(完整版)英语必修三课文

Unit1

FESTIVALS AND CELEBRATIONS

Festivals and celebrations of all kinds have been held everywhere since ancient times. Most ancient festivals would celebrate the end of cold weather, planting in spring and harvest in autumn. Sometimes celebrations would be held after hunters had caught animals. At that time people would starve if food was difficult to find, especially during the cold winter months. Today's festivals have many origins, some religious, some seasonal, and some for special people or events.

Festivals of the Dead

Some festivals are held to honour the dead or to satisfy the ancestors, who might return either to help or to do harm. For the Japanese festival Obon, people should go to clean graves and light incense in memory of their ancestors. They also light lamps and play music because they think that this will lead the ancestors back to earth. In Mexico, people celebrate the Day of the Dead in early November. On this important feast day, people eat food in the shape of skulls and cakes with "bones" on them. They offer food, flowers and gifts to the dead. The Western holiday Halloween also had its origin in old beliefs about the return of the spirits of dead people. It is now a children's festival, when they can dress up and go to their neighbours' homes to ask for sweets. If the neighbours do not give any sweets, the children might play a trick on them.

Festivals to Honour People

Festivals can also be held to honour famous people. The Dragon Boat Festival in China honours the famous ancient poet, Qu Yuan.In the USA, Columbus Day is in memory of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the New World. India has a national festival on October 2 to honour Mohandas Gandhi, the leader who helped gain India's independence from Britain.

Harvest Festivals

Harvest and Thanksgiving festivals can be very happy events. People are grateful because their food is gathered for the winter and the agricultural work is over. In European ountries, people will usually decorate churches and town halls with flowers and fruit, and will get together to have meals. Some people might win awards for their farm produce, like the biggest watermelon or the most handsome rooster. China and Japan have mid-autumn festivals, when people admire the moon and in China, enjoy mooncakes.

Spring Festivals

The most energetic and important festivals are the ones that look forward to the end of winter and to the coming of spring. At the Spring Festival in China, people eat dumplings, fish and meat and may give children lucky money in red paper. There are dragon dances and carnivals, and families celebrate the Lunar New Year together. Some Western countries have very exciting carnivals, which take place forty days before Easter, usually in February. These carnivals might include parades, dancing in the streets day and night, loud music and colourful clothing of all kinds. Easter is an important religious and social festival for Christians around the world. It celebrates the return of Jesus from the dead and the coming of spring and new life. Japan's Cherry Blossom Festival happens a little later. The country, covered with cherry tree flowers, looks as though it is covered with pink snow.

People love to get together to eat, drink and have fun with each other. Festivals let us enjoy life, be proud of our customs and forget our work for a little while.

COME AND EAT HERE (1)

Wang Peng sat in his empty restaurant feeling very frustrated. It had been a very strange morning. Usually he got up early and prepared his menu of barbecued mutton kebabs,

roast pork, stir-flied vegetables and fried rice. Then by lunchtime they would all be sold.By now his restaurant ought to be full of people. But not today! Why was that? What could

have happened? He thought of his mutton, beef and bacon cooked in the hottest, finest oil.His cola was sugary and cold, and his ice cream was made of milk, cream and delicious fruit. "Nothing could be better," he thought. Suddenly he saw his friend Li Chang hurrying by. "Hello, Lao Li," he called. "Your usual?" But Li Chang seemed not to hear. What was the matter? Something terrible must have happened if Li Chang was not coming to eat in his restaurant as he always did.

Wang Peng followed Li Chang into a new small restaurant. He saw a sign in the window.

Tired of all that fat? Want to lose weight?

Come inside Yong Hui’s slimming restaurant.

Only slimming foods served here.

Make yourself thin again!

Curiosity drove Wang Peng inside. It was full of people. The hostess, a very thin lady, came forward."Welcome," she said. "My name is Yong Hui. I'll help you lose weight and be fit in two weeks if you eat here every day." Then she gave a menu to Wang Peng. There were few choices of food and drink on it: just rice, raw vegetables served in vinegar, fruit and water. Wang Peng was amazed at this and especially at the prices. It cost more than a good meal in his restaurant! He could not believe his eyes. He threw down the menu and hurried outside. On his way home he thought about his own menu. Did it make people fat? Perhaps he should go to the library and find out. He could not have Yong Hui getting away with telling people lies! He had better do some research!

