1、Unit 1 1 Let us not, however, flatter ourselves overmuch on account of our human victories over nature. For each such victory nature takes its revenge on us. Friedrich Engels (page 1) 但是我们不要过分陶醉于我们人类对自然界的胜利。对于每一次这样的胜利,自然 界都对我们进行报复。弗里德里希 恩格斯 该句出自德国哲学家、革命导师弗里德里希 恩格斯的劳动在从猿到人转变过程中 的作用一文,意在说明人类与自然界要和谐共处。
2、 2 Welcome to the jungle, a huge sea of green alive with the sounds of animals. (page 2, line 1) 欢迎来到这片雨林,这是一片绿色的海洋,到处都可以听到动物发出的声音。 (1) 句中 a sea of 意为大量的,大片的。如: He looked down and saw a sea of smiling faces. 他往下看,看到一张张笑脸。 (2) 句中 alive with 意为充满,到处都是(活的或动的东西)。如: The pond was alive with frogs. 池塘里满是青蛙
3、。 3 The Amazon River, from which the rainforest gets its name, is close to 6,400 kilometres in lengthroughly 100 kilometres longer than the Yangtze River. (page 2, lines 79) 亚马孙雨林得名于亚马孙河,亚马孙河长接近 6400 千米,比长江还长约 100 千米。 句中 from which the rainforest gets its name 是非限制性定语从句,为先行项 The Amazon River 提供补充信息,
4、先行项和非限制性定语从句之间用逗号隔开。如: The house, which was built over a hundred years ago, was not damaged in the earthquake. 这座一百多年前建成的房子在地震中没有受损。 4 The forests different levels support an unbelievable variety of wildlife. (page 3, lines 1415) 雨林的不同层次使种类多到难以置信的野生动植物得以生存。 句中 variety 意为(同一事物的)不同种类,多种式样,a variety of
5、 意为各种各样 的。如: We can see that a variety of techniques are used in the painting. 我们可以看到这幅画作中使用了多种技巧。 5 At the bottom, there is a system of roots beneath the ground. (page 3, lines 1516) 在底部,有一个地表下的根系。 句中 beneath 意为在下面。如: Alice quickly hid the letter beneath a pile of clothes. 艾丽斯迅速把信藏在一堆衣服下。 6 Each le
6、vel of the forest forms its own little world, home to different kinds of living things. (page 3, lines 1920) 雨林的每一层都形成了自己的小世界,成为各种生物的家园。 句中 living 是形容词,意为活的,活着的。如: He is considered to be one of the greatest living writers. 他被认为是在世的最伟大的作家之一。 7 While a significant number of jaguars survive here, they
7、are only one element of this forests food chain. (page 3, lines 2324) 相当多的美洲豹在这里生存,但它们只是亚马孙雨林食物链的一个要素。 句中 survive 意为生存,存活,继续存在;survive 还可以表示幸存,幸免于难,艰 难度过,后面直接跟宾语,不加介词。如: It was very hard for me in those days but I survived. 那段日子对我来说很艰难,但我还是挺过来了。 He survived the accident without any injury. 他在事故中幸免于难
8、,而且毫发无损。 8 These frogs, in turn, feed on insects which eat leaves and fruit. (page 3, lines 2527) 相应地,这些青蛙以昆虫为食,而昆虫则吃树叶和水果。 句中 in turn 意为相应地,转而。如: Increasing production costs will, in turn, lead to higher prices. 生产成本不断提高相应地会引起价格上涨。 9 The Amazon rainforest breathes life into the planet by fixing car
9、bon and producing over 20 per cent of all the Earths oxygen. (page 3, lines 3031) 亚马孙雨林能固定碳,而且产生的氧气超过全球总量的 20%,从而使得地球生生不息。 句中 breathe life into 意为给带来起色,注入活力。如: We need some new people to breathe life into this project. 我们需要一些新人来为这个项目注入活力。 8210 Over the past 50 years, about 17 per cent of the rainfor
10、est has disappeared due to human activities such as agriculture and cattle farming. (page 3, lines 3435) 在过去的 50 年里,由于农耕和养牛等人类活动,约 17% 的雨林已经消失了。 句中 due to 意为由于,因为。due to 一般用于正式文体,日常英语中人们一般用 because of。如: The flight was cancelled due to bad weather. 由于天气不好,航班被取消了。 11 As the impact of human activities
