大學(xué)英語自學(xué)教程 課文及翻譯

大學(xué)英語自學(xué)教程（上冊(cè)）課文及翻譯六篇Ol-A.Howtobeasuccessfullanguagelearner?“Learningalanguageiseasy,evenachildcandoit!”Mostadultswhoarelearningasecondlanguagewoulddisagreewiththisstatement.Forthem,learningalanguageisaverydifficulttask.Theyneedhundredsofhoursofstudyandpractice,andeventhiswillnotguaranteesuccessforeveryadultlanguagelearner.Languagelearningisdifferentfromotherkindsoflearning.Somepeoplewhoareveryintelligentandsuccessfulintheirfieldsfinditdifficulttosucceedinlanguagelearning.Conversely,somepeoplewhoaresuccessfullanguagelearnersfinditdifficulttosucceedinotherfields.Languageteachersoftenofferadvicetolanguagelearners:"Readasmuchasyoucaninthenewlanguage.”“Practicespeakingthelanguageeveryday.”“Livewithpeoplewhospeakthelanguage.”“Don'ttranslate-trytothinkinthenewlanguage.”“Learnasachildwou1dlearn;playwiththelanguage.”Butwhatdoesasuccessfullanguagelearnerdo?Languagelearningresearchshowsthatsuccessfullanguagelearnersaresimilarinmanyways.Firstofall,successfullanguagelearnersareindependentlearners.Theydonotdependonthebookortheteacher;theydiscovertheirownwaytolearnthelanguage.Insteadofwaitingfortheteachertoexplain,theytrytofindthepatternsandtherulesforthemselves.Theyaregoodguesserswholookforcluesandformtheirownconclusions.Whentheyguesswrong,theyguessagain.Theytrytolearnfromtheirmistakes.Successfullanguagelearningisactivelearning.Therefore,successfullearnersdonotwaitforachancetousethelanguage;theylookforsuchachance.Theyfindpeoplewhospeakthelanguageandtheyaskthesepeopletocorrectthemwhentheymakeamistake.Theywilltryanythingtocommunicate.Theyarenotafraidtorepeatwhattheyhearortosaystrangethings;theyarewillingtomakemistakesandtryagain.Whencommunicationisdifficult,theycanacceptinformationthatisinexactorincomplete.Itismorefood.Butnoonehasbeenabletoprovethatfishisanybetterforthebrainthanmanyotherkindsoffood.Anothersuchideaisthatyoushouldnotdrinkwaterwithmeals.Washingfooddownwithwaterasasubstituteforchewingisnotagoodidea,butsomewaterwithmealshasbeenfoundtobehelpful.Itmakesthedigestivejuicesflowmorefreelyandhelpstodigestthefood.Manyoftheideaswhichscientiststellushavenofoundationhavetodowithmixturesoffoods.Afewyearsagothebeliefbecamegeneralthatorangejuiceandmilkshouldneverbedrunkatthesamemeal.Thereasongivenwasthattheacidintheorangejuicewou1dmakethemilkcurdleandbecomeindigestible.Asamatteroffact,milkalwaysmeetsinthestomachadigestivejuicewhichcurdlesit;thecurdlingofthemilkisthefirststepinitsdigestion.Asimilarwrongideaisthatfishandicecreamwheneatenatthesamemealformapoisonouscombination.Stillanotherwrongideaaboutmixingfoodsisthatproteinsandcarbohydratesshouldneverbeeatenatthesamemeal.Manypeoplethinkofbread,forexample,asacarbohydratefood.Itischieflyacarbohydratefood,butitalsocontainsproteins.Inthesameway,milk,probablythebestsinglefood,containsbothproteinsandcarbohydrates.Itisjustasfoolishtosaythatoneshouldnevereatmeatandpotatoestogetherasitistosaythatoneshouldnevereatbreadordrinkmilk.【課文譯文】對(duì)食物的錯(cuò)誤看法很多原始民族認(rèn)為吃某種動(dòng)物可以使他們獲得這種動(dòng)物的一些好的品質(zhì)。例如，他們認(rèn)為吃鹿可以使他們跑得像鹿一樣快。一些野蠻部落相信，吃戰(zhàn)爭中表現(xiàn)勇敢的敵人會(huì)使他們勇敢。吃人現(xiàn)象開始發(fā)生可能是因?yàn)槿藗兛释兊孟袼麄兊臄橙四菢訌?qiáng)壯、勇敢。一些文明人曾經(jīng)認(rèn)為，姜根有某種魔力，能改善他們的記憶力。蛋能美化他們的聲音。也有人認(rèn)為西紅柿有魔力。西紅柿被稱為愛的蘋果，他們認(rèn)為吃西紅柿能使人墜入愛河。后來又出現(xiàn)了另一個(gè)關(guān)于西紅柿的錯(cuò)誤觀點(diǎn)一一西紅柿有毒。如果認(rèn)為西紅柿有毒的人知道二戰(zhàn)中數(shù)百萬磅的西紅柿提供給了在海外的戰(zhàn)士們，他們會(huì)多么吃驚！甚至在今天也有很多關(guān)于食物的錯(cuò)誤看法，其中一些看法很普遍。一種想法認(rèn)為魚是最佳益腦食物。魚是有益于大腦的食物，就像它對(duì)肌肉、皮膚、骨骼一樣有益。但是沒有人能夠證明對(duì)于大腦來說魚比其他種類的食物更好。另外一種想法認(rèn)為，吃飯的時(shí)候不應(yīng)該喝水。雖然用水把食物沖下去來代替咀嚼不是個(gè)好主意，但是人們發(fā)現(xiàn)吃飯時(shí)喝點(diǎn)水是有益的。水能使消化液更自由地流動(dòng)，有助于消化食物。很多想法是關(guān)于食物混在一起吃的，而科學(xué)家告訴我們，這些想法毫無根據(jù)。幾年前有一種很普遍的看法，認(rèn)為不能在同一餐中喝桔子汁和牛奶，其理由是桔子汁中的酸性物質(zhì)能使牛奶凝結(jié)而難以消化。事實(shí)上，牛奶在胃里總會(huì)遇到一種使它凝結(jié)的消化液，而這種凝結(jié)是消化的第一步。類似的一種錯(cuò)誤想法認(rèn)為在同一餐中吃魚和冰淇淋會(huì)形成一種有毒的化合物。還有一種關(guān)于食物混在一起吃的錯(cuò)誤想法，即不能在同一餐中吃蛋白質(zhì)食物和淀粉質(zhì)食物。例如，很多人認(rèn)為面包是一種淀粉質(zhì)食物。雖然面包主要是一種淀粉質(zhì)食物，但它也含有蛋白質(zhì)。同樣，牛奶可能是最好的單一食物，但它也含有蛋白質(zhì)和淀粉。不要吃面包喝牛奶，這種說法是愚蠢的，就像說不要把肉類和土豆一起食用一樣。大學(xué)英語自學(xué)教程（上冊(cè)）unit19動(dòng)物瀕危，誰來關(guān)心19-A.AnimalsatRisk:WhoCares?Ananimalspeciesbecomesextinctwhenitfailstoproduceenoughyoungineachgenerationtokeeppacewiththedeath-rate.Wecantellfromfossilevidenceinrocksthatmanylivingspecieshavebecomeextinctoverthemillionsofyearssincelifebegan.Itisanaturalprocessandextinctionisthefateofanyanimalthathasspecializedtoofartochangewhenitsenvironmentchanges,orhastocompetewithabetter-adaptedandmorepowerfulanimal.Becauseofremarkabletechnicaldevelopmentsduringthepastfewcenturies,manhasdestroyedornearlydestroyedsomespeciesbykillingthematsucharatethattheycouldn'tproduceenoughoffspring,orbycompletelychangingtheirnaturalenvironmentatsurprisingspeed.Anumberofexamplescanbegivenofthewayinwhichnaturalenvironmentsarebeingrapidlychanged-Amazonia,forinstance.Thereiseverylikelihoodthatmanyspeciesofanimalswillbemadeextinctbecauseoftheseandsimilarclearancesofnaturalvegetation.Largenumbersofanimalshavebeenhuntedandkilledforfood.TheNorthAmericanbuffaloisacaseofthenear-extinctionofaspeciesthroughhunting.Oftenthenumbersaresogreatthehuntersmaynotrealizethedanger.Butevenwhenthedangeriswidelypublicized,thefinancialrewardsforthehuntersmaybesogreatthattheychoosetoignorethethreattothespecies.Attitudeslikethishaveledtohunterskillinganimalsforfurs,forivoryormerelyforornaments.Aslightvariationonthisiswhentouristshuntanimalsfortrophies.Magnificentcreaturessuchaslionsandtigershavebeenhuntedoutofexistenceinsomepartsoftheworld.Itisimportanttorealize,though,thatanimalsaresometimeskilledoutoffear.Bigcatsarekilledinthisway.Andanimalsaresometimeskilledoutofawishtoreducenumberstohelpthespeciestosurvive.ThekillingoftheCanadiansealsisclaimedtobeforthispurpose,andtheuseoftheirskinsforfursisonlyabyproduct.Manypeopleareconcernedaboutanimalsandwildlifeconservation.Onewaytopreservespeciesunderthreatofextinction-whateverthecause-istoremovethemtozoosandparksandbreedthemthere.Thereisalwaysthechancethatenoughoffspringwillbeborntoreturnthemonedaytotheirnaturalenvironment-provideditstillexists,andthathuntersdon'tkillthemagain!Anothermethodistoprotecttheanimalsintheirnaturalenvironmentbycreatingwildlifereservesandparksandusinggamewardenstolookafterthem.Buttheparksarelarge,thewardensfewandthedeterminationofhuntersverygreat.Earlyin1980wardensandhuntersclashedinEastAfrica.Thehunterswerearmedwithmodernweaponsandseveralpeoplewerekilled.Thereisgreatpleasureinwatchingwildlifeinnaturalornearnaturalenvironments,andtourismcanaddtotheincomeofcountries.Theanimalsarestillresources-butinaverydifferentform.【課文譯文】動(dòng)物瀕危，誰來關(guān)心當(dāng)一種動(dòng)物不能在每一代都繁殖出足夠的后代而與其死亡率保持一致時(shí)，它就會(huì)逐漸滅絕了。我們可根據(jù)巖石里的化石得出結(jié)論：自生命開始數(shù)百萬年以來，許多物種已經(jīng)滅絕了。這是一個(gè)自然過程，任何一種過于特化而不能隨環(huán)境改變而改變的動(dòng)物，或者任何一種與適應(yīng)性更強(qiáng)、更厲害的動(dòng)物來競爭的動(dòng)物，滅絕都是其必然的命運(yùn)。