赖世雄高级美国英语 lesson 13

Lesson 13，
　　The Ivy¹ League Schools： Excellence² in Education.
　　常春藤盟校——教育界的佼佼者
　　The first permanent English settlement in the New World was at Plymouth Bay in what in now the state of Massachusetts in 1620. Merely 16 years later， a group of successful settlers in New Town （renamed Cambridge after their alma mater） started a college. They named it after the Puritan minister who willed half his estate and all his books to the college. This clergyman's name was John Harvard， and his namesake remains³ the most prestigious⁴ among the more than 2000 institutes of higher education in the United States today.
　　Harvard is not the only great school in the US， of course. A small industry has grown up around the ranking of the best tertiary schools， and year after year， seven schools dominate most of these Top Twenty or Top Fifty lists. Harvard is nearly always at or close to the top， joined frequently by Yale （in Connecticut）， Princeton （in New Jersey）， Dartmouth （in New Hampshire）， Cornell （in New York state）， Columbia （in New York city）， the University of Pennsylvania， and Brown （in Rhode Island）。 These eight private universities are collectively referred to as the Ivy League schools.
　　Why the name？ Ivy is a vine； that is， a plant which grows up or along the surface of other plants such as trees， or， in the human landscape， along the sides of stone buildings. As these eight universities are old （the youngest among them， Cornell， was founded in 1853）， ivy has had plenty of time to decorate the outsides of the more historic buildings on these campuses. The word league， however， is more an invention of imagination than a reality. Though there is an association called the Ivy League， it refers to the above schools' participation⁵ in an American football athletic⁶ conference rather than to any academic alliance. Further， despite the lengthy⁷ academic lineage of these schools， the footballing Ivy League was not formally formed until 1956， though highly cometitive football and other athletic games have been hotly contested among the schools for many generations.
　　Since these institutes of higher learning had such an early start in the history of the United States， it is not surprising that they should individually and collectively have exerted a great influence on American society. Their status whithin national scholarly circles is unparalleled. Admission to these universities is highly demanding： many students apply for every one lucky enough to be accepted.As these universities are private， they are relatively⁸ expensive. Offsetting⁹ the extremely high tuition are many opportunities for scholarships. These scholarships are awarded to meritorious¹⁰ students regardless of their backgrounds.
　　Additionally， the roster¹¹ of the faculties¹² of these schools reads like a Who's Who list of important Americans （and quite a few foreigners， as well）。 Their intellectual integrity shows in the number of Nobel and other major prizes awarded which they have garnered¹³ over the years. Some of the country's most famous doctors， statesmen， engineers， scientists， and educationists have studied and taught within these ivy-covered walls. No fewer than 14 US presidents have earned degrees here， including six at Harvard， six at Yale， and two at Princeton.
　　Though only a select few can join the ranks as Ivy Leaguers each year， Americans are endowed with a world-class tertiary educational system second to none. Not every graduate from an Ivy League school "makes the grade" in life； even a first-rate education is no guarantee of success. Still， those who do enter and leave the Ivy League universities in the northeastern United States have a much better than average chance to join the ranks of the movers and shakers of not only the US cociety， but， once back in their home countries， of their native lands as well.

1 ivy   

n.常青藤，常春藤

参考例句：

• Her wedding bouquet consisted of roses and ivy.她的婚礼花篮包括玫瑰和长春藤。
• The wall is covered all over with ivy.墙上爬满了常春藤。

2 excellence   

n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德

参考例句：

• His art has reached a high degree of excellence.他的艺术已达到炉火纯青的地步。
• My performance is far below excellence.我的表演离优秀还差得远呢。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• 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。

4 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

5 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

6 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

7 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。

8 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

9 offsetting   

n.偏置法v.抵消( offset的现在分词 )；补偿；（为了比较的目的而）把…并列（或并置）；为（管道等）装支管

参考例句：

• Dealers, having concluded a forward contract, should always hedge with an offsetting contract. 外汇经营商在签订了一项远期合同之后总是应进行套头交易签订一项相抵合同。 来自辞典例句
• Where does Germany think offsetting shifts into greater external deficits might occur? 在德国看来，这么大的外部赤字应该转移到哪里？ 来自互联网

10 meritorious   

adj.值得赞赏的

参考例句：

• He wrote a meritorious theme about his visit to the cotton mill.他写了一篇关于参观棉纺织厂的有价值的论文。
• He was praised for his meritorious service.他由于出色地工作而受到称赞。

11 roster   

n.值勤表，花名册

参考例句：

• The teacher checked the roster to see whom he would teach this year.老师查看花名册，想了解今年要教的学生。
• The next day he put himself first on the new roster for domestic chores.第二天，他把自己排在了新的家务值日表的第一位。

12 faculties   

n.能力( faculty的名词复数 )；全体教职员；技巧；院

参考例句：

• Although he's ninety, his mental faculties remain unimpaired. 他虽年届九旬，但头脑仍然清晰。
• All your faculties have come into play in your work. 在你的工作中，你的全部才能已起到了作用。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 garnered   

v.收集并（通常）贮藏（某物），取得，获得( garner的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Mr. Smith gradually garnered a national reputation as a financial expert. 史密斯先生逐渐赢得全国金融专家的声誉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He has garnered extensive support for his proposals. 他的提议得到了广泛的支持。 来自辞典例句