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2021年1月19日发(作者：缪晋)
大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

contents
Unit 1

TEXT A
What is a decision

TEXT B
Secrets of success at an interview

语法

AS
的用法

TEXT A
Black holes

Unit 2


Unit 3



Unit 4


Unit 5



Unit 6


Unit 7



Unit 8



TEXT B
Worlds within worlds


TEXT A

Euthanasia:for and against

TEXT B
Advantage unfair

语法


TEXT A


Slavery on our doorstep

TEXT B
Return of the chain gang


TEXT A

The new music

TEXT B
Different types of composers

语法


TEXT A


Improving industrial efficiency through robotics

TEXT B
Predicting earthquakes


TEXT A

Leisure and leadership

TEXT B
The time message

语法


TEXT A


Jet lag: prevention and cure

1
TEXT B
Controlling your concentration




大学英语自学教程（下）电子版


Unit 9



TEXT A
Aging in European countries

TEXT B
Children
’
s self-esteem

语法



The campaign for election

Unit 10



TEXT A
TEXT B
The American two-party system


Sacrificed to science

Unit 11




TEXT A
TEXT B
Let
’
s stop keeping pets

语法



Let your mind wander

Unit 12




TEXT A
TEXT B
To sleep ,perchance to dream

语法



Work , labor , and play

Unit 13




TEXT A
TEXT B
The workman
’
s compensation

语法



The teacher
’
s last shocking lesson

Unit 14




TEXT A
TEXT B
The seeds of wrath

语法



The computer and the poet

Unit 15






TEXT A
TEXT B
Changes to come in U.S .education

语法




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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版


大学英语自学教程（下）

01-A. What Is a Decision?
A decision is a choice made from among alternative courses of action that are available.
The purpose of making a decision is to establish and achieve organizational goals and objectives.
The
reason
for
making
a
decision
is
that
a
problem
exists,
goals
or
objectives
are
wrong,
or
something is standing in the way of accomplishing them.
Thus
the
decision- making
process
is
fundamental
to
management.
Almost
everything
a
manager does involves decisions, indeed, some suggest that the management process is decision
making. Although managers cannot predict the future, many of their decisions require that they
consider possible future events. Often managers must make a best guess at what the future will
be
and
try
to
leave
as
little
as
possible
to
chance,
hut
since
uncertainty
is
always
there,
risk
accompanies decisions. Sometimes the consequences of a poor decision are slight; at other times
they are serious.
Choice is the opportunity to select among alternatives. If there is no choice, there is no
decision
to be
made.
Decision
making
is
the
process of
choosing,
and
many
decisions
have a
broad
range
of
choice.
For
example,
a
student
may
be
able
to
choose
among
a
number
of
different courses in order to implement the decision to obtain a college degree. For managers,
every
decision
has
constraints
based
on
policies,
procedures,
laws,
precedents,
and
the
like.
These constraints exist at all levels of the organization.
Alternatives are the possible courses of action from which choices can be made. If there
are
no
alternatives,
there
is
no
choice
and,
therefore,
no
decision.
If
no
alternatives
are
seen,
often it means that a thorough job of examining the problems has not been done. For example,
managers
sometimes
treat
problems
in
an
either/or
fashion;
this
is
their
way
of
simplifying
complex problems. But the tendency to simplify blinds them to other alternatives.
At
the
managerial
level,
decision
making
includes
limiting
alternatives
as
well
as
identifying them, and the range is from highly limited to practically unlimited.
Decision makers must have some way of determining which of several alternatives is best
--
that
is,
which
contributes
the
most
to
the
achievement
of
organizational
goals.
An
太好

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

organizational
goal
is
an
end
or
a
state
of
affairs
the
organization
seeks
to
reach.
Because
individuals (and organizations) frequently have different ideas about how to attain the goals, the
best choice may depend on who makes the decision. Frequently, departments or units within an
organization make decisions that are good for them individually but that are less than optimal for
the larger organization. Called suboptimization, this is a trade-off that increases the advantages
to one unit or function but decreases the advantages to another unit or function. For example, the
marketing
manager
may
argue
effectively
for
an
increased
advertising
budget.
In
the
larger
scheme
of
things,
however,
increased
funding
for
research
to
improve
the
products
might
be
more beneficial to the organization.
These trade-offs occur because there are many objectives that organizations wish to attain
simultaneously.
Some
of
these
objectives
are
more
important
than
others,
but
the
order
and
degree
of
importance
often
vary
from
person
to
person
and
from
department
to
department.
Different managers define the same problem in different terms. When presented with a common
case, sales managers tend to see sales problems, production managers see production problems,
and so on.
The ordering and importance of multiple objectives is also based, in part, on the values of
the decision maker. Such values are personal; they are hard to understand, even by the individual,
because they are so dynamic and complex. In many business situations different people's values
about
acceptable
degrees
of
risk
and
profitability
cause
disagreement
about
the
correctness
of
decisions.
People often assume that a decision is an isolated phenomenon. But from a systems point
of
view,
problems
have
multiple
causes,
and
decisions
have
intended
and
unintended
consequences.
An
organization
is
an
ongoing
entity,
and
a
decision
made
today
may
have
consequences far into the future. Thus the skilled manager looks toward the future consequences
of current decisions.

-B. Secrets of Success at an Interview

The subject of today's talk is interviews.

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

The key words here are preparation and confidence, which will carry you far.
Do your homework first.
Find out all you can about the job you are applying for and the organization you hope to
work for.
Many of the employers I interviewed made the same criticism of candidates.
no idea what the day to day work of the job brings about. They have vague notions of
the company's prospects’ or of 'serving the com
munity', but have never taken the trouble to find
out the actual tasks they will be required to do.”

Do not let this be said of you. It shows an unattractive indifference to your employer and
to your job.
Take
the
time
to
put
yourself
into
the
interviewer's
place.
He
wants
somebody
who
is
hard-working with a pleasant personality and a real interest in the job.
Anything that you find out about the prospective employer can be used to your advantage
during the interview to show that you have bothered to master some facts about the people who
you hope to work for.
Write down (and remember) the questions you want to ask the interviewer(s) so that you
are not speechless when they invite your questions. Make sure that holidays and pay are not the
first things you ask about. If all your questions have been answered during the interview, reply:


Do
not
be
afraid
to
ask
for
clarification
of
something
that
has
been
said
during
the
interview if you want to be sure what was implied, but do be polite.
Just
before
you
go
to
the
interview,
look
again
at
the
original
advertisement
that
you
answered,
any
correspondence
from
your
prospective
employer,
photocopies
of
your
letter
of
application or application form and your resume.
Then you will remember what you said and what they want. This is very important if you
have
applied
for
many
jobs
in
a
short
time
as
it
is
easy
to
become
confused
and
give
an
impression of inefficiency.
Make
sure
you
know
where
and
when
you
have
to
report
for
the
interview.
Go
to
the
building (but not inside the office) a day or two before, if necessary, to find out how long the
journey takes and where exactly the place is.

