【本周主题】
．Urban Legends　都市传奇
　Modern 1)Fairy Tales　现代童话


　． 标题单字　
　
urban (a.) 城市的
legend (n.) 传奇，传说

　． 副标题单字　
　
1) fairy tale (n.) 童话


1.
Lots of people have seen the photograph of the young tourist standing
on the roof of the World Trade Center on the morning of September
11. It was 1)apparently taken a few seconds before the 2)hijacked
planes hit. Many people also heard and 3)passed on the story of
the old man who "4)surfed the 5)rubble" down from the 85th floor
to safety.

很多人都曾看过那名年轻观光客在 9月11日早上，站在纽约世贸中心楼顶
的照片。看起来好像是在世贸中心遭被挟持的飞机撞击之前几秒钟拍摄的
。许多人也听过与转述过一位老人的故事，他从八十五楼一路「滑过碎瓦
砾」，安全到达地面。

　． 标题单字　
　
1) apparently (adv.) 表面看来，显然
2) hijack (v.) 劫持
3) pass on (phr.) 传递下去
4) surf (v.) 冲浪
5) rubble (n.) 碎石，瓦砾


2.
Neither of these stories were true, but their spread shows how
quickly 1)rumors can be passed on, particularly through the Internet.
If enough people pass on a story, it may 2)qualify for the 3)title
of urban legend: a modern, 4)fictional story, told as truth,
which reaches a wide audience by being passed on from person to
person. Usually the original source of the story is very hard to
5)trace.

这两则故事都不是真的，但它们的散布却显示出谣言流传得有多快，尤其
是经过网际网路。如一则故事有够多人转述，就有资格称为都市传奇：也
就是虚构的现代故事，当作事实来讲述，经由口耳相传后变得广为人知。
这类故事最早的来源通常已很难追踪。

　． 标题单字　
　
1) rumor (n.) 谣言，传闻
2) qualify (v.) 合格
3) title (n.) 头衔
4) fictional (a.) 虚构的
5) trace (v.) 追溯


3.
For example, in 1994 there were several reports in 1)mainstream
American newspapers that teams of "2)organ 3)harvesters" were at
work. A typical 4)version of the story tells of a man who goes to
Las Vegas for a 5)convention. He meets a beautiful girl in a bar,
and they have some drinks together.

比方说，在1994年，美国主流报纸上刊登过几则报导，指出有一群「器官
猎人」在活动。这个故事的典型版本是说有一名男子到拉斯维加斯参加会
议，在酒吧遇到一位美女，跟她一起喝了一些酒。

　． 标题单字　
　
1) mainstream (a.) 主流的
2) organ (n.) 器官
3) harvester (n.) 收获者，收割者
4) version (n.) 版本
5) convention (n.) 会议


4.
The next thing the man remembers, he is in his hotel room lying
in a bathtub full of ice. There is a phone by the side of the
bathtub with a note on it. The note says, "Call the hospital or
you will die." He calls an 1)ambulance and is 2)rushed to a hospital,
where the doctor tells him that someone has 3)removed one of his
4)kidneys, probably to sell.

接下来这名男子只记得自己已经回到旅馆房间，躺在装满冰块的浴缸里。
浴缸旁边有一只电话，上面放了一张纸条。纸条上写著：「打电话给医院
，否则你会死。」他打电话叫救护车，被紧急送往医院，医生告诉他，有
人摘走他的一颗肾脏，可能是拿去卖。

　． 标题单字　
　
1) ambulance (n.) 救护车
2) rush (v.) 急送
3) remove (v.) 移去
4) kidney (n.) 肾脏


5.
The story is totally untrue, but it does have several very clear
messages. First, be careful when you visit big cities. Second,
don't try to 1)pick up strangers in bars. And third, don't drink
too much. It is a 2)cautionary tale, just like the ones our parents
told when we were kids.

这个故事完全是假的，但它却传达了几项非常明确的讯息。第一，你造访
大城市时一定要小心。第二，不要在酒吧随便与人搭讪。第三，不要喝太
多酒。这是一个具有告诫意味的故事，就跟小时候父母说给我们听的故事
一样。

　． 标题单字　
　
1) pick up (phr.)（口）钓（异性）
2) cautionary (a.) 警示的，告诫的


6.
Why do we so often believe urban legends? One of the main reasons
is that when the stories are passed on, they always happen to "a
friend of a friend." You 1)trust your friend, so why wouldn't you
believe his story? Then, when you pass the story on, it's much
easier to just say it happened to your classmate's friend rather
than say my friend's friend's friend. No matter how many people
pass the story on, it always seems that you are only a couple of
people away from what actually happened.

我们为什么经常会听信都市传奇？一个主要原因在于，人们流传这些故事
时，总是会说它发生在「一位朋友的朋友」身上。你信任自己的朋友，不
就会相信他说的故事吗？接著，当你转述这个故事时，说它发生在你同学
的朋友身上，总比说它发生在我朋友的朋友的朋友身上来得简单。无论经
过多少人转述，听起来总是觉得跟真正的源头只隔了两三层。

　． 标题单字　
　
1) trust (v.) 信任


7.
The urban legends that spread most quickly are the ones related
to something that many people fear. 1)Currently, in America, things
like 2)terrorism and bio-warfare are on top of the fear list. It
doesn't seem to matter how much accurate information we have 3)
access to; we still love rumors and 4)bizarre stories. That's why
every year sees new urban legends. Some of the most famous have
even been collected into books on the topic.

流传最快的都市传奇都跟许多人害怕的事有关。目前在美国，恐怖主义与
生化战争之类高居恐怖名单的榜首。无论我们可以取得多少正确资讯似乎
都不重要，我们还是爱听谣言与怪异的故事。这就是每年都会有新的都市
传奇诞生的缘故。一些最著名的都市传奇甚至已收录在关于这个题材的书
籍中。

　． 标题单字　
　
1) currently (adv.) 目前，现在
2) terrorism (n.) 恐怖主义
3) access (n.) 门路，管道
4) bizarre (a.) 怪异的，荒诞的


8.
Oh, and by the way, did you know that if you leave a tooth in a
glass of Coca-Cola it will 1)dissolve overnight? It happened to
my uncle's friend, honestly.

对了，顺便一提，你知道如果你把一颗牙齿放在装有可口可乐的玻璃杯里
，它会在一夜之间溶解吗？我舅舅的朋友就遇到这种事，真的。

　． 标题单字　
　
1) dissolve (v.) 溶解