VOA常速英语20116--虚拟的美国大学广为世界人民流传

虚拟的美国大学广为世界人民流传

The Midwest farm state of Iowa is so proud of its string of blue-water lakes - the Okoboji Lakes- that it calls them "Iowa's Great Lakes." They're ringed by resorts, marinas, and fishing cabins.And they're very real. We point that out because not everything is real in those parts. Mostnotably: the renowned¹, but quite mythical², University of Okoboji. All over the world, youbump into people wearing University of Okoboji caps and sweatshirts. In fact, a U of O pennant- with its impressive crest³ showing the Iowa Great Lakes - was once planted at the South Pole.The legendary⁴ University of Okoboji football team, the Fightin' Phantoms⁵, plays threepowerhouses - Notre Dame⁶, the University of Nebraska and the winner of the University of Iowaversus Iowa State game - on a single day, September 31. That's right, September only has 30days. So far, the Phantoms have won every game. The make-believe University of Okoboji wasconceived 36 years ago by brothers Herman and Emil Richter, who own a clothing store in thenearby town of Milford, Iowa. As a lark⁷, they printed U of O T-shirts, and people snapped themup. Today, you can also get University of Okoboji mugs and sweatshirts that are every bit asimpressive as those from Stanford or Yale. Former president George W. Bush was evenpresented with the university's cap and gown. Not the usual mortar-board cap with a tasseland not a heavy robe. Okoboji's cap and gown are a golf hat and a beach towel. The Universityof Okoboji may not have halls of ivy⁸ or much of a student body. Its enrollment⁹ is zero. But it'sa party school, holding an actual homecoming marathon each July, and winter games in January- with ski races, snowshoe hikes and something called a "freeze your fanny bike ride." Peoplewho've been there during the deep freeze of an Iowa winter swear they saw Jack¹⁰ Frost andSanta Claus throwing snowballs by the lake.

以农业之州著称的爱荷华州位于美国中西部，以其一连串澄澈绿水湖--欧克博奇湖区为傲。这片湖区的爱称是"爱荷华湖区"。该湖区为避暑胜地、游艇船坞、钓鱼小屋环绕。而且看起来都十分真实。我们特意提出这一点，是因为并非爱荷华的所有事物都真是存在。最引人瞩目的是：闻名遐迩又十分神秘的欧克博奇大学。在全球各地，你都能碰到身着印有欧克博奇大学校徽帽子和运动衫的人。事实上，这所带有爱荷华湖区、让人印象深刻的大学相传地处南极。

这所传奇式学校的足球队名为打败幻影，曾于9月31日那天在爱荷华州立比赛中打败了三个对手：圣母大学、内布拉斯加大学和爱荷华大学。对，然而9月只有30天。目前为止，该校足球队无往而不胜。欧克博奇大学是36年前爱荷华州附近米尔福德镇的一对兄弟赫尔曼和埃米尔臆想出来的，这对兄弟开了一家服装店。为了以假乱真，他们印制了带有欧克博奇大学校徽的T恤，销量甚好。如今，你依然可以买到欧克博奇大学的马克杯和运动衫，与斯坦福大学或耶鲁大学的一样逼真。美国前总统布什还曾穿戴过欧克博奇大学的校帽和校服。但不同以往的是，学位帽没有流苏，也不沉重。而是由高尔夫帽和沙滩浴巾组成。欧克博奇大学的师生人数不到常春藤的教学楼，也没有学生。生源为0。这是一所派对学校，每年7月会举行货真价实的夏季马拉松比赛，每年1月会举行冬季运动会--滑雪、雪上远足以及"冬日骑行之旅"。来爱荷华州参加过冬日骑行之旅的人都信誓旦旦地说自己见过杰克冻人和圣诞老人在湖边扔雪球。

1 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

2 mythical   

adj.神话的；虚构的；想像的

参考例句：

• Undeniably,he is a man of mythical status.不可否认，他是一个神话般的人物。
• Their wealth is merely mythical.他们的财富完全是虚构的。

3 crest   

n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖

参考例句：

• The rooster bristled his crest.公鸡竖起了鸡冠。
• He reached the crest of the hill before dawn.他于黎明前到达山顶。

4 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

5 phantoms   

n.鬼怪，幽灵( phantom的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They vanished down the stairs like two phantoms. 他们像两个幽灵似的消失在了楼下。 来自辞典例句
• The horrible night that he had passed had left phantoms behind it. 他刚才度过的恐布之夜留下了种种错觉。 来自辞典例句

6 dame   

n.女士

参考例句：

• The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
• If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会，你就要跟那个夫人结婚。

7 lark   

n.云雀，百灵鸟；n.嬉戏，玩笑；vi.嬉戏

参考例句：

• He thinks it cruel to confine a lark in a cage.他认为把云雀关在笼子里太残忍了。
• She lived in the village with her grandparents as cheerful as a lark.她同祖父母一起住在乡间非常快活。

8 ivy   

n.常青藤，常春藤

参考例句：

• Her wedding bouquet consisted of roses and ivy.她的婚礼花篮包括玫瑰和长春藤。
• The wall is covered all over with ivy.墙上爬满了常春藤。

9 enrollment   

n.注册或登记的人数；登记

参考例句：

• You will be given a reading list at enrollment.注册时你会收到一份阅读书目。
• I just got the enrollment notice from Fudan University.我刚刚接到复旦大学的入学通知书。

10 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。