牛逼est……妈的……要继续坚持！！！

Today I want to discuss fossil fuels such as coat, oil, and natural gas. The term "fossil fuel" refers to the trapped remains of plants and animals in sedimentary rock. You see, living plants trap energy from the sun by the process of photosynthesis, and they store the energy in their chemical compounds. Most of that energy is released when the plant dies and decays. However, sometimes organic matter is buried before it decays completely. In this way some of the solar energy be comes trapped in rocks---hence the name fossil fuel. Although the amount of organic matter trapped in any one growing season is small, the accumulated remains from millions of years are considerable. Because the accumulation rate is so slow---millions of times slower than the rate at which we now dig up this organic matter and burn it for energy---we must consider fossil fuels as nonrenewable resources. Tomorrow we'll be discussing alternatives to fossil fuels that can be renewed.

Not long ago, some of you may have read about a team of mountain-climbing scientists who helped to recalculate the elevation of the highest mountain in the world: Mt. Everest. Of course, the elevation of Mt. Everest was determined many years ago, using traditional surveying methods. But these scientists wanted to make a more precise measurement using a new method that takes advantage of recent advances in technology. It's called the Global Positioning System. The Global Positioning System uses 24 satellites that circle the Earth. Each of these satellites is constantly sending out signals. And each signal contains important information that can be used to determine the longitude, latitude, and elevation of any point on the Earth's surface. Well, in order to use this system to calculate Mt. Everest's elevation, scientists needed to put a special receiver on its summit to receive signals from the satellites. The problem with this was that, in the past, the receivers were much too heavy for climbers to carry. But now these receivers have been reduced to about the size and weight of a handheld telephone, so climbers were able to take a receiver to the top of Everest and, from there, to access the satellite system signals that would allow them to determine the precise elevation. And it turns out that the famous peak is actually a few feet higher than was previously thought.

Now, you've been reading articles about the tremendous damage done to life and property by earthquakes. That's why seismologists have been working so hard to develop methods of earthquake prediction. We can now predict earthquake fairly well, but the predictions only locate potential areas of danger. They don't predict the specific time and location at which an earthquake is likely to occur. Today I want to introduce to you three prediction models that have been developed. The first prediction model looks along earthquake faults, those cracks in the Earth's crust, to find what are known as seismic gaps. Seismic gaps are places where the fault has shown little or no seismic activity for a long time. This theory postulates that such places are due for a major shock. The second model relies on phenomena---like ground tlit. Using long cylindrical tubes containing water, observers noted that ground tilt tended to occur before major earthquakes. That led them to correctly predict the big Haicheng quake of 1975---the first successful earthquake prediction scientists have ever made. A million people were evacuated from that Chinese city before the earthquake struck. Unfortunately, this method hasn't worked consistently, so we can't say it's been perfected. The third model is based on the theory that major earthquakes closely follow a series of minor ones. Starting with the measurements and timing of the smaller quakes, a complex formula calculates the "times of increased probability" of a much larger quake. Right now, this method, like the first method, cannot predict specific times and places, but that may change as it is further developed. For the moment, none of these models can predict with reasonable levels of confidence.

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原帖由 Horse 于 2008-4-11 01:56 发表 4 g$ p3 |, Z( k* Q: L! R: |. T' g. A
牛逼est……妈的……要继续坚持！！！

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哈哈 是！ 小马哥

One reason oceanographers analyze the sediment on the ocean floor is to see how long-terms changes in Earth's temperature have affected the depth of the ocean. By analyzing the remains of sea animals in old layers of ocean sediment, oceanographers can determine the depth of the ocean in the past. They've analyzed hundreds of such layers, including some from the coldest periods of Earth's history——the ice ages. What they've found is that during the ice ages, the amount of water in the oceans decreased. Water levels in the ocean dropped by about four hundred feet. Water from the ocean evaporated and became frozen in continental glaciers, so it didn't drain back into the ocean. When temperatures eventually rose again, the glaciers melted, and the oceans returned to their former depths. Analysis of sedimentary data indicates that periods of glacial freezing and melting occurred in regular cycles of twenty thousand, forty thousand, and one hundred thousand years. Oceanographers are interested in the history of seawater levels because they hope to use this historical data in order to predict the possible effect that global warming could have on sea water levels. If industrial pollutants are capable of heating global temperatures to the point that glaciers begin to melt, it is urgent for us to know precisely how high sea levels will rise as a result.

