中级英语听力lesson 25
时间:2018-12-26 作者:英语课 分类:中级英语听力
Mary: On holiday, one summer, we were camping, of course, (Yes, of course) er, and had been to Italy and, er, back into France (Yeah) and, at the border, we had an awful lot of trouble finding the passport and (Mm) the this and the that, (Mm) to move over from Italy to France, erm, so I was rather disappointed a, at the mess we'd made of it and, as we travelled on into France, I spent the rest of that day tidying up the car (Mhm) and I very carefully put into one folder 1 the passports, the tickets, travellers' cheques and all our currency (Yeah) and it was all beautifully packed so that we wouldn't be caught in this position again of not being able to find (Mhm, Mhm) anything. Erm, we eventually decided 2 to stop in a town where we knew there was a campsite and in the town we stopped at a garage, really to ask the way to the campsite, (Mm) but while we were there we thought, well, we'll get some petrol, erm, and, er, ask the question at the same time. (Yeah) Erm ... the man put the petrol in the car and, with all efficiency, I took out the folder (Yeah) with the money in it (Mhm) and paid for the petrol and then we went on our way. The campsite was about two or three miles away. Er, when we got to the campite, we went into the office and one of the things one usually carries as a camper is a little sort of card, erm, a camping ticket, if you like, and, er, I ...
Tom: What's that for?
Mary: Well, one gets reduced rates for being a (Oh, I see) member of a camping club, (Mm) or something like that. Erm, and I went to get it from the folder, properly packed folder, (Mm) and I could not find the folder! (Oh, God!) We had everything out of the car, all over the floor on the grass, erm, and each one of us was sure we, er, had seen it somewhere since the garage. And we finally had to say to these people, 'We are very sorry, we have no money, no card, no nothing' And ...
Tom: How much money was involved?
Mary: Well, all our holiday money, you know. Some hundreds of pounds, in travellers' cheques and some in currency, you see, a few pounds ...
Tom: And passports?
Mary: And passports, and tickets for the boat (God!) Erm, so we said we'd go to the police station. So back we went to the town. And we all went into the police station. Erm, and a very friendly policeman said, 'Well, I can do nothing about it. Your best bet is to see the British Consul 3, er, in the city.' Erm, well this was on a Saturday afternoon and it was five o'clock and he told us that we would be able to get into the, er, Consul on Monday morning when they opened, which didn't encourage us too much. (Quite!) Then it suddenly struck us that somebody must have taken this money, at the garage, (Ah, of course) so back we went the garage (Mhm) and we thought that as we stood talking to the man asking 'Where do you go to the campsite?', someone else had obviously stolen our folder.
Tom: That was the last time you'd had it ...?
Mary: Yes, indeed, (Mm) you see, erm, that was the last time that we could all agree (Mm) that we must have had it. (Mhm) So, er, John distracted the man's attention and I went into the man's office and went all through his papers on his desk (laughter) looking for it. It was a sort of green-coloured folder (Yeah) which one should have found easily (Yeah) and it wasn't there. And then we saw an old woman across the road, sitting on a window-ledge, and I was sure she was sitting on our folder because something green was sticking out underneath 4 her. And we had to try and work out some way of moving er, to see. And eventually we persuaded her by asking her to give us directions and she stood up to speak to us. But it wasn't our folder at all she was just sitting on a little green mat (Oh) obviously to keep herself clean. Erm ... and we were feeling pretty desperate by now, (I bet you were. Yeah) so back we went to the campsite and we were going to beg, 'Please, may we stay tonight and worry (Mm) about it tomorrow?' (Mm) you see. And when we got back they said, 'There's been a phone call. Would you go to this address? Er, someone has found your folder.' So ...
Tom: How would anybody who'd found your folder (have) phoned, the fact, the campsite?
