1223 托福遇险， 一月重来

Joanne_L

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lzhnuaa007

也是30-25-55

sydtsou

請問作文題目是???謝謝!

tiantian111

还有机会！！加油呀！

tiantian111

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Verdun

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lzhnuaa007

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lzhnuaa007

找到了关于天上掉钻石的背景，希望你能看懂，ets让我听它，我看都费劲
Is It Raining Diamonds On Uranus
Berkeley - October 1, 1999 - If experiments at the University of California, Berkeley, are any indication, future explorers of our solar system may well find diamonds hailing down through the atmospheres of Neptune and Uranus.
These planets contain a high proportion of methane, which UC Berkeley researchers have now shown can turn into diamond at the high temperatures and pressures found inside these planets.
"Once these diamonds form, they fall like raindrops or hailstones toward the center of the planet," said Laura Robin Benedetti, a graduate student in physics at UC Berkeley.
The team, led by Benedetti and Raymond Jeanloz, professor of geology and geophysics, produced these conditions inside a diamond anvil cell, squeezing liquid methane to several hundred thousand times atmospheric pressure. When they focused a laser beam on the pressurized liquid, heating it to some 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit, diamond dust appeared.
They report their experimental findings in a paper in the Oct. 1 issue of Science.
The demonstration that methane can convert to diamond as well as other complex hydrocarbons in the interiors of giant planets like Neptune hint at a complex chemistry inside gaseous planets and even brown dwarf stars. Brown dwarfs are small, dim stars barely larger than the largest gas giant planets.
"This is opening the door to study of the interesting types of chemical reactions taking place inside planets and brown dwarfs," Jeanloz said. "Now that technology is able to reproduce the high pressures and temperatures found there, we are getting much better quality information on the chemical reactions taking place under these conditions."
"It is not amazing that chemistry like this happens inside planets, it's just that most people haven't dealt with the chemical reactions that can occur," Benedetti said. "The interior of these planets may be much more complicated that our current picture."
A simple calculation, for example, shows that the energy released by diamonds settling to the planet's core could account for the excess heat radiated by Neptune, that is, the heat given off by Neptune in excess of what it receives from the sun.
"What's exciting to us is the application of this high-pressure chemistry to understanding the outer planets," Jeanloz said.
"As more planets are found in unexpected orbits around other stars, the effects of internal chemical processes will need to be further clarified in order to obtain a general understanding of planet formation and evolution," the authors concluded in the Science paper.
Our solar system's other gas giant planets -- Jupiter and Saturn -- may also contain diamonds produced under such conditions, though they contain proportionately less methane than Neptune and Uranus. Based on theoretical calculations, Neptune and Uranus are estimated to contain about 10 to 15 percent methane under an outer atmosphere of hydrogen and helium. (See graphic for presumed internal structure of Neptune,
Several groups of researchers have suggested that the methane in these planets could conceivably turn into diamond at fairly shallow depths, about one tenth of the way to the center. Nearly two decades ago, a group at Lawrence Livermore National laboratory shocked some methane and reported the formation of diamond before the stuff evaporated. That group was led by retired scientist Marvin Ross and researchers William Nellis and Francis Ree.
Recently some theorists in Italy also concluded that diamonds were likely.
Benedetti and Jeanloz decided to try the obvious experiment -- squeeze liquid methane and see if they could make diamond dust.
The liquid methane, cooled with liquid nitrogen, was placed in a diamond anvil cell and squeezed to between 10 and 50 billion pascals (gigapascals), or about 100,000 - 500,000 times atmospheric pressure. The researchers then heated the compressed methane with an infrared laser to about 2,000 to 3,000 Kelvin (3600-5400 degrees Fahrenheit).
