60秒科学:Bad Mileage Driving Tips

On May 19th, President Obama announced a new federal gas mileage¹ standard. He wants the country’s entire car and light truck fleet to average 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016. Some reaction was swift and to the point. Here’s forlorn Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn: “What if you want to drive a gas hog²? You don’t have the right any longer in this country to spend your money to drive a gas hog?”

Fret³ not, Senator, because with the proper care, upkeep and driving behavior, it’s possible to squeeze many fewer miles out of a given gallon of gas than whatever standard the feds might impose on us. Here are some tips for turning even the most fuel-efficient vehicle into a gas-guzzling petroleum⁴ pig:

Keep your tires under-inflated. Always do jackrabbit starts. Never get a tune-up. Avoid driving at a steady speed on highways. Add whatever doodads you can to the surface to increase wind resistance. And when all else fails, put her up on blocks and just keep spinning your wheels.

—Steve Mirsky

 

1 mileage   

n.里程，英里数；好处，利润

参考例句：

• He doesn't think there's any mileage in that type of advertising.他认为做那种广告毫无效益。
• What mileage has your car done?你的汽车跑了多少英里？

2 hog   

n.猪；馋嘴贪吃的人；vt.把…占为己有，独占

参考例句：

• He is greedy like a hog.他像猪一样贪婪。
• Drivers who hog the road leave no room for other cars.那些占着路面的驾驶员一点余地都不留给其他车辆。

3 fret   

v.(使)烦恼；(使)焦急；(使)腐蚀，(使)磨损

参考例句：

• Don't fret.We'll get there on time.别着急，我们能准时到那里。
• She'll fret herself to death one of these days.她总有一天会愁死的.

4 petroleum   

n.原油，石油

参考例句：

• The Government of Iran advanced the price of petroleum last week.上星期伊朗政府提高了石油价格。
• The purpose of oil refinery is to refine crude petroleum.炼油厂的主要工作是提炼原油。