TPO2托福听力Lecture2原文文本

　　TPO2托福听力Lecture2原文文本

　　Manila Hemp

　　Professor: Hi, everyone, good to see you all today. Actually, I expected the population to be a lot lower today. It typically runs between 50 and 60 percent on the day the research paper is due. Um, I was hoping to have your exams back today, but, uh, the situation was that I went away for the weekend, and I was supposed to get in yesterday at five, and I expected to fully complete all the exams by midnight or so, which is the time that I usually go to bed, but my flight was delayed, and I ended up not getting in until one o’clock in the morning. Anyway, I’ll do my best to have them finished by the next time we meet.

　　OK, in the last class, we started talking about useful plant fibers. In particular, we talked about cotton fibers, which we said were very useful, not only in the textile industry, but also in the chemical industry, and in the production of many products, such as plastics, paper, explosives, and so on. Today we’ll continue talking about useful fibers, and we’ll begin with a fiber that’s commonly known as “Manila hemp.”

　　Now, for some strange reason, many people believe that Manila hemp is a hemp plant. But Manila hemp is not really hemp. It’s actually a member of the banana family—it even bears little banana-shaped fruits. The “Manila” part of the name makes sense, because Manila hemp is produced chiefly in the Philippine Islands and, of course, the capital city of the Philippines is Manila.

　　Now, as fibers go, Manila hemp fibers are very long. They can easily be several feet in length and they’re also very strong, very flexible. They have one more characteristic that’s very important, and that is that they are exceptionally resistant to salt water. And this combination of characteristics—long, strong, flexible, resistant to salt water—makes Manila hemp a great material for ropes, especially for ropes that are gonna be used on ocean-going ships.

　　In fact, by the early 1940’s, even though steel cables were available, most ships in the United States Navy were not moored with steel cables; they were moored with Manila hemp ropes. Now, why was that? Well, the main reason was that steel cables degrade very, very quickly in contact with salt water. If you’ve ever been to San Francisco, you know that the Golden Gate Bridge is red. And it’s red because of the zinc paint that goes on those stainless steel cables.

　　That, if they start at one end of the bridge and they work to the other end, by the time they finish, it’s already time to go back and start painting the beginning of the bridge again, because the bridge was built with steel cables, and steel cables can’t take the salt air unless they’re treated repeatedly with a zinc-based paint.

　　On the other hand, plant products like Manila hemp, you can drag through the ocean for weeks on end. If you wanna tie your anchor to it and drop it right into the ocean, that’s no problem, because plant fibers can stand up for months, even years, in direct contact with salt water.

　　OK, so how do you take plant fibers that individually you could break with your hands and turn them into a rope that’s strong enough to moor a ship that weighs thousands of tons? Well, what you do is you extract these long fibers from the Manila hemp plant, and then you take several of these fibers, and you group them into a bundle, because by grouping the fibers you greatly increase their breaking strength—that bundle of fibers is much stronger than any of the individual fibers that compose it.

　　And then you take that bundle of fibers and you twist it a little bit, because by twisting it, you increase its breaking strength even more. And then you take several of these little bundles, and you group and twist them into bigger bundles, which you then group and twist into even bigger bundles, and so on, until eventually, you end up with a very, very strong rope.

　　TPO2托福听力Lecture2题目文本

　　1.What aspect of Manila hemp fibers does the professor mainly discuss in the lecture?

　　a) Similarities between cotton fibers and manila hemp fibers

　　b) Various types of manila hemp fibers

　　c) The economic importance of Manila hemp fibers

　　d) A use of Manila hemp fibers

　　2.Why does the professor mention going away for the weekend?

　　a) To tell the class a joke

　　b) To apologize for not completing some work

　　c) To introduce the topic of the lecture

　　d) To encourage students to ask about her trip

　　3.What does the professor imply about the name Manila hemp?

　　a) It is a commercial brand name.

　　b) Part of the name is inappropriate.

　　c) The name has recently changed.

　　d) The name was first used in the 1940's.

