时代周刊 新一轮核游戏 成败在此一举(1)

The New Nuclear Poker¹

新一轮核游戏

MORE PLAYERS. LOOSER RULES. EVERYTHING AT STAKE

玩家更多，规则更松，成败在此一举

BY W.J. HENNIGAN

文/W.J.亨尼根

AT A VAST TRACT² OF UNINHABITED DESERT IN southern Nevada,

在内华达南部无人居住的广阔沙漠中，

hundreds of moonlike craters³ dimple the wasteland,

数以百计类似月球表面的石坑就躺在这片荒原上，

remnants of Cold War nuclear explosions that melted the bedrock and fused the sand

这些都是冷战时期核爆炸留下的，在核爆炸产生的高温下，基岩融化，沙土也变成了熔浆，

to ensure that America could take part in the unthinkable: global thermonuclearwar.

这一切都是为了确保美国能够把不可能变成可能：全球热核战争。

The crowds of scientists and generals are long gone—the U. S. hasn’t tested a nuke since 1992,

尽管那批科学家和将军早已不在 - 1992年以来，美国也再未进行过核武器测试，

when then President George H. W. Bush declared a self-imposed testing moratorium⁴.

因为当时的乔治·W·布什总统宣布自愿暂停试验。

But the Nevada National Security test site is not completely abandoned.

但内华达州国家安全局的测试基地并未完全被抛弃。

A skeleton crew of custodians⁵ oversees⁶ the long dormant⁷ facility, less than 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas,

一批骨干监管人员还在距离拉斯维加斯西北方向不到90英里（约145千米)的地方监管着那些已经长期休眠的设施，

standing⁸ by to turn the lights back on if the day ever comes.

等着重新启动的那一天。

It may come sooner than many thought.

出人意料的是，这一天可能很快就会到来。

Since 1993, the Department of Energy has had to be ready to conduct a nuclear test within two to three years if ordered by the President.

自1993年以来，按照规定，一旦总统下令，两到三年内，能源部必须将核试验准备就绪。

Late last year, the Trump⁹ Administration ordered the department to be ready, for the first time,

去年年底，特朗普政府已经下令能源部做好准备——这还是1993年以来的第一次——

to conduct a short-notice nuclear test in as little as six months.

要求能源部临时在短短6个月时间内进行核试验。

That is not enough time to install the warhead in shafts¹⁰ as deep as 4,000 ft. and affix¹¹ all the proper technical instrumentation and diagnostics equipment.

六个月的时间根本无法将核弹弹头安装到深达4000英尺（约1200米)的井筒并配上所有合适的技术仪器和诊断设备。

But the purpose of such a detonation¹², which the Administration labels “a simple test, with waivers and simplified processes,”

不过，这样的测试，政府当局称其为“进行了各种减免及简化的简单测试，”

would not be to ensure that the nation’s most powerful weapons were in operational order,

其目的并不是为了确保这个国家最强大的武器能够正常运转，

or to check whether a new type of warhead worked, a TIME review of nuclear-policy documents has found.

也不是为了检查一种新型的弹头是否起作用，本刊在研究了相关的核政策文件后发现。

Rather, a National Nuclear Security Administration official tells TIME, such a test would be “conducted for political purposes.”

一位国家核安全局官员向本刊透露，这样的测试是“为了政治目的展开的。”

The point, this and other sources say, would be to show Russia’s Vladimir Putin,

消息人士称，其目的是为了向俄罗斯的弗拉基米尔·普京，

North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, Iran’s Ayatullah Ali Khamenei and other adversaries¹³ what they are up against.

朝鲜的金正恩，伊朗的阿亚图拉·阿里·哈梅内伊等对手展示，他们面临的是怎样的劲敌。

1 poker   

n.扑克；vt.烙制

参考例句：

• He was cleared out in the poker game.他打扑克牌，把钱都输光了。
• I'm old enough to play poker and do something with it.我打扑克是老手了，可以玩些花样。

2 tract   

n.传单，小册子，大片(土地或森林)

参考例句：

• He owns a large tract of forest.他拥有一大片森林。
• He wrote a tract on this subject.他曾对此写了一篇短文。

3 craters   

n.火山口( crater的名词复数 )；弹坑等

参考例句：

• Small meteorites have left impact craters all over the planet's surface. 这个行星的表面布满了小块陨石留下的撞击坑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The battlefield was full of craters made by exploding shells. 战场上布满弹坑。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 moratorium   

n.(行动、活动的)暂停(期)，延期偿付

参考例句：

• The government has called for a moratorium on weapons testing.政府已要求暂停武器试验。
• We recommended a moratorium on two particular kinds of experiments.我们建议暂禁两种特殊的实验。

5 custodians   

n.看守人，保管人( custodian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• If we aren't good custodians for our planet, what right do we have to be here? 如果我们作为自己星球的管理者不称职我们还有什么理由留在这里？ 来自电影对白
• Custodians primarily responsible for the inspection of vehicles, access, custody. 保管员主要负责车辆的验收、出入、保管。 来自互联网

6 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

7 dormant   

adj.暂停活动的；休眠的；潜伏的

参考例句：

• Many animals are in a dormant state during winter.在冬天许多动物都处于睡眠状态。
• This dormant volcano suddenly fired up.这座休眠火山突然爆发了。

8 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。

9 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

10 shafts   

n.轴( shaft的名词复数 )；（箭、高尔夫球棒等的）杆；通风井；一阵（疼痛、害怕等）

参考例句：

• He deliberately jerked the shafts to rock him a bit. 他故意的上下颠动车把，摇这个老猴子几下。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
• Shafts were sunk, with tunnels dug laterally. 竖井已经打下，并且挖有横向矿道。 来自辞典例句

11 affix   

n.附件，附录 vt.附贴，盖(章)，签署

参考例句：

• Please affix your signature to the document. 请你在这个文件上签字。
• Complete the form and affix four tokens to its back. 填完该表，在背面贴上4张凭券。

12 detonation   

n.爆炸；巨响

参考例句：

• A fearful detonation burst forth on the barricade.街垒传来一阵骇人的爆炸声。
• Within a few hundreds of microseconds,detonation is complete.在几百微秒之内，爆炸便完成了。

13 adversaries   

n.对手，敌手( adversary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• That would cause potential adversaries to recoil from a challenge. 这会迫使潜在的敌人在挑战面前退缩。 来自辞典例句
• Every adversaries are more comfortable with a predictable, coherent America. 就连敌人也会因有可以预料的，始终一致的美国而感到舒服得多。 来自辞典例句