"It's really cool to watch," said Benedetti. "When you turn on the laser the methane turns black because of all the diamonds created. The black diamond specks float in a clear hydrocarbon liquid melted by the laser."
Raman spectroscopy confirmed the identity of the suspended specks, as did subsequent analysis with X-ray crystallography. The flecks were diamonds interspersed with hydrocarbons.
Jeanloz said that the high temperature breaks up methane (CH4) into carbon and hydrogen, while high pressure condenses the carbon to diamond. Other types of hydrocarbons -- doubly and triply bonded carbon -- also were produced, apparently in the cooler areas outside that illuminated by the laser.
Jeanloz and his team plan next to see what happens to other constituents of these planets -- ammonia and water -- at high temperatures and pressures.
Coauthors of the paper with Benedetti and Jeanloz are post-doctoral researcher Jeffrey H. Nguyen, now a scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; geology graduate student Wendell A. Caldwell, Chinese visiting scholar Hongjian Liu and Michael Kruger, a former graduate student now in the physics department at the University of Missouri, Kansas City.
Diamonds From The Sky
Amherst - August 9, 1999 - In the Aug. 6 issue of the journal Science, University of Massachusetts geoscientist Stephen Haggerty contends that some of the carbon in diamonds comes from outer space.
Haggerty argues against the long-held view that the carbon in diamond comes from the remains of plants and marine organisms as they decayed under the high temperatures and pressures of the Earth's deep interior. The invited review is titled, "A Diamond Trilogy: Superplumes, Supercontinents, and Supernovae."
Many in the scientific community have long theorized that diamonds are primarily the result of organic materials that were dragged into the Earth's interior as one continental plate was thrust beneath another in a process called subduction.
This theory holds that the organic material, when exposed to the extreme heat and pressure within the Earth for millions of years, produced the carbon in diamonds. But the fossil record, and the dating of diamonds, indicate that this carbon is at least three billion years older than animal and plant life.
Haggerty suspects that some of the carbon in these diamonds was in fact produced in supernovae: the explosions of dying stars. The carbon was incorporated into our solar system, where it is the fourth most abundant element.
This carbon, plus some that was brought to Earth on meteorites, may well be the source of diamonds, Haggerty says. The study of diamond has seen a recent burst of activity as new research methods have become available. The new theory is based on an evaluation of this scientific literature, he notes.
Evidence lending weight to the "stardust" theory includes the antiquity of the diamonds, and the similarity of carbon isotopic ratios to those found in meteorites, Haggerty says.
Also, the bulk composition of the Earth is chondritic; that is, similar to a class of meteorites called chondrites. Chondrites contain several forms of carbon, including diamonds older than our sun.
"Because the early Earth was bombarded by meteorites," he says, "it is reasonable to conclude that the carbon in diamonds on the Earth is primordial."
Scientists have shown that most diamonds are brought from the Earth's interior to its surface by volcanoes. But the volcanoes that bring forth these precious stones are much younger than the diamonds themselves, according to Haggerty.
"This combination of old diamonds and young volcanoes indicates that the diamonds were already formed when magma brought them to the surface," said Haggerty.
Additionally, there were two geologically short time periods during which hundreds of diamond-producing volcanoes erupted all over the Earth. One group erupted about one billion years ago, and the other 100 million years ago.
Haggerty suggests that the eruptions were the result of the "blooming" of molten plumes from the Earth's core. The volcanoes occurred randomly around the planet, rather than along continental plate boundaries, lending support to the model of deep primary carbon.

