人教高中英語選修九課文word文檔

1、選修9Unit1Breakingrecords-Reading"THEROADISALWAYSAHEADOFYOU"AshritaFurmanisasportsmanwholikesthechallengeofbreakingGuinnessrecords.Overthelast25years,hehasbrokenapproximately93Guinnessrecords.Morethantwentyofthesehestillholds,includingtherecordforhavingthemostrecords.Buttheserecordsarenotmad

2、einanyconventionalsportlikeswimmingorsoccer.RatherAshritaattemptstobreakrecordsinveryimaginativeeventsandinveryinterestingplaces.Recently,Ashritaachievedhisdreamofbreakingarecordinallsevencontinents,includinghulahoopinginAustralia,pogostickjumpingunderwaterinSouthAmerica,andperformingdeepkneebendsin

3、ahotairballooninNorthAmerica.Whiletheseactivitiesmightseemchildishandcauselaughterratherthanrespect,inrealitytheyrequireanenormousamountofstrengthandfitnessaswellasdetermination.Thinkaboutthefineneckadjustmentsneededtokeepafullbottleofmilkonyourheadwhileyouarewalking.Youcanstoptorestoreatbutthebottl

4、ehastostayonyourhead.WhileAshritamakesstandingontopofa75cmSwissballlookeasy,itisnot.Ittakesalotofconcentrationandagreatsenseofbalancetostayonit.Youhavetostruggletostayontopespeciallywhenyourlegsstartshaking.Andwhataboutsomersaultingalongaroadfor12milesSomersaultingisatougheventasyouhavetoovercomediz

5、ziness,extremetirednessandpain.Youarepermittedtorestforonlyfiveminutesineveryhourofrollingbutyouareallowedtostopbrieflytovomit.CoveringamileinthefastesttimewhiledoinggymnasticallycorrectlungesisyetanothereventinwhichAshritaisoutstanding.Lungesareextremelyhardonyourlegs.Youstartbystandingandthenyoust

6、epforwardwiththefightfootwhiletouchingtheleftkneetotheground.Thenyoustandupagainandstepforwardwiththeleftfootwhiletouchingthefightkneetotheground.Imaginedoingthisforamile!Yetthistalentedsportsmanisnotanaturalathlete.Asachildhewasveryunfitandwasnotatallinterestedinsports.However,hewasfascinatedbytheG

7、uinnessBookofWorldRecords.HowAshritacametobeasportsmanisaninterestingstory.Asateenager,hebegansearchingforadeepermeaninginlife.HestudiedEasternreligionsand,aged16,discoveredanIndianmeditationteachercalledSriChinmoywholivedinhisneighbourhoodinNewYorkCity.Sincethattimeintheearly1970s,Ashritahasbeenone

8、ofSriChinmoy'sstudents.SriChinmoysaysthatitisjustasimportantforpeopletodeveloptheirbodiesasitistodeveloptheirminds,heartsandspiritualselves.Hebelievesthatthereisnolimittopeople'sphysicalabilities.WhenAshritacamethirdina24-hourbicyclemarathoninNewYork'sCentralParkin1978,heknewthathewouldo

9、nedaygetintotheGuinnessBookofWorldRecords.Hehadbeenurgedbyhisspiritualleadertoenterthemarathoneventhoughhehaddonenotraining.So,whenhewonthirdplace,hecametotheunderstandingthathisbodywasjustaninstrumentofthespiritandthatheseemedtobeabletousehisspirittoaccomplishanything.Fromthenon,Ashritarefusedtoacc

10、eptanyphysicallimitation.Withthisnewconfidence,AsharitabrokehisfirstGuinnessrecordwith27,000jumpingjacksin1979.ThemotivationtokeeptryingtobreakrecordscomesthroughhisdevotiontoSriChinmoy.EverytimeAshritatriestobreakarecord,hereachesapointwherehefeelshecannotphysicallydoanymore.Atthatmoment,hegoesdeep

