新视野大学英语第二册Unit 2.docVIP

Unit Two Ⅰ Preview??? Environmental awareness takes second place to economic development in most nations of the world. As damage to our environment increases, however, some nations are developing programs to protect their natural resources. The first passage in this unit describes some of these national programs. The second passage tells us how some cities have begun to increase the amount of green space for their citizens. The third passage emphasizes the essential nature of water to our living planet and how we upset the balance of nature by polluting our water supply. Read more to learn how we must live in balance with nature or we will destroy the earth home we share. Ⅱ Background Information Ecology is the study of the relationships among plants, animals, people, and their environment, and the balance among these relationships. New England is the most northeastern region of the U.S.A., including the states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont. It was so named by John Smith when he explored it in 1614. A New Englander is a native or resident of New England. 3. Grand Banks is a vast extension of the ocean off southeast Newfoundland（纽芬兰岛）in the North Atlantic, one of the world’s greatest cod-fishing grounds. 4. Islam is a religion and social way of life based on the teachings of Mohammed as preserved in the Koran (可兰经) and the Sunna (伊斯兰教教规). It is centered in Mecca (麦加), and includes the worship of gods represented by holy stones called the Kaaba (建于麦加的伊斯兰教寺院内的圣堂). 5. Mecca or Makkah, with a population of 200,000, is the chief holy city of Islam, capital of the Hejaz (汉志省, 沙特阿拉伯省名), Saudi Arabia, in a valley surrounded by hills, 80 km. from the Red Sea. It was the birthplace of Mohammed. Its economy depends upon pilgrims (朝圣者). Ⅲ Text Structure Analysis ?The “problem-solution” is one of the most common patterns we have in writing (Students might remember “problem-solution” structure in Unit 5, Book 1.). There ar