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The Ups and Downs of Roller Coasters 极限快感──云霄飞车

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If you have been on a roller coaster, you’ll remember the adrenaline rushing through your veins as you dashed down the track at lightning speed. ___1___ But, these fairground favorites actually have a long, colorful history that can be traced back to 15th century Russia.

如果你曾搭过云霄飞车，一定很难忘记以闪电般的速度冲下轨道时，那种肾上腺素冲过静脉的感觉。多数人以为云霄飞车的设计是一种为了满足现代追求刺激者的新兴发明。然而，游乐园中最受喜爱的云霄飞车其实可以追溯至15世纪的俄国，并且有一段悠久且多采多姿的历史。

In some languages, the word “roller coaster” translates as “Russian mountain.” That’s because the first roller coasters were mountains. ___2___ Guides would take riders up as high as 24 meters, and then slide down with them on small sleds. By the 18th century, St. Petersburg had caught on to the trend. Around the city, the ice slides were lined with colorful lanterns, enabling rides to be taken at night. Next, the pastime arrived in France, where the roller coaster was adapted to consist of wheeled carriages that traveled over metal tracks laid on steep wood slopes.

云霄飞车这个词在某些语言被译成「俄罗斯山」。因为首座云霄飞车是一座座的山。在冬季，木制的山丘会被建起，外型塑造成像是填满冰的半筒状溜滑梯。向导会带领乘客至24公尺的高处，接着坐在小型雪橇上跟他一起滑下。到了18世纪，圣彼得堡也跟上这波流行。许多冰制滑梯两旁并列着多彩的灯笼，坐落在城市各地，让人们晚上也可以搭乘。接着这项娱乐设施传到法国，在那云霄飞车被改造成有轮子的车厢，可以在铺有金属轨道的陡峭木制斜坡上四处滑行。

___3___ In 1895, the first vertical loop was incorporated into “The Flip Flap” in Brooklyn. One prominent omission, though, was seatbelts. The first Golden Age of roller coasters, having spread to many countries, came to an end with the Great Depression. ___4___ Built to the hair-raising dimensions we are familiar with today, it gave rise to a second generation of gravity-defying amusement rides.

随着名声远播，云霄飞车也不停发展。在1895年，首座垂直环状轨道成为布鲁克林「翻筋斗」的一部分，但它明显缺少一样东西：安全带。云霄飞车在第一次的全盛时期中传到许多国家，直到经济大萧条才结束。到了1970年代，俄亥俄州的「赛车」推出后，云霄飞车终于能再度风行。此款云霄飞车就跟我们现今熟悉、那令人寒毛直竖的规模一样，它创造了第二代反地心引力的娱乐设施。

Today, New Jersey’s “Kingda Ka” is the tallest, fastest roller coaster on the planet; it accelerates to 128 mph in just 3.5 seconds! ___5___ So, don’t go off the tracks: buckle up, and get ready to scream!

现今，位于纽泽西的「京达卡」是全世界最高也最快的云霄飞车，它可以在短短3.5秒内加速至128英里。然而在日本的「钢铁之龙2000」是全世界最长的极限云霄飞车，带给你长达将近2.5公里的纯粹刺激。所以，别离开轨道，系上安全带，准备放声尖叫吧！

(A)   Roller coasters continued to develop as their popularity grew.

(B)   Many people think roller coasters are a recent invention, designed to satisfy modern thrillseekers.

(C)   They finally made their comeback in the 1970s, when “The Racer” was erected in Ohio.

(D)  Japan is home to the world’s longest “hypercoaster,” with “Steel Dragon 2000” offering you almost 2.5 kilometers of pure madness.

(E)   In the winter, wooden hills were constructed, fashioned like half-tube slides and packed with ice.

−by Alice Davis

Vocabulary

单词发音

vein [ven] n. 静脉，血管

translate [trænsˋlet] v. 翻译

sled [slɛd] n. 雪橇

catch on to the trend 赶上潮流(流行)

pastime [ˋpæs͵taɪm] n. 消遣；娱乐

adapt [əˋdæpt] v. 改建，改造

vertical [ˋvɝtɪk!] adj. 垂直的；竖的

prominent [ˋprɑmənənt] adj. 显著的；显眼的

hair-raising [ˋhɛr͵rezɪŋ] adj. 令人毛骨悚然的, 令人恐惧的 inspiring horror; terrifying

dimension [dɪˋmɛnʃən] n. 大小，规模

give rise to 引起 to cause something to exist

defy [dɪˋfaɪ] v. 向……挑战

accelerate [ækˋsɛlə͵ret] v. 使加速

thrillseeker [͵θrɪlˋsikɚ] n. 寻求刺激的人  person who seeks thrills, commonly associated with extreme sports

More Information

单词发音

adrenaline [əˈdrɛnəlɪn] n. 肾上腺素

dash [dæʃ] v. 猛冲; 急奔

fairground [ˋfɛr͵graʊnd] n. 露天游乐场

slide [slaɪd] n. 滑道；滑坡；滑梯

carriage [ˋkærɪdʒ] n. 客车车厢

loop [lup] n. 环状物；环路; 环线

omission [oˋmɪʃən] n. 省略；删除

buckle up 系上安全带 to buckle one's seat belt, as in a car or plane

comeback [ˋkʌm͵bæk] n. 东山再起; 重整旗鼓

erect [ɪˋrɛkt] v. 建立；建造

fashion [ˋfæʃən] v. 把……塑造成

Kingda Ka (Jackson, New Jersey 08527 USA)

Steel Dragon 2000 Worlds Longest Steel Roller Coaster

Answer