Unit Six The Pace of LifeText A

Old Father Time Becomes A Terror

Text Organization Parts Paragraphs Main ideas

1 Paras 1-11 There are three reasons why we feel so time-pressed.

2 Paras 12-18 Not all people feel so time-impressed.

3 Paras 19-23 There are three different reactions to time famine.

4 Paras 24-28 The author points out the crux of the problem and puts forward a prescription for the stress people feel.

Background Information

1. Richard Tomkins:

consumer industries editor

of the Financial Times, where

he has been a member of the

editorial staff since 1983. He is currently based at the company's London headquarters, where he leads a team of journalists covering the consumer goods sector and writes about consumer trends.

2. Stress in the WorkplaceIt seems that more and more the

most common complaint from the American worker is that he or she is under a large amount of work related stress. This is no surprise as surveys show that companies expect each worker to do more with less and work longer doing it!

Do you feel time-pressed/time-stressed?– With our fast paced world everyone wants

something done instantly. We eat fast food restaurants, we often stop at corner convenience stores, we carry beepers and cellular phones to stay in touch, we ship overnight, we all have deadlines and everyone is always in a rush…

Is stress good for a person or not ?– A certain amount of stress is good for a

person and builds character, extended stress has not only causes health problems but reduced work performance in an individual.

New Words Study

Vocabulary:

bewilder, convention, multiply, burden, fraction, minute, prosperity, abundance

Phrase:

set about, eat into, amount to

1. cope (prologue)deal successfully (with sb. / sth. difficult ) 对付 cope with

有效地 , 成功地对付或应付 deal with

采取行动去对付 , 并不考虑能否成功E.g. 1) Health psychologists study how people

cope with stress.

2) People who attempt suicide usually suffer

from extreme emotional distress and feel

unable to cope with their problems.

2. set about: (prologue)begin (a task); start (doing sth.) 开Phrases: set about sth/doing sth set out to do sthE.g. 1) The school authorities must set

about finding solutions to the campus security problems. 2) My mom and I set about clearing up after the guests left.

3. bewilder (line 5) puzzle; confuse 使困惑，使糊涂（这个词在强

调困惑的同时也强调极端的思想上的迷惑）Collocation:

find sth. bewildering 发现某事很为难 in bewilderment 迷惑地Word family: bewilderment n. 迷惑 bewildering adj. 令人困惑的 E.g. Big city traffic bewilders me.

大城市的交通使我晕头转向。

4. eat into (line 6)gradually reduce the amount of (sth.

valuable); damage or destroy 吞噬；侵蚀；毁坏

E.g. 1) All these car expenses are eating into our savings.

2)Responsibilities at home and work eat into his time.

Phrases: eat away 侵蚀 , 消耗 eat out 在外面吃饭 eat up 吃完，用完，对…感兴趣 eat one’s words 承认说错了话

5. multiply (line 21)increase in number or quantity; add a number to

itself a particular number of times 增加，乘E.g. page 207, 3 你应该记住，电冰箱不能够杀灭细菌，它只能降低细菌

繁殖的速度 .1 ）搭配： multiply one’s chances of success 增加个人的成功机会 multiply A by B 用 B 乘 A2 ）比较： increase, multiply ( 增加 ) increase 指数字、范围、规模、数量等方面逐步增长 multiply 乘，还有“大幅度增加”的意思3) 除 : divide vt. division n. 除法 乘 : multiply vt. multiplication 乘法　 add, addition; subtract, subtraction

6. burden (line 24)heavy load 负担，重负Phrase: be burdened with 为…所累 / 烦比较 : load: 指船上或车上的负荷 burden: 指生物所负的重担E.g. 1)Many pupils find homework a burden.

2) Some farmers are complaining about the heavy burden of taxation.

