Lesson 42 Modern cavemen 现代洞穴人

Cave exploration, or pot-holing, as it has come to be known, is a relatively new sport.

Football, or soccer, as it is sometimes called, is very popular in the world.

• Things can go wrong on a big scale, as a number of people recently discovered in Parramatta, a suburb of Sydney. ^{as 引导的非限性定语从句}
• As the Commanding Officer explained later, one half of the station did not know what the other half was doing! ^{as 引导的非限定性定语从句修饰后面的整个主句}
• Cave exploration, or pot-holing, as (it) has come to be known, is a relatively new sport. ^{去掉it就是一个标准的非限定性定语从句（美式）}

come to do ^{开始(逐渐的)...}

• Future historians will be in a unique position when they come to record the history of our own times.
• He soon made a name for himself and came to be known to the Italians as Giovanni Acuto.
• Mrs. Richards realized that it must be the man from the Electricity Board who had come to read the metre.
• When you come to think about it, there are only four ways you can deal with rubbish...

造句：H1N1 flu, or swine flu, as it has come to be known, is a highly contagious but preventable, controllable and curable disease. ^{H1N1流感，或称猪流感，正如人们逐渐了解的那样，是一种 高度传染性但可防可控可治的疾病。}

Perhaps it is the desire for solitude or the chance of making an unexpected discovery that lures people down to the depths of the earth.

The desire for solitude lures people down to the depths of the earth. ^简单句
The chance of making an unexpected discovery lures people down to the depths of the earth. ^简单句
Perhaps the desire for solitude or the chance of making an unexpected discovery lures people down to the depths of the earth. ^主语并列

desire for ... ^{对...的渴求}

• He was overestimating their desire for peace. ^{他高估了他们对和平的渴望。}
• He was imbued with a desire for social justice.^{他满怀着寻求社会正义的愿望。}
• It is sad to see a man so corrupted by the desire for money and power. ^{看到一个人被金钱和权力欲望所腐蚀很可悲。}

the depths of the earth ^{在地球的深处}

• the depths of the ocean
• the depths of the space
• the depths of the forest
• (in) the depths of despair ^{(在)绝望的深渊}

造句：It is the desire for knowledge that lures him to the scientific world. ^{正是对知识的渴望诱使他走进了科学的世界。}

It is impossible to give a satisfactory explanation for a pot-holer's motives.

give a satisfactory / convincing / logical / ... explanation for sth. ^{对于...的解释}

• The teacher gave a satisfactory explanation for the experiment's results.^{老师对实验结果做出了令人满意的解释。}
• She gave a convincing explanation for her absence.^{她对她的缺席做出了令人信服的解释。}
• The scientist gave a logical explanation for the phenomenon.^{科学家对这种现象做出了合乎逻辑的解释。}

it is impossible to give a satisfactory explanation for ... ^{不可能对……作出令人满意的解释}

• It is impossible to give a satisfactory explanation for his sudden disappearance. ^{对他突然消失的原因无法给出令人满意的解释。}

造句：It has never been explained why Maya civilization vanished from the earth.^{谁也无法解释为何玛雅文明从地球上突然消失。}
It is impossible to give a satisfactory explanation for the disappearance of Maya civilization.

For him, caves have the same peculiar fascination which high mountains have for the climber.

have a / an peculiar / extraordinary / unfailing fascination for ... ^{对…有一种/特殊的/非凡的/持久的魅力}

• Mars has an extraordinary fascination for would-be voyagers.
• Cats have an unfailing fascination for most people.
• She has a fascination for ancient history.^{她对古代历史有着浓厚的兴趣。}
• The old mansion has a peculiar fascination for ghost hunters.^{这座老宅对鬼魂猎人有一种特殊的吸引力。}
• He has an extraordinary fascination for space exploration. ^{他对太空探索有着非凡的兴趣。}
• The sea has an unfailing fascination for her. ^{大海对她有着持久的吸引力。}

造句：For him, books have the same peculiar facination which rosmetics have for his wife.^{书对他有一种独特的吸引力，就像化妆品对他老婆的吸引力一样。}

• Antique shops exert a peculiar fascination on a great many people.

造句： Stamp colleting exerts a peculiar fascination on me. ^{我很喜欢集邮。}
Stamp collecting has a peculiar fascination for me. ^无灵主语

They arouse instincts which can only be dimly understood.

dim / dimly ^{昏暗的/地，朦胧的/地}

• Then, squinting his eyes, he said:'The light is dim. Read the letter to me'.
• I did remember, but only dimly. ^{我的确记得，只是记不太清楚了}

造句：His behavior can only be dimly understood. ^{他的行为很难理解。} 
It is impossible to give a satisfactory explanation for his behavior.

