学术英语写作范文17篇.doc

Sample 1Native American Influences on Modern U.S. CultureWhen the first Europeans came to the North American continent, they encountered the completely new cultures of the Native American. Peoples of North America, Native Americans, who had highly developed cultures in many respects, must have been as curious about them. As always happens when two or more cultures come into contact, there was a cultural exchange. Native Americans adopted some of the Europeans ways, and the Europeans adopted some of their ways. As a result, Native Americans have made many valuable contributions to modern U.S. culture, particularly in the areas of language, art, food, and government.First of all, native Americans left a permanent mark on the English language. The early English-speaking settlers borrowed from several different Native American languages words for places in this new land. All across the country are cities, towns, rivers, and states with native American names. For example, the states of Delaware, Iowa, Illinois, and Alabama are named after Native American tribes, as are the cities of Chicago, Miami, and Spokane. In addition to place names, English adopted from various Native American languages the words for animals and plants found in the Americas, Chipmunk, moose, raccoon, skunk, tobacco, and squash are just a few examples. Although the vocabulary of English is the area that shows the most Native American influence, it is not the only area of U.S. culture that has been shaped by contact with Native Americans. Art if another area of important Native American contributions. Wool rugs woven by women of the Navajo Tribe in Arizona and New Mexico are highly valued works of art in the United States. Native American jewelry made from silver and turquoise is also very popular and very expensive. Especially in the western and southwestern regions of the United States, native crafts such as pottery, leather products, and beadwork can be found in many homes. Indeed, native art and handicrafts are a treasured part of U.S. culture.In addition to language and art, agriculture is another area in which Native Americans had a great and lasting influence on the peoples who arrived here from Europe, Africa, and Asia. Being skilled farmers, the Native Americans of North America taught the new comers many things about farming techniques and crops. Every U.S. schoolchild has heard the story of how Native Americans taught the first settlers to place a dead fish in a planting hole to provide fertilizer for the growing plant. Furthermore, they taught the settlers irrigation methods and crop rotation. Many of the foods people in the United States eat today were introduced to the Europeans by Native Americans. For example, corn and chocolate were unknown in Europe. Now they are staples in the U.S. diet.Finally, it may surprise some people to learn that citizens of the United States are also indebted to the native people for our form of government. The Iroquois, who were an extremely large tribe with many branches called “nations”, had developed a highly sophisticated system of government to settle disputes that arose between the various branches. Five of the nations had joined together in a confederation called “The League of the Iroquois.” Under the league, each nation was autonomous in running its own internal affairs, but the nations acted as a unit when dealing with outsiders. The league kept the Iroquois from fighting among themselves and was also valuable in diplomatic relations with other tribes. When the 13 colonies were considering what kind of government to establish after they had won their independence from Britain, someone suggested that they use a system similar to that of the League of the Iroquois. Under this system, each colony or future state would be autonomous in managing its own affairs but would join forces with the other states to deal with matters that concerned them all. This is exactly what happened. As a result, the present from of government of the United States can be traced directly back to a Native American model.In conclusion, we can easily see from these few examples the extent of Native American influence on our language, our art forms, out eating habits, and our government. The people of the United States are deeply indebted to Native Americans for their contributions to U.S. Culture.Exercise: Complete the outline by filling in the missing parts.Native American Influences on Modern U.S. CultureI. IntroductionThesis statement: _II. BodyA. Native Americans left a permanent mark on the English language.1. Names of places-cities, towns, rivers, and statesa. States: Delaware, Iowa, Illinois, Alabamab. Cities: Chicago, Miami, Spokane2. Names of animals and plantsa. Animals: chipmunk, moose, raccoon, skunkb. Plants: tobacco, squashB. _1. Navajo rugs2. Silver and turquoise jewelry3. _a. Potteryb. _c. _c. _1. Farming techniquesa. _b. _2. _a. _b. _D. _1. Iroquois-large tribe with many branches ("nations")Needed to settle disputes among various branches2. Five nations formed League of Iroquoisa. _b. Acted together when dealing with outsiders3. After independence, 13 colonies adopted similar system.a. Each colony (future state) was autonomous in managing own affairs.b. _III. Conclusion_Sample 2: At the MoviesYou Are Where You Sit: Seating Choice Can Tell a Lot about a Person!1 When he goes to the movies, Ravel Centeno likes to sit on the aisle and stretch his feet out-a fact that by itself speaks volumes about his personality, according to a new study. The study, commissioned by the British movie theater company Odeon, examined how theater seating habits reflect personality. And as the summer movie season reaches its zenith, the research says you are where you sit. Psychologist Donna Dawson divided moviegoers into four different personality types based on their seating preferences and cited examples of movie characters who fit those types.2 Those who sit on the aisle, like Centeno, are "detached observers"-people who like to have their own space, who are observers and tend to be quieter. "That's funny, because I'm a writer," Centeno said Thursday as he waited to see AI. at the Cineplex Odeon at Universal CityWalk. "So that's what I do (observe people)." One celluloid example of a detached observer, said Dawson, is Jack Nicholson's Melvin Udall character in As Good as It Gets.3 Other personality types, according to Dawson:4 The "front row film fanatic": Extroverted, assertive, and competitive, these are people who like to see movies with others, not on their own. An example from the movies might be Mike Meyers's Austin Powers or Julia Roberts's Erin Brockovich.5 The"middle-of-the-roaders": These are the people who like to sit in the middle, fittingly. They are people who are flexible and try to get along with others, such as Gwyneth Paltrow's Emma. Gloria and Tom Candelaria of Redlands say that seems to fit them. "We like the middle because it's not too far back and not too close to the front," Gloria Candelaria said as she scanned the marquee at CityWalk. Tom Candelaria said the "middle-of-the-roader" label seems to fit them because "we're easygoing."6 The "invisible rebels": Those who sit far in the back are people who are rebellious and like excitement but don't necessary seek the limelight, the study said. A typical example is Clint Eastwood's Man with No Name and Sigourney Weaver's Lt. Ripley in the Alien films. "The back row is,where things happen; it's an exciting area of danger and lots of passionate smooching," Dawson said in the Odeon report. "It tends to attract people who are rebellious." 