2020年PETS-3考试教材第十九单元：历史

Unit 19 History

Conversations

1 Chang and Hank are in the same university.

They are talking about the western frntier in America.

Chang:Recently I have studied American history.

I am very interested in the western frontier in your country.

Could you tell me something about it,Hank?

Yes,of course.

The life to the frontiersmen in the west has always been an attraction to us American people.

My grandmother often told me stories about her grandfather who was a pioneer in the early days.

Really?Her accounts must be trustworthy.

In the 1870s,my great-great-grandfather heard that gold had been found in the west.

Like many other easterners,he felt an urge to go west And he took the wagon across the plains and deserts.

Was that a long,risky journey?Yes.It was really a bard journey.

Did he go to a villalge or a town?Oh,no,the frontier was none of these.

It was just wild uncultivated land.

What kind of houses did they live in?

If they happened to be near a forest,they built log cabins.

In such a wild place,what did they eat?

They ate whatever was available.

Those people were really fearless and self-reliant.

You are right.

That's perhaps one reason why we Americans

still look back upon the past with respect and admiration.

Thank you very much.

2 A guide is leading the visitors to visit some historic places.

Carol and Clive are among them.

Ladies and gentlemen.

If you will just pause for a moment on this terrace,

you will get a good general view of the rains,with the Forum in front of you,the Temple of Jupiter to the left,and the Baths and the Amphitheatre beyond.

Hurry up,Clive.I can't hear what the guide is saying.

Al right.Just let me stay in the shade for a minute while I change the film.

Is that your last roll?

No,I've got two more rolls after this.

Don't worry.We'll have enough slides to bore our friends for months.

The town of Pompeii was a favourite resort of rich Roman families.

Emperors often stayed here too.

As I'm sure,you know,it was destroyed in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius which occurred in the year 79 AD.

The streets and houses were buried under a thick layer of lava.Excavation of the site began in 1748 and,as you can see,it has uncovered a wonderful picture of life in ancient times.

It certainly is wonderful.

You can almost imagine the ancient Romans are still here,eating and drinking in their houses.

If you see any,let me know.

I haven't got any shots of ancient Romans singing.

As we walk down towards athe Forum,notice how the streets are designed.

There are high pavements on either side,and pedestrian crossings in the form of stepping stones.

Between the stones,you can see quite clearly the deep marks made by the Chariot wheels.

Goodness me!It is really a historic site.

3.A small white Ford shot out in front of a blue car.

The two lawyers are questioning the driver of the blue car.

Please tell the court exactly what happened.

Certainly.I was driving home along Harbour Road.

I was just going to slow down when I saw a small white Ford in a side road.

I was sure he was going to wait there until I drover past.

I had no idea he was going to shoot out in front of me.

In other words,the driver of the white Ford shot out without any warning,is that right?

This was,after all,at a time when the country was the only European power resisting Nazi Germany,even though she did enjoy massive support from her Commonwealth partners.

A plan to use the German Air Force as the prelude to the invasion of the UK had been discussed in 1939,and was at first rejected.

However,in view of the strength of the Royal Navy,the Germans did eventually decide they had to crush the RAF first.

They had won convincingly in the Polish campaign in 1939 and the Scandinavian and French campaigns in 1940,but they were now up against a well-organized air defense system,and things were going to be more difficult for them.

The British,on the other hand,over0estimated German strength and competence.

This was worrying,but not something that would lose them the battle,and they also had a new invention--radar--to help direct the fighters to intercept attacking German aircraft.

Furthermore,the British were starting to get intelligence from intercepting German communications,having cracked the Enigma code system.

The Battle officially began on 13 August,with an all-out assault on"Eagle day".

The German Air Force lost a total of 1 733 aircraft from July to October,the RAF 915.

The Germans were actually winning the battle of attrition but,frustrated by the unexpected numbers of Allied planes opposing them,switched in early September to night bombing of cities.

This was a fatal mistake.

The earlier dilution of effort was made worse as the German Air Force wandered between attacks on transport,civilian morale and the aviation industry.

The Blitz,as it was known,continued after the Battle of Britain had finished.

During the Blits,between September 1940 and May 1941,the Germans dropped more than 35 000 tons of bombs for the loss of 650 aircraft.

London was attacked 19 times with 18 800 tons of bombs.

On 17 September,two days after the German Air Force's worst day in the Battle of Britain,

Hitler cancelled his plan for the invasion of Britain.

The campaign kof city bombing continued,but Hitler by now was focusing on Russia-and on 22 June 1941,he launched the greatest land-air campaign in the history of war and its aim was the invasion of the Soviet Union.

Words and Expressions:

attempt superiority channel absolutely

尝试优越;优势海峡完全地

essential mount invasion conquer

必需的;基本的开始，着手侵略征服

coordination competent invade range

协调有能力的侵略范围

resist massive commonwealth prelude

抵抗巨大的英联邦前奏，序幕

bomb reject in view of crush

轰炸拒绝考虑到压倒;摧毁

convincingly campaign over-estimate fighter

令人信服地战役过高估计战斗机

intercept furthermore communication crack

拦截另外交流;通信破解

enigma code assault frustrated

密码密码袭击沮丧的

unexpected allied oppose switch

出其不意的同盟的反对，对抗转换

fatal dilution civilian morale

致命的削弱平民士气

aviation cancel launch

航空取消发动

Exercises Section I Listening Comprehension

Listen to the record.

Answer each question by choosing A,B,C or D from the four possible choices.

A 1.W:Where did you and your friend go on your vacation?

M:We spent two days in Spain,four days in Sweden and five days in Scotland.

2.W:I wonder what's happened to Jane.

She has been absent for almost two weeks.

M:She took a leave to see her father in Canada.

3.W:Hi,Jack.So glad to see you!

M:Likewise.I remember the last time we met was eight months agoat John's wedding party.How are you doing?

4.W:Did you see last night's film?

M:Well,I meant to see it,but one of my classmates came.

We had a long talk about our schooling.

5.W:Did you visit the Bell Tower when you had your vacation in Xi'an last year?

M:I couldn't make it last time.I plan to visit it next month.

6.W:How did you like the program last night?

M:Unfortunately,I came back too late to watch it.

7.W:How did you like the play?

M:Generally speaking,it was good.

The part of the lady was played well,but I thought the man who played the husband was too dramatic to be realistic.