国家地理 加里曼丹岛的地底洞天(3)

Now imagine them down there, Frank and Cookie, mud smeared¹ and grinning, on the verge² of joining two cave systems into a single, immense whole. Not your thing? Well, for cavers, it's the thing. And it's rare that such superlative connections are made. In the often obscure world of underground exploration, which is governed by international bodies with names such as the "Longest, Largest, and Deepest Committee," such a feat³ would be a very big deal.

现在，想象一下在地底的弗兰克和库奇，全身泥巴、开心微笑：很快就能将两个洞穴系统连接成一个巨大完整的洞穴系统了。你没什么兴趣吗？对探洞家来说，这是他们最有兴趣的事了。能做到这种“某某之最”的连结是非常罕见的。地底探索的世界通常鲜为人知，由名为“最长、最大、最深委员会”之类的国际机构负责管理，在这个世界里，此等壮举可是天大的事。

Elsewhere far below the Earth's surface, in the entrails of Racer Cave, another team was slithering into place. They too carried hammers and a drill, and soon the two teams would begin banging on the cave walls and drilling into the rock, listening for each other, hoping noise would lead them to a connection and a spot in the record books.

在地底深处的另一个地方，黑蛇洞内部，另一支队伍也正又滑又钻地就位了。他们也带着铁锤和电钻，两支队伍很快就会开始在穴壁岩石上敲打、钻洞，倾听彼此的声响，希望噪音能带领他们找到连结点，让他们名留青史。

1 smeared   

弄脏； 玷污； 涂抹； 擦上

参考例句：

• The children had smeared mud on the walls. 那几个孩子往墙上抹了泥巴。
• A few words were smeared. 有写字被涂模糊了。

2 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

3 feat   

n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的

参考例句：

• Man's first landing on the moon was a feat of great daring.人类首次登月是一个勇敢的壮举。
• He received a medal for his heroic feat.他因其英雄业绩而获得一枚勋章。