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Looking Up to a New Way of Farming 垂直耕作，开心种菜

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One of the main principles of business is that supply must meet demand. This is easier said than ___1___, however, especially when it comes to an issue that is fundamental to human existence – food supply. If we are unable to adequately ___2___ for the 6.8 billion people currently inhabiting the planet, a burning question will soon arise: how will modern agriculture cater to the 9 billion who will ___3___ the global population by 2050?

商业的主要准则之一是供需平衡。然而，这说的比做的容易，尤其当事情牵涉到关系人类存亡的基本议题──粮食供应。由于我们无法适当地提供粮食给目前居住在地球上的68亿人口，一个亟需解决的问题将很快地浮上台面：现代农业将如何满足2050年全球90亿人口的需求？

The drawbacks of food production on a mass scale are well-publicized – deforestation, pollution from fertilizer, and the environmental costs of food transportation, to ___4___ but a few. But a professor named Dickson Despommier has used a little lateral thinking to come up with a vertical solution that could ___5___ change the face of farming as we know it.

大规模生产粮食的缺点受到广泛宣传──滥伐森林、肥料的污染及运输粮食过程的环境成本，以上只是单单列举几项。不过，一位名叫迪克森．戴斯波米尔的教授运用了一点点的创新的横向思维就想出了一个纵向的解决方法，而这个方法将可能改变我们所知的农业面貌。

Vertical farming sprouted from a project on rooftop gardening, which Despommier’s students decided was too limited an innovation to inspire any large-scale solutions. Thinking bigger, they came up with a design for transparent skyscrapers which would function like urban farming greenhouses, up to 30 stories high and ___6___ an area the size of a city block. Inside are potted crops, stacked layer upon layer, just the ___7___ city-dwelling humans have been living for decades! Crops rotate on conveyor belts, receiving the exact amount of light and water they require. A temperature-controlled environment ensures the produce can grow all year around, ___8___ from the harsh unpredictability of the elements. This indoor agriculture would recycle its water and function off renewable energy.

垂直耕作从屋顶园艺计划萌芽，戴斯波米尔的学生认为此项创新发明太过局限，无法激发出大规模的解决办法。将眼光放大放远后，他们想出了一个设计：一栋功能像都市农作温室的透明摩天大楼。该建筑高达30层楼且涵盖范围如同一个城市街区的大小。大楼里面有一层层堆栈的盆栽作物，就如同居住在城市的人类数十年来的生活方式一样！作物在输送带上转动，接收确切所需的光与水分。温控的环境确保农产品能全年生长，且作物受到保护，不受恶劣又不可预测的天气影响。这个室内的农业将回收利用水资源，并藉由再生能源运作。

Criticism had been directed at vertical farming, namely at the amount of ___9___ lighting the crops would need and the expense of converting buildings into these “farmscrapers.” Yet the consequences of making cities self-sufficient and returning vast expanses of farmland back to ___10__ could be, literally, Earth-changing.

垂直耕作也遭受批评，也就是将矛头指向其作物所需的大量人工照明，以及将建筑物转换成「农作大楼」的费用。不过，能让城市自给自足，且将辽阔农地归还给大自然，这样的结果也许真正能改变地球。

−by Alice Davis

Vocabulary

单词发音

demand [dɪˋmænd] n. 需要，需求

fundamental [͵fʌndəˋmɛnt!] adj. 基础的；根本的，十分重要的[（+to）]

agriculture [ˋægrɪ͵kʌltʃɚ] n. 农业

cater to 为...服务; 供应伙食; 迎合

drawback [ˋdrɔ͵bæk] n. 缺点，短处，不利条件

vertical [ˋvɝtɪk!] adj. 垂直的

innovation [͵ɪnəˋveʃən] n. 革新，改革，创新

inspire [ɪnˋspaɪr] v. 激发，激励

rotate [ˋrotet] v. 旋转，转动

harsh [hɑrʃ] adj. 严厉的；严酷的，恶劣的

recycle [riˋsaɪk!] v. 再利用; 回收利用

criticism [ˋkrɪtə͵sɪzəm] n. 批评

expense [ɪkˋspɛns] n. 费用；支出

convert [kənˋvɝt] v. 转变，变换[（+to/into）]

consequence [ˋkɑnsə͵kwɛns] n. 结果，后果

More Information

单词发音

existence [ɪgˋzɪstəns] n. 生存

adequately [ˋædəkwɪtlɪ] adv. 适当地; 足够地

burning [ˋbɝnɪŋ] adj. 紧急的

well-publicized adj.  广泛宣传的

publicize [ˋpʌblɪ͵saɪz] v. 宣传;  宣扬 made known; especially made widely known

deforestation [͵difɔrəsˋteʃən] n. 砍伐森林

fertilizer [ˋfɝtl͵aɪzɚ] n. 肥料

to name/mention but a few 仅以这些为例 used after mentioning a small number of people or things as examples of a larger group

lateral thinking 横向思考（法）; 侧面思考（指从各个不同角度来思考问题）the process of considering a problem in a different and original way, rather than following traditional or expected ideas

sprout [spraʊt] v. 发芽; 萌芽

large-scale [ˋlɑrdʒˋskel] adj. 大规模的

transparent [trænsˋpɛrənt] adj. 透明的

skyscraper [ˋskaɪ͵skrepɚ] n. 摩天楼，超高层大楼

block [blɑk] n.（四面围有街道的）街区

conveyor [kənˈveɚ] belt 传送带﹐输送带

produce [ˋprɑdjus] n. 农产品

unpredictability [ˌʌnprɪˌdɪktə'bɪlətɪ] n. 不可预测性

the elements 大自然的力量

element [ˋɛləmənt] n. 自然力，恶劣天气

off [ɔf] prep. 以……为依靠 from

The father of vertical farming - economist.com/video

Designing the vertical farm - economist.com/video

Answer