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北外英语中级听力-36

时间:2006-10-08 16:00来源:互联网 提供网友:KK320   字体: [ ]
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    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

  Just before I give a few details about the-er-fun aspect of computers that is, for use at home and for entertainment-I'd like to mention a couple of facts about the outlook for ISDN-that's the integrated services digital network-and it foresees a world-wide telecommunications network which could transmit telex1 and voice signals and, indeed, full-colour video images and high-speed computer data. Now, can you just imagine having a meeting with your colleagues around the world without even leaving your office? Well, that's what world-wide video teleconferencing can do, and it's on the cards that internal toll-free telephones may be available and also faster computer transmission with a digital network. And how are all these marvellous things achieved? Well, there are satellite relays, and digital packet switching, and laser devices which transmit over fibre-optic cables. But more about that another time.
And after that slight diversion I'll get back to a totally different aspect of modern technology-home computers, or PCs-that stands for personal computers. First, a bit of background. Some people attribute this growth industry to the recession which led to redundancies and a shorter working week, and this in turn led to more leisure time. So what are people doing with this extra free time that's on their hands? They're indulging in home entertainment, that's what! Hundreds of companies have sprung up to fill this gap, and the sports, DIY and home entertainment industries are achieving phenomenal success. In 1983 in the US, there were four million PCs, and game-playing was the principal use, with educational use a close second; and in third place was the financial function for things like budgeting, balancing cheque books, accounting2 and forecasting and so on.
To illustrate3 this with a few concrete figures, from the States again, in 1983, 52 per cent of the software was for entertainment programs, whereas only 16 percent was educational. Possibly this could be explained by the short life span of computer games, and having teenagers in the home was a decisive factor in the purchase of a personal computer, as households with children in this age-range were 50 per cent more likely to buy them. As far as the interest versus4 disapproval5 statistics go, in the 18-19 age-group, 25 per cent expressed interest in PCs and 18 per cent disapproval; and at the other end of the scale, the over-60s showed only 3 per cent interest and a resounding7 87 per cent disapproval!
And this trend towards PCs is likely to continue as users become more knowledgeable8 and want more expensive machines with all kinds of new things. And there's a wide range in sizes, too, as the portable market expands, and now you can buy a featherweight lap-size model that's less than 2 kg, or something larger at around 12 kg but still portable. Just to digress slightly, I'd like to point out that microtechnology has hit other aspects of the home and leisure industry as well. With more time on our hands it seems we're spending more time keeping fit, and fitness has become a real growth industry, and it seems prone9 to gadgetry10 as well! There are all sorts of new things on the market these days. Take, for example, the watches that monitor your pulse rate as you jog or do aerobics11, or exercise bicycles with sensors12 in the handgrips to check your pulse rate and then display it on a screen. And for those of you who remember that famous toy of the early 80s-Rubik's cube, the one with six sides, each composed of nine rotating faces, with 43 quintillion combinations-well, anyway, in a lab in the US they're working on a Cubot-that's a self-contained robot using microprocessors13 and mechanics-to solve it. But I'm getting off the track again, so back to our home computers with a final warning.
The technical innovations of the last couple of decades have led to a host of new words in our vocabulary, and one of these is hacker-that's H-A-C-K-E-R-and it simply means an enthusiast14 who breaks into computers. And, not so long ago in the States, teenagers who were hackers15 used their home computers to break into supposedly secure government and business computers, for example in banks, labs and research centres. They just tried out different passwords until they found the right one. And as one seventeen-year-old said, 'It was like child's play.' And all that's needed is a home computer and a modem-that's M-O-D-E-M-which is a device that allows computers to transmit data over the phone lines-and, of course, a basic knowledge of how to operate a computer! And this has led to tangled16 legal and ethical17 problems-but we won't go into that here. But, as you can see, home computers are indeed a handy thing to have around, not only for entertainment but also for educational value. And no doubt in future ...
