英语听力精选进阶版 7089

Background: 好莱坞经典电影《泰坦尼克号》讲述了在 1912 年与冰山相撞而沉船的超级豪华客轮的故事。据最近来自一个澳大利亚大学的研究报告称，当年船上英国乘客的生存率低于美国乘客，是因为英国乘客们在上救生船时遵守了排队的礼貌规则。

The story of the Titanic¹ continues to grip 吸引 us. The Hollywood blockbuster 大片 starring Leonardo diCaprio and Kate Winslet brought the horror and romance of the tragedy to a new generation.

But when the 'unsinkable' luxury liner ‘永不沉没的’超级豪华客轮 went down after hitting an iceberg² 冰山 on her maiden³ voyage 初次航行 more than 1,500 people perished 死了 in the icy waters of the north Atlantic.

Now David Savage⁴, a Behavioural Economist⁵ from Queensland University of Technology, has concluded 总结 that more British passengers died than Americans because they stood in line.

But his study also destroys another enduring myth 长期以来的一个说法. He found no evidence that poorer passengers were locked down below 被锁在 （甲板层）下面 and unable to reach the deck 甲板 to escape. And his work also suggests that gallantry 绅士风度 withstood 挡住了 the rising waters. Mostly, he says, the women and children first rule 女士孩子优先的常规 was followed.

But if he's right about the rest then Leonardo diCaprio, who played an American in the movie, would have cheated to survive and Kate Winslet would have got a seat in a lifeboat 救生船 much sooner, whilst the Brits would have gone down 沉下去 not to the sound of the band playing, but to the sound of a polite chorus 合唱 of "After you", "No, after you"...

GLOSSARY⁶ 词汇表

grip 吸引

blockbuster 大片

'unsinkable' luxury liner ‘永不沉没的’超级豪华客轮

iceberg 冰山

maiden voyage 初次航行

perished 死了

concluded 总结

enduring myth 长期以来的一个说法

locked down below 被锁在（甲板层）下面

deck 甲板

gallantry 绅士风度

withstood 挡住了

the women and children first rule 女士孩子优先的常规

lifeboat 救生船

gone down 沉下去

chorus 合唱

Questions and Answers

1. True or false: The Titanic went down on its first trip. 

True. The boat hit an iceberg on its maiden voyage – its first trip.

2. How many people died in the disaster?

More than 1,500 people perished, or died, in the disaster.

3. True or false: According to the new research, poorer passengers were locked below deck and unable to escape. 

False. David Savage found no evidence that poorer passengers were locked below deck.

4. According to the research, did people let women and children off the Titanic first?

Yes, David Savage says that mostly the women and children first rule was followed.

1 titanic   

adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的

参考例句：

• We have been making titanic effort to achieve our purpose.我们一直在作极大的努力，以达到我们的目的。
• The island was created by titanic powers and they are still at work today.台湾岛是由一个至今仍然在运作的巨大力量塑造出来的。

2 iceberg   

n.冰山，流冰，冷冰冰的人

参考例句：

• The ship hit an iceberg and went under.船撞上一座冰山而沉没了。
• The glacier calved a large iceberg.冰河崩解而形成一个大冰山。

3 maiden   

n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的

参考例句：

• The prince fell in love with a fair young maiden.王子爱上了一位年轻美丽的少女。
• The aircraft makes its maiden flight tomorrow.这架飞机明天首航。

4 savage   

adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人

参考例句：

• The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
• He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。

5 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

6 glossary   

n.注释词表；术语汇编

参考例句：

• The text is supplemented by an adequate glossary.正文附有一个详细的词汇表。
• For convenience,we have also provided a glossary in an appendix.为了方便，我们在附录中也提供了术语表。