美国国家公共电台 NPR--What caused Monday's major earthquake in Turkey? Here's what we know

What caused Monday's major earthquake in Turkey? Here's what we know

Transcript¹

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

The earthquake that struck Turkey this week did not surprise many seismologists who study the region and its fault lines. So why was the region not better prepared? NPR's Geoff Brumfiel has more.

GEOFF BRUMFIEL, BYLINE²: To understand what just happened, here's the big picture. The Arabian Peninsula is making its way north into the Eurasian Plate, and the entire nation of Turkey is getting squeezed aside. Michael Steckler is at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory³ at Columbia University.

MICHAEL STECKLER: Arabia is slowly moving north and has been colliding with Turkey. And Turkey is moving out of the way to the west.

BRUMFIEL: This earthquake occurred at the junction⁴ of several faults involved with that tectonic push.

STECKLER: It's a pretty busy and complicated area.

BRUMFIEL: But Turkish seismologists had suspected that at some point, there was going to be a big quake in this region.

FATIH BULUT: This is not surprise for us.

BRUMFIEL: Fatih Bulut is a seismologist at Bogazici University in Istanbul. Bulut says stress has been building up in this part of Turkey for hundreds of years. His team and others have been predicting an earthquake about this size, though they couldn't say exactly when it would happen. The quake was the kind that occurs when two parts of the earth slide past each other. As a result, the damage has spread along the fault line.

BULUT: It is quite large. know. Like, 10 cities are affected⁵, structurally⁶ affected, in Turkey.

BRUMFIEL: Turkey and Syria have been at the epicenter of earthquakes for a millennia⁷, including a quake that flattened⁸ the Syrian city of Aleppo in 1138. Turkey now has seismic⁹ codes to try and keep buildings standing¹⁰. But Bulut says because this area hadn't been hit hard for centuries, it's quite possible that some of the buildings predate the codes.

BULUT: Sometimes there are very old things built before these rules exist.

BRUMFIEL: Steckler adds that he believes some construction in Turkey circumvents¹¹ the rules.

STECKLER: I know, certainly in Istanbul, there's a lot of illegal construction that goes on that - and people not following the building codes.

BRUMFIEL: Strong aftershocks are continuing to rock the region. Steckler says he expects they may go on for a while.

STECKLER: That whole area - all the pieces of the earth will slowly adjust and break and rupture¹² and come to a new equilibrium¹³.

BRUMFIEL: While the people above struggle to come to grips with the devastating¹⁴ aftermath of this powerful quake.

Geoff Brumfiel, NPR News.

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1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 observatory   

n.天文台，气象台，瞭望台，观测台

参考例句：

• Guy's house was close to the observatory.盖伊的房子离天文台很近。
• Officials from Greenwich Observatory have the clock checked twice a day.格林威治天文台的职员们每天对大钟检查两次。

4 junction   

n.连接，接合；交叉点，接合处，枢纽站

参考例句：

• There's a bridge at the junction of the two rivers.两河的汇合处有座桥。
• You must give way when you come to this junction.你到了这个路口必须让路。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 structurally   

在结构上

参考例句：

• The house roof was (structurally) unsound. 这屋顶（结构）不牢固。
• Pinhole on shot-hole damage is never structurally significant. 针孔和蛀洞所造成的危害对结构的影响不大。

7 millennia   

n.一千年，千禧年

参考例句：

• For two millennia, exogamy was a major transgression for Jews. 两千年来，异族通婚一直是犹太人的一大禁忌。
• In the course of millennia, the dinosaurs died out. 在几千年的时间里，恐龙逐渐死绝了。

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 seismic   

a.地震的，地震强度的

参考例句：

• Earthquakes produce two types of seismic waves.地震产生两种地震波。
• The latest seismic activity was also felt in northern Kenya.肯尼亚北部也感觉到了最近的地震活动。

10 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。

11 circumvents   

n.设法克服或避免（某事物），回避( circumvent的名词复数 )；绕过，绕行，绕道旅行v.设法克服或避免（某事物），回避( circumvent的第三人称单数 )；绕过，绕行，绕道旅行

参考例句：

• It is a living, powerful river that easily circumvents all obstacles. 生活就是如此，强有力的激流才可以轻易的绕过所有的阻碍。 来自互联网

12 rupture   

n.破裂；(关系的)决裂；v.(使)破裂

参考例句：

• I can rupture a rule for a friend.我可以为朋友破一次例。
• The rupture of a blood vessel usually cause the mark of a bruise.血管的突然破裂往往会造成外伤的痕迹。

13 equilibrium   

n.平衡，均衡，相称，均势，平静

参考例句：

• Change in the world around us disturbs our inner equilibrium.我们周围世界的变化扰乱了我们内心的平静。
• This is best expressed in the form of an equilibrium constant.这最好用平衡常数的形式来表示。

14 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。