全新版大學(xué)英語第二冊UNIT

1、UNIT 4 The Virtual World Part I Pre-Reading Task Listen to the recording two or three times and then think over the following questions: 1. Is the hero a student or an employee? 2. What was he doing when the boss came in? 3. How did he act in front of his boss? 4. Can you guess what the texts in thi

2、s unit are going to be about? The following words in the recording may be new to you: surf vt. （在網(wǎng)上）漫游 log onto 進(jìn)入（計算機(jī)系統(tǒng)） unpredictable a. 不可預(yù)測的 Part II Text A Maia Szalavitz, formerly a television producer, now spends her time as a writer. In this essay she explores digital reality and its conseque

3、nces. Along the way, she compares the digital world to the real world, acknowledging the attractions of the electronic dimension. A VIRTUAL LIFE Maia Szalavitz After too long on the Net, even a phone call can be a shock. My boyfriends Liverpool accent suddenly becomes impossible to interpret after h

4、is easily understood words on screen; a secretarys clipped tone seems more rejecting than Id imagined it would be. Time itself becomes fluid hours become minutes, or seconds stretch into days. Weekends, once a highlight of my week, are now just two ordinary days. For the last three years, since I st

5、opped working as a television producer, I have done much of my work as a telecommuter. I submit articles and edit them via email and communicate with colleagues on Internet mailing lists. My boyfriend lives in England, so much of our relationship is also computer-assisted. If I desired, I could stay

6、 inside for weeks without wanting anything. I can order food, and manage my money, love and work. In fact, at times I have spent as long as three weeks alone at home, going out only to get mail and buy newspapers and groceries. I watched most of the endless snowstorm of96 on TV. But after a while, l

7、ife itself begins to feel unreal. I start to feel as though Ive become one with my machines, taking data in, spitting them back out, just another link in the Net. Others on line report the same symptoms. We start to feel an aversion to outside forms of socializing. We have become the Net critics wor

8、st nightmare. What first seemed like a luxury, crawling from bed to computer, not worrying about hair, and clothes and face, has become a form of escape, a lack of discipline. And once you start replacing real human contact with cyber-interaction, coming back out of the cave can be quite difficult.

9、I find myself shyer, more cautious, more anxious. Or, conversely, when suddenly confronted with real live humans, I get overexcited, speak too much, interrupt. I constantly worry if I am dressed appropriately, that perhaps Ive actually forgotten to put on a skirt and walked outside in the T-shirt an

10、d underwear I sleep and live in. At times, I turn on the television and just leave it to talk away in the background, something that Id never done previously. The voices of the programs are comforting, but then Im jarred by the commercials. I find myself sucked in by soap operas, or needing to keep

11、up with the latest news and the weather. Dateline, Frontline, Nightline, CNN, New York 1, every possible angle of every story over and over and over, even when they are of no possible use to me. Work moves into the background. I decide to check my email. On line, I find myself attacking everyone in

12、sight. I am bad-tempered, and easily angered. I find everyone on my mailing list insensitive, believing that theyve forgotten that there are people actually reading their wounding remarks. I dont realize that Im projecting until after Ive been embarrassed by someone who politely points out that Ive

13、attacked her for agreeing with me. When Im in this state, I fight my boyfriend as well, misinterpreting his intentions because of the lack of emotional cues given by our typed dialogue. The fight takes hours, because the system keeps crashing. I say a line, then he does, then crash! And yet we keep

14、on, doggedly. Id never realized how important daily routine is: dressing for work, sleeping normal hours. Id never thought I relied so much on co-workers for company. I began to understand why long-term unemployment can be so damaging, why life without an externally supported daily plan can lead to

15、higher rates of drug abuse, crime, suicide. To restore balance to my life, I force myself back into the real world. I call people, arrange to meet with the few remaining friends who havent fled New York City. I try to at least get to the gym, so as to set apart the weekend from the rest of my week.

16、I arrange interviews for stories, doctors appointments anything to get me out of the house and connected with others. But sometimes being face to face is too much. I see a friend and her ringing laughter is intolerable the noise of conversation in the restaurant, unbearable. I make my excuses and fl

17、ee. I re-enter my apartment and run to the computer as though it were a place of safety. I click on the modem, the once-annoying sound of the connection now as pleasant as my favorite tune. I enter my password. The real world disappears. (820 words) New Words and Expressions virtual a. 虛擬的；實質(zhì)上的 acce

18、nt n. 口音 interpret v. 理解；解釋；（作）口譯 clipped a. with a short clear pronunciation 發(fā)音快而清脆的 tone n. 語氣，口氣，腔調(diào) fluid a. not stable, likely to change 不穩(wěn)定的，可變的 n. 液體 stretch v. (cause to) become longer, wider, etc. without breaking 拉長，伸展 telecommuter n. one who works from home, communicating with the workplac

