1、.ContentsActive Reading 2.Work in groups and discuss the questions: How many branches of science can you think of? anatomy: studying the body astronomy: studying space biochemistry: studying chemical processes botany: studying plants chemical engineering: studying chemical substances cosmology: stud

2、ying the universeWarming Up. ecology: studying organisms and their environment genetics: studying genes and variation meteorology: studying weather microbiology: studying viruses etc nutrition: studying food oceanography: studying the seas pharmacology: studying medical drugs radiology: studying rad

3、iant energy such as X-raysWarming Up.Warming Up2. Where did you learn most about science?3. How much do you remember about your science lessons at school?4. Who was your best science teacher? Why do you remember him / her?5. Can you remember any lesson in particular?6. What would you do to improve s

4、cience teaching at school?.TextScience: fact or fiction?.Science: fact or fiction?1 Students arent what they used to be. These days, it seems, some of them never even open a book. Such is the depressing picture painted by popular science writer Steve Jones in his book The Single Helix, laying the fi

5、nger of blame on modern communication systems. The message is the medium; once upon a time there were books, but now, Jones says, “the medium is, or so it seems, anything but lines of print on a page.” Many students are just not used to reading books anymore theyre such an outdated form of communica

6、tion. Text.2 So how do you get them to learn about science? Well, if you go into a campus bookstore you can find out. There are songbooks for biochemists, with chemical formulae set to music to make them easier to remember. Relativity is explained in a video game which is a simulation of a rocket jo

7、urney through space: You can play tennis on board as the rocket speeds up or slows down. And there are cartoons to make even the most obscure scientific subjects accessible, and fun as well.Text.3 But even these methods of generating interest have become conventional. Rather more radical is the prop

8、osal which a physics professor has come up with to learn science from the mistakes in science fiction films. Some of the films may be dreadful, but they hide a lot of helpful messages. Students just have to sit back, relax, enjoy the film, and soak up a bit of science at the same time.Text.4 A few e

9、xamples will show what the professor has in mind. In The Day the Earth Caught Fire (1961), the earth is pushed towards the sun as a result of two simultaneous atomic explosions. But this contravenes Newtons Third Law of Motion namely, that action and reaction are equal and opposite. Since the Earth

10、weighs six thousand billion billion tons, a huge blast would be needed to push it into the right direction. Supposing it hurled a hundred million tons of rock and debris into space. This explosion would require a bomb far greater than any that has ever exploded. But a few basic sums would show that

11、such a blast, as well as killing every single inhabitant of the earth, would only shift the Earth about a quarter of an inch out of its orbit.Text.5 So the film is fiction without the science. The same could be said of the 1986 film Aliens. In this film the crew saunter around the spaceship as if th

12、ey were at home on earth whereas they should be floating, in a gravity-free environment. The producers of Aliens would fail a first year physics exam, but Stanley Kubrick and Arthur Clarke, the brains behind 2001: A Space Odyssey, would pass the same exam with flying colours. On board the spaceship

13、a giant wheel rotates, generating centripetal force and giving the astronauts on board a sense of “up” and “down”.Text.6The treatment of relativity in science fiction films is even more confusing. Take Star Trek: The Voyage Home (1987). As the spaceship revolves round the sun, it gathers so much spe

14、ed that it moves backwards into history. But this is nonsense, not relativity. As Jones puts it, “Einstein said that nothing travels at more than the speed of light, not that the clocks will run the other way if you go fast enough.” Even Superman (1978) is baffled by the concept. It takes him a spli

15、t second to fly round the earth anticlockwise to save Lois Lane, who has fallen victim to an earthquake. Jones: “Time is not like a car. It has no reverse gear.”Text.7 Finally, what about those giant insects like the ones in Empire of the Ants, the 1977 film based on a story by H. G. Wells? The prob

16、lem is their lungs, or rather, the lack of them. Ants dont have lungs, so they get oxygen by absorbing it through the tissues of their bodies. The bigger the ant, the longer it would take to absorb the oxygen and their body parts would not be able to function well. So an ant the size of a human woul

