这本书的英文原版书名是the memeory palace of matteo ricci,作者是Jonathan D Spence，amazon上就可以找的到。
从这本书中，你只能找到一部分的记忆方法，因为它只是阐述了一个框架。这本书主要描写了一个传教士从欧洲到中国的传教历程。
http://wwwamazoncom/Memory-Palace-Matteo-Ricci/dp/0140080988
罗伯特·唐尼参与的**：
《热带惊雷/摄影棚惊魂 Tropic Thunder 》 (2008) Kirk Lazarus
《无敌绿巨人 The Incredible Hulk 》 (2008) Tony Stark
《钢铁人 Iron Man 》 (2008) Tony Stark/Iron Man
《查理·巴特利/男孩巴特利 Charlie Bartlett 》 (2007) The Principal
《杀人十二星座 Zodiac 》 (2007) Paul Avery
《幸运牌手 Lucky You 》 (2007) Telephone Jack
《 Poe 》 (2007) Edgar Allan Poe
《黑暗扫描仪/盲区行者/双面魔神 A Scanner Darkly 》 (2006) James Barris
《长毛狗 The Shaggy Dog 》 (2006) Dr Kozak
《放下屠刀 A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints 》 (2006) co-producer
《放下屠刀 A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints 》 (2006) Dito
《皮囊 Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus 》 (2006) Lionel Sweeney
《 The Sangraal 》 (2006) Archeologist Stone
《小贼·美女·妙探/接吻!接吻!开枪!开枪! Kiss Kiss Bang Bang 》 (2005) Harry Lockhart
《晚安，好运 Good Night, and Good Luck 》 (2005) Joe Wershba
《 Hubert Selby Jr: It/ll Be Better Tomorrow 》 (2005) Narrator
《 Tsunami Aid: A Concert of Hope 》 (2005) Himself
《第6场 Game 6 》 (2005) Steven Schwimmer
《 The Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts 》 (2004) Himself
《 "Between the Lines" 》 (2004) Host
《爱神 Eros 》 (2004) Nick Penrose (segment "Equilibrium")
《 "Biography" Val Kilmer 》 (2004) Himself
《鬼影人/哥西卡 Gothika 》 (2003) Pete Graham
《唱歌神探/奇探心魔 The Singing Detective 》 (2003) Dan Dark
《唱歌神探/奇探心魔 The Singing Detective 》 (2003) singer: "In My Dreams"
《**之光：卓别林的艺界人生 Charlie: The Life and Art of Charles Chaplin 》 (2003) Himself
《 Whatever We Do 》 (2003) Bobby
《 "Sunday Morning Shootout" 》 (2003) Himself (5 episodes, 2004-2006)
《 101 Most Shocking Moments in Entertainment 》 (2003) Himself (archive footage)
《 Hollywood Celebrates Denzel Washington: An American Cinematheque Tribute 》 (2003) Himself
《 Lethargy 》 (2002) Animal Therapist
《 Last Party 2000 》 (2001) Himself
《 7th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards 》 (2001) Himself
《奇迹小子/天才接班人/古惑教师/成功人士 Wonder Boys 》 (2000) Terry Crabtree
《 Auto Motives 》 (2000) Rob
《黑道当家 Black and White 》 (1999) Terry Donager
《大制骗家/包芬格计划 Bowfinger 》 (1999) Jerry Renfro
《 Friends & Lovers 》 (1999) (song "Carla") (uncredited)
《 Friends & Lovers 》 (1999) Hans
《在梦中 In Dreams 》 (1999) Vivian Thompson
《美国警官 US Marshals 》 (1998) Special Agent John Royce
《迷色布局 Gingerbread Man, The 》 (1998) Clyde Pell