11、 continues to grow and the list of species in danger of extinction becomes longer, we are left with a question: can we afford to damage the lungs of the planet? (page 3, lines 3538) 人类活动的影响不断增加,濒危物种的名单越来越长,这留给我们一个问题:我们能 承担得起损害地球之肺的后果吗? (1) 句中 impact 意为作用,影响。如: New technologies will have an impact on
12、 teaching methods. 新技术会对教学方法产生影响。 (2) 句中 leave 意为造成,使留下。如: She left me with the impression that she disliked me. 她给我的印象是她讨厌我。 (3) 句中 damage 是动词,意为损害,损坏,损伤;damage 还可以作名词,后面常 跟介词 to。如: His house was badly damaged in the earthquake. 他的房子在地震中受损严重。 The disease can cause serious damage to the brain. 这种疾病会
13、对大脑造成严重损伤。 12 When you think of a fearsome hunter, images of lions and sharks may spring to mind. (page 8) 当你想到一个可怕的捕猎者,狮子和鲨鱼的形象可能会立刻跃入脑海。 (1) 句中 fearsome 意为可怕的。词缀 -some 可置于某些名词后构成形容词,表 示有倾向的,易于的。如: quarrelsome 爱争吵的,好口角的 troublesome 令人烦恼的,讨厌的 (2) 句中 spring to mind 意为马上想到,突然出现在脑海里,spring 是不规则动词, 过去式为
14、 sprang,过去分词为 sprung。如: If you refer to Hawaii, a vision of pretty beaches and blue seas may spring to mind. 如果你提到夏威夷,美丽海滩和蓝色海洋的景象可能就会立刻浮现在脑 海中。 8313 Still others hunt animals just for fun: deer are tracked and shot by people who enjoy the excitement of the sport. (page 8) 还有一些人猎杀动物只是为了找乐子:那些追踪、射猎鹿的
15、人喜欢狩猎的刺激。 句中 track 意为追踪,找寻。如: Police have been tracking the criminal for months. 警察几个月来都在追踪那名罪犯。 14 As the human population continues to grow, so does the effect we have on animals. (page 8) 随着人口的持续增长,我们对动物的影响也在不断增加。 本句为主从复合句,主句是 so 引导的倒装句,目的是强调人类对动物的影响在日益 增加,相当于 the effect we have on animals contin
16、ues to grow as well。句中 so 表 示前者的情况同样适用于后者,常用结构为so + 助动词 / 情态动词 / 系动词 + 主语。 如: As the demand for products rises, so do their prices . 随着需求的增加,产品的价格也会上涨。 15 The smog in the air has coloured the sky a smoky grey; its also given me a cough that I cant get rid of. (page 11, lines 1213) 空气中的雾霾把天空染成了烟灰色,还让
17、我患上了咳嗽,老是不好。 (1) 句中 smog 意为雾霾,烟雾,smog 是由 smoke 和 fog 两个词各取一部分缩合 而成的一个新词。如: brunch = breakfast + lunch 早午餐 motel = motor + hotel 汽车旅馆 (2) 句中 colour 是动词,意为给着色,给染色。如: The rising sun coloured the sky bright red. 冉冉升起的太阳把天空染得通红。 (3) 句中 get rid of 意为摆脱,丢弃。如: We got rid of all the old toys. 我们扔掉了所有的旧玩具。 16
18、 In defence of the factories, however, Id like to point out that we also try to control the amount of pollution we produce. (page 11, lines 1921) 不过,为工厂说句公道话,我想指出的是我们也在努力控制所产生的污染量。 句中 defence 意为(对批评的)辩护,维护,in defence of 意为为作解释或辩 护。如: I have to say in her defence that she meant no harm. 我得为她说句话,她并没有恶
19、意。 17 It has to be a community-wide effort, and everyone can help by following the golden rule: reduce, reuse and recycle. (page 12, lines 3942) 84 全社会必须共同努力,每个人都遵循减少使用、重复使用和循环利用的指导原则,就 能尽一份力。 该原则简称为 3R 原则,包括减少使用、重复使用和循环利用三个方面。其中,减少 使用要求尽量用高效的方式来达到既定的生产目的或消费目的,从源头上节约资源, 减少污染,反对产品的过度包装;重复使用要求制造的产品和包装
20、容器能够被多次使 用,选择使用周期较长的高质量产品,抵制一次性用品;循环利用要求物品在完成使 用功能后能变成可重新利用的资源,而不是只能作为垃圾填埋。 18 A former UN official once said, Saving our planet, lifting people out of poverty, advancing economic growth . these are one and the same fight. (page 12, lines 4749) 一位联合国前官员曾经说过:拯救地球,使人们摆脱贫困,促进经济增长这些完 全就是同一场战斗。 句中 one and the same 意为同一个(人或物),表示强调。如: I was amazed to discover that Muhammad Ali and Cassius Clay were one and the same person. 我惊奇地发现穆罕默德 阿里和卡修斯 克莱竟然是同一个人。