Vocabulary Power appreciate (to understand how good or useful someone or something is) I m not an expert, but I appreciate fine works o

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1 Part 26 Zoom In Sveta Bogoroditsa The church Sveta Bogoroditsa ( Holy Virgin ) in Karlovo has a handsome profile with its blue and white bell tower. The bell tower is relatively new, from 1897, but the church building, as the inscription above the western entrance tells us, dates from Before they began constructing this new building in 1847, the older church of the Holy Virgin had burned down in This latter church, about which little is known, is believed by some to have been built already at the end of the fifteenth century, at the time of the founding of the little town of Karli-ova, later Karlovo. In any case, the names of priests serving in the church have been preserved from the eighteenth century on. Although the construction was completed in 1851, the events of the Crimean War and lack of funds delayed the furnishing of the church, and its consecration did not take place until May 20, consecration Karli-ova Words & Phrases holy profile inscription latter priest preserve furnish 190

2 Vocabulary Power appreciate (to understand how good or useful someone or something is) I m not an expert, but I appreciate fine works of art. exhibition (a show of paintings, photographs, or other objects that people can go to see) The museum is staging an exhibition of Picasso s work. performance (a musical, dramatic, or other entertainment presented before an audience) This evening s performance will begin at 8 p.m. interpret (to explain the meaning of something) The students were asked to interpret the poem. critic (a person who writes about and expresses opinions about things such as books, films, music, or art) The movie was hailed by critics as a triumphant piece of realism. choreography (the inventing of steps and movements for ballets and other dances) The choreography of that ballet was done by a famous choreographer. illustration (a picture in a book, article etc., especially one that helps you to understand it) The book contains 62 pages of illustrations. tune (to make a musical instrument play at the right pitch) Someone s coming tomorrow to tune the piano. Review Exercise interpret choreography critic illustration tune 1. The orchestra began to up as we entered the hall. 2. Different people might events differently. 3. Dancers begin practicing their. 4. She is the movie for our local newspaper. 5. The has been included to enhance content understanding. 191

3 Exercises 1 All art is creation, regardless of how closely the imitation resembles the original. Even the most rigorous attempt to create an absolute likeness is ultimately selective. Doing a portrait, (A), the artist may ask the subject to look serious, not smile selecting a certain aspect of the person. We know Mona Lisa Giaconda, the subject of the most famous portrait in the world, through her mysterious smile; but we will never know what the entire person was like. The treasure of art, (B), is that its reality lives forever. The final product is really an addition to reality, not simply a way of totally reproducing it. The artist always contributes something new, something that never was put together in precisely that way before. Leonardo s Mona Lisa is not Mona Lisa. The latter has long since gone to her reward; the former will never die. (A) (B) in contrast therefore in contrast however for example hence for example however in other words therefore 2 Fourteenth-century approaches to music had a deep and continuing impact on music and musical life in later centuries. Perhaps most significant was the invention of a precise and unambiguous notation that could record a wide variety of rhythms and allowed music to be distributed in writing and performed accurately wherever it went. We now take this for granted when we play from notation and sight-read through unfamiliar music, but it was a remarkable innovation in the fourteenth century. Among its effects was that composers could fix their music exactly as they wished it to be performed, as poets had long been able to set down their poems, leading them to take pride in authorship as few composers had done before the fourteenth century. In addition, future composers would claim credit for their work more readily and would remain anonymous much less often than was true before anonymous the simplification of musical notation ways to protect a musician s authorship the relationship between music and poetry the invention of musical notation and its effects important roles of composers in the 14th century 192

