第一部分 阅读与词汇
1. The Blue Pig with a Black Tail
Once upon a time(从前) a certain king sent a message to another king, saying, “Send me a blue pig with a black tail, or else——”
The other replied, “I haven't one; if I had——”
Both kings were so angry that they went to war with each other. They collected all their soldiers and fought with each other. Brave men were killed, and women and children died because they could get nothing to eat.
When it seemed that neither side could win the war, the kings began to talk aboutpeace. First of all, it was necessary to explain the two messages. Each king was angry at what the other had said.
“What did you mean,”Asked the second king, “by saying, ‘sending a blue pig with a black tail, or else——’?”
“Why,”said the first king, “I could mean only one thing. I meant that I wanted you to send me a blue pig with a black tail, or else a pig of some other color.”
“Oh, that was all, was it? I did not get the whole of your message,”answered the second king. “What a pity! “He added.
“Ah, but I must know what you meant by your reply to my message,”asked the first king. “You said, 'I haven't one; if I had——”'
“Why, my answer is very clear. I meant that I hadn't one; if I had, I should have sent it to you.”
“Well, well! “said the first king, “We have been fighting about nothing. If we had only explained these things before the war started, then this bitter war must have beenavoided.”
So the great war of the blue pig with the black tail was recorded in the histories of the two countries in order to prevent such a war happening again.
【汉语翻译】
黑尾巴的蓝猪
从前有位国王给另一位国王送去一条信息，说，“给我送来一只长着黑尾巴(tail)的蓝猪，或者其他的——”
另一位回答说，“我没有这样的猪，如果我有——”。
两位国王如此生气以致于(so angry that)发动了战争。他们调集所有士兵去打仗。勇敢的士兵死在战场上，女人和孩子因为没有食物而死去。
看来好像(it seemed that.)双方都不能(neither side could)打赢这场战争，于是两位国王开始谈论和平(talk about peace)。首先(first of all)，有必要去解释(explain)那两条信息。两位国王都因对方所说的话而生气。
第二位国王问道，“你当时说‘送我一只长着黑尾巴的蓝猪，否则——’，你那么说是什么意思？”
“怎么，”第一位国王回答道，“我只能表示一个意思啊，我是说我希望你给我送一只黑尾巴的蓝猪，或者其他颜色的猪。”（注：or else可有两种解释，一是作为短语，译为“否则”，二是作为两个单独的单词，放在一起译为“或者其他”）
第二位国王回答，“哎呀！就是这个意思啊？我没有理解你信息的全部。”他补充说(add)。“真可惜(what a pity)!”
“嗯，但我必须知道你的回信是什么意思，”第一位国王补充道，“你说‘我没有这样的猪，即使我有——’”。
“我的回答很清楚啊。我是说我没有那样的猪；如果有的话，我会送给你的。”
“哎呀！”第一位国王说，“我们之间的战争毫无理由。如果我们能在战争开始之前解释清楚这些事情，这场痛苦的战争(bitter war)就一定能避免(avoid)。”
于是这场关于黑尾巴的蓝猪的战争被载入(was recorded)两国史册以防止(prevent)此类现象再次发生。
2. A Girl's Smile
About ten years ago when I was a student in college, life was hard for me then. Both my parents had lost their jobs, so I worked at my University's Museum in my spare time. One day while working in the gift shop, I saw an old couple come in with a little girl in a wheelchair.
As I looked closer at this girl, I found that she had no arms or legs, just ahead, neck and torso(躯干). She was wearing a pretty white dress, also a little redcap.
When they came closer to me, I turned my head toward the girl and gave her a wink(眨眼). As I took the money from hergrandparents, I looked back at the girl, who was giving me the prettiest, largest smile I had ever seen.
All of a sudden her handicap(残疾)was gone and all I saw was this perfect girl. I wasdeeply moved by her smile, and almost immediately she gave me a completely newsense of what life is all about. She took me from a poor, unhappy college student and brought me into her world: a world of smiles, love and warmth.
That was ten years ago. I'm a successful business person now and whenever I am in low spirits and think about the troubles of the world, I'll think about that little girl and the lesson about life that she taught me, so I will never lose courage.
