【英语时差8,16】非人为的石油泄漏

Oil Spills , Naturally It's a big deal when an oil tanker¹ spills its contents into the ocean. And for good reason. When the Exxon Valdez dumped ten million gallons of oil into waters off the Alaskan coast, the massive slick killed hundreds of thousands of animals. Casualties included salmon², sea birds, seals, and bald eagles. But not all oil spills are man-made. According to one study, the ocean floor off the coast of Santa Barbara, California has leaked the equivalent of as many as eighty Exxon Valdez-volume spills over the past several hundred thousand years. Now, there are important differences between spills caused by poorly piloted tankers³ and natural seepage⁴. When a ship dumps its load, almost all the oil is let loose at once, coating and contaminating everything in sight. Natural spills, on the other hand, occur relatively⁵ slowly over long periods of time and are confined to a smaller area. So animals either avoid natural slicks or learn to live with them. Where Did All The Oil Go? One question that intrigues⁶ scientists about natural oil spills is what ultimately happens to all that crude? When it first seeps⁷ out, most of the oil rests on the water’s surface, creating natural slicks that can extend for miles. Some of the oil washes up on shore, some dissolves into the surrounding water, and some is eaten by microbes. But scientists suspect that a good portion of the crude eventually sinks, and settles on the ocean floor. The next step in this research is to figure out how and why oil sinks and settles, and how it affects animals in the area.

1 tanker   

n.油轮

参考例句：

• The tanker took on 200,000 barrels of crude oil.油轮装载了二十万桶原油。
• Heavy seas had pounded the tanker into three parts.汹涌的巨浪把油轮撞成三载。

2 salmon   

n.鲑，大马哈鱼，橙红色的

参考例句：

• We saw a salmon jumping in the waterfall there.我们看见一条大马哈鱼在那边瀑布中跳跃。
• Do you have any fresh salmon in at the moment?现在有新鲜大马哈鱼卖吗？

3 tankers   

运送大量液体或气体的轮船[卡车]( tanker的名词复数 )； 油轮； 罐车； 油槽车

参考例句：

• They should stop offloading waste from oil tankers into the sea. 他们应当停止从油轮上往海里倾倒废弃物。
• The harbour admits large tankers and freighters. 这个港口容得下巨型油船和货轮。

4 seepage   

n.泄漏

参考例句：

• Chemical seepage has caused untold damage.化学品泄漏已造成不可估量的损失。
• Water gradually escapes by seepage through the ground.水逐渐从地面渗走了。

5 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

6 intrigues   

n.密谋策划( intrigue的名词复数 )；神秘气氛；引人入胜的复杂情节v.搞阴谋诡计( intrigue的第三人称单数 )；激起…的好奇心

参考例句：

• He was made king as a result of various intrigues. 由于搞了各种各样的阴谋，他当上了国王。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Those who go in for intrigues and conspiracy are doomed to failure. 搞阴谋诡计的人注定要失败。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 seeps   

n.（液体）渗( seep的名词复数 )；渗透；渗出；漏出v.（液体）渗( seep的第三人称单数 )；渗透；渗出；漏出

参考例句：

• Water seeps through sand. 水渗入沙中。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Water seeps out of the wall. 水从墙里沁出。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》