4 3 Whatever the professional musician may hold, most musical beginners still search for specific words with which to pin down their musical (A). That is why they always find Tchaikovsky easier to understand than Beethoven. In the first place, it is easier to pin a meaningword on a Tchaikovsky piece than on a Beethoven one. Much easier. Moreover, with the Russian composer, every time you come back to a piece of his it almost always says the same thing to you, whereas with Beethoven it is often quite difficult to put your finger right on what he is saying. And any musician will tell you that that is why Beethoven is the (B) composer. Because music which always says the same thing to you will necessarily soon become dull music, but music whose meaning is slightly different with each hearing has a greater chance of remaining alive. (A) (B) tastes greater careers more popular potential more popular reactions greater background more creative 4 The visual arts are nonverbal languages, but in more ways than one might expect. We all know that paintings communicate, and that we are able to derive some information from them more effectively than we can from words. (A) But few of us are aware of the fact that obtaining information from an image is not automatic not even from the most realistic picture of a familiar subject. (B) We have to be able to read a particular system of distortions that has been used to translate the original three-dimensional scene into a two-dimensional reproduction. (C) For example, a great many words would be needed to describe a miracle performed by a saint or what the Rocky Mountains looked like in 1848 with the same degree of detail found in a painted image of such a subject. (A)-(C)-(B) (B)-(C)-(A) (C)-(B)-(A) (B)-(A)-(C) (C)-(A)-(B) 193

5 Part 27 Zoom In The wrapping of Christmas presents, William Waits notes, is a fairly recent phenomenon in American life. It arose at the turn of the 20th century, during a period when hand-made presents were giving way to machine-made, store-bought ones. For both givers and manufacturers, this shift presented a problem, for the machine-made items, precisely because they were convenient, represented less of the giver s personal attention than the hand-made items had done; thus they were symbolically less intimate. To disguise this loss of symbolic value, and to invest the manufactured items with a personal touch, retailers encouraged shoppers to have their purchases giftwrapped. Gift-wrapping, in Waits s acute term, became a decontaminating mechanism that removed the presents from the normal flow of bought-and-sold goods and made them, for a single ceremonial moment, emblems of rather than commerce. emblem intimacy disguise generosity convenience encouragement Words & Phrases fairly recent phenomenon arise give way to manufacturer shift precisely represent attention symbolically intimate disguise invest retailer acute term decontaminating mechanism ceremonial commerce 194

6 Vocabulary Power commerce (trade, especially between countries; the buying and selling of goods and services) The growth of commerce between those two countries is remarkable. critical (expressing disapproval of somebody or something and saying what you think is bad about them) The report was sharply critical of the police. retirement (the act of stopping work because you have reached a particular age; the time when you do this) Last year ill health compelled his retirement. dilemma (a difficult situation in which you have to choose between two or more undesirable alternatives) I could see no way of resolving this moral dilemma. conformity (behavior or actions that follow the accepted rules of society) Conformity provides order in the society. legitimate (acceptable according to the law; reasonable and justified) He didn t abandon that claim to his legitimate right. charisma (the powerful personal quality that some people have to attract and impress other people) The President has great personal charisma. depression (a period when there is little economic activity and many people are poor or without jobs) The country is experiencing a severe economic depression. Review Exercise retirement dilemma depression commerce conformity 1. The music business marries art and. 2. Linda saved enough money against. 3. Tom faced a about whether to accept her offer or not. 4. Governments often invoke patriotism to enforce. 5. Many people lost their jobs in the of the 1930s. 195

7 Exercises 1 One way of looking at trust in personal relations centers around your fears of rejection. Let us look at the progressive disclosure of personal information as part of the process of building trust. You show some trust in another by making a disclosure that is a little risky. If the other is supportive about your disclosure, trust is likely to be enhanced. Trust may be further enhanced if the other risks disclosing at a similar level of intimacy. However, if the other person accepts your initial disclosure, you are unlikely to risk deeper disclosures and may even end the relationship. Therefore, where both of you feel relatively safe, you may be prepared to continue testing and building trust by disclosing at a slightly deeper level. 2 Today s TGV drivers, however, spend their working day comfortably seated in a warm or airconditioned cab. In the late 1940s, the train drivers in France had been doing dangerous manual work operating steam engines for upwards of four decades. ( ) By retirement in their early fifties, they were exhausted: often sick and with a life expectancy rarely in excess of ten years. ( ) Generous pensions were the least they could reasonably ask. ( ) The nearest they come to manual labor is when they press a series of electric switches to activate their machinery. ( ) For them to retire before the age of fifty-five appears absurd. ( ) Thanks to the medical and other provisions of the French welfare state, such men may reasonably expect to live well into their eighties, which places a significant burden upon the public finances. TGV 196

