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中级英语听力lesson 29

时间:2005-06-14 16:00:00

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(单词翻译)

Linda: Oh, yes, I remember. We were conducting a survey into the, the needs of disabled people in the borough1 (Yes) in which I work in London. And we got a request from an old man to go along and, and see him in connection with this survey. Well, some of the people that I'd seen on the survey before were really quite poor and lived in very bad housing conditions. (Yes) They were also ... tended to be elderly and to really have some quite bad disabilities, so I was quite prepared for, for anything I thought that I might meet. Anyway, I went along to, to this house and it was not at all what I'd expected. It was a, a large house and really had an air of fa, faded gentility about it. It was in a part of the borough which had (Really?) once been quite fashionable. Er, I knocked at the door and the old man, Mr. Sinclair, came to, to let me in and showed me into a back room, which he lived in. The rest of the house, I think, must have been shut up and he was just living in one or two rooms. (How extraordinary!) Anyway, we started the interview which I had to, to conduct with him and he was very, very willing to talk but he never stopped grumbling2. He grumbled3 about ... young people, about the rising cost of living, about the government, about how the area had gone down, and so on and so forth4. He didn't seem to have a good word to say for anybody at all. (S ... )
Janet: Got a real chip on his shoulder?
Linda: Well, he was. He was a really grumpy old man and not very likeable with it. But he was ... rather frail5 and in his eighties and ... I just accepted that perhaps, you know, he'd had a hard life in, in some way an, and hadn't really resolved it. Anyway, I left the, er, the house and went back to the office, wrote up the interview and didn't think any more about it. And then about a week later, I got a phone call from him saying that he thought he'd left out some important things about himself (Really?) that I should know, and would I go and see him again. So I explained that it was a survey that we were doing and that it wasn't really very usual to go back and see somebody a second time, but if he felt it was really important then, of course, I would go. (Yeah) So I went along and exactly the same thing happened as had happened before. He showed me into the back room and he started grumbling again and this went on for about half an hour and I began to wonder why on earth he'd asked me to go back a second time.
Janet: He didn't tell you anything new about himself?
Linda: Well, he ... after about half an hour he started. He said, 'I, I expect you wonder why I've asked you to come back,' (Quite) and I said, 'Well, as a matter of fact, yes I do.' So he said, 'Well, I think I should tell you a bit about myself and perhaps explain why I, I seem to have a chip on my shoulder,' which took me aback, back a bit, you know. Anyway, apparently6, he had come from a, a family which was ... really quite well-to-do but not spectacularly rich and his father had a, a small grocery business and had supported his mother and, and his two sisters. Well, his mother and father both died quite early on in his life and he took over the business (Yes) and it fell to him, of course, to support his two sisters. (Yes) Well, gradually the, the business began to, to flourish. He opened up new lines in the shops, he bought in some foreign foods and he (He ... ) acquired new premises7.
Janet: He really built the whole thing up.
Linda: Well yes. He didn't become a multimillionaire or anything like that, but he was certainly very comfortably off. Anyway, he ... one of his sisters got married and the other sister emigrated to Australia but he himself never, never married.
Janet: He just stayed on in the house by himself?
Linda: He stayed on in, in this house which had been the family house for a number of years.
Janet: Completely alone?
Linda: Completely alone, yes. And he ... really cut himself off from his friends, or friends of the family, because he was giving all day, every day, to the growth of his business. So he kept going for a number of years but eventually, of course, he began to, to grow older and with age came arthritis8 (Oh dear) and ... gradually the, the condition worsened and he became more and more in pain, more and more frail but he still battled on, I think, for a number of years (Yes) but eventually he was forced to give up. And it left him completely alone. He was still, of course, well off, (Yes) but that wasn't in itself enough, and while he was telling me this he was, he was so upset because he'd remembered when telling me the excitement and the thrill he'd felt (Yes) when he was completing these transactions, of what it m, meant to be both powerful, respected and really somebody of note (Yes) in the area, whereas now he was old, (H...) frail, in pain.
Janet: He'd lost everything.
Linda: Yes, he had. His, his neighbours were very good to him, but it wasn't that that he wanted. (No) And I felt so ... helpless because it wasn't that he needed more money, it wasn't that he really needed visitors—he didn't particularly want visitor. (No) What he wanted was to be, to be young again and to be in a position of, of building something up and seeing the results (Yes) from it.
Janet: Oh, what a sad story!

