Lesson 01  A Puma at large 逃遁的美洲狮
Listen to the tape then answer the question below.
听录音，然后回答以下问题。
Where must the puma have come from?

    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 the 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 saw 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 small 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 where 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 animal is still at large in the quiet countryside.

New words and expressions 生词和短语
 
     puma
n.   美洲狮

     spot
v.   看出，发现

     evidence
n.   证据

     accumulate
v.   积累，积聚

     oblige
v.   使……感到必须

     hunt
n.   追猎；寻找

     blackberry
n.   黑莓

     human being
     人类

     corner
v.   使走投无路，使陷入困境

     trail
n.   一串，一系列

     print
n.   印痕

     cling
v.   粘

     convince
v.   使……信服

     somehow
adv. 不知怎么搞地，不知什么原因

     disturb
v.   令人不安

参考译文

    美洲狮是一种体形似猫的大动物，产于美洲。当伦敦动物园接到报告说，在伦敦以南45英里处发现一只美洲狮时，这些报告并没有受到重视。可是，随着证据越来越多，动物园的专家们感到有必要进行一番调查，因为凡是声称见到过美洲狮的人们所描述的情况竟是出奇地相似。
    搜寻美洲狮的工作是从一座小村庄开始的。那里的一位妇女在采摘黑莓时的看见“一只大猫”，离她仅5码远，她刚看见它，它就立刻逃走了。专家证实，美洲狮非被逼得走投无路，是决不会伤人的。事实上搜寻工作很困难，因为常常是早晨在甲地发现那只美洲狮，晚上却在20英里外的乙地发现它的踪迹。无论它走哪儿，一路上总会留下一串死鹿及死兔子之类的小动物，在许多地方看见爪印，灌木丛中发现了粘在上面的美洲狮毛。有人抱怨说夜里听见“像猫一样的叫声”；一位商人去钓鱼，看见那只美洲狮在树上。专家们如今已经完全肯定那只动物就是美洲狮，但它是从哪儿来的呢？由于全国动物园没有一家报告丢了美洲狮，因此那只美洲狮一定是某位私人收藏豢养的，不知怎么设法逃出来了。搜寻工作进行了好几个星期，但始终未能逮住那只美洲狮。想到在宁静的乡村里有一头危险的野兽继续逍遥流窜，真令人担心。

New words and expression 生词和短语

学习词汇时仅知道汉语语义是不够的，要把单词放在语句中体会其应用

学习关键句结构是则要把它放在段落结构或文章里

puma  n.美洲狮

spot  v.看出, 发现  

= see, pick out, recognize, catch sight of  强调结果, 辨别出, 看见, 识别, 发现

-- A tall man is easy to spot in the crowd.

-- He has good eye for spotting mistakes.

同意词：

-- find：强调发现的结果  /  find out：查出事实真相

-- discover：做出重大发现  /  notice：注意到

-- observe：观察  /  watch：观察活动中的人或画面

Spot  n.斑点

-- There is a white spot on the shirt.

on the spot有两个含义：

1> 立刻, 马上（at once, immediately）

-- Anyone breaking the rules will be asked to leave on the spot.

2> at the place of the action 在现场

-- Wherever she is needed, she is quickly on the spot.

Evidence  n.证据（不可数名词）

Evident  adj.明显的, 显然的  /  evidently  adv.明显地, 显然

Evidence = proof (n.证据)

-- When the police arrived, he had already destroyed the evidence.

in evidence 显而易见的

-- He was in evidence at the party.

Accumulate  v.积累, 积聚（强调积累的过程）

-- As the evidence accumulates, experts from the zoo felt obliged to investigate.

Gather  vt.聚集, 把某人召集在某处

-- The teacher gathered his students in the class

Collect  vt.搜集, 采集

-- Do you collect stamps? Yes, I collect stamps as my hobby.（n.业余爱好）

Assemble  v.集合, 集会 / 装配

-- A large number of people assemble on the square.

Hoard  vt.大量的储存 （-- hoard up = store up 储藏）

-- The squirrel hoards up nuts for the cold winter （squirrel n.松鼠）（nut n.坚果）

amass  vt.积聚（主要用于诗歌和文学作品）

-- The clouds amassed above the hills

Oblige  v.使…感到必须

feel obliged to do sth  感觉有必要做某事

-- I feel obliged to say no to his demand（n.要求, 需要）

be obliged to do sth  被迫做某事

-- They were obliged to sell their car to pay their debts off.（debt n.债务）

hunt  v.n.追猎, 寻找 （hunt for）

-- The experts from London zoo began to hunt (v.) for a puma.

-- The hunt (n.) for the puma proved the difficult. （prove vt.证明, 证实）

search 搜寻某处为了寻找到某人或某物

-- The police were searching the forest for the missing boy.

run after 强调追赶, 追求

-- look, a dog is running after a cat

-- what are you run after in your life

seek = pursue  v.追寻(理想)

chase  v.追赶 （-- They are chasing a thief / They are running after a thief）

blackberry  n.黑莓  /  berry  n.浆果

human being  人类

corner  v.使走投无路, 使陷入困境    作为动词, 经常使用被动语态

-- The thief was cornered at last  

-- The problem cornered me.

corner  n.角落

-- at the corner of the street  -- in the corner of the room   -- on the corner of the desk

Trail  n.一串, 一系列

trail  vt. 跟踪, 追踪（= follow）

-- The police trailed the criminal to the place where he was hiding （criminal n.罪犯）

Print  n.印痕

Cling  v.粘 （clung, clung, clinging）

-- She is always clinging to her mother.

-- He clung to the hope that he would succeed. 他怀有成功的希望

stick  v.粘住 （-- stick the envelop）n.信封

stick to 坚持 （-- stick to the plan / stick to one’s promise）n.许诺

sticky  adj.粘的 （-- sticky fingers）

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