【汉语翻译】
一个女孩的微笑
大约十年前，我还在大学(college)里学习，那时的生活很艰难。我的父母都失业了，因此，我在业余时间去大学博物馆工作，有一天，当我正在礼品店工作时(while working in the gift shop)，我看到一对老年夫妇推着一个坐在轮椅(wheelchair)里的小女孩进来了。
当我仔细看这女孩时，我发现她没有胳膊和腿，只有头(head)、颈和躯干。她穿着漂亮的(pretty)白色衣服(dress)，还戴着一顶小红帽(cap)。
当他们走近我时，我转向这个女孩并对她眨了眨眼。我从她的祖父母(grandparents)手里接过钱时，我又回头看看那个女孩，她正在给我一个最漂亮、最灿烂的微笑。
突然间她的残疾消失了，我所看到的是一个完美的(perfect)女孩。她的笑容深深地(deeply)打动了我，几乎立刻让我对人生有了全新的(completely new)感觉(sense)。她把我从一个贫穷不幸大学生带入了她的世界：一个微笑、爱和温暖的世界。
那是十年前的事了。现在我已是一名成功的商人。无论何时(whenever)我情绪低落(in low spirits)、因烦恼而忧虑时，我就会想起那个小女孩和她教给我的关于生活的教训，因此，我从未丧失勇气(lose courage)。
3. Take Our Daughters to Work Day
On April 27 is Take Our Daughters to Work Day in Brkain. Started in America and brought to Britain in 1994, Take Our Daughters to Work Day has become a special day for girls between 11 and 15. On that day thousands of girl stake a day off school and go together with one of their parents to their work places. The purpose of this day is to open up girls' eyes and get them to believe in themselves.
For many years people have thought that boys can do better than girls in society. But in fact girls can be whatever they want to be just like boys, whether it is a pilot, anurse or a manager. On this special day, girls can have a close look at what their parents are doing and this may help girls to believe in themselves when they need to choose their work.
Schools and many companies also think this activity useful. Green Middle School for Girls, in north London has made the day a necessary part of education.
Zarina, 15, studying in Green Middle school, went to her mother's law office. She found it interesting to see her mother at work. She has always liked this idea of going into law and thinks maybe she will does the same work as her mother later.
If parents believe in their daughters and show examples both at work and at home for them, this will give a lot of help to girls. Take Our Daughters to Work Day is certainly a step in the right direction.
【汉语翻译】
带着女儿上班节
4月(April) 27日在英国是“带着女儿去上班节”。这个节日起源于美国。1994年传入英国，它已成为11至15岁之间女孩的特殊节日。那一天，成千上万的女孩休假一天(take a day off)，与父亲或母亲一起(together)去他们的工作场所。这个节日的目的(purpose)是让女孩开阔眼界，让她们相信自己(believe in themselves)。
很多年来，人们认为男孩在社会中(in society)可以比女孩做得更好，但实际上，女孩可以像男孩一样做她们想做的任何工作，无论是飞行员(pilot)、护士还是经理(manager)都可以。在这个特殊的日子(on this special day)，女孩可以近距离地观察她们的父母在做什么，这可能会有助于女孩在选择工作时增加自信。
学校和许多公司也认为这项活动(activity)很有用。伦敦北部的格林女子中学已经把这一天作为教育的必要组成部分了。
15岁的加莱纳就读于格林中学，她去了她妈妈的律师事务所(law office)．她发现看她妈妈工作很有意思。她一直有步入法律界的想法，她想可能以后她会像妈妈一样工作。
如果家长相信他们的女儿，在工作中、在家里都为她们树立榜样会对她们有很大帮助。 “带女儿去上班节”无疑是朝正确的方向(in the right direction)迈进了一步。
4. Aunt Frankie (1)
Aunt Frankie is a fun, busy and caring lady! She is always ready to have fun. After a long day at work, she usually comes in the door singing some songs from the 80s.Sometimes she has a new dance step to share. Aunt Frankie and her husband own acandy shop. That shop has brought in some money for them, but they don't buy much furniture. Aunt Frankie enjoys having more space in her house.
