晨读
Monday漂浮物,洋流之前兆
Week One
真题品读
(广东高考)
Scientists today aremaking greater effort tostudy oceancurrents. Most do it using
satellites and other high-techequipment. However, ocean expert Curtis Ebbesmeyer does it
in a special way — by studying movements ofrandomfloating garbage. As a scientist with
many years’experience, he started this type of research in the early 1990s when he heard
about hundreds of athletic shoes washing up on the shores of the northwest coast of the
United States. There were so many shoes that people weresetting upswap meets to try and
matchleft and right shoes to sell or wear.
Ebbesmeyer found out in his researches that the shoes — about 60,000 in total — fell
into the ocean in a shipping accident. He phoned the shoe company and asked if they wanted
the shoes back. As expected, the company told him that they didn’t. Ebbesmeyerrealised
this could be a great experiment. If he learnt when and where the shoes went into the water
and tracked where they landed, he could learn a lot about the patterns of ocean currents.
The Pacific Northwest is one of the world’s best areas for beachcombing 海滩搜
寻 because winds and currents join here, andas a result, there is a group of serious
beachcombers in the area. Ebbesmeyer got to know a lot of them and asked for their help
in collecting information about where the shoes landed. In a year he collectedreliable
information on l,600 shoes. With this data, he and a colleague were able to test and improve
a computer programmedesignedto model ocean currents, and publish the findings of their
study.
As the result of his work, Ebbesmeyer has become known as the scientist to call with
questions about any unusual objects found floating in the ocean. He has even started an
association of beachcombers and ocean experts, with 500 subscribers 订户 from West Africa
to New Zealand. They have recorded all lost objectsrangingfrom potatoes to golf gloves.
词汇品析
1. make great efforts to do sth.努力去做某事
The report shows that we are making some progress but we need tomake greater
efforts.这份报告表明,我们正在取得进步,但是我们还需要更加努力。
2. currentkrntn.水流,潮流adj.当前的
搭配current affairs时事
The Gulf Stream is a warm oceancurrentwhich starts in the Gulf of Mexico and
flows northeast across the Atlantic.墨西哥湾暖流是一股温暖的洋流,它起始于墨
西哥湾,向东北流经大西洋。
In itscurrentstate, the car is worth $1,000.照现在的车况来看,这辆车值1,000美元。
3. equipmentkwpmntn.设备,装备,用具
搭配a piece of equipment一件设备
链接〈同根〉equipv.配备,装备
〈近〉apparatusn.设备,仪器instrumentn.仪器;乐器
Different metals have different uses. For example, steel is used in cars, and iron is
used in electricalequipment.不同的金属有不同的用途。例如,钢用于汽车制造,
铁用于电气设备。
4. randomrndmadj.随意的,任意的
搭配at random随便地;任意地
链接〈近〉aimlessadj.无目的的unorganisedadj.组织不善的;杂乱无章的
The films were made inrandomorder, and moved backwards and forwards through
two hundred years.电影按任意顺序拍摄,时间在200年之间来回变换。
5. experienceksprinsn.经验;经历v.经历;体验
搭配gainget experience获得经验in sb.’s experience根据某人的经验
链接〈同根〉experiencedadj.有经验的〈近〉undergov.经历
He has no previousexperienceof lecturing.他以前没有讲课的经验。
I had a similarexperiencelast year.去年我经历了类似的事情。
6. set up建立,成立,创立;建起;安装
In 1995, the organisationset upan office in Beijing. 1995年,该机构在北京成立了
办事处。
The city policeset uproadblocks to check passing vehicles.该市警察设置了路障以
检查过往车辆。
7. matchmv.(与……)成对;(与……)相配;把……联系起来n.体育比赛,
竞赛;有优势的对手
搭配match... with...将……与……对应meet one’s match遇到对手,棋逢对手