英语听力精选进阶版 7081

Background: 一种非常罕见的可食用的菌类也就是我们常说的意大利白松露或白松露前不久在东京的一个拍卖会上与大家见面。一个重为一公斤的松露以三万美元的最高价被拍走，然而这个价格却远远比不上去年竞拍的价格，由此看来松露销售市场也没有能逃脱信贷危机的风波。

White truffles 白松露 have been described by one famous chef as the diamond of the kitchen.

They are almost as expensive as precious stones because they are extremely hard to find, growing underground 地下 beneath certain trees.

Some of the rarest truffle specimens¹ were auctioned³ 被拍卖 at a VIP dinner in Tokyo attended by sumo wrestlers 相扑运动员 and beauty queens 选美皇后.

The biggest one, found in Italy, was bought by a Japanese millionaire with a chain 连锁 of fashion shops.

He paid $30,000 for it and intends to eat with a bowl of rice.

However, the prices were way down on 下降 a similar truffle auction² last year, when an even bigger truffle was bought for $300,000 in China.

The economy of Japan is thought to be heading for recession⁴ 衰退 and the auctioneers say that's why prices have dropped.

Nevertheless, tickets for the auction cost hundreds of dollars apiece and the hotel was packed 挤满了 with guests, who were of course served truffle sauce 松露汁 with their dinner.

GLOSSARY⁵ 词汇表

white truffles 白松露

underground 地下

auctioned 被拍卖

sumo wrestlers 相扑运动员

beauty queens 选美皇后

chain 连锁

way down on 下降

recession 衰退

packed 挤满了

truffle sauce 松露汁

Questions and Answers

1. True or false? Truffles are more expensive than diamonds.

False

2. Where are truffles found? 

They grow underground beneath certain types of tree.

3. Where was the auction’s highest bidder⁶ from?

The bidder who bought the most-expensive truffle was Japanese.

4. Why has the price of truffles gone down recently?

The global credit crunch⁷ and the threat of recession has made truffle prices fall.

1 specimens   

n.样品( specimen的名词复数 )；范例；（化验的）抽样；某种类型的人

参考例句：

• Astronauts have brought back specimens of rock from the moon. 宇航员从月球带回了岩石标本。
• The traveler brought back some specimens of the rocks from the mountains. 那位旅行者从山上带回了一些岩石标本。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 auction   

n.拍卖；拍卖会；vt.拍卖

参考例句：

• They've put the contents of their house up for auction.他们把房子里的东西全都拿去拍卖了。
• They bought a new minibus with the proceeds from the auction.他们用拍卖得来的钱买了一辆新面包车。

3 auctioned   

v.拍卖( auction的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It was sad to see all grandmother's lovely things being auctioned off. 眼看着祖母那些可爱的东西全都被拍卖掉，心里真不好受。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• TV franchises will be auctioned to the highest bidder. 电视特许经营权将拍卖给出价最高的投标人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 recession   

n.（工商业的）衷退（期），萧条（期）

参考例句：

• Manufacturing fell sharply under the impact of the recession.受到经济萧条的影响，制造业急剧衰退。
• A rise in interest rates plunged Britain deeper into recession.利率的提高导致英国经济更加萧条。

5 glossary   

n.注释词表；术语汇编

参考例句：

• The text is supplemented by an adequate glossary.正文附有一个详细的词汇表。
• For convenience,we have also provided a glossary in an appendix.为了方便，我们在附录中也提供了术语表。

6 bidder   

n.(拍卖时的)出价人，报价人，投标人

参考例句：

• TV franchises will be auctioned to the highest bidder.电视特许经营权将拍卖给出价最高的投标人。
• The bidder withdrew his bid after submission of his bid.投标者在投标之后撤销了投标书。

7 crunch   

n.关键时刻；艰难局面；v.发出碎裂声

参考例句：

• If it comes to the crunch they'll support us.关键时刻他们是会支持我们的。
• People who crunch nuts at the movies can be very annoying.看电影时嘎吱作声地嚼干果的人会使人十分讨厌。