Listen this way听力教程第一册-6

Unit 6   By Bus or by train?
 
PartⅠ Getting ready
If you are not travelling for a long distance, you can take a train which is more comfortable than a plane. If you want to wander around a city, the bus service is usually very helpful. Big cities generally have a rather extensive system of bus lines. If you are afraid of the complicated bus routes, you can take a taxi. But taxis are very expensive in almost every city worldwide.

A  The following words and phrases will appear in this unit. All of them are related to travelling especially by bus and by train and some are frequently used in railway announcements. Listen carefully and study the definitions.
   1. transfer: move or change from one vehicle to another in the course of a journey
   2. fare: the price charged to carry a person by bus, train, taxi, etc.
   3. via: travelling through a place on the way
   4. cab: a taxi
   5. platform: a raised flat surface built along the side of the track at a railway station for travellers getting on or off a train
   6. alteration¹: something   changed
   7. call at: stop at a particular place for a short time to allow people to get on or off
   8. inter-city train: a type of British rail train which carries passengers quickly from one city to another with fewer stops and better service than other trains
   9. automobile²: a car
  10. car pool: an agreement made by a number of car owners to take turns driving each other to work, school, etc.
 
B  You are going to hear some short conversations. Supply the missing words.
   1. Passenger: Excuse me, driver. Does this bus _________ the exhibition centre?
      Street:    No, not this bus. You'll have to _________ downtown.
      Passenger: Which bus do I take from there?
      Street:    I _________ it's the number _________ bus.
 
   2. Passenger: This bus will _________ me to the Holiday Inn, _________ it?
      Driver:    Yep. It sure will.
      Passenger: How much is the _________?
      Driver:    _________ cents. Exact _________.
      Passenger: Here you are.
      Driver:    Don't give it to me. _________ it in the _________.
 
   3. Customer: How much is the _________ to San Francisco _________Los Angeles?
      Agent:    It's _________.
      Customer: Can I ________ in Los Angeles for a few days?
      Agent:    Sure. Your ticket is _______ for three weeks.
  
   4. Passenger: Is this cab _______?
      Driver:    No. Where are you going?
      Passenger: To the Park Apartments. They're on _________ Street.
      Driver:    I _____ where they are. _______in.

C  You are going to hear a tourist guide about Hong Kong's most exciting new shopping centre. Write down every word as a dictation. It will be read three times. In the first reading, you will hear the whole passage from beginning to end. In the second reading, you will hear a pause after each sentence or just part of a sentence. During the pause, you must write down what you have just heard as quickly as possible. You can check what you have written with the third reading.
   ______________________________________________________
   ______________________________________________________
   ______________________________________________________
   ______________________________________________________
   ______________________________________________________
   
Part Ⅱ At the railway station
If you are travelling by train, it is always important and necessary for you to pay close attention to the loudspeaker announcements at the railway station because they not only confirm the facts which you should already know like the departure time of your train, the platform number, its destination and stopovers but also give information about alterations³ to the expected situation such as delays and platform alterations.

A  You are going to hear some railway announcements. While you listen, tick all the names of places you hear on the tape.
   Bristol Parkway   Keynsham          Reading
   Bridegwater      Leamington Spa  Severn Beach
   Cardiff      Nailsea          Swindon
   Didcot      Newport          Taunton
   Exeter      Oldfield Park  Weston-super-Mare
   Filton      Paddington London  York
   Gloucester      Path Spa 
   Hereford      Plymouth 

B  Now listen to the announcements again. Complete the following chart. Note that where there is a dash (?, there is nothing to write.
   Destination  Platform  Time    Stopover(s)        Delay
                 Number
   ____________  ________  ______  Keynsham, _______     -   
   Severn Beach  ________  ______     -           -  
   ____________     -     ______  Newport        _______
   ____________  ________  ______  Bristol Parkway 
   Gloucester  ________  ______  Filton, ________   - 
   ________ and   
   Plymouth  ________  ______       -          -  
   Paddington        
   Lodon  ________  ______  ________, Reading   ________
  
