英语听力：Wild China 美丽中国 -1

 The last hidden world---China.

 

For centuries, travelers to China have told tales of magical landscapes and surprising creatures. Chinese civilization is the world’s oldest. And today, it’s largest, with well over a billion people. It’s home to more than 50 distinct ethnic¹ groups. And a wide range of traditional lifestyles, often in close partnership² with nature.

 

We know that China faces immense social and environmental problems. But there is great beauty here, too. China is home to the world’s highest mountains, vast deserts ranging from searing hot to mind numbing³ cold, steaming forests harboring rare creatures, grassy⁴ plains beneath vast horizons, and rich tropical seas.

 

Now for the first time ever, we can explore the whole of this great country, meet some of the surprising and exotic creatures that live here, and consider the relationship of the people and wild life of China to the remarkable⁵ landscape in which they live. This is Wild China.

 

Our exploration of China begins in the warm subtropical south. On the Li River, fishermen and birds perch⁶ on bamboo rafts, a partnership that goes back more than a thousand years. This scenery is known throughout the world, a recurring⁷ motif⁸ in Chinese paintings, and a major tourist attraction. The south of China is a vast area, eight times larger than the UK. It’s a landscape of hills but also of water. It rains here for up to 250 days a year. And standing⁹ water is everywhere. And in a floodplain of the Yangtze River, black-tailed godwits probe the mud in search of worms.

 

But it isn’t just wildlife that thrives in this environment. The swampy¹⁰ ground provides ideal conditions for the remarkable member of the grass family - rice. The Chinese have been cultivating rice for at least 8000 years.

1 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

2 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

3 numbing   

adj.使麻木的，使失去感觉的v.使麻木，使麻痹( numb的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Watching television had a numbing effect on his mind. 看电视使他头脑麻木。
• It was numbing work, requiring patience and dedication. 这是一种令人麻木的工作，需要有耐心和忘我精神。 来自辞典例句

4 grassy   

adj.盖满草的；长满草的

参考例句：

• They sat and had their lunch on a grassy hillside.他们坐在长满草的山坡上吃午饭。
• Cattle move freely across the grassy plain.牛群自由自在地走过草原。

5 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

6 perch   

n.栖木，高位，杆；v.栖息，就位，位于

参考例句：

• The bird took its perch.鸟停歇在栖木上。
• Little birds perch themselves on the branches.小鸟儿栖歇在树枝上。

7 recurring   

adj.往复的，再次发生的

参考例句：

• This kind of problem is recurring often. 这类问题经常发生。
• For our own country, it has been a time for recurring trial. 就我们国家而言，它经过了一个反复考验的时期。

8 motif   

n.(图案的)基本花纹，(衣服的)花边；主题

参考例句：

• Alienation is a central motif in her novels.疏离感是她小说的一个重要的主题。
• The jacket has a rose motif on the collar.这件夹克衫领子上有一朵玫瑰花的图案。

9 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

10 swampy   

adj.沼泽的，湿地的

参考例句：

• Malaria is still rampant in some swampy regions.疟疾在一些沼泽地区仍很猖獗。
• An ox as grazing in a swampy meadow.一头牛在一块泥泞的草地上吃草。