新概念3-第11部分

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Harry　used　to　consider　it　a　great　joke　to　go　into　expensive　cosmetic　shops　and　make　outrageous　requests　for　goods　that　do　not　exist。　He　would　invent　fanciful　names　on　the　spot。　On　entering　a　shop；　he　would　ask　for　a　new　perfume　called　'Scented　Shadow'　or　for　'insoluble　bath　cubes'。　If　a　shop　girl　told　him　she　had　not　heard　of　it；　he　would　pretend　to　be　considerably　put　out。　He　loved　to　be　told　that　one　of　his　imaginary　products　was　temporarily　out　of　stock　and　he　would　faithfully　promise　to　call　again　at　some　future　date；　but　of　course　he　never　did。　How　Harry　managed　to　keep　a　straight　face　during　these　performances　is　quite　beyond　me。　
Harry　does　not　need　to　be　prompted　to　explain　how　he　bought　his　precious　bottle　of　mud。　One　day；　he　went　to　an　exclusive　shop　in　London　and　asked　for　'Myrolite'。　The　shop　assistant　looked　puzzled　and　Harry　repeated　the　word；　slowly　stressing　each　syllable。　When　the　girl　shook　her　head　in　bewilderment；　Harry　went　on　to　explain　that　'myrolite'　was　a　hard；　amber…like　substance　which　could　be　used　to　remove　freckles。　This　explanation　evidently　conveyed　something　to　the　girl　who　searched　shelf　after　shelf。　She　produced　all　sorts　of　weird　concoctions；　but　none　of　them　met　with　Harry's　requirements。　When　Harry　put　on　his　act　of　being　mildly　annoyed；　the　girl　promised　to　order　some　for　him。　Intoxicated　by　his　success；　Harry　then　asked　for　perfumed　mud。　He　expected　the　girl　to　look　at　him　in　blank　astonishment。　However；　it　was　his　turn　to　be　surprised；　for　the　girl's　eyes　immediately　lit　up　and　she　'fetched　several　botties　which　she　placed　on　the　counter　for　Harry　　to　inspect。　For　once；　Harry　had　to　admit　defeat。　He　picked　up　what　seemed　to　be　the　smallest　bottle　and　discreetly　asked　the　price。　He　was　glad　to　get　away　with　a　mere　five　guineas　and　he　beat　a　hasty　retreat；　clutching　the　precious　bottle　under　his　arm。　From　then　on；　Harry　decided　that　this　little　game　he　had　invented　might　prove　to　be　expensive。　The　curious　bottle　which　now　adorns　the　bookcase　in　his　study　was　his　first　and　last　purchase　of　rare　cosmetics。

Lesson53　In　the　public　interest
The　Scandinavian　countries　are　much　admired　all　over　the　world　for　their　enlightened　social　policies。　Sweden　has　evolved　an　excellent　system　for　protecting　the　individual　citizen　from　high…handed　or　incompetent　public　officers。　The　system　has　worked　so　well；　that　it　has　been　adopted　in　other　countries　like　Denmark；　Norway；　Finland；　and　New　Zealand。　Even　countries　with　large　populations　like　Britain　and　the　United　States　are　seriously　considering　imitating　the　Swedes。
The　Swedes　were　the　first　to　recognize　that　public　officials　like　civil　servants；　collectors　can　make　mistakes　or　act　over…zealously　in　the　belief　that　they　are　serving　the　public。　As　long　ago　as　1809；　the　Swedish　Parliament　introduced　a　scheme　to　safeguard　the　interest　of　the　individual。　A　parliamentary　committee　representing　all　political　parties　appoints　a　person　who　is　suitably　qualified　to　investigate　private　grievances　against　the　State。　The　official　title　of　the　person　is　'Justiteombudsman'；　but　the　Swedes　commonly　refer　to　him　as　the　'J。O。'　or　'Ombudsman'。　The　Ombudsman　is　not　subject　to　political　pressure。　He　investigates　complaints　large　and　small　that　come　to　him　from　all　levels　of　society。　As　complaints　must　be　made　in　writing；　the　Ombudsman　receives　an　average　of　1200　letters　a　year。　He　has　eight　lawyer　assistants　to　help　him　and　he　examines　every　single　letter　in　detail。　There　is　nothing　secretive　about　the　Ombudsman's　work；　for　his　correspondence　is　open　to　public　inspection。　If　a　citizen's　complaint　is　justified；　the　Ombudsman　will　act　on　his　behalf。　The　action　he　takes　varies　according　to　the　nature　of　the　complaint。　He　may　gently　reprimand　an　official　or　even　suggest　to　parliament　that　a　law　be　altered。　The　following　case　is　a　typical　example　of　the　Ombudsman's　work。　
