英语听力—环球英语 629 Mount Everest

　　Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight¹. I'm Marina Santee.
Voice 2
And I'm Mike Procter. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
"I am on top of the world!". And so she was! Rebecca Stephens had just climbed to the top of the world's highest mountain. She was nearly nine thousand metres above sea level. She was the first British woman to get to the top of Mount² Everest. The year was nineteen-ninety-three [1993], but the story of people climbing Mount Everest began a long time before that. In this programme we tell some of that story.
Voice 2
The surface of the planet³ on which we live is not in a single piece. It is divided into several large sections of rock called tectonic plates. The plates move slowly over the surface of the earth. As they move against or next to each other, earthquakes happen, volcanoes⁴ explode. As the plates crash into each other, mountains are formed. Scientists believe that the Himalaya Mountains were formed in this way about 50 million years ago. They say the plate that carries India crashed into the plate that carries Europe and Asia. This pushed up the land and formed the Himalayas. The highest mountain of these is Mount Everest, which is now 8850 metres high. But, along with the rest of the Himalayas, it is slowly getting higher, as India continues to move northwards⁵.
Voice 1
Everest sits on the border between Nepal and Tibet⁶ (now part of China). The Nepalese people call Everest 'Mount Sagarmatha' - which means⁷ Goddess of the Sky. The Tibetans call it Mount Chomolungma - which means Mother Goddess of the Universe. At first, the British called it Peak⁸ 15. But in 1865 the mountain got its most famous name. Sir George Everest was a British official in India. He was one of the officials who had been responsible⁹ for measuring the mountains. Although he objected, the Royal Geographical¹⁰ Society in London named the world's highest mountain after him.
Voice 2
In 1921 a team from Britain went to Everest. They wanted to discover if it was possible to climb to the top of the mountain. The team included a teacher named George Mallory. He was an intelligent man, and spent his free time climbing mountains all over the world. In time, he decided¹¹ that he must climb the highest mountain of all. Asked why he wanted to climb Everest, he said: "Because it is there!" In 1921 he climbed up the North Col, to over 7000 metres. From there he thought he could see a way up to the top of Mount Everest.
Voice 1
A year later Mallory returned. George Finch¹², another member of the team, climbed to 8320 metres. He used oxygen breathing equipment during the climb. This was the highest climbed by any human being so far, and it was only five hundred metres below the top. Mallory also tried to reach the top but failed. During this attempt, seven Sherpas were killed when snow fell on top of them. Sherpas are people who live in the Himalayas, and are used to the high altitude¹³. They often go with climbers as guides and to help carry equipment.
Voice 2
Mallory led another team to Everest two years later, in 1924. Two brave climbers climbed even higher without using oxygen: their names were Howard Somervell and Felix Norton. Somervell was a wonderful doctor who later worked in India. But Mallory's attempt on Everest had a sad ending. Mallory and his young friend Andrew Irvine tried to reach the top on the eighth of June, but they never returned. The question is still asked: did Mallory and Irvine reach the top of Everest?
Voice 1
It was only in 1999 that Mallory's body was found. His injuries suggested that he had had a fall. It has been suggested that Mallory fell while going down the mountain. An ice axe¹⁴ which belonged to Irvine has been found but his body has never been found. Mallory's camera is also still missing¹⁵. If found, it could contain pictures that would show if Mallory and Irvine reached the top of the mountain, or not.
Voice 2
During the 1930s several groups of people tried to climb the mountain: they were all turned back by bad weather. In 1934 a man named Maurice Wilson tried to climb Everest alone. He had no experience of climbing and no equipment. He thought these things were not necessary if a person had religious¹⁶ faith! But Wilson never returned; his body was found a year later.
Voice 1
In 1935 Eric Shipton believed that he had identified a way up the mountain from the other side, from Nepal. But Nepal was closed to foreigners. At that time, all attempts to climb Mount Everest were made from Tibet. Shipton's team included a Sherpa named Tenzing Norgay. Years later, he would be one of the first two people to reach the top.
Voice 2
After the Second World War there were more attempts to climb Mount Everest. But in 1950, there was a big change. The borders of Tibet were closed to foreigners. And the borders of Nepal were opened. So it became possible to use the other way to the top – the way that Eric Shipton had identified. More teams attempted the climb. But there was bad weather, and the paths were full of danger, but success could not be far away!
Voice 1
Success came on the twenty-ninth of May, 1953.  That morning Tenzing Norgay stood on the top of the world's highest mountain with Edmund Hillary, from New Zealand. They had climbed from the Nepal side. It was a great event in history. News reached London on the second of June, the day that Queen Elizabeth became Queen.
Many people have since climbed Mount Everest by different, and more difficult ways. About 3000 have reached the top. But more than two hundred people have died trying to do so. The first woman to reach the top was Junko Tabei, from Japan. In May 2010, an American named Jordan Romero became the youngest person to reach the top. He was thirteen years and ten months old.
Voice 2
Today, many people visit the base camps of Everest. These are the places from which the long climbs to the top must begin. But climbing to the top is still a very difficult and special thing to do. Climbers need to be fit, skilful¹⁷, and well prepared. They need special permits¹⁸. They need equipment, transport and local guides. All this costs money - tens of thousands of dollars.
Still, the appeal of Everest is very strong. Reaching the top of the world's highest mountain is still something very few people have done, something very special. No wonder Rebecca Stephens said 'I am on top of the world'!
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 mount   