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

Aim to arrive five or ten minutes early for the actual interview, then you will have a little
time in hand and you will not panic if you are delayed. You start at a disadvantage if you arrive
worried and ten minutes late.
Dress in clean, neat, conservative clothes. Now is NOT the time to experiment with the
punk look or (girls) to wear low-cut dresses with miniskirts. Make sure that your shoes, hands
and hair (and teeth) are clean and neat.
Have the letter inviting you for an interview ready to show in case there is any difficulty
in communication.
You
may
find
yourself
facing
one
interviewer
or
a
panel.
The
latter
is
far
more
intimidating, but do not let it worry you too much. The interviewer will probably have a table in
front of him/her. Do not put your things or arms on it.
If
you
have
a
bag
or
a
case,
put
it
on
the
floor
beside
your
chair.
Do
not
clutch
it
nervously or, worse still, drop it, spilling everything.
Shake hands if the interviewer offers his hand first. There is little likelihood that a panel
of five wants to go though the process of all shaking hands with you in turn. So you do not be
upset if no one offers.
Shake
hands
firmly
--
a
weak
hand
suggests a
weak
personality,
and
a
crushing grip
is
obviously
painful.
Do
not
drop
the
hand
as
soon
as
yours
has
touched
it
as
this
will
seem
to
show you do not like the other person.
Speak
politely
and
naturally
even
if
you
are
feeling
shy.
Think
before
you
answer
any
questions.
If
you
cannot
understand,
ask:

you
mind
rephrasing
the
question, please?
The
question will then be repeated in different words.
If you are not definitely accepted or turned down on the spot, ask:
hear the results of this interview?
If you do receive a letter offering you the job, you must reply by letter (keep a photocopy)
as soon as possible.
Good luck!


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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

02-A. Black Holes

What is a black hole? Well, it's difficult to answer this question, since the terms we would
normally
use
to
describe
a
scientific
phenomenon
are
inadequate
here.
Astronomers
and
scientists think that a black hole is a region of space (not a thing ) into which matter has fallen
and from which nothing can escape ?not even light. So we can't see a black hole. A black hole
exerts a strong gravitational pull and yet it has no matter. It is only space -- or so we think. How
can this happen?
The theory is that some stars explode when their density increases to a particular point;
they
collapse
and
sometimes
a
supernova
occurs.
From
earth,
a
supernova
looks
like
a
very
bright
light
in
the
sky
which
shines
even
in
the
daytime.
Supernovae
were
reported
by
astronomers
in
the
seventeenth
and
eighteenth
centuries.
Some
people
think
that
the
Star
of
Bethlehem could have been a supernova. The collapse of a star may produce a White Dwarf or a
neutron star -- a star, whose matter is so dense that it continually shrinks by the force of its own
gravity. But if the star is very large (much bigger than our sun) this process of shrinking may be
so intense that a black hole results. Imagine the earth reduced to the size of a marble, but still
having the same mass and a stronger gravitational pull, and you have some idea of the force of a
black hole. Any
matter near the black hole is sucked in. It
is impossible to say what happens
inside a black hole. Scientists have called the boundary area around the hole the
We
know
nothing
about
events
which
happen
once
objects
pass
this
boundary.
But
in
theory,
matter must behave very differently inside the hole.
For example, if a man fell into a black hole, he would think that he reached the center of it
very quickly. However an observer at the event horizon would think that the man never reached
the center at all. Our space and time laws don't seem to apply to objects in the area of a black
hole.
Einstein's
relativity
theory
is
the
only
one
which
can
explain
such
phenomena.
Einstein
claimed that matter and energy are interchangeable, so that there is no
There are no constants at all, and measurements of time and space depend on the position of the
observer.
They
are
relative.
We
do
not
yet
fully
understand
the
implications
of
the
relativity
theory;
but
it
is
interesting
that
Einstein's
theory
provided
a
basis
for
the
idea
of
black
holes

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

before
astronomers
started
to
find
some
evidence
for
their
existence.
It
is
only
recently
that
astronomers
have
begun
specific
research
into
black
holes.
In
August
1977,
a
satellite
was
launched to gather data about the 10 million black holes which are thought to be in the Milky
Way. And astronomers are planning a new observatory to study the individual exploding stars
believed to be black holes,
The
most
convincing
evidence
of
black
holes
comes
frown
research
into
binary
star
systems. Binary stars, as their name suggests, are twin stars whose position in space affects each
other. In some binary systems, astronomers have shown that there is an invisible companion star,
a
the one which we can see is
being
pulled
towards
the
companion
star.
Could
this
invisible
star,
which
exerts
such
a
great
force, be a black hole? Astronomers have evidence of a few other stars too, which might have
black holes as companions.
The
story
of
black
holes
is just
beginning.
Speculations
about
them.
are
endless.
There
might be a massive black hole at the center of our galaxy swallowing up stars at a very rapid rate.
Mankind
may
one
day
meet
this
fate.
On
the
other
hand,
scientists
have
suggested
that
very
advanced technology could one day make use of the energy of black holes for mankind. These
speculations
sound
like
science
fiction.
But
the
theory
of
black
holes
in
space
is
accepted
by
many
serious
scientists
and
astronomers.
They
show
us
a
world
which
operates
in
a
totally
different way from our own and they question our most basic experience of space and time.

02-B. Worlds within Worlds

First of all let us consider the earth (that is to say, the world) as a planet revolving round
the sun. The earth is one of nine planets which move in orbit round the sun. These nine planets,
together
with
the
sun,
make
up
what
is
called
our
solar
system.
How
this
wonderful
system
started
and
what
kept
it
working
with
such
wonderful
accuracy
is
largely
a
mystery
but
astronomers
tell
us
that
it
is
only
one
of
millions
of
similar
systems
in
space,
and
one
of
the
smallest.
The
stars
which
we
see
glittering
in
the
sky
on
a
dark
and
cloudless
night
are
almost