8 3 Rarely are people recruited to an executive team because their strengths are the best complement to those of the existing team members. When is the last time you heard a leader talking about how your team needed to add a person who not only had the technical competence but who could also help build stronger relationships within the group? The vast majority of the time, we recruit by job function and all but ignore individuals strengths. What s worse, when leaders do recruit for strength, they all too often pick people who act, think, or behave like themselves, although unintentionally in most cases. It s an age-old dilemma. How is a company supposed to grow, adapt, and change if a domineering CEO continues to pick people who agree with him and who have a similar background and personality? domineering 4 Let s say an ant in a colony stumbles upon a new food source. No dictator ant has to tell the colony to reorganize itself to harvest that source. Instead, one ant, in the course of his normal searching, stumbles upon the food. Then a neighboring ant will notice that ant s change in direction, and then a neighbor of that ant will notice the change, and pretty soon, as Steven Johnson puts it,. The entire colony will have a pheromone superhighway to harvest the new food source. A change has been quickly communicated through the system, and the whole colony mind has restructured itself to take advantage of this new circumstance. There has been no conscious decision to make the change. But a new set of arrangements has emerged, and once the custom has been set, future ants will automatically conform. Positive change comes from conflict Local information can lead to global wisdom Diversity generates a wider range of solutions Cooperation sometimes leads to negative consequences The success of any system relies upon a central controller pheromone 197

9 Part 28 Zoom In The essence of science is to uncover patterns and regularities in nature by finding algorithmic compressions of observations. But the raw data of observation rarely exhibit explicit regularities. Instead we find that nature s order is hidden from us, it is written in code. To make progress in science we need to crack the cosmic code, to dig beneath the raw data and uncover the hidden order. I often liken fundamental science to doing a crossword puzzle. Experiment and observation provide us with clues, but the clues are cryptic, and require some considerable ingenuity to solve. With each new solution,. As with a crossword, so with the physical universe, we find that the solutions to independent clues link together in a consistent and supportive way to form a coherent unity, so that the more clues we solve, the easier we find it to fill in the missing features. cryptic the depth of scientific experiments keeps us in awe we glimpse a bit more of the overall pattern of nature the code-breaking process becomes increasingly mysterious the regularity of nature is revealed in its entirety to the observer we crack the cosmic codes one by one, replacing an old solution with the new one Words & Phrases uncover regularity algorithmic compression raw data exhibit explicit crack liken fundamental experiment clue considerable ingenuity overall consistent coherent feature 198

10 Vocabulary Power molecule (the smallest part of an element or compound that is capable of independent existence. It consists of two or more atoms) There are few molecules that are more stable and difficult to decompose than H2O. H2O ferment (to change chemically through the action of living substances, such as yeast or bacteria, or to use (a substance) to produce a chemical ) When fruits ferment, the product is wine. When grains ferment, beer is produced. biodegradable (able to decay naturally and in a way that is not harmful) When the largest retailer in the world, Wal-Mart, said that it would sell produce in PLA containers, this boosted sales of biodegradable packaging. Wal-Mart PLA heredity (the process by which characteristics are given from a parent to their child through the genes) Hair loss can occur because of heredity, lack of vitamins, and excess dandruff. photosynthesis (the process by which a plant uses the energy from the light of the sun to produce its own food) Chlorophyll absorbs light, without which photosynthesis cannot take place. predator (an animal that hunts, kills and eats other animals) A change in the number of predators or prey in a food web can alter the entire ecosystem in which they live. Review Exercise heredity molecule predator photosynthesis biodegradable 1. packaging is one of the new trends for green living. 2. Why is the number of prey always more than the number of s? 3. The fact is, is only a factor in about 10% of all breast cancers. 4. Water has long been known to exhibit many physical properties that distinguish it from other small s of comparable mass. 5. is the process of converting light energy to chemical energy and storing it in the bonds of sugar. 199