《一夜风流 One Night Stand 》 (1997) Charlie
《 Hugo Pool 》 (1997) Franz Mazur
《 Two Girls and a Guy 》 (1997) Blake Allen
《 Two Girls and a Guy 》 (1997) (song "Snakes") (uncredited)
《 Danger Zone 》 (1996) Jim Scott
《浮华暂借问 Restoration 》 (1995) Robert Merivel
《理查三世 Richard III 》 (1995) Anthony, Earl of Rivers
《心情故事 Home for the Holidays 》 (1995) Tommy Larson
《天生杀人狂/闪灵杀手/天生杀手 Natural Born Killers 》 (1994) Wayne Gale
《我心属于你 Only You 》 (1994) Peter Wright
《世纪** Century of Cinema, A 》 (1994) Himself
《 Hail Caesar 》 (1994) Jerry
《第65届奥斯卡金像奖颁奖典礼 65th Annual Academy Awards, The 》 (1993) Himself (uncredited)
《 Last Party, The 》 (1993) Himself
《 Last Party, The 》 (1993)
《穿梭阴阳间 Heart and Souls 》 (1993) Thomas Reilly
《银色，性，男女 Short Cuts 》 (1993) Bill Bush
《肥皂拼盘 Soapdish 》 (1991) David Seton Barnes
《 Too Much Sun 》 (1991) Reed Richmond
《 Too Much Sun 》 (1991) (song "Too Much Sun") (uncredited)
《飞离航道 Air America 》 (1990) Billy Covington
《法网终结者 True Believer 》 (1989) Roger Baron
《再世俏郎君 Chances Are 》 (1989) Alex Finch
《好人约翰尼 Johnny Be Good 》 (1988) Leo Wiggins
《一九六九 1969 》 (1988) Ralph
《 Rented Lips 》 (1988) Wolf Dangler
《越南家书 Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam 》 (1987) (voice)
《泡妞专家 Pick-up Artist, The 》 (1987) Jack Jericho
《零下的激情 Less Than Zero 》 (1987) Julian Wells
《学生皇帝 Back to School 》 (1986) Derek
《美国 America 》 (1986) Paulie Hackley
《火爆小子 Tuff Turf 》 (1985) Jimmy Parker
《摩登保姆 Weird Science 》 (1985) Ian
《 "Mussolini: The Untold Story" 》 (1985) Bruno Mussolini
《初生 Firstborn 》 (1984) Lee
《情到深时 Baby, It's You 》 (1983) Stewart
《乌龙军校 Up the Academy 》 (1980) (uncredited)
《 Greaser's Palace 》 (1972) (uncredited)
圆明园位于北京市郊西北十里,又称圆明三园，是清代大型皇家园林，与颐和园毗邻，由圆明园、长春园和绮春园组成。今天我们简单谈一些关于圆明园的资料。
一、圆明园始建于何时
圆明园始建于明代。早先是明代的一座私家园林。清初曾将北京西北郊的许多前明私园收归内务府奉宸院，再分赐给皇室成员和贵族官僚。圆明园就是康熙四十八年赐给皇四子胤禛的一座“赐园”。
大规模的修建是在清朝乾隆时期,此后经150余年的经营,建成一座由圆明园、长春园、万春园组成的方圆30华里的世界最豪华的皇家宫苑共40景,145处建筑。
二、当年圆明园究竟有哪些建筑
圆明园内有雄伟庄严的宫殿,也有玲珑精巧的亭台楼阁;有象征闹市的“买卖街”,也有仿照田园风光的“山村”。园中许多风景是模仿全国各地的名胜修成的。如杭州的平湖秋月雷峰夕照,海宁的安澜园,苏州的狮子林等。还有许多景物是按古代诗人、画家描写的意境建造的,如蓬莱瑶台、武陵春色等。
另外,还有仿巴黎凡尔赛宫的海晏堂。园中不但有壮丽的建筑群、还收藏着无数极珍贵的文物。既有历史书画、孤本秘籍,也有金银珠宝、名贵铜、瓷器。
三、清朝末年圆明园的劫难
1860年10月6日,英法联军对圆明园进行洗劫。强盗们把一切能拿走的全拿走了,那些较重的珐琅瓶和瓷器则被砸碎。为了掩盖罪行,10月18日,英国全权大臣额尔金下令焚毁圆明园。几千名英国士兵一齐放火,一时黑烟如云,弥漫北京上空,百余里之内不见日光,大火延烧一星期,圆明园化为一片焦土。
事后,额尔金还得意地说,烧掉圆明园,是为了给中国人的脑袋里留下一个“必要的印象”。
四、建国后对圆明园的保护整修
清朝灭亡后，圆明园又长期遭到官僚、军阀、奸商巧取豪夺，民国初期走马灯一样更迭的军阀，都把圆明园作为取之不尽的建筑材料场。到了日寇占领时期，北京粮食紧张，不少农户入园开田种稻，圆明园早已面目全非。
