胡敏讀故事記托福詞匯 第157期:核妖怪 現(xiàn)在怎么樣了?The Nuclear Gene: What now?
胡敏讀故事記托福詞匯 第157期:核妖怪 現(xiàn)在怎么樣了?The Nuclear Gene: What now?
中英對照
THE NUCLEAR GENE: WHAT NOW?
核妖怪：現(xiàn)在怎么樣了？
The Oak Ridge Laboratories were at one time the nucleus of the American nuclear program.
奧克·里奇實驗室曾經是美國核計劃的核心組成部分。
Splitting the atom at that time was a novel idea: all you had to do was to get a mass of uranium nuclear together, and you got a reaction.
當時原子裂變還是一個非常新穎的想法：你只需要聚集大量的鈾核子，反應就可以發(fā)生了。
How much of a reaction depended on the number of nuclei you put together.
反應的大小決定于核子數(shù)量的多少。
Numerous tests were carried out over the years just to see what would happen when and how, because everyone involved was just a novice at what they were doing.
多年以來人們先后進行了眾多試驗來研究核反應的結果、時間和方式，因為每個人對于他們所做的試驗來說還都是新手。
As it was wartime, the initial work was top secret, and everyone involved had to take an oath of secrecy and obedience.
由于當時處于戰(zhàn)爭時期，最初的工作都屬于絕密一級，每一個參與核反應試驗的人都必須發(fā)誓保密并絕對服從命令。
By now, the novelty has worn off, to say the least.
至少可以這樣說，現(xiàn)在核反應這件事情的新奇度已經減退了。
Nowadays, it is well known that a great many noxious substances are released during nuclear reactions.
如今眾所周知核反應過程中會釋放出很多有毒物質。
More than that, any serious nuclear exchange could send most of mankind to oblivion, rendering all the achievements of human civilization over many thousands of years null and void.
但事情還遠遠不只如此。任何嚴重的核交火都會產生嚴重的后果：可以使大多數(shù)人類最終灰飛煙滅；可以使人類幾千年文明的成就毀于一旦，變得毫無價值。
The very thought of such an eventuality is enough to make any sensitive human being feel quite numb and helpless.
一想到這種結果就足以使一個敏感的人變得非常麻木和無助。
A film was made some years ago about exactly what would happen.
多年前曾經有一部電影確切描述過將會發(fā)生什么樣的情況。
It turns out that Australia would probably be the last oasis left capable of sustaining human life.
核交火的最后結果是地球上可能只剩澳洲成為最后的綠洲，只有這一塊土地上才有人類生命延續(xù)。
There are plenty of nutrients in Australia’s rich soil, as well as plants of high nutritional value to provide sufficient nutriment for the animals needed to be reared to feed the last stragglers of the human race.
因為澳洲肥沃的土壤里有充足的營養(yǎng)物質，她更富有營養(yǎng)價值高的植物給動物提供其所需的足夠的營養(yǎng)品，喂養(yǎng)這些動物是為了給碩果僅存的人類提供食品。
Of course, those sheep and cows would need to be carefully nurtured before they could ever be turned into nutritious steaks.
當然，那些羊和牛都必須小心飼養(yǎng)，這樣才能被制成有營養(yǎng)成分的羊排扣牛排。
No problem, I think, people would have plenty of time on their hands.
在我看來，毫無疑問，人們將會有大量的時間可供自己支配利用。
重點詞匯
oak[əuk]n. 橡樹，橡木
nutritious[nju:'triʃəs]adj. 有營養(yǎng)的，滋養(yǎng)的
oasis[əu'eisis]n. 綠洲，避風港，宜人之地
oath[əuθ]n. 誓言，誓約，咒罵語
nucleus['nju:kliəs]n. 核，核心，細胞核，原子核
initial[i'niʃəl]n. (詞)首字母
adj. 開始的，最初的，
adj. 無助的，無依靠的
oblivion[ə'bliviən]n. 遺忘，忘卻
void[vɔid]adj. 空的，無效的，空虛的
n. 真空，空
adj. 為數(shù)眾多的，許多
