Unit 4 Reading

The great flood
大洪水
Last week in Geography class, we learnt that if all the ice in the North and South Poles melted, sea level around the world would rise, and many cities would be flooded and disappear.
上周，在地理课上，我们了解到，如果在北极和南极所有的冰都融化了，全球的海平面将上升，许多城市将被淹没、消失。
It started to worry me. What would happen if our city was badly flooded? Would anyone remain alive?
这开始让我担心，如果我们的城市被严重地淹没，会发生什么事？会有人活着吗？
Last night, I dreamt about a great flood:
昨晚，我梦见了一个大洪水：
It was nine o'clock in the morning. My bedroom floor was a pool of water.
现在是早上九点钟。我的卧室地板上有一滩水。
I looked out of the window. Water was everywhere. It covered roads, parks and small houses.
我看着窗外，到处都是水，淹没了道路、公园和小房子。
Large objects, such as coaches and boats, passed by my window. They were floating in the water.
大型的物件，例如客车和船只，经过了我的窗户，它们是在漂在水中的。
I could not just stand there! I had to do something!
我不能只是傻站在那里！我必须做些什么！
I tried to call my dad, but the line was dead, my computer was still working, so I sent him an email.
我试着打电话给我爸爸，但电话线路已断了，我的电脑还在工作，所以我给他发了一封电子邮件。
I wrote, “Dad, there's a flood! What should we do?”
我写道：“爸爸，发洪水了！我们应该怎么办？”
He sent me an email back which said, “Kevin, my boss has given me some work. It's important to stick with it. I can't afford to sit around and worry about the flood.”
他给我回复了一封电子邮件，说：“Kevin，我的老板交给我一些工作要做，坚守岗位是很重要的，我不能坐在那里担心洪水。”
Then I emailed my best friend. “What should we do about the flood?” I asked.
然后我发邮件给我最好的朋友。“关于洪水我们应该做些什么？”我问。
My friend replied, “I have no time to think about the flood. I'm playing computer games …”
我的朋友回我说，“我没有时间去想什么洪水，我在玩电脑游戏……”
I shouted, “The WATER! Look at the WATER!” But my cries fell on deaf ears.
我大喊道：“水！看水！”但是，他们对我的哭喊声置若罔闻。
In offices and homes, people just sat and stared at their computer screens.
在办公室里，在家里，人们只是呆坐在他们的电脑屏幕前。
It seemed that they did not want to leave. Computers were more important than the flood.
看起来，他们不想离开——电脑比洪水更重要。
Very soon, the water came into people's rooms. It poured onto their desks and covered their computers.
很快，水就进入了人们的房间。流到他们的办公桌上，淹到了他们的电脑。
In surprise, people finally started to notice the flood, but it was too late.
惊喜的是，人们终于开始注意到洪水了，但为已太迟了。
Then I awoke. There was no water. I was safe-for now.
然后我就醒了。并没有水，我是安全的，现在。