11 Exercises 1 Many fruits, vegetables, and flowering trees depend on pollinators, such as honeybees, for their reproduction. (A) These include loss of habitat of the pollinators (for example, forests), invasive species of parasites (for example, fire ants that attack honeybee populations), viral infections transmitted from abroad, and large-scale use of pesticides, which kill the pollinators. (B) Indeed, the fruit industry spends vast sums of money on bee pollinators. There is now a mass decline in the wild populations of many pollinators, including honeybees, and also a replacement of native pollinators by unsuitable invasive species. (C) The results will be declining crop productivity and rising food costs. There is, as with the other areas of disastrous biodiversity decline, a multitude of interacting factors, probably all of which are contributing to the decline. pollinator (A)-(C)-(B) (B)-(C)-(A) (C)-(B)-(A) (B)-(A)-(C) (C)-(A)-(B) 2 Our brain is a great computing machine, but it also places some obstacles in the way of apprehending reality truthfully. There is no question that the brain-mind mechanism is one of the most glorious achievements of evolution. ( ) Unfortunately, despite its many amazing features, it has also developed several procedures that are less desirable. ( ) Every impressive evolutionary adaptation winds up blocking other possibilities: the bat has an exceptionally sensitive sonar but poor eyesight; the shark can t see well either but has a fantastic sense of smell. ( ) The first of these is the nervous system itself. ( ) The more that is known about how the mind works, the more we realize that the filter through which we experience the world has some peculiar built-in biases. ( ) If we do not understand how these biases work, thoughts and actions are never truly going to be under conscious control. 200

12 3 A distinctive characteristic of the African elephant is its extremely large ears. Besides their important use in hearing, the ears serve as, similar to those of the fennec fox, which is a small nocturnal fox found in the Sahara of North Africa and has unusually large ears. They provide a large surface area through which runs an extensive network of blood vessels. When the animal is hot, the blood vessels expand and rise above the skin, so that blood running through them is more exposed to the air. Spreading of the ears and ear-flapping are characteristically seen when elephants stand in the shade on hot days because of high-temperature. The action increases the air currents over the blood vessels so blood is cooled more efficiently, helping reduce the body temperature. nocturnal radiators to prevent overheating useful tools for giving directions ways of hearing predators moving around symbols of representing its status in a group channels of communicating with other elephants 4 Minerals are necessary for the body to build tissues or assist in various body functions. Minerals are found in all body tissues. They cannot provide energy by themselves, but in their role as body regulators, they contribute to the production of energy within the body. Minerals are found in water and in natural (unprocessed) foods, together with proteins, fats, and vitamins. Humans obtain minerals by eating plants grown in mineral-rich soil or by eating animals that have eaten such plants. The specific mineral content of food is determined by burning the food and then chemically analyzing the remaining ash. Most minerals in food occur as salts, which are soluble in water. Therefore, the minerals leave the food and remain in the cooking water. Using this cooking liquid improves the flavor as well as the nutrient content of foods to which it is added. 201

13 Part 29 Zoom In In a study conducted by Karen O Quinn and Joel Aronoff, participants were asked to negotiate with a seller over the purchase price of a piece of art. Toward the end of the negotiation, the seller made a final offer in one of two ways. Half of the time he said that he would accept $6,000, while the other half of the time he gave the same final price but also added a little humor ( Well, my final offer is $6,000, and I ll throw in my pet frog ). Those few moments of attempted humor had a large effect, as participants made a much greater compromise in their purchase price when they heard about the frog. It seemed that the brief humorous comment momentarily put the participants in a good mood and encouraged them to be more giving. Words & Phrases conduct participant negotiate purchase accept compromise momentarily 202

14 Vocabulary Power mental (relating to the health or state of someone s mind) Stress has an effect on both your physical and mental health. bias (an opinion about whether a person, group, or idea is good or bad which influences how you deal with it) Students were evaluated without bias. consciousness (the condition of being awake and able to understand what is happening around you) David lost consciousness last night and didn t wake up for a while. David extrovert( introvert) (someone who is active and confident, and who enjoys spending time with other people) Most people believe that an extrovert is a person who is friendly and outgoing. collaborative (involving, or done by, several people or groups of people working together) Many of the greatest advances in science have come from collaborative efforts. conform (to behave in the way that most other people in your group or society behave) There are some people who do not conform to traditional standards of behavior. rationale (the reasons for a decision, belief, etc.) What is the rationale behind this change? Review Exercise extrovert consciousness conform collaborative bias 1. Companies should produce products which to international safety standards. 2. He is a real with a sense of humor that you wouldn t believe. 3. It is clear that the company has a(n) against women. 4. She could faintly hear voices as she began to regain. 5. During their meeting tomorrow, both companies hope to work out specific plans. 203