由于近兒個(gè)世紀(jì)技術(shù)的迅猛發(fā)展，人類大量捕殺動(dòng)物以致其繁殖不出足夠多的后代，或者以驚人的速度改變它們生存的自然環(huán)境，結(jié)果一些動(dòng)物被毀滅或幾乎被毀滅了。很多例子都可以說明自然環(huán)境是如何迅速被改變的，亞馬遜尼亞國家公園就是一個(gè)例子。很有可能，許多種動(dòng)物將由于自然植物在這些或類似的地方被砍伐殆盡而瀕于滅絕。大量的動(dòng)物被捕殺用作食物。北美野牛就是一個(gè)因捕獵而近于滅絕的例子。動(dòng)物的數(shù)量常常很大，因而捕獵者可能意識(shí)不到它們存在滅絕的危險(xiǎn)。但即使這種危險(xiǎn)被廣而告之，捕獵者為獲取巨大經(jīng)濟(jì)利益，可能會(huì)無視動(dòng)物的存亡。這種思想使獵人為獲取毛皮、象牙或僅僅為了做一些裝飾品而捕殺動(dòng)物。與此略有不同的是旅游者為了留個(gè)紀(jì)念而追殺動(dòng)物。獅子、老虎之類的大型動(dòng)物在世界一些地方已被殺光。但有時(shí)人捕殺動(dòng)物是由于害怕動(dòng)物，認(rèn)識(shí)這一點(diǎn)非常重要，大型的貓科動(dòng)物就是這樣被捕殺的。有時(shí)為了幫助動(dòng)物生存要捕殺一些以減少其數(shù)量。據(jù)說加拿大殺海豹就是出于這個(gè)目的，而用海豹皮制革只是附帶的。許多人關(guān)心動(dòng)物及野生動(dòng)物的保護(hù)。不管動(dòng)物瀕危的原因是什么，保護(hù)方法其一就是把它們遷移到動(dòng)物園和公園，在那兒喂養(yǎng)它們。完全有可能等它們繁殖出足夠數(shù)量的后代以后，將來有一天放它們回歸自然，其條件是它們還存活而且獵人不再捕殺。另一種方法是在動(dòng)物生存的自然環(huán)境里創(chuàng)建野生動(dòng)物保護(hù)區(qū)，由管理人員負(fù)責(zé)照料它們。然而保護(hù)區(qū)面積很大，管理人員少，但獵人捕殺動(dòng)物的決心卻很大。1980年初，在東部非洲，管理員與獵人發(fā)生過沖突。獵人持有現(xiàn)代化武器，有數(shù)人死亡。在自然環(huán)境或接近自然環(huán)境里觀賞野生動(dòng)物是很有趣的，旅游業(yè)也可以給國家增加收入。動(dòng)物仍然是資源，但它們是另一種形式的資源。importantforthemtolearntothinkinthelanguagethantoknowthemeaningofeveryword.Finally,successfullanguagelearnersarelearnerswithapurpose.Theywanttolearnthelanguagebecausetheyareinterestedinthelanguageandthepeoplewhospeakit.Itisnecessaryforthemtolearnthelanguageinordertocommunicatewiththesepeopleandtolearnfromthem.Theyfinditeasytopracticeusingthelanguageregularlybecausetheywanttolearnwithit.Whatkindoflanguagelearnerareyou?Ifyouareasuccessfullanguagelearner,youhaveprobablybeenlearningindependently,actively,andpurposefully.Ontheotherhand,ifyourlanguagelearninghasbeenlessthansuccessful,youmightdowelltotrysomeofthetechniquesoutlinedabove.【譯文】怎樣成為一名成功的語言學(xué)習(xí)者“學(xué)習(xí)一門語言很容易，即使小孩也能做得到?！贝蠖鄶?shù)正在學(xué)習(xí)第二語言的成年人會(huì)不同意這種說法。對(duì)他們來說，學(xué)習(xí)一門語言是非常困難的事情。他們需要數(shù)百小時(shí)的學(xué)習(xí)與練習(xí)，即使這樣也不能保證每個(gè)成年語言學(xué)習(xí)者都能學(xué)好。語言學(xué)習(xí)不同于其他學(xué)習(xí)。許多人很聰明，在自己的領(lǐng)域很成功，但他們發(fā)現(xiàn)很難學(xué)好一門語言。相反，一些人學(xué)習(xí)語言很成功，但卻發(fā)現(xiàn)很難在其他領(lǐng)域有所成就。語言教師常常向語言學(xué)習(xí)者提出建議：“要用新的語言盡量多閱讀”，“每天練習(xí)說這種語言”，“與說這種語言的人住在一起”，“不要翻譯一一盡量用這種新的語言去思考”，“要像孩子學(xué)語言一樣去學(xué)習(xí)新語言”，“放松地去學(xué)習(xí)語言?！比欢?，成功的語言學(xué)習(xí)者是怎樣做的呢?