The Old Canada Road is a long-lost trail between the Canadian province of Quebec and Maine, in the northeast corner of the United States. Yes, it really was lost, and finding it again was a complex process that involved state-of-the-art technology. How the location of the road was pinpointed was very interesting, and I'll return to it as soon as I've given you a little background information. The road was begun in 1817, a few years before Maine even became a state. At the time, Quebec was a major market for livestock, crops, and fish, so a road to Quebec was seen by officials in Maine as necessary for trade. For about 20 years, the movement of people and goods was mostly from Maine to Quebec, but then the trend reversed as thousands of Canadians immigrated to Maine to escape poor crops, a lack of jobs, and the threat of disease. I think it was a cholera epidemic. Besides these negative reasons, major building projects in Maine also made the state very attractive for the Canadians who needed work. I should stress, though, that immigration during that period went in both directions. In fact, the flow of people and goods went completely unhindered. There wasn't even a border post until around 1850.The people of the time saw Maine and Quebec as a single region, mainly because of the strong French influence, which is still evident in Maine today. Eventually, the road fell into disuse as a major railway was completed; finally, people simply forgot about it and that's how it came to be lost. This brings me back to the original topic.

Scientists are always on the lookout for alternative sources of energy. Today we're going to discuss one that's so plentiful they say it could supply more energy than all the coal and oil in the world. It's found in something called gas hydrate and ,believe it or not, that's a kind of ice. That's right. But the water in this ice was way down below the Earth's surface when it was frozen, so it was under a lot of pressure. And trapped inside the crystals of ice are individual molecules of methane---that's what's in natural gas. All this makes gas hydrate pretty strange stuff. If you touch a match to a piece of this ice, it'll burst into flame. And when geologists bring a chunk of it up to the surface to study at normal air pressure and temperature, gas hydrate begins to hiss and bubble---and in less than half an hour, the ice melts and the methane inside escapes into the air. Now, as you might guess, this can make gas hydrate kind of hard for miners to handle. And then there’s the problem of where it's located---in frozen arctic regions or in ocean waters off the Atlantic coast---and up to a mile down. Environmentalists warn that mining it could even be disastrous. Offshore drilling could allow seawater to seep down into the huge icy deposits and release tons of methane up into the atmosphere. And methane, our listeners may recall, is a greenhouse gas that could really worsen the problem of global warming. So, gas hydrate may offer some interesting possibilities. But, with all these drawbacks, I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for it to fuel my furnace.

第四篇$ C9 [3 E* |1 D& ~, Q0 F. m
Fossil fuels
# P  U& u3 E. U( X5 x- z+ Acoat/oil/natural gas
4 l8 T3 X5 C; k* C9 [2 I& X# Strap
  O# w$ n6 ]% ^) [, j( xremains of plants and animals in sedimentary rock( f- @7 K) B+ _) o% |
photosynthesis1 D/ l3 ^0 T$ w* i: a+ q  f
chemical compound
$ ~1 X4 |3 a0 X8 ?/ horganic
5 j  F" m: y' j9 |accumulate
% A6 A/ ~; P. Z$ d& Cconsiderable
- G0 ]9 Z0 F+ t+ E; _dig up
! A% d1 L7 k6 F  n4 Pnonrenewable resource
& v' Y' B* |6 K' [/ p$ Walternatives! }% ?+ K7 e+ a8 u+ v1 G: P- G

