美国发现3个新地球:全都在水瓶座

 　　For centuries it has been one of the most vexing¹ mysteries for mankind: are we, the seven billion inhabitants of this wondrous² [en]blue planet really alone, or is there life somewhere out there in the universe?

　　数百年来，人类一直为一个最大的谜团所困扰：我们这70亿生活在这个奇妙的蓝色星球上的居民，真的是孤独的吗，还是宇宙某处其实存在着生命？

　　Several days ago, we came a step closer to answering that tantalising question with the landmark³ announcement by Nasa scientists of the discovery of a new solar system that has at least three Earth-like planets — with climates that just might support life.

　　几天前，NASA科学家公布了一项里程碑式的重大发现：他们发现一个新的太阳系，其中至少有3个地球这样的行星，而且这些星球上的气候条件也许能维持生命，这项发现使我们离谜题的答案又近了一步。

　　The intriguing⁴ new planets are comparatively near neighbours, too, at just 39 light years from Earth. Granted, 39 light years (234 trillion miles) is hardly a short hop⁵.

　　相比之下，这些迷人的新行星也算是我们的近邻，距地球只有39光年。当然，39光年（234兆英里）也很难看作“骐骥一跃”（连光都要走39年呢）。

　　Scientists have long speculated that life-supporting planets must exist somewhere in the universe, but none has ever yet been confirmed as potentially life-sustaining. Now astronomers⁶ say they have detected no less than seven Earth-sized worlds orbiting a red dwarf⁷ star — the equivalent of our sun — called TRAPPIST-1.

　　长久以来，科学家们推测宇宙某处一定存在着能支持生命的星球，但没有什么潜在的可维持生命的证据是坐实的。现在，宇航员们说他们已经探测到不少于7个地球大小的世界在一颗红矮星外的轨道上运行，这颗红矮星相当于我们的地球，被称作TRAPPIST-1.

　　The seven planets are believed to be at least a billion years old and, in theory, all could have lakes and oceans. But three are too close to the star and, therefore, likely to be too hot to have water, while the furthermost planet is too cold.

　　据信，这7颗行星至少已有10亿年历史，从理论上讲，这些行星上都可能有湖泊和海洋。但是，其中3颗离恒星太远，因此可能温度太高没有水，而最远的一颗行星又太冷了。

　　It is the three planets in the middle (named TRAPPIST-1 'e', 'f' and 'g') that are generating the most interest as they lie in what is known as the habitable 'Goldilocks Zone' — neither too hot nor too cold for life to thrive.

　　人们对中间的3颗行星（名为TRAPPIST-1 'e'、TRAPPIST-1 'f'和TRAPPIST-1 'g）兴趣最大，因为它们处于有名的适居的“金发区”——既不太热，也不太冷，适合生命繁衍。

　　The announcement yesterday prompts another intriguing and much debated question: if there is intelligent alien life on a planet orbiting TRAPPIST-1, why hasn't it made the effort to get in touch with us or even come visiting?

　　昨天公布的发现又引发了另一个困惑难解、莫衷一是的问题：如果在TRAPPIST-1轨道的一颗行星上存在有智慧的外星生命，那么他们为什么没有努力与我们联系甚至来地球作客呢？

　　This is the famous conundrum⁸ dubbed⁹ the 'Fermi Paradox¹⁰'. Back in the Forties, the renowned¹¹ Italian physicist¹² Enrico Fermi suggested that, with 100 billion stars in our galaxy¹³, it was logically inevitable¹⁴ that intelligent life should have evolved elsewhere in the universe. So, Fermi asked, where are all the aliens?

　　这就是有名的谜题——“费米悖论”。早在上世纪40年代，著名意大利物利学家恩里科?费米就提出：我们的星系中有1千万颗恒星，从逻辑上讲，宇宙某处应该不可避免地演化出了智慧生命。所以，费米问道：外星人在哪里呢？

　　Yet 40 years of intensive searching for extra-terrestrial intelligence has yielded nothing. No radio signals, no credible¹⁵ spacecraft sightings, no close encounters of any kind.

　　然而，40年集中的星外智慧生命搜索之旅颗粒无收。没有无线电信号，没有可靠的星际飞行物目击，没有任何形式的近距离接触。

　　Geoffrey Miller¹⁶, an evolutionary¹⁷ psychologist at the University of New Mexico, has proposed a disturbing answer. Perhaps there is a limit to how sophisticated a species can become.

　　新墨西哥大学的进化心理学家杰弗里?米勒提出了一个令人迷惑的答案。也许，物种演化的高级程度是有上限的。

　　We become smart enough to make nuclear bombs — and dumb enough to use them, he says. Or perhaps we just get addicted¹⁸ to social media and computer games, Miller suggests facetiously¹⁹.

