He's No Mastermind 他不是一個(gè)足智多謀的人
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Could You Do Better? 你能做的更好嗎?
There is no doubt that users of the bbcukchina website are among the most intelligent and educated people. So let's see if you know the answers to the following general knowledge questions:
In Greek mythology what did Prometheus steal from the gods? Ursus Maritimus is the scientific name for which bear? Pierre is the capital of which American state?
How did you get on? If you answered the questions correctly then you did a lot better than a contestant on a long-running BBC quiz show called Mastermind, who got the lowest score in the programme's 40-year history.
Software analyst Kajen Thuraaisingham scored a measly five points out of 29 over the two rounds of the show.
The format of the show sees contestants answer questions on a specialised subject of their choosing before tackling a round of general knowledge.
The pressure really comes to bear on the players as they occupy the iconic black leather chair positioned under a bright spotlight.
After the show Mastermind's host John Humphrys commiserated with the unfortunate contestant.
"It's the 'black chair' syndrome," said Humphrys. "No matter how hard you prepare for a show, the mind can just go blank when you're in that chair and the lights are on you."
Mr Thuraaisingham was gracious in defeat, saying, "I tried my best but it wasn't my night."
As well as being tested on general knowledge, Mastermind contestants are sometimes quizzed on their mastery of the English language, and indeed the final question that Mr Thuraaisingham faced was a vocabulary test.
Can you do better than he did? Let's find out. What word can mean a joint of pork, to pawn, or a German white wine?
(Answers to all the questions in this text are in the PDF worksheet that accompanies this Take Away English)
Glossary 詞匯表 (收聽發(fā)音, 請(qǐng)單擊英語單詞)
- general knowledge常識(shí)
- mythology 神話
- scientific name科學(xué)名稱
- get on進(jìn)行
- contestant 參賽者
- quiz show 智力競(jìng)賽節(jié)目
- measly 少得可憐
- rounds 輪
- format 版本,格式
- specialised subject 長(zhǎng)項(xiàng)題目
- tackling 解決,應(yīng)付
- pressure... comes to bear感到壓力
- iconic 標(biāo)志性的
- spotlight 聚光燈
- host 主持人
- commiserated 安慰,表示同情
- syndrome綜合癥
- go blank 腦子里一片空白
- gracious in defeat雖輸猶榮
- pawn 典當(dāng),抵押