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

certainly the suns of other solar systems more or less like our own, but they are so far away in
space that it is unlikely that we shall ever get to know very much about them. About our own
solar system, however, we are learning more every day.
Before the American and Russian astronauts made their thrilling journeys into outer space
it was difficult for us to realise what our earth looked like from hundreds of thousands of miles
away,
but
the
photographs
which
the
astronauts
were
able
to
take
show
us
the
earth
in
space
looking not very different from what the moon looks like when we look at it from the earth. The
earth is, however, very different from the moon, which the American astronauts have found to be
without life or vegetation, whereas our earth is very much alive in every respect. The moon, by
the way, is called a satellite because it goes round our earth as well as round the sun. In other
words, it goes round the sun with our earth.
The surface of our earth is covered by masses of land and larger areas of water. Let us
consider the water areas first. The total water area is about three times as large as the land area.
The very large separate areas of water are called

the lesser areas are called

In most of the oceans and seas some of the water is found to be flowing in a particular
direction -- that is to say, from one part towards another part of the ocean or sea concerned. The
water
which
is
flowing
in
this
manner
is
said
to
be
moving
as
a

There
are
many
thousands of currents in the waters of the oceans and seas, but only certain of the stronger and
better
marked
currents
are
specially
named
and
of
great
importance.
These
currents
are
important
because
they
affect
the
climate
of
the
land
areas
close
to
where
they
flow
and
also
because they carry large quantities of microscopic animal and vegetable life which forms a large
part of the food for fishes.
The nature and characteristics of the surface of the land areas of the earth vary a great deal
from area to area and from
place to place. The surface of some areas consists largely of high
mountains and deep valleys whilst, in other areas, most of the surface consists of plains. If one
made a journey over the Continents one would find every kind of surface including mountain
ranges,
plains, plateaux, deserts,
tropical
forestlands
and
empty
areas
covered
permanently
by
ice and snow.
When thinking and learning about the world we should not forget that our world is the
home of a very great many different people -- peoples with different coloured skins, living very

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

different
lives
and
having
very
different
ideas
about
a
great
many
important
things
such
as
religion, government, education and social behaviour.
The circumstances under which different people live make a great difference between the
way in which they live and the way in which we live, and it ought to be our business to try to
understand those different circumstances so that we can better understand people of other lands.
Above
all,
we
should
avoid
deciding
what
we
think
about
people
different
from
ourselves
without first having learned a great deal about them and the kind of lives they have to live. It is
true to say that the more we learn about other people, the better we understand their ideas and, as
a rule, the better we like those people themselves.


03-A. Euthanasia: For and Against


We
mustn't
delay
any
longer ...
swallowing
is
difficult ...
and
breathing,
that's
also
difficult. Those muscles
are weakening too ... we mustn't delay any longer.”

These were the words of Dutchman Cees van Wendel de Joode asking his doctor to help
him die. Affected with a serious disease, van Wendel was no longer able to speak clearly and he
knew there was no hope of recovery and that his condition was rapidly deteriorating.
Van Wendel's last three months of life before being given a final, lethal injection by his
doctor were filmed and first shown on television last year in the Netherlands. The programme
has since been bought by 20 countries and each time it is shown, it starts a nationwide debate on
the subject.
The Netherlands is the only country in Europe which permits euthanasia, although it is
not
technically
legal
there.
However,
doctors
who
carry
out
euthanasia
under
strict
guidelines
introduced
by
the
Dutch
Parliament
two
years
ago
are
usually
not
prosecuted.
The
guidelines
demand that the patient is experiencing extreme suffering, that there is no chance of a cure, and
that the patient has made repeated requests for euthanasia. In addition to this, a second doctor
must
confirm
that
these
criteria
have
been
met
and
the
death
must
be
reported
to
the
police
department.

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

Should doctors be allowed to take the lives of others? Dr. Wilfred van Oijen, Cees van
Wendel's doctor, explains how he looks at the question:

case,
killing
is
the
worst
thing
I
can
imagine.
But
that's
entirely
different
from
my
work
as
a
doctor. I care for people and I try to ensure that they don't suffer too much. That's a very different
thing.”

Many people, though, are totally against the practice of euthanasia. Dr. Andrew Ferguson,
Chairman of the organisation Healthcare Opposed to Euthanasia, says that
of euthanasia cases, what the patient is actually asking for is something else. They may want a
health professional to open up communication for them with their loved ones or family -- there's
nearly always another question behind the qu
estion.”

Britain also has a strong tradition of hospices -- special hospitals which care only for the
dying and their special needs. Cicely Saunders, President of the National Hospice Council and a
founder member of the hospice movement, argues that euthanasia doesn't take into account that
there
are
ways
of
caring
for
the
dying.
She
is
also
concerned
that
allowing
euthanasia
would
undermine
the
need
for
care
and
consideration
of
a
wide
range
of
people:

very
easy
in
society
now
for
the
elderly,
the
disabled
and
the
dependent
to
feel
that
they
are
burdens,
and
therefore that they ought to opt out. I think that anything that legally allows the shortening of life
does make those people more vulnerable.”

Many find this prohibition of an individual's right to die paternalistic. Although they agree
that
life
is
important
and
should
be
respected,
they
feel
that
the
quality
of
life
should
not
be
ignored. Dr. van Oijen believes that people have the fundamental right to choose for themselves
if
they
want
to
die:

those
people
who
oppose
euthanasia
are
telling
me
is
that
dying
people haven't the right. And that when people are very ill, we are all afraid of their death. But
there are situations where death is a friend. And in those cases, why not?

But
van Wendel's death was both moving and sensitive. His doctor was clearly a family friend; his
wife
had
only
her
husband's
interests
at
heart.
Some,
however,
would
argue
that
it
would
be
dangerous
to
use
this
particular
example
to
support
the
case
for
euthanasia.
Not
all
patients
would receive such a high level of individual care and attention.

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版


03-B. Advantage Unfair

According
to
the
writer
Walter
Ellis,
author of
a
book
called
the Oxbridge Conspiracy,
Britain is still dominated by the old-boy network: it isn't what you know that matters, but who
you
know.
He
claims
that
at
Oxford
and
Cambridge
Universities
(Oxbridge
for
short)
a
few
select people start on an escalator ride which, over the years, carries them to the tops of British
privilege and power. His research revealed that the top professions all continue to be dominated,
if not 90 per cent, then 60 or 65 per cent, by Oxbridge graduates.
And yet, says Ellis, Oxbridge graduates make up only two per cent of the total number of
students
who
graduate
from
Britain's
universities.
Other
researches
also
seem
to
support
his
belief that Oxbridge graduates start with an unfair advantage in the employment market. In the
law, a recently published report showed that out of 26 senior judges appointed to the High Court
last year, all of them went to private schools and 21 of them went to Oxbridge.
But can this be said to amount to a conspiracy? Not according to Dr. John Rae, a former
headmaster of one of Britain's leading private schools, Westminster:

now
gone.
Some
time
ago
--
in
the
60s
and
before
?entry
to
Oxford
and
Cambridge
was
not
entirely on merit. Now, there's absolutely no question in any objective observer's mind that, entry
to Oxford and Cambridge is fiercely competitive.
However,
many
would
disagree
with
this.
For,
although
over
three-quarters
of
British
pupils
are
educated
in
state
schools,
over
half
the
students
that
go
to
Oxbridge
have
been
to
private,
or

schools.
Is
this
because
pupils
from
Britain's
private
schools
are
more
intelligent than those from state schools, or are they simply better prepared?
On average, about $$ 5,000 a year is spent on each private school pupil, more than twice
the amount spent on state school pupils. So how can the state schools be expected to compete
with the private schools when they have far fewer resources? And how can they prepare their
pupils for the special entrance exam to Oxford University, which requires extra preparation, and
for which many public school pupils traditionally stay at school and do an additional term?