　　他说：我们已变得聪明到能制造核弹，却又笨到不知如何使用它们。米勒开玩笑说，也许是因为我们太沉迷于社交网络和电脑游戏了。

　　'The aliens may forget to send radio signals or colonise space because they are too busy with runaway²⁰ consumerism and virtual reality narcissism²¹ . . . just as we are doing today,' he says.

　　他说：“也许外星人忘了发射无线电线号或者在太空中开拓疆域，因为他们太忙了，正在疯狂购物，陶醉于虚拟现实之中……就像今天的我们。”

1 vexing   

adj.使人烦恼的，使人恼火的v.使烦恼( vex的现在分词 )；使苦恼；使生气；详细讨论

参考例句：

• It is vexing to have to wait a long time for him. 长时间地等他真使人厌烦。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Lately a vexing problem had grown infuriatingly worse. 最近发生了一个讨厌的问题，而且严重到令人发指的地步。 来自辞典例句

2 wondrous   

adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地

参考例句：

• The internal structure of the Department is wondrous to behold.看一下国务院的内部结构是很有意思的。
• We were driven across this wondrous vast land of lakes and forests.我们乘车穿越这片有着湖泊及森林的广袤而神奇的土地。

3 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

4 intriguing   

adj.有趣的；迷人的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的现在分词)；激起…的好奇心

参考例句：

• These discoveries raise intriguing questions. 这些发现带来了非常有趣的问题。
• It all sounds very intriguing. 这些听起来都很有趣。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 hop   

n.单脚跳，跳跃；vi.单脚跳，跳跃；着手做某事；vt.跳跃，跃过

参考例句：

• The children had a competition to see who could hop the fastest.孩子们举行比赛，看谁单足跳跃最快。
• How long can you hop on your right foot?你用右脚能跳多远？

6 astronomers   

n.天文学者，天文学家( astronomer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Astronomers can accurately foretell the date,time,and length of future eclipses. 天文学家能精确地预告未来日食月食的日期、时刻和时长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Astronomers used to ask why only Saturn has rings. 天文学家们过去一直感到奇怪，为什么只有土星有光环。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 dwarf   

n.矮子，侏儒，矮小的动植物；vt.使…矮小

参考例句：

• The dwarf's long arms were not proportional to his height.那侏儒的长臂与他的身高不成比例。
• The dwarf shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. 矮子耸耸肩膀，摇摇头。

8 conundrum   

n.谜语；难题

参考例句：

• Let me give you some history about a conundrum.让我给你们一些关于谜题的历史。
• Scientists had focused on two explanations to solve this conundrum.科学家已锁定两种解释来解开这个难题。

9 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 paradox   

n.似乎矛盾却正确的说法；自相矛盾的人(物)

参考例句：

• The story contains many levels of paradox.这个故事存在多重悖论。
• The paradox is that Japan does need serious education reform.矛盾的地方是日本确实需要教育改革。

11 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

12 physicist   

n.物理学家，研究物理学的人

参考例句：

• He is a physicist of the first rank.他是一流的物理学家。
• The successful physicist never puts on airs.这位卓有成就的物理学家从不摆架子。

13 galaxy   

n.星系；银河系；一群(杰出或著名的人物)

参考例句：

• The earth is one of the planets in the Galaxy.地球是银河系中的星球之一。
• The company has a galaxy of talent.该公司拥有一批优秀的人才。

14 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

15 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

16 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

17 evolutionary   

adj.进化的；演化的，演变的；[生]进化论的

参考例句：

• Life has its own evolutionary process.生命有其自身的进化过程。
• These are fascinating questions to be resolved by the evolutionary studies of plants.这些十分吸引人的问题将在研究植物进化过程中得以解决。

18 addicted   

adj.沉溺于....的，对...上瘾的

参考例句：

• He was addicted to heroin at the age of 17.他17岁的时候对海洛因上了瘾。
• She's become addicted to love stories.她迷上了爱情小说。

19 facetiously   

adv.爱开玩笑地；滑稽地，爱开玩笑地

参考例句：

• The house had been facetiously named by some waggish officer. 这房子是由某个机智幽默的军官命名的。 来自辞典例句
• I sometimes facetiously place the cause of it all to Charley Furuseth's credit. 我有时候也曾将起因全部可笑地推在却利？福罗萨的身上。 来自辞典例句

20 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。

21 narcissism   

n.自我陶醉，自恋

参考例句：

• Those who suffer from narcissism become self-absorbed.自恋的人会变得自私。
• The collective narcissism of the Kerouac circle is ultimately boring.凯鲁亚克和他周围人物的集体自我陶醉欲最终使人厌烦不已。