When Aunt Frankie stays at home, she likes to be comfortable, and she almost always wears a big white T-shirt, old pink shorts, and no socks or shoes.
【汉语翻译】
姑妈弗兰奇(1)
姑妈(aunt)弗兰奇是一位有趣、忙碌、有爱心的女士(lady)!她总是喜欢逗乐。工作一整天后，她通常会唱(sing)着80年代的歌进入家门。有时她还会和你分享(share)新的舞步。
姑妈弗兰奇和他的丈夫拥有一家糖果店(candy shop)。那家店铺给他们赚了一些钱，但他们没买很多的家具(furniture)。姑妈弗兰奇喜欢房间里有更多的空间(space)。
姑妈弗兰奇在家时，她喜欢让自己感觉舒服(comfortable)，她几乎总是穿着一件很宽松的白色T恤(T-shirt)，粉色旧短裤(shorts)，不穿袜子(socks)和鞋。
5. Aunt Frankie (2)
I love to visit Aunt Frankie. There I can always please my stomach. Aunt Frankie has theability to bake(烤) different kinds of pies and biscuits. They all taste very delicious.Eggs, milk,butter, and salt all become wonderful in her kitchen. She promises to teach me someday.
When I've come to eat some bananas and pears, she will sit next to me at the table. She puts her hands on mine and asks me how my day was, how my classes are going, what new friends I've made, and whether I've made progress in my grammar andcomposition. Aunt Frankie also has many tales and funny jokes to tell me.
【汉语翻译】
姑妈弗兰奇(2)
我喜欢拜访姑妈弗兰奇。在那里我总是可以满足我的胃。姑妈弗兰奇具有烘烤各种不同馅饼(pie)和饼干(biscuit)的能力(ability)。她做的那些尝起来(taste)非常好吃(delicious)。鸡蛋、牛奶、黄油(butter)和盐在她的厨房里(in her kitchen)都会变得美妙无比。她答应以后会教我的。
当我开始吃香蕉(banana)和梨(pear)的时候，她会挨着我坐在桌旁。用她的双手按住我的手，问我过的怎么样，功课如何，我又交了哪些新朋友，还有我的语法(grammar)和作文(composition)是否取得进步(make progress)。姑妈弗兰奇还会给我讲许多神话故事(tale)和有趣的笑话(joke)。
6. A Flying Sail
That summer was a hot one in Boston. Almost every afternoon, I went swimming in a nearby swimming pool with my best friend, Ben Franklin. We loved those long, hot days.
On one pleasant afternoon, Ben was late. I went to his house and climbed upstairs tohis small bedroom. He was sitting there making a kite.
“What's with the kite?”I said, “I thought we were going swimming.”
Ben smiled at me and said, “We need the kite for swimming.”
“Who goes swimming with a kite?”I asked.
“I do,”Ben said. His blue eyes were shining.
With such a clever friend, I got used to hearing crazy ideas. I just shook my head, “I'd like to see how you do it.”
Half an hour later, we were standing on the bank of the pool. Ben held his crazy kite in one hand and a log(圆木) in the other. He sat on the bank, took off his shoes, and tied the end of the kite thread to his foot. Then he flew the kite into the air and let the wind catch it. The kite rose over the swimming pool.
“This is fantastic! “I shouted.
Ben smiled at me and jumped into the pool. He threw one arm over his log，leaned(倚靠) back, and let the kite pull him across the pool.
“Oh, I get it ! “I cried，“It's a flying sail!”