Mary: Right. Well, this is what we discovered. We were w, worried, because someone might have found it (Mm) and we might get our passports, but what about our money, you know. (Quite, yeah) So we went to the address, (Mhm) and it was a little cycle-repair shop, kept by two brothers. And they told us that they had seen us driving up the road to the campsite. We had swung round a corner (Mm) and the folder had flown off the top of the car! (Cor) We'd obviously left it (Yes) there, at the garage. And it had fallen at their feet. (Good heavens!) They saw the tent and camping stuff (Yeah) on top of the car. (Mm) They saw which way we were going. (Mm) They guessed we were going to the campsite, because it (Mm) was just a country lane (Mm) and they telephoned! Weren't we lucky? And (Gosh!) when we got there they said, er, 'Would we check that everything (Mm) was there.' (Mm) And certainly everything was there, (mm) nothing gone. And we were so pleased, we'd only got one piece of, erm, French currency—it was on large-value (Mm) note (Mm)—a number of pounds. (Mm) Erm, and we knew that we had to live till Monday, (Yeah) so we asked them if they would change this note for us. Erm, and the man sent a small boy to another shop to get change (Yes) and he came back with two equal value notes, (Oh yes) he'd split it in half (Mm) if you like. So we gave them half (Yeah) and we went back to the campsite and put up our tent and installed ourselves and then we went out and spent the other half on a celebration. Erm, and er, of course, we had no money all day Sunday (Yes) and had to spend the day eating bread and si ...
Tom: But you felt rich, because you'd got everything back.
Mary: Indeed, we were so relieved ...
Tom: How terribly lucky, though! What a lucky story!
Lesley: Oh Jackie, I've had such a terrible day. You just won't believe.
Jackie: You look exhausted 5. What on earth have you been doing?
Lesley: Oh, I've been such a fool! (Oh) You just wouldn't believe what I've done.
Jackie: I would, I would. Come on ... (You won't) Where've you been?
Lesley: I'm dying to tell someone. I've been down to London (Uh-huh) you see. (Uh-huh) OK, I thought I'd be very sensible, so I'd drive down to the Underground on ... on the outskirts 6 of London, leave the car and go in by Tube. All right? (Er ... what you) Very sensible. (Yes) Yes? (OK) OK. So I drove down to London (Uh-huh) and I parked my car by the Tube station and I got the Tube into London. (Uh-huh) Fine! All right? (Well, sounds like it) so far, so good. (Yes) Right. Came back out of London ... (Uh-huh ... and you er ... forgot the car?) Got out of the Tube. No, no, I didn't forget the car. (Oh) I couldn't find the car, Jackie. (You're joking) It'd gone. (You're kidding) No, no, really, it'd gone. I walked out ... happily out of the Tube, you know, over to where it was (Mm) and I looked and it was a red Mini and mine's green, so (Oh on!) I thought 'Oh no'. So having panicked a bit, I rang the police, you see, and this lovely, new little policeman ... a young one (Yes, all shiny and bright) came out to help. That's it yes ... buttons shining ... (Yes) big, smile ... came down to help, so I said 'I've lost my car. It's been stolen' and I took him to see it and everything and ...
Jackie: You mean where it wasn't.
Lesley: And sure enough, it wasn't ... yes, well, right ... and it wasn't there. And then he coughed a bit and he went very quiet ... (Oh dear) and he took me back into the Tube station (Oh dear) and out the other side into the other car park ... and there was my car, Jackie (Oh Lesley) parked in the other Tube station car park, the other side of the station, because there are two exits, you see, so I walked out of an exit (Yes) not knowing there were two and it was in the other one.
Jackie: Oh Lesley. And was he ever so cross?
Lesley: He was livid, Jackie. (Really) He really ... he went on and on at me and I didn't know what to do. It was (Oh dear) just frightful 7. I just ... I went red and just shut up and said 'Sorry' all the time.
Jackie: Jumped in your car and (Oh yes) and left.
Lesley: Oh, it was awful. I'm never doing that again ever.