lzhnuaa007

意大利一种歌剧

'verismo'
Romantic Studies


Musical 'verismo' was a notable feature of operas by such diverse composers as Leoncavallo, Mascagni, Puccini, Mussorgsky and others. What do we understand by the term 'Verismo' in opera?
This essay aims to explore the origins and development of the 'verismo' style in nineteenth century opera and to examine its importance within the operatic genre as a whole. In doing this, an understanding of the term 'verismo' can be established in its operatic context
'Verismo' is an Italian term meaning 'realism'. The word is most often used to describe an Italian operatic movement of the late nineteenth century, which included the works of composers such as Mascagni, Leoncavallo, Puccini and Giordano. However, realism in music was not a new phenomenon to the nineteenth century, and was by no means founded in nor confined to Italy. Realism dates as far back as Ancient Greek drama and tragedy, where human emotions and passions were strikingly portrayed. Throughout history artists felt a proclivity for expressing realism, whether it be through literature, art, drama or music.

The movement which preceded nineteenth century operatic 'verismo' took its influences from the realist artistic works of previous centuries, and also focused upon major changes taking place at the time. The Western world was undergoing dramatic transformation on both a societal and economic level as a result of the scientific and industrial revolutions. The French academic Auguste Comte (1798-1857) founded the philosophy of positivism, a scientific theory of society, which centred around the concept that "mankind had outgrown theology and metaphysics; the only reality with which it need concern itself was that of observable 'fact'. There were no mysteries in the world that rigorous scientific investigation would not solve sooner or later" (Kimbell, David, 1995: Italian Opera: Cambridge University Press p622). This philosophy was fuel to the fire of early realists who, between the mid and late 1800's developed a more extreme anti-Romantic and almost scientific form of realism more often referred to as 'naturalism'. This movement, a direct reflection of the cultural shift taking place, was a central theme of aesthetic debate throughout the 1850's and 1860's. In writing on this theme Dahlhaus states "Even where the music of the period might be described more plausibly as 'neo-Romantic' than as 'realist', it often shared with the other arts a loss of idealism and of subjectivism. In many cases it shared too a contempt for aesthetic norms and conventions, flaunting them carelessly in the interests of a greater 'reality' "(Samson, Jim, 1991: 'Music and Society' in Jim Samson, ed.,The Late Romantic Era: From the Mid 19th Century to World War I:Macmillan p22).

The leading proponent of 'naturalism' was the French author Emile Zola (1840-1902) whose work "professed documentary realism while gloating over sordid and violent aspects of life"(Rosselli, John, 1991: 'Italy: the Decline of a Tradition' in Jim Sansom, ed., The Late Romantic Era: From the Mid 19th Century to World War I Macmillan, p140). His works tended to focus very much upon the 'low-life'. criminals, peasants and the relationship between society and its victims. These themes can be seen in later operas of the realist and verismo genres.

Operas such as Fidelio(1814) by Beethoven, Aida(1871) by Verdi and Carmen by Bizet can be cited as early examples of realism making an effect on opera. In the case of Beethoven it was the striking depiction of Pizarro's inprisonment of Florestan, the raw human emotions of Fidelio, and the overwhelming freedom scene at the end which convey the realistic message. Verdi's opera was also true to life, containing rich Egyptian local colour and scenic detail. Bizet's Carmen, based upon a novella of Prosper Merimee was also a realistic opera based upon ordinary people, eroticism and violence and as such it was incomprehensible to the patrons of the Opera-Comique, who felt that "the respectability of the state-subsidised theatre had been sullied by what one critic described as "Castilian licentiousness"."(Orrey, Leslie, 1996:Opera: Thames & Hudson p156-7)
Realism was also a prevalent concern of many nineteenth century Russian writers and composers. A struggle to create and maintain a Russion national music had been started by Glinka (1804-1857) and Dargomyzhsky (1813-1869) and was later continued by Russians such as Balakirev, Cui, Borodin, Rimsky Korsakov and Musorgsky. These composers were not trained in the standard German conservatory tradition and hence looked to their own nation, lore and folk music for inspiration and subject matter. It was such national inspiration that stirred Modest Musorgsky (1839-1881) to write his epic opera Boris Godunov (1874) which has today become one of the cornerstones of the operatic repertoire.

Musorgsky had lived in an artists commune in Saint Petersberg in 1863, where he had been exposed to contemporary literary movements, theory and aesthetics, learning about styles such as realism. This style was "espoused by Nikolai Gavrilovich Chernishevsky and exemplified in the novels and stories of Turgenev and Grigorovich. The arts, according to this doctrine, must eschew their own conventions in order to present their subjects in a direct and unadorned fashion; and proper subjects for artistic treatment are to be the real stuff of ordinary life- the Russian peasant, newly freed, became a favourite object of literary scrutiny" (Platinga, Leon, 1984: Romantic Music- A history of musical style in 19th Century Europe: W.W. Norton & Co. p374) Musorgsky's exposure to these works, as well as the influence of Dargomyzhsky's 'The Stone Guest' (1860-9) influenced a series of realistic works, for example a chamber opera setting of Gogol's The Marriage (1868) which was an extreme experiment in realistic declamation, which preceded Boris Godunov

