Geoengineering

　　地理工程學(xué)

　　Implicit promises

　　包含著承諾

　　A geoengineering experiment has come unstuck.But there will be more

　　地理工程試驗(yàn)取得突破。可期待更多。

　　FOR the past few years, a European collaboration called IMPLICC has been looking at whatit might mean to engineer the climate,

　　近幾年在歐洲合作平臺(tái)上，簡(jiǎn)稱(chēng)IMPLICC的組織，

　　by reducing the amount of sunshine that reaches the Earth s surface.

　　持續(xù)對(duì)減少陽(yáng)光直射地球?yàn)槟康难芯孔鎏接憽?/p>

　　A lot of IMPLICC s work, like much else in climate science, has taken the form of computermodelling.

　　探討是為了解該項(xiàng)氣候工程的含義。IMPLICC和其他氣候科學(xué)研究相似，較多采用電腦模擬程序。

　　In its case the models try to mimic the effects of things like putting veils of reflectiveparticles into the stratosphere,

　　在這里，創(chuàng)造出的氣候模型設(shè)法模擬出兩種情況，其一是將層層的反光微粒放入平流層中，

　　or brightening the clouds over the oceans.

　　其二是增加海洋上空云朵對(duì)光線(xiàn)的反射度。

　　This week the IMPLICC team andother interested parties met in Mainz, Germany, to discuss the resultsfor the variousmodels have turned out to agree far better than many of their creators expected.

　　IMPLICC團(tuán)隊(duì)與其他相關(guān)組織，這個(gè)星期在德國(guó)--邁因茨舉行討論。

　　In particular, they suggest that particles in the stratosphere can indeed stop rising levelsof greenhouse gases raising the overall global temperature, though in doing so theyslightly cool the tropics while the poles warm a bit.

　　多個(gè)模型結(jié)果的相符程度還比模型創(chuàng)造人所預(yù)計(jì)的更相似，加強(qiáng)了預(yù)測(cè)結(jié)果的可信度。盡管溫室氣體在持續(xù)的增加中，研究顯示反光微粒能防止溫室氣體，造成全球氣溫的升高。

　　Other things being equal, the models also agree that geoengineering tends to suppress thehydrologic cycle, with less evaporation and less rainfall.

　　與此同時(shí)，預(yù)計(jì)到熱帶地區(qū)氣溫會(huì)微降， 南北極的氣溫則會(huì)微升。 所有其他因素不變，各模型一致顯示水文循環(huán)會(huì)遭壓制，代表將有較少的蒸發(fā)及降雨量。

　　Some researchers, however, want to go beyond modelling.They wish to experiment in thereal world.

　　然而，有些科研人員則選擇進(jìn)行真正的實(shí)驗(yàn)。

　　The highest-profile of these schemes has been part of a programme called SPICE, which ispaid for mainly by Britain s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

　　最受矚目的是簡(jiǎn)稱(chēng)SPICE的組織。

　　Much of SPICE takes place in computers and laboratories, but one part was to be an actualexperimenta tethered balloon with a kilometre-long hosepipe attached to it.

　　SPICE主要是由EPSRC助資，大部分研究仍在使用電腦程序及實(shí)驗(yàn)室研究，一部分研究則在使用真實(shí)實(shí)驗(yàn)。

　　The idea was to pump a small amount of water up to the balloon and thence out into theair, so as to assess the possibility of spraying out other substances at far greater heights.

　　實(shí)驗(yàn)采用一公里長(zhǎng)的輸送管拴住氣球。氣球升空后，實(shí)驗(yàn)性地通過(guò)輸送管在空氣中噴灑水，為估計(jì)在更高氣層中噴灑其他物質(zhì)的可能性。

　　This move to a practical project has proved controversial.

　　轉(zhuǎn)向這類(lèi)真實(shí)實(shí)驗(yàn)?zāi)Ｊ绞怯兴臓?zhēng)議點(diǎn)。

　　Some people worry that tinkering deliberately with the atmosphere may cause more harmthan good.

