Unit 4 Fresh Start新编大学英语第二版第一册课文翻译

Unit 4 Fresh Start
Fresh Start
[1] I first began to wonder what I was doing on a college campus when my parents drove off, leaving me standing pitifully in a parking lot. I decided I wanted nothing more than to find my way safely to my dorm room. It seemed that everyone on campus was watching me. My plan was to keep my ears open and my mouth shut and I hoped no one would notice I was a freshman.
[2] The next morning I found my first class and marched in. Once I was in the room, however, another problem awaited me. Where to sit? After much hesitation I chose a seat in the first row and to the side.
[3] "Welcome to Biology 101," the professor began. Oh, God, I had thought it was a literature class. A cold sweat broke out on the back of my neck. I groped for my schedule and checked the room number. I was in the right room but the wrong building.
[4] So now what? Get up and leave in the middle of the lecture? Wouldn't the professor be angry? I knew everyone would stare. Forget it. I settled into my chair and tried to look as serious as a biology major might be.
[5] After class I felt a little hungry, and I hurried to the cafeteria. I piled my tray with sandwiches and was heading for the seat when I accidentally stepped in a large puddle of ketchup. My food tray tipped and I lost my balance. As my rear end met the floor, I saw my entire life pass before my eyes; it ended with my first day of college classes.
[6] In the seconds after my fall I thought how nice it would be if no one had noticed. But as all the students in the cafeteria came to their feet, cheering and clapping, I knew they had not only noticed, they were determined that I would never forget it.
[7] For the next three days I dined alone on nothing more than shame, and some junk food from a machine placed outside my room. On the fourth day I thought I needed some real food badly. Perhaps three days was long enough for the campus population [N] to have forgotten me. So off to the cafeteria I went.
[8] I made my way through the food line and tiptoed to a table. Suddenly I heard a crash that sounded familiar. I looked up to find that another poor soul had met the same fate as I had. My heart went out to him as people began to cheer and clap as they had for me. He got up, hands held high above his head in a victory clasp, grinning from ear to ear.
I expected him to slip out of the cafeteria as I had, but instead he turned around and began preparing another tray. And that's when I realized I had been taking myself far too seriously.
[9] Who cared whether I dropped a tray, where I sat in class, or even whether I
showed up in the wrong lecture? Nobody. This wasn't like high school. In college, it didn't matter. This was my big chance to do my own thing.
[10] Once I realized that I had no one's expectations to live up to but my own, I relaxed. I began to view college as a wonderful experiment. I dressed a little differently, I discovered a taste for jazz, and I decided I liked going barefoot.
[11] I gave up trying to act my way through college and began not acting at all. College, I decided, was probably the only time I would be completely forgiven for any mistakes (including stepping in puddles of ketchup and dropping food trays). So I used the opportunity to make all the ones I thought I'd ever make.
[12] Three years after graduation, I'm still making mistakes. And I'm even being forgiven for a few.
新的开端
1 当我父母开车离去，留下我可怜巴巴站在停车场上时，我开始寻思我在校园里该做什么。

