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Reading ComprehensionSkimming andScanning15minutesPassagel TheNext SocietyThe new economymay ormay notmaterialize,but there is nodoubt that the next society will bewith usshortly.In thedeveloped world,and probablyin theemerging countriesas well,this newsocietywill be a gooddeal more important than the new economy ifany.It will be quitedifferent from thesociety of the late20th century,and alsodifferent fromwhat most people expect.Much of it will beunprecedented.And most of it is alreadyhere,or israpidly emerging.In thedeveloped countries,the dominantfactor in the nextsociety will be something to whichmostpeople are only just beginning to pay attention:the rapidgrowth in the olderpopulation and the rapidshrinkingof the younger generation.Politicians everywherestill promiseto savethe existingpensionsystem,but they-and theirconstituents-know perfectlywell thatin another25years people will have tokeep workinguntil theirmid-70s,health permitting.What hasnot yetsunk inis that a growingnumber ofolder people—say thoseover50—will notkeepon working as traditionalfull timenine-to-five employees,but willparticipate in the labor force inmany new anddifferent ways:as temporaries,as part-timers,as consultantson specialassignments,andso on.What used to bepersonnel and are nowknown as human resourcesdepartments stillassume thatthosewho workfor anorganization arefull-time employees.Employment laws and regulationsare basedon the sameassumption.Within20or25years,however,perhaps asmany ashalf the people whoworkfor anorganization will not beemployed byit,certainly noton afull-time basis.This will be especiallytruefor older people.New ways of workingwith peopleat armslength willincreasingly become thecentral managerialissue ofemploying organizations,and not just ofbusinesses.The shrinkingof theyounger populationwill cause an evengreater upheaval,if onlybecausenothing likethis hashappened sincethe dyingcenturies of the RomanEmpire.In everysingle developedcountry,but alsoin Chinaand Brazil,the birthrate is now wellbelow thereplacement rate of
2.2livebirths perwoman ofreproductive age.Politically,this means that immigrationwill becomean importantand highly divisiveissue in all rich countries.It willcut acrossall traditionalpolitical alignments.Economically,the declinein theyoung populationwill changemarkets in their justpowers from theconsent of the governed.n Ina time when women,having novote,could neithergive norwithhold consent,Jefferson had to beusing the word menin itsprincipal senseof nmales,and itprobably neveroccuiTedto himthat anyonewould thinkotherwise.Looking atmodern dictionariesindicate that the definitionthatlinks manwith malesis the predominant one.Studies ofcollege studentsand schoolchildren indicatethat even when the broaddefinitions of“msn andmerT are taught,they tend to conjureup imagesofmale peopleonly.We wouldnever use the sentenceA girlgrows up to be a man,because weassumethe narrowerdefinition of the wordman.The PronounProblemThe firstgrammars ofmodern Englishwere writtenin the16th and17th centuries.They weremainlyintended to help boys from upperclass familiesprepare for the study of Latin,a languagemostscholars consideredsuperior toEnglish.The maleauthors of these earliestEnglish grammarswrote for(代词)male readersin anage whenfew womenwere literate.The masculine-gender pronounsdid notreflecta beliefthat masculine pronouns couldrefer toboth sexes.The grammars of thisperiod containnoindication thatmasculinepronounswere sex-inclusive whenused ingeneral references.Instead thesepronounsreflected the reality ofmale culturaldominance and the male-centered worldview thatresulted.He started to be used as a generic pronoun bygrammarians who were trying to change along-established traditionof using they as a singularpronoun.In1850an Actof Parliamentgave比准)official sanction6to therecently inventedconcept of the generiche.In thelanguage used in actsofParliament,the newlaw said,nwords importingthe masculine gender shall be deemedand taken toinclude females/1Although similarlanguage incontracts and other legaldocuments subsequentlyhelpedreinforce thisgrammatical edictin allEnglish-speaking countries,it wasoften convenientlyignored.In1879,for example,a moveto admitfemale physicians to theall-male Massachusetts Medical Societywaseffectively blockedon the grounds that the society*s by-laws describingmembership used the pronounhe.Just asman is not truly generic in the1990s,he is not atrue genericpronoun.Studies haveconfirmedthat most people understand he to refer tomen only.Sentences likeA doctor is abusyperson;he must be able to balancea millionobligations atonce1imply that all doctorsare men.As aresult of the fact thathe isread bymany as a masculinepronoun,many people,especially women,havecome tofeel that the genericpronouns excludeswomen.This meansthat more and morepeople find theuse ofsuch apronoun problematic.Solving thePronoun ProblemTheyas aSingular-Most people,when writingand speaking informally,rely onsingular they as amatterof course:*If youlove someone,set themfree”Sting.If youpay attention to your own speech,youll probablycatch yourselfusingthe same constructionyourself.Its enough to drive anyone out oftheir sensesHGeorge BernardShaw.nI shouldntlike topunish anyone,even iitheyd doneme wrongGeorgeEliot.Some people are annoyed by theincoiTect grammarthat this solution necessitates,butthis constructionis usedmoreandmore frequently.He orShe---Despite thecharge ofclumsiness,double-pronoun constructionshave madeacomeback:nTo beblack inthis countryis simplytoo pervasivean experiencefor anywriter toomit fromheror hiswork/wrote SamuelR.Delany.Overuse of this solutioncan beawkward,however.Pluralizing-A writercan oftenrecast materialin theplural.For instance,instead ofAs headvancesin hisprogram,the medicalstudent hasincreasing opportunities for clinical work,try As they advancein their program,medical studentshave increasingopportunitiesforclinicalwork”Eliminating Pronouns—Avoid having to usepronouns at all;instead ofna firstgrader canfeed anddresshimself Jyou couldwrite,na firstgrader caneat findget dressedwithout assistance.1Further Alternatives-he she or s/he,using oneinstead ofhe,or usinga newgenericpronounthon,co,E,try,hash,hit.
1.Man could be used to referto femalehuman beingin thepast.
2.In all men are created equalnin Declarationof Independenceby Thomas Jefferson,the word“menrefer toboth malesand femaleswhether they have voteright or not.
3.In1879,MassachusettsMedicalSociety refused to admitmore thanten femalephysicians because thesocietys by-laws describingmembership used the pronounhe.
4.The firstgrammarsofmodem Englishwere writtenin order to helpboysfrom the upperclass preparefor the studyof Latin.5・Man paralleledthe Latinword homowhich means.
6.Studies show thateven when studentsaretaughtthe broaddefinition of man andmen,they thinkof.
7.Grammarians started to usehe as a genericpronoun because they weretryingto changeatradition ofusingtheyas.
8.When mostpeople read the wordhe”,they wouldunderstand it to raterto.
9.Although somepeople areannoyedbyof singularthey,this constructionis usedmoreand morefrequently to solve the pronoun problem.
10.Another wayof solvingthepronounproblem is to useinstead of the singular.Passage4:Soichiro HondaThefounder of Honda,Soichiro Honda was a mechanical engineerwith apassion formotorcycleand automobileracing.Honda startedhis companyin1946by buildingmotorized bicycleswith small,war-surplus engines.Honda wouldgrow to become the world*s leadingmanufacturer of motorcyclesand laterone of the leadingautomakers.Following itsfounders lead,Honda has always beena leaderintechnology,especially in the area of enginedevelopment.(特立独行的人)Soichiro Hondawas describedas amaverick in a nationof conformists.He madeita pointto wearloud suitsand wildlycolored shirts.An inventorby naturewho oftenjoined thework onthefloors of his factoriesand research laboratories,Honda developedengines thattransformed themotorcycleinto aworldwide means of transportation.Born in1906,Honda grewup in the townof Tenryu,Japan.The eldestson of a blacksmithwhorepaired bicycles,theyoungSoichiro had only anelementary schooleducation when,in histeens,he lefthome to seekhis fortunein Tokyo.An autorepair companyhired himin1922,but for a yearhe wasforcedto serveas ababy-sitter for the auto shops ownerand hiswife.While employedat theautoshop,however,Honda builthis ownracing carusing anold aircraftengine andhandmade partsandparticipated inracing.His racingcareer wasshort lived,however.He sufferedserious injuriesin a1936crash.By1937,Honda hadrecovered fromhis injuries.He establishedhis owncompany,manufacturingpiston rings,but hefound thathe lackeda basicknowledge ofcasting.To obtain it,he enrolledin atechnical high school,applying theoriesas helearned themin the classrooms to his ownfactory.But hedid not botherto takeexaminations at the school.Informed thathe wouldnot begraduated,Hondacommented that a diplomawas Hworthless than a movietheater ticket.A ticketguarantees thatyou cangetinto thetheater.But a diploma doesntguarantee thatyou can make aliving/Hondas burgeoningcompany massproduced metalpropellers duringWW II,replacing woodenones.Allied bombingand anearthquake destroyedmost of his factoryand hesold whatwas lefttoToyota in
1945.In1946,he establishedthe HondaTechnical ResearchInstitute tomotorize bicycleswith small,war-surplus engines.These bikesbecame verypopular in Japan.The institutesoon beganmakingengines.Renamed Honda Motor in1948,the companybegan manufacturingmotorcycles.Businessexecutive TakeoFujisawa washired to manage the company whileHonda focused on engineering.In1951,Honda broughtout theDream TypeE motorcycle,which provedan immediatesuccessthanks toHondas innovativeoverhead valvedesign,The smallerF-type cub1952accounted for70%of Japansmotorcycle productionby theend ofthat year.A publicoffering andsupport fromMitsubishiBank allowed Honda to expand and begin exporting.The versatileCl00Super Cub,released in1958,became aninternational bestseller.In1959,the AmericanHonda Motorwas foundedand soonbegan usingthe slogan,nYou meet thenicest peopleon aHonda,ntooffset thestereotype ofmotorcyclists duringthat period.Though thesmallbikes weredismissed by the dominantAmerican andBritish manufacturersof the time,the inexpensiveimportsbrought newriders intomotorcycling andchanged theindustry foreverin the United States.Ever theracing enthusiast,Honda beganentering his companys motorcyclesin domesticJapaneseraces during the1950s.Tn themid-1950s,Honda declaredthat hiscompany wouldsomeday winworldchampionship events—a declarationthat seemedunrealistic at the time.In June1959,the Honda racing teambrought theirfirst motorbiketo competein theIsle ofManTourist Trophyrace,then the world*s most popular motorcycle race.This was the firstentry by aJapanese team.With ridersNaomi Taniguchi,who finishedsixth,Teisuke Tanaka,who finishedeighth,and KiyoshiKawashima,who wouldlater succeedSoichiro as Honda Motorpresident,as teammanager,Honda won the manufacturersprize.However,they were not pleasedwith theirperformance.Kawashima remembers:uWe wereclobbered.Our horsepowerwas less than halfthat of the winner.nLearning from this experience,Soichiro and his teamworked evenharder to make rapidprogress intheirmotorsports activities.Two yearsafter theirfirst failure,they werethe sensation at theTT bycapturingthe firstfive placesin boththe125ce and250cc classes.The upstartJapanese hadoutclassed alltheirrivals.As aresultof the teamsstellar performance,the Hondaname becamewell knownworldwide,and itsexport volumerose dramatically.Soichiro seemedto haveforeseen thefuture ofJapan,which,twenty yearslater,was to become one of the worlds leadingeconomies.Honda would becomethe most successfulmanufacturer in all ofmotorcycle racing.Honda hassincewon hundredsof nationaland worldchampionships in all forms ofmotorcyclecompetition.While Hondaoversaw aworldwide companyby the early-1970sHondaentered theautomobilemarket in1967,he nevershied away from gettinghis handsgreasy.Sol Sanders,author of a Hondabiography,said Hondaappeared“almost daily*at the research labwhere developmentwork wasbeingdone.Even aspresident of the company,he workedas one of the researchers,1Sanders quoteda Hondaengineeras saying.Whenever weencountered aproblem,he studiedit alongwith us.”In1973,Honda,at67,retired on the25th anniversaryof Hondasfounding.He declaredhisconviction thatHonda shouldremain ayouthful company.Honda has always movedahead of the times,and Iattribute itssuccess to the fact that thefirm possessesdreams and youthfulness/Honda saidat thetime.Unlike mostchief executiveofficers inJapan,who stepdown to become chairmenof theirfirms,Honda retainedonty thetitle ofsupreme adviser”.In retirement,Honda devotedhimself topublicservice andfrequent travelabroad.He received the Orderof theSacred Treasure,first class,the highesthonorbestowed byJapans emperor.He alsoreceivedthe American autoindustry*s highestaward whenhe was admittedto theAutomotive Hall of Famein
1989.Hondawas awarded theAMAs highesthonor,the DudPerkins Award,in
1971.Honda diedon August5,1991from liverfailure at
84.His wife,Sachi,and threechildren survivedhim.
1.Soichiro Hondawas aman whopreferred towear plainclothes.
2.When enrolledin atechnicalhigh school toobtain basicknowledge ofcasting,Soichiro Hondafinallygot thediploma after attending theexaminations.
3.Like mostchief executiveofficers inJapan,Soichiro HondaStepped downto becomechairmen ofHondaafter hisretirement.
4.Even as the president of aworldwide company,Soichiro Hondawould work at the researchlabwiththe employees.
5.Following itsfounders lead,Honda has always beena leaderin technology,especially in the area of.
6.After WW11,Honda mountedon bicyclesand thesemotorized bicyclessold rapidlyinJapan.
7.A publicoffering andsupport from allowedHondatoexpand his businessandbegin toinvade theinternational market.
8.In1959,the AmericanHondaMotorused theslogan/tochangethe negativeimage ofmotorcyclists inAmerica.
9.In1959with theirfirst motorbikeHondaracingteam participatein race,which was themost popularmotorcycleraceat thattime.