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Until
recently,
many
blamed
Oxford
for
this
bias
because
of
the
university's
special
entrance
exam
(Cambridge
abolished
its
entrance
exam
in
1986).
But
last
February,
Oxford
University decided to abolish the exam to encourage more state school applicants. From autumn
1996, Oxford University applicants, like applicants to other universities, will be judged only on
their A level results and on their performance at interviews, although some departments might
still set special tests.
However, some argue that there's nothing wrong in having elite places of learning, and
that by their very nature, these places should not be easily accessible. Most countries are run by
an elite and have centres of academic excellence from which the elite are recruited. Walter Ellis
accepts that this is true:

provide this elite through a much broader base. In America you've got the Ivy League, centred
on
Harvard
and
Yale,
with
Princeton
and
Stanford
and
others.
But
again,
those
universities
together -- the elite universities -- are about ten or fifteen in number, and are being pushed along
from behind by other great universities like, for example, Chicago and Berkeley. So you don't
have just this narrow concentration of two universities providing a constantly replicating elit
e.”

When it comes to Oxford and Cambridge being elitist because of the number of private
school pupils they accept, Professor Stone of Oxford University argues that there is a simple fact
he and his associates cannot ignore:

place for remedial education. It's not what Oxford is there to do.”

However, since academic excellence does appear to be related to the amount of
money
spent per pupil, this does seem to imply that Prime Minister John Major's vision of Britain as a
classless society is still a long way off. And it may be worth remembering that while John Major
didn't himself go to Oxbridge, most of his ministers did.

04-A. Slavery on Our Doorstep
There are estimated to be more than 20,000 overseas domestic servants working in Britain

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(the exact figure is not known because the Home Office, the Government department that deals
with this, does not keep statistics). Usually, they have been brought over by foreign businessmen,
diplomats
or
Britons
returning
from
abroad.
Of
these
20,000,
just
under
2,000
are
being
exploited
and
abused
by
their
employers,
according
to
a
London-based
campaigning
group
which helps overseas servants working in Britain.
The abuse can take several forms. Often the domestics are not allowed to go out, and they
do not receive any payment. They can be physically, sexually and psychologically abused. And
they can have their passports removed, making leaving or
The
sad
condition
of
women
working
as
domestics
around
the
world
received
much
media
attention
earlier
this
year
in
several
highly
publicised
cases.
In
one
of
them,
a
Filipino
maid was executed in Singapore after being convicted of murder, despite protests from various
quarters
that
her
guilt
had
not
been
adequately
established.
Groups
like
Anti-Slavery
International say other, less
dramatic, cases are equally
deserving of attention, such as that of
Lydia Garcia, a Filipino maid working in London:

I was supposed to be paid $$ 120 but I never received that amount. They always threatened that
they would send me back to my country.”

Then there is the case of Kumari from Sri Lanka. The main breadwinner in her family, she
used to work for a very low wage at a tea factory in Sri Lanka. Because she found it difficult to
feed her four children, she accepted a job working as a domestic in London. She says she felt
like a prisoner at the London house where she worked:

on a shelf with a spad0 of only three feet above me. I wasn't allowed to talk to anybody. I wasn't
even allowed to open the window. My employers always threatened to report me to the Home
Office or the police.”

At
the
end
of
1994
the
British
Government
introduced
new
measures
to
help
protect
domestic workers from abuse by their employers. This included increasing the minimum age of
employees to 18, getting employees to read and, understand an advice leaflet, getting employers
to agree to provide adequate maintenance and conditions, and to put in writing the main terms
and conditions of the job (of which the employees should see a copy).

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However, many people doubt whether this will successfully reduce the incidence of abuse.
For
the
main
problem
facing
overseas
maids
and
domestics
who
try
to
complain
about
cruel
living
and
working
conditions
is
that
they
do
not
have
independent
immigrant
status
and
so
cannot change employer. (They are allowed in the United Kingdom under a special concession
in the immigration rules which allows foreigners to bring domestic staff with them.) So if they
do complain, they risk being deported.
Allowing
domestic
workers
the
freedom
to
seek
the
same
type
of
work
but
with
a
different
employer,
if
they
so
choose,
is
what
groups
like
Anti- Slavery
International
are
campaigning
the
Government
for.
It
is,
they
say,
the
right
to
change
employers
which
distinguishes employment from slavery.
04-B. Return of The Chain Gang
Eyewitnesses say it was a scene straight out of a black and white movie from the 1950s.
As the sun rose over the fields of Huntsville, Alabama, in the American South, the convicts got
down
from
the
trucks
that
had
brought
them
there.
Watched
over
by
guards
with
guns,
they
raised
their
legs
in
unison
and
made
their
way
to
the
edge
of
the
highway,
Interstate
65.
The
BBC's Washington correspondent Clare Bolderson was there and she sent this report:

five, were shackled together in leg irons joined by an eight-foot chain. The prisoners will work
for up to 90 days on the gang: they'll clear ditches of weeds and mend fences along Alabama's
main roads. While they are working on the gang, they
抣
l also live in some of the harshest prison
conditions in the United States. There'll be no televisions or phone calls; many other day-to-day
privileges will be denied.”

The authorities in Alabama say there is a lot of support for the re-introduction of chain
gangs in the State after a gap of 30 years (the last gangs were abolished in Georgia in the early
1960s).
Many
people
believe
it
is
an
effective
way
to
get
criminals
to
pay
back
their
debt
to
society.
The prisoners stay shackled when they use toilets. They reacted sharply to the treatment
they are given:

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Prisoner one:
now.
Prisoner two:

Prisoner three:
Six out of every ten prisoners in chains are black, which is why the chain gangs call up
images of slavery in centuries gone by, when black people were brought from Africa in leg irons
and made to work in plantations owned by white men. Not surprisingly, although three-quarters
of the white population of Alabama supports chain gangs, only a small number of black people
do. Don Claxton, spokesman for the State Government of Alabama, insists that the system is not
racist:

that's going to help save the people of Alabama tax money because they don't have to pay as
many officers to work on the highways. And it's going to help clean up our highways and it's
going to help c
lean up the State.”

