architecture

　　5. by the middle of the 20^th century, modern architecture, which was influenced by new technology and mass production, was dealing with increasingly complex social needs. important characteristics of modern architectural works are expanses of glass and the use of reinforced concrete. advances in elevator technology, air conditioning, and electric lighting have all had important effects.

　　influence
　　affect　　

alaska

　　3. alaska is america’s largest state, but only about 325,000 people live there. according to estimates, 800,000 hectares of its land area are fit for plowing but only about 640,000 hectares are being cultivated.
　　6. the gold that changed life so suddenly for alaska was soon ended, and although many stories about mining camps have become part of american literature, the gold from alaskan earth contributed less to economic progress than the fish from alaskan waters. the fish caught in a single year range in value from $80 million to $90 million. fur-bearing animals are plentiful in the forests and streams, and valuable fur seals inhabit the waters. after fishing, the state’s chief industry is lumber and the production of wood pulp. in recent years, alaska’s single most important resource has become oil. the state also has large deposits of coal, copper, gold and other minerals.　　

　　课堂练习：

optimists really do live longer, say scientists

　　optimist：乐观者
　　pessimist：悲观者
　　1. for the philosopher arthur schopenhauer optimism was fundamentally wrong, banal and corrupting, while the father of psychoanalysis sigmund freud simply declared it to be neurotic.
　　2. experience shows that looking on the bright side of life does have advantages and recent scientific evidence points to the positive mindset as being beneficial to health. in other words, optimists live longer.
　　3. that was the conclusion reached by experts at the mayo clinic in the u.s. state of minnesota who evaluated answers given by people to a set of questions in the 1960s. of the 729 candidates, 200 had died and according to scientists, there were a disproportionate number of pessimists among them.
　　4. ten points more on the pessimism scale --- that was the difference between "slightly pessimistic" and "averagely pessimistic" ---- were enough to boost a person’s chances of dying by 19 percent, according to the study by prominent psychologist martin seligman of the university of pennsylvania.
　　5. the study does not say why pessimists die but an older survey taken among children in san franCISCO and los angeles makes it clear that personal attitude towards the world is a key factor in the longevity equation.
　　6. the latest evidence to support the theory that optimists tend to cope better with illness of all kinds has been provided by professor ralf schwarzer of berlin’s free university who questioned 600 heart and lung patients. his conclusion: optimists recover more swiftly from operations than their pessimistic counterparts, tend to be happier after treatment and return to work more swiftly.
　　7. there have been suggestions that optimists do not stay healthier but rather turn into optimists later because they enjoy good health. numerous surveys have taken into account a person’s state of health at the outset and the effect remains the same.
　　8. studies have shown that optimists do not blind themselves to reality either. they thus interpret it in a positive way. "sublimating and denying things tend to alter reality but illusions are a way of seeing reality in the best light," said californian psychology professor shelley taylor.
　　9. german science journal "bild der wissenschaft", which carries a major article on the topic in its current march issue, commented on "the right attitude" to having a tumor.
　　10. it seems psychotherapy can go some way towards extending the life span and life quality of a sick person although a complete recovery using psychological technique alone is unlikely.
　　11. doctors like, however, to point out the example of u.s. cycling professional lance armstrong, who was seriously ill with cancer, but whose unshakeable optimism helped him to take the top trophy twice at cycling’s premier tour de france.
　　12. the magazine also quoted a study by sheldon cohens of the carnegie-mellon-university in pittsburgh: 420 volunteers were deliberately infected with strains of various common cold viruses. a day later checks were carried out to see who had caught a cold.
　　13. the results showed that in the case of people who had satisfactory, long-tem relations with friends, neighbors or colleagues, the virus was less likely to trigger a cold. of people with three or fewer firm relationships 62 percent became ill compared with only 35 percent of those who had six or more close human links.
　　1. paragraph 2 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030501】
　　答案：b
　　2. paragraph 6 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030502】
　　答案：a
　　3. paragraph 7 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030503】
　　答案：c
　　4. paragraph 8 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030504】
　　答案：d

the making of a success story

　　retailer：零售商
　　wholesaler：批发商
　　1. ikea is the world’s largest furniture retailer, and the man behind it is ingvar kamprad, one of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs. born in sweden in 1926, kamprad was a natural businessman. as a child, he enjoyed selling things and made small profits from selling matches, seeds, and pencils in his community. when kamprad was 17, his father gave him some money as a reward for his good grades. naturally he used it to start up a business - ikea.
　　2. ikea’s name comes from kamprad’s initials （i.k.） and the place where he grew up （‘e’ and‘a’）. today ikea is known for its modern, minimalist furniture, but it was not a furniture company in the beginning. rather, ikea sold all kinds of miscellaneous goods. kamprad’s wares included anything that he could sell for profits at discounted prices, including watches, pens and stockings.