10.According toHonda,are,the majorfactors thatled to the successofHondacompany.Passages:A BriefHistory ofClockClocksAt best,historians knowthat5,000-6,000years ago,great civilizationsin the Middle East and NorthAfricastartedtoexamine formsof clock-making instead of workingwith only the monthlyand annualcalendar.Little isknown onexactly how these formsworked or indeed theactual deconstructionof thetime,but it has beensuggested that the intentionwas tomaximize timeavailable to achieve moreas thesizeof the population grew.Perhaps suchfuture periodsof timewere intendedto benefitthe communityby allotting specificlengths of time to tasks.Was this the beginningof theworking weekSunClocksWith thedisappearance of any ancientcivilization,such as the Sumerianculture,knowledge is alsolost.Whilst we can onlyhypothesize on the reasonsof whythe equivalentto themodem wristwatchwasnever completed,we knowthat theancient Egyptianswere nextto layouta system of dividingthe dayintoparts,similar tohours.Obelisks”tall four-sided taperedmonuments werecarefully constructedand evenpurposefullygeographically locatedaround3500BC.A shadowwas eastas theSun movedacross thesky by theobelisk,which itappears was then markedout insections,allowing people to clearlysee the two halvesof the day.Some of the sectionshave alsobeen foundto indicatethe“years longestand shortestdays,which it is thoughtwere developmentsadded laterto allowidentification of other importanttimesubdivisions.Another ancientEgyptian shadowclock*or sundial“has beendiscovered to have beenin usearound1500BC,which allowedthe measuringof the passage ofhours”.The sectionswere dividedintoten parts,With twontwilight hours1indicated,occurring in the morningand theevening.For itto worksuccessfullythen atmidday ornoon,the devicehad to be turned180degrees tomeasure theafternoonhours.Water ClocksWater clocks*were among the earliesttime keepingdevices that didnt use the observation of thecelestialbodies tocalculate thepassage of time.The ancientGreeks,it isbelieved,began usingwaterclocks around325BC.Most of these clockswere used to determinethe hoursof thenight,but may havealso beenused duringdaylight.An inherentproblem with the waterclock was that they werenottotallyaccurate,as the systemofmeasurement wasbased on the flow of watereither into,or outof,a containerwhich had markersaround thesides.Another verysimilar formwas that of abowl thatsank duringaperiod as it wasfilled ofwater from a regulatedflow.It isknown thatwater clockswere common acrossthe MiddleEast,and that these were still beingused in North Africaduring theearly part of thetwentieth-century.Mechanical ClocksIn1656,Christian Huygens1Dutch scientist,made the first Pendulum钟摆clock,with a振幅.mechanism usinga naturalperiod ofoscillation“Galileo Galilei*is credited,in mosthistoricalbooks,for inventingthe pendulumas earlyas1582,but hisdesign wasnot builtbefore hisdeath.Huygens clock,when built,had anerror ofnless thanonly oneminute a day*.This was a massiveleap inthedevelopment ofmaintaining accuracy,as thishad previouslynever beenachieved.Later refinementsto the pendulum clock reducedthis marginof error to lessthan10seconds a day.The mechanicalclock continued to developuntil theyachieved anaccuracy of*a hundredth-of-a-second a day,when thependulumclockbecame theaccepted standardin mostastronomicalobservatories.Quartz ClocksTherunning of a nQuartzclock1is basedon thepiezoelectric propertyof thequartz crystal.When anelectricfield is applied to a quartzcrystal,it actuallychanges theshape of the crystalitself,If youthensqueeze itor bendit,an electricfield isgenerated.When placedin anappropriate electroniccircuit,thisinteraction between the mechanicalstress and the electricalfield causesthe crystalto vibrate,generatinga constantelectric signalwhich canthen be used for example on an electronicclock display.The firstwrist-watches that appeared in mass production used LED,Light EmittingDiode displays.By the1970s thesewere to be replacedbya“LCD”,“Liquid CrystalDisplay.Quartz clockscontinue to dominate themarket because of theaccuracy andreliability of theperformance,also beinginexpensive to produce onmass scale.The timekeeping performanceof thequartzclock has now beensurpassed by the HAtomicclock”.Atomic ClocksScientistsdiscovered sometime agothat atomsand moleculeshave resonancesand thateachchemical elementand compoundabsorbs andemits Electromagneticradiation1within itsowncharacteristic frequencies”,This we are toldis highlyaccurate evenover Time and Space
1.The development of radarand thesubsequent experimentationwith highfrequency radiocommunicationsduring the1930sand1940s createda vastamount ofknowledge regardingnelectromagneticwaves1,also knownas“microwaves,which interactwith theatoms.The developmentof atomic clocksfocused firstlyon microwaveresonances in the chemicalAmmonia and its molecules.In
1957.NIST,the NationalInstitute ofStandards andTechnology”,completed aseries oftests usinga“Cesium AtomicBeam device,followed bya secondprogram ofexperiments byNIST in orderto havesomething forcomparison whenworking at the atomiclevel.By1960,as theoutcome of the programs,nCesium TimeStandards**were incorporatedas theofficial timekeeping systemat NIST.The Naturalfrequencyn recognizedcurrently is the measurementof time.used byall scientists,defines theperiod of one second1as exactly*9,192,631,770Oscillations1orn9,192,631,770Cycles oftheCesium AtomsResonant FrequencyFromthe Macrocosm,or nPlanetaryAlignment,to theMicrocosm1,or nAtomicFrequency1,the cesiumnow maintainsaccuracy with a degreeof errortoabout one-millionth of a secondper year.Much ofmodern lifehas cometo dependon suchprecise measurementsof time.The dayis long(钟)past when we couldget bywith atimepiece accurate to the nearest quarterhour.Transportation,financial markets,communication,manufacturing,electric powerand many other technologieshavebecome dependenton super-accurate clocks.Scientific researchand thedemands ofmodern technologycontinuere drive our searchfbr ever more accuracy,The nextgeneration ofCesium TimeStandards ispresentlyunder developmentat NIST*s BoulderLaboratory1and otherlaboratories around the world.Something toRememberThe onlything thatshould beremembered duringall thistechnological developmentis thatweshould neverlose the ability totell the time approximately by naturalmeans and the powers of deduction(拐杖)without requiringcrutches tolean on.Our conceptof TIMEand usingit together with TECHNOLOGYstill hasroom forradicalreassessment interms ofmans evolutionarythinking regardingour viewof thepast,our onwardjourneyinto thefuture and our conceptof time in relationshipto universe.
1.It issuggested that5,000-6,000years agopeople in theMiddleEastandNorth Africastartedto allotspecific lengthsoftime totasks.
2.Ancient Egyptianshadow clocknor sundial”discovered around1500BC,could measurepassage ofhoursautomatically and continuously.
3.Water clocksHwas the first devicethatdidntuse theobservationof the celestialbodies tocalculatethe passageoftime.
4.Galileo Galileibuilt thefirst Hpendulumclock”as earlyas
1656.
5.Waterclockswere mostlyusedtodetermine.
6.Huygens*clock,a mechanicalone,had anerror oflessthanonly oneminute a day,which was amassive leapin thedevelopment of.
7.Since Quartzclocks areboth inexpensiveto produceinmassscale andin performance,they continuetodominate themarket.
8.Scientific researchand thecontinue to driveoursearch forevermoreaccuracy intime.
9.Of all the clocksintroduced in thepassage,the onewith the most accuracyis.
10.No matterhow advancedthe technologyof measuringtime willbe we should neverlose theability totellthe timeapproximatelyby.Passage6:Its NeverToo Lateto StartExerciseResearchers FindGreat RewardsWhen MildExercise ProgramsAre StartedLate InLife.May13,2003—You know the benefits of exercise programs.And if youve beeninactive,you mayhave also feltthem-with soremuscles andbruised motivation to continue.But a new study in womenshows that the old adageis true—its nevertoo lateto startwhen itcomes toexercise programs.So now(乐队花车)?what canyou doto jumpon the exercise bandwagonWebMD gotexercise tipsfrom theexperts.There certainlyseems to be somethinghere tosuggest thatwomen canstart exercisinglater inlifeand stillreap therewards/lead researcherand CDCepidemiologist Edward W.Gregg,PhD,tellsWebMD.His findingsare publishedin theMay16issue ofThe Journal of the American MedicalAssociation.Researchers tracked9,500women for12years,starting when theywere at leastage
66.In thattime,(减少)they found that thosewho went from doinglittle ornothing to walking justa mileadayslashedtheir riskOf deathfrom allcauses and from cancerby nearlyhalf.Their risk of heartdisease alsofell bymore than athird.In fact,they enjoyednearly as much protection as women whowerephysically activebefore the studybegan andremained so.During thestudy,he and his colleaguessurveyed thewomen on their exerciselevels atthe startofthe trial and againup tosix yearslater.Years later,the researcherstracked theirrates of death anddisease.(少活动The newinformation wefound is that olderwomen whowentfrombeing sedentary的)or walkingabout twomiles aweek towalking eightmiles aweek between the twovisits hadsignificantlife improvements/says anotherstudy researcher,Jane A.Cauley,DrPH,of the University ofPittsburgh.fundamental ways.Growth infamily formationhas beenthe drivingforce of all domesticmarkets in thedeveloped world,but the rate offamily formationis certainto fallsteadily unlessbolstered bylarge-scaleimmigration of younger people.The homogeneousmass marketthat emergedin allrich countriesafterthe Second World Warhas beenyouth-determined from the start.It willnow becomemiddle-age-determined,or perhapsmore likelyit willsplit intotwo:a middle-age-determined massmarketand amuch smalleryouth-determined one.And because the supplyofyoungpeople willshrink,creating newemployment patternsto attractand holdthe growingnumber ofolderpeopleespeciallyolder educated peoplewill become increasinglyimportant.Knowledge is allThe nextsociety willbeaknowledge society.Knowledge willbe itskey resource,and knowledgeworkerswillbethe dominantgroup in its workforce.Its three main characteristics willbe:•Borderlessness,because knowledgetravels evenmore effortlesslythan money.•Upward mobility,available to everyone througheasily acquiredformal education.•The potentialfor failureas well as success.Anyone canacquire themeansofproductionn,i.e,theknowledge requiredfor the job,but noteveryone canwin.Together,those threecharacteristicswillmake the knowledge societya highlycompetitive one,fororganizations andindividuals alike.Information technology,although only one of manynewfeatures ofthe nextsociety,is alreadyhaving onehugely importanteffect:it is allowing knowledgeto spreadnear-instantly,and making it accessibleto everyone.Given theease andspeed atwhich informationtravels,every institutionin theknowledge society-not onlybusinesses,but alsoschools,universities,hospitals andincreasingly governmentagencies too—has to be globallycompetitive,even thoughmostorganizations willcontinue to be localin theiractivities andin theirmarkets.This isbecause theInternetwill keepcustomers everywhereinformed onwhat is available anywherein the world,and atwhat price.This newknowledge economywill relyheavily onknowledge workers.At present,this termiswidely usedto describepeople withconsiderable theoretical knowledge and learning:doctors,lawyers,teachers,accountants,chemical engineers.But the most strikinggrowth willbe inknowledgetechnologists〜computer technicians,software designers,analysts inclinical labs,Were talkingabout womenwith anaverage ageof77atthe second visit/she tellsWebMD.“Andwere talkingabout theirengaging invery mildexercise-and notrunning marathons.,(运动)But if the onlyworkout youvebeen gettinglately involvesthe TVremote,heres how toavoid thosewalks aroundthe blockfrom makingyour bodyfeel as if it just tackledBoston MarathonsinfamousnHeartbreak Hill.Get acheckup beforea workout.A visitto your doctoriswise for anyone beginningan exercise program,but itscrucial for theelderly orothers whohave beeninactive because of healthproblems.In additionto theobvious-checking(养生法)your heartand lungs-your doctorcan helpdetermine if your regimenneeds toconsider othermedicalconditions,and thedrugs youtake for them.“People cansometimes controlconditions such as diabetesand highblood pressurewith weight lossand exerciseso theydont need to continuetheir medications,n saysWilliam A.Banks,MD,professor ofgeriatricsat SaintLouis UniversitySchool ofMedicine.Its importantto letyourdoctorknow aboutyournew exerciseprogram incase yourmedication dosesneed to be changed.A doctorcan alsohelp facilitatethe besttype ofexercise if you have a disabilityor impairment.Forinstance,many ofmy patientshave badknees,so Itell themthat ifthey startrunning oreven walking,theyre going tohave problemsthat willlikely impacttheir ability to continue/he tellsWebMD.nSo Itryto steerthem to another activity,such asswimmings which is especiallygood for people withjoint(月巴胖)problems or obesityStart slow.Once youget thegreen light,the keyto avoidingfatigue and muscle pain is topull outof thegatevery slowly.nYou hearso muchabout theimportance of getting30minutes ofexercise aday,but thoserecommendationsshould not be viewedas goalsifyouvebeen sedentary—even ifyoure healthy/*Banks says.Initially,you shouldactually shootbelow yourcomfort level.Too often,people-especially thosewho areolder overdoit in the beginningand hurtthemselves tothepoint where they needtwo weeksto recover.Its bettertowalk for a few minutesa daysevery day,than do10minutes your first dayand thennot be able towalkfor the restof theweek.1Go more often.Of course,those few minutes ofyour exerciseprogram can be doneseveral timesaday.First,try todosome activityfor afewminutesseveral timesaday.Then slowlyincrease thetime spentin eachsession.But dontworry aboutgoing fasteruntil youveexercised regularlyfor at least onemonth.A key(需要氧气的)to intensity=Ideally,you want to beaerobic enoughso you can utterafewwords orsyllablesin eachsentence,but notso littlethat yourespeakingincomplete sentencesor too much so youcan barelytalk,advises Banks.Dont gosolo.Although there isnoevidence that people arefitter when they exercisewith others,they are morelikely tostick to an exerciseprogram,or anythingelse,with thebuddy system.Were alwaysbetter inthe company ofothers/says Banks.Another benefitto group activities:Organized exerciseprograms,like thoseavailable forlow ornocost atthe YMCAor localhospitals,often includeprofessional guidance—especially useful[or thosewithconditions such as obesity,diabetes,and arthritis.nThere areexercise therapistsor physiologistswhocan expertlyguide you to theproper way to increaseyour enduranceand intensitywithout riskinginjuryor fatigue/says Gregg.Do what you enjoy.While Greggsstudy and others havefocusedonwalking because its amongthe easiestand mostpopularformsofexercise,you should pick anactivity youlike,soyoucontinue it.]t could be gardening,swimming,tennis,orthe old favorite,walking.nIf youabsolutely hateexercise,like me,I recommend(踏车)exercise machines,*says Banks,Since Ihate toexercise,I runon atreadmill while watching TV.Fm especiallyfond of working outwhilewatchingthe cartoonPinky and the Brain.H
1.It issuggested thatwomen shouldnot doexercises ifthey areover sixty.
2.According toEdwardW.Gregg,its nevertoo latefor womento startexercise.
