with poverty, injustice, exploitation,
and war, arguing that the root cause of
environmental problems was the American
economic system and its manifestations.
• He was instrumental in pointing out that
there was a direct association between
socioeconomic standing and exposure to
environmental pollutants and that
economics, not social responsibility, was
guiding technological decision making.
2. Cultural notes
• 1) Three Mile Island: The accident at the
Three Mile Island Unit 2 (TMI-2) nuclear
power plant near Middletown, Pennsylvania,
on March 28, 1979, was the most serious in
U.S. commercial nuclear power plant
operating history, even though it led to no
deaths or injuries to plant workers or members
of the nearby community..
• But it brought about sweeping changes
involving emergency response planning,
reactor operator training, human factors
engineering, radiation protection, and many
other areas of nuclear power plant operations.
It also caused the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission to tighten and heighten its
regulatory oversight. Resultant changes in the
nuclear power industry and at the NRC had the
effect of enhancing safety
Three Mile Island nuclear power plant
2) The Chernobyl Disaster
• On April 25th -26th, 1986 the World's worst
nuclear power accident occurred at Chernobyl
in the former USSR (now Ukraine). The
Chernobyl nuclear power plant located 80
miles north of Kiev had 4 reactors and whilst
testing reactor number 4 numerous safety
procedures were disregarded. At 1:23am the
chain reaction in the reactor became out of
control creating explosions and a fireball
which blew off the reactor's heavy steel and
concrete lid.
• The Chernobyl accident killed more than 30
people immediately, and as a result of the high
radiation levels in the surrounding 20-mile
radius, 135,00 people had to be evacuated.
3) What happened in Bhopal?
• On the night of Dec. 2nd and 3rd, 1984, a
Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India, began
leaking 27 tons of the deadly gas. None of the
six safety systems designed to contain such a
leak were operational, allowing the gas to
spread throughout the city of Bhopal. Half a
million people were exposed to the gas and
20,000 have died to date as a result of their
exposure.
• More than 120,000 people still suffer from
ailments caused by the accident and the
subsequent pollution at the plant site. These
ailments include blindness, extreme difficulty
in breathing, and gynecological disorders. The
site has never been properly cleaned up and it
continues to poison the residents of Bhopal.
3. Outline of the essay
• 3. Outline of the essay
• Part 1 (pp. 1)
• Introduction: people live in 2 worlds, natural world
and our own world.
• Part 2 (pp. 2-5): Why the two worlds are at war?
• Part 3 (pp. 6-9) Deal with the first law of the
ecosphere and the law governing the relationship
between man-made object and the surroundings
• Part IV. (pp. 10-11) The closed cyclical
process of ecosphere and the linear process of
techno-sphere.
• Part V. (pp. 12-14) The consistent and
harmonious nature of ecosphere as contrasted
to the rapid change and variation of the technosphere.
• Part VI. (pp. 15-16) The consequences of
failure of the ecosphere and the techno-sphere.
• Part VII. (pp. 17-21) The danger for us to take
sides
• Part VIII. (pp. 22-23) The importance of
interplay.
II. Discourse analysis
•
•
•
•
•
Guide to Reading
1. abridge: vt. To make shorter by using fewer words.
e.g.
The story was abridged from the original work.
The rights of citizens must not be abridged.
公民权利不能擅予削减。
He decided to abridge his stay here after he
received a letter from home.
他接到家信后决定缩短在这里的逗留时间。
• 2. watershed: n. an event marking a unique or
important historical change of course or one on
which important developments depend; (=
landmark; turning point)
• e.g.
• Leaving her first job was a watershed in her
life.
辞去她的第一份工作是她生活中的一个转
折点。
• Her visit to India proved to be a watershed in
her life.
她的印度之行成了她一生的转折点。
• 3. elaborate (on): vi. To express at greater length or
in greater detail; (≈clarify)
• e.g.
• Please elaborate your plan.
请做出详细的计划.
