新概念英语三课文免费打印版.docx

1、新概念英语三课文免费打印版 Lesson 1 A Puma at large 潜逃的美洲狮Pumas are large, cat-like animals which are found in America. When reports came into London Zoo that a wild puma had been spotted forty-five miles south of London, they were not taken seriously. However, as the evidence began to accumulate, experts from t

2、he Zoo felt obliged to investigate, for the descriptions given by people who claimed to have seen the puma were extraordinarily similar. The hunt for the puma began in a small village where a woman picking blackberries saw a large cat only five yards away from her. It immediately ran away when she s

3、aw it, and experts confirmed that a puma will not attack a human being unless it is cornered. The search proved difficult, for the puma was often observed at one place in the morning and at another place twenty miles away in the evening. Wherever it went, it left behind it a trail of dead deer and s

4、mall animals like rabbits. Paw prints were seen in a number of places and puma fur was found clinging to bushes. Several people complained of cat-like noises at night and a businessman on a fishing trip saw the puma up a tree. The experts were now fully convinced that the animal was a puma, but wher

5、e had it come from? As no pumas had been reported missing from any zoo in the country, this one must have been in the possession of a private collector and somehow managed to escape. The hunt went on for several weeks, but the puma was not caught. It is disturbing to think that a dangerous wild anim

6、al is still at large in the quiet countryside.Lesson 2 Thirteen equals one 十三等于一 Our vicar is always raising money for one cause or another, but he has never managed to get enough money to have the church clock repaired. The big clock which used to strike the hours day and night was damaged many yea

7、rs ago and has been silent ever since. One night, however, our vicar work up with a start: the clock was striking the hours! Looking at his watch, he saw that it was one oclock, but the bell struck thirteen times before it stopped. Armed with a torch, the vicar went up into the clock tower to see wh

8、at was going on. In the torchlight, he caught sight of a figure whom he immediately recognized as Bill Wilkins, our local grocer. Whatever are you doing up here Bill? asked the vicar in surprise. Im trying to repair the bell, answered Bill. Ive been coming up here night after night for weeks now. Yo

9、u see, I was hoping to give you a surprise. You certainly did give me a surprise! said the vicar. Youve probably woken up everyone in the village as well. Still, Im glad the bell is working again. Thats the trouble, vicar, answered Bill. Its working all right, but Im afraid that at one oclock it wil

10、l strike thirteen times and theres nothing I can do about it.Well get used to that, Bill, said the vicar. Thirteen is not as good as one, but its better than nothing. Now lets go downstairs and have a cup of tea. Lesson 3 An unknown goddess 无名女神 Some time ago, and interesting discovery was made by a

11、rchaeologists on the Aegean island of Kea. An American team explored a temple which stands in an ancient city on the promontory of Ayia Irini. The city at one time must have been prosperous, for it enjoyed a high level of civilization. Houses - often three storeys high - were built of stone. They ha

12、d large rooms with beautifully decorated walls. The city was equipped with a drainage system, for a great many clay pipes were found beneath the narrow streets.The temple which the archaeologists explored was used as a place of worship from the fifteenth century B.C. until Roman times. In the most s

13、acred room of temple, clay fragments of fifteen statues were found. Each of these represented a goddess and had, at one time, been painted. The body of one statue was found among remains dating from the fifteenth century B.C. Its missing head happened to be among remains of the fifth century B.C. Th

14、is head must have been found in Classical times and carefully preserved. It was very old and precious even then. When the archaeologists reconstructed the fragments, they were amazed to find that the goddess turned out to be a very modern-looking woman. She stood three feet high and her hands rested

15、 on her hips. She was wearing a full-length skirt which swept the ground. Despite her great age, she was very graceful indeed, but, so far, the archaeologists have been unable to discover her identity.Lesson 4 The double life of Alfred Bloggs 阿尔弗雷德.布洛格斯的双重生活 These days, people who do manual work oft

16、en receive far more money than people who work in offices. People who work in offices are frequently referred to as white-collar workers for the simple reason that they usually wear a collar and tie to go to work. Such is human nature, that a great many people are often willing to sacrifice higher p

