必修 2 unit1
IN SEARCH OF THE AMBER ROOM
Frederick William Ⅰ， the King of Prussia , could never have imagined that hisgreatest gift to the Russian people would have such an amazing history . This giftwas the Amber Room , which was given this name because severaltons of amberwere used to make it . The amber which was selected had a beautiful yellow-browncolour like honey . The design of the room was in the fancy style popular in those
days . It was also a treasure decorated with gold and jewels , which took the country'sbest artists about ten years to make .
In fact , the room was not made to be a gift . It was designed for the palace of
Frederick Ⅰ. However, the next King of Prussia , Frederick William Ⅰ ,to whom theamber room belonged, decided not to keep it. In 1716 he gave it to Peter the Great.In return , the Czar sent him a troop of his best soldiers. So the Amber Room
because part of the Czar's winter palace in St Petersburg.About four metres long, theroom served as a small reception hall for important visitors .
Later,CatherineⅡ had the Amber Room moved to a palace outside St Petersburgwhere she spent her summers. She told her artists to add more details to it .In 1770the room was completed the way she wanted . Almost six hundred candles lit theroom ,and its mirrors and pictures shone like gold. Sadly , although the Amber Roomwas considered one of the wonders of the world , it is now missing .
In September 1941, the Nazi army was near St Petersburg . This was a time whenthe two countries were at war . Before the Nazis could get to the summer palace , theRussians were able to remove some furniture and small art objects from the AmberRoom . However , some of the Nazis secretly stole the room itself . In less than twodays 100,000 pieces were put inside twenty-seven wooodenboxs . There is no doubtthat the boxs were then put on a train for Konigsberg, which was at that time aGerman city on the Baltic Sea . After that, what happened to the Amber Roomremains a mystery .
Recently , the Russians and Germans have built a new Amber Room at the summer
palace . By studying old photos of the former Amber Room , they have made the
new one look like the old one .In 2003 it was ready for the people of St Petersburgwhen they celebrated the 300th birthday of their city .
A FACT OR AN OPINION?
What is a fact? Is it something that people believe? No. A fact is anything that canbe proved. For example, it can be proved that China has more people than any othercountry in the world. This is a fact.
Then what is an opinion? An opinion is what someone believes is true but has notbeen proved. So an opinion is not good evidence in a trial. For example, it is anopinion if you say “ Cats are better pets than dogsay be true, ”but.Ititmis difficult to
prove. Some people may not agree with this opinion but they also cannot prove
that they are right.
In a trial, a judge must decide which eyewitnesses to believe and which not to believe.The judge does not consider what each eyewitness looks like or where that personlives or works. He/she only cares about whether the eyewitness has given trueinformation, which must be facts rather than opinions. This kind of information iscalled evidence.
Unit 2
AN INTERVIEW
Pausanias,who was a Greek writer about 2,000 years ago, has come on a magicaljourney on March 18th 2007 to find out about the present-day Olympic Games. Heis now interviewing Li Yan, a volunteer for the 2008 Olympic Games.
P: My name is Pausanias.I li ved in what you call “ AncientGreece ”and I used towrite about the Olympic Games a long time ago. I’ ve come to your time to find outabout the present-day Olympic Games because I know that in 2004 they were held
in my homeland. May I ask you some questions about the modern Olympics?
L: Good heavens! Have you really come from so long ago? But of course you
can 103f
ask any questions you like. What would you like to know?
P: How often do you hold your Games?
L: Every four years. There are two main sets of Games-the Winter and Summer
Olympics, and both are held every four years on a regular basis. The Winter Olympicsare usually held two years before the Summer Games. Only athletes who have
reached the agreed standard for their event will be admitted as competitors. They
may come from anywhere in the world.
P: Winter Games? How can the runners enjoy competing in winter? And what
about the horses?
L: Oh no! There are no running races or horse riding events. Instead there are competitionslike skiing and ic e skating which need snow and ice. That ’ s why they called the WinterOlympics. It ’ s in the Summer Olympics that you have the running races, together withswimming, sailing and all the team sports.
