【New words and expressions】生词和短语

★hot adj 带电的, 充电的

hot热的, hot-hot-hot : 麻辣烫

hot-wings : 辣鸡翅

hot-tempered : 火暴(脾气)的    temper n 脾气 v. (冶金)回火、锻炼, 调和, 调节

hot line : 热线

hot topic : 热门话题

hot cake : 热蛋糕

hot dog : 热狗

It sells like a hot cake/cakes 表示一个东西的畅销, 热销

hot新鲜的

best seller : 畅销的东西

hot potato棘手的问题

hot news最热点的新闻

hot snake触电的蛇

★fireman n 消防队员

hydrant  n.消防栓, 消防龙头

fire extinguisher : 灭火器   extinguisher n.熄灭者, 灭火器

extinguish＝put out : 灭火

★cause v; n 引起; 原因

cause sth : 引起麻烦

Carelessness causes accidents. 粗心导致事故

Pride causes failure骄傲使人失败    failure

cause sb to do sth : 引起某人做某事, 导致某人做某事

Illness caused him to lose his temper    (lose his temper 发火)

because : 因为 be cause

reason : 理由, cause : 原因

cause : 强调事情发生的直接原因(一个)

reason : 其他各种的理由(很多个)

★examine v 检查

examine the soil

check : 核实, 核对

★accidentally adv 意外地, 偶然地 (但更趋向于 “偶然” 的意思)

accident－》accidental－》accidentally

accident : 事故

unexpectedly : 出乎意料地(更趋向于 “意外” 的意思)

★remains n 尸体, 残骸

remains指dead body

★wire n 电线

★volt n 伏特

★power line 电力线

★solve v 解决

solve the mystery

solve the problem

★mystery n 谜

mystery(无法接受地, 解释不了的)

★snatch v 抓住

catch : 如抓鱼

hold : 握着

snatch : (突然抓起来)强调动作的突然性

seize : 抓住(用力)seize my arm

★spark n 火花, 并不一定电火花

【Text】

Lesson 53 Hot snake 触电的蛇

First listen and then answer the question. 听录音, 然后回答以下问题.

What caused the fire?

At last firemen have put out a big forest fire in California. Since then, they have been trying to find out how the fire began. Forest fires are often caused by broken glass or by cigarette ends which people carelessly throw away. Yesterday the firemen examined the ground carefully, but were not able to find any broken glass. They were also quite sure that a cigarette end did not start the fire. This morning, however, a firemen accidentally discovered the cause. He noticed the remains of a snake which was wound round the electric wires of a 16, 000-volt power line. In this way, he was able to solve the mystery. The explanation was simple but very unusual. A bird had snatched up the snake from the ground and then dropped it on to the wires. The snake then wound itself round the wires. When it did so, it sent sparks down to the ground and these immediately started a fire.

参考译文

消防队员们终于扑灭了加利福尼亚的一场森林大火. 从那时起, 他们一直试图找出起火的原因. 森林火灾时常由破碎的玻璃或人们随手扔掉的香烟头引起. 昨天, 消防队员仔细查看了地面, 但未能发现碎玻璃. 他们还十分肯定火灾也不是由烟头引起的. 然而今天上午, 一个消防队员偶然发现了起火的原因. 他发现了缠绕在16, 000伏高压线上的一条死蛇. 就这样, 他解开了起火之谜. 解释很简单, 却异乎寻常. 一只鸟把蛇从地上抓起来, 然后把它扔到了电线上. 于是蛇就缠住了几根电线. 当它这样做时, 把火花送到了地面, 这些火花立刻引起了一场大火.

【课文讲解】

put out a fire扑灭火

a fire一场(堆)火

since then 从那时起到现在为止

have been trying to

现在完成时强调的是很有可能进行下去, 但并不是强调必然要进行下去

broken glass被打碎的玻璃片

cigarette ends烟头

be able to 能够 / be not able to 没有能够

be sure that : 对...很有把握

quite sure : 相当的把握性

rather : 相当

fairly [] adv.相当, 公正地, 诚实地

quite(＝completely)－》rather－》fairly

程度一个比一个轻

quite a few颇有几个(相当多的)

start a fire＝cause a fire

accidentally(by chance) : 偶然地

unexpectedly : 出乎别人意料之外

cause : 直接原因

notice : 注意别人没注意的东西

wind one's way : 蜿蜒而行

wind [] vt 盘旋, 缠绕

16,000-volt power line : 连字符 : “-” 一旦加在两个词之间, 这个词之间就失去了加复数的资格, 能够加连字符的概念一定是做定语

in this way : 以这种方式

explanation : 解释

had done : 先发生的事

drop : 无意掉下去的

do so : 这么做

i refuse to do so我拒绝这么做

send+宾补

down to the ground : 介词短语作宾补

these 指的是 sparks

hot snake : 触电的蛇

get a shake

get a electric shock  触电

now that既然

【Special Difficulties】 难点

quite /quiet

quiet adj 安静的

quite adv 相当地, 非常地, 很

cause/reason

reason : 理由, cause : 原因(直接)

cause v

1、cause sth : 导致, 引起

2、cause sb to do sth : 导致某人做某事

reason v

reason with sb : 劝说(以道理)

beg for sth : 乞求什么东西

drop/fall

drop vt +宾语(名词或代词), 强调的是不小心掉下来

fall vi 物宾语, 强调的是掉下来的概念, 动作

【Multiple choice questions】多项选择题

6  He was able to solve the mystery. He ______.

a.could if he wanted to    b.could but he didn't want to

c.succeeded in solving it   d. didn't succeed in solving it

6、key phrase : be able to＝can, succeed in doing

11  In this way he was able to solve the mystery. ______he did it.

a.That's so  b.Like this  c.That's how  d. So

11、in this way以这种方式 = that’s how

like 在英文中不表示方式, 只表示两者的东西很象



【Summary writing】 摘要写作

1  Have firemen put out a big forest fire in California or not? Have they been trying to discover its cause?(Now that ...)

2  Was there any evidence that it was started by broken glass or by a cigarette end or not?

3  Who has just solved the mystery?(However)

4  What did he notice? Had it been dropped by a bird on to the electric wires or not?(which)

5  Where did the snake wind itself? What had it sent to the ground? Did this cause the fire or not?(In winding... and)

1 now that 既然

Now that fireman have put out a big forest fire in California ,they have been trying to discover its cause.

2 evidence n 证据

区分同位语从句与定语从句地区别 :

如果that做了主语或者宾语, 是定语从句

如果that既不作主语也不作宾语, 是同位语从句

fact , evidence 的后面往往是加同为语从句

5 (in) winding itself around the wires the snake had sent sparks to the ground and it caused the fire.

介词 “in” “on” 放在动词 “-ing” 前面的理解方式和没有 “in” “on” 的理解方式一样

多项选择参考答案:

l.(c) 2.(d) 3.(a) 4.(c) 5.(c) 6.(c) 7.(d) 8.(c) 9.(d) 10.(a) 1 l.(c-) 12.(c)