1、Unit 1 Women of achievementReadingWHY NOT CARRY ON HER GOOD WORK?I enjoyed English,biology,and chemistry at school,but which one should I choose to study at university?I did not know the answer until one evening when I sat down at the computer to do some research on great Women of China.By chance I
2、came across an article about a doctor called Lin Qiaozhi,a specialist in womens diseases.She lived from 1901 to 1983.It seemed that she had been very busy in her chosen career,travelling abroad to study as well as writing books and articlel.One of them caught my eye.It was a small book explaining ho
3、w to cut the death rate from having and caring for babies.She gave some simple rules to follow for keeping babies clean,healthy and free from sickness.Why did she write that?who were the women that Lin Qiaozhi thought needed this advice?I looked carefully at the text and realized that it was intende
4、d for women in the countryside.Perhaps if they had an emergency they could not reach a doctor.Suddenly it hit me how difficult it was for a woman to get medical training at that time.That was a generation when girls education was always placed second to boys.Was she so much cleverer than anyone else
5、?Further reading made me realize that it was hard work and determination as well as her gentle nature that got her into medical school.What made her succeed later on was the kindness and consideration she showed to all her patients.There was story after story of how Lin Qiaozhi,tired after a days wo
6、rk,went late at night to deliver a baby for a poor family who could not pay her.By now I could not wait to find out more about her.I discovered that Lin Qiaozhi had devoted her whole life to her patients and had chosen not to have a family of her own.Instead she made sure that about50,000 babies wer
7、e safely delivered.By this time I was very excited.Why not study at medial college like Lin Qiaozhi and carry on the good work?It was still not too late for me to improve my studies,prepare for the university entrance examinations,andUnit 2 Working the landReadingA PIONEER FOR ALL PEOPLEAlthough he
8、is one of Chinas most famous scientists,Yuan Longping considers himself a farmer,for he works the land to do his research.Indeed,his sunburnt face and arms and his slim,strong body are just like those of millions of Chinese farmers,for whom he has struggled for the past five decades.Dr Yuan Longping
9、 grows what is called super hybrid rice.In 1974,he became the first agricultural pioneer in the world to grow rice that has a high output. This special strain of rice makes it possible to produce one-third more of the crop in the same fields.Now more than 60% of the rice produced in China each year
10、is from this hybrid strain.Born into a poor farmers family in 1930,Dr Yuan graduated from Southwest Agricultural College in 1953.Since then,finding ways to grow more rice has been his life goal.As a young man,he saw the great need for increasing the rice output.At that time,hunger was a disturbing p
11、roblem in many parts of the countryside.Dr Yuan searched for a way to increase rice harvests without expanding the area of the fields.In 1950,Chinese farmers could produce only fifty million tons of rice.In a recent harvest,however,nearly two hundred million tons of rice was produced.These increased
12、 harvests mean that 22% of the worlds people are fed from just 7% of the farmland in China.Dr Yuan is now circulating his knowledge in India,Vietnam and many other less developed countries to increase their rice harvests.Thanks to his research,the UN has more tools in the battle to rid the world of
13、hunger,Using his hybrid rice,farmers are producing harvests twice as large as before.Dr Yuan is quite satisfied with his life.However,he doesnt care about being famous.He feels it gives him less freedom to do his research.He would much rather keep time for his hobbies.He enjoys listening to violin m
14、usic,playing mah-jong,swimming and reading.Spending money on himself or leading a comfortable life also means very little to him.Indeed,he believes that a person with too much money has more rather than fewer troubles.He therefore gives millions of yuan to equip others for their research in agricult
15、ure. Just dreaming for things,however,costs nothing.Long ago Dr Yuan had a dream about rice plants as tall as sorghum.Each ear of rice was as big as an ear of corn and each grain of rice was as huge as a peanut.Dr Yuan awoke from his dream with the hope of producing a kind of rice that could feed mo
16、re people.Now,many years later,Dr Yuan has another dream:to export his rice so that it can be grown around the globe.One dream is not always enough,especially for a person who loves and cares for his people.Unit 2 Working the landReadingCHEMICAL OR ORGANIC FARMING？Over the past half century,using ch
17、emical fertilizers has become very common in farming.Many farmers welcomed them as a great way to stop crop disease and increase production.Recently,however,scientists have been finding that long-term use of these fertilizers can cause damage to the land and,even more dangerous,to peoples health.Wha
