新奇事件簿 禁止汽车鸣笛 噪音污染

Nigeria's largest city Lagos declared a car "Horn-Free Day" last week in an attempt to raise awareness¹ of noise pollution. People are constantly bombarded with an endless cacophony² of screeches³, sirens and high-pitched honking⁵ from impatient motorists. The Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola told reporters that the extent of the noise from car horns was now serious enough to be a danger to people's hearing. Talking about Horn-Free Day, he told reporters: "It is for our own good. It is for our own health. It is for our own life." The World Health Organization said high-decibel noise pollution was a critical health hazard that increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases and high blood pressure.

尼日利亚最大的城市拉各斯上周宣布“禁止汽车鸣笛日”，试图提高对噪声污染的认识。人们不断受到无尽刺耳的急刹车时的尖叫声,不耐烦的汽车司机的高音喇叭声的困扰。拉各斯州州长法仕拉先生告诉记者, 现在汽车喇叭噪音的程度严重威胁人们的听力。谈到“禁止鸣笛日”，他告诉记者，这是为了我们自己的利益。这是为了我们自己的健康。这是为了我们自己的生命。”