irrigation n. 灌溉
negative a. 否定的；消极的；负的
multiple a. 复合的，多种多样的；n. 倍数
dual a. 双（重）的
swamp n. 沼泽；vt. 淹没；
notable a. 显着的；n. 名人
transition n. 过渡，转变
orient vt. 使朝向；n. (the O-)东方
wrap vt. 包，裹；n. 披肩，围巾
moderate a. 中等的；温和的；
cultivate vt. 耕作；培养
urge vt. 鼓励；催促
irritate vt. 使恼怒；使不适
temperament n. 性格
ferry n. 渡船；
decay vi. 腐烂；衰落
interval n. 间隔、间隙
conquer vt. 征服；战胜
addict n. 有瘾的人；入迷的人；
acquaint vt. （with）使了解
worthwhile a. 值得的
recruit vt. 招募
flee v. 逃走；避开
surrender v. 投降；屈服（于）
entitle vt. 给…权利；给…题名
neutral a. 中立的；中性的
nationality n. 国籍，民族
cease 停止
assign vt. 指定；分配
govern vt. 统治；支配
confidential a. 秘密的；表示信任的
shed vt. 流出；摆脱；n. 棚屋
emotional a.情绪激动的；感情的
alleviate vt. 减轻、缓解
exposure n. 暴露
definitely ad. 肯定的
settlement n. 解决，协议；居留地
slap vt. 打、拍，掌击；
dizzy 头晕目眩的
rouse vt. 唤起，唤醒
restraint n. 抑制；约束措施
inclusive a. 包括一切的
empirical a. 以经验为依据的，经验主义的
revision n. 修订，复习
deduce vt. 推论，推断，
authorize vt. 授权
reclaim vt. 要回；回收
autonomous a. 自治的；独立自主的
robust a. 强壮的
denote vt. 标志；表示，是…的标志
reproach 责备、批评
pirate n. 海盗；vt. 盗用，非法盗印
meadow n. 草地
swell v. 肿胀，膨胀；
degrade vt. 贬低、削弱
contaminate vt. 污染
hollow a. 空的；虚伪的；n. 洼地
dental a. 牙齿的
particle n. 微粒
tribute n. 称赞；贡品
convict vt. 宣判…有罪；n. 囚犯
stiff a. 酸痛的、僵直的；不灵活的
provocative a. 挑衅的
elicit vt. 诱出，引出、得到
screw n. 螺丝（钉）；vt. 用螺丝固定；拧
applicable a. 合适的、适当的
cruise vi. 航游；缓慢巡行；n. 航游
fame n. 声誉，名声
roar vi. 咆哮；轰鸣；vt. 大声喊出n. 呐喊声；轰鸣
soak 浸泡；（使）湿透
smash vt. 粉碎；猛击；使失败；
infectious a. 传染的；有感染力的
luminous a. 发光的，发亮的，光明的
aural comprehension
Section A
Conversation One （00:37-）
M: Tonight, we have a very special guest. Mrs. Anna Sanchez is a three time Olympic champion and author of the new book To the Edge. Mrs Sanchez, thank you for joining us.
W: Thank you for having me.
M: Let’s start with your book. What does the title To the Edge mean? What are you referring to?
W: The book is about how science and technology has helped push humans to the edge of their physical abilities. I argue that in the past 20 years we have had the best athletes the world has ever seen.
M: But is this a fair comparison? How do you know, how, say, a football player from 50 years ago would compare to one today?
W: Well, you are right. That comparison would be perhaps impossible to make. But the point is more about our knowledge today of human biochemistry, nutrition and mechanics. I believe that while our bodies have not changed in thousands of years, what has changed is the scientific knowledge. This has allowed athletes to push the limits【超越极限】of what was previously thought possible.
M: That’s interesting. Please tell us more about these perceived【感知、认为】limits.
W: The world has seen sports records being broken that could only be broken with the aid of technology, whether【是否、无论】this be the speed of a tennis serve or the fastest time in 100 meter dash or 200 meter swimming race.
M: Is there any concern that technology is giving some athletes an unfair advantage over others?
W: That is an interesting question and one that has to be considered very carefully. Skis【滑雪】, for example, went from being made of wood to a metal【金属】alloy【合金】, which allows for better control and faster speed. There is no stopping technological progress. But, as I said, each situation should be considered carefully on a case by case basis【根据具体情况】.