【汉语翻译】
飞航
在波士顿那个炎热的夏季，几乎每天下午，我都和最好的朋友本·富兰克林去附近的一个泳池(swimming pool)游泳。我们热爱那些漫长炎热的夏日。
在一个宜人的午后，本来迟了。我就去了他家，爬上楼(climb upstairs)来到他的小卧室(bedroom)。他正坐在那儿做一个风筝(kite)。
“用这个风筝干什么？”我说，“我本以为我们要去游泳的。”
本对我笑了笑说，“我们需要这个风筝去游泳。”
“谁会带着个风筝去游泳呢？”我问道。
“我会，”本说，他蓝色的眼睛闪闪发亮(shine)。
有这么一个聪明的朋友，我习惯于(get used to)听到疯狂的(crazy)想法。我只是摇摇头(shake)，说，“我倒想看看你怎么做。”
半个小时后，我们来到了泳池的岸边(bank)。本一只手抓着他那荒唐的风筝，另一只手拿着根圆木。他坐在岸边，脱掉衣服，然后把风筝线(thread)的一端系在一只脚上。然后他把风筝放飞，让风带动它。风筝在泳池上空升起(rise)。
“这太棒了(fantastic)!”我大喊道。
本对我笑着，然后跳进(jump into)泳池。他一只胳膊抱着他的圆木，向后仰着，让风筝拉着(pull)他游过泳池。
“噢，我明白了！”大叫道，“这是一次飞航！”
7. The Colorful World
The world around us is full of colors: the grass is green, the sky is blue. What a pity it will be if people can not see all the colors. But there are people who are blind to certain colors.
Human color blindness is a strange thing to explain. In a single eye there aremillions ofvery small things called “cones(锥形物)”. They help us to see in bright light and to tell the difference between colors. There are also millions of “rods(视网膜杆)”but they are used for seeing when it is nearly dark. They show us shape but not the color.
Some birds and animals' eyes have few or no cones, so they can not see colors. Cats and dogs cannot see colors as well as we can.
Some insects(昆虫) can even see X-rays. Scientists know that there are other colors around us which insects can see but which we cannot see.
Human beings have favorite colors. Blue is often popular because it is the color of the cool sky and sea. Green is the color which makes us think of grass, field and is the color of the sun. On the other hand, red is the color of blood and fire. It makes some people think of accidents, danger and blood. Black is the color of the night. In the dark we cannot see what is around us, so we are sometimes afraid of the unknown and do not like black as a color.
【汉语翻译】
多彩的世界
我们周围的世界充满(be full of)色彩：草(grass)是绿色的，天空是蓝色的。如果人看不到所有这些颜色，那将是多么遗憾的事呀！但有些人对某些颜色的确是看不见的(blind)。
人类的色盲很难解释。在一只眼睛(a single eye)里有几百万(millions of)叫做“视锥”的微小物质。它们帮助我们在亮光(bright light)下看清并辨别颜色的差异(tell the difference between colors)。单眼中也有几百万“视网膜杆”，但它们是用来(be used for)在天色几乎(nearly)黑下来时看清东西的，它们为我们显示形状(shape)而非颜色。
一些鸟和动物的眼睛有很少(few)或没有视锥，所以它们看不到颜色。猫和狗不能和我们一样看清颜色。
一些昆虫甚至可以看到X射线(X-ray)。科学家们知道，我们周围有些其他颜色昆虫可以看到而我们却无法看到。
人类有最偏爱的颜色。蓝色常受欢迎是因为它是凉爽的天空和海洋的颜色。绿色是让我们想起草地、骤野和森林的颜色，黄色是太阳(sun)色。另一方面，红色是血(blood)与火(fire)的颜色，使一些人想起事故、危险和流血。黑色是夜的颜色．在黑暗中(in the dark)，我们看不到周围的一切，所以我们有时害怕未知的(unknown)事物，不喜欢黑色。
8. Computers Are Becoming More and More Popular
More and more people are living the life with computers. Using computers you can send e-mails quickly and easily. You are able to send a letter with photos and sounds to someone anywhere in the world without putting a stamp. E-mail can send its message to the other side of the world in seconds. E-mail is easy to use and it saves time and money. It serves for twenty-four hours. You can send e-mails to your friends when they are in bed, and when they send e-mails back, maybe you're seeing a film at the cinema.
Computers are also important far students now. Many students like to surf the Internet, but some students only play games instead of searching for useful information and learning from the Internet. Besides, they spend too much time on the computer, which is very bad for their health. Can you imagine in the future without teachers but computers? Students will teach themselves in the school in the future. At that time, students will carry a personal computer (PC) instead of a book bag. And teachers will disappear. Computers help students develop their own ways of learning. Students will follow the learning programs by looking at on-line(在线的) libraries and watching lessons, Students can take advantage of all kinds of learning websites.