17、d be more likely to be gasping for breath than biting off the head of a reckless teenager. Text.Text科學(xué)：事實還是虛構(gòu)科學(xué)：事實還是虛構(gòu)? 1學(xué)生已今非昔比。如今，似乎有些學(xué)生從來就沒有翻開過書本。這是科普作家斯蒂夫瓊斯在其單螺旋線一書中描繪的令人沮喪的情景，他把批評的矛頭指向現(xiàn)代通信系統(tǒng)。信息即媒介；從前有書本，可是現(xiàn)在，瓊斯說：“媒介是，或者說似乎是，一切，但絕不是紙上印的一行行字。”許多學(xué)生就是不再習(xí)慣讀書了書是老掉牙的溝通方式。.Text2 那么怎樣使他們學(xué)習(xí)科學(xué)呢？好吧，你要是走進(jìn)校園

18、書店，就會找到辦法。那里有生物化學(xué)家的歌本，其中化學(xué)分子式被配上樂曲以便記憶。相對論是用電子游戲來解釋的，那是個虛擬乘火箭在空間旅行的游戲：你可以在火箭加速或減速飛行時在上面打網(wǎng)球。還有卡通，它們使哪怕最艱澀的科學(xué)話題都變得有趣易懂。 .Text3 可是就連這些激發(fā)興趣的方法也已變得老套了。更激進(jìn)的方法是一個物理學(xué)教授提出來的：從科幻電影的錯誤中學(xué)習(xí)科學(xué)。有些電影也許糟透了，但其中隱藏有大量有益的信息。學(xué)生只需舒舒服服地坐著、放松、欣賞電影，同時吸收一點(diǎn)科學(xué)知識。 .Text4 有幾個例子可以說明教授的想法。在地球著火之日（1961）中，兩顆同時爆炸的原子彈把地球推向太陽。可是這違反了牛頓的第

19、三運(yùn)動定律即，作用力和反作用力相等且方向相反。既然地球重達(dá)六千艾噸，那就需要特大的爆炸才能把它推入正確的方向。假設(shè)爆炸將一億噸巖石和碎渣 拋入宇宙，那么這個炸彈的威力要比任何以往的炸彈都要大。但是，稍做運(yùn)算就能說明，這樣一場爆炸除了會把地球上的生物全部殺死之外，充其量也只能讓地球偏離軌道大約四分之一英寸。 注：地球的重量應(yīng)該是610的24次方千克（10的18次方叫艾）。.Text5 所以，這部電影是沒有科學(xué)含量的虛構(gòu)作品。1986年出品的電影異形也是同樣。在這部影片中，宇航員們在宇宙飛船中走來走去，就好像在地球上的家里一樣而實際上他們應(yīng)當(dāng)在無重力環(huán)境中漂浮才對。異形的制片人可能會在大學(xué)一年級的

20、物理學(xué)考試中不及格，但是2001：太空漫游背后的智囊斯坦利庫布里克和亞瑟克拉克卻會在同樣的考試中以高分通過。宇宙飛船上有一巨大的輪子轉(zhuǎn)動著，產(chǎn)生向心力，并給船上的宇航員一種“起伏”感。.Text6 科幻電影中對相對論的處理更是令人摸不著頭腦。以星艦迷航：回家之旅（1987）為例：宇宙飛船圍繞太陽飛行，速度越來越快，最后竟然飛回到了歷史之中。但這是瞎編亂造，而不是相對論。正如瓊斯所說：“愛因斯坦說沒有什么比光速更快；但沒有說如果你跑得夠快，鐘表就會倒轉(zhuǎn)。” 就連超人（1978）也被此概念所困惑。他在瞬間往逆時針方向繞地球一周去救地震受難者洛伊斯萊恩。瓊斯說：“時間不像汽車，它沒有倒擋。” .Te

