新概念英语第三册课文+答案第42课：Modern cavemen

新概念英语第三册内容主要针对的是基础比较薄弱的同学，为了方便同学们可以更好地巩固英语基础，小编还整理了新概念英语第三册课文、新概念英语第三册音频相关内容，便于同学们一起学习!

一、课文原文

1.课文
Cave exploration, or pot-holing, as it has come to be known, is a relatively new sport. Perhaps it is the desire for solitude or the chance of making an unexpected discovery that lures people down to the depths of the earth. It is impossible to give a satisfactory explanation for a pot-holer's motives. For him, caves have the same peculiar fascination which high mountains have for the climber. They arouse instincts which can only be dimly understood.
Exploring really deep caves is not a task for the Sunday afternoon rambler. Such undertakings require the precise planning and foresight of military operations. It can take as long as eight days to rig up rope ladders and to establish supply bases before a descent can be made into a very deep cave. Precautions of this sort are necessary, for it is impossible to foretell the exact nature of the difficulties which will confront the pot-holer. The deepest known cave in the world is the Gouffre Berger near Grenoble. It extends to a depth of 3,723 feet. This immense chasm has been formed by an underground stream which has tunneled a course through a flaw in the rocks. The entrance to the cave is on a plateau in the Dauphine Alps. As it is only six feet across, it is barely noticeable. The cave might never have been discovered has not the entrance been spotted by the distinguished French pot-holer, Berger. Since its discovery, it has become a sort of potholers' Everest. Though a number of descents have been made, much of it still remains to be explored.
A team of pot-holers recently went down the Gouffre Berger. After entering the narrow gap on the plateau, they climbed down the steep sides of the cave until they came to narrow corridor. They had to edge their way along this, sometimes wading across shallow streams, or swimming across deep pools. Suddenly they came to a waterfall which dropped into an underground lake at the bottom of the cave. They plunged into the lake, and after loading their gear on an inflatable rubber dinghy, let the current carry them to the other side. To protect themselves from the icy water, they had to wear special rubber suits. At the far end of the lake, they came to huge piles of rubble which had been washed up by the water. In this part of the cave, they could hear an insistent booming sound which they found was caused by a small waterspout shooting down into a pool from the roof of the cave. Squeezing through a cleft in the rocks, the pot-holers arrived at an enormous cavern, the size of a huge concert hall. After switching on powerful arc lights, they saw great stalagmites -- some of them over forty feet high -- rising up like tree-trunks to meet the stalactites suspended from the roof. Round about, piles of limestone glistened in all the colours of the rainbow. In the eerie silence of the cavern, the only sound that could be heard was made by water which dripped continuously from the high dome above them.

2.翻译
洞穴勘查——或洞穴勘探——是一项比较新的体育活动。寻求独处的愿望或寻求意外发现的机会的欲望吸引人们来到地下深处。要想对洞穴探险者的动机作出满意的解释是不可能的。对洞穴探险者来说，洞穴有一种特殊的魅力，就像高山对登山者有特殊魅力一样。为什么洞空能引发人的那种探险本能，人们对此只能有一种模模糊糊的理解。
探测非常深的洞穴不是那些在星期日下午漫步的人所能胜任的。这种活动需要有军事行动般的周密布署和预见能力。有时需要花费整整8天时间来搭起绳梯，建立供应基地，然后才能到一个很深的洞穴里。作出这样的准备是必要的，因为无法预见到洞穴探险者究竟会遇到什么性质的困难。世界上最深的洞穴是格里诺布尔附近的高弗.伯杰洞，深达3,723英尺。这个深邃的洞穴是由一条地下暗泉冲刷岩石中的缝隙并使之慢慢变大而形成的。此洞的洞口在丹芬阿尔卑斯山的高原上，仅6英尺宽，很难被发现。若不是法国著名洞穴探险家伯杰由于偶然的机会发现了这个洞口的话，这个洞也许不会为人所知。自从被发现以后，这个洞成了洞穴探险者的珠穆朗玛峰，人们多次进入洞内探险，但至今尚有不少东西有待勘探。
最近，一队洞穴探险者下到了高弗.伯杰洞里。他们从高原上的窄缝进去，顺着笔直陡峭的洞壁往下爬。来到一条狭窄的走廊上。他们不得不侧着身子往前走，有时过浅溪，有时游过深潭。突然，他们来到一道瀑布前，那瀑布奔泻而下，注入洞底一处地下湖里。他们跳入湖中，把各种器具装上一只充气的橡皮艇，听任水流将他们带往对岸。湖水冰冷刺骨，他们必须穿上一种特制的橡皮服以保护自己。在湖的尽头，他们见到一大堆一大堆由湖水冲刷上岸的碎石。在这儿，他们可以听见一种连续不断的轰鸣声。后来他们发现这是由山洞顶部的一个小孔里喷出的水柱跌落到水潭中发出的声音。洞穴探险者从岩石缝里挤身过去，来到一个巨大的洞里，其大小相当于一个音乐厅。他们打开强力弧光灯，看见一株株巨大的石笋，有的高达40英尺，像树干似地向上长着，与洞顶悬挂下来的钟乳石相接。周围是一堆堆石灰石，像彩虹一样闪闪发光。洞里有一种可怕的寂静，唯一的可以听见的声响是高高的圆顶上不间断地滴水的嘀嗒声。