【汉语翻译】
电脑越来越普及
越来越多的人在使用电脑。通过电脑你可以迅速快捷地发送电邮（e-mail）．你能够发送附带照片和声音的邮件给世界上任何地方(anywhere)的人而无需粘贴邮票。电邮可以在几秒中(in seconds)把邮件发送给地球另一边的人。电邮使用方便，节省时间和金钱。可以24小时地服务(serve)．当你的朋友在床上睡觉时你可以给他们发邮件，当他们给你回复邮件时，可能你正在影院(at the cinema)看电影(see a film)。
现在电脑对学生也很重要。许多学生喜欢上网(surf the Internet)，但一些学生只玩游戏而不是通过电脑查找有用信息及学习。此外，他们花太多时间用电脑，这对他们的健康非常不利。
你能想象(imagine)未来没有教师只有电脑吗？未来(in the future)学生们将在学校里自学。那时，学生会携带一台个人电脑(personal computer)而不是一个书包．教师将会消失(disappear)。电脑帮助学生培养他们自己的学习方式。学生通过在线图书馆跟踪学习节目(program)，观看课程。学生可以利用(take advantage of)各种学习网站(website)。
9. Frogs Longing for a King
There once lived many frogs in a great pond under a bridge.They had an excellent home and all the food they wished, but they were not satisfied. They made speeches in the pond. They said they should have a king.
Then they asked the God to give them a king. The God gave them a big piece of wood. The wood did not move at all, so the frogs went to ask the God to give them a king which could take action. The God sent them an eel(鳗鱼), but the frogs thought the eel was too small and did not look like a king, so the eel was not welcome in the pond. Then the frogs went to the God again for the last time. The frogs were given a stork(白鹤)as their king. They believed the stork was great, which could rule over them, so they showed honor to the stork. But the stork ate all the frogs one by one until there was hardly any frog left in the whole pond.
How much better it would have been for the frogs if they had been satisfied with their life!
【汉语翻译】
渴望国王的青蛙
从前有许多青蛙(frog)住在桥(bridge)下的一个大池塘(pond)里。他们有极好的(excellent)家，还有很多喜欢的食物，但它们并不满意(satisfied)。他们在池塘里发表演讲(speech)。它们说它们应该有个国王。
然后它们请求上帝(the God)给它们一个国王。上帝给了它们一大截木头(wood)。木头根本不(not...at all)动，于是这些青蛙去找上帝，要求给它们一个能够采取行动(take action)的国王。上帝给它们送来一条鳗鱼，但青蛙们认为鳗鱼太小了，看起来不像(look like)个国王，因此这条鳗鱼在池塘里不受欢迎(not welcome)。然后它们又去找上帝了，最后一次，上帝给了它们一只白鹤当它们的国王。它们认为这只白鹳很伟大，可以统治它们，于是它们对白鹳表示尊敬(honor)。但这只白鹳却把所有的青蛙一个接着一个吃掉了，整个池塘几乎没有(hardly any)青蛙了。
如果这些青蛙对它们的生活满意的话那该多好啊！
在下面的这篇文章中，你可以学习几个常见中国菜名的英文说法，比如鱼香肉丝、辣子鸡丁等！
10. Dialogue: Chinese Food
W: Waitress, G: Guest
W: Good afternoon, sir. We have both Chinese food and western food. Which do you like better, Chinese or Western?
G: I'll have Chinese food for a change today. I like Chinese food very much, you know.
W: I'm glad to hear that. This way, please. Here is the menu for today.
G: Thanks. This is my first visit to China. Could you tell me what different kinds of Chinese food you serve here?
W: As you can see from the menu, we serve Shanghai food, Guangdong food and Sichuan food.
G: Could you tell me more about them?
W: With pleasure. Generally, Guangdong food is a bit light. Sichuan food has a strong and hot taste. Shanghai food is rather oily.
G: Very interesting. There are so many kinds of dishes of different tastes. It's hard to decide which to take. But I think I'll have Sichuan food this time as I like hot food. I'd like to have some standard Sichuan dishes.