3.All the9,500women whoparticipated in theresearchwould havelittle exercisesor wouldonly walkjusta mileadaybeforetheresearch.
4.Another benefitof groupactivities is that professionalguidance in the groupcan helpcure obesity,diabetes,and arthritis.
5.Since exercisesmay controlconditions such as diabetesandhighblood pressure,some oldpeopledont need to ifthey begin an exerciseprogram.
6.As issuggested byWilliam A.Banks,is especiallygood forpeople withjoint problemsorobesity.
7.For thosewho juststart toexercise,the bestway to avoid fatigueandmusclepainis to.
8.For the exerciser,a simplemethod inchecking theintensity of theexerciseis to see thatwhether onecanwhile having theexercise.
9.In organizedexerciseprograms,exercise therapistsor physiologistscan expertlyguide anexerciser totheproper way to increasehis or her without risking injuryor fatigue.
10.It isrecommended that the exercisershouldpick up anactivity he/she likesso thathe/she mayPassage:Preparing forWeight LossSurgeryFor thosewho considerweight loss surgery,they are attheend of their ropes.Traditional methodsofdiet andexercise havehad no effect,and this procedure is a lastresort.But byno meansis theleapfrom thinkingabout weight loss surgeryto theoperating tablea shortone.People need to beaware,in greatdetail,of the risk andbenefitsof weight loss surgery sotheyunderstand what it is all about/*says HarveyJ.Sugerman,presidentof the American Society forBariatricSurgery.nThe procedureis notwithoutrisk,and there isa great dealof anxietythat comeswithit,so ittakes considerablepreparation.0From checkingon insurancecoverage topsychological examsto supportgroups,preparing for thislife-changing proceduretakes time,physical andmental readiness,and most of all,commitment.First StepsFromthetimea personfirst thinksabout havingweight loss surgery,to thetime theymake thecommitmenttohaveit doneis typicallyabout twoyears,*says JamesKolenich,a bariatricsurgeon attheUniversity ofPennsylvania MedicalCenter,Horizon.nMost people dont rushinto this,they talktofamily andfriends,they talkto thehospital,they gohome and they thinkabout itmore;its usuallya verythoughtfulapproach.,More than60million obesepeople areliving in the U.S.,according to the AmericanObesityAssociation AOA,and about9million areseverely obese.Weight loss surgery,also calledbariatricsurgery,can besuccessful whendiet andexercise havefailed,and a persons healthis on the line.Overweight is thesecondleading causeof preventabledeath,after smoking,in the U.S.,according to theAOA.The firstthing a person shoulddo iscontact his insurance company to learnif heis coveredfor thesurgery,and heshould contacthis primary care doctorto findout ifthere isdocumentation ofhis strugglewith obesity,*says Kolenich.Many insurance companies wantto knowthat aprimarycaredoctor hastriedto helpthe patientlose weightwith psychologicalcounseling,diet,and anexercise planfor fiveyears,and for many patients,this isa bigroad block.1While there are otheroptions,such aspersonally financingthe procedure,they arecostly:TheNational Instituteof Diabetesand Digestiveand KidneyDiseases website statesthat thisprocedure canrunfrom$20,000to$35,
000.With such a heftyprice tagon weight loss surgery,it paysto ensure that yourdoctor documentsyourbattle withobesity earlyon,to openup optionsdown theroad.When youvecrossed allyour is anddotted allyour isin the insurance category,it istime tofind ahospital orcenter,and asurgeon,which arefirst-rate.Finding aBatiatric SurgeonWhen youre lookingfor asurgeon,ask ifhe or she isboard-certified by theAmericanBoard ofSurgery,0says Kotenich.nIs hea memberof theAmericanSocietyof BariatrieSurgeons Whatis themortalityrate of the surgeon,the morbidityrate,the successrateClearly,the surgeonyou findshould bewell experiencedin the areaofweight loss surgery.Make surethe surgeonyou chooseis anexperienced and qualified bariatriesurgeon/1says DanielHerren,chief ofbariatric surgery at Mt.Sinai Hospitalin NewYork.Its clearthat themore experiencedthe surgeon,the lowertherisk of mortality.Ideally,you wouldprefer tofind asurgeon whohasperformed at least100of theseprocedures/1What you are lookingfor doesntstop withnumbers andstatistics—you willalso needa supportsystem,Look for a centeror hospitalthat offerseducational seminarsto thosewho arejustbeginningtheprocess soyou canlearn moreabout theactual procedure,the benefits,and therisks.Also lookforsupport groups,that can be utilizedpre-and post-operatively.Preparing forWeight LossSurgeryThe singlemost importantfactor is that theyhave torealize the surgery is not a cure forobesity/1says Herren.Its avery powerfultool usedin thefight againstobesity.It needs to beconsidered aspart ofaprocess,and a lifelong commitmentto followup withphysicians,a regularexerciseprogram,andhealthy eating.If aperson doesntunderstand thatthis isalifelongcommitment,that itsnet aquick fix,then heorsheisnota goodcandidate.From aphysical standpoint,the preparationfor weight losssurgeryinvolves meetingwith doctors-alot of them.A person also needsto meetwith anutritionist,to beginto betterunderstand theelements of healthyeating,and howeating habitsneed tochange beforeand after the surgery.nBy gettinginto apropernutritional mindsetbefore surgery,such aslearning toeat smallerportions,eating Slowly,paying closerattentionto thenutritional make-up ofmeals,apersonis betteradapted for the majorchanges in theirlifestyle afterthe surgery/*says Herron.Understanding theRisksUnderstanding thepossible outcomesofweightlosssurgery,including therisks,is animportantpart ofpreparing for the procedure.Education isa tremendouslyimportant partof thepreoperativeprocess/says Herron.There isno questionthat thereare majorrisks associatedwith the operation.However,those riskscan beminimized byhaving athorough preoperativeworkup sothere arentsurprisesduring the procedure,and bymaking surethesurgeonis experiencedandqualified.1Nonetheless,dealing with the emotionaltoll ofthisprocedurecan be difficult,especially whenconsideringthe possibilityofdeath.nThere have been goodstudies looking attherisk ofdying afterweightlosssurgery,showing that although there isariskofdeath withsurgery,the overallsurvival rate isimproved withsurgery compared to nothaving thesurgeryatall,and livingwithobesity/says Herron.It helpsthat mostcenters andhospitals andinsurancecompanies,require psychologicalevaluationsprior to the allowingthe procedure—which benefitsboth patientand doctor.nYou have to fillyour mindwith asmuchoptimism andpositive thinkingas possible/says JoeDe Simone,PhD,a psychiatristinprivate practice inN.Y.,who workswith patientspreparing forweightlosssurgery.Basically,thepreparation is to becomemore conscious of whatyou arethinking and feeling,and startpreparingyourself tothink of food andyour lifein adifferent way.This isa courageousstep forpeopleto take,andits notjust aboutweight changing-ifs aboutlife changing.11Pest-Op ExpectationsWhileweightlosssurgery doeshave a major impacton apersons life,it requires,like anysurgicalprocedure,some recoverytime.nThe recoveryperiod isquite variable/says Herron.nI havesome patientswho take aweek offand areback fulltime,andotherswhotake three tofour weeksto recover.While itscertainlyphysically possible to beback to90%of capacityafteraweek,mostpeopletake longerto adjustto the new lifestyle.nNew techniqueshave alsohelped tolessen recoverytime.Today,theprocedurecan beperformedminimally invasivelyvia smallincisions.Tn afew centersaroundthecountry it can even be doneon anoutpatientbasis.Patients alsoneed to remember weightlosssurgery isnotacure.nIfs nota magicbullet,but isanamazingly powerfulweight-loss tool/says Herron.nA personwill findthey willlose abouta poundperday for thefirstmonth or so.Then theylllose between50%-75%of theirexcess bodyweight typicallyduringthefirst12months aftersurgery/1What followsis dedicationto ahealthy dietand exerciseregimen,continual follow-up withdoctors tomonitor progress,and commitmentto a newlife.
1.Weight losssurgeryis one of the traditionalwaysoflosing weight.
2.Many peoplehave weightlosssurgerypossibly becauseoverweight maygive riseto death.
3.Afterhaving theweightlosssurgery,apersonwillnotsuffer fromobesity anymore.
4.A personalso mightbe requiredto quitsmoking toimprove theoutcome of theoperation.
5.It isadvisable thata patient have his/her operationcovered by theinsurancecompany becauseweightloss surgeryis usually.
6.A personwho thinksabout havingweightlosssurgery shouldfind bariatricsurgeon.
7.Eating smallerportions,eating slowly,paying attentionto thenutritional ofmeals areexamples ofhealthyeating habits.
8.During thepreparing procedure,one importantpart istohelpthe candidatesunderstand thepossibleoutcomes and—.
9.According toHerron,after havingthesurgery,the recoverytime fromperson toperson.
10.With thedevelopment of,the recoveryperiod may become shorterand shorter.Passages BirdBrainsCracking WalnutsThescene:a trafficlight crossingonauniversity campusinJapan.Carrion crowsand humanslineup patiently,waiting for the trafficto halt.When thelights change,the birdshop in front of the carsandplace walnuts,which theypicked from the adjoiningtrees,on theroad.After thelights turngreen again,the birdsfly awayand vehiclesdrive over the nuts,cracking them open.Finally,when itstime tocrossagain,the crowsjoin thepedestrians and pick up their meal.Biologists already knew thecorvine family—it includescrows,ravens,rooks,magpies andjackdaws—to beamongthesmartest of all birds.But thisremarkable pieceof behaviorwould seemto bea particularly acutedemonstration ofbird intelligence.Researchers believethey probablynoticed carsdrivingover nutsfallen froma walnuttree overhanginga road.The crowsalreadyknewabout droppingclamsfromaheight on the seashoreto breakthemopen,but foundthis did not workfor walnutsbecauseof theirsoft greenouter shell.Other birdsdo this,although notwith quitethe sameprecision.In theDardia Mountainsof Greece,eagles can be seencarrying tortoisesup to a greatheight anddropping themontorocks below.Do BirdsHave IntelligenceScientistshave arguedfor decadesover whetherwild creatures,including birds,show genuineintelligence.Some stillconsider the human mindto beunique,with animalscapable ofonlythesimplestmental processes.But a new generation of scientistsbelieves thatcreatures,including birds,can solveproblemsby insightand evenlearn byexample,ashumanchildren do.Birds caneven talkin ameaningfulway.Good MemorySome birds showquite astonishingpowersofrecall.A typeof North American crowmay have theanimal worldskeenest memory.It collectsup to30,000pine seedsover threeweeks inNovember,andthen carefullyburies themfor safekeeping acrossover anareaof200square miles.Over the next eightmonths,it succeedsin retrievingover90percent of them,evenwhen they arecovered infeet ofsnow.Making andUsing ToolsOnthe Pacific island of New Caledonia,the crowsdemonstrate atool-making,and toolusingcapability comparable to Paleolithicmans.Dr GavinHunt,a NewZealand biologist,spent threeyearsobserving the birds.He foundthat theyused twodifferent formsof hookedtool topull grubsfrom deepwithintree trunks.Other birdsand someprimates have been seento useobjects toforage.But what isunusual hereis that the crowsalso make their owntools.Using theirbeaks asscissors andsnippers,theyfashion hooksfrom twigs,and makebarbed,serrated rakesor combsfrom stiffleathery leaves.And theydon*t throwthe toolsaway afterone use-they carrythem from one foragingplace to another.Scientists are still debatingwhat thisbehavior means.Mans useof toolsis considereda primeindicationofhisintelligence,is thisa skillacquired by chance Didthe crowsacquire toolmaking skillsbytrialanderror rather than planningOr,inits ability to adapt andexploit anenormous range ofresources andhabitats,is thecrow closer to humansthan anyother creatureDr Hunt saidthis ofhis research:There aremany intriguingquestions thatremain to be answeredaboutcrows*tool behavior.Most importantwould bewhether ornot theymostly learnor geneticallyinherittheknow-how tomake anduse tools.Without knowingthat it is difficultto sayanything abouttheir intelligence,although onecould guessthat thesecrows have the capability to beas cleveras crowsingeneral.nThe woodpecker finch isanother consummatetoolmaker;It willsnap offa twig,trim itto sizeanduse itto pryinsects outof bark.In captivity,a cactusfinch learnthowtodo thisby watchingthewoodpecker finchfrom itscage.The teacherhelped thepupil bypassing areadymade spineacross for thecactus finchto use.Communication AbilityAnothersign of intelligence,thought tobe absentin mostnon-human animals,is theability toengagein complex,meaningful communication.The workof ProfessorIrene Pepperbergof theUniversity of Arizona,Tucson,hasnowshown thegeneral perceptionof parrotsas mindlessmimics tobe incorrect.The captiveAfrican greyparrot Alexisone of a number ofparrots nowbelieved tohave theintelligenceand emotionalmake-up of a3to4year oldchild.Under thetutelage ofProfessor Pepperherg,he acquireda vocabularyof over100words.He couldsay thewords forcolors andshapes and,apparently,use themmeaningfully.He has learned thelabels for more than35different objects;heknows whento useno,and phrasessuch ascome here,”1want XJand“Wanna goY.nA birdsabilitytounderstand,or speak,another bird*s languagecan be very valuable.New Zealandsaddlebacksoccupy the same teiTitoryfor years.They havedistinct songdialects”passed onthroughthe generations.New territoryvacancies arehard tofind,so young males arealways on the look-out fornewwidows intowhose territorythey canmove.While theywander aroundthe forest,they learnthedifferent dialectsongs,just aswe mightlearn alanguage ordevelop aregional dialect.As soon as aterritory-owning maledies,anewyoungmalemay moveinto take overwithin10minutes.He willimmediatelystart singingthe dialectof the territory heisin.Possessing AbstractConceptsIntelligence-if thisis whatscientists agreethese birdspossess-isnotlimited to thebirdswe alwaysthought of asbright.In recentexperiments atCardiff Universityin Britain,a pigeonidentified subtledifferencesbetween abstractdesigns thateven artstudents didnot notice.Tt couldeven tellthataPicassowas not the sameasaMonet.The experimentseems toshow thatpigeons canhold concepts,or ideas,intheir heads.The visualconcept for the pigeonis Picassospainting style.Social NecessityMakes BirdsSmart.Scientists believeit isnot physicalneed that drives creaturesto becomesmarter,but socialnecessity.The complexitiesof livingtogether requirea higherlevel ofintelligence.Corvids andparrots,along withdolphins,chimps,and humansare allhighly social-and smart-animals.Some ravenscertainly applytheir intelligencefor the good of the flock.In NorthAmerica,they(动物尸体).contact otherravens totell themthe location of a carcass Ravensare specializedfeeders onthe carcasses oflarge mammalssuchasmoose duringthe harshwinter monthsof NorthAmerica.Thebirds roosttogether at night ona tree,arriving noisilyfromalldirections shortlybefore sunset.The next(同步地)morning,all thebirds leavethe roostas highlysynchronized groupsat dawn,giving afewnoisy caws,followed byhonking.They mayall beflying offin thedirection takenbyabird,which haddiscovereda carcassthe previousday.This birdleads the others to his food store,apparently sharinghisfinding withthe restof the flock.Ravens share information about their findingsoffoodcarcasses becausedead animalsare patchily(散落士也)distributed andhard tofind.Many eyeshave abetter chanceof finding a carcass,and once共享的.one has been located,the informationis pooledAlthough the carcass nowhas tobe shared食腐动物between moreindividuals,the heavysnowfall andriskofmammal scavengerstaking thefoodmean thata singlebird or a smallgroup could not eatit allalone anyway.Intelligence InheritanceThelevel ofintelligence amongbirds mayvary.But noliving birdis trulystupid.Each generationofbirds thatleaves theprotection ofits parentsto becomeindependent has the inborngeneticinformation that will helpittosurvive in the outside world and the skillsthat ithaslearnedfrom itsparents.They wouldnever havemet thechallenge ofevolution withoutsome degreeof nativecunning.Its justthat somehave muchmore thanothers.
