高中英语北师大版必修4英语课文

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1、“Who wants to be a Millionaire? I dont,” says Charles GrayAngus Deayton interviews ex-millionaire Charles GrayA lot of people are determined to become a millionaire. They spend half their time dreaming up ways of getting rich, and the rest of their time thinking about all the enjoyable things they w

2、ould do once they got rich. But do all millionaires find the happiness that they thought they would get when they achieve their goals? Some millionaires continue to be concerned about money when they become millionaires. They are hardworking to get all that money. Then they are hardworking to make s

3、ure they never lose it!But there are people who have turned their backs on their millions and found different ways to be happy in their lives. Charles Gray is one example.Sixteen years ago, Charles was a college professor with a huge six-bedroom house and $2 million. Today he lives in a small dormit

4、ory room where there is only second-hand furniture. There are certainly no signs that Charles was a rich man! There is a small garden outside with a few fruit trees. Charles grows some vegetables and a few flowers. He gets his clothes and a lot of other things from charity shops.But Charles apprecia

5、tes this change. 1.1 He was pleased to give up the lifestyle of a rich man. He was tired of being a person who had everything in a world where many people had nothing. He made the choice to give all his money away. And this, he said, brought him happiness.“A few years ago,” says Charles, “I was a mi

6、llionaire, but was aware there were a lot of hungry people in the world.” Therefore he gave away all his money to charities. When he had two thousand dollars left, he gave away small bank notes in the streets of local poor areas. Did he feel like Father Christmas? “It was a lot of fun,”says Charles.

7、Charles believes that many people want to earn a lot of money so that they will not have any worries. However, most people never make much money. Charles Gray decided to drop out and has discovered that having only a little money makes you free. Are there any things he misses? “No, Im much happier n

8、ow. I wouldnt go back to being rich for anything - no way.” When less is moreWhat can you do with 5 yuan? Not a lot, you may think. Well, if buying a bag of candies or cookies doesnt appeal to you, how about buying a tree instead? Yes, a tree along the banks of the Yellow River to be exact.Every yea

9、r, approximately 1.6 billion tons of soil flows into the Yellow River, Chinas second longest river. The soil contains materials to keep the natural balance of the area. Over time, a lot of soil has been removed, which has caused serious erosion of the land along the River. In some areas in Shanxi Pr

10、ovince, this has destroyed almost all the land, and has forced many local farmers to move to other areas.It is a huge job to control Yellow River erosion. Many people believe this kind of work is best done by government or international organisations. You may agree with this point of view. If so, it

11、 is time for you to think again.In fact, it is you who have the most important role to play in stopping Yellow River erosion. Did you know the importance of your 5 yuan? For a start, it can buy you a tree, which will help make soil stay on the land. On land with rich soil, local farmers can grow cro

12、ps to make a living. With the money they earn from their crops, farmers buy goods or services. This helps to develop local economies.1.2 Still puzzled how your 5 yuan can have so much effect? Well, just take a look at the fact below. Since 1997, a tree-planting programme has changed the Jiuchengong

13、Valley in Inner Mongolia into a green homeland. Visitors from all over the world now come to admire this great achievement. What is more, the success of the programme has greatly improved the lives of the local people. Just think: all this started with 5 yuan! So when you have 5 yuan in your pocket

14、next time, think twice about how to use the money. Remember you can use it to buy a tree and create a green future for our motherland, our people and yourself. Remote HeadphonesThese fantastic headphones from Philips have no wires. You can listen to your favourite programmes while you are walking ro

15、und the house or garden! You can listen to relaxing music in the bath!With Remote Headphones you can go up to sixty metres away from your radio or TV. The signals go through glass, doors and walls. These exciting, new headphones give you freedom to move around plus top quality sound. Excellent value

16、 at: 80.45Mini CameraInterested in photography? Fujiko has produced an amazing new mini camera - the advanced 1001 ix. It is no bigger than a credit card! It is convenient and very reliable. It is really easy to use, too. It has an automatic focus and flash, so you dont have to worry about anything.

