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Living Underground 我家住在地下

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繁體中文譯本   

For some, home is where the earth is  对于某些人而言，家就在土壤里面

Down a dirt road and between thickets of trees, Paul Queen lives inside a grassy, man-made hill.

在一条夹在树丛之间的泥土路上，保罗．昆恩住在一座长满了青草的人造山丘里。

Deer try to stroll across his rooftop. Gopher tortoises attempt to tunnel into the walls.

鹿儿想从他的屋顶上漫步而过。地鼠陆龟试图在他的墙上钻洞。

But inside, Queen can barely hear the rain – or deer hoofsteps. His home is earth-sheltered, meaning it’s not exactly underground but is surrounded and insulated by a massive mound of soil. National builders of the obscure style, which first grew out of hillsides and rural grasslands during the energy crisis decades ago, say that amid concerns about power bills and natural disasters, more people are burrowing into the earth.

但在屋里，昆恩几乎听不到雨声，也听不到鹿儿的蹄声。他的家包覆在土壤当中，并不是说位于地底下，而是被一大丘土壤所围绕与隔绝。这种不显眼的建筑方式最早在数十年前的能源危机期间出现于山坡与乡下草原地区。全国采用这种方式的建筑师表示，在电费节节高涨，自然灾害又愈来愈频繁的情况下，愈来愈多人都选择了钻入土壤下。

Although Queen estimates the building style reduces his cooling bills by 40 percent and says he will probably never have to evacuate for a hurricane, the housing concept remains rare in Florida.

根据昆恩的估计，这种建筑方式为他节省了百分之四十的冷气费用，他表示，他大概永远都不必为了飓风来袭而撤离家园。不过，这种住宅概念在佛罗里达州却仍相当罕见。

“Until you’re really in one, you really don’t realize how wonderful they are,” Queen, who works in marketing, said of his Florida home. “The way it’s laid out, it has as much light as any house.”

「只有实际住过，才会知道这种房子有多好，」从事营销工作的昆恩针对他的佛州住家说道：「由于其格局的设计，室内光线完全不输其他房子。」

[However,] Stephanie Thomas-Rees, a research architect with the Florida Solar Energy Center, said the state’s sandy soil and high water table make managing moisture difficult in an earth-sheltered home. Others suggest that without hills, which provide a natural construction site, it’s harder to find good locations for such homes here.

不过，佛罗里达太阳能中心的研究建筑师史达夫妮．托马斯-瑞斯指出，该州的砂质土壤与高地下水位使得土壤覆盖的住宅难以控制湿度。另外有些人则指出，如果没有山丘这样的自然建筑处所，这类房屋在这里其实比较难找到适当的坐落地点。

How much does it cost?  建造成本多高？

Dale Pearcey, president of Formworks Building inc. in Colorado, said prices are on par with traditional homes, though mortgages often are paid off faster because of reduced heating and cooling bills.

科罗拉多州的构型建筑公司总裁戴尔．皮尔希表示，这种房屋的价格与传统住宅差不多，但因为暖气及冷气费用比较省，所以房贷通常会比较早还清。

“If some contractor came up with a bunch of model homes and put them all in one place where the general public would just walk through them, it would change a lot of people’s minds in a hurry,” he said.

「如果有哪家建商愿意兴建一批样品屋，全部坐落在同一个地区，让大众可以进去参观，那么一定可以让很多人的观念立刻改变，」他说。

单词发音

More Information

home is where the heart is 心之所在即为家 something that you say which means that your true home is with the person or in the place that you love most

grassy [ˋgræsɪ] adj. 盖满草的；长满草的

tortoise [ˋtɔrtəs] n. 陆龟；龟

obscure [əbˋskjʊr] adj. 模糊的；含糊不清的 not readily noticed or seen; inconspicuous

evacuate [ɪˋvækjʊ͵et] v. 撤离

housing [ˋhaʊzɪŋ] n.（总称）房屋，住宅

water table 地下水位

mortgage [ˋmɔrgɪdʒ] n. 抵押借款

contractor [ˋkɑntræktɚ] n. 承包人，承包商

课文朗读

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An image problem  形象问题

“Most people think it’s going to look like dungeon,” said Alice McCorkle, who said her Florida home gets plenty of light through windows on one side. Her husband built the home on the highest point of the property, and its dirt-filled walls regulate temperatures so well that family members come over when power goes out during cold snaps.