15 Exercises 1 Almost all teenagers have difficulty with their families. Even the healthiest boys and girls push their parents to validate them as adults before the parents are ready to accept the new situation. All teenagers do some distancing as part of their individuation process. But healthy boys and girls know that their parents love them and stay connected in important ways. They keep talking and seeking contact. Even as they rage at their parents on the surface, a part of them remains loyal and connected to them. Teenagers generally manage to stay close to their families and maintain some family loyalty. They usually have someone in the family whom they love and trust. Through all the chaos of adolescence, they keep the faith with this person. maintaining family ties in adolescence various ways to resolve family conflicts the effects of counseling on stressed teenagers different attitudes of teenagers toward gender role the necessity of giving independence to teenagers 2 To say that we need to curb anger and our negative thoughts and emotions does not mean that we should deny our feelings. There is an important distinction to be made between denial and restraint. The latter constitutes a (A) desperate / deliberate and voluntarily adopted discipline based on an appreciation of the benefits of doing so. This is very different from the case of someone who suppresses emotions such as anger out of a feeling that they need to present a facade of selfcontrol, or out of fear of what others may think. Such behavior is like (B) healing / closing a wound which is still infected. We are not talking about rule-following. Where denial and suppression occur, there comes the danger that in doing so the individual stores up anger and resentment. The trouble here is that at some future point they may find they cannot (C) contain / attain these feelings any longer. facade (A) (B) (C) desperate healing contain desperate healing attain deliberate healing contain deliberate closing contain deliberate closing attain 204

16 3 Furthermore, such children have had the safety to express and explore their feelings. When children grow up, the quality of listening they experience from the adults around them is almost as vital for their psychological development as food is for their physical development. ( ) Children who have been listened to sensitively are likely not only to be accepted by others but to accept themselves as well. ( ) Their sense of worth is intact. ( ) Thus they have been helped to acquire the ability to listen to and trust their own feelings, which is an essential part of listening to others. ( ) In addition, having at least one parent who listens well provides children with a secure base from which to engage in exploratory behavior. ( ) Children who have not been adequately listened to are likely to be more out of touch with their feelings, insecure, anxious, angry, and aggressive. exploratory behavior 4 According to sociologists and anthropologists, one of the most widespread and basic norms of human culture embodies in the rule for reciprocation. The rule requires that one person try to repay, in kind, what another person has provided. By obligating the recipient of an act to repayment in the future, the rule for reciprocation allows one individual to give something to another with confidence that it is not being lost. This sense of future obligation within the rule makes possible the development of various kinds of continuing relationships, transactions, and exchanges that are beneficial to the society. Consequently, all members of the society are trained from childhood to obey the rule or suffer serious social disapproval. reciprocation 205

17 Part 30 Zoom In One reason why the definitions of words have changed over time is simply because of their misuse. There are a growing number of examples where the incorrect meaning of relatively commonplace language has become more widespread than the original intention or definition. (A) Now, imagine that an angry customer sent you a letter about the service he received in one of your stores. If your reply is that you perused his letter, he is likely to get even more angry than he was before. (B) The word peruse is one of them. Most people think that to peruse something means to scan or skim it quickly, without paying much attention. In fact, this is the exact opposite of what peruse really means: to study or read something carefully, in detail. (C) But the word has been misused so often by so many people, that this second sense of it the exact opposite of what it actually means has finally been accepted as a secondary definition and as far as most people know, it is the only definition. (A)-(C)-(B) (B)-(C)-(A) (C)-(B)-(A) (B)-(A)-(C) (C)-(A)-(B) Words & Phrases definition misuse incorrect relatively commonplace widespread original intention scan skim exact opposite in detail accept secondary 206

