问答题
"Clean your plate !" and "Be a member of the clean-plate club ! "Just about every kid in the US has heard this from a parent or grandparent. Often, it's accompanied by an appeal: "Just think about those starving orphans(孤儿) in Africa! " Sure, we should be grateful for every bite of food. Unfortunately, many people in the US take a few too many bites. Instead of saying "clean the plate", perhaps we should save some food for tomorrow. According to news reports, US restaurants are partly to blame for the growing bellies (肚子). A waiter puts a plate of food in front of each customer, with two to four times the amount recommended by the government, according to a USA Today story. Americans traditionally associate quantity with value and most restaurants try to give them that. They serve large portions to stand apart from competitors and to give the customers value. They prefer to have customers complain about too much food rather than too little. Barbara Rolls, a nutrition professor at Pennsylvania State University, told USA Today that restaurant portion sizes began to grow in the 1970s, the same time that the American waistline began to expand. Health experts have tried to get many restaurants to serve smaller portions. Now, apparently, some customers are calling for this too. A restaurant industry trade magazine reported last month that 57 percent of more than 4,000 people surveyed believed restaurants serve portions that are too large; 23 percent had no opinion; 20 percent disagreed. But a closer look at the survey indicates that many Americans who can't afford fine dining still prefer large portions. Seventy percent of those earning at least $ 150,000 per year prefer smaller portions. But only 45 percent of those earning less than $ 25,000 want smaller. It's not that working class Americans don't want to eat healthy. It's just that after long hours at low-paying jobs, getting less on their plate hardly seems like a good deal. They live from paycheck to paycheck, happy to save a little money for next year's Christmas presents.
【答案解析】[长难句分析] 1．Barbara Rolls，a nutrition professor at Pennsylvania State University，told USA Today that restaurant portion sizes began to grow in the 1970s，the same time that the American waistline began to expand． [句子分析] 本句的主干是“Barbara Roils told USA Today”，“a nutrition professor at Pennsylvania State University”是“Barbara Roils”的同位语。谓语“told”后面的“USA Today”是间接宾语，that引导的从句作直接宾语。“the same time that the American…”是“1970s”的同位语，其中that引导的定语从句修饰先行词“time”。 [译文] 一个来自宾夕法尼亚州大学的名叫芭芭拉·劳斯的营养学专家告诉《今日美国》，在19世纪70年代，餐馆所提供的食物量开始增长，与此同时，美国人的腰围也开始增加。 2．A restaurant industry trade magazine reported last month that 57 percent of more than 4，000 people surveyed believed restaurants serve portions that are too large；23 percent had no opinion；20 percent disagreed． [句子分析] 本句的谓语“reported”后面是由that引导的宾语从句，该从句中包括由两个分号隔开的三个分句。过去分词“surveyed”是修饰“people”的后置定语，谓语“believed”后面是省略了关联词that的宾语从句“restaurants serve portions”。定语从句“that are too large”修饰先行词“portions”。 [译文] 一个餐饮业杂志报道说，根据上个月对4000顾客的调查显示，57%的人认为餐馆提供的食物太多了，23%的人没有意见，20%的人持相反的意见。 3．But a closer look at the survey indicates that many Americans who can't afford fine dining still prefer large portions [句子分析] 本句的谓语“indicates”后面是由that引导的宾语从句，该从句中又有一个由“who”引导的定语从句，修饰先行词“Americans”。 [译文] 但是进一步的调查显示，许多生活条件不好的顾客还是希望餐馆提供大量食物。 4．It's just that，after long hours at low-paying jobs，getting less on their plate hardly seems like a good deal． [句子分析] 本句的主干是“It's just that getting less on…”，系动词is后面是由that引导的表语从句。介词短语“after long hours at low-paying jobs”作状语。 [译文] 在他们长时间工作之后，所得薪水又很少，如果他们盘子中的食物不足，在他们看来，这顿饭钱就花得不值。