step-by-step3000第三册unit9答案及原文.doc

1、英语专业学生经典的听力材料Unit 9 ways to TravelPart I Warming upA1. This news item is about Boeings 18 billion new orders this year for its new 777 jetliner.2. This news item is about possible mergers between airlines.A2 Tapescript:1. Boeing, the worlds leading commercial airplane maker, announced it has 18 bill

2、ion dollars in new orders this year for its new 777 jetliner. This figure puts demand for the Boeing aircraft ahead of comparable models produced by rival Airbus of Europe.2. British Airways and Dutch carrier KLM confirm they are in act of merger talks. Swiss Air won approval for taking majority con

3、trol of Belgiums Sabena Airlines and there was another flurry of take-over discussions among some major American carriers. They come on the heels of number one United Airlines offer to buy number six U. S. Airways two weeks ago. The nations number two, American Airlines, and the countrys third large

4、st, Delta, have been having what are described as preliminary discussions about a possible combination. American had reportedly been talking with Northwest about a hook up as well. The top three U.S. airlines, United, American and Delta currently control 56 percent of U.S. air traffic. If the merger

5、s go through, theyd control 85 percent.BMonorail1. Monorail systems rely on a very simple technology: rubber-tired cars riding on a narrow concrete guide-way.2. Monorail systems are capable of speeds of 65 miles per hour and offer ride quality comparable to conventional rail transit technologies.3.

6、Monorail systems are safe and more environmentally sensitive than any other elevated transit technology.4. And noise and neighborhood disruption caused by monorail construction are dramatically lower than other forms of mass transit.Maglev1. One of the most exiting recent innovations in railroad tec

7、hnology is magnetic levitation, or Maglev, which relies on the principle of magnetism - attraction and repulsion.2. This new technology will result in trains that are faster, smoother, more efficient, more comfortable, and more environmentally sound.Light Rail1. Light rail transit is an electric rai

8、lway system characterized by its ability to operate single cars or multi-car trains along shared or exclusive rights-of-way at ground level, on aerial structures, in subways, or occasionally in streets.2. It is able to board and discharge passengers at station platforms or at street, track, or car-f

9、loor level, and is normally powered by overhead electrical wires.3. The maximum speed of light rail trains is normally 60 miles per hour (100 km per hour).4. Passenger capacity of each car in a multiple car consist can be up to as many as 250 passengers (standees included).Tapescript:1. MonorailMono

10、rail systems rely on a very simple technology: rubber-tired cars riding on a narrow concrete guide-way. The cars are self propelled by electric motors with power pickup via distribution bars mounted on the side of the guide-way. Monorail systems are capable of speeds of 65 miles per hour and offer r

11、ide quality comparable to conventional rail transit technologies.Monorail systems are safe because the design and nature of monorail systems make it very difficult for trespassers to access the guide-way and power rails.Monorail systems are more environmentally sensitive than any other elevated tran

12、sit technology due to the monorails narrow guide-way structure and quiet rubber tires. Also, since many of the pylon and rail components can be prefabricated elsewhere and then assembled along the routes, the noise and disruption of construction will be kept to a minimum. Thus, noise and neighborhoo

13、d disruption caused by monorail construction are dramatically lower than other forms of mass transit.2. MaglevOne of the most exiting recent innovations in railroad technology is magnetic levitation, or Maglev, which relies on the principle of magnetism- attraction and repulsion. This new technology

14、, still under development, will result in trains that are faster, smoother, more efficient, more comfortable, and more environmentally sound. No longer will trains rumble heavily along steel rails; rather, they will float along a magnetic cushion without any direct contact with the ground.3. Light R

15、ailLight rail transit is an electric railway system, constructed in the 1970s or later, characterized by its ability to operate single cars or multi-car trains along shared or exclusive rights-of-way at ground level, on aerial structures, in subways, or occasionally in streets. It is able to board a

16、nd discharge passengers at station platforms or at street, track, or car-floor level, and is normally powered by overhead electrical wires.In most current settings, light rail is anything but light and is built to exacting standards. The maximum speed of light rail trains is normally 60 miles per ho

