全新版大学英语听说教程第三册 Unit 15

Unit 15

Part B

Text 1

Women in Business

Most women in France work. Their average salary is about 75% that of their male co-workers, even though laws passed in 1972 require 'professional equality' between the sexes.

The good news is that women are increasingly moving into middle management. A handful are top executives. The higher their position, the harder it is to balance family and career. A 38-year-old woman who graduated from the prestigious¹ National School of Administration remembers that when she took a senior post in a ministry², her male colleagues assured her, 'You are one of us, one of the guys.' But when she became a mother, they stuck to age-old traditions that she couldn't follow-long lunches and late-night meetings. 'It was too much pressure and I felt like I was being sabotaged,' she says.

For those who want to balance family with a job, as opposed to a high-pressure, high-visibility career, France is a haven³. Women marry later, on average, than in America -- at age 25. And they stay in the workforce⁴. Part-time jobs are easy to find. Maternity⁵ benefits are generous, with over six months of paid leave. Women who've raised three or more children are entitled to a state-funded pension. The quality of publicly funded education for children is high. And abortion⁶ is not only legal, but it's paid for by the state.

French businesswomen dress elegantly, argue intelligently and play hardball at the negotiating table. They show their wit, intellect, ability to make puns and understanding of politics, history and literature. Unlike most American female executives who dress conservatively in a dark, not particularly flattering suit, with no jewelry⁷ and little makeup⁸, Frenchwomen see no need to abandon femininity and elegance⁹ in the business world. They prefer soft colors, stylish¹⁰ clothes, silk scarves, manicured nails, light makeup, and simple but elegant jewelry.

Questions:

1. What do you know about French businesswomen?

2. What does the speaker intend to say through the passage about French businesswomen?

3. What is implied in the passage about French businesswomen?

Text 2

Are Women the Weaker Sex?

Women and men are not created equal. Mother Nature favors her own sex when it comes to longevity¹¹, with women living about seven years -- or 10% -- longer than men.

Still, men actually get a head start in the battle of the sexes, since male babies outnumber female babies by 115 to 100. But by about age 30, women have caught up with men numerically, and they then leave men in the dust, with three women alive for every man by age 85.

But there's the paradox¹²: While women live longer than men, they're generally sicker. Men tend to die from rapidly fatal health problems such as heart attacks, accidents, suicides and homicides. Women, on the other hand, tend to develop lingering illnesses that often cause years of discomfort¹³.

Women spend twice as much money on health care as men do. They also consult doctors more frequently, take more drugs, spend more days in hospitals and have more operations. They also take more sick time off from work. Why? The chief causes seem to be genes¹⁴, hormones¹⁵ and interactions of the two.

Many women suffer from chronic¹⁶ conditions like muscle and joint¹⁷ pain, sleep disorder¹⁸, anxiety, headaches, and fatigue¹⁹. There is no known cause for them, but they probably result from the body's abnormal response to stress. Women may be more likely than men to have these diseases simply because they are under more stress. A woman is often under tremendous stress to fulfill²⁰ what she sees as her obligations to her family, her community and her employer.

Researchers still know little about women's health. There is clearly a need for more research into why women come down with chronic illnesses and what can be done about it.

Questions:

1. What is the main idea of the passage?

2. What is the speaker's attitude toward women's health problems?

3. Why is the age of 30 mentioned in the passage?

4. What can be inferred from the passage?

Part C

Elizabeth Blackwell

Elizabeth Blackwell was born in 1821 in England. Her family moved to the United States when she was 11. There, several years later, a family friend who suffered from cancer suggested to her that she study medicine. The dying friend said that perhaps her sickness would have been better understood if she had been treated by a woman. Elizabeth knew that no woman had ever been permitted to study in a medical college, but she began to think about the idea seriously after the friend died.

Supported by her family, she began to study medicine privately²¹ with a doctor. Later she was accepted by Geneva Medical College in New York State and graduated in 1849 with high honors. She became the first woman in the Western world to have completed medical school training.

Dr. Blackwell had many dreams. One was to start a hospital for women and children; another was to build a medical school to train women doctors. After many years' struggle against every kind of opposition²², she finally succeeded in opening the first medical college for women in New York in 1868, and a second one later in London. In 1871 she founded the British National Health Society.

Elizabeth Blackwell believed that the true responsibility of doctors was to prevent disease. She started a program in which doctors visited patients in their homes and taught them basic hygiene²³ about house cleaning and food preparation so that sickness could be prevented. And she started the program of disease prevention in her schools. It was the first time the idea of preventing disease was taught at a medical college.

Dr. Blackwell died in 1910, at the age of 89. She is remembered for her contributions to the cause of medicine and for showing the way for women to move on.

