第四十一篇              the operation 经营of international 国际的airlines航空公司

                                         国际航空公司的经营

international airlines have rediscovered the business traveler, the man or woman who regularly jets from country to country as part of the job．this does not necessarily mean that airlines ever abandoned their business travelers. instead, companies like lufthansa and swissair

would right argue that they have always catered best for the executive class passengers．but many airlines could be accused of concentrating too heavily in the recent past on attracting passengers by volume, often at the expense of the regular traveler．too often, they have seemed geared for quantity rather than quality．

operating a major airline is essentially a matter of finding the right mix of passengers．the airlines need to fill up the back end of their wide-bodied jets with low fare passengers, without forgetting that the front end should be filled with people who pay substantially more for their tickets．

it is no coincidence that the two major airline bankruptcies were among the companies specializing in cheap flights．but low fares require consistently full aircraft to make flights economically viable, and in the recent recession the volume of traffic has not grown．equally the large number of airlines jostling for the available passengers has created a huge excess of capacity．the net result of excess capacity and cut-throat competition driving down fares had been to push some airlines into collapse and leave many others hovering on the brink．

against this grim background, it is no surprise that airlines are turning increasingly towards the business travelers to improve their rates of return, they have invested much time and effort to establish exactly what the executive demands for sitting apart from the tourists．

high on the list of priorities is punctuality；an executive's time is money．in-flight service is another area where the airlines are jostling for the executive's attention．the free drinks and headsets and better food are all part of the lure．

another development has been the accent of seating arrangements．regular travelers have become well versed in the debate about seat pitch－the amount of room between each passenger．and first-class passengers are now offered sleeperette seats, which, for long journeys, make it possible to snatch a proper night's sleep．sleeperettes have proved so popular that they will soon become universal in the front end of most aircraft．

the airlines are also trying to improve things on the ground．executive lounges are commonplace and intended to make the inevitable waiting between flights a little more bearable．luggage handling is being improved．regrettably, there is little the airlines can do to speed up the boring immigration and customs process, which manages to upset and frustrate passengers of all classes in every continent．

although it is the airlines' intention to attract executive passengers from their rivals, the airlines themselves would nonetheless like to change one bad habit of this kind of traveler－the expensive habit of booking a flight and then failing to turn up．the practice is particularly widespread in europe, where businessmen frequently book return journeys home one on several flights．

 

练习：

1． according to the passage, in operating airlines it is essential基本的to

a) keep in mind记住 the need of the executives  only．商业乘客

b) satisfy the need of the low fare票价费用 passengers at the expense 开支of the executives．

c) try to attract as many passengers as possible by reducing fares．

d) cater to the need of passengers sitting at both ends of the jets．

   2 operating a major airline is essentially  a matter of finding the right mix of passengers.the airlines need to fill up the back end of their wide-bodied jets with low fare passengers, without forgetting that the front end should be filled with people who pay substantially more for their tickets．

 

2． the following are all mentioned as reasons why the airlines are having a hard time except that

a) the tourist industry is experiencing an all-time low．

b) there is no increase in the number of passengers．

c) there are more seats on the planes than needed．

d) the competition between airlines is strong．

   3 it is no coincidence that the two major airline bankruptcies破产 were among the companies specializing in cheap flights．but low fares require consistently full aircraft to make flights economically viable, and in the recent recession衰退 the volume of traffic has not grown．equally the large number of airlines jostling for the available passengers has created a huge excess of capacity容量．the net result of excess capacity and cut-throat competition driving down fares had been to push some airlines into collapse倒闭 and leave many others hovering 盘旋on the brink．边缘

 

 

3． the improvements the airlines attempt at include all the following except

a) making their seats more comfortable．

b) providing better food during flights．

c) showing more movies during the long flights．

d) offering sleeperettes 卧铺to first-class passengers．

   5 high on the list of priorities is punctuality；an executive's time is money．in-flight service is another area where the airlines are jostling for the executive's attention．the free drinks and headsets耳机 and better food are all part of the lure．

          6 another development has been the accent of seating arrangements．regular travelers have become well versed in the debate about seat pitch－the amount of room between each passenger．and first-class passengers are now offered sleeperette seats, which, for long journeys, make it possible to snatch a proper night's sleep．sleeperettes have proved so popular that they will soon become universal in the front end of most aircraft.



4． there is not much the airlines can do when it comes to

a) making sure the departures 出发离开are not delayed．

b) the efficient handling of luggage．

c) speeding up 加速customs 海关的procedure．程序，手续

d) the improvement of the condition of waiting lounges．休息室

从答案入手

5 high on the list of priorities is punctuality；an executive's time is money．in-flight service is another area where the airlines are jostling for the executive's attention．the free drinks and headsets and better food are all part of the lure．

6 another development has been the accent of seating arrangements．regular travelers have become well versed in the debate about seat pitch－the amount of room between each passenger．and first-class passengers are now offered sleeperette seats, which, for long journeys, make it possible to snatch a proper night's sleep．sleeperettes have proved so popular that they will soon become universal in the front end of most aircraft．

7 the airlines are also trying to improve things on the ground．executive lounges are commonplace and intended to make the inevitable waiting between flights a little more bearable．luggage handling is being improved．regrettably, there is little the airlines can do to speed up the boring immigration and customs process, which manages to upset and frustrate passengers of all classes in every continent． 

 

5． which of the following is a bad habit of the executive passengers that frustrates the airlines?