　　有人擔(dān)心，以粗淺的方法任意操縱大氣層，弊會(huì)大于利。

　　Others fear that if geoengineering is shown to work it will, by offering a palliative for theproblem of global warming, let politicians put off difficult decisions that might lead to apermanent solution.

　　此外，地理工程即使奏效，功效也不會(huì)持久。

　　As Clive Hamilton, a philosopher critical of much of the thinking behind geoengineeringresearch, pointed out to the meeting, though the environmental effects of such experimentsmay be nugatory,

　　哲學(xué)家克利韋漢密爾頓在會(huì)議中對(duì)地理工程研究背后的理念提出批評(píng)，指政治家可能借暫緩措施，推遲制定有難度的持久性對(duì)策。

　　their effects on the way people think could be more profound, and much less easilycontained.

　　認(rèn)為地理工程或?qū)Νh(huán)境影響微不足道，但對(duì)人們的思考模式卻有更深層及無(wú)法控制的影響。

　　Cloud cover

　　云蓋

　　In light of such thinking, in September 2011, a stakeholder committee consisting of ageographer,

　　這類(lèi)思考方向的浮現(xiàn)，促使利益相關(guān)者委員會(huì)于9月2011年成立。

　　a sociologist, an atmospheric scientist, an engineer and an adviser to Friends of the Earthwho had been appointed by the EPSRC told the SPICE merchants,

　　EPSRC任命，由地理學(xué)家，社會(huì)學(xué)家，大氣層科學(xué)家，工程師及地球的朋友各一位所組成。

　　they needed to be more convincing about how the experiment would be explained, how itwould fit into ideas about the future, and how its safety and wisdom could be vouched forpublicly.

　　委員會(huì)要求SPICE商家，對(duì)實(shí)驗(yàn)?zāi)康模磥?lái)環(huán)境展望的合適性，如何對(duì)公眾提供研究操作上的安全及知識(shí)擔(dān)保，向這幾個(gè)方面做出更有說(shuō)服力的解釋及支持。

　　A further complication was a patent application covering some relevant technology byPeter Davidson, a consultant engineer whom the EPSRC had asked to play a role in choosingwhat geoengineering work it should pay for.

　　實(shí)驗(yàn)的執(zhí)行更因工程顧問(wèn)彼得戴維森對(duì)相關(guān)技術(shù)做出專(zhuān)利權(quán)申請(qǐng)，而有所復(fù)雜化。

　　Though this application had been filed before SPICE was proposed,

　　戴維森同時(shí)受EPSRC委托，負(fù)責(zé)挑選可獲資助的地理工程項(xiàng)目。

　　and Mr Davidson both declared his interest and recused himself from discussions on SPICEteam when advising EPSRC,

　　戴維森先生在SPICE組成之前以提交專(zhuān)利申請(qǐng)，也呈報(bào)有關(guān)利益沖突并對(duì)EPSRC提供專(zhuān)業(yè)指導(dǎo)時(shí)，刻意回避針對(duì)SPICE團(tuán)隊(duì)的討論。

　　Matt Watson of Bristol university, SPICE s principle investigator, was sufficiently concernedabout both the application and wider issues of the sort considered by the stakeholdercommittee that, this week, he cancelled the balloon experiment.

　　盡管如此，身為SPICE主要調(diào)查員的布里斯托爾大學(xué)人員馬特沃森，對(duì)專(zhuān)利權(quán)申請(qǐng)及受趣益相關(guān)者委員會(huì)關(guān)注的廣泛?jiǎn)栴}持有所顧忌，以取消這星期的氣球?qū)嶒?yàn)。

　　The meeting in Mainz also learned, though, of another experiment that has met with betterfortune.

　　邁因茨會(huì)議仍從另個(gè)實(shí)驗(yàn)有所獲得。

　　Last September a team led by researchers from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, inLa Jolla, California, looked at whether clouds could be whitened artificiallyusing particlesemitted from a boat.

　　實(shí)驗(yàn)團(tuán)隊(duì)來(lái)至加利福尼亞拉奧拉，斯克里普斯海洋學(xué)公共機(jī)構(gòu)，探討的是，利用船只排出的微粒體將云朵人工白化的可行性。

　　Such brightening has been observed in the exhaust plumes of cargo ships for some time,but Lynn Russell, who ran the experiment, was still surprised by how much brightening theteam saw.

