涉海英语读写教程(理科卷)Unit_4.doc

Unit 4 Climate VariabilityText A Part I Understanding and LearningBackground information1. Philosophical Transactions: the worlds first science journal. In 1662, the newly formed “Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge” was granted a charter to publish by King Charles II and on 6 March 1665, the first issue of Philosophical Transactions was published under the visionary editorship of Henry Oldenburg, who was also the Secretary of the Society. The first volumes of the worlds first scientific journal were very different from todays journal, but in essence it served the same function，namely to inform the Fellows of the Society and other interested readers of the latest scientific discoveries. As such, Philosophical Transactions established the important principles of scientific priority and peer review, which have become the central foundations of scientific journals ever since. In 1886, the breadth and scope of scientific discovery had increased to such an extent that it became necessary to divide the journal into two, Philosophical Transactions A and B, covering the physical sciences and the life sciences respectively. 2. The Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research carries out research in the Arctic and Antarctic as well as in the high and mid latitude oceans.3. Tamboras explosion: In 1815，Tambora in Indonesia exploded with the force of roughly 1, 000 megatons of TNT, the largest volcanic eruption in recorded history.Detailed Study of the TextI. Reality has a way of trumping art, and human-induced climate change is very real indeed.(Para. 2)Meaning: The situation of climate change caused by human beings in reality is more critical than what is described in science fictions.trump: 1. v. beat 胜过;压过The Socialists tried to trump this with their slogan.社会党党员设法用他们的口号把它压过去。The Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank has trumped Lloyds by raising its offer.汇丰银行通过提高报价击败了劳埃德保险公司。2. n. the suit having the highest value in one particular game (牌戏中的)王牌，主牌Hearts are trumps.红桃是主。3. trump card something powerful giving an advantage over 王牌;绝招;杀手锏In the end, they took their appeal to the Supreme Court; this, they had believed from the outset, would be their trump card.最后，他们上诉到最高法院：他们从一开始就认为这一招是他们的杀手锏。She could threaten to play her trump card, an autobiography of embarrassing disclosures.她可能会威胁要拿出她的杀手锏：出自传来爆料糗事。4. come up trumps do something successfully without expectation 意外地胜利;意外地成功Dwayne has come up trumps with a goal worthy of winning any match.德韦恩意外地蒙进了一个可以拿下任何比赛的球。induce 1. v. cause引起;导致Doctors said surgery could induce a heart attack.医生们说手术有可能引起心脏病发作。an economic crisis induced by high oil prices由高油价引发的经济危机2. v. persuade or influence引诱;劝说I would do anything to induce them to stay.我会想尽一切办法劝他们留下来。More than 4,000 teachers were induced to take early retirement.4000 多名教师被说服提前退休。3. induce labour or birth cause a pregnant woman to start giving birth by using drugs or other medical means用人工方法引(产) He might decide that it is best to induce labour.他也许决定最好引产。J. Geo-engineering, as it has come to be known, may be a way of buying time for the transition to a low-carbon economy to take place in an orderly manner.(Para. 3)transition1. n. the process in which something changes from one state to another转型 The transition from a dictatorship to a multi-party democracy is proving to be difficult. 从专政国家到多党民主国家的转型证明是很艰难的。2. v. move gradually from one to the other (逐渐地) 转向Most of the discussion was on what is needed to be done now as we transitioned from the security issues to the challenging economic issues. 大多数讨论都集中在目前需要做什么，因为我们已从安全问题逐渐转到具有挑战性的经济问题上。K. The most plausible way to remove carbon dioxide is to increase the amount of photosynthesis going on.