7 For some people, though, sometimes a chair is just a chair. "I don't knowwherever there's an empty seat," said filmgoer Chris Marshall of Lake Hollywood, when asked where he likes to sit. "That works for me."Questions About the Organization1. What kind of introduction does this newspaper article have?a. It is a funnel introduction-it begins with a general statement and narrows down to the thesis statement.b. It begins with an example and ends with the thesis statement.c. It explains the reasons for the study and ends with the thesis statement.2. What kind of conclusion does it have?a. It summarizes the four main personality types.b. It gives the writer's opinion on the study.c. It gives an example that contrasts with the main points.3. What words in the thesis statement indicate that the article uses logical division of ideas as a pattern of organization?About the Support4. What two kinds of supporting details are used in this article?_ and _5. The psychologist who made the study used one kind of support, and the writer of the article reporting the results of the study used another kind. Which person used which kind?a. The psychologist used _b. The writer used _About the Content6. How do we know if the psychologist is correct? Does the article mention the methods she used in her study to match seating preference and personality type, or does it report only the results?Sample 3Culture ShockMoving to a new country can be an exciting, even exhilarating experience. In a new environment, you somehow feel more alive: seeing new sights, eating new food, hearing the foreign sounds of a new language, and feeling a different climate against your skin stimulate your senses as never before. Soon, however, this sensory bombardment becomes sensory overload. Suddenly, new experiences seem stressful rather than stimulating, and delight turns into discomfort. This is the phenomenon known as culture shock. Culture shock is more than jet lag or homesickness, and it affects nearly everyone who enters a new culture-tourists, business travelers, diplomats, and students alike. Although not everyone experiences culture shock in exactly the same way, many experts agree that it has roughly five stages.In the first stage, you are excited by your new environment. You experience some simple difficulties such as trying to use the telephone or public transportation, but you consider these small challenges that you can quickly overcome. Your feelings about the new culture are positive, so you are eager to make contact with people and to try new foods.Sooner or later, differences in behavior and customs become more noticeable to you. This is the second stage of culture shock. Because you do not know the social customs of the new culture, you may find it difficult to make friends. For instance, you do not understand how to make "small talk," so it is hard to carry on a casual, get-acquainted conversation. One day in the school cafeteria, you overhear a conversation. You understand all the words, but you do not understand the meaning. Why is everyone laughing? Are they laughing at you or at some joke that you did not understand? Also, you aren't always sure how to act while shopping. Is this store self-service, or should you wait for a clerk to assist you? If you buy a sweater in the wrong size, can you exchange it? These are not minor challenges; they are major frustrations.In the third stage, you no longer have positive feelings about the new culture. You feel that you have made a mistake in coming here. Making friends hasn't been easy, so you begin to feel lonely and isolated. Now you want to be with familiar people and eat familiar food. You begin to spend most of your free time with students from your home country, and you eat in restaurants that serve your native food. In fact, food becomes an obsession, and you spend a lot of time planning, shopping for, and cooking food from home.You know that you are in the fourth stage of culture shock when you have negative feelings about almost everything. In this stage, you actively reject the new culture. You become critical, suspicious, and irritable. You believe that people are unfriendly, that your landlord is trying to cheat you, that your teachers do not like you, and that the food is making you sick. In fact, you may actually develop stomachaches, headaches, sleeplessness, lethargy, or other physical symptoms. Finally, you reach the fifth stage. As your language skills improve, you begin to have some success in meeting people and in negotiating situations. You are able to exchange the sweater that was too small, and you can successfully chat about the weather with a stranger on the bus. Your self-confidence grows. After realizing that you cannot change your surroundings, you begin to accept the differences and tolerate them. For instance, the food will never be as tasty as the food in your home country, but you are now able to eat and sometimes even enjoy many dishes. Youmay not like the way some people in your host country dress or behave in public, but you do not regard their clothes and behavior as wrong-just different.Concluding Paragraph ATo sum up, culture shock is a very real phenomenon that has been studied for more than 30 years by psychologists and anthropologist$. Its five phases are (1) positive feelings toward the new culture, (2) awareness of small differences, (3) growing discomfort and need for contact with home culture, (4) negative feelings, and (5) acceptance and adjustment. Symptoms may vary, and not all people experience all five phases. In the end, however, people who suffer culture shock are stronger from having overcome the difficulties and frustrations of adapting to life in a new land.Concluding Paragraph BIn conclusion, nearly everyone moving to a new country feels some degree of culture shock. Symptoms may vary, and not all people experience all five stages. Newcomers with a strong support group may feel at home immediately in the new culture, while others may take months to feel comfortable. Staying in touch with friends and family, keeping a positive attitude, and, above all, learning the language as soon as possible are ways to overcome the difficulties and frustrations of adapting to life in a new land.Exercise: 1. Which concluding paragraph best suits the passage and why?2. Which concluding paragraph is a summary of the subtopics? Which one par