英语导读 1000 句

Contents

Section 1        Making Friends
Section 2        Around Town
Section 3        Sir, Madam, Mr., Mrs., Miss and Ms.
Section 4        Going Places
Section 5        In the Home
Section 6        Cities, Towns and Villages
Section 7        In the Garden
Section 8        Playing Games
Section 9        Types of Work
Section 10        Different Kinds of Eating
Section 11        Time
Section 12        Different Values
Section 13        Libraries
Section 14        Cinema, Theater
Section 15        Flying
Section 16        Supermarkets
Section 17        Children
Section 18        Music
Section 19        Famous Writers
Section 20        Famous Musicians
Section 21        Television
Section 22        Radio
Section 23        Newspapers
Section 24        School
Section 25        University
Section 26        Electricity
Section 27        Environment
Section 28        Acid Rain
Section 29        Global Warming
Section 30        Climate Change
Section 31        Marriage
Section 32        Death
Section 33        Birth
Section 34        Clothes
Section 35        The Body
Section 36        Illness
Section 37        Cooking
Section 38        Inventions
Section 39        Languages
Section 40        Geography
Section 41        Shopping
Section 42        Visiting the Doctor
Section 43        Hospitals
Section 44        At Sea
Section 45        Swimming etc.
Section 46        Holidays
Section 47        Books
Section 48        Magazines
Section 49        Water
Section 50        Positions
Section 51        Toilet
Section 52        Washing
Section 53        Toys
Section 54        Games etc.
Section 55        Dance
Section 56        Computers
Section 57        Directions
Section 58        Internet
Section 59        Transport
Section 60        Which Knife
Section 61        Weather
Section 62        Art
Section 63        In the Countryside
Section 64        Under the Sea
Section 65        Mountains
Section 66        Travel Guides
Section 67        Atlas, Map, Globe
Section 68        Politics
Section 69        Goodbyes

[ 本帖最后由 炫炫爸 于 2006-3-12 14:15 编辑 ].

Section 1

Making Friends

1        Hi, my name is Bill.
2        Hi, I’m Mary.
3        Nice to meet you, Mary.
4        Likewise.
5        Where are you from?
6        I’m from the USA, and you?
7        Oh, I’m from Finland.
8        Finland? Where is that?
9        It’s in northern Europe.
10        Oh, I didn’t know.
11        And where in the America are you from?
12        I’m from Texas. That’s in the south.
13        Yes, I’ve heard of it.
14        Have you really?
15        Sure, it’s quite famous..

Section 2

Around Town

1        Do you know this town well?
2        Sure, I have been here many times.
3        How many libraries are there here?
4        There are three.
5        Three, that’s a lot for a small town.
6        Well, one belongs to the town.
7        And the other two？
8        They belong to the university.
9        Can anyone use them?
10        No. Only students can use the university libraries.
11        But can anyone use the town library?
12        Of course. I have been going there for years.
13        But really you should join the library.
14        How do I do that?
15        You gave them your name and address, and they gave you a ticket.
16        Good. That sounds easy..

Section 3

Sir, Madam, Mr., Mrs., Miss and Ms.

1        In western countries, many titles are used.
2        Men are usually called Mister.
3        Women can have different titles.
4        A woman can choose her title.
5        If she is married, she can call herself Mrs. or Ms.
6        If a woman is unmarried, she can call herself Miss or Ms.
7        So when do we use Sir or Madam?
8        They are often used in formal letters.
9        Sometimes we hear people call others Sir or Madam.
10        Yes. They are formal terms and very polite.
11        So how do we know when to use them?
12        Well, if you don’t know people, you can use those terms.
13        It is considered too polite.
14        Some people would think so, but don’t worry about it.
15        Most people don’t mind if you guess..

Section 4

Going Places

1        Travel can be very exciting.
2        Many people like to travel.
3        People think travel is expensive.
4        This need not be so.
5        We can travel by many ways.
6        Walking is a form of travel.
7        It can be very interesting.
8        Walking enables us to see many things in detail.
9        We can travel by plane, bus, train or car.
10        When we travel that way, we get to places quickly.
11        However, we don’t see things so deeply.
12        A bicycle is a quicker way to travel than walking.
13        By bicycle, we can still see things in detail.
14        We can stop easier and examine what we find interesting.
15        But all types of travel are interesting..

Section 5

In the Home

1        There are many kinds of rooms in a house.
2        The bedroom is where we sleep.
3        In the kitchen we cook our meals.
4        In the dining room, we eat the food we have cooked.
5        Lounges are used for relaxing.
6        Some houses have a study.
7        The study is like an office at home.
8        The bathroom is where we wash.
9        Some bathrooms have a bath.
10        Other bathrooms have a shower.
11        Most bathrooms have a toilet.
12        Some houses have more than one bathroom.
13        Several bedrooms can make a part of a house.
14        A house can also have a garden.
15        A garden may have a small house called a shed..

