【正文】 就連我國的象征－禿鷹也受到了威脅。美國內(nèi)務部將不下１０９個物種列入面臨滅絕的物種名單（面臨滅絕的物種指那種生存前景不樂觀，需要保護的物種）。我們再也見不到旅鴿和麋了，因為它們已經(jīng)滅絕。 of all the continents, the most drastic reduction in wildlife has occurred in north America, where the transition from a rural to a highly industrialized society has been most rapid. Among the victims are birds, mammals and fish. We will never again see the passenger pigeon or the eastern elk( n. 麋 ). They have been wiped out. Of many other species, only a few representatives still survive in the wild. The . Department of the Interior has put no fewer than 109 species on the endangered species list. (An endangered species is one with poor prospects for survival and in need of protection.) This list includes everything from the timber wolf （林狼） to the whooping crane（鳴鶴） . Even the bald eagle, our national symbol, is threatened.在各大州中，北美洲的野生動物減少幅度最大，因為它由鄉(xiāng)村向高度工業(yè)化社會轉(zhuǎn)變得最快。農(nóng)民們 則去消滅象草原犬鼠和狡狼那類小一些的動物。水污染會毒死江河湖海里的魚類。而大多數(shù)都源于人類自身的貪婪和缺乏計劃性，人口的每一次增長都會導致野生環(huán)境的縮小。直到最近，由于氣候、棲息地或動物本身基因的變化而引起的，這一物種滅絕的過程是逐步而緩慢的，但如今現(xiàn)代文明的大規(guī)模入侵似將破壞這種平衡，從而為我們野生動物的挽救工作帶空前的壓力。 ” Text 4 Our disappearing wildlife Animal life first appeared on the earth about 400 million years ago. Through the passing millennia (millennium n. a period of 1,000 years), thousands of animal species have e and gone. Until recently, this process was gradual, the result of change in climate, in habitat (the natural home of a plant or animal ), or in the genes of the animals themselves, but the tremendous expansion of modern civilization now threatens to upset the natural balance, putting unprecedented (a. 無前例的 ) pressure on the survival of our ，地球上就有了動物。雖然從統(tǒng)計上看確有這么一個計劃，我們必須記住，所有的高峰期都具有例外的。盡管在大多數(shù)領域中，這種高峰期均來得很早－大多數(shù)諾貝爾獎獲得者都是在其３０歲前那幾年和３０至４０歲之間作出了最突出的成就－但具有創(chuàng)造力的人終其一生都能做出高質(zhì)量的工作。門德爾松 17歲時譜寫了他的廣為人知的 作品《仲夏夜之夢》。 WHEN ARE YOU MOST CREATIVE? Generally between 30 to 39, but the peak varies with different professions. Mozart wrote a symphony and four sonatas (奏鳴曲 ) by age eight, and Mendelssohn posed his bestknown work, A Midsummer Night‘s dream, at 17. Psychologist H. C. Lehman presents the years for peak work in many fields. Though the peak in most fields es earlymost Nobel Prize winners did their top research in their late 20‘s and 30‘screative people continue to produce quality work throughout their ？一般說是在３０至 39 歲之間，但其高峰期又因職業(yè)而異 。青春時期，荊刺遍地。 ―父母對他們未成年的孩子說： ?這是最幸福的歲月。 ‖ The American Institute of Public Opinion says that the pessimism peak occurs when we realize that talent and determination aren’t enough to guarantee (v. to assure, ensure 保證，擔保 ) success. Lady Luck must ，當我們認識到才能與意志并不足以保證我們獲得成功時，嚴重的悲觀情緒就會產(chǎn)生了，此時就要靠 “ 運氣女神 ” 幫忙了。國家健康調(diào)查報告認為，過了３０歲以后，我們 ―變得較為現(xiàn)實，而且并不把幸福就當作目的本身。 over 30, we believer that they‘re behind us. A National Health Survey agrees: After age 30, we ―bee more realistic and do not view happiness as a goal in itself. If we maintain our health, achieve professional and emotional goals, then happiness, we feel, we follow.