VOA标准英语2010年-On the Road Again - and Again and Agai

In the 1930s — the era of streamliner trains, planes, and automobiles¹ — a travel trailer with a shiny aluminum² skin made its debut³. Its very name — Airstream — suggested smooth, aerodynamic travel. Many people who bought these shiny little trailers loved to show them off so much, they towed them in caravans⁴ around the globe. 

Airstream trailers have been called land yachts, or silver bullets for their gleaming, rounded, art deco design. They are still being made, though today the company offers far fancier options than existed when these trailers first headed out across the landscape 74 years ago.

Shiny Airstreams come in all sizes. Here's a tiny one. Kind of doubt this one has all the comforts of home.

Airstreams became a symbol of American wanderlust, creating a mystique and romance about hitting the road.

The Airstream story begins with a remarkable⁵ adventurer named Wally Byum, who took over a company that produced the first Airstream Clipper in 1936. Its riveted-aluminum shell borrowed the burnished⁶ look of the new Pan Am Clipper airplane and of streamlined steamships⁷ and railroad locomotives. The polished shell was so light that two workers could easily lift it onto its bed.

So much a part of popular culture did Airstreams become that someone used their design to create Christmas ornaments⁸.

Early Airstreams resembles a boat cabin, with a small but highly efficient kitchen area, a tiny restroom with shower and even a tub, and couches that fold into beds.

To this day, as many as 5,000 owners bring their Airstreams to rallies in U.S. cities. Some clubs formed by owners of vintage Airstreams have 1,300 members or more. One club member told us, mobility⁹ is a human right, and you can never get enough of it.

Vintage Airstreams were smaller and more mobile than today's monstrous¹⁰ and motorized recreational vehicles. As one Airstreamer put it, It didn't used to be such a big deal to hook up and go someplace.

[To learn more about Airstreams and those who love them, check out Bryan Burkhart's book on the silver bullets of travel.  It's called "Airstream: A History of the Land Yacht," published by Chronicle Books of San Francisco.]
 

1 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 aluminum   

n.(aluminium)铝

参考例句：

• The aluminum sheets cannot be too much thicker than 0.04 inches.铝板厚度不能超过0.04英寸。
• During the launch phase,it would ride in a protective aluminum shell.在发射阶段，它盛在一只保护的铝壳里。

3 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。

4 caravans   

（可供居住的）拖车（通常由机动车拖行）( caravan的名词复数 )； 篷车； （穿过沙漠地带的）旅行队（如商队）

参考例句：

• Old-fashioned gypsy caravans are painted wooden vehicles that are pulled by horses. 旧式的吉卜赛大篷车是由马拉的涂了颜色的木质车辆。
• Old-fashioned gypsy caravans are painted wooden vehicles. 旧时的吉普赛大篷车是涂了颜色的木质车辆。

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 burnished   

adj.抛光的，光亮的v.擦亮（金属等），磨光( burnish的过去式和过去分词 )；被擦亮，磨光

参考例句：

• The floor was spotless; the grate and fire-irons were burnished bright. 地板上没有污迹；炉栅和火炉用具擦得发亮。 来自辞典例句
• The woods today are burnished bronze. 今天的树林是一片发亮的青铜色。 来自辞典例句

7 steamships   

n.汽船，大轮船( steamship的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Berths on steamships can be booked a long while in advance. 轮船上的床位可以提前多日预订。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The sailing ships were superseded by the steamships. 帆船已被汽船所取代。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

8 ornaments   

n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。
• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 mobility   

n.可动性，变动性，情感不定

参考例句：

• The difference in regional house prices acts as an obstacle to mobility of labour.不同地区房价的差异阻碍了劳动力的流动。
• Mobility is very important in guerrilla warfare.机动性在游击战中至关重要。

10 monstrous   

adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的

参考例句：

• The smoke began to whirl and grew into a monstrous column.浓烟开始盘旋上升，形成了一个巨大的烟柱。
• Your behaviour in class is monstrous!你在课堂上的行为真是丢人！