环球英语 — 56：Sense of Touch

　　Voice 1
Hello. I’m Marina Santee.
Voice 2
And I’m Mike Procter. Welcome to Spotlight¹. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
In today’s programme we look at the power of touch! David Bast reads us an imaginary² story from Greek³ mythology⁴.
Voice 3
It was a light summer evening. The air was fresh and warm. King Midas decided⁵ to go for a walk in the green gardens. He was thinking about his money. He always thought about his money! He would count it again later! Ah how he loved counting all his riches. Midas was day-dreaming about the gold as he walked. Soon, he reached a big tree. He saw a man lying under the tree. The man was asleep! He looked like he had drunk⁶ too much alcohol⁷. King Midas recognised the man. It was Silenus. Silenus knew one of the gods - Dionysus. So King Midas took Silenus into his home. He gave him food and drink. He provided⁸ a place for him to stay. He treated Silenus well. King Midas did this for ten days. On the eleventh day he took Silenus to Dionysus. Dionysus was pleased. He had been worried about Silenus. He was happy that Midas had treated him well. He said, ‘‘Midas, you may choose your reward⁹ - your gift. I will give you whatever you want - to say thank you.”
Midas did not have to think for too long. He knew what he wanted. He said, ‘I would like everything I touch to turn into gold.’
Dionysus agreed. He was not happy with the king’s request. But King Midas was full of joy! He could not wait to try his new power! He went outside and touched an oak¹⁰ tree. Immediately, the whole tree turned to gold! King Midas laughed happily. What a wonderful power! He would be the richest person in the universe!
Midas returned home. He sat down at his huge table. And he ordered his servants,
‘Bring me the best wine and the best food.’
This was time to celebrate! The servants hurried to attend to their master. Midas’s eyes grew wider and wider. The food looked wonderful! Mmmm what should he eat first? Maybe he should drink a little wine first. His servant poured the smooth red wine into a glass. He passed it to the King. But as the King lifted the glass to his mouth something happened. The wine turned to gold! King Midas was worried. He looked at the food. He reached out for a piece of the fine food in front of him. And - the same thing happened. The food turned to gold! Midas could not eat or drink! He tried again - and again. Finally only gold objects lay on the table before him. This was terrible! He must go and see Dionysus. He ran out of the house. On his way, he saw his daughter.
‘Father what is wrong?’ She asked.
‘Oh, my dear. I am so pleased to see you.’ The King said, as he put his arms around the young girl. Her body hardened¹¹. He still held her. He knew what had happened. What a fool! Not his daughter! Tears fell down the King’s face. And he fell to his knees. He cried at the feet of the golden¹² statue - his daughter.
“Dionysus! Dionysus! Dionysus! Please remove my powers! Please! I ... my daughter ... I cannot touch anything! These powers will kill me and everyone around me. Please, help.”
Dionysus told Midas to go and wash in the river. When he washed there, his power would leave his body. It would flow into the river instead. So the King obeyed. And his power left him from that time on. King Midas decided that he hated wealth and riches. He moved to the country to live a simple life. His desire for wealth had cost him greatly.
Voice 2
The human touch is a powerful¹³ sense. Someone puts their arm around you when you are sad. No one speaks. But somehow you feel better. When you are young, you hold your mother’s hand when you are afraid.
Voice 1
The sense of touch is different to the other four senses - seeing, hearing, smelling and tasting. These senses are in particular parts of the body. But the sense of touch is all over the body. It is in the skin. It originates¹⁴ in the deepest part of skin - the dermis¹⁵. The dermis is filled with very small nerve¹⁶ endings. These react¹⁷ to touch. They carry information to the spinal¹⁸ cord¹⁹ that goes through the backbone²⁰. The spinal cord sends messages to the brain.
Voice 2
There are about one hundred [100] touch ‘receivers’ in the end of each finger! This means²¹ that even if you touch something very gently, you can feel it. There is nothing like the human touch.
Voice 1
Or - is there? Scientists in the United²² States believe that there could be. Professor Saraf and Doctor Vivek Maheshwari work in the University of Nebraska. They have created a device²³ that can ‘feel’ objects. They say it can ‘feel’ to the same degree as a human finger!
Voice 2
The scientists created a special film. The film is made of very thin materials that can sense pressure. The film produces a small amount of light wherever it experiences pressure. Then the scientists use a camera to see where the pressure is.
Voice 1
The scientists hope that the device will be useful to doctors. For example, the device could touch cells²⁴ to ‘show’ if they were normal or cancerous. Such technology could increase the success rate of cancer operations.
Voice 2
Professor Saraf hopes to make more developments. He would like to create a device that can also sense temperature changes. This would make it more like the human sense of touch.
Creating an exact copy of any of nature’s designs is not an easy job - even for the experts. After all - no one can compete with God’s touch. But scientists’ progress in this area is still very promising²⁵. If they succeed with their plans, it will open the way for new possibilities in the world of medicine and technology.
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 imaginary   

adj.想象中的，假想的，虚构的，幻想的；虚数的

参考例句：

• All the characters in this book are imaginary.此书中的所有人物都是虚构的。
• The boy's fears were only imaginary.这小孩的恐惧只是一种想象。

