B4L7 Tornadoes 龍捲風

課文解析

1. It was a warm spring day when the Newport family began to hear a very loud and faraway sound from their farm in southern Kansas.（見第1行）
(1) 這是the Newport family 所經歷真實悲劇：http://www.tornadoproject.com/stories/stories.htm
(2) faraway adj. 遙遠的 = distant

2. As it came closer, it grew darker and darker.（見第3行）
(1) as 連接詞 = when
但是當談到年齡或生活的階段時，只能用when。
例：When he was young, he never thought about getting married and having a family.

(2) grow在這裡當「變成」解釋，是一個連綴動詞，後面要加形容詞，特別用來表示緩慢和逐漸的變化。
例：My eyes grew tired after working for eight hours on the computer.

3. Trees were being knocked down.（見第5行）
此為過去被動進行式，表示樹一棵一棵接連被吹倒。knock down擊倒

4. As soon as they realized the danger they were facing, the parents rushed their five children into the cellar below the kitchen. （見第5行）
(1) as soon as = the moment = the instant = when 當……
(2) below和under區別：
a. 一般（位置）在……以下時：below和under皆可
例：In Taiwan, many parks are located by a river, below/under a bridge.
b. 水平位置低於……時：below
例：Geographically speaking, Mexico is located below the United States.
c. 完全覆蓋在……的下面時：under
例：Children put red envelopes under their pillows on Chinese New Year’s eve.

5. When the children came out a few minutes later, they found their entire home blown away.（見第7行）
find + O + OC
例：He found his wallet stolen.
　　I found several girls chatting in the classroom.

6. If they had not been safely protected below the ground, they would surely have died.（見第8行）
這是和過去事實相反的假設語法。

7. Although this tragedy happened years ago, in 1932, similar stories have been told over and over since then about the destructive power of these unpredictable storms.（見第13行）
S + have p.p. + since NP clause (past tense) 自從……
例：She hasn’t eaten anything since yesterday morning.
She has been talking on the phone since she got home.
The villagers have been trapped by a flood since the typhoon arrived.

8. In August 2005, the state of Wisconsin was hit by nearly 30 tornadoes over a period of just six and a half hours.（見第16行）
(1) over prep. 在……的期間內
(2) 關於這一次的龍捲風請參看此網站的報導：
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,166166,00.html

9. Some years earlier, in May 1996, a far more deadly outbreak of tornadoes in Bangladesh left more than 700 dead and 30,000 injured.（見第19行）
(1) 修飾比較級的副詞，不能用very，而是要用far, more, a lot, a little等。
(2) leave + O + OC 使（某人或某物）處某狀態，此句的dead和injured為受詞補語。
(3) 此網站有此龍捲風簡單的報導：
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/ abs/10.1111/0033-0124.00121?journalCode= prog

10. Such small tornadoes occur in many places around the world, even in southern Taiwan, where several are usually reported every spring.（見第25行）
where 關係副詞，引導非限定的關係子句，作用並非瞭解先行詞southern Taiwan的必要資訊，而是作為補充之用；where = in which。

11. It is, however, the big tornadoes that receive the most attention.（見第28行）
(1) It is/was ... that .... 此句構為分裂句，可用來強調句子的主詞、受詞及表示地點、時間或原因等的副詞（片語或子句）。此句原為However, the big tornadoes receive the most attention.

12. These bring not only death and destruction, but also stories of strange phenomena--flocks of dead birds dropping out of the sky, chickens still alive but with all of their feathers gone, pieces of straw stuck in trees.（見第29行）
(1) 形容不同的群體有不同的字
a flock of (sheep, goats, birds) 一群（綿羊、山羊、鳥）
a school of (fish) 一群（魚類）
a swarm of (bees, insects) 一群（蜜蜂、昆蟲）
a herd of (land animals, such as cows, deer, elephants etc.) 一群（獸類）
a bunch of (grapes/flowers/keys) 指一串連結在一起的(葡萄、花、鑰匙)
a herd of (cows/ elephants) 指群居動物
a pack of (hounds, wolves or other animals that hunt together) 一群（獵犬、狼或其他一起狩獵的動物）

13. What makes tornadoes so dangerous is not just their great power but also their unpredictable nature.（見第39行）
(1) what 引導名詞子句（What makes tornadoes so dangerous）作為此句的主詞。
(2) not just ... but (also) = not only ... but (also) = not simply ... but (also) = not merely ... but (also)
(3) nature在這裡指的是「（事物的）性質，本質」
例：Investing in the stock market is by nature a risky activity.

