万物简史 第381期:进入对流层(22)

 　　By 1958, when people in lab coats started to pay attention to it, it had risen to 315 parts per million. 到1958年实验室人员开始重视这个问题的时候，那个数字已经上升到百万分之三百一十五。

　　Today it is over 360 parts per million and rising by roughly one-quarter of 1 percent a year. 今天，那个数字已经是百万分之三百六十以上，而且还在以每年大约百分之零点二五的速度继续攀升。

　　By the end of the twenty-first century it is forecast to rise to about 560 parts per million. 据预测，到21世纪末，这个数字会达到大约百万分之五百六十。

　　So far, the Earth's oceans and forests (which also pack away a lot of carbon) have managed to save us from ourselves, 到目前为止，地球上的海洋和森林（森林也带走了大量的碳）成功地挽救了我们自我毁灭的命运。

　　but as Peter Cox of the British Meteorological Office puts it: 但是，正如英国气象局的彼得·考克斯所说：

　　"There is a critical threshold where the natural biosphere¹ stops buffering² us from the effects of our emissions³ and actually starts to amplify⁴ them." “有一条临界线。到了那个时候，大自然的生物圈已经无法缓解我们排放的二氧化碳对我们自身所产生的影响，实际上还开始起增大作用。”

　　The fear is that there would be a runaway⁵ increase in the Earth's warming. 人们担心，全球变暖的情况将会迅速恶化。

　　Unable to adapt, many trees and other plants would die, releasing their stores of carbon and adding to the problem. 由于无法适应，许多树木和别的植物将会死去，把储存的碳释放出来，使问题变得更加严重。

　　Such cycles have occasionally happened in the distant past even without a human contribution. 这种循环在遥远的过去也偶尔发生过，即使在没有人类参与的情况下。

　　The good news is that even here nature is quite wonderful. 然而，即使到了那种地步，大自然还在创造奇迹，这是个好消息。

　　It is almost certain that eventually the carbon cycle would reassert itself and return the Earth to a situation of stability and happiness. 几乎可以肯定，碳循环最后会东山再起，还地球一个稳定而美好的环境。

　　The last time this happened, it took a mere⁶ sixty thousand years. 上一次发生这类事，只花了6万年时间。

1 biosphere   

n.生命层，生物圈

参考例句：

• The entire biosphere was becoming more transparent.整个生物圈越来越透明。
• The impact of modern technology on the biosphere is evident worldwide.现代技术对生物圈的影响在全世界是明显的。

2 buffering   

缓冲（作用）； 减震； 阻尼； 隔离

参考例句：

• Fig. 3-13 gives a suggested buffering arrangement for the data lines. 图3―13示出了一种缓冲数据线的方案。
• It requires buffering for most applications. 在大多数使用场合，它都需要缓冲。

3 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

4 amplify   

vt.放大，增强；详述，详加解说

参考例句：

• The new manager wants to amplify the company.新经理想要扩大公司。
• Please amplify your remarks by giving us some examples.请举例详述你的话。

5 runaway   

n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的

参考例句：

• The police have not found the runaway to date.警察迄今没抓到逃犯。
• He was praised for bringing up the runaway horse.他勒住了脱缰之马受到了表扬。

6 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。