托尔金专家：如果没有刘易斯的不断鼓励，托尔金是完成不了《魔戒》的。再说托尔金的确需要有人鼓励他。
1949年，动笔12年后，托尔金坐在阁楼的床上，用两个手指敲出了《魔戒》的完整稿。全书有几十个人物，62个章节，页数很多，高达千页，所以编辑把它分成三册出版。
托尔金专家：他们劝他出成三部曲，而他把《魔戒》看成是一个整体。
后来《魔戒》的第一册被命名为《魔戒再现》，于1954年8月出版。剩下两册在后14个月中陆续发行。很多人把该书看作二战的寓言，这让作者很失望。
托尔金专家：他不喜欢别人对号入座，将书中所写和现实生活一一进行对照，所以说汤姆·波内维勒并不是中立国瑞士，而魔朵也不是纳粹德国。
结果《魔戒》在后十年内销量很稳定。该书所取得的丰厚收入令托尔金得以提前从牛津大学退休。他搬了新家，并计划退休后专心写作。接着到了动荡不安的60年代中期，美国发行了平装本的《魔戒》。此书顿时成为全美国上下觉醒大学生的必读书。
托尔金专家：这成了一本反战书，在当时年代，反对越战的呼声水涨船高，大学校园里尤其如此。
托尔金专家：最早的读者都是些脱离主流社会的人。他们恰巧在中土世界的森林中遇到了托尔金。
到1968年，这本书已狂卖逾三百万套，温文尔雅的作者一下子成为英雄偶像，这令他很不喜欢。
托尔金专家：托尔金觉得嬉皮士对他的青睐着实可怕，“毒品文化”？他根本不精此道！
后来几年中，《魔戒》遍及全球。它被翻译成25种文字，在大学课堂上精读，被流行歌曲颂唱。该书影响了几代人，读者年龄层次不同，感受各异。
注释:
1) imbue v. 浸透
2) mythology n. 神话
3) ignite v. 点燃
4) linguistics n. 语言学
5) obsession n. 迷恋
6) dismount v. 下马
7) scribble out 信手写来，匆匆写下
8) marsh n. 沼泽
9) appalling a. 令人震惊的
10) grim a. 严酷的
11) weed n. 野草
12) perfectionist n. 完美主义者
13) density n. 密度
14) appendix n. 附录
15) genre n. 流派
16) chronology n. 年表
17) dedication n.奉献，专注
18) workload n. 工作量
19) drag on 拖拉
20) fellow n. 朋友，同事
21) niche n. 神圣的或合适的地位
22) pint n. 品脱
23) enthrall v. 迷惑
24) trilogy n. 三部曲
25) entitle v. 命名为
26) interpret v. 认为是……意思
27) allegory n. 寓言
28) allegorical a. 寓言的
29) correspondence n. 相应
30) settle in 迁入新居并安顿好
31) turbulent a. 狂暴的，吵闹的
32) paperback n. 平装本
33) disillusioned a. 觉醒了的，醒悟了的
34) resistance n. 反抗
35) unwanted a. 多余的，讨厌的
36) cult n. 礼拜，一群信徒
37) hippie n. 嬉皮士
38) dissect v. 仔细研究
39) prism n. 棱镜
★★《2003年05月号-第40期-Disc01-08》★★
The Hubble
When most people think of space, what comes to mind are names like 1)John Glenn and Neil Armstrong. When scientists think about space, the name that comes to mind is Hubble, a space telescope we sent on a twenty-year journey to explore the 2)origins of the universe. It's already being called the most scientifically significant space project we ever 3)embarked on. Taking pictures of the universe that literally let you and me and everyone else look back in time and see what the universe looked like 13 billion years ago.
The images are like nothing ever seen before, as much art as science, visions of a universe more violent and fantastic than anyone had dared to imagine. Everything from razor-sharp views of the planets in our own 4)solar system, to the vast stellar nurseries where stars and planets are born. Some show us the 5)explosive 6)outbursts of dying 7)suns, others the 8)swirling 9)masses of stars that make up the 10)galaxies. But Hubble isn't just giving us extraordinary pictures, it's helping astronomers unlock the secrets of the universe.
Morgan: You know, people have been wondering about how the universe began probably since the caveman, right. The caveman wandered out, looked up and saw those little dots of lights, and he had no clue.
Dr. Bruce Morgan is the Associate Director for Science For The Hubble Space Telescope.