Exploring really deep caves is not a task for the Sunday afternoon rambler.

the + 名词 ^类指

• Horses are useful animals. ^主谓一致
• The horse is a useful animal.
• A horse is a useful animal.

...is not a task for sb. ^{不是某人所能胜任的}

• Studying abroad is not a task for the lazy-bones. ^{出国留学不是懒汉所能胜任的。}
• Being a good husband is not a task for the playboy. ^{做个好老公不是花花公子能胜任的。}

Such undertakings require the precise planning and foresight of military operations.

require the precise planning and foresight of ... ^{需要精确的计划和远见…}

• Speculation in stocks requires the precise planning and foresight of a professional investor.^{炒股需要一个职业投资人的精密计划和远见。}

It can take as long as eight days to rig up rope ladders and to establish supply bases before a descent can be made into a very deep cave.

take ^{v.需要...(时间、人、事物)}

• The wound will take a long time to heal.
• It takes two people to make a quarrel.
• You're an idiot! —It takes one to know one !

Anyone can be passionate, but it takes real lovers to be silly. — Rose Franken

rig up ^{to make sth. quickly out of whatever you can find 草草做成，草草搭起}

• They rigged up a shelter using a sheet and some branches.
• We managed to rig up a shelter for the night. ^{我们匆匆搭了个棚子过夜。}

make a descent = descend ^下降

• ... before pot-holers can descend into a very deep cave. ^{替换为人做主语}

Precautions of this sort are necessary, for it is impossible to foretell the exact nature of the difficulties which will confront the pot-holer.

This sort of precaution is necessary, ... ^{替换（但Precautions习惯用复数）}

precaution ^{n.预防措施（常用复数）}

• fire / safety / security / sanitary precautions ^{防火/安全/保安/卫生预防措施}

confront / face sb. ^{面对某人（摆在面前）}

• She decided to confront him about his lies. ^{她决定直面他对他的谎言。}
• He had to face his boss with the bad news. ^{他不得不面对老板说出坏消息。}

The deepest known cave in the world is the Gouffre Berger near Grenoble.

known ^{adj.已知的、已发现的；知名的，出了名的}

• little-known ^{鲜为人知的}
• unknown ^未知的
• well-known ^{众所周知的}

It extends to a depth of 3,723 feet.

extend to a depth of ... ^深达...

• The platforms extend to a depth of over 100 feet under the sea.

This immense chasm has been formed by an underground stream which has tunneled a course through a flaw in the rocks.

chasm ^{n.深渊，峡谷}

• Chasmal definition is resembling a chasm. ^{峡谷的定义是类似于一个裂口。}
• It is more of a chasm than a gap. ^{但这显然是一个鸿沟而不是什么缺口。}
• So why the growing chasm? ^{差距为什么越来越大？}
• The present gap is really more of a chasm. ^{目前的差距越来越大了。}
• The tourists luxuriated in the beauties of the chasm. ^{游客们尽情地享受这个峡谷的美景。}

tunnel ^{n.隧道，地道 v.开凿隧道，挖地道}

• The thieves tunnelled under all the security devices.  ^{小偷们在所有的那些安全装置下面都挖了地道。}
• He passed down the tunnel. ^{他穿过隧道。}
• The tunnel would be well-ventilated if tall chimneys were built above sea level.

The entrance to the cave is on a plateau in the Dauphine Alps.

plateau ^n.高原

• The Qinghai-Xizang Plateau has long been known as the roof of the world. ^{青藏高原素有世界屋脊之称。}

* The cave might never have been discovered had not the entrance been spotted by the distinguished French pot-holer, Berger.

If + S. + did / were, S. + would / should / could / might + do ^{与现在的事实相反}

• 'Young man,' she answered, 'if you ate more and talked less, we would both enjoy our dinner!'
• The tunnel would be well-ventilated if tall chimneys were built above sea level.

当 were、had ^{做助动词时}、should 放到句首即可倒装并去掉“if” ^{仅用于正式场合的演讲与作文中}

• If I were you, I would go abroad at once. →  Were I you, I would go abroad at once. 
• If you had come here a little earlier just now, you might have met her. → Had you come here a little earlier just now, you might have met her.
• If it should rain tomorrow, you could stay at home. →  Should it rain tomorrow, you could stay at home.
• If the sun were to rise in the west, I would lend you the money. →  Were the sun to rise in the west, I would lend you the money.

