听写练习AmericanandBritishEnglish.doc

American and British EnglishLanguage experts say that spoken English was almost the same in the American colonies and Britain. Americans began to change the sound of their speech after the Revolutionary War in 1776. They wanted to separate themselves from the British in language as they had separated themselves from the British government.Webster published The American Dictionary of the English Language in 1828. It established rules for speaking and spelling the words used in American English.The different languages of the immigrants who came to the United States also helped make American English different from British English. Many foreign words and expressions became part of English as Americans speak it.Sometimes Americans and British people do not understand each other because of different word meanings. For example, a “wastebasket” in America is a “dustbin” in Britain. French fried potatoes in the United States are called “chips” in Britain. All these differences led British writer George Bernard Shaw to joke that Britain and America are two countries separated by the same language.American wedding customsWedding days are often considered the most important day of many peoples lives. For this reason alone, throughout the past and into modern day, numerous customs and superstitions have developed around the wedding event, in hopes of creating The Perfect Day!A very common custom still honored today is in reference to a time-old saying, Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, and a silver sixpence inside your shoe. So old is this that tracing it back to its origination is nearly impossible. The old is believed to be the friends and family attending the wedding. The new is represented by the couple themselves, as a new union. The borrowed is something from the families that is to be returned. Something blue is interpreted to represent the brides virginity. The sixpence can be any form of money, tucked into the brides shoe, this to bring wealth to the union, both in monetary means and love.An Old SayingToday we explain a very old saying that has had a big influence on rock-and-roll music. That saying is a rolling stone gathers no moss. It has several meanings. One meaning is that a person who never settles down in one place will not be successful. Another is that someone who is always moving, with no roots in one place, avoids responsibilities.This proverb was said to be first used in the 1500s. But in the 1960s, the expression rolling stone became famous in the world of rock-and-roll music. It became the name of a rock group, a song and a magazine.Experts say it all started with a song by the American singer and guitarist Muddy Waters. He was one of the countrys top blues musicians until his death in 1983. His music influenced singers like Elvis Presley and Bob Dylan. In 1950, Muddy Waters recorded a song called Rollin Stone. (153 words)AutomobilesIt is impossible to say that any one man invented the automobile. Many individuals living and working in different countries and at different times contributed to its development. Many of the discoveries that went into the creation of the automobile were small in themselves. But together they were important. Here are two examples.“Carriage is running at a speed of 8 to 9 miles an hour.” It was almost unheard of in those days. According to automobile historians, this was the first practical use of mechanical power to move a vehicle. After its first run, the machine reportedly burned up while the inventor and his friends were celebrating its success at a pub.Henry Ford is considered the father of modern automobile mass production. His famous Model-T car, because of its low price, made it possible to produce cars on a large scale and his efforts made it accessible to ordinary people.Cant Cant is the worst word that can be written or spoken, and can do more harm than lying. Many strong spirits have been broken by it. It springs from the lips of thoughtless people each morning and robs us of the courage we need that day. It rings in our ears like a timely sent warning and laughs when we fall by the way.Cant is the father of weak effort, and the parent of fear and half-hearted work. It weakens the efforts of clever craftsmen, and makes people work less. It poisons the soul of a person with an illusion. It laughs at peoples hopes and dreams.Whatever the goal you are seeking, keep trying, and answer by saying, I can! Cant is the enemy that is ready to ruin your will. It will only give way to courage, patience and skill. Treat it with strong and continuous hate, for once it is welcomed it can break any man. (160 words)Dangerous Lead_based Paint Common Around the WorldA new study shows that lead-based paint remains a worldwide threat to public health. Paint containing lead is a major cause of lead poisoning in children.The heavy metal enters the body when children breathe the paint dust or fumes in the air. Or when babies put their mouth on painted surfaces or swallow pieces of paint.Lead can damage the brain and the nervous system. It can decrease intelligence, create behavior problems and slow a childs growth.Researchers tested new household paints from twelve countries in Africa, Asia and South America. The paints were sold under different brand names. The study found that almost three-fourths of the brands had dangerously high levels of lead.The professor says high quality paint can be produced without lead. He and his team are calling for a worldwide ban on lead-based paint. He says many parts of the world are doing too little to correct the problem of lead poisoning in children. He notes that research has found no safe Death Valley: A Beautiful but Dangerous PlaceDeath Valley is a land