21、xt7 最后，1977年根據(jù)H.G.威爾斯的小說拍攝的螞蟻帝國里的那些巨型昆蟲又如何呢？問題在于它們的肺，或者說，它們根本沒有肺。螞蟻沒有肺，它們是通過身體組織吸收氧氣的。螞蟻越大，吸收氧氣的時間就越長這樣它們身體的各部件就不能良好地運(yùn)作。所以像人那么大的螞蟻更可能老是在大口喘氣，而不是把冒失少年的腦袋咬掉。.Words & Phrases.Words & Phrases.depressing a. sth. that is depressing makes you feel very unhappy and disappointed 令人沮喪的；令人喪氣的 e.g.1. Th

22、e whole experience was very depressing. 整個經(jīng)歷令人非常沮喪。2. He always woke with a sense of deep sorrow and depressing loss. 他醒來時總是滿懷哀愁，抑郁惆悵。Word family: depress v. depression n. depressed a.Words & Phrases.Fill in the blanks with the appropriate word from the box:1. It _ me that nobody seems to care.

23、2. People who struggle with excessive Internet use maybe _ or have other mood disorders, Orzack said. (CET4-2010-6)3. Studies over a range of illnesses, from _ to heart disease, reveal that the presence of social support helps people fend off illness (CET4-2000-6)4. That thought is too _ for words.W

24、ords & Phrasesdepress depressed depression depressingdepresses depresseddepressiondepressing.anymore ad. used when talking or asking about a situation that has ended, or about sth. that sb. has stopped doing（談?wù)摶蛟儐栆呀?jīng)結(jié)束的情況或某人已經(jīng)停止做的事）再也 e.g. 1. She doesnt live here anymore. 她不再住在這兒了。2. People are n

25、ot interested in movies anymore. 人們不再對電影感興趣了。Words & Phrases.Words & Phrasesoutdated a. old and no longer suitable for modern purposes, methods, or situations 過時的；陳舊的e.g. 1. Many of us conform to the outdated customs laid down by our forebears. 我們許多人都遵循祖先立下的過時習(xí)俗。2. That list of addresses is

26、outdated, many have changed. 那個通訊錄已經(jīng)沒用了，許多地址已經(jīng)變了。.songbook n. C a book that contains the words and music of a lot of songs 歌本；歌曲集e.g. 1. While rummaging around my bookcase I came across my old copy of the songbook. 在一次偶然的情況下我亂翻我的書柜，竟然翻到了當(dāng)年我的那本音樂集。 2. Initially I thought I could simply copy my old so

27、ngbook and send it back. 起初我以為我只要把我的舊歌集復(fù)印一下就可以把它送回去了。 Words & Phrases.biochemistn. C a person who studies chemical processes that occur in living things 生物化學(xué)家e.g. 1. She is a biochemist who works on the frontiers of biology. 她是從事生物學(xué)前沿研究的生化學(xué)家。 2. Sir Chain was a German-born British biochemist. 錢恩

28、先生是一位出生在德國的英國生物化學(xué)家。Word family: biochemistry n.Words & Phrases.formula n. C (pl formulas or formulae) 1. a group of letters or numbers that represents a rule in science or mathematics（科學(xué)或數(shù)學(xué)中的）方程式，公式 e.g. Use the formula to calculate the volume of the container. 用公式計算容器的容積。2. a plan or method for

29、 dealing with a problem or achieving a result方案 ；方法 e.g. The foreign ministers have thrashed out a suitable compromise formula. 外交部長們經(jīng)過反復(fù)討論，已經(jīng)制訂出合適的折中方案。Words & Phrases.relativity n. U (science) the relationship between time, space, and movement as described in Einsteins Theory of Relativity（愛因斯

30、坦的）相對論 e.g.1. Einstein formulated the Theory of Relativity in 1905. 愛因斯坦于1905年創(chuàng)立了相對論。 2. Einsteins Theory of Relativity won for him universal esteem. 愛因斯坦的相對論贏得了全世界對他的崇敬。Word family: relative a. Words & Phrases.simulation n. C, U ( of) sth. that produces the features of a situation in a way that