3 Greek   

adj.希腊(人)的，希腊语的；n.希腊人；希腊语

参考例句：

• The Greek seaman went to the hospital five times.这位希腊海员到该医院去过五次。
• Delta is the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet.δ是希腊字母中的第四个字母。

4 mythology   

n.神话，神话学，神话集

参考例句：

• In Greek mythology,Zeus was the ruler of Gods and men.在希腊神话中，宙斯是众神和人类的统治者。
• He is the hero of Greek mythology.他是希腊民间传说中的英雄。

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 drunk   

adj.醉酒的；(喻)陶醉的；n.酗酒者，醉汉

参考例句：

• People who drives when they are drunk should be heavily penalised.醉酒驾车的人应受重罚。
• She found him drunk when she came home at night.她晚上回家时，经常发现他醉醺醺的。

7 alcohol   

n.酒精，乙醇；含酒精的饮料

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors.法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。
• The alcohol is industrial.这些酒精是供工业用的。

8 provided   

conj.假如，若是；adj.预备好的，由...供给的

参考例句：

• Provided it's fine we will have a pleasant holiday.如果天气良好，我们的假日将过得非常愉快。
• I will come provided that it's not raining tomorrow.如果明天不下雨，我就来。

9 reward   

n.报酬，酬谢，赏金；vt.奖赏，酬谢，报应

参考例句：

• He will expect some reward after working so hard.他工作很努力，会得到报偿的。
• I didn't do it for reward;I did it for love.我做这件事不是为了报酬，而是出于爱好。

10 oak   

n.栎树，橡树，栎木，橡木

参考例句：

• The chair is of solid oak.这把椅子是纯橡木的。
• The carpenter will floor this room with oak.木匠将用橡木铺设这个房间的地板。

11 hardened   

adj.变硬的，坚毅的v.（使）变硬( harden的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）坚固；（使）硬化；（使）变得坚强

参考例句：

• His mind hardened as he became used to difficulty. 他坚强起来了，因为他已习惯于困难。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Her mind hardened at the thought of the difficulties awaiting her. 当她想到面临着许多困难时，她的意志更坚定了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

12 golden   

adj.金的，含金的，可贵的，金色的，贵重的，繁盛的

参考例句：

• My teacher is an Englishman with golden hair.我的老师是一个金黄色头发的英国人。
• It's a balmy evening,the golden time for lovers.这是一个暖和的夜晚，是恋人们的黄金时光。

13 powerful   

adj.有力的，有权力的，强大的

参考例句：

• The UN began to get more and more powerful.联合国开始变得越来越强大了。
• Such are the most powerful voices of our times!这些就是我们时代的最有力的声音！

14 originates   

v.起源于，来自，产生( originate的第三人称单数 )；创造；创始；开创

参考例句：

• The theory of relativity originates with Albert Einstein. 相对论是爱因斯坦创立的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All knowledge originates from labour. 一切知识起源于劳动。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

15 dermis   

n.真皮

参考例句：

• The dermis is composed of the connective tissue that supports the epidermis.真皮是由支撑表皮的结蒂组织构成的。
• Althouth very thin,the epidermis serves to protect the underlying dermis.表皮虽然非常薄，却可用来保护下层的真皮。

16 nerve   

n.神经；勇气，胆量，沉着，果断

参考例句：

• Did he have the nerve to say that?他竟有脸说这话吗？
• He never got up enough nerve to meet me.他从没有足够的胆量来见我。

17 react   

vi.起反应，起作用；反抗，起反作用

参考例句：

• She didn't look up or react in any way.她既不抬头，也没有任何反应。
• How did he react to your suggestion?他如何对待你的建议？

18 spinal   

adj.针的，尖刺的，尖刺状突起的；adj.脊骨的，脊髓的

参考例句：

• After three days in Japan,the spinal column becomes extraordinarily flexible.在日本三天，就已经使脊椎骨变得富有弹性了。
• Your spinal column is made up of 24 movable vertebrae.你的脊柱由24个活动的脊椎骨构成。

19 cord   

n.绳，线；纺织品；小电线；腱

参考例句：

• I wear a safety cord all the time.我一直带着安全绳索。
• I pulled the cord,and I felt a strong jerk.拉住绳索，我强烈的恐惧。

20 backbone   

n.脊骨，脊柱，骨干；刚毅，骨气

参考例句：

• The Chinese people have backbone.中国人民有骨气。
• The backbone is an articulate structure.脊椎骨是一种关节相连的结构。

21 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

22 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

23 device   

n.器械，装置；计划，策略，诡计

参考例句：

• The device will be in production by the end of the year.该装置将于年底投入生产。
• The device will save much time and effort for us.这种装置会使我们节省大量时间和气力。

24 cells   

n.细胞( cell的名词复数 )；小牢房；（修道士或修女住的）小房间；电池

参考例句：

• Once in the bloodstream, the bacteria adhere to the surface of the red cells. 细菌一进入血液里，就附着在红细胞表面上。
• an amorphous mass of cells with no identity at all 不知何物的杂乱一团的细胞

25 promising   

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。