画鸵萌宠网
Unit 5 Unsolved Mysteries
Listening and Speaking
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In the picture on the left, a criminal is breaking a law; he is committing a crime.
In the picture on the right, the detective is catching and arresting the criminal.
In the picture in the center, the detective is questioning the criminal but he is not making a confession.
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The greatest detective
Sherlock Holmes is probably the greatest detective ever known — well, at least he’s one of the most famous. But he never actually existed … he’s an imaginary detective who appears in sixty stories created by the Scottish author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Doyle was not always a writer. He started his career as a doctor. Fortunately for us, he did not have many patients. He needed money and so he started to write stories.
The first Sherlock Holmes story was published in 1887, and was called A Study in Scarlet. Later, a magazine published The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and readers loved it!
What makes Sherlock Holmes so special Well, he was very intelligent and successful. He always arrested the criminal — every single time — with the help of his partner, Dr. Watson.
In the stories, Holmes lived at 221B Baker Street in London, England. Thousands of people visit that address every year. There’s also a Sherlock Holmes Museum in London.
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Mike: … So, we can look forward to warmer temperatures. It’ll be a good weekend for the beach. Over to you, Alexa.
Alexa: Thank you for that weather report, Mike. And finally, this story just in. … We have a report that a local man, Nick Brown, saw some strange lights. He was driving home at about 10 . He said the lights were bright and they moved across the sky. He stopped at a gas station and talked to a police officer about the lights. The police officer had seen the lights, too.
Mike: Hmm … that’s a strange story. What happened next
Alexa: Well, Mr. Brown took some pictures, but there was no film in his camera. Finally, he called his wife on his cell phone. But by that time, the lights were gone.
Mike: Well, I know that there is a legend around here about mysterious lights … a lot of local people have seen the lights. It’s starting to seem like those lights really exist. What do you think, Alexa
Alexa: I don’t believe it. I think it’s some kind of hoax!
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It was raining heavily. I couldn’t see clearly. I drove slowly. Suddenly, I saw a young girl. She was dressed neatly and standing in the middle of the road. I was surprised! Somehow, I stopped the car quickly.
“What are you doing” I asked. She looked at me strangely but didn’t answer. “Are you OK” I asked. “I’m fine,” she answered. Then she smiled happily and walked away quietly. Nervously, I drove to my hotel and checked in. I told the clerk about the little girl. “Do you know her” I asked. “Oh yes,” he said calmly.
“That’s Mary Anne. She died five years ago on that road. It was a car accident during a rainstorm.”
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The Tunguska Mystery
It was early morning. June 30, 1908, in eastern Russia. Suddenly, a terrible explosion rocked the forest in Tunguska. People fell to the ground, and all the trees for 2000 square kilometers were knocked down. People heard the explosion 800 kilometers away, and the fire burned for many weeks.
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What caused this terrible explosion A century later, scientists are still trying to find the answer. Here are some possible explanations.
1. An asteroid: Asteroids are very large pieces of rock that go around in space and sometimes hit the planet. They can cause lots of damage. Some of them weigh as much as 100,000 tons. If an asteroid hit the earth, it would cause a huge explosion.
2. A comet: Comets are giant balls of gas, ice, and rock with long tails. They travel through space in a regular pattern. Encke’s Comet was near Earth in 1908, and it’s possible that a part of it broke off and hit the earth.
3. A UFO accident: Some people believe that a spaceship crashed into the ground in Siberia and its engine exploded.
4. An extraterrestrial attack: Another idea is that extraterrestrials, that is,
people from other planets, attacked the earth. Extraterrestrials might have wanted to destroy the earth, so they aimed their weapons at Earth and set fire to the forest.
5. A scientific experiment: Another idea is that scientists made a mistake during an experiment with electricity. A man named Nikola Tesla tried to build a “supergun” that used electricity. Maybe it was a test of his gun and it didn’t work correctly.
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Q: Where is Marfa and what exactly is it famous for
A: Marfa is a small town in west Texas in the United States. It’s famous for the “Marfa mystery lights.”
Q: What are the mystery lights exactly
A: No one knows for sure. There are many different ideas about that.
Q: Can you describe them
A: That’s a difficult question. Different people see different lights. They are not always the same. I can say that they appear after sunset in the sky. They dance mysteriously in air and vanish. Then they suddenly reappear.
Q: Some people say they are car headlights. Do you think so
A: No, I don’t. A man first saw the mystery lights over 100 years ago. The man was Robert Ellison and the year was 1883. Of course we didn’t have cars in 1883.
