作者：金利
出版社：外语教学与研究出版社
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每天5分钟，用英语了解美国文化试读：
写在前面的话
我们从小受到中国文化的熏陶，即使学习英语十几年，也无法真正理解美国人所追求的“美国梦”是什么；盲目地过了这么多年的圣诞节，却不知道圣诞节的真正用意是什么。其实这就像不了解中国文化的老外无法理解我们的“中庸之道”一样。
想要把英语学透，不仅仅只是“背单词、说口语”这么简单，更重要的是要了解美国的文化，这也正是学习英语最有魅力的地方。在本书中，我们会带你驰骋在美国文化中，为你全方位解读美国人的生活和思考方式。
本书包含超真切、超全面的美国文化！为你面面俱到地趣解美国文化。此外，本书还会根据具体的美国语境，对“原汁原味”的特色表达进行讲解，让你在浓烈的文化氛围下更加有效地学习各种地道口语。这既是一本增长见闻的读物，也是一本学习英语的工具书！本书特色近距离看“大国家、小国民”通过本书，那具有神秘感的自由女神、对世界经济举足轻重的金融华尔街、聚集高端科技的硅谷等美国文化标志在你面前通通“现身”，让你近距离了解它们。此外，我们还会揭秘美国人为何不选择公共交通，美国孩子为何如此独立。为你“捅破”美国文化这层窗，让你对美国文化了如指掌。地毯式涵盖美国文化本书围绕9大分类、80个主题，地毯式涵盖美国的历史趣闻、体育音乐、风土人情、民间习俗等方方面面。此外，还会在每个主题里就相关内容进行拓展，形式丰富，增强本书的可读性和趣味性。拓展形式包括对主题下相关的名人轶事、特色景点、特色表达、历史事件的讲解。边品美国文化边学英语我们会针对每个主题，从国外网站选取英文素材，语言地道，且附有中文翻译，方便你更好地理解美国文化。对美国文化进行一番介绍之后，还会对文中出现的俚语和与文化历史相关的特色表达进行深度讲解，让你知道它们的“来源”。此外，我们还会在每个主题中拓展与主题相关的英语对话，让你可以用地道英语侃谈美国文化。编者Part1美国为何不可复制？Top 1美国人所追求的“美国梦”是什么？
The term “American dream”is used in many ways, but it essentially is an idea that suggests that anyone in the U.S. can succeed through hard work and has the potential to lead a happy, successful life. Many people have expanded upon or refined the definition to include things such as freedom, fulfillment and meaningful relationships. Someone who manages to achieve his or her version of the American dream is often said to be “living the dream.” This concept has been subject to criticism, because some people believe that the structure of society in the U.S. prevents such an idealistic goal for everyone. Critics often point to examples of inequality rooted in class, race, religion and ethnicity that suggest that the American dream is not attainable for everyone.
The idea of an American dream is older than the U.S., dating to the 1600s, when people began to have all sorts of hopes and aspirations for what was a new and largely unexplored continent to European immigrants. Many of these dreams focused on owning land and establishing a prosperous business that—theoretically, at least—would increase one' s happiness. During the Great Depression of the 1930s, authors often wrote about the idealistic American dream, somewhat codifying the concept and entrenching it in American society.
The dream for Americans is often portrayed as being perfectly average. For example, some people might say that it is being married, having two children and living in a three-bedroom home with a white picket fence. Rather than being based on great wealth or success, this version of the dream might be based more on avoiding things such as poverty and loneliness.
Some people say that the American dream represents the desire to live a better life than the previous generation did—and that there is a legitimate opportunity for this to happen. The desire among many parents is for their children to lead happy lives. This is especially true among immigrants, because many of them fled extremely difficult circumstances in their native countries.
