Unit 6 Disasters and Crises 广东理工学院大学英语4Warm-upCan you tell us about a disaster or a crisis that you know of?Have you ever lived through a disaster or a crisis?What did you do in that situation?Background Knowledge On September 11,2001,Washington and New York were struck by a series of terrorist attacks.At 8:46 a.m.,American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York,sparking a massive explosion and leaving a giant hole in the buildings facade.At 9:03 a.m.,United Airlines flight 175 smashed into Twin Towers of the World Trade Center,wiping out many of the supporting columns and leaving the building aflame.At 9:40 am,American Flight 77 slammed from the west into a segment of the Pentagon(US Defense Department)building where more than 800 people worked.It crashed into the five-sided building,into its lower floors near a helicopter landing pad.Within minutes,the upper floors collapsed into the 300-meter-wide gap,which extended most of the way through the office rings to the courtyard.Background Knowledge At 9:59 a.m.,after remaining erect for 56 minutes,the South Tower of the World Trade Center,structurally crippled to a greater degree than its twin,crumpled floor by floor in 10 seconds,following an explosion in a huge cloud of smoke and dust.At 10:28 the North Tower,having stood for 102 minutes,collapsed like a house of cards in 8 seconds,sending tons of debris into the surrounding streets.At 11:34 a.m.,United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in western Pennsylvania,between New York and Washington.More than 8,000 people were killed in these terrorist attacks.The four commercial aircraft,compared to missiles with wings,were believed to have been hijacked by nineteen men ready to sacrifice their lives.According to US intelligence,Saudi exile Osama bin Laden and his al Qaeda Group were behind the 9/11 airborne assaults.PreparationPreparation1.What was the authors initial reaction when he happened to see that a plane had crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center?He thought it was just an accident.PreparationPreparation2.Who are the real heroes in the authors opinion?Firefighters and police officers,the men and women willing to risk their lives to save others.PreparationPreparation 3.What did the author learn from this act of terrorism?He realized that life is too short and too precious to let himself get upset over trivial things and carry grudges.He learned also that one cant take thingsfor granted and never knows when his or her timewill be over,so one needs to make the most of every m i n u t e h e o r s h e h a s.September 11 and My Turn 1One of the things I always believe is that no matter how bad something is,you can take something positive out of it.The one time I wasnt sure of that was on September 11.译文译文 I usually wake up at 6:30 or 7:00 in the morning.That day,I happened to wake up earlier.1I turned on the television and as I was flipping through channels,I saw that a plane had crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center.My initial reaction was that it was a terrible accident.Then I saw another plane crash into the South Tower.I realized that I was witnessing an act of terrorism.译文译文 I woke up my wife,Vanessa.1As we sat and viewed the tragic events,we grieved for the victims and their families;we prayed for the survivors.We both knew our country and our lives would be changed forever.译文译文 1My wife and I spent the day glued to the television,watching the horrific images over and over again.My heart ached as I watched family members searching the street for their loved ones.The pain and fear in their eyes is something I will never forget.2I sat on my couch overwhelmed with emotion.I was sad and angry and even a little bit confused.3I could not understand how something this horrible could have happened.I wanted answers and explanations.Who was responsible for taking the lives of so many innocent people?What was their motivation?How could our leaders have let this happen?译文译文 I thought about all of the firefighters going into the burning buildings to rescue people and never coming out.A lot of people say that athletes are heroes,but I know thats not really true.1The real heroes are firefighters and police officers,the men and women willing to risk their lives to save others.译文译文 I hear older people talk about the attack on Pearl Harbor and the Kennedy Assassination and how drastically those events affected them.1For my generation,the tragedy of September 11 paralleled that of Pearl Harbor.2We will be talking about the devastating effect this day had on our country,and our lives as individuals,for years to come.译文译文 It wasnt until a few weeks after September 11 that I began to see that perhaps some good did come from this tragedy.1People seem different now,more understanding,more tolerant.Little things that seemed to be such a bother before are no longer a big deal.Personally,I am more patient than I was.I realize life is too short,and too preciou