17、 Its also made from an attractive and strong material. The Mini Camera is not expensive either! Cost: 199.99Special Jewellery For Your EarsThese are gold and attractive. They are also useful in many noisy situations. When you are tired of loud disco music, or bored at a party, you dont have to liste

18、n. 1.3 Simply put them on! Thousands of satisfied customers!A bargain at 19.50!Feline Floor CleanersDo you find housework tiring and boring? Are you worried about the state of your house or flat? Have you got a cat that walks round your flat all day? Here is the perfect solution. It will change your

19、 life. Put the floor cleaners on your cat, and sit back and relax. The cleaners are made from good quality material. They are very practical and easy to wash. And theyre cheap! Special offer - complete set for only 5.99.Write to: Animal Magic, P.O. Box 123 Africa on G8 AgendaJuly 5, 2005 Scotland Th

20、e Group of Eight, or G8, was formed by eight of the worlds wealthiest nations in 1998. The G8 is made up of political leaders from France, the United States, Britain, Germany, Japan, Italy, Canada and Russia. They meet every summer to discuss major problems that concern the whole world.It is going t

21、o be remembered as a historical meeting this year, as the topic of Africa will be discussed in detail. Widespread poverty in Africa means that many people there cannot get the water, clothing, housing, electricity or education they need. AIDS is another problem of great concern so sex education and

22、health care administration are extremely important.Reforms have been demanded by people from all over the world. They want the leaders to cancel the debt of Africas poorest countries so that the problems there can be prevented from getting any worse. Their belief is that this is the only way for man

23、y of these nations to escape their painful pasts. 2.1.1 LONDON WINSJuly 6, 2005 LondonAt 12:45 UK time today, the name of the host city for the 2012 Olympic Games was being announced by the International Olympics Committee (IOC) in Singapore. It was London. Londons name had been announced twice befo

24、re, in 1908 and 1948, so it now has the distinction of being the first city to host the event three times.Applications to host the games had also been made by Moscow, Madrid, New York and Paris. In the end, it came down to a choice between Paris and London.The news is being celebrated by crowds in t

25、he streets. Cheering people can also be seen everywhere: in pubs, homes and offices all over London. Prince William, who is now in New Zealand, said he was delighted that the 2012 Olympic Games would be held in London and he was looking forward to the Games.2.1.2 The classic advertisement is one tha

26、t gives information about finding certain products. It is likely to be just the name of a company, part of which may be a general location. For example, it could be “Shanghai Sewing Machine”, or “Tsing Tao Beer Corporation”, and you would know what the companies sell, where they are located, and the

27、 brand names.However, this kind of advertising might not be suitable when there are products and services in direct competition with each other in the market place. In such situations, advertisements need to attract, and hold the attention of the public. Some advertisements consist of pictures or th

28、e words of experts to show people how good the products are. Others try to create advertisements that people simply enjoy looking at. As present-day advertisers often have large budgets, a lot of money is spent on applying modern techniques of design to make these advertisements as visually attracti

29、ve as possible.However, even this is often not enough to be noticed in a modern city. Because of the advertising boom, people are used to seeing high standards of visual design. Modern advertisements must stand out in a world full of competition by combining the highest standards of design with idea

30、s linked to the products to make them more attractive. For example, 2.2 some advertisements may suggest that buying a car can make you free. That is, they use the concept of freedom to sell the car. Other common ideas include happiness, wealth and success. In fact, in the world of advertisements, su

31、ch content is as old as advertising itself.For many of todays advertisers, repeating old ideas is not a successful approach. They realise that it does not matter how attractive the idea linked with the product is -most people know that the main purpose of the advertisement is making customers spend

32、money. Instead, these advertisers look for other ways to make people notice their products. The top advertisers of today believe that using humour as well as new and unusual ideas to surprise people is important in modern advertisements. Their aim is to create something that has never been seen befo

33、re and is fascinating for people to look at. By doing this, they hope to make people forget that someone is trying to sell them something! However, not all advertising is about selling products and services for a profit. Some contemporary advertisements mainly aim to make contributions to society. T

34、here are public advertisements which encourage citizens to participate in improving their neighbourhood, protecting the environment, and helping other people. Over the last decade, the government has worked hard at using advertisements to educate the public on fighting AIDS, saving water, helping th