W: Would you like pork shreds with fish seasoning(鱼香肉丝) , chicken cubes with chilipeppers(辣子鸡丁) and sour pungent soup(酸辣汤)?
G: Very nice. Let me try them.
W: We usually serve the food first and then the soup, but we'll bring you the soup first if you like.
G: I'm used to having soup first.
W: All right, sir. I'll get it for you right now.
【汉语翻译】
对话：中餐
W: 女服务员，G: 客人(guest)
W: 下午好，先生。我们这里有中餐也有西餐(western food)．您要点中餐还是西餐？
G: 今天我想吃中餐换个口味。你知道我很喜欢中餐的。
W: 很高兴听您这么说。这边请……这是今天的菜单(menu)。
G: 谢谢，这是我第一次来中国。请给我讲讲这里都供应哪些中国菜！
W: 正如您在菜单上所看到的，我们供应四川菜、广东菜和上海菜
G:能给我详细介绍一下吗？
W: 非常乐意(with pleasure)。一般来说(generally)，广东菜口味清淡些(a bit light)，四川菜味道重、辣，上海菜相当油腻(rather oily)。
G: 非常有趣。这么多不同口味的不同菜肴(dish)，很难决定吃哪种了。但这次我想吃四川菜，因为我喜欢辣的。我想要些标准的(standard)四川菜。
W: 那您看鱼香肉丝、辣子鸡丁和酸(sour)辣汤怎么样？
G: 非常好，让我尝尝吧。
W: 我们通常是先上菜后上汤，但我们可以根据您的要求给您先上汤。
G: 我习惯先喝汤(I'm used to having soup first)。
W: 好的，先生。我马上给您端上。
11. The Flower-bed's Secret (1)
Once there was an English prince(王子). His name was Henry. Prince Henry liked to study languages, but smiles never came on his face. His father, the King, loved him dearly, and tried to make him happy in every possible way.
The King gave the boy a small horse, so that he might ride when he liked. The King also had a boat made for the Prince, so that he might sail on the lake.
Yet the young Prince was not happy. One day the King had an interview with a man named Sir Arthur. Prince Henry was also there, with an unhappy face, as usual.
Sir Arthur turned to the King, and said，“I have a method to make Prince Henry happy, but you have to send him to the countryside" At first, the King refused, but Sir Arthur insisted on taking the Prince to the country. Finally, the King agreed.
【汉语翻译】
花坛的秘密(1)
从前有位英国王子叫亨利。亨利王子喜欢学习语言，但他的脸上从来没有笑容。他的父亲即国王非常爱他，尽力用所有可能的方法让他快乐。
国王给这个男孩一匹小马(small horse)，这样他乐意时就可以骑马。国王还让人给王子造了一艘小船(The King also had a boat made for the Prince)，这样他可以在湖上(on the lake)航行。
然而（yet）年轻的王子还是不快乐。有一天国王会见(interview) 一位亚瑟爵士。亨利王子也在那里，一副不开心的样子，和平时一样(as usual)。
亚瑟爵士转向(turn to)国王，说，“我有一个方法(method)可以让亨利王子快乐，但您必须送他去乡下(countryside)。”起初(at first)，国外拒绝了，但亚瑟爵士坚持(insist)带王子去乡下，最后，国王同意了。
12. The Flower-bed's Secret (2)
Prince Henry and Sir Arthur went to Sir Arthur's house. His big yard was divided into two parts-inside yard and outside yard, and the outside yard was a big garden with a flowerbed. Sir Arthur cancelled all his activities and stayed with the Prince at home. He told Henry, “Do you know my flowerbed can talk, and it has a secret.”The prince thought it very strange. Sir Arthur went on, “it tells the secret only to those who watch it every day. If you learn the secret, you will be happy every day in the year.”
Prince Henry looked, but there was no flower, not even a leaf upon it. Then he circled the flower-bed every day. Even when a storm came，he didn't go inside, so he caught a cold and coughed badly.
Many days passed. The flowerbed was wet, and the warm sun shone upon it. At last, one fine morning, he saw tiny plants coming up.