The idealistic vision of the American dream often disregards discrimination based on a person' s race, religion, gender and national origin, which might inhibit his or her ability to achieve specific goals. Critics also point out that many versions of the dream equate prosperity with happiness, and that happiness is possible without wealth or even in poverty. To some people, the American dream might be more about personal fulfillment than about economic success or owning property.“美国梦”这个词被用在很多地方，但它本质上传达的思想是：在美国，任何人都可以通过努力工作获得成功，任何人都有过上幸福、成功生活的可能。许多人扩展或升华了美国梦的定义，为其加入了一些内涵，诸如自由、成就感和有意义的人际关系。实现了自己的美国梦版本的人常常被视为已经“梦想成真”。美国梦这个概念也受到了一些批评，因为一些人认为，美国的社会结构无法使所有人都实现这一理想目标。评论家经常指出阶级、种族、宗教和民族不平等的例子，说明不是每个人都能实现美国梦。
美国梦这一观念的出现比美国的历史还要早，可以追溯到17世纪，那时欧洲移民开始对这个未知的新大陆充满希望和抱负。当时许多人的梦想都专注在获得土地和建立商业繁荣上，至少从理论上说，这会增加人们的幸福感。在20世纪30年代的经济大萧条期间，作家们常常以理想的美国梦为主题，将这一观念写入书中，使之深深扎根于美国社会中。
美国梦常会被描述成是过一种完全普通的生活。例如，有些人可能会说，美国梦就是结婚组建家庭，拥有两个孩子，住在一个有3间卧室的房子里，房子外面是白色的尖桩栅栏，并非拥有众多的财富或取得巨大成功。这个版本的美国梦可能更多是希望摆脱贫穷和孤独这类的事物。
有人说，美国梦代表着渴望比上一代过上更好的生活，并且能真正有机会去实现这一梦想。许多父母的愿望是他们的孩子能过上幸福的生活。这一想法在移民中尤为常见，因为他们中的许多人是逃离本国极其困难的环境然后来到美国的。
美国梦的理想愿景往往会忽视种族、宗教、性别和国籍带来的歧视，这将不利于人们通过个人能力去实现特定目标。批评家也指出，许多版本的美国梦都把财富等同于幸福，而幸福在没有财富或即使贫穷的情况下也是可能的。对某些人而言，美国梦更多地意味着实现个人价值，而不是经济上的成功或拥有资产。“品”美国特色文化1 每个人都梦想着走上easy street，那么easy street真的那么好走吗？其实地图上根本没有这条easy street, easy street这个表达用来形容一个人飞黄腾达后过着奢华舒适的生活。据说最初是一位美国作家在他的小说里用到了这个表达，他在书的结尾写道：“He could walk up and down easy street.”即“他生活优裕”。之后，easy street就泛指手头很宽裕，生活优裕。2 美国梦虽是梦，但并非整天闲着没事做的一场白日梦。If you snooze, you lose!（如果你不注意，就错过良机了！）因为整天snooze（打盹）的人，再有梦想也是空谈，所以会lose（失去）。另外，有些闹钟上有一个让你贪睡的按键，这个按键也叫snooze。如果闹钟响了但你还想睡，按一下snooze键，隔几分钟闹钟会再响。“聊”美国特色文化Conversation1A: Do you know that Anna has hit the jackpot？你知道安娜买彩票中头奖了吗？B: Yeah, that money puts her on easy street for the rest of her life.知道，那笔钱让她后半辈子衣食无忧了。A: That' s right. I really envy her．是啊，真羡慕她。B: Well, I' d rather get that money with my own efforts．好吧，我宁愿靠自己的努力得到那样一笔钱。Conversation 2A: Have you seen the updates of the exam website？你看过考试网站的更新内容了吗？B: Come on. They just released that last night. There is no hurry．拜托，他们昨晚才公布的，不着急看。A: If you snooze, you lose！ 如果你不注意，就错过良机了！B: It' s not that serious. Let me finish my game first．没那么严重。让我先把这局游戏玩完再说吧。“问”美国特色文化1 美国梦代表着什么？美国梦有广义和狭义之分。狭义上是坚信在美国只要通过努力便能获得更好生活的理想，即人们必须通过自己的勤奋工作迈向繁荣，而非依赖于特定的社会阶级；广义上指美国的平等、自由、民主。几百年来，美国梦一直激励着世界各地的年轻人来到这片土地创造自己的价值，美国也因此成为全球成功人士的摇篮。2 阿甘所追寻的就是美国梦吗？《阿甘正传》的大热，主要因为它是对美国梦的绝佳阐释。《阿甘正传》描述的是一个智商不高的男人，却“傻人有傻福”，他经历了越战，参加过乒乓外交，游弋于各大美国事件当中，成为美国精神的化身。他的故事也让所有信仰美国梦的人相信：只要努力，就一定能获得成功。3 美国人追逐美国梦的动力是什么？一些历史学家认为，美国梦就是对财富的渴求和追逐。据说，康涅狄格州立大学历史学教授马修·沃肖尔指出：“对金钱的追求，是‘美国梦’中不变的成分。恰恰是对财富的过度追逐，使‘美国梦’也在变味，逐步丧失了对世界各地人们的吸引力。”如果说早期的美国人还提倡靠“诚实和勤奋”来致富，如今则是越来越热衷于寻求“快速致富”。Top 2为何美国被称作“大熔炉”？
The United States is a country of immigrants. It is a place where people from all over the world come to build a better life. Some immigrants bring their families. Some bring a few of their favorite things. Others come alone with nothing but determination. One thing that every immigrant brings with them is their culture. A person' s culture is the customs and beliefs that they hold. A person' s culture is strongly tied to the country where they grew up. It is tied to their relationship with their family. Many people come to America from so many different places all over the world. For this reason, many people call America a “melting pot” of cultures.