Section 6

Cities, Towns and Villages

1        A city is really just a large town.
2        A town is just a large village.
3        A small village without any shops is called a hamlet.
4        A hamlet may have only a few houses.
5        A village will contain a few shops and several houses.
6        Cities have lots and lots of people.
7        Towns have fewer people.
8        Villages and hamlets have even fewer people.
9        In England, every city has a cathedral.
10        A cathedral is a large church.
11        Some European countries also have cathedrals.
12        Towns have several churches.
13        A village will often have at least one church.
14        A hamlet may or may not have a church.
15        Churches are an important part of cities, towns, villages and hamlets..

Section 7

In the Garden

1        Many houses have gardens.
2        But gardens are not just for houses.
3        Many towns and cities have public gardens.
4        House gardens can have several uses.
5        People use them to grow things.
6        If the climate is right, people like to have lawns.
7        Lawns are areas of grass.
8        The grass will be kept, cut and neat.
9        Flowers are popular in gardens too.
10        They make the garden beautiful.
11        Some people use gardens to grow food.
12        Vegetables are popular, but so is fruit.
13        Public gardens usually don’t have vegetables and fruit.
14        They have trees, bushes, lawns and flowers.
15        Gardens are to relax in a beautiful environment..

Section 8

Playing Games

1        How many games can you think of?
2        Well, that depends on what kinds of games you mean.
3        Any kind.
4        Well, there are all kinds of sports.
5        Like what?
6        Like football, swimming, tennis etc.
7        Yes. Those games are for outdoors.
8        Sometimes swimming and tennis are not.
9        You’re right, but what about indoor games?
10        Like table tennis, badminton and volleyball.
11        Yes. But those need special places.
12        What do you mean?
13        Well, you can’t play them at home.
14        Oh, you mean games like chess, drafts and cards.
15        Yeah, they are games too..

Section 9

Types of Work

1        What does your father do?
2        He is a teacher.
3        What does he teach?
4        Mathematics.
5        Does your mother work?
6        Sure, she is a doctor.
7        In the hospital?
8        Yes, and your parents?
9        My father is an engineer.
10        And your mother?
11        She was once a secretary in a factory.
12        My sister is a soldier.
13        Oh, my brother will be going into the army.
14        So, they’ll both be in the army.
15        Yes. And I have another brother who has been in the navy..

Section 10

Different Kinds of Eating


1        I like restaurants.
2        What kind of restaurants?
3        For food, of course.
4        Ah, but there are many kinds of restaurants.
5        Like what?
6        Well, there are fancy restaurants.
7        You mean expensive ones?
8        Yes. And there are cheap ones too.
9        Like fast food restaurants.
10        Well, yes. But not all cheap ones are fast food.
11        Like McDonald’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken.
12        We usually call that one KFC.
13        What about Café’s? Are they restaurants?
14        Some are, if they serve food.
15        But their menus are usually limited..

Section 11

Time

1        There are three different ways of telling the time.
2        We can say, for example, three fifteen (3:15).
3        Or we can say a quarter past three (3:15).
4        We can also say zero three fifteen hours (03:15).
5        That’s if it is 3:15 am.
6        If it is 3:15 pm, we say fifteen fifteen hours (15:15).
7        We call that the 24-hour clock.
8        If it is 3:45, we can say that.
9        Or we can say a quarter to four (3:45).
10        3:35 becomes twenty-five to four.
11        We can say five past three (3:05).
12        We can’t say six past three (3:06).
13        We must say six minutes past three (3:06).
14        If it is not 5, 10, 20, 25, 35, 40, 50 or 55, then we must add minutes.
15        But it really doesn’t matter which we use if others understand us..

Section 12

Different Values

1        Weights and measures are different in different countries.
2        We call the different systems decimal and imperial.
3        Most countries use the decimal system.
4        That’s a system that uses units of ten to count and measure.
5        The imperial system came from England and is still used in some countries.
6        England will have changed to the decimal system by the end of the decade.
7        Many imperial countries are changing to decimal.
8        America uses the imperial system for weights and measures.
9        But America uses decimal for money.
10        Americans use pounds and ounces for weight.
11        The decimal system uses grams and kilograms.
12        The imperial system uses inches, feet, yards and miles for measuring length.
13        The decimal system uses millimeters, centimeters, meters and kilometers.
14        In the imperial system, pints, quarts and gallons measure liquids and fluids.
15        The decimal system uses liters..

Section 13

Libraries

1        Most towns and cities have a library.
2        Libraries are available to everyone.
3        People think that libraries are just for books.
4        They are wrong.
5        In modern libraries, you can borrow many things.
6        Books, of course, are what people expected to find in libraries.
7        Did you know, however, that you can also borrow music?
8        Yes, many libraries will lend CDs and records.
9        Some libraries will also lend computer programs.
10        Do you know why we have libraries?
11        It is to enable those who can not afford to buy books etc. to have access to them.
12        However, they are not just used by poor people.
13        All kinds of people use them, from children to professors, poor to rich.
14        It would be almost impossible for you or me to collect so many books and CDs.
15        So libraries can be said to be very useful places..