’ re
P: I see. Earlier you said that athletes are invited from all over the world. Do you mean
the Greek world? Our Greek cities used to compete against each other just for thehonour of winning. No other countries could join in, nor could slaves or women!
L: Nowadays any country can take part if their athletes are good enough. There are
over 250 sports and each on has its own standard. Women are not only allowed,but play a very important role in gymnastics, athletics, team sports and
⋯
P: Please wait a minute! All those events, all those countries and even women
taking part! Where are all the athletes housed?
L: For each Olympics, a special village is built for them to live in, a main
reception building, several stadiums for competitions, and a gymnasium as well.
P: That sounds very expensive. Does anyone want to host the Olympic Games?
L: As a matter of fact, every country wants the opportunity. It ’ s a great responsib but also a great
honour to be chosen. There ’ s as much competition among countries to host the Olympics as to winOlympic medals. The 2008 Olympics will be held in Beijing, China. Did you know that?
P: Oh yes! You must be very proud.
L: Certainly. And after that the 2012 Olympics will be held in London. They havealready started planning for it. A new village for the athletes and all the stadiums will
uilt to the east of London. New medals will be designed of course and
P: Did you say medals? So even the olive wreath has been replaced! Oh dear! Do
you compete for prize money too?
⋯
L: No, we don’it ’still all about being able to run faster, jump higher and throw ’further. That
”
s
P: Well, that ’ good news. How interesting! Thank you so much for your time.
THE STORY OF ATLANTA
Atlanta was a Greek princess. She was very beautiful and could run faster than anyman in Greece. But she was not allowed to run and win glory for herself in the OlympicGames. She was so angry that she said to her father that she would not marry anyonewho could not run faster than her. Her father said that she must marry, so Atlantamade a bargain with him. She said to him,\"These are my rules. When a man says hewants to marry me, I will run against him. If he cannot run as fast as me, he will bekilled. No one will be pardoned.\"
Many kings and princes wanted to marry Atlanta, but when they heard of rules theyknew it was hopeless. So many of them sadly went home, but others stayed to run therace. There was a man called Hippomenes who was amazed when he heard ofAtlanta's rules,\"Why are these men so foolish?\" he thought. \"Why will they let
themselves be killed because they cannot run as fast as this princess?\" However, whenshe saw Atlanta come out of her house to run, Hippomenes changed his mind.\"I willmarry Atlanta--or die!\" he said.
The race started and although the man ran very fast, Atlanta ran faster. As
Hippomenes watched he thought, \"How can I run as fast as Atlanta?\" He went to askthe Greek Godness of Love for help. She promised to help him and gave him threegolden apples. She said,\" Throw an apple in front of Atlanta when she is running past.When she stops to pick it up, you will be able to run p 103f
ast her and win.\"
Hippomenes took the apples and went to the King. He said,\" I want to marryAtlanta .\" The King was sad to see another man die, but Hippomenes said,\" I will
marry her------or die!\" So the race began.
Unit 3
WHO AM I?
Over time I have been changed quite
a lot. I began as a calculating machine in France
in 12. Although I was young I could simplify difficult
sums. I developed very
slowly and it took nearly two hundred years before I was built as an analytical
machine by Charles Babbage. After I was programmed by an operator who used cards
with holes, I could
“ think ” logicallyduceandanproanswer quicker than any person.
At that time it was considered a technological revolution and the start of my
intelligence
” . In 1936 my real father, Alan Turing, wrote a book about how I could be
made to work as a
“ universal machinesolve”anyto difficult mathematical problem.
From then on, I grew rapidly both in size and in brainpower. By the 1949s I had
grown as large as a room, and I wondered if I would grow any larger. However, this reality also worried my designers. As time went by, as was make smaller. First as a
PC(personal computer) and then as a laptop, I have been used in offices and homes
since
the 1970s.
These changes only became possible as my memory improved. First it was stored in tubes, then on transistors and later on very small chips. As a result I totally changed my shape. As I have grown older I have also grown smaller. Over time my memory
has developed so much that, like an elephant, I never forget anything I have been told!