The “melting pot” idea compares America to a giant soup pot. Each immigrant is an ingredient added to the pot. Each immigrant adds their own flavor. After each immigrant comes to America, they connect to other people. People learn about each other' s culture. This is the beginning of the soup pot of America melting together.
The American mosaic is one of different cultures and regional identities, each with unique characteristics and flavors. Americans often think of themselves not only as coming from a particular ethnic heritage, but also of being part of a geographical region. Understanding these regional characteristics and flavors is an excellent way to get to know Americans.
American history began with waves of immigrants, bringing their own cultures and traditions to a vast new country. No other place in the world has such a diverse population. It is this diversity that makes America what it is and, at the same time, creates the challenges it faces.
American immigration began in 1607 with the colony of Jamestown. In 1620, another group of people left England to build a settlement in America. These people called themselves Pilgrims. They wanted to go to a place where they could practice their religion freely. They wanted to be free of the control of the English government. Both of these groups worked hard to build good settlements.美国是一个移民国家，这里有来自世界各地的人，他们都怀揣着构建更好生活的梦想。有些移民会拖家带口过来；有些则只是带几件他们最喜爱的东西；其他的人则孑然一身，带着坚定的决心来到美国。但是每个移民必会带着的是他们的文化。这种文化是他们所怀有的信念以及他们的习俗，与他们成长的国家有紧密的联系，与他们和家人的关系紧密相关。许多人来到美国，他们来自世界上众多的不同地方，这使得美国被称为文化“大熔炉”。“大熔炉”这个概念将美国比作一个巨大的汤锅，而每个移民则是加入这个汤锅里的配料，每种配料都有不同的味道。移民来到美国之后，与其他人接触，开始了解彼此的文化，这就是美国大熔炉开始熔化在一起的过程。
美国是一个由不同文化和区域特性构成的万花筒，每种文化都有自己的特征和特色。美国人通常会觉得自己不仅来自特定种族背景，而且是一个地理区域里的一分子。了解这些地域特征和特色是了解美国人的绝佳方式。
美国历史始于移民浪潮，这些移民带着他们的文化和传统来到这个庞大的新国家。世界上再没有一个由这样多样化的人口组成的地方。但是正是这个多样性特点让美国成为美国，与此同时，也造成了这个国家面临的挑战。
美国移民始于1607年的詹姆斯敦殖民地。1620年，另一群人离开英国在美国建立了自己的殖民地。这些人称自己为清教徒。他们想找到一个能够自由追求他们宗教信仰的地方。他们不想受英国政府的控制。这两批移民都非常努力地建设美好的家园。“品”美国特色文化1 在作为“大熔炉”的美国，有很多新移民过来的人并不富裕，他们是来美国求财谋生的。他们常把I don' t have a bean．挂在嘴边。你或许会纳闷没豆子有什么好炫耀的？其实bean不仅指豆子，还指毫无价值的东西，因为美国人认为像豆子那样小的东西是微不足道的，所以当一个人叨念他连一颗豆子都没有的时候，就是自嘲一无所有了。2 在美国，有很多处于社会底层的人都lead a dog' s life，过着穷困潦倒的日子。老美爱狗，也喜欢使用众多与狗狗相关的习语，lead a dog' s life暗指某人过的日子比流浪狗还要惨，因为流浪狗有时还有人施舍一盘狗食。“聊”美国特色文化Conversation 1A: Hey, can you lend me some money, buddy? I am hard up these days．嘿，兄弟，能借我点钱吗？最近手头紧。B: The funds I bought came down again yesterday. I don' t have a bean now．我买的基金昨天又跌了，我现在一分钱都没有。A: Well then, it seems we both need to tighten our belts this month.看来这个月我们都得勒紧裤腰带过日子了。B: You said it．你说得没错。Conversation 2A: How is it going, David？戴维，最近怎么样啊？B: I have led a dog' s life．我过得挺惨的。A: How come? Last time you told me that you got a well-paid job．