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I know that a lot of people in cities in China do live in large apartment blocks which have many floors, maybe 15 or 20 or more, but I live in a flat in a much smaller house of just three floors. (d) What are the different factors which give rise to new fashions?
Fashion designers produce innovations and new styles. There are changes in the economic situation so that people may spend more or less on clothes; also new materials and colours become available, and people get different ideas about what to wear when they travel to other places or watch films and TV.
6 Translate the paragraph into Chinese.
Sometimes the hemline indicator, as it’s called, can even precede and predict a change in the mood of the stock market long before it actually happens. In September 2007, at the New York fashion shows, which were displaying their styles for spring 2008, the trend was for much longer dresses and skirts, many to mid-calf or even down to the ankles. Some people felt this showed that the hemline indicator was no longer reliable, and that designers no longer dictated what people would wear. During the London and New York fashion shows in September 2008, hemlines continued to drop. But sure
enough, in the fall of 2008, the stock market indexes fell dramatically when the banking crisis hit the US, Europe and then the rest of the world. Hemlines were no longer following the stock market – they were showing the way and indicating future economic trends. 有时候，所谓的裙摆指标甚至能事先早早就预告股市的变化。2007年9月，纽约时装展展示了2008年春季流行风格，潮流转向了长衣、长裙，许多裙摆降至小腿中线，甚至到了脚踝。有人觉得，这表明裙摆指标靠不住了，或者服装设计师不再左右着装的趋势了。在2008年9月的伦敦和纽约时装展中，裙摆继续下降。果然，2008年秋天金融危机袭击美欧，波及全球，股指急跌。此时，裙摆不再被动追随股市升跌，而是引领潮流，预示未来的经济趋势了。（? 第一句原文复杂，但译成中文较简单。最后一句译文加词，加上“被动”可起强调作用，让本句的意思更明确。） 7 Translate the paragraphs into English.
一个人的穿着似乎能影响他的行为方式。譬如，在校内要穿校服是中小学生所必须严格遵守的规矩之一。倘若在学生着装整齐划一和行为的统一规范之间不存在一种象征性关联的话，校服便不可能如此盛行。
然而，多年的学校生活让学生在内心里对随处可见的校服产生了抵触情绪，校服毕竟压制了个性的表达。为了弥补这种损失，学生常常会在周末穿流行的休闲装。直到上了大学，他们才会享受真正的着装自由，而服装上的无序与大学培养创造力、鼓励自由表达思想及展露才华密切相关。可惜这样的好景不会太长，经过一段相对短暂的自由之后，他们在毕业工作之后将再次经历着装规范的压力。(hard and fast; there is no doubt that; currency; correlation; backlash; ubiquitous; compensate for;anarchy; obtain; revive)
