Lesson 16 Mary had a little lamb

Ashamed of having acted so rashly, Dimitri apologized to Aleko for having accused him.

迪米特里為自己的魯莽而感到不好意思，向阿列科道了歉，說是錯怪了他。

Lesson 16 Mary had a little lamb

While they were talking it began to rain and Dimitri stayed in Aleko's house until the rain stopped.

就在他倆說話的時候，天下起了雨，迪米特里便呆在阿列科家里避雨，一直等到雨停為止。

Lesson 16 Mary had a little lamb

When he went outside half an hour later, he was astonished to find the little black lamb was almost white.

半小時后，當他從屋里出來時，他驚奇地發現小黑羔羊全身幾乎都變成白色。

Lesson 16 Mary had a little lamb

Its wool, which had been dyed black, had been washed clean by the rain!

原來羊毛上染的黑色被雨水沖掉了！

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

Verrazano, an Italian about whom little is known, sailed into New York Harbour in 1524 and named it Angouleme.

1524年，一位鮮為人知的意大利人維拉薩諾駕船駛進紐約港，并將該港名為安古拉姆。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

He described it as 'a very agreeable situation located within two small hills in the midst of which flowed a great river.

“地理位置十分適宜，位于兩座小山的中間，一條大河從中間流過”。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

'Though Verrazano is by no means considered to be a great explorer,

雖然維拉薩諾絕對算不上一個偉大的探險家，

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

his name will probably remain immortal, for on November 21st, 1964, the longest suspension bridge in the world was named after him.

但他的名字將流芳百世，因為1964年11月21日建成的一座世界上最長的吊橋是以他的名字命名。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

The Verrazano Bridge, which was designed by Othmar Ammann, joins Brooklyn to Staten Island.

維拉薩諾大橋由奧斯馬。阿曼設計，連結著布魯克林與斯塔頓島，

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

It has a span of 4,260 feet.

橋長4，260英尺。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

The bridge is so long that the shape of the earth had to be taken into account by its designer.

由于橋身太長，設計者不得不考慮了地表的形狀。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

Two great towers support four huge cables.

兩座巨塔支撐著4根粗大的鋼纜。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

The towers are built on immense underwater platforms make of steel and concrete.

塔身建在巨大的水下鋼盤混凝土平臺上。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

The platforms extend to a depth of over 100 feet under the sea.

平臺深入海底100英尺。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

These alone took sixteen months to build.

僅這兩座塔就花了16個月才建成。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

Above the surface of the water, the towers rise to a height of nearly 700 feet.

塔身高出水面將近700英尺。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

They support the cables from which the bridge has been suspended.

高塔支撐著鋼纜，而鋼纜又懸吊著大橋，

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

Each of the four cables contains 26,108 lengths of wire.

4根鋼纜中的每根由26，108股鋼繩組成。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

It has been estimated that if the bridge were packed with cars, it would still only be carrying a third of its total capacity.

據估計，若橋上擺滿了汽車，也只不過是橋的總承載力的1/3。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

However, size and strength are not the only important things about this bridge.

然而，這座橋重要特點不僅是它的規模與強度。

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

Despite its immensity,

盡管此橋很大，

Lesson 17 The longest suspension bridge in the world

it is both simple and elegant, fulfilling its designer's dream to create 'an enormous object drawn as faintly as possible'.

但它的結構簡單，造型優美，實現了設計者企圖創造一個“盡量用細線條勾畫出一個龐然大物”的夢想。

Lesson 18 Electric currents in modern art

Modern sculpture rarely surprises us any more.

現代雕塑不再使我們感到驚訝了。

Lesson 18 Electric currents in modern art

The idea that modern art can only be seen in museums is mistaken.

那種認為現代藝術只能在博物館里才能看到的觀點是錯誤的。

Lesson 18 Electric currents in modern art

Even people who take no interest in art cannot have failed to notice examples of modern sculpture on display in public places.

即使是對藝術不感興趣的人也不會注意到在公共場所展示的現代藝術品。

Lesson 18 Electric currents in modern art

Strange forms stand in gardens, and outside buildings and shops.

公園里、大樓和商店外豎立著的奇形怪狀的雕塑，

Lesson 18 Electric currents in modern art

We have got quite used to them.

對這些，我們已經司空見慣了。

Lesson 18 Electric currents in modern art

Some so-called 'modern' pieces have been on display for nearly eighty years.

有些所謂的“現代”藝術品在那里已經陳列了近80年了。

Lesson 18 Electric currents in modern art

In spite of this, some people -- including myself -- were surprise by a recent exhibition of modern sculpture.

盡管如此，最近舉辦的一次現代雕塑展覽還是使一些人（包括我在內）大吃了一驚。

Lesson 18 Electric currents in modern art

The first thing I saw when I entered the art gallery was a notice which said:

走進展廳首先看到的是一張告示，上面寫著