31、 seems real but is not 模擬物e.g.1. The simulation allows him to test various features of a system. 這種模擬使他能夠試驗一個系統(tǒng)的各種特征。2. The pilots skills are tested through simulation. 飛行員的技術(shù)是通過模擬飛行來檢測的。Word family: simulate v. Words & Phrases.generate vt. to make a lot of people express feelings or opinions ab

32、out sth. 引起；引發(fā) e.g.1. The advertising campaign generated a lot of interest in our work. 廣告活動使很多人對我們的工作產(chǎn)生了興趣。2. This book will continue to generate excitement for a long time. 這本書將在很長一段時間里繼續(xù)使人們?yōu)橹印ord family: generation n. Words & Phrases.Choose the best answer for the following sentence:Extens

33、ive reporting on television has helped to _ interest in a wide variety of sports and activities. (CET4-2001-06-53)A. gatherB. generateC. assembleD. yieldWords & Pposal n. C1. a plan or suggestion, esp. a formal one that a group has to consider （尤指某團(tuán)體必須考慮的正式）計劃，建議，議案 e.g. A good many pr

34、oposals were raised by the delegates, as was to be expected. (CET4-2003-12)正如預(yù)計的，代表們提出了很多建議。2. a request to sb. to get married to you 求婚e.g. She had had many proposals but preferred to remain single. 許多人向她求過婚，但她愿過獨(dú)身生活。Words & Phrases.Choose the best answer for the following sentence:Many a deleg

35、ate was in favour of his proposal that a special committee _ to investigate the incident. (CET4-2002-1) were set up was set upC. be set upD. set upA. Note that subjunctive mood is used here. Words & Phrases.Words & PhrasesWord family: propose1. vt. (fml) to suggest sth. as a plan or course o

36、f action (正式)提議，建議e.g. 1. I propose that he should leave now. 我建議他現(xiàn)在就離開。 2. One proposed solution to this problem is the automated highway system. (CET4-2002-1) 對這個問題的一個提議是建設(shè)自動高速公路體系。2. vi. to ask sb. to marry you, esp. in a formal way(尤指正式地向某人)求婚e.g. He proposed to her on bended knee. 他單膝跪下向她求婚。.dr

37、eadful a. very unpleasant 糟透了的；非常討厭的 e.g. 1. The result should be dreadful for you. 結(jié)果對你將是極不愉快的。2. The victim suffered a dreadful injury and lost a lot of blood. 受害者受了重傷，大量失血。Word family: dread n. & v. Words & Phrases.soak v. to put sth. into a liquid and leave it there for a period of time

38、浸；泡e.g. 1. She soaked the shirt in soapy water. 她把襯衫泡在肥皂水里。2. Before cooking them you should soak the beans overnight in water. 煮之前，你得把豆子浸泡在水里一整夜。See also: soak up Words & Phrases.atomic a. 1. relating to or using the energy that is produced by splitting atoms 原子能的；利用原子能的e.g. They were monitorin

39、g the upper air to collect evidence of atomic explosions. 他們正在檢測高空空氣以收集原子爆炸的證據(jù)。2. relating to the atoms in a substance 原子的e.g. Atomic fission furnishes enormous energy. 原子分裂可提供大量的能量。Word family: atom n. Words & Phrases.explosion n. C an occasion when sth. bursts with a lot of force and a loud no

40、ise, often causing damage 爆炸 e.g. 1. The missile warhead hit the target, effecting a nuclear explosion. 導(dǎo)彈頭擊中目標(biāo)，完成了一次核爆炸。2. There was a muffled explosion somewhere on their right. 在他們右邊什么地方有一聲沉悶的爆炸聲。Word family: explode v.explosive a. & n.Words & Phrases.contravene vt. (fml) to do sth. that

41、is not allowed by a rule, law, or agreement 與相抵觸； 違反（規(guī)章、法律或協(xié)議） e.g. 1. You are contravening the currency regulations. 你這是在違反貨幣制度的規(guī)定2. He intentionally contravened the rule of golf. 他在高爾夫球賽中有意犯規(guī)。3. He contravened the Official Secrets Act. 他違反了官員保密法。Words & Ply ad. used for introducing

42、more detailed information about a subject that you are discussing 即；那就是 e.g. 1. We need to concentrate on our target audience, namely women aged between 20 and 30. 我們須針對我們的聽眾對象，即年齡在20到30歲之間的婦女。2. The railroad connects two cities, namely, New York and Chicago. 這條鐵路連接兩個城市, 即紐約和芝加哥。Words & Phrases.