11、withinhimselfandconnectswithhissoulandhisteacher.Ashritaalwaysacknowledgeshisteacherinhisrecord-breakingfact,heoftenwearsaT-shirtwithSriChinmoy'swordsontheback.Thewordsare:"Thereisonlyoneperfectroad.Itisaheadofyou,alwaysaheadofyou."FOCUSON.LanceArmstrongDateofBirth:8thSeptember,1971Cou

12、ntry:USALanceArmstrong'sGuinnessrecordforthefastestaveragespeedattheTourdeFrancewassetin1999withanaveragespeedof40.27km/hr.Inhisteenshewasatriathletebutat16hebegantoconcentrateoncycling.Hewasanamateurcyclistbeforethe1992OlympicGamesbutturnedprofessionalafterhehadcompetedintheGames.Inthefollowing

13、fewyears,hewonnumeroustitles,andby1996hehadbecometheworld'snumberone.However,inOctober1996,hediscoveredhehadcancerandhadtoleavecycling.Successfullyfightinghisillness,Armstrongofficiallyreturnedtoracingin1998.In1999hewontheTourdeFranceandin2003heachievedhisgoalofwinningfiveToursdeFrance.Michellie

14、JonesDateofBirth:9thJune,1969Country:AustraliaIn1988MichellieJoneshelpedestablishthemulti-sportevent,thetriathlon,inAustralia.Aftercompletingherteachingqualificationsin1990,sheconcentratedonthetriathlon.In1991,shefinishedthirdattheworldchampionships.In1992and1993,shewastheInternationalTriathlonUnion

15、WorldChampion.Sincethen,shehasneverfinishedlowerthanfourthinanyoftheworldchampionshipsshehascompetedin.AttheSydneyOlympicsin2000shewonthesilvermedalintheWomen'sTriathlon,thefirsttimetheeventhadbeenincludedintheOlympicGames.Recently,forthefirsttimein15years,Joneswasnotselectedaspartofthenationalt

16、eamandthereforedidnotcompeteinthe2004OlympicsinAthens.FuMingxiaDateofBirth:16thAugust,1978Country:ChinaFuMingxiafirststoodontopofthe10-metredivingplatformattheageofnine.At12yearsoldshewonaGuinnessRecordwhenshebecametheyoungestfemaletowinthewomen'sworldtitleforplatformdivingattheWorldChampionship

17、sinAustraliain1991.Atthe1992BarcelonaOlympicGames,shetookthegoldmedalinthewomen's10-metreplatform,becomingtheyoungestOlympicdivingchampionofalltime.Thiswasfollowedbygreatsuccessatthe1996AtlantaOlympicGameswhereshewongoldforboththe10-metreplatformandthethree-metrespringboard.Thismadeherthefirstwo

18、maninOlympicdivinghistorytowinthreegoldmedals.SheretiredfromdivingafterAtlantaandwenttostudyeconomicsatuniversity.WhilethereshedecidedtomakeacomebackandwentontocompeteattheSydneyOlympicGames,whereshewonherfourthOlympicgold,againmakingOlympichistory.MartinStrelDateofBirth:1stOctober,1954Country:Slove

19、niaStrelwastrainedasaguitaristbeforehebecameaprofessionalmarathonswimmerin1978.Hehasapassionforswimmingtheworld'sgreatrivers.In2000,hewasthefirstpersonevertoswimtheentirelengthoftheDanubeRiverinEurope-adistanceof3,004kilometresin58days.Forthis,heattainedhisfirstentryintheGuinnessBookofWorldRecor

20、ds.Thenin2001hebroketheGuinnessrecordfornon-stopswimming-kilometresintheDanubeRiverin84hoursand10minutes.MartinwonhisthirdentryintheGuinnessBookofWorldRecordsin2002whenhebeathisownrecordforlongdistanceswimmingbyswimmingthelengthoftheMississippiRiverinNorthAmericain68days,atotalof3,797kilometres.Then

