新概念英语第三册lesson 38 The first calender

（单词翻译）

Lesson 38:The first calender 最早的日历
        
Listen to the tape then answer the question below.
听录音，然后回答以下问题。
What is the importance of the dots, lines, and symbols engraved² on some, bones and ivory?

    Future historians will be in a unique position when they come to record the history of our own times. They will hardly know which facts to select from the great mass of evidence that steadily³ accumulates. What is more, they will not have to rely solely⁴ on the written word. Films, videos, CDs and CD-ROMS are just some of the bewildering amount of information they will have. They will be able, as it were, to see and hear us in action. But the historian attempting to reconstruct the distant past is always faced with a difficult task. He has to deduce what he can from the few scanty⁵ clues available. Even seemingly insignificant⁶ remains⁷ can shed interesting light on the history of early man.
    Up to now, historians have assumed that calendars came into being with the advent⁸ of agriculture, for then man was faced with a real need to understand something about the seasons. Recent scientific evidence seems to indicate that this assumption is incorrect.
    Historians have long been puzzled by dots, lines and symbols which have been engraved on walls, bones, and the ivory tusks¹⁰ of mammoths. The nomads¹³ who made these markings lived by hunting and fishing during the last Ice Age which began about 35,000 B.C. and ended about 10,000 B.C. By correlating markings made in various parts of the world, historians have been able to read this difficult code. They have found that it is connected with the passage of days and the phases of the moon. It is, in fact, a primitive¹⁴ type of calendar. It has long been known that the hunting scenes depicted¹⁶ on walls were not simply a form of artistic¹⁷ expression. They had a definite meaning, for they were as near as early man could get to writing. It is possible that there is a definite relation between these paintings and the markings that sometimes accompany them. It seems that man was making a real effort to understand the seasons 20,000 years earlier than has been supposed.

New words and expressions 生词和短语

     calendar
n.   历法，日历

     historian
n.   历史学家

     unique
adj. 无与伦比的

     steadily
adv. 不断地

     solely
adv. 唯一地

     video
n.   录像

     CD-ROOM
n.   （只读）光盘驱动器

     bewilder
v.   令人眼花缭乱

     deduce
v.   推断，推理

     scanty
adj. 不足的，贫乏的

     clue
n.   线索

     insignificant
adj. 不重要的

     shed
v.   使流出，泻

     advent
n.   出现，到来，来临

     agriculture
n.   农业

     assumption
n.   假定，设想

     dot
n.   小圆点

     symbol
n.   符号

     engrave¹
v.   雕刻

     ivory
n.   象牙制品

     mammoth¹¹
n.   （古）长毛象

     tusk⁹
n.   獠牙，长牙，象牙

     nomad¹²
n.   游牧民

     correlate
v.   使相互联系

     phase
n.   月相，天相

     primitive
adj. 原始的

     depict¹⁵
v.   描画，描绘
    
参考译文

    未来的历史学家在写我们这一段历史的时候会别具一格。对于逐渐积累起来的庞大材料，他们几乎不知道选取哪些好，而且，也不必完全依赖文字材料。电影、录像、光盘和光盘驱动器只是能为他们提供令人眼花缭乱的大量信息的几种手段。他们能够身临其境般地观看我们做事，倾听我们讲话。但是，历史学家企图重现遥远的过去可是一项艰巨的任务，他们必须根据现有的不充分的线索进行推理。即使看起来微不足道的遗物，也可能揭示人类早期历史的一些有趣的内容。
    历史学家迄今认为日历是随农业的问世而出现的，因为当时人们面临着了解四季的实际需要，但近期科学研究发现，好像这种假设是不正确的。
    长期以来，历史学家一直对雕刻在墙壁上、骨头上、古代长毛象的象牙上的点、线和形形色色的符号感到困惑不解。这些痕迹是游牧人留下的，他们生活在从公元前约35，000年到公元前10，000年的冰川期的末期，以狩猎、捕鱼为生。历史学家通过把世界各地留下的这种痕迹放在一起研究，终于弄懂了这种费解的代码。他们发现代码与昼夜更迭和月亮圆缺有关，事实上是一种最原始的日历。大家早就知道，画在墙上的狩猎图景并不是单纯的艺术表现形式，它们有着一定的含义，因为它们已接近古代人的文字形式。有时，这种图画与墙壁上的刻痕共存，它们之间可能有一定的联系。看来人类早就致力于探索四季变迁了，比人们想像的要早20,000年。
 