Dade County, Florida, which includes the city of Miami, is a dangerous place to be these days, that according to a Miami Herald18 poll released this week. The survey reports that forty-two percent of people interviewed or their family members have been victims of burglary, robbery or assault in the past five years. Almost one half say they need guns to feel safe in Dade County, although most people won't say whether they do own weapons. The Herald conducted the survey in the wake of a widely publicized booby trap killing19, in which a store owner killed a would-be burglar. And now the poll suggests a lot more people want to take law into their own hands. Herald reporter Andre Vicluchee has been covering the story.
"The one part I think that that was a little surprising was the number of people who feel that it is okay to shoot, to kill an intruder that comes into your house. We found sixty-three percent feel that they should have the right to kill an intruder in their house.""Whether or not the person is armed or not only if ...""Whether they know or not if the person is armed. It surprised us; we figured there would be something of a hard-line attitude out there. But this was probably above what we expected.""Well, it seems, though, that people are perceiving at least in Dade County that crimes are really in bad situation that they are willing to do something about it with violence.""Yes. I went back and questioned more at length another fifteen or twenty responded from the poll. And they all seem to feel that, if they find themselves in a situation in which they have to take some action, even if it means killing somebody, they'll do it.""I'll take it that Miami Herald poll and perhaps that a lot of people's feelings about crimes stem in part from this case of the booby trap victim, a store owner booby trapped his variety store raider in a black neighborhood. Tell us about that case.""The man's name is Prentice Raschid. He is a black business man who has a small store in a black high-crime area of town. He has been burglarized, I think, seven or eight times over the past few weeks, had asked for help from the police and had not gotton any answer to his satisfaction. So he went ahead and set up an electrical booby trap in the store. About a week and a half ago one morning, they found a young man dead in the booby trap who had been electrocuted while trying to carry out some stuff from the store.""In what has the public reaction been then?""The public reaction has been an overwhelming support for Mr Raschid. He has been charged with man slaughter20, and with setting up an illegal man trap. But our poll found that seventy-nine percent of the population here feel he should not be prosecuted21.""Has this case, this booby trap case, led to inspire any other similar instances of citizen store-owners fighting back against burglars?""I don't know if it directly inspired them, but it may have been a coincidence. But in the following week there were another five incidents in which citizens, if you will, turn the tables on assailants. In fact these all six incidents left four people dead, four alleged22 criminals dead and two others wounded in the hospital.""Is there anything about Dade County that is making it a particularly blood thirsty place at the moment, as crime's really on the increase in Dade County . . .""I believe the situation is, we have a city here that has grown a lot in the last few years.""In what way? What's been the source of the growth?""Immigration for the most part, and lot of people coming in from Cuba, Cuban refugees, a lot of Haitian refugees, and from all over Latin America. What is interesting about the Raschid case in this context is that, as Mr Raschid has pointed23 out himself, that although he is a black business man operating in a black area, his support has come from all groups, Hispanic, white and black.""Andre, do you carry around a gun when you are doing your reporting?""I don't. But I know some reporters that do."Andre Vigluche is a reporter for the Miami Herald.
Technology and the Future (III)Now I would like to discuss environment, which is very much a function of transportation and communication. But it is also a function of population. As everybody knows, we are now in a population explosion-but probably around the turn of the century this particular explosion will be controlled and the world population may be shrinking again.
Nevertheless, even with a six billion population there may be more room than is generally imagined today. By the twenty-first century, agriculture will be on the way out. It's a ridiculous process: a whole acre is needed to feed one person, because growing plants are extremely inefficient24 devices for trapping sunlight. If we could develop a biological system working at a mere25 five per cent efficiency-today's solar cells can double that-it would require twenty square feet, not one acre, to feed one person.
Food production is the last major industry to yield to technology. Only now are we doing something about it, probably too little and too late.
