英语听力精选进阶版 6323

The 100th anniversary of the ship they said would never sink has been remembered in a number of special events this week.

It was on the night of April 15th 1912 that the world's largest ship, Titanic¹, struck an iceberg² on her maiden³ voyage.

The owners of the huge vessel⁴, White Star Line, had said the ship was "designed to be unsinkable" but people interpreted this as proof that it was completely invincible⁵.

But sadly this wasn't the case and more than 1,500 people perished in the icy cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean. It was a tragedy that is still remembered today and a story that has become part of the popular imagination.The Titanic is a symbol for the most epic⁶ and glamorous⁷ failure.

Myths and legends surround the story but the only real first-hand account of what happened can be discovered from the collection of wireless⁸ messages sent between the Titanic and the other ships which hurriedly tried to organise⁹ a rescue operation.

It is a telegraphic narrative¹⁰ showing how the Titanic had been given warnings of ice by other ships and which records the increasingly frantic¹¹ calls for assistance after the collision with the huge iceberg.

"Come at once. We have struck a berg. It's a CQD, [an official distress¹² signal] old man," the Titanic called to another ship, the Carpathia. It was like trying to organise a rescue by Twitter, with operators on other ships trying to make sense of the stream of sometimes contradictory¹³ information.

The Titanic, as the showcase of an ambitious, optimistic era, had the biggest and best wireless equipment in the world but investigations¹⁴ after the sinking would never satisfactorily establish why these warnings had been ignored.

Its sinking may have happened 100 years ago, but the ship's legacy¹⁵ still plays an important role in the way the maritime¹⁶ industry works today. International safety regulations became far stricter following the disaster and these rules are still governing the way ships are built.

Quiz 小测验

1. Is this statement true, false, or not given? The Titanic was on its first trip when the disaster happened.

True

2. What did the owners of the Titanic say it was designed to be?

Unsinkable

3. How did ships communicate with each other when they were at sea?

By wireless or telegraphic messages

4. What word describes the current interest of an event that happened in the past?

Legacy

5. What has the maritime industry done to the international safety regulations since the disaster?

Made them stricter

Glossary 词汇表

maiden voyage 处女航/首航

vessel 船只

invincible 所向无敌的

perished 消失

part of the popular imagination 人们的想象的一部分

myths 神话

first-hand account 第一手记录

telegraphic narrative 电报内容

contradictory 相互矛盾的

optimistic era 乐观的时代

legacy 遗产

maritime industry 航海业

1 titanic   

adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的

参考例句：

• We have been making titanic effort to achieve our purpose.我们一直在作极大的努力，以达到我们的目的。
• The island was created by titanic powers and they are still at work today.台湾岛是由一个至今仍然在运作的巨大力量塑造出来的。

2 iceberg   

n.冰山，流冰，冷冰冰的人

参考例句：

• The ship hit an iceberg and went under.船撞上一座冰山而沉没了。
• The glacier calved a large iceberg.冰河崩解而形成一个大冰山。

3 maiden   

n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的

参考例句：

• The prince fell in love with a fair young maiden.王子爱上了一位年轻美丽的少女。
• The aircraft makes its maiden flight tomorrow.这架飞机明天首航。

4 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

5 invincible   

adj.不可征服的，难以制服的

参考例句：

• This football team was once reputed to be invincible.这支足球队曾被誉为无敌的劲旅。
• The workers are invincible as long as they hold together.只要工人团结一致，他们就是不可战胜的。

6 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

7 glamorous   

adj.富有魅力的；美丽动人的；令人向往的

参考例句：

• The south coast is less glamorous but full of clean and attractive hotels.南海岸魅力稍逊，但却有很多干净漂亮的宾馆。
• It is hard work and not a glamorous job as portrayed by the media.这是份苦差，并非像媒体描绘的那般令人向往。

8 wireless   

adj.无线的；n.无线电

参考例句：

• There are a lot of wireless links in a radio.收音机里有许多无线电线路。
• Wireless messages tell us that the ship was sinking.无线电报告知我们那艘船正在下沉。

9 organise   

vt.组织，安排，筹办

参考例句：

• He has the ability to organise.他很有组织才能。
• It's my job to organise all the ceremonial events.由我来组织所有的仪式。

10 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

11 frantic   

adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的

参考例句：

• I've had a frantic rush to get my work done.我急急忙忙地赶完工作。
• He made frantic dash for the departing train.他发疯似地冲向正开出的火车。

12 distress   

n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛

参考例句：

• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
• Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

13 contradictory   

adj.反驳的，反对的，抗辩的；n.正反对，矛盾对立

参考例句：

• The argument is internally contradictory.论据本身自相矛盾。
• What he said was self-contradictory.他讲话前后不符。

14 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

15 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

16 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。