外研社必修七-moudule-6-原文

外研版選修七M6英語課文Module

6

Reading

and

Vocabulary

Part

1

The

Amazing

Caves

of

Zhoukoudian

Zhoukoudian

is

a

small

village

about

50

kilometres

south-west

of

Beijing.

In

the

1920s,

archaeologists

discovered

some

prehistoric

human

bones

there

which

changed

China's

knowledge

of

its

history.

They

came

from

an

unknown

species

of

man

and

were

the

first

evidence

of

primitive

human

life

in

China

thousands

of

years

ago.

The

remains

were

...

three

teeth!

In

1929,

a

complete

skull

was

also

discovered.

Eventually,

archaeologists

found

almost

200

items,

including

six

skulls

and

more

than

150

teeth.

These

discoveries

proved

the

existence

of

a

human

species

who

lived

in

the

area

between

700,000

and

200,000

years

ago.

Four

sites

where

Beijing

Man

and

his

relations

lived

were

discovered

on

the

northern

face

of

Dragon

Bone

Hill

(Longgushan).

They

lived

in

the

limestone

caves

in

the

area.

However,

the

life

span

of

Beijing

Man

was

short.

About

70%

of

the

people

probably

died

before

the

age

of

14.

Fewer

than

5%

lived

to

the

age

of

50.

Even

so,

they

were

quite

sophisticated.

Ashes

were

found

alongside

the

fossils

which

showed

they

used

fire

for

cooking

food

and

also

for

light,

warmth

and

protection

from

wild

beasts.

This

is

the

earliest

evidence

of

the

use

of

fire

anywhere

in

the

world.

They

also

made

tools

of

bones

and

sharpened

stones.

Unfortunately,

when

Japan

invaded

China

in

1937,

excavations

at

the

Beijing

Man

Site

stopped

and

most

of

the

fossils

disappeared,

including

a

Beijing

Man

skull.

They

have

never

been

found.

After

the

People's

Republic

of

China

was

established

in

1949,

the

work

started

again

and

Zhoukoudian

became

an

important

tourist

attraction.

Zhoukoudian

was

listed

as

a

world

heritage

site

in

December

1987.

It

has

not

only

given

us

important

information

about

prehistoric

Asian

societies,

but

also

has

provided

amazing

evidence

about

the

process

of

evolution.

At

the

Suzhou

conference

in

June

2004,

one

of

the

delegates

praised

China's

work

on

heritage

sites,

"China

has

done

excellent

work

in

protecting

world

heritage,

both

tangible

and

intangible."

Tangible

cultural

heritage

includes

museums

and

monuments—things

you

can

see

and

touch.

But

what

is

intangible

cultural

heritage?

Intangible

cultural

heritage,

which

is

also

called

living

cultural

heritage,

consists

of

the

following

features:

1

Oral

Heritage

This

includes

languages,

spoken

literature,

music,

dance,

games,

customs

and

knowledge

of

traditional

craftwork.

It

also

includes

the

cultural

places

where

popular

and

traditional

cultural

activities

take

place

(for

example,

sites

for

story-telling

and

festivals,

etc.).

2

Living

Human

Treasures

Living

human

treasures

are

people

who

have

the

knowledge

and

skills

required

for

the

cultural

traditions

of

their

society.

3

Endangered

Languages

Endangered

languages

are

languages

spoken

by

only

a

few

people

and

languages

which

are

not

taught

to

new

inhabitants

of

the

region.

For

example,

there

are

nearly

60

languages

in

Australia

which

are

endangered,

or

are

disappearing.

4

Traditional

Music

of

the

World

Musical

traditions

around

the

world

form

part

of

the

intangible

heritage

of

mankind

in

the

same

way

as

monuments

and

natural

sites.

For

example,

Kunqu

opera,

was

founded

before

the

Ming

Dynasty

(1368–1644)

in

Kunshan,

near

Suzhou.

UNESCO

added

Kunqu

to

its

intangible

heritage

list

in

2001

Chinese

Cultural

Heritage

Bid

for

UNESCO

Traditional

Chinese

Medicine

(TCM)

and

the

Mid-Autumn

Festival

could

be

listed

on

the

directory

of

world

intangible

cultural

heritage

if

a

bid

to

UNESCO

is

successful.

They

could

join

the

Chinese

arts

of

Guqin

Music

and

Kunqu

Opera

as

"world

intangible

heritages".