Translation of the passages Active reading (1) 时装潮流50年
1960 至2010 年间的时装史存在着两个不可忽略或不可低估的不变因素：一是无处不在的牛仔裤，二是女装裙摆的升降。
牛仔裤是用粗斜纹布做的，早在16 世纪末法国就有了这种布料。直到19 世纪中叶，李维·施 特劳斯发现在加州淘金热中劳动的矿工很需要用这种耐用布料做成的牛仔裤，他还用铆钉来加固裤子。直到1950 年代，蓝色粗斜纹布做的牛仔裤一直只是流行的工装，但是后来牛仔裤变成了青春、新思想、反叛及个性的标志。1950 年代末，李维·施特劳斯公司开始向欧亚出口蓝色
牛仔裤。年轻人趋之若鹜，视其为美国活力四射的、随意的生活方式的象征。
裙摆在这一时期有着特殊的意义。人们时常会注意到，女人的裙摆和经济之间存在一种颇为精确的关联性，且鲜有例外。股市升时裙摆也跟着上升；股市跌时裙摆就跟着下降。在经济繁荣和萧条时期女性到底为什么要多暴露或少暴露双腿至今仍然是个迷。但总的趋势是必定是这样的：每当经济前景不明朗时，男人和女人都倾向于穿比较保守的衣服。
1960 年代时装史上一个最重要的发展就是英国时装设计师玛丽·匡特发明的超短裙。由于匡特在“摇摆伦敦”的中心地带工作，超短裙很快就风行全球。当法国杰出的时装设计师库雷热把超短裙变成一件高级时装时，超短裙得到了人们更多的尊敬。但是，如果只有长筒袜而没有发明裤袜的话，超短裙是不可能在全球流行的，因为裙摆的上升会让人看见长筒袜的袜口。
60 年代中、70 年代初的嬉皮士运动影响了牛仔裤的设计，牛仔裤的裤腿发展成了扩张的“喇叭形”。到了70 年代中期，随着经济的恶化，裙摆降低到了小腿中部和脚踝部，而牛仔裤则不再是清一色的蓝色了。
牛仔裤在朋克时期依然很时髦，裤腿通常有撕裂的口子，并配有铁链及打着装饰钉的皮带。这种样式的牛仔裤延续了几年，但流行的范围越来越小，仅限于内城区的少数年轻人群体，对其他年龄段的群体影响不大。
作为对朋克无政府主义的一种抗拒，新浪漫派是一个主要出现在英国夜总会的时装潮流。这种时装大胆创新、魅力十足：衬衫以皱褶和奢侈为特征，牛仔裤是绝对不可以接受的。
80 年代中期兴起了几种风格各异的服装。“权威装”以雅致的套装为特色，带肩垫的上衣配及膝
短裙，受到新近得势的女士的欢迎。毫不奇怪，当经济不稳定的时候，人们不想在穿着上太冒险。男士则流行以电视剧 “迈阿密风云”命名的“迈阿密风云”式样的时装，名牌短外套配时髦的T 恤，留着有型的短胡子——长三、四天的样子。和往常一样，粗斜纹布仍然受到年轻人的欢迎。尤其是重金属音乐迷，爱穿漂白的、撕开裂口的牛仔裤及牛仔衫。
在1987 年全球股市崩盘之前，裙摆也开始逐渐地上升起来。 美国在80 年代末兴起了一种较为保守的风格，称为“学院风”。男士穿拉尔夫·劳伦和布鲁克斯兄弟品牌的经典服装，衣领带纽扣的衬衫、斜纹棉布裤、平底便鞋，脖子上随意系着一件毛衣。他们也穿牛仔裤，但是必须是新的，或者是干净、熨平的牛仔裤，完全不是李维·施特劳斯最初所设想的那种牛仔裤。
90 年代随着世界经济的再次复苏，年轻人的时装也变得更加大胆起来了。靴子、匡威或耐克运动鞋都很流行，但是流行颜色变成了橄榄绿和米灰色。头发要么留得很长，要么是染成蓝色、绿色或红色的短刺头。帽衫、棒球帽及松垮型牛仔裤在街上随处可见。松垮型牛仔裤往往穿得很低，松松垮垮地挂在臀部上。
2000 年1 月纽约的科技股市崩盘。和往常一样，裙摆也下降了，正如一位评论家所说的，“循规蹈矩、一本正经的式样开始流行了，裙摆必须过膝。” 但仅仅过了一年，股市开始复苏，超短迷你裙又回来了，裙摆比多年以来的都要高。
这段时间，除非在工作时，人们通常不穿正式的服装。名牌牛仔裤享有很高的知名度，用传统的粗斜纹布制作，可能还加了点莱卡。由著名服装品牌，如阿玛尼、胡戈·伯斯士及莫斯奇诺剪裁、销售。这些品牌公司以前都只做最优雅的时装。紧身牛仔裤在英国及欧洲大部分地区很流行。裙子的长度不太确定，范围从超短到“理性”——即及膝或刚刚过膝。
有时候，所谓的裙摆标志甚至能够在事情发生之前早早地预告股票牛市和熊市的更替。2007 年9月的纽约时装展展示了2008 年春季流行式样，潮流转向了长衣、长裙，裙摆降至小腿中线，甚至到了脚踝。有人觉得这表明裙摆标志靠不住了，要不就是服装设计师已经丧失了对时装的主宰权。2008年9 月，在伦敦和纽约时装展中，裙摆继续下降。果然，2008 年秋天金融危机袭击美欧，波及全球，股指急剧下跌。这时，裙摆不再被动地追随股市升跌，而是引领潮流，预示未来的经济趋势了。
在整个这段时期内，时装的风格多种多样，它们的诞生往往起因于人们希望归属于某种亚文化、与之认同的愿望。但是，这个时期不变因素是粗斜纹布和裙摆。影响力最大的当属19 世纪加利福尼亚州的一个服装制造商以及1960 年代工作在“摇摆伦敦”的一位年轻的时装设计师。 Active reading (2) 生态珠宝：海洋玻璃