43、blast n. C an explosion, esp. one caused by a bomb （尤指炸彈引起的）爆炸e.g. 1. Police said that the blast occurred at 9 a.m. 警方說這次爆炸發(fā)生在上午九點(diǎn)。2. A huge bomb blast rocked central London last night. 昨晚一次劇烈的炸彈爆炸震動了倫敦市中心。3. In a sudden _ of anger, the man tore up everything within reach. (CET4-2000-01-60) A. attac

44、k B. burst C. split D. blastWords & PhrasesB.hurlvt. to throw sth. using a lot of force 猛投；用力擲e.g. 1. Children were hurling snowballs at one another. 孩子們在互擲雪球。2. Rioters hurled chairs through the windows. 暴亂者向窗里擲椅子。3. The young track and field athlete could already hurl the discus 60 yards. 這個年輕

45、的田徑運(yùn)動員已能把鐵餅擲60碼遠(yuǎn)。Words & Phrases.debris n. U the broken pieces that are left when sth. large has been destroyed, esp. by an explosion, fire, or accident（尤指爆炸、火災(zāi)或事 故后留下的）廢墟，瓦礫堆，殘骸 e.g. 1. She was hit by flying debris from the blast. 她被爆炸飛散的碎片擊中。 2. After the bombing there was a lot of debris ever

46、ywhere. 轟炸過后到處是一片殘骸。3. Police have spent the day sifting through the debris for clues. 警方花了一整天在廢墟中查找線索。Words & Phrases.inhabitant n. C a person or animal that lives in a particular place 居民；棲息的動物e.g. 1. The islands earliest inhabitants came from India. 島上最早的居民來自印度。2. The tapeworm is an inhabitan

47、t of the intestine. 絳蟲是棲居腸內(nèi)的寄生蟲。Word family: inhabit v. Words & Phrases.shiftvt. to move an object from one place to another 移動；搬動 e.g. Help me shift the desk to the window please. 請幫我把桌子搬到窗戶那兒。Choose the best answer for the following sentence:Mass advertising helped to _ the emphasis from the p

48、roduction of goods to their consumption. (CET4-2005-6)A. vary B. shift C. lay D. moderateWords & PhrasesB.alien n. C 1. a person or creature from a planet other than Earth 外星人；外星生物e.g. Jim is an alien in this film. 吉姆在這部電影里是個外星人。 2. (AmE) sb. who is not a citizen of the country they are living i

49、n 外國人；僑民e.g. 1. An Englishman is an alien in America. 英國人在美國便是外國僑民。2. Illegal aliens are usually deported to their country of origin. 非法外僑通常被逐回原籍國。Words & Phrases.sauntervi. to walk in a slow and relaxed way 漫步；閑步e.g. 1. He sauntered by, looking very pleased with himself. 他漫步閑逛, 看起來非常悠然自得。2. A p

50、oliceman sauntered over from across the road to find out what the crowd was doing. 一個警察從馬路對面踱步過來看看那群人在干什么。Words & Pducer n. C 1. sb. whose job is to organize the work and money involved in making a film, play, television program etc. (電影、戲劇、電視節(jié)目等的)制作人，制片人e.g. As the producer, he believ

51、es the film will be a success. 作為制片人，他相信這部影片將會很成功。 2. a person or company that grows food or makes goods to be sold （食品或商品的）生產(chǎn)商，生產(chǎn)者e.g. That company is a producer of television sets. 那家公司生產(chǎn)電視機(jī)。Words & Phrases.giant a. (only before noun) extremely large 巨型的 e.g. 1. The teams mascot is a giant swa

