VOA新闻杂志2024--Mysterious Structure Discovered in Nevada Desert

Mysterious Structure Discovered in Nevada Desert

A mysterious rising structure has been discovered in a rural desert area in the western American state of Nevada.

The tall, pillar-shaped object is being described as a monolith. Images suggest it is made of metallic¹ material and its surface is reflective.

The object recently drew attention when the Las Vegas police department published a photo and message about the structure on the social media service X. It read: “We see a lot of weird² things when people go hiking like not being prepared for the weather, not bringing enough water...but check this out!”

Officers recently saw the monolith while carrying out a search and rescue operation. The area is about one hour north of Las Vegas. It is popular with hikers.

The area is part of Nevada’s large Desert National Wildlife Refuge. Bighorn sheep and desert tortoises can be found there. The monolith was put in an area with mountain peaks up to 2,100 meters high.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service told The Associated Press (AP) that its members were trying to learn more about the monolith.

Images included with the X message showed the structure standing³ tall against a bright blue sky, with distant views of the Las Vegas valley. Many observers noted⁴ on social media the monolith looked like an object that appeared in Stanley Kubrick’s famous science fiction film 2001: A Space Odyssey⁵.

The mysterious structure is the latest object to appear in recent years in different places around the U.S. and Europe. The first one to receive wide media attention was discovered in the Utah desert in late 2020. Others have been discovered in California and in the nations of Canada, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Britain.

All the structures disappeared about as quickly as they appeared. Placing the objects is a violation⁶ of a U.S. law that protects federal lands.

The monolith found in Utah in 2020 stood about 3.6 meters tall, the AP reported. It was placed in rock in an area so remote that local officials decided⁷ not to immediately inform the public. The officials feared people would get lost trying to find it.

But many people were successful in finding it. Fish and Wildlife officials said that during the search, visitors to the area flattened⁸ plants with vehicles and left behind human waste. Two men known for doing extreme sports in Utah later said that kind of damage persuaded them to go to the area late at night and tear the structure down and remove it.

This time, officials at the Fish and Wildlife Service are worried about similar harms from visitors. Nevada’s Desert National Wildlife Refuge is the largest wildlife refuge outside of Alaska.

Christa Weise oversees⁹ refuge operations. She said, “People might come looking for it and be coming with inappropriate vehicles or driving where they shouldn't, trampling¹⁰ plants."The Nevada monolith has produced many different opinions by people on social media. One X user, publishing under the name @NWK1WAYS, simply declared: "Clearly Aliens!"Another user, @cdharris19, expressed disbelief that the mysterious placers had struck again. "Are we really gonna do this whole thing again?" the user asked. "Just remove the trash, find who dumped it, and fine them."I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

pillar – n. a tall structure made out of stone, wood, etc. that usually supports something above it

monolith – n. a structure, usually made of stone, that was put in position by people as a monument or for religious reasons?

reflect – v. to throw off heat, light, sound, etc. from a surface

weird – adj. unusual or strange

hike – v. a long walk, often taken in the countryside

science fiction – n. stories about life in the future or in other parts of the universe

remote – adj. extremely far away or very isolated¹¹

refuge – n. a place designated to protect people or animals from outside harms

inappropriate – adj. not suitable

trample¹² – v. to walk on something, usually damaging or hurting it

dump– v. to put something somewhere to get rid of it, especially in a place where you should not put it

1 metallic   

adj.金属的；金属制的；含金属的；产金属的；像金属的

参考例句：

• A sharp metallic note coming from the outside frightened me.外面传来尖锐铿锵的声音吓了我一跳。
• He picked up a metallic ring last night.昨夜他捡了一个金属戒指。

2 weird   

adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的

参考例句：

• From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来，他好像有点怪。
• His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。

3 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

4 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

5 odyssey   

n.长途冒险旅行；一连串的冒险

参考例句：

• The march to Travnik was the final stretch of a 16-hour odyssey.去特拉夫尼克的这段路是长达16小时艰险旅行的最后一程。
• His odyssey of passion, friendship,love,and revenge was now finished.他的热情、友谊、爱情和复仇的漫长历程，到此结束了。

6 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 flattened   

[医]（水）平扁的，弄平的

参考例句：

• She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
• I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。

9 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

10 trampling   

踩( trample的现在分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯

参考例句：

• Diplomats denounced the leaders for trampling their citizens' civil rights. 外交官谴责这些领导人践踏其公民的公民权。
• They don't want people trampling the grass, pitching tents or building fires. 他们不希望人们踩踏草坪、支帐篷或生火。

11 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

12 trample   

vt.踩，践踏；无视，伤害，侵犯

参考例句：

• Don't trample on the grass. 勿踏草地。
• Don't trample on the flowers when you play in the garden. 在花园里玩耍时,不要踩坏花。