(Para. 6)plausible1. a. seem likely to be true or valid (解释或叙述) 看似合理的 A more plausible explanation would seem to be that people are fed up with the administration. 一个更合理的解释似乎是人们对行政机关感到厌倦。2. a. seem to be telling the truth and to be sincere and honest. (人) 看似可信的 All I can say is that he was so plausible; it wasnt just me that he conned. 我只能说，他看上去好像那么可信，他骗的可不只我一个。L. On the other hand, shallow-water blooms caused by nitrate and phosphate pollution often swamp the local environment. (Para. 11)swamp 1. n. an area of very wet land with wild plants growing in it沼泽地 I spent one whole night by a swamp behind the road listening to frogs. 我整个晚上都在这条路后面的一个沼泽地旁听蛙鸣。2. v. fill with water淹没 Their electronic navigation failed and a rogue wave swamped the boat. 他们的电子导航装置失灵了，一个巨浪吞没了那只船。3. v. have something more than one can deal with使应接不暇 usu. passive He is swamped with work. 他工作正忙得不可开交。M. One, which has been widely touted in the past, is, perversely, to increase pollution in the atmosphere.(Para. 13)tout1. v. try to sell something or convince people that it is good兜售; 吹嘘slick television ads touting the candidates 吹嘘那些候选人的华而不实的电视广告2. v. sell (tickets) outside a sports stadium or theater, usually for more than their original value (在体育场或剧院外) 高价倒卖 (票) BRIT (美国英语为scalp)3. n. someone who sells things such as tickets unofficially, usually at prices which are higher than the official ones票贩子perverselyad. 乖戾地; 有悖常理地She was perversely pleased to be causing trouble. 她反常地乐在制造麻烦中。perverse a. unreasonable 乖戾的; 有悖常理的 It would be perverse to stop this healthy trend. 阻止这一健康的趋势是有悖常理的。He seemed to take a perverse pleasure in being disagreeable. 他似乎在招人厌恶中得到一种反常的乐趣。N. Geo-engineerings growth spurt will need to be matched by some grown-up questioning.(Para. 16)Meaning: A sudden development of geo-engineering will need to be connected with some grown-up questioning.spurt 1. v. come out quickly in a thin, powerful stream (使)喷射;(使)喷发They spurted blood all over me. I nearly passed out.他们的血喷了我一身。我几乎昏了过去。He hit her on the head, causing her to spurt blood.他击中了她的头部，她也开始流血。a fountain that spurts water nine stories high水可以喷到 9 层楼那么高的喷泉I saw flames spurt from the roof.我看到火焰从屋顶冒了出来。spurt out: spurt When the washing machine spurts out water, at least we can mop it up.洗衣机冒出水来时，我们至少可以把水擦干。Wear eye protection when opening the container, since its so easy for contents to spurt out.打开容器时要戴好护眼罩，因为里面的东西很容易喷出来。2. n. stream coming out of something very forcefully (喷射出的)一股A spurt of diesel came from one valve and none from the other.一股柴油从一个阀门中喷射出来，另一个阀门中则没有喷出任何东西。3. n. a sudden, brief period of intense activity, effort, or emotion (行动、努力、感情的)迸发At adolescence, muscles go through a growth spurt.在青春期，肌肉会迅猛发育。I flushed bright red as a spurt of anger flashed through me.一股怒气直冲头顶，我的脸一下子涨得通红。The recent spurt in violence has demoralized the public.最近暴力行为激增，这已经打击了公众的信心。4. v. suddenly increase the speed for a short while 突然加速前进;冲刺The back wheels spun and the van spurted up the last few feet.后轮突然转动起来，货车加速冲过了最后几英尺距离。5. in spurts时有时无; 一阵一阵地The deals came in spurts: three in 1977, none in 1978, three more in 1979.交易时有时无：1977 年有 3 笔，1978 年没有，1979 年又有 3 笔。Part IIKey to ExercisesPre-reading questionsA. plant more trees/use alternative energy/stop all contamination/get rid of electricity made with fossil fuel/get rid of the internal combustion engine/stop all deforestation/stop all desertification/only allow sustainable farmingB. We would think this is true since growing trees consume carbon dioxide through respiration. But its been found that they also emit methane which is a far more potent greenhouse gas (GHG) than carbon dioxide. If the tree is burned in a forest fire or as fuel, all that carbon dioxide is released at once, but if its harvested and made into building materials, the bulk of the carbon dioxide remains sequestered. Older trees keep carbon