C  Now try this: listen to some more authentic⁴ versions of the announcements. After listening answer the following questions with the help of the above chart.
   1. You are going to Plymouth. When are you going to leave? Which platform do you want?
      __________________________________________________________     
   2. You want to go to Oldfield Park. It is on the line to Bath Spa. Which train do you want?
      __________________________________________________________ 
   3. You are waiting on platform 5. Is it possible for you to catch the train to Severn Beach? If not, what do you have to do?
      __________________________________________________________
   4. You are standing⁵ on platform 5 waiting for the 15:29 to Gloucester. Someone asks you if he should take this train for Newport. What is your answer?
      __________________________________________________________
   5. You are intending to travel to Cardiff on the 15:20. Will you be able to get there on time? Why? If you don't want to be too late what should you do?
      __________________________________________________________
   6. You are in a hurry to get to Bristol Parkway and you are waiting on platform 5 for the 15:29 train. Can you get there any earlier and if so, from which platform?
      __________________________________________________________
   7. You are leaving for Didcot on the 11:10. Do you have to change anywhere and if so, where?
      __________________________________________________________

Part Ⅲ  Why are we waiting here?
When a train comes into the station where you are waiting, you cannot always be certain that is the one you want. Don't hurry. Listen carefully to the station announcement first or you may get on a wrong train.

A  Mr. and Mrs. Bashford, a very snobbish⁶ couple, are sitting on a train. The train is waiting at the station. You are going to listen to a conversation among Mr. Bashford, Mrs. Bashford and the guard. While listening for the first time, add more key words if you can in the left-hand column. After the second listening, fill the gaps in the summary in the right-hand column with the help of the notes.
   Summary
   Mr. and Mrs. Bashford are planning to leave for ________ by the ________ train which leaves from platform ________. Now they are on the train. But it is already ________, and the train is still waiting at the station. Mr. Bashford gets so angry that he shouts at a ________. To his surprise, the guard tells him that the train is not going to leave until ________. He wonders why the ________ train should leave ________ minutes later without letting them know. And then, the guard realises that they have made a terrible mistake. Instead of going to platform ________, they go to platform _____, so the train they are onis the ________ to ________ not the ________ to ________.

B  Now try this: listen to a more authentic version of the conversation. Pay more attention to its language. After listening answer the following questions by completing the sentences.
   1. What is Mr. Bashford's first question about the train?
      When is this train __________________________________?
   2. What does Mrs. Bashford say when Mr. Bashford gets impatient?
      Well, don't _____________, darling.
   3. What exactly does Mr. Bashford say when the guard repeats his question?
      Don't just __________________! ______it.
   4. What does the guard say when Mr. Bashford gets angry?
      Now ____________, sir. Don't _________!
   5. From which sentences can we see that Mr. Bashford is a very snobbish person?
      Now ________! I'm a _____________ man and I have some ______________ friends. One of them is the ____________ and I'm going to _______________.
   6. What does the guard say when Mr. Bashford says he is a very important person and that he is going to tell the head of the railway about all this?
      I don't ________________, sir, or ________________.
   7. Mr. Bashford thinks the guard's last question is stupid. What does he say?
      Don't __________. Of course I ______! Why __________ I'm on this train?

Part Ⅳ More about the topic: Automobiles⁷ in the USA
Energy crisis⁸ is a global concern now. Many countries have already made great efforts in cutting their energy consumption⁹, some even passed legislation¹⁰ on energy saving. Automobiles are to be blamed now and then. They not only use up a lot of energy but also produce severe pollution. So people are advised not to use their automobiles as often as they presently do. Car pools emerge¹¹ as the times require.
The following short passage is about automobiles in the USA. Supply the missing words while listening.

   The United States is full of automobiles. There are still families _______ cars, but some families have _______ or even _______. However, cars are used for more than ________. They are a _________ part of life.
   Cars are used for _______. They are driven to _______ and _________ by workers who have no _______ way to get to their _______. When salesmen are _______ to different parts of the city, they have to drive in order to _______ their products. Farmers have to drive into the city in order to get _______.
   Sometimes small children must be driven to _______ In some cities school _______
   are used only when children live more than _______ from the school. When the children are too young to walk that _______. their mothers take ________ driving them to school, One mother drives on _______, taking her _______ children and the _______ children as well. Another mother drives on _______, another on _______, and so on. This is called forming a car pool. Men also form _______ pools, with _______ or _______ men taking turns driving to the place where they all work.
   More car pools should be ______ in order to put fewer ________ on the road and to use less gasoline. _______ is a great problem, and so is the traffic ________ and ______ cities. Too many cars are being driven. _________ will have to be done about the use of cars.