        Los Angeles police yesterday added a new name to the list of victims of what they believe is a new serial9 killer10. Like the first four victims Joseph Griffin was a homeless man shot on the head while sleeping alone. NPR's Salas Wason reports from Los Angeles.
        Early this month the police department sent notices to every homeless shelter about the transient killer. Staff member Marcotte Tears reads from the Xerox11 post near the check-in window at the Union Rescue Mission down town.
        "Four men have been shot in the head in the last three weeks. The men were all transients and sleeping alone at the time of the killings13. Please tell everyone in this chapel14 and those along the streets to come indoors at night to any of the missions or shelters. When they are full please tell the men to group together, not to be alone at night, but huddle15 for safety. The lives of the men may depend upon their following these instructions."
        Since that notice was distributed, police have searched their records and added five more victims to the list. Except for the victim added yesterday they are not transients, but they were all shot while out on the streets in the early morning hours. Commander William Booth, a spokesman for the police department, won't confirm it, but reportedly all the men were shot with a small caliber16 gun. So far Booth said the task force working on the case doesn't have many clues and only a little bit of information about the murderer.
        "Frankly17 not nearly enough. We have a brief description: a male black, who is tall, slim, a hundred fifty to a hundred and seventy pounds, twenty-five to thirty years old. With a medium to large Afro haircut."
        The first victim was shot on September 4th, the most recent October 7th. The crime took place in several Los Angeles neighborhoods. All five homeless men killed were sleeping outside downtown. Not in the skid18 road area, but nearby. Although the city's transients have been urged to sleep in shelters, there are thousands more men than beds are available. And not all the homeless choose to stay in the shelters. Still most of the men at the Union Rescue Mission know about the transient killer and admit to some concern.
        Los Angeles police are still looking for another serial murderer. This outside slayer19 is suspected of killing12 seventeen women, mostly prostitutes during the past three years. I'm Salas Wason in Los Angeles.