dioxide sequestered but they consume about equal amounts of carbon dioxide and oxygen (releasing carbon dioxide as a result) so theyre carbon-neutral. Only while theyre growing do they act as carbon sinks. If we could find a way to deal with the methane emissions then planting a million acres of trees would be a good start at reducing carbon dioxide. Then wed need to manage it responsibly to prevent the devastating fires created by modern “hands-off” approaches to forest management.C. Open.ExercisesI. Reading Comprehension 1. In the science fiction that looks at the Earths neighbors-Mars and Venus, planetary engineering is proposed to make them habitable. Can this intriguing idea be realized on earth? Can science fiction now be converted into science fact? This implies the argument of the article.2. Reducing the emission of carbon dioxide is the most effective and reasonable solution to global warming, but getting the worlds population to give up fossil fuels is proving exceedingly hard. In the authors opinion, therefore, geo-engineering may be an alternative.3. Because many felt that the very possibility of fiddling with the climate would create an excuse to avoid the hard choices a low-carbon economy would impose.4. Broadly, these ideas fall into two categories. One is to remove excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The other is to compensate for the climate-warming greenhouse effect this carbon dioxide and other gases cause, by reducing the amount of sunlight reaching the ground.5. Fertilizing the ocean with iron should cause a bloom of planktonic algae, thus sucking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.6. The advantage of fertilizing the oceans is that it could be done with existing technology. The disadvantage is the unknown knock-on effects. Planktonic algae are at the bottom of the food chain. If more of them are around, the rest of that chain will be affected. This could be a good thing, of course. More algae might mean more krill, and that might mean more whales and other large sea animals. On the other hand, shallow-water blooms caused by nitrate and phosphate pollution often swamp the local environment.7. Sulphur compounds, which are the main cause of acid rain, have a tendency to form tiny particles that reflect sunlight back into space. That effect is most noticeable when a volcano erupts explosively, which can cool the whole climate.8. Global warming is such a threat that all the options, including geo-engineering, deserve to be explored.II. Structure AnalysisPart I: Putting forward the issue: Geo-engineering, which is highly risky and extraordinarily complex, may be a way of buying time for the transition to a low-carbon economy to take place in an orderly manner. (Paras. 1-3)1. An intriguing idea is proposed in science fiction._2. Humans question about the habitability on the earth._3. The answer to the above question_Part II: Some scientists analysis about geo-engineering in Philosophical Transactions (Paras. 4-14)A. The purpose of publishing related papers in Philosophical Transactions (Para. 4)B. The categories of geo-engineering in broad sense (Paras.5-14)A. One is to remove excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The most plausible way: to increase the amount of photosynthesis going on. One of the theories: iron-fertilization theory B. The other is to compensate for the climate-warming greenhouse effect this carbon dioxide and other gases cause, by reducing the amount of sunlight reaching the ground. a. One approach is to increase the amount of pollution in the atmosphere which can reflect sunlight back into space. b. The other approach is to spray clouds with seawater. Part III: The concerns about geo-engineering approaches (Paras. 