外研版英语选修八-MODULE-5-课文原文(6页).doc

-外研版英语选修八-MODULE-5-课文原文-第 6 页【MODULE 5】The Conquest of the Universe【READING AND VOCABULARY】 Space: the Final FrontierPart 1Ever since Neil Armstrong first set foot on the Moon back on 21st July, 1969, people have become accustomed to the idea of space travel. Millions of people watched that first moon landing on television, their hearts in their mouths, aware of how difficult and dangerous an adventure it was, and what risks had to be taken. With Armstrongs now famous words:“Thats one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”, a dream was achieved. All three astronauts made it safely back to Earth, using a spaceship computer that was much less powerful than the ones used by the average school students today.There were several more journeys into space over the next few years but the single spaceships were very expensive as they could not take off more than once. People were no longer so enthusiastic about a peace travel programme that was costing the United States $10 million a day. That was until the arrival of the space shuttlea spacecraft that could be used for several journeys. The first shuttle fight into space was the Columbialaunched from the Kennedy Space Centre on 12th April, 1981,. The aim of this flight was to test the new shuttle system, to go safely up into orbit and to return to the Earth for a safe landing. It was a success and a little more than a decade after Apollo 11s historic voyage, the Columbia made a safe, controlled, aeroplane-style landing in California. This was the start of a new age of space travel.By the time the Challenger took off in 1986, the world seemed to have lost its fear and wonder at the amazing achievement of people going to be a special flight and so millions of people turned in to witness the take-off on TV. An ordinary teacher, Christa McAuliffe, 37, who was married with two children, was to be the first civilian in space. She was going to give two fifteen-minute lessons from space. The first was to show the controls of the spacecraft and explain how gravity worked. The second was to describe the aim of the Challenger space programme. Christa hoped to communicate a sense of excitement and create new interest in the space programme.Sadly, she never came back to her classroom again, as the shuttle exploded just over a minute after taking off in Florida and all seven astronauts were killed.The world was in shock maybe they assumed this space flight would be no more dangerous than getting on an aeroplane. But how wrong they werein one moment excitement and success turned into fear and disaster. It was the worst space accident ever. As one Russian said at the time,“When something like this happens we are neither Russians nor Americans. We are just human being who have the same feelings.”Part 2I can remember that day so clearly, watching the take-off on TV at school. There was an ordinary teacher on the Challenger, and we were all very excited. We didnt have much patience waiting for the launch. We had seen the smiling faces of the astronauts waving to the world as they stepped into the shuttle. Then, little more than a minute after take-off, we saw a strange red and orange light in the sky, followed by a cloud of white smoke. The Challenger had exploded in mid-air and we all started screaming.It happened so quickly and everyone was schoolboy I had thought that going into space as an astronaut must be the best job in the world. When I heard, a few weeks later, that the bodies of the astronaut and even the teachers lesson plans had been found at the bottom of the ocean, I was not so sure it was worth it at all. In spite of all our advanced technology, the world is still only at the very beginning of its voyage into space.【READINH AND VOCABULARY】 Secrets of the Gas GiantThe Cassini-Huygens space probe, which reached Saturn last week, has sent bank amazing photographs of the planets famous rings viewed in ultraviolet light. The pictures show them in shades of blue, green and red. The different colours shoe exactly what the rings are made of: the red means the ring contains tiny pieces of rock and the blue and green is likely to be a mixture of water and frozen gases. Saturn itself is made of gases. It is so light and it could float on waterif a big enough ocean could be found!The probe is an international project to explore the planet and its rings and moons. It was launched in 1997 and its mission was to explore the “gas giant” planet which is the furthest planet to be seen from the Earth without a telescope.Scientist says the spacecrafts four-year tour of Saturn may tell them how the rings are formed. It will also study the planets atmosphere and magnetic field.The porbe has sent back pictures of some of Saturns moon, including tiny Phoebe, which has a strange shapeunlike other planets and their moons, it is not perfectly roundand Saturns biggest moon, Titan, which is believed to be the only body in the solar system other than the Earth with liquid on the surface.The images of Titan and Phoebe look strangely like photos of Earth and our own Moon, taken decades ago by the earliest space missions. They are so clear that it is easy to forget they ear coming from a distance f one-and-a-half-billion kilometers.