Morgan: Generations of humans have gone by with absolutely no clue about how the universe started. When my father went to school, no matter how smart he was or how smart his teachers were, nobody had a clue how old was the universe, how were 11)atoms made, how are stars formed. No one knew.
The Hubble space telescope is the size of a 12)greyhound bus, it weighs ten tons and flies 400 miles above the earth, moving five miles a second. Its cameras and scientific instruments are so 13)sophisticated that they can capture light that began traveling through space more than 13 billion years ago. By the time that light finally enters the telescope and is transformed into an image, the picture it shows is of the universe as it was back when the light began its journey in the unimaginably distant past, in effect turning the telescope into a time machine.
Dr. Mario Livio is the head of the science division for the Hubble space telescope.
Livio: When we look back in time, using Hubble, we can see the universe, how it looked when it was less than a billion years old. And we can see what galaxies looked back then, when they were the building blocks of today's galaxies.
But why is knowing this important today?
Livio: Because we want to understand our origins. I mean, it's a very 14)fundamental thing.
一只望远镜的革命
很多人想到太空时，首先在脑海中出现的名字不是约翰·格林就是尼尔·阿姆斯特朗。而当科学家想到太空时，他们脑海中出现的是哈勃太空望远镜。二十年来哈勃望远镜一直在为我们探索宇宙的起源之谜，它被称为是人类所进行的最具科学意义的太空项目。从它拍摄的宇宙照片上，我们每人都能回顾到宇宙在130亿年前的模样。
照片所展示出的图像是我们前所未见的：科学犹如艺术，宇宙图像比任何人所敢想的还要更火烈、更奇异。照片内容包罗万象，有太阳系各行星的精彩绝伦的景致，也有孕育出星球、行星的巨大恒星。一些图片展现了恒星毁灭前大爆炸的情景，还有一些展现了组成银河的群星星云。但是哈勃望远镜不只为我们提供了优秀的图片，它还帮助天文学家去解开宇宙的奥秘。
摩根：人类可能从穴居时候起就一直在猜测宇宙是怎样开始的。穴居人走到野外，抬头看天，看到星星点点的光，茫然一片，空无头绪。
布鲁斯·摩根博士是哈勃太空望远镜科学研究所的副主任。
摩根：多少代人以来都不知道宇宙是怎样开始的。当年我父亲读书的时候，且不论他有多聪明和他老师有多聪明，谁也不知道宇宙的年龄，原子是怎样产生的，星星是怎样产生的。谁也不知道。
哈勃太空望远镜的大小和灰狗巴士差不多，重达10吨，在地球400英里高空上飞行，每秒钟移动5英里。它的镜头和科学设备实在太精密了，连130亿年前太空中的光线也能捕捉得到。当光线最终进入望远镜里转成图像后，图片上能看到宇宙的从前，光线在无法想像的遥远过去开始旅行的情景。从效果上说，哈勃就是一架时光机器。
马里奥·里维奥是哈勃太空望远镜科学部的部长。
里维奥：我们用哈勃望远镜回顾过去，能看到宇宙在差不多十亿年前的样子。我们也可以看到当年的银河，看到它们怎样演化成今天的银河。
但是为什么知道这些对今天意义重大呢？
里维奥：因为我们想知道自己的起源。我的意思是，那是人之本啊。
注释:
1) John Glenn和Neil Armstrong都是美国第一批登月的宇航员。
2) origin n. 起源，由来
3) embark on 从事，着手
4) solar system 太阳系
5) explosive a. 爆炸的
6) outburst n. 爆发
7) sun n. 太阳，有卫星的恒星
8) swirling n. 旋涡，涡流
9) mass n. 大量
10) galaxy n. 星系，银河
11) atom n. 原子
12) greyhound n. 灰狗，快速船
13) sophisticated a. （武器）很复杂的，高尖的
14) fundamental a. 基础的，基本的
★★《2003年05月号-第40期-Disc01-09》★★
The Stonehenge
This ancient monument of huge stones standing on the vast Salisbury plains in England has captured our imaginations for centuries. It's the most 1)enigmatic 2)pre-historic monument on earth.
What makes the structure at Stonehenge 3)unique is the fact that for the first time they're shaping stones on a massive scale.
Dating back as far as 2950 B.C., theories about who built Stonehenge have included the 4)druids and the Greeks. 5)Speculation as to its purpose, range from 6)astronomy to a 7)UFO landing site.
