万物简史 第245期:马斯特-马克的夸克(17)

 　　At least the names for the two main possible culprits are entertaining: they are said to be either WIMPs² (for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles, which is to say specks³ of invisible matter left over from the Big Bang) or MACHOs (for MAssive Compact Halo Objects—really just another name for black holes, brown dwarfs⁴, and other very dim stars).

　　至少有两个主要嫌疑的名字受到注意：据说，它们不是“WIMP¹”（“弱互相作用大质量粒子”，即大爆炸留下的看不见的微小物质），就是“MACHO”（“晕状大质量致密天体”，实际上只是黑洞、棕色矮星和其他光线很暗的恒星的另一种说法）。

　　Particle physicists⁵ have tended to favor the particle explanation of WIMPs, astrophysicists the stellar explanation of MACHOs. For a time MACHOs had the upper hand, but not nearly enough of them were found, so sentiment swung back toward WIMPs but with the problem that no WIMP has ever been found. Because they are weakly interacting, they are (assuming they even exist) very hard to detect. Cosmic rays would cause too much interference. So scientists must go deep underground.

　　粒子物理学家往往赞成解释为粒子，即WIMP；天体物理学家赞成解释为星体，即MACHO。MACHO一度占了上风，但根本找不到足够的数量，所以风向又转向WIMP──问题是WIMP从来没有发现过。由于它们的相互作用很弱，因此很难识别它们（即使假设它们的存在）。宇宙射线会造成太多干扰。因此，科学家们必须钻到地下深处。

　　夸克星

　　One kilometer underground cosmic bombardments would be one millionth what they would be on the surface. But even when all these are added in, "two-thirds of the universe is still missing from the balance sheet," as one commentator⁶ has put it. For the moment we might very well call them DUNNOS (for Dark Unknown Nonreflective Nondetectable Objects Somewhere).

　　在地下一公里的地方，宇宙射线的轰击强度只有地面的百万分之一。但是，即使把这一切都加上去，正如有一位评论家说的：“宇宙在决算表上还相差三分之二。”眼下，我不妨把它们称之为“DUNNOS”（某处未知非反射不可测物体）。

　　Recent evidence suggests that not only are the galaxies⁷ of the universe racing⁸ away from us, but that they are doing so at a rate that is accelerating.

　　近来有迹象表明，宇宙的星系不仅在离我们远去，而且离去的速度越来越快。

1 wimp   

n.无用的人

参考例句：

• The more she called her husband a wimp,the more timid he became.她越叫她先生懦夫，他就越胆小怯懦。
• I hate those who get on their high horses in front of wimps.我最恨那些在弱者面前盛气凌人的人。

2 wimps   

n.懦弱的人，无用的人( wimp的名词复数 )v.懦弱的人，无用的人( wimp的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• No. Seatbelts are for wimps. Besides, I'm a great driver. 不。只有懦夫才系安全带。我驾车很在行。 来自互联网
• Good news for wimps (a weak person), then. 这对于那些白面小生来说可是个好消息。 来自互联网

3 specks   

n.眼镜；斑点，微粒，污点( speck的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Minutes later Brown spotted two specks in the ocean. 几分钟后布朗发现海洋中有两个小点。 来自英汉非文学 - 百科语料821
• Do you ever seem to see specks in front of your eyes? 你眼睛前面曾似乎看见过小点吗？ 来自辞典例句

4 dwarfs   

n.侏儒，矮子（dwarf的复数形式）vt.（使）显得矮小（dwarf的第三人称单数形式）

参考例句：

• Shakespeare dwarfs other dramatists. 莎士比亚使其他剧作家相形见绌。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The new building dwarfs all the other buildings in the town. 新大楼使城里所有其他建筑物都显得矮小了。 来自辞典例句

5 physicists   

物理学家( physicist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• For many particle physicists, however, it was a year of frustration. 对于许多粒子物理学家来说，这是受挫折的一年。 来自英汉非文学 - 科技
• Physicists seek rules or patterns to provide a framework. 物理学家寻求用法则或图式来构成一个框架。

6 commentator   

n.注释者，解说者；实况广播评论员

参考例句：

• He is a good commentator because he can get across the game.他能简单地解说这场比赛，是个好的解说者。
• The commentator made a big mistake during the live broadcast.在直播节目中评论员犯了个大错误。

7 galaxies   

星系( galaxy的名词复数 )； 银河系； 一群（杰出或著名的人物）

参考例句：

• Quasars are the highly energetic cores of distant galaxies. 类星体是遥远星系的极为活跃的核心体。
• We still don't know how many galaxies there are in the universe. 我们还不知道宇宙中有多少个星系。

8 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。