我决定我最想做的就是平安无事地回到寝室。

我感到似乎校园里每个人都在看我。

我打定主意：竖起耳朵，闭上嘴巴，但愿别人不知道我是个新生。

第二天早上我找到了上第一节课的教室，大步走了进去。

然而，进了教室，我又碰到了一个难题。

坐哪儿呢？犹豫再三，我挑了第一排边上的一个座位。

3 “欢迎你们来听生物101 课，”教授开始了开场白。

天哪，我还以为这是文学课！我的后脖根上冒出了冷汗，摸出课程表核对了一下教室号-----教室号是对的，但我却走错了教学楼。

4 怎么办？上课期间就站起来走出去？教授会不会生气？大家肯定会盯着我看。

算了吧。

我还是稳坐在座位上，尽量使自己看起来和生物专业的学生一样认真。

5 下了课后我觉得有点饿，便赶忙去自助食堂。

我往托盘里装了些三明治就朝座位走去，就在这时，我无意中踩到了一大滩番茄酱。

手中的托盘倾斜了，我失去了平衡。

就在我屁股着地的刹那间，我看见自己整个人生在眼前一闪而过，然后终止在大学上课的第一天。

6 摔到后的几秒里，我想要是没有人看见我刚才的窘像该有多好。

但是，食堂里所有的学生都站了起来，欢呼鼓掌，我知道他们不仅看见了我刚才的情景，而且下决心要我永远都不会忘掉那一幕。

7 接下来的三天里，我独自品尝羞辱，用以果腹的也只是从安放在房间外的机器上买来的没有营养的食品。

到了第四天，我感到自己急需补充一些真正的食物。

兴许三天的时间足以让校园里的人把我忘在脑后。

于是我去了食堂。

8 我好不容易排队取到了食物，踮脚走到一张桌子前坐下。

突然我听到一阵熟悉的哗啦跌倒声，抬头看见一个可怜的家伙遭遇了和我原先一样的命运。

当人们开始像对待我那
样欢呼鼓掌的时候，我对他满怀同情。

他站起身，咧嘴大笑，双手紧握高举在头顶上，做出胜利的姿势。

9 我是否摔了托盘，坐在教室的哪个位置，甚至于是否走错了教室，有谁会在乎呢？没有人在乎。

这不像在中学。

在大学里，这些都无关紧要。

我完全可以按自己的意愿行事。

10 一旦意识到我不必考虑别人的期望，只要自己满意就行，我感到释然。

我开始把上大学看作一个美妙的实验。

我稍稍改变了自己的穿着，开始欣赏爵士乐，还认定自己喜欢光着脚走路。

11 在以后的大学生活里，我不再试图做出什么姿态，而是顺其自然。

大学，在我看来，也许是唯一一个有错误可以完全得到谅解的阶段（包括踩到番茄酱，摔了托盘）。

于是，我利用这个机会来体验我认为自己可能会犯的所有过失。

12 大学毕业已经三年了，我仍然时有过失，其中一些过失我还得到了原谅。

Becoming a Successful Student
[1] So you've finally made it to college. You've been accepted, and you've been living on campus for some time. Now you begin to ask yourself "How does one become a successful student?" "What are the characteristics of successful students?" To answer these questions, you'd better first bear in mind the following tips:
[2] Be self-disciplined. You should not leave the weekly reading until the night before it is required. You must discipline yourself (no one will scold you if you don't) and set up
a regular schedule in order to succeed.
[3] Think positively. You need to have a good self-image so you can turn what seems like defeat into a positive learning situation. If you expect that you can do better, and you try to do better, then overall you will do better.
[4] Be interested in your courses. Even if you think a course is the most boring one in the world, force yourself to be interested. Take a minor point and read as much as possible about it in order to become an expert in just that little bit of information. That kind of interest can cause interest in the entire course.
[5] Take good notes and study them regularly. Because there are so few tests (usually no more than two or three plus the final exam), they will cover work done over a long period of time. Only by taking and then keeping up with your notes can you study effectively for these tests.
[6] Seek help when you need it, before it's too late. If you have special problems, don't be afraid to seek help. See your teacher, your advisor, anyone that you think may be able to help you. It is important that you be aware of where you can go for help. And most
campuses can help you with money—student loans, scholarships, special student aid funds, or work-study programs. Find out what is available at your school, and be prepared to use it when you need it.
[7] Attend classes and be active in class. Attending class and arriving on time are important points to show that you are serious about your learning. You should take part in classroom discussions and hand in assignments on time. Speaking up in class forces you to think about what is being discussed and keeps you interested in it.
[8] Have a good attitude about college life. Know your strong points and your weaknesses, understand what a college can and cannot do for you. Take responsibility for your own education. You should realize that attending college offers you the raw material for success and education—libraries, teachers, textbooks. However, only you can educate yourself. Take advantage of what is around you and use it to your best advantage according to your own needs.
[9] Have the "know-how" to be successful. Make sure that you know how to study, take notes, take tests, and use time wisely. Be sure you can use reference sources such as the library. Develop memory skills. Try to get along with your teachers and your fellow students. You should be at ease in expressing yourself and in understanding words. Learn from experience. Always look for ways to do things better.
[10] Following all this advice, you may not automatically become a successful student, but you will surely be on the right road to success.
做一个成功的学生
1 你终于上了大学。