of beautiful but dangerous extremes. There are mountains that reach more than three thousand meters into the sky. There is a place called Badwater that is the lowest area of land in the Western Hemisphere. If there were water there, it would be eighty-six meters below the level of the ocean.Death Valley can be dangerously cold during the winter months. Storms in the mountains can produce sudden flooding on the floor of the Valley.The extreme heat in summer has killed people in the past. It will continue to kill those who do not honor this extreme climate. Death Valley does not forgive those who are not careful.It is a good example of the violence of nature.However,it would be wrong to think that nothing lives there. The Valley is full of life.Wild flowers grow very quickly after a little rain. Birds, snakes and other animals always enjoy their stay.Death Valley: the Coming of the NameThe area was named by a woman in 1849. That was the year after gold was discovered in California. Thousands of people from other parts of the country traveled to the gold mining areas in California. They were in a hurry to get there before other people did.Many people were not careful. They made bad choices or wrong decisions. One group trying to reach California decided to take a path called the Old Spanish Trail. By December, they had reached Death Valley. They did not have to survive the terrible heat of summer, but there was still an extreme lack of water. There were few plants for their work animals to eat.The people could not find a pass through the tall mountains. Gradually, they began to suffer from a lack of food. To survive, they killed their work animals for food and began to walk out of the Valley. As they left, one woman looked back and said,Good-bye, death valley. The name has never been changed. (169 words)DepressionThe dictionary describes depression as the state of feeling very sad, anxious and hopeless. The question here is why one gets depressed. Is the inability to deal with the situation or the high stress levels that come with success or failure?Life is full of twists and turns. Some are pleasant and some are not so pleasant, and sometimes even terrible. Seasonal changes are the main reason for depression in nature. Change is unavoidable. It may happen in nature or in life. But the way the change makes us feel is subjective. They differ from person to person, along with the ways we deal with them.Feeling depression is a normal phenomenon, but letting it overtake us completely is not the best thing. There are no specific rules or concepts in dealing with it. A person should adopt whatever way he or she feels is the best, but be sure it will not hurt another person. (157 words)Differences Between Television and Radio AnnouncersWhen television first began to expand, very few of the people who had become famous as radio announcers were able to be equally effective on television. Some of the difficulties they experienced when they were trying to adjust themselves to the new medium were technical. When working on radio, for example, they had become used to seeing on behalf of the listener. This art of seeing for others means that the announcer has to be very good at talking.In the case of television, however, the announcer sees everything with the viewer. His duty, therefore, is completely different. He is there to make sure that the viewer does not miss any point of interest, to help him focus on particular things, and to help him understand the images on the television screen. Unlike his radio colleague, he must know the value of silence and how to use it at those moments when the pictures speak for themselves. (157 words)Different Styles of DirectionsI travel a lot, and I find out different “styles” of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”In Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.In the countryside of the American Midwest, instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. For example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “its about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They dont know.(155 words)Going Digital：California Textbook ProjectCalifornia approves traditional textbooks in six-year cycles. Digital ones can offer the latest information. They lighten the load of school bags. They save paper and trees, and make learning more fun and interactive. And lastly they help schools with their finances.The state has had to make severe cuts in school spending because of deep financial problems. More than six million students attend California public schools.Earlier this year, California invited content developers to offer digital math and science materials for high schools. These had to meet at least ninety percent of the states learning requirements. Specially trained teachers examined sixteen textbooks and approved ten of them.School administrators point out that the texts may be free online, but students need a way to access them. Not everyone has a computer or electronic reader. Schools could print out copies, but that would not help the environment. Also, there is the cost to train teachers to use digital textbooks effectively.Light PollutionWe usually think of pollution as a harmful waste substance that threatens the air and water. But some people have become concerned about another kind of pollution. It can be everywhere, depending on the time of day. And it is not thought of as a substance. It is light.The idea of light pollution has developed with the increase of lights in cities. In many areas, this light makes it difficult or impossible to observe stars and planets in the night sky. Light pollution threatens to reduce the scientific value of research telescopes.Light pollution is the result of wasted