Patricia looked beautiful and elegant as always. 帕特里夏看上去总是那么美丽优雅。
12.undertake：vt. (undertook, undertaken) agree to be responsible for a job or project and do it承担，着手做
Dr. Johnson undertook the task of writing a comprehensive English dictionary.
约翰逊博士着手写一本详尽的英语词典。
13.liable：(be ~ to do sth.) likely to do sth. in a particular way because of a fault or tendency 可能（易于）做某事
Many parts of the country are liable to suffer from flooding. 该国的许多地方易遭水灾。
14.reservoir：n.[C]
1) a large quantity of sth. that can be used 积蓄；储备
Colleges are a reservoir of talents for companies. 大学是企业的人才库。
2）an artificial or natural lake where water is stored so that it can be supplied to the houses in an area （人造的）水库；（天然）蓄水湖
If it rains heavily, the reservoir will overflow. 如果下大雨，水库里的水就会溢出来。
15.in the company of: in sb’s company; with sb. 和某人在一起
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She caught sight of her grandson, in the company of three other boys of similar age, going into the narrow alley which led to the railway.
她看见她的孙子与其他三个年龄相仿的男孩一起，进入了那条通向铁路的狭窄小巷。
16.outstanding：a. extremely good or impressive 杰出的；出众的；显著的
His performance in charitable activities was outstanding. 在公益活动方面，他的表现非常出色。
Difficult sentences:
1. The data show that as students have increasingly shouldered the ever-rising cost of tuition, they have defected from the study of the humanities and toward applied science and “hard” skills that they bet will lead to employment. (Para. 2) Meaning:The facts and information show that as students have spent increasingly more money on tuition, they have turned away from studying the humanities to some practical courses that they believe will enable them to get a job more easily.
2. In other words, a college education is more and more seen as a means for economic betterment rather than a means for human betterment. (Para. 2) Meaning:In other words, a college education is more considered as a method to improve students’ future economic status rather than improve human nature or behavior.
Meaning beyond words:The quality of a college education is increasingly questionable because the trend among many colleges is to become more like a business and less like an academic setting.
3. Once the dominant pillars of university life, the humanities now play little roles when students take their college tours. These days, labs are more vivid and compelling than libraries. (Para. 3)
Meaning: The humanities that once dominated university life now play a trivial role when students have their college visits; nowadays, labs are more eye-catching and fascinating than libraries.
Meaning beyond words:Libraries were once the only place where students spent much time reading materials, doing research and writing papers. However, as more students are taking science courses, labs where students do scientific experiments play a more important role for learning than traditional libraries.
Note:A “college tour” is a series of campus visits to a number of colleges or
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universities by a prospective student. College tours may be taken individually or by school groups and educational programs as a way for a large number of people to visit several schools over a short period of time. In addition, many colleges now offer virtual tours on the Internet.
4. Historians, architects, authors, philosophers and artists have captured the words, images and meanings of this inner struggle in the form of story, music, myth, painting, architecture, sculpture, landscape and traditions. (Para.5) Meaning:Our historians, architects, authors, philosophers and artists have successfully caught the words, images and meanings of this mysterious inner force by way of story, music, myth, painting, architecture, sculpture, landscape and traditions.
5. Most importantly, studying the humanities invests us with great insight and self-awareness, thereby releasing our creative energy and talent in a positive and constructive manner. (Para. 7)
Meaning:The most important advantage for us to study the humanities is that it enables us to become more analytical and self-aware; therefore, our creativeness and talent are brought out in a positive and constructive way.
6. Famous people who studied the humanities make a long list indeed. It’s easy to see that the humanities can prepare us for many different careers and jobs we can undertake, whether medicine, business, science or entertainment.(Para. 8) Meaning:It is true that famous people who studied the humanities can make up a long list. Obviously, the humanities enable us to engage in many different careers and jobs, no matter whether they are medicine, business, science or entertainment. Note:“Whether medicine, business, science or entertainment” is an elliptical clause. It can be understood as “Whether they are medicine, business, science or entertainment”. In an elliptical clause some words are left out. Because it’s within a context, it is usually clear what is missing. As a rule, elliptical sentences consist of two clauses, one containing the grammar elements the other has left out. For example: 1)Jessica had five dollars while Monica (had) one.