• Can you elaborate on that, Mr. fox.
福克斯先生，那个问题能否请您详细阐述一下？
• It takes cunning workmen to make such elaborate
furniture.
能工巧匠才能制作如此精致的家具。
4. remedy: to relieve or cure (a disease or
disorder
• e.g.
• Aspirin may remedy a headache.
阿斯匹林可治头痛。
• If I made a mistake, I will try to remedy it.
我如果有错的话,我会改正的。
• Is there a sovereign remedy for this condition?
在这种情况下有没有万全之策?
5. as such: （in and of itself, per se)本身,确切
地说
• e.g.
• Wealth, as such, doesn’t matter much.
• （财富本身并不重要．）
• I don’t have a nervous breakdown as such, it
was more a reaction to overwork.（我不是真
的得了精神上的病，那只是工作过度的反
映．）
6. instigate: serve as the inciting cause for
(＝promote, inspire, incite; ≈cause, stimulate)
• e.g.
• The antigovernment gangsters instigated a
rebellion.
• My children finally instigated me to buy a
laptop.
• instigator: 教唆犯；煽动者
Part 1 ( para.1) two worlds, natural world
and our own world
• 1. occur, happen, take place
• You can say an event occurs. However, you only use
occur to talk about events which are not planned.
And occur is a fairly formal word. In conversation,
you usually say that an event happens.
• You do not say that a planned event “occurs” or
“happens”. You say that it takes place.
• e.g.
• Mrs. Weaver had been in the milking shed
when the explosion occurred.
• You might noticed what happened on Friday.
• The first meeting of this committee took place
on 9 January.
Occur to; happen to
Error correction:
1) She no longer cared what happened to her.
2) I wonder what’s occurred to Jane.
3) The idea/thought had never happened to me.
4) It happened to him that he hadn’t eaten
anything since the night before.
5) It occurred to him to tell the director the
problem.
2. exempt; except
•
•
•
•
exempt: to release from obligation
except: to leave out, omit
e.g.
He is exempt from punishment about this thing.
关于此事对他已免于处分。
• No one is exempt from talking nonsense; the mistake
is to do it solemnly.
谁也难免会讲些废话，错就错在一本正经地讲。
• No admittance except on business.
非公莫入。
• I have no other wish except to pass the
examination.
我除了要通过考试之外，没有别的心愿。
• I like her except when she is angry.
除了她发怒的时候,我挺喜欢她。
Part 2 (pp. 2-5) Why two worlds are at war?
• 1. breach:
• If you breach an agreement, a law, or a
promise, you break it. (=violate)
• If someone or something breaches a barrier,
they make an opening in it, usually leaving it
weakened or destroyed (formal). (=rupture)
•
• e.g.
• Traders who breach the rules could face
a fine of up to $ 10,000.
• The enemy’s fierce attack finally
breached the walls of the city.
• 2. On planetary scale, the division between
the two worlds has been breached:
• Globally, the two worlds are no longer
separated, having nothing to do with each other.
• This is a transitional sentence, linking up the
following part with the first paragraph.
3. unwitting: adj.
• If you describe a person or their actions as
unwitting, you mean the person does
something or is involved in something without
realizing it. (=unintentional; ≠witting)
• e.g.
• We are unwitting victims of the unfair system.
• I feel sorry for my unwitting interruption of
their private conversation.
4. …even droughts, floods, and heat weaves
may become unwitting acts of man:
• What people do may unintentionally
cause droughts, floods and heat weaves.
• 5. Like the Creation, the portending global
events are cosmic…(pp.3):
• Like the Creation of the universe, events that
happen in this world may have vast effects,
especially on the relationship between the
planet Earth and the sun.
6. portend: to serve as an omen or a
warning of;
• e.g.
• Black clouds portend a storm.乌云是暴风
雨的前兆。
What do these strange events portend?
这些奇怪的事件预示着什么?
It portends the approach of a violent
revolutionary storm.
