语言爱好者的胜地

周华南

美國华盛顿特区有一家世界文字博物馆，该博物馆通过运用科技提供了多种沉浸式的体验，启动观众的多种感官，激发他们的学习兴趣。

1When visitors enter Planet Word， a museum in Washing⁃ton， D.C.， they will see Speaking Willow， a tall art piece repre⁃senting a tree. As they pass under the artwork， they can hearrecordings of speech in hundreds of languages comingfrom the tree， most of which sound foreign to the listeners.The different voices also speak at the same time. The resultingnoise is similar to that made in a crowded theater before a show begins.

2This is a specially⁃made work for the museum. It is the first of many immersive expe⁃riences for visitors at Planet Word， a museum all about words and language. The exhibitsplayfully explore the large and complex subject of language.

3In one room， a video plays， showing babies saying their first words. Another room，called“Where Do Words Come From”， teaches the history of some common English words.The space includes a 22⁃foot⁃tall“Wall of Words”， where visitors speak into devices andlearn about the roots of the English language. That exhibit took two years to build.

4An interactive room invites listeners to speak and learn about different languages. Na⁃tive speakers of 28 languages and two sign languages teach people sayings in those lan⁃guages. They also explain how language shapes their understanding of the world and howwords cannot be separated from culture.

5Other rooms explore the different ways language is used—from humor and songwrit⁃ing， to public speaking and advertising. Visitors can sing karaoke while learning aboutsongwriting， record a famous speech， play a joke⁃telling game， and teach a computer how tomake cartoons. Almost every exhibit is interactive and most ask visitors to speak aloud.

6One exhibit room is all about books. It is designed to look like an old， rich library.Books line the shelves. When a book is placed on the table， a recorded reading begins andpictures appear， which can leave a deep impression on visitors.

7Planet Word is housed in Washington， D.C.’s historic Franklin School. Its founderFriedman is a former reading and writing teacher. She wanted to create a museum to buildinterest in writing and language. The museum is designed mainly for teenagers， but mostadults can also learn from and enjoy a visit to Planet Word. Friedman hopes people willleave the museum with a better understanding of the words they use every day and theworld of languages around them.

Reading Check

Detail

1. What can we know about Speaking Willow in paragraph 1？

A. It is able to do translation work.

B. It presents the origins of languages.

C. It shows various languages to visitors.

D. It is used to predict a show in a theater.

Detail

2. What is unique to the exhibit room on books？

A. It is arranged on a website.

B. It is designed for history lovers.

C. It can provide service in sign languages.

D. It can show recorded readings and pictures.

Detail

3. Why was Planet Word set up according to the text？

A. To help teenagers deal with language barriers.

B. To stress the importance of languages in our life.

C. To arouse peoples interest in writing and language.

D. To provide good ways for people to learn languages.

Inference

4. Where is the text most likely from？

A. A diary.

B. A newspaper.

C. A novel.

D. A magazine.

Ⅰ. Difficult sentence in the text

As they pass under the artwork， they can hear recordings of speech in hundreds of lan⁃guages coming from the tree， most of which sound foreign to the listeners. 当他们从这个艺术品下面经过时，他们可以听到来自这棵树的数百种语言的讲话录音，其中大多数听起来都很陌生。

【点石成金】本句中的As they pass under the artwork为as引导的时间状语从句;coming from the tree为修饰languages的后置定语;most of which sound foreign to the lis?teners为定语从句，修饰recordings。

Ⅱ. Text⁃centered chunks

be similar to 与……相似

be separated from 与……分离

leave a deep impression on 给……留下深刻的印象

be designed for 为……而设计

with a better understanding of 对……有更好的理解