Section 14

Cinema, Theater

1        What’s the difference between a cinema and a theater?
2        Theaters are generally for live performances.
3        Cinemas are for recorded shows.
4        What are live performances?
5        These are where there are people on the stage actually performing there and then.
6        So what sort of performances can we expect?
7        There can be acting of plays, you know, drama, comedy etc.
8        Anything else?
9        Sure, there can be musical performances by solo artists or by bands.
10        Can I see classical concert at a theater?
11        Yes, some theaters are used for that.
12        Cinemas are different then?
13        Yah, cinemas usually show movies.
14        And these are not live.
15        That’s right, they were recorded on film long before you see it in the cinema.
16        I don’t know which I prefer.
17        Perhaps they are equally as good as each other..

Section 15

Flying

1        We usually fly in aeroplane.
2        But there are different kinds of machines for flying in.
3        The general term for machines we fly in is aircraft.
4        The types most people use for travel are called passenger aircraft.
5        Similar aeroplanes are used for transporting goods.
6        These we term as transport aircraft.
7        Helicopters are used by both the military and by private citizens.
8        However, some aircraft are only used by the military.
9        The military is the army, navy and airforce.
10        Not just the airforce use aircraft.
11        Most military aircraft are used for fighting or defense.
12        Many, however, are used for transport.
13        These provide food etc. for the armed forces.
14        Some aircraft fly from ships called aircraft carriers.
15        Even space rockets can be called aircraft..

Section 16

Supermarkets

1        What happens in a supermarket?
2        Well, first, you will pick up a basket or a trolley.
3        What’s the difference between a basket and a trolley?
4        A basket is used for just a little shopping.
5        A trolley has wheels and is used when we have a lot to buy.
6        Then when we have chosen which we want, we go shopping.
7        Modern supermarkets have food from all around the world.
8        The food is arranged in sections containing similar foods and supplies.
9        You walk up and down the sections choosing what you want.
10        In big supermarkets, the choice can be very large.
11        You can buy clothes and household items in some supermarkets.
12        When you have finished, you go to the checkout.
13        Here you take all your shopping out of the basket or trolley.
14        The checkout person will then put the items across a machine.
15        The machine tells you how much to pay..

Section 17

Children

1        Children from all around the world are basically the same.
2        Their needs are similar wherever they live.
3        Of course they need food, parents and love.
4        However, as children grow older, their needs may differ according to their culture.
5        In some countries, children go to school from the age of three.
6        In other cultures, children may never go to school at all.
7        When they are babies, they all eat or drink milk.
8        When they are older, their food becomes the same as their parents.
9        This naturally is different in different parts of the world.
10        In the west, children learn to use knives and forks and spoons.
11        In the east, they use chopsticks and spoons.
12        Children will leave school and start work at different ages.
13        Their education will depend on many things including cultural background.
14        It does not matter if they are from east or west, most people think children are beautiful.
15        It is a shame it changes as they get older..

Section 18

Music

1        Some people say that music is the universal language.
2        Music bridges culture better than language does.
3        Almost everyone in the world knows about classical music.
4        Classical music is the kind written by Beethoven, Bach, Wagner, Tchaikovsky etc.
5        These composers came from different countries.
6        But their music spread around the world.
7        Today we can buy all kinds of music to listen to.
8        Popular music, also called pop music, generally appeals to teenagers.
9        Rock, jazz, blues, opera, soul and folk music are specialest kinds of music.
10        However, they can appeal to all kinds of people in all countries.
11        In the 1960s and 1970s, the Beatles from England were the most famous musicians.
12        Their music influenced young people around the world.
13        Although they no longer create music like Beethoven etc., the Beatles’ music is still loved and performed.
14        Today there is such a wide variety of music to choose from, that it seems difficult.
15        It maybe best to try all the different kinds available.
16        Then we can buy and enjoy the ones we like most..

Section 19

Famous Writers

1        Most countries produce a few famous writers.
2        Which writers can you think of from your country?
3        How many writers do you know from other countries?
4        How many are 20th century writers?
5        Perhaps we know the old writers best.
6        In China, everyone has heard of Shakespeare.
7        He was an Englishman, but he died in 1616.
8        So for 400 years, people have remembered Shakespeare.
9        What about American writers?
10        Do you know which are American and which are British?
11        Sometimes it is difficult to know.
12        But most of the famous writers before the 20th century were British.
13        Russia has produced some very famous writers too.
14        Most of the Russian writers are famed for their passion and romance in their books.
15        France also has produced some great writers.
16        And China?.