新中国成立后，十分重视圆明园遗址的保护，先后将其列为公园用地和重点文物保护单位，进行了大规模植树绿化，近半数的土地成为绿化地带。现在，十几万株树木蔚然成林，多数建筑基址尚可找到，数十处假山叠石仍然可见，西洋楼遗址的石雕残迹颇引人注目。
"the palace museum"的意思是"故宫博物院"
例句
I want to see The Palace Museum
我想去看看故宫博物馆。
Members of the palace museum staff who helped move the artifacts toChongqing
帮助转运文物到重庆的故宫博物院工作人员。
The Palace Museum was founded in 1925 and receives millions of visitors a year,mostly from within China
故宫博物院成立于1925年，每年要接待数百万游客，其中大多数来自中国国内。
The Palace Museum is based within the Forbidden City, home to the country'semperors during the Ming and Qing dynasties
故宫博物院是在紫禁城的基础上改造而成，紫禁城是中国明清两朝的皇宫。
After initially denying the reports, authorities at the Palace Museum -- as it is known in Chinese -- issued a statement late Monday condemning the move
故宫博物院最初否认了该报道，其后于周一发表声明，谴责了这项方案。
景区简介
北京故宫，旧称紫禁城，位于北京中轴线的中心，是明清两个朝代的皇宫，是世界上现存规模最大、保存最为完整的木质结构的宫殿型建筑。故宫入选了世界文化遗产，是全国重点文物保护单位，国家AAAAA级旅游景区。
北京故宫于明成祖朱棣于西元1406年开始建设，明代永乐十八年（1420年）建成，曾有24位皇帝在此住过。
故宫被誉为世界五大宫之首（北京故宫、法国凡尔赛宫、英国白金汉宫、美国白宫和俄罗斯克里姆林宫）。
2014年11月23日，北京故宫吉祥物首度对外亮相，该吉祥物源自中国传统的吉祥龙凤形象，分别为龙“壮壮”和凤“美美”。2015年6月13日，故宫博物院试行限流8万人次和实名制售票。
2015年为庆祝故宫博物院建立90周年，故宫5大区域18个重要展览集中呈现。
景点介绍
旅游指南
开放时间
旺季(4月1日-10月31日)：8：30-16：10，16：00停止售票，17：00清场
淡季(11月1日-次年3月31日)：8：30-15：40，15：30停止售票，16：30清场
门票价格
旺季(4月1日-10月31日)60元
淡季(11月1日-次年3月31日)40元
景点介绍
折叠故宫内廷
故宫建筑的后半部叫内廷，内廷宫殿的大门——乾清门，左右有琉璃照壁，门里是后三宫。内廷以乾清宫、交泰殿、坤宁宫为中心，东西两翼有东六宫和西六宫，是皇帝处理日常政务之处也是皇帝与后妃居住生活的地方。后半部在建筑风格上不同于前半部。前半部建筑形象是严肃、庄严、壮丽、雄伟，以象征皇帝的至高无上。后半部内廷则富有生活气息，建筑多是自成院落，有花园
在故宫“内庭”最后面。重檐庑殿顶。坤宁宫是明朝及清朝雍正帝之前的皇后寝宫，两头有暖阁。清代改为祭神场所。雍正后，西暖阁为萨满的祭祀地。其中东暖阁为皇帝大婚的洞房，康熙、同治、光绪三帝，均在此举行婚礼。
折叠太和殿
太和殿
太和殿，俗称“金銮殿”。明永乐十八年（公元1420年）建成。初名奉天殿，明嘉靖时改名皇极殿，清顺治时始称太和殿。清康熙三十四年（公元1695年）重建。
太和殿是现存中国古代建筑中最高大的建筑，是封建皇权的象征。这里是明清两代皇帝举行大典的场所，皇帝登基、大婚、册立皇后和每年的春节、冬至节、皇帝生日以及公布进士黄榜、派将出征、宴会等大的庆典活动都在这里举行。
折叠中和殿
故宫中和殿中和殿建于明永乐十八年（公元1220年），历经三次火灾，现存为明天启七年（公元1627年）重建。每逢皇帝在太和殿举行典礼前，先在此休息，接受官员的跪拜礼。每年春季祭先农坛，也先在此阅视祭文。祭祀地坛、太庙、社稷坛的祝版，也在此阅视。
折叠保和殿
故宫保和殿保和殿建于明永乐十八年（公元1420年），清乾隆时重修。每年除夕，皇帝在此宴请少数民族王公大臣。自乾隆后期，这里便成为举行科举殿试的场所。
折叠养心殿
故宫养心殿养心殿建于明嘉靖十六年（公元1537年），清雍正年重修，作工字形建筑，分前后两殿。自清雍正以后，皇帝寝宫移至后殿，前殿成为皇帝处理日常政务，接见臣工的地方。东暖阁是同治、光绪皇帝年幼时，慈安太后和慈禧太后垂帘听政的地方。宣统三年（公元1911年）辛亥革命爆发，溥仪在此召开“御前会议”，作出退位决定。西暖阁是清代皇帝批阅奏章，或与亲近大臣密商之处。西暖阁西侧另一小室为乾隆皇帝最著名的书房之一三希堂。
折叠乾清宫
故宫乾清宫
乾清宫始建于明永乐十八年（1420年），现存建筑为清嘉庆三年（1798年）所建，是明清皇帝日常起居和处理政务的地方，自清雍正移居养心殿后改为接见外国使臣的场所。
折叠交泰殿
故宫交泰殿交泰殿建于明嘉靖年间，顺治、康熙和嘉庆年间重修，原为皇后千秋节受庆贺礼的地方，清代用来存放“清二十五宝”御玺。
折叠坤宁宫
故宫坤宁宫坤宁宫建于明永乐十八年（公元1420年）。明代属皇后的寝宫，清顺治十二年（公元1655年）仿盛京清宁宫的式样重修。西端四间辟为萨满教祭神的场所，东端二间是皇帝大婚的洞房，年幼登基的康熙、同治、光绪三位皇帝均在此成婚。
折叠文华殿