预示一场猛烈的革命风暴的来临.
7. exert: exercise; put to use
• e.g.
• His teachings still exert a strong influence.
他的教导仍在产生巨大影响。
• You'll have to exert yourself more if you want
to pass your exam.
你若想考试及格, 就必须更加努力.
• To achieve this goal, you must have ambition;
likewise you need to exert great efforts.
要实现这一目标,你必须有雄心壮志,同时还
得十分努力。
8. largely: for the most part; mainly;
on a large scale
• e.g.
• His successes were largely due to luck.
他的成功主要靠运气。
• He lived high and expended largely.
他生活讲究，花费很大。
• One's upbringing largely determines success
in life.
一个人的教养封一生事业的成功具有决定
性的影响。
9. fluctuate: vary irregularly; be unstable, have
ups and downs (= swing)
• e.g.
• The stock market fluctuates all the time.
• The old man fluctuated between hope and
fear.(忽喜忽忧)
• Prices fluctuate from year to year.
物价年年波动。
10. govern: direct or strongly influence the
behavior of; rule
• e.g.
• You should govern your temper
你应该控制你的情绪。
• Govern by supply and demand, price is the
invisible hand in economics
在经济生活中，价格是看不见的手，取决
於供给与需求关系。
• Who are the men who really govern in this
country? 谁是这个国家 的真正统治者?
• 11. tamper: vi. to interfere in a harmful
manner; intrude in other people's affairs or
business; interfere in an unwanted way
• e.g.
• Don’t tamper with my affairs. (interfere;
meddle)
• Someone tampered with the documents on
my desk. (篡改）
• He got the permission by tampering
with an official. （贿赂）
12. We have been… unaware, … of the
potentially disastrous …
• Notice the structure of the sentence. It could be
reconstructed in the following way:
• Like the Sorcerer’s Apprentice, we have been
tampering with this powerful force, unaware of
the potentially disastrous consequences of our
actions.
• It means: We have been doing things without
knowing that they may have serious effects on
the planet Earth.
• 13. swirl: n. the shape of something rotating
rapidly; v. turn in a twisting or spinning motion;
• e.g.
• Jane today wears a nice hat with a swirl of
lace around it.
• A swirl of dust forced the girl to cover her face
with her hands.
• The poor man was swirled away by the current.
• 14. But this image, now repeatedly thrust
before us in photographs, posters, and
advertisements, is misleading.( pp.4.):
• The Earth we see in photos, posters, and ads,
which appears so beautiful, is not the true
reflection of the world we live in.
15. materialize: v. come into being; become
reality; (=happen, appear)
• e.g.
• They feel very sad that their dream failed to
materialize.
• You can materialize your lofty aspiration
through hard working.
• He planned to materialize his idea in words
16. esoteric: =mysterious ≠exoteric
• e.g.
• I hate studying those esoteric philosophical
theories.
• To me an English teacher, Buddhism is totally
esoteric.
17. blanket: v. cover as if with a blanket; form
a blanket-like cover (over)
• e.g.
• Snow blanketed the fields.
• Heavy clouds blanket over the sky before a
storm comes.
18. Niche: the specific space occupied by
an organism with its habitat
• e.g.
• Amy, trying to keep as far from him as
possible, moved across the stone floor of the
tower roof, and found a niche which concealed
her.
• He found the right niche for himself.
• (他为自己找到一份称心的工作.)
• 19. Ecosphere: ecological sphere
/earth/planet( referring to the air, water, and
soil that cover the Earth and the plants and
animals that live on it. （生物圈；生态层）
• 20. grandiose: impressive because of
unnecessary largeness or grandeur; used to
show disapproval (= grand)
• e.g.
• He’s always producing grandiose plans that
never work.
• They have gone through those long and bitter
deliberations made in presence of some
grandiose purpose they had not the means to
carry out.
• 21. … catastrophically diminishing our
ability to provide for basic human needs:
• Frequent natural disasters have reduced
our ability to satisfy the needs of people on
earth.