　　觀(guān)察出能使云朵變白，實(shí)驗(yàn)人員琳拉塞爾仍對(duì)實(shí)驗(yàn)成果，云朵的白化程度感到驚訝。

　　Though Dr Russell s experiment had been designed mainly to look at how clouds formnaturally, it paves the way for future work on geoengineering.

　　云朵若經(jīng)白化，就能把更多陽(yáng)光反射回太空。盡管貨船排放出的廢氣羽狀物以被拉塞爾的實(shí)驗(yàn)是為觀(guān)察云朵的自然形成而設(shè)計(jì)，在此也為更多地理工程研究鋪路。

　　How that will affect attitudes to global warming remains to be seen.

　　該實(shí)驗(yàn)會(huì)如何影響對(duì)全球變暖的態(tài)度，卻仍無(wú)法預(yù)計(jì)。

　　詞語(yǔ)解釋

　　1.implicit a.不言明的;無(wú)疑問(wèn)的

　　And deposits enjoy an implicit state guarantee.

　　可是國(guó)家卻一直為儲(chǔ)蓄提供隱性的擔(dān)保。

　　2.climate n.氣候;水土，風(fēng)土

　　Climate change will cause mass migration.

　　氣候變化將導(dǎo)致大規(guī)模移民。

　　3.stratosphere n.平流層，同溫層

　　Aircraft engines are optimised for level flight at cruising speed in the stratosphere.

　　飛機(jī)在平流層以巡航速度水平飛行時(shí)，其發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)將得到優(yōu)化。

　　4.tropic n.回歸線(xiàn);熱帶

　　The tropic sun glared down on us all day.

　　熱帶的太陽(yáng)整日灼曬著我們。

　　5.evaporation n.蒸發(fā)，發(fā)散;消失

　　My anger evaporated and I wanted to cry.

　　我的怒氣漸漸消失，想大哭一場(chǎng)。

　　Geoengineering

　　地理工程學(xué)

　　Implicit promises

　　包含著承諾

　　A geoengineering experiment has come unstuck.But there will be more

　　地理工程試驗(yàn)取得突破。可期待更多。

　　FOR the past few years, a European collaboration called IMPLICC has been looking at whatit might mean to engineer the climate,

　　近幾年在歐洲合作平臺(tái)上，簡(jiǎn)稱(chēng)IMPLICC的組織，

　　by reducing the amount of sunshine that reaches the Earth s surface.

　　持續(xù)對(duì)減少陽(yáng)光直射地球?yàn)槟康难芯孔鎏接憽?/p>

　　A lot of IMPLICC s work, like much else in climate science, has taken the form of computermodelling.

　　探討是為了解該項(xiàng)氣候工程的含義。IMPLICC和其他氣候科學(xué)研究相似，較多采用電腦模擬程序。

　　In its case the models try to mimic the effects of things like putting veils of reflectiveparticles into the stratosphere,

　　在這里，創(chuàng)造出的氣候模型設(shè)法模擬出兩種情況，其一是將層層的反光微粒放入平流層中，

　　or brightening the clouds over the oceans.

　　其二是增加海洋上空云朵對(duì)光線(xiàn)的反射度。

　　This week the IMPLICC team andother interested parties met in Mainz, Germany, to discuss the resultsfor the variousmodels have turned out to agree far better than many of their creators expected.

　　IMPLICC團(tuán)隊(duì)與其他相關(guān)組織，這個(gè)星期在德國(guó)--邁因茨舉行討論。

　　In particular, they suggest that particles in the stratosphere can indeed stop rising levelsof greenhouse gases raising the overall global temperature, though in doing so theyslightly cool the tropics while the poles warm a bit.

　　多個(gè)模型結(jié)果的相符程度還比模型創(chuàng)造人所預(yù)計(jì)的更相似，加強(qiáng)了預(yù)測(cè)結(jié)果的可信度。盡管溫室氣體在持續(xù)的增加中，研究顯示反光微粒能防止溫室氣體，造成全球氣溫的升高。

　　Other things being equal, the models also agree that geoengineering tends to suppress thehydrologic cycle, with less evaporation and less rainfall.

