Unit 8 高级英语

Unit 8An Interactive LifeHistory of NewsweekSynopsisHistory: Founded by Thomas J.C. Martyn, a form er foreign editor at Tim e magazine, Newsweek was first published on Feb. 17, 1933. That issue, called “News-Week,” featured seven photographs from the w eek‟s news on the cover. It cost 10 cents a copy, $4 for a year, and had a circulation of 50,000. Newsweek was bought by The Washington Post Company in 1961. Today, Newsweek has a worldwide circulation of more than 4 million and a total readership of m ore than 21 million. The advertising rate base for the United States is 3.1 million.Newsweek holds more prestigious National Magazine Awards, given by the Am erican Society of Magazine Editors (ASME), than any other newsweekly. Content: Newsweek offers com prehensive coverage of world events with a global network of correspondents, reporters and editors covering national and international affairs, business, science and technology, society and arts and entertainment. Newsweek also features respected commentators such as Jonathan Alter, Ellis Cose, Jane Bryant Quinn, Robert J. Sam uelson, Allan Sloan, Anna Quindlen, Stuart Taylor Jr. and George Will. Award-winning critics David Ansen and Peter Plagens review films and art. on MSNBC offers the weekly magazine online, daily news updates, Web-only colum ns from Newsweek‟s top writers, photo galleries and archives.NY Staff: Newsweek‟s editorial staff, based in New York, is made up of senior editors and writers and general, associate and assistant editors. The editorial staff also includes head researchers, research-reporters, librarians, graphic artists, photographers and support technicians.Bureaus: Newsweek‟s eight dom estic bureaus are located in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. Its eight overseas bureaus are in Beijing, Cape Town, Jerusalem, London, Mexico City, Moscow, Paris and Tokyo.Sections: Newsweek covers a wide range of topics in National and International Affairs, Business, Science & Technology, Medicine, Family and Arts & Entertainment. Additional coverage is provided through “The Tip Sheet,” a how-to newsletter for consum ers covering topical subjects, such as health, m oney and fashion. Regular weekly pages are Periscope, My Turn, Conventiona l Wisdom Watch, Perspectives and Newsmakers. My Turn is the only newsweekly column written by readers. Approximately 4,000 letters to the editor are received each m onth.Newsweek Inc. also publishes Newsweek International in three English-language editions - Atlantic, Asia, Latin Am erica - and is part of The Bulletin With Newsweek in Australia, with a com bined circulation of 751,000. Newsweek appears each week in m ore than 190 countries around the world. It is the only newsm agazine with weekly foreign-language editions - in Japanese (since 1986), Korean (since …91) and Spanish (since …96). On June 6, 2000, Newsweek International launched NewsweekIn Arabic (Newsweek Bil Logha Al-Arabia), and later in 2000, Newsweek Polska was published and is distributed throughout Poland.In 1993, Newsweek produced a CD-ROM sold quarterly by subscription and at retail outlets-the first such electronic publishing venture by a major magazine. In 1994, Newsweek went online on Prodigy and in 1996 moved to Am erica Online. In Oct. 1998, was launched on the World Wide Web. On June 19, 2000, the site entered into a joint venture with to becom e . Newsweek is also a strategic partner to NBC; the two produce joint investigations and other material for broadcast and print.1.Explain what an interactive life is.(a life which act reciprocally)Interaction is the collaborative exchange of thoughts, feelings, or ideas between two or more people resulting in a reciprocal effect on each other.2.Ten years have passed since the article was published. Do you think the world has been put atour fingertips yet? why or why not?3.Even if we can put the whole world at out fingertips, what are some of the negative effectswhich bear on it?Discussion on the overall structure of the text:P 1-2: IntroductionP3-10: InteractivityP11-15: ConvergenceP16-18: Dark sidesP19: ConclusionDetailed Study of the T ext1. an interactive life: a life which acts reciprocally2. put the world at your fingertips: to become familiar with the world by using the tips of your fingers on computers; fingertip here has both a literal and a figurative meaning, literally it means the tip of the finger on the computer while figuratively it means to be familiar with as in the phrase "have at one's fingertips".3. To get an idea . . . the past: In order to form a view of what will happen in the future, you need only to have a look at what happened in the past.4. In the decades . . . dramatically: In the tens of years covered by the machines on exhibition, the idea and purpose of sound recording experienced great changes.5. Edison …communicate: Edison designed and developed his sound recording machine as a working tool for people to talk to each other over long distance.6. He intended ... more: His only intention in inventing the machine was the recording of voices.7. His competitors . . . and art; His business rivals saw in their minds that there was great possibility of using the machine for entertainment and art.1) envision: picture in the mind2) potential: future possibility3) entertainment: amusement8. Where he saw …Beethoven: He imagined that the machine could record informal communication between departments in a company but other people thought it could be used