Part III( paras.6-9)
1. One of the basic laws of the ecosphere can be
summed up as “ Everything is connected to
everything else. “ (para.6):
The first law is that in ecosphere, every
component is related to other components,
thus forming an elaborate network.
2. elaborate: adj.: Planned or executed with
painstaking attention to numerous parts or
details. (精心制作的）
e.g.
I'm sure you look more charming in them
than any one we shall see in the most
elaborate dinner toilette.
The tablecloth is very expensive, because if
the elaborate lace patterns
• 3. aquatic: adj. relating to or consisting of or
being in water;
•
•
•
•
e.g.
Boats are aquatic vehicles.
Water lilies are aquatic plants.
Fish are aquatic animals.
• 4. Photosynthesis n. [ U ] 光合作用
• The production of special sugar-like
substances that keep plants alive, caused by
the action of sunlight on Chlorophyll.( =the
green matter in leaves); the way green plants
make their own food.
• Photosynthetic adj.
• 5. habitat: n. the area or environment where
an organism or ecological community
normally lives or occurs (= home ground)
• e.g.
• The polar bear’s habitat is the icy waters of
the Arctic.
• I prefer to see animals in their natural habitat,
rather than in zoos.
• 6. The fish is not only, existentially, a fish,
but also an element of this network, which
defines its functions. ( para. 6):
•
• The function of the fish is determined by the
role it plays in the ecological network.
• 7. Indeed, in the evolutionary sense, a good
care of the network – the microorganisms
and plants, for example – preceded the fish,
which could establish itself only because it
fitted properly into the preexisting
system.( para. 6):
• The fish could play its role because it
became a necessary link with the processes
preceding it and the processes following it in
the ecological system.
• 8. A car, for example, imposes itself on the
neighborhood rather than being defined by
it…(para. 7):
• A car does not respond to its environment
but insists on its own needs being met...
• 9. fit in/into: to find a time when something
can happen without causing problems
e.g.
• The gear doesn’t fit into the machine.
• How is the extra work getting to fit into the
schedule?
• Nancy tried to fit her holidays in with Alex’s.
10. impose… on/upon…: compel to behave in a
certain way (=enforce; ≈ compel)
• e.g.
• Did you think, child, because you have been
able to impose upon your father, that you
could impose upon me?
• It was now their turn to impose some limit on
that sort of science, which had lots of influence
on our habitat.
11. accommodate v. :have enough space for
• e.g.
• Are there enough shelves to accommodate all
our books ?
• A flat can accommodate a family of five.
12. afflict; inflict
• afflict: cause great unhappiness for; distress;
(be afflicted with/by) (使折磨;折磨)
• inflict: impose something unpleasant (强加于)
• e.g.
• She was afflicted by the death of her parents.
• Famine and war still afflict mankind.
饥荒与战争依旧给人类带来痛苦。
• Don‘t inflict your ideas on me.
别把你的想法强加于我。
• 13. Defined so narrowly, it is no surprise
that cars have properties that hostile to the
environment. ( para. 8):
• When cars are produced to serve such
narrow purposes, it is not surprising that
some of their characteristic qualities are
harmful to the environment.
14. hostile; hostel
• Hostile: antagonistic; feeling or showing
enmity
• Hostel: lodging at minimum cost with
minimum amenities, usually reserved for the
young or old
• e.g.
• Americans are hostile to the idea of higher
taxes.
• Bicycling through Europe can be fairly
inexpensive if you stay in hostels.
• 15. in proportion to: agreeing in amount,
magnitude, or degree
• e.g.
• The room is wide in proportion to its height.
这房间就其高度的比例而言是很宽的.
• Payment will be in proportion to the work
done, not to the time spent doing it.
报酬将与工作量成比例, 而不是与花费的时
间成比例.