Today we're going to look at some aspects of life—or perhaps it would be more correct to say 'death' in Ancient Egypt.
Egypt has always fascinated ordinary people as well as scholars engaged in the serious study of the past. To most of us it's a land of mystery and magic. In particular, the custom of preserving the bodies of important people, especially of kings and queens, has quite a hold on the popular imagination. How many thrillers 8 and horror films are based on the idea of finding a mummy in the secret tomb of a lost king, who in the case of horror movies usually comes to life again!
In earlier times the subject exerted a more sinister 9 fascination—so-called 'mummy dust'—the powdered remains 10 of dead Egyptians—was thought to be an essential ingredient in many magical spells and medical remedies—a case of the cure being worse than the disease?
This of course led to a great demand for mummies both inside and outside Egypt, and even to an industry of making 'false mummies' to sell to unsuspecting foreigners. This continued well into the 19th century. Even when, at that time, tighter controls were exerted by the Egyptian authorities, many mummies were still sold on the Black Market, and even some of the mummies that were acquired for museums for scientific purposes were bought clandestinely 11.
These days, archaeologists and anthropologists have more moral scruples 12 about the way they treat the dead—even those who have been dead for thousands of years. That's one reason why—even though new techniques of analysis can reveal fascinating information, there is some hesitation 13 about carrying out 'autopsies 14' on too many mummies in an indiscriminate way. Besides the ethical 15 question, there is the practical one that any analysis must involve at least some degree of destruction.
The studies that have been made in recent years have therefore for the most part been of mummies which were already in poor state of preservation 16, and the investigators 17 have tried to do the minimum damage possible—taking only tiny samples of tissue for analysis, or using non-destructive means of study such as X-rays.
At the end of each study, it is now customary to restore the mummy to a state of 'decent burial'. In this way, the scientists involved have tried to satisfy both their curiosity and their consciences.
In a moment, I'm going to ask Dr Albert Simons, a noted 18 expert on Egyptian archaeology 19, to give us an overview 20 of some recent studies and what they have revealed ...
Burglaries
The figures for burglaries have risen alarmingly over the last few years and are now quite appalling 21. Let me quote you a few statistics about break-ins.
A house is burgled in Britain now about every two minutes, and over the past three years the number of burglaries reported to the police has risen by approximately 50,000 to well over 400,000 this year. The insurance companies report that last year alone household burglary losses rose by 27 per cent over the previous year to £138.2 million, and I believe one or two companies are refusing to provide burglary cover in what we might call high-risk areas.
There are, nevertheless, half a dozen measures which can be taken against burglaries, which I will briefly 22 outline for you. It really only requires some basic common sense and a small outlay 23, combined with a little knowledge of the way a burglar thinks and operates. You have to put yourself in his position, really. Most burglars are opportunists looking for an easy break-in, so don't make things simple for them. Don't advertise the fact you're out or away, or be careless about security. Even if you're just popping out for a quarter of an hour, don't leave doors and windows open or unlocked. A burglary can take less than ten minutes.
This time element leads me to my second main point, that where a house is hard to get into and will take a long time to do so because you've fitted good locks and bolts on your exterior 24 doors and windows or even burglar alarms, the chances are that the burglar will move on to somewhere easier. There are plenty of these, I can assure you. Milk bottles left on the doorstep, papers by the front door, garage doors wide open, curtains drawn 25 in the daytime or un-drawn at night are all indications. For comparatively little you can buy a programmed time-switch that'll turn on and off a light at appropriate times.
Not all burglaries happen while you are out, of course. You should always be wary 26 of callers at the door who say, for example, that they've come to read the gas meter; always check their credentials 27, and if in doubt don't let them in. It's also a good idea to keep a record of serial 28 numbers on electrical equipment, radios, TVs and so on, or even to take photographs of valuable jewellery, antiques or pictures.