21、in2003hebecamethefirstmantohaveswumthewhole1,929kilometresofthedifficultParanaRiverinSouth2004,StrelagainbrokehisownGuinnessrecordbyswimmingthelengthofthedangerousChangjiangRiver(4,600km),thethirdlongestfiverintheworld.選修9Unit2Sailingtheoceans-ReadingSRILINGTHEOCERNSWemaywellwonderhowseamenexploredt

22、heoceansbeforelatitudeandlongitudemadeitpossibletoplotaship'spositiononamap.Thevoyagesoftravellersbeforethe17thcenturyshowthattheywerenotatthemercyoftheseaeventhoughtheydidnothavemodernnavigationalaids.SohowdidtheynavigatesowellReadthesepagesfromanencyclopedia.Page1:UsingnaturetohelpKeepingalong

23、sidethecoastlineThisseemstohavebeenthefirstandmostusefulformofexplorationwhichcarriedtheminimumamountofrisk.UsingcelestialbodiesNorthStarAttheNorthPoletheNorthStarisatitshighestpositioninthesky,butattheequatoritisalongthehorizon.Soaccomplishednavigatorswereabletouseittoplottheirpositions.SunOnaclear

24、dayespeciallyduringthesummerthesailorscouldusethesunoverheadatmiddaytonavigateby.Theycanusetheheightofthesuntoworkouttheirlatitude.CloudsSeacaptainsobservedthecloudsoverislands.Thereisaspecialcloudformationwhichindicatesthereislandcloseby.UsingwildlifeSeaweedSailorsoftensawseaweedintheseaandcouldtel

25、lbythecolourandsmellhowlongithadbeenthem.Ifitwasfreshandsmelledstrongly,thentheshipwasclosetoland.BirdsSeabirdscouldbeusedtoshowthewaytolandwhenitwasnowheretobeseen.Intheeveningnestingbirdsreturntolandandtheirnests.Soseamencouldfollowthebirdstolandeveniftheywereoffshoreandintheopensea.Usingtheweathe

26、rFogFoggathersatseaaswellasoverstreamsorrivers.Seamenusedittohelpidentifythepositionofastreamorriverwhentheywereclosetoland.WindsWiseseamenusedthewindstodirecttheirsailing.Theycouldacceleratethespeed,buttheycouldalsobedangerous.SotheVikingswouldobservethewindsbeforeandduringtheiroutwardorreturnjourn

27、eys.UsingtheseaCertaintidesandcurrentscouldbeusedbyskillfulsailorstocarryshipstotheirskillshelpedsailorsexploretheseasanddiscovernewlands.Theyincreasedtheirabilitytonavigatenewseaswhentheyusedinstruments.Page2:UsingnavigationalinstrumentstohelpFindinglongitudeTherewasnosecuremethodofmeasuringlongitu

28、deuntilthe17thcenturywhentheBritishsolvedthistheoreticalproblem.Nobodyknewthattheearthmovedwestwards15degreeseveryhour,butsailorsdidknowanapproximatemethodofcalculatinglongitudeusingspeedandtime.Anearlymethodofmeasuringspeedinvolvedthrowingaknottedropetiedtoalogoverthesideoftheship.Theropewastiedtoa

29、logwhichwasthenthrownintothesea.Astheshipadvancedthroughthewatertheknotswerecountedastheypassedthroughaseaman'shands.Thenumberofknotsthatwerecountedduringafixedperiodoftimegavethespeedoftheshipinnauticalmilesperhour.Later,whenseamenbegantousethecompassinthe12thcenturytheycouldcalculatelongitudeu

30、singcomplicatedmathematicaltables.ThecompasshasaspecialmagneticpointerwhichalwaysindicatestheNorthPole,soitisusedtohelpfindthedirectionthattheshipneedstogo.Inthiswaytheshipcouldsetastraightcourseeveninthemiddleoftheocean.FindinglatitudeTheBearingCircleItwasthefirstinstrumenttomeasurethesun'sposi