The libretto for the opera was written by Musorgsky himself, but was based on a well crafted historical drama of the same name by Aleksandr Pushkin and N. M. Karamazin's History of the Russian State (1824). This opera assumes the form of a prologue and four acts and centres around Boris Godunov's (bass) murder of the rightful heir to the Russian throne, Dimitri. A monk named Grigory (tenor) poses as the late Dimitri and aims to start a revolt agains Boris who had laid claim to the throne. Suddenly Boris, crazed by visions of the murdered boy, staggers in. A second monk, Pimen (bass), appears and tells of the young Dimitri, now numbered among the saints of God. It is too much for the demented Boris, who falls dead. (For a more detailed description of the plot see Lloyd-Jones, David, 1993: 'Modest Musorgsky' in Amanda Holden ed., The Penguin Opera Guide p260)
Boris Godunov signified the pinnacle of Musorgsky's experimentations with realism, and both preceded and influenced the Italian veristic movement through its succinct melodic lines which directly convey emotion, its dramatic recitative, irregularity of phrase length, intensely national libretto and focus on word setting, and an obvious folk influence. Musorgsky aimed to write music as a true and accurate, yet artistic reproduction of the nuances of human speech. As Feodor Chaliapin (a bass who assumed the role of Boris Godunov in Rimsky Korsakov's edition of the opera) stated "certainly Musorgsky is a realist, but his power lies not in the fact that his music is realistic, but in the fact that his realism is music in the most staggering sense of the word. Behind his realism, as behind a curtain, there is a whole world of insights and emotions that simply cannot fit into the realistic plane" (Chaliapin, Feodor: 'Memoir extract' in Caryl Emerson and Robert William Oldani, ed., Modest Musorgsky and Boris Godunov; Myths, Realities, Reconsiderations: Cambridge, p156)

The first Italian opera to be truly described as 'veristic' was Cavalleria Rusticana by Pietro Mascagni (1863-1945). This was a one-act work, first performed in 1890, whose title literally translated means 'Rustic Chivalry'. It was originally written for an opera competition of 1888, sponsored by the Milanese publisher E. Sonzogno. Mascagni was unknown at the time, but his opera won the competition. The libretto was based upon a story from Giovanni Verga's Vita dei Campi of 1880.
The Italian 'verismo' movement into which this opera fits "resembles French naturalism in the use of scenes and characters from common life; but the French naturalists used these materials as a means for the development of more general ideas and feelings, idealising both scene and music, whereas the goal of the Italian realists was simply to present a vivid, melodramatic plot, to arouse sensation by violent contrasts and to paint a cross-section of life without concerning themselves with any general significance the action might have"(Grout, Donald Jay, 1988: A Short History of Opera Columbia University Press, p509). Itis interesting to note that the essential difference between French literary naturalism and Italian veristic writing was that French authors often assumed a more harsly politicised and theoretical stance, offering social commentary through their work. It is thought that this apparent difference between French and Italian works of the time was due to the relative states of the two countries. France was re-establishing itself after the Revolution of 1848 which had shaken the otherwise sturdy foundations of the nation, whereas Italy had finally become a powerful and unified country, leaving its' citizens feeling proud and confident. This was directly reflected in the comparative literary outputs of Zola, a Frenchman directly and honestly critiquing the state of his country, and Sicilian writers such as Verga and Luigi Capuana writing short stories and novels about regions of Italy, the working-class lifestyle and events taking place within this setting.
As with veristic literature, operas of the genre tended to starkly depict violence and passion, as well as celebrating the cultures of different regional areas. As Kimbell states, "Whilst naturalism is urban, verismo is more typically rural and provincial"(Kimbell, David, 1995: Italian Opera: Cambridge p624)