怎么会呢？上次你告诉我你找到了一份薪水不错的工作。B: I don' t even know where to begin. Long story．我都不知道从哪儿说起，说来话长。“问”美国特色文化1“大熔炉”一词从何而来？“大熔炉”的意思是在各种民族混杂的都市中，不同民族文化不断地相互影响、同化和融合，形成一个很独特的新的拥有共同文化的社会。这个词首次出现在伊斯雷尔·赞格威尔的戏剧《熔炉》中。melting pot的基本意思是坩埚，形容如同不同金属在坩埚中混合成合金一样，不同文化混合形成一种新的文化。这个词以前指的是美国的大都市纽约，现在多指多种文化融合的国家，以美国最为典型。2 美国为何会成为“大熔炉”？美国历史很短，所以无法形成一个具有强大生命力的文化认同来统一和传承美国的文化。美国曾是一个没有民族概念的移民国家，在没有一个强大的民族和民族文化形成统治意识形态的情况下，这个国家的任何人和族群，都没有权利和能力来排斥别族文化和族群。这就注定了虽然无奈，但美国不得不成为一个熔炉。3 美国这个大熔炉“熔”的是什么？美国“熔”的内容丰富多彩，例如，美国的音乐融合了黑人音乐、西方民间音乐和拉丁民间音乐；美国的料理不仅具有欧洲料理、墨西哥料理和亚洲料理的特色，同时又有自己的特点，如奶酪多；而风靡美国的牛仔文化，融合了美国劳工服装文化和法国服装文化。另外，美国的后现代主义文化既融合了来自欧洲的后现代主义风潮，又含有来自亚洲和非洲的美学素材。Top 3个人主义从何而来？
As is known to all, the United States, regarded as the cradle of the trend of individualism, has explored its essential values throughout the world, though actually the person who created the word “individualism” is not American himself. Tocqueville,a French socialist and also the author of the book Democracy in America,first used this term,about which he gave a description rather than a definition: “Individualism is a mature and calm feeling, which disposes each member of the community to sever himself from the mass of his fellows and to draw apart with his family and his friends, so that after he has thus formed a little circle of his own, he willingly leaves society at large to itself.”
So we can see, individualism is not Native America. And we have to admit that basic to any understanding of the development of the American individualism is the process of the urbanization and modernization.
The trend providing fertile soils to individualism is urbanization. Roughly speaking, the definition of urbanization is a process in which the proportion of popularity in cities has been constantly increasing. As an immigrant country, the United States' procedure of urbanization appeared to be more complex but manifest. The final product was “a multitude of separate corporations”. During the progression, social differentiation then arose and people were not so liable to be connected together by loyalty, trust, or somewhat of this kind as before. A new era has come, in which contracts replacing handshakes have become so general to keep the relationship between people.
Another factor helping to accelerate the development of individualism is modernization, which is characterized as hundreds, even thousands of technologies and inventions having been put into service. So we draw the conclusion that the Industrial Revolution liberated people from their farmland, enabled them to seek their fortune in cities, and provided them with a great deal of newly invented articles which met their self-needs varying from one person to another.