to record music.9. Someday …interactivity; At some future time it will be quite suitable to have a place like the Edison National Historical Site in memory of those who make the important advance recently in interactivity although it has not been able to do all the things the creators promised.10. With so much ... to the hype: Since large sums of money have been spent on an idea which is mainly in the planning stage, since great hopes have been put on such an idea, there certainly is a lot of exaggerated public ity.1) on the drawing board: in the planning stage2) hype: loud, exaggerated promotion or publicity11. Simply put . . . Broadway1) simply put: to express in a way that is easy to understand2) a huge amount ... of a button; if you press a button, you will be able to get a large amount of information over a wide range of topics3) esoteric scientific journal; magazines on science written in such a way as to be understood only by a few who know the subject12. At various points... "Terminator XII" : At different places, you can turn on the device for other possible development of the story and offer your own variation.13. Say you shoot ... a fee for watching: For example, you film a video which you think has special artistic pretensions. Send out the video and ask those who have watched it to pay a fee. In this way you can make quite a sum of money.14. Peter Jennings would be obsolete: There is no longer any need for news anchorman because anyone can record news with a video-camera and put it on the universal network for everybody else to see.15. On the receiving end ... stream of data1) on the receiving end: for those who are the viewers2) the era of the no-brainer: the period of no need to bother about the selection of programmes3) to be programmed: to furnish the computer with a planned sequence of operations to be performed16. Sounds great …actually work: In theory the whole idea seems wonderful but even for those who firmly believe in this, it is difficult to work out the details of how it will actually function.1) come to: concern2) nailing down: making sure, settling3) specifics: details17. How will we negotiate ... to sleep?1) negotiate: succeed in crossing, surmounting, moving through2) mass: a large quantity or number3) How shall we handle and manage such a large quantity of data and still have time to sleep?18. Will government ... highway?: Will government formulate regulations to control and govern the kind and number of communications sent out over the numerous channels?1) data highway: the authors are comparing the transmission in the air to a busy highway and information, data travels a-long the highway. This is a vivid metaphor.19. And, frankly, …anyway?1) This is no longer a question on specifics. It inquires into the usefulness and ultimate purpose of such an idea.2) what for: why20. The quick answer . . . Portala V alley, Calif.1) quick: prompt2) we're a long way from 'Wild Palms' : there is still great distance before we can reach the stage as depicted in the TV series 'Wild Palms'21. But even if ... within a year or two1) techno-chaos: technological disorder or confusion2) futuristic fantasy: highly imaginative TV series, with stress on the speed, flux and violence of the machine age3) The futuristic fantasy mini-series refer to 'Wild Palms' .22. Instead of ... on the TV: If, you want to see a film, you don't need to rent a tape and play it on your VCR. Instead, you may pick one from the catalog shown on the TV and phone the library to have it beamed to you.23. Game fanatics…, shoot-'em-ups: Those who are obssessed in video games may do it in the same way by contacting another electronic library which has a large number of video tapes recording the actual shootings and killings seen in video game shops.1) realistic: 真人真事2) arcade：连拱廊商店 a roofed passageway esp. one with shops on either side; here it refers to an amusement center having coin-operated games; a video arcade3) shoot-' em" up: a movie or television show featuring much physical violence, esp. shooting and killing24. Instead of flipping through ... latest gear: Those who want to do shopping at home do not needto look through catalogs published by garment companies. They may watch video catalogs with women displaying front and rear views of the newest fashion of clothing -25. Some cable companies . . . sporting events1) cable companies: 有线电视公司2) select camera angles for sporting events: choose how one would like to watch the ball games or other athletic competitions26. Why does Caruso call this "fake interactive"?It is not considered genuine interactivity because it is not revolutionary enough and is just one step beyond passive viewing. It is still the traditional form of sitting on the couch watching.27. To some degree ... Network: To a certain extent, viewers have already accepted quite a bit of false interactivity, such as using their remote control devices to quickly choose a suitable program, ordering film which you will pay for seeing it and doing shopping at home with credit cards so frequently that the bills accumulate.28. Moving beyond . . . infrastructure: Getting over the first stage and moving into what Caruso terms as "real interactive", people need to bring about great changes in the basic structure on which technology and regulation rest.technological and regulatory infrastructure: 技术和管理基础设施29. fibre-optic cable: 光纤电缆30. Either a government . . . each other1) to set a performance standard: to lay down norms for operation31. At