Unit1TheideaofbecomingawriterhadcometomeoffandonsincemychildhoodinBelleville,butitwasn'tuntilmythirdyearinhighschoolthatthepossibilitytookhold.从孩提时代，我还住在贝尔维尔时，我的脑子里就断断续续地转着当作家的念头，但直等到我高中三年级，这—想法才有了实现的可能。Lyingonthesofa,Ifinallyfaceduptotheunwelcometask,tookthelistoutofmynotebook,andscannedit.Thetopiconwhichmyeyestoppedwas“TheArtofEatingSpaghetti.”我躺在沙发上，最终不得不面对这一讨厌的功课，便从笔记本里抽出作文题目单粗粗……看。我的目光落在“吃意大利细面条的艺术”这个题目上。WhenIfinisheditthenightwashalfgoneandtherewasnotimelefttocomposeaproper,respectableessayforMr.Fleagle.等我写完时已是半夜时分，再没时间为弗利格尔先生写一篇循规蹈矩、像模像样的文章了。Ididmybesttoavoidshowingpleasure,butwhatIwasfeelingwaspuredelightatthisdemonstrationthatmywordshadthepowertomakepeoplelaugh.我尽力不流露出得意的心情，但是看到我写的文章竟然能使别人大笑，我真是心花怒放。Unit2“Ihadn'tseenhimmorethanonceortwiceayearoverthepast25or30yearsbecauseImovedawayfromtheoldneighborhoodandyoukindoflosetoucheventhoughyouneverforget.Hewasagreatguy.”近25到30年来，我跟他一年只见一两次面，因为我从原来住的老街坊搬了出来，联系自然就少了·，虽说你一直放在心上。他在的时候可真是个大好人。”ButIrealizedthatOldEdwasstillonhismindwhenhespokeagain,almostmoretohimselfthantome:"Ishouldhavekeptintouch.Yes,”herepeated,“Ishouldhavekeptintouch.”可我知道他还在想着老埃德。他又开口时，与其说是跟我说话，还不如说是自言自语：“我真该一直保持联系。真的，”他重复道，“我真该一直保持联系。”whenitsaysherethattherearen'tmanyofusleft,that'sabsolutelyright.EverytimeIgotoaclassreunion,forexample,therearefewerandfewerstillaround.”信里说我们这些人当中留下的不多了，说得一点不错。比如说，每次我去参加老同学聚会，来的人总是越来越少。”Yourfriendshipovertheyearshasmeantanawfullottome,morethanIcansaybecauseI'mnotgoodatsayingthingslikethat.你多年的友谊对我非常重要，远比我能说出来的重要得多，因为我不擅长说这样的话。Helookedsortofsorrowful,orasifheweretryingtoseesomethinginthedistance.“IguessIshouldhavewrittenitsooner.”他神情有点悲伤，似乎想看清远处什么东西。“我想我真该早些写这封信。Unit3Somepeoplewouldliketostopthesechangesandgobacktowhattheyseeasapurerandsimplerage.有人想中止这种种变化，回到那个他们认为更纯洁更朴素的时代。Evenifallgovernmentmoneyforresearchwerecutoff(andthepresentgovernmentisdoingitsbest),theforceofcompetitionwouldstillbringaboutadvancesintechnology.即使所有用于研究的政府资金都被取消(现政府最擅此事)，竞争的力量仍将继续带来技术的发展。Whatcanbedonetoharnessthisinterestandgivethepublicthescientificbackgrounditneedstomakeinformeddecisionsonsubjectslikeacidrain,thegreenhouseeffect,nuclearweapons,andgeneticengineering?怎么样才能利用这种兴趣，向公众提供所需要的科学知识，以便其在酸雨、温室效应、核武器以及基因工程等问题上作出明达的决定呢?TherearesomeverygoodscienceprogrammesonTV,butotherspresentscientificwonderssimplyasmagic,withoutexplainingthemorshowinghowtheyfitintotheframeworkofscientificideas.电视上有一些相当优秀的科学节目，但其他的节目把科学奇迹简单地作为魔术播出，既不加以说明，也不展现它们与科学观念的整体框架的关系。Theworldtodayisfilledwithdangers,hencethesickjokethatthereasonwehavenotbeencontactedbyanaliencivilizationisthatcivilizationstendtodestroythemselveswhentheyreachourstage.当今世界充满危险，因此就有了那个令人毛骨悚然的玩笑，说我们尚未受到外星文明造访...
