名人励志英语演讲 第45期:我们选择登月(6)

 　　We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling¹ to postpone², and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.

　　我们决定在这个10年间登月，并且完成其它的事，不是因为它们轻而易举，而是因为它们困难重重，因为这个目标将使我们能源的组织以及技能的检验达到最佳水平，因为这个挑战是我们乐于接受的，因为这个挑战是我们不愿推迟的，因为这个挑战是我们志在必得的，对于其他的挑战也是一样。

　　It is for these reasons that I regard the decision last year to shift our efforts in space from low to high gear as among the most important decisions that will be made during my incumbency³ in the office of the Presidency⁴.

　　正是因为这些理由，我把去年关于升级航天设备的决定作为我在本届总统任期内最重要的决定之一。

　　In the last 24 hours we have seen facilities now being created for the greatest and most complex exploration in man's history. We have felt the ground shake and the air shattered by the testing of a Saturn⁵ C-1 booster rocket, many times as powerful as the Atlas⁶ which launched John Glenn, generating power equivalent to 10,000 automobiles⁷ with their accelerators on the floor. We have seen the site where five F-1 rocket engines, each one as powerful as all eight engines of the Saturn combined, will be clustered together to make the advanced Saturn missile, assembled in a new building to be built at Cape⁸ Canaveral as tall as a 48 story structure, as wide as a city block, and as long as two lengths of this field.

　　在过去的23小时里，我们看到一些设施已经为人类历史上最伟大也最复杂的探险而建立起来。我们感受到了土星C-1助推火箭试验产生的震动和冲击波，它比把约翰·格伦送入太空的大力神火箭还要强大好几倍，产生了相当于1万辆汽车的功率。我们看到了5个F-1火箭发动机，每一个都相当于8个土星发动机功率的总和，它们将会用于更先进的土星导弹，在卡纳维拉尔角即将兴建的48层大楼中组装起来，这幢建筑有一个城市街区宽，其长度是我们这个体育场的两倍。

1 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

2 postpone   

v.延期，推迟

参考例句：

• I shall postpone making a decision till I learn full particulars.在未获悉详情之前我得从缓作出决定。
• She decided to postpone the converastion for that evening.她决定当天晚上把谈话搁一搁。

3 incumbency   

n.职责，义务

参考例句：

• Every incumbency employee has his year-end bonus.所有的在职员工都可以领到年终奖金。
• Administrator ethic includes administrative incumbency and administrative conscience.行政人员伦理包括行政义务和行政良知。

4 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

5 Saturn   

n.农神，土星

参考例句：

• Astronomers used to ask why only Saturn has rings.天文学家们过去一直感到奇怪，为什么只有土星有光环。
• These comparisons suggested that Saturn is made of lighter materials.这些比较告诉我们，土星由较轻的物质构成。

6 atlas   

n.地图册，图表集

参考例句：

• He reached down the atlas from the top shelf.他从书架顶层取下地图集。
• The atlas contains forty maps,including three of Great Britain.这本地图集有40幅地图，其中包括3幅英国地图。

7 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。