energy. Bright light that shines into the sky is not being used to provide light where it is needed on Earth. Lights that are brighter than necessary also cause light pollution. Recently, two Italian astronomers and an American environmental scientist created a world map of the night sky. The map shows that North America, Western Europe and Japan have the greatest amount of light pollution. (165 words)Mistakes Are Good TeachersAfter the birth of my second child，I got a job at a restaurant. Having worked with an experienced waitress for a few days，I was allowed to wait on tables on my own. When Saturday night came，I was luckily given the tables not far from the kitchen. However，I still felt a little hard to carry the heavy trays. So I moved slowly, minding every step. I remembered how happy I was when I saw a tray standing next to the tables. It looked different from the one I was trained on，and it had nice handles which made it easier to move around. I was pleased with everything and began to believe I was natural at this job. Then, an old man came to me and said that was his wifes walker. I stood frozen as ice，but my face was on fire. Since then, I have learned to be more careful and not to be too sure of myself. (164 words)Our ConcernThe history of life on earth has been a history of interaction between living things and their surroundings. To a large extent, the physical form and the habits of the earths vegetation and its animal life have been molded by the environment. Only in the present century has one species of man acquired significant power to alter the nature of his world.The rapidity of change follows the pace of man rather than the pace of nature. Radiation is now the unnatural creation of mans tampering with the atom. The chemicals are the creations of mans inventive mind, having no counterparts in nature.We have put poisonous and biologically potent chemicals into the hands of persons largely ignorant of their potentials for harm. We have subjected enormous numbers of people to contact with these poisons, without their consent and often without their knowledge. We have allowed these chemicals to be used with little or no advance investigation of their effect. Future generations are unlikely to forgive our lack of concern. Self-conceptThe self-concept is a complex structure. This complexity is illustrated by the idea of multiple selves. We seem to be a different person in each of many different situations, and an example may clarify this concept. First, picture yourself an athletic event. Now, contrast this image with one of yourselves taking a final exam. Finally, imagine yourself at work on a very busy day. You should probably describe yourself differently in each setting. Which image is really you? Of course, all are. We have multiple selves each dependent on the context. Together they form our self-concept. It is the context that makes certain aspects of our self-concept more important at the particular moment. Self-concept is composed of our beliefs, values and attitudes. Our beliefs give our self-concepts their substance; our values give them aspirations and standards; and our attitudes give them motivation. These three elements provide a structure in which we develop and build ourselves.ShopaholicsThe word addiction usually makes you think of alcohol or drugs, but in modern day society we are seeing some new kinds of addictions. Some people are compulsive shoppers. Others find it impossible to pull themselves away from their work. Still others spend countless hours watching TV or playing computer games.Over the years, shopping has become a very common activity. Many people enjoy going to malls or stores more and more every day, but its more than a common hobby for some of them. They have turned into shopaholics. They are people who simply enjoy shopping and walking around spending money without being able to stop doing it. They are hooked on shopping and usually buy things that they dont need. Even though they dont have enough money, they want to buy everything they want.Why do they have this addiction? There isnt a specific answer. Some people go shopping when they are sad, worried, upset or lonely. Some even tend to have this addiction when they feel guilty. (167 words)SoccerSoccer has had a slow start in America. In fact, the majority of schools still have no official soccer teams or coaches. But the blossoming popularity of the game cannot be denied. Thanks to the efforts of some world-famous soccer stars, soccer is soon to have its place in American culture.Although soccer has enjoyed decades of popularity elsewhere, it was literally ignored in America. Instead, a variation of the game called “football” was most popular in the U.S. and still is to this day. But the obvious advantages of playing soccer instead will soon win even the most avid football enthusiasts.For one thing, soccer is a much safer game to play than football. No one deliberately tries to knock an opponent down in soccer. In fact, the players are discouraged from even touching each other.Soccer is a game that requires skill and dexterity in controlling the ball. Since no one may use hands to do this, soccer players soon acquire incredible control of their heads, knees, and feet.Study Finds More Trees on Farms Than Was ThougtFarmers, especially in developing countries, are often criticized for cutting down forests. But a new study suggests that many farmers recognize the value in keeping trees.Researchers using satellite images found at least ten percent tree cover on more than one billion hectares of farmland. That is almost half the farmland in the world.Earlier estimates were much lower but incomplete. The authors of the new study say it may still underestimate the true extent worldwide