你被录取了，而且已经在校园里住了一段时间。

现在你开始问自己：“怎样才能成为一名成功的学生？” “成功的学生有什么样的特点？” 要回答这样的问题，
你最好先牢记以下的忠告：
2 自律不要把你每周要阅读的东西留到最后一个晚上才看。

要想成功，你必须约束自己（当然如果你不这样做，也不会有人责备你），并制定一个常备不懈的时间表。

3 建设性地思考你必须对自己有信心，这样你才能把可能的挫折转变成对学习有利的局面。

如果你相信自己能做地更好，并且努力去做，那么，总体上你会做得更好。

4 对自己所学的科目感兴趣即便你认为某一门课无聊透顶，你也必须强迫自己对它感兴趣。

选出一个小的知识点，尽可能多地阅读相关的内容，使自己成为这小部分知识的专家。

这种对局部的兴趣可以使你对整个课程产生兴趣。

5 做好笔记，经常复习大学考试不多（通常不超过两三次，外加期末考试），考试往往会涉及一大段时间里所学的内容。

只有通过记笔记，不断复习记下来的东西，你才能有效的学习，通过考试。

6 及时寻找帮助，以免贻误时机如果你有特别的困难，就应大胆地寻求帮助。

可以去找你的老师、导师，找任何你认为可以帮助你的人。

重要的是，你得知道从哪儿可以得到帮助。

大多数学校能帮学生得到钱----学生贷款、奖学金、助学金或勤工俭学的项目。

先了解清楚自己学校可提供什么帮助，必要时就可以获得帮助。

7 不缺课，课堂表现活跃不缺课，按时上课是你学习态度认真的重要表现。

你还应该积极参与课堂讨论，按时交作业。

课堂发言能促使你认真思考讨论的内容，并且使你对它保持兴趣。

8 正确对待大学生活清楚认识自己的强项和弱点，了解大学能够为你做什么，不能为你做什么。

要对自己的教育负起责任来。

你应该认识到，上大学给了你成功和教育的原材料-----图书馆、教师、课本。

然而，只有你本人才能教育你自己。

好好利用你身边的资源，根据自己的需要最大程度地去利用这些资源。

9 掌握成功的“秘诀” 确保自己知道如何学习、做笔记、考试以及合理地使用时间。

确保你知道如何使用可供参考的资源，如图书馆。

培养自己的记忆能力。

与老师、同学保持良好的关系。

懂得自由地表达自己，聆听他人。

从经验中吸取教训。

总是寻求解决问题的更好途径。

10 你如果照以上的忠告去做，你也许不会必然地成为一个成功的学生，但是你肯定是走在通往成功的正确道路上。

College — A New Beginning
by John N. Gardner and A. Jerome Jewler
[1] "When I was talking on the phone with a colleague earlier this morning, he told me I shouldn't try to come to my office today because freshmen are arriving and everything is a mess on campus. My colleague was right. It certainly is a mess. There are hundreds of cars packed with hot, sweaty students, their families, and their many belongings. Mothers and fathers argue about when, where, and whether to park. Campus police do what they can to direct traffic, but they know they will have to let some rules be broken today. It is the messiest day of the year, no doubt about it. It is also my favorite day."
[2] In this way Charlotte J. Patterson recently began her welcoming speech to arriving freshmen. A psychology professor at the University of Virginia], Patterson has a great deal of understanding for new students—for their hopes, dreams, and fears. What does it mean to be a freshman on the first day of the semester? Professor Patterson views it as a new beginning. She continued:
[3] "It makes me think of those early spring days when the snow is melting. One cannot step down anywhere without splashing. Even when I am cold and wet, I cannot
hate those days; they tell me spring is coming. Freshman arrival is also a mess, but I cannot hate it either. Freshmen appear in town like young green shoots sprouting up everywhere, looking for light. Their faces hang out of the windows of dorms like fresh new buds on an old, old tree. Someone else may worry about the sun and the soil and the possibility of frost, but for both young plants and freshmen it is enough to be alive and here.
