时差N小时 美国国家公园管理处

National parks have been called "the best idea America ever had." But the idea of preserving land ran contrary to the prevailing¹ national mood during the 19th century, which saw nature as something to be subdued² and conquered.

国家公园被认为是“美国历史上最棒的概念”。然而在19世纪，这种保护土地的想法却有悖于当时盛行的国民情绪，那时人们视自然为被征服或制服的对象。

The first national park, Yellowstone, was reserved by Congress in 1872, and 5 other parks were added over the next 40 years. In addition to offering environmental protection, the parks also stimulated³ tourism and economic expansion in the West. By 1916, the Interior Department was responsible for 14 national parks and 21 national monuments.

国会于1872年建立了第一个国家公园，黄石公园。在接下来的40年里，又陆续建立了其它五个公园。国家公园除了保护自然环境外，还能刺激西部的旅游业和经济发展。至1916年，内政部门总共负责管理14个国家公园和21个国家级博物馆。

With meager⁴ funding, they had to use army personnel and civilians⁵ to tend to many parks and monuments. A wealthy and concerned Chicago businessman named Stephen T. Mather had joined the Department of Interior in 1915 and used his private funds to publicize the plight⁶ of the national parks. Congress responded, and on August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson approved legislation that created the National Park Service.

因为微薄的资金投入，他们不得不借用军队人员和平民来照管公园和博物馆。一位富有的芝加哥商人 Stephen T. Mather 对此很关心，他于1915年加入内政部，自费宣传国家公园所面临的困境。国会做出响应，且伍德鲁·威尔逊总统也于1916年8月25日通过立法成立了国家公园管理局。

The many roles of the Park Service have expanded over the years, as has the number of areas under its jurisdiction⁷. In 1980 Congress added 47 million acres of unspoiled wilderness⁸ in Alaska, more than doubling the size of the Park System. Controversy⁹ still remains¹⁰ about whether or not they should be used to drill for oil, and how best to allow public access to the parks without destroying their integrity.

过去几年，随着管辖区域数量增加，国家公园管理局所扮演的角色扩大了。1980年国会又将阿拉斯加的四百七十万公顷未开发的荒野纳入国家公园管理局管辖范围，这比自然公园系统的两倍还多。但关于是否应该在这片土地上钻井开发石油、以及如何让公众进出公园时不损害其完整性的问题上仍存在争议。

1 prevailing   

adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的

参考例句：

• She wears a fashionable hair style prevailing in the city.她的发型是这个城市流行的款式。
• This reflects attitudes and values prevailing in society.这反映了社会上盛行的态度和价值观。

2 subdued   

adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He seemed a bit subdued to me. 我觉得他当时有点闷闷不乐。
• I felt strangely subdued when it was all over. 一切都结束的时候，我却有一种奇怪的压抑感。

3 stimulated   

a.刺激的

参考例句：

• The exhibition has stimulated interest in her work. 展览增进了人们对她作品的兴趣。
• The award has stimulated her into working still harder. 奖金促使她更加努力地工作。

4 meager   

adj.缺乏的，不足的，瘦的

参考例句：

• He could not support his family on his meager salary.他靠微薄的工资无法养家。
• The two men and the woman grouped about the fire and began their meager meal.两个男人同一个女人围着火，开始吃起少得可怜的午饭。

5 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

6 plight   

n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定

参考例句：

• The leader was much concerned over the plight of the refugees.那位领袖对难民的困境很担忧。
• She was in a most helpless plight.她真不知如何是好。

7 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

8 wilderness   

n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

9 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

10 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。