Section 20

Famous Musicians

1        How many musical instruments can you think of?
2        Can you named anyone famous for playing what you chose?
3        How many are from the 20th century?
4        Before then, most famous musicians were also composers.
5        Composers were more famous than the players.
6        Is that the case today?
7        Most of famous musicians before the 20th century played in orchestras.
8        Today, many of the most well-known musicians belong to the rock and pop world.
9        If they create their own music, are they also composers?
10        Yes, they are. But their work is different to that of Beethoven etc.
11        Is Michael Jackson as famous as Beethoven?
12        Will his work last as long?
13        Modern musicians and composers usually do not stay famous for more than a year or two.
14        Today’s fame is often short lived.
15        But the famous will earn lots and lots of money.
16        It is interesting to compare musicians like Beethoven and Michael Jackson.
17        It is difficult to say which is the best because they are so different.
18        Each one was famous because they gave the public the right thing at the right time..

Section 21

Television

1        How many hours a day do you watch television?
2        In many modern western countries, the average is 4 hours per day.
3        Many people think it is too much, do you agree?
4        What are the benefits of watching TV?
5        Its impact since it became popular is tremendous.
6        It is only since the second half of the 20th century that it became available to most people in the west.
7        In China it is less than that.
8        But now it is so popular that it can be seen every where.
9        What do most people like to watch on TV?
10        Well, it can be different according to their age.
11        Movies, of course, are popular.
12        As is the news and the weather reports.
13        Soap operas are also very popular in deed.
14        Some soaps as we call them have been running for over 40 years.
15        Name some soaps from your own country’s television networks.
16        Today, due to satellite broadcasting, we are able to get programs from all over the world.
17        In Europe, for example, people can see CCTV.
18        Did you know that?.

Section 22

Radio

1        When television became popular, people thought the radio would not survive.
2        As we all know today, that was wrong.
3        In fact, most people in the west listen to radio more than they watch TV.
4        Do you believe that?
5        Well, they listen in the morning when they are getting ready to go to work.
6        They listen when they are driving their cars.
7        Some listen when they are walking in the street.
8        Sometimes we see people with walkmans.
9        But we don’t know if they are listening to radio or to their own music.
10        For many many years, we learned about new music only from the radio.
11        Today perhaps television programs like MTV are taking over.
12        Have you heard of the BBC and VOA?
13        Then you probably know these from learning English.
14        Many students in China use the radio to help them study language.
15        Although there are television stations like CCTV9 which can help, radios are cheap to buy and easy to carry around.
16        So radio still has some advantages over television..

Section 23

Newspapers

1        Why is it called a newspaper?
2        Because it contains news of course.
3        But Modern newspapers contain much more than just news.
4        They have competitions and puzzles and advice.
5        They are one of the oldest forms of mass communication.
6        They are printed in virtually every language in the world.
7        Newspapers find their way into almost every home in the world.
8        Some print pictures in color today.
9        Some are more like magazines than newspapers.
10        Front page news is a term from newspapers, which has come into our daily language.
11        Try to think of all the kinds of newspapers there are, what about company newspapers, local newspapers, national and international financial newspapers?
12        There are too many to know them all.
13        But we can know the importance of newspapers.
14        How many uses do you know for old newspapers?.

Section 23

Newspapers

1        Why is it called a newspaper?
2        Because it contains news of course.
3        But Modern newspapers contain much more than just news.
4        They have competitions and puzzles and advice.
5        They are one of the oldest forms of mass communication.
6        They are printed in virtually every language in the world.
7        Newspapers find their way into almost every home in the world.
8        Some print pictures in color today.
9        Some are more like magazines than newspapers.
10        Front page news is a term from newspapers, which has come into our daily language.
11        Try to think of all the kinds of newspapers there are, what about company newspapers, local newspapers, national and international financial newspapers?
12        There are too many to know them all.
13        But we can know the importance of newspapers.
14        How many uses do you know for old newspapers?.

Section 24

School

1        I like school, I hate school.
2        Why do people feel like that.
3        Which are you, a lover or a hater?
4        Do you or did you enjoy school and learning?
5        So what makes a school good or bad?
6        Perhaps it is the teachers.
7        If you have good caring teachers, you will enjoy learning.
8        Or is it the classmates that make it good or bad?
9        Why do we spend so many years at school?
10        It should prepare us for our adult life.
11        Was your school successful at doing that?
12        People can have very strong ideas about what school should and shouldn’t do.
13        Whether schools are to prepare us for adult life or further education, they are important.
14        So it maybe just a matter of luck if we get to a good school or not.
15        That luck, however, can change our whole life..

Section 25

University

1        Most people do not go to university.
2        Some say it is only the lucky ones who go there.
3        Probably we all will agree that to go to university is special.
4        Have you heard of Cambridge, Oxford, Harvard, Stanford?
5        Some universities become world famous.
6        Universities often produce famous men and women.
7        They become leaders in politics, business, science and art.
8        But university is not just about learning.
9        It is here where people make life long friends.
10        Whilst university, people make decisions that affect their whole lives.
11        Universities produce medicines and science, technology and research that can benefit human kind.
12        Some universities are so big that they are like a whole town.
13        We call this a campus.
14        But not all universities are campus universities.
15        Some are spread around a city or a town and do not group everyone together in the same place.
16        Whichever they are, they all play an important part in the present and future of the world..