A　foreigner　living　in　a　Swedish　village　wrote　to　the　Ombudsman　complaining　that　he　had　been　ill…treated　by　the　police；　simply　because　he　was　a　foreigner。　The　Ombudsman　immediately　wrote　to　the　Chief　of　Police　in　the　district　asking　him　to　send　a　record　of　the　case。　There　was　nothing　in　the　record　to　show　that　the　foreigner's　complaint　was　justified　and　the　Chief　of　Police　stoutly　denied　the　accusation。　It　was　impossible　for　the　Ombudsman　to　take　action；　but　when　he　received　a　similar　complaint　from　another　foreigner　in　the　same　village；　he　immediately　sent　one　of　his　lawyers　to　investigate　the　matter。　The　lawyer　ascertained　that　a　policeman　had　indeed　dealt　roughly　with　foreigners　on　several　occasions。　The　fact　that　the　policeman　was　prejudiced　against　foreigners　could　not　be　recorded　in　he　official　files。　It　was　only　possible　for　the　Ombudsman　to　
find　this　out　by　sending　one　of　his　representatives　to　check　the　facts。　The　policeman　in　question　was　severely　reprimanded　and　was　informed　that　if　any　further　complaints　were　lodged　against　him；　he　would　be　prosecuted。　The　Ombudsman's　prompt　action　at　once　put　an　end　to　an　unpleasant　practice　which　might　have　gone　unnoticed。　

Lesson54　Instinct　or　cleverness？
We　have　been　brought　up　to　fear　insects。　We　regard　them　as　unnecessary　creatures　that　do　more　harm　than　good。　Man　continually　wages　war　on　item；　for　they　contaminate　his　food；　carry　diseases；　or　devour　his　crops。　They　sting　or　bite　without　provocation；　they　fly　uninvited　into　our　rooms　on　summer　nights；　or　beat　against　our　lighted　windows。　We　live　in　dread　not　only　of　unpleasant　insects　like　spiders　or　wasps；　but　of　quite　harmless　ones　like　moths。　Reading　about　them　increases　our　understanding　with　out　dispelling　our　fears。　Knowing　that　the　industrious　ant　lives　in　a　highly
organized　society　does　nothing　to　prevent　us　from　being　filled　with　revulsion　when　we　find　hordes　of　them　crawling　over　a　carefully　prepared　picnic　lunch。　No　matter　how　much　we　like　honey；　or　how　much　we　have　read　about　the　uncanny　sense　of　direction　which　bees　possess；　we　have　a　horror　of　being　stung。　Most　of　our　fears　are　unreasonable；　but　they　are　impossible　to　erase。　At　the　same　time；　however；　insects　are　strangely　fascinaing。　We　enjoy　reading　about　them；　especially　when　we　find　that；　like　the　praying　mantis；　they　lead　perfectly　horrible　lives。　We　enjoy　staring　at　them　entranced　as　they　go　about　their　business；　unaware　（we　hope）　of　our　presence。　Who　has　not　stood　in　awe　at　the　sight　of　a　spider　pouncing　on　a　fly；　or　a　column　of　ants　triumphantly　bearing　home　an　enormous　dead　beetle　？　
