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Newsworthy Clips: A new twist on tornado study 飓风研究出现新转折

 

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A new twist on tornado study  飓风研究出现新转折

 

Funny thing about tornadoes: When they ought to drop out of the sky, they usually don’t. Despite all the radars looking for them, no one quite knows when or where they’ll appear.

飓风有个很奇怪的现象就是：当它们应该出现在天际时却偏偏不来。即使人类布下天罗地网的雷达好搜寻飓风的芳踪，但仍旧没有人能确知它们究竟会在何时、何地现身。

 

Researchers are out to change that; the largest tornado research project in history hit the road [in May]. More than 100 meteorologists and students in more than 40 vehicles roamed the Great Plains for five weeks, bringing a panoply of storm-detecting devices to bear on one of the most elusive, dreaded and least understood weather phenomena. The ultimate aim is to extend the average warning time for tornadoes, now at about 13 minutes in the United States.

不过，一批研究人员已经出动，准备扭转局势，他们自五月起已经展开了史上最大规模的飓风研究计划（译注：hit the road指动身、展开，由于该研究实际上会四处奔波追踪飓风，因此也有出发上路的双关意）。超过一百名气象学家和学生分别搭乘四十多辆车，在大草原（译注：从美国中西部一直延伸到加拿大部分省分的区域）上漫游五周，他们全副武装地携带着各式侦测暴风的器材，志在探索飓风这种最难以捉摸、令人心惊胆战、而且外界对其所知不多的气象现象；而研究的终极目标是希望能加长飓风预警的期间，目前美国已能在飓风出现前的十三分钟左右发出预报。

 

VORTEX2 (which stands for Verification of the Origins of Rotation in Tornadoes Experiment) is the younger but bigger brother of VORTEX1. That effort, in 1994 and 1995, determined that downdrafts trailing a supercell thunderstorm and even air circulation close to the ground may be critical factors in tornado formation. But it didn’t reveal why less than 20 percent of supercell thunderstorms, which generate tornadoes, actually do.

VORTEX　2号（全名为验证飓风旋转起源的实验）算是VORTEX　1号的小弟，但规模却比1号更大。1号研究于一九九四年及一九九五年间展开，结果发现，超大胞雷雨拖曳的向下气流，甚至连地面附近的气流，都有可能对飓风的形成扮演举足轻重的角色；只不过，这项实验对于为何只有不到二成的超大胞雷雨最后会形成飓风，却无法解释原因。

 

Todd Krause. Meteorologist for the National Weather Service, wondered, “There are times when you’ve got two thunderstorms that look identical on radar, but one produces a tornado and the other one doesn’t. Why is that?”

「美国国家气象局」托德．克劳斯纳闷着说，「有时会发现两个雷雨在雷达上看起来完全一模一样，但最后其中一个转变成飓风，另一个却不变，究竟原因何在呢？」

 

VORTEX1 saw the first use of a truck-mounted radar, the so-called “Doppler on Wheels.” But there was only one such unit. The “fully nomadic” CORTEX2 employs 14 radar-equipped vehicles along with mobile and stationary weather sensors, weather balloons and photographers.

在VORTEX　1号上首度使用了架设在卡车上的雷达，被称为「机动性的都卜勒雷达」，但目前仅有一套这种装置。堪称「持续在游走行进的」VORTEX　2号则配备有十四辆架设了雷达的车辆，外加机动和固定的各种气象传感器、气象探测气球以及摄影人员。

 

Brad Smull, an associate program director with the National Science Foundation, said the key is collection of both broad and fine-scale views of tornadoes, in addition to data on temperature changes and close-to-the-ground wind speeds near the funnels.

计划副主持人「美国国家科学基金会」的布雷德．史慕尔指出，研究除了能得到气温变化的数据，以及飓风的漏斗状旋风附近、紧临地面的风速之外，关键在于必须要搜集到广尺度和微尺度的飓风影像。

 

－by Bill McAuliffe

 

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twist [twɪst] n. 意外转折; 重大转机

meteorologist [͵mitɪəˋrɑlədʒɪst] n. 气象学者

Great Plains 大草原 the vast, relatively flat region of land in central North America that stretches from northeastern Canada to southern Texas

panoply [ˋpænəplɪ] n. 全套; 全副盔甲

elusive [ɪˋlusɪv] adj. 难以理解的，难以记起的

dreaded [ ˈdrɛdɪd ] adj. 可怕的，令人畏惧的

verification [͵vɛrɪfɪˋkeʃən] n. 确认；证明；核实

downdraft [ˋdaʊn͵dræft] n. 向下之气流或风

trail [trel] v. 拖，曳 to drag (the body, for example) wearily or heavily

supercell thunderstorm 超大胞雷雨(雷雨依型態可分為單胞、多胞、颮線和超大胞等。超大胞雷雨不但規模比其他雷雨大，可達數十公里，而生命期也比其他雷雨長，可達數小時甚至半天以上)a lightning storm that is characterized by a strong, continuously rotating upward air current; also known for causing violent tornadoes and large hail

supercell [ˋsupɚsɛl] n. 超级单体, 是雷暴的一种，拥有深厚、持续旋转上升气流的中气旋

wonder [ˋwʌndɚ] v. 纳闷；想知道[（+about）]