語言學(xué)習(xí)研究表明，成功的語言學(xué)習(xí)者在許多方面都有相似之處。首先，成功的語言學(xué)習(xí)者獨(dú)立學(xué)習(xí)。他們不依賴書本和老師，而且能找到自己學(xué)習(xí)語言的方法。他們不是等待老師來解釋，而是自己盡力去找到語言的句式和規(guī)則。他們尋找線索并由自己得出結(jié)論，從而做出正確的猜測。如果猜錯(cuò)，他們就再猜一遍。他們都努力從錯(cuò)誤中學(xué)習(xí)。成功的語言學(xué)習(xí)是一種主動(dòng)的學(xué)習(xí)。因此，成功的語言學(xué)習(xí)者不是坐等時(shí)機(jī)而是主動(dòng)尋找機(jī)會(huì)來使用語言。他們找到（說）這種語言的人進(jìn)行練習(xí)，出錯(cuò)時(shí)請(qǐng)這些人糾正。他們不失時(shí)機(jī)地進(jìn)行交流，不怕重復(fù)所聽到的話，也不怕說出離奇的話，他們不在乎出錯(cuò)，并樂于反復(fù)嘗試。當(dāng)交流困難時(shí)，他們可以接受不確切或不完整的信息。對(duì)他們來說，更重要的是學(xué)習(xí)用這種語言思考，而不是知道每個(gè)詞的意思。最后，成功的語言學(xué)習(xí)者學(xué)習(xí)目的明確。他們想學(xué)習(xí)一門語言是因?yàn)樗麄儗?duì)這門語言以及說這種語言的人感興趣。他們有必要學(xué)習(xí)這門語言去和那些人交流并向他們學(xué)習(xí)。他們發(fā)現(xiàn)經(jīng)常練習(xí)使用這種語言很容易，因?yàn)樗麄兿肜眠@種語言來學(xué)習(xí)。你是什么樣的語言學(xué)習(xí)者?如果你是一位成功的語言學(xué)習(xí)者，那么你大概一直在獨(dú)立地、主動(dòng)地、目的明確地學(xué)習(xí)。另一方面,如果你的語言學(xué)習(xí)一直不太成功,你不妨試試上面提到的一些技巧。大學(xué)英語自學(xué)教程(上冊(cè))unit02稅、稅、還是稅02-A.Taxes,Taxes,andMoreTaxesAmericansoftensaythatthereareonlytwothingsapersoncanbesureofinlife:deathandtaxes,Americansdonothaveacorneronthe"death"market,butmanypeoplefeelthattheUnitedStatesleadstheworldwiththeworsttaxes.Taxesconsistofthemoneywhichpeoplepaytosupporttheirgovernment.TherearegenerallythreelevelsofgovernmentintheUnitedStates:federal,state,andcity;therefore,therearethreetypesoftaxes.Salariedpeoplewhoearnmorethanafewthousanddollarsmustpayacertainpercentageoftheirsalariestothefederalgovernment.Thepercentagevariesfrompersontoperson.Itdependsontheirsalaries.Thefederalgovernmenthasagraduatedincometax,thatis,thepercentageofthetax(14to70percent)increasesasaperson5sincomeincreases.Withthehighcostoftaxes,peoplearenotveryhappyonApril15,whenthefederaltaxesaredue.Thesecondtaxisforthestategovernment:NewYork,California,NorthDakota,oranyoftheotherforty-sevenstates.Somestateshaveanincometaxsimilartothatofthefederalgovernment.Ofcourse,thepercentageforthestatetaxislower.Otherstateshaveasalestax,whichisapercentagechargedtoanyitemwhichyoubuyinthatstate.Forexample,apersonmightwanttobuyapacketofcigarettesfortwenty-fivecents.Ifthereisasalestaxofeightpercentinthatstate,thenthecostofthecigarettesistwentysevencents.Thisfigureincludesthesalestax.Somestatesuseincometaxinadditiontosalestaxtoraisetheirrevenues.Thestatetaxlawsarediverseandconfusing.Thethirdtaxisforthecity.Thistaxcomesintwoforms:propertytax（peoplewhoownahomehavetopaytaxesonit）andexcisetax,whichischargedoncarsinacity.Thecitiesusethesefundsforeducation,policeandfiredepartments,publicworksandmunicipalbuildings.SinceAmericanspaysuchhightaxes,theyoftenfeelthattheyareworkingonedayeachweekjusttopaytheirtaxes.Peoplealwayscomplainabouttaxes.Theyoftenprotestthatthegovernmentusestheirtaxdollarsinthewrongway.Theysaythatitspendstoomuchonuselessandimpracticalprograms.AlthoughAmericanshavedifferentviewsonmanyissues,theytendtoagreeononesubject:taxesaretoohigh.【課文譯文】稅、稅、還是稅美國人常說，人的一生有兩件事可以肯定會(huì)發(fā)生：死亡和稅收。美國人并不壟斷死亡市場，但許多人卻感到美國以最重的賦稅領(lǐng)先于世界。稅指人們?yōu)橹С终U納的資金。在美國通常有三級(jí)政府：聯(lián)邦政府，州政府及市政府，因此就存在三種稅。收入超過幾千元的工薪人士必須向聯(lián)邦政府繳納一定比率的稅金。這一比率因人而異，取決于各人的工資數(shù)。聯(lián)邦政府實(shí)行累進(jìn)收入所得稅制，也就是說，稅率（14%?70%）隨個(gè)人收入的增加而增加，由于高額稅收，人們?cè)?月15日很不愉快，因?yàn)檫@一天是繳納稅款的日子。第二種稅是繳納給州政府的，這些州包括紐約，加利福尼亞，北達(dá)科他以及其他47個(gè)州中的任何一個(gè)。一些州的收入所得稅的收取辦法同聯(lián)邦政府的相似，當(dāng)然其稅率要低一些。一些州設(shè)有銷售稅，即對(duì)你在該州所購買的任何商品所收的一定比率的?稅金。比如，某人想買一包25美分的煙。如果該州收取8%的銷售稅，那么買這包煙要花27美分，這一錢數(shù)就包括銷售稅。一些州利用收入所得稅外加銷售稅的辦法來提高稅收，各州的稅收法規(guī)五花八門，令人費(fèi)解。第三種稅是向市政府繳納的。這種稅有兩種：一種是財(cái)產(chǎn)稅（擁有房屋的人都必須交稅），另一種是本國消費(fèi)稅，即對(duì)城市汽車所征收的稅金。城市將這些資金用于教育、警察和消防部門、公共設(shè)施及市政建設(shè)。由于美國人須付高額稅金，所以他們經(jīng)常感到每周有一天純粹是在為繳稅而工作。人們總是在抱怨稅收太高。他們常常抗議政府濫用他們的稅金。他們說政府將太多的錢花在無用且不符合實(shí)際的項(xiàng)目上了。盡管美國人在很多問題上有不同的看法，但他們?cè)谝粋€(gè)話題上的意見總是一致的：稅收太高。大學(xué)英語自學(xué)教程(上冊(cè))unit03大西洋03-A.TheAtlanticOceanTheAtlanticOceanisoneoftheoceansthatseparatetheOldWorldfromtheNew.ForcenturiesitkepttheAmericasfrombeingdiscoveredbythepeopleofEurope.ManywrongideasabouttheAtlanticmadeearlysailorsunwillingtosailfaroutintoit.Oneideawasthatitreachedoutto"theedgeoftheworld.〃Sailorswereafraidthattheymightsailrightofftheearth.Anotherideawasthatattheequatortheoceanwouldbeboilinghot.TheAtlanticOceanisonlyhalfasbigasthePacific,butitisstillverylarge.Itismorethan4,000miles(6,000km)widewhereColumbuscrossedit.Evenatitsnarrowestitisabout2,000miles(3,200km)wide.ThisnarrowestplaceisbetweenthebulgeofsouthAmericaandthebulgeofAfrica.TwothingsmaketheAtlanticOceanratherunusual.Forsolargeanoceanithasveryfewislands.Also,itistheworld，ssaltiestocean.ThereissomuchwaterintheAtlanticthatitishardtoimaginehowmuchthereis.Butsupposenomorerainfellintoitandnomorewaterwasbroughttoitbyrivers.Itwouldtaketheoceanabout4,000yearstodryup.Ontheaveragethewaterisalittlemorethantwomiles(3.2km)deep,butinplacesitismuchdeeper.ThedeepestspotisnearPuertoRico.This〃deep〃30,246feet-almostsixmiles(9.6km).OneofthelongestmountainrangesoftheworldrisestheflooroftheAtlantic.Thismountainrangerunsnorthandsouthdownthemiddleoftheocean.Thetopsofafewofthemountainsreachupabovetheseaandmakeislands.TheAzoresarethetopsofpeaksinthemid-Atlanticmountainrange.SeveralhundredmileseastwardfromFloridathereisapartoftheoceancalledtheSargassoSea.Herethewaterisquiet,forthereislittlewind.Inthedaysofsailingvesselsthecrewwereafraidtheywouldbebecalmedhere.Sometimestheywere.Oceancurrentsaresometimecalled"riversinthesea.〃Oneofthese，，river/，intheAtlanticiscalledtheGulfStream.Itisacurrentofwarmwater.AnotheristheLabradorCurrent-coldwatercomingdownfromtheArctic.Oceancurrentsaffecttheclimatesofthelandsnearwhichtheyf1ow.TheAtlanticfurnishesmuchfoodforthepeopleonitsshores.Oneofitsmostfamousfishingregions,theGrandBanks,isnearNewfoundland.TodaytheAtlanticisagreathighway.Itisnot,however,alwaysasmoothandsafeone.Stormssweepacrossitandpileupgreatwaves.IcebergsfloatdownfromtheFarNorthacrossthepathsofships.Wenowhavesuchfastwaysoftravelingthatthisbigoceanseemstohavegrownsmaller.Columbussailedformorethantwomonthstocrossit.Afastmodernsteamshipcanmakethetripinlessthanfourdays.AirplanesflyfromNewYorktoLondoninonlyeighthoursandfromSouthAmericatoAfricainfour!【課文譯文】大西洋大西洋是將歐洲和美洲分隔開的海洋之一。它使南北美洲長達(dá)幾個(gè)世紀(jì)之久都未被人發(fā)現(xiàn)。人們對(duì)大西洋有許多誤解，這使得早期的海員不愿意遠(yuǎn)航駛?cè)氪笪餮蟆Ｒ环N想法是大西洋遠(yuǎn)抵“世界的邊緣”，海員們擔(dān)心他們會(huì)一直航行到地球邊上掉落下去。另一個(gè)想法是在赤道處，大西洋的海水是滾燙的。大西洋的面積只是太平洋的一半，但也非常遼闊。哥倫布穿越過的地方寬達(dá)4000多英里（6000公里）。即使最窄的地方寬度也有大約2000英里（3200公里），這是一片位于南美洲最東端與非洲最西端之間的水域。大西洋有兩點(diǎn)非同尋常。其一是在如此遼闊的海洋里少有島嶼。另外，大西洋是世界上含鹽量最高的海洋。大西洋海水量很大，人們無法想像到底有多少水。但如果假設(shè)不再有降雨和河水注入，則需4000年大西洋才會(huì)干涸。大西洋平均水深有2英里（3.2公里）多一點(diǎn)，但有些地方要深得多。最深處在波多黎各島附近，深達(dá)30246英尺——約6英里（9.6公里）。世界上最長的山脈之一從大西洋海底隆起，這條山脈沿海底中部向南北延伸，幾座山峰露出海面，形成島嶼。亞速爾群島就是大西洋中部山脈露出水面的幾座山峰。佛羅里達(dá)州向東幾百英里有一處海域叫馬尾藻海，這里由于很少刮風(fēng)，海面很平靜。在使用帆船的時(shí)代，船員們擔(dān)心他們會(huì)因無風(fēng)而在此處無法航行。有時(shí)他們確實(shí)會(huì)遇到這種情況。海流有時(shí)被稱作“海洋中的河流”。大西洋有一條這種“河流”，叫做墨西哥灣流，這是一股暖水流；另外一條是拉布拉多海流一一這是來自北冰洋的冷水流。洋流對(duì)流域附近大陸的氣候有影響。