　　come from：源自，来自
　　in the beginning：起初
　　origin
　　3. ikea first began to sell furniture through a mail-order catalogue in 1947. the furniture was all designed and made by manufacturers near kamprad’s home. initial sales were very encouraging, so kamprad expanded the product line. furniture was such a successful aspect of the business that ikea became solely a furniture company in 1951.
　　4. in 1953 ikea opened its first showroom in almhult, sweden. ikea is known today for its spacious stores with furniture in attractive settings, but in the early 1950s, people ordered from catalogues. thus response to the first showroom was overwhelming: people loved being able to see and try the furniture before buying it. this led to increased sales and the company continued to thrive. by 1955, ikea was designing all its own furniture.
　　5. in 1956 kamprad saw a man disassembling a table to make it easier to transport. kamprad was inspired. the man had given him a great idea: flat packaging. flat packaging would mean lower shipping costs for ikea and lower prices for customers. ikea tried it and sales soared. the problem was that people had to assemble furniture themselves, but over time, even this grew into an advantage for ikea. nowadays, ikea is often seen as having connotations of self-sufficiency. this image has done wonders for the company, leading to better sales and continued expansion.

　　assemble：装配，集合
　　disassemble：解开，分解
　　6. today there are over 200 stores in 32 countries. amazingly, ingvar kamprad has managed to keep ikea a privately-held company. in 2004 he was named the world’s richest man. he currently lives in switzerland and is retied from the day-to-day operations of ikea. ikea itself, though, just keeps on growing.
　　练习：
　　1. paragraph 2 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030505】
　　答案：c
　　2. paragraph 3 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030506】
　　答案：d
　　3. paragraph 4 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030507】
　　答案：b
　　4. paragraph 5 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030508】
　　答案：e

is there a way to keep the britain’s economy growing?

　　1. in today’s knowledge economy, nations survive on the things they do best. japanese design electronics while germens export engineering techniques. the french serve the best food and americans make computers.
　　2. britain specializes in the gift of talking. the nation doesn’t manufacture much of anything. but it has lawyers, stylists and business consultants who earn their living from talk, talk and more talk. the world foundation think tank says the uk’s four iconic jobs today are not scientists, engineers, teachers and nurses. instead, they’re hairdressers, celebrities, management consultants and managers. but can all this talking keep the british economy going? the british government thinks it can.

　　special：特殊的，专门的
　　specialize in：擅长于，专攻
　　specialization：特殊化，专门 tY&6WX ErGJr@~gwC[ 本_资_料_来_源_于_贵_州_学_习_网 外语园地职称英语 Http://wwW.gzU521.coM )tY&6WX ErGJr@~gwC

　　gift：才能
　　talent：才能
　　3. although the country’s trade deficit was more than ￡ 60 billion in 2006, uk’s largest in the postwar period, officials say the country has nothing to worry about. in fact, britain does have a world-class pharmaceutical industry, and it still makes a small sum from selling arms abroad. it also trades services - accountancy, insurance, banking and advertising. the government believes britain is on the cutting edge of the knowledge economy. after all, the country of shakespeare and wordsworth has a literary tradition of which to be proud. rock‘n’ roll is an english language medium, and there are billions to be made by their cutting-edge bands. in other words, the creative economy has plenty of strength to carry the british economy.

　　strong：强壮的
　　strength：实力
　　4. however, creative industries account for only about 4 percent of uk’s exports of goods and services. the industries are finding it hard to make a profit, according to a report of the national endowment for science, technology and the arts. the report shows only 38 percent of british companies were engaged in "innovation activities", 3 percentage points below the eu average and well below germany （61 percent） and sweden （47 percent）.
　　5. in fact, it might be better to call britain a "servant" economy - there are at least 4 million people "in service". the majority of the population are employed by the rich to cook, clean, and take care of their children. many graduates are even doing menial jobs for which they do not need a degree. most employment growth has been, and will continue to be, at the low-skill end of the service sector - in shops, bars, hotels, domestic service and in nursing and care homes.
　　练习：
　　1. paragraph 2 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030509】
　　答案：f
　　2. paragraph 3 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030510】
　　答案：d
　　3. paragraph 4 ______.
　　【答疑编号11030511】
　　答案：e
　　4. paragraph 5______.
　　【答疑编号11030512】
　　答案：c