At the library Wang Peng was surprised to find that his restaurant served far too much fat and Yong Hui’s far too little. Even though her customers might get thin after eating Yong Hui’s food, they were not eating enough energy-giving food to keep them fit. They would become tired very quickly. Wang Peng felt more hopeful as he drove back home. Perhaps

with a discount and a new sign he could win his customers back. So he wrote: Want to feel fit and energetic?

Come and eat here! Discounts today!

Our food gives you energy all day!

The competition between the two restaurants was on!

No one knows exactly how the earth began, as it happened so long ago. However, according to a widely accepted theory, the universe began with a "Big Bang" that threw matter in all directions.After that, atoms began to form and combine to create stars and other bodies.

For several billion years after the "Big Bang", the earth was still just a cloud of dust. What it was to become was uncertain until between 4.5 and 3.8 billion years ago when

the dust settled into a solid globe. The earth became so violent that it was not clear whether the shape would last or not. It exploded loudly with fire and rock. They were in

time to produce carbon, nitrogen, water vapour and other gases, which were to make the earth's atmosphere. What is even more important is that as the earth cooled down, water

began to appear on its surface.

Water had also appeared on other planets like Mars but, unlike the earth, it had disappeared later. It was not immediately obvious that water was to be fundamental to the development of life. What many scientists believe is that the continued presence of water allowed the earth to dissolve harmful gases and acids into the oceans and seas. This produced a chain reaction,which made it possible for life to develop.

Many millions of years later, the first extremely small plants began to appear on the surface of the water. They multiplied and filled the oceans and seas with oxygen, which encouraged the later development of early shellfish and all sorts of fish. Next, green plants began to grow on land. They were followed in time by land animals. Some were insects. Others, called amphibians,were able to live on land as well as in the water. Later when the plants grew into forests, reptiles appeared for the first time. They produced young enerally by laying eggs. After that, some huge animals, called dinosaurs, developed. They laid eggs too and existed on the earth for more than 140 million years. However,

65 million years ago the age of the dinosaurs ended. Why they suddenly disappeared still remains a mystery. This disappearance made possible the rise of mammals on the earth. These animals were different from all life forms in the past, because they gave birth to young baby animals and produced milk to feed them.

Finally about 2.6 million years ago some small clever animals, now with hands and feet,appeared and spread all over the earth. Thus they have, in their turn, become the most important animals on the planet. But they are not looking after the earth very well. They are putting too much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which prevents heat from escaping from the earth into space. As a result of this, many scientists believe the earth may become too hot to live on.So whether life will continue on the earth for millions of years to come will depend on whether this problem can be solved.

Li Daiyu and her cousin Liu Qian were on a trip to Canada to visit their cousins in Montreal on the Atlantic coast. Rather than take the aeroplane all the way, they decided to fly to Vancouver and then take the train west to east across Canada. The thought that they could cross the whole continent was exciting.

Their friend, Danny Lin, was waiting at the airport. He was going to take them and their baggage to catch "The True North", the cross-Canada train. On the way to the station, he chatted about their trip. "You're going to see some great scenery. Going eastward, you'll pass mountains and thousands of lakes and forests, as well as wide rivers and large cities. Some people have the idea that you can cross Canada in less than five days, but they forget the fact that Canada is 5,500 kilometres from coast to coast. Here in Vancouver, you're in Canada's warmest part. People say it is Canada's most beautiful city, surrounded by mountains and the Pacific Ocean. Skiing in the Rocky Mountains and sailing in the harbour make Vancouver one of Canada's most popular cities to live in. Its population is increasing rapidly. The coast north of Vancouver has some of the oldest and most beautiful forests in the world. It is so wet there that the trees are extremely tall, some measuring over 90 metres."

That afternoon aboard the train, the cousins settled down in their seats. Earlier that day, when they crossed the Rocky Mountains, they managed to catch sight of some mountain goats and even a grizzly bear and an eagle. Their next stop was Calgary, which is famous for the Calgary Stampede. Cowboys from all over the world come to compete in the Stampede. Many of them have a gift for riding wild horses and can win thousands of dollars in prizes.