文华殿初为皇帝便殿，明天顺、成化两朝，太子践祚之前，先摄事于文华殿，嘉靖十五年（1536年）改为皇帝便殿，清康熙康熙二十二年（1683年）始重建，为明清皇帝经筵之所。
折叠武英殿
武英殿始建于明初，明代于武英殿设待诏，择能画者居之。明末农民起义军领袖李自成于崇祯十七年（1644年）春攻入北京，在四月二十九日于武英殿草草举行了即位仪式。清兵入关后，摄政王多尔衮以武英殿作为理事之所。康熙皇帝开始将这里作为刊刻典籍之所。
折叠御花园
故宫御花园在坤宁宫北面的是御花园。御花园里有高耸的松柏、珍贵的花木、山石和亭阁。御花园原名宫后苑，占地11000多平方米，有建筑20余处。以钦安殿为中心，园林建筑采用主次相辅、左右对称的格局，布局紧凑、古典富丽。殿东北的堆秀山，为太湖石迭砌而成，上筑御景亭，名为万春亭和千秋亭的两座亭子，可以说是保存的古亭中最为华丽的花园了。
折叠金水桥
内金水桥位于太和门广场，共5座，单孔拱券式。广场南部自西向东蜿蜒流淌着一条如弓形的金水河，这就是所谓的“内金水桥”。这是紫禁城内最大，也是最壮观，最华美的一组石桥。正中的是御路桥，供皇帝专用。东西两侧为王公桥，供皇室成员、亲王大臣通行。再两侧为品级桥，供三品以上官员行走。功能和天安门前的外金水桥相同。
英国议会大厦
THE HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT
THE Houses of Parliament have had a long and violent history Guy Fawkes tried to blow them up, Hitler destroyed large parts of them, and they were burnt to the ground in 1834 because someone stuffed too many government forms into the stove that heated them So the building you see today by the river Thames isn't really very old Only a few parts of it date back much more than a hundred years But it still remains, with St Paul's Cathedral and Buckingham Palace, one of the most famous buildings in London and, indeed, the world
The Palace of Westminster
The proper name for the Houses of Parliament is the Palace of Westminster and, in fact, there has been a royal palace on that site ever since the days of Edward the Confessor_H The last king actually to live there was Henry VIII who left the Palace of Westminster after a bad fire in 1529 The Houses of Parliament are still a royal palace and were controlled by the Lord Great Chamberlain himself until 1965 There are records of a keeper of the palace since 1150, and he was paid 7d a day for the job from that day until 1884, when the position was abolished And if you think that is funny, remember that even today all the MPs' cloakroom pegs have a little loop of red tape hanging from them --- to hold their swords! The oldest part of the Houses of Parliament is Westminster Hall Parts of this were built by William Rufus who succeeded William the Conqueror_H But most of it was built by a famous architect called Henry Yevele between 1394 and 1399 When William Rufus first built Westminster Hall it was called the New Hall to stop it being confused with the Old Hall built by Edward the Confessor From that day to this the courtyard in front of it has been known as “New Palace Yard”
Westminster Hall was the scene of many famous trials and Sir Thomas More,_H Charles I, and Guy Fawkes were all tried and condemned to death there
