Track 2-05-03.mp3

Supplementary Reading

Ⅰ. Culture Notes

ⅰ. Chicken Soup for the Soul  

Chicken Soup for the Soul is a series of books, usually featuring a collection of short, inspirational stories and motivational essays. There have been numerous volumes of Chicken Soup issued. As of January 2006, there were over 105 titles. Many of the books are directed at specific groups of people, e.g. Chicken Soup for the Mother's Soul, Chicken Soup for the Prisoner's Soul, Chicken Soup for the Volunteer's Soul, Chicken Soup for the Grandparent's Soul, Chicken Soup for the Ocean Lover's Soul, etc. The name "Chicken Soup" was chosen for this series because of the use of chicken soup as a home remedy for the sick.

ⅱ. Proverb: A cat has nine lives.  

1. Origin of the proverb 

The belief that a cat has nine lives is probably based on the fact that a cat is more tenacious of life than most other animals. Cats can survive harsh conditions. They can fall from a few stories up and not die. This is because cats are built differently from other animals.

Attempts have been made to trace the origin of the common expression back to ancient Egypt. It is often said that the cat-headed goddess of Egypt had nine lives and that this circumstance gave rise to the old saying about a cat having nine lives. Another theory on the origin of this expression is that in ancient times nine was a lucky number. As cats seem able to escape injury time and time again, this lucky number seemed suited to the cat.  

2. Does a cat really have nine lives?  

1. The cat's earliest ancestors probably hunted both on the ground and in the trees. (T)

2. To survive, they needed not only claws, but remarkable balance. (T)

3. Because of having nine lives, the cat is very safe and free in today’s modern cities. (F)

(=The cat faces particular dangers in today's modern cities. )

4. High-rise syndrome means cats can jump high in the sky. (F)

(=High-rise syndrome means cats falling out of windows. )

Ⅱ. Language Study

1. (para. 1) incline:  v.  (make sb.) tend to feel sth. or want to do sth.

* I incline to the view that peace can be achieved.

* The Prime Minister is believed to be inclining towards an April election.

* 尽管不是很确定，我还是倾向于相信他说的话。

(=Although not very convincing, I'm still inclined to believe what he said.)

  * She inclines to leanness.

  (=她体质属偏瘦型。)

2. (para. 2) in good/excellent/poor health: 健康状况良好/很好/差)

* Living together with her sons, the old woman was very happy and in excellent health.

* 因为抽烟抽得很厉害，他的健康状况较差。

(=The man was in poor health due to his heavy smoking. )

3. (para. 4) horrible:  adj.  causing a feeling of extreme fear or dislike

  * That fish smells horrible. // a horrible crime/nightmare

  * 昨晚我做了一个可怕的恶梦。

  (=I had a horrible nightmare last night. )

4. (para. 4) suffer from: experience physical or mental pain

* She's been suffering from (= been ill with) cancer for two years.

  * 他妻子去世时他遭受了很大的痛苦。

(=He suffered quite a lot when his wife left him. )

5. (para. 4) progressive:  adj.  happening or advancing gradually by stages over a period of time

  * Cancer is a disease caused by progressive growth of abnormal cells.

  * 过去几年来，生活水平逐渐下降。

(=There's been a progressive decline in the standard of living over the past few years. )

6. (para. 6) in spite of: (used before one fact that makes another fact surprising) taking no notice of; not being affected by

  * In spite of the fact that she was too ill to see anyone, he insisted on visiting her.

  * 尽管有伤在身，比尔还是会参加周六的比赛。

  (=In spite of his injury, Bill will play in Saturday's match. )

7. (para. 6) aid: n.  help

  * A woman in the street saw that he was in trouble and came to his aid.

  * 她帮助了一个被困在车内的男人。

(=She went to the aid of a man trapped in his car. )

8. (para. 6) install:  vt.  place, fix (a piece of equipment) in position for use; add new software to the computer

  * The plumber is coming tomorrow to install the new washing machine.

  * 你能帮我装一下这个软件吗？

(=Can you help me install this software? )

9. (para. 6) optimistic:  adj.  believing that good things will happen in the future

  * The doctor said he was optimistic that the little boy would make a full recovery.