1. What do we learn about Anna Sanchez?
2. What is the woman’s book mainly about?
3. What has changed in the past thousands of years?
4. What is the man’s concern about the use of technology in sports competitions?
previously【以前的】
perceived 【感知、认为】
Conversation Two （3:53-）
W: I’ve worked in international trade all my life. My father did so too before me. So I guess you could say it runs in the family.
M: What products have you worked with?
W: All sorts, really. I’ve imported textiles【纺织品】, machinery【机械】, toys, solar panels【面板】, all kinds of things over the years. Trends and demand come and go【趋势和需求来来去去】. So one needs to be very flexible to succeed in this industry.
M: I see. What goods are you trading now?
W: I now import furniture from China into Italy and foods from Italy into China. I even use the same container【容器、集装箱】. It’s a very efficient way of conducting【指挥、行为】trade.
M: The same container? You mean you own a 40-foot cargo container?
W: Yeah, that’s right. I have a warehouse in Genoa, Italy and another in Shanghai. I source mid-century modern furniture from different factories in China. It’s very good value for money. I collect it all in my warehouse and then dispatch【派遣、发送】it to my other warehouse in Italy. Over there I do the same【在那边我也这样做】, but with Italian foods instead of furniture, things like pasta【意大利面团】, cheese【奶酪】, wine, chocolates【巧克力】. And I send all that to my warehouse in China in the same freight【货物、货运】container I use for the furniture.
M: So I presume you sell both lines of products wholesale【批发】in each respective country.
W: Of course. I possess a network of clients and partners in both countries. That’s the main benefit of having done this for so long. I’ve made great business contacts over time.
M: How many times do you ship?
W: I did 12 shipments【发货】last year, 18 this year, and I hope to grow to around 25 next year. That’s both ways, there and back again. Demand for authentic【真正的、正宗的】Italian food in China is growing rapidly. And similarly, sales of affordable【付得起的、便宜的】, yet stylish【时髦的】wooden furniture are also increasing in Italy. Furniture【家具】is marginally【稍微】more profitable, mostly because it enjoys lower customs【海关、关税】duties.
Q5: What does the woman think is required to be successful in international trade?
Q6: What does the woman say is special about her way of doing trade?
Q7: What does the woman have in both Italy and China?
Q8: What does the woman say makes furniture marginally more profitable?
customer【顾客】
customs【海关、关税】
Section B
Passage One （7:50）
Too many people view their jobs as a five day prison【监狱】from which they are paroled【假释】every Friday, says Joel Goodman, founder of the Humour Project, a humour consulting【咨询】group in Sara Togher Springs, New York. Humour unlocks the office prison because it lets adults bring some of their childlike spirit to the job.
According to Howard Collier, professor of psychology at University of Tennessee, Knoxville, an office with humour breaks is an office with satisfied and productive employees. Polio conducted a study that proved humour can help workers excel【出色、超过】at routine production tasks. Employees performed better when they have fun.
in large corporations with a hierarchy【等级制度】of power. There is often no outlet【发泄方式】for stress. Every company needs underground ways of poking fun at the organization, says Lynn Mark, a speaker on workplace humour for St.. Mary's Health Centre in St. Louis.
Kodak's Rochester, New York, branch discovered a way for its 20000 employees to uncork【发泄、泄漏】that bottled up resentments【怨恨】. There are 1000 square foot Humor Room features a toy store. Among the room’s many stress reducing gadgets. The main attraction【有吸引力的事物】is a boss doll with detachable arms and legs. Employees can take the doll【洋娃娃】apart【拆开】as long as they put its arms and legs back in place.
Sandy Cohan, owner of a graphic print production business, created the quote board to document the bizarre phrase【短语】, as people say, when under strict deadlines, when you're under stress, you say stupid things, says Cohen. Now we just look at each other and say, that's one for the quote board.
9. What does the passage say about humour in the workplace?
10. What does the study by Howard Polio show?
11. What can Kodak’s employees do in the Humour Room?
Passage Two （10:55-）
Public interest was aroused by the latest discovery of a changed gene in obese【肥胖的】mice【mouse的复数：老鼠】. The news was made known by Rockefeller University geneticist Jeffrey Friedman. The researchers believe this gene influences development of a hormone【激素】that tells the organism【生物、有机体】how fat or full it is【多胖或者是多饱】. Those with the change gene may not sense when they have eaten enough or if they have sufficient fatty tissue【薄纸】and thus can't tell when to stop eating.