1 j, d( M! ?% K9 o, N 5 U7 z( ?& Q2 C9 f5 `+ ^* J
第五篇8 W+ \) m8 O% B3 w; G6 s: |* V0 ?' X
mountain-climbing scientists' R0 \6 Y$ l; x3 H6 A
recalculate! n7 h5 f2 m% `- W! S
elevation/latitude/longitude; h! y# I; ~& E. u$ Z# w
Mt. Everest7 y7 q7 Z, X, D; d2 \; V8 e9 V
traditional surveying method
; P) Z6 }2 s8 c, H6 e. a9 Zposition% N* Q$ j: k( k! R* g; T
satellite
4 `6 M; _5 A$ V# Xcircle
, a2 P2 G& h* E* h0 oreceiver  }' F* [# j) S; A; E1 K
summit/ c  @# L& `1 n: f
climber8 r$ L9 r3 \7 P" z
handheld
$ ~' i8 u; r6 N) [feet$ d5 M2 }# R( s" D0 S* E9 @2 n
previously
; u# S( |! X6 R9 W5 _; i( q/ _/ b8 {% Q6 w9 S) u
* N- A8 t/ t; t
第六篇. d1 G8 T$ Y$ `! e
Tremendous
' |0 U, l) @) R  U: z# R7 bproperty9 k+ U+ V2 \9 C
seismologist
* C1 Y& K* |+ ]8 \$ i, d9 mearthquake prediction
- t* W0 n2 Z: v; o: d. ~potential' N% U/ {, d& A
specific
8 O& ]+ |" B2 ~: rlocation
8 c, P. w: S, p7 P# c: toccur9 I) G* |3 h+ A' v9 f
earthquake faults; x6 c' S# D4 W9 t1 u
crack
) f( n8 Q# v  i" v5 d, _seismic gaps
! ^& A- X8 [7 \8 Wpostulate7 X# x, T/ t  [
due$ a7 s- u. Y3 d1 s+ Z, }
major shock
3 c* N9 @7 w% I9 [7 Iphenomena
6 a4 m/ A% v6 `( r5 `ground tilt
( X5 c3 T% y' a0 @6 {1 h1 a2 mlong cylindrical tube  z# z: U$ e, O* G
minor ones
8 @7 |) d& Q8 Pmeasurement
2 V: L& R$ Z  \* p; r/ }formula calculate
/ P; F; x5 S8 M. _& D2 u# Bfurther developed3 Z7 w- [/ J# g9 b% ]4 F  X5 Q  F
levels( p" }7 U! a" s- E* ^
% N2 s7 M0 w! N  l  K5 J5 T: v- r
第七篇% R' T2 R  C, E3 h% b
Oceanographer
% |& u7 k1 }% J5 otemperature
0 m* ~! o" z3 u# K0 T  d6 t7 Cdepth/ `9 s- G6 l" z% j
analyzing/analysis) o0 Q$ U& ~; t' z' D6 A. C
remains
. @& c2 X7 n" Nlayer of sediment
9 F( o3 |0 L; K( M; t6 e! sice ages6 Q4 i- E) X- w  x: @
feet, O& M# y/ N+ b( L( Y- [
evaporate
; C$ `0 j( s2 K) H8 E% Zfrozen! m, N8 Z) x5 ~& z) M1 W( b, r
continental glaciers
% _' c) r- ]5 ^. P: j5 `) xmelt1 v2 ~8 F' P# Z! e5 F& s
data1 ?/ x1 i2 ~& X8 `, R3 C# h
indicates
& r0 H  F- g2 N( F. qregular, e8 i5 `& f% r8 k( O
seawater level
6 [3 \2 o# B8 U- yhistorical data+ D2 g! r* V. Q2 `8 |7 ]
global warming/ Y4 c1 E. R! M* y7 X* D. o5 D+ t3 ?- N

