首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
(1)As we hurtle towards me new millennium, what is the better symbol of the relentless passage of time than me ancient sundial?
(1)As we hurtle towards me new millennium, what is the better symbol of the relentless passage of time than me ancient sundial?
admin
2019-05-24
32
问题
(1)As we hurtle towards me new millennium, what is the better symbol of the relentless passage of time than me ancient sundial? Sundials come in many forms, but horizontal ones are by far the most common. Usually set on a pedestal, they consist of a flat dial face and a gnomon—the slanting piece of metal that casts the shadow. Believe it or not, interest in sundials is increasing in the west. A quick glance at the Internet reveals burgeoning sundial societies all over me world for the scientifically inclined and even detailed sundial trials for those who want to check out me dials in gardens in the United States, France or Britain. This is time travel with a difference.
(2)Quotes or mottoes have traditionally been inscribed on sundials to promote reflection and thought, and these sayings are repeated on the modern versions of the old timepiece. The philosophical sayings add to the image of the timelessness of sundials, but are also reminders in the great poetic traditions of the transient nature of human life.
(3)"Time began in a garden" is a quotation referring to the Christian Bible legend of the Garden of Eden where, Christian belief says, human life began at the dawn of Creation, and from having been eternal, humans became subject to the decay of time.
(4)"I am a shadow. So are you" reminds the observer that a passing life can be as swift and transitory as the shadow that drifts over the face of a sundial, while the enigmatic "I make time—Dost thou?" plays on the double meaning of the English words for marking or keeping time, like a clock, and marking time by failing to make progress.
(5)Sundials have long been beautifully crafted but now some innovative Western Sculptors are creating dramatic new variations on the theme, such as a vertical or wall dial from a modern courtyard setting. Bold colorful sun designs or simple minimalist wall plaques are available, and there is even a water fountain dial where the water jet replaces the gnomon(finger)as marker of time. Clever designs playing with the sun and resulting shadow forms also use stark hunks of rough-hewn stone, taking us back to those pointers of old, or employ reflective materials like glass.
(6)The earliest sundials are recorded in use around 300 BC. They come from the stage in ancient times when men and women began to use simple sticks and markers to show the time of day as the shadows progressed. Such devices grew steadily more complex until by Roman times no fewer than 12 types of sundial were recorded, including a sophisticated portable version. More than mere markers of time, such dials served for centuries to indicate mankind’s understanding of the complexities of the heavens.
(7)Somewhere along the line, someone realized that a slanting object would cast a more accurate shadow than a vertical one for the purposes of keeping time. The problem of seasonal changes was removed by placing the slanting object parallel to the Earth’s axis. Even after clocks and watches were invented, their reliability was questionable and sundials still had to be used to check their accuracy.
(8)But eventually, as the 18th and 19th centuries progressed, and coinciding with the era of "picturesque" or idealized landscape gardening in Britain and Europe, sundials became garden ornaments first and timekeepers second. Their value in this area has never been questioned, as successful gardens often rely on such focal points for impact.
(9)With their inherent dignity and image of scientific order triumphing over chaos, sundials provide the perfect centerpiece for herb gardens, historic gardens, hospitals, schools, riversides churches(set in thyme of cause), knot gardens, memorial gardens, cemeteries and civic gardens.
(10)Armillary sundials are especially aesthetically pleasing, with their circular or spherical shape and make superb garden ornaments. Consisting of several rings, they revolved from the celestial globes used by ancient astronomers to plot the position of the stars.
(11)The word armillary comes from the Latin armillary—a bracelet or ring. One ring representing the equator has the hours walked on it, a second stands for the meridian, and a third the horizon.
(12)The rod through the centre representing the earth’s axis shows the time by casting its shadow on to the hour times marked on the equatorial ring.
(13)Sun time is not the same as watch time because it measures time as it is, not as we would like it to be, with noon today exactly 24 hours away from noon tomorrow. Before the world became a small place and people didn’t move around very much, local time was a perfectly satisfactory measurement. But as modern communication and means of travel grew more sophisticated standard time zones were adopted. As a result, your sundial will agree with your watch only on four days of the year, not because it is inaccurate but because it is measuring a different kind of time. Adjustments for "daylight saving" time throw yet another spoke in the wheel. There’s a new kind of tour for you—time travel. It couldn’t catch on.
According to the passage, armillary sundials _____.
选项
A、consists of at least three rings with different meanings
B、can not be used to mark the time at that time
C、are used purely as a kind of garden ornaments
D、are a kind of bracelets representing the equator
答案
A
解析
第10段提到armillary sundial由several rings组成,第11段指出armillary一词原义为“手镯,环形物”,继而介绍了三个代表不同意义的环,因此可推断armillary至少有三个环,故A正确。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/CZEK777K
0
专业英语八级
相关试题推荐
Culturaltendenciesimpactthewaychildrenparticipateineducation.Therearedifferentexpectationsabout"normal"schoolb
Culturaltendenciesimpactthewaychildrenparticipateineducation.Therearedifferentexpectationsabout"normal"schoolb
Yoga,theancientpracticeofpostures,breathingandmeditation,isgainingalotofattentionfromthematerialworldthati
Yoga,theancientpracticeofpostures,breathingandmeditation,isgainingalotofattentionfromthematerialworldthati
Today’scollegestudentsaremorenarcissisticandself-centeredthantheirpredecessors,accordingtoacomprehensivenewstud
PASSAGEFOURWhydoestheauthormentionthecoveroftheofficialprogram?
PASSAGETHREEWhatmighthappentothebigwheelstylepatients?
WritingaResearchPaperI.ResearchPaperandOrdinaryEssayA.Similarityin【T1】______:【T1】______e.g.—choosingatopic—as
随机试题
脐中痛不能忍,喜温喜按,面赤,手足厥冷,脉微欲绝者,宜选用腹中冷痛,手足厥冷。身体疼痛者,宜选用
下列关于冠状血流的叙述,哪一项是不正确的
女性,70岁。有高血压病史多年,因肺炎入院,应用抗生素和输液后,体温未下降,逐渐出现烦躁、气促。查体:体温38.6℃,呼吸44次/分,血压150/90mmHg,心率120次/分,口唇发绀,两肺闻及湿啰音。血气分析:PaO256mmHg,PaCO232m
库斯莫尔呼吸特征是
确诊前列腺癌最可靠的方法是
(操作员:张主管;账套:101账套;操作日期:2014年1月1日)设置单位类型。单位类型编码:001单位类型名称:客户
甲股份有限公司(以下简称“甲公司”)为了建造一栋厂房,于20×1年11月1日专门从某银行借入5000万元(假定甲公司向该银行的借款仅此一笔),借款期限为2年,年利率为6%,利息到期一次支付。该厂房采用出包方式建造,与承包方签订的工程合同的总造价为8000万
在欣赏ABACA回旋曲结构的乐曲《钟表店》时,为加深幼儿对乐曲中引子、间奏、尾声音乐的理解,教师用小闹钟、布谷鸟钟、复古摇摆钟和星星座钟四幅小图片表示四种不同的钟声,分别对应乐曲中引子、间奏一、间奏二、尾声的音乐,结合小图片让幼儿欣赏,再引导幼儿将小图片填
Both______watcheshavebroken.
A、Urgethefoodindustrytocutcaloriesineverydayfoods.B、Urgethefoodindustrytocutsaltineverydayfoods.C、Urgethef
最新回复
(
0
)