Now a ruin with many of the original stones fallen or removed, this site still attracts nearly five thousand tourists everyday.
Around the same time as the ancient Egyptians were building the pyramids, the first stones arrived here at Stonehenge. The mystery of this stone is that they are only found in the Brescelly Mountains in south Wales, nearly 150 miles away.
It was a huge job to transport these stones from Wales, because originally there were about 80 of them here at Stonehenge weighing up to four tons each. Now, if I got in my car it would take me about 5 hours to drive all the way to Wales. But to those people, it would've been an enormous distance.
The stones were brought by boat from the mountains and pulled from the coast by 8)sledge to the site.
I think, you need a minimum of about 150 people, simply to move on of these massive forty-ton stones.
Getting the stones to the site was an amazing 9)feat, but building Stonehenge was much more complex. It is not just simply one stone piled on top of another, they're joined together, this hole in the section here that's been 10)pounded out using stone hammers, and that originally fitted on top of that 11)protruding 12)knob on top of that stone.
After nearly 5,000 years Stonehenge is still standing. We now know how it was built. The question "why" is a bit more 13)problematic. Twenty first century followers of ancient mystical beliefs are sure that Stonehenge has a connection with the summer and winter 14)solstices. "As a druid, as a priest of the land, I feel Stonehenge to be one of the key sacred temples in the world. Stonehenge evokes in us a connection between some deep 15)ancestral intuitive soul and the power of nature around us."
Nature may well know all the answers, but science has yet to prove its theories. It seems Stonehenge isn't ready to reveal all its secrets just yet.
巨石阵
古老的巨石阵屹立在英格兰索尔兹伯里平原上，数世纪以来，它的丰姿赋予了我们丰富的想象力。它是地球上最神秘的史前遗迹。
巨石阵是独一无二的，因为它是首次出现的最大规模巨石。
究竟是谁建造了巨石阵？这要追溯到公元前2950年，有两种说法：一种认为是特鲁伊特教的教徒，另一种说法则认为是希腊人。有关巨石阵作用的推测也是众说纷纭，上至天文学意义，下至不明飞行体的降落点，尚无定论。
现在，尽管很多巨石已经倒塌，或给搬走，但是这古迹仍然每天吸引着近五千名游客观光。
差不多就在古埃及人建造金字塔的时候，巨石阵的第一批石头被运达英格兰索尔兹伯里平原。巨石的神秘之处在于，它只能从南威尔士的普雷西山脉取材，而那里位于150英里开外。
从威尔士搬运石材是个艰巨的工作，因为最初的巨石阵中约有80多块巨石，每块重达4吨。现在如果从巨石阵开车去威尔士，全程需要大概5小时。可对于古人来说，这实在是条遥遥长路。
巨石从大山里开采出来后，先用船只运抵海岸，然后再利用撬具从海岸运到现在的地址。
仅仅是搬运这些重达四十吨的巨石，就需要大约150人。
能把些巨石运送到这里已是惊人之举。但建造巨石阵所花费的工夫更是复杂。因为巨石并不是简单地堆叠在一起，而是被巧妙地连接在一起：石块上这一部分的孔眼是用石锤开出来的，它原来刚好可以套住顶上另一块巨石的石楦。
经历了五千年的风风雨雨，巨石仍然屹立不倒。现在我们已经知道它是如何建成的了。但问题是，为什么要建造这样一个巨石阵呢？古代密教的21世纪追随者则确信不疑：巨石阵与夏至、冬至日有关。“身为特鲁伊特信徒以及这片土地的神职者，我认为巨石阵是世上最重要的圣殿之一。它唤醒我们，在深藏的祖传直觉精神与大自然力量之间是有着某种联系的。”
大自然也许知道一切答案，但理论有待于用科学去进一步考证。看来巨石阵似乎还不愿意将神秘面纱全部揭开哩。
注释：
1) enigmatic a. 谜一般的，高深莫测的
2) pre-historic a. 史前的，古老的
3) unique a. 独特的
4) druid n. 德鲁伊特教团员
5) speculation n. 思索
6) astronomy n. 天文学
7) UFO即unidentified flying object，飞碟，不明飞行物
8) sledge n. 雪橇
9) feat n. 壮举
10) pound v. 连续重击
11) protruding a. 突出的
12) knob n. 突出物
13) problematic a. 问题的，有疑问的
14) solstice n. （天文）至日，至点
15) ancestral a. 祖先的，祖传的
★★《2003年05月号-第40期-Disc01-10》★★
A Century of Memories (1920-1929)
At the 1)dawn of the 1920's, America was clearly entering a new era, an era defined by a vast and complicated urban culture that would dominate the rest of the 20th century.