Section 26

Electricity

1        If we try to think of the most important inventions, electricity will surely be on the list.
2        For the last 100 years, it has played an important part in the development of the modern world.
3        It affects everyone’s life in one way or another.
4        It is probably present the moment we are born and it stays with us throughout our lives.
5        When the electricity goes off, we call it a power cut.
6        Major power cuts in cities can have disastrous results for commerce and for life.
7        Try to think of all the things, organizations etc. that truly depend on electricity.
8        In fact, it is probably more difficult to think of those not dependent on it.
9        We also call electricity power, which shows how important it is.
10        We could say that we take electricity for granted.
11        In the modern world, the making of electricity is a major concern.
12        Its production can harm our environment.
13        Because of this, scientists and engineers are researching new ways of making it.
14        Without it, our lives will change dramatically.
15        And it is unlikely to be for the better..

Section 27

Environment

1        What exactly is the environment?
2        It’s the world around us.
3        You mean the sky and trees and things like that.
4        Well, yes. But it can be even closer to home.
5        In fact, your home is an environment.
6        So it is anything that is around us, yah?
7        Yah. But most people today think of it as nature.
8        That’s what I thought at first.
9        Well, it has become very important today to think of the natural environment.
10        Is that because we are afraid of what is happening in nature?
11        Sure. It is really only in the last 50 years that we have realized what harm we are causing to the natural environment.
12        But the damage was started long before that, wasn’t it?
13        I suppose it’s started with industrial revolution about 300 years ago.
14        That’s not very long, if you think how old the world is.
15        No. But most of the environmental damage had been increasing dramatically over the past 100 years.
16        Yes. But now we are aware of it, we are doing our best to rectify it..

Section 28

Acid Rain

1        50 years ago, no one talked about acid rain.
2        Then we didn't really know the harm it was causing to the world.
3        Today almost every adult and school child is aware of acid rain and its effects.
4        It affects people all around the world.
5        Even those who are not responsible for its creation suffer from it.
6        It is caused mostly by the burning of fossil fuels.
7        Fossil fuels are coal, gas, oil and peat and create carbon when they are burned.
8        Carbon is both necessary and dangerous in our world.
9        Plants and trees need carbon dioxide, CO2, to breeze.
10        Carbon monoxide, CO, however, is poisonous to us.
11        When carbon and other elements get into the air, they mix with water in the clouds.
12        The clouds move around the world and produce rain.
13        This rain is like an acid and it destroys trees, plants, rivers and fish when it falls.
14        The more trees it destroys, the more difficult it is for nature to redress the balance.
15        The burning of fossil fuels must be controlled in order to assist in the prevention of acid rain..

Section 29

Global Warming

1        Some people say the earth is getting warmer.
2        They blame something called greenhouse gasses.
3        The greenhouse gasses destroy the higher atmosphere that keeps our planet from getting too hot.
4        CFCs are the gasses that cause one of the biggest problems in global warming.
5        CFCs destroy some of the ozone that is in the higher atmosphere.
6        The ozone layer helps us by filter out some of the harmful ultraviolet rays from the sun.
7        These rays can cause skin cancer in humans.
8        These rays can also help to heat up our planet.
9        Over the polar ice caps, we now have holes in the ozone layer.
10        These, people believe, contribute to world’s global warming.
11        One of its effects could have is to speed up the melting of the polar ice caps.
12        If these melt too quickly, the level of the sea will rise too fast for us to control it.
13        The effect of a rise in the height of the sea will be dramatic.
14        Many of the world’s major cities will be under sea water.
15        So, global warming can be very dangerous to our future environment..

Section 30

Climate Change

1        El Nino, which is not an English name, is playing an important part in our lives.
2        We often hear people talk about the strange weather we are having nowadays.
3        The changing weather patterns are not fully understood yet.
4        El Nino is one which is not clear in scientist’s minds.
5        It is a sort of warming of the seas that move around the earth.
6        Many strange weather phenomenon are blamed on El Nino.
7        But this may not be the real case.
8        Global warming, the depletion of the ozone layer, acid rain etc. can all have an effect upon the weather.
9        What are these effects that everyone is talking about?
10        Tropical storms are appearing in non-tropical areas.
11        Some parts of the world are heating up too much and crops are failing, deserts are extending, turning arable land into unfarmable land.
12        Floods are coming to areas that have never experienced than before.
13        Unnatural weather occurrences are happening everywhere.
14        We are not certain what the long term effects will be.
15        It is certain, however, that we must pay attention to these occurrences..

全都是英文,建议最好有中英文对照比较好.