Burning and building
On the 16th October 1834 the Palace of Westminster was almost totally burnt down Only Westminster Hall and a few rooms and corridors were left The rest was a heap of smouldering ruins Parliament had sat at the palace since 1547 but now they had to make do with some small and unsatisfactory rooms that had been patched up After five months of this it is not surprising that the members decided to rebuild the Houses of Parliament properly They soon decided that the designs of Mr Charles Barry were the best and the foundation stone was laid by his wife in 1840 It took just ten years to build the new palace and Parliament re-assembled there in 1850
The palace is built on a great bed of concrete ten feet thick and has over 1,000 rooms There are more than a hundred staircases and over two miles of corridors New Members of Parliament take a long time to find their way about and it is unlikely that any one man has ever been everywhere
The Palace is bombed�
The Houses of Parliament are so big that it was almost impossible for the German bombers during the 1939---1945 war to miss them They were, in fact, hit by bombs on 14 separate occasions, although only a few caused any real damage The worst of all was on 10th May 1941 when they were hit by twelve bombs The bombs caused a disastrous fire which burnt out the Chamber where the MPs actually sit and destroyed a number of rooms and corridors
Rebuilding began the week the war ended Although the parts that were bombed were rebuilt very much as Barry had first designed them, they were brought up to date inside and made much more roomy and comfortable
But one arch was left with the marks of the bomb splinters still on it to remind future MPs of the ordeal that the Houses of Parliament had gone through
Big Ben�
The one part of the Houses of Parliament that people all over the world immediately recognize is _HBt5;Big Ben_H But nearly everybody gets it slightly wrong because Big Ben is really the name of the big bell which strikes the hours The tall tower which holds the clock is correctly called the Clock Tower
The dials --- all four of them --- of this enormous clock are 23 feet across and its works weigh five tons The big bell which strikes the deep hour notes weighs 13�1/2� tons In spite of its huge size, Big Ben is a very good timekeeper and almost never gets more than a second off time