The researchers also reported finding a gene nearly identical to the mouse obesity gene in humans. The operation of this gene in humans has not yet been demonstrated, however. Still, professionals like University of Vermont psychologist Esther Roth Blume reacted enthusiastically【热心的、满腔热情地】：“This research indicates that people really are born with a tendency to have a certain weight, just as they are to have a particular skin color or height. ”
Actually, behavioral geneticists believe that less than half of the total weight variation is programmed【程序化的、规划】in the genes, while height is almost entirely genetically determined. Whatever role genes play, Americans are getting fatter. A survey by the Center for Disease Control found that obesity has increased greatly over the last 10 years. Such rapid change underlines the role of environmental factors like the abundance of rich foods in Americans overeating. The Center for Disease Control has also found that teens are far less physically active than they were even a decade ago. Excepting【除…之外】that weight is predetermined can relieve【减轻、缓解】guilt for overweight people. But people's belief that they cannot control their weight can itself contribute to obesity.
Q12: What does the speaker say has aroused【唤醒】public interest?
Q13: What do we learn about the changed gene?
Q14: What does University of Vermont psychologist Esther Rothblum say?
Q15: What accounts【账目、把...归因于】for Americans’ obesity according to a survey by the Center for Disease Control?
organic【有机的】
organism【生物、有机体】
Section C
Recording One （14:40-）
Qualities of a relationship【友谊的质量】such as openness【开放】，compassion【同情】and mental stimulation【刺激】are of concern to most of us regardless of sex，but- judging from the questionnaire response，they are more important to women than to men.
Asked to consider the ingredients【因素】of close friendship, women rated【认为】these qualities above all others. Men assigned【指定、分配】a lower priority【优先事项】to them in favor of similarity in interests，selected by 77 % of men, and responsiveness【反应能力】in a crisis, chosen by 61% of male respondents. Mental stimulation, ranked third in popularity by men as well as women，was the only area of overlap【重叠部分】. Among men，only 28% named openness as an important quality; caring was picked by 23%.
It is evident by their selections that when women speak of close friendships，they are referring to emotional factors, while men emphasize the pleasure they find in a friend's company【公司、同伴】. That is，when a man speaks of 'a friend'，he is likely to be taking about someone he does things with - a teammate，a fellow hobbyist, a drinking buddy【朋友】. These activities are the fabric【布料、构造】of the friendship; it is a 'doing' relationship in which similarity in interests is the key bond【纽带、联系】. This factor was a consideration of less than 11% of women. Women opt for a warm, emotional atmosphere where communication flows freely; activity is mere background.
Lastly, men, as we have seen，have serious questions about each other's loyalty. Perhaps this is why they placed such strong emphasis on responsiveness in a crisis - 'someone I can call on for help.' Women, as their testimonies【证据】indicate【表明、暗示】, are generally more secure with each other and consequently are more likely to treat this issue lightly. In follow-up【后续的】interviews this was confirmed numerous times as woman after woman indicated that 'being there when needed was taken for granted【认为是理所当然的】.'
As for the hazards【危害、障碍】of friendship, more than a few relationships have been shattered【打碎、削弱】because of cutthroat【残酷的】competition and feelings of betrayal【背叛】. This applies to both men and women, but unequally. In comparison，nearly twice as many men complained about these issues as women. Further，while competition and betrayal are the main thorns to female relationship，men are plagued【困扰】in almost equal amounts by two additional issues：lack of friendship and a fear of appearing【显得】unmanly【没有男子气概】. Obviously，for a man，a good friend is hard to find.
Question 16：What quality do men value most concerning friendship according to a questionnaire【问卷调查】response?
Question 17：What do women refer to when speaking of close friendships【亲密的友谊】?
Question 18：What may threaten a friendship for both men and women?
Recording Two （18:45-）
The partial skeletons【骨骼】of more than 20 dinosaurs and the scattered【分散的】bones of about 300 more have been discovered in Utah and Colorado. At what is now the Dinosaur National Monument【纪念馆】.
