英语听书《海底两万里》第534期 第33章 北纬47.24度, 西经17.28度(9)

 I didn't expect to find this electric cable in mint condition, as it looked on leaving its place of manufacture. 现在我并不指望还能看到那条电缆原来刚被拿出制造车间时的样子。

The long snake was covered with seashell rubble¹ and bristling² with foraminifera; 这条长蛇覆盖着介壳碎片，孔虫动物丛生，

a crust of caked gravel³ protected it from any mollusks that might bore into it.  外层被包上一层石质粘糊，这层粘糊保护着它，不让软体动物在上面凿洞。

It rested serenely⁴, sheltered from the sea's motions,  它静静地躺着，不受海水运动的搔扰，

under a pressure favorable to the transmission of that electric spark that goes from America to Europe in 32/100 of a second. 处在一种很适合于以32％秒从美洲向欧洲传送信息的电压下。

This cable will no doubt last indefinitely because, as observers note, its gutta-percha casing is improved by a stay in salt water. 电缆的寿命可能是无限期的，因为人们发现，马来树胶皮在海水中随着泡浸时间增长而变得越来越坚韧。

Besides, on this well-chosen plateau, the cable never lies at depths that could cause a break. 此外，在这片选择得很得当的高原上，电缆绝对不会沉入更深的水层里，以致拉断。

The Nautilus followed it to its lowest reaches, located 4,431 meters down, “鹦鹉螺号”船只沿着电缆到了海洋最底层，即位于4431米的深海。

and even there it rested without any stress or strain. 在那里，电缆还是没出现任何收缩现象。

Then we returned to the locality where the 1863 accident had taken place. 然后，我们向1863年发生事故的地点接近。

There the ocean floor formed a valley 120 kilometers wide,  此时，海底出现了一座宽120公里的山谷。

into which you could fit Mt. Blanc without its summit poking⁵ above the surface of the waves.  如果把勃朗峰放在这里，它的峰顶也不会露出水面。

1 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

2 bristling   

a.竖立的

参考例句：

• "Don't you question Miz Wilkes' word,'said Archie, his beard bristling. "威尔克斯太太的话，你就不必怀疑了。 "阿尔奇说。他的胡子也翘了起来。
• You were bristling just now. 你刚才在发毛。

3 gravel   

n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石

参考例句：

• We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
• More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。

4 serenely   

adv.安详地，宁静地，平静地

参考例句：

• The boat sailed serenely on towards the horizon.小船平稳地向着天水交接处驶去。
• It was a serenely beautiful night.那是一个宁静美丽的夜晚。

5 poking   

n. 刺，戳，袋 vt. 拨开，刺，戳 vi. 戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢

参考例句：

• He was poking at the rubbish with his stick. 他正用手杖拨动垃圾。
• He spent his weekends poking around dusty old bookshops. 他周末都泡在布满尘埃的旧书店里。