Unit 5 Working the Land There existed a common assumption that chemicals were the best way to attain higher yields in conventional agriculture. But these chemicals tend to accumulate in the soil and underground water， and affect the crops and，in turn， the animals and humans who digest them. How to tackle this issue？ Scientists are convinced that the answer lies in agricultural technology. Theydevote themselves to generating seeds with superb characteristics， which can reduce risks of pest and boost output greatly. In the meantime， more farmers have turned to organic farming. They entirely avoid the use of chemical pesticides and fertilisers so that the products have betterflavour and comprise richer nutrition， for instance， essential minerals. We hope that with scientists’ intense efforts and the widespread application of agricultural technology， farmers can have more alternatives. 1 devotevt.把……献（给）；把……专用于；专心于 1.[外研选必④－1] After Sherlock Holmes made him a household name， Doyle gave up medicine and devoted himself entirely to writing （write）. 点拨 句意：在福尔摩斯使道尔变得家喻户晓之后，道尔放弃了行医，全身心投入写作。a household name 家喻户晓的人（或物）。 2.Sun Jiadong’s devotion （devote） to China’s space industry is wonderfully inspiring. 3.2008年，张桂梅成立了一所女子学校，她把所有的时间和精力都投入了进去。 In 2008， Zhang Guimei set up an all-girls high school， to which she devoted all her time and energy . （"介词＋which"引导的非限制性定语从句） 4.我最崇拜的人是袁隆平，他一生致力于水稻生产。 （人物介绍） The person I admire most is Yuan Longping， who devoted all his life to rice production .（定语从句） ★devote ... to ... 把……用于；献身；致力；专心 devote oneself to （doing）sth. 致力于（做）某事 ★devoted adj.挚爱的；忠诚的；全心全意的 be devoted to （doing）sth. 专心于（做）某事；致力于（做）某事 ★devotion n.关爱；奉献；专心 2 convincevt.使相信；使确信；说服 1.[外研选必①－5]But Darwin’s scientific studies were so convincing （convince） that more and more people started to believe his theory. 2.[外研选必④－3]Great to hear you’re coming to the US！ I hope I can convince you to stop （stop） by and visit us in New York. 3.Given his experience， I am convinced of his ability to tackle the problem. 4.我完全相信，通过我们的共同努力，我们能够克服这些困难。（读后续写之主旨升华） I am fully convinced that with our joint efforts we can overcome these difficulties. 点拨 在写作中，用I am convinced that... 代替I believe/think that... 可为文章增色不少。 ★convince sb. of sth. 使某人相信某事 convince sb. to do sth. 说服某人做某事 ★convinced adj.坚信的；深信的；确信的 be convinced of... 坚信……；确信…… be convinced that＋从句相信……；确信…… ★convincing adj.令人信服的 3 alternativen.可供选择的事物 adj.可供替代的；非传统的 1.Facial recognition technology is a quick and cool alternative to traditional passwords， and you cannot forget your own face！ 2.You can turn to ... ...
