研究生英语综合1第八单元课后答案

生活在汽车文化中

肯恩·吉费尔

[1] 人们闭口不谈汽车带来的危险和困难，但对短途旅行自己宁愿开车而不愿骑自行车却有如下辩解：自行车太危险、太不方便。他们自以为开车出行只需为满箱的燃料付费，而把自己花大量时间工作来付购车款及买保险忽略不计。他们要么无视或否认汽车造成的空气污染，要么自以为汽车能使他们远离汽车尾气的危害。(最近研究表明，汽车内部的空气污染远比车外严重。)一位百事通式的人在网上说现在汽车尾气已经干净得不能靠吸入这样的气体来自杀了！他们要么忽视，要么把久坐开车带来的健康问题视为正常，还说骑自行车上班的人有超人的能力。他们极力否认由于人们不愿意改变行为习惯而引起的全球变暖问题的存在。事实上，即使那些承认全球变暖问题的机动车司机也只是在等别人去解决问题。

[2]人们是如何变得这么依赖动力交通的呢？如果我们相信电视或电影中的场景，那么，在拥有汽车之前，似乎每个美国家庭都有一匹马和一辆马车，或者每个人都有自己的马和马鞍。但是，这只是（影视作品）将现有汽车文化向过去时代的投射而已。(在描述美国西部的影片中，马能不进食而飞奔数日。这简直不可思议！) 事实上，过去人们每天要花费大量时间来饲养、照顾马匹。因此，大多数人择镇而居，步行就可以到达任何地方。那时，长距离的步行并不稀奇，反而被当作一种享受和乐趣。

[3] 有人坚持说我们如此依赖汽车是因为我们这个现代化的时代或者是因为我们的富足。然而，世界上其他地区并不像我们这样依赖汽车。在工资和美国一样高的欧洲，每个国家的汽车出行率都不到美国的一半。

[4] 那些想否认这个事实的人会说：“欧洲比美国小，人们都是短途旅行。”除非算上阿拉斯加，否则第一个观点不成立。第二个论断是正确的，因为大体上说，欧洲人无需狂奔50英里去上班。而不管怎样讲，在美国超过半数的出行并未超过5英里。

[5] 过去，靠交通工具出行的是富人。即便在没有机动车的朝代，国王尊贵的脚哪怕碰触地面也会被认为不合适。有人为他供膳、沐浴，并有宫女服侍左右。因此，他就成了一个肥胖、无用、不健康甚至会过早夭折的大孩子。显然，这样的目的是尽快地削弱他并尽可能地滋长他的依赖性。

[6]同样，在今天的文化中，商家们也竭力使消费者依赖性十足。健康的个体能够自己解决问题，是无利可图的。我发现我可以仅用30分钟为自己准备一餐美食，其间，我还可以干点别的事情，而整个成本不超过1美元。然而，很多人依赖于加热即食的食品或去餐馆。这些办法成本高，费时多，味道还不好。

[7] 但是，人们的交通依赖能产生更大的利润空间。亨利·福特相信，在美国，每个家庭或每个人都将拥有自己的汽车。同时，他极力反对无轨电车的使用，甚至到了不与任何利用无轨电车收发货物的公司有任何商业往来的地步。(事实上，经济大萧条前使用无轨电车运输货物是赚钱的好途径。)无轨电车到底有什么错误？它们不方便吗？它们很昂贵吗？我在拥有无轨电车的城市度过了人生最初的10年。可以这样讲，它们乘坐起来相当有趣，根本不像汽车那样成为麻烦：无轨电车没有后来取代它的公共汽车的污染和噪音。(虽然从那时起，汽车就一直在改进。) 的确，我们不得不步行到电车站，但是我们同样可以在目的地直接下车，而不用从停车场再走上一长段路。乘坐电车的费用远低于我们花的停车费。事实上，城市管理者终于意识到，人们把车留在家里会大大降低开销。然而，把汽车留在家中也减少了汽车公司的利润。因为这样一来，汽车就不烧油，也不消耗轮胎。这也就是为什么汽车公司、加油站、汽车轮胎制造商要联手破坏电车线路的真正原因。

[8]今天，当人们说汽车是必需品时，他们实际上是在说我们的社会正竭力使汽车成为必需品。由于人们愿意为节约仅仅5美分而驱车5英里，小型的便利店已在很大程度上萎缩并不断消失。实际上，即使价格并不便宜，很多人也很愿跑这额外的5英里路。以前破旧、弯曲、坡度平缓、行驶缓慢的旧街道被坡度大、车速高的高速路所代替。因为即便是这5英里的路程，人们也已经变得一年比一年更加没有耐心了。年复一年，公路看上去更像竞赛跑道。要想成为一个自行车手是需要鼓足勇气的。