How to Present a Seminar Paper
        In this talk, I am going to give some advice on how to present a seminar paper.
        At one time, most university teaching took the form of giving formal lectures. Nowadays, many university teachers try to involve their students more actively20 in the learning process. One of the ways in which this is done is by conducting seminars. In a seminar, what usually happens is this. One student is chosen to give his ideas on a certain topic. These ideas are then discussed by the other students (the participants) in the seminar.
        What I'd like to discuss with you today is the techniques of presenting a paper at a seminar. As you know, there are two main stages involved in this. One is the preparation stage which involves researching and writing up a topic. The other stage is the presentation stage when you actually present the paper to your audience. It is this second stage that I am concerned with now. Let us therefore imagine that you have been asked to lead off a seminar discussion and that you have done all the necessary preparation. In other words you have done your research and you have written it up. How are you going to present it?
        There are two ways in which this can be done.
        The first method is to circulate copies of the paper in advance to all the participants. This gives them time to read it before the seminar, so that they can come already prepared with their own ideas about what you have written. The second method is where there is no time for previous circulation, or there is some other reason why the paper cannot be circulated. In that case, of course, the paper will have to read aloud to the group, who will probably make their own notes on it while they are listening.
        In this talk, I am going to concentrate on the first method, where the paper is circulated in advance, as this is the most efficient way of conducting a seminar; but most of what I am going to say also applies to the second method; and indeed may be useful to remember any time you have to speak in public.
        You will probably be expected to introduce your paper even if it has been circulated beforehand. There are two good reasons for this. One is that the participants may have read the paper but forgotten some of the main points. The second reason is that some of the participants may not in fact have had time to read your paper, although they may have glanced through it quickly. They will therefore not be in a position to comment on it, unless they get some idea of what it is all about.
        When you are introducing your paper, what you must not do is simply read the whole paper aloud. This is because:
        Firstly, if the paper is a fairly long one, there may not be enough time for discussion. From your point of view, the discussion is the most important thing. It is very helpful for you if other people criticize your work: in that way you can improve it.
        Secondly21, a lot of information can be understood when one is reading. It is not so easy to pick up detailed22 information when one is listening. In other words, there may be lack of comprehension or understanding.
        Thirdly, it can be very boring listening to something being read aloud. Anyway some of your audience may have read your paper carefully and will not thank you for having to go through all of it again.
        Therefore, what you must do is follow the following nine points:
        1. Decide on a time limit for your talk. Tell your audience what it is. Stick to your time limit. This is very important.
        2. Write out your spoken presentation in the way that you intend to say it. This means that you must do some of the work of writing the paper again, in a sense. You may think that this is a waste of time, but it isn't. If a speaker tries to make a summary of his paper while he is standing23 in front of his audience, the results are usually disastrous24.
        3. Concentrate only on the main points. Ignore details. Hammer home the essence of your argument. If necessary, find ways of making your basic points so that your audience will be clear about what they are.
        4. Try to make your spoken presentation lively and interesting. This doesn't necessarily mean telling jokes and anecdotes25. But if you can think of interesting or amusing examples to illustrate26 your argument, use them.
        5. If you are not used to speaking in public, write out everything you have to say, including examples, etc. Rehearse what you are going to say until you are word perfect.
        6. When you know exactly what you are going to say, reduce it to outline notes. Rehearse your talk again, this time from the outline notes. Make sure you can find your way easily from the outline notes to the full notes, in case you forget something.
        7. At the seminar, speak from the outline notes. But bring both sets of notes and your original paper to the meeting. Knowing that you have a full set of notes available will be good for your self-confidence.
        8. Look at your audience while your are speaking. The technique to use is this. First read the appropriate parts of your notes silently (if you are using outline notes, this won't take you long). Then look up at your audience and say what you have to say. Never speak while you are still reading. While you are looking at your audience, try to judge what they are thinking. Are they following you? You will never make contact with your audience if your eyes are fixed27 on the paper in front of you.
        9. Make a strong ending. One good way of doing this is to repeat your main points briefly28 and invite questions or comments.
        Perhaps I can sum up by saying this. Remember that listening is very different from reading. Something that is going to be listened to has therefore got to be prepared in a different way from something that is intended to be read.

 


