英語聽力小短文走遍全世界：全球變暖問題
Global warming may or not be the great environmental crisis of the 21st century, but—regardless of weather it is or isn't— we won't do much about it. We will argue over it and may even, as a nation, make some fairly solemn-sounding commitments to avoid it. But the more dramatic and meaningful these commitments seem, the less likely they are to be observed.
全球變暖有可能是21世紀巨大的環(huán)境危機，也有可能不是，但是無論它是或不是我們對此都無能為力。我們會爭論不休，作為一個國家，或許會做出一些聽起來相當(dāng)認真的承諾來避免這一危機。但是這些承諾看起來越是令人印象深刻、越是有意義，就越是不太可能被遵守。
Al Gore calls global warming an “inconvenient truth,” as if merely recognizing it could put in on a path to a solution. But the real truth is that we don't know enough to believe global warming, and — with our major technological breakthroughs — we can't do much about it.
Al Gore 稱全球變暖是一個“讓人感到麻煩的事實”，似乎只要認識到它的存在就可以把我們帶往一條解決問題的途經(jīng)上去。但是真正的事實是，我們沒有掌握足夠的知識去緩解全球變暖，并且如果沒有重大的技術(shù)突破，我們對此也束手無策。
No government will adopt rigid restrictions on economic growth and personal freedom (limits on electricity usage, driving and travel)that might cut back global warming. Still, politicians want to show they're “doing something”. Consider the Kyoto Protocol. It allowed countries that joined to punish those that didn't. But it hasn't reduced CO? emissions (up about 25% since 1990), and many signatories didn't adopt tough enough policies to hit their 2008 — 2012 targets.
沒有哪個政府會對經(jīng)濟增長和個人自由(限制電力的使用，駕駛和旅游)采取嚴格的限制令，雖然這樣的限制可以緩解全球變暖。即便事實如此，執(zhí)政者們還是想表明他們在“采取措施”。就拿《京都協(xié)議》來說吧，它允許其成員國懲罰非成員國。但是它并沒有起到減少二氧化碳的排放量(自從1990年以來上升了25%)的作用，并且，許多簽字國并沒有采取足夠嚴格的政策來盡力完成他們所制定的2008—2012年度的目標。
The practical conclusion is that if global warming is a potential disaster, the only solution is new technology. Only an aggressive research and development program might find ways of breaking our dependence on fossil fuels or dealing with it.
比較實際的結(jié)論是，如果全球變暖是一個潛在的災(zāi)難，那么唯一的解決辦法就是新技術(shù)。只有積極進取的研究開發(fā)項目才可能會找到辦法打破我們對于化石燃料的依賴，或者找到應(yīng)對這一難題的辦法。
The trouble with the global warming debate is that it has become a moral problem when it's really engineering one. The inconvenient truth is that if we don't solve the engineering problem, we're helpless.
全球變暖這場辯論所存在的問題是，它本是一個技術(shù)問題，卻都已經(jīng)變成了一個道德問題。這個被忽視的真相就是，如果不能解決這個技術(shù)問題，我們將對此束手無策。
英語單詞詞匯整理:
1. solemn adj.嚴肅的，莊重的
eg：His solemn little face broke into smiles.
他那嚴肅的小臉綻開了笑容。
短語
solemn promise 莊嚴承諾 ; 誓言 ; 鄭重承諾 ; 莊嚴的誓言
solemn profession 終身圣愿 ; 隆重終身圣愿
solemn serious 岸然
2. commitment n. 承諾，托付
eg: They made a commitment to peace.
他們承諾要維護和平。
短語：
commitment fee 承擔(dān)費;承諾費;承約費
loan commitment 貸款承諾;貨款承諾;放款承諾;貸款委托書
Service commitment 服務(wù)承諾;效勞許諾
Management commitment 管理承諾;管理委員會;管理的承諾
Commitment Document 承諾文件
3. dramatic adj. 引人注目的，戲劇性的
eg: Their arrival was dramatic and exciting.
他們的到來令人激動不已，難以忘懷。
短語：
Dramatic Lyrics 戲劇抒情詩;詩劇抒懷詩
Dramatic Arts 戲劇藝術(shù)
Dramatic Writing 編劇;話劇寫作
dramatic rights 改編權(quán)
4. observe v. 遵守，觀察
eg: Everyone should observe the law.
任何人都必須遵紀守法。
短語：
witness observe 目睹 ; 目擊
observe silence 默哀
observe things 觀察事物 ; 觀察東西
observe that 對某人說
5. breakthrough n. 突破
eg: Scientists have made a breakthrough in their treatment of that disease.
科學(xué)家在治療那種疾病方面已有突破。
短語：
breakthrough point 切入點;突破點
breakthrough time 突破時間
technological breakthrough 技術(shù)突破
6. aggressive adj. 進取的，攻擊性強的
eg: The dogs are trained to be aggressive.
這些狗被訓(xùn)練得具有攻擊性。
短語：
aggressive mode 積極模式;主動模式;挑戰(zhàn)模式;激進模式
aggressive active 積極主動
aggressive Driving 侵略性駕駛;攻擊性駕駛
7. fossil fuel 礦物燃料
eg: Coal is usually referred to as a fossil fuel.
煤通常被稱為礦物燃料.
短語：
Fossil-Fuel Resources Utilization in China 中國能源資源消費及其經(jīng)濟性分析
fossil-fuel power station 火力發(fā)電廠
fossil-fuel boiler 化石燃料鍋爐
佳句采摘：
We will argue over it and may even, as a nation, make some fairly solemn-sounding commitments to avoid it. But the more dramatic and meaningful these commitments seem, the less likely they are to be observed.
我們會爭論不休，作為一個國家，或許會做出一些聽起來相當(dāng)認真的承諾來避免這一危機。但是這些承諾看起來越是令人印象深刻、越是有意義，就越是不太可能被遵守。
