waste disposal and waste reprocessing. According to the speaker, these operations should be performed in at least three countries with each carrying out one (at most two) operations.
17) Para 37: Does ―this is 27,000 too many‖ simply mean that a reduction of warheads is
necessary?
No. The preceding sentence says that we still have 27,000 warheads in existence, so this sentence means 27,000 warheads are more than necessary by 27,000 warheads. Then the necessary number is zero, in other words, all these 27,000 warheads must be destroyed.
18) Para 38: Does ―operate with their arsenals on hair-trigger alert‖ mean ―running their weapon
producing factories by protecting them with great vigilance‖?
No. It means keeping their weapons (missiles and nuclear bombs) always ready to be launched at the slightest warning of an enemy attack. This can be seen from what follows. 19) Para 40: What kind of ―environment‖ is the speaker talking about?
He is talking about an ideological or cultural environment, because this environment will influence people‘s views on nuclear weapons. 2. Multiple-choice Questions
1) Mohamed ElBaradei and the International Atomic Energy Agency he heads received the
Nobel Peace Prize 2005 for their achievements in ______D______. A. doing researches on atomic energy
B. seeing to it that nuclear-weapon states take concrete steps towards nuclear disarmament C. promoting multinational distribution of the operations for producing nuclear material for
civilian uses
D. preventing a black market in nuclear material and equipment and proliferation of nuclear
weapons Explanation:
A has no grounds in the text. B and C are not what he and his colleagues have actually done. D is supported by Paragraph 4, which says, ―At the International Atomic Energy Agency, my colleagues and I work to keep nuclear materials out of the reach of extremist groups. We inspect nuclear facilities all over the world, to be sure that peaceful nuclear activities are not being used as a cloak for weapons programmes.‖ Extremist groups could only get nuclear material and equipment on a black market, and inspection of nuclear facilities is aimed at non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.
2) ElBaradei thinks ______C______ is the most important of all the causes of civil wars,
organized crime, and extremism. A. human rights abuses B. a deep sense of injustice C. poverty D. lack of good governance Explanation:
Though in Paragraph 13 he talks about how the combination of poverty and other factors creates a most fertile breeding ground for civil wars, organized crime, and extremism, yet earlier in the text (Paragraphs 11-12), he makes a contrast between the wealthy and the poor, and later (Paragraphs 18-20), he only dwells on how poverty breeds conflict.
3) ElBaradei thinks that, if mankind is to avoid destroying itself ________A_______.
A. everyone should think intuitively that nuclear weapons are evil and refuse to use them B. proliferation of nuclear bombs must be absolutely prohibited C. nuclear disarmament must be carried through to the end
D. a world order must be set up in which nuclear weapons are not used to discourage war Explanation:
A, B, C and D are actually rephrasings of Paragraphs 27-30: Para 27: I have no doubt that, if we hope to escape self-destruction, then nuclear weapons should have no place in our collective conscience, and no role in our security.
4) According to ElBaradei, all the following are the steps urgently needed EXCEPT
______A______.
A. create an environment in which nuclear weapons are regarded as a taboo and a historical
anomaly
B. keep nuclear and radiological material out of the hands of extremist groups
C. tighten control over the operations for producing the nuclear material that could be used
in weapons
D. accelerate disarmament efforts Explanation:
In Paragraph 31, he says that three steps are urgently required, then in Paragraphs 32, 33, 36 he enumerates these steps with ―first‖, ―second‖, and ―third‖, which are B, C, and D. A is found in Paragraph 39, where he says that the hard part is how we create an environment in which nuclear weapons, like slavery or genocide, are regarded as a taboo and a historical anomaly. Since it is the hard part, it is to be done later when conditions are ripe.
5) _________B________ is one of the steps towards strict non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.
A. protecting nuclear facilities
B. making multinational the operations for producing nuclear material for civilian uses C. the UN Security Council backing the inspections of the IAEA D. reducing the strategic role given to nuclear weapons Explanation:
Proliferation of nuclear weapons means that more and more countries can and do produce nuclear weapons. If a country has mastered the operations for producing nuclear material for civilian uses, which, under the current system, is their right, they can also master those for making bombs. If the former are made multinational (B), that is, the operations are distributed among a number of countries, then no single country can have exclusive control over the whole cycle of operations. Under such a system, it is impossible for a country to make nuclear weapons, that is, non-proliferation of nuclear weapons is achieved.
A is one of the measures for keeping nuclear and radiological material out of the hands of extremist groups (Para 32), C is one of the details of strengthening the verification system, which is in turn a way of preventing nuclear proliferation (Para 35), and D is a good start towards nuclear disarmament (Para 36).
