Chapter One
Introduction
Numbers are all around us. Numbers are very important to our study and our life. Numeral system includes cardinal numbers, ordinal numbers, odd numbers, even numbers, decimals， fractions and percentages. The numbers used to count the objects in a group are called cardinal numbers:1,2,3,4, etc. Those used to indicate position or order in a list are called ordinal numbers:1st,2nd,3rd,4th, etc. The odd numbers are those beginning with 1 and counting by twos:1,3,5,7,9, etc. The even numbers are those beginning with 2 and counting by twos：2,4,6,8,10, etc. Decimal numbers may sometimes be identified for containing a decimal separator （for example the“.”in 10. 09 or 3. 141,59）. Fractions are quotient of two rational numbers. The numbers are divided into denominator and numerator. Percentage is a number or ratio expressed as a fraction of 100. It is often denoted using the percent sign,“%”, or the abbreviation“pct.”.
Telephone numbers, addresses, prices, temperatures, time, dates, etc. are all closely linked with the use of numbers. Besides, numbers also play an important role in broadcasting programs such as scientific stories, statistic updates and news reports about ongoing events of various kinds. Therefore, quick and accurate response to numbers is very important in daily communication.
There are seven chapters in this book, including Chapter One—introduction, Chapter Two—cardinal numbers, Chapter Three—ordinal numbers, Chapter Four—decimals, fractions and percentages, Chapter Five—mathematic forms, Chapter Six—numbers in daily life and Chapter Seven—comprehensive Exercises. From Chapter Two to Chapter Six, each chapter focuses on one aspect of numbers with analysis and exercises. The last chapter is to test students' ability of listening to various kinds of numbers and numerals.
How Numbers are Pronounced
A. You will hear a short passage on listening to numbers. Write down the words or phrases that you've heard on the blanks.
Although identification of numbers （1 ）________ is usually easy， number identification through （2）________proves to be a big problem for many people. In actual listening，we are often required to get the numbers immediately after we hear them. Noting numbers requires familiarity with the English number system. The group of three concepts is very important when you have numbers. And （3）________to get a correct number，some-times a mere mistake in a （4）________，can seriously affect the understanding the mean-ing and cause severe （5 ）________. Remember that numbers are in groups of （6 ）________except for the group farthest to the left. For easy reading and writing，numbers are separated by a （7）________ （，）into groups of three digits each. Every time you hear a word such as （8 ）________________________ . Look at the number“56，789，123，040”. It consists of 11 digits. It is called fifty－six billion，seven hundred eighty－nine million，one hundred twenty three thousand and forty. Numbers are often read in （9）________________. For example，“12，345，000”is read“twelve million，three hundred forty－five thousand”or“twelve point three four five million”. The differences between billion and million，“－teens”and“-tys”are so difficult that no one can simply ignore them. Saying numbers to yourselves after you hear them can increase your （10 ）________________. Let's practice with numbers and learn to be good at numbers.
B. Listen to the following paragraphs and fill in the numbers on the blanks.
About （1）________of American households have at least one television set, and （2）________have more than one. To reach this vast audiences, there were , by （3） ，（4 ）________________televisions stations in the United States—including （5 ） commercial VHF stations and （6）________________commercial UHFs, as well as （7）________noncommercial VHFs and （8）________noncommercial UHFs. These statistics indicate the staggering dimensions of television's reach. Perhaps even more significant is the fact that Americans spend （9 ）________ hours a day on TV. But in our （10 ）________century we need to examine the function of the medium more closely.
C. Listen to the following report carefully and fill in the numbers on the blanks.
More than （1）________drivers and front seat passengers are killed or seriously injured each year. At a speed of only （2）________miles per hour, it is the same as falling from a （3）________floor window. Wearing a seat belt saves lives, and it reduces your chance of death or serious injury by more than （4）________seat passengers over （5）________could be fined up to （6）________. Therefore drivers or front in most vehicles must wear a seat belt. If you don't, you . It will not be up to drivers to make sure you wear your belt. But it will be the driver's responsibility to make sure that children under （7 ）________do not ride in the front unless they are wearing a seat belt of some kind.