1.The exampleof theJapanese carrioncrows atthe beginningof thepassage isa demonstrationof the.A kindnessof peopleB harmoniousliving conditionsCecological stabilityD birdintelligence
2.believes thatbirds as wellassome othernon-human animalsshow intelligence.A BiologistsBA newgenerationofscientistsC Researchersof theUniversityofArizonaD OnlyDrHuntandhiscolleagues
3.A typeof NorthAmerican crowcan mostof thepine seedsit buriedeven they are indeepsnow.A eatup Bretrieve Ccrack Dlose
4.The writercompares theability of the crowson thePacificisland ofNewCaledonia inmaking andusingtools withthatof.A Paleolithicman BNorthAmericancrowC thewoodpeckerfinchD carrioncrows
5.People generallyregard parrotsspeaking humanlanguage as_______.A meaningfulcommunication Bconveyance offeelingsC mindlessmimics Dridiculous noises
6.A NewZealand saddlebacklearns thelanguage of another saddlebackin orderto.A share information aboutfood with it manufacturingtechnologists,paralegals.These peopleareas muchmanual workersas they are knowledgeworkers;in fact,they usuallyspend farmore timeworkingwith theirhands thanwith their brains.But theirmanual workis basedonasubstantial amountof theoreticalknowledgewhich can be acquiredonly throughformal education,not through anapprenticeship.They are not,asarule,much betterpaid thantraditional skilledworkers,but theyseethemselves as“professionals.Just asunskilled manualworkers inmanufacturing werethe dominantsocialand politicalforce in the20th century,knowledge technologistsare likely to becomethe dominantsocial—and perhapsalso political—force overthe nextdecades.The newprotectionismStructurally,too,thenextsociety isalready divergingfrom thesociety almostall ofus stilllive in.The20th centurysaw therapid declineof thesector thathad dominatedsociety for10,000years:agriculture.In volumeterms,farm productionnow isatleastfour orfive timeswhat it was beforetheFirst World War.But in1913farm productsaccounted for70%of worldtrade,whereas nowtheir shareisat most17%.In theearly years of the20th century,agriculture in most developedcountries was thelargest singlecontributor toGDP;now inrichcountriesits contributionhas dwindledto thepoint ofbecomingmarginal.And thefarm populationis downto atiny proportionof the total.Manufacturing hastraveled a long waydown the same road.Since the SecondWorldWar,manufacturing output in thedeveloped worldhas probablytripled involume,but inflationadjustedmanufacturing priceshave fallensteadily,whereas the cost ofprime knowledgeproducts-health careandeducation-has tripled,again adjustedfor inflation.The relativepurchasing powerof manufacturedgoodsagainst knowledgeproducts is now onlyone-fifth orone-sixth ofwhatit was50years ago.Manufacturing employmentin Americahas fallen from35%of theworkforce in the1950stoless thanhalfthat now,without causingmuch socialdisruption.But itmay betoomuchto hopefor anequally easytransitionin countriessuchasJapan orGermany,where blue-collar manufacturingworkers stillmake up25—30%of thelaborforce.The declineof farmingasaproducer ofwealth andof livelihoodshas allowedfarm protectionismtospread toa degreethat would have beenunthinkable beforetheSecondWorldWar.In thesame way,thedecline ofmanufacturing willtrigger anexplosion ofmanufacturingB beatit in the competition for aspouseC usethe dialectto controltheterritoryitjustmoves intoD showthat ithastheabilityto acquiredifferent dialects
7.It is thatdrivesbirds tobecome intelligent.A societynecessity Bphysical needCgenetic informationD psychologicalrequest
8.Somebirds,suchas,may holdideas in their heads.
9.Some ravensin NorthAmerica applytheirintelligencefor thegood of theflockby theotherstohisfoodstore.
10.Birds geneticallyinherit skillsand abilitiesto meet the.Passage9Television:The CyclopsThat EatsBooksWhat isdestroying Americatoday isnot theliberal breedof politicians,ortheInternationalMonetary Fundbankers,misguided educationalelite,ortheWorld Councilof Churches.These arelargelysymptoms of a greaterdisorder.But ifthere is any singleinstitution toblame,it istelevision.Television,in fact,has greaterpower overthe livesof mostAmericans thanany educationalsystem着or governmentor church.Children particularlyare easilyinfluenced.They arefascinated,hypnotized迷的and tranquilizedby TV.It isoften thecenter of their world.Even whenthe setis turnedoff,theycontinue totell storiesabout whattheyve seenon it.No wonder,then,that whenthey growup they arenot preparedforthe frontline oflife;they simplyhave nomental defensesto confrontthe realityof theworld.The TruthAbout TVOne of themost disturbing truths about TV isthat iteats books.Once outof school,nearly60%ofall adultAmericans havenever reada singlebook,and mostof therest read onlyonebook a year.AlvinKernan,author ofThe Deathof Literature,says thatreading booksis ceasingtobethe primary way ofknowingsomething in our society.11He alsopoints outthat bachelorsdegrees inEnglish literaturehavedeclined by33%in the last twentyyears.American libraries,he adds,areincrisis,with fewpatrons tosupportthem.Thousands ofteachers atthe elementary,secondary and college levelscan testifythat theirstudents(肤浅)writing exhibitsa tendencytowards superficialitythat wasntseen,say,ten orfifteen yearsago.It showsup not only in the students*lack of analytical skillsbut in their poorcommand ofgrammar andrhetoric.The mechanicsof the English languagehavebeentortured to pieces byTV.Visual,movingimages can*tbeheld in the netof carefullanguage.They wantto breakout.They reallyhave nothingtodo withlanguage.So language,grammar andrhetoric have become fractured.Recent surveysby dozensof organizationsalso suggestthat upto40%of theAmerican publicisfunctionally illiterate.The problem isn!tjustinourschools orinthe way reading is taught.TV teaches(费people notto rean.It makesthem incapableof engagingin anart that isnowperceived asstrenuous力的)and active.Passive asit la,television hasinvaded ourculture socompletely thatyou seeits effectsin everyquarter,even inthe literary world.It showsup msupermarket paperbacks,from StephenKing to(彳氐俗、说).pulp.fiction dThese arereally formsof verbalTV-literature that issosuperficial thatthosewho readit canrevel,inthesame sensationsthey experiencewhenthey are watchingTV.Even moreimportantly,the growinginfluence oftelevision-has changedpeoples habitsand valuesand affected theirassumptions aboutthe world.The sort of reflective,critical andvalueladen thinkingencouragedby cookshasbeenrendered outof date.The Cyclops(独眼巨人)In thiscontext,we woulddo wellto recallthe Cyclops--the raceofone-eyed giantsinGreek myth.The followingis Hamiltonsdescription of the encounterbetweentheadventurer OdysseusandPolyphemus,a Cyclops.As Odysseuswas on his wayhome,he andhis crewfound Polyphemus*cave.They stayedinit as ashelterand waitedfortheowner tocome back.At lasthe came,hideous andhuge,tall asagreatmountaincrag.Driving hisflock beforehim heentered andclosed theeave*s mouthwith aponderous slabof stone.Then lookingaround hecaught sight of thestrangers.He roaredout andstretched out his mightyarmsand ineach greathand seizedone of the menand dashedhis brainsout on the ground.Slowly hefeastedoff themto thelast shred,and then,satisfied,stretched himselfout acrossthe cavernand slept.He wassafefrom attack.None buthe couldroll backthe hugestone beforethe door,and ifthe horrifiedmen hadbeenabletosummon courageand strengthenough tokill himthey wouldhavebeenimprisoned thereforever.What Ifind particularlyappropriate aboutthis mythasitapplies todayisthatfirst,the Cyclopsimprisonsthese menin darkness,and that,second,he beatstheirbrainsout beforehe devoursthem.Itdoesnt takemuch imaginationto applythis to the effects of TVonus andour children.TVs Effecton LearningQuiteliterally,TV affectsthe waypeople think.Tn FourArguments forthe EliminationofTelevision
(1378),Jerry Manderquotes from the EmeryReport thatwhenwewatch televisionnourusual processes of thinkingand discernment(识另能力)are semi-functional atbest.1The studyalsoargues thatwhile televisionappears tohave thepotential to provide usefulinformation toviewers,thetechnology oftelevision and the inherentnature of the viewingexperience actuallyinhibit learningas weusuallythink ofit.When wewatch TVwe thinkwe arelookingata picture,or an image ofsomething,but whatweare(屏闪)actually seeingis thousandsof dotsof lightblinking onand offin astrobe effectthat iscalculatedto happenrapidly enoughto keepus fromrecognizing thephenomenon.More thana decadeago,Manderand otherspointed toinstances ofnTV epilepsy(癫痫症)J in which thosewatching thisstrobe effectoverextendedtheir capacities,and theNew EnglandJournalofMedicine recentlyhonored thisafflictionwith amedical classification:video gameepilepsy.Shadows on the ScreenTelevisionalso teachesthat peoplearent quitereal;they areimages orlittle beingswho movein amediumno thickerthanasliver ofglass.Unfortunately,the tendencyisto start thinkingof themin thewaychildren thinkwhentheysee too many cartoons,thatpeopleare merelyobjects thatcan bedestroyed.Or thatcan fall over acliff andbe smashedtopiecesandpickthemselves upagain.This violenceofcartoons hasno basisin reality.Actual peoplearen*t imagesbut substantial,physical,corporeal beingswith souls.And,of course,the violenceon televisionleads toviolence.TV EatingOut OurSubstanceTV eatsbooks.It eatsacademic skills.It eatspositive charactertraits.It eveneats familyrelationships.How manyfamilies doyou knowthat spendthe dinnerhour infront of the TV,seldom communicatingwith oneanother Howmany have a televisionon whiletheyhavebreakfast orpreparefor workor schoolAndwhat aboutschool Pveheard collegeprofessors sayof theirstudents,nWell,you have toentertain them.”One Iknow recommendsusing TVand filmclips insteadof lecturing,nthrowing in acommercial everyten minutesor soto keep them awake.n Ateacher shouldteach.But TV eats theprinciplesof peoplewho aresupposed tobe responsible,transforming theminto passiveservants of theCyclops.TVeatsour substance.What wesee,hear,touch,smell,feel andunderstand abouttheworldhasbeen processedfor us.TV teachesthat alllife-styles and all valuesare equal,and that thereisno clearlydefinedright andwrong.Muggeridge concluded:nThere isa dangerin translating life into an image,and thatis what窜改television isdoing.In doingit,It isfalsifying life.Far from the camerasbeing anaccurate recorderofwhatisgoing on,it is the exactopposite.It cannotconvey reality,nor doesit evenwantto.”
1.Television doesnthelp buildup mentaldefenses forpeople toAdeal withviolence Bface asharp competitionCcompete withrivals
2.Television is theEnglishlanguage.A destroyingB diffusingC purifyingD standardizing
3.Television hason peoplescharacter.D confrontthe realityof theworldA apositive effectB anegative effectCnoeffectDsbeneficial effect
4.One of themostdisturbingtruthsaboutTVisthat it makesreading bookscease tobeinour society.A themostpopularrecreationB theonly methodof acquiringliteracyC theprimarywayofgettinginformationD thefinancial resources
5.Television hasinvaded ourculture socompletely that that iteven haseffect on.A theliteraryworldB foreigncountriesC thehighly-educatedpeopleD thosewho dontwatch TVatall
6.Television iscomparedto the Cyclopsbecause.A itdeprives usof ourthinking abilitybefore destroyingusB itis alsoenormous insizeC itis ascruel asthe one-eyed giantDboth TVand theCyclops doharm Toourchildren
7.In translatinglife into animage,television islife.A recordingB imitatingC creatingD falsifying
8.When wewatch TV,our aresemi-functional atbest.
9.When childrensee TOOmany cartoonsthey mayregard peopleas insteadof substantial,physical,corporeal beingswithsouls.
10.It isstated inthe conclusionthat bytranslatinglifeinto,television isfalsifying life.Passagel0:You don*thavetobe18:Going to college asan adultEveryso often,especially when Im feelingdown,I takeout myold collegenotes,textbooks anddiplomas,and take a littlestroll downmemory lane.I rememberthe funI hadin college,the peopleI met,theprofessors whotaught meand theexperiences thatchanged my life.And Imglad Imade thesacrifices.After graduatinghighschool,I thoughtcollege wasntfor me.I serveda four-year stintintheU.S.Marine Corps,and thentook ajob withthe postalservice.In myna vet,I thought that movingup withintheagency wouldbe fairlyeasy.I wasbright,knowledgeable,eager to learn new things andwilling toputinthetime neededto developmyself.But Iran intoa brick wall.It seemedthere wasan insidetrack,and I wasdefinitely noton it.After aboutayear andahalf,I realizedthat mychances of advancement werenil,and itwastime todo somethingabout it.I floatedthe ideaof attending college tomy coworkersand superiorsand theresponse wasmostlynegative.But there wereafew peoplewho thought it wasa good idea,and1did aLot ofthinking.I sawtwochoices:
1.Stay where I was,miserable in a low-level job.
