Unit 1 No Sweat! 不費吹灰之力

There were four passengers in the small aircraft as it sputtered over the Andes; a businessman, an inventor, a priest and a laid-back budget traveller.
一架正飛越安第斯山脈的小飛機上坐著四名乘客：一名商人，一名發明家，一位神父和一個靠預算過日子、看起來懶懶散散的旅行者。

Suddenly the pilot entered the cabin and told them the horrible news: “Gentlemen, the plane is going down. I’m going to try to crash-land it, but you must all jump.”
突然，駕駛員走進艙告訴他們可怕的消息“：各位先生，這架飛機正失控下降中，我要設法迫降，但你們必須先跳下飛機。”

Naturally, the men were horrified, and even more so when they discovered that there were only three parachutes.
當然，那幾個人都嚇得目瞪口呆，尤其是當他們發現只有三個降落傘可以使用時，更是心驚膽戰。

The businessman said, “Sirs, I employ thousands of people. Their lives and those of their families depend on me . I think you’ll agree that I must survive.” He promptly put on a parachute and leaped.
那名商人說道“：各位先生，我雇用好幾千名員工，他們都要靠我養家活口，我想你們都同意我必須活著回去。”說著他便穿上一具降落傘跳出飛機去。

The inventor rose, already adjusting the straps. “I’m the smartest man in the world. My inventions have transformed the lives of millions. There’s no telling how much good I may yet do. Goodbye.” And he, too, jumped from the plane.
接著發明家站了起來，調整了肩帶說道“：我是世界上最聰明的人，我的發明改變了成千上萬人的生活。我還會對大眾造多少福難以估計。再見了，各位！”他也跟著跳出機艙。

The priest was serene, and interrupted his prayers to speak to the traveller. “I am a man of God, my son; I have no fear of death. Take the last parachute and save you life.”
神父心平氣和，中斷禱告，對旅行者說道“：小伙子，我是信奉上帝的人，我對死并不畏懼，剩下的降落傘你就拿去用，逃命去吧！”

“Hey, it’s cool, Father. There’re still two parachutes left. The smartest man in the world just jumped out of the plane wearing my backpack.”
“嘿，神父，真是太棒了！我們還有兩個降落傘。那個自稱世界上最聰明的人背了我的背包跳出去了。”

英語知識點解說：

1.passenger n. 乘客

2.aircraft n. 航空器（飛機、飛艇、飛船的總稱），單、復數同形，即an aircraft, two aircraft 。但 airplane 一字復數要加 s 。

3.sputter vt. 發啪啪聲；嘎嘎作響

4.laid-back a. 懶散的；松弛的
例：People in California are said to be laid-back, and it certainly seems to be a relaxed place.
（據說加州的人都很懶散，那個地方也的確像是個休閑的去處。）

5.budget n. 預算 & vt. 預計；安排時間
budget one's time 有效安排某人的時間
例：You should budget your time. In fact, you don't have much time to waste.
（你應有效安排你的時間。事實上，你能浪費的時間并不多。）

6.cabin n. 機艙

7.horrible a. 可怕的；令人毛骨悚然的
例：Peter let out a horrible cry when he saw his wife's credit card bill.
（彼得看見他老婆的信用卡賬單時，大聲驚叫了出來。）

8.crash-land vt. 使迫降

9.parachute n. 降落傘

10.survive vt. 比……活得久；撐過
survival n. 生還
例：I swear, Lord, if I survive this hangover, I'll never drink again.
（主??！我發誓，要是我能撐過這次宿醉，我就再也不會喝酒了。）

11.promptly ad. 迅速地
例：Remove that illegal structure promptly or legal action will be brought against you.
（立即把那個違章建筑拆掉，否則你將受到法律的制裁。）

12.adjust vt. & vi. 調節；適應
adjust(oneself) to... 適應……
例：You either have to adjust (yourself) to your surroundings or be overwhelmed by them.
（你要調整自己去適應環境，要不然就只有隨波逐流了。）

13.strap n. 皮帶；肩帶

14.There's no telling... 沒有人知道…… ；無法得知…
=It's impossible to tell...
例：There's no telling how fat Fat Freddy will eventually become.
（實在沒有人會知道胖子佛瑞迪最后會變得多胖。）

15.do good 行善
本文 how much good I may yet do 為名詞從句，其中當 how much good 當 do 的賓語，yet 則為副詞，表“尚會”。
例：Everyone means well, but to actually do good is rather more difficult.
（每個人的心地都是善良的，但要真正行善卻是相當困難。）

16.serene a. 安詳的；寧靜的
例：What could be more valuable than a serene heart?
（還有什么要比寧靜的心情更可貴呢

17.interrupt vt. 中斷；阻止
例: We interrupt this program to bring you a special announcement from the White House.
（本節目現在要插播一段白宮發布的特別報道。）

18.prayer n. 祈禱；請愿
say one's prayers 念祈禱文
例："Say your prayers, cowboy. You're about to meet your Maker," said Black Bart as he drew his gun.
（“快禱告吧，牛仔。你馬上就可以見到你的主子。”布萊克·巴特掏出手槍時說道。）

19.cool a. 涼的；冷靜的；了不起的；很棒的
現今青少年的口頭語“酷”，就源自 cool 一字。
例：If you try too hard to look cool, you won't.
（如果你刻意裝扮成酷模樣，結果會適得其反。）

20.backpack n. 背包

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