「大多数人都认为这种房子看起来一定像地牢一样，」艾丽斯．麦克高寇说。她表示自己位于佛州的住宅可从一侧的窗户获得大量光线。她先生把住宅在那片土地的最高点，填满土壤的墙壁调节温度的效果非常好，家族成员在寒流来袭期间如果遇到停电，都会到他们家避寒。

In Queen’s home, the ceiling of a central atrium climbs more than two stories, and a small octagon of windows inside it rises above the peak of the hill. The atrium gets so much light, Queen grows potted plants on its floor. Three other living spaces surround the atrium like petals. Dirt was packed between them, but some areas were left exposed – so even though the home is buried beneath a grassy hill, all rooms have windows.

在昆恩的住宅里，中庭的天花板超过两层楼高，小小的呈八角形的窗户突出于山丘顶上。中庭的光线非常充足，昆恩甚至能够在这里的地板种盆栽。另外的三个生活空间像花瓣一样环绕着中庭。这些空间之间都填满了土壤，但有些部分仍然暴露出来──所以这幢住宅虽然埋在长满青草的山丘里，每个房间仍然有窗户。

Queen said he’s never had an issue with moisture or bugs. The shell of the home is 10 inches of steel-reinforced concrete. A layer of asphalt, then a layer of rubber follow. Finally several feet of dirt coat the rest.

昆恩说他从来没遇到潮湿或虫子入侵的问题。这幢住宅的外壳是十吋厚的钢筋强化的混凝土，一层柏油，再一层橡胶，最后才是几呎厚的土壤。

For the most part, life in an earth-sheltered home isn’t too different, Queen says. But there are some quirks. Some of the walls are curved so he can’t hang paintings (he opts for easels). Cell-phone and wireless Internet signals have trouble penetrating the thick walls. And then there are the wild animals who think it’s their home too.

昆恩说，大体上而言，住在土壤覆盖的住宅里，生活并没有什么不同。不过，还是有一些古怪之处。屋里有些墙壁是弯曲的，所以无法在这些墙上挂画（他选择摆画架）。手机和无线网络的讯号难以穿越厚厚的墙壁。此外，有些野生动物不免以为这里也是牠们的家。

“The quirkiness is fun,” Queen said. “I like that no one else has [a home] like it.”

「这些古怪的特性很有趣，」昆恩说：「我喜欢自己的家能与众不同。」

－by Rachael Jackson

单词发音

Vocabulary Focus

thicket [ˋθɪkɪt] n. 灌林丛；杂木林 an area of trees and bushes growing closely together

insulate [ˋɪnsə͵let] v. 隔离；使孤立 to cover and surround something with a material or substance in order to stop heat, sound or electricity from escaping or entering

burrow [ˋbɝo] v. 住入地洞 to dig a hole in the ground, especially to live in

lay out 安排, 布置 to design the way in which a house, city or garden is built or created

on par with 与…相等, 与…一样 the same as or equal to someone or something

opt for (idiom) 决定某事物; 选择某事物 to choose a specific option

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dungeon [ˋdʌndʒən] n.（城堡内的）土牢，地牢

cold snap 乍冷﹐骤冷 a period of intensely cold and dry weather

atrium [ˋɑtrɪəm] n. 天井前厅；中庭

octagon [ˋɑktə͵gɑn] n. 八边形；八角形

asphalt [ˋæsfɔlt] n. 沥青；柏油

quirk [kwɝk] n.〔偶然发生的〕奇事 an unpredictable or unaccountable act or event

easel [ˋiz!] n. 画架；黑板架

Paul Queen checks on his roof where he cultivates grass and vines, July 1, 2010, in Oviedo, Florida. His home is earth-sheltered, meaning it's not exactly underground but is surrounded and insulated by a massive mound of soil. (George Skene, MCT)

The rooms inside this earth-sheltered house are vaulted. Here, owner Paul Queen works in the kitchen, July 1, 2010, in Oviedo, Florida. His home is earth-sheltered, meaning it's not exactly underground but is surrounded and insulated by a massive mound of soil.