unit8thenewcave.pptVIP

Unit 8 The New Cave Ⅰ. Information related to the text the Ice age An ice age is a period in the earth’s history when moving sheets of ice covered large regions of the world’s land surface. Earth scientists believe that there have been several ice ages. The earliest known ice age occurred about 700 million years ago, and the most recent one, usually referred to as the Ice Age or the Pleistocene Ice Age began about 2 million years ago and continued to 10,000 or 15,000 years ago. Scientists have learned that Ice Age climates changed from time to time. During periods of advancing ice, average temperatures were probably about 10 to 15 degrees F (about -9 to -12 degrees C) 2) Myths and Legends Both myths and legends are traditional stories handed down from earliest times. Although the two words are often used interchangeably, myths are stories about gods and legends stories about men. Myths embody the primitive beliefs of peoples, and provided a romantic explanation of the wonders of nature when scientific explanations were lacking. Natural forces were personified and deified. For example, the Greeks believed that thunder and lightning expressed the displeasure of the great god Zeus. Legends are stories connected with some period in the history of a people or nation, often containing an element of fact. Legends are intended to glorify a hero and tell marvellous deeds he supposedly performed. In Chinese folklore, the story of Da Yu who succeeded in taming the rivers is a legend and the story of Chang’E Flying to the Moon is a myth. Ⅱ. Introductory remarks In this short essay, Asimov imagines a future society where life is made more comfortable and secure by going entirely underground. Though the suggestion may seem odd and unpleasant at first thought, Asimov argues that there are definite advantages to underground life. Then he lists four advantages, and, using his expertise, explains them one by one in some detail, leading the r