And my memory became so large that even Icouldn ’ t believe it! But I was always so lonely standing there by myself, until in early 1960s they gave me a family connected by a network. I was able to share my knowledge with others through the World Wide
Web.
Since the 1970s many new applications have been found for my. I have become very important in communication, finance and trade. I have also been put into robots and used to make mobile phones as well as help with medical operations. I have even
been put into space rockets and sent to explore the Moon and Mars. Anyhow, my goal
is to provide humans with a life of high quality. I am now truly filled with happiness that
I am a devoted friend and helper of the human race!
“
ANDY –THE ANDROID
I ’ m part of an android football team. About once a yearwe are allowed to get togetherto play a game of football. I’ m as big as a human. It fact, I look like one too. On thefootball team I ’ m a striker so I have to be able to run very fast. My computer ships help
me to move and think like a human. For example, I have learned to signal to my
teammates in computer language to give me the ball when I am open and have a
good for a goal.
My first football competition was in Nagoya, Japan several years ago. Last year ourteam went to Seattle, Washington in the USA. We won second place. Personally, I
think the team that won first place cheated. They had developed a new type of programjust before the competition. So we need to encourage our programmer to improve ourintelligence too. We are determined to create an even better system. In a way ourprogrammer is like our coach. She programs us with all the possible moves she hasseen while watching human games. Then she prepares reliable moves to use if a newsituation arises. In this way I can make up new moves using my “ artificial
intelligence ” . I could like to play against a human team, for I have been programmed to
act just like them. After all, with the help of my electronic brain which never forgets
anything, using my intelligence is what I ’ m all about!
Unit 4
HOW DAISY LEARNED TO HELP WILDLIFE
Daisy had always longed to help endangered species of wildlife. One day she woke upand found a flying carpet by her bed. “ Where youdo want to go?” it asked. Daisyresponded immediately.“ I ’ d like to see some endangered wildlife,” she said.take me to a distant land where I can find the animal that gave fur to make thissweater. ”onceAt the carpet flew away and took her to Tibet. There d103f
aisy saw and antelope looking sad. It said,“ We’ re being killed for the wool beneathour stomachs. Our fur is being used to make sweaters for people like you. As a result,we are now an endangered species. ” At that Daisy cried,“ I ’ m sorry I didn’ t knowI wonder what is being done to help you. Flying carpet, please show me a place wherethere ’ s some wildlife protection.”
The flying carpet traveled so fast that next minute they were in Zimbabwe. Daisy
turned around and found that she was being watched by and elephant. “ Haveyoucome to take my photo?” it asked. In relief Daisy burst into laughter.“ Don’ tsaid the elephant,“ We used to be an endangered species. Farmers hunted tus withoumercy. They said we destroyed their farms, and money from tourists only went to thelarge tour companies. So the government decided to help. They allowed tourists tohunt only a certain number of animals if they paid the farmers. Now the farmers arehappy and our numbers are increasing. So good things are being done here to savelocal wildlife.”
“ That ’ s good news. It shows the importance of wildlife protection, butDaisy smiled,
I ’ d like to help as the WWF suggests.” The carpet rose again andcealmostthey at on
“ What arewere in a thick rainforest. A monkey watched them as it rubbed itself.
doing? ”asked Daisy. “ I ’protectingm myself from mosquitoes, it”replied. When I
find a millipede insect, I rub it over my body. It contains a powerful drug which
affects mosquitoes. You should pay more attention to the rainforest where I live the
appreciate how the animals live together. No rainforest, no animals, no drugs.
Daisy was amazed. “ Flying carpet, please take me home so I can tell WWF and we can begin producing this new drug. Monkey, please come and help. ”The monkey
agreed. The carpet flew home. As they landed, things began to disappear. Two
minutes later everything had gone-the monkey, too. So Daisy was not able to make her
new drug. But what an experience! She had learned so much! And there was always
WWF⋯
ANIMAL
EXTINCTION
Many animals have disappeared
during the long history of the earth.The
most famous
of these animals are dinosaurs.They lived on the earth tens of millions of years ago,
long before humans came into being and their future seemed secure at that time.