One promising26 field of research is the production of proteins from petroleum27 by microbiological conversion28, which sounds most unappetizing-but we do use microbes to make wine. This process gives high-quality proteins, some of them better balanced for human consumption than natural vegetable proteins. It would take only three per cent of today's petroleum output to provide the total protein needs of the entire human race.
With the exception of luxury items-and the Russians, I've heard, have already started to export synthetic29 caviare-most foods will be factory-made in the next century. This will free vast areas of agricultural land for other purposes-living, parks, recreation, hunting-above all, for wilderness30.
As a source of raw materials, the sea seems inexhaustible. Any element you care to mention is there, in solution or lying on the seabed. We will also be forced to use it for more and more of our water supply, through desalination31 techniques.
I'm sorry to leave the sea so hastily, but space is a lot bigger and I must spend more time on that.
Our current ideas of space and its potentialities are badly distorted by the primitive32 nature of our techniques. To prove this, here is a statistic6 that will surprise you.
The amount of energy needed to lift a man to the Moon is about 1,000 kilowatt-hours and that costs only ten to twenty dollars! The difference of nine zeros between this and the Apollo budget is a measure of our present incompetence33. Ultimately, there's no reason why space travel should be, in terms of future incomes, much more expensive than jet flight today.
Space communities will be established first on the Moon, then on Mars, and later on other worlds. But much closer to the Earth, orbital space stations of many kinds will be in wide use by the year 2000. In May 1967, I was in Dallas to attend the first conference on the commercial uses of space-including tourism. Barron Hilton gave a talk on the Hilton Orbiter Hotel, which he hopes to see in his lifetime. Space tourism is going to be a major industry in the twenty-first century.
Another tremendously important use of space stations will be for medical research. One paper given at Dallas discussed the engineering problem of a hospital in orbit.
Which brings a poignant34 memory to mind. The last letter I ever received from that great scientist professor J B S Haldane was written when he was dying of cancer and in considerable pain from his operations. In it, he said what a boon35 the weightless environment of a space hospital would be to patients like himself not to mention burn victims, sufferers from heart complaints, and those afflicted36 with muscle diseases. I am convinced that research in space will open up unguessed regions of medical knowledge and give us a vast range of new therapies. So I get pretty mad when I hear ignorant but well-intentioned people ask, 'Why not spend the space budget on something useful-like cancer research?' When we do find a cancer cure, part of the basic knowledge will have come from space. And ultimately we will find even more important secrets there: perhaps, some day, a cure for death itself ...
Scarborough Fair*Are you going to Scarborough FairParsley, sage, rosemary and thymeRemember me to one who lives thereShe once was a true love of mine*Tell her to make me a cambric shirtTell her to make me a cambric shirt(On the side of a hill in the deep forest green)Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme(Tracing of sparrow on the snow-crested brown)Without no seams nor needle work(Blankets and bedclothes the child of the mountain)Then she'll be a true love of mine(Sleeps unaware of the clarion call)Tell her to find me an acre of landTell her to find me an acre of land(On the side of a hill a sprinkling of leaves)Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme(Washes the grave with silvery tears)Between the salt water and the sea strands(A soldier cleans and polishes a gun)Then she'll be a true love of mineTell her to reap it with a sickle of leatherTell her to reap it with a sickle of leather(War bellows blazing in scarlet battalions)Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme(Generals order their soldiers to kill)And gather it all in a bunch of heather(and to fight for a cause they've long ago forgotten)Then she'll be a true love of mine(Repeat*)


