ALL+互動英語[有聲版]：【進階、應用】聽說讀寫全面升級 2024年8月號第237期 (電子雜誌)

Tilted Beauty: The Leaning Tower of Pisa
比薩斜塔的傾斜之美
8/21
The Leaning Tower of Pisa is without a doubt one of the most photographed buildings in the entire world. Faced with its distinctive lean, tourists can’t seem to resist taking pictures in which they pretend to hold it up, lick it like an ice cream cone, or make some other silly sight gag. So, in honor of the tower’s recent 850th anniversary, let’s take a look at some of the most interesting aspects of its long, strange history.
The tower’s fame results from a basic design flaw.
Of course, the tower wasn’t supposed to lean. However, its architects made a serious mistake. The tower’s three-meter foundation wasn’t deep enough to support its weight in the soft soil on which the city of Pisa is located. In fact, because of the city’s unstable ground, there are several other leaning towers in Pisa.
The tower took 199 years to build.
Though construction of the tower began in 1173, it wasn’t completed until 1372! This was largely due to several decades-long delays caused by wars between Pisa and its neighbors. Fortunately, these delays allowed the soil beneath the tower to settle, almost certainly saving it from falling over.

比薩斜塔無疑是全世界最常被拍攝的建築之一。面對其獨特的傾斜，遊客似乎無法抗拒拍照，在照片中他們假裝撐起它、像冰淇淋甜筒一樣舔它，或者做其他一些愚蠢的視覺笑點。因此，為了紀念該塔最近興建了八百五十週年，讓我們來看看它漫長而奇怪的歷史中一些最有趣的方面吧。
該塔的名氣源於一個基本的設計缺陷。
當然，這座塔原本不應該傾斜。然而，它的建築師們犯了一個嚴重的錯誤。該塔的三公尺地基深度不足以支撐它位在比薩市所處的軟土上的重量。事實上，由於該市的地基不穩，比薩還有其他幾座斜塔。
該塔興建歷時一百九十九年。
雖然這座塔的建造始於一一七三年，但直到一三七二年才竣工！這主要是由於比薩與鄰近城市的戰爭而導致了數十年的延誤。幸好，這段延誤時間使得該塔下方的土壤沉降壓實，幾乎可以肯定使其免於倒塌。

8/22
Galileo used the tower to conduct a famous physics experiment.
According to one of Galileo’s students, the renowned scientist and inventor dropped two balls consisting of different masses but made of the same material from the top of the tower. Because both balls hit the ground at the same time, the experiment showed that objects fall at the same speed regardless of their weight. This disproved the great Greek philosopher Aristotle’s theory that heavier objects fall faster than lighter objects.
A church tower in Germany leans even more.
Although the Leaning Tower of Pisa is certainly the world’s most famous leaning tower, the Leaning Tower of Suurhusen in Germany has an even greater lean, at 5.19 degrees compared to 3.97 degrees for the Tower of Pisa. However, the Italian tower is much taller and is widely considered a jewel of Romanesque art, which may account for its greater fame.
In any case, by combining beauty with a rather obvious defect, the Leaning Tower of Pisa has become a truly global icon of architecture. In spite of its fundamental flaw—indeed, because of it—the tower remains an enduring symbol of human ingenuity and resilience.

伽利略利用該塔進行了一項著名的物理實驗。
根據伽利略一位學生的說法，這位知名的科學家兼發明家從塔頂丟下兩顆由不同質量組成但相同材質製成的球。由於兩顆球同時落地，該實驗顯示，無論重量如何，物體都會以相同的速度落下。這證明了偉大的希臘哲學家亞里斯多德的理論，即較重的物體降落速度比較輕的物體更快是錯誤的。
德國的一座教堂塔樓傾斜得更嚴重。
雖然比薩斜塔確實是世界上最著名的斜塔，但相較於比薩斜塔的傾斜度為三點九七度，德國蘇爾胡森斜塔的傾斜度更大，為五點一九度。然而，這座義大利斜塔要高得多，而且普遍被視為羅馬式藝術的瑰寶，這可能是它名聲更響亮的原因。
無論如何，比薩斜塔結合了美與頗為明顯的缺陷，成為了一個真正全球的建築標誌。儘管它存在根本性的缺陷——事實上，正因為如此——這座塔仍然是人類聰明才智與堅韌的永恆象徵。

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Unit 1 News Report 看新聞學英語
Taiwan Shaken by Biggest Earthquake in 25 Years
臺灣發生二十五年以來最大地震

Unit 2 Travel  繞著地球玩
Monuments and Medals: Paris Gets Ready for the 2024 Summer Olympics
今夏遊巴黎，為奧運喝采

Unit 3 Olympic feature  奧運特輯
A Timeless Test: The Evolution of the Olympic Pentathlon
奧運五項運動的演變史

Unit 4 Reading Skill 讀門祕笈
Escaping from Infinite Scrolling
擺脫無限滾動

Unit 5 Plus Talk  會話百分百
Planning a Trip
用英語規劃旅遊
1. Inquiring about a Travel Package  詢問旅遊套裝行程
2. Arranging Some Alternatives  安排其他選擇
3. Booking a Hotel  預訂飯店
4. Asking about Package Deals  詢問優惠套裝行程

Unit 6 People 人物側寫
Ariana Grande: From Tragedies to Triumphs
亞莉安娜：從悲劇邁向勝利

Unit 7 混合題型
Brisk Walking or Ultra Jogging: Which Wins the Fitness Face-Off?
健走或超慢跑：健身對決，何者勝出？

Unit 8 Writing 寫作練習
Translation Practice
翻譯寫作

CNN News
Animal Behaviors during the Eclipse
日食期間的動物行為

Unit 9 Language 語言文化
Mysteries Carved in Stone: The Ancient Language of Runes
石刻之謎：古老的盧恩字母

Unit 10 Architecture  歷史建築
Tilted Beauty: The Leaning Tower of Pisa
比薩斜塔的傾斜之美

Unit 11 Dialogue Focus 情境對話
Pastries around the World
世界糕點大賞
What’s Your Favorite Pastry?
你最喜歡什麼糕點？

Unit 12 Food  食品與健康
Food Poisoning: The Invisible Threat
食物中毒：看不見的威脅


Unit 13 Culture  文化探討
The Great Shoe Debate: Should Shoes Be Worn Indoors?
室內該不該穿鞋呢？

Unit 14 Topic Writing主題式寫作
Writing about a Picture
看圖寫作