31、tion.Aseamanwouldmeasurethesun'sshadowandcompareitwiththeheightofthesunatmidday.Thenhecouldtellifhewassailingonhiscorrectratherthanarandomcourse.ABearingCircleTheAstrolabeTheastrolabe,quadrantandsextantareallconnected.Theyaredevelopmentsofoneanother.Theearliest,theastrolabe,wasaspecialall-in-one

32、toolfortellingthepositionoftheshipinrelationtothesunandvariousstarswhichcoveredthewholesky.Thisgavetheseamenthelocaltimeandallowedthemtofindtheirlatitudeatsea.However,itwasawkwardtouseasoneofthepointsofreferencewasthemovingshipitself.TheQuadrantThiswasamorepreciseandsimplifiedversionoftheastrolabe.I

33、tmeasuredhowhighstarswereabovethehorizonusingaquartercircleratherthanthefullcircleofthewaseasiertohandlebecauseitwasmoreportable.Itsshortcomingwasthatitstillusedthemovingshipasoneofthefixedpointsofreference.Astheshiproseandplungedinthewaves,itwasextremelydifficulttobeaccuratewithanyreading.Thesextan

34、tThesextantwastheupdatedversionoftheastrolabeandquadrantwhichreducedthetendencytomakemistakes.Itprovedtobethemostaccurateandreliableoftheseearlynavigationalinstruments.Itworksbymeasuringtheanglebetweentwofixedobjectsoutsidetheshipusingtwomirrors.Thismadethecalculationsmorepreciseandeasiertodo.THEGRE

35、ATESTNAVIGATIONALJOURNEY:ALESSONINSURVIVALIamproudtohavesailedwithCaptainBlighonhisjourneyofover40daysthroughabout4,000milesinanopenboatacrossthePacificOceanin1789.Ouroutwardvoyageinthe"Bounty"toTahitihadbeenfilledwiththekindofincidentsthatIthoughtwouldbemystorieswhenIreturnedhome.Buthowwr

36、ongIwas!OnourdeparturefromTahiti,someofthecrewtookoverthedepositedthecaptainintoasmallboattolethimfindhisownwayhome.ButwhoelsewastogowithhimThoseofusonboardthe"Bounty"werecaughtinadilemma.Wasitbettertoriskcertaindeathbysittingclosetogetheronasmall,crowdedopenboatwithverylittlefoodandwaterO

37、rshouldonestayonthe"Bounty"withthecrewandfacecertaindeathfromtheBritishNavyifcaughtThedrawbackofstayingontheshipseemedtogrowasIthoughtabouthowwrongitwastotreatCaptainBlighinthisway.SoIjoinedhiminthesmallboat.Asduskfell,weseemedtofaceanuncertainfuture.Wehadnochartsandtheonlyinstrumentstheca

38、ptainwasallowedtotakewithhimwereacompassandaquadrant.Oncewewereatsea,ourroutineeverydaywasthesame.Atsunriseandsunsetthecaptainmeasuredourpositionusingthequadrantandsetthecourseusingthecompass.Itwasextremelydifficultforustogetacorrectreadingfromthequadrantastheboatmovedconstantly.Thecaptainusedasyste

39、mcalled"deadreckoning".Heknewtherewaslanddirectlynorthwestofouroriginalposition.Sohistaskwastomakesurewestayedonthatcourse.Asyoucanseefromthemapwekepttoastraightcourseprettywell.Inaddition,thecaptainkeptusallbusyreadingthetablestoworkoutourposition.Althoughthistookagreatdealoftime,itdidn&#

40、39;tmatter.Timewas,afterall,whatwehadalotof!Ourdailyfoodwassharedequallyamongusall:onepieceofbreadandonecupofwater.Itwasstarvationquantitiesbuttheextremelackofwaterwasthehardesttocopewithpsychologically.Imagineallthatwateraroundyou,butnoneofitwassafetodrinkbecausethesaltinitwoulddriveyoumad!Alltheti