However,
the
re- introduction
of
these
measures
has
caused
a
great
deal
of
strong
disagreement.
Human
rights
organizations
say
that
putting
prisoners
in
chains
is
not
only
inhumane but also ineffective. Alvin Bronstein, member of the Civil Liberties Union, says that
study
after
study
has
shown
that
you
cannot
prevent
people
from
committing
crimes
by
punishment or the threat of punishment:
hostile,
so
that
when
they
get
out
of
prison,
they
will
increase
the
level
of
their
criminal
behaviour.”

Civil liberties groups say that chaining people together doesn't solve the causes of crime,
such
as
poverty
or
disaffection
within
society.
What
it
does
is
punish
prisoners
for
the
ills
of
society. They say the practice takes the United States back to the Middle Ages, and that it is a
shame
to
American
society.
But
that
抯

not
an
argument
likely
to
win
favour
among
many
people in the Deep South of the United States. Alabama's experiment is to be widened to include
more
prisoners,
and
other
States,
such as Arkansas
and
Arizona,
will
very
probably
introduce
their own chain gang schemes.

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05-A. The New Music
The
new
music
was
built
out
of
materials
already
in
existence:
blues,
rock'n'roll,
folk
music. But although the forms remained, something completely new and original was made out
of these older elements -- more original, perhaps, than even the new musicians themselves yet
realize.
The
transformation
took
place
in
1966--1967.
Up
to
that
time,
the
blues
had
been
an
essentially black medium. Rock'n'roll, a blues derivative, was rhythmic dance music. Folk music,
old and modern, was popular among college students. The three forms remained musically and
culturally
distinct,
and even
as
late
as
1965,
none of
them
were
expressing
any
radically
new
states of consciousness. Blues expressed black soul; rock was the beat of youthful energy; and
folk music expressed anti-war sentiments as well as love and hope.
In 1966 -- 1967 there was spontaneous transformation. In the United States, it originated
with youthful rock groups playing in San Francisco. In England, it was led by the Beatles, who
were already established as an extremely fine and highly individual rock group. What happened,
as well as it can be put into words, was this. First, the separate musical traditions were brought
together.
Bob Dylan
and
the
Jefferson
Airplane
played
folk
rock,
folk
ideas
with a
rock beat.
White rock groups began experimenting with the blues. Of course, white musicians had always
played the blues, but essentially as
imitators of the Negro style; now it began to be the white
bands’
own
music.
And
all of
the groups
moved
towards
a
broader
eclecticism
and
synthesis.
They freely took over elements from jazz, from American country music, and as time went on
from even more diverse sources. What developed was a music readily taking on various forms
and capable of an almost limitless range of expression.
The second thing that happened was that all the musical groups began using the full range
of electric instruments and the technology of electronic amplifiers. The electric guitar was an old
instrument,
but
the
new
electronic
effects
were
altogether
different
--
so
different
that
a
new
listener
in
1967
might
well
feel
that
there
had
never
been
any
sounds
like
that
in
the
world
before. Electronics did, in fact, make possible sounds that no instrument up to that time could
produce.
And
in
studio
recordings,
new
techniques
made
possible
effects
that
not
even
an
electronic band could produce live. Electronic amplifiers also made possible a fantastic increase
in
volume,
the
music
becoming
as
loud
and
penetrating
as
the
human
ear
could
stand,
and

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thereby achieving a
now audiences of total participants, feeling the music in all of their senses and all of their bones.
Third, the music becomes a multi-media experience; a part of a total environment. The
walls of the ballrooms were covered with changing patterns of light, the beginning of the new art
of
the
light
show.
And
the
audience
did
not
sit,
it
danced.
With
records
at
home,
listeners
imitated these lighting effects as best they could, and heightened the whole experience by using
drugs. Often music was played out of doors, where nature provided the environment.

05-B. Different Types of Composers
I
can
see
three
different
types
of
composers
in
musical
history,
each
of
whom
creates
music in a somewhat different fashion.
The
type
that
has
fired
public
imagination
most
is
that
of
the
spontaneously
inspired
composer -- the Franz Schubert type, in other words. All composers are inspired, of course, but
this type is more spontaneously inspired. Music simply wells out of him. He can't get it down on
paper fast enough. You can almost
tell this type of composer by his fruitful output. In certain
months, Schubert wrote a song a day. Hugo Wolf did the same.
In a sense, men of this kind begin not so much with a musical theme as with a completed
composition. They invariably work best in the shorter forms.
It
is
much easier to improvise a
song than it is to improvise a symphony. It isn't easy to be inspired in that spontaneous way for
long periods at a stretch. Even Schubert was more successful in handling the shorter forms of
music. The spontaneously inspired man is only one type of composer, with his own limitations.
Beethoven belongs to the second type -- the constructive type, one might call it. This type
serves as an example of my theory of the creative process in music better than any other, because
in this case the composer really does begin with a musical theme. In Beethoven's case there is no
doubt about it, for we have the notebooks in which he put the themes down. We can see from his
notebooks how he worked over his themes -- how he would not let them be until they were as
perfect
as
he
could
make
them.
Beethoven
was
not
a
spontaneously
inspired
composer
in
the
Schubert sense at all. He was the type that begins with a theme; makes it a preliminary idea; and

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upon that composes a musical work, day after day, in painstaking fashion. Most composers since
Beethoven's day belong to this second type.
The third type of composer I can only call, for lack of a better name, the traditionalist type.
Men like Palestrina and Bach belong in this category. They both are characteristic of the kind of
composer who is born in a particular period of musical history, when a certain musical style is
about
to
reach
its
fullest
development.
It
is
a
question
at
such
a
time
of
creating
music
in
a
well-known and accepted style and doing it in a way that is better than anyone has done it before
you.
The traditionalist type of composer begins with a pattern rather than with a theme. The
creative act with Palestrina is not the thematic conception so much as the personal treatment of a
well-established
pattern.
And
even
Bach,
who
composed
forty-eight
of
the
most
various
and
inspired themes in his
Well Tempered Clavichord,
knew in advance the general formal mold that
they were to fill. It goes without saying that we are not living in a traditionalist period nowadays.
One
might
add,
for
the
sake
of
completeness,
a
fourth type
of
composer
--
the
pioneer
type: men like Gesualdo in the seventeenth century, Moussorgsky and Berlioz in the nineteenth,
Debussy and Edgar Varese in the twentieth. It is difficult to summarize the composing methods
of so diversified a group. One can safely say that their approach to composition is the opposite
of
the
traditionalist
type.
They
clearly
oppose
conventional
solutions
of
musical
problems.
Inmany ways, their attitude
is experimental ?they seek to add new harmonies, new sonorities,
new formal principles. The pioneer type was the characteristic one at the turn of the seventeenth
century and also at the beginning of the twentieth century, but it is much less evident today.