2.Take achance and give collegea try.Since myjob was Leadingme nowhere,I decided to startcollege.Overcoming the initial obstaclesWhenI started;I encountereda lot of resistancefrom peopleat work.The phrasecareer student*wasbandied aboutat me,as ifI waslearning nothingpractical andbasically tryingtoavoidgrowing up.Actuallyit was the otherway around,I sawstaying inmy jobasaway toavoid facingresponsibilities,andcollegeasa morereal world——and anislandofsanity inmy life.While itmade littledifference tome ifmy coworkersor bossessupported mydecision toattendcollege,I didwant myfamily behindme.The supportwas there-I didntneed any financial help,but Igot alotof moralsupport frommy parents,as wellas fromfriends andrelatives.Probably the biggest obstacleI faced,since I was plaguedby doubtsabout myown intelligenceandabilities,was justgetting started.I decidedtostartclose tohome anddo myfirst twoyearsofcollege atPalmBeach Community College,which was on the way to work,and thentransfer toFlorida Atlantic University,which wasmore outof theway.I haddriven pastthe campusof Palm Beach CommunityCollege severaltimes.In thespring of1987,1finally workedup the nerve togo into the admissionsoffice.For many people thatfirst stepisabig one,andits easyto believe that oneis steppingintoanabyss,but PBCCwas flexibleenough forme.I had totake theAmerican College Test and,after scoringwell onthat,was ableto registerfor classes.My firstclass wasintroductionto theSocial Sciences,andfromthe momentthe professorbegan tolecture,I knewI hadfounda placewhere Icould learnand grow.Culture ShockYoumight expectto experienceculture shockin collegeafter yourday-to-day experiences.I found,instead,that mostof the culture shock happens when you leaveclass andgo backto work.For whileyourcoworkers andbosses arenot changing,you are.You mayfind yourselfcolliding withthe peopleat work.They mayfind thatyour newhabits,likestudying duringbreaks andlunch,and not goingto the localbar todrink andgripe aboutwork,are disturbing(当前的状况).the statusquoYou mayevenbetempted togive up.Please dont.It maybedifficult,you maybe exhaustedand youmayhavetotune outcriticism,but Ican tellyou fromexperience thatits allworth iton the day youput onthecap andgown andreceive yourdiploma.College lifefor adults(注册入学)So you*ve goneand doneit.You havebeen acceptedfor matriculationatacommunitycollege oruniversity,and havebeen givena dateand time to register,Your biggest.worry maybe aboutwhat thingsare likeinthe classroom.Does the professor takeattendanceSome do,some dont,though allencourage perfectattendance andclass participation.Is thereabreak If the classis threehours long,there probablyis.When youreport to yourfirstclass,try tobe therealittle early.Get a good seat,preferably inthe frontof the classroom soyou cansee andhear the professorbetter.Have allthe requiredbooks forthe class,andanotebook andpen.When classstarts,the professor willhand outa syllabus,discuss it,talk aboutterm papersand maythen beginteaching.You maybe worriedabout howtheprofessorwill reactto you.You needntbe thatconcerned.At thecommunity college anduniversity Iattended,professors welcomedolder students.We tendedtobe morefocused ongetting aneducation,had a lot tocontribute to theclassdiscussion becauseof ourexperience intheworld and were lesslikelytoargue over a grade.As youget to know yourclassmates intheclass,you mayfind yourselfgravitating towardotherstudents yourage.There*s nothingwrong withthis,but iftheres a group project,theprofessorwill probablywantthe generationstoworktogether.This isagoodopportunity tobroaden yourhorizons.That doesntmean youshould justshow up,take classesand take off.There maybeaclub oractivity foryourmajor oncampus thatcan help you in your jobsearch lateron.You mayeven findthatthecompany ofotherscholars willhelp youexpand yourintellectual horizons.And takingin acollege sportsevent oncein awhilecan bea funwaytomeet other people.The BigTimeGraduation fromPalmBeachCommunityCollegewasamilestone inmylife.Against theodds,I hadachievedsomething.I waswalking onsunshine/asthesong goes,and had learned tolet allthe negativitygoin oneearandouttheother.I had made friendswiththeprofessors,and thestudents I had workedwith werewonderful.In truth,I wasaddicted tothe challengesthat collegeprovided.I graduatedfrom communitycollege inDecember1990,then startedat Florida AtlanticUniversitythefollowing month.FloridaAtlanticUniversity wasa wholenew worldawaiting discovery.My firsttime there,I hadbeen scared.It wasso bigand seeminglyimpersonal.Sure,there wouldbe somepeople fromthecommunitycollegeon thesame trackas I wason,but stilltherewerelots ofstrangers.In April1994,1had accumulatedenough creditsto graduatefrom FAU.It wasa bittersweetoccasion.Iloved educationandlearning,but wantedtomakemy careerchange soonerrather thanlater.Two monthsaftergraduation Ileft thepost office,diploma inhand,and embarked onanew career.It hasnt always beeneasyand ithasntalwaysbeen that much fun,but Ivenever regrettedreinventing mylife.I amnow acopy editorforanewspaper,with afew yearsof experienceunder mybelt,and havealsoearned a computer networkingcertification along theway.Even now,I havegrand plansthat involvelawschool someday,and maybean MBA.A college degree opensdoors.It mightnot bepossibleto see thedoors when you arejust startingout,but theyare thereifyou havethepatience anddrive topursue yourdreams.Good luckin yourfutureendeavors.
1.The writerdecidedtoattend collegebecause.A he could seeno hopeof movingup theladder inthe postalagencyB he was eagertolearnnewthingsall hislifeC hisrelatives andfriends urgedhim toreceive furthereducationD withoutadiplomahecouldnot getpromotion in his organization
2.How didthe writerscolleagues reactwhentheygot toknow hisdecisionA Theyoffered hima lotof moralsupport.B Theythought it wasagoodidea.C Theyrefusedtogive himanyfinancialhelp.D Theirresponses weremostly negative.
3.According tothe writer,mostof thecultureshockhappenswhen he.A wentinto theclassroom afterworkB leftclass andwent backto workCparticipated ina groupprojectD tookinacollege sportsevent
4.In the writers opinion,unlike whatotherpeoplethought,isawaytoavoid facingresponsibilities.A stayingin hisjob Bbeing acareer student1,C quittingjobs Dgoing backtocollege
5.For thewriter,the biggestobstacle duringthe wholeprocess of attendingcollegewas.A justgetting startedB resistancefrom peopleat workCto passtheAmericanCollegeTestD cultureshock experiencedin college
6.Career studentsusually contributemore totheclassdiscussion becauseoftheir.A intelligenceand abilitiesB willingnessto participateCagreeable personalityD experience intheworld
7.The writerthoughtthat oneofthe achievementshe hadwas that.A hebegan tolove learningBhewaspromoted inthe postaloffice aftergetting thediplomaC he hadlearnedto ignorenegative commentsDhehadno difficultywhen heembarkedonanewcareer
8.One ofthe advantagesof campuslife wasthatonemay inthecompany ofotherscholars.
9.By sayingthe authormeant thatwith acollegedegree,one canexpect morechances ofemploymentand success.
10.Looking backonhisdecision togo tocollege,thewriter.Passagel1:Suggestions forImproving ReadingSpeedImprovement ofReading RateTtis safeto saythat almostanyone candouble hisorherspeed of reading whilemaintaining equaloreven bettercomprehension.In otherwords,you canimprove thespeed withwhich youget whatyou wantfromyour reading.The averagecollege studentreads between250and350words perminute onfiction andnon-technicalmaterials.A good*reading speedis around500to700words perminute,but somepeople canread1,000words perminute or more on these materials.What makesthe differenceThere arethreemainfactors involvedin improvingreading speed:1thedesire toimprove,2the willingnessto trynew techniquesand3the motivationto practice.Learning to read rapidlyand wellpresupposes thatyou havethe necessaryvocabulary andcomprehensionskills.Whenyou have advancedon the reading comprehensionmaterials toa levelat whichyou can understandcollege-level materials,you willbe readyto practicespeed readingin earnest.The Roleof SpeedintheReading ProcessUnderstandingthe roleof speedinthereading processis essential.Research showsa closerelationbetween speed and understanding-although itis theopposite ofwhatyoumight expect!Among thousandsofindividuals takingreading training,inmostcases an increase in rate wasaccompanied by an increaseincomprehension anda decrease in ratebrought decreasedcomprehension withit.It appearsthat ploddingorword-by-word analysisinhibits rather than increasesunderstanding.Most adultsare ableto increasetheir reading rate considerablyand ratherquickly withoutloweringtheir comprehension.These sameindividuals usuallyshow adecreaseincomprehension whenthey reducetheirrate.Such results,of courseare heavilydependent upon the methodusedtogain theincreased rate.Simply readingmore rapidlywithout actualimprovement inbasic readinghabits usuallyresults inloweredcomprehension.Factors thatReduce ReadingRateSome ofthe factorswhich reducereading rate:
1.Limited perceptualspan word-by-word reading;
2.Slow perceptualreaction timeslow recognitionand responsetothematerial
3.Vocalization readingaloud
4.Faulty eyemovements includinginaccuracy inplacement ofthe page,in returnsweep,inrhythm andregularity ofmovement,etc.;
5.Regression needlessor unconsciousre-reading
6.Faulty habitsof attentionand concentrationincluding simpleinattention duringthereadingactand faultyprocessesofretention
7.Lack ofpracticein reading-useitor loseit!
8.Fear oflosing comprehension,causing the person todeliberately read more slowly;
9.Habitual slow reading,in which thepersoncannot read faster becauseheorshe hasalwaysread slowly;protectionism-even aslip servicecontinues tobe paidto freetrade.This protectionismmaynot necessarilytaketheform oftraditional tariffs,but ofsubsidies,quotas andregulations of all kinds.Even morelikely,regional blockswill emergethat tradefreely internallybut arehighly protectionistexternally.The EuropeanUnion,NAFFA andMercosur alreadypoint in that direction.The futureofthecorporationStatistically,multinational companiesplay muchthesamepart intheworldeconomy as they didin
1913.But theyhavebecomevery differentanimals.Multinationals in1913were domestic firms withsubsidiariesabroad,each ofthem self-contained,in chargeof apolitically definedterritory,and highlyautonomous.Multinationals nowtend tobe organizedglobally alongproduct orservice lines.But likethemultinationals of1913,theyareheld togetherand controlledby ownership.By contrast,the multinationalsof2025are likelytobeheld togetherand controlledby strategy.There willstill beownership,of course.Butalliances,joint ventures,minority stakes,know-how agreementscontracts willincreasingly bethe buildingblocksof aconfederation.This kind of organizationwill needanewkindoftop management.In mostcountries,and eveninagood manylarge andcomplex companies,top managementis stillseenas anextension ofoperating management.Tomorrows topmanagement,however,is likelytobea distinctandseparate organ:it willstand forthecompany.One ofthemost important jobsahead forthe topmanagementof{hebigcompanyoftomorrow,and especiallyofthemultinational,willbeto balancetheconflicting demandson businessbeing madeby theneed forboth short-term andlong-term results,and bythecorporations variousconstituencies:customers,shareholders,knowledge employeesand communities.
1.Thenewsociety willbe muchmoreimportantthanthe neweconomyonly inthe developedcountries.
2.In another25years peoplewill haveto keepworkingasfull-time employeesuntil theirmid-70s ifhealthpermits.
3.Nowadays inChina,becauseofthepopulationpolicy,the birthrate hasdecreased.
4.In developedcountries,the issueof immigrationwillbecomeimportant politically.
5.The dominantpart inthenextsocietys workforce is
6.makes knowledgespread rapidlyand availabletoeveryone.
10.Poor evaluationof whichaspects areimportant andwhich areunimportant;
11.The effortto remember everything ratherthan toremember selectively.Since theseconditions alsotendtoreduce comprehension,increasing thereadingrateby eliminatingthemis likelytoproduceincreased comprehension,too.This isentirely differentfrom simplyspeeding upthe rate ofreading—which mayactually maketherealreading problemmore severe.In addition,forcedacceleration maydestroy confidence in onesabilityto read.The obvioussolution,then,isto increase rateasa partof atotal improvementofthewhole readingprocess,as specialtraining programsin readingdo.Basic Conditionsfor IncreasingReading RateAwell-planned programprepares formaximum increaseinrateby establishingthe necessaryconditions.Four basicconditions include:
1.Have youreyes checked.Often,very slowreadingisrelated touncorrected eyedefects.Before embarkingonaspeed readingprogram,make surethat anycorrectable eyedefects you mayhave aretaken careof.
2.Eliminate thehabit ofpronouncing words as you read.If yousound outwords inyour throatorwhisper them,your readingrate isslowed considerably.You shouldbe ableto readmost materialsat leasttwoor threetimes fastersilently thanorally,because you can getmeaning fromphrases withoutreading eachwordindividually.If youare awareof soundingor hearing”wordsas youread,try to concentrate onkeywords andmeaningful ideasasyouforce yourselfto readfaster.
3.Avoid regressingrereading.The averagestudent readingat250words perminute regressesorrereads about20times perpage.Rereading wordsand phrasesisahabit whichwill slowyour reading speeddown toa snaifspace.Usually,itisunnecessary toreread words,fortheideas youwant areexplained andelaboratedmore fullylater.Furthermore,the slowestreader usuallyregresses mostfrequently.Because hereads slowly,his mindhastimetowander andhis rereadingreflects both his inabilityto concentrateandhislack ofconfidence inhiscomprehension skills.