• 16. … year by year, less and less of the
applied fertilizer was taken up by the crop
and progressively more drained through the
soil into groundwater, in the form of nitrates
that contaminated river, lakes, and water
supplies. ( para. 9 ):
• When the soil is saturated with nitrogen
fertilizer, it cannot take in more so the
excess fertilizer finds its way into
underground water, thus causing water
pollution.
• 17. progressively: advancing in amount
or intensity (= more and more,
increasingly )
• e.g.
• His eyesight is becoming progressively
worse. 他的视力越来越差.
• The bank has progressively increased its
liquidity. 银行逐渐地增加其流动资产。
Part IV ( Paras. 10-11)
• 1. respire: v. to breathe in and out; inhale
and exhale
• e.g.
• Say respires when she reaches the top of
the hill.
• 2. excrete: to get rid of waste material
from your body through your bowels,
your skin etc.
• e.g.
• The skin excretes sweat.
• Certain plants excrete a sweet juice,
apparently for the sake of eliminating
something injurious from their sap.
3. mold: n. any of various fungi that often cause
disintegration of organic matter (能引起有机
物质分解的真菌)
e.g. Throw that bread away. It has been kept for
so many days, and there’s mold on it.
• 4. convert: v. to change (something) into
another form, substance, state, or product; (=
change; ≈alter)
• e.g.
• The cold weather has converted water into ice.
• Could you please convert feet into meters?
• We converted from 220 to 110 volts.
5. ingest v.: to take (food) into the stomach
• e.g.
• An elephant needs to ingest at least 40Kgs of
banana.
• Cf.
• digest: convert food into absorbable
substances
• e.g.
• I cannot digest milk products.
•
6. Crops and the animals to which they are
fed are eaten by people; their waste is
flushed into the sewer system, altered in
composition but not in amount at a
treatment plant, and the residue is
dumped into rivers or the ocean as waste –
which upsets the natural aquatic
ecosystem.( para.11 ):
• People, after digestion, excrete the waste
which is flushed into the sewer system. The
sewage gets to a treatment plant which
modifies it, but it is still waste after being
processed. The waste does not reenter the
life cycle but disturbs the natural processes
wherever it is dumped. The residue of the
waste will go into rivers, oceans and will
have harmful effect on the aquatic
ecosystem.
7. flush; blush
• flush: redden with strong emotion, as anger
• blush: redden with modesty, confusion, or
shame
• e.g.
• The young man blushed as he was chosen for
a dance.
• The young man flushed as his rivals passed
him by.
8. ineffectually: in an ineffectual manner
• e.g.
• She tried ineffectually to light the gas-stove,
and Thomas came to help her.
• The runner had tried ineffectually to gain
admission as a visitor at that area.
9. assault: violent attack; to attack violently
• e.g.
• The city is secure against assault. 此城坚不可
摧, 固若金汤.
• The enemy wanted to take a town by assault.
敌人妄图强占一镇．
Part V ( Paras 12-14)
• 1. compatible - able to exist and perform in
harmonious or agreeable combination (= agreeable)
• e.g.
• People admired this compatible married
couple.
• Accuracy is not always compatible with haste.
忙中难免出错。
• This printer is compatible with most
microcomputers.
这台打印机是与大多数微型电子计算机兼
容的.
• 2. trial and error: A method of reaching a
correct solution or satisfactory result by trying
out various means or theories until error is
sufficiently reduced or eliminated.
• e.g.
• He learned technical skills by trial and error.
他通过不断摸索掌握技能。
• I finally found the right key after lots of trial
and error.
经过反复试验，我终于找到了正确的方法。
• 3. tune: v. adjust for (better) functioning (=
tune up)
• e.g.
• The repairman tuned the engine carefully.
• Idioms:
• tune in
• tune out
• tune up
• 4. leave to (one's) own devices: To allow to
do as one pleases.
• e.g.
• Parents should leave their children to their
own devices for an hour in the afternoon.