新概念英语正版图书购买

　　自学导读
课文详注 Further notes on the text
1．He had often dreamed of retiring in England and had planned to settle down in the country．过去他常幻想退休后到英国，并计划在乡间安顿下来。
（1）dream of 在这里不表示具体的做梦，
而是“幻想”、“向往”的意思：
Frank used to dream of having a car of his own.
弗兰克过去常幻想拥有一辆自己的车。
（2）settle down 是个固定短语，
可以表示“定居”、“安身”、“安顿”等含义：
They settled down in Australia in 1988.
他们1988年在澳大利亚定居了。
After two years of travelling, I want to settle down now.
旅行了两年之后，我现在想过安定的日子了。
2．Almost immediately he began to complain about the weather, for even though it was still summer, it rained continually and it was often bitterly cold. 但紧接着他就开始抱怨那里的天气了。 因为即使那时仍为夏季，但雨总是下个不停，而且常常冷得厉害。
（1）for 在这里为连词，
为所陈述的事说出原因。它与 because不同，不能用于句首。并且在for后面必须重复主语：
I don't have a car, for I can't afford it.
我没有车，因为我买不起。
（2）连词even though引导的是让步状语从句，
表示“即使”、“虽然”：
Even though we were very tired, we went on with the work.
虽然我们已非常累了，我们仍然继续干活。
3．He acted as if be had never lived in England before．他的举动就好像他从未在英国生活过一样。
连词 as if/ though 引导方式状语从句，通常跟在描述行为举止的动词之后，如act, appear, feel, look, smell, sound等后面：
She acted as if she were mad.
她的举动像疯了一样。
It feels as if/ though it's going to rain.
这天气给人的感觉好像是要下雨。
4．In the end, it was more than he could bear. 最后，他再也忍受不住。
more than在这里表示“超过……的范围”：
This piece of news is more than I can believe.
我无法相信这条消息。
这种用法与它通常表示“比……更多”的用法稍有不同：
There were more than ten people in the room.
房间里不止10个人。

　　语法 Grammar in use
过去完成时
在第14课的语法中，我们学习了过去完成时的构成和基本用法。它经常与一般过去时连用，表示在过去某个动作发生前完成的动作：
When I arrived, Jane had left.
我到时，简已经走了。（走发生在我到达之前）
与过去完成时连用的表示时间的词或词组有when, after, as
soon as, (not) until, by that time, (never) before, already, for, since, just等，
另外它还常与连词no sooner…than和 hardly…when连用。（cf．词汇学习）过去完成时不能与副词ago 连用（ago只能与一般过去时连用）：
He hadn't finished it by yesterday evening.
到昨天晚上他还没做完。

　　词汇学习 Word study
1．no sooner…than与 hardly…when
这两组连词意义都与 as soon as相近，但都比 as soon as正式。
它们通常都与过去完成时连用。当 no sooner和 hardly位于句
首时，后面的主谓结构都要颠倒顺序，即句子变为 no sooner/hardly+助动词+主语+动词形式的语序：
He had no sooner returned than he bought a house and went to live there.
他刚一回来便买下了一幢房子住了进去。
No sooner had he returned than he bought a house and went to live there.
（译文同上）
No sooner had he begun speaking than he was interrupted.
他刚一开始讲话就被打断了。
He had hardly had time to settle down when he sold the house and left the country.
他还没等安顿下来就卖掉了房子，离开了这个国家。
Hardly had he had time to settle down when he sold the house and left the country.
（译文同上）
Hardly had he got into the bus when it began moving.
他刚刚登上那辆公共汽车它就开了。
no sooner…than与 hardly…when 都是固定词组， than与when不可混用。
2．country与 countryside
country的意义比较广，它可以有“国家”、“祖国”或“乡下”等多种含义：
He had planned to settle down in the country.
他原计划在乡下定居。
He sold the house and left the country.
他卖掉房子，离开了这个国家。
country 作“乡下”讲时，
通常与the连用，作“国家”
讲时则不一
定：
We are going to spend the weekend in the country.
我们打算去乡下过这个周末。
Which country do you come from?
你来自哪个国家？
countryside主要指“农村地区”、“乡下”：
I grew up in the countryside.
我在农村长大。
3．continuously与 continually
这两个副词都与动词 continue（继续，持续）有关。它们的区别在于continuously （不断地，连续地）指动作中间没有间断，而continually （频繁地，反复地）则指动作中间有间断但又持续很久：
It rained continually.
天总是/频繁地下雨。（有间断）
This plane can fly continuously for twenty hours.
这架飞机可以连续飞行20小时。（中间没有间断）
Why does he come here continually?
他为什么老是到这里来？
You mustn't watch TV for such a long time continuously.
你不能这么长时间连续地看电视。