There were many different kinds of dinosaur and a number of them used to live in
China.The eggs of twenty-five species have been found in Xixia,County,Nanyang,
Henan Province.Not long ago a rare new species of bird-like dinosaur was discovered in
ChaoyangCounty,LiaoningProvince.When
scientists inspeacted the bones,they were
surprised
to find that these dinosaurs could not only run like the others but also climb
trees.They
learned this from the way the bones were joined together.
Dinosaurs died out suddenly about 65 million years ago. Some scientists think it
came after an unexpected incident when a huge rock from space hit the earth and put
too
much dust into the air.Others think the earth got too hot for the dinosaurs
”
to live on any more.Nobody knows for sure why and how dinosaurs disappeared
from the earth in such a short time.
We know many other wild plants, animals,insects and birds have died out morerecently.According to a UN report,some 844 animals and plants have disappeared inthe last 500 years.The dodo is one of them.It lived on the Island of Mauritius andwas a very friendly animal.Please listen to a story of the dodo and how itdisappeared frome the earth.
Unit 5
THE BAND THAT WASN’T
Have you ever wanted to be part of a band as a famous singer or musician? Haveyou ever dreamed of playing in front of thousands of people at a concert, at whicheveryone is clapping and appreciating your music? Do you sing karaoke and pretendyou are a famous singer like Song Zuying or Lin Huan? To be honest, a lot of peopleattach great importance to becoming rich and famous. But just how do people form aband?
Many musicians meet and form a band because they like to write and play theirown music. They may start as a group of high-school students, for whbac
om practicing their music in someone ’ s hours is the first step to fame. Sometimes they mayplay to passers-by in the street or subway so that they can earn some extra moneyfor themselves or to pay for their instruments. Later they may give performances in
pubs or clubs, for which they are paid in cash. Of course they hope to make recordsin a studio and sell millions of copies to become millionaires!
However, there was one band hat started in a different way. It was called the
Monkees and began as a TV show. The musicians were to play jokes on each otheras well as play music, most of which was based loosely on the beatles. The TV
organizers had planned to find four musicians who could act as well as sing. They putan advertisement in a newspaper looking for rock musicians, but they could only findone who was good enough. They had to use actors for the other three members of theband.
As some of these actors could not sing well enough, they had to rely on othermusicians to help them. So during the broadcasts they just pretended to sing.
Anyhow their performances were humorous enough to be copied by clubs in order toget more familiar with them. Each week on TV, the Mondees would play and singsongs written by other musicians. However, after a year or so in which they becamemore serious about their work, the Monkees started to play and sing their own songslike a real band. Then they produced their own records and started touring and playtheir own music. In the USA they became even more popular than the Beatles and
sold even more records. The band broke up about 1970, but happily the reunited inthe mid-1980s. they produced a new record in 1996, with which they celebrated theirformer time as a real band.
FREDDY THE FROG(II)
Not long after Freddy and the band became famous,they visited Britain on a brieftour.Fans showed their devotion by waiting for hours to get tichkets for theirconcerts.Freddy was now quite confident when he went into a concert hall.He
enjoyed singing and all the congratulations afterwards!His most exciting invitation wasto perform on a programme called \"Top of the Pops.\"He had to go to London,wear anexpensive suit and give a performance to a TV camera.It felt very strange.But assoon as the programme was over,the telephones which were in the same roomstarted ringing.Everybody was asking when they could see Freddy and his bandagain. They were truly stars.
Then things went wrong.Freddy and his band could not go out anywhere withoutbeing followed.Even when they wore sunglasses or beards people recognized them.Fans found them even when they went into the toilet.They tried to hide in thereading rooms of libraries,but it was useless.Someonewas always there!Their
personal life was regularly discussed by people who did not know them but talked asif they were close friends. At last feeling very upset and sensitive,Freddy and hisband to which they were never to return,and went back to the lak5e.
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