home . . . created programs1) TV monitor： a TV receiver2) computer screen fronting: 计算机屏幕表面3) a hard disc: 硬盘32. The shows . . . titles: Future programs may be the technological descendants of today's CD-ROM discs.1) CD-ROM: Compact Discs with Read-Only-Memory 光盘只读存储器2) title: discs of movies or TV programs 视盘33. titles produced ... on another: discs produced in one specified form can only be played on machines designed for such discs34. CD-ROMs do provide . . . hold，however: In spite of that, CD-ROMs still give you a chance to have a brief look at what will be in store for us in the future.1) glimpse: a brief look2) hold: to be in store35. A number of companies . . . still photographs1) developing multimedia products: bringing into being products involving the use of several media2) still photographs: static photographs 静止图像36. Philips Interactive . . . adventure game1) in which the viewer ... on the screen: the viewer may decide on which part on, the museum to visit and turn on the television2) an animated adventure game; an exciting experience filled with activity and vigor37. Many investors . . . market; Many investors are confident that amusement will be the most profitable market for interactive products38. But some industry ... to businesses1) two parallel home markets: two home markets running side by side but not crossing each other2) cater to: to take account of and provide with what is necessary3) leisure activities: entertainment4) But some industry people following the market trend say that in the future there will be two markets at home developing side by side, one serving the needs for entertainment, the other providing what is needed by businesses.39. Hawkins says ... on a small screen1) work-at-home market: those people who stay at home to do their work and have their computers linked with the office terminals2) outlet: market3) teleconferencing devices: equipments used for holding a conference of individuals in different locations, as by speaker-phone, closed circuit TV, etc.4) portable computing devices:equipments used for calculation which can be easily carried around5) touted: recommended highly6) runs on a handwritten . . . screen: operates on instructionswritten by hand on a small screen in a casual way40. If all this …"complete viewer control."1) come to pass: come about or happen2) still a very big if: so far, it is still not certain that this will be realized3) could: denoting possibility41. She says …information servicesWhy does she compare consumers to cowboys? In what way are they similar?-The cowboys round up cattle while the consumers round up data.42. There will be ... networks1) there will be thousands of "channels" delivered: information will be provided through numerous bands of frequencies2) cellular 蜂窝电话43. To prevent getting trampled . . . the viewer wants1) The authors here continue to follow the metaphor of "cow-boy". Hence words like trample, stampede, corral, rope in.2) trample: crush, destroy by or as by treading heavily on3) stampede: a sudden, headlong running away of a group of frightened animals, esp. horses or cattle4) info: information5) corral: an enclosure for holding horses, cattle or other animals; pen6) rope in: to enclose (animals) with ropes7) To avoid being overwhelmed by a large amount of in-coming data, the viewer will depend on an electronic device with coded instructions to choose from the mass of information the kind of things he needs.44. Caruso's "final frontier" . . . and data1) final frontier: the last new field of learning beyond which there is no more unexplored field2) telephony: the science of telephonic transmission3) two-way: used for both transmission and reception45．At the very least ... phone calls; At any rate, it would probably make impossible phone calls to women in indecent, offensive language by people who would not disclose their names or identities because you would be able to see the images.46. "Interactivity" ... close second: "Interactivity" for the time being may be the most used word which has little meaning but sounds impressive to outsiders while "convergence" follows "interactivity" closely in the second place in frequency. convergence: act or condition of moving towards the same place, result47. To the moneymen . . . clean up: To the business people, itmeans that everything will move toward the same place and : . they will make a lot of profit.1) clean up: to make much money or profit48. To scientists . . . become reality: To scientists, it means that technology has developed to sucha stage that what was considered as wild notion can now be realized and become a fact.49. Nicholas Negroponte .. . his proposal1) director of MIT's Media Lab: 麻省理工学院媒介实验室主任2) a leading think tank: one of the principal research centers for offering proposals on current issues to official agencies3) think tank: a group or institution organized for intensive research and problem-solving, esp. in the area of technology or political strategy 思想库4) in this new worlds in the new research field of new medium50. Now, politic ians, . . . the new medium: At present, politicians starting from President Clinton all the way down to lower-level officials are eager and willing to state that they are for the new medium fall over oneself: to be eager and willing (to do something)51. These dreams . .. data transmittal1) to make leaps：to make big advances2) data transmittal：the sending out of information52. Today a chip . . . per transistor; Today an integrated circuit can hold as much information as 4 million transistors but the cost is only one tenth of a cent per transistor.53. these electronic highways have become clogged: the wires, cables or air can no longer carry the increased number of signals become cloggged: become stopped up, become jammed54. Both of these ... the simplest form1) both of these developments: referring to developments in the capacity of silicon chip and in transmission2) digitalization: the turning of data into a numerical description expressed in digits 数字编码55. Called binary formatting ... 