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1 telex kpHwn     
n.用户电报,直通专用电传
参考例句:
  • I shall send you the information by telex.我将用电传把这一信息给你传来。
  • He rushed in with an urgent telex from Hong Kong.他手里拿着一份香港发来的紧急电传冲了进来。
2 accounting nzSzsY     
n.会计,会计学,借贷对照表
参考例句:
  • A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
  • There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。
3 illustrate IaRxw     
v.举例说明,阐明;图解,加插图
参考例句:
  • The company's bank statements illustrate its success.这家公司的银行报表说明了它的成功。
  • This diagram will illustrate what I mean.这个图表可说明我的意思。
4 versus wi7wU     
prep.以…为对手,对;与…相比之下
参考例句:
  • The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
  • The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。
5 disapproval VuTx4     
n.反对,不赞成
参考例句:
  • The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
  • They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。
6 statistic QuGwb     
n.统计量;adj.统计的,统计学的
参考例句:
  • Official statistics show real wages declining by 24%.官方统计数字表明实际工资下降了24%。
  • There are no reliable statistics for the number of deaths in the battle.关于阵亡人数没有可靠的统计数字。
7 resounding zkCzZC     
adj. 响亮的
参考例句:
  • The astronaut was welcomed with joyous,resounding acclaim. 人们欢声雷动地迎接那位宇航员。
  • He hit the water with a resounding slap. 他啪的一声拍了一下水。
8 knowledgeable m2Yxg     
adj.知识渊博的;有见识的
参考例句:
  • He's quite knowledgeable about the theatre.他对戏剧很有心得。
  • He made some knowledgeable remarks at the meeting.他在会上的发言颇有见地。
9 prone 50bzu     
adj.(to)易于…的,很可能…的;俯卧的
参考例句:
  • Some people are prone to jump to hasty conclusions.有些人往往作出轻率的结论。
  • He is prone to lose his temper when people disagree with him.人家一不同意他的意见,他就发脾气。
10 gadgetry bd058f3270e6f2184e2ff31a05104bce     
n.小机械,小器具
参考例句:
  • His desk is covered with electronic gadgetry. 他的书桌上摆满了各种电子装置。
  • Then why not just take back all your fancy gadgetry? 那你怎么不把这堆玩意给我撤了? 来自电影对白
11 aerobics Bznzhw     
n.健身操,健美操,韵律操
参考例句:
  • Doing aerobics is a good way to improve one's health.做有氧健身操是改善健康状况的一个好方法。
  • Aren't you going to the aerobics class this morning?今天上午你不是去上有氧运动课吗?
12 sensors 029aee483db9ae244d7a5cb353e74602     
n.传感器,灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时,有很大变化。 来自辞典例句
13 microprocessors 937cb6d36748cbbe6ff19e715f8bfcc4     
微(信息)处理机( microprocessor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • This sort of work would have been inconceivable before the advent of microprocessors. 在微处理机问世之前这种工作是难以想象的。
  • In microprocessors, the name used for the IEEE interface bus standard. 微处理机中,IEEE接口总线标准的名字。
14 enthusiast pj7zR     
n.热心人,热衷者
参考例句:
  • He is an enthusiast about politics.他是个热衷于政治的人。
  • He was an enthusiast and loved to evoke enthusiasm in others.他是一个激情昂扬的人,也热中于唤起他人心中的激情。
15 hackers dc5d6e5c0ffd6d1cd249286ced098382     
n.计算机迷( hacker的名词复数 );私自存取或篡改电脑资料者,电脑“黑客”
参考例句:
  • They think of viruses that infect an organization from the outside.They envision hackers breaking into their information vaults. 他们考虑来自外部的感染公司的病毒,他们设想黑客侵入到信息宝库中。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Arranging a meeting with the hackers took weeks againoff-again email exchanges. 通过几星期电子邮件往来安排见面,他们最终同意了。 来自互联网
16 tangled e487ee1bc1477d6c2828d91e94c01c6e     
adj. 纠缠的,紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • Your hair's so tangled that I can't comb it. 你的头发太乱了,我梳不动。