Doppler [ ˈdɑplɚ] n. 都卜勒(利用声光电波因相对运动所引起的振动频率变化，即可测得飞行体的方向和速率)

nomadic [noˋmædɪk] adj. 游动的; 游牧的流浪的

funnel [ˋfʌn!] n. 漏斗

 

 

 

 

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Tech industry looks to turn down the cost  科技业亟思压低成本之道

 

Data centers churn out the goods and services of the digital world, processing online bank transactions, delivering e-mail, uploading photos, and streaming video to Internet users around the world. These centers suck massive amounts of energy. Reducing energy costs has made building a greener data center the environmental [goal] of the tech industry.

数据中心（译注：或译信息中心、数据中心）大量生产数字世界的产品和服务，不但会处理在线银行业务，还能传送电子邮件、上传照片，还能串流视讯影像内容给世界各地的网络用户。这些中心在运作时会消耗大量能源，因此科技业为了节省能源成本，便把打造绿色环保的数据中心定为其环保目标。

 

“We think it’s possible to double computing while driving down energy consumption,” said Rob Bernard, chief environmental strategist at Microsoft, one of the largest data-center players in the world. The company has been experimenting with clean energy, recycling wastewater, turning off the air conditioning and turning to open-air cooling at data centers, with the goal of reducing the company’s carbon footprint by 30 percent by 2012.

「我们认为，加倍运算，同时也降低能源消耗，确有可能，」「微软」公司首席环保策略师罗伯．博纳表示。「微软」是全球数据中心的龙头之一，该公司已经实验用洁净能源、回收废水、关掉数据中心的空调并以户外空气来降温等做法，目标是希望能在二０一二年降低该公司的碳足迹（译注：即温室气体排放量）达百分之三十。

 

Microsoft’s servers power Hotmail, search engines and other online products, including Windows Media Player. The company also is building Azure, a network to deliver services online, also known as “cloud computing.”

「微软」的服务器肩负着Hotmail电子邮件信箱、搜索引擎和包括窗口Media Player等在线产品的营运大任。该公司同时还正建立Azure「云端运算」平台，以作为透过网络传送服务的网络（译注：「云」常用来代表网际网络，因为云朵能传神地表达网际路的浩瀚、漫无边际，以及网络连线架构的错综复杂又充满不确定性。而云端运算的概念，则是以网际网络为基础的运算系统架构，整个运算系统极为复杂庞大，但使用者不须拥有专业知识，也无须知道进行运算的大量服务器资源究竟在哪里、如何运作，只要把想运算的数据抛给系统，系统自然会迅速回传结果，省时、省钱又省力，如Google搜寻就利用到云端运算的技术）。

 

Microsoft is preparing to open what it calls a Gen 3 – third generation – data center in the Chicago area. Instead of putting racks of servers in rooms, the company asked vendors to build a server and cooling system designed to operate in a shipping container, which can be trucked to the building and plugged in.

「微软」正准备启用位于芝加哥地区的所谓第三代数据中心。过去数据中心往往是在很多室内的架子上塞入大量服务器来运作，但「微软」建造所谓第三代数据中心时，则要求供货商打造出能在货柜中运作的服务器和冷却系统，成品可以用卡车运送到建筑中，插上电就能运作自如了。

 

“What happens now is we essentially have created [a] plug-and-play environment, where all we provide is a power plug, a cooling plug with water in it and a data plug,” said Christian Belady, power and cooling architect with Microsoft. The number of servers can then grow and shrink depending on needs.

「我们现在采用的做法，基本上就像是打造出即插即用的环境，我们只要提供电力插头、冷却插头好让冷却系统中的水来发挥降温能力，再加上信息插头就够了」「微软」电力与冷却建筑设计师克里斯提安．贝雷迪指出。在第三代数据中心里，服务器数量可以依据需求而有所增减。

 

Eventually, the company imagines doing away with the building entirely and just having a large parking lot, surrounded by a chain-link fence and barbed wire, filled with these containers.

「微软」的终极目标是，希望能完全省去建筑的使用，只要把货柜停放在大型停车场即可，而四周则以链式围篱和铁丝网作为屏障。

 

－by Sharon Pian

 

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suck [sʌk] v. 吸收（水分）；吸取（知识）

rack [ræk] n. 架子

chain-link 钢丝网眼的

barbed [bɑrbd] adj. 有刺的

 

 

 

 

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Tiny cameras have big market  小型相机市场大

 

Having earned a reputation helping other companies make smaller and faster semiconductors, San Jose-based Tessera now hopes to use its miniature camera technology to revolutionize how a wide array of gadgets interact with people. Founded in 1990, Tessera primarily has been known for its widely used semiconductor-packaging technology. But about four years ago, executives at Tessera – which earns most of its revenue by licensing its technology to others – decides to branch out, and the camera market seemed promising.