41、methecaptaintriedtopreserveourgoodspiritsbytellingstoriesandtalkinghopefullyaboutwhatwewoulddowhenwegotbacktoEngland.Weonlyhalfbelievedhim.Thetensionintheboatgotworseasthesupplyoffoodandwatergraduallydisappeared.Wecouldforeseethatwewoulddieifwecouldnotreachlandverysoonandwesankgraduallyintoasleepy,h

42、alf-alivestate.Thecaptainwasasweakastherestofus,buthewasdeterminednottogiveup.Hecontinuedhisnavigationalmeasurementseveryday.Hekeptusbusyandtriedtotakeourmindsoffourstomachsandourthirst.Hekeptusalive.YoucouldnotimagineamoredisturbingsightthanwhatwelookedlikewhenarrivinginTimoroverfortydaysafterbeing

43、setlooseinoursmallboat.Ourclothesweretorn,wehadfeverandourfacesshowedthehardshipswehadsuffered.Butafterarest,somegoodmealsandsomenewclothes,everythingchanged.Wecouldn'tstoptalkingaboutourvoyageandeverybodywantedtohearaboutit.Weweretheheroeswhohadescapedthejawsofdeathbycompletingthegreatestnaviga

44、tionalfeatofalltime!選修9Unit3Australia-ReadingGLIMPSESOFAUSTRALIAAUSTRALIACapital:CanberraOffcialname:CommonwealthofAustraliaArea:7,686,850km2Population:20millionHighestpoint:MountKosciuszko,2,228metresabovesealevelLowestpoint:LakeEyre,15metresbelowsealevelAustraliaistheonlycountrythatisalsoacontinen

45、t.Itisthesixthlargestcountryintheworldandisinthesmallestcontinent-Oceania.Itisamainlydrycountrywithonlyafewcoastalareasthathaveadequaterainfalltosupportalargepopulation.Approximately80ofAustraliansliveinthesouth-easterncoastalarea,whichineludesAustralia'stwolargestcitiesMelbourneandSydney.Thecen

46、treofthecontinent,whichismainlydesertanddrygrassland,hasfewsettlements.Australiaisfamousforitshuge,openspaces,brightsunshine,enormousnumberofsheepandcattleanditsunusualwildlife,whichincludekangaroosandkoalas.Australiaisapopulardestinationwithtouristsfromallovertheworldwhocometoexperienceitsuniqueeco

47、logy.Australiaismadeupofsixstates.LikethestatesinAmerica,Australianstatesareautonomousinsomeareasofgovernment.However,Australiahasafederalgovernmentresponsibleformattersthataffectpeoplealloverthecountry,suchasdefence,foreignpolicyandtaxation.ThefederalparliamentislocatedinCanberra.CITIZENSHIPCEREMON

48、IESPLANNEDAROUNDAUSTRALIAOn26January,AustraliaDay,inover200locationsacrossthenation,morethan9,000peoplewillbecomeAustraliancitizens."Bythesecitizenshipceremonieswewelcomethosewhohavecomefromoverseasfrommanydifferentculturalandsocialbackgroundsintoourcommunitiesandournation,"saidtheMinister

49、forCitizenshipandMulticulturalAffairs."AustraliaDaycelebrationsthatincludepeoplefromsomanybirthplacesareanexcellentwaytoencouragetolerance,respectandfriendshipamongallthepeopleofAustralia."Mostcitizenshipceremonieswillbefollowedbydisplaysofsinginganddancingfrommanyofthemigrants'homelan

50、dsandthetastingoffoodfromallovertheworld.GobyplaneandseecloudsGobyTRAINandseeAustraliaEnjoy3nightsonboardtheIndian-PacificOnthis4,352-kmjourneyfromSydneytoPerthviaAdelaideyou'llviewsomeotAustraliasuniquesceneryfromthesuperbBlueMountainstothetreelessplainsoftheNuliarbor.Alongthewayyouwillspotafas

