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College English Listening and Speaking
Course 5 Listening Text (NEW) Recorder ： Cole Win Gao
background, puts me in a very strong position, as far as being able to function in space. \5. Tito said he would take pictures and tell people about the experience upon his return. Tito says his launch aboard a Russian rocket and six-day stay on the International Space Station demonstrates that anyone can -- and should -- experience space.
(B)
Work Bank
seamstress n. 女裁缝
Queens, N. Y. 纽约市皇后区
Sputnik 人造地球卫星{特指前苏联1957年发射的世界第一颗人造卫星〉 Jet Propulsion Laboratory 喷气机推进实验室 Pasadena (美国城市名)
Mariner Mars probe 水手号火星探测器 yearn for 渴望，向往 snapshot n. 快照 trillion num. 万亿
manor house n. 庄园大厦 Los Angeles 洛杉矶(美国城市) Suzanne (人名) disposable e. 可任意使用的 put ... on hold 暂时搁置
Mir n. (前苏联)和平号宇宙空间站
MirCorp joint venture 和平号合资公司 afloat a. 飘浮的
Parachute v. 用降落伞着陆
Notes
1. Sputnik On Oct. 4, 1957, the Soviets launched the world's first artificial satellite, called Sputnik (fellow traveler). Although it was only a simple 58-cm (23-in) aluminum sphere containing a pair of radio transmitters, Sputnik's successful orbits around Earth marked a huge step in technology and ushered in the space age.
2. Wilshire Associates Wilshire Associates Incorporated is a global investment advisory film that offers investment products and services, including investment consulting, asset management, mutual fund management and analytical tools, to clients in over 20 countries, representing over 400 organizations with assets totaling more than $2.5 trillion.
3. The Russians didn't cut any corners... The Russians didn’t cut back on any necessary training or lower the requirements for Tito.
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College English Listening and Speaking
Course 5 Listening Text (NEW) Recorder ： Cole Win Gao
The World's First Space Tourist (Part Two)
Dennis Tito is the oldest child of working-class Italian immigrants whose ancestors came from the town of Tito in southern Italy. His father was a printer, and his mother was a seamstress (女裁缝). While growing up in Queens, N.Y., Tito became interested in space travel. He says he dreamed of space flight when he saw Sputnik launch as a teenager in 1957. Yes, it was Sputnik that sparked his teenage imagination.
Tito earned bachelor's and master's degrees in aerospace engineering and went to work in 1964 for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. He charted flight paths for NASA's Mariner Mars probes, earning $15,000 a year. But he yearned for more -- more money.
Tito founded his own company Wilshire Associates in the early 1970s, using the mathematical intelligence he developed during his NASA career to analyze the stock market instead. His firm produces the Wilshire 500 Total Market Index, which is watched by Federal Reserve officials as an overall snapshot of U.S. stock markets.
By age 40, he had made his first million. The millions kept piling up; the investment firm now manages more than $10 billion in assets and advises on $1 trillion in assets. His personal fortune is estimated at $200 million.
Tito's passions include opera, sailing and buying fast cars -- but driving them slowly. Most are housed in the eight-car garage of his 30,000-square-foot
manor house with ocean views that he built on top of a mountain in Los Angeles. He and his wife, Suzanne, divorced shortly after the house was completed. His three children are in their 20s.
With a large disposable income, Tito toyed with the idea of flying to Mir in the early 1990s. The Russians had just sent up a Japanese journalist and a British chemist for cash, and Tito wanted to be the next guest cosmonaut. But the Soviet Union's collapse forced him to put his dream on hold. The space dream came alive again in April 2000, when the MirCorp joint venture called in April 2000, in hopes of keeping Mir afloat.
Tito put millions into an account that the Russian space program could access once he was launched to Mir, and went to the cosmonaut headquarters in the Star City, outside Moscow. There, the 5-foot-5, 140-pound, fit-looking
businessman threw himself into training. \he boasted.
When Russia decided to sink its 15-year-old space station, officials offered Tito an alternative destination -- the International Space Station, barely 2 years old. Another Soyuz spacecraft was needed at the space station as a fresh lifeboat, and the third, empty seat was offered to him.
Tito was thrilled with the change in travel plans. \hotels,\
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College English Listening and Speaking
Course 5 Listening Text (NEW) Recorder ： Cole Win Gao
He took special delight in launching from the same pad where Sputnik took off on Oct. 4, 1957, and where the world's first spaceman, Yuri Gagarin, took off on April 12, 1961.
Tito was the third American to be launched aboard a Russian rocket, but the first to land in a Russian spacecraft. The Soyuz capsule parachutes down into remote Kazakstan.