Last　summer　I　spent　days　in　the　garden　watching　thousands　of　ants　crawling　up　the　trunk　of　my　prize　peach　tree。　The　tree　has　grown　against　a　warm　wall　on　a　sheltered　side　of　the　house。　I　am　especially　proud　of　it；　not　only　because　it　has　survived　several　severe　winters；　but　because　it　occasionally　produces　luscious　peaches。　During　the　summer；　I　noticed　that　the　leaves　of　the　tree　were　beginning　to　wither。　Clusters　of　tiny　insects　called　aphides　were　to　be　found　on　the　underside　of　the　leaves。　They　were　visited　by　a　laop　colony　of　ants　which　obtained　a　sort　of　honey　from　them。　I　immediately　embarked　on　an　experiment　which；　even　though　it　failed　to　get　rid　of　the　ants；　kept　me　fascinated　for　twenty…four　hours。　I　bound　the　base　of　the　tree　with　sticky　tape　；　making　it　impossible　for　the　ants　to　reach　the　aphides。　The　tape　was　so　sticky　that　they　did　not　dare　to　cross　it。　For　a　long　time；　I　watched　them　scurrying　around　the　base　of　the　tree　in　bewilderment。　I　even　went　out　at　midnight　with　a　torch　and　noted　with　satisfaction　（and　surprise）　that　the　ants　were　still　swarming　around　the　sticky　tape　without　being　able　to　do　anything　about　it。　I　got　up　early　next　morning　hoping　to　find　that　the　ants　had　given　up　in　despair。　Instead；　I　saw　that　they　had　discovered　a　new　route。　They　were　climbing　up　the　wall　of　the　house　and　then　on　to　the　leaves　of
the　tree。　I　realized　sadly　that　I　had　been　completely　defeated　by　their　ingenuity。　The　ants　had　been　quick　to　find　an　answer　to　my　thoroughly　unscientific　methods！

Lesson55　From　the　earth：　greatings
Radio　astronomy　has　greatly　increased　our　understanding　of　the　universe。　Radio　telescopes　have　one　big　advantage　over　conventional　telescopes　in　that　they　can　operate　in　all　weather　conditions　and　can　pick　up　signals　coming　from　very　distant　stars。　These　signals　are　produced　by　colliding　stars　or　nuclear　reactions　in　outer　space。　The　most　powerful　signals　that　have　been　received　have　been　emitted　by　what　seem　to　be　truly　colossal　stars　which　scientists　have　named　'quasars'。
A　better　understanding　of　these　phenomena　may　completely　alter　our　conception　of　the　nature　of　the　universe。　The　radio　telescope　at　Jodrell　Bank　in　England　was　for　many　years　the　largest　in　the　world。　A　new　telescope；　over　twice　the　size；　was　recently　built　at　Sugar　Grove　in　West　Virginia。　Astronomers　no　longer　regard　as　fanciful　the　idea　that　they　may　one　day　pick　up　signals　which　have　been　sent　by　intelligent　beings　on　other　worlds。　This　possibility　gives　rise　to　interesting　speculations。　Highly　advanced　civilizations　may　have　existed　on　other　planets　long　before　intelligent　forms　of　life　evolved　on　the　earth。　Conversely；　intelligent　being　which　are　just　beginning　to　develop　on　remote　worlds　may　be　ready　to　pick　up　our　signals　in　thousands　of　years'　time；　or　when　life　on　earth　has　become　extinct。　Such　speculations　no　longer　belong　to　the　realm　of　science　fiction；　for　astronomers　are　now　exploring　the　chances　of　communicating　with　living　creatures　（if　they　exist）　on　distant　planets。　This　undertaking　which　has　been　named　Project　Ozma　was　begun　in　1960；　but　it　may　take　a　great　many　years　before　results　are　obtained。　
Aware　of　the　fact　that　it　would　be　impossible　to　wait　thousands　or　millions　of　years　to　receive　an　answer　from　a　distant　planet；　scientists　engaged　in　Project　Ozma　are　concentrating　their　attention　on　stars　which　are　relatively　close。　One　of　the　most　likely　stars　is　Tau　Ceti　which　is　eleven　light　years　away。　If　signals　from　the　earth　were　received　by　intelligent　creatures　on　a　planet　circling　this
star；　we　would　have　to　wait　twenty…two　years　for　an　answer。　The　Green　Bank　telescope　in　West　Virginia　has　been　specially　designed　to　distinguish　between　random　signals　and　signals　which　might　be　in　code。　Even　if　contact　were　eventually　established；　a