  * 她有信心赢得金牌。

(=She is optimistic about her chances of winning a gold medal. )

10. (para. 6) to a degree: to a certain extent, partly

* To some degree I think that's right, but there are other factors which may affect the situation.  

  * 那部电影有点枯燥。

(=The film was boring to a degree. )

11. (para. 8) Our home was a split-level affair  with 14 steps leading up from the garage to the kitchen door.

   What is “a split-level affair” ?

   (= A room or building that has floors at different heights in different parts. )

   Translate the sentence into Chinese.

   (=我们家住的是错层式的房子，从汽车间通往厨房门有14级台阶。)

12. (para. 8) I felt that if the day arrived when I was unable to lift one foot up one step and then drag the other painfully after it — repeating the process 14 times until, utterly spent , I would be through — I could then admit defeat and lie down and die.

   Translate the sentence into Chinese.

 (=我觉得如果有一天我无法再抬起一只脚迈上一个台阶，再痛苦地拖起另一只脚——将这个过程重复14遍，直到精疲力竭爬上去——到那时我就会服输并躺下死去。)

13. (para. 10) hold on to: not give up; not let go of

* I'd hold on to that house for the time being; house prices are rising sharply at the moment.

* 他依然努力想保住在政府部门的职位。

(=He was still managing to hold on to his position in the government. )

14. (para. 10) miserable: adj.  causing great unhappiness, discomfort, etc.; extremely unhappy

* What a miserable existence! How could anyone live in such dreadful conditions!

  * 过去，农民的生活很痛苦。

  (=In the old days the peasants lived a miserable life. )

15. (para. 13) dismiss:  vt.  put (thoughts, etc.) out of one's mind; remove (sb.) from a position

* The committee dismissed the idea as rubbish.

  * 凡是违反公司规定的人都将被解雇。

(=Anyone who breaks company rules will be dismissed. )

16. (para. 15) bundle:  vt.  wrap; dress warmly because it is cold

  * We're supposed to bundle newspapers before throwing them away.

  * 你最好穿暖和一点，外面很冷。

(=You'd better bundle up because it's very cold outdoors. )

17. (para. 17) interval:  n.  a period of time between events, activities, etc.

  * After an interval of three days the peace talks resumed.

  * There's often a long interval between an author completing a book and it appearing in the bookshops.

  * 我们每隔一段时间见个面，一般大约一月一次。

(=We see each other at regular intervals — usually about once a month. )

18. (para. 24) penetrate:  v.  force a way (into or through sth.); be fully understood

* Amazingly, the bullet did not penetrate his brain.  

* In a normal winter, the frost penetrates deeply enough to kill off insect eggs in the soil.

* 西方观念逐渐传入东方。

(=Western ideas penetrate slowly through the East. )

19. (para. 24) In the next few frozen seconds the shame and horror of that moment penetrated, and I was sick with an intensity I had never felt before.

   Translate the sentence into Chinese.

   (=刹那间，时间凝固了，我感到万分的羞愧和震惊。我从来没有这么难受过。)

20. (para. 25) trait:  n.  a particular quality, esp. of a person’s character

* His sense of humour is one of his better traits.

* Arrogance is a very unattractive personality/character trait.

  * 那个老师上课很有幽默感。

(=The teacher teaches with a trait of humor. )

21. (para. 27) pray:  v.  speak to God to give thanks or ask for sth.; wish or hope very strongly that sth. will happen or is true

* Let us pray for the victims of this terrible earthquake.

  * We pray you that the prisoner may be set free.

  * 我们祈祷明天出远门有个好天气。

(=We're praying for good weather for tomorrow's trip. )

22. (para. 27) awareness:  n.  knowledge or understanding

* If the manager has no awareness of the problem, then nothing will get done.

  * 大众对艾滋病的认识与了解有助于控制疾病的传播。

(=Public awareness of AIDS has helped to limit the spread of the disease. )

23. (para. 27) shortcoming:  n.  weakness that a person or thing has

* He is a person with many shortcomings.

  * We all have our shortcomings.

  * 不管谁指出我们的缺点，我们都改正。

(=No matter who points out our shortcomings, we will correct them. )