2018年经济学人 科技革命:内燃机迎来末日(2)

 

Last month Britain joined a lengthening¹ list of electric-only countries, saying that all new cars must be zero-emission by 2050.

上个月，英国加入了一份正变得越来越长的只使用电动车的国家名单，声称到2050年，全部新车必须是零排放。

The shift from fuel and pistons² to batteries and electric motors is unlikely to take that long.

从燃料和活塞到电池和电力马达的转型不可能用这么长的时间。

The first death rattles³ of the internal combustion⁴ engine are already reverberating⁵ around the world—and many of the consequences will be welcome.

内燃机的第一声濒死哀鸣早已回响在世界各地——这一后果中的许多东西都将是受欢迎的。

To gauge⁶ what lies ahead, think how the internal combustion engine has shaped modern life.

要想预测今后的情况，想一想内燃机是如何塑造了当代生活的。

The rich world was rebuilt for motor vehicles, with huge investments in road networks and the invention of suburbia, along with shopping malls and drive-through restaurants.

当初，富裕世界就是为汽车而重建的，具体地说就是道路网的大笔投资和城镇郊区的发明，以及各种购物中心和免下车餐厅。

Roughly 85% of American workers commute⁷ by car.

大约85%的美国工人乘车上下班。

Carmaking was also a generator⁸ of economic development and the expansion of the middle class, in post-war America and elsewhere.

在战后美国和其他各地，汽车制造还是经济发展和中产阶层膨胀的一位缔造者。

There are now about 1bn cars on the road, almost all powered by fossil fuels.

如今，大约有1万亿辆车在路上，几乎全都是由化石燃料驱动。

Though most of them sit idle, America's car and lorry engines can produce ten times as much energy as its power stations.

美国的汽车和卡车发动机尽管大部分处于闲置状态，但是，它们能够产生十倍于电站的能量。

The internal combustion engine is the mightiest⁹ motor in history.

内燃机是史上最威猛的发动机。

But electrification¹⁰ has thrown the car industry into turmoil¹¹.

但是，电动化却让汽车行业陷入了危机之中。

Its best brands are founded on their engineering heritage—especially in Germany.

该行业的最佳品牌是建立在它们的工艺传承之上的——尤其是在德国。

Compared with existing vehicles, electric cars are much simpler and have fewer parts; they are more like computers on wheels.

与现有的车辆相比，电动车简单得多，而且零部件也少了；它们更像是轮子上的计算机。

That means they need fewer people to assemble them and fewer subsidiary systems from specialist suppliers.

这意味着，它们需要更少的人手来组装，更少的来自专业供应商的辅助系统。

Carworkers at factories that do not make electric cars are worried that they could be for the chop.

在工厂里不生产电动车的汽车工人担心他们可能被裁员。

With less to go wrong, the market for maintenance and spare parts will shrink.

由于故障减少，维修和备件市场会萎缩。

While today's carmakers grapple with their costly¹² legacy¹³ of old factories and swollen¹⁴ workforces¹⁵, new entrants will be unencumbered.

就在当今的汽车厂商勉力应付它们代价高昂的旧厂房和臃肿员工的遗产时，新的加入者将会了无牵挂。

Premium¹⁶ brands may be able to stand out through styling and handling, but low-margin, mass-market carmakers will have to compete chiefly on cost.

优质品牌或许有能力通过款式和工艺脱颖而出，但是薄利多销的厂商将不得不首先在成本方面进行竞争。

Assuming, of course, that people want to own cars at all.

当然，假设人们想拥有自己的汽车的。

1 lengthening   

（时间或空间）延长，伸长( lengthen的现在分词 )； 加长

参考例句：

• The evening shadows were lengthening. 残阳下的影子越拉越长。
• The shadows are lengthening for me. 我的影子越来越长了。 来自演讲部分

2 pistons   

活塞( piston的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Some pistons have seating rings of metal or leather. 有些活塞上有金属或皮革的密封环。
• A pump uses valves and pistons. 泵使用阀和活塞。

3 rattles   

（使）发出格格的响声， （使）作嘎嘎声( rattle的第三人称单数 )； 喋喋不休地说话； 迅速而嘎嘎作响地移动，堕下或走动； 使紧张，使恐惧

参考例句：

• It rattles the windowpane and sends the dog scratching to get under the bed. 它把窗玻璃震得格格作响，把狗吓得往床底下钻。
• How thin it is, and how dainty and frail; and how it rattles. 你看它够多么薄，多么精致，多么不结实；还老那么哗楞哗楞地响。

4 combustion   

n.燃烧；氧化；骚动

参考例句：

• We might be tempted to think of combustion.我们也许会联想到氧化。
• The smoke formed by their combustion is negligible.由它燃烧所生成的烟是可忽略的。

5 reverberating   

回响，回荡( reverberate的现在分词 )； 使反响，使回荡，使反射

参考例句：

• The words are still ringing [reverberating] in one's ears. 言犹在耳。
• I heard a voice reverberating: "Crawl out! I give you liberty!" 我听到一个声音在回荡：“爬出来吧，我给你自由！”

6 gauge   

v.精确计量；估计；n.标准度量；计量器

参考例句：

• Can you gauge what her reaction is likely to be?你能揣测她的反应可能是什么吗？
• It's difficult to gauge one's character.要判断一个人的品格是很困难的。

7 commute   

vi.乘车上下班；vt.减(刑)；折合；n.上下班交通

参考例句：

• I spend much less time on my commute to work now.我现在工作的往返时间要节省好多。
• Most office workers commute from the suburbs.很多公司的职员都是从郊外来上班的。

8 generator   

n.发电机，发生器

参考例句：

• All the while the giant generator poured out its power.巨大的发电机一刻不停地发出电力。
• This is an alternating current generator.这是一台交流发电机。

9 mightiest   

adj.趾高气扬( mighty的最高级 )；巨大的；强有力的；浩瀚的

参考例句：

• \"If thou fearest to leave me in our cottage, thou mightiest take me along with thee. “要是你害怕把我一个人留在咱们的小屋里，你可以带我一块儿去那儿嘛。 来自英汉文学 - 红字
• Silent though is, after all, the mightiest agent in human affairs. 确实，沉默毕竟是人类事件中最强大的代理人。 来自互联网

10 electrification   

n.充电，电气化；起电；电化；带电

参考例句：

• Electrification of the countryside--yes, that, too, is impressive. 是的。农村电气化也是了不起的事。 来自演讲部分
• After electrification, it will readily stick to a wall or a ceiling. 起电后，它立即吸附到墙壁上或天花板上。 来自辞典例句

11 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

12 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

13 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

14 swollen   

adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀

参考例句：

• Her legs had got swollen from standing up all day.因为整天站着，她的双腿已经肿了。
• A mosquito had bitten her and her arm had swollen up.蚊子叮了她，她的手臂肿起来了。

15 workforces   

全体员工( workforce的名词复数 )； （国家或行业等）劳动力； 劳动大军； 劳动人口

参考例句：

• The Web has allowed companies to become more distributed and workforces to become more flexible. 网站已允许各公司更加分散，工作队伍也变得更加灵活。
• They are large centres of business in their own with skilled workforces and business-friendly environments. 从自身条件来说，它们都是大型商业中心，拥有大批技能型劳动力和友好的商业运作环境。

16 premium   

n.加付款；赠品；adj.高级的；售价高的

参考例句：

• You have to pay a premium for express delivery.寄快递你得付额外费用。
• Fresh water was at a premium after the reservoir was contaminated.在水库被污染之后，清水便因稀而贵了。