17、ur (100 km per hour), while heavy rail trains normally operate at higher speeds. Depending upon the specific system, the distance between light rail stations is shorter than within heavy rail systems, which lends some major advantages to urban settings.Light rail trains operate as either single or m

18、ultiple car consists. Passenger capacity of each car in a multiple car consist can be up to as many as 250 passengers (standees included).PART IIIn 1888, Boston, Massachusetts, became the first American city to replace horse-drawn trolleys with electric streetcars. Streetcars, which look similar to

19、train passenger coaches, clanged their bells, rattled around the corners and crried almost 14 billion riders at their height in 1920. old photos show overhead vires crisscrossing almost every US city. Then streetcars ridership replaced trolleys steadily as Americans took to automobiles and communiti

20、es replaced trolleys with buses. But now it seems cities cant lay streetcars tracks fast enough.So why is the number of US cities running streetcars and other light rail systems now up to 19? Why are 43 other cities building or drawing plans for light rail lines?Dan Tangherlini is acting dicrestor o

21、f Wanshington D.C.s Transportation Department. :Many cities are beginning to re-evaluate that decision to move away from streetcars. We look at current bus ridership members, and many of the routes that have the highest bus ridership were some of our most popular streetcar routes. So there goes the

22、notiong that the buses are providing increased flexibility, at least on those roads. And so maybe theres something between the very expensive subway systems, which cost between 140 and 200 million dollars a mile and the bus route. And thats what were beginning to ask.Streetcar lines cost less than 1

23、0 million dollars a mile to build. Washington is the latest city to announce it is studying the feasibility of bringing back streetcars, even though it already it already enjoys a fast-moving regional subway system called “metro” that runs through several parts of the city. Across country in Washing

24、ton D.C., Bill Lind works for a conservative think tank called the Free Congress Foundation. The organization has printed several studies supporting light rail transit, including streetcars. “The old rationale for getting rid of the streetcars is that they get in the way of the automobiles. But what

25、 we found is that the automobile, generally with one person per car, is probably the least efficient way to use the limited amount of space you have on urban streets. If youve got 50 people on board a streetcar, youre doing a lot better job of making use of the street space you have.”Even if Washing

26、tons transit department gets the green light to bring back streetcars, its likely to be at least ten years before Mr. Lind and his neighbor will be riding them. The city has to secure federal funding for a large chunk of the work. Citizens who say they pine for the trolleys may lose their nostalgia

27、when they realize the cars will be jangling past their windows or slowing their automobile rides across town.But across America, streetcars and light rail trains are curiosities no longer. Theyre a prestige item, tangible proof that a city is environmentally friendly, on the move, an din touch with

28、the human desire, in the midst of todays bustle and speed, for a streetcars soothing touch of serenity. A: the most popular streetcar routesB: less than 10 million dollars (130-190 million dollars) / between 140 and 200 million dollarsA: the least efficient way to use the limited amount of space on

29、urban streetsB: youve got 50 people on board a streetcar.A: federal fundingB: jangle past citizens windowsC: slow the automobiles rides A: a city is environmentally friendlyB: a streetcars soothing touch of serenity. B:I. Above and underground public transit systemsA. traffic jams / congestionB. fru

30、stration / discomfort / unhapinessII. Public transportation A. light rail systemsB. a new public trainIII. B. 1. metro systems 2. Southeast Asia 3. innovative us of public transit buses.IV. Excessive greenhouse gas emissions B. clean C. the amount of energy usedTranscript: Today the worlds urban are

31、as hold more than 4 times the population in the 1950s. traffic is pilling up in nearly every major metropolitan area. In Bangkok, the Capital of Thailand, traffic jams last for hours while the economy loses an estimated 6% of output. Many governments are promoting above and underground transit syste

32、ms to fight such congestion. The sounds of public transit systems are spreading throughout the world. Urban trains are appearing even in the wide expanses of the western United States, in places like Dallas, a Texas city known for oil riches and big cars. “In Texas, we are not very used to riding a train to travel around the city. But actually, Dallas and Houston have both started light rail systems. It is very popular in both cities.” This is Brewster McCracken, a city cou