英语听力：自然百科 冰冻星球 前往地球尽头(1)

Over one third of our planet is frozen, and yet, the icy worlds of the Arctic and Antarctic are as alien to most of us as the surface of another planet.

我们星球的三分之一是冰冻的,然而,南极和北极的冰冷世界对我们大多数人来说非常陌生，就像另一个星球一样。

There are places of superlatives. From ice caps that hold nearly eighty percent of our planet's fresh water to frozen forests that encircle the entire globe.

这里是最高级的地方。从持有近百分之八十我们星球的淡水的冰帽到环抱整个星球的冰冻森林，这里应有尽有。

These are places that feed our imaginations, places that seem to be borrowed from fairy tales. They're dominated and shaped by the ice, both by its coming and by its going.

这些地方让我们的想象力天马行空,这些地方又好像来自童话故事中。一切都被奇形怪状难以捉摸，来无影去无踪的冰所统治着。

This is our planet's last true wilderness¹ and one that is changing just as we're beginning to understand it.

这是我们星球上的最后一片真正的荒野,改变之一就是我们开始理解它。

In this series, we'll be travelling to all parts of these lonely lands, both north and south, to witness its wonders perhaps for the last time and to discover some extraordinary examples of survival against all the odds², as can be found anywhere on the planet.

在这个系列中,我们将前往这一孤独地域的所有地方，无论是北方还是南方，带领您见证也许是最后一次的奇迹,去发现一些异乎寻常的反对世界常理生存下来的奇迹。

The poles are permanently³ capped with ice. Nowhere is colder, windier or more hostile to life.

两极被永久覆盖着冰。没有不冷的地方，而在这种条件下生命很难存活。

1 wilderness   

n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

2 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

3 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。