Cavalleria Rusticana was certainly Anti-Wagnerian in style, flouting operatic conventions for melodramatic gain, favouring a return to the older cantabile style of earlier Italian operas. The veristic element is clear through Mascagni's expression of raw emotion and the exploration and unleashing of more accessible subject matters. The intense passion and sensation of the relationship between Turiddu and Lola and the duel between Turiddu and Alfio portray the realistic, if not sensationalistic, thematic material.
This extreme passion is delivered through poignantly expressive melodic or declamatory phrases, accompanied by sensational orchestral harmonies, with choral or instrumental interludes to set the mood. At times Mascagni's score seems rather simplistic or almost purposefully primitive, although it serves its purpose to deliver moments of excitement, tension and passion in swift succession - as Kimbell calls it "continuous vibrant emotional ecstacy. It was the combination of radical simplicity in the dramatic action with a style of vocal writing in which virtually every phrase is laden with searing intensity that made Cavalleria Rusticana irresistible and verismo fashionable"(Kimbell, David, 1995: Italian Opera: Cambridge p621)

The second most famous Italian 'verismo' opera of the period was I Pagliaci (often referred to simply as Pagliacci), meaning 'Clowns', written by Ruggiero Leoncavallo (1858-1919) two years after the first performance of Cavalleria Rusticana. The opera was undoubtedly influenced by Mascagni's work and is today often played as part of an operatic double bill with Cavalleria. Its libretto, written by the composer himself, was based upon a real court case at which Leoncavallo's father had been police-magistrate, a crime of passion.
The opera opens in a veristic manner with a prologue during which a clown, Tonio (baritone), explains that the play is not just make-believe: the characters are real people, the story true. The plot revolves around Tonio's unrequited love for Canio's wife, Nedda (soprano), Nedda's passion for her her lover, Silvio (baritone), and the mental turmoil, madness and murders that ensue during the Harlequinade they are performing.
The realism is artfully portrayed here, with emotional conflicts from the characters' personal lives interfering with their professional lives and wreaking havoc in the Commedia dell'arte play-within-a-play. The tenor solo, 'Vesti la giubba', in which Canio the clown must laugh although his heart is breaking is a fine example of the welling emotion contained within the opera.

The music of I Pagliacci is without a doubt more sophisticated and continuous than Cavalleria Rusticana, with rich harmonies and a certain air of tension maintained throughout. Its' true to life, yet primitive themes of passion, jealousy, violence, despair and love make I Pagliacci a veristic and dramatic masterpiece. As Boyden describes it, " the epitome of every hot-blooded Italian operatic cliche, Pagliacci is one of the most elementally exciting operas ever written and its international popularity has never waned from the day if its' premiere" (Boyden, Matthew, 1997:Opera: Penguin, p327)
Unfortunately both Masgagni and Leoncavallo never again achieved the success of their first veristic operas, with Cavalleria Rusticana and I Pagliacci respectively being the composers' main legacies to the world of opera.

Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924) was, however, the leading figure in Italian opera of the late nineteenth century. His three most famous works, La Boheme (1896), Tosca (1900), and Madama Butterfly (1904) all convey aspects of the verismo style to their audiences.
Puccini also wrote a one-act veristic melodrama, Il Tabarro (1915-16) which contained many realistic touches such as car-horn noises, and snatches of music from La Boheme as we see a music seller on stage. These realistic elements are closely integrated into the otherwise sombre atmosphere of the drama and heighten our involvement and understanding of the action. Some aspects of realism, although perhaps less convincing, are also apparent in La Fanciulla del West (1910) although these are more related to the depiction of the Californian locale.

La Boheme contains dramatic touches of verismo in a different scale to that of Cavalleria Rusticana. Its drama is not based on crime and violence, but upon the pathetic plight of Mimi combined with heart-wrenching music, longing and yearning for better times.
Tosca was based upon a drama of the same name, written in 1887 by Victorien Sardou. The plot centres around lust and crime, two veristic themes, which are beautifully set to music. "To anatomise the crime of passion became an obsession with writers in the last decades of the nineteenth century; and the fascination forges a link between verismo and decadence that is obviously indispensable to any understanding of Puccini" (Kinbell, David, 1995:Italian Opera: Cambridge p624)