Q: What do you think causes the lights
A: There are many theories. The Native Americans thought the lights were stars falling to Earth. Some people think uranium gas causes the lights. Other people suggest that ball lightning does it. Ball lightning is lightning in the shape of circle. It often appears just after a rainstorm.
Q: What are some of the weirdest ideas about the lights
A: Well, some people call them “ghost lights.” They think ghosts do it. That’s the strangest idea. Some say they are UFOs. I don’t think so.
Q: What do the experts say
A: They can’t figure it out. Some engineers even came from Japan one time. They studied the lights, but couldn’t solve the mystery.
Q: Are the local people scared
A: No, actually, they aren’t. They like the lights. And every year in early
September there’s a big town festival to celebrate the mystery lights.
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Q: What do you think causes the lights
A: There are many theories. The Native Americans thought the lights were stars falling to Earth. Some people think uranium gas causes the lights. Other people suggest that ball lightning does it. Ball lightning is lightning in the shape of circle. It often appears just after a rainstorm.
Q: What are some of the weirdest ideas about the lights
A: Well, some people call them “ghost lights.” They think ghosts do it. That’s the strangest idea. Some say they are UFOs. I don’t think so.
Q: What do the experts say
A: They can’t figure it out. Some engineers even came from Japan one time. They studied the lights, but couldn’t solve the mystery.
Q: Are the local people scared
A: No, actually, they aren’t. They like the lights. And every year in early September there’s a big town festival to celebrate the mystery lights.
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1. That man seems angry.
2. She speaks French.
3. Your sister looks tired.
4. He practices the piano every day.
5. My aunt always watches the news.
6. My friend knows the answer.
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Stye: Do you know the Dodd Diamond
Frye: Of course! The museum owns it.
Stye: Not anymore! Someone stole it last night!
Frye: Really How did it happen
Stye: Well, it’s unlikely the criminal walked into the room. There’s an alarm on the floor.
Frye: But there’s no alarm for the skylight.
Stye: You’re right! I bet the criminal climbed down a rope. Then he took the diamond without touching the floor!
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A: I love chocolate.
B: There's a good chance that's true. I know you like sweets. You probably like chocolate, too.
A: My family has moved house six times.
B: It doesn't seem possible.
A: Why do you say that
B: I've known you since we were kids.
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A: Do you believe that Bruno Hauptmann was the real kidnapper
B: I doubt that he was. Nobody's likely to be so silly to leave all the evidence there for people to find. Besides, he never made a confession, did he
A: If it wasn’t him … it could have been Betty Gow. What do you think
B: Well, it’s unlikely that she did it. She loved the baby. She even fainted at the trial.
A: That’s true. Then it could have been Ernie Brinkert.
B: Why do you think it could be him
A: Well, he’s Violet Sharpe’s boyfriend. He knew about the Lindberghs. It’s quite possible that he made a secret plan with his girlfriend to kidnap the baby for money.
B: That’s nonsense. His girlfriend had an alibi. She wasn’t in the house on the day the baby was kidnapped.
A: Maybe that was part of the secret plan. Perhaps she was purposefully out of the house.
B: Well, possibly. But Ernie’s handwriting didn’t match the kidnapper’s note. How can you explain that
A: I dare say that was also part of the plan. He could have deliberately written the note in a handwriting that is different to normal.
B: It doesn’t seem possible. He couldn’t possibly have fooled the court.
Video Course
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Agnes: When I was visiting my grandfather in his village I witnessed a very strange event. It wasn’t raining and the women of the village went to a special place to make the rain fall. And that night it rained.
Dave: There’s a strange tale in Mexico about La Llorona who is a woman who wanders the streets weeping for her dead sons. When there is a strong wind they say you can hear La Llorona .
Catherine: In New Jersey there’s a thing or a monster called the “Jersey Devil.” They say it’s very big and hairy but also very sneaky and that it moves from tree to tree.
Lourdes: My favorite mysteries are about UFOs, which means Unidentified Flying Objects. I’m not sure if the UFOs are real or if they are a hoax, but I would like to think that they are real.
Alejandra: One of the mysteries that I find interesting and has not been solved yet is the one of the Pyramids. How they made them. How they brought in those very heavy pieces of stone to build the Pyramids.
Calum: My advisor and my teacher told us that the dorm that we lived in was
haunted, and one time late at night all the lights turned off suddenly and it was very strange and quite scary.
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Agnes: When I was visiting my grandfather in his village I witnessed a very strange event. It wasn’t raining and the women of the village went to a special place to make the rain fall. And that night it rained.