15-16) 1) Concern one: how to regulate the small-scale experiments? 2) Concern two: some enthusiastic researchers worry about undue haste.Part IV: Conclusion: Global warming is such a threat that all the options, including geo-engineering, deserve to be explored. (Para. 17)III. Vocabulary Study A. 1.curbing 2.touted 3.planetary 4.trump 5.induce 6. imposing 7.plausible 8.Preliminary 9.perversely 10.spurtB. 1. A 2. B 3.B 4.B 5.A 6. A 7.B 8.B 9.A 10.CC. 1.fiddling with 2.far-fetched 3.converted into 4. fall into 5.compensate for 6.suck upD. 1.cohabitation 2.distend 3.figment 4.obliterated 5.polygamyIV. Cloze：1. by 2. assess 3. unproven 4.side-effects 5. fears 6. complex 7. modifying 8.for instance 9.acidic 10. on 11. dissolves 12. ecosystem 13. cautiously 14. moral 15. uncertainties 16. curbing 17. return 18. Nevertheless 19. schemes 20. preliminary V. TranslationA. 这是个有趣的想法，它甚至有可能实现，不过任何现在正在阅读这些故事的读者在其有生之年很可能无法看到这个想法的实现了。但是更让人担心的-同时也是更现实的-就是人类有想法用星球工程这样的构想来使地球本身适合居住，而且在不久的将来就有这种需要。现实总是比科幻故事更胜一筹，而且人类活动引起的气候变化确实是真实存在的。面对如此真实的现实，有人禁不住要问：能否把科幻故事变为科学事实?然而,甚至一些满腔热忱的研究者也担心欲速则不达的情况。长期以来一直倡导进行更多实验的凯斯博士称，事物的发展速度比他能想到的要快，这是他始料未及的。“花几年的时间来进行辩论比匆匆忙忙进行实验更有益。你可能做大量的实验，这些实验会给你大量的信息，并且这些实验本身不会产生实质性的环境影响：但是这些实验具有重要的含义。”地球工程的迅速发展需要由一些现实的问题来与之匹配。比如谁是受益者？谁是决策者？谁是风险承担者? B. Some scientists think climate change needs a more radical approach, i.e. fiddling with the earth. It is an intriguing idea. Tinkering with the atmosphere or the oceans on a large scale would be highly risky and extraordinarily complex. One of the ideas, which has been widely touted in the past, is, perversely, to increase pollution in the atmosphere. The disadvantage is the unknown knock-on effects. But the alternative, getting the worlds population to give up fossil fuels, is proving exceedingly hard. Even its advocates think geo-engineering is not to be approached lightly. Nor, though, is it something to be ignored completely. Global warming is such a threat that all the options deserve to be explored. Geo-engineering, as it has come to be known, may be a way of buying time for the transition to a low-carbon economy to take place in an orderly manner.VIII. Extended ExercisesA.1. which way the wind blows观察情况搜集信息(以采取下一步行动)2. blowing hot and cold摇摆不定，喜怒无常3. head in the clouds不切实际，好高骛远4. ride out the storm 渡过难关5. keep a weather eye on 注意观察6. straws in the wind预示即将发生的迹象，预兆，苗头7. cloud on the horizon 大难临头8. under the weather由于天气不好而引起的身体不适B.1.永恒的真理如果不在新的社会形势下赋予新的意义，要么就不是真理，要么就不是永恒的。 (美国总统 富兰克林罗斯福)2.天生的才干如同天生的植物一样，需要靠学习来修剪。(英国哲学家 弗朗西斯培根)3.如果你希望成功，当以恒心为良友、以经验为参谋、以谨慎为兄弟、以希望为哨兵。 (美国发明家托马斯爱迪生)4.胜不矜，败不馁。 (美国南北战争中的将领波特)5.有耐心圆满完成简单工作的人，才能够轻而易举地完成困难的事。(德国剧作家、诗人弗里德里希席勒 )6.人们时常问我是否晓得成功的诀窍，能否告诉他们怎样使他们的梦想成为现实。我的回答是：身体力行。(美国实业家华特迪斯尼)7.永远记住：取得成功的决心比任何一件事都重要. (美国前总统亚伯拉罕林肯)8.伟大的事业靠恒心而不是靠力量来完成。（英国作家 萨缪尔约翰逊 ）Part IIIReference Translation参考译文全球气候变暖: 气候变化 意见各异 一些科学家认为有必要采用更为激进的方法处理气候问题。除了试图减少温室气体的排放，科学家们计划改造地球。有一类科幻小说关注地球的邻居-火星和金星，问的是如何使这些星球变得适合人类居住，其答案就是星球工程。金星的大气层太厚，这造成了巨大的温室效应，并使得离太阳更近的星球的温度越发的高。火星的情况正好相反。火星离太阳比地球远，那里的温度非常低。比地球离太阳更远的星球其大气层太稀薄，以至于不能存贮太阳提供的热量。所以，对我们这些邻居星球的大气层做文章开辟了人类居住的新领域，同时也为科幻小说提供了新的素材。这是个有趣的想法，它甚至有可能实现，不过任何现在正在阅读这些故事的读者在其有生之年很可能无法看到这个想法的实现了。但是更让人担心的-同时也是更现实的-就是人类有想法用星球工程这样的构想来使地球本身适合居住，而且在不久的将来就有这种需要。现实总是迫使人们使出最后的手段，而且人类活动引起的气候变化确实是真实存在的。面对如此真实的现实，有人禁不住要问：能否把科幻故事变为科学事实？通过对大气层或海洋进行大规模的改造来改变气候，这样的风险将会很高，过程也超乎寻常的复杂。但是另外的一个途径-即让全球的人口放弃化石燃料-被证明是极其困难的。地球工程,正如人们所知，可能会为向低碳经济顺利过渡赢得一些时间。过去，地球工程是个禁忌的话题，因为许多人担心通过地球工程改变气候的这种可能性，会让人们有了借口来回避一些低碳经济所要求的艰难选择。但是，现在人们越来越感觉到，如果政客们向科学家们就这个问题上征求建议的话，能给政客提供一些选择总不是坏事。为了这个目的，英国最古老的科学院皇家学会-在其学报哲学会刊（Philosophical Transactions）上发表了一系列文章，科学家们列出了一些改变气候变暖的选择方案并建议进行一些实验来检验这些方案的可行性。从广义上说，这些方案分为两类。一类是减少大气中过多的二氧化碳。另一类是通过减少到达地面的日照量，来抵消二氧化碳及其他气体气造成的温室效应。 要消除二氧化碳，最合理的方案是增加光合作用。光合作用能将二氧化碳和水转化成植物物质。但是，腐烂的植物物质会向大气中释放二氧化碳。所以，只有避免腐烂植物的产生，才能永久消除二氧化碳气体。还有一个被广泛讨论的方案,也是皇家学会学报通讯员重新审视的方案,就是对海洋进行铁施肥。海水中的浮游生物的增长总是受到某种限制。这可能是光，或是我