After two days' travel, the girls began to realize that Canada is quite empty. At school, they had learned that most Canadians live within a few hundred kilometres of the USA border, and Canada's population is only slightly over thirty million, but now they were amazed to see such an empty country. They went through a wheat-growing province and saw farms that covered thousands of acres. After dinner, they were back in an urban area, the busy port city of Thunder Bay at the top of the Great Lakes. The girls were surprised at the fact that ocean ships can sail up the Great Lakes. Because of the Great Lakes, they learned, Canada has more fresh water than any other country in the world. In fact, it has one-third of the world's total fresh water, and much of it is in the Great Lakes.

That night as they slept, the train rushed across the top of Lake Superior, through the great forests and southward towards Toronto.

外研版英语必修三课文原文

Great European Cities PARIS Paris is the capital and largest city of France, situated on River Seine. It is one of the most beautiful cities in the world and is visited by more than eight million tourists every year. The most popular place for tourists is the Eiffel Tower, the famous symbol of Paris. One of the world’s largest art galleries, the Louvre, is also located in Paris. The city is also located in Paris. The city is also famous for its restaurants, cafes and theatres. About two-thirds of France’s artists and writers live in Paris. BARCELONA Barcelona is the second largest city of Spain and is situated on the northeast coast, about five hundred kilometres east of the Spanish capital, Madrid. One of Barcelona’s most famous landmarks is the Church of Sagrada Familia, which was designed by an architect called Antonio Gaudi. Gaudi worked on the project from 1882 until his death in 1926. The church hasn’t been finished yet! FLORENCE Florence is an Italian city which became famous because of the Renaissance, a great artistic movement which began in the 1300s and lasted for three hundred ears. During the Renaissance, some of the greatest painters of all time lived and worked in Florence. Many of Florence’s most beautiful paintings and sculptures were produced by great artists such as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. Florence is visited each year by about a million tourists who come to see the art galleries, churches and museums. The Uffizi Palace is the most famous art gallery in the city. ATHENS Athens, the capital of Greece, is known as the birthplace of western civilization. Two thousand four hundred years ago, it was the world’s most powerful city. Buildings such as the Parthenon on the Acropolis Hill were built during this period. Greece’s best writers lived in ancient Athens. Their work has influenced other writers ever since. The Human Development Report In the year 2000, 147 world leaders agreed to work together to reduce poverty by 2015 or earlier. From this agreement came the Human Development Report. One of the most important sections of this report is the Human Development Index. This examines the achievements of 175 countries. The Index measures a country’s achievements in three ways: life expectancy (how long people usually live), education and income. The index has some surprises. Norway is at the top of the list, while the US is at number 7. The other top five countries are: Iceland(2), Sweden(3), Australia(4), the Netherlands(5). The UK is in the thirteenth position, while China is in the middle of the list. The bottom ten countries are all African countries, with Sierra Leone(in West Africa) at the bottom of the list. The report describes eight Development Goals. The most important goals are to: Reduce poverty and hunger; Make sure that all children have education up to the age of 11; Fight AIDS and other diseases; Improve the environment of poor people, e.g. make sure they have safe drinking water; Encourage developed countries to give more help to other countries. The 2003 Human Development Report gives examples of successful development. For example, in nine years, China increased life expectancy by 13 years. In the last ten years in China, 150 million people moved out of poverty. However, the challenges are still great. Every day 799 million people in developing countries are hungry. Over half of these are in South Asia or Africa. Although more than 80% of children in developing countries go to primary school, about 115 million children are not being educated. More than 1 billion people in developing countries do not drink safe water. However, in other regions of the world, e.g. Eastern Europe, water is now mostly safe to drink.

新人教版高中英语必修三完整课文译文

新人教版高中英语课文译文 必修三 第一单元世界各地的节日 Reading 节日和庆典 自古以来，世界各地就有各种各样的节日和庆典。最古老的节日总是庆祝严寒的结束、春季的种植和秋天的收割。有时，在猎人捕获猎物后，也举行庆祝活动。在那个时代，如果食物难以找到，特别是在寒冷的冬月，人们就会挨饿。现在的节日有很多由来，一些是宗教上的，一些是季节性的，一些是纪念特殊的人和事件的。 亡灵节 有些节日，是为了纪念死者，或使祖先得到满足，因为祖先们有可能回到世上（给人们）提供帮助，也有可能带来危害。在日本的盂兰盆节，人们要扫墓、烧香，以缅怀祖先。他们还点起灯笼，奏响乐曲，因为他们认为这样做可以把祖先引回到世上。在墨西哥，亡灵节是在11月初。在这个重要的节庆日子里，人们会吃制成颅骨形状的食物和装点有“骨头”的蛋糕。他们向亡者祭献食物、鲜花和礼品。西方节日万圣节也源自人们古老的信念，认为亡者的灵魂会返回人间。万圣节如今成了孩子们的节日，这天他们可以乔装打扮上邻居家要糖吃。如果邻居什么糖也不给，那么孩子们就可以捉弄他们了。 纪念名人的节日 也有纪念名人的节日。中国的端午节（龙舟节）是纪念古代著名诗人屈