以协助其他公司制造更小、更快的半导体享誉的圣荷西「泰塞拉」公司，如今期盼运用其微型相机科技来重新改造人类和各种小装置互动的方式。成立于一九九０年的「泰塞拉」公司，以其受到广泛使用的半导体封装技术着称，该公司大部分营收都来自于把专门的技术授权给其他公司使用；不过，四年前左右，该公司高层决定另辟蹊径，而相机市场似乎前景看好。

 

While most cell phone cameras have 40 or so components and tend to be bulky, cameras made by Tessera’s method consist simply of a tiny lens module bonded with a tiny image sensor, with no moving parts. The technology also enables scores of cameras to be manufactured together on a sheet of silicon and then individually cut out for placement in phones or other devices.

大多数手机相机都有四十个左右的组件，导致体积往往过大，但「泰塞拉」所制造的相机则只包含了微小的镜头组件，再结合微小的影像传感器，而没有任何会移动的零件。这项技术还可以在同一张硅片上生产大量相机，可以再一个个割下来安装在手机或其他装置上。

 

The camera’s diminutive size and assembly process reduce the materials and costs of production, Tessera CEO Henry “Hank” Nothhaft said. He added that making a camera with his company’s technology costs about half of what it does to make the larger versions.

「泰塞拉」执行长亨利．「汉克」．诺斯哈弗特表示，相机迷你的大小和简单的组装过程有助于减少原料的消耗和降低生产成本。他补充说，以该公司技术制作出的相机，成本只有其他较大相机的一半左右。

 

Nothhaft envisions the cameras being built someday into a vast assortment of devices, including vending machines. The Fujitaka company in Japan is developing a vending device that uses a camera to count the wrinkles on a customer’s face to determine their age, in response to a new Japanese law forbidding vending-machine operators from selling tobacco to anyone under 20.

诺斯哈弗特期望有朝一日这种相机能内建在包括贩卖机等各式设备中。日本「富士高」公司现正研发的一种贩卖机，会使用相机来数算顾客脸上的皱纹，好推测出他们的年纪，这是因为日本施行的一项新法，禁止贩卖机业者贩卖香烟给二十岁以下的年轻人（译注：因此贩卖机业者必须采用能推测买者年纪的贩卖机，才不至于触法）。

 

To prevent unwanted frowns from showing up in photographs, cameras using Tessera’s technology already can determine when the subject is smiling and, thus, when it’s OK to snap the picture.

为了避免有人对被擅自照相可能不悦，运用「泰塞拉」技术所制造的相机还能测出被照相者是否在微笑，如果是的话，就表示摄影并无大碍。

 

“This is just emerging,” Nothhaft said. “We’re here on ground zero and so it gives us a chance to be a real market leader.”

「这目前还只是一项新兴科技，」诺斯哈弗特表示，「而我们公司正站在起点，所以更有机会能当上市场真正的领导者。」

 

－by Steve Johnson

 

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semiconductor [͵sɛmɪkənˋdʌktɚ] n.【电】半导体

array [əˋre] n.（排列整齐的）一批；一系列；大量[S][（+of）]

semiconductor-packaging 半导体封装

bulky [ˋbʌlkɪ] adj. 体积大的，庞大的；过大的

silicon [ˋsɪlɪkən] n.【化】矽 a common chemical element that is used in electronic devices, such as computers, and in making materials such as glass, concrete and steel

add [æd] v. 补充说[Y][+that]

assortment [əˋsɔrtmənt] n. 各种各样

frown [fraʊn] n. 皱眉，蹙额；不悦之色

 

 

 

 

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Vocabulary Focus

hit the road【口】上路; 出发 to start a journey or begin something new

bring to bear 把某事物应用于(某人/某事物)[+on] making a concentrated effort in order to change a situation

churn out 大量生产;【口】大量生产某物(通常质量恶劣); 粗制滥造 to produce large amounts of something

plug-and-play 即插即用（计算机业界的一种标准，让硬设备能在安装时自行辨识，而不必由使用者设定）having the ability to add something new to an existing computer system and then having it work automatically without the need for technical support or manual input

do away with (something) 废除, 停止 to get rid of something

revolutionize [͵rɛvəˋluʃən͵aɪz] v. 彻底改革，在……方面实现突破性大变革 to completely change something so that it is much easier

branch out 扩大业务范围; 向新的方向扩展自己的活动或兴趣 to start to do something different from what you usually do, especially in your job

bond [bɑnd] v. 结合 to connect two or more things in some way

scores [skorz] n. 大量，许多[P][（+of）] large numbers of something

diminutive [dəˋmɪnjətɪv] adj. 小的，微小的 small

ground zero 开始; 起点 the center and starting point of the rapid development of something

 

 

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