17、ay for the privilege of becoming white-collar workers. This can give rise to curious situations, as it did in the case of Alfred Bloggs who worked as a dustman for the Ellesmere Corporation. When he got married, Alf was too embarrassed to say anything to his wife about his job. He simply told her th

18、at he worked for the Corporation. Every morning, he left home dressed in a smart black suit. He then changed into overalls and spent the next eight hours as a dustman. Before returning home at night. He took a shower and changed back into his suit. Alf did this for over two years and his fellow dust

19、men kept his secret Alfs wife has never discovered that she married a dustman and she never will, for Alf has just found another job. He will soon be working in an office. He will be earning only half as much as he used to, but he feels that his rise in status is well worth the loss of money. From n

20、ow on, he will wear a suit all day and others will call him Mr. Bloggs, not Alf.Lesson 5 The facts 确切数字 Editors of newspapers and magazines often go to extremes to provide their reader with unimportant facts and statistics. Last year a journalist had been instructed by a well-known magazine to write

21、 an article on the presidents palace in a new African republic. When the article arrived, the editor read the first sentence and then refuse to publish it. The article began: Hundreds of steps lead to the high wall which surrounds the presidents palace. The editor at once sent the journalist a fax i

22、nstructing him find out the exact number of steps and the height of the wall. The journalist immediately set out to obtain these important facts, but the took a long time to send them Meanwhile, the editor was getting impatient, for the magazine would soon go to press. He sent the journalist two mor

23、e faxes, but received no reply. He sent yet another fax informing the journalist that if he did not reply soon he would be fired. When the journalist again failed to reply, the editor reluctantly published the article as it had originally been written. A week later, the editor at last received a fax

24、 from the journalist. Not only had the poor man been arrested, but he had been sent to prison as well. However, he had at last been allowed to send a fax in which he informed the editor that the he had been arrested while counting the 1,084 steps leading to the fifteen-foot wall which surrounded the

25、 presidents palace.Lesson 6 Smash-and-grab 砸橱窗抢劫 The expensive shops in a famous near Piccadilly were just opening. At this time of the morning, the arcade was almost empty. Mr. Taylor, the owner of a jewellery shop was admiring a new display. Two of his assistants had been working busily since eigh

26、t oclock and had only just finished. Diamond necklaces and rings had been beautifully arranged on a background of black velvet. After gazing at the display for several minutes, Mr. Taylor went back into his shop.The silence was suddenly broken when a large car, with its headlights on and its home bl

27、aring, roared down the arcade. It came to a stop outside the jewellers. One man stayed at the wheel while two others with black stocking over their faces jumped out and smashed the window of the shop with iron bars. While this was going on, Mr. Taylor was upstairs. He and his staff began throwing fu

28、rniture out of the window. Chairs and tables went flying into the arcade. One of the thieves was struck by a heavy statue, but he was too busy helping himself to diamonds to notice any pain. The raid was all over in three minutes, for the men scrambled back into the car and it moved off at a fantast

29、ic speed. Just as it was leaving, Mr. Taylor rushed out and ran after it throwing ashtrays and vases, but it was impossible to stop the thieves. They had got away with thousands of pounds worth of diamonds. Lesson 7 Mutilated ladies 残钞鉴别组 Has it ever happened to you? Have you ever put your trousers

30、in the washing machine and then remembered there was a large bank note in your back pocket? When you rescued your trousers, did note in your back pocket? When you rescued your trousers, did you find the note was whiter than white? People who live in Britain neednt despair when they made mistakes lik

31、e this (and a lot of people do)! Fortunately for them, the Bank of England has a team called Mutilated Ladies which deals with claims from people who fed their money to a machine or to their dog. Dogs, it seems, love to chew up money!A recent case concerns Jane Butlin whose fianc, John, runs a succe

32、ssful furniture business. John had very good day and put his wallet containing $3,000 into the microwave oven for safekeeping. Then he and Jane went horse-riding. When they got home, Jane cooked their dinner in the microwave oven and without realizing it, cooked her fiancs wallet as well. Imagine their dismay when they found a beautifully-cooked wallet and notes turned to ash! John went to see his bank manager who sent the remains of wallet and the money to the special department of the Bank of England in Newcastle: the Mutilate Ladies! They examined the remain and John got al