原的。美国的哥伦布日是纪念克里斯托弗.哥伦布发现“新大陆”的日子。印度 在10月2日有个全国性节日，纪念莫汉达斯.甘地，他是帮助印度脱离英国 而独立的领袖。 庆丰收的节日 收获与感恩节是十分喜庆的节日。越冬的粮食收集起来了，农活结束了，人们都心怀感激。在欧洲国家，人们通常用花果来装饰教堂和市政厅，在一 起聚餐。有些人还可能因为他们的农产品（参加各种评选）而获奖，比如最 大的西瓜或最帅的公鸡。中国和日本都有中秋节，这时人们会赏月。在中国，人们还品尝月饼。 春天的节日 最富生气而又最重要的节日，就是告别冬天、迎来春天的日子。中国人 过春节要吃饺子、鱼和肉，还要给孩子们送红纸包着的压岁钱。（他们）舞 龙灯、狂欢，全家人聚在一起欢庆阴历年。在一些西方国家有激动人心的狂 欢节，通常在二月，复活节前的四十天。狂欢节期间，人们穿着各种艳丽的 节日盛装，伴随着鼓噪的音乐，在街头游行，昼夜跳舞。复活节是全世界基 督徒的一个重要的宗教和公众节日。它庆祝耶稣复活，也欢庆春天和新生命 的到来。再晚些时候，日本就迎来了樱花节，（节日里）整个国度到处是盛 开的樱花。看上去就像覆盖了一层粉红色的雪。 人们喜欢聚在一起吃、喝、玩耍。节日让我们享受生活，让我们为自己的习俗而自豪，还可以暂时忘掉工作中的烦恼。 Using Language 一段伤心的爱情故事 李方的心都碎了。这天是情人节，胡瑾说她下班后会在咖啡馆和他见面

高一英语人教版必修三-全册课文原文

高一英语人教版必修三-全册课文原文 Unit 1 Festivals around the world FESTIVALS AND CELEBRATIONS Festivals and celebrations of all kinds have been held everywhere since ancient times. Most ancient festivals would celebrate the end of cold weather, planting in spring and harvest in autumn. Sometimes celebrations would be held after hunters had caught animals. At that time people would starve if food was difficult to find, especially during the cold winter months. Today’s festivals have many origins, some religious, some seasonal, and some for special people or events. Festivals of the dead Some festivals are held to honour the dead or to satisfy the ancestors, who might return either to help or to do harm. For the Japanese festival Obon, people should go to clean graves and light incense in memory of their ancestors. They also light lamps and play music because they think that will lead the ancestors back to earth. In

