passage55

55. TV's Value Many people who are alive today know what it is like to live in a world without television. Television is only about forty years old. Yet it has been an important part in our lives. Some people think that the years before television were a better time. They believe that families talked more and did more things together. More books were read. People got more outdoor exercise. But others disagree They say that television is a good tool for education It tells us what is happening in the world. It provides plenty of fun for us. It helps us understand how people live and work. Although some people describe television as a great teacher, others say television has caused the poor reading and writing skills of our people Television gets praise for helping us understand the people of the world. But it also has influence on family life. Television tells us the news of the day. But it can also make us lazy by giving only short news instead of telling the whole story. Even people who love television are not happy with it. They think there are too many advertisements on television. People will probably continue to discuss about television’s value. But everyone agrees that it is one of the most important inventions of the twentieth century. 55．电视的价值 很多现在还在世的(alive)人知道没有电视时人们的生活情形。电视出现至今只有40多年的时间，然而(yet)它已经成为我们生活中一个重要的部分。 有些人认为电视出现之前的日子更美好。他们说过去家里人花更多的时间在一起聊天，或一起做更多的事，他们会读更多的书，进行更多的户外锻炼(outdoor exercise)。 但有些人不同意。他们说电视是很好的教育工具，它让我们了解世界各地发生的事情，它为我们提供了很多娱乐(plenty of fun)，它帮助我们了解人们如何生活和工作。 尽管(although)有人把电视描述(describe)为了不起的教师，但也有人说人们读写技能(skill)的降低是电视导致的。电视因帮助我们了解世界各地而得到赞扬(praise)，但电视也对家庭生活有影响(influence)。电视让我们了解当今的新闻时事，也让我们变得懒惰(lazy) ——我们只能获悉简短的新闻摘要，而不是整个事件的始末。 甚至连喜欢看电视的人也对它不满意。他们说电视里的广告(advertisement)太多了。人们很可能还会继续讨论(discuss)电视的价值(value)。但有一点人们已经达成共识，那就是电视是20世纪(the twentieth century)最重大的发明(invention)之一。