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1 borough EdRyS     
n.享有自治权的市镇;(英)自治市镇
参考例句:
  • He was slated for borough president.他被提名做自治区主席。
  • That's what happened to Harry Barritt of London's Bromley borough.住在伦敦的布罗姆利自治市的哈里.巴里特就经历了此事。
2 grumbling grumbling     
adj. 喃喃鸣不平的, 出怨言的
参考例句:
  • She's always grumbling to me about how badly she's treated at work. 她总是向我抱怨她在工作中如何受亏待。
  • We didn't hear any grumbling about the food. 我们没听到过对食物的抱怨。
3 grumbled ed735a7f7af37489d7db1a9ef3b64f91     
抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 ); 发牢骚; 咕哝; 发哼声
参考例句:
  • He grumbled at the low pay offered to him. 他抱怨给他的工资低。
  • The heat was sweltering, and the men grumbled fiercely over their work. 天热得让人发昏,水手们边干活边发着牢骚。
4 forth Hzdz2     
adv.向前;向外,往外
参考例句:
  • The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
  • He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。
5 frail yz3yD     
adj.身体虚弱的;易损坏的
参考例句:
  • Mrs. Warner is already 96 and too frail to live by herself.华纳太太已经九十六岁了,身体虚弱,不便独居。
  • She lay in bed looking particularly frail.她躺在床上,看上去特别虚弱。
6 apparently tMmyQ     
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎
参考例句:
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
7 premises 6l1zWN     
n.建筑物,房屋
参考例句:
  • According to the rules,no alcohol can be consumed on the premises.按照规定,场内不准饮酒。
  • All repairs are done on the premises and not put out.全部修缮都在家里进行,不用送到外面去做。
8 arthritis XeyyE     
n.关节炎
参考例句:
  • Rheumatoid arthritis has also been linked with the virus.风湿性关节炎也与这种病毒有关。
  • He spent three months in the hospital with acute rheumatic arthritis.他患急性风湿性关节炎,在医院住了三个月。
9 serial 0zuw2     
n.连本影片,连本电视节目;adj.连续的
参考例句:
  • A new serial is starting on television tonight.今晚电视开播一部新的电视连续剧。
  • Can you account for the serial failures in our experiment?你能解释我们实验屡屡失败的原因吗?
10 killer rpLziK     
n.杀人者,杀人犯,杀手,屠杀者
参考例句:
  • Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
  • The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。
11 xerox ffPwL     
n./v.施乐复印机,静电复印
参考例句:
  • Xerox and Lucent are two more high-tech companies run by women.施乐和朗讯是另外两家由女性经营的大科技公司。
  • You cannot take it home,but you can xerox it.你不能把它带回家,但可以复印。
12 killing kpBziQ     
n.巨额利润;突然赚大钱,发大财
参考例句:
  • Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
  • Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。
13 killings 76d97e8407f821a6e56296c4c9a9388c     
谋杀( killing的名词复数 ); 突然发大财,暴发
参考例句:
  • His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
  • The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
14 chapel UXNzg     
n.小教堂,殡仪馆
参考例句:
  • The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
  • She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午,她在小教堂的演出,可以说是登峰造极。
15 huddle s5UyT     
vi.挤作一团;蜷缩;vt.聚集;n.挤在一起的人
参考例句:
  • They like living in a huddle.他们喜欢杂居在一起。
  • The cold wind made the boy huddle inside his coat.寒风使这个男孩卷缩在他的外衣里。
16 caliber JsFzO     
n.能力;水准
参考例句:
  • They ought to win with players of such high caliber.他们选手的能力这样高,应该获胜。
  • We are always trying to improve the caliber of our schools.我们一直在想方设法提高我们学校的水平。
17 frankly fsXzcf     
adv.坦白地,直率地;坦率地说
参考例句:
  • To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说,我一点也不赞成这个主意。
  • Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说,我不反对改革。
18 skid RE9yK     
v.打滑 n.滑向一侧;滑道 ,滑轨
参考例句:
  • He braked suddenly,causing the front wheels to skid.他突然剎车,使得前轮打了滑。
  • The police examined the skid marks to see how fast the car had been travelling.警察检查了车轮滑行痕迹,以判断汽车当时开得有多快。
19 slayer slayer     
n. 杀人者,凶手
参考例句:
  • The young man was Oedipus, who thus unknowingly became the slayer of his own father. 这位青年就是俄狄浦斯。他在不明真相的情况下杀死了自己的父亲。
  • May I depend on you to stand by me and my daughters, then, deer-slayer? 如此说来,我可以指望你照料我和女儿了,杀鹿人?
20 actively lzezni     
adv.积极地,勤奋地
参考例句:
  • During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
  • We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。
21 secondly cjazXx     
adv.第二,其次
参考例句:
  • Secondly,use your own head and present your point of view.第二,动脑筋提出自己的见解。
  • Secondly it is necessary to define the applied load.其次,需要确定所作用的载荷。
22 detailed xuNzms     
adj.详细的,详尽的,极注意细节的,完全的
参考例句:
  • He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
  • A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。
23 standing 2hCzgo     
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。
24 disastrous 2ujx0     
adj.灾难性的,造成灾害的;极坏的,很糟的
参考例句:
  • The heavy rainstorm caused a disastrous flood.暴雨成灾。
  • Her investment had disastrous consequences.She lost everything she owned.她的投资结果很惨,血本无归。
25 anecdotes anecdotes     
n.掌故,趣闻,轶事( anecdote的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • amusing anecdotes about his brief career as an actor 关于他短暂演员生涯的趣闻逸事
  • He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman. 他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。 来自《简明英汉词典》
26 illustrate IaRxw     
v.举例说明,阐明;图解,加插图
参考例句:
  • The company's bank statements illustrate its success.这家公司的银行报表说明了它的成功。
  • This diagram will illustrate what I mean.这个图表可说明我的意思。
27 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
28 briefly 9Styo     
adv.简单地,简短地
参考例句:
  • I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
  • He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

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