人教版高中英语必修三Unit5课文翻译

Unit 5 Canada-"The True North" 李黛予和她表妹刘倩要去加拿大大西洋海岸的蒙特利尔市看望她们的表兄妹们。她们不想一路乘飞机，她们决定飞到温哥华，再从西海岸乘火车横穿加拿大到达东海岸。要横贯整个大陆的想法很是令人兴奋。 她们的朋友林丹尼在机场等候她们。他要带着她们和行李到火车站乘坐横穿加拿大的“真北方”号列车。在去火车站的路上，林丹尼聊起了她们的旅程：“你们沿途将会看到美丽壮阔的风景。向东一直走，你们会经过一座座山脉，上千个湖泊、森林，还有宽阔的河流和许多大城市。有人想在不到五天的时间里横穿加拿大，他们忘了加拿大从东海岸到西海岸共有5，500公里。这儿，温哥华，是加拿大最温暖的地方。人们说温哥华是加拿大最美丽的城市，被大山和太平洋环抱。落基山可以滑雪，海港供你扬帆，这些使得温哥华成为加拿大最受欢迎的居住城市之一。这个城市的人口增长很快。在温哥华北面的海岸上保存了最古老、最美丽的森林。那儿的湿度很大，所以树都长得特别高，一些高达90多米。” 那天下午表姐俩才登上了火车落了座。火车先是穿越落基山脉，她们设法看到了野山羊，甚至还看到了一只大灰熊和一只鹰。她们的下一站就是卡尔加里，这个城市因“大西部赛马会”而闻名。来自世界各地的牛仔们来参加赛马会比赛。他们中许多人都有骑野马的本领，他们能赢得几千美元的奖金。 两天以后，她们开始意识到加拿大人烟稀少。他们在学校学过，大多数加拿大人定居在靠近美国几百英里的边境地带，加拿大的人口也就是三千万多一点儿。但是现在看到这么空旷的国家，她们很惊讶。火车穿过一个种植小麦的省份，她们看到了面积有数千英亩的农场。晚饭后她们又回到城市，位于五大湖区顶端的繁忙的港口城市桑得贝。巨大的海轮可以开到五大湖，让表姐妹俩感到吃惊。她们知道，因为有五大湖，加拿大的淡水比世界上任何其他国家都多。事实上，加拿大拥有全世界三分之一的淡水量，其中大部分都蓄在五大湖泊里。 那天夜里她们睡着了，火车越过苏必利尔湖，穿过大森林，朝南向多伦多飞驰着。 1

高一英语人教版必修三Unit 5 课文内容

Unit 5 CANADA- “THE TRUE NORTH” A TRIP ON “THE TRUE NORTH” Li Daiyu and her cousin Liu Qian were on a trip to Canada to visit their cousins in Montreal on the Atlantic coast. Rather than take the aeroplane all the way, they decided to fly to Vancouver and then take the train from west to east across Canada. The thought that they could cross the whole continent was exciting. Their friend, Danny Lin, was waiting at the airport. He was going to take them and their baggage to catch “The True North”, the cross-Canada train. On the way to the station, he chatted about their trip. “You’re going to see some great scenery. Going eastward, you’ll pass mountains and thousands of lakes and forests, as well as wide rivers and large cities. Some people have the idea that you can cross Canada in less than five days, but they forget the fact that Canada is 5,500 kilometres from coast to coast. Here in Vancouver, you’re in Canada’s warmest part. People say it is Canada’s most popular cities to live in. Its population is increasing rapidly. The coast north of Vancouver has some of the oldest and most beautiful forests in the world. It is so wet there that the trees are extremely tall, some measuring over 90 metres.” That afternoon aboard the train, the cousins settled down in their seats. Earlier that day, when they crossed the Rocky Mountains, they managed to catch sight of some mountain goats and even a grizzly bear and an eagle. Their next stop was Calgary, which is famous for the Calgary Stampede. Cowboys from all over the world come to compete in the Stampede. Many of them have a gift for riding wild horses and can win thousands of dollars in prizes. After two days’ travel, the girls began to realize that Canada is quite empty. At school, they had learned that most Canadians live within a few hundred kilometres of the USA border, and Canada’s population is only slightly over thirty million, but now they were amazed to see such an empty country. They went through a wheat-growing province and saw farms that covered thousands of acres. After dinner, they were back in an urban area, the busy port city of Thunder Bay at the top of the Great Lakes. The girls were surprised at the fact that ocean ships can sail up the Great Lakes. Because of the Great Lakes, they learned, Canada has more fresh water than any other country in the world. In fact, it has one-third of the world’s total fresh water, and much of it is in the Great Lakes. That night as they slept, the train rushed across the top of Lake Superior, through the great forests and southward towards Toronto. “THE TRUE NORTH” FROM TORONTO TO MONTREAL The next morning the bushes and maple trees outside their windows were red, gold and orange, and there was frost on the ground, confirming that fall had arrived in Canada. Around noon they arrived in Toronto, the biggest and most wealthy city in Canada. They were not leaving for Montreal until later, so they went on a tour of the city. They went up the tall CN Tower and looked across the lake. In the distance, they could see the misty cloud that rose from the great Niagara Falls, which is on the south side of the lake. The water flows into the Niagara River and over the falls on its way to the sea. They saw the covered stadium, home of several famous basketball teams. As they walked north from the harbour area, Li Daiyu said, “Lin Fei, one of my mother’s old schoolmates, lives here. I should phone her from a telephone booth.”