Any further tips I may not have mentioned can always be got from your local police station, where you should ask to speak to the Crime Prevention Officer.
In the final analysis I think I should say that when it comes to fitting security systems and the like you've really got to strike a balance between the cost of what you spend on installing the system and the value of the property you're trying to protect.
- Peter returned the plan and charts to their folder.彼得把这份计划和表格放回文件夹中。
- He draws the document from its folder.他把文件从硬纸夹里抽出来。
- This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
- There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
- A consul's duty is to help his own nationals.领事的职责是帮助自己的同胞。
- He'll hold the post of consul general for the United States at Shanghai.他将就任美国驻上海总领事(的职务)。
- Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
- She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣,里面套着一条连衣裙。
- It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长,到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
- Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。
- Our car broke down on the outskirts of the city.我们的汽车在市郊出了故障。
- They mostly live on the outskirts of a town.他们大多住在近郊。
- How frightful to have a husband who snores!有一个发鼾声的丈夫多讨厌啊!
- We're having frightful weather these days.这几天天气坏极了。
- He has written seven thrillers, and clearly enjoys intellectual pursuits. 他已经写了7本惊悚小说,显然很喜欢这样的智力活动。 来自辞典例句
- Most Americans prefer to read fast-moving adventure stories that we call "thrillers". 大部分美国人喜欢看我们称之为"惊险小说"的情节多变的冒险故事。 来自辞典例句
- There is something sinister at the back of that series of crimes.在这一系列罪行背后有险恶的阴谋。
- Their proposals are all worthless and designed out of sinister motives.他们的建议不仅一钱不值,而且包藏祸心。
- He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
- The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。
- You should do your competing clandestinely, by disguising your export volumes and prices somehow. 你应该设法隐瞒出口数量和价格,暗中进行竞争。 来自辞典例句
- Darlington. Stevens's angst is clandestinely disclosed while he makes contact with other people. 就在史帝文斯与他人接触的当下,透露出一种不可言喻的焦虑气氛。 来自互联网
- I overcame my moral scruples. 我抛开了道德方面的顾虑。
- I'm not ashamed of my scruples about your family. They were natural. 我并未因为对你家人的顾虑而感到羞耻。这种感觉是自然而然的。 来自疯狂英语突破英语语调
- After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天,他终于直说了。
- There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。
- Autopsies cannot be performed and thus no recent histological examinations have been reported. 不能进行尸体解剖,因此没有新近的组织学检查的报道。 来自辞典例句
- I told you to supervise autopsies, not to set up a lot of fancy rules. 我叫你监督解剖室,不是去制定一些空想的规定。 来自辞典例句
- It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
- It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。
- The police are responsible for the preservation of law and order.警察负责维持法律与秩序。
- The picture is in an excellent state of preservation.这幅画保存得极为完好。
- This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
- The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
- Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。
- She teaches archaeology at the university.她在大学里教考古学。
- He displayed interest in archaeology.他对考古学有兴趣。
- The opening chapter gives a brief historical overview of transport.第一章是运输史的简要回顾。
- The seminar aims to provide an overview on new media publishing.研讨会旨在综览新兴的媒体出版。
- The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions.恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。
- Nothing can extenuate such appalling behaviour.这种骇人听闻的行径罪无可恕。
- 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。
- There was very little outlay on new machinery.添置新机器的开支微乎其微。
- The outlay seems to bear no relation to the object aimed at.这费用似乎和预期目的完全不相称。
- The seed has a hard exterior covering.这种子外壳很硬。
- We are painting the exterior wall of the house.我们正在给房子的外墙涂漆。
- All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
- Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
- He is wary of telling secrets to others.他谨防向他人泄露秘密。
- Paula frowned,suddenly wary.宝拉皱了皱眉头,突然警惕起来。
- He has long credentials of diplomatic service.他的外交工作资历很深。
- Both candidates for the job have excellent credentials.此项工作的两个求职者都非常符合资格。