　　4.Why does the professor mention the Golden Gate Bridge?

　　a) To demonstrate a disadvantage of steel cables

　　b) To give an example of the creative use of color

　　c) To show that steel cables are able to resist salt water

　　d) To give an example of a use of Manila hemp

　　5.According to the professor, what was the main reason that many ships used Manila hemp ropes instead of steel cables?

　　a) Manila hemp was cheaper.

　　b) Manila hemp was easier to produce.

　　c) Manila hemp is more resistant to salt water.

　　d) Manila hemp is lighter in weight.

　　6.According to the lecture, what are two ways to increase the strength or rope made from Manila hemp fibers?

　　a) Coat the fibers with zinc-based paint

　　b) Combine the fibers into bundles

　　c) Soak bundles of fibers in salt water

　　d) Twist bundles of fibers

　　TPO2托福听力Lecture2答案解析

　　第1题：主旨题

　　正确答案：D

　　对应原文：0'57"-1'5" 1'32"-1'56"Today we’ll continue talking about useful fibers, and we’ll begin with a fiber that’s commonly known as “Manila hemp.”......

　　They can easily be several feet in length and they’re also very strong, very flexible. They have one more characteristic that’s very important, and that is that they are exceptionally resistant to salt water. And this combination of characteristics—long, strong, flexible, resistant to salt water—makes Manila hemp a great material for ropes, especially for ropes that are gonna be used on ocean-going ships.

　　解析：教授说今天我们要讲有用的纤维。总览全文，一直在讲马尼拉麻绳的应用。

　　第2题：目的题

　　正确答案：B

　　对应原文：0'15"-0'39"Um, I was hoping to have your exams back today, but, uh, the situation was that I went away for the weekend, and I was supposed to get in yesterday at five, and I expected to fully complete all the exams by midnight or so, which is the time that I usually go to bed, but my flight was delayed, and I ended up not getting in until one o’clock in the morning. Anyway, I’ll do my best to have them finished by the next time we meet.

　　解析：教授提到她周末离开的事情，就是为了向大家道歉，没有完成自己的工作。

　　第3题：推断题

　　正确答案：B

　　对应原文：1'17"-1'26"The “Manila” part of the name makes sense, because Manila hemp is produced chiefly in the Philippine Islands and, of course, the capital city of the Philippines is Manila.

　　解析：之前教授提到，出于一些奇怪的原因很多人认为尼马拉大麻是一种大麻类的植物。实际上，他是香蕉家族的。甚至它有小小香蕉形的果子。它的部分名字有道理。因为马尼拉大麻原指菲律宾首都马尼拉。可以推断出，教授认为后面的大麻两个字，不合适。

　　第4题：目的题

　　正确答案：A

　　对应原文：2'14"-2'40"If you’ve ever been to San Francisco, you know that the Golden Gate Bridge is red. And it’s red because of the zinc paint that goes on those stainless steel cables. That, if they start at one end of the bridge and they work to the other end, by the time they finish, it’s already time to go back and start painting the beginning of the bridge again, because the bridge was built with steel cables, and steel cables can’t take the salt air unless they’re treated repeatedly with a zinc-based paint.

　　解析：这里教授提到的金门大桥，为了说明金属线的一个劣势，在盐水中容易生锈老化。

　　第5题：细节题

　　正确答案：C

　　对应原文：2'40"-2'57"On the other hand, plant products like Manila hemp, you can drag through the ocean for weeks on end. If you wanna tie your anchor to it and drop it right into the ocean, that’s no problem, because plant fibers can stand up for months, even years, in direct contact with salt water.

　　解析：大量船只使用马尼拉麻绳而不是金属缆绳的原因，就是因为它非常耐盐。

　　第6题：细节-多选题

　　正确答案：BD

　　对应原文：3'7"-3'21" 3'26"-3'33"Well, what you do is you extract these long fibers from the Manila hemp plant, and then you take several of these fibers, and you group them into a bundle, because by grouping the fibers you greatly increase their breaking strength......

　　And then you take that bundle of fibers and you twist it a little bit, because by twisting it, you increase its breaking strength even more.

　　解析：两个使马尼拉麻变得结实的方法，一是将纤维扎成束，另一是将束缠绕在一起