18、t are some of the problems caused by chemical fertilizers?First,they damage the land by killing the helpful bacteria and pests as well as the harmful ones.Chemicals also stay in the ground and underground water for a long time.This affects crops and,therefore,animals and humans,since chemicals get i
19、nside the crops and cannot just be washed off.These chemicals in the food supply build up in peoples bodies over time.Many of these chemicals can lead to cancer or other illnesses.In addition,fruit,vegetables and other food grown with chemical fertilizers usually grow too fast to be full of much nut
20、rition.They may look beautiful,but inside there is usually more water than vitamins and minerals.With these discoveries,some farmers and many customers are beginning to turn to organic farming.Organic farming is simply farming without using any chemicals.They focus on keeping their soil rich and fre
21、e of disease.A healthy soil reduces disease and helps crops grow strong and healthy.Organic farmers,therefore,often prefer using natural waste from animals as fertilizer.They feel that this makes the soil in their fields richer in minerals and so more fertile.This also keeps the air,soil,water and c
22、rops free from chemicals.Organic farmers also use many other methods to keep the soil fertile.They often change the kind of crop in each field every few years,for example,growing corn or wheat and then next year peas or soybeans.Crops such as peas or soybeans put important minerals back into the soi
23、l,making it ready for crops such as wheat or corn that neet rich and fertile soil.Organic farmers also plant crops to use different levels of soil,for example,planting peanuts that use the grounds surface followed by vegetables that put down deep roots.Some organic farmers prefer planting grass betw
24、een crops to prevent wind or water from carrying away the soil,and then leaving it in the ground to become a natural fertilizer for the next years crop.These many different organic farming methods have the same goal:to grow good food and avoid damaging the environment or peoples helth.Unit 3 A taste
25、 of English humourReadingA MASTER OF NONVERBAL HUMOURAs Victor Hugo once said,“Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face”,and up to now nobody has been able to do this better than Charlie Chaplin.He brightened the lives of Americans and British thorugh two world wars and the hard ye
26、ars in between.He made people laugh at a time when they felt depressed,so they could feel more content with their lives.Now that Charlies own life was easy!He was born in a poor family in 1899.His parents were both poor music hall performers.You may find it astonishing that Charlie was taught to sin
27、g as soon as he could speak and dance as soon as he could walk.Such training was common in acting families at this time,especially when the family income was often uncertain.Unfortunately his father died,leaving the family even worse off,so Charlie spent his childhood looking after his sick mother a
28、nd his brother.By his teens,Charlie had,through his humour,become one of the most popular child actors in England.He could mime and act the fool doing ordinary everyday tasks.No one was ever bored watching him-his subtle acting made everything entertaining.As time went by,he began making films.He gr
29、ew more and more poular as his charming character,the little tramp,became known throughout the world.The tramp,a poor,homeless man with a moustache,wore large trousers,worn-out shoes and a small round black hat.He walked around stiffly carrying a walking stico.This character was a social failure but
30、 was loved for his optimism and determination to overcome all difficulties.He was the underdog who was kind even when others were unkind to him.How did the little tramp make a sad situation entertaining?Here is an example from one of his most famous films,The Gold Rush.It is the mid-nineteenth centu
31、ry and gold has just been discovered in California.Like so many others,the little tramp and his friend have rushed there in search of gold,but without success.Instead they are hiding in a small hut on the edge of a mountain during a snowstorm with nothing to eat.They are so hungry that they try boil
32、ing a pair of leathe shoes for their dinner.Charlie first picks out the laces and eats them as if they were spaghetti.Then he cuts off the leather top of the shoe as if it were the finest steak.Finally he tries cutting and chewing the bottom of the shoe.He eats each mouthful with great enjoyment.The
33、 acting is so convincing that it makes you believe that it is one of the best meals he has ever tasted!Charlie Chapin worth,directed and produced the films he starred in.In 1972 he was given a special Oscar for his outstanding work in films,He lived in England and the USA but spent his last years in