Day after day he saw that these plants made lines, and that the lines formed some letters. He thought about the spelling and tried to translate them into his own language. At last, he got it: DO SOME GOOD TO SOMEONE EVERY DAY.
【汉语翻译】
花坛的秘密(2)
亨利王子和亚瑟爵士去了亚瑟爵士的家。他的大院子被分成(be divided into)两部分一里院和外院，外院是一个有花坛的大花园。亚瑟爵士取消(cancel)他所有的活动，在家里陪着王子。他告诉亨利，“我的花坛会讲话，它有一个秘密。”王子觉得很奇怪。亚瑟爵士继续说道，“它只把秘密说给那些每天关注它的人。如果你知道了这个秘密，你会在这一年里每天都快乐。”
亨利王子看着花坛，但上面没有花朵，甚至连一片树叶也没有。然后，他每天围绕(circle)花坛转，即使当暴风雨(storm)来临时他也不进屋，结果他感冒(catch a cold)了，咳嗽(cough)不止。
许多天过去了。花坛被打湿了，然后温暖的太阳又照在上面。终于，一个美好的早晨，他看到微小的植物长出来了。
日复一日，他看到这些植物长成一条条线(line)，然后这些植物线条构成(form)一些字母。他思考着将这些字母拼写(spell)成单词，然后翻译(translate)成他自己的语言。终于，他明白了：每天为别人做点好事。
13. TV's Value
Many people who are alive today know what it is like to live in a world without television. Television is only about forty years old. Yet it has been an important part inour lives.
Some people think that the years before television were a better time. They believe that families talked more and did more things together. More books were read. People got more outdoor exercise.
But others disagree. They say that television is a good tool for education. It tells us what is happening in the world. It provides plenty of fun for us. It helps us understand how people live and work.
Although some people describe television as a great teacher, others say television has caused the poor reading and writing skills of our people. Television gets praise for helping us understand the people of the world. But it also has influence on family li tells us the news of the day. But it can also make us lazy by giving only short news instead of telling the whole story.
Even people who love television are not happy with it. They think there are too many advertisements on television. People will probably continue to discuss about television’s value. But everyone agrees that it is one of the most important inventions of the twentieth century.
【汉语翻译】
电视的价值
很多现在还在世的(alive)人知道没有电视时人们的生活情形。电视出现至今只有40多年的时间，然而(yet)它已经成为我们生活中一个重要的部分。
有些人认为电视出现之前的日子更美好。他们说过去家里人花更多的时间在一起聊天，或一起做更多的事，他们会读更多的书，进行更多的户外锻炼(outdoor exercise)。
但有些人不同意。他们说电视是很好的教育工具，它让我们了解世界各地发生的事情，它为我们提供了很多娱乐(plenty of fun)，它帮助我们了解人们如何生活和工作。
尽管(although)有人把电视描述(describe)为了不起的教师，但也有人说人们读写技能(skill)的降低是电视导致的。电视因帮助我们了解世界各地而得到赞扬(praise)，但电视也对家庭生活有影响(influence)。电视让我们了解当今的新闻时事，也让我们变得懒惰(lazy) ——我们只能获悉简短的新闻摘要，而不是整个事件的始末。
甚至连喜欢看电视的人也对它不满意。他们说电视里的广告(advertisement)太多了。人们很可能还会继续讨论(discuss)电视的价值(value)。但有一点人们已经达成共识，那就是电视是20世纪(the twentieth century)最重大的发明(invention)之一。
14. The Cat That Rang the Bell
The cat lived in a nunnery(女修道院). She had noticed that when a certain bell was rung, a group of nuns(修女) would come for their meals，and she also received her food.
One day she was shut up in a room by herself when she heard the bell ring. But she couldn't open the door, the window was too high to reach, and the glass was too strong to break. At last, after some hours, the door was opened. She hurried to the place where she expected to find her dinner, but no dinner there. She was very hungry, and hunger made her clever. She knew where the rope hung which pulled the bell. “Now, when that bell rings I generally get my supper,”she thought as she ran towards the rope. That was a thick rope. It was easy for her to reach the rope. She jumped upon it. It gave a pleasant sound. As she was swinging, she thought, “Now I shall get my supper, though I have lost my dinner. ”The bell rang louder and louder.