• 5. Left to their own devices, ecosystems are
conservative… ( para.12):
• If the ecosystems are not upset by outside
intrusion, they will remain the same with very
little change.
• 6. In contrast to the ecosphere, the
technosphere is composed of objects and
materials that reflect a rapid and relentless
process of change and variation. (para.13.):
• The characteristics of the objects and materials
in the technosphere are of rapid change and
great variety.
7. Model T Ford: = Ford Model T
• The Ford Model T was an automobile
produced by Henry Ford's Ford Motor
Company from 1908 through 1927. The model
T set 1908 as the historic year that the
automobile came into popular usage. It is
generally regarded as the first affordable
automobile, the car which "put America on
wheels“.
• 8. array: n. an orderly arrangement
(≈arrangement)
• e.g.
• He turned and strode away, across the dewy
fields, and disappeared beyond an array of
trees.
• The tiled floor was thick with dust, and a
remarkable array of miscellaneous objects
was veiled in the same grey covering.
• 9. quill pen: pen made from a bird's feather
• e.g.
• There was no sound for a moment but the scratching
of Sir Alfred's quill pen across the paper.
•
• 10. biodegradable: adj. tech able to be
broken down into harmless products by the
natural action of living things (e.g.
• bacteria) 生物分解
• e.g.
• A biodegradable detergent is welcomed at
the market.
• 11. A is shorthand for B: A is a simple and
brief way of describing B.
• e.g.
• He’s been “relocated”, which is shorthand for
“given a worse job a long way away”.
• 12. insidious: working or spreading harmfully
in a subtle or stealthy manner
• e.g.
• It was the insidious rumor that had finally
finished their friendship.
• An insidious disease sometimes is worse than
the disease that causes a patient’s frequent visit
to a hospital.
Part VI ( Paras. 15 – 16 )
1. with respect to: concerning
e.g.
Handle students administration with respect
to humanity.(坚持以人为本做好学生工作)
With respect to the present situation, I am
afraid that I am not able to tell you our
decision right now.
2. at first glance:
on initial
consideration(= at first sight)
• e.g.
• At first glance the plan seemed unworkable.
• I feel like a new man; and although at first
glance I might be mistaken for a Safety
Deposit Vault, I beg you to remember that my
Brains are still composed of the same old
material.
• 3. Yet nearly every modern technology has
grave faults, which appear not as a failure
to accomplish its designed purpose but as a
serious impact on the environment. ( para.
15):
• The fault of most modern technology is not
with its failure to meet the designed purpose,
• but with its adverse effect on the environment.
• 4. emit: v. give off, send forth, or discharge; as
of light, heat, or radiation, vapor, etc.; (= give
out, give off)
• The ozone layer blocks some harmful rays
which the sun emits.
• The chimney emitted a cloud of smoke.
•
•
•
•
5. contaminate - make impure; (= pollute)
e.g.
The industrial wastes contaminated the lake.
Don't drink the water--it's contaminated.
• 6. Regard only as a failure in the plant’s
function, the accident at Chernobyl amounts to
a serious but local fire that destroyed the plant.
• Notice the position of the word “but”.
Normally we can say “…amount to merely a
serious local fire that…”. If so, the tune is
rather flat and pale. Here the author employs
the writing skill -- “anticlimax” to achieve the
sarcastic tone.
anticlimax
• e.g.
• "Seldom has a city gained such world renown,
and I am proud and happy to welcome you to
Hiroshima, a town known throughout the
world for its---oysters."
这里是广岛市长说的话，作者本意为市长
会说广岛之所以闻名于世是因为那场骇人
听闻的大灾难（原子弹爆炸），谁知道市
长却说广岛是因牡蛎而出名。这里用了突
降法的修辞手法，起到讽刺的作用。
7. resultant: adj. resulting, esp. as the total
outcome of more or less opposed forces
• e.g.
• Use shaded skylights to compensate for any
resultant loss of natural daylight.