虽然海洋玻璃正在逐渐消失，珠宝设计师吉娜·考恩仍在搜寻这种难觅的珍宝。
珠宝设计师吉娜·考恩说，在海滩上搜寻海洋玻璃时，她看起来像人形螃蟹：她低头弯腰，侧着身子随着白色浪花的起伏，完全忘记了时间的流逝。在牛津的她的工作室里，她边吃午饭，边告诉我：“我每次都希望能找到比上次更好的海洋玻璃。几小时后，我会抬起头来，这时才发现偌大的海滩已经空无一人，我的肩膀被晒伤了。”
见过被海水打磨过的玻璃的人都明白，这种玻璃在海里呆上一段时间之后就能奇迹般地由一块普通玻璃变成一颗耀眼的珍宝。把它们拿在手里，你会发现它们每一快都折射出不同的光泽，散发出独特的光彩。
没有什么硬性的的规定说明玻璃碎块要在海水中放多长时间才能被正式称为海洋玻璃，但可以肯定的是，年代越久远，玻璃就越光滑、越奇特。50 岁的考恩解释说：“完美的海洋玻璃没有棱角。它们的棱角经海水多年的拍打已经磨平了，它们也从大块玻璃变成了小巧精美的宝石。玻璃的颜色也能道出它们的年龄，如果你发现红色或琥珀色的海洋玻璃，你找到的可能就是几百年前的玻璃——我们已经不再生产这种玻璃了。”
要制造玻璃珠宝，考恩得先把她找到的海洋玻璃放在磨石滚筒里抛光，除掉玻璃表面的霜花。她把其中一些抛光的玻璃镶在银器上，剩下的或串成珠链，或用金刚钻打眼后用细丝串在一起。
90 年代末，她设计的产品在伦敦的利博提百货店出售。如今，你可能在美术馆里看到她的作品，但是她主要做订单产品，她设计的产品从脚链到订婚戒指无所不包。
在立志成为珠宝商之前，考恩从20 岁到40 岁都从事新闻报道及音乐管理工作。她在祖国南非开普敦的砂砾海滩散步时偶然发现几颗海洋玻璃，并注意到它们在海水的塑造下呈现各种不同的形状。她从此开始收集海洋玻璃，把它们存放在一个大玻璃柜里，放在工作室显眼的位置。尽管她的收藏包括来自遥远的斐济和马略卡岛的珍品，但最令人惊叹的是她在英国沙滩上找到的维多利亚时期的海洋__玻璃藏品。
她最喜欢的寻宝地——也是许多收藏者的寻宝地——是英国达勒姆县的锡厄姆海滩。那儿是维多利亚玻璃厂的所在地，该厂于1921 年关闭。有成千上万公吨的玻璃撒落到海上，并在过去的一个世纪里被海浪打磨抛光，为考恩提供了大量的原材料。
海洋玻璃的产生是废物再生的一种形式，不仅如此，它也是大自然补救人类愚蠢行为的一个例子。
考恩说，“人的过失行为被转变成积极的东西，这真是太好了。” 虽然在19 世纪没有人思考过向大海倾倒玻璃的后果，但这件事最后演变成了一个完美的过程：玻璃最终破碎了，变成了沙子。如今，对玻璃废料的负责任的态度是尽量重新利用废旧玻璃，这确实有很大的好处，但却宣告了海洋玻璃时代的终结。考恩说，“这是一个机遇：海洋玻璃资源最终会枯竭，将来有一天，它们会比钻石还珍贵。”
供货的减少加上需求的增加使海洋玻璃生意非常兴隆。以前人们曾经免费向珠宝商提供自己的收藏，现在它们在EBay 上能卖到成百上千英镑。就连年轻的收藏者也深知它们潜在的价值。最近一位15 岁的女孩把她的收藏卖给考恩，想挣点钱参加学校组织的旅游。考恩说：“我付给她的钱比它的实际价值高多了，她把它拍得很漂亮。”
当人们开始对珠宝的来源提出质疑时，海洋玻璃的生态优点让它们更具吸引力。黄金的提炼会给环境带来损害，它的坏名声以及钻石业的糟糕人权记录给选择变废为宝的珠宝设计者带来了
极大的优势。
海洋玻璃的减少似乎让人觉得应该恢复（往海里）倾倒玻璃的旧习，但考恩绝不宽恕这样的做 法。“有人跟我说‘为什么不往海里倒玻璃以保证未来原材料的供应，或打磨新玻璃让它看上去像旧玻璃？’这可不是我干的事。这样做会失去神秘感。我喜欢的是。每块海洋玻璃的背后都有一个故事，你可以想象它曾经的样子，它走过的地方以及它的年龄。每个人都会在同一块玻璃上看到不同的故事。”
50 年后，塑料可能是被海浪冲上岸的唯一的东西了，但考恩坚信艺术家会想办法给它们派上用场。她说，“已经有珠宝商开始使用熔化塑料了，人们会找到富有创造性的方法来利用一切现有的资源。”
同时，孩子们会继续抓取海洋战利品，不管它们是否有价值。毕竟它们都是免费的珍宝，就算在傍晚时分你把它放回到海滩上，任海浪把它冲走，也值得去搜寻。
所以，下一次如果你想知道如何充分利用英国沙滩的话，你可以照着考恩的样子做：站在海滩上，摆出螃蟹的姿势，去搜寻那些闪闪发光的鹅卵石，别让它们从你的眼前溜走。
Unit 4
Active reading (1)
The Credit Card Trap
Culture points
A charity shop is a shop that sells clothes, books and other goods given by people in order to raise money for a charity (an organization that exists to help people in need).
