美国国家公共电台 NPR From Wristwatches To Radio, How World War I Ushered In The Modern World

 

LOURDES GARCIA-NAVARRO, HOST:

The United States entered World War I a hundred years ago this week on April 6, 1917. The war is remembered mostly for its brutality¹. But as NPR's Greg Myre explains, it was also a moment when emerging technologies converged², remaking life on and off the battlefield.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "OVER THERE")

NORA BAYES: Over there, over there.

GREG MYRE, BYLINE³: Imagine you're a military officer in World War I. Armies have grown so large you can no longer communicate just by the sound of your voice or the wave of your hand. You need to synchronize⁴ movements of troops and artillery⁵ far and wide. You need a wristwatch.

(SOUNDBITE OF CLOCK TICKING)

CARLENE STEPHENS: The entire process of using artillery to protect folks in the trenches⁶ as they advanced was an elaborately timed, choreographed⁷ forward motion.

MYRE: That's Carlene Stephens of the Smithsonian's American History Museum. And she's showing me a 1917 Elgin watch, the kind worn by many soldiers. Before the war, wristwatches were worn mostly as jewelry⁸ by upper-class women. But they became essential gear for frontline officers. This one has white numbers tipped with radium so they glow in the dark, and a metal grill⁹ partly covers the watch face.

STEPHENS: This guard is often referred to as shrapnel guard so that if a soldier is out in the field, the guard protects the tender dial of the watch.

MYRE: This is one small example of the way the war sped up technology at a rapid-fire pace. Speaking of rapid fire, machine guns were introduced in the war as were tanks, radios and military aircraft. This was the first real technology war. The examples are endless. So we'll let historian Libby O'Connell sum it up.

LIBBY O'CONNELL: The soldiers rode in on horseback and flew out on airplanes.

MYRE: O'Connell is part of the World War I Centennial Commission created by Congress to mark the anniversary. Like many historians, she feels Americans don't appreciate the ways the war and its technology transformed this country and the world. The day after Congress declared war, the government banned private radio in the country fearing it might be misused¹⁰. Here's O'Connell again.

O'CONNELL: What the government does by taking over the radio industry - they were able to really fund technological¹¹ advances that would have otherwise taken years to do.

MYRE: These advances merged¹² in ways no one had imagined before the war. Radio and phone communications were vital to orchestrating troop movements along a front line that stretched hundreds of miles. As Carlene Stephens explains, wristwatches also proved critical for pilots serving as a backup fuel gauge¹³.

STEPHENS: If you were out too long as a pilot, you didn't make it back because you ran out of fuel.

MYRE: Of course, warfare¹⁴ and technology also collided in nefarious¹⁵ ways that produced mass death, most notably¹⁶ with chemical weapons. But when the war ended, the U.S. emerged as a true military power with the world's largest economy, a more global mindset and a new appreciation¹⁷ for technology. Here's Libby O'Connell.

O'CONNELL: World War I will change everything. It turns it into the modern world. This will be the beginning of the truly modern era.

MYRE: And even then, Americans could feel that something had changed.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "MEDLEY¹⁸: AND HE'S DAY OOH-LA-LA! WEE WEE/HOW YOU GONNA KEEP 'EM DOWN")

BING CROSBY AND LINDSAY CROSBY: (Singing) How you going to keep them down on the bar after they've seen Harry¹⁹ (ph).

MYRE: Greg Myre, NPR News, Washington.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "MEDLEY: AND HE'S DAY OOH-LA-LA! WEE WEE/HOW YOU GONNA KEEP 'EM DOWN")

BING CROSBY AND LINDSAY CROSBY: (Singing) How you going to keep them away from Broadway jazzing alone and painting details (ph).

1 brutality   

n.野蛮的行为，残忍，野蛮

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• a general who was infamous for his brutality 因残忍而恶名昭彰的将军

2 converged   

v.（线条、运动的物体等）会于一点( converge的过去式 )；（趋于）相似或相同；人或车辆汇集；聚集

参考例句：

• Thousands of supporters converged on London for the rally. 成千上万的支持者从四面八方汇聚伦敦举行集会。
• People converged on the political meeting from all parts of the city. 人们从城市的四面八方涌向这次政治集会。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 synchronize   

v.使同步 [=synchronise]

参考例句：

• The sound on a film must synchronize with the action. 影片中的声音必须与动作配合一致。
• You must synchronize your Inbox before selecting additional folders. 在选择其他文件夹前，您必须同步您的收件箱。

5 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

6 trenches   

深沟，地沟( trench的名词复数 )； 战壕

参考例句：

• life in the trenches 第一次世界大战期间的战壕生活
• The troops stormed the enemy's trenches and fanned out across the fields. 部队猛攻敌人的战壕，并在田野上呈扇形散开。

7 choreographed   

v.设计舞蹈动作( choreograph的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• There was some carefully choreographed flag-waving as the President drove by. 总统的车经过时，人们按精心编排的动作挥舞着旗帜。
• Achim had choreographed the dance in Act II himself. 阿希姆自己设计了第2幕的舞蹈动作。 来自辞典例句

8 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

9 grill   

n.烤架，铁格子，烤肉；v.烧，烤，严加盘问

参考例句：

• Put it under the grill for a minute to brown the top.放在烤架下烤一分钟把上面烤成金黄色。
• I'll grill you some mutton.我来给你烤一些羊肉吃。

10 misused   

v.使用…不当( misuse的过去式和过去分词 )；把…派作不正当的用途；虐待；滥用

参考例句：

• He misused his dog shamefully. 他可耻地虐待自己的狗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had grossly misused his power. 他严重滥用职权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 technological   

adj.技术的；工艺的

参考例句：

• A successful company must keep up with the pace of technological change.一家成功的公司必须得跟上技术变革的步伐。
• Today,the pace of life is increasing with technological advancements.当今， 随着科技进步，生活节奏不断增快。

12 merged   

（使）混合( merge的过去式和过去分词 )； 相融； 融入； 渐渐消失在某物中

参考例句：

• Turf wars are inevitable when two departments are merged. 两个部门合并时总免不了争争权限。
• The small shops were merged into a large market. 那些小商店合并成为一个大商场。

13 gauge   

v.精确计量；估计；n.标准度量；计量器

参考例句：

• Can you gauge what her reaction is likely to be?你能揣测她的反应可能是什么吗？
• It's difficult to gauge one's character.要判断一个人的品格是很困难的。

14 warfare   

n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突

参考例句：

• He addressed the audience on the subject of atomic warfare.他向听众演讲有关原子战争的问题。
• Their struggle consists mainly in peasant guerrilla warfare.他们的斗争主要是农民游击战。

15 nefarious   

adj.恶毒的，极坏的

参考例句：

• My father believes you all have a nefarious purpose here.我父亲认为你们都有邪恶的目的。
• He was universally feared because of his many nefarious deeds.因为他干了许多罪恶的勾当，所以人人都惧怕他。

16 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

17 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

18 medley   

n.混合

参考例句：

• Today's sports meeting doesn't seem to include medley relay swimming.现在的运动会好象还没有混合接力泳这个比赛项目。
• China won the Men's 200 metres Individual Medley.中国赢得了男子200米个人混合泳比赛。

19 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。