The Seven Wonders of the Modern World: The Empire State Building 现代文明七大奇景：帝国大厦
- 详细资料
- 创建于 2005年3月03日
- 最后更新于 2024年5月25日
- 发布于 2011年8月24日
- 作者：Mike Lee
- 点击数：373
课文朗读
课文讲解
New York is a city of famous buildings and monuments, but the Big Apple sports a true modern wonder in the majestic Empire State Building. Probably the world’s most recognizable skyscraper, it remains America’s second tallest building.
纽约市是一个著名大楼及纪念碑林立的城市，而纽约市最值得骄傲的当代建筑奇迹就属雄伟的帝国大厦了。它或许是世界上最容易被认出来的摩天大楼，也仍是全美第二高的摩天大楼。
Legend has it that, upon meeting, William Lamb (the building’s architect) asked John Raksob (the building’s financier) what he had in mind. In response, Raksob pulled a thick pencil out of his desk, held it upright, and said, “How high can you make it so won’t fall down?” Lamb’s solution? A building designed with an internal pyramid for ducts, elevators, and hallways, surrounded by another pyramid of office space.
传说威廉蓝伯（帝国大厦的建筑师）与约翰雷克索伯（帝国大厦的投资者）会面时，问他脑海中有何想法。雷克索伯的回应是，他从书桌里拿出一枝粗的铅笔，把它立直并且说：「你可以把大楼盖得多高，而不会倒下？」蓝伯提出解决方案是：大楼采用金字塔式的设计，内层是管线、电梯间、和门厅，外层又是金字塔式的办公空间。
Build in 1930, the Empire State Building’s art deco design is a delightful synergy of early twentieth-century technological innovation and classical motifs. In addition to its classic appearance, the construction of the Empire State Building was an unparalleled feat of organization and efficiency with construction averaging 4.5 floors per week! This rate of ascent remains unsurpassed.
帝国大厦建于1930年，其装饰艺术设计结合二十世纪初的创新科技及古典精神，产生了更令人惊艳的效果。除了古典的外观之外，帝国大厦的建造在结构及效率上更是无与伦比，每星期的工程进度平均可建到四层楼半，其高度攀升的速度至今都无人可以打破。
No other building is identified more closely with the Big Apple. It was even named after New York State’s own nickname. For its groundbreaking architecture and engineering, the Empire State Building continues to set the standard against which other skyscrapers are judged.
没有其它大厦比帝国大厦更能跟纽约市联想在一起了，它甚至是以纽约州的别名来命名。在创新建筑和工程技术方面，帝国大厦持续立下标竿，成为其他摩天楼评比的标准。
Vocabulary
单词发音
monument [ˋmɑnjəmənt] n. 纪念碑，纪念塔
sport [sport] v.【口】炫耀；夸示 to display or show off
skyscraper [ˋskaɪ͵skrepɚ] n. 摩天楼，超高层大楼
pyramid [ˋpɪrəmɪd] n. 金字塔
duct [dʌkt] n. 输送管；导管 a tube or pipe for enclosing electrical cables or wires
art deco〔20世纪20和30年代流行的一种〕装饰派艺术（风格）
synergy [ˋsɪnɚdʒɪ] n.〔两个人的精力和思想结合后产生的〕协同作用﹐增效作用 combined action or functioning; synergism
motif [moˋtif] n.〔书﹑电影﹑艺术品等的〕主题﹐中心思想; 基本模式 a repeated figure or design in architecture or decoration
unparalleled [ʌnˋpærə͵lɛld] adj. 无比的；无双的；空前未有的 without parallel, equal, or match; unequaled
ascent [əˋsɛnt] n. 上升；登高
groundbreaking [ˋgraʊnd͵brekɪŋ] adj. 开创性的
Sentence of the Day
The construction engineers who built the Empire State Building ran a tight ship.
建造帝国大厦的工程师采用纪律严明、注重效率的管理方式。
课文讲解
Jenny and Ryan, university civil engineering students, are walking on-campus in New York: 珍妮和雷恩是土木工程系的大学生，两人在纽约的校园里散步。
R: I still can’t believe the Twin Towers are gone. It seems like a movie …
我到现在还不敢相信双子星大楼已经消失了，好像演电影一样……
J: You know, they weren’t the first buildings in New York to be hit by a plane. An Air Force bomber crashed into the Empire State Building in 1945, although that was an accident.
你知道吗，它不是纽约第一座被飞机撞击的大楼。在1945年，一架空军的轰炸机撞上了帝国大厦，但那只是一场意外。
R: Yeah, But the building was constructed so well that the damage was neither critical nor structural. The fact that it was built into solid bedrock probably helped.
是呀，但是帝国大厦建造很坚固，所以损坏程度并没有很严重，也没伤到结构部分。或许建筑在坚固的岩层上，有助于让它保持屹立不倒。
J: Also sounds like solid engineering. Even in winds of 160 kph, the Empire State Building sways less than a centimeter to each side.
听起来还真是一个扎实的建筑工程。即使在风速每小时160公里的强风中，帝国大厦左右摇晃的幅度也少于一公分。
R: And unbelievable, the whole steel was welded together in a blistering twenty-three weeks. Talk about motivation!
更不可思议的是，全部的钢骨结构焊接在二十三周内就已迅速完成。真是有志者事竟成！
J: What amazes me most is that the whole massive undertaking was accomplished in just over thirteen months. They must’ve hired some top-of-the-line construction engineers.
让我最吃惊的是整个浩大的工程只花了十三个多月完成。他们一定是雇用了一些顶尖的建筑工程师。
R: Ironically, because it was finished in the middle of the depression, lots of office space stayed vacant, earning it the nickname the “Empty State Building” for a while.
讽刺的是，帝国大厦盖完时正值经济萧条时期，很多办公空间都无人使用，所以有一段时间人们给它取名为「空屋大厦」。
J: With 97 percent of its space rented, it sure ain’t empty now! That’s more than I can say for my stomach – let’s get a hot dog.
因为百分之九十七的空间都租了出去，现在可不是空屋了！我的胃可是空得很，咱们去吃热狗吧。
－by Darshan Tyler
Vocabulary
单词发音
civil engineering 土木工程
bedrock [ˋbɛd͵rɑk] n. 基岩﹐底岩﹐床岩 any firm foundation
sway [swe] v. 摇动，摇摆
weld [wɛld] v. 焊接；熔接
blistering [ˋblɪstərɪŋ] adj.（温度，速度）极高的，极度的；极热的，极快的 very rapid
undertaking [͵ʌndɚˋtekɪŋ] n. 任务; 事业
top-of-the-line (同类商品中）最好的，顶极的
vacant [ˋvekənt] adj. 空着的，未被占用的
Sentence of the Day
Construction of the Empire State Building went like a dream.
帝国大厦的建造过程非常顺利