7. fraction (line 31)small part, bit, amount or proportion (of sth.) 小部

分，一点儿，少许E.g. Only a small fraction of the population lived in

that remote area.搭配： a fraction of 一小部分… in a fraction of a second 眨眼间【典型考题】 She is careful with her money , and

spends only a _______of her earnings . A. fragment B. section C. fragrant D. fraction 【解析】 fraction 微不足道的一部分，小部分；

fragment 指说话、文章中的一部分；碎片，断片，片段； section 指整体的组成部分； fragrant 香的，芬芳的

8. amount to (line 41) add up to, be equal to 总计 , 相当于Phrases: amount to (doing) sth 等于 , 相当于E.g. 1) What you say amounts to a direct

accusation.

你所说的话等于直接的指责。 2) His words amount to a refusal.

他说的话等于是拒绝。 3) His debts amount to 5,000 pounds.

他的债务共达五千镑。

9. minute (line 41)adj. very small in size or amount 极小的，极

少的Phrases: in a minute 马上，稍等片刻 the minute (that) 一…就 , 等于 to the minute 准时地E.g. 1) Only a minute amount of money is

needed.

2)Studies show that water contains minute quantities of lead( 铅 ).

10. prosperity (line 43)state of being economically successful; state of

being successful or rich 繁荣；成功，富足1. Collocation: live in prosperity 过着富足的生活 2. word family: prosper v. 繁荣，昌盛，成功 prosperous adj. 繁荣的E.g. page 208, 5

自 13 世纪来 , 这个城镇一直生产羊毛、布匹和地毯 , 它今天的许多繁荣兴旺仍然建立在这些工业的基础上 .

E.g. In prosperity our friends know us; in adversity we know our friends.

顺境中，朋友结识了我们 ; 逆境中 , 我们认识了朋友 .

11. abundance (line 46)quantity that is more than enough; plenty

丰富，充裕 Word family: abundant adj 丰富的 , 富于 abundantly adv. 充分地Phrases: in abundance 大量，丰富 an abundance of 充裕 , 富足 abundant in sth. 富于…E.g. Most milk consists of an abundance of the

major nutrients needed by the body for good health.

　　绝大多数牛奶含大量人体所需的主要营养 .

Part One (Paras 1—11 )

Main idea: The author thinks there are three reasons why we feel so time-pressed.

Content Questions

1. What are the reasons why people feel so time-pressed?

2. Where can people get news, facts and opinions today?

Difficult Sentences Analysis1. The aircraft promised new horizons, too.

The trouble is, it delivered them. (L 11) 1) What does the word “trouble” imply?

– “trouble” implies the unfavorable effect of the invention of aircraft.

2) What does the words “deliver” mean and what does “them” refer to here?– “deliver” means to provide or to bring. “ them”

here refers to “horizon”.

[翻译 ]飞机也曾有可能为我们拓展新天地。问题是，飞机提供了新天地。

2. It’s very existence created a demand for time-consuming journeys…, or the trip to a convention on the other side of the world. (L 12)

1) very: exact 可以表示强调 e.g. This is the very book I want!2) “time-consuming” 动宾结构 (verb-object type) e.g. self-defeating(战胜自己 ) record-breaking(打破记录 ) breathtaking(惊人的 )[翻译 ]其存在本身产生了对耗时的长途旅行的需求，

这种旅行，如越洋购物，或远道前往地球的另一半参加会议，以前我们是根本无法想象的。

3. In the home, washing machines promised to free women from having to toil over the laundry.(L17)

1) promise to: 保证，一定2) free sb from: 解除负担、义务或限制3) toil over = toil on :艰苦地工作[翻译 ] 在家里，洗衣机可望使妇女摆脱繁

重的洗衣劳作。

4. Meanwhile, technology has not only allowed work to spread into our leisure time…e-mails and voicemails.(L22)

1) not only…, but… 不仅…，而且…2) laptop-on-the-beach: 短语形容词e.g. a face-to-face interview 　面对面的面试　　 a novice-teacher’s mistake　　一个见习老师犯的错误　　 a told-you-so air　　一种”我不是给你说过吗”的神情　　 a by-now-familiar excuse　　一个现在为大家所熟悉的借口 [翻译 ] 与此同时，技术发展不但听任工作侵入我们