众所周知，美国作为个人主义的摇篮，在整个世界范围内探索着其基本价值，然而，创造“个人主义”一词的人其实不是美国人。法国社会党人托克维尔是《论美国的民主》一书的作者，他第一次使用了这个词。与其说他对这个词进行了定义，倒不如说是对这个词的描述：“个人主义是一种成熟而平静的态度，让群体中的每个成员倾向于脱离其他成员，脱离家人和朋友。这样，他自己的小圈子形成后，他便心甘情愿地脱离整个社会。”
所以可以看出，个人主义并不是美国本土的产物。我们不得不承认，要理解美国个人主义的发展，基础是必须了解美国的城市化和现代化的进程。
城市化的趋势为个人主义提供了肥沃的土壤。粗略地讲，城市化的定义就是城市普及程度的比例不断增加的过程。作为一个移民国家，美国的城市化过程似乎更复杂但却更明显，其最终结果是“大量独立企业”出现。在此过程中，社会分化开始出现，忠诚、信任或其他诸如此类的东西已经不能再像过去那样把彼此紧密联系起来了。新时代已经到来，人与人之间的关系普遍已由合约而不是握手来维系了。
另一个加速个人主义发展的因素是现代化。其特点是，成百上千的技术和发明被使用开来。所以我们得出这样的结论：工业革命把人们从他们的农田中解放出来，使他们能在城市寻求财富，并向他们提供了大量新发明的物品，以满足不同人士的需求。“品”美国特色文化1 崇尚个人主义的美国人，有时容易以自我为中心，擅自采取行动，于是经常会有人提醒：“You should keep sb in line.”英语中常用in line表示排队的意思，但这里不是要求某人排队站好，而是指某人的某些行为有点出格了，应想办法让他老实点。2 个人主义讲究利己性，崇尚个人主义的人为人处世的方式有时会令人觉得他们常push around，就是颐指气使地指使他人干这干那的。push around的字面意思是“将人推来推去”，引申一下就是摆布某人，要求某人去做某事。既然有习惯发号施令的人，就会存在容易被push around的人，这类人可以称为pushover，如：She is a total pushover.（她完全是个没主见的人。）“聊”美国特色文化Conversation 1A: I think Tom is too individualistic. Do you remember what he said to John in the meeting？我觉得汤姆太个人主义了，你还记得开会的时候他对约翰说的话吗？B: Yeah, that joke, I remember．嗯，那个玩笑，我记得。A: That has gone a little too far. You should keep Tom in line．那个玩笑开得有点过分了。你得管着他点。B: OK, I' ll find time to talk with him．好，我会找个时间跟他谈的。Conversation 2A: I saw Damon shouting at Jenny on my way back to my dorm．我回宿舍的路上看见戴蒙冲珍妮大声嚷嚷。B: Yeah, I see that scene quite often．是啊，我经常看见那种场景。A: Damon is so bossy. He is always pushing Jenny around. I don' t like him．戴蒙太专横了，总是对珍妮呼来唤去的。我不喜欢他。B: Neither do I. But it is not all his fault. You know Jenny. She is a total pushover．我也不喜欢他，但这也不全是他的错，你也知道珍妮，她完全是个没主见的人。“问”美国特色文化1 个人主义有哪些内涵？“个人主义”在西方文化，特别是在美国文化中起着举足轻重的作用。“个人主义”这个词最早出现是法语形式的individualisme，来自欧洲人对法国大革命以及启蒙运动思想的普遍反应。然而，首先使用“个人主义”这个术语的是19世纪20年代中期圣西门的追随者。也许是因为圣西门主义的广泛影响，“个人主义”这个术语在19世纪得到了非常广泛的使用，发展成为一种个人主义思想体系及理论。2 个人主义是美国文化中不可或缺的一部分吗？在西方文化中，虽然强调个体为本的价值观占主导地位，但唯有在美国文化中，被誉为精华的个人主义才发展到极端的地步，并被作为一种普通的价值观得到极度的推崇。不过，在美国，个人主义最初是为迎合资本主义和自由主义民主发展而出现的。3 美国的个人主义的本质是什么？美国是个人主义价值观的典型代表。个人主义价值观根植于早期殖民时期及拓边时期所得到的自立精神，至今成为美国精神的重要组成部分。它代表了美国文化的基本特征，并且直接、真实地涵盖了美国思想，成了美国人的社会理想和世界观。Top 4为什么美国能够创造硅谷神话？
Silicon Valley is widely regarded as the ultimate success as an incubator of start-ups and entrepreneurship. Arguably, the most important factor in its success has been the formation of a unique culture—one that allows people with diverse skills, who often don' t know each other, to mix and match:collaborating and trusting in ways that people in other cultures don' t. It is not simply creative destruction, as many observers say. More importantly, it is a process of creative reassembly, as people join forces on temporary projects and then recirculate and recombine for other projects later.