  • A movement caught his eye in the tangled undergrowth. 乱灌木丛里的晃动引起了他的注意。
17 ethical diIz4     
adj.伦理的,道德的,合乎道德的
参考例句:
  • It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
  • It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。
18 herald qdCzd     
vt.预示...的来临,预告,宣布,欢迎
参考例句:
  • In England, the cuckoo is the herald of spring.在英国杜鹃鸟是报春的使者。
  • Dawn is the herald of day.曙光是白昼的先驱。
19 killing kpBziQ     
n.巨额利润;突然赚大钱,发大财
参考例句:
  • Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
  • Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。
20 slaughter 8Tpz1     
n.屠杀,屠宰;vt.屠杀,宰杀
参考例句:
  • I couldn't stand to watch them slaughter the cattle.我不忍看他们宰牛。
  • Wholesale slaughter was carried out in the name of progress.大规模的屠杀在维护进步的名义下进行。
21 prosecuted Wk5zqY     
a.被起诉的
参考例句:
  • The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
  • The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。
22 alleged gzaz3i     
a.被指控的,嫌疑的
参考例句:
  • It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
  • alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为
23 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
24 inefficient c76xm     
adj.效率低的,无效的
参考例句:
  • The inefficient operation cost the firm a lot of money.低效率的运作使该公司损失了许多钱。
  • Their communication systems are inefficient in the extreme.他们的通讯系统效率非常差。
25 mere rC1xE     
adj.纯粹的;仅仅,只不过
参考例句:
  • That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
  • It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。
26 promising BkQzsk     
adj.有希望的,有前途的
参考例句:
  • The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
  • We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。
27 petroleum WiUyi     
n.原油,石油
参考例句:
  • The Government of Iran advanced the price of petroleum last week.上星期伊朗政府提高了石油价格。
  • The purpose of oil refinery is to refine crude petroleum.炼油厂的主要工作是提炼原油。
28 conversion UZPyI     
n.转化,转换,转变
参考例句:
  • He underwent quite a conversion.他彻底变了。
  • Waste conversion is a part of the production process.废物处理是生产过程的一个组成部分。
29 synthetic zHtzY     
adj.合成的,人工的;综合的;n.人工制品
参考例句:
  • We felt the salesman's synthetic friendliness.我们感觉到那位销售员的虚情假意。
  • It's a synthetic diamond.这是人造钻石。
30 wilderness SgrwS     
n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等,荒漠
参考例句:
  • She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
  • Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。
31 desalination xwNxL     
n.脱盐(作用)
参考例句:
  • Crops can be grown on this land after desalination. 这片土地经过脱盐就可以种植庄稼了。
  • One source is by desalination-taking the salt out of salt water to make it drinkable. 淡水的来源之一是使水淡化--把含盐的水中的盐份去掉,使之能够饮用。
32 primitive vSwz0     
adj.原始的;简单的;n.原(始)人,原始事物
参考例句:
  • It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
  • His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。
33 incompetence o8Uxt     
n.不胜任,不称职
参考例句:
  • He was dismissed for incompetence. 他因不称职而被解雇。
  • She felt she had been made a scapegoat for her boss's incompetence. 她觉得,本是老板无能,但她却成了替罪羊。
34 poignant FB1yu     
adj.令人痛苦的,辛酸的,惨痛的
参考例句:
  • His lyrics are as acerbic and poignant as they ever have been.他的歌词一如既往的犀利辛辣。
  • It is especially poignant that he died on the day before his wedding.他在婚礼前一天去世了,这尤其令人悲恸。
35 boon CRVyF     
n.恩赐,恩物,恩惠
参考例句:
  • A car is a real boon when you live in the country.在郊外居住,有辆汽车确实极为方便。
  • These machines have proved a real boon to disabled people.事实证明这些机器让残疾人受益匪浅。
36 afflicted aaf4adfe86f9ab55b4275dae2a2e305a     
使受痛苦,折磨( afflict的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • About 40% of the country's population is afflicted with the disease. 全国40%左右的人口患有这种疾病。
  • A terrible restlessness that was like to hunger afflicted Martin Eden. 一阵可怕的、跟饥饿差不多的不安情绪折磨着马丁·伊登。
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