引用:

Originally posted by emily妈妈 at 2005-10-24 09:55 AM:
全都是英文,建议最好有中英文对照比较好

.

Section 31

Marriage

1        Marriage is an almost universal act.
2        It is the coming together of two people to share their lives in an official way.
3        In many countries, it has a religious connection.
4        It is one of the oldest ceremonies remaining in most cultures.
5        Most countries and religions set a minimum age for marriage.
6        This will vary from country to country.
7        In the UK, for example, a couple may marry at 16 years old.
8        If a marriage is to be dissolved, we call this divorce.
9        Some religions do not permit divorce.
10        In the 20th century, some people decided to live together without getting married.
11        This can be called common-law marriage.
12        Most people do this because they want a trial marriage before the real thing.
13        It was thought that it was easier than going through divorce if the relationship didn’t work.
14        However, the law in many countries considers this, and after a few years of living together, similar laws to divorce apply.
15        So, marriage is still popular even though common-law marriage is still tried first, as people may eventually marry anyway..

Section 32

Death

1        It is surprising how different cultures treat death.
2        The ceremonies surrounding it vary from culture to culture, country to country.
3        Even the colors associated with death vary.
4        In western cultures, black or grey are linked to death.
5        In Asia, brighter colors are normal.
6        In western cultures, it is not polite to talk a lot about death.
7        In other cultures, it may not be an uncommon talking point.
8        The forms of burial vary also.
9        In the west, people maybe cremated, that is burned to ashes and then buried.
10        They may also choose to be buried as a whole body.
11        They will be buried in a special place called a cemetery.
12        In some other places, they may be burned on a funeral pyre.
13        What happens to us after we die is always a subject of variety and difference.
14        Some think that after death there is nothing.
15        Others think that there is a life after death or even reincarnation..

Section 33

Birth

1        Of course, none of us can remember our own birth.
2        If we could, I wonder what we would remember.
3        For the mothers, it is a painful but usually a delightful experience.
4        Hundreds of years ago, mothers and babies may die at the time of birth.
5        Today, however, this is far less common.
6        A mid-wife is usually present at the birth to assist the mother and the baby.
7        In some countries, the father likes to be present at the birth.
8        In the 9 months before the baby is born, the mother is said to be pregnant.
9        Pregnancy changes many things in the woman’s body, not just in her stomach.
10        In modern society, there are many different ways of delivering the baby.
11        Some mothers even have the baby under water.
12        One of first things we do when we are born is to cry.
13        This enables us to take our first breath after the umbilical cord is cut.
14        Then we quickly learn how to get food from our mothers.
15        From then all our lives are different..

Section 34

Clothes

1        “Clothes make us the man”, states an old English saying.
2        But is it true?
3        If we think carefully, we will find that it is often the case.
4        For example, when we see a man in a suit and tie, what do we think?
5        Different professions may require different clothing.
6        Why is this?
7        It maybe because our clothes tell others which professional or social group we belong to.
8        People feel more comfortable if they can identify which group we are in.
9        Usually males and females wear different types of clothing.
10        In the 20th century, however, this changed.
11        Women started to wear some of the traditional male clothing.
12        Even different cultures are starting to change their clothes.
13        Around the world, western style clothing is becoming more popular.
14        Perhaps this is not always such a good thing.
15        Variety in clothing can make our society more attractive and interesting..

Section 35

The Body

1        Throughout the world, our bodies are different colors.
2        Hair, eyes and skin may vary according to our genes.
3        Other aspects of our body, thought, are roughly the same.
4        Most of us can name all the external parts of the body.
5        We usually can name several of our internal main organs.
6        Such as heart and lungs.
7        To know all of the names of the parts of our bodies, we need to study for many years.
8        Our bodies are really very marvelous things.
9        The way that they continue to work year after year is wonderful.
10        Of course, we need to take care of our bodies with the right diet and exercise.
11        As we gain more knowledge about our bodies, so we understand better how to take care of them.
12        In the last 100 years, people are taller, stronger and live longer.
13        This is because doctors and scientists know much more about how our bodies work.
14        Their work has not stopped.
15        And we can expect that we will go on learning more.
16        Then our bodies will be even better equipped to handle our life styles.
17        Perhaps soon most people will expect to live beyond 100 years old..

Section 36

Illness

1        No one goes through life without getting ill.
2        We usually think of illness as a bad thing.
3        Sometimes, thought, it is necessary to be ill, especially when we are young.
4        That’s because we need to build up immunity against disease and sickness.
5        Most children will get measles and mumps etc. when they are quite young.
6        Then the effect of these illnesses is not usually very bad.
7        If we get them when we are older, it can be much worse for us.
8        Throughout history, we have fought against diseases and illnesses and many will have been eradicated from most countries by the end of this century.
9        But new ones seem to come along to challenge us, or perhaps these new ones were always there but we did not identify them.
10        AIDS, Acquired Immunity Deficiency Syndrome, for example, we know is a modern disease.
11        It may take decades to find a really effective cure for it.
12        However, we can be encouraged by modern science, which has found cures for most illnesses.
13        What about the common cold?
14        One of oldest illnesses is still the most illusive to cure..