18 Vocabulary Power definition (an explanation of the meaning of a word or phrase) We need to look at a more expansive definition of the term. imitation (the act of copying someone else s actions) A child learns to talk by imitation. irony (the use of words that say the opposite of what you really mean) England is famous for its food, she said with irony. talkative (liking to talk a lot) Tom is the most talkative man I ve ever seen. Tom arbitrary (not based on any principle, plan, or system) Symbols have arbitrary shapes unrelated to their meanings. literature (pieces of writing that are valued as works of art, especially novels, plays and poems; pieces of writing or printed information on a particular subject) Literature will not disappear until the end of human time. clarity (the quality of being clear and pure) Clarity, conciseness, and preciseness are writing s three virtues. spontaneous (unplanned and voluntary or instinctive, not provoked or invited by others) Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings. Review Exercise literature clarity talkative irony spontaneous 1. The is that the body s reaction to avoid pain causes pain itself. 2. His actions were and not compelled. 3. I ve read all the available on keeping rabbits. 4. The woman likes to have conversations with other people. 5. When writing instructions, of statement is the most important thing. 207

19 Exercises 1 A child can only improve her talking when she s ready for it; you can t force-feed language, because the baby just won t accept it. (A), a baby who is two months old can imitate and learn to use vowel sounds, but she can t manage consonants yet. She ll begin to pick them up in another couple of months, though. The baby s first year of language learning holds a number of keys to her later talking and thinking abilities. For example, her early babblings may give an idea of how intelligent the child is going to be; heavy babblers often grow up to be clever children. (B), it can be disappointing that babies who can speak before they re expected to don t necessarily grow up to be more articulate or clever, because very early speech is more like imitation than considered utterances. (A) (B) Furthermore On the other hand Furthermore As a result For example Similarly For example On the other hand In contrast Similarly 2 The French horn is from Germany. The Great Dane has no connection to Denmark. Cold-blooded animals often have warmer blood than warm-blooded animals. A cold is not caused by the cold. Death Valley is teeming with life. Starfish are not fish. These are just a few things I ve been keeping in my little Ironic Facts file on my computer. Irony is named for the Greek comic character Eiron, a clever underdog, who by his wit repeatedly triumphs over the boastful character of Alazon. But the stuff above is a different kind of irony. These ironies are a function of our ridiculously inaccurate language. I feel we need someone to come in and clean it all up, a Rudy Giuliani of English who would crack down on all lazy, loitering, leftover-from-other -eras words. But that ll never happen because the inertia of bad ideas is a powerful force. inertia 208

20 3 If someone were to say, He is a liberal talker, we might interpret liberal as a label for that person s political stance, or we might take it to mean that he or she is very talkative. Unless the user of the word offered a clue as to the intended meaning, we would have to rely on mere guesswork. If we were to hear a movie critic say, Eddie Murphy s role was better than most, we would be left to speculate about whether the allusion to the role referred to the character part he was asked to play or his acting. Moreover, the claim that the role was better than most might be thought to mean that it was better than the majority of the parts he has been given in films or that his performance excelled that of most of the other performers in the film. allusion 4 Pulitzer Prize-winning psychiatrist Robert Coles urges his students at Harvard Medical School to read George Eliot s Middlemarch and Walker Percy s The Moviegoer. Unlike standard textbooks, these novels explore in human terms many of the ethical issues that physicians face. Dr. John Stone of Emory University School of Medicine recommends Leo Tolstoy s The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Albert Camus s The Plague for their insights into death and dying. Literature, Stone says, will help lead a young doctor to proper sensitivity; it will help to find the proper words for the proper moment; even to place the doctor, vicariously, in the patient s hospital bed. Through literature, young doctors can learn to understand other people not only objectively from the outside but subjectively from the inside. Indeed, they can learn. how to break bad news to patients and their families to deal with the intense pressure of life-and-death situations to perceive the world through someone else s mind and body how to use microscopes and examine specimens by themselves to identify the multitude of factors that contribute to the diseases vicariously 209