課文:

Does floating in a barrel over a massive waterfall or walking on the wings of an airplane sound appealing to you? If so, you might be a daredevil! Reckless activities like these seem crazy, yet since ancient times people have been taking incredible risks, often just for the thrill of it.

daredevil:喜歡冒險的人、鋌而走險的人、不怕死的、冒險家
float:漂浮的
barrel:大桶
massive:巨大的、大量的、大規模的
mass:大量
appealing:有魅力的、動人的
reckless:不顧後果的
incredible:難以置信的
thrill:(使)興奮、激動

Early pioneers

Spaniard Abbas Ibn Firnas, a 9th-century inventor, was fascinated with flight, so he designed and built a glider. To test his device, Firnas jumped from the top of a tower, gliding successfully for a short distance before making a hard landing. His brief flight was well documented and inspired those in early aviation.

pioneer:拓荒者、先驅
inventor:發明家
fascinate:強烈吸引、使著迷
glider:滑翔機
tower:高塔
brief:短暫的
well document:證據充分的
aviation:航空(學)、飛行
avi-:鳥

Niagara Falls has probably attracted more daredevils over the years than any other location on Earth. In 1859, “The Great Blondin,” also known as Jean Francios Gravelot, walked along a 1,100-foot tightrope over the falls. It was suspender 170 feet above the river and connected the U.S. and Canadian sides!

tightrope:鋼索、繩索
suspend:懸吊、吊掛、吊起來、中止、使暫停
sus-:在上面
connect:連結、使接通

In 1901, 63-year-old retired school teacher Annie Taylor went over the falls in a barrel but only after sending her cat over beforehand to test the barrel. They both survived, making Taylor the first person to ever do so.

beforehand:預先、事先、提前的


文法:
… have been … often just …
(…從過去以來一直在做…因為…)

特別補充:
risk-taking
:冒險行為
consistently:一貫地、固守地
push the limits:(= you see how far you can go)
have a fascination with:對…強烈著迷
aviator glasses:飛行員眼鏡
dog people:愛狗人士
cat people:愛貓人士
affection:溫和的感情
companionship:陪伴關係
publicity stunt:作秀、宣傳噱頭

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