　　與此同時(shí)，預(yù)計(jì)到熱帶地區(qū)氣溫會(huì)微降， 南北極的氣溫則會(huì)微升。 所有其他因素不變，各模型一致顯示水文循環(huán)會(huì)遭壓制，代表將有較少的蒸發(fā)及降雨量。

　　Some researchers, however, want to go beyond modelling.They wish to experiment in thereal world.

　　然而，有些科研人員則選擇進(jìn)行真正的實(shí)驗(yàn)。

　　The highest-profile of these schemes has been part of a programme called SPICE, which ispaid for mainly by Britain s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

　　最受矚目的是簡(jiǎn)稱(chēng)SPICE的組織。

　　Much of SPICE takes place in computers and laboratories, but one part was to be an actualexperimenta tethered balloon with a kilometre-long hosepipe attached to it.

　　SPICE主要是由EPSRC助資，大部分研究仍在使用電腦程序及實(shí)驗(yàn)室研究，一部分研究則在使用真實(shí)實(shí)驗(yàn)。

　　The idea was to pump a small amount of water up to the balloon and thence out into theair, so as to assess the possibility of spraying out other substances at far greater heights.

　　實(shí)驗(yàn)采用一公里長(zhǎng)的輸送管拴住氣球。氣球升空后，實(shí)驗(yàn)性地通過(guò)輸送管在空氣中噴灑水，為估計(jì)在更高氣層中噴灑其他物質(zhì)的可能性。

　　This move to a practical project has proved controversial.

　　轉(zhuǎn)向這類(lèi)真實(shí)實(shí)驗(yàn)?zāi)Ｊ绞怯兴臓?zhēng)議點(diǎn)。

　　Some people worry that tinkering deliberately with the atmosphere may cause more harmthan good.

　　有人擔(dān)心，以粗淺的方法任意操縱大氣層，弊會(huì)大于利。

　　Others fear that if geoengineering is shown to work it will, by offering a palliative for theproblem of global warming, let politicians put off difficult decisions that might lead to apermanent solution.

　　此外，地理工程即使奏效，功效也不會(huì)持久。

　　As Clive Hamilton, a philosopher critical of much of the thinking behind geoengineeringresearch, pointed out to the meeting, though the environmental effects of such experimentsmay be nugatory,

　　哲學(xué)家克利韋漢密爾頓在會(huì)議中對(duì)地理工程研究背后的理念提出批評(píng)，指政治家可能借暫緩措施，推遲制定有難度的持久性對(duì)策。

　　their effects on the way people think could be more profound, and much less easilycontained.

　　認(rèn)為地理工程或?qū)Νh(huán)境影響微不足道，但對(duì)人們的思考模式卻有更深層及無(wú)法控制的影響。

　　Cloud cover

　　云蓋

　　In light of such thinking, in September 2011, a stakeholder committee consisting of ageographer,

　　這類(lèi)思考方向的浮現(xiàn)，促使利益相關(guān)者委員會(huì)于9月2011年成立。

　　a sociologist, an atmospheric scientist, an engineer and an adviser to Friends of the Earthwho had been appointed by the EPSRC told the SPICE merchants,

　　EPSRC任命，由地理學(xué)家，社會(huì)學(xué)家，大氣層科學(xué)家，工程師及地球的朋友各一位所組成。

　　they needed to be more convincing about how the experiment would be explained, how itwould fit into ideas about the future, and how its safety and wisdom could be vouched forpublicly.

　　委員會(huì)要求SPICE商家，對(duì)實(shí)驗(yàn)?zāi)康模磥?lái)環(huán)境展望的合適性，如何對(duì)公眾提供研究操作上的安全及知識(shí)擔(dān)保，向這幾個(gè)方面做出更有說(shuō)服力的解釋及支持。

　　A further complication was a patent application covering some relevant technology byPeter Davidson, a consultant engineer whom the EPSRC had asked to play a role in choosingwhat geoengineering work it should pay for.