14. To better understand tornadoes, scientists have developed special heavy-duty vehicles and weather-monitoring equipment that allow them to make close-up observations of these dangerous storms.（見第47行）
(1) To better understand tornadoes = In order to know tornadoes better
(2) that 引導關係子句。

15. Radar equipment is put on trucks and driven near a tornado, where it records wind speeds and other weather data.（見第53行）
(1) equipment是「裝備」的意思，指「為某種目的而所需的一整套道具、服裝等」，為不可數名詞，量詞要用a piece of。
例：camping equipment 露營設備
　　sports equipment 體育設備
　　a new piece of electrical equipment 一件新的電子設備

equip v. [T] 裝備；使有（做……的）能力

equipped adj. 有裝備的；有能力的
例：His experience didn’t equip him for his new job; he had to learn many new things.

(2) where 引導關係子句，意思是in which (this position)。

Vocabulary補充
1. rush v. [T, I] 催促；趕忙
rush n. [sing., U] 匆忙
rush sb. into (doing) sth. 催促某人（做）某事（未經仔細思考）
rush hour 尖峰時間
no rush 不趕時間
make a rush for 匆忙前往，衝向
gold rush 淘金熱

2. tornado n. [C] 龍捲風 (pl. tornados or tornadoes)
【說明】龍捲風也可以用whirlwind或美式口語中的twister這個字。顧名思義，whirlwind就是「旋轉的風」，而twister就像把東西扭緊了一樣，一九九六年好萊塢電影《龍捲風》的英文片名就是Twister。

3. outbreak n. [C] 發生，break out 爆發
outbreak和break out除了用在疾病的爆發，也常用在戰爭、災難等的發生。

4. monitor v. [T] 持續觀察；監視，監聽
monitor n. [C] 監視裝置；螢幕
TV/computer monitor 電視／電腦螢幕
color monitor 彩色螢幕
例：The woman told the police that someone was stalking her and monitoring her phone calls.

5. injury n. [C, U] 傷害；損害
【補充】injure, wound, hurt, bruise, sprain的區別：
injure 對自己或他人肉體上的傷害，通常是無意間造成的
wound 通常指用武器在皮膚上造成傷口或是在戰爭、攻擊中許多人受到波及的狀況。較為正式，多半使用被動語態
hurt同injure，但更強調傷痛本身
bruise 瘀傷
sprain 關節部位的扭傷

6. prone adj. 易於……；很可能
tornado-prone areas 容易發生龍捲風的地區
be prone to sth./to do sth. 有……的傾向，容易……
例：People who spend a lot of time in the sun are prone to skin cancer.
　　People are prone to lie when they are afraid.

7. Kansas n. 美國的堪薩斯州
堪薩斯州的生活環境舒適、氣候也相當宜人，人口約二百六十五萬人，州名的由來源自印地安語kansa或 kaw，意思是「吹南風的地方之人」，州花是向日葵。堪薩斯州位於美國地理中心，為工商業提供良好的經濟利益，除了是美國經濟成長速度最快的州之一，也是美國高科技工業勞動力所佔比例最高的十個州之一。在農作物方面，堪薩斯州的小麥及牛肉產量居美國之冠。

8. Wisconsin n. 美國的威斯康辛州
「威斯康辛」名稱源自這個地區一條主要河流的印地安語，意思是「水流的匯聚處」。早期來此的礦工都住在礦井裡，或在山坡上挖窯洞為家，就像獾一樣，所以又有「獾州」的別稱。威斯康辛州位於美國北部，州花是紫羅蘭，全國大約有百分之四十的乳酪和百分之二十的奶油來自此地，是全國乳牛擁有量和產奶量最多的州。境內有二個大湖——蘇必略湖和密西根湖，並擁有世界最著名的密西西比河，以秀麗的風景聞名。

9. Bangladesh n. 孟加拉
全名孟加拉人民共和國（People’s Republic of Bangladesh）的孟加拉，位於南亞東北部，是世界上最貧窮的國家之一，人口超過一億，也是全球人口密度最高的國家之一，境內氣候高溫潮濕、河道密布、降雨豐沛。首都為達卡，主要信仰伊斯蘭教，以農業為主要經濟來源，所產黃麻居世界第一位，另還產茶葉、甘蔗、椰子等。

10. radar n. [C, U] 雷達
例：The control tower locates all the planes by radar.
【補充】雷達是利用電波發射器發出無線電波，電波遇到目標物會立即反彈回來，由雷達天線接收後在螢光幕上反應出光點，藉著觀察光點的數目及大小，可以推測目標物的數量、形狀、大小，是一種用來偵測目標物方向、距離、速度及數量的無線電器械。另外，還可以由電波反射的時間來測知目標物的距離，被廣泛應用在航空、航海、軍事、氣象等方面。

11. 和天氣相關的片語及諺語：
• We’ll have to take a raincheck. 改期
• It’s raining cats and dogs. 下傾盆大雨
• He is feeling under the weather. 身體不適；心情不好
• He has his head in the clouds. 幻想；心不在焉
• Her reaction was like a storm in a teacup. 小題大作
• Her show took the audience by storm. 使（觀眾）陶醉；風靡
• It never rains but it pours. 禍不單行
• After a storm comes the calm. 雨過天青；否極泰來
• Every cloud has a silver lining. 否極泰來