06-A. Improving Industrial Efficiency through Robotics
Robots, becoming increasingly prevalent in factories and industrial plants throughout the
developed
world,
are
programmed
and
engineered
to
perform
industrial
tasks
without
human
intervention
.
Most
of
today's
robots
are
employed
in
the
automotive
industry,
where
they
are
programmed to take over such jobs as welding and spray painting automobile and truck bodies.

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They
also
load
and
unload
hot,
heavy
metal
forms
used
in
machines
casting
automobile
and
truck frames.
Robots, already taking over human tasks in the automotive field, are beginning to be seen,
although to a lesser degree, in other industries as well. There they build electric motors, small
appliances,
pocket
calculators,
and
even
watches.
The
robots
used
in
nuclear
power
plants
handle the radioactive materials, preventing human personnel from being exposed to radiation.
These are the robots responsible for the reduction in job-related injuries in this new industry.
What makes a robot a robot and not just another kind of automatic machine? Robots differ
from
automatic
machines
in
that
after
completion
of
one
specific

task,
they
can
be
reprogrammed by a computer to do another one. As an example, a robot doing spot welding one
month can be reprogrammed and switched to spray painting the next. Automatic machines, on
the other hand, are not
capable of
many different uses; they are built to perform only one task.
The next generation of robots will be able to see
objects
, will have a
sense
of touch, and
will make
critical
decisions. Engineers skilled in microelectronics and computer technology are
developing artificial vision for robots. With the ability to
one
specific
class
of
objects
out
of
a
stack
of
different
kinds
of
materials.
One
robot
vision
system uses electronic
digital cameras
containing many rows of light-sensitive materials. When
light from an object such as a machine part strikes the camera, the sensitive materials measure
the intensity of light and convert the light rays into a range of numbers. The numbers are part of
a grayscale system in which brightness is measured in a range of values. One scale ranges from 0
to 15, and another from 0 to 255. The 0 is
represented
by black. The highest number is white.
The
numbers
in
between
represent
different
shades
of
gray.
The
computer
then
makes
the
calculations
and
converts

the
numbers
into
a
picture
that
shows
an
image
of
the
object
in
question. It is not yet known whether robots will one day have vision as good as human vision.
Technicians believe they will, but only after years of development.
Engineers working on other advances are designing and experimenting with new types of
metal
hands
and
fingers,
giving
robots
a
sense
of
touch.
Other
engineers
are
writing
new
programs
allowing
robots
to
make
decisions
such
as
whether.
to
discard
defective
parts
in
finished products. To do this, the robot will also have to be capable of identifying those defective
parts.

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

These future robots, assembled with a sense of touch and the ability to see and make decisions,
will have plenty of work to do. They can be used to explore for
minerals
on the
ocean
floor or in
deep areas of mines too dangerous for humans to enter. They will work as gas station attendants,
firemen, housekeepers, and security personnel. Anyone wanting to understand the industry of the
future will have to know about robotics.

06-B. Predicting Earthquakes
Can earthquakes be predicted? Scientists are working on programs to predict where and
when an earthquake will occur. They hope to develop an early warning system that can be used
to forecast earthquakes so that lives can be saved.
Earthquakes are the most dangerous and deadly of all natural events. They occur in many
parts of the world. Giant earthquakes have been recorded in Iran, China, Guatemala, Chile, India,
and
Alaska.
Two
of
the
biggest
earthquakes
that
were
ever
recorded
took
place
in
China
and
Alaska.
These
earthquakes
measured
about
8.5
on
the
Richter
Scale.
The
Richter
Scale
was
devised
by
Charles
Richter
in
1935,
and
compares
the
energy
level
of
earthquakes.
An
earthquake that measures a 2 on the scale can be felt hut causes little damage. One that measures
4.5
on
the
scale
can
cause
slight
damage,
and
an
earthquake
that
has
a
reading of over
7
can
cause major damage. It is important to note that a reading of 4 indicates an earthquake ten times
as strong as one with a reading of ists want to be able to predict those earthquakes that
have a reading of over 4 on the Richter Scale.
How do earthquakes occur? Earthquakes are caused by the shifting of rocks along cracks,
or
faults,
in
the
earth's
crust.
The
fault
is
produced
when
rocks
near
each
other
are
pulled
in
different directions. The best-known fault in North America is the San Andreasfault in the state
of California in the United States.
The nations that are actively involved in earthquake prediction programs include Japan,
China, Russia, and the United States. These countries have set up seismic networks in areas of
their
countries
where
earthquakes
are
known
to
occur.
These
networks
are
on
the
alert
for
warning
signs
that
show
the
weakening
of
rock
layers
that
can
precede
an
earthquake.
Many

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kinds of seismic instruments are used by the networks to monitor the movements of the earth's
crust. The scientists also check water in deep wells. They watch for changes in the water level
and temperature that are associated with movement along faults.
Scientists in China, Russia, and the United States measure radon in ground water. Radon
is a gas that comes from the radioactive decay of radium in rocks. The gas flows through the
ground and dissolves in underground streams and wells. Scientists speculate that the amount of
radon increases in the ground when rocks layers shift, exposing new rock, and thus more radon.
Chinese and Russian scientists have reported that in places where stress is building up, the radon
levels of the water build up too. When the radon levels of the water subside and drop back to
normal
readings,
an
earthquake
may
occur.
United
States
scientists
have
also
placed
radon
monitoring stations in earthquake zones, particularly California. However, all the scientists agree
that more data is necessary to prove that radon levels in water are associated with the possible
birth of an earthquake.
Earthquake prediction is still a young science. Everyone agrees that earthquakes cannot
be
predicted
with
any
reliability.
Scientists
have
only
a
partial
understanding
of
the
physical
processes that cause earthquakes. Much more research has to be done. New and more up-to-date
methods have to be found for collecting earthquake data and analyzing it. However, scientists
have had some success in predicting earthquakes. Several small earthquakes were predicted in
New York State, in the eastern part of the United States. Chinese scientists predicted a major one
in Haicheng in 1975, and Russian scientists predicted a major one in Garm in 1978. While this is
a small start, it is still a beginning.
07-A. Leisure and Leadership
Observations
and
research
findings
indicate
that
people
in
advanced
industrial
societies
are
increasingly
concerned
with
opportunities
for leisure and what they can do in their leisure time. The
importance people attach to
paid holiday
s and the rapid development of
services
for
mass
entertainment

and
recreation
are
signs
of
this
increasing

concern .