1 and 0: The system is a number system with each number being expressed by an arrangement of two numerals: 1 and 0. It turns every number or letter into a code using only 1 and 0.56. Originally, this code ... fibre-optic cables1) this code was stored as on-or-off electrical charges: this signal was kept in a computer memory unit as electrical energy which can be sent out or stopped2) pulses of light: light waves57. Bringing high-speed . . . can be digitized: By linking high-speed computers with the complete fibre-optic cable system, people will be able to turn very complicated information into a code using only 1 and 0.58. unimedia: a single media59. bit: a single digit in a binary number system60. At the Media Lab, . . . with the futureto experiment with the future: to conduct experiments in order to invent devices for future use61. artificial intelligence: 人工智能62. to build some working "intelligent agents": to produce some artificial devices which can solveproblems, direct conduct by reasoning and which can function properly63. In one program, . . . marching order: In one of the coded instructions for operations performed by a computer, Maes has created four "images" on the computer screen representing different artificial persons, each programmed with a set of concrete instructions.64. Although the agents . . . preferences: Although these artificialintelligent persons are only given coded instructions for the first : time, they come to know a lot by watching what their masters are interested in.65. Imagme the conversation: . . . for you! : Try to think what the conversation would be like: " I have got a user who will suit you fine!66. Maes and others . . . dreams1) concede: admit as valid; acknowledge2) a dark side: disadvantage；bad effect67．"Who will protect . . . data bank?1) privacy: one's private life or personal affairs2) viewing habit: what one likes to watch .3) ... are all fed into one cable-phone company data bank: are all put steadily into a data bank of a company through the cable-phone4) data bank: a large collection of data in a computer, organized so that it can be expanded, updated and retrieved rapidly for various use 数据库68. And where . .. butlers?1) where: in whatever place, situation, or respect in which2) can counteragents be far behind: This is an imitation of British poet Shelly's "Ode to the West Wind" in which the last line runs "If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?"3) keep tabs on: to keep check on; follow or watch every move of4) electronic butler: the headservant of a household who is an artificial intelligence device69. presentation: (articles, publication) for consideration70. Indeed ... of information: Certainly these electronic devices are a source of valuable information71. Advertisers . . . tap into it: Advertisers are not the only people who could wrongly exploit and benefit from the network so long as they were able to make a secret connection with the network.72. If the tolls . . . and unplugged1) toll: a charge for service or extra service2) have: a person or nation with relatively much wealth or rich resources3) have-not: a person or nation with little or no wealth or resources4) vs: standing for versus, meaning in contrast with5) the wired: those who have access to the network6) the unplugged: those who cannot afford to use the information highway7) Why may interactivity widen the gap? Because those who have access to the information may have better opportunities since information and the speed of acquiring information are decisive in today's competition.73. call for: demand, require74. levy a fee for services used: impose and collect certain amount of money for using the facilities75. the new technology - - - effect: the new technology may in the end have the effect of making society more democratic76. It' s a shift .. . populism: It' s a change from monopoly of information by a small group of the rich and privileged to a situation in which information is shared by all.77. In the next few years . . . viewer-directed movies: In the next few years there may be quite a lot of discussion over whether it is good or bad, whether it should be allowed to have display of actual violence in the new stage of video games, including movies planned and controlled by viewers.78. It' s one thing , . . from a human1) it's one thing - - - (it's) quite another: this is a useful pattern, denoting contrast ... 是一回事，…则是另一回事2) To kill a cartoon man quickly in video game shops is entirely different from seeing the killing of a genuine human by turning on the television.79. At this point …speculation: At the present stage, a lot of thins are still guesswork.80. while the big players…predictions: while the big gamblers and main designers produce statements81. In that case…for the ride：It that is the situation, the best thing to do is to join in passively waiting for future changes.III.1．理论上听起来奸极了，但一旦具体到它究竟如何运作时，就连最真减的信奉者也感到为难。