Extension from the Text 1. Speaking
Where do you think the biggest threat to the world comes from? From terrorists? From war? From environment pollution? Or from any other sources? Give your reasons. 2. Cloze
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Whether one believes in evolution, intelligent design, or Divine Creation, one thing is certain. Since the 1) beginning of history, human beings have been at war with each other, under the pretext of religion, ideology, ethnicity and 2) other reasons. And no civilization has ever willingly given up its most powerful 3) weapons. We seem to agree today that we can share modern technology, but we still refuse to acknowledge that our values at their very core are 4) shared values.
I am an Egyptian Muslim, educated in Cairo and New York, and now living in Vienna. My 5) wife and I have spent half our lives in the North, half in the South. And we have experienced first hand the unique nature of the human family and the common values we all share.
Shakespeare speaks of every single member of that 6) family in The Merchant of Venice, when he asks, ―If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not 7) laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?‖
And lest we forget:
There is no religion that was founded 8) on intolerance, and no religion that does not value the sanctity of human life.
Some would say that it is too 9) idealistic to believe in a society based on tolerance and the sanctity of human life, where borders, nationalities and ideologies are of marginal importance. To those I say, this is not idealism, but rather 10) realism, because history has taught us that war rarely resolves our differences. Force does not heal old wounds; it opens new ones.
Explanations:
1) ―The ______ of history‖ denotes time. Considered alone, the blank could be ―beginning‖,
―middle‖ or ―end‖. But the blank can only be ―beginning‖ if the meaning of ―since‖ is considered together with it.
2) Religion, ideology, ethnicity are reasons for war, but they are not the only reasons. To include
all reasons, ―other‖ reasons must be mentioned.
3) The preceding sentence tells about war. To engage in war, men will not give up their weapons.
―Most powerful‖ confirms this conclusion.
4) In the next paragraph, which is an example of how the speaker had experienced values in the
South and the North, we see the phrase ―the values we share‖. So ―_____ values‖ must be ―shared values‖.
5) Only he and his wife can have always spent their lives together. Not even their children.
6) The word ―member‖ and ―you‖ and ―we‖ in Shakespeare‘s questions tell us that the blank
denotes a group of people. The word ―that‖ suggests that the group of people is mentioned in the preceding sentence. Such a word in the preceding sentence is ―family‖.
7) To tickle somebody means to touch his body lightly to excite the surface nerves, and the result
is that the person cannot but laugh.
8) ―To found something on (a certain basis)‖ is the idiomatic collocation.
9) The next sentence ―To those I say, this is not idealism‖ expresses ElBaradei‘s view contrary
to the view expressed in ―it is too ________ to believe in . . .‖ Then the blank must be the adjective form of idealism—―idealistic‖.
10) ―Not . . . but rather . . .‖ indicates that the blank is a noun meaning the opposite of
―idealism‖—―realism‖. 3. Translating
Translate the following passage into Chinese.
I wish we were all more thorough students of the mighty past, for we should thus be rendered braver prophets of the future, and more cheerful workers in the present. History shows us with what tenacity the human race survives. Earthquake, famine, and pestilence have done their worst, but over them rolls a healing tide of years and they are lost to view; or sweeps the great procession, and hardly shows a scar. Rulers around whom clustered new forms of civilization pass away, but greater men succeed them. Nations are rooted up; great hopes seem blighted; revolutions rise and rivers run with the blood of patriots; the globe itself seems headed toward the abyss; new patriots are born; higher hopes bloom out like stars; humanity emerges from the dark ages vastly ahead of what it was on entering that cave of gloom, and ever the right comes uppermost; and now is Christ‘s kingdom nearer than when we first believed.