二、课文精讲

(课文精讲根据顺序分析课文重点)

（Attention： The following points are not covered by the video. It is better for you to watch the video or listen to the MP3 first and try to take notes on your own. Then you may check here to get more details. ）

1.Perhaps it is the desire for solitude or the chance of making an unexpected discovery that lures people down to the depths of the earth.
背诵句型
结构分析: it is the desir e ......or the chance ......that......，运用了强调了句式，被强调的部分是句子的主语:it is the desire ......or the chance
eg: It is the desir for knowledge that lures her into the book world. 是她对知识的渴求吸引她走进书的海洋。

2.It can take as long as eight days to rig up rope ladders and establish supply bases before a descent can be made into a very deep cave.
结构分析: before 引导时间状语从句。It 为形式主语，as long as eight days 作谓语can take 的宾语，不定式短语to ring up rope ladders and to establish supply bases作真正的主语。
词汇注释：
ring up 草草作成 eg. Soldiers rigged up tents for the night.
make a descent 下落

3.Precautions of this sort are necessary,for it is impossible to foretell the exact nature of difficulties which will confront the pot-holer.
结构分析：for 连接两个并列句，第二个并列分句中which引导的定语从句修饰difficulties
语汇注释：
precaution n.预防措施 Eg: We have to save our precautions of insuring my car.
take steps/actions 采取措施

4.The cave might never been discovered had not the entrance been spotted by the distinguished French pot-holers,Berger.
背诵句型
结构分析：had not the entrance been spotted by the distinguished French pot-holers,Berger是非真实条件句，省略了if。即：如果条件从句中有were ,had 或should ,可以把if省略，把这几个词放到主语之前，构成主谓倒装.
eg:Had he taken a little more time to think,he might have acted more sensibly.

5.They had to edge their way along this,cometimes wading across shallow streams ,or swimming across deep pools.
背诵句型
结构分析：简单句，cometimes wading across shallow streams ,or swimming across deep pools做主语补足语，补充说明该洞穴内的险峻。
词汇注释：edge one's way 侧身挤过，侧身徐徐向前

6.After switching on powerful are lights ,they saw great stalamites--some of them over forty feet high--rising up like tree-trunks to meet the stalactites suspended from the roof.
结构分析：some of them over forty feet high做宾补，补充说明stalamite的高度；现在分词短语rising......roof 做宾补，补充说明stalamite的形态，不定式短语to meet......作状语，表结果，suspended form the roof作定语，修饰stalamite

三、单词学习

1、提示:n.名词、adj.形容词、vi.不及物动词、vt.及物动词、adv.副词、prep.介词、pron.代词、int.感叹词、num.数词、abbr.短语缩写
2、双击或选中某个单词可划词查字典，如下图：(手机端无法使用此功能)

3、单词列表：
caveman
n. （远古）洞穴人
pot-holing
n. 洞穴探险，洞穴探险运动
solitude
n. 孤独，寂寞
lure
v. 引诱，诱惑
pot-holer
n. 洞穴探险者
undertaking
n. 任务，工作
foresight
n. 预见；深谋远虑
foretell
v. 预言
Grenoble
n. 格里诺布尔

chasm
n. 断层，裂口，陷坑
flaw
n. 小裂缝
distinguished
adj. 杰出的，著名的
Everest
n. 珠穆朗玛峰
wade
v. 涉水
waterfall
n. 瀑布
gear
n. 一套用具
inflatable
adj. 可充气的
rubble
n. 碎瓦
insistent
adj. 连续的，不断的
boom
v. 轰响
waterspout
n. 强大的水柱
cleft
n. 裂隙，开
cavern
n. 在洞穴
stalagmite
n. 石笋
stalactite
n. 钟乳石
limestone
n. 石灰石
glisten
v. 闪烁
cerie
adj. 引塌恐惧的，可怕的
dome
n. 穹窿，圆顶

四、课后练习答案

1d 2a 3b 4c 5c 6b 7d 8b 9c 10a 11d 12b

　　更多新概念英语的干货内容，欢迎访问新东方新概念英语课堂，查看新概念英语第三册课后答案、新概念英语第三册单词和新概念英语第三册听力可供参考。祝同学们学习新概念英语3顺利!

新东方在线英语水平测试