52、n. 這個隊的吉祥物是只大天鵝。2. The giant packet gives you more for less money! 特大的包裝讓你用便宜的價錢買到超值的分量! Words & Phrases.rotatev. to move in a circle around a fixed central point, or move sth. in this way （使）旋轉(zhuǎn)；（使）轉(zhuǎn)動e.g. 1. The Earth rotates on its axis once every 24 hours. 地球每24小時繞地軸自轉(zhuǎn)一周。2. The doctor asked th

53、e patient to rotate his eyes. 醫(yī)生叫病人轉(zhuǎn)動一下眼球。Words & Phrases.centripetal force n. U (science) a force that makes things move towards the centre of sth. when they are moving around that centre 向心力 e.g. 1. After some treatment of centripetal force, he deduces Keplers third law. 在向心力的一些論述之后，他推出了開普勒的第三

54、定律。2. Gravity is the centripetal force that keeps the planets orbiting around the Sun. 重力是一種向心力，能使行星環(huán)繞太陽運(yùn)行。Words & Phrases.astronaut n. C sb. who travels and works in space 宇航員e.g. 1. The rocket boosts the astronaut into space. 這火箭能把宇航員送入太空。2. Therere three astronauts in the spacecraft. 在這艘宇宙飛船里

55、有三名宇航員。Words & Phrases.trek n. C a walk that seems long and difficult 漫長艱苦的徒步旅程e.g. 1. The refugees made the trek across the border. 難民們艱苦跋涉越過邊境。 2. The family made the long trek west in 1890. 1890年他們?nèi)议L途跋涉前往西部。Words & Phrases.revolve vi. ( around / on) to turn or spin around a central point

56、 轉(zhuǎn)動；旋轉(zhuǎn)e.g.1. The Earth revolves on its axis. 地球繞地軸自轉(zhuǎn)。2. The planets revolve around the Sun. 行星繞太陽運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)。Words & Phrases.superman n. C (pl supermen) a man who has extremely great abilities, skills, or strength 超人e.g. 1. The film portrays Gandhi as a kind of superman. 這部電影把甘地描繪成一個超人。2. He is a superma

57、n in mental and physical strength. 他在智力 體力上是個超人。Words & PhrasesSuperman (1978).baffle vt. if a problem, sb.s behaviour etc. baffles you, you cannot understand it or solve it （問題或行為等）使困惑，難倒e.g.1. The scene baffled all description. 那情景難以形容。2. The police were baffled by the total lack of clues to t

58、he murder. 那件謀殺案由于沒有一點(diǎn)線索把警方難住了。 Words & Phrases.anticlockwise a. & ad. (BrE) moving in the direction opposite to the direction of the hands of a clock 逆時針（的）；沿逆時針方向（的）=(AmE) counterclockwise 美Antonym: clockwisee.g. 1. Turn the lid anticlockwise. 逆時針方向轉(zhuǎn)動蓋子。2. Please turn the key in a clockwis

59、e direction. 請順時針轉(zhuǎn)動鑰匙。Words & Phrases.gear n. C, U the part of an engine that changes engine power into movement（排）擋 e.g.1. Always use a low gear when driving down a steep hill. 你駕車駛下很陡的山路時，一定要用低速檔。2. She selected a low gear and started down the track carefully. 她選了低速擋小心翼翼地沿小徑下行。 Words & Phr

60、ases.empire n. C a number of countries ruled by one person or government 帝國e.g.1. The Roman Empire was divided in the 4th century AD. 羅馬帝國于公元4世紀(jì)分裂。2. His business empire collapsed under a massive burden of debt. 他的商業(yè)帝國無力承擔(dān)沉重的債務(wù)負(fù)擔(dān)垮掉了。 Words & Phrases.reckless a. not thinking about the possible bad effects of your actions 輕率的；魯莽的 e.g.1. She showed a reckless disregard for her own safety. 她對自己的安全完全不在意。2. He was accused of causing death by reckless driving. 他被控魯莽駕駛而致人死亡。3. You were r