I. Grammar

1. so and such

(1)So it had been from the days many years ago…( para. 2)

(2)The roadsides, once so attractive, were now lined with browned and withered vegetation as though swept by fire. (para. 5)

(3)Can anyone believe it is possible to lay down such a large number of poisons on the surface of the earth without making it unfit for all life? (para. 16)

(4)I am saying…that the methods employed must be such that they do not destroy us along with the insects. (para.19)

so (adv.) 表示“如此”、“这样”的意思.用作副词,修饰形容词和副词.主要结构有:

1)so +adj.+a/an +可数名词单数+that从句

2)so+adj./adv.+that从句

3)so+many/few/much/little+复数可数名词+that从句

such(adj.)表示“如此”“这样”的意思，用作形容词,修饰名词.主要结构有：

1)such+a/an+adj.+单数可数名词+that从句

2)such+adj.+不可数名词+that从句

3)such+adj.+复数可数名词+that从句

2. considering

(1)prep. 就...而论， 照...说来， 鉴于

That is not so bad, considering (the circumstances).

(2)adv. [口]细想起来， 认真说； 概括而论； 总而言之

Yes, her speed was really quite good, considering.

(3)conj.考虑到

Considering he's only been learning English a year, he speaks it very well.

II．Writing Features

What is good writing?

Her measured, carefully-worded (language) yet passionate prose (passion, love) was all the more damning because she, herself, was a scientist (ideas; information).

How can we write with power and precision?

(1)Eloquence

1) Parallels

…until they emerge and combine into new forms that kill vegetation, sicken cattle, and work unknown harm on those who drink from once pure wells. (para. 11)

…to still the song of birds and the leaping of fish, to coat the leaves with a deadly film, and to linger on in soil… (para. 16)

2) Rhetorical questions

Can anyone believe…? (para. 16)

How could intelligent beings… ? (para. 18)

3) Antitheses: (juxtaposition of contrasting ideas in one grammatical structure)

The rapidity of change follows the impetuous pace of man rather than the deliberate pace of nature. (para. 13)

…this imagined tragedy may easily become a harsh reality we all shall know. (para. 8)

(2)Precision

1)Qualifying expressions:

To a large extent, the physical form and the habits of the earth’s vegetation and its animal life have been molded by the environment. (para. 10)

This pollution is for the most part irrecoverable. (para. 11)

And even this, were it by some miracle possible, would be futile. (para. 14)

2) Special verbs:

n. – v.: flame, coat, line    adj. – v.: still, brown, damp