Self-study guide to New Concept English Volume 4: Lesson 7 Bats (Part 1)

Lesson 7 Bats Lesson 7 Bats

by MAURICE BURTON from Curiosities of animal life

7-1. Not all sounds made by animals serve as language, and we have only to turn to that extraordinary discovery of echo-location in bats to see a case in which the voice plays a strictly utilitarian role.

Not all sounds made by animals play a linguistic role. We need only take the unusual example of the discovery of echolocation in bats to see that sound plays an extremely practical role.

Explain Not all sounds... What is negated here is part of it, which is called a partial negative sentence. When all, every, both, always, etc. are used in negative structures, they do not mean that all of them are negated, but that part of them is negated. And most English places not in the predicate.

For example: All is not a gold that glitters. (Not all that glitters is gold.) Glittery things are not necessarily gold.

Every one cannot write novels. (Not every one can write novels.) Not everyone can write novels.

I don’t like both of the novels. (That is, I like only one of the two novels.) I don’t like both of the two novels.

Plays a strictly utilitarian role is literally translated as "playing an absolutely practical role" and can be translated as "playing an absolutely practical role".

Words and phrases

turn to: to try to get help, advice, or sympathy from sb.,

For example: You can always turn to me for help.

Utilitarian: practical (intended to be useful and practical rather than attractive or comfortable),

For example: A good cloth coat is more utilitarian than a fur one. A good cloth coat is more utilitarian than a fur one. A cloth coat is more useful than a fur coat.

Also master the term utilitarianism.

7-2. To get a full appreciation of what this means we must turn first to some recent human inventions.

Translation To fully understand the meaning of this sentence, we should first Let’s look back at some of mankind’s most recent inventions.

Explain how to get a full appreciation of what this means is used as an adverbial of purpose to modify turn. When the infinitive is used as an adverbial and is placed at the beginning of the sentence, it is more formal and has a heavier tone than when placed at the end. what this means is a noun clause and serves as the object of of.

This refers to the previous sentence: we have only to turn…plays a strictly utilitarian role.

Words and phrases

appreciation: valuation; evaluation; identification (an understanding of the importance or meaning of sth),

For example: They are mistaken in their appreciation of the country's economic conditions. Their judgment of the country's economic conditions was wrong.

have a keen appreciation of a joke and can deeply understand the beauty of a joke

The verb form of appreciation is appreciate and the adjective form is appreciative.

7-3. Everyone knows that if he shouts in the vicinity of a wall or a mountainside, an echo will come back.

Translation Everyone knows that if he shouts in the vicinity of a wall or a mountainside, an echo will come back. If a shout was heard near the mountainside, he would hear an echo.

Words and phrases

in the vicinity (of sth.): (near...); (with...) close (in the area around a particular place), < /p>

For example: a mansion in the vicinity of the lake Lakeside Mansion

His income is in the vicinity of $50,000 His annual income is nearly $50,000

7- 4. The further off this solid obstruction, the longer time will elapse for the return of the echo.

The further off this solid obstruction, the longer time it will take for the echo to return.

I omitted is after explaining obstruction. for the return of the echo is the attributive of time.

Words and Phrases

obstruction: obstruction; obstacle (object) (when sth blocks a road, passage, tube etc, or the thing that blocks it), the verb form of obstruction for obstruct.

elapse: (time) elapses, in the past (if a particular period of time elapses, it passes),

For example: Five years elapsed before he returned. return.

7-5. A sound made by tapping on the hull of a ship will be reflected from the sea bottom, and by measuring the time interval between the taps and the receipt of the echoes, the depth of the sea ??at that point can be calculated.

The sound produced by knocking on the hull of the ship will be reflected back from the sea floor. By measuring the time between the echo and the original sound, the depth of the ocean at that location can be calculated.

Words and phrases

receipt: receive (when sb. receives sth.),

For example: We are awaiting the receipt of further information . We are waiting to receive further information.

Another common meaning of receipt is "receipt, invoice", and the verb form of receipt is receive.

interval: (space, time) interval; spacing; gap; gap (the period of time between two events, activities, etc),

For example: an interval of 30 years the interval of 30 years

the interval between a lightening flash and the following thunder the interval between lightning and subsequent thunder

an interval of 10 meters between posts 10 meters between posts Distance

She has intervals of freedom from worry.