不为人们重视的光污染

61  不为人们重视的光污染

ENVIRONMENT REPORT - August 31, 2001: Light PollutionBy Mario Ritter

（Start at 1'01" ）This is Bill White with with the VOA Special English Environment Report.
We usually think of (1)pollution as a harmful waste (2)substance that threatens the air and water. But some people have become (3)concerned about another kind of pollution. It can be everywhere, depending on the time of day. And it is not thought of as a substance. It is light.
The idea of light pollution has developed with the increase of lights in cities. In many areas, this light makes it difficult or impossible to (4)observe stars and (5)planets in the night sky. In Nineteen-Eighty-Eight, the International Dark-Sky Association¹ formed. This organization wants to reduce light pollution in the night sky. It also (6)urges the effective use of electric lighting².
There are a number of reasons why light pollution is important. One has become clear at the Mount³ Wilson Observatory⁴ near Los Angeles, California. Mount Wilson Observatory was home to the largest (7)telescopes in the world during the first half of the Nineteen-Hundreds.
During that period, Los Angeles grew to become one of America's biggest cities.
Today, light from Los Angeles makes the night sky above Mount Wilson very bright. It is no longer an important research center because of light pollution.
Light pollution threatens to reduce the scientific value of research telescopes in other important observatories⁵. They include Lick⁶ Observatory near San Jose, California and Yerkes Observatory near Chicago, Illinois.
Light pollution is the result of wasted energy. Bright light that shines into the sky is not being used to provide light where it is needed on Earth. Poorly designed lighting causes a great deal of light pollution. Lights that are brighter than necessary also cause light pollution.
Recently, two Italian (8)astronomers and an American (9)environmental scientist created a world map of the night sky. The map shows that North America, Western Europe and Japan have the greatest amount of light pollution.
Most people in America are surprised to find out that they are able to see our own (10)galaxy, The (11)Milky⁷ Way, with their own eyes. But about three-fourths of Americans cannot see the Milky Way because of man-made light.
Objects in the night sky are resources that provide everyone with wonder. But light pollution threatens to (12)prevent those wonderful sights from being seen.
This VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT was written by Mario Ritter.

 

(1)  pollution[ pE5lu:FEn, -5lju:- ]n.污染, 玷污
(2)  substance[ 5sQbstEns ]n.物质, 实质, 主旨
(3) concern[ kEn5sE:n ]vt.涉及, 关系到n.(利害)关系, 关心, 关注, 关注, 所关心的是
(4) observe[ Eb5zE:v ]vt.观察, 观测, 遵守, 评述, 说
(5) planet[5plAnIt]n.[天]行星
(6) urge[ E:dV ]vt.催促, 力劝n.强烈欲望, 迫切要求v.促进
(7) telescope[ 5teliskEup ]n.望远镜v.压缩
(8) astronomer[E5strRnEmE(r)]n.天文学家
(9) environmental[ in7vaiErEn5mentl ]adj.周围的, 环境的n.环境论
(10) galaxy[ 5^AlEksi ]n.星系, 银河, 一群显赫的人, 一系列光彩夺目的东西
(11) Milky Way银河
(12) prevent[ pri5vent ]v.防止, 预防

1 association   

n.联盟，协会，社团；交往，联合；联想

参考例句：

• Our long association with your company has brought great benefits.我方和贵公司的长期合作带来了巨大的利益。
• I broke away from the association ten years ago.我10年前就脱离了那个团体。

2 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

3 mount   

n.山峰，乘用马，框，衬纸；vi.增长，骑上（马）；vt.提升，爬上，装备

参考例句：

• Their debts continued to mount up.他们的债务不断增加。
• She is the first woman who steps on the top of Mount Jolmo Lungma.她是第一个登上珠穆朗玛峰的女人。

4 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。

5 observatories   

n.天文台，气象台( observatory的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• John Heilbron, The Sun in the Church: Cathedrals as Solar Observatories, 3-23. 约翰．海耳布隆，《教会里的太阳：教堂即太阳观测台》，第3-23页。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists use satellites, land observatories and historical data to provide information about the weather. 气象学家使用卫星、上天文台和历史资料来提供有关天气的信息。 来自互联网

6 lick   

vt.舔（吃），打败，轻拍，吞卷；n.舔，少许

参考例句：

• I think we could lick the best teams there.我想我们能打败那儿最好的队。
• The house would look better with a lick of paint.这房子稍加颜色就好看了。

7 milky   

adj.牛奶的，多奶的；乳白色的

参考例句：

• Alexander always has milky coffee at lunchtime.亚历山大总是在午餐时喝掺奶的咖啡。
• I like a hot milky drink at bedtime.我喜欢睡前喝杯热奶饮料。