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

The term
environment,
health,
employment,
food,
family
life,
friends,
education,
material
possessions,
leisure and recreation, and so on. Generally speaking, the quality of life, especially as seen by
the
individual
,
is
meaningfu
l

in
terms
of
the
degree
to
which
these
various
areas
of
life
are
available or provide sa
tisfaction to the individual.
As activity carried out as one thinks fit during one's spare time, leisure has the following
functions: relaxation, recreation and entertainment, and personal development. The importance
of thesevaries according to the nature of one's job and one's life-style.
Thus
, people who need to
exert
much
energy
in
their
work
will
find
relaxation
most
desirable
in
leisure.
Those
with
a
better education and in
professional occupations
may tend more to seek recreation and personal
development (e.g., cultivation of skills and
hobbies
) in leisure.
The
specific

use
of
leisure
varies
from
individual
to
individual.
Even
the
same
leisure
activity may be used differently by different individuals. Thus, the following are possible uses of
television watching, a popular leisure activity: a change of experience to provide
the stress and strain of work; to learn
more about what is happening in one's environment; to
provide an
opportunity
for understanding oneself by comparing other people
抯

life experiences
as portrayed in the
programmes
.
In an
urban
society in which highly structured, fast-paced and stressful work looms large
in life, experiences of a different nature, be it television watching or bird-watching, can lead to a
self-renewal and a more
Since
leisure
is
basically
self- determined,
one
is
able
to
take
to
one's
interests
and
preferences and get involved in an activity in ways that will bring enjoyment and satisfaction.
Our likes and dislikes, tastes and preferences that underlie our choices of such activities
as
reading
books,
going
to
the
cinema,
camping, or
certain
cultural
pursuits,
are
all
related
to
social
contexts
and learning experiences. We acquire interests in a variety of things and subjects
from
our
families,
schools,
jobs,
and
the
mass
media.
Basically,
such
attitudes
amount
to
a
recognition
that leisure is an important area of life and a belief that leisure can and should be put
to good use.
Professional workers
in recreation services, too, will find that to impart positive leisure
attitudes to the general public is
essential
for motivating them to use their leisure in creative and

23
大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

satisfying
ways.
Hence
,
it
can
be
argued
that
the
people
with
whom
we
come
into
contact
in
these
various
contexts

are
all
likely
to
have
exerted
some
influence
in
shaping
our
attitudes,
interests and even skills relevant to how we handle leisure.
Influence
of this kind is a form of
leadership.
Parents,
teachers
in
schools,
work
associates
and
communicators
in
or
using
the
mass
media are all capable of
arousing
our
potential
interests. For example, the degree to which and
the ways in which a school encourages participation in games, sports and
cultural
pursuits are
likely to
contribute
to the shaping of leisure attitudes on the part of the students.
Schools
usually
set
as
their
educational
objective
the
attainment
of
a
balanced
development of the person. The more seriously this is sought, the more likely positive attitudes
towards leisure as well as
academic

work
will be encouraged.

07-B. The Time Message
You
may
have
been
exposed
to
this
idea
before,
but
this
time
try
to
hear.
There
is
a
message that is trying to reach you, and it is important that it get through loud and clear. The
message?
Time management!
Time is elusive and tricky. It is the easiest thing in the world to waste -- the most difficult
to control. When you look ahead, it may appear you have more than you need. Yet it has a way
of slipping through your fingers like quicksand. You may suddenly find that there is no way to
stretch the little time
you have left to cover all
your obligations.
For example, as a beginning
student looking ahead to a full term you may feel that you have an oversupply of time on your
hands. But toward the end of the term you may panic because time is running out. The answer?
Control!
Time is dangerous. If you don't control it, it will control you. If you don't make it work for
you, it will work against you. You must become the master of time, not the servant.
Study hard and play hard is an old proverb, but it still makes sense. You have plenty of
time for classes, study, work, and play if you use your time properly. It is not how much time

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

you allocate for study that counts but how much you learn when you do study.
Too
much
wasted
time
is
bad
medicine.
The
more
time
you
waste,
the
easier
it
is
to
continue wasting time. Soon, doing nothing becomes a habit you can't break. It becomes a drug.
When this happens, you lose your feeling of accomplishment and you fall by the wayside. A full
schedule is a good schedule.
Some students refuse to hear the time message. They refuse to accept the fact that college
life demands some degree of time control. There is no escape. So what's the next step? If you
seriously wish to get the time message, this passage will give it to you. Remember ?it will not
only improve your grades but also free you to enjoy college life more.
Message 1. Time is valuable -- control it from the beginning.
Time is today, not tomorrow or next week. Start your plan at the beginning of the term
and readjust it with each new project. Thus you can spread your work time around a little.
Message 2. Get the notebook habit.
Go and buy a pocket-size notebook. There are many varieties of these special notebooks.
Select the one you like best. Use it to schedule your study time each day. You can also use it to
note important dates, appointments, addresses, and telephone numbers. Keep it with you at all
times.
Message 3. Prepare a weekly study schedule.
The main purpose of the notebook is to help you prepare a weekly study schedule. Once
prepared, follow the same pattern every week with
minor adjustments. Sunday is an excellent
day to make up your schedule for the following week. Write in your class schedule first. Add
your work hours, if any. Then write in the hours each day you feel you must allocate for study.
Keep it simple.
Message 4. Be realistic.
When you plan time for these things, be realistic. Don't underestimate. Overestimate, if
possible, so that emergencies thatarise don't hang you up. Otherwise your entire routine may get
thrown off balance while you devote night and day to crash efforts. Message
5.
Make study time
fit the course.
How much study time you schedule for each classroom hour depends on tour factors:(l)
your ability, (2) the difficulty of the class, (3) the grades you hope to achieve, and (4) how well

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

you use your study time. One thing, however, is certain: you should schedule a minimum of one
hour of study for each classroom hour. In many cases, more will be required.
Message 6. Keep your schedule flexible.
A
good
schedule
must
have
a
little
give
so
that
special
projects
can
be
taken
care
of
properly.
Think
out
and
prepare
your
schedule
each
week
and
do
not
become
a
slave
to
an
inflexible pattern. Adjust it as you deem necessary.
Message 7. Study first ?fun later.
You will enjoy your fun time more after you have completed your study responsibilities.
So,
where
possible,
schedule
your
study
hours
in
advance
of
fun
activities.
This
is
a
sound
principle to follow, so keep it in mind as you prepare your first schedule.
Message S. Study some each class day.
Some concentrated study each day is better than many study hours one day and nothing
the next. As you work out your individual schedule, attempt to include a minimum of two study
hours each day. This will not only keep the study habit alive but also keep you up to date on your
class assignments and projects.
Few beginning freshmen can control their time effectively without a written schedule, so
why kid yourself into thinking you don't need one? You do. Later on, when you have had more
experience and you have the time-control habit, you may be able to operate without it. Of course
the schedule is only the first step. Once you have it prepared, you must stick with it and follow it
faithfully. You must push away the many temptations that are always present or your schedule is
useless. Your schedule will give you control only if you make it work.

