美国国家公共电台 NPR--What is the significance of the fusion breakthrough?

What is the significance of the fusion¹ breakthrough?

Transcript²

Department of Energy scientists announced a breakthrough in nuclear fusion. NPR's Rob Schmitz speaks with Scott Hsu, lead fusion coordinator³ at DOE, about what this means for the future.

ROB SCHMITZ, HOST:

Joining us now to talk about what this breakthrough means for the U.S. is Scott Hsu, the lead fusion coordinator at the Department of Energy. Thanks for being here, Scott.

SCOTT HSU: Thank you. Great to be here.

SCHMITZ: As Geoff just mentioned, for the first time ever in a laboratory, researchers were able to generate more energy from fusion than they used to start the process. The total gain was around 150%, which sounds astounding⁴. But how realistic is it that this will be able to create clean, safe electricity anytime soon?

HSU: Well, I think this achievement was a big step in the sense that before, we questioned whether this was even possible, right?

SCHMITZ: Right.

HSU: In theory, we knew it could be done. But it's like flipping⁵ a switch. Last week, we didn't - people questioned whether it was possible. Today, we know it is possible. So I think that's the important piece.

SCHMITZ: And this happened in a U.S. Department of Energy lab. What are other countries doing? Are we - it makes me wonder if we're entering into an era where we see a nuclear fusion race.

HSU: Yes, indeed. Other countries are increasing their investments in this area, both because of increasing technical readiness, as we just saw, but also the strong market pull for an energy technology that fusion - of fusion characteristics. So they are investing strongly, many other countries.

SCHMITZ: And which countries are sort of in the lead on this, other than the United States, obviously?

HSU: Well, the U.K. has has declared an ambition to bring a fusion pilot plant online by 2040. And, of course, the People's Republic of China is investing very strongly.

SCHMITZ: And let's talk about the infrastructure⁶ that this will require. How much is this going to cost? Are we investing enough money in this now to make this viable⁷ in the future?

HSU: Yeah, that's a great question. You know, when people ask, how long will it take? - to me, it's more about our collective will and how much we invest. And so I think we know what needs to be done. And it's a collective will to get there. In terms of infrastructure, I think there's many opportunities and needs. If we are to have a fusion energy economy, there's a lot of opportunities in high-tech⁸ components⁹, materials and manufacturing. We would like to be able to secure these supply chains in America and with our allies. But also, we can repurpose existing infrastructure. For example, decommissioning power plants would be a win-win, saving costs for fusion developers and also bringing benefits to local communities because fusion is clean.

SCHMITZ: And are we going to see money in the budget for this in the years to come now that this discovery has been made?

HSU: Well, even if I knew the answer to that, I couldn't say it here. I'd have to refer those questions to the Department of Energy public affairs folks.

SCHMITZ: But, Scott, when we look at the infrastructure that's required for nuclear fusion to actually be viable, we're thinking about things like especially skilled professionals, people who understand how this works. At this stage, do we have enough people trained in this to make this happen?

HSU: So that's a great question. We really do need to build our workforce¹⁰. I think in the hardcore fusion plasma¹¹ physics, we have a good number of people. But to do all the rest of the things to get to viable commercial fusion energy, we need to grow our workforce in many different areas to bring fusion to technical and commercial viability¹². So we welcome people to join this fight.

SCHMITZ: Scott Hsu is the lead fusion coordinator at the Department of Energy. Thanks, Scott.

HSU: Thank you.

1 fusion   

n.溶化；熔解；熔化状态，熔和；熔接

参考例句：

• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc. 黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。
• This alloy is formed by the fusion of two types of metal.这种合金是用两种金属熔合而成的。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

4 astounding   

adj.使人震惊的vt.使震惊，使大吃一惊astound的现在分词)

参考例句：

• There was an astounding 20% increase in sales. 销售量惊人地增加了20%。
• The Chairman's remarks were so astounding that the audience listened to him with bated breath. 主席说的话令人吃惊，所以听众都屏息听他说。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 flipping   

讨厌之极的

参考例句：

• I hate this flipping hotel! 我讨厌这个该死的旅馆！
• Don't go flipping your lid. 别发火。

6 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

7 viable   

adj.可行的，切实可行的，能活下去的

参考例句：

• The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
• The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。

8 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

9 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

10 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

11 plasma   

n.血浆，细胞质，乳清

参考例句：

• Keep some blood plasma back for the serious cases.留一些血浆给重病号。
• The plasma is the liquid portion of blood that is free of cells .血浆是血液的液体部分，不包含各种细胞。

12 viability   

n.存活(能力)

参考例句：

• What is required to achieve or maintain such viability? 要达到或维持这种生存能力需要什么？
• Scientists are experimenting to find ways to ensure the viability of seeds for even longer periods of time. 正如我们所说，科学家正在试验努力寻找让种子的生命力更加延长的方法。