Part Ⅴ Memory test: Bus Information
Almost all American cities have bus services within the city. Some bus companies even have special telephone numbers with taped messages for some popular routes. If you want information about bus travel, you can call those numbers.

In this section you are going to hear two tapes, each made by a different bus company, in a different city, and for a different route (preferably only one time). While listening fill in as much information as possible into the following two charts.
Chart 1
           Greyhound Schedule and Fare Information 
   Leave Houston         Arrive New Orleans
   ___________________________  _____________________________ 
   ___________________________  _____________________________ 
   ___________________________  _____________________________ 
   ___________________________  _____________________________ 
   ___________________________  _____________________________ 
   ___________________________  _____________________________ 
   ___________________________  _____________________________ 
   ___________________________  _____________________________ 
   ___________________________  _____________________________
   ___________________________  _____________________________
   ___________________________  _____________________________
                             Fares 
   Beaumont:    One-way ______     Round trip ________
   Port Arthur: One-way ______     Round trip ________
   New Orleans: One-way ______     Round trip ________ 
   For additional information, call __________________ 
 

Chart 2
           Trailways    
                    Pittsburgh  Philadelphia  Baltimore  Washington D.C.
   Departure time   __________  ____________  _________  _______________     
   Travel time     __________  ____________  _________  _______________   
   One way fare     __________  ____________  _________  _______________   
   Round trip fare  __________  ____________  _________  _______________    
   For further information, call ______________________    
    
Part Ⅵ Reminder of key points in this unit
   Verb & Verb Phrase  Noun & Noun Phrase  Other
  PartⅠ  go past       downtown           exact
   transfer       Holiday Inn   via
   believe       fare           exciting
   drop               change           intimate
   relax               cab           first-class
                apartments 
                fashion 
                designer 
                accessory 
                chef 
                selection 
                night club 
                karaoke lounge 
  Part Ⅱ call at       platform           due in
   report       alteration   approximately
   run               inter-city train 
   apologise  
  Part Ⅲ repeat       darling           impatient
   mean               guard           calm
   care               head           stupid
  Part Ⅳ take turn           automobile   necessary
   form               pleasure            own
   park               salesman 
                product 
                supply 
                school bus 
                        neighbour 
                car pool 
                gasoline 
  Part Ⅴ                     port            additional
                citizen            automatic
                discount            further
                              senior
 

1 alteration   

n.变更，改变；蚀变

参考例句：

• The shirt needs alteration.这件衬衣需要改一改。
• He easily perceived there was an alteration in my countenance.他立刻看出我的脸色和往常有些不同。

2 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

3 alterations   

n.改动( alteration的名词复数 )；更改；变化；改变

参考例句：

• Any alterations should be written in neatly to the left side. 改动部分应书写清晰，插在正文的左侧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code. 基因突变是指DNA 密码的改变。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 authentic   

a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的

参考例句：

• This is an authentic news report. We can depend on it. 这是篇可靠的新闻报道, 我们相信它。
• Autumn is also the authentic season of renewal. 秋天才是真正的除旧布新的季节。

5 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

6 snobbish   

adj.势利的，谄上欺下的

参考例句：

• She's much too snobbish to stay at that plain hotel.她很势利，不愿住在那个普通旅馆。
• I'd expected her to be snobbish but she was warm and friendly.我原以为她会非常势利，但她却非常热情和友好。

7 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

9 consumption   

n.消费，消耗，消费额，消耗量，结核病

参考例句：

• Consumption of oil has declined in recent years.石油消耗量在最近几年下降了。
• The meat was condemned as unfit for human consumption.这种肉已被宣布不适宜人们食用。

10 legislation   

n.立法，法律的制定；法规，法律

参考例句：

• They began to draft legislation.他们开始起草法规。
• The liberals band together against the new legislation.自由党员联合一致反对新的立法。

11 emerge   

vi.（从水中等）出来，出现，浮现，形成

参考例句：

• The baby's head was starting to emerge from the womb.婴儿的头开始从母亲的子宮中露出来。
• It's still hard to tell who will emerge victorious.鹿死谁手尚难逆料。