The Silicon Valley culture is derived from the frontier spirit, which valued pragmatic cooperation. That spirit enabled strangers to team up to form wagon trains heading west and to entrust their lives to each other. They had no choice but to trust fast or die.
One helpful way to think of Silicon Valley is as a rainforest, which thrives because its many elements combine to create new and unexpected flora and fauna. And the rainforest model is not just an analogy. An innovation ecosystem is not merely like a biological system; it is a biological system.
Flowing through this biological system are nutrients: talent, ideas and capital. And the system becomes more productive the faster the nutrients flow. That' s where the issue of culture comes into play. In the real world, economic systems are made of human beings, not anonymous gears. And in the real world, human nature gets in the way.
Silicon Valley has created a culture that encourages people with diverse talents and backgrounds to meet, to trust each other and to take a chance together. That culture is firmly in place because crucial keystone institutions, from venture capital firms to attorneys to entrepreneurs, treat the broader community as more important than the “winning” of any individual transaction. It is a culture based on, among other things, seeking fairness, not advantage.
Silicon Valley is a state of mind much more than a location, and it' s that state of mind that is crucial to aspiring entrepreneurs. Businesspeople and leaders who seek to replicate Silicon Valley' s success should, therefore, recognize this mindset and seek to foster it.
硅谷作为新兴公司和创业的孵化器，被广泛认为取得了巨大的成功。可以说，硅谷成功最重要的因素在于其独特文化的形成——这种文化使得掌握了多样化技能但通常互相并不认识的人们在一起相处和适应，以其他文化背景下没有的方式取得合作与信任。如许多观察员所说，这可不仅仅是创造性破坏。更重要的是，这是一次创造性重组的过程，因为人们会在临时项目上通力合作，然后为了之后的其他项目再循环和重组。
硅谷文化源于拓荒精神，强调务实合作。拓荒精神使陌生人组建马车队向西驶去，并将生命互相托付。他们别无选择，要么坚信不疑，要么就得随时面对死亡。
一种有助于理解硅谷的方法就是将其想象成热带雨林，它之所以繁荣是因为众多要素共同创造了让人意想不到的新动植物群。热带雨林模型不仅仅是一个比喻。因为创新的生态系统不仅仅像生物系统，它就是一个生物系统。
流经这个生物系统的都是养分：人才、创意和资金。养分流动得越快，系统就越多产。这就是文化发挥作用的所在。在现实世界中，经济体系是由人组成的，而不是无名的齿轮。在现实世界中，人的本性会成为障碍。
硅谷创造的文化促使具有多样天赋和背景的人相遇，彼此信任，然后一起冒险。这种文化岿然不动，因为那些重要的基础机构，从风险资本公司到律师再到企业家，把更广大的群体看得比某次单一运作的成功更重。这种文化建立在许多事物的基础上，其中之一是寻求合理公正，而不是利益。
与其说硅谷是一个地方，不如说它是一种心态，这种心态对有抱负的企业家来说至关重要。因此，那些企图复制硅谷成功的商务人士和领导者应该看重这种心态，并去发扬它。“品”美国特色文化1 硅谷能成就当今的科技神话，少不了那些拼命三郎般的IT人才。为了创业成功，他们几乎每天break their necks。我们知道break一般指“打断，弄坏，折断”，这里不能夸张地译为“折断他们的脖子”，其实这个表达指的是拼命去完成一项工作，或者以最快速度赶到一个地方。所以，好友着急工作时，你可以打趣一句：“Don' t break your neck.”意思是“用不着拼命”。2 不敢尝试的创业者永远不可能出人头地。美国人从不吝啬鼓励旁人Give it a shot！这可不是怂恿你赏人一拳，也不是让你给人一枪，而是支持你去试试，或者说：“Give it a go! ”“聊”美国特色文化Conversation 1A: Can you bring me another cup of coffee？能帮我再拿一杯咖啡吗？B: Sure. But do not break your neck on the work; you have plenty of time．没问题，但你不用那么拼命地工作，你有充足的时间。A: I don' t want to leave it until next week. I have other things to do.我不想把它留到下周了，我还有其他事情要做呢。B: You are such a workaholic．你真是个工作狂。Conversation 2A: I am afraid the customer will refuse this project again．我害怕客户会再次拒绝这个项目。