世界小史 第13章:建造房屋

 　　But people didn't yet know how to build houses.

　　但是人们当时还不知道如何建造房屋。

　　Not a pleasant thought, since at that time it was often intensely¹ cold – at certain periods far colder than today.

　　一想到这点令人很不愉快，因为在这个时期天气常常很冷——有时候甚至比现在冷得多。

　　Winters were longer and summers shorter.

　　当时冬季更长，夏季更短。

　　Snow lay deep throughout the year, not only on mountain tops, but down in the valleys as well,

　　从山顶到深深的谷底，终年覆盖着积雪，

　　and glaciers², which were immense³ in those days, spread far out into the plains.

　　还有像今天一样巨大的冰川远远向前推进至平原。

　　This is why we say that the Stone Age began before the last Ice Age had ended.

　　所以我们说石器时代开始早于最后一个冰河时代。

　　Prehistoric⁴ people must have suffered dreadfully from the cold,

　　史前时期的人类一定受了严寒之苦，

　　and if they came across a cave where they could shelter from the freezing winds, how happy they must have been!

　　如果他们偶然发现一个能给他们挡风御寒的山洞，他们一定会高兴！

　　For this reason they are also known as 'cavemen', although they may not have actually lived in caves.

　　因为这个原因，他们也被称为为“穴居人”，虽然他们可能实际上没有住在洞穴里。

　　Do you know what else these cavemen invented?

　　你知道这些穴居人还发明了什么吗？

　　Can't you guess? They invented talking.

　　你会想得到吗？他们发明了说话。

　　I mean having real conversations with each other, using words.

　　我指的是互相用词语进行真真正正的交流。

1 intensely   

adv.强烈地

参考例句：

• I was intensely curious to know more about him. 我迫不及待地想更多地了解他的情况。
• Her parents were intensely ambitious for her and her younger sister. 她的父母对她和她妹妹有着很高的期望。

2 glaciers   

冰河，冰川( glacier的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Glaciers gouged out valleys from the hills. 冰川把丘陵地带冲出一条条山谷。
• It has ice and snow glaciers, rainforests and beautiful mountains. 既有冰川，又有雨林和秀丽的山峰。 来自英语晨读30分（高一）

3 immense   

adj.巨大的；极好的

参考例句：

• They made an immense improvement in English.在英语方面他们取得了巨大的进步。
• The expense of living is immense.生活费用很庞大。

4 prehistoric   

adj.（有记载的）历史以前的，史前的，古老的

参考例句：

• They have found prehistoric remains.他们发现了史前遗迹。
• It was rather like an exhibition of prehistoric electronic equipment.这儿倒像是在展览古老的电子设备。