运用带有遮阳的天窗以弥补自然光的损失。
• If the syllabus was accepted by the majority of
students , it would be unnecessary to answer
all resultant complaints.如果课程规划当初
得到了大多数同学接受，那么就没有必要
回答由此而来的抱怨。
8. acknowledge: v. declare to be true or admit
the existence or reality or truth of; (= admit)
• e.g.
I acknowledge that her criticism is just.
我承认她的批评是公正的。
He is unwilling to acknowledge defeat.
他不愿认输。
I passed her in the street but she didn't even
acknowledge me when I smiled.
我在街上遇到她，可是当我向她微笑时，
她却连招呼都没有向我打一个。
• 9. unmet: adj. not satisfied or fulfilled
• e.g.
How can one know what needs are
involved in conflict situations? How can
one know what human needs are being
met and unmet?
10. mortgage:按揭
• e.g.
• I have bought a house by paying my mortgage
in monthly installment. 我以每月分期付款偿
还按揭购买了一套房子．
• Primary mortgage loan notes．一手楼按揭贷
款须知．
• 11. In the technosphere, debts are repaid
from within and, at least in theory, are
always capable of being paid off, or, in some
cases, canceled. (Para.16):
• In the economic field, debts are repaid with
the production of goods. Debts are required
to be repaid, unless they are canceled.
12. disseminate v. fml.: to spread ( news,
ideas, etc.) widely (= spread)
e.g.
Whatever the defects of American universities
may be, they disseminate no prejudices.
I hate those who disseminate rumors.
散布谣言
They use the press to disseminate right-wing
views.
他们利用报刊来传播右翼观点.
• 13. envelop: v. to enclose or encase completely
with or as if with a covering (= enclose, wrap)
• e.g.
• Accompanying the darkness, a stillness
envelops the city.
• Fog enveloped the house.
• 14. These debts were merely transferred to
the victims, and are paid as they sicken and
die.(Para.16):
• People who suffered from radioactivity or
toxic chemicals are the victims of the debts
created by the technosphere. They paid the
debt with sickness or even death.
Part VII ( Paras. 17-21)
1. In terms of :With regard to; from the point
of view of
e.g.
In terms of cash outlay, the sum is peanuts.
从花费来看,这笔钱乃区区小数
Think of it in terms of an investment.
从投资的角度来考虑那件事.
It is difficult to express it in terms of science.
要用科学的字眼来表达它是很困难的。
2. Interplay ( of , between) n.:
the action or effect of two or more things on each
other (= interaction)
• e.g.
• I’m interested in the interplay between
practical and theoretical linguistics.
• The problems result from the interplay of the
ecosphere and the technosphere.
• Classroom teaching is the interplay between
the teacher and the student.
• 3. Of course, as in a conventional war, the
issues can be simplified by taking sides;
ignoring the interests of one combatant or
the other. But this is done only at the cost of
understanding.(Para.18):
• If we take sides in the war of the two worlds,
we are doing so at the risk of failing to have a
clear understanding of the nature and cause of
the war. Thus, we lose the chance to really
solve the grave environmental crisis.
• 4. take sides: to support one person, group, or
opinion over another
• e.g.
• I never take sides. 我从不偏袒哪一方。
• A parent shouldn't take sides when children
start quarrelling with each other.
当孩子们吵架时，父母都不该插手盲目袒
护自己的孩子。
• 5. mediate: To resolve or settle (differences) by
working with all the conflicting parties
• e.g.
• He mediated a settlement between labor and
management.他在劳资双方间通过调停达成
和解。
• He tried to mediate between two warring
countries. 他试图在两个交战国之间进行斡
旋
• The dispute was settled by mediation.
• 爭端已被調解了。
• 6. concoct: If you concoct an excuse,
explanation, or account, you invent one that is
false or misleading.
• e.g.
• The child concocted a story about having been
attacked.
• He concocted a plan to get rich quickly.
• He had to hastily concoct an excuse.