Questions:

1. Why did Elizabeth Blackwell want to become a doctor?

2. How did she begin her study in medicine?

3. As the first woman doctor, where did she open the first medical college for women?

4. What did Elizabeth Blackwell think was the true responsibility of doctors?

5. Which of the following best describes Elizabeth Blackwell?

Part D

An Interview with a Successful Woman Writer

(The author of Harry²⁴ Potter, J. R. Rowling, is being interviewed by a reporter.)

Interviewer: Where do you get your ideas from, Mrs. Rowling?

Rowling: I wish I knew. Sometimes they just come like magic and other times I have to sit and think for weeks before I manage to work out how something will happen. Where the idea for Harry Potter actually came from I really couldn't tell you. I was traveling on a train between Manchester and London and it just popped into my head. I spent four hours thinking about what Hogwarts would be like -- the most interesting train journey I've ever taken. By the time I got off at King's Cross many of the characters in the books had already been invented.

Interviewer: Are any of the characters in the books based on real people?

Rowling: Tricky²⁵ question! The answer is yes, and no. I have to confess that Hermione Granger is a little bit like I was at her age, though I was neither as clever nor as annoying. Ron is little bit like my oldest friend and Professor Snape is a lot like one of my old teachers, but I'm not saying which one.

Interviewer: How long have you been writing?

Rowling: Nearly all my life. I had written two novels before I had the idea for Harry, though I'd never tried to get them published.

Interviewer: Did you expect the Harry books to be this successful?

Rowling: Never. I just wrote the sort of thing I liked reading when I was younger. I didn't expect lots of people to like them, in fact, I never really thought much apart from getting them published.

Interviewer: Any clues about the next book?

Rowling: I don't want to give anything away, but I can tell you that the books are getting darker ... Harry's going to have quite a bit to deal with as he gets older. Sorry if they get too scary!

Interviewer: Who are your favorite authors?

Rowling: My favorite writer of all time is Jane Austen.

Questions:

1. What does Rowling say about the original idea for the Harry Potter books?

2. Which of the following is true about the characters in the Harry books?

3. What do we learn about what Rowling did with her books?

4. According to the interview, which of the following is true?

1 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

2 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

3 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

4 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

5 maternity   

n.母性，母道，妇产科病房；adj.孕妇的，母性的

参考例句：

• Women workers are entitled to maternity leave with full pay.女工产假期间工资照发。
• Trainee nurses have to work for some weeks in maternity.受训的护士必须在产科病房工作数周。

6 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

7 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

8 makeup   

n.组织；性格；化装品

参考例句：

• Those who failed the exam take a makeup exam.这次考试不及格的人必须参加补考。
• Do you think her beauty could makeup for her stupidity?你认为她的美丽能弥补她的愚蠢吗？

9 elegance   

n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙

参考例句：

• The furnishings in the room imparted an air of elegance.这个房间的家具带给这房间一种优雅的气氛。
• John has been known for his sartorial elegance.约翰因为衣着讲究而出名。

10 stylish   

adj.流行的，时髦的；漂亮的，气派的

参考例句：

• He's a stylish dresser.他是个穿着很有格调的人。
• What stylish women are wearing in Paris will be worn by women all over the world.巴黎女性时装往往会引导世界时装潮流。

11 longevity   

n.长命；长寿

参考例句：

• Good habits promote longevity.良好的习惯能增长寿命。
• Human longevity runs in families.人类的长寿具有家族遗传性。

12 paradox   

n.似乎矛盾却正确的说法；自相矛盾的人(物)

参考例句：

• The story contains many levels of paradox.这个故事存在多重悖论。
• The paradox is that Japan does need serious education reform.矛盾的地方是日本确实需要教育改革。

13 discomfort   

n.不舒服，不安，难过，困难，不方便

参考例句：

• One has to bear a little discomfort while travelling.旅行中总要忍受一点不便。
• She turned red with discomfort when the teacher spoke.老师讲话时她不好意思地红着脸。

14 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

15 hormones   

n. 荷尔蒙，激素 名词hormone的复数形式

参考例句：

• This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body. 这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。
• The adrenals produce a large per cent of a man's sex hormones. 肾上腺分泌人体的大部分性激素。

16 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

17 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

18 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

19 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

20 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

21 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

22 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

23 hygiene   

n.健康法，卫生学 （a.hygienic）

参考例句：

• Their course of study includes elementary hygiene and medical theory.他们的课程包括基础卫生学和医疗知识。
• He's going to give us a lecture on public hygiene.他要给我们作关于公共卫生方面的报告。

24 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

25 tricky   

adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的

参考例句：

• I'm in a rather tricky position.Can you help me out?我的处境很棘手，你能帮我吗？
• He avoided this tricky question and talked in generalities.他回避了这个非常微妙的问题，只做了个笼统的表述。