After World War I, there was an eagerness to embrace the new and it was in America's cities, most dramatically in its biggest, New York, where the modern age was born. The very architecture of the city spoke of America's new 2)ascendancy and her 3)aspirations.
Historian David McCullen--
David McCullen: The 4)skyscraper was an example of the new form achieving a kind of thrilling scale and nobility. More people worked there than lived in the average small town in America.
A movement to the cities that had started during World War I 5)accelerated. In 1920, for the first time more Americans lived in urban centers than in country towns and villages.
American studies professor, Anne Douglas--
Anne Douglas: The pace has been set in the cities. The city is 6)irresistibly attractive, is really at a kind of high tide in this decade. It's a force, a 7)magnet.
The very names of New York streets would become 8)synonymous with progress and innovation. Broadway would represent the best and latest in American entertainment. Madison Avenue would come to 9)stand for the bustling new business of advertising which was uniting the nation in a set of shared fantasies and desires. And Wall Street came to represent the decade's expanding economic opportunities. Wall Street was where the 10)action was. People came from everywhere to get in on it.
Michael Trinkel--
Michael Trinkel: The reason I came to New York was there was nobody there after they closed the mines in 1926 in Pennsylvania. There was no money coming there. This fella Jerry got me the first job and he said, "Come on down to Wall Street, the streets are 11)paved with gold."
It seemed that way too on Park and 5th avenues where the 12)tycoons lived. The number of millionaires in the 1920's jumped 400% over the previous decade. The 20's feeling of limitless horizons was fueled by their 13)lavish lifestyle.
Francis Leimen Lobe--
Francis Leimen Lobe: In those days you had lots of help. You had a cook, you had a kitchen maid and you had a 14)laundress. And then you had a parlor maid, a 15)chambermaid and mother's maid. How many does that make? Six, but I think there were eight, actually. Terribly nice people.
It was in 16)Harlem clubs that one could see the artists at the 17)forefront of this fresh and uniquely American music. Performers such as Louis Armstrong, Bessie Smith and a 18)dapper young man named Edward Kennedy Ellington, his friends simply called him, Duke.
The actor, Aussie Davis--
Aussie Davis: Duke was the essence of what black music was all about. Everybody else was heading in that direction, but Duke was there.
The cultural historian, Stretch Johnson--
Stretch Johnson: The first time that I was seized by the music was the first time I heard Duke Ellington broadcast from the Cotton Club where Broadway, Hollywood and Paris rub elbows. People came from all over the United States to experience what was going on in Harlem in the 20's.
The author, Eudora Wealthy--
Eudora Wealthy: I was young then, you know, and we went up to Harlem that night to dance and everything. We all saved up for months to get the money to go out to a nightclub. Of course the music was wonderful.
Harlem was contributing more than music to America's new urban culture. The world above New York's 125th street was, in the 1920's, a hot bed of political, social and cultural activity. It was later called the Harlem 19)Renaissance.
Aussie Davis: The Harlem Renaissance was one of those fancy terms that white folks invent when they want to take a particular look at some aspect of black folks. I don't think black folk running around saying "we're going to have us a renaissance" or something like that, but it was a holiday of the spirit. I'm glad that there was a Harlem Renaissance, and there be Beetles boys and Alan Lock took it and developed it and made it into a political weapon. Fine, it achieved a great deal for us by making America recognize that we were artists, and if we were artists that could produce works of genius, how then could we be inferior and treated as second-class citizens? All of that I later understood and later appreciated. But when the stuff first came to me, it was something that I could enjoy like a sweet potato pie, like an ice-cream cone, or you know, like the girls that I was in love with.
20)Propelled by the great technological leaps in the 1920's, social patterns began to shift. Nowhere was this more obvious than in the changes seen in American women. An expanding job market had given more and more women careers and the 21)disposable income to do with what they wished. Throughout the 1920's, women would assert a 22)newfound freedom and independence. Nothing symbolized that more than the 19th 23)amendment to the constitution. Finally in 1920 after 81 years of 24)agitation, women had won the right to vote.
Anne Douglas--