大西洋為兩岸的人們提供了豐富的食物。大淺灘是最著名的捕魚區(qū)之一，位于紐芬蘭附近。今天，大西洋是一條重要的航路，這條航路并不總是風(fēng)平浪靜，毫無危險(xiǎn)。暴風(fēng)雨會(huì)掠過洋面，堆起大浪。從北冰洋漂來的冰山也會(huì)橫穿航道。我們現(xiàn)在有快捷的旅行方式，這個(gè)大洋似乎也變小了。哥倫布橫越大西洋用了兩個(gè)多月的時(shí)間，一艘現(xiàn)代化快輪不到4天就可完成這一航程，而乘飛機(jī)從紐約到倫敦只用8小時(shí)，從南美到非洲只用4小時(shí)。大學(xué)英語自學(xué)教程（上冊(cè)）unit04改善你的記憶力04-A.ImprovingYourMemoryPsychologicalresearchhasfocusedonanumberofbasicprinciplesthathelpmemory:meaningfulness,organization,association,andvisualization.Itisusefultoknowhowtheseprincipleswork.Meaningfulnessaffectsmemoryatalllevels.Informationthatdoesnotmakeanysensetoyouisdifficulttoremember.Thereareseveralwaysinwhichwecanmakematerialmoremeaningful.Manypeople,forinstance,learnarhymetohelpthemremember.Doyouknowtherhyme“ThirtydayshasSeptember,April,June,andNovember-**?”Ithelpsmanypeoplerememberwhichmonthsoftheyearhave30days.Organizationalsomakesadifferenceinourabilitytoremember.Howusefulwouldalibrarybeifthebookswerekeptinrandomorder?Materialthatisorganizedisbetterrememberedthanjumbledinformation.Oneexampleoforganizationischunking.Chunkingconsistsofgroupingseparatebitsofinformation.Forexample,thenumber4671363ismoreeasilyrememberedifitischunkedas467,13,63.Categorizingisanothermeansoforganization.Supposeyouareaskedtorememberthefollowinglistofwords:man,bench,dog,desk,woman,horse,child,cat,chair.Manypeoplewillgroupthewordsintosimilarcategoriesandrememberthemasfollows:man,woman,child;cat,dog,horse;bench,chair,desk.Needlesstosay,thesecondlistcanberememberedmoreeasilythanthefirstone.Associationreferstotakingthematerialwewanttorememberandrelatingittosomethingwerememberaccurately.Inmemorizinganumber,youmighttrytoassociateitwithfamiliarnumbersorevents.Forexample,theheightofMountFujiinJapan-12,389feet-mightberememberedusingthefollowingassociations:12isthenumberofmonthsintheyear,and389isthenumberofdaysinayear(365)addedtothenumberofmonthstwice(24).Thelastprincipleisvisualization.Researchhasshownstrikingimprovementsinmanytypesofmemorytaskswhenpeopleareaskedtovisualizetheitemstoberemembered.Inonestudy,subjectsinonegroupwereaskedtolearnsomewordsusingimagery,whilethesecondgroupusedrepetitiontolearnthewords.Thoseusingimageryremembered80to90percentofthewords,comparedwith30to40percentofthewordsforthosewhomemorizedbyrepetition.Thusforminganintegrate