Section 37

Cooking

1        Once we discovered fire, we learned how to cook.
2        Since then, the methods of cooking vary tremendously.
3        Culinary tastes have delivered boiling, baking, broiling, frying, grilling, roasting and many other ways of cooking.
4        Around the world, so many different ways of presenting food have evolved.
5        Almost every country has its own cooking characteristics.
6        In China, most hot food is quick fired, whereas in the west, grilling is preferred.
7        In Chinese homes, it is not common to see an oven.
8        In the west, everyone has an oven for baking and roasting.
9        Meat, in China, is usually cut up into small portions.
10        In the west, large pieces of meat are often served at meal times.
11        Today, some people do not eat meat.
12        They are called vegetarians.
13        Those who eat nothing associated with animals or fish are called vegans.
14        Even without meat or fish, there is still a great variety of choice of foods.
15        If we look in modern bookshops, we can see hundreds of books to teach us how to cook.
16        For many, cooking and eating is one of the greatest pleasures in life..

Section 38

Inventions

1        They say that the world’s first great invention was the wheel.
2        Perhaps we could argue that the discovery of fire was equally as important.
3        Of course we don’t know who invented those.
4        But we do know about modern inventions.
5        Alexander Graham Bell, Marconi and Faraday are all associated with inventions brought about as a result of electricity.
6        A Scotsman called Logie Baird is said to have invented the television.
7        And that has greatly changed our lives.
8        What other inventions have changed our lives in a big way?
9        Most of them probably.
10        China is famous for its early inventions of printing, the compass, gun powder etc.
11        Modern inventions will probably change our lives as much as older ones.
12        The computer has already started to modify the way that we live.
13        Communication seems to be the most dramatically effected by modern inventions.
14        The fax machine, mobile phones and Internet are bringing new changes almost daily.
15        Soon everyone will have a mobile phone that has easy access to the Internet.
16        Then we can expect to see pictures of the people we are talking to on the phone.
17        Television, telephone and computer will all be built into one small handheld machine.
18        And today these changes are happening faster than at any other time in our history..

Section 39

Languages

1        Language is one of the major forms of communication between people.
2        Speech and writing are the main components of a language.
3        By introducing grammar into language, we make it easier to communicate.
4        The structure of language is different between languages.
5        Word order, tense, noun and verb forms may vary.
6        Some languages, like French and German, give nouns a gender.
7        Others may change the verb according to gender.
8        Some, like English, do not give genders to either noun or verb.
9        The number of words used in a language varies considerably.
10        In English, there are as many as almost 2,000,000 words which can be used.
11        Only about 60,000 are used daily and in fact 10,000 words are enough to communicate well in English.
12        One of the difficulties with language is that it is rarely static.
13        That is language is always changing as cultures meet and exchange ideas.
14        New words enter our languages every year, most are technical or scientific.
15        The variety of languages in the world makes it more interesting than if we all spoke just one language..

Section 40

Geography

1        What is the capital of this country?
2        Where is such and such a country?
3        This is what we think of when we think of geography.
4        In fact, geography covers not just countries and cities, but the structure of our planet as well.
5        Mountains and rivers, plains and forests, volcanoes and clouds are all part of geography.
6        How well we know the world we live in, not just our own country, determines how knowledgeable we are about geography.
7        The structure of the land, the rock formations etc. are of equal importance to geographies as is which countries are where.
8        Our recent concern about the environment has stimulated people’s interest in it.
9        Weather patterns and their changes are all part of it.
10        With 2/3 of the world covered in water, the study of the seas, oceans and rivers is as important as the study of land masses.
11        It is interesting to look at old books and maps of the world and to see how things have changed.
12        Countries change their names and borders just as nature changes our environment.
13        The effect of political influences changes the geography of our world too.
14        Therefore, we can see that geography like language is not static.
15        So, if we want keep informed, we must constantly watch the changes..

Section 41

Shopping

1        A western supermarket is so unlike what we see in China.
2        In fact, China does not have many real supermarkets outside of the major cities.
3        To enter a huge building and buy anything from food to furniture all on one floor is quite uncommon in China.
4        When we think of shopping, we usually think of buying food and clothes.
5        Modern western supermarkets sell boats, and you can also buy furniture, newspapers, household items and electrical and electronic goods
6        On entering a supermarket, we usually take a small basket or trolley.
7        This will depend on how much we plan to purchase.
8        Wheeling a large trolley around a supermarket can be a pleasant experience.
9        As we walk along aisle after aisle, putting in the things we want, we can get most things in one single store.
10        Then we cue at the checkout and wait for the clerk to tell us how much to pay.
11        We can pay by cash, check or credit card; it doesn’t matter to the supermarket.
12        Nowadays we can even go shopping without leaving our home.
13        We can purchase our daily goods over the Internet.
14        We are shown a supermarket and on the screen we go down the aisles.
15        We pay by credit card, and the purchases are delivered to our homes the same day..