的闲暇时间——如海滩手提电脑综合症——而且还添加了收发传真，电子邮件和语音邮件这些新的负担。

5. Technology apart, the Internet points the way to a second reason why we feel so time-pressed: the information explosion.(L27)

1) … apart: 除了…以外 (包括在内 ) 同义结构 : besides, in addition to, etc.* Practice of the Structure: (exercise, P213)2) time-pressed: 时间紧迫的 (名词 +ed 分

词 ) e.g. heartbroken 悲伤的 weather-beaten饱经风霜的，风雨侵蚀

的[翻译 ] 发展，因特网指出了我们为何感到时间如此紧迫的第二个原因：信息爆炸。

6. “In the whole world of scholarship, there were only a handful of scientific journals in the 18th century, …comparative zoology. (L36)

1) a handful of: 一小部分的 类似结构： mouthful, fistful( 一把 ), spoonful …2) the publication of a book: of表示动宾关系 (=to publish a book) e.g. the occupation of the city (=to occupy a

city)3) event: a significant occurrence or happening 大事[翻译 ] “ 在 18 世纪，整个国际学术界总共只有屈指可数的几家科学刊物，出版一本书是件了不起的大事，”哈佛大学比较动物学博物馆昆虫馆名誉馆长爱德华 .威尔逊说。

Supporting Facts(P204.2)1) The motorcar causes more traffic problems than it promises to solve.

2) The aircraft creates a high demand for time- consuming journeys that we never dreamed of.

3) The washing machine, contrary to our expectations, multiplies the hours spent on washing and ironing.

4) Instead of making our lives easier, technology goes so far as to cram extra work into our leisure time.

5) Technology produces the new burden of dealing with faxes, e-mails and voicemails.

6) Technology eats further into our time by forcing us to handle software glitches on computers and filling our heads with useless information from internet.

Assignments1. Review the words we learnt today

and try to make sentences with the key words.

2. Preview the new words and read the rest of the text.

3. Write the accurate meaning of the following useful expressions according to the part I of text A.

Write the accurate meaning of the following useful expressions according to the part I of text A.

1. 生活节奏2. 忙忙碌碌3. 着手解决4. 提出建议5. 休闲娱乐6. 吞噬我们的光阴7. 交通堵塞8. 耗时的长途旅行9. 个人穿着打扮10. 侵入到，传播到

11. the information explosion

12. a tiny fraction of

13. pour in

14. the whole world of scholarship

15. a handful of scientific journals

16. honorary curator

17. the expanding frontiers of scholarship

18. rising prosperity

19. be driven on

20. struggle to keep up

Content QuestionsReasons:

–①Technology–②information explosion –③rising prosperity

Transitional sentences: Para. 5, 7, 11

back

Content Questions

Para. 9People now got information from 150

television channels, Internet sites, magazines, books and CD-ROM.

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Unit Six The Pace of LifeUnit Six The Pace of Life

Text A

Old Father Time Becomes A Terror

Words and Phrases to Drill

bewilder expedition multiply

burden syndrome fraction

journal publication comparative

frontier prosperity oblige

confusion abundance forecast

on the go amount to eat into

quantities of set about doing

pour in a handful of

Part Two (Paras12-18)

Main Idea: Not everyone is time-stressed, and in the case of Americans they have actually gained more free time in the past decade.

New Words Study

forecast, perception,

nurture, offspring,

appliance, distribution

forecast (line 56)

tell in advance; predict 预报，预测 fore + n. 前… : forearm 前臂 fore + v. 预… : foretell 预言【典型考题】 I usually listen to the

weather_______, though I have little faith in it.

