经济学人:各国要积极应对气候变暖(1)

 Leaders 社论

Climate change 气候变化

The temperature rises 温度上升

A new report produces a mixture of alarm and apathy¹ 新报告敲响警钟，对此有人惊慌，有人冷漠

For decades scientists have warned that rising atmospheric² concentrations of greenhouse gases from the burning of fossil fuels 几十年来，燃烧化石燃料导致温室气体浓度不断上升，

risk adversely³ affecting the climate, increasing ocean acidity⁴, the frequency of freak weather and other symptoms of planetary ill-health. 科学家一直都在警告这将恶化气候、增加海洋酸度、增高天气反常频率，并会导致其他地球不健康的症状表现。

But it seemed that keeping the temperature within 2°C of pre-industrial levels, although disruptive, would probably leave Earth in a chronic⁵ but stable condition. 但是如果温度浮动相比工业化前不超过2°C，尽管有一定破坏性，但是可能会使地球处于一种慢性恶化但是稳定的状态。

A report unveiled this week from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a UN-backed body that musters⁶ the science needed to inform policy, shows how optimistic that was. 联合国政府间气候变化专门委员会（IPCC）是由联合国支持的组织，主要任务是为政策制定提供科学信息。本周，委员会公布了一份报告，报告表明这样的想法过于乐观。

The survey was commissioned in 2015 by the then 195 signatories of the Paris climate agreement— 这项调查是2015年由当时195个巴黎气候协议签署国委托进行的——

which commits them to keep warming "well below" 2°C and to "pursue efforts towards 1.5°C". 规定协定国要将气候升温“最好”控制在2°C以下，且“力求1.5°C”。

The effects and technical feasibility of keeping warming within this tighter limit were the report's focus. 报告重点是在这个更严格的限度内保持气候变暖的影响和技术可行性。

How it was put together, the message it contains and the reaction it elicited⁷ all matter. 报告的组合方式、内容信息以及影响都很重要。

First, the way it was assembled. 首先是组合方式。

Although the report presents no new science of its own, its survey of more than 6,000 studies is meticulous⁸. 尽管这份报告本身并没有什么新科学，但它对6000多项研究的调查却十分细致。

With every passing year scientists amass⁹ more data about how the climate has already changed. 随着时间的流逝，科学家们积累了更多关于气候变化的数据。

And, as many people battered¹⁰ in Florida this week by Hurricane Michael will attest¹¹, it is changing faster than anyone foresaw even two decades ago. 而且，本周在佛罗里达遭受飓风“迈克尔”袭击的人将会亲身体验，气候变化速度甚至比20年前任何人预想的都要快。

This new knowledge, together with improved understanding of the complex climate system, makes projections¹² like those the IPCC has compiled more compelling. 这种新认知，加上对复杂气候系统的更好理解，使得政府间气候变化专门委员会的预测很有说服力。

Uncertainties¹³ remain; 但不确定性仍然存在；

individual research contained within the report may yet be challenged. 报告中包含的个人研究可能会受到挑战。

But in study after study, page after page, fact after fact, the evidence for anthropogenic climate change, long clear, is harder than ever to ignore. 但在大量研究中得出的人类活动导致气候变化的证据，显而易见再难忽视。

 

1 apathy   

n.漠不关心，无动于衷；冷淡

参考例句：

• He was sunk in apathy after his failure.他失败后心恢意冷。
• She heard the story with apathy.她听了这个故事无动于衷。

2 atmospheric   

adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的

参考例句：

• Sea surface temperatures and atmospheric circulation are strongly coupled.海洋表面温度与大气环流是密切相关的。
• Clouds return radiant energy to the surface primarily via the atmospheric window.云主要通过大气窗区向地表辐射能量。

3 adversely   

ad.有害地

参考例句：

• We commented adversely upon the imbecility of that message of telegraphic style. 我们对着这条电报式的愚蠢的留言发泄了一通不满。
• Widely fluctuating exchange rates may adversely affect international trade. 浮动幅度很大的汇率可能会对国际贸易产生有害的影响。

4 acidity   

n.酸度，酸性

参考例句：

• This plant prefers alkaline soil,though it will readily tolerate some acidity.这种植物在酸性土壤中也能生存，但硷性土壤更加适宜。
• Gastric acidity would not prevent the organism from passing into the gut.胃的酸度不能防止细菌进入肠道。

5 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

6 musters   

v.集合，召集，集结（尤指部队）( muster的第三人称单数 )；（自他人处）搜集某事物；聚集；激发

参考例句：

• The garrison musters eighty men. 驻军共有八十名。 来自辞典例句
• Musters were being taken through England in view of wars with Scotland and France. 一群群队伍在带领下正穿过英格兰，期待与苏格兰和法兰西开战。 来自互联网

7 elicited   

引出，探出( elicit的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Threats to reinstate the tax elicited jeer from the Opposition. 恢复此项征税的威胁引起了反对党的嘲笑。
• The comedian's joke elicited applause and laughter from the audience. 那位滑稽演员的笑话博得观众的掌声和笑声。

8 meticulous   

adj.极其仔细的，一丝不苟的

参考例句：

• We'll have to handle the matter with meticulous care.这事一点不能含糊。
• She is meticulous in her presentation of facts.她介绍事实十分详细。

9 amass   

vt.积累，积聚

参考例句：

• How had he amassed his fortune?他是如何积累财富的呢？
• The capitalists amass great wealth by exploiting workers.资本家剥削工人而积累了巨额财富。

10 battered   

adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损

参考例句：

• He drove up in a battered old car.他开着一辆又老又破的旧车。
• The world was brutally battered but it survived.这个世界遭受了惨重的创伤,但它还是生存下来了。

11 attest   

vt.证明，证实；表明

参考例句：

• I can attest to the absolute truth of his statement. 我可以证实他的话是千真万确的。
• These ruins sufficiently attest the former grandeur of the place. 这些遗迹充分证明此处昔日的宏伟。

12 projections   

预测( projection的名词复数 )； 投影； 投掷； 突起物

参考例句：

• Their sales projections are a total thumbsuck. 他们的销售量预测纯属估计。
• The council has revised its projections of funding requirements upwards. 地方议会调高了对资金需求的预测。

13 uncertainties   

无把握( uncertainty的名词复数 )； 不确定； 变化不定； 无把握、不确定的事物

参考例句：

• One of the uncertainties of military duty is that you never know when you might suddenly get posted away. 任军职不稳定的因素之一是你永远不知道什么时候会突然被派往它处。
• Uncertainties affecting peace and development are on the rise. 影响和平与发展的不确定因素在增加。 来自汉英非文学 - 十六大报告