In the tower there are some cells into which MPs who misbehave themselves are put, although it hasn't been used for this purpose since 1880 And at the very top of the tower you can see a little light burning when the House is actually sitting
Parliament�
The Houses of Parliament are the home of the House of Commons and the House of Lords The House of Commons is made up of Members of Parliament who are elected by the people of Great Britain to run the country for them There are 630 of them, although it is very seldom that they are all there at once
The House of Lords is made up of “peers of the realm”, who are titled lords, bishops, and very senior judges Most of the Lords are “hereditary” which means that their titles have come down from father to son, but recently a new sort of Lord, a “life peer”, has been introduced into the House of Lords Life peers are men and women of great experience and ability who have done a great deal of work for the country and whose worth has been recognized in this way A great many Lords who have the right to a seat in the House of Lords never bother to attend at all
Too old, too cramped�
Although the Houses of Parliament are admired by many people outside, the Members of Parliament, the Lords, and the Civil Servants who actually work there find them very uncomfortable and old fashioned Over the last few years the complaints have been getting louder and louder as MPs find that they've got no room to do their work properly Some want to move to a new building entirely, others want big new buildings tacked on to Barry's masterpiece But they can't agree on what is to be done
One idea was to dig out a whole lot of new rooms underneath the present building, another was to fill up New Palace Yard with new buildings yet another idea was to leave the buildings and London entirely and build totally new Houses of Parliament somewhere nearer the middle of Great Britain
But it is almost certain that when you are grown up and with children of your own that the Lords and the Commons will still be in the Palace of Westminster as they have been for more than 400 years
Mr Speaker�
There are a number of important people in the Houses of Parliament --- the prime minister, the_HBt6; Lord Chancellor_H, the leader of the House of Commons, and many others But the man who is most respected is the Speaker of the House of Commons who is an MP elected by all the other MPs to run the business of the House of Commons When he is offcially on duty he wears magnificent robes and a full wig and everyone stands up as he passes No one is allowed to argue with him and even the prime minister has to obey the Speaker's rulings