B: We' ve put so much effort into it. Just give it a shot．我们在这上面花了那么多工夫，试试吧。A: Right. We need to have confidence in our project．对，我们应该对自己的项目有信心。B: That' s it．这就对了。“问”美国特色文化1 硅谷是盛产硅的山谷吗？硅谷之所以名字当中有一个“硅”字，是因为当地的大多数企业制造的半导体含有高纯度的硅或者生产与电脑相关的产品。而“谷”表示的是圣克拉拉谷。据说在硅谷刚建立起的十几年时间里，记者常将其错拼为“硅胶谷”，因为在当时的美国文化中还没有“硅谷”这个词。2 如今硅谷是怎样的地方？硅谷坐落于美国加州北部旧金山湾以南，后来高科技产业在这里兴起，于是“硅谷”这一名称现泛指所有高科技产业。它不仅是美国重要的电子工业基地，也是世界最为知名的电子工业集中地。自从国际著名电器公司和苹果公司等高科技公司在这里落户之后，硅谷焕然一新，成为一座繁华的城镇。在短短的十几年之内，无数IT人才在硅谷成功致富。3 为何硅谷是创业者的温床？若你富有创意且兼具实力，那么硅谷将是你功成名就的好去处。许多IT人才在这里一夜暴富，这在世界其他地方听起来可能是“神话”，但在硅谷却并不稀奇，例如创立了雅虎的杨致远。在1994年他与搭档共同创立了雅虎，公司股票上市后一夜之间他们晋级亿万富翁。而在当时，戴着眼镜、看上去俨然大学生模样的杨致远已成为众多美国青年心目中的偶像。Top 5没有汽车，在美国“寸步难行”！
Car culture was born in the United States. In no other country does the automobile have sway over the national psyche. Iconic films like Rebel Without a Cause, novels like On the Road,and even classic music albums like Bob Dylan' s Highway 61 Revisited reveal how central the individualism and the freedom of the automobile and the open road are to American culture.
Nobel Prize-winning novelist William Faulkner went so far as to claim, “The American really loves nothing but his automobile: not his wife his child nor his country nor even his bank-account first.”His sardonic observation retains its force over a half-century later. There are now more than 200 million cars in the United States. In Los Angeles there evidently are more registered cars than people. Some families spend more on their monthly car payments than on their home mortgage.
Americans have always cherished personal freedom and mobility, rugged individualism and masculine force. The advent of the horseless carriage combined all these qualities and more. The automobile traveled faster than the speed of reason; it promised to make everyone a pathfinder to a better life. It was the vehicle of personal democracy,acting as a social leveling force, granting more and more people a wide range of personal choices—where to travel, where to work and live, where to seek personal pleasure and social recreation.
In 2000, an automobile makes the rush hour trip averaging four miles per hour. American drivers are stuck in traffic for eight billion hours a year. Yet despite congested traffic, polluted air, and rising gas prices, Americans have not changed their driving or car ownership patterns.
Suburban commuters have resolutely stayed in their vehicles rather than join car pools or use public transportation. Teens continue to fill high-school parking lots with automobiles. America' s love affair with the car has matured into a marriage—and an addiction. The automobile retains its firm hold over our psyche because it continues to represent a metaphor for what Americans have always prized: these ideals of private freedom, personal mobility, and empowered spontaneity.
汽车文化诞生于美国。没有一个国家能像美国这样因为汽车而动摇国民心态。例如《无因的叛逆》这样标志性的影片，《在路上》这类小说，甚至鲍勃·迪伦的《重访61号公路》这样的经典唱片都表明，汽车和开放的道路中蕴含的个人主义以及自由对美国文化有多么重
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