4.Develop awider eye-span.This willhelp youreadmore than oneword ata glance.Since writtenmaterialis lessmeaningful ifread wordby word,this willhelpyoulearn toread byphrases orthought units.Rate AdjustmentPoorresults areinevitable ifthe readerattempts to usethesame rate for alltypes of material andfor allreading purposes.He mustlearn to adjust hisrate tohis purposein readingand tothe difficultyof thematerial.The fastestrate workson easy,familiar,interesting materialorin reading togather information ona particularpoint;A slowerrateisbetter formaterial which is unfamiliarin contentand languagestructure orwhichmust bethoroughly digested.The effectivereader adjusts his raterthe ineffective reader alwaysusesthe same.Rate maybe adjustedoverall foran entirearticle,or internallyfor partsofanarticle.As ananalogy,imagine thatyou plantotakea100-mile mountaintrip.Since thistrip willinclude hills,curves,and amountainpass,you estimateit willtakethreehours forthe totaltrip,averaging about35miles anhour.Thisis youroverall rate adjustment.In actualdriving,however,youmayslow downto nomore than15miles perhouron somecurves andhills,while speedingupto50miles perhour ormore onrelatively straight and levelsections.This isyour internalrateadjustment.Similarly,thereisno setrate whichthegoodreader followsinflexiblyin readingaparticularselection,even thoughhe hasset himselfan overallrateforthe totaljob.Reading rateshould varyaccording to your readingpuipose.To understandinformation,for example,skim orscan ata rapidrate.To determinethe valueofmaterialortoread forenjoyment,read rapidlyorslowly accordingtoyourfeeling.To readanalytically,read ata moderatepace topermit you to interrelatedideas.The natureand difficultyofthematerial alsocalls foradjustments inrate.Obviously,level ofdifficultydepends greatlyon theparticular readersknowledge.While Einsteinstheories maybe extremelydifficultfor mostlaymen,they wouldbeverysimple andclear toa professorof physics.Hence,the laymanand thephysicsprofessorwillreadthesame materialat differentrates.Generally,difficult materialwill entailaslower ratersimpler materialwill permita fasterrate.In general,decrease speedwhenyou findthe following:
1.Unfamiliar terminology.Try tounderstand itin contextatthatpoint;otherwise,readonand returntoit later.
2.Difficult sentenceand paragraphstructure.Slow downenoughtoenable youto untanglethem andgetaccurate contextforthepassage.
3.Unfamiliar orabstract concepts.Look forapplications orexamplesofyourownas wellas studyingthoseofthewriter.Take enoughtimetoget themclearly inmind.
4.Detailed,technical material.This includescomplicated directions,statements ofdifficult principles,and materialson which youhavescant background.
5.Material onwhichyouwant detailedretention.In general,Increase speedwhenyoumeetthefollowing:
1.Simple materialwith fewideas which are newtoyou.Move rapidlyoverthefamiliar ones;spendmost ofyour time on theunfamiliar ideas.
2.Unnecessary examplesand illustrations.Since theseare includedto clarifyideas,move overthemrapidly whentheyarenot needed.
3.Detailed explanationand ideaelaboration whichyou do not need.
4.Broad,generalized ideasand ideaswhich arerestatements ofprevious ones.These can be readilygrasped,even withscan techniques.
1.A personwithagood readingspeed usuallyreads between250and350words perminute onfiction andnon-technical materials.
2.If oneattempts toremembereverythingratherthantorememberselectively duringreading,he/she mayhavea comparativelyslowreadingrate.
3.The writerproposes to usethesame ratefor alltypes ofmaterial andfor allreadingpurposes.
4.Knowledgeable peoplereadfaster.
5.If onehasthedesire toimprove hisreadingspeed,the motivationto practiceand,he mayimprove hisreadingspeed.
6.A preconditionforareader tolearn toread rapidlyand wellisthathe musthavethenecessary
7.Different fromwhat mostpeople expect,theresearchshowsthat anincreaseinreadingrate maylead to.
8.To avoiddestroying confidencein one*sabilitytoread,one shouldspeed up therateofreadingas apartof.
9.Rereading ofa slowreader reflectsbothhisandhislack ofconfidenceinhis comprehensionskills.
10.An effectivereader usuallyadjustshisratetohis purposeinreadingand tothe difficultyofthematerialwhile anineffectivereaderalways.Passagel2The InterviewAt the DemobilizationCentre,aftertheusual roundof medicalinspection,return ofservice equipment,and issueof allowancesand civilianclothing,I hadbeen interviewedbyanofficer whosejobwasto adviseoncareers.On learningthat I had ascience degreeand variedexperienceinengineering technology,heexpressed theopinion that I wouldhave nodifficulty infindingagood civilianjob.Industry wasreorganizingitself forpost-war productionand there was alreadyan urgentdemand forqualifiedtechnologists,especially inthe field of electronics,which wasmy specialinterest.I hadbeen verymuchencouraged bythis,as I hadmadea pointof keepingup withnew trendsand developmentsby borrowingbooksthrough theCentral LibrarySystem,and bysubscribing tovarious technicaljournals andmagazines,so I felt quiteconfident ofmy abilityto holddown agood job.He hadgiven mea letterof introductionto theHigherAppointments Officein TavistockSquare,London,and suggestedthat Icall on them assoonas I hadsettledmyself indigs andhad enjoyeda shortholiday...Shortly aftermy return,I visitedthe AppointmentsOffice,whereIwas interviewedby twocourteous,impersonal menwho questionedme closelyon myacademic background,service careerand experienceinindustry.I explainedthat aftergraduating I had workedfor twoyears asa CommunicationEngineer fortheStandard OilCompany at their ArubaRefinery,earning enoughto payfor postgraduatestudyin England.Atthe end oftheinterview theytold methat Iwouldbenotified ofany vacanciessuitable tomy experienceandqualifications.Two weekslater Ireceived aletter fromthe AppointmentsOffice,togetherwitha listof threefirms,each of which hadvacancies forqualified CommunicationEngineers.I promptlywrote to each one,stating myqualifications andexperience,and soonreceived veryencouraging replies,each withan invitationtoan interview.Everything wasworking verysmoothly and I felton top oftheworld.Iwasnervous as I stoodinfrontoftheHead Officein Mayfair;this firmhad a high internationalreputationandthethoughtofbeing associatedwithitadded tomy excitement.Anyway,I reasoned,this wasthefirst ofthe interviews,and ifI failedhere therewerestilltwo chancesremaining.The uniformedattendantpolitely openedthe largedoors forme,and asI approachedthe receptionistsdesk shesmiled quitepleasantly.Good morning.n Herbrows wereraised inpolite enquiry.“Good morning,I replied,“My nameis Braithwaite.I amhere foran interviewwith Mr.Symonds.1I hadtaken agreat dealof carewith my appearance that morning.Iwas wearing my best suitwith thefightshirt andtie andpocket handkerchief;my shoeswere smartlypolished,my teethwere wellbrushed andIwaswearingmybestsmile-all thishad passedthe verycritical inspectionof Mr.and Mrs.Belmont withwhomI lived.I mighteven saythatIwas quiteproud ofmyappearance.Yet thereceptionists smilesuddenlydisappeared.She reachedfora large diaryand consulteditasif toverify mystatement,then shepicked upthetelephone and,cupping herhand aroundthe mouthpieceasiffor greaterprivacy,spoke rapidlyinto it,watching mestealthily thewhile.Will youcome thisway Sheset offdown awide corridor,her backstraightandstiff withadisapproval whichwas echoedinthetap-tap ofher highheels.At theendofthe corridorwe enteredan automaticlift;the girlmaintained asilent hostilityand avoidedlookingat me.At thesecond floorwe stepped out intoa passageontowhich severalrooms opened;pausingbriefly outsideoneofthem shesaid In there/1and quicklyretreated tothe lift.I knockedon thedoor andentereda spaciousroom wherefour menwere seatedata large table.One ofthem rose,walked aroundto shakehands withmeandintroduced hiscolleagues,and thenindicateda chairinwhichI seatedmyself.After abrief enquiryinto myplace ofbirth andR.A.F.serviceexperience,they began to questionme closelyon telecommunicationsandthedevelopmentof electronics inthatfield.The questionswere studied,deliberate,and suddenlythe nervousnesswhichhadtroubled meallthe morningdisappeared;now Iwas confident,at easewithafamiliar subject.They questionedmeontheory,equipment,circuits,operation;on mytraining intheU.S.A.,and onmy experiencethere andin SouthAmerica.They werethorough,but Iwas relaxednow;the yearsof study,field work and postgraduateresearchwere abouttopayoff,and Iknew thatIwasholding myown,and evenenjoying it.And thenitwasallover.Mr.Symonds,the gentlemanwho hadwelcomed me,leaned backinhischairand lookedfrom onetoanotherofhis associates.They noddedto him,andhesaid:Mr.Braithwaite,my associatesandIare completelysatisfied with your repliesandfeelsurethatinterms ofqualification,ability andexperience,youareabundantly suitedtothepost we have inmind.But wearefaced witha certaindifficulty.Employing you would meanplacing youinaposition ofauthority overanumber ofour Englishemployees,many ofwhom havebeen withusavery long time,andwefeel thatsuchan appointmentwould unfavorablyaffect thebalance ofgood relationshipwhich hasalways obtainedin thisfirm.We couldnot offeryou thatpost without the responsibility,neither wouldwe askyoutoaccept the oneor twoother vacanciesofadifferent typewhich doexist,for.theyareunsuitable forsomeone withyour highstandardof educationand ability.So,I*m afraid,we willnotbe abletouse you.1At thishe rose,extendedhis handinthecourtesy ofdismissal.Ifeltdrained ofstrength andthought;yet somehowI managedto leavethat office,navigate thepassage,lift andcorridor,and walkoutofthe buildinginto thebusy sunlitstreet.Ihadjust beenbrought faceto facewithsomething Ihad eitherforgotten orcompletely ignoredfor morethan sixexciting yearsmy blackskin.Ithad not mattered when I volunteeredfor aircrewservice in1940;it hadnot matteredduringtheperiod offlyingtraining orwhenIreceived mywings and was postedtoasquadron;it hadnotmatteredintheexcitinguncertainties ofoperational flying,of livingand lovingfrom dayto day,brothered tomenwholike myselfhadno tomorrowand couldnot affordto wastetoday onthe absurditiesof prejudice;it hadnot matteredwhen,uniformed andwinged,I visitedtheatres anddance halls,pubs andprivate houses.Ihadforgotten aboutmy blackface duringthose years.I sawit dailyyet nevernoticed itscolour.I wasanairman inflying kitwhile onHis Majesty*s business,smiled at,encouraged,welcomed bygratefulcivilians inbars oronthestreet,who sawnot me,but theuniform and its relationshiptotheglorious,undyingFew.Yes,Ihadforgotten aboutmy skinwhenIhad soeagerly discussedmy post-war prospectswith theCareersOfficer andthe Appointmentspeople;Ihadquite forgottenabout itasIcheerfully enteredthat grand,imposing building...Now,asIwalked sadlyaway,I consciouslyturned myeyes away fromthesightofmy facereflected inthelarge plate-glass shopwindows.Disappointment and anger werea solidbitter lumprising insideme;Ihurried into the nearestpublic lavatoryandwas violently sick.
1.The officeratthedemobilization centerthoughtitwas hardfortheauthor tofind ajob.
2.The authorwas goodat computer.
3.Qualified technologistswere inbad needofinthe fieldofelectronics.
4.The authorhad workedintheheadquarters ofStandard OilCompany.
5.The authorwas quiteproud ofthatmorningof interview.
6.The authorsteppedoutofthe lift at.
7.Mr.Symonds andhisassociateswere withthe authorsreplies.
8.The authorhad eitherforgotten orcompletely ignoredformorethan sixyears.
9.The authorwas smiledat,encouraged andwelcomed bycivilians whenhewasin.
