大学英语系列教材视听说教程第二单元听力原文

Peter: And now for our last report of this evening, we turn to Jayne Montgomery in

our London office for a story that reads like a movie screenplay. Jane.

Jayne: Thanks, Peter. It’s been just over a month now since police on a routine

patrol spotted a tall, blonde man wandering in a daze on a beach in the costal town of Sheerness in southeast England. Officers initially approached this man because he seemed to be lost. The man, who appears to be in his late 20s and early 30s, was dressed as if he’d come from a celebration of some sort. However, the strange thing was that the clothes he was wearing at that time were wet—as if he’d just been in the water. While he was not injured, officers say that he was extremely confused. And when asked his name, he seemed to draw a blank. Concerned for the man’s safety, officers took him to a nearby hospital for observation. Staff members found the man physically intact, but unable or unwilling to talk. According to one hospital staff member, the young man doesn’t seem to know where he is or even who he is. We spoke earlier with a social worker at the Sheerness Memorial Hospital.

Social Worker:

At the moment, we’re concentrating on establishing the patient’s identity. He was brought into the hospital without any money or identification. We’ve tried showing him photos of various places in the U.K. and Europe, hoping he’d associate something in a picture with his home. But so far, we haven’t had any luck. At the moment, we believe that this young man is suffering from some kind of memory lapse, a form of temporary amnesia, if you will.

Jayne: The story might have ended there if one of the hospital social workers hadn’t

given the man a piece of paper and pen, hoping that he would try to write something and perhaps has identified himself that way. That’s when things took an unusual turn.

Social Worker: Well, it’s quite astonishing really. We’re all expecting to write his name or

perhaps where he’s from. But instead, he drew this picture of a piano. No one quite understood what he was trying to communicate so we took him downstairs where we’ve got a piano. You can imagine our shock when he sat down and began playing everything from Tchaikovsky to the songs by the Beatles!

Jayne: Several weeks later, the man now being referred to as “the Piano Man” still

hasn’t spoken and for the most part, remains extremely confused. Social workers observing him claim that it’s only when he is at the piano that he seems to be content. The special hotline established to help the man has been inundated with calls from around the globe. As of today, though, no positive identity has been made. Peter?

Peter: That’s quite a story, Jane. I’m curious…have doctors been able to determine

what may have caused the man’s memory loss?

Jayne: At this point, they aren’t sure. Because this man doesn’t appear to suffer any

sort of head injury, doctors believe that his amnesia may have been brought on by a sudden shock of some kind.

Peter: It’s interesting that his ability to play the piano remains intact even though he

can’t remember who he is.

Jayne: Yes, his case really does raise some interesting questions about the human

mind and about how our memories work.

Peter: Hmm… Well, it’ll be interesting to see how this story develops. If any of our

listeners has any information that might help to identify this man, we’re asking that you please contact our production office…