- ^$ g/ C- n( b* F5 I; ^8 W9 R 4 w9 j" w2 g9 u* Z
第八篇  i2 Z4 M* E% }" ~1 G
Road
( q, @1 t2 U3 q+ q4 Ylong-lost trail
; [; ?/ P9 L$ y( `& a7 |5 z9 _province: s! `; ~7 G3 @$ s, e
location6 H! ^9 E+ s2 N' `3 Z
pinpoint" L, j$ _6 a9 U4 O" v
background information; _- }# Z) T- y( N, {
major market) ?1 i6 ]9 Q' E) x& F( w5 T
livestock
* N+ v' v4 k" F( x: Pofficials
' T$ K& i' u9 E4 Qreversed  q, T+ q8 Z, S8 W: I) y7 }6 p
threat
$ {! A! r7 _9 [$ S$ D0 kepidemic; p" \- f* l2 _1 F6 d
attractive
6 V9 _( B6 V5 h! J9 x/ |. f1 S3 h  nnegative9 E* `5 _5 Y4 x0 G7 j) m6 U9 O( l
stress7 C" O; ^" g8 g9 v2 B( W6 j! S
immigration$ t# p. _; ~8 h: c
flow; r4 j( ]6 V: ~6 @" C# l2 h
unhindered
( c0 r- e' n" l" l4 W  p3 ~border post' K, Z3 v6 b1 w  v" q2 B
region$ o/ P0 B+ \8 P* e& `6 W7 q5 _# }, Y
French influence
0 F" r2 B( W5 }' Tevident
+ U: o! Z, i/ i$ D( Leventually
! \+ N3 d3 Q* y# q! i; U* h0 O+ r( Pfell into disuse
) \. D9 H/ ^/ U' [. K' Foriginal topic. Y6 Q) s* @0 f) {! C7 \7 Q9 f

  H, L4 V4 L1 Y+ c$ i$ a第九篇
6 I3 D7 \$ Y3 J. j) RLookout for
* S6 |  [6 a! w/ ~alternative sources of energy
5 A9 s3 D$ p2 w4 `plentiful
* v2 s( o6 m6 tsupply
0 n% M" M( v) K4 p* K1 Tgas hydrate
8 D5 k4 a1 |4 o6 f9 E( s( i- Xtrapped
$ B# `' ^) _$ {% [crystal$ ^6 t7 y. D5 E  q! H4 G) S
molecules3 A3 z+ X2 M0 v
methane
8 H- ^2 B  p2 z; x0 gnatural gas
9 ?+ [$ ~6 a' N! estuff4 Q: U1 S5 b, Y; R( n
burst into flame% O( q2 P. x* v' R: d# _% H& n
a chunk of
0 @( i- R, a1 r  fhiss and bubble
$ \3 H) J, ]: V. g1 w9 Dhandle
$ q, t2 J. Q, D/ Z& Jfrozen arctic region$ S, W8 N9 R# B( u
offshore drilling
5 A4 }9 S! k* Y% _( q# mseep
1 Z# L% [% X. u( `greenhouse gas
6 q! k4 d* x' ]1 `7 x6 Iworsen
3 J' v1 o4 e' \' w  Jfuel- `4 A, C5 o% c( y: ~. {) F& Z* `
furnace: n) ]! O6 t0 T4 ~
  H6 N5 K) n! X
[ 本帖最后由 icenot 于 2008-4-18 00:17 编辑 ]

Since we've been discussing alternative fuels lately, I wanted to pass on to you some information I read about a new fuel that's been in the news a lot lately. It's called A-21. It's composed of water and a chemical known as naphtha. It seems to be a very promising fuel because it's much cleaner than the gasoline that we use today. That's not to say that it doesn’t pollute, but it is cleaner.A-21 isn't like some other alternative fuels that require completely new types of engines.A-21 still works in regular, everyday combustion engines---like the ones in cars---with only minor mechanical modifications. So changing over wouldn't be a big deal. You may doubt some of these claims as many researchers have. Some people feared that because it contains about 45 percent water it would freeze in the winter. But a small amount of antifreeze was added to it, and that seems to have solved the problem. A-21 has recently undergone street tests in buses in Reno, Nevada. So far it seems to work just fine. This is a good thing, especially in Nevada, because the state government there has passed a law requiring that a large percentage of vehicles in Nevada run on alternative fuels.A-21 should help.