10.The authorwasviolentlysick becausehe felt.Passagel3:The Sciencethat ImitatesNatures MechanismsAEuropean industrialistnot longago becamevery suspiciousabout Americanpurposes andintentionsin certainareas ofscientific research.He learnedbychancethatthe United States was signingcontracts withscientistsinEngland,France,Italy,Germany,Belgium,Sweden,Uruguay,Chile,Argentina,Australia,andother countries,calling forresearch intosuch mattersasthefunction ofthe frogs eye andthe learning abilityof theoctopus.It seemedtotheindustrialist thatsuch studiescouldnotpossibly haveany practicalvalue.He seriouslybelieved thattheUnited States was employing the foreign scientists todo meaningless workandoccupy theirtime,while Americanscientists werebusy inthe reallyimportant areasof science.He wasunaware ofthefact thattheUnited States wasspending muchmore moneyat homethan abroadfor similarstudies.Nature doesthings betterthan peopleActually,theresearchhe questionedinvolves afieldofscience sonew that mostpeoplehave neverheardofit.Named bionicsin1960,this scienceis thestudyofliving creatures,a studyin searchof principleapplicable to engineering.Nature hasoperated avast laboratoryfor twobillion years,and bionicsprobes thesecrets ofthemarvelous special-purpose mechanismsthat havedeveloped.Take the frogs eyeforexample.A frogeats onlylive insects,and its eye instantlyspots amoving flywithinreach ofits tongue.You cansurround afrog withdead thereforemotionless flies,andit will neverknowtheyare there.If wecan completelyunderstand themechanic ofthefrogs eye,wecandevelop amap readingeye formissilesandapattern-recognition eye”for ourbasic airdefense systemcalled SAGEsemi-automaticground environment.SAGE isbadly overworked.Its internationalnetwork ofradar EYESsupplies atremendousmass ofunimportant detailsabout meteorites,clouds,flights ofducks,geese,and friendlyplanes,anditsometimes getsconfused.Until wecan buildamechanicalfrogs eye into SAGE,itwillremainsomewhat inefficient.Military andcivilian usesThefrogseyeholds promisein civilianlife,too.For example,atmostmajor airportsthe airtrafficproblem—with20million flightsper yearto handle—has reacheda criticalstage.We mustdevelop betterdevices for monitoring and controlling air traffic.Special-purpose mechanismas excitingasthefrog*seyecan befound throughoutnature.The batisunder study because the bats sonaris muchmore efficientthan man-made sonar.By bouncingsupersonicsqueaks offobjects aroundhim,thebatflies aboutwith remarkableskills.A batcan flythrough adark roomstrungwith dozensof pianowires andnever toucha singlewire.The mosquitois understudybecausewe needtosolve the problemof Staticthat lessensthe efficiencyofour communicationssystems.A mosquito,simply byvibrating itswings,can setupahum thatwill cutthroughany interferingnoise manor naturecan createloud whistlesor thunder,for instanceandgiveamessage toanother mosquito150feet away.Electrical systemTheoreticallyatleastweshouldbeableto copythese mechanismsfound in nature,for allbiologicalorganisms-from mosquitoto frogtoman-areinpart actuallyelectrical systems.The sense organs thatconnect”all animalstotheoutsideworldare merelytransducers—instruments like a microphone,TVcamera,or phonographpickup arm—which convertone form of energy into another.A microphone,forexample,converts soundinto electricalsignals whichare carriedtoaloudspeaker andconverted backintosound waves.Similarly,thenervecells ofa mansear converta cryfor helpinto electricalpulses whicharesped overhis nervoussystem tothe brain.The brainreceives thesignal,and thensends anansweringelectrical-pulse messagetohislegs,where itis convenedinto muscularenergy whenhe startsrunning towardthecry.We havebeen slowto profitfromthisclose analogybetween abiological organismandanelectronicsystem.It wasonly intheearly1950sthatwe consciouslybegantounite biologistswith physicists,chemists,electronic experts,mathematicians,and engineersinateam tosolvethemysteries ofbiological machinery.The firstformal bionicsmeeting-called by theU.S.Ak Force—was heldin
1960.A yearlater therewere20,000biologists atwork inresearch laboratoriesintheUnitedStatesmorethandouble thenumberemployed tenyears earlier.Electronic andnonelectronicA bionicistcan,of course,copy muchin naturewithout resortingto electronics.For example,anairplane wingthat givesunique stabilitytoa small planewas introducedby theCessna Companyin1960;thewing tipsofaseabird servedasthemodel.An artificialgill toextract oxygenfrom waterand throwoffcarbon dioxidelikeafishs gillis beingstudied bythe Navyfor useon submarines.For theNavy,too,theU.S.Rubber Companyis makingtests ofa rubberskin forboats andsubmarine hulls,modeled onthe elasticskinofadolphin.But thegreatest advancesin bionicsunquestionably willbe electronicinnature.Already aninstrumentlaboratory hasdeveloped aneye thatcan peerthroughamicroscope anddistinguish certainkinds ofdiseasedceils fromhealthy cells.General ElectricCompany hasan experimentaleye,the Visilog,thatoperates onthe principleused bythe humaneyeinjudging distanceasasolid surfaceis approached.We humansjudge outrateof approach bythe changedoccurring inthe textureofasurface asour eyesgetcloser andclosertoit.This explainswhy wesometimes failtoseea glassdoor,but wealways stopshortof abrickwall.General Electricseye calculatestherateofapproachto anytextured surfaceand containsadevice toslow theapproach speed.It isbeing developed,hopefully,to pemita plannedmoon-probe rockettomake asoft landingonthemoon*s surface.A smallvariety ofVisilog maybe createdfortheblind.Ears,nose,and brainTheowls earsare fascinatingto manybionicists,fortheowl hasuncanny directionalhearing.He canheara mousechewing andfly downon it,even thoughitishidden fromsight undera pileof leaves.For thoseengagedin designingsensitive mechanicears forlistening toenemy sonar,owl researchmay indeedhavevalue.Nor is the nosebeing ignored.Many malecreatures findtheir wayto theirmates byfollowing anodorgiven offbythefemale.To exploremechanical scentdetection,the Armorresearch Foundationhasdeveloped asynthetic nosewhich can,itisbelieved,detect scentsin vaporsataratio ofone particleto amillion.The Foundationthinks thatitcan be usedin earlydetection offood spoilage,and towarn industrialandmilitary personnelofthepresence ofpoisonous vapors.Finally,the bionicist is extremely interested intheone general mechanism that servesthe entireanimalkingdom—the brain.The brainmakes allanimals unimaginablyefficient,like small-size computers.nActually,though/says Dr.Warren S.Moculloch,oneofour greatcomputer-scientists,Computers arenothingmorethanstupid beasts,they haventthe brainsofanant.And theycant dothejobthat mustbedone.”Hopefully,bionicistisextremelyinterestedintheonegeneral mechanismthatmimics thebrain.But aslongasthetiny brainofapigeon continuousto bafflescience,there seemslittle likelihoodof understandingthesecretsofthehumanbrain duringthis century.Yet,even ifthe bionicistnever attainsthis goal,he willmakemany discoveriesthat onceseemed impossibletous.Even inour lifetimehe maybeableto buildmachinesthatwillbe intelligentenough.
1.The UnitedStateswasmaking researchonthefrogseyeandthelearningability.
2.The UnitedStateswasemployingtheforeignscientiststodomeaninglessworkto occupytheir time.
3.Bionics isa studyin searchof principleapplicabletoengineering bystudying ofliving creatures.
4.Bionics isnow developedtoaremarkable level.
5.We mustdevelop betterdevicesformonitoringandcontrollingairtraffic becausehas reachedacritical stage.
6.A mosquitocan givea messagetoanothermosquito150feet awayby.
7.Animals*senseorgansareonlywhich convertenergy from one forminto another.
8.The U.S.Rubber Companyis makingtests ofmodeling theelastic skinofadolphin for
9.Owl researchmayhavevalue indesigning.
10.—isageneralmechanismthat servesthe entireanimal kingdom.Passage14Intelligent TransportSystemToday,therearemany waysto travelaround alarge metropolitanarea,for workor pleasure.
7.had dominatedsociety for10,000years butdeclined rapidlyinthe20th century.
8.In ordertoadjustfor inflation,the cost ofwhichare the main knowledgeproductswas tripled.
9.Multinationals in1913were composed ofadomesticfirmsand itsself-contained andautonomous
10.Top managementintheNext societywillbea organ.Passage2:Rain forests(生态系统)Tropical rainforests are themost diverseecosystem on Earth,and alsothe oldest.Today,tropical rainforestscover only6percent ofthe Earthsground surface,but theyare hometo overhalf oftheplanets plant and animal species.What Isa RainforestGenerallyspeaking,a rainforestisanenvironment thatreceives highrainfall andis dominatedby talltrees.A widerangeofecosystems fallinto thiscategory,of course.But mostofthetimewhenpeople talkabout rainforests,they mean the tropical rainforests located near the equator.These forestsreceive between160and400inches ofrain peryear.The totalannual rainfallis spreadprettyevenly throughoutthe year,andthetemperature rarelydips below60degrees Fahrenheit.This steadyclimate isdue tothe positionof rainforestsontheglobe.Because ofthe orientationof theEarth!s axis,the Northernand Southernhemispheres eachspend partoftheyear tiltedaway fromthe sun.Since rainforestsareatthe middleoftheglobe,locatedneartheequator,they arcnot especiallyaffected bythischange.They receivenearly thesame amountof sunlight,and thereforeheat,all year.Consequently,theweather in these regionsremains fairlyconstant.The consistentlywet,warm weatherand ample sunlight giveplant lifeeverything itneedsto thrive.Trees havethe resourcesto growto tremendousheights,and theylive forhundreds,even thousands,of years.These giants,which reach60to150ft inthe air,form thebasic structure ofthe rainforest.Their topbranches(树冠)spread wideinorderto capturemaximum sunlight.This createsa thickcanopy levelatthe topoftheforest,with thinnergreenery levelsunderneath.SomeYou couldwalk,although therange isadmittedly low.You couldbicycle,but youstill doalotofwork,andits dangerous.You coulddriveacar,which takesconcentration andsobriety anda license.You couldride abus,and letsomeone elsedrive.You could takeatrain,and letacomputerdrive you.Or youcould fly,andwait alongtimeforthe plane totakeoffand land.All modesof transportationhave advantages,and disadvantages.However,in recent decades,the singlesystem that haswon overall othersistheprivate automobile.This allowsyoutogo fromyour startingpointto yourdestination point,withyourcomplete control,atareasonable speedinareasonable time.Unfortunately,apart fromthe pollutantscreated bythe vehicleitself,the factthat somanyotherpeople seemtoenjoy itsperceived freedomcauses majortraffic jams,andtherequirement fortraffic controldevices.Too manypeople usingtoo littleroad spaceatthesame timecauses traffic jams.It is most profoundonlarge gradeseparated roads,that havelimited access.There havebeen varioussolutions triedout,includinghigh occupancyvehicle lanes,ramp metering,or roadwidening.Unfortunately,they simplydont solvetheproblem oflack ofcapacity.Traffic controldevices imposecertain controlsonthe flowof traffic.Most commonare trafficlights.These meterthe flowof trafficbetween twoormoreroads so that atno timeisanyvehicle inconflict withanyother.However,they alsoimpose thattraffic comestoacomplete stop,requiring vehiclesto stopandthen startagain.This not only slowsvehicles down,but alsoisthe prime causeof wastedenergyinurbansettings.Unfortunately,cities arevery reluctantto spendmoney.Therefore anyfuture transportsystem has to becheapfor cities.This impliesthat currentinfrastructure iskept asmuch aspossible,or improved.Using roads,theprimeinfrastructure availabletoday wouldmeantheform factorfor vehicles would staythesame,buteach individualvehicle couldbe mademore intelligent.So fortomorrow,we needto designa transportsystemthatuses roadsoravery slightimprovement onroadstoprovideahighcapacity systemthat providesservice foreveryone.This couldbe achievedbyimplementing thefollowing eightsystems,each ofwhich providesmoreofa burdenonthecar manufacturer,but wouldeventually providea system,whichisautomatic,safe andefficient.Firstly,all carsshould haveintelligence brakesand cruisecontrol.These wouldremove the driver fromtheresponsibility of having to follow alongbehind somebody.By pressinga button,the driverwould givecontrolofthe distance betweenhis car andthecar infront.If thecar infront sloweddown,you wouldnothave towait forthe brakelights tolight up,the drivertoseethem,Wen pressthe brakepedal theright amount,andcontinuouslymonitor thedistance.Instead thecar wouldbe programmedto continuouslymonitor thedistancetothecar infront andinstantly alterits speedto matchand maintainthedistance.By speedingupthefeedback circuit,youcanclose thedistance of cars,and thereforeincrease thecapacity.You alsoremove drivererror soreducing thenumber ofaccidents.Also,cars couldcommunicatelocally witheach otherand wareahead oftime thatfollowing carsneedtoslow down.Next,you needto removethedriverfromtheresponsibility ofsteering the vehicle.Having complexvision systems onacarseems overthe topastheynotonlydramatically increasethe costofthecar,butalso thecomplexity ofthe controlsoftware.Instead youcould builddetector intothefrontofthecar thatdetect the middleofalane oftraffic.The carwould tryand keepthevehicleinthatlane.Junctions couldbebuilt byhavingthecenterline split.The operatoror route planning softwarewould decidewhich ofthetwo ormore signalstofollow.Separating lanesof automaticcars fromthose drivenby humansespecially onhigh speedhighways,would givean incentiveto notonly purchasean automaticcar but also topurchase theroad spacewhich ituses.Since theseseparate laneswouldhavenotonlyfast movingtraffic butalso safer traffic,they couldbemarked andsold bycities tocreate arevenue streamto allow the buildingof moreaugmented roads.Having adevice inthecarthat doesrouteplanningisagreat helpforpeoplewho dontknowthewayaround yourcity.But whatifyoulived inthe cityformanyyears Itsnotgoingtobethatmuchuse,is itBylinking routeplanning withreal timeinformationontraffic levelsinthecity,youcanquickly divertyourjourney tousethemost efficientroads.This informationcouldberelayed tovehicles usingbroadcastradio.Roadside sensorsthat determinetheflowoftrafficonaroad woulddetectthespeeds.The abilityto removethe parkingrequirements fromnear abuilding wouldallow morecompactcities,whicharebetter pedestrianenvironments.However,people dontlike towalk froma parkingstructurethatisalongwayfromtheir destination.The solutionisto allowthecar todrop offthepassengers whererequired and then driveitself tothe nearestparking structurethat isknowntohavea space.By automaticallycontrolling thespeedandlocationof all traffic,youcanmake junctionswork veryefficiently.At themoment,some traffichas tostop,and whenit resumes,the carsspread outintoalargedisperse volume.Instead youcould moveeach group ofcarsasapacket,adjusting itsspeed so that itarrivesatanintersection atjust theright timesothatit neverhas tostop.This couldbe achievedbychanging thespeed ofa sectionof roadso thosecars slowdown gradually.The speedsof roadsegmentswould beset bynearby junctioncomputers eachlinked totheother.This wouldcreate aholistic trafficcontrolsystem.If onesection lostpower,thesystemwould reverttoanormal junction.When agroupof people move fromone location toanother,it wouldmake senseto allowthem totraveltogether insteadofhavingtoeachuseaseparate vehicle.On demandgroup transportwould allowtherequest ofalarge vehicle which can automatically move people fromonelocation toanother.Thesevehicles wouldbe storedat strategiclocations,andthensent tothe requestingsite asquickly aspossible.Vehicles couldbe bookedin advance,andyoupay bythetimeusedinminutes,notthedistance traveledordestination.At theother endisthereplacement ofthe taxi.This wouldbe similartothegroup transportbut forsmallergroups.Again thesevehicleswouldbe storedat strategiclocations,sothatpeopledont have towaitvery long.Again theyare hiredbytheminute ofuse.Since youarenolonger requiredto ownyourown vehicle,thetotalnumber ofvehicles requiredinthewhole systemis reduced,and thereforethenumber of parking spacesrequired.Given afully demanddriven transportsystem,youwouldnever needtofind anotherparking spaceinyourlife.After theabove isimplemented,youhaveon demandprivate orgroup transportvehicles drivingthemselvesfrom pointto pointwithouttheneedtostop atjunctions,wait fortrafficjamson freeways,orget lostalongtheway.
1.Riding abicycle takesconcentration,sobriety anda license.
2.Private automobileisthemostimportantmode oftransportation inrecentdecades.
3.Air pollutionisthemost seriousproblem causedbytheexist oftoomanyprivate automobiles.
4.Traffic lightsare themost commontraffic controldevices.
5.Drivers canbe freefromtheresponsibility ofhavingtofollow alongbehind someonewiththe help of.
6.Having complexvisionsystemwill increasethecostofthecarandincrease.
7.You canhave fastmoving andsafertrafficin.
8.To solvethe problemofparking,we needthecartodriveitself tothenearestparking structureafter.