英语必修3课文翻译

节日和庆典 自古以来，世界各地就有各种各样的节日和庆典。最古老的节日总是庆祝严寒的结束、春季的种植和秋天的收割。有时，在猎人捕获猎物后，也举行庆祝活动。在那个时代，如果食物难以找到，特别是在寒冷的冬月，人们会挨饿。现在的节日有很多由来，一些是宗教上的，一些是季节性的，一些是纪念特殊的人和事件的。 亡灵节 有些节日，是为了纪念死者，或使祖先得到满足，因为祖先们有可能回到世上（给人们）提供帮助，也有可能带来危害。在日本的盂兰盆节，人们要扫墓、烧香，以缅怀祖先。他们还点起灯笼，奏响乐曲，因为他们认为这样做可以把祖先引回到世上。在墨西哥，亡灵节是在11月初。在这个重要的节日里，人们会吃制成颅骨形状的食物，和装点有“骨头”的蛋糕。他们向亡者祭献食物、鲜花和礼品。西方节日万圣节也源自人们古老的信念，认为亡者的灵魂会返回人间。万圣节如今成了孩子们的节日，这天他们可以乔装打扮上到邻居家要糖吃。如果邻居什么糖也不给，那么孩子们就可以捉弄他们了。 纪念名人的节日 也有纪念名人的节日。中国的端午节（龙舟节），是纪念著名古代诗人屈原的。美国的哥伦布日是纪念克里斯托弗·哥伦布发现“新大陆”的日子。印度在10月2日有个全国性节日，纪念莫汉达斯·甘地，他是帮助印度脱离英国而独立的领袖。 庆丰收的节日 收获与感恩节是非常喜庆的节日。越冬的粮食收集起来了，农活结束了，人们都心怀感激。在欧洲国家，人们通常用花果来装饰教堂和市政厅，在一起聚餐。有些人还可能因为他们的农产品（参加各种评选）而获奖，比如最大的西瓜或最帅的公鸡。中国和日本都有中秋节，这时，人们会赏月。在中国，人们还品尝月饼。 春天的节日 最富生气而又最重要的节日，就是告别冬天、迎来春天的日子。中国人过春节要吃饺子、鱼和肉，还要给孩子们送红纸包着的压岁钱。（他们）舞龙灯、狂欢，全家人聚在一起欢庆阴历年。在一些西方国家有激动人心的狂欢节，通常在二月，复活节前的四十天。狂欢节期间，人们身着各种艳丽的节日盛装，伴随着鼓噪的音乐，在街头游行，昼夜跳舞。复活节是全世界基督徒的一个重要的宗教和公众节日。它庆祝耶稣复活，也欢庆春天和新生命的到来。再晚些时候，日本就迎来了樱花节，（节日里）整个国度到处是盛开的樱花，看上去就像覆盖了一层粉红色的雪。 人们喜欢聚在一起吃、喝、玩耍。节日让我们享受生活，让我们为自己的习俗而自豪，还可以暂时忘掉工作中的烦恼。 Festivals and celebrations Festivals and celebrations of all kinds have been held everywhere since ancient times. Most ancient festivals would celebrate the end of cold weather, planting in spring and harvest in autumn. Sometimes celebrate would be held after hunters had caught animals. At that time people would starve if food was difficult to find, especially during the cold winter months. Today’s festivals have many origins ,some religious, some seasonal, and some for special people or events. Festivals of the Dead Some festivals are held to honour the dead or to satisfy the ancestors, who might return either to help or to do harm. For the Japanese festival. Obon, people should go to clean graves and light incense in memory of their ancestors. They also light lamps and play music because they think that this will lead the ancestors back to earth. In Mexico, people celebrate the Day of the Dead in early November. On this important feast day, people eat food in the shape of skulls and cakes with