　　實(shí)驗(yàn)的執(zhí)行更因工程顧問(wèn)彼得戴維森對(duì)相關(guān)技術(shù)做出專(zhuān)利權(quán)申請(qǐng)，而有所復(fù)雜化。

　　Though this application had been filed before SPICE was proposed,

　　戴維森同時(shí)受EPSRC委托，負(fù)責(zé)挑選可獲資助的地理工程項(xiàng)目。

　　and Mr Davidson both declared his interest and recused himself from discussions on SPICEteam when advising EPSRC,

　　戴維森先生在SPICE組成之前以提交專(zhuān)利申請(qǐng)，也呈報(bào)有關(guān)利益沖突并對(duì)EPSRC提供專(zhuān)業(yè)指導(dǎo)時(shí)，刻意回避針對(duì)SPICE團(tuán)隊(duì)的討論。

　　Matt Watson of Bristol university, SPICE s principle investigator, was sufficiently concernedabout both the application and wider issues of the sort considered by the stakeholdercommittee that, this week, he cancelled the balloon experiment.

　　盡管如此，身為SPICE主要調(diào)查員的布里斯托爾大學(xué)人員馬特沃森，對(duì)專(zhuān)利權(quán)申請(qǐng)及受趣益相關(guān)者委員會(huì)關(guān)注的廣泛?jiǎn)栴}持有所顧忌，以取消這星期的氣球?qū)嶒?yàn)。

　　The meeting in Mainz also learned, though, of another experiment that has met with betterfortune.

　　邁因茨會(huì)議仍從另個(gè)實(shí)驗(yàn)有所獲得。

　　Last September a team led by researchers from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, inLa Jolla, California, looked at whether clouds could be whitened artificiallyusing particlesemitted from a boat.

　　實(shí)驗(yàn)團(tuán)隊(duì)來(lái)至加利福尼亞拉奧拉，斯克里普斯海洋學(xué)公共機(jī)構(gòu)，探討的是，利用船只排出的微粒體將云朵人工白化的可行性。

　　Such brightening has been observed in the exhaust plumes of cargo ships for some time,but Lynn Russell, who ran the experiment, was still surprised by how much brightening theteam saw.

　　觀(guān)察出能使云朵變白，實(shí)驗(yàn)人員琳拉塞爾仍對(duì)實(shí)驗(yàn)成果，云朵的白化程度感到驚訝。

　　Though Dr Russell s experiment had been designed mainly to look at how clouds formnaturally, it paves the way for future work on geoengineering.

　　云朵若經(jīng)白化，就能把更多陽(yáng)光反射回太空。盡管貨船排放出的廢氣羽狀物以被拉塞爾的實(shí)驗(yàn)是為觀(guān)察云朵的自然形成而設(shè)計(jì)，在此也為更多地理工程研究鋪路。

　　How that will affect attitudes to global warming remains to be seen.

　　該實(shí)驗(yàn)會(huì)如何影響對(duì)全球變暖的態(tài)度，卻仍無(wú)法預(yù)計(jì)。

　　詞語(yǔ)解釋

　　1.implicit a.不言明的;無(wú)疑問(wèn)的

　　And deposits enjoy an implicit state guarantee.

　　可是國(guó)家卻一直為儲(chǔ)蓄提供隱性的擔(dān)保。

　　2.climate n.氣候;水土，風(fēng)土

　　Climate change will cause mass migration.

　　氣候變化將導(dǎo)致大規(guī)模移民。

　　3.stratosphere n.平流層，同溫層

　　Aircraft engines are optimised for level flight at cruising speed in the stratosphere.

　　飛機(jī)在平流層以巡航速度水平飛行時(shí)，其發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)將得到優(yōu)化。

　　4.tropic n.回歸線(xiàn);熱帶

　　The tropic sun glared down on us all day.

　　熱帶的太陽(yáng)整日灼曬著我們。

　　5.evaporation n.蒸發(fā)，發(fā)散;消失

　　My anger evaporated and I wanted to cry.

　　我的怒氣漸漸消失，想大哭一場(chǎng)。