【READING PRACTICE】 May the Force Be with YouStar Wars is a series of science fantasy films. The six-film series began in 1977, and has a world-wide audience, with films, books, video games, television series and toys. It is now acknowledged by the movie industry as the most successful film series ever.The films were made in random order, and move backwards and forwards through two hundred years. They describe the deeds of Anakin Skywalker, a noble Jedi knight, while Darth Vader, under orders from Lord Sith, creates tension then conflict between various autonomous republics and movements. This results in the defeat of the Jedi.Then Anakins son, Luke Skywalker, joins the Rebel Alliance to attack the authority of the new evil Empire. He accuses Darth Vader of killing his father, so he trains to become a Jedi knight and swears to avenge his loss. But to his sorrow, he learns that his father is actually Darth Vader himself. Luke escapes the latters grasp, as well as the Emperors attempt to turn him to the Dark Side. Instead, to his great relief, he achieves glory by turning his father back to the light side, while the divisions of the Rebel Alliance fleet flights the battle for the airspace over the motherland, and wins the war.Star Wars reflects many abstract concepts in Greek, Roman and Chinese folk stories, such as an ability to foresee the future and the impossibility of controlling ones destiny. For example, Anakin Skywalker cause the death of his wife coming to her aid. Luke is like the hero lf a wuxia film, with his intention of avenging the death of his father, to become the most powerful Master of his art.The broad theme of Star Wars philosophy is the Force, and in every movie someone says “May the Force be with you.” Star Wars stresses the dangers of fear, anger, and hate, as well as putting aside ones sympathy for certain people. For example, Luke Skywalker is ever told that his training rather than rescue his friends.This is consistent with many religious faiths, which stress rational thought, personal dignity and a devotion to praying for holy understanding, as opposed to the “Dark Side”, of violent passion and acute emotion.However, the strongest influence is Taoist philosophy. The Force is similar to Qi, a stable balance of the Yin and Yang forces to human beings and the environment. Many true Taoist masters eventually become supreme beings, similar to Obi-Wan and Yoda who Luke, as their scholar, consults for their teaching and advice.Even the language and clothing convey the philosophy of the Forcethe Dark Force soldiers speak with British accents and wear black uniforms whilst most of the Rebels speaker American English and wear light colours.【CULTURAL CORNER】 The War of the WorldsIn 1898, the English writer H.G. Wells wrote what is arguably the most important novel in the history of science fiction The War of the Worlds. It is a dramatic story about an invasion of the Earth by aliens from Mars, a subject that has fascinated science fiction writers and film-makers ever since. But when, in 1938, the American actor and director, Orson Welles set a radio drama of The War of the Worlds in real life New Jersey town of Grovers Mill, little did he know what people turned on their radios and heard the Mercury Theatre Company broadcast, it was so realistic that they believed every word:Ladies and gentlemen, I have a grave announcement to make. Incredible as it may seen, both the observations of science and the evidence of our eyes lead to the inescapable assumption that those strange beings who landed in the New Jersey farmlands tonight are the vanguard of an invading army from the planet Mars.Orson Welles had managed to set in motion a panic across America. When people heard that an invasion by aliens from Mars was underway, there was a wave of mass hysteria. Hundreds of people left their homes in panic, there were traffic jams all over the state and the police received thousands of telephone calls from terrified listeners who believed that Martians were attacking.The sleepy town of Grovers Mill for an hour became the centre of the universe.One 13-year-old boy was doing his homework when he hears the first newsflash of the invasion. Taking the radio into the café downstairs where his mother worked, he and a dozen or so customers listened with mounting fear to the broadcast, until the men jumped up and announced they were going to get their guns and join in the defence at Grovers Mill.Did Orson Welles deliberately set out to terrify the nation? Or was it simply a masterpiece of realistic theatre? Either way, The War of the Worlds will be remembered as a piece of broadcasting history.