Since its discovery, it has become a sort of potholers' Everest.

a sort / kind of ... ^{好像是...、貌似...}

• We sometimes imagine a desert island to be a sort of paradise where the sun always shines.
• In spite of this, the Italians regarded him as a sort of hero.

Since its discovery, it has become, as it were, the pot-holer's Everest. ^替换
Since its discovery, it has become, so to speak, the pot-holer's Everest.

Though a number of descents have been made, much of it still remains to be explored.

remain to be done ^有待于..

• Several problems remain to be settled.
• It remains to be seen how many senior citizens will actually benefit from this new plan.

A team of pot-holers recently went down the Gouffre Berger.

A team of  ^一支团队

• It was the last day of the year and a large crowd of people had gathered under the Town Hall clock.
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored.
• Armed with the new machine, a search party went into the cave hoping to find buried treasure.

After entering the narrow gap on the plateau, they climbed down the steep sides of the cave until they came to narrow corridor.

narrow ^{adj. 狭窄的，狭小的}

• the narrow gap ^{狭窄的缝隙}
• the narrow corridor ^{狭窄的通道、走廊}
• The curriculum was too narrow and too rigid. ^{课程设置过于狭窄和死板。}

They had to edge their way along this, sometimes wading across shallow streams, or swimming across deep pools.

edge one's way ^{侧着身子走}

• He edged his way through the crowded room. ^{他小心翼翼地挤过拥挤的房间。}

动词 + one's way

Suddenly they came to a waterfall which dropped into an underground lake at the bottom of the cave.

Suddenly they came to a waterfall and the waterfall dropped into an underground lake at the bottom of the cave. ^{翻译、理解时按“啰嗦”的并列处理}

They plunged into the lake, and after loading their gear on an inflatable rubber dinghy, let the current carry them to the other side.

plunge into ... ^{“扑通”一声纵身跃入水中}

• The order to abandon ship was given and hundreds of people plunged into the icy water.

To protect themselves from the icy water, they had to wear special rubber suits.

To navigate through the dense jungle, they had to rely on machetes to clear a path. ^{为了在茂密的丛林中穿行，他们不得不依靠砍刀开路。}

At the far end of the lake, they came to huge piles of rubble which had been washed up by the water.

rubble ^{n.瓦砾，碎石(不可数)}

• Brick rubble is useful as the base for paths and patios.  ^{碎砖可用作道路和天井的基石。}
• The bomb reduced the houses to rubble. ^{炸弹把那片房子炸成了一堆瓦砾。}

washed up ^被冲上岸

• Thousands of herring and crab are washed up on the beaches during every storm.  ^{成千上万的鲱鱼和螃蟹每逢暴风雨都会被冲上岸。}

In this part of the cave, they could hear an insistent booming sound which they found was caused by a small waterspout shooting down into a pool from the roof of the cave.

双重定语从句 ^{（嵌入式定语从句）}

• She has an adopted son who she says is an orphan. ^{她有一个养子，这个养子据她讲是个孤儿。}
• Aleko suddenly acquired a new lamb which he claimed was bought. ^{Aleko突然得到了一只新的羊羔，这只羊羔他声称是买来的。}

Squeezing through a cleft in the rocks, the pot-holers arrived at an enormous cavern, the size of a huge concert hall.

the size of ^{相当于…的面积} 

• The new planet is about ten times the size of the earth. ^{这个新发现的行星大约是地球大小的10倍。}
• The largest asteroid is Ceres, which is about a quarter the size of the moon. ^{最大的小行星是谷神星，其体积大约是月球的四分之一。}

After switching on powerful arc lights, they saw great stalagmites — some of them over forty feet high —  rising up like tree-trunks to meet the stalactites suspended from the roof.

... — some of them being over forty feet high — ...

造句：After switching on the light, I saw sparkling diamonds —some of them as big as marbles— contained in a small black box.^{在打开灯之后，我看到在一个小 黑盒子里面装着闪闪发光的钻石，其中有些有玻璃球那么大。}

Round about, piles of limestone glistened in all the colours of the rainbow.

glisten in ^{闪耀在...里}

• Dewdrops glisten in the morning sun.^{露珠在晨光下闪闪发光。}

In the eerie silence of the cavern, the only sound that could be heard was made by water which dripped continuously from the high dome above them.

造句：In the eerie silence of the house, the only sound that could be heard was made by wind which blew continuously from a broken window.^{在这栋房子可怕的寂静中，唯一 能听到的声音就是从一扇打碎的窗子不断吹进的风声。}