2020年经济学人 榕树专栏--风暴不歇的日本和韩国(2)

On September 8th Kim Jong Un, the North’s dictator, assembled his top brass¹ to review the damage a week earlier from the second of the typhoons, Maysak, which destroyed 2,000 homes and washed away 60km of roads and 57 bridges. As the meeting took place, the third, Haishen, was sweeping² inland. Although it had weakened before it made landfall, Haishen was the first “supertyphoon” of the season. It packed sustained winds of 135 knots (250kph).

9月8日，朝鲜独裁者金正恩召集朝鲜高层去审查一周之前的第二次台风“美莎克”造成的损失，这次台风摧毁了两千座房屋，冲毁了60公里的道路和57座桥梁。就在金正恩举行相关会议时，第三次台风“海神”纵贯朝鲜内陆。尽管台风“海神”在登陆前已经减弱，但它还是本季第一个“超级台风”。它的风速持续达到135节（合每小时250公里）。

Most of the western Pacific, the world’s biggest typhoon factory, has actually seen unusually few this season. Meteorologists had predicted that. Thanks to a regular rhythm in the climate known as the El Nino-Southern Oscillation, their models said tradewinds in lower latitudes³ would be stronger than usual, making it harder for typhoons to form.

尽管西太平洋地区是世界上最大的台风工厂，但实际上，这个季节的台风并不多见。气象学家预测到了这一点。由于厄尔尼诺-南方涛动气候的周期固定，气候模型表明，低纬度地区的信风将比平时更强，使台风更难形成。

Yet something man-made may be at work farther north. A facet⁴ of global warming is that the tropics are expanding. That may account for increased monsoon⁵ flooding and a shift north in the intensity⁶ of typhoons. Surface temperatures in a huge patch of ocean south of Japan have been at record highs. The heat gives strength to the typhoons passing over. As Maysak unwound, the energy it dumped into the jet stream may have contributed to savage⁷ swings from hot to cold in western America.

然而有些由人为原因引发的气候可能会在更远的北方发挥作用。全球变暖体现的一个方面是热带地区正在扩张。由此可能引发了雨季洪水增多和台风强度北移的现象。日本南部一大片海域的表面温度一直处于历史最高水平。高温为经过的台风赋予了力量。随着台风“美莎克”的平息，它注入急流中的能量可能导致了美国西部从热到冷的剧烈震荡。

Japan and South Korea grew rich by pouring concrete. Construction—dams, levees, pumping stations—still delights planners confronting threats from the weather. A shrine⁸ for the world’s disaster experts is a cathedral-like cistern⁹ under Tokyo, a 6.3km-network of tunnels and tanks supported by 500-tonne columns.

日本和韩国靠浇注混凝土致富。尽管规划者面临着气候威胁，但他们还是为水坝、堤坝和泵站的建设而感到高兴。对于世界灾难学家，位于东京地下的一个类似神庙的蓄水池就是圣地，这个6.3km长的地下通道和水罐网络，由500吨重的柱子支撑着。

1 brass   

n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器

参考例句：

• Many of the workers play in the factory's brass band.许多工人都在工厂铜管乐队中演奏。
• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。

2 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

3 latitudes   

纬度

参考例句：

• Latitudes are the lines that go from east to west. 纬线是从东到西的线。
• It was the brief Indian Summer of the high latitudes. 这是高纬度地方的那种短暂的晚秋。

4 facet   

n.(问题等的)一个方面；(多面体的)面

参考例句：

• He has perfected himself in every facet of his job.他已使自己对工作的各个方面都得心应手。
• Every facet of college life is fascinating.大学生活的每个方面都令人兴奋。

5 monsoon   

n.季雨，季风，大雨

参考例句：

• The monsoon rains started early this year.今年季雨降雨开始得早。
• The main climate type in that region is monsoon.那个地区主要以季风气候为主要气候类型。

6 intensity   

n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度

参考例句：

• I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。
• The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。

7 savage   

adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人

参考例句：

• The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
• He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。

8 shrine   

n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣

参考例句：

• The shrine was an object of pilgrimage.这处圣地是人们朝圣的目的地。
• They bowed down before the shrine.他们在神龛前鞠躬示敬。

9 cistern   

n.贮水池

参考例句：

• The cistern is empty but soon fills again.蓄水池里现在没水，但不久就会储满水的。
• The lavatory cistern overflowed.厕所水箱的水溢出来了