n.山峰，乘用马，框，衬纸；vi.增长，骑上（马）；vt.提升，爬上，装备

参考例句：

• Their debts continued to mount up.他们的债务不断增加。
• She is the first woman who steps on the top of Mount Jolmo Lungma.她是第一个登上珠穆朗玛峰的女人。

3 planet   

n.行星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun. 海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. 然而, 垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。

4 volcanoes   

n.火山( volcano的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Volcanoes and geysers erupt. 火山和间歇喷泉均能喷发。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He has been able to tell us more about active volcanoes than any man alive. 他现在比任何人都能更多地向我们讲述有关活火山的情况。 来自《用法词典》

5 northwards   

adj.向北的；adv.向北

参考例句：

• He pointed his boat northwards.他将船驶向北方。
• These birds migrate northwards in spring and southwards in fall.这些鸟春天向北迁徙，秋天向南迁徙。

6 Tibet   

n.西藏

参考例句：

• It was the year before last that he went to Tibet.他前年去的西藏。
• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。

7 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

8 peak   

n.山峰，巅，山顶，顶点，尖峰，帽舌；adj.最高的，最大值的；vi.到达最高点，消瘦，变憔悴，逐渐缩小；vt.使竖起，使达到最高点

参考例句：

• Traffic reaches a peak between 8 and 9 in the morning.早晨八九点钟是交通的高峰时刻。
• He was the first to top the mountain peak.他是第一个登上这座山峰的人。

9 responsible   

adj.有责任的，应负责的；可靠的，可信赖的；责任重大的；vi.休息，睡；静止，停止

参考例句：

• He must be responsible to me for this matter.这件事他必须对我负责。
• The police are responsible for the preservation of law and order.警察负责维持法律与秩序。

10 geographical   

adj.地理的；地区(性)的

参考例句：

• The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
• These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。

11 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

12 finch   

n.雀科鸣禽(如燕雀，金丝雀等)

参考例句：

• This behaviour is commonly observed among several species of finch.这种行为常常可以在几种雀科鸣禽中看到。
• In Australia,it is predominantly called the Gouldian Finch.在澳大利亚，它主要还是被称之为胡锦雀。

13 altitude   

n.海拔高度；高处

参考例句：

• The plane flew at an altitude of 20,000 feet.这架飞机在两万英尺的高空飞行。
• What is the altitude of the top of the mountain?这座山的顶峰海拔是多少？

14 axe   

n.斧子；v.用斧头砍，削减

参考例句：

• Be careful with that sharp axe.那把斧子很锋利，你要当心。
• The edge of this axe has turned.这把斧子卷了刃了。

15 missing   

adj.遗失的，缺少的，失踪的

参考例句：

• Check the tools and see if anything is missing.检点一下工具，看有无丢失。
• All the others are here;he's the only one missing.别人都来了，就短他一个。

16 religious   

adj.宗教性的，虔诚的，宗教上的；n.修道士，出家人

参考例句：

• She is very religious person who goes to church every Sunday.她十分虔诚，每个星期天都上教堂。
• It is hard for me to reject religious beliefs.要我抛弃自己的宗教信仰是困难的。

17 skilful   

(=skillful)adj.灵巧的，熟练的

参考例句：

• The more you practise,the more skilful you'll become.练习的次数越多，熟练的程度越高。
• He's not very skilful with his chopsticks.他用筷子不大熟练。

18 permits   

许可( permit的名词复数 )； 许可证； 执照

参考例句：

• The building permits are granted by the City Building Department. 建筑许可证由城建局签发。
• This task permits (of) no delay. 这项任务不允许有任何耽搁。