Section 42

Visiting the Doctor

1        In China, when people get ill, they usually go to the hospital.
2        In the west, people will go to their doctor.
3        Every person will be registered with a doctor, who gets to know them well.
4        The doctor will keep a medical record which is a history of your health.
5        Usually, before going to the doctor, we will telephone for an appointment.
6        Then we go to the doctor’s surgery at the appointed time, and wait until the doctor is ready.
7        We will wait in the waiting room with the other people who want to see the doctor.
8        When it is our turn to go in, we usually go in alone and in private.
9        Then the doctor will ask some questions before he or she decides what to do.
10        Usually the doctor will prescribe medicines for us to take.
11        If there is something very serious, then the doctor may decide to send us to hospital.
12        If we are too ill to go to the surgery, the doctor will visit us at our home.
13        In Europe, the doctor will be paid by the government, not by the patient.
14        However, we may have to pay for the medicine that is prescribed.
15        Doctors are very respected members of the community..

Section 43

Hospitals

1        If we are very ill or need surgery, we go to the hospital.
2        Hospitals are usually very big places, especially in developed countries.
3        The hospital will be separated into departments.
4        Each department will specialize in one kind of illness, or in one part of the body.
5        There are many different kinds of skilled people working in hospitals.
6        There are administrators, cooks, cleaners and porters as well as surgeons, doctors and nurses.
7        There maybe special hospitals just for children, old people or for maternity.
8        Hospitals are usually extremely clean and hygienic, which is very important.
9        If you visit hospital and don’t stay in overnight, you are called an outpatient.
10        Otherwise, you will stay in bed and be cared for by the nurses and doctors.
11        In the west, there are usually specific times when friends can visit.
12        In emergencies, people may be taken to hospital in an ambulance.
13        The ambulance drivers will be skilled in first aid or paramedics.
14        The ambulance may also take you back home if a car etc. is not convenient.
15        Of course, it is important that every community has access to a hospital..

Section 44

At Sea

1        Throughout history, people have left the land and taken to the sea.
2        This has been done to catch food by fishing or to visit other lands.
3        Boats and ships have been used for this purpose.
4        The first boats were made of wood, as many are still today.
5        Paddles were first used to propel the boats and then sails were used.
6        Eventually, more sails were added to give speed to the ships and boats.
7        Later, coal was used to create steam driven engines.
8        Today, most ships or boats use oil based fuels.
9        There are rules and laws at sea, called maritime law.
10        Thieves at sea are called pirates, they break the maritime laws.
11        All sailors know to respect the sea as it can be a very dangerous place.
12        Perhaps drowning is one of the most feared forms of dying.
13        The sea bed is littered with thousands of years of shipping that sunk.
14        Nowadays, some people dive for the treasures that sunken ships may hold.
15        The fated ship, Titanic, has recently been one such ship, that has reviewed its sunken treasures..

Section 45
Swimming etc.

1        The crawl, the backstroke, the breathstoke and the butterfly, what are these?
2        They are the different strokes we can use when swimming.
3        There are others, but these are the main ones.
4        These are strokes used for swimming on the water.
5        But what about under the water?
6        Snorkeling is a method of swimming on the surface while looking under the sea.
7        We use a tube which fix into our mouth for breathing, and a mask to help us see.
8        This way we can skim along the surface without bringing our head out of the water for air.
9        We use scuba equipment if we want to go deeper and stay under the water for a longer time.
10        Scuba is an acronym for Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus.
11        Usually when scuba diving, we will wear a special waterproof suit, a weighted belt, a mask, flippers and an oxygen tank.
12        In order to do this kind of diving, we should first be trained, as it can be dangerous.
13        Another form of diving is to plunge into the water from above the surface.
14        This is also an event in the Olympic Games, which involves many different styles.
15        Synchronized swimming is a form of dance performed in the water, and is also an Olympic event.
16        So we can use the water in many exciting and interesting ways..

Section 46

Holidays

1        How often do you go on holidays?
2        Do you mean to have a break from work or to travel?
3        I mean to travel out of your area.
4        Ah, well, that depends how much money I have to spend.
5        What do you mean?
6        Well, if I have a lot of money, I will go abroad, you know, to visit another country.
7        And if not, then I will just go to the local beach, or visit some local places of interest.
8        What sort of places would you visit locally on holiday?
9        Sometimes I will visit friends or relatives, or perhaps I will go to visit museums, art galleries or ancient buildings.
10        Anything else?
11        Yes. I will go to the countryside and climb some mountains. What about you?
12        Me? I always go abroad to see other countries and cultures.
13        But that can be expensive counted.
14        Not if you go to countries which are much cheaper than yours.
15        Then your money can go much further..