a) they do not book their seats in advance．

b) they do not sit on the seats they are supposed to take．

c) they do not travel on the flight they have booked．

d) they do not pay in advance for the seats they book．

   8  although it is the airlines' intention to attract executive passengers from their rivals, the airlines themselves would nonetheless like to change one bad habit of this kind of traveler－he expensive habit of booking a flight and then failing to turn up．the practice is particularly widespread in europe, where businessmen frequently book return journeys home one on several flights．

 

 

第四十二篇                            sauna  桑拿浴

 

ceremonial bathing has existed for thousands of years and has many forms, one of which is the sauna．the finns have perfected the steam bath, or sauna, which may be taken, usually in an enclosed room, by pouring water over hot rocks or as dry heat bath．the japanese, greeks, turks and russians as well as native americans have forms of the sweat bath in their bathing rituals．dry heat and steam baths had advocates in ancient rome and pre-columbian americans used sweat lodges．

the earliest saunas were probably underground caves heated by a fire that naturally filled with smoke as chimney making was unknown at that time．a fire kept in a fire-pit would heat the rock walls of the cave．after reaching full heat, the smoke was let out of the cave and the stones would retain heat for several hours．a few people today say that the smoke sauna, “svusauna”, is the only true sauna experience and that all saunas should have at least a background odor or smoke．today most saunas use electric stoves, although gas and wood-burning stoves are available．

saunas are relaxing and stress relieving．those with muscle aches or arthritis may find that the heat relaxes muscles and relieves pain and inflammation．asthma patients find that the heat enlarges air passageways of the lung and facilitates breathing．saunas do not cure the common cold but they may help to alleviate congestion and speed recovery time．the body’s core temperature usually rises a 1-2 degrees while in the sauna, thus imitating a slight fever．the regular use of a sauna may decrease the likelihood of getting a cold in the first place．

sauna is goof for your skin as the blood flow to the skin increases and sweating occurs．adults sweat about 2 lbs of water per hour on average in a sauna．a good sweat removes dirt and grime from pores and gives the skin a healthy glow．the loss in water weight is temporary as the body’s physiological mechanisms will quickly restore proper volumes．the cardiovascular system gets work out as the heart must pump harder and faster to move blood to the surface for heat exchange．heart rate may increase from 72 beats per minute on average to 100-150 beats per minute．

a normal heart can handle these stresses but those with heart trouble wishing to begin to use a sauna should seek a doctor’s advice．the elderly and those with diabetes should check with their doctor prior to beginning to take saunas．pregnant women should not take saunas, particularly in the first three months．indeed, everyone just starting out should take short sessions at first to become accustomed to this type of bath．

 

练习：

1． ceremonial bathing  仪式的礼仪的洗澡

a) is called the sauna by finns．

b) is equivalent to the steam bath．蒸气浴

c) has various forms．

d) is held in an enclosed room．

    1 ceremonial bathing has existed for thousands of years and has many forms, one of which is the sauna．finns芬兰人 have perfected the steam bath, or sauna, which may be taken, usually in an enclosed room, by pouring water over hot rocks or as dry heat bath．the japanese, greeks, turks and russians as well as native americans have forms of the sweat bath in their bathing rituals．dry heat and steam baths had advocates in ancient rome and pre-columbian americans used sweat lodges．

 

2． what is understood by some people to be the true sauna experience?

a) saunas in underground caves．洞穴

b) saunas with smoke．

c) saunas using wood burning stoves．火炉

d) saunas using electric stoves．

      先看答案

     2  the earliest saunas were probably underground caves heated by a fire that naturally filled with smoke as chimney烟囱 making was unknown at that time．a fire kept in a fire-pit would heat the rock walls of the cave．after reaching full heat, the smoke was let out of the cave and the stones would retain heat for several hours．a few people today say that the smoke sauna, “svusauna”, is the only true sauna experience and that all saunas should have at least a background odor or smoke．today most saunas use electric stoves, although gas and wood-burning stoves are available．

 

3． according to the third paragraph, saunas, can do all of the following except

a) reducing the chance of getting cold．

b) speeding recovery．加速康复

c) relieving stress．    缓解压力

d) curing asthma．  治疗哮喘

saunas are relaxing and stress relieving．those with muscle aches or arthritis may find that the heat relaxes muscles and relieves pain and inflammation．asthma patients find that the heat enlarges air passageways of the lung and facilitates breathing．saunas do not cure the common cold but they may help to alleviate减轻缓和  congestion充血and speed recovery time．the body’s core temperature usually rises a 1-2 degrees while in the sauna, thus imitating a slight fever．the regular use of a sauna may decrease the likelihood of getting a cold in the first place．

 

4． according to the fourth paragraph, sauna gives the skin a healthy glow because

a) pores毛孔 are cleaned by sweat．

b) water is lost by sweating．

c) blood moves to the surface for heat exchange．

d) the heart pumps harder and faster．

  4  sauna is good for your skin as the blood flow to the skin increases and sweating occurs．adults sweat about 2 lbs of water per hour on average in a sauna．a good sweat removes dirt and grime from pores and gives the skin a healthy glow．the loss in water weight is temporary as the body’s physiological mechanisms will quickly restore proper volumes．the cardiovascular system gets work out as the heart must pump harder and faster to move blood to the surface for heat exchange．heart rate may increase from 72 beats per minute on average to 100-150 beats per minute．

 

5． who are advised not to take a sauna?

a) elderly people．

b) pregnant women．

c) people with heart trouble．

d) all of the above．

  5  a normal heart can handle these stresses but those with heart trouble wishing to begin to use a sauna should seek a doctor’s advice．the elderly and those with diabetes糖尿病 should check with their doctor prior to beginning to take saunas．pregnant women should not take saunas, particularly in the first three months．indeed, everyone just starting out should take short sessions at first to become accustomed to this type of bath．