UNESCO

has

47

items

on

the

world

heritage

list,

including

Chinese

Kunqu

Opera

and

Guqin

Music.

Every

two

years

the

directory

is

enlarged

by

giving

each

country

the

chance

to

recommend

one

candidate.

No

discrimination

is

made

against

countries

which

make

regular

bids,

so

although

the

process

is

long,

there

is

a

strong

possibility

that

TCM

and

the

Mid-Autumn

Festival

will

be

accepted.

While

the

bid

is

going

through,

the

state

government

allocates

funds

for

each

item's

protection.

The

application

for

TCM

would

highlight

the

fact

that

traditional

Chinese

medicine

is

a

culture

that

has

existed

for

thousands

of

years.

If

TCM

is

accepted

on

the

UNESCO

list,

doctors

and

practitioners

would

advocate

both

its

advantages

and

its

legal

status

abroad.

The

theories

and

experiences

of

old

TCM

practitioners

would

continue

to

be

collected,

and

treatment

would

be

extended

into

other

areas

of

medicine,

such

as

research

into

the

AIDS

virus

and

malaria.

But

some

people

feel

that

there

needs

to

be

a

compromise

between

the

term

"heritage"

which

suggests

something

old-fashioned,

and

the

fact

that

TCM

is

still

developing

as

a

medical

science.

Mid-Autumn

celebrations

reflect

Chinese

cultural

traditions.

With

more

than

50

million

Chinese

living

and

working

overseas,

the

Mid-Autumn

Festival

reminds

them

of

their

Chinese

origins

and

would

help

to

unite

Chinese

people

all

over

the

world.

Plans

for

a

seminar

of

experts

on

the

festival

have

been

announced,

which

will

recommend

symbolic

ambassadors

to

promote

the

bid.

Other

examples

of

China's

intangible

cultural

heritage

include

the

ancient

art

of

Shaolin

kung

fu,

the

world's

longest

epic

poem

of

Tibetan

King

Gesser,

and

Chen-style

Tai

Chi.

UNESCO's

agenda

for

the

world's

tangible

and

intangible

heritage

is

also

to

act

as

a

warning

system

for

sites

which

are

at

the

mercy

of

redevelopment,

pollution

or

even

the

effects

of

tourism,

and

cultural

activities

which

are

in

danger.

UNESCO

undertakes

to

take

sites

off

the

World

Heritage

list

if

their

present

state

is

threatened

by

an

absence

of

protection.

Getting

accepted

on

the

list

is

the

result

not

simply

of

a

subjective

recommendation

by

interested

groups,

but

of

cultural

diplomacy

by

governments

and

a

thorough

understanding

of

the

bureaucratic

system

of

UNESCO.

In

return,

UNESCO

recognises

the

autonomy

of

provincial,

federal

and

state

cultural

organisations,

but

offers

support

and

guidance

when

requested.

Santa

Fe's

Living

Treasures

The

Living

Treasures

Program

originated

in

Santa

Fe,

New

Mexico

in

the

USA

in

1984

and

has

now

spread

to

dozens

of

other

communities

across

the

country.

It

started

when

a

Santa

Fe

organisation

called

the

Network

for

the

Common

Good

was

established.

The

idea

was

to

celebrate

the

lives

of

members

of

the

older

generation.

"Older

people

are

easily

forgotten

or

ignored

in

a

country

like

the

USA,"

said

Robin

Rodar,

one

of

the

organisers.

"Youth

and

new

things

seem

more

important

to

a

lot

of

people."

This

isn't

the

way

with

other

cultures.

In

New

Mexico,

older

people

from

Hispanic

and

native

American

cultures

preserve

their

traditions

and

languages.

The

extended

family

is

important

and

grandparents

are

respected.

This

is

also

true

in

Asian

cultures.

In

fact,

the

Santa

Fe

organisers

got

the

idea

for

the

Living

Treasures

Program

from

a

Japanese

tradition

of

honouring

folk

artists.

Twice

a

year,

in

spring

and

autumn,

the

program

honours

three

older

New

Mexicans.

They

are

asked

to

give

a

long

interview—an

oral

history—which

is

taped

and

preserved

at

the

Santa

Fe

Public

Library.

A

photographer

spends

a

day

with

each

living

treasure

and

the

photog