19、e using a computer terminal 遠(yuǎn)程工作者 submit vt. give (sth.) to sb. so that it may be formally considered 提交，呈遞 edit vt. revise or correct 編輯 email n. 電子郵件 vt. 給發(fā)電子郵件；用電子郵件發(fā) communicate vi. 通信，交往 Internet n. 互聯(lián)網(wǎng)，因特網(wǎng) relationship n. 關(guān)系 at times sometimes 有時 endless a. having or seeming to have no end 無休止

20、的 take in 收進(jìn)，吸收 data n. （datum 的復(fù)數(shù)形式）數(shù)據(jù)，資料 spit vt. 吐出 on line connected to or controlled by a computer (network) 聯(lián)機(jī)地，在線 symptom n. 征兆；癥狀 aversion n. a strong feeling of dislike 厭惡，反感 socialize vi. mix socially with others 社交，交際 critic n. a person who judges or criticizes 評論家；對持批評態(tài)度的人 nightmare n. a

21、 terrifying dream 噩夢 crawl vi. 爬，爬行 interaction n. 交往；相互作用 cyber-interaction n. 通過網(wǎng)絡(luò)交往 conversely ad. 相反地 appropriately ad. 適當(dāng)?shù)?，得體地 appropriate a. T-shirt n. T恤衫 underwear n. 內(nèi)衣 but then yet at the same time 但另一方面，然而 jar v. 使感到不快，刺激（神經(jīng)等） commercial n. 商業(yè)廣告 a. 商業(yè)的 suck v. draw liquid or air into the

22、mouth 吸，吮 suck in 吸引，使卷入；吸收 opera n. 歌?。ㄋ囆g(shù)） soap opera 肥皂?。ㄒ约彝栴}為題材的廣播或電視連續(xù)劇） keep up with learn about or be aware of (the news, etc.); move at the same rate as 及時了解或跟上 angle n. a particular way of considering an issue, etc. 角度，立場 in sight visible; likely to come soon 可看到的；臨近 bad-tempered a. having

23、a bad temper 脾氣壞的，易怒的 insensitive a. not able to feel, unsympathetic to other peoples feelings 感覺遲鈍的，麻木不仁的 sensitive a. 敏感的 remark n. 言辭，話語 v. 說，評說 project v. imagine that others have (the same feelings, usu. unpleasant ones) as you 以為別人也有（與自己同樣的情緒） misinterpret vt. understand wrongly 錯誤地理解，錯誤地解釋 em

24、otional a. 感情上的；動感情的 cue n. 提示，暗示 doggedly ad. persistently 頑強(qiáng)地，堅持不懈地 routine n. 例行事務(wù)，日常工作，慣例 rely vi. depend confidently, put trust in 依靠，依賴 unemployment n. 失業(yè) externally ad. 從外面，在外部 external a. 外面的，外部的 abuse n. wrong or excessive use; cruel treatment 濫用，虐待 crime n. （犯）罪 suicide n. 自殺 restore vt. b

25、ring back to a former condition 恢復(fù) arrange vt. prepare or plan 安排 flee v. run away (from) 逃走；逃離 gym n. 體育館，健身房 set apart 使分離，使分開 interview n., vt. 接見；面試 appointment n. 約會 laughter n. 笑，笑聲 intolerable a. too bad to be endured 不能忍受的，無法容忍的 apartment n. 一套公寓房間；公寓 click v. （使）發(fā)咔噠聲；用鼠標(biāo)點(diǎn)擊 n. 咔噠聲 modem n. 調(diào)

26、制解調(diào)器 annoying a. 討厭的，惱人的 annoy vt. make angry, irritate; bother 使惱怒，使煩惱 connection n. 連接 tune n. 曲子，曲調(diào) password n. 口令，密碼 Proper Names Maia Szalavitz 邁亞塞拉維茨 Liverpool 利物浦（英格蘭西部港口城市） Dateline 美國National Broadcasting Company (NBC) 的專題新聞報道節(jié)目 Frontline 美國Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) 的專題新聞報道節(jié)目 Nightl

27、ine 美國American Broadcasting Company(ABC)的專題新聞報道節(jié)目 CNN =Cable News Network （美國）有線新聞電視網(wǎng) Language sense Enhancement 1. Read aloud paragraphs 10-13 and learn them by heart. 2. Read aloud the following poem: Happily Addicted to the Web Doorbell rings, Im not listening, From my mouth, drool is glistening,

28、 Im happy although My parents are not Happily addicted to the Web. All night long, I sit clicking, Unaware time is ticking, Theres heard on my cheek, Same clothes for a week, Happily addicted to the Web. Friends come by; they shake me, Saying, Yo, man! Dont you know tonights senior prom? With a shru

29、g, I replied, No, man; I just discovered letterman-dot-com! I dont phone, dont send faxes, Dont go out, dont pay taxes, Who cares if someday They drag me away? Im happily addicted to the Web! 3. Read the following quotations. Learn them by heart if you can. You might need to look up new words in a dictionary. Man is still the most extraordinary computer of all. John F, Kennedy A computer does not substitute for judgment any more than a pencil substitutes for litera