All three of Tito's children were at the Baikonur Cosmodrome for his launch. Tito insisted he was not afraid or even nervous about his flight.
\afraid to cross the street?\Questions 1 :
Listen to the recording and choose the right answers to each questions you hear.
1. Where was Tito born? A. In southern Italy B. In the UK. C. In the U.S.
D. The passage does not say.
正确答案：D. The passage does not say.
2. When did Tito first become fascinated with space travel? A. In 1955 when he took his first f1ight to New York. B. In 1957 when the Soviets launched Sputnik.
C. In 1964 when he was on his first job in a jet laboratory. D. In 1959 when the U.S. launched its first satellite.
正确答案：B. In 1957 when the Soviets launched Sputnik.
3. What was Tito's major in university? A. Mathematics. B. Finance.
C. Electronic engineering. D. Aerospace engineering.
正确答案：D. Aerospace engineering.
4. Which of the following may NOT be the business of Tito's firm? A. Manufacturing. B. Financial advisory. C. Investment consulting D. Stock market.
正确答案：A. Manufacturing.
5. Which of the following is NOT true about Tito's hobby?
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College English Listening and Speaking
Course 5 Listening Text (NEW) Recorder ： Cole Win Gao
A. He likes singing.
B. He loves sailing boats.
C. He likes speeding in fast cars. D. He is fond of big houses.
正确答案：C. He likes speeding in fast cars.
6. What was the main cause of Tito's abandoning his plan to fly to Mir in the early 1990s?
A. The U.S. government prohibited him from paying the Russians. B. The Soviet Union broke up.
C. The Russians were not interested in Tito's application. D. Tito was busy with his divorce case. 正确答案：B. The Soviet Union broke up.
7. What can be inferred about Tito's training? A. The Russians gave him a hard time.
B. Tito complained a lot about the strict training.
C. Tito received strict training from both Russians and NASA.
D. Tito's training was no different from that for Russian cosmonauts.
正确答案：D. Tito's training was no different from that for Russian cosmonauts.
Questions 2:
Listen to the recording again and complete the following statements about Tito’s Personal information.
His physical appearance His family information Tito’s Personal File Record (1). He is 5 foot 5 inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. (2). He looks fit. (1). He is the oldest child of working-class Italian immigrants. (2). His father was a printer and his mother was a seamstress. (3). He has three children who are in their 20s. (4). He and his wife, Suzanne, devoiced shortly after their house was completed. His educational background and (1). He earned bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Aerospace engineering. work experience (2). He worked for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California and flight paths charted for NASA's Mariner Mars probes. (3). He founded his own company Wilshire Associates in the early 1970s and became a millionaire by the age of 40. His personal passions or hobbies
(1). He wanted to earn more money and to pursue his teenage dream -----space flight. Recorder Cole Win Gao 1
College English Listening and Speaking
Course 5 Listening Text (NEW) Recorder ： Cole Win Gao
(2). His passions include opera , sailing and buying fast cars---- but driving them slowly. (3). Most of his cars are housed in the eight-car garage of his 30,000-square-foot manor house with ocean views that he built on top of a mountain in Los Angeles. Speaking Task (1)
You have just heart a story about the world’s first space tourist, Dennis Tito. What is your opinion of him and his flight? Exchange views with your partner. Reflections:
You may wish to cover the following points in your discussion.
1. What is special about the space tourist Dennis Tito? 2. What is the significance of Tito's f1ying in space? 3. What are the prospects of the space tourism?
4. What do you think: of Tito's courage to fly in space?
Dennis Tito, an American millionaire from California, flew into space at his own expense and became the first space tourist in the world. He stayed in space for six days and then landed in Siberia.
Dennis was born into a poor Italian immigrant family. From childhood, he had a dream of flying into space. He worked hard and accumulated a large fortune. Though he was a very successful businessman and could fly to anywhere in the world, he never abandoned his youthful dream -- flying into space. He managed to fulfill his dream at the age of 61. Of course, he had to pay a lot of money to the Russians and endure the hardship of strict space training.
We should not underestimate the importance of Tito's flying in space. His trip marked the beginning of a new era in space exploration. As the technology of space exploration has matured, ordinary people now can fly in spaceships if they wish and commercial space travel will probably become popular in the next 20 or 50 years.
But still, space travel at present involves danger. The recent breakup of the space shuttle \could end in a disaster. Dennis Tito surely knew this danger but he demonstrated an exceptional courage in facing the difficulty and danger. He set a good example not only to his three children but also to all who are pursuing their teenage dreams. Speaking Task (2)
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