The Speaker has his own beautiful house in the palace itself with its own library and courtyard and its own little lawn
英国议会大厦
英国议会大厦的历史十分悠久而且风云迭起。盖伊·福克斯曾试图炸掉它，希特勒曾毁坏了大厦的一大部分。1834年，曾因有人在炉子里大量焚烧政府文件而引起火灾，把大厦夷为平地。所以，今天人们在泰晤士河畔看到的大厦，实际上并不很古老，只是其中一小部分远远超过了一百年，然而，如同圣保罗大教堂和白金汉宫一样，议会大厦也仍然是伦敦甚至世界上最负盛誉的建筑之一。
西敏斯特宫
议会大厦的确切名称是西敏斯特宫，实际上自从撤克逊王爱德华以来，这个地方一直是一个皇宫。住在这个皇宫的最后一个国王是亨利八世，他在1529年一场大火之后迁出了西敏斯特宫。现在的议会大厦仍是一个皇宫。1965年以前一直由掌礼大臣本人亲自管理。这里保存着1150年以来的看守人记录，看守人每天可得七便士的报酬，这个职位一直到1884年才取消。如果你认为这一点很有趣的话，那么请你记住直到今天，各议员衣帽间的衣帽钉上还吊着红布带做的小套环——供挂剑之用!议会大厦的最古老部分是西敏斯特大厅，它是由威廉一世的继承人威廉·鲁弗斯修建的，但大部分是由一位名叫亨利·耶维尔的著名建筑家于1394年至1399年之间建造的。威廉·鲁弗斯当初建造西敏斯特大厅时，把它称作新厅，以区别于撒克逊王爱德华建造的旧厅。此后，西敏斯特大厅前的庭院一直称作新宫院。
西敏斯特大厅曾是审讯许多名人的地方，如，托马斯·莫尔爵士、查理一世、盖伊·福克斯都是在这里出庭受审并被判处死刑的。�
焚毁和建造
1834年10月16日，西敏斯特宫几乎全部焚毁，只有西敏斯特大厅和为数不多的房间以及走廊幸免，其余部分都化为灰烬。议会自1547年就设在这座宫内，火灾后，议会只好将就着使用那些临时盖起的不能令人满意的狭小房间。难怪五个月后，议员们就决定好好地重建议会大厦。很快，他们便选中了查尔斯·巴里的设计方案，认为这是最好的方案。1840年，大厦由巴里的妻子奠基。修建这座新宫殿用了整整十年。1850年，议会又重新在西敏斯特宫开会了。
这座宫殿建筑在十英尺厚的用混凝土制成的巨大基座上，共有一千多个房间，一百多个楼梯和两英里多长的走廊。新上任的议员要花不少时间来熟悉他们要走的路。至今都不可能有任何人走遍宫殿的各个地方。
宫殿被炸
议会大厦乃一如此庞然大物，在1939年至1945年的战争中，德国的轰炸机几乎不可能不轰炸它。事实上，宫殿先后被炸中了十四次，不过只有几次造成了严重破坏，其中最严重的一次是在1941年5月10日，那一次被十二颗炸弹击中，引起了灾难性大火，烧毁了议员们开会的会议厅，并毁坏了一些房间和走廊。
战争一结束的那个星期就开始重建了。虽然被炸部分尽可能照巴里的原设计进行修复，但内部装修现代化了，房间也比原先宽敞舒适多了。
但是留下了一个拱门没有整修，弹片痕迹依然可辨，以便使今后的议员们牢记议会大厦所经历的浩劫。
大本钟
议会大厦只有一部分是世人一下就能认出的，那就是“大本钟”，但是几乎人人都说得不甚准确，因为“大本钟”是鸣声报时的大钟的名字，而装有这只大钟的高塔的确切名字叫钟塔。
巨钟的四个钟面，每个直径为二十三英尺，机件重五吨，敲击出低沉浑厚钟声的大钟重十三吨半。尽管大钟硕大无朋，走时却很准确，误差几乎从未超出一秒。
钟塔里有几间监禁室，用来关押那些行为不轨的议员，但自1880年之后，一直没有用于这种用途。钟塔的顶端有一个窗口，当窗口出现灯光时，说明议会正在开会。
议会
英国议会大厦是上下两院所在地。下议院由议会议员组成，议员由英国人民选举出来，为他们管理国家。议员共有六百三十名，但这些议员很少全体同时出席会议。
上议院是由“贵族”组成的，他们都是有头衔的勋爵、主教、高级法官。大多数勋爵是“世袭”的，即儿子可以继承父亲的头衔。但近来一种新的勋爵，即“非世袭的终身贵族”进入了上议院。他们是经验丰富、能力非凡的男女志士，他们为国家做出了卓越贡献，因此，授予他们贵族称号，以表彰他们的功勋。许多有权在上议院中占有席位的勋爵，却从来不高兴出席会议。
太老、太窄狭
外界许多人都赞美议会大厦，而实际在里边工作的议员们、勋爵们及公务员们都感到不舒适，感到地方太老式。最近几年来，议员们感到没有足够的地方进行正常工作，而愈发怨声载道。有的主张全部迁到一所新楼里去，另有人主张在巴里的杰作旁建造一些附属楼房，究竟怎么办，其说不一。
有一种设想是在现址底下建造一整片新的房间，另一种设想是在新宫院里建满新楼房，还有一种设想，就是全部从现址、从伦敦迁出，到更接近英国中心的某个地方另建新的议会大厦。
但基本上可以断定，当下一代长大成人并生儿育女时，上下两院还将如过去四百多年来一样坐落在西敏斯特宫。
议长先生
B议会大厦里有许多重要人物——首相、大法官、下议院领袖以及其他要人。但最受尊敬的是下议院的议长，他是全体议员选举出来管理下议院的事务的。当他正式执行任务时，他身穿庄严的锦袍，头戴长长的假发，他所到之处，人人都起立致敬。谁都不许同他争论，甚至首相也要服从他的裁定。
议长在这座宫殿里有自己的优雅的住所，还附有图书馆、庭院和小草坪。
—— 译自：〔英〕《知识画报》周刊