9.We havea requestofalargevehiclewhich canautomaticallymovepeoplefromonelocationtoanother tomeetthedemand of.Passagel
10.In ordertobeprompt,taxi forthe transportof smallergroups shouldbe storedat.5:Planning andPeopleTn allkinds oforganizations—companies,schools,hospitals,etc.—decisions appearcorrect intheorybut do not workin practice.There aremany reasonsfor this.To illustratethe problemsinvolved wewillconsider fourcases wheredifferent decisionshavetobe taken.Case No.1The manager ofa shipping companywas interestedin usinglarge metalcontainers forthe companyscargoinsteadofconventional methodsof loadingand unloading.He discoveredthattheuseof containerswas lessexpensive andquicker thanconventional methods.More cargocouldbesent atone timeanddelays onthewaywere shorter.The onlymajor disadvantageapart fromtheinitialcostofthe containerswasthat not all shipscouldtakethem.However,the managerbelievedthathiscompanycould findenoughships for their containers.His plantouse containers wasadopted bythe boardof directors.Unfortunately,however,itwasnever putinto practice.The dockersheard abouttheplanand didnot like it.The reasonwasthatthe containers wouldmake abouta quarterofthedockers redundant.The plan was killed.The comparisonofcontainerswith conventionalmethods isshown inthefollowingtable.Advantages Disadvantages
1.less freightexpenses
2.quicker delivery
1.notall ships cantake themContainers
3.more cargocanbesent atone time
2.heavy initialcost
4.shorter delaysontheway
1.more freightexpenses
2.slower deliveryConventional
1.allshipscan usethem
3.less cargocanbesent atone timemethods
2.no needto spendmoney onthecontainers
4.longer delaysonthewayCase No.2A solarpump wasbuilt inasmalldesert village.The pumpusedthe deserts most commonresource-sunlight,toincreaseits greatestnecessity-water.Solar collectorswere usedto collectthe sun*srays.Flat collectorscanbestationary anddonothave movingparts whichcanbebroken insand storms.The systemusedthe20degree centigradetemperature differencebetweenthesolar collectorsand thegroundwater toworkagas expansionengine whichpumped waterfrom underthe ground.Some ofthe social effectsofthe newpumps wereplanned for.Children aged6to15usedtobring thewaterfrom wells,wheretheymet theold menofthe village andreceived informaleducation fromthem.Inorder toreplace this,a schoolwas alsoincluded inthe project.But the project hadnot consideredthetraditional powerstructureofthe village.As soonastheforeign expertsleft,thetworichest menin thevillagetook controlofthepump andstarted sellingwater toeveryone else.The resultwasthatthe majorityofpeople werepoorer thanbefore.Case No.3In1946therewasa programintheRio Grandevalley tosubstitute hybrid corn forthe nativecorn.The nativecorn wasof poornutritional qualityand gavea poorquantity ofgrain whilethe hybrid corn wasofexcellent qualityand gaveabout threetimes aslarge acrop asthe nativevariety.In thefirst yearhalf ofthe84farmers inthevillageplanted hybridcorn anddoubled thecorn production.Three yearslater,however,only threefarmers plantedhybridcorn.The otherswere plantingthe traditionalvariety.At thebeginningoftheproject theprogram leaderstudied theecology oftheareaand showedfilmsdemonstrating thesuperiority ofthenewcorn.The farmersagreed thatthe hybridcorn hadgreatadvantages.The sizeofthecrop confirmedthese advantages.Why didthey stopplanting itThe answerwassimple:their wivesdidnotlikeit.They complainedthatitwasnt goodfor cookingand theydidnt liketheflavor.Case No.4The managerofalarge officebuilding hadreceived manycomplaints aboutthe liftservice inthebuilding.He engagedagroupof engineersto studythe situationand makerecommendations forimprovement.The engineerssuggested twoalternative solutions:
1.adding morelifts ofthesametypes;
2.replacing theexisting liftsby fasterones.The managerdecided thatboth alternativesolutions weretoo expensive.So thefirms psychologistofferedto studythe problem.He noticedthat manypeople arrivedat theiroffices feelingangry andimpatient.The reasonthey gavewasthelength oftime they hadtowait forthelift.However,thepsychologist wasimpressed bythe factthat theyhadonlyhadtowait arelatively shorttime.It occurredtohim thatthe reasonfor theirannoyance wasthefacttheyhadto standbythelifts inactive.He suggestedasimple,inexpensive solutiontothemanager.This wasadopted andcomplaints stoppedimmediately.Thesolution wasto placealargemirror nexttothelifts.Three ofthese casesshow failure,and onesuccess.What conclusionscanbemade aboutthe decisioninvolvedFirst,in anydecision,some considerationsaremorerelevant thanothers.It isa mistaketoattempt to,solve aproblem inengineering termswhentheproblem isa psychologicalone.Similarly,it iswrongtoconcentrateonthesocialeffectsofanew inventionif itis mechanicallyinadequate.It isamistake toattempt toimprove onepartofa systemifthewhole systemhastobe changed.Secondly,thereisa morefundamental question.A solutionmaybetechnically verycrude butwillwork becausepeopleareenthusiastic aboutit.Some projectspredict negativehuman reactionsbut areunableto persuadepeople thattheprojectis right.Other projectsfail becauseof indifference—peopleneither likeit nordislike it-they justdonotthink itis necessary.A projectwillbesuccessful onlyif thepeopleinvolved believethatitis necessaryand valuablefor theirown lives.Some peoplebelievethatinthesecases theplans areright butthepeopleare wrong.History,however,has shownthis belieftobedangerous.
1.There areshorter delaysontheway ifcontainers areused.
2.The planofthemanagerofashippingcompanytousecontainerswas rejectedbytheboard ofdirectorsbecausetheplanwasstrongly opposedbythedockers.
3.Using thecontainers totransport cankeepthegoods clean.
4.Sunlight isthedesertsmostcommonresource whilefresh airisthedeserts greatestnecessity.
5.Children canreceive fromtheoldmen whenbrought waterfrom wellsin thedesert.
6.Compared withthe hybridcorn,the nativecom ispoor in.
7.The disadvantageofthehybridcornisthatitwasand poorin flavor.
8.The psychologistfoundthatmanypeoplefelt whenthey arrivedattheiroffice.
9.Iftheproblemisa psychologicalone,we cantattempt to.
10.History wasshown thatthe beliefthatisdangerous.large treesgrow sotall thatthey eventower overthe canopy layer.As yougo lower,down intothe rainforest,youfindless andless greenery.The forestfloor is made upofmoss,fungi,and decayingplant matterthat hasfallenfromthe upperlayers.The reasonfor thisdecreasein greeneryis verysimple theoverabundance ofplants gatheringsunlight atthe topofthe forest blocksmostsunlight fromreaching thebottom ofthe forest,making itdifficult forrobust plantstothrive.The,Forest forthe TreesTheamplesunlightand extremelywet climateofmanytropical areasencourage thegrowth oftoweringtrees withwide canopies.This thicktop layerofthe rainforest dictatesthe livesofallother plantsinthe forest.New treeseedlings rarelysurvive tomake ittothe top unlesssome oldertrees die,creating aholeinthe canopy.When thishappens,all ofthe seedlingsonthe ground levelcompete intenselytoreach the sunlight.Many plantspecies reachthetopoftheforest byclimbing thetall trees.It ismuch easierto ascendthisway,becausethe plant doesnthavetoform itsown supportingstructure.Some plantspecies,called epiphytes,grow directlyonthesurface ofthe gianttrees.These plants,which includea varietyof orchidsand ferns,make upmuch ofthe understory,the layerofthe rainforestright belowthe canopy.Epiphytes areclose enoughtothetop toreceive adequatelight,andtherunoff(养分)fromthecanopylayerprovides allthe waterand nutrientsthey need,whichisimportant since theydont haveaccess tothe nutrients inthe ground.Stranglers andButtressesSome epiphyteseventually developinto stranglers.They growlong,thick rootsthat extenddown thetreetrunk intothe ground.Astheycontinue togrow,the rootsform asortofweb structureall aroundthetree.Atthesame time,the stranglerplants branchesextend upward,spreading outintothecanopy.Eventually,the stranglermay blockso muchlight fromabove,and absorbsuchahigh percentageofnutrients fromthegroundbelow,thatthehost treedies.Competition overnutrients isalmost asintense ascompetitionforlight.The excessiverainfall rapidlydissolvesnutrients inthe soilmakingitrelatively infertileexcept atthetoplayers.For thisreason,rainforest treeroots growoutward tocover awider area,ratherthandownward tolower levels.This makesrainforesttrees somewhatunstable,sincetheydonthavevery stronganchors intheground.Some treescompensatefor thisby growingnatural buttresses.These buttressesare basicallytree trunksthat extendoutfromtheside ofthe treeand clowntotheground,giving thetree additionalsupport.Rainforest treesare dependenton bacteriathat arecontinually producingnutrientsintheground.(共生的)Rainforest bacteria and treeshaveavery close,symbiotic relationship.The treesprovide thebacteriawith food,intheformoffallen leavesandothermaterial,andthebacteria breakthis materialdowninto thenutrients thatthe treesneedtosurvive.Oneofthemostremarkable thingsaboutrainforestplant lifeis itsdiversity.The temperaterainforestsof thePacific Northwestare mainlycomposedofa dozenorsotree species.A tropical rainforest,on theotherhand,might have300distinct treespecies.All Creatures,Great andSmallRainforests arehometothe majorityof animal species intheworld.And agreat number of specieswhonow livein otherenvironments,including humans,originally inhabitedthe rainforests.Researchersestimate thatinalarge rainforest area,there maybemorethan10million differentanimalspecies.Most ofthese specieshave adaptedfor lifeintheupper levelsofthe rainforest,where foodismost(plentiful.Insects,whichcaneasily climbor flyfrom treeto tree,make upthe largestgroup antsarethe)most abundantanimal intherainforest.Insect specieshaveahighly symbioticrelationship withthe plantlifeinarainforest.The insectsmovefromplant toplant,enjoying thewealth offood providedthere.Asthey travel,the insectsmay pickuptheplants1seeds,dropping themsome distanceaway.This helpstodisperse thepopulation oftheplantspecies overa largerarea.The numerousbirds oftherainforestalso playamajorpart inseed dispersal.When theyeat fruitfrom(排泄)a plant,the seedspass throughtheir digestivesystem.By thetime theyexcrete theseeds,the birdsmayhave flownmany milesawayfromthe fruit-bearing tree.There arealso alarge numberof reptilesand mammalsintherainforest.Since the weather isso hotandhumid duringtheday,most rainforestmammals areactive onlyatnight,dusk ordawn.The manyrainforestbat speciesare especiallywell adaptedfor thislifestyle.Using theirsonar,bats navigateeasilythrough themass oftrees intherainforest,feeding oninsects andfruit.While mostrainforest speciesspend theirlives inthe trees,thereisalso alotoflife ontheforestfloor.Great apes,wild pigs,big catsand evenelephants canallbefound inrainforests.There areanumberofpeoplewho liveinthe rainforests,aswell.These tribes—which,up untilrecently,numbered inthe thousands—are beingforced outoftherainforests atan alarmingrate becauseofdeforestation.DeforestationIn thepast hundredyears,humans havebegun destroyingrainforests atan alarmingrate.Today,roughly
1.5acres ofrainforestaredestroyed everysecond.People arecutting downtherainforests inpursuit ofthree majorresources:•land forcrops•lumber forpaper andother woodproducts•land forlivestock pasturesInthe currenteconomy,people obviouslyhaveaneed forallofthese resources.But almostallexperts agreethat,over time,we willsuffer muchmore fromthe destructionoftherainforests thanwe willbenefit.The worldsrainforestsarean extremelyvaluable naturalresource,tobesure,but notfortheirlumberor theirland.They arethemaincradle oflife onEarth,and theyhold millions of unique life formsthat wehaveyet todiscover.Destroying therainforests iscomparable todestroying anunknown planetwehavenoidea whatwere losing.If deforestationcontinues atits currentrate,the worldstropical rainforestswill bewipedout within40years.
1.Virtually allplantandanimalspeciesonEarthcanbefound intropical rainforests.
2.There isnot muchchange intheweatherinthetropicalrainforestsalltheyear round.
3.The largestnumberofrainforestsintheworldare locatedontheAfrican continent.
4.Below thecanopy levelofatropicalrainforestgrows anoverabundance ofplants.
5.New treeseedlings willnot surviveto reachthecanopylevel unless.
6.Epiphytes,which formmuch ofthe understoryoftherainforest,get alltheir waterand nutrientsfrom.
7.Stranglers areso calledbecause theyby blockingthesunlightand competingforthenutrients.
8.Since rainforestbacteriaandtrees dependon eachother forlife,the relationshipthey formis termed.
9.Plant speciesare dispersedoveralarge areawiththehelpof.
10.As wearestillignorant ofmillionsofuniquelifeforms intherainforest,deforestation canbecompared tothe destructionof.Passages:Some Noteson Gender-Neutral LanguageGeneralThe practiceof assigningmasculinegenderto neutralterms comesfromthefactthatevery languagereflectsthe prejudicesofthesociety inwhich itevolved,and Englishevolved throughmostofits historyina male-centered,patriarchal society.Like anyother language,however,English isalways changing.Oneonly hastoreadaloud sentencesfromthe19th centuryhooks assignedforthisclass tosense theshifts thathaveoccurred inthelast150years.When readerspickupsomethingtoread,they expectdifferentconventions dependingonthetimeinwhichthematerial waswritten.As writersin1995,we needtobenotonly awareoftheconventions thatour readersmay expect,butalsoconsciousofthe responsesour wordsmayelicit.In addition,we needtoknowhowtheshifting natureof languagecanmakecertain wordsawkwardor misleading.“Man”Man oncewasatrulygenericword referringto allhumans,but hasgradually narrowedin meaningtobecome aword thatrefers toadult malehuman beings.Anglo-Saxons usedthewordto refertoallpeople.One exampleofthisoccurs whenan Anglo-Saxon writerrefers toa seventh-century Englishprincess as“awonderful man
1.Man paralleledthe Latinword homo,na memberofthehuman species.not vir,nan adultmaleofthespecies.1The OldEnglish wordfor adultmale waswaepman andtheoldEnglish wordforadult womanwas wifman.Inthecourse oftime,wifman evolvedintotheword woman.n Maneventuallyceased tobeusedtoreferto individualwomen andreplaced waepmanasaspecific termdistinguishingan adultmale froman adultfemale.But mancontinuedtobeusedin generalizationsaboutboth sexes.By the18th century,the modern,narrow senseofmanwas firmlyestablished asthepredominantone.When EdmundBurke,writing ofthe FrenchRevolution,used menintheold,inclusive way,he tookpainsto spellouthismeaning:nSuch adeplorable havocismadeintheminds ofmen bothsexes inFrance...”ThomasJeffersondidnotmakethesame distinctionindeclaring that“allmenarecreatedequal1and governmentsare institutedamong men,deriving。