大学英语Book2 Unit 2.doc

wordSection AThe humanities: Out of date?Background information1the humanitiesThe humanities are a group of academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative. The humanities, called social sciences, include history, anthropology, munication studies, cultural studies, law, language, literature, philosophy,religion,music and theater,etc.Through exploration of the humanities,students learn how to think creatively and critically,to reason,and to ask questions.Because these skills allow students to gain new insights into everything from poetry and paintings to business models and politics,humanistic subjects have been at the heart of a liberal arts education.Today,humanistic knowledge continues to provide the ideal foundation for exploring and understanding the human experience.However,with the economic downtrend,many colleges and universities intend to cut liberal arts courses to save money,and students also try to take natural science courses to help them seek job opportunities.Whether or not studying courses in the humanities has thus bee a controversial question.2 self-awarenessSelf-awareness isn’t a quality that you demonstrate by telling a story,but rather it has to do with how you tell the story and your ability to municate what you learned.Being able to explain to the admissions mittee why you value one acplishment above others,what you learned from a setback,or the deeper meaning of your career goals,is evidence of self-awareness.Furthermore,the self-aware individual has knowledge of both his strengths and weaknesses.3 James CameronWorld-famous director of the movie,Titanic.The film received 14 Academy Award nominations and was awarded 11 Oscars（奥斯卡奖).4 Sally RideAn American physicist and former NASA(m美国国家航空航天局) astronaut.In 1983,at age 32,she became the first American woman and then youngest American to enter space.5 Bruce LeeA Chinese-American actor,martial arts instructor,philosopher,film director,film producer,and screenwriter.He was considered the most influential martial artist and a cultural icon.Born in San Francisco,he was raised in Hong Kong until his late teens.He moved back to the United States at 18 and studied philosophy at Washington University.6Gwyneth PaltrowAn American actress and singer.She gained worldwide recognition through her performance in Shakesperar in Love(1998),for which she won an Academy Award for Best Actress.7 Renee ZellwegerAn American actress and producer.She received two nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.8 Matt DamonAn American actor and screenwriter.He and his friend Ben Affleck won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and the Golden Globe Award（金球奖） for Best Screenplay for their work—Good Will Hunting(1997).He also got multiple Best Actor nominations.9 Harold Varmus An American Nobel Prize-winning scientist and the 14th and current Director of the National Cancer Institute.He was a co-recipient of the 1989 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their work on the origins of cancer.10 Michael EisnerAn American businessman.He was the chief executive officer of The Walt Disney pany from 1984 until 2005.Detailed study of the text1 when the going gets tough,the tough take accounting.(Para.1)Meaning:When conditions or situations bee difficult,determined people choose to study the subject of accounting,hoping they can more easily find a job in the future.when the going gets tough:when the situation bees difficult当形势变得严峻时When the going gets tough,women can get as tough as men.当形势变得严峻时，女人可以变得跟男人一样坚强。

NOTE A more mon saying in the similar strcture is”When the going gets tough,the tough get going “.this is an informal expression and an old motto meaning”When the situation bees difficult,strong people take the necessary action to deal with it(艰难之路唯勇者行)”.Now people often creative use the motto,by only quoting the first part”When the going gets tough…”.The author is very witty to use”take accounting”here to be humorous and sarcastic.accounting:n.[U] the work if accounting or the methods they use 会计；会计学Students’major objective is to be financially well off.Accordingly,today the most popular course is not literature ir history but accounting.学生的主要目的是在经济上富裕。

因此，当今最流行的课程不是文学或历史，而是会计take accounting:choose to study the subject of accounting选择会计学2When the job market worsens,many students calculate they can’t major in English or history(Para.1)Meaning:When there are fewer iob openings,many college students make a judgment from the situation and think they can’t study English or history as their major.Meaning beyond words :Many students will not take the classes that won’t help them locate a decent job later.calculate:vt.1) make a judgment about what is likely to happen using the available information估计；预测；推测It’s difficult to calculate the long-term effect。