35、e poor, giving up smoking, etc. These advertisements have helped to increase public knowledge, which has made our society a better place for everyone. A According to a research published by Leeds University yesterday, people dont mind bad language on television as long as it is not used in programme

36、s watched by children.The study found there was “amazing agreement” about when bad language was serious and when it was not. Even a group of mothers agreed that a certain amount of bad language in the well-known film Pulp Fiction was “OK” because the dialogue and situation made it“funny”. Some peopl

37、e said they found the use of drugs in the film more worrying than the bad language.People were asked to comment on scenes from films like Pulp Fiction, TV series like Channel 4s Brookside and cartoons like South Park. Leeds University concluded that people made a distinction between bad language use

38、d in programmes for adults, and those meant for children.Peter Moore, a writer at the BBC, said, “The result does not surprise us at all. We have always tried to keep bad language away from innocent ears and this is a very important consideration when deciding at what times of day certain programmes

39、 are shown.” Susan Bold, director of programmes at ITV, said, “The report gives interesting information about attitudes to bad language on screen. But it doesnt mean that we can increase the amount of bad language used on television.”2.3 BMore than 30 astronomers on a sightseeing trip to the museum

40、of science had an amazing escape, after their trolleybus crashed into a greengrocers truck on Park Avenue.The accident, which took place in Kingston, a town southwest of London, happened because of the fog. The 60-year-old driver of the truck did not know that he was parked in the way of the trolley

41、bus. When the driver finally discovered the trolleybus coming towards him through the fog, he tried to move but his tyres got stuck in the muddy ground. At the last minute, he jumped out of the truck, hurting his ankle, before the trolleybus crashed into the truck, pushing it 20 yards. “I would have

42、 been killed if Id stayed in the truck,” he said afterwards.A spokesman for the police said, “Its amazing that no one was badly hurt. When we arrived at the scene, we called an ambulance as we saw blood everywhere. We soon realised, however, that the blood was really strawberry juice! The greengroce

43、rs truck had been carrying a load of fresh strawberries.” He praised the bravery of the astronomers who were helped out of the windows of the trolleybus by firemen. CMum Lillian Derbyshire is going to see her four daughters again-after a 31-year holiday!Shonda (now 38), Shelley (37), Sherri (36)and

44、Shirin (34) went on holiday to America with Lillians ex-husband-and never came back. Sherri wrote a letter to a local paper asking her mother to contact her.Now Lillian, of West Gorton, Manchester, is making the 3,000-mile journey to California to see her daughters. I cant stop crying with happiness

45、, she said. Dear Aunt Mei,I cant believe Ive been in London for 6 months already! I certainly owe you an apology for not writing more often. Ive just been so busy studying and trying to absorb all the new things around me I think Im still experiencing culture shock. There is so much here that is dif

46、ferent from home. But youll soon experience it all yourself! I wish your visit wasnt going to be so brief but theres a lot we can do and see in a week. Im just so glad you can afford to visit me and I refuse to let you pay for anything while youre here!I dont know what your expectations are of Londo

47、n, but knowing that youve never travelled outside of Asia, I thought Id tell you a bit about what you can expect to find.First of all, the food. When I first got here, I was amazed to find that London is such an international city. There are people from all over the world living here and as a result

48、, there are many international restaurants. Do you know that almost every town in Britain has at least one Chinese restaurant? But British people hardly ever eat Chinese food for breakfast. Youre going to have to get used to bacon and eggs with a few slices of toast for breakfast over here, Aunt Mei

49、!And a word of advice. 3.1 To avoid getting confused about the British tipping system, you need to check your bill to see if a tip is included or not. If it isnt, I suggest leaving 10% of the bill for the waiter or waitress even a bit more if the service is good. Talking of money its really easy to

50、exchange travellers cheques at banks or hotels so I advise you to get some of those before you come.I think we should consider staying in the English countryside for a few nights as I know you enjoy hiking. We can wander through the fields and even pick a few mushrooms to have with our breakfast! I

51、have learnt which ones are tasty and safe to eat so we wont risk getting sick! And dont forget a warm coat! It can get pretty cold and foggy in this country.One last thing, I didnt understand British humour at all when I first got here. The British find the strangest things funny! Were certainly mor