Calum: My advisor and my teacher told us that the dorm that we lived in was haunted, and one time late at night all the lights turned off suddenly and it was very strange and quite scary.
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Roberto: Does anybody know why Tara asked us to come here today
Takeshi: She said something about solving a crime and arresting a criminal.
Claudia: Arresting a criminal
Tara: Yes, a criminal.
Takeshi: Hey, Tara. Nice hat!
Tara: Someone in this room has committed a crime.
All: What Come on. What are you talking about
Tara: A theft. Someone ate Sun-hee’s yogurt!
Sun-hee: Well, my yogurt is missing. But it’s OK. It’s only yogurt.
Tara: It starts with yogurt. Next time it’s your cookies, your ice cream … who knows where it will end
Sun-hee: OK ... OK. Go on.
Tara: It’s very likely one of you did it because you all have a key to this apartment.
Takeshi: I only use my key for emergencies. And besides, you live here, you have a key … maybe you took it …
Tara: I’m the detective, I didn’t do it. Now. The thief worked calmly, quietly, and very neatly. Note the weapon. (holds up spoon) Clean and dry.
Roberto: I didn’t do it. I have an alibi. I was out of town last week … just got home last night.
Tara: I know you didn’t do it, Roberto. I asked you to come here today because you are a friend of the thief — Claudia!
Claudia: What
Tara: Confess! You’re always too busy to go shopping! You didn’t have any yogurt. You were hungry. It was late! You waited until everyone went to bed and then you slowly entered the kitchen, you made sure no one was there, then you carefully took this spoon and — very quietly — opened the refrigerator door and ate Sun-hee’s yogurt!
Claudia: (jokingly) No! No! It’s not true!
Mike: (enters apartment using key) Hey, everyone! (to Tara while taking spoon and walking towards fridge) Thanks. Nice hat! (to all while eating yogurt) What’s
up
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Roberto: Does anybody know why Tara asked us to come here today
Takeshi: She said something about solving a crime and arresting a criminal.
Claudia: Arresting a criminal
Tara: Yes, a criminal.
Takeshi: Hey, Tara. Nice hat!
Tara: Someone in this room has committed a crime.
All: What Come on. What are you talking about
Tara: A theft. Someone ate Sun-hee’s yogurt!
Sun-hee: Well, my yogurt is missing. But it’s OK. It’s only yogurt.
Tara: It starts with yogurt. Next time it’s your cookies, your ice cream … who knows where it will end
Sun-hee: OK … OK. Go on.
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Tara: It’s very likely one of you did it because you all have a key to this apartment.
Takeshi: I only use my key for emergencies. And besides, you live here, you have a key … maybe you took it …
Tara: I’m the detective, I didn’t do it. Now. The thief worked calmly, quietly, and very neatly. Note the weapon. (holds up spoon) Clean and dry.
Roberto: I didn’t do it. I have an alibi. I was out of town last week … just got home last night.
Tara: I know you didn’t do it, Roberto. I asked you to come here today because you are a friend of the thief — Claudia!
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Claudia: What
Tara: Confess! You’re always too busy to go shopping! You didn’t have any yogurt. You were hungry. It was late! You waited until everyone went to bed and then you slowly entered the kitchen, you made sure no one was there, then you carefully took this spoon and — very quietly — opened the refrigerator door and ate Sun-hee’s yogurt!
Claudia: (jokingly) No! No! It’s not true!
Mike: (enters apartment using key) Hey, everyone! (to Tara while taking spoon and walking towards fridge) Thanks. Nice hat! (to all while eating yogurt) What’s
up
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One day, Tara found that someone had eaten Sun-hee’s yogurt without notice. So, she asked everyone to help her solve this “crime.” She thought that it was very likely that one of her friends stole Sun-hee’s yogurt because they all had a key to the apartment. While Sun-hee the owner was quite calm and generous
about the missing yogurt, Tara got serious about the matter. She warned everyone that a misdemeanor might gradually become a real crime if it were not checked at the start. She seemed to be determined to solve the crime, though in a humorous way. She accused Takeshi first, but he denied it. While Tara was showing everyone the “weapon” — a clean, dry spoon — Roberto said that he had an alibi and hadn’t done it. Tara said she knew he hadn’t done it and that Claudia had done it! Just as Claudia was protesting that it wasn’t true, Mike suddenly walked in. He calmly went to the refrigerator, took out some yogurt, and ate it! Finally everyone came to know who the “thief” really was.
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