[9] 人们坚持说他们喜欢驾车，可我不懂他们从中能享受到什么乐趣。一些司机开车时脏话满嘴：骂自己，也对着路人不耐烦地大喊大叫。我在听到他们之前就能认出这些人。因为他们会违反交通规则，在我离红灯还不到50英尺的时候抢行而差点致我于死地。我父母家旁边有一段三车道的路面。这一路面在进入一段两车道路段之前蜿蜒绕上了一个陡坡。这段陡坡就成了亡命之徒的赛车跑道。那些司机以超过限速10英里的时速盲目地急转弯，就为了第一个冲上山坡。这种开车习惯很容易使我想起在中学课间上完一门课要换教室时所遇到的情形：所有的孩子你推我，我推你，乱作一团。现在马路上也同样乱作一团，而捣乱的就是这同一群人。我猜想如果这帮人真的是想享受驾驶乐趣的话，完全可以慢慢来，大可不必让自己也让别人身处险境。

[10] 有人已把奢侈品当作必需品。同这些已经经过的人辩论这个问题是很困难的。改变自己的生活以适应于汽车世界的人坚持认为，离开了汽车，生活是完全不可能的。他们会问：“没有车我怎么可以往返100英里去上班？”找一个收入较低一点工作，无须每天奔波100英里，仍然可以过得很惬意。还可以享受很多的空余时间。“那我们怎么送孩子们上学呢？”孩子们自己有腿，不是吗？“要是下雨怎么到校呢？”我步行上学15年，我不曾记得有哪一次雨对我来说是个大问题。“那我们怎么搬运食品杂物或者其他东西呢？”你每天得开着一辆2吨重的车跑来跑去，只是因为你1个月要去一次杂货店买东西。不管怎样，没有汽车并不会挨饿，也不会导致物质匮乏，尽管他们愿意这样认为。事实上，

如果不开车而是步行或骑自行车，他们就会发现自己能有更多的余钱在手上，能有更多的闲暇时光，还会有身体的健健康康。

[11] 如果有人建议我丢掉自行车，我的理由会是什么呢？我说，我不愿错过清晨新鲜的空气、鸟儿的欢唱、充满活力的良好感觉、沿途的鲜花与树木，还有夜晚的星空。为什么有人喜欢把自己封闭在车里开来开去呢？要是我，我会错过很多很好的锻炼机会。因为每周骑上60英里自行车就能达到推荐的适宜运动量。当然，如果花同样的时间步行，效果也是一样的好，尽管这样的步行不能带我去上班或者是去偏远乡村享受愉快的旅行。如果我不得不买车来弥补这一出行上的缺憾的话，我就必须找一份高薪水的工作，住在我不愿意住的地方。

[12] 我得承认，并非每个人都能回心转意。即使每个专家都认为地球升温是实实在在的，即使每位医生都告诉他的病人说需要更多的锻炼，即使每条街道都禁止汽车通行，即使所有地方的车速都降到每小时25英里，即使汽油税、停车费及其他的税收项目使得养车的费用过于昂贵，美国人还是会继续热爱并擦亮他们的汽车。像自行车这样普通、实用、方便的交通工具永远也无法赢得他们的青睐。他们在内心会永远热切地渴望那高大的、尾部翘起的、耗油的鲜粉红色1959款卡迪拉克汽车。而且，他们会永远怨恨我们剥夺了他们的乐趣。

[13] 但是，人们变得成熟而且行为举止有责任心的时代早已一去不复返了。我们这些成熟和具有责任感的人必须和他们错误的想法和做法斗争到底，以改变这个世界的运行模式。

[14] 否则，我们的子孙后代将无处生存。

Key to the exercises]

1．Reading comprehension

(1) Part 1 (Para. 1) Regardless of lots of problems caused by cars people still refuse to give up driving cars.

Part 2 (Para. 2 to Para. 9) Different aspects are explored to find out why people become so depend on driving.

Part 3 (Para.10 to the end) It’s difficult for people to change opinions but we have to persuade them to act responsibly to sustain the planet.

(2) The author tries to persuade people to give up driving by analyzing what makes people so dependent on driving and emphasizing the negative effects brought about by autos.

(3) The superficial reason is that American people are richer. The underlying reason is that transportational dependency can lead to profits, so the car and car –related companies want to make people dependent on cars.

(4) If people choose to take streetcars, their profits will be reduced.

(5) Because people prefer to buy groceries in far away places; roadway looks more like race track each year; all these show we are straining to make it a necessity.

(6) Drivers are in bad manners, and they drive at a high speed.

(7) It is difficult to change people’s habits, because people are accustomed to driving cars.

(8) (open)

2. Vocabulary

(1) know-it-all (2) affluence (3) sacred (4) redefines (5) guzzle (6) exorbitant (7) crippled (8) strained

3. Paraphrase

(1) If we believe what happened on television and movies, with each family having a horse and a wagon in the past, then we’ll forget it is just today’s car culture put, with imagination, in a background of the old time.

(2) Clearly, the purpose of doing this is to make him unable to take care of himself and become dependent on others to the greatest degree.

(3) I can cook delicious meal all on my own in 30 minutes with less money while doing other work.

(4) Henry Ford firmly believed each American family or each American would have a car.