7. allot; allocate
•
•
•
•
allot: share (a larger number or amount)
allocate: assign for a specific purpose
e.g.
The school board will allocate funds for the
baseball team.
• The school board will allot funds among the
departments according to need.
• They allot the profits of the business by the
end of a year. 他们年终分配红利
• 8. inducement: act or means of persuading
• e.g.
• Reward is an inducement effort.
报酬使人们努力工作。
• He hasn‘t much inducement to study English.
他没有学习英语的兴趣。
• They have little inducement to work harder.
没有什么可以使他们更加努力工作.
9. marauder - someone who attacks in search of
booty (= predator ≈ aggressor )
• e.g.
• To find them, however, I had to light my
candles, when the first thing I saw was the
havoc my marauder had left behind him.
• 10. endow: give qualities or abilities to
(= empower; ≈give )
• e.g.
• Nature has endowed the wolf with the
means of catching its food.
11. artifact - a man-made object taken as a
whole (= artefact)
• e.g.
• Anything made by artificial means is called an
artifact.
• 12. thrust: the essence; the point
• e.g.
• The whole thrust of the project was to make
money.
• What was the thrust of his argument?
他的论据的要点是什麽?
• 13. allow for: make a possibility or provide
opportunity for; permit to be attainable or
cause to remain; (= allow, provide, leave)
• e.g.
• We must allow for his youth
我们应当体谅他年轻。
• We must allow for the train being late
我们必须想到火车会晚点的。
• You must allow for five per cent wastage in
transit
在运输中要允许有百分之五的损耗量.
•
•
•
•
14. entail: to make (an event or action)
necessary; involve
e.g.
That will entail an early start tomorrow
morning.
那就需要明晨很早动身.
This job would entail your learning how to
use a computer.
这工作将需要你学会怎样用计算机。
Part VIII (Paras. 22 -23)
• 1. bewildering - causing bafflement (= unclear)
• e.g.
• The play was at the same time a bewildering
and an exciting experience.
• The reason for their actions is bewildering to
this day.
• 2. as yet - used in negative statement to
describe a situation that has existed up to this
point or up to the present time (= thus far, till
now, yet)
• e.g.
• We are as yet unable to say when the train will
arrive. 我们还说不上火车什么时候到达。
• We should be responsible for the generation as
yet unborn. 我们应该对下一代负责。
3. lament: n. a cry of sorrow and grief (=wail)
•
v. express grief verbally; regret strongly
• e.g.
• Short pleasure, long lament.
【谚】痛快一时，痛苦一世。
• The song was composed especially as a
lament for a deceased person
这是专门为悼念某一死者所写的挽歌．
• 4. battle cry: a yell intended to rally a
group of soldiers in battle; a slogan used
to rally support for a cause (= war cry,
rallying cry)
• e.g.
“One world, one dream!” is our 2008 battle cry.
“ Away from drug!” becomes a worldwide battle
cry.
IV. Assignment
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Translate the following passage from Chinese into Chinese:
The early snows fall soft and white and seem to heal the
landscape. There are as yet no tracks through the drifts, no
muddied slush in the roads. The wind sweeps snow into the
scars of our harvest time haste, smoothing the brow of hill,
hiding furrow and cog and trash in the yard. Snow muffles
the shriek of metal and the rasp of motion. It covers our flintier
purposes and brings a redeeming silence, as if a curtain has
• fallen on the strivings of a year, and now we may stop, look in
ward, and rediscover the amber warmth of family and
conversation.
• At such times, locked away inside wall and woole
n, lulled by the sedatives of wood-smoke and
• candlelight, we recall the competing claims of
• nature. We see the branch and bark of trees, rather
than the sugar-scented green of their leaves. We
• look out the window and admire the elegance of
• ice crystal, the bravely patient tree leaning leafless
into the wind, the dramatic shadows of the
• stooping sun. We look at the structure of things,
• the geometry of branch and snowflake, family and
deed.
• Thank you!