51、cinatingvarietyofwildlife.Enjoy2nightsonboardtheGhanAsyoutravelfromAdelaidetoDarwinviaAliceSprings,you'llobservesomeofAustralia'smostspectacularlandscapes-fromtherollinghillssurroundingAdelaidetotherustyredsofAustralia'scentreandthetropicalsplendourofDarwin.Formoreinformation,timetablesa

52、ndfaresgotoShenPing,Iwishyoucouldseethisamazingrock.ItispartofoneofAustralia's14WormHeritageSitesandrisesabout335metresoutofavast,flatsandyplain.Atdifferenttimesofthedayitappearstochangeco/our,fromgrey-redatsunrise,togoldenandfinallytoburningredatdusk.AboriginalpeoplehavelivednearUluruforthousan

53、dsofyearsandyoutcansacred.IndianwalkarounditwithanAboriainalguidetolearnabouttheircustoms,art,religionandday-to-daylife.Itisalsopossibletoclimbtherock,butmostpeopledon'tdothisoutofrespectforI'llbebackinSydneyinPacifictraintoPerth.theAboriginalpeoplewhoconsidertherocktobeafortnightbecauseI

54、9;vemadeareservationontheloveJackToursoutsideHobartDrive250kmnorthwestwardsfromHobartalongtheA10highwayandyou'llarriveatthesouthernendofthemagnificentCradleMountainNationalParkandWorldHeritagearea.Thisparkisfamousforitsmountainpeaks,lakesandancientforests.Apopularattractionforactivetouristsisthe

55、80-kmwalkingtrackthatjoinsthesouthernandnorthernendsofthepark.Therearealsoarangeofshortwalks.ReadinganddiscussingBeforeyoureadthefollowingtext,readthetitleandlookatthepictures.Discusswithapartnerwhatyouexpecttoreadaboutinthetext.AUSTRALI'ASDANGEROUSCREATURESAustraliaishometomorethan170differentk

56、indsofsnakeand115ofthesearepoisonous.Infact,Australiahasmorekindsofvenomoussnakethananyothercountryintheworld.Luckily,thepoisonofmostsnakescankillorparalyzeonlysmallfewvarieties,however,cankillhumans,soitisjustaswellthatsnakesareveryshyandusuallyattackonlyiftheyaredisturbedandfeelthreatened.Thereare

57、alsoapproximately2,000differentkindsofspiderinAustraliaand,likesnakes,mosthaveapoisonousbite.However,themajorityhavenoeffectonhumansorcauseonlymildafewhavevenomthatispowerfulenoughtokillahumanbeing.WhileasmallnumberofAustraliansarebittenbyspiderseachyear,mostrecoverwithoutanymedicaltreatment.Theseas

58、aroundAustraliacontainover160differentkindsofshark,whichvaryinsizefromjust20centimetrestoover14metres.However,althoughtheylookdangerousbecauseoftheirwidemouthsandsharpteeth,allbuttwoorthreekindsareharmlesstohumans.Anotherpotentiallydangerousseaanimalisthejellyfish.Mostkindsofpoisonousjellyfishcancau

59、seseverepaintoanyonewhotouchesthembutthepoisonoftheboxjellyfishcanactuallykillahuman,especiallyifthatpersonhasaweakheart.Thetiniestamountofpoisonfromaboxjellyfishcankillinlessthanfiveminutesanditisprobablythemostpoisonousanimalintheworld.ThereisoneotherdangerousanimalinAustraliaworthmentioning,andthatisthecrocodile.AlthoughtwotypesofcrocodileliveinAustralia,onlythesaltwatercrocodilehasbeenknowntokillhumans.Thiscrocodilemovesveryquicklywhenitseessomethingitconsiderstobefood,andfromtimetotimeacrocodilehassnatchedsomeoneb