The nuns hearing the bell ring at so unusual an hour, and came hurrying to the bell. They wondered what was wrong. To their great surprise, they saw it was the cat which rang the bell! They couldn't understand and thought for some time, till the sister who gave the cat her meals remembered that she had not been present at dinner time, and then, she brought double meals to the cat immediately.
【汉语翻译】
敲钟的猫
这只猫住在一家女修道院里。她注意到当某个钟(bell)敲响(ring)时，一群(a group of)修女就会来吃饭，她也可以得到她的食物。
有一天她把自己关闭(shut)在一间屋子里，那时她听到钟声响了。但她无法打开门，窗户太高了够不着，玻璃(glass)太结实了无法打破(break)。最后，几个小时后，门终于被打开了。她匆忙赶到她期盼(expect)可以找到午餐的地方，但那里却没有午餐。她太饿了，饥饿让她变得聪明。她知道拉响钟声的绳子悬挂(hang)在哪儿。“现在，要是那挂钟响了，一般我就可以得到我的晚餐了。”当她朝绳子跑去时，她这样想着。那是一根粗绳子(a thick rope)。她可以很容易地够到绳子。她一跃而起跳上了绳子。绳子响起了悦耳的声音。在她摇摆（swing）时，她想，“现在我将要得到我的晚餐了，尽管我没有吃上午餐。”钟声越来越响了。
修女们听到钟声在这不寻常的时间内响起，便匆匆赶到钟所在的地方。她们想知道(wonder)到底发生什么事了。让她们非常惊奇的是(to their great surprise)，她们看到敲响钟的竟是那只猫。她们无法理解，还想了一段时间，后来，给这只猫喂食的那位修女想起这只猫在午饭时间不在场(present)，然后，她就立即给这只猫拿来了双倍的(double)食物。
15. Lewis and Clark Reach the Pacific
I clean the rain off my face. Most explorers (探险家) hope to find land, but Meriwether Lewis and I, William Clark, came all the way from St. Louis to reach thePacific Ocean. I turn around and face the rest of our ship members.
“We did it!” I shout, putting up our flag. Everyone cheers as loudly as waves(波浪)hitting the rocks. "We've paddled (划桨) upstream, walked a long way over snowymountains, and faced hunger and many other dangers. ”
At the time, I see the girl. She keeps silent.“Of course, without the help of our Indian friend, we wouldn't have made it Thank you, miss.”
I look back at the Pacific and notice that Meriwether looks unhappy. I truly can understand why. We had hoped to see Asian trading ships at sea, but there are no ships anywhere. We planned to sail home by sea. Maybe the ships will come soon. If not, we'll have to go back the same way we came.
【汉语翻译】
刘易斯和克拉克到达太平洋
我擦去脸上的雨水。大部分探险家希望发现大陆，但梅里韦瑟·刘易斯和我，威廉·克拉克，从圣·路易斯一路行来到达了太平洋(the Pacific Ocean)，我环顾四周，面对着我们的其他船员。
“我们做到了！”我大喊道，并举起(put up)我们的旗帜(flag)。大家欢呼(cheer)，声音洪亮(loudly)就像海浪击打(hit)到岩石(rock)上。“我们划桨逆流而上(upstream)，长途跋涉穿过雪山(snowy mountain)，面对饥饿(hunger)和许多其他危险。”
这时我看到莎卡嘉薇亚。她保持沉默(keep silent)。“当然了，没有我们的印第安(Indian)朋友莎卡嘉薇亚的帮助，我们不可能完成。谢谢你，莎卡嘉薇亚”。
我回头望着太平洋并注意到梅里韦瑟看上去不开心。我的确可以理解他的心情。我们本希望在海上看到亚洲的(Asian)商船，可是却没有。我们计划乘船(by sea)回家。可能不久会有船来。如果没有，我们将不得不沿原路返回了。
（整理初中英语网络资源，仅做教学教研之用，尊重原创）