Credit rating refers to information about someone that a bank or shop uses for deciding whether to lend them money or give them credit. With a higher credit rating, you can borrow more money or have a higher limit on a cash card etc. Language points
1 My credit card was a fairly pathetic, status-free dark blue, whereas hers was a very exclusive gold one. (Para 1)
My credit card was quite useless in an annoying way. It was dark blue and ordinary, it did not have any particular status. Hers was gold and it was limited to a particular group. So the writer felt inferior and wanted a gold credit card too.
2 Now, I had a job which was as steady as any job was in those days – that’s to say, not very, but you know, no complaints. (Para 3)
In those days a steady job (a job in which you would be employed steadily, for a long time) was often not very steady because in the bad economic situation many people would lose their jobs – no job was steady, including the writer’s – but at least she had a job. So, she did not really have any complaints. 3 They target people who are prone to impulse-buying, and potentially bad credit risks, tempted to spend more than they have, and liable to fall behind with repayments. (Para 7)
The credit card companies or banks direct their advertising and sales promotions at people who are very likely to buy things on impulse (without planning), who are possibly bad credit risks (ie they may not be able to pay their debts), who spend more money than they have, and who will not make repayments on time.
4 Her bank! I trusted them! They know even better than I do how broke she is. (Para 12)
The writer was very surprised that her bank – which she had trusted as a good bank – was offering her
daughter a credit card, because she knew that her daughter had no money at all and the bank knew this even better than she did.
5 … and it’s probable that she’ll have another go at university when she has paid off her debts. (Para 22)
Because of her debts, Kelly couldn’t get a student loan, so for financial reasons she dropped out of university and got a job in a supermarket. When she has paid off her debts, she may well go back to university and try again to finish her degree.
6 You’ve got the whole world into this ridiculous credit card trap … (Para 26)
This is part of the writer’s humorous advice about what we should say to the banks: You have got everybody into this silly and unreasonable credit card trap – you have caught us in this bad situation that is difficult to escape from.
Reading and understanding
3 Choose the best answer to the questions. 1 Why did the writer feel ashamed when she met an old friend in a theatre queue? (a) She found she didn’t have enough money to pay for the tickets. (b) She realized that her friend had been more successful in life. (c) She thought her friend’s credit card looked better than her own. (d) She felt her friend looked better than she did.
2 What happened when she applied for a gold credit card? (a) She didn’t get one.
(b) It cost her more than she expected. (c) She was sent one of a different colour. (d) She felt better.
3 Which sort of customers do credit card companies want? (a) People who already have a lot of money.
(b) Students who might have a lot of money one day.
(c) People who are likely to spend more money than they have. (d) People who will never be able to pay the interest on repayments. 4 What did the writer’s daughter want her to do? (a) To lend her ￡3,000.
(b) To let her use the writer’s credit card.
(c) To support her application for a credit card.
(d) To increase the amount of money the writer was giving her regularly. 5 Why couldn’t Kelly access the money in her account? (a) She didn’t have an Internet connection.
(b) The bank wouldn’t let her operate the account from abroad. (c) She didn’t have any money left in the account.
(d) She had a communication problem in a foreign bank. 6 What happened to Kelly in the end?
(a) She couldn’t afford to continue her education.
(b) She stayed overseas and got a job in a supermarket.
(c) She had to take a bigger student loan to pay off her debts. (d) She was helped financially by her family.