1. Rats and Men “Insoluble” Problems S. I. Hayakawa
insolubable: that cannot be solved or explained 不能解决的
Eg. an insoluble problem / mystery

2. About the Author
Canadian-born American philologist（语文学学家）, educator, and legislator (Japanese origin). Noted for his writings on general semantics（语义学）, such as Language in Action (1941), he was also president of San Francisco State College ( ) and a U.S. senator from California ( ).

3. Test your vocabulary Bump v./n. Blast n. Solely adv. Panicky adj.
Suspend v.
Sulk v.
Cynical adj.
Exaggerated adj.
Knock
Pessimistic
Hang
Gust
Only
Overstated
Fearful
Be silent

4. Structure Part 1 ( paras1---2) Part 2 ( paras3---8）

5. To change the situation jump to the right jump to the left
Step 1
To train rats to jump
to the right
to the left
Step 2
To change the situation
jump to the right
jump to the left
If the rat fails to figure out the new system
bump nose, fall into a net
find a dish of food
find a dish of food
bump nose, fall into a net
give up and refuse to jump at all

6. What will happen if rats are continually forced to make choice
What will happen if rats are continually forced to make choice? ( paragraph 2)

7. Summary of Part1
Experiments performed by Professor Maier show that “neurosis” induced in experimental rats is caused by their （ ）to their problems.
fixated reaction

8. Part 2 What’s the reason for rats’ breakdown? (para3)
According to Dr. Maier, rats and human beings are ( ) in their actions when they have nervous breakdowns. (para3)
alike

9. Example 1 In order to cure her husband’s faults The wife may nag him
His faults get worse
She nags him some more
His faults gets worse still
She nags him even more

10. Example 2: White people in a northern city deploring the illiteracy and high crime rate among Negroes
Segregate, persecute them, deny opportunities
Perpetuates the illiteracy and the high crime rate
Perpetuate the segregation, persecution and denial of opportunity

11. Example 3: Students trying to express themselves in writing
In order to improve students’ writing
Teach them fundamentals of ….
Destroys students’ interest in writing, write even more poorly
The teacher redoubles his dose of grammar and mechanics
The students become increasingly bored and rebellious

12. Example4: a nation believing that the only way to secure peace and dignity is through armed force
Embark on a huge armaments program
Arouse the fears of neighbouring nations ( increase their armaments)
Double armaments
Neighbouring nations double their armaments too
Triple armaments

13. Summary of Part 2
Governed by a fixated reaction to their problems, human beings, when disturbed, go through pretty much the same stages as the rats. This behavior pattern recurs throughout human life from the small tragedies of the home to the world-shaking tragedies among nations. ( four examples given)

14. Part 3 What’s the topic sentence of Paragraph 9?
What’s your understanding of the last sentence of Paragraph 10?

15. Summary of Part 3
The difference between a rat’s problems and those of man’s as well as their similarity in their reaction to their problems reveal that man is functioning at less than full human capacity since a rat’s power of abstraction is limited while that of man is known as not.

16. New Words Convulsion Induce Attain Recur Nag Deplore Segregate
Persecute
Perpetuate

17. convulsion The patient lost consciousness and went into convulsions.
---Violent uncontrollable contractions of muscles 抽搐
the convulsions of the stock market
--- a violent disturbance 震荡

18. induce Neurosis is induced in rats.
Her illness was induced by overwork.
Failure induces a total sense of inferiority.
Advertising induces people to buy.
---cause, produce , bring about , call forth 引起

19. fixated: adj. (not before noun)
fixated on sb / sth: always thinking and talking about sb/sth in a way that is not normal （对…)异常依恋
eg. He is fixated on things that remind him of his childhood.

20. attain The goal is to be attained simply by making a different choice.
The software has attained a high degree of market penetration.
Sherry worked very hard to attain a B+ average.
---gain, accomplish, achieve 实现， 取得

21. recur Leap year recurs every four years.
Economic crises recur periodically.
The cancer recurred.
This is a recurring story.
--- occur again after an interval ; occur time after time 发生

22. nag She nags at her husband about their lack of money.
She constantly nags her daughter about getting married.
She nags her husband all day long.
--- bother persistently with trivial complaints
抱怨，唠叨

23. deplore We deplore the use of violence against innocent people.
A formal word meaning to disapprove very strongly of a situation or of someone’s behaviour, and believe that something should be done to stop it (not in progressive or passive)
voice/ express one’s approval / condemn / denounce
We deplore the use of violence against innocent people.
The entire world deplores this tragic situation and agrees that swift action is needed.

24. segregate The doctor segregates people with infectious diseases.
Separate or set apart from others or from the general mass
discriminate, single out, divide, part , isolate
The doctor segregates people with infectious diseases.
Handicapped people should not be segregated from the rest of society.
Those are characteristics that segregate leaders from followers.

25. persecute He always persecutes me with private questions.
Cause to suffer
Torment / oppress / harass / torture / harm / molest
He always persecutes me with private questions.
Members of these sects(派别，宗派） are ruthlessly persecuted and suppressed.
His mother was persecuted to death.

26. perpetuate
Cause to continue; make something last; preserve from extinction
Carry on / preserve / continue / uphold
Regular service intervals and tender care will perpetuate the useful life of your automobile.
Increasing the supply of weapons will only perpetuate the violence and anarchy.（无政府状态，混乱）

27. Collocation 1 experiments nose convulsions a coma stages results
faults
perform
a series of
one’s
bump
go into
fall into
go through
pretty much
the same
produce
the expected
one’s
cure

28. Collocation 2 an adaptive response plainly visible race around wildly
violent trembling
disturbed children
a given choice
sullenly refuse to act at all
world-shaking tragedies

29. Paraphrase …deny them opportunities for employment and advancement
(refuse to grant)
…taxes the best minds among those interested in orderly social change
(make burdensome and rigorous demands on …)
…fill the ranks of remedial English classes
(the body of members of a group, eg, He joined the ranks of the unemployed.)
…secure peace and dignity
(guarantee)
…embark on a huge armaments program
(start)
…be sure to be sufficiently armed to preserve peace
(cause to remain or last)

30. Grammar 1：并列句
It is the “insolubility” of the rat’s problem that leads to its nervous breakdown, and, as Dr. Maier shows in his studies of disturbed children and adults, rats and human beings seem to go through pretty much the same stages.
“Insolubility” leads to its nervous breakdown, and, rats and human beings seem to go through the same stages.

31. Grammar 2：主谓宾的识别
The search for a way to break up this vicious circle taxes the best minds among those interested in orderly social change.

32. Writing Exercise We cannot afford to … so … that…
We cannot afford to stop devising and manufacturing weapons so deadly that they cannot be used without destroying civilization itself.
…, but it is … that …
Of course these instances are oversimplified, but it is often because of vicious circles of this kind that we are unable to get at or do anything about the conditions that lead to disaster.

33. Reading Comprehension
According to the article, what causes the rat’s neurosis?
What happens in the final stage of their neurosis?
How do human beings fall into the same vicious circles as rats?