成人高等教育英语教材第四册10

UNIT 10
Saying Goodbye
Integrated¹ Skills Development

Passage A Beginning and an End

　　"I've forgotten the last time that I cried. But I really can not cheer up now," said Philip, a graduate majoring in physics at a state university.
Philip drank a lot of wine while having supper with a few friends. Being half drunk², he was speaking from the bottom of his heart.
As the end of their academic career approaches, some soon-to-be graduates become sad and drown their sorrows in alcohol³.
They find a restaurant, order a few dishes and beer and settle down to chat. Though excited at the start of the evening, they gradually become depressed⁴.
Are these graduates simply uncertain of the future, or do they feel hopeless of the future?
One student said, "By now, almost everybody has found a job. No need to consider it further. And the graduation papers are nearly finished. They just need polishing and a printing of the final draft⁵."A psychology⁶ professor gave a deeper explanation. "The four years at college are quite special and important to students. They study and live together in these years. From the time when they gathered as freshmen⁷ at the very beginning, everything was new, and anything was possible. Now, it is ending, and they'll go their different ways. They know nothing about their future except one thing — that what is outside campus⁸ is different from their colleges or universities.""It is college life that teaches them to say goodbye to immaturity⁹ and makes them relatively¹⁰ independent little by little. They treasure this period of time when they experience happiness, sadness, love, friendship, hopes and loneliness. When faced with its end, they find it difficult to accept the reality. So they drink, and even cry."Philip added, "Three years ago, I was still a freshman¹¹. A senior in my department told me not to waste my time. His words are still ringing in my ears now. Looking back to the past years, I've no regrets from my four years. That's enough. Unfortunately, I've spent a lot of time in vain. Now it's time for me to warn others."David, a teacher from the university, said. "This is understandable. After all, I was once a college student myself. However, I don't think it's good to drink and chat all day and night. These students' parents are paying for their education. To eat and drink as they do is a real waste. It's also bad for their health. They should find some better ways to enjoy their last moments at college."
New Words and Expressions

accept
V. 接受，领受，认可

alcohol
n. 酒精，含有酒精的饮料

chat
V. 闲谈，聊天

depressed
a. 抑郁的；萧条的

draft
n. 草稿，草案；草图

drown
V. 淹死，溺死，淹没

explanation
n. 解释，说明

freshman
n. 大学一年级学生；新手

gather
V. 聚集；使聚拢

graduate
n. 毕业生

immaturity
n. 未成熟，未成年

independent
a. 独立的，自主的

loneliness
n. 孤独，寂寞

polish
V. 磨光，擦亮；润饰

printing
n. 印刷

reality
n. 现实，真实

regret
n. 懊悔，遗憾

sorrow
n. 悲哀，悲痛

treasure
V. 珍爱，珍视；珍藏

warn
V. 警告，告诫

after all
毕竟，终究

cheer up
高兴起来，振作起来

from the bottom of one's heart
衷心地，真诚地

little by little
一点一点地，逐渐地

look back
回头看，回顾

settle down
定居；安下心来

Merry Learning¹²

Mark Twain, a famous American writer was also a famous humorist. He liked to tell funny stories, and play jokes on his friends. One day, a friend of his lost his money and asked Twain to buy a railroad¹³ ticket for him.
Twain said, "I'm sorry, but it happens that I have very little money with me. I don't have money to buy both your ticket and mine."
The friend was very sad.
"However," said Twain, "you can get on the train with me and, when the conductor comes to collect the tickets, you can hide under my seat."
The friend had no other alternative, so he finally agreed to this plan. Later, however, when the conductor came, Twain gave him two tickets, one for himself and one for his friend.
Then in a loud voice, so that everybody around could hear him, Twain explained, "My friend is a very strange fellow. When he rides on a train, he doesn't like to sit on the seat. He prefers to lie on the floor under the seat."
Of course, everybody then looked at the poor fellow under the seat and laughed at him loudly.
 

1 integrated   

a.整合的，完整的

参考例句：

• A fully integrated low phase noise LC voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) is presented.介绍了一种全集成的LC压控振荡器(VCO)的设计。

2 drunk   

adj.醉酒的；(喻)陶醉的；n.酗酒者，醉汉

参考例句：

• People who drives when they are drunk should be heavily penalised.醉酒驾车的人应受重罚。
• She found him drunk when she came home at night.她晚上回家时，经常发现他醉醺醺的。

3 alcohol   

n.酒精，乙醇；含酒精的饮料

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors.法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。
• The alcohol is industrial.这些酒精是供工业用的。

4 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

5 draft   

vt.起草，作...的草稿；n.草稿，草图，草案

参考例句：

• He's now revising the first draft of his essay.他目前正修改他的文章初稿。
• The draft of this article has been done。这篇文章已经定稿。

6 psychology   

n.心理，心理学，心理状态

参考例句：

• She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
• He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。

7 freshmen   

n.（中学或大学的）一年级学生( freshman的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We are freshmen and they are sophomores. 我们是一年级学生，他们是二年级学生。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• University freshmen get lots of razzing, but they like the initiation. 大一新生受各种嘲弄，但是他们对这种入门经验甘之如饴。 来自辞典例句

8 campus   

n.大学校园，学校校园；大学　

参考例句：

• They spoke of the old days on the campus.他们谈起昔日的校园生活。
• The campus covers an area of twenty square kilometres.这个校园占地二十平方公里。

9 immaturity   

n.不成熟；未充分成长；未成熟；粗糙

参考例句：

• It traces the development of a young man from immaturity to maturity. 它描写一位青年从不成熟到成熟的发展过程。 来自辞典例句
• Immaturity is the inability to use one's understanding without guidance from another. 不成熟就是不经他人的指引就无法运用自身的理解力。 来自互联网

10 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。

11 freshman   

n.大学一年级学生(可兼指男女)

参考例句：

• Jack decided to live in during his freshman year at college.杰克决定大一时住校。
• He is a freshman in the show business.他在演艺界是一名新手。

12 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

13 railroad   

n.铁路；vi.由铁路运输

参考例句：

• The railroad connects two cities,namely,New York and Chicago.这条铁路连接两个城市，即纽约与芝加哥。
• My brother is working on the railroad.我兄弟在铁路系统工作。