(5) That’s the reason that automobile, gasoline, and auto tire companies made secret plans to destroy the streetcar lines.

(6) Since people are willing to drive a longer way to buy cheaper goods, local businesses gradually get out of business.

(7) I can detect these motorists even though I can’t hear them because they will try to stop suddenly at a red light while breaking a couple of laws.

4. Cloze

(1) answer (2) said (3) done (4) eliminate (5) powered (6) run (7) practical (8) rid (9) industrial (10) fundamental (11) down (12) depend (13) mass (14) transit (15) congestion (16) clash (17) closes (18) find (19) breathe (20) paycheck

5. Translation

A. Translate the following paragraph into Chinese.

朦胧中显现出来的那个庞然大物，十分壮观，寂然不动而气度非凡，那就是中国的长城。它孤独地沿着山的一侧蜿蜒而上，再往下进入山谷深处，带着它与世无争的特性。每隔一定的距离就有一座森严的瞭望台，冷峻挺立，十分威严。它铁面无情。建造它，付出了千百万生命，每一块灰色的砖石上都染满了那离乡背井犹如囚徒者的斑斑血泪。它跨越崇山峻岭毅然向前。它具有大无畏的精神，漫漫征途无尽头，走了一程又一程，一直走到

亚洲最边远的地方，茕茕孑立，神秘莫测，犹如它所捍卫的大帝国一样。中国的长城就是那样的庞然大物，在朦胧中寂然不动，气度非凡，十分壮观。

B. Translate the following sentences into English.

(1) The fresh morning air, the singings of birds, the trees and flowers on the sides of the street, and the stars at night conspire to make you feel how beautiful the life is.

(2) Some Chinese brands have nudged into the international market on the back of competitive pricing. At the same time they haven’t ignored such strategies as product quality, an efficient distribution and after-sales service.

(3) Several of her friends brainwashed my sister Mary into believing that her best friend Carol has saying nasty things about her behind her back. Mary was as sorry as she could be when she found out it wasn’t true.

(4) A politician must project himself if he wants to win an election.

(5) With the quicken pace of life, people feel time presses and drive their cars faster and faster, which makes the roadway look like a race track. The automobiles running at a high speed sorely threaten the safety of pedestrians.

(6) Nowadays people become increasingly dependent on automobiles. Despite one mile round trip to work, they will resort to automobiles.

(7) Low in price and good in quality, the commodities made in China have won hearts of the consumers all over the world.

(8) Starting from scratch, Chinese automobile industry has gradually developed into what it is. But with it at the preliminary stage, it is impractical to set an exorbitant quality standard for it.

Text B:

Cars, Culture, Concrete, and Convenience

Ⅰ. Background information

1. Richard Risemberg He was born in Argentina in 1953 and raised in Los Angeles, attended Pepperdine University on a writing scholarship and published as writer and photographer in newspapers and magazines. He is now the publisher and editor of Living Room Urban Ecology webzine, co

editor of New Colonist

urban life webzine and moderator of Urban Ecology email forum. He has contributed dozens of photos to J. H. Crawford’s new book, Carfree Cities and Lives in Miracle Mile District of Los Angeles.

2. National City Lines scandal refer to the related passage in part IV.

3. David Rudlin a planner and urban designer, who joined URBED (Urban and Economic Development Group) in 1990 to head up the BURA(British Urban

Regeneration Association) best practice award winning. He is also a founder member of CUBE—Manchester’s Centre for the Understanding of the Build Environment. http://www.urbed.co.uk

4. Nick Dodd Nick is URBED’s environmental consultant with BSc (hons) environmental resource science from Salford University, and an MPhil in environmental purchasing from UMIST. He is currently working with Sustainability North West on a recycling industries park for East Manchester. http://www.urbed.co.uk

5. Baron Haussmann (180911) was a French civic planner whose name is

associated with the rebuilding of Paris. He was born in that city of a Protestant family, German in origin.

6. The San Andreas Fault is a rightlateral geological fault that runs roughly

northwest to southeast along the western coast of North America. This is a transform boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate.

7. Pasadena a city of southern California northeast of Los Angeles. It is famous for its Rose Bowl and annual Tournament of Roses parade. Population, 131,591。 帕萨迪纳美国加利福尼亚州南部洛山矶东北部的一座城市，因其玫瑰碗剧场和每年的玫瑰花车而闻名。人口131,591

8. Phoenix The capital and largest city of Arizona, in the southcentral part of

the state northwest of Tucson. Settled in 1868, it became territorial capital in 18

and state capital in 1912. The city is noted as a winter and health resort. Population, 983,403. 菲尼克斯美国亚利桑那州的首府和最大城市，位于该州的中南部地区、图森西北部，1868年建立，18年成为地区性首府，1912年成为州首府。该城以冬季和疗养胜地而闻名。人口983,403。

Ⅱ. Key to the exercises

1 F 2F 3F 4 5T 6T 7T 8 F 9F F 10T