　　练习答案 Key to written exercises
1．关键句型练习答案
A What happened: returned(1.2); bought( 1.4); went(1.4); began(1.5); rained(1.6); go (1.7); acted(1.8); was…could bear(1.9); sold…left(1.9); ended(1.10)
What had happened: had lived (1.1); had often dreamed (1.2); had planned(1.3); had no sooner returned(1.4); had never lived (1.8); had hardly had(1.9); had had (1.10); had thought (1.10)
2．难点练习答案
A 1 I had no sooner left the house than it began to rain.
2 We had no sooner hung the picture on the wall than it fell down.
B 1 continuously  2 continually  3 country
3．多项选择题答案
1 b  2c  3a  4a  5c  6b
7 d  8 d  9 b  10 a  11d  12 d

　　课堂笔记
dream of：想，梦见（梦想）
think of：想（思维的活动）
settle down：定居
no sooner...than：（关联词）一...就...
同义as soon as,the moment,on doing
had no sooner done...than一般过去时，固定用法
he had no sooner arrived than he called me up。
no sooner放在句首就要倒装
no sooner had he arrived than he called me up（倒装）
almost immediately：马上（时间上，用于写作）
for：（连词）表示因为（解释说明，附加的）＝because因为（一定要说的）
even though--从句的连词，"即使"（让步状语从句）
even though i came here，my mind was absent尽管我人来了，但我还是心不在焉
for＋并列句，做主句
so many years：这么多年
after ＋ ...
after seven years of hard work，he was successful
after ten years of staying in abroad，he decided¹⁸ to return and settle down
got a shock：吓了一跳，吃了一惊
as if＋句子：似乎，好像
过去完成时，虚拟语气
he acted as if he was poor
even though--even if
as if-- as though
in the end，it was more than he could bear他再也不能忍受
i can't affard it ＝ it was more than i can affard
hardly...when...:还没来得及...就...；用法同no sooner ... than
hardly had sb done
have time to do sth：有时间做某事
i have no time to talk with you。
i have time enough to have coffee
knock out：打晕，击倒
he had hardly opened his eyes when he was knocked out
the dream ended
except：除...外
key structures
过去完成时
no sooner...than...
hardly...when...
special difficulties:
a.no sooner...than...
hardly...when...
b.country(国家，乡间)
countryside（农村）景色 seaside
in the country：在乡下住
multiple choice
5. not any more 不再
not any longer
not any further
not more ＝ less比...少
not longer不是更长
4. as if ＝ as though
act as if/though习惯用法
as if 是宾语从句
as 后面可以加句子，like 后面加词
even if即使
11. do as id did 按我所做的做
seem as if看起来象什么
act as if
look as if看起来象什么
conduct可以做动词，表示行为，＝behave
不及物动词，如果作及物动词，加oneself
他表现的很好，he conducted himself well
he behaved as well
in a bad state 状态不太好
though 虽然，even though 即使＝even if
这些词出现在两句之间，就不再加but
worn out 破旧不堪的
engine发动机
gearbox变速箱
sawdust木头屑子
not only出现在句首要倒装
the engine was not only worn out but the gearbox was full of sawdust