Many of the best specimens【样本】may be seen today at museums of natural history in the largest cities of the United States and Canada. This dinosaur pit【坑】is the largest and best preserved deposit【放置、沉淀物】of dinosaurs known today. Many people get the idea from the massive bones and the pit bull【公牛】that some disaster, such as a volcanic explosion or a sudden flood, killed a whole herd of dinosaurs【恐龙】in this area. This could have happened, but it probably did not.
The main reasons for thinking otherwise【否则、不是那样的】are the scattered bones and the thickness【厚度】of the deposit. In other deposits where the animals were thought to have died together, the skeletons were usually complete and often all the bones were in their proper places. Rounded【圆形的】pieces of fossil bones have been found here. These fragments got their smooth round shape, though, rolling【滚动】along the stream【小河、流动】bottom. In a mass killing, the bones would have been left on the stream or lake bottom together at the same level. But in this deposit, the bones occur throughout【遍及、自始至终】a zone【地区】of sandstone【砂岩】about 12 feet thick.
The mixture of swamp【湿地、沼泽】dwellers【居民】and dry land types also seems to indicate that the deposit is a mixture from different places. The pit area is a large dinosaur graveyard【墓地】, not a place where they died. Most of the remains probably floated down on eastward【向东方向的】flowing【流动的】river until they were left on a shallow sandbar【沙洲】. Some of them may have come from far away dry land areas to the west. Perhaps they drowned【淹死】trying to cross a small stream or washed【洗】away during floods. Some of the swamp dwellers may have got stuck in the very sandbar that became their grave. Others may have floated for miles before being stranded【搁浅】.
Even today, similar events take place when floods come in the spring. Sheep, cattle【牛】，deer【鹿】are often trapped by rising waters and often drown. Their dead bodies float downstream until the flood recedes【逐渐远离、逐渐退去】and leaves them stranded on a bar【酒吧】or shore【滨、岸】where they lie half buried【埋葬】in the sand【沙子】until they decay【腐烂、衰败】. Early travelers on the Missouri River reported that shores and bars were often lined with the decaying bodies of Buffalo that had died during spring floods.
19. Where can many of the best dinosaur specimens be found in North America?
20. What occurs to many people when they see the massive bones in the pit wall?
21. What does the speaker suggest about the large number of dinosaur bones found in the pet?
Recording Three （22:45-）
I would like particularly to talk about the need to develop a new style of aging【变老】in our own society. Young people in this country have been accused【指责、控告】of not caring for their parents the way they would have in the old country. And this is true. But it is also true that old people have been influenced by an American ideal of independence and autonomy【独立自主】. So we live alone, perhaps on the verge of【在...的边缘】starvation【饥饿】in time without friends. But we are independent.
This standard American style has been forced on every ethnic【种族】group, although there are many groups for whom the ideal is not practical. It is a poor ideal in pursuing【追求】it does a great deal of【大量】harm. This ideal of independence also contains a tremendous【大量的】amount of unselfishness【不自私、慷慨】.
In talking to today's young mothers. I have asked them what kind of grandmothers they think they are going to be. I hear devoted, loving mothers say that when they are through raising their children, they have no intention of becoming grandmothers【奶奶】. They were astonished to hear that in most of the world, throughout most of its history, families have been three or four generation families living under the same roof【屋顶】.
We have overemphasized the small family unit【单元】, father, mother, small children. We think it is wonderful if grandma and grandpa, if they're still alive, can live alone. We have reached the point where we think the only thing we can do for our children is to stay out of their way. And the only thing we can do for our daughter in law is to see as little of her as possible. Old peoples' nursing homes【养老院】. Even the best run【尤其是经营好的】are filled with older people who believe the only thing they can do for their children is to look cheerful【高兴地】when they come to visit. So in the end, older people have to devote all their energies to not being a burden.
We are beginning to see what a tremendous price we've paid for our emphasis on independence and autonomy. We've isolated old people and we've cut off the children from their grandparents. One of the reasons we have as bad a generation gap today as we do is that grandparents have stepped out. Young people are being deprived【剥夺】of the things they need most: perspective to know why their parents behave so peculiarly【特别、古怪的】and why their grandparents say the things they do.
Question 22: What have young Americans been accused of?
Question 23: What does the speaker say about old people in the United States?
Question 24: What is astonishing to the young mothers interviewed by the speaker?
Question 25: What does the speaker say older people try their best to do?
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