34、 Switzerland,where he was buried in 1977.He is loved and remembered as a great actor who could inspire people with great confidence. Unit 3 A taste of English humour2 Some jokes are longer and tell a short,funny story.The following is one of those jokes about the famous detective Sherlock Holmes and
35、 his friend Doctor Watson.Read it and decide which of these two kinds of jokes you like better.Give your reasons.Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson went camping in a mountainous area.They were lying in the open air under the stars.Sherlock Holmes looked up at the stars and whispered,“Watson,when you
36、look at that beautiful sky,what do you think of?”Watson replied,“I think of how short life is and how long the universe has lasted.”“No,no,Watson!”Holmes said.“What do you really think of?”Watson tried again.“I think of how small I am and how vast the sky is.”“Try again,Watson!”said Holmes.Watson tr
37、ied a third time.“I think of how cold the universe is and how warm people can be in their beds.”Holmes said,“Watson,you fool!You should be thinking that someone has stolen our tent!”Unit 4 Body languageReadingCOMMUNICATION：NO PROBLEM?Yesterday,another student and I,representing our universitys stude
38、nt association,went to the Capital International Airport to meet this years international students.They were coming to study at Beijing University.We would take them first to their dormitories and the to the student canteen.After half an hour of waiting for their flight to arrive,I saw several young
39、 people enter the waiting area looking around curiously.I stood for a minute watching them and then went to greet them.The first person to arrive was Tony Garcia from Colombia,closely followed by Julia Smith from Britain.After I met them and then introduced them to each other,I was very surprised.To
40、ny approached Julia,touched her shoulder and kissed her on the cheek!She stepped back appearing surprised and put up her hands,as if in defence.I guessed that there was probably a major misunderstanding.Then Akira Nagata from Japan come in smiling,together with George Cook from Canada.As they were i
41、ntroduced,George reached his hand out to the Japanese student.Just at that moment,however,Akira bowed so his nose touched Georges moving hand.They both apologized-another cultural mistake! Ahmed Aziz,another international student,was from Jordan.When we met yesterday,he moved very close to me as I i
42、ntroduced myself.I moved back a bit,but he come closer to ask a question and then shook my hand.When Darlene Coulon from France came dashing through the door,she recognized Tony Garciasmiling face.They shook hands and then kissed each other twice on each cheek,since that is the French custom when ad
43、ults meet people they know.Ahmed Aziz,on the contrary,simply nodded at the girls.Men from Middle Eastern and other Muslim countries will often stand quite close to other men to talk but will usually not touch women.As I get to know more international friends,I learn more about this cultural“body lan
44、guage”.Not all cultures greet each other the same way,nor are they comfortable in the same way with touching or distance between people.In the same way that people communicate with spoken Ianguage,they also express their feelings using unspoken“Ianguage”through physical distance,actions or posture.E
45、nglish people,for example,do not usually stand very close to others or touch strangers as soon as they meet.Howerer,people from places like Spain,Italy or South American countries approach others closely and are more likely to touch them.Most people around the world now greet each other by shaking h
46、ands,but some cultures use other greetings as well,such as the Japanese,who prefer to bow.These actions are not good or bad,but are simply ways in which cultures have developed.I have seen,however,that cultural customs for body language are very general-not all members of a culture behave in the sam
47、e way.In general,though,studying international customs can certainly help avoid difficulties in todays world of cultural crossroads!Unit 4 Body languageReadingSHOWING OUR FEELINGSBody language is one of the most powerful means of communication,often even more powerful than spoken language.People aro
48、und the world even more powerful than spoken language.People around the world show all kinds of feelings,wishes and affiudes that they might never speak aloud.It is possible to“read”others around us,even if they do not intend for us to catch their unspoken communication.Of course,body language can b
49、e misread,but many gestures and actions are universal.The most universal facial expression is,of course,the smile-its function si to show happiness and people at ease.It does not always mean that we are trul haapy,however.Smiles around the world can be false,hiding other feelings like anger,fear or worry.There are unbappy smiles,such as when someong“loses face”and smiles to hide to hide it.However,the general purpose of smiling is to show good feelings.From t