‖你什么時候最幸福？你對自己的身體狀況感到最滿意是１５至２４歲，對事業(yè)感到最滿意是４０至４９歲，悲觀情結最嚴重是３０至３９。 WHEN ARE YOU HAPPIEST? You have the best physical sense of yourself from 15 to 24。 ‖ Suicide, a measure of mental problems, peaks from 20 to 24 and then again around 70. Incidences of suicide are smallest among people with intact marriages, highest among the ，高峰期出在２０到２４歲之間和７０歲左右。不過心理學家說，在４０到５５歲之間的人羅多的人說他們 ―感到 ‖處在神經(jīng)崩潰的邊緣，實際發(fā)生的卻相對很少。全國精神健康研究所的報告稱：在精神病醫(yī)院里，在這個年齡段內(nèi)的男女患者超過總數(shù)的一半（男性比女性高２０％） But if we are most neurotic (a. 患神經(jīng)病的 ) between 30 and 35, apparently we recover quickly. Admissions to mental hospitals drop sharply around age 40 and stay down until age 65. Yet, say psychologists, between 40 and 55, more people report they ―feel‖ on the verge (n. 邊緣 ) of a nervous breakdown. Relatively few actually occur. ―We bee veterans (n. a person who has had long experience 老手，有經(jīng)驗的人 ) at coping,‖ says psychologist Marvin 我們在３０到３５歲之間最易患神經(jīng)病，很明顯，我們會很快康復。 WHEN ARE YOU MOST LIKELY TO DEVELOP MENTAL DISORDERS? From 30 to surprisingly narrow peak is very real. The National Institute of Mental Health (INMH) reports that more than half of the patients in mental hospitals, male and female, are in this age group (men leading women by about 20%)什么時候你最容易患精神錯亂病癥？是３０到３５歲之間。年齡權威人士威廉姆 .凱納爾說：―年齡較大的女性保持低血壓實際上是非常重要的。國家健康研究所數(shù)字顯示，這種諸如關節(jié)炎、風濕病和心臟病的 ―老年 ‖病的發(fā)作，總體來說對適應性較強的女性并不多見。 Women also get an additional bonus of good health later in life. The figures of National Institute of Health show that the onset of such ―old age‖ disease as arthritis(n. inflammation of a joint, as in gout or rheumatism 關節(jié)炎 ), rheumatism（ n. any disorder of the extremities or back, characterized by pain or stiffness 風濕?。?, and heart ailments (n. illness 疾病 ) deny the generally greater fitness of women: Life expectancy for men is now 。湯姆金斯說： “ 細胞從出生就在死亡，但當我們接近３０歲時，細胞的死亡速度超過其被更換速度。 ” 連科學家也說不清楚，女性要（比男性）多５年最健康時間。紐約內(nèi)科醫(yī)生唐納德。 WHEN ARE YOU HEALTHIEST? For men, from 15 to 25。這種機敏與智慧之間的交換使得心理學家利奧普。詹森說： “ 但你做其他事情的能力卻在增長。人２０歲時最機敏，３０歲左右時記憶力開始衰退，尤其是數(shù)學計算能力。 around 30, memory begins to decline (v. decrease, move from a better to worse position 減少，下降 ), particularly your ability to perform mathematical putations. “But your I. Q. for other tasks climbs,” says Berkeley psychologist. Arthur Jensen. Your vocabulary at age 45, for example, is three times as great as when you graduated from college. At 60, your brain possesses almost four times as much information as it did at age 21. This tradeoff between sharpness and wisdom has led psychologist Dr. Leopold Bella to suggest that “maturity quotients （成熟商數(shù)） ” (. s instead of I. Q. s) be adopted for 么時候最聰明？根據(jù)智商分數(shù)推算， 18 到 25 歲時最聰明。 8 WHEN ARE YOU SMARTEST? From 18 to 25, according to I. Q., scores。這些交換似乎并不總是那么公正的，但在每一個年齡段上，人都有各自的某些優(yōu)勢。今天，當我們比祖輩多活 20 年的時候，當女性神秘地比男性壽長７歲的時候， ―人生的游戲 ‖實際上就是 ―交換的游戲 ‖，這一點比以往任何時候都更加清楚。原因似乎是不同的階段與不同的成就相關聯(lián)，而這些不同的領域又與生命的各個具體階段相聯(lián)系。 15. Only by exposing the previously hidden problem of women