[4] "Yes, today is the beginning of a new life. One day you're Mama's child, living at home; the next day, you're a freshman and on your own. FRESHMAN! I like the word. The very name itself suggests a problem. Should it be pronounced with stress on the FRESH or on the MAN? It could be either. It doesn't matter whether you think of adulthood as a journey or as an arrival; today is clearly a step on the path of your life. Freshman excitement and freshman fears can be seen on every young face around me.
[5] "College is an exciting time, perhaps the most exciting time of your life. But it is also a time of many major adjustments and some disappointments. Most fields of study have become quite competitive. You will need to study hard and prepare yourself well in order to enter them. Also the information explosion has brought greater demands on people who want to absorb all that information. As a result, there is a growing need for a more structured introduction to college. And courses that are intended for freshmen have become popular on campuses. As new students, you should take some of these courses that will help you to prepare for the more difficult courses you will take later. Make sure you learn to read, write, and speak well, and don't be afraid of courses that make you think. Thinking can be exciting and also rewarding. Also take time to enjoy yourselves—relax a bit, eat well, and laugh a lot. Make college the wonderful and rewarding experience that you have hoped it would be. Good luck to all of you!"
大学——一个新的开端
1 “上午早些时候，我与一位同事通电话。

他告诉我今天不该来办公室，因为正是新生入学的时候，校园里一切都乱套了。

他说得没错，真的是一团糟。

校园里有几百辆车，载着汗流浃背的新生，他们的家人，还有许多行李。

做父母的为什么时候停车、在哪里停车、是否要停车争执不休。

校警竭尽全力指挥交通，但是他们知道，今天不得不允许人们违反一些规则了。

毫无疑问，这是一年中最忙乱的日子，也是我最喜欢的日子。

”
2 这是夏洛特·J. 帕特森在最近的迎新致辞中的开场白。

作为弗吉尼亚大学的一位心理学教授，帕特森非常了解新生：了解他们的希望、梦想和顾虑。

在开学的这一天成为大学一年级学生意味着什么？帕特森教授它意味着一个新的开端。

她接着说：
3 “它使我想起了积雪消融的早春时节。

你无论踩到哪里都会溅起水花。

但即便是又冷又湿，我也无法使自己怨恨那些日子，应为他们预示着春天的到来。

新生的到来使学校一团糟，但我同样无法讨厌这件事。

新生来到镇上，就像绿色的新苗从四处冒出来，寻找阳光。

当他们的脸从宿舍的窗口，就好像古老的大树上绽出的新芽。

也许有人会担心阳光是否充足，土壤是否肥沃，霜冻是否降临，但是对幼苗和大学新生来讲，能够存活，能够跨进大学的校门，就足够了。

4 “是的，今天是新生活的开始。

昨天你们还是妈妈的孩子，住在家里；今天，你们已经是大学的新生，开始独立生活了。

‘新生！’我喜欢这一称呼。

这个称呼本身让人想到一个问题。

我们在读这个词时，应该把重音放在‘新’上呢，还是放在‘生’上？怎么读都可以。

无论你把成年看成是旅程还是终点，今天无疑是你们人生道路上的一大步。

新生的欢喜和新生的忧愁都挂在我周围每一张年轻的脸上。

5 “大学是令人激奋的时期。

如今，大多数研究领域的竞争都已经非常激烈了。

你们必须努力学习。

做好充分准备，才能进入这些领域。

信息爆炸对需求信息的人提出了更高的要求。

因此，对大学生活来说，越来越需要一个安排更合理的开端。

现在，学校里针对新生的课程越来越受到欢迎。

作为新同学，你们应该选修一些这样的课程，它们能帮助你为将来学习难度更大的课程做好准备。

你们应该确保自己学会很好地阅读、写作和发言，不要惧怕那些迫使你思考的课程。

思考可以令人兴奋并且大有收获。

同时，花一些时间享受生活——放松一下，注意营养，笑口常开。

让大学生活如你所愿，成为美妙而有价值的经历。

祝大家好运！”。