A. broadcast B. prediction

C. forecast D. announcementforecast 指对未来事件的预测，这种预测建立在

某中知识或判断上； broadcast广播，播音 ； prediction 预言，预示 announcement 通告，包括告诉要发生的事或已发生的事

perception (line 67)n. way of seeing or understanding sth.; ability to

notice and understand things看法，观念；感知，感觉

perceive v. 察觉 ---perception n. 察觉力receive v. 接待 ---reception n. 接待处 [v] …ceive: deceive, receive, perceive, conceive… [n]…ception: deception, reception, perception, conception…1) perception of beauty and ugliness2) Our teachers also taught us how to increase

the powers of perception.

nurture ( line 76)

vt. care for and educate (a child); encourage the growth of (sth.); nourish 养育；培养；滋养

Words family: – nurse护士 ,保姆 --- nurture v./ n. 养育 , 营养– nourish v. 养育 ,喂养– nutrition n. 营养，营养学

1) Parents want to know the best way to nurture their child to adulthood.

2) The local government has taken measures to nurture the state-run factories.

offspring (line 76)

n. child or children of a particular person or couple子孙，后代（总称）

E.g. The old man has ______.

　　 A. an offspring B. two offsprings 　　 C. several offspring D. the offsprings【试题解析】 offspring 子孙后代，其复数形式不变，

仍为 offspring ，且不与 an 搭配E.g. 1) How do parents pass genes on to their

offspring? 2) The atom bomb is the offspring of the

20th century physics.

appliance (line 79)

instrument or device for a specific purpose用具，器皿

E.g. page 207, 1.你可以通过贷款购买基本的家用器具 , 比如炊具

和加热器具 . apply ①应用 : appliance 用具 ,器械 , applicable适用的 ,

application 应用 ,实施 ②申请 : applicant申请人 , application申请 ( 表 )

distribution: (line 81)the act of giving things to a large group of

people or delivering goods to companies分布，分配

E.g. page 208, 10.

尽管官方数据具有一定的局限性 ,但是它们对于收入的分布状况的大体趋势的确提供了一些暗示 .

[注意 ] contribution 贡献 ,奉献 attribution 归因，归属；品质 ,属性 distribution 分配 , 分发

Difficult sentences analysis

1. “It is a convenient shorthand to say we’re all time-starved, but we have to remember that it only applies to, say, half the population,” says Michael Willmott, director of the Future Foundation, a London research company. (L48)

2. Those who gained the least—less than an hour—were working couples with pre-school children, perhaps reflecting the trend for parents to spend more time nurturing their offspring. (L74)

1. “It is a convenient shorthand to say we’re all time-starved, but we have to remember that it only applies to, say, half the population,” says Michael Willmott, director of the Future Foundation, a London research company. (L48)

1) “It” 为形式主语，真实主语为“ to say we …” 2) shorthand: 简略的表达方法 3) apply to: 适用于 4) “say” 在句中为插入语 (parenthetical

expression) 见 Usage(P212) “ 说我们都缺少时间只是随意讲讲，我们应该记

住，这种说法大约只适用于一半人，”伦敦一家研究公司的未来基金会主任迈克尔 .威尔莫特说。

2. Those who gained the least—less than an hour—were working couples with pre-school children, perhaps reflecting the trend for parents to spend more time nurturing their offspring. (L74)

1) “reflecting the trend for parents …” 是修饰说明其前面的部分，也可以理解成：“ which reflects the trend for parents …”

2) spend time (in) doing sth: 花多少时间做某事

得益最少的—增加了不足一个小时—是有学前子女的双职工夫妇， 这或许反映了父母在抚养孩子方面花费更多时间这一倾向。

Comprehensive questions

Turn to page 203, find out the answers to questions 7 to 9 according to text A with your partner in class.

Keys

P.203. Content QuestionsP.203. Content Questions7. Is every one time-starved today? What

percentage of the population is suffering under the stresses and strains of life today?

----Not everybody is time-starved. 50% of the population is suffering…

8. What is stress envy, as conceived by Paul Edwards?

---- If you’re not stressed, you’re not succeeding. Everyone wants to have a little bit of this stress to show they’re an important person.

9. How much free time has the average American gained since the mid-1960s? How are the gains distributed between the sexes?

---They had gained five hours a week in free time. There are appalling inequalities in the distribution between the sexes.

Assignments

1. Review what we’ve learned after class.

2. Do the left exercises of unit six on your own.