大学英语听力第四册 lesson 15

（单词翻译）

　　PART A Micro-Listening
1. M: Did you go to the museum before or after lunch?
W: After. First I had lunch at McDonald's, and then I decided¹ to see the new exhibits² at the museum before it closed.
Q: What did the woman do after lunch?
2. W: Have you seen Mr Young lately?
M: No, I haven't seen him since the week before last.
Q: When did the man see Mr Young?
3. M: Why did Linda spend the whole day at the library?
W: To finish her chemistry paper before the exams begin.
Q: What do we know about Linda?
4. W: Did you miss the beginning of the concert yesterday?
M: No. The concert began as soon as I arrived at the hall.
Q : What does the man mean?
5. M: Can you come to my office early to help me with my paper?
W: I'd like to, but I can't leave until I've typed out the letters.
Q : What is the woman going to do?
6. M: It's 12 o'clock now. Shall we have something to eat?
W: Not until I finish writing the paper.
Q : What is the woman doing now?
7. W: How's John doing with his writing?
M: Oh, he's improved his writing skill since he took the English course.
Q : What do you know about John?
8. M : Could you return this CD to John when you meet him on Wednesday at the Student Union meeting?
W: No problem. In fact I'm seeing him this afternoon at the English literature class. I can give it to him then.
Q : When will John get his CD back?
9. W: Did you ask Mary to attend the lecture on solar energy?
M: Well, she won't be back from her conference³ until the lecture series⁴ is over.
Q : What do we know about Mary?
10. W: You're always doing housework on Saturdays, Bill. You must enjoy it.
M : Not really. I'd rather relax or go swimming but there always seems to be so much work to do in the house. By the time I get home during the week, I'm always worn⁵ out.
Q : What does the man usually do on Saturdays?
PART B Macro-Listening
Passage 1
English Food
Tapescript
Visitors to Britain are always complaining about English food. But they do not really know what they are talking about because they rarely⁶ get a chance to eat it. Most of the restaurants in large towns have foreign owners and serve foreign food. When visitors are invited to eat in an English home their hosts often feel they must offer them something foreign and exotic⁷.
Those of us who do know English food are aware that at its best it can be really very good. On the other hand it is true to say that it is sometimes terrible. Part of the problem is that we are not really interested in food we eat to live and not live to eat. So we don't generally spend the necessary time and effort needed to cook really good meals. We prefer food that is simple and easy to cook, or ready prepared food which only needs heating⁸ up before eating.
You can find the best English food in small restaurants in the country away from the large cities, where life is slower and people are not in such a hurry. But, of course, most visitors come to London. They come because they are interested in shopping and sightseeing. They do not come because of the food, so why should they complain about it?
Passage 2
American Fast Food Restaurants
Tapescript
Americans are often in a hurry. They rush to work, rush home, and rush through their meals. Workers and students usually have only a half hour or an hour for lunch. Many working people don't have time to cook dinners every night. As a result, a lot of Americans eat some of their meals in fast food restaurants. The service is quick, and the prices are cheap. Most fast food restaurants offer carry-out service, too. Customers can order the food 'to go' and take it home.
What do fast food restaurants serve? Of course, many of them have hot dogs, hamburgers, fried⁹ chicken, pizza, or ice cream. But other fast food restaurants specialize¹⁰ in different foods. Some places serve roast¹¹ beef. Some serve fish and seafood¹². Some even serve steak and lobster¹³. In fact, you can find popular foreign dishes in fast food restaurants, too. There are Greek¹⁴ restaurants with gyros. There are Mexican restaurants with tacos. There are Italian restaurants with Italian sausage and spaghetti¹⁵. And there are Chinese restaurants with Cantonese or Sichuan foods.
A lot of fast food restaurants are franchises¹⁷, a very popular form of business in the United¹⁸ States. There are many restaurants in a franchise¹⁶, and each franchise has a different owner. However, all of the restaurants are under one central management, and the name of the restaurants is the same everywhere in the United States -- and in foreign countries, too. This kind of central control guarantees that, for example, McDonald's hamburgers and Kentucky Fried Chicken taste the same everywhere.
In modern American life, fast food restaurants are very important. They provide quick meals for people in a hurry and inexpensive¹⁹ meals for people on a budget.