我希望我们对气势磅礴的过去历史研究得更彻底，因为这样一来，我们预言未来时就会大胆些，当前工作时就愉快些。历史告诉我们，人类是以何等坚韧精神生存下来的。地震，饥馑，瘟疫可以肆虐一时，但随后治愈创伤的岁月潮水般滚滚而来，使它们消失得无影无踪；或者说伟大的历史进程横扫大地，几乎看不到任何伤疤。新形式的文明围绕着帝王建立起来，这些帝王逝世后，又有更伟大的人物继起。有些民族被连根拔起，希望似乎化为泡影；革命一次又一次发生，爱国志士血流成河；地球本身似乎就要沉入深渊，然而新的爱国者又涌现出来，更高的希望如星光闪耀，人类大步走出了黑暗的世纪，比当初进入那阴森洞穴时大大地进步了。从此，公理至高无上。现在，基督的王国比我们最初预想到的更为临近了。
Chinese Version of the Text
穆罕默德·巴拉迪在2005年诺贝尔奖颁奖典礼上的演讲
1 尊敬的国王和王后陛下、殿下、尊敬的挪威诺贝尔委员会的委员们、各位阁下、各位女士、各位先生：
2 获得这个最有价值的荣耀，我和国际原子能机构感到受之有愧、自豪和高兴，最重要的是，它更坚定了我们的决心。
3 我的弟媳为一个支持开罗的孤儿院的组织工作。她和她的同事们照料因无法控制的情况成了孤儿的孩子们。她们给他们饭吃，给他们衣穿，教他们读书。 4 在国际原子能机构，我和我的同事们为了不让极端分子得到核材料而工作。我们核查全世界的核设施，以确保为和平目的的核活动不会被用来作为武器计划的掩护。 5 我和我的弟媳尽管所用的途径不同，却都在朝着同一个目标奋斗——为全人类大家庭的安全而奋斗。
6 但为什么到目前为止这种安全还离我们很远呢？
7 我相信这是因为我们的安全策略跟不上我们面临的威胁的变化。全球化扫除了阻碍商品交流、观念传播及人员来往的障碍，但也同时扫除了那些限制对安全的威胁，将其局部化的障碍。
8 最近联合国高级专门小组确定了人类现在面临的五种威胁：
1、贫困、传染性疾病和环境恶化； 2、国内、国际武装冲突； 3、有组织犯罪； 4、恐怖主义；
5、大规模杀伤性武器。
9 这些都是“没有国界的威胁”，在这些问题上，传统的国家安全观念都已经过时了。我
们不能用建造更多的城墙、开发更大规模的武器或者派遣更多的军队来抵御这些威胁。情况恰恰相反。按其本性来说，这些安全威胁主要靠各个国家之间的合作才能抵御。 10 更重要的是这些威胁并不是互相分离或者说各不相同的。我们揭开表层，就会发现它们是紧密相连相关的。
11 今天，我们有1000人坐在这个庄严的大厅里。设想一下，如果我们代表全世界的人，我左边的200人是世界上的富人，他们消费掉80%的可利用资源，而我右边的400人是靠每天不到2美元收入度日的人。
12 我左边这些贫困的人并不比过道右边这些人愚蠢，也不比他们卑鄙。他们只不过是生来就处于这种命运之中。 13 在现实世界，生活条件不平衡必然会导致机会不均等，在很多情况下也会导致希望破灭。更糟糕的是，穷人本来的困境往往跟践踏人权、治理不善、深感不公结合在一起，并造成这些现象。这种结合，自然就为内战、有组织犯罪以及各种形式的极端主义的滋生制造了肥沃的土壤。
14 在那些冲突持续恶化了几十年的地区，各国不断地想方设法消除其不安全感，或者显示自己的“实力”。有些时候，这些国家也会像以前已经这样做过的国家那样，可能很想寻求大规模杀伤性武器。 15 女士们，先生们。 16 十五年前冷战结束时，我们很多人都希望出现一个世界新秩序。一个植根于人类团结的世界新秩序，一个公平、有效、人人有份的世界新秩序。
17 但今天，我们离这个目标跟以前一样遥远。也许我们已经拆除了东西方之间的隔离墙，但还须在南北之间、贫富之间架起一座沟通的桥梁。
18 看看我们的发展援助记录吧。去年，世界各国在军备上的花费超过1万亿美元，但官方捐给发展中国家的发展援助资金却不到其10%——仅800亿美元，而这些发展中国家有8.5亿人正在挨饿。
19 我的朋友詹姆斯·莫里斯领导世界粮食计划署，其任务是给挨饿的人提供食品。他最近告诉我：“只要我拥有军备开支的1%，这个世界上就谁都不会饿着肚子上床。”
20 贫困继续引发冲突，这并不是什么出人意料的事。过去十年里，有1300万人死于武装冲突，其中900万人死于非洲撒哈拉沙漠以南地区，这里是世界上最穷的地方。
21 再看看我们是如何对待人的生命的神圣和价值的吧。2001年9月恐怖分子袭击了美国后，我们对这种滔天罪行深感悲痛，表示痛恨，这无疑是正确的。但是现在很多人仍不知道，自1998年以来，已有380万人因刚果民主共和国内战而丧生。
22 我们是否可以得出结论：我们的优先事项定得不妥，我们行事厚此薄彼？ 23 女士们，先生们。
24 脑海中有了这幅“宏大的图画”，我们便能更好地了解未来在禁止核扩散和裁军方面变化的图景。
25 这变化的图景有三个主要特点：核原料与核设备大黑市的出现，核武器及敏感核技术的扩散，核裁军的停滞。
26 今天，全球化将我们彼此拉得更近，如果我们对一些人的不安全置之不理，他们的不安全很快会变成大家的不安全。
27 同样，随着先进的科学技术的传播，只要我们有些人决心依赖核武器，我们就继续在冒这同一种武器会越来越吸引别人的风险。 28 我毫不怀疑，如果我们希望避免自我毁灭，那么核武器在我们集体的良知中就不该有一席之地；在保障我们的安全方面就不该起任何作用。
29 为了实现这一目标，我们必须绝对确保没有更多的国家获得这些致命的武器。