国家地理-2008-04-12 Alternative Energy 可替代能源

 When the wind picks up at the foot of the Rockies, there are those who believe they can hear the future. At the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, making alternative power sources competitive with fossil fuels has been a mission since the energy crisis of the 1970s. Scientists worked to create solar cells far more efficient than those currently available to homeowners. They believe the market for this technology is about to come of age. When it was installed, this was believed to be the largest residential¹ solar-electric system in the United States. The homeowner is actually selling electricity back to the power company.  "I also feel good because I've always been committed about the environment and doing something and we have to start as individuals to do things."
 
But individuals can do only so much. Researchers here say, for renewable energy to really make a difference, it has to be on a large scale. There hasn't been any great sense of urgency for finding energy alternatives. For decades, low gas prices have kept Americans in their cars, usually alone. But a jumping gas prices often spotlights² the search for something else to keep all those cars going.
 
What's in there now is a material that looks like straw or, it's actually the material that farmers just leave sitting on the ground after they go through when they harvest corn. We are trying to get farmers to collect this material so that we can run it through conversion³ technology to make new liquid fuels.
 
Since the energy crisis of the 70s, some farmers have been diverting part of their grain harvest to make a fuel called ethanol. But the emphasis now is on the stalks and stubble left on the ground after the harvest. "The cellulose attained⁴ here that actually is made up of sugars, is something that they can turn into ethanol on the same way that they're currently taking the corn grain that having it turned into fuel grade ethanol. "
 
The National Renewable Energy Lab has a plant that converts harvest leftovers⁵ and just about anything else into fuel. Proving that renewable energy technology is viable⁶ remains⁷ a struggle, at least in America. Wind turbines were pioneered in the United States, but countries in Europe use them to supply more meaningful amounts of power. With the current energy situation labeled a crisis, the urgency for finding reliable alternatives to fossil fuels may have arrived. And for renewable energy, the future may be now.

cellulose: 纤维素
organic substance that forms the main part of all plants and trees and is used in making plastics, paper, etc
 
wind turbine：风力涡轮发电机
A wind turbine is a machine for converting the kinetic⁸ energy in wind into mechanical energy.

1 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

2 spotlights   

n.聚光灯（的光）( spotlight的名词复数 )；公众注意的中心v.聚光照明( spotlight的第三人称单数 )；使公众注意，使突出醒目

参考例句：

• The room was lit by spotlights. 房间被聚光灯照亮。
• The dazzle of the spotlights made him ill at ease. 聚光灯的耀眼强光使他局促不安。 来自辞典例句

3 conversion   

n.转化，转换，转变

参考例句：

• He underwent quite a conversion.他彻底变了。
• Waste conversion is a part of the production process.废物处理是生产过程的一个组成部分。

4 attained   

（通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况）

参考例句：

• She has attained the degree of Master of Arts. 她已获得文学硕士学位。
• Lu Hsun attained a high position in the republic of letters. 鲁迅在文坛上获得崇高的地位。

5 leftovers   

n.剩余物，残留物，剩菜

参考例句：

• He can do miracles with a few kitchen leftovers.他能用厨房里几样剩饭做出一顿美餐。
• She made supper from leftovers she had thrown together.她用吃剩的食物拼凑成一顿晚饭。

6 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。

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

8 kinetic   

adj.运动的；动力学的

参考例句：

• There exist many sources of energy both potential and kinetic.存在着许多势能和动能的能源。
• The kinetic theory of gases is the best known example.气体动力学理论就是最有名的例子。