52、e used to Chinese humour so dont be surprised if you hear laughter when you dont think anythings funny. Theyre not laughing at you! But even though some British people are quite strange, the majority of them are really friendly and Ive made some good friends.Anyhow, Id better get back to work. I am

53、so looking forward to your visit, Aunt Mei!Love Xiaojin When I first arrived in San Francisco, I had a difficult time understanding certain aspects of the American way of doing things. Once I went to visit an American friend. After a splendid evening, I finished my cocoa and got ready to leave. As s

54、oon as we said goodbye, my friend went back to his room closing the door behind him. It made me feel that I was not really welcome.Jin LiIve always been outgoing but since an embarrassing experience in a New York restaurant Ive been much more cautious. I was enjoying my dessert and talking to my Ame

55、rican friend Janice at the table when I noticed people staring at us. I asked Janice what was wrong and she told me that I was talking too loudly. She said that to some American people, it sounded like I was shouting. I whispered for the rest of the evening.Wang Lei What did I learn about Chinese cu

56、stoms from my exciting exchange to China? Well, the Chinese are extremely welcoming. One evening, I was invited to a Chinese family dinner. 3.2 I had a good appetite and the food was yummy. But my host kept on putting more food in my rice bowl. They didnt seem to hear me saying “No, thank you”in my

57、poor spoken Chinese. This was a very special experience I had in China. In my culture, you dont get more food if you dont ask for more.MartinI had a similar experience the last time, I visited China. The Chinese are the friendliest people I have ever met. After my visit to a Chinese family, my frien

58、ds grandfather wouldnt let me go to the bus station alone. He insisted on walking me to the station to see me off. I kept saying that I knew the way myself, but it just did not work. What he did was amazing. This will not happen in many other cultures, I guess.TomChinese people are very modest too.

59、Last time, when I visited China, we saw the tour guide wearing a very pretty fur coat on the day we left. I told her the coat suited her, but she looked very embarrassed, saying that it was a cheap one she had bought a long time ago. I was surprised. In my culture, when people say nice things about

60、us, we feel very happy and say thanks.Tina Host: Welcome to“Countries of the World”.Today were talking about Australia, the land of sunshine and surfing. George and Fiona are two Australians who have joined us for todays show. So first of all, tell us a bit about yourselves.George: Hi. Well, I live

61、on an acre of land outside Melbourne but my family actually came here from Greece in the 1980sin fact, Melbourne is the city with the largest number of Greek people outside Athens! At first, we didnt feel we belong here, but now we are attached to the land we live on.Host: Thanks, George. Now heres

62、Fiona from SydneyFiona: Hello. Australia is my birthplace but my mum came from Scotland and my dad came from France. Thats the great thing about Australian culture its such a mix of different cultures. The early settlers were mostly English and Irish, but since 1945, the population has become more a

63、nd more mixed with people from Southern Europe and Asia.Host: Wow! How do these different cultures affect different aspects of Australian culture? 3.3 Fiona: Well, for example, we see all these influences in modern Australian cooking. Chefs call it “fusion food” a brilliant mixture of delicious Sout

64、hern European food mixed with Southeast Asian food. The desserts are the best theyre so yummy!Host: Sounds tasty!George: And kangaroos are tasty too! In Melbourne, the only place we ever see kangaroos is on the menu in a restaurant. You mainly see kangaroos in the vast area of desert in the middle o

65、f Australia. This is a great place for camping but you have to look out for snakes and spiders Australia has some of the most dangerous in the world.Host: So do many people live in the desert?George: Not really. There are people who work in the mines, of course. Australia actually exports the most d

66、iamonds and coal in the world! And there are also a lot of sheep farms in the desert areas in fact, Ive heard that there are seven sheep for every person. But most Australians live on the coast. Thats why surfing is such a popular sport.Fiona: But its not the only sport Australians are fond of. Because the weathers so good, Australians like being outdoors. Walking, fishing, horse-riding, tennis, golf and sailing are all popular. We take sport very seriously and have produced great Olympic swimme