By Rob Broomby, London

Background: 好莱坞经典电影《泰坦尼克号》讲述了在 1912 年与冰山相撞而沉船的超级豪华客轮的故事。据最近来自一个澳大利亚大学的研究报告称，当年船上英国乘客的生存率低于美国乘客，是因为英国乘客们在上救生船时遵守了排队的礼貌规则。

Questions: 请在听下面录音的时候试着回答这些问题。这是一个用来帮助你提高听力技能的练习。

1. True or false: The Titanic went down on its first trip.

2. How many people died in the disaster?

3. True or false: According to the new research, poorer passengers were locked below deck and unable to escape.

4. According to the research, did people let women and children off the Titanic first?

Click here for answers

Listen to Rob Broomby's report 点击此处下载录音材料

The story of the Titanic continues to grip 吸引 us. The Hollywood blockbuster 大片 starring Leonardo diCaprio and Kate Winslet brought the horror and romance of the tragedy to a new generation.

But when the 'unsinkable' luxury liner ‘永不沉没的’超级豪华客轮 went down after hitting an iceberg 冰山 on her maiden voyage 初次航行 more than 1,500 people perished 死了 in the icy waters of the north Atlantic.

Now David Savage, a Behavioural Economist from Queensland University of Technology, has concluded 总结 that more British passengers died than Americans because they stood in line.

But his study also destroys another enduring myth 长期以来的一个说法. He found no evidence that poorer passengers were locked down below 被锁在 （甲板层）下面 and unable to reach the deck 甲板 to escape. And his work also suggests that gallantry 绅士风度 withstood 挡住了 the rising waters. Mostly, he says, the women and children first rule 女士孩子优先的常规 was followed.

But if he's right about the rest then Leonardo diCaprio, who played an American in the movie, would have cheated to survive and Kate Winslet would have got a seat in a lifeboat 救生船 much sooner, whilst the Brits would have gone down 沉下去 not to the sound of the band playing, but to the sound of a polite chorus 合唱 of "After you", "No, after you"...

GLOSSARY 词汇表 (收听发音, 请单击英语单词)

grip 吸引

blockbuster 大片

'unsinkable' luxury liner ‘永不沉没的’超级豪华客轮

iceberg 冰山

maiden voyage 初次航行

perished 死了

concluded 总结

enduring myth 长期以来的一个说法

locked down below 被锁在（甲板层）下面

deck 甲板

gallantry 绅士风度

withstood 挡住了

the women and children first rule 女士孩子优先的常规

lifeboat 救生船

gone down 沉下去

chorus 合唱

Answers

1. True or false: The Titanic went down on its first trip.
True. The boat hit an iceberg on its maiden voyage – its first trip.

2. How many people died in the disaster?
More than 1,500 people perished, or died, in the disaster.

3. True or false: According to the new research, poorer passengers were locked below deck and unable to escape.
False. David Savage found no evidence that poorer passengers were locked below deck.

4. According to the research, did people let women and children off the Titanic first?
Yes, David Savage says that mostly the women and children first rule was followed.

Back to top