08-A. Jet Lag: Prevention and Cure
The problem of Jet Lag
is
one every
international traveller comes across at some
time.
But do you have to suffer? Understand what it is, and how a careful
diet
can minimize its worst
effects, and your flights will be less stressful(
压力
).
The effects of rapid travel on the body are actually far more disturbing than we realize. Jet
Lag is not a
psychological

consequence
of having to
readjust
to a different time zone. It is due to

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

changes in the body's physiological regulatory mechanisms, specifically the hormonal systems,
in a different environment.
Confused? So was John Foster Dulles, the American Secretary of State, when he flew to
Egypt to conduct negotiations on the Aswan Dam. He later blamed his poor judgement on Jet
Lag.
The effects can be used to advantage, too. President Johnson once conducted an important
meeting
in
Guam
and
kept
the
entire
proceedings
at
Washington
DC
time.
The
White
House
working
personnel
were
as
fresh
as
paint,
while
the
locals,
in
this
case,
were
jet-lagged.
Essentially, they had been instantaneously transported to America.
Now that we understand what Jet Lag is, we can go some way to overcoming it. A great
number of the body's events are scheduled to occur at a certain time of day. Naturally these have
to be regulated, and there are two regulatory systems which interact.
One
timing
system
comes
from
the
evidence
of
our
senses
and
stomachs,
and
the
periodicity
we
experience
when
living
in
a
particular
time
zone.
The
other
belongs
in
our
internal clocks (the major one of which may be physically located in a part of the brain called the
suprachiasmatic nucleus) which, left alone, would tie the body to a 25 hour -- yes, 25 -- rhythm.
Normally the two timers are in step, and the external cues tend to regularise the internal clocks
to the more convenient 24 hour period.
If, however, you move the whole body to a time zone which is four hours different, the
two clocks will be out of step, like two alarm clocks which are normally set together, but which
have been reset a few hours apart. Whereas the two clocks would normally sound their alarms
together, now they ring at different times. Similarly, the body can he set for evening while the
sun is rising.
In
time
the
physiological
system
will
reset
itself,
but
it
does
take
time.
One
easily
monitored rhythm is palm sweating. A man flown to a time zone different by 10 hours will take
eight days to readjust his palm sweat. Blood pressure, which is also rhythmical, takes four days
to readjust.
One reason for this discrepancy is that different bodily events are controlled by different
factors. The hormone cortisol, which controls salt and water excretion, is made in the morning,
wherever the body is. But the growth hormone is released during sleep, whenever in the day that

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

sleep
occurs.
Normally
these
two
hormones
are
separated
by
seven
or
eight
hours,
but
if
the
body arrives at a destination in the early morning (local) and goes to sleep as soon as possible,
the two hormones will be released simultaneously.
What can we do about it? It is not feasible to wait four days until the body is used to the
new
time
zone.
Fortunately
there
is
a
short
cut.
It
relies
on
two
things
--
the
power
of
the
stomach to regulate the timing of other events, and the pharmacological actions of coffee.
The basic assumptions are:
Coffee
delays
the
body
clock
in
the
morning,
and
advances
it
at
night.
Coffee
at
mid- afternoon is neutral.
Protein in meals stimulates wakefulness, while carbohydrates promote sleep.
Putting food into an empty stomach helps synchronize the body clock.

08-B. Coetrolling Your Concentration
CONCENTRATION IS CENTERINC YOUR ATTENTION
Psychologically defined, concentration is the process of centering one's attention over a
period
of
time.
In
practical
application,
however,
concentration
is
not
as
simple
to
deal
successfully with as the definition may imply. For this reason, it is helpful to keep the following
points in mind.
Your attention span varies
Even
with
the
greatest
effort,
oar
span
of
attention
fluctuates.
You
can
demonstrate
for
yourself this fluctuation of attention. In a quiet room, place a watch so that it can just scarcely be
heard. Listen carefully and notice how the ticking increases in apparent intensity, fades to a point
where it cannot be heard, and then increases again. This phenomenon reveals how our span of
attention fluctuates, for the intensity of the ticking i s actually constant.
You pay attention to one thing at m time
Evidence
to
date
indicates
that
you
attend
to
one
idea at
a
time.
It
is
possible
for
your
attention
to
shift
so
rapidly
that
it
seems
that
you
attend
to
several
concepts
at
once.
But

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大学英语自学教程（下）电子版

apparently this is only an illusion. In high concentration the shift from the focus of attention is of
short duration and relatively infrequent.
An illustration of periods of high, moderate, and low attention

High attention has long periods of attending and short distraction periods. In low attention
the periods of attending are short and the distraction periods long. In moderate attention there is
a mixture of the extremes. Thus it is easy to see that it is highly unlikely that the student who has
most of his attention centered on fancying at large will be able to recall even the major points of
a lecture.
Lack of concentration is a symptom, not the cause, of difficulty. When a student says


can't
concentrate
what
he
is
really
saying
is,

can't
attend
to
the
task
at
hand
because
my
distractors are too strong.
DISTRACTORS ARE OF TWO SORTS --PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL
A distractor is anything which causes attention to vary from a central focal point. In the
study situation distractors may be thought of as either psychological or physical in nature. Both
types
of
distractors
must
be
understood
before
the
student
can
attempt
to
remedy
his
lack
of
concentration.
Emotions are the most powerful distractors
The angry man forgets the pain of injury the fearful man finds it difficult to enjoy pleasure
and the tense or anxious person may react violently to the smallest of matters. In the student's
life there are many psychological pressures and tensions which block effective productivity. The
fears
about
making
the
grade,
the
doubts
of
the
friendliness
of
a
friend’s
behaviour
and
the
pressures
of
limited
finances
--
these
are
only
a
few
of
the
emotional
forces
which
affect
the
student.
Emotional
reaction
varies
greatly
from
person
to
person.
Some
persons
gain
goal
and
direction
from
their
tensions
and
actually
do
better
because
of
them.
Others
fall
apart
under
pressure, while a fewpeople do well despite the pressure.
Physical distractors are always present and rarely understood

Our environment is much more important to how we feel and react than we often think.
Particularly is this true of the effect of physical distractors on mental tasks. One research report

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