高一英语人教版必修三unit1课文内容

Unit 1 Festivals around the world FESTIVALS AND CELEBRATIONS Festivals and celebrations of all kinds have been held everywhere since ancient times. Most ancient festivals would celebrate the end of cold weather, planting in spring and harvest in autumn. Sometimes celebrations would be held after hunters had caught animals. At that time people would starve if food was difficult to find, especially during the cold winter months. Today’s festivals have many origins, some religious, some seasonal, and some for special people or events. Festivals of the dead Some festivals are held to honour the dead or to satisfy the ancestors, who might return either to help or to do harm. For the Japanese festival Obon, people should go to clean graves and light incense in memory of their ancestors. They also light lamps and play music because they think that will lead the ancestors back to earth. In Mexico, people celebrate the Day of the Dead in early November. On this important feast day, people eat food in the shape of skulls and cakes with “bones” on them. They offer food, flowers and gifts to the dead. The Western holiday Halloween also had its origin in old beliefs about the return of the spirits of dead people. It is now a children’s festival, when they can dress up and go to their neighbours’ homes to ask for sweets. If the neighbours do not give any sweets, the children might play a trick on them. Festivals to Honour People Festivals can also be held to honour famous people. The Dragon Boat Festival in China honours the famous ancient poet, Qu Y uan. In the USA, Columbus Day is in memory of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the New World. India has a national festival on October 2 to honour Mohandas Gandhi, the leader who helped gain India’s independence from Britain. Harvest Festivals Harvest and Thanksgiving festivals can be very happy events. People are grateful because their food is gathered for the winter and the agricultural work is over. In European countries, people will usually decorate churches and town halls with flowers and fruit, and will get together to have meals. Some people might win awards for their farm produce, like the biggest watermelon or the most handsome rooster. China and Japan have mid-autumn festivals when people admire the moon and in China enjoy moon-cakes. Spring Festivals The most energetic and important festivals are the ones that look forward to the end of winter and to the coming of spring. At the Spring Festival in China, people eat dumplings, fish and meat and may give children lucky money in red paper. There are dragon dances and carnivals, and families celebrate the Lunar New Year together. Some Western countries have very exciting carnivals, which take place forty days before Easter, usually in February. These carnivals might include parades, dancing in the streets day and night, loud music and colourful clothing of al kinds. Easter is an important religious and social festival for Christians around the world. It celebrates the return of Jesus from the dead and the coming of spring and new life. Japan’s Cherry Blossom Festival happens a little later. The country, covered with cherry tree flowers, looks as though it is covered with pink snow. People love to get together to eat, drink and have fun with each other. Festivals let us enjoy life, be proud of our customs and forget our work for a little while.

英语必修三Unit 4 Astronomy课文翻译

英语必修三Unit 4 Astronomy课文翻译 作者：未知来源：尚学苑2014-09-20 LIF HOW E BEGAN ON THE EARTH No one knows exactly how the earth began, as it happened so long ago. However, according to a widely accepted theory, the universe began with a "Big Bang" that threw matter in all directions.After that, atoms began to form and combine to create stars and other bodies. For several billion years after the "Big Bang", the earth was still just a cloud of dust. What it was to become was uncertain until between 4.5 and 3.8 billion years ago when the dust settled into a solid globe. The earth became so violent that it was not clear whether the shape would last or not. It exploded loudly with fire and rock. They were in time to produce carbon, nitrogen, water vapour and other gases, which were to make the earths atmosphere. What is even more important is that as the earth cooled down, water began to appear on its surface. Water had also appeared on other planets like Mars but, unlike the earth, it had disappeared later. It was not immediately obvious that water was to be fundamental to the development of life. What many scientists believe is that the continued presence of water allowed the earth to dissolve harmful gases and acids into the oceans and seas. This produced a chain reaction, which made it possible for life to develop. Many millions of years later, the first extremely small plants began to appear on the surface of the water. They multiplied and filled the oceans and seas with oxygen, which encouraged the later development of early shellfish and all sorts of fish. Next, green plants began to grow on land. They were followed in time by land animals. Some were insects. Others, called amphibians, were able to live on land as well as in the water. Later when the plants grew into forests, reptiles appeared for the first time. They produced young enerally by laying eggs. After that, some huge animals, called dinosaurs, developed. They laid eggs too and existed on the earth for more than 140 million years. However, 65 million years ago the age of the dinosaurs ended. Why they suddenly disappeared still remains a mystery. This disappearance made possible the rise of mammals on the earth. These animals were different from all life forms in the past, because they gave birth to young baby animals and produced milk to feed them. Finally about 2.6 million years ago some small clever animals, now with hands and feet, appeared and spread all over the earth. Thus they have, in their turn, become the most important animals on the planet. But they are not looking after the earth very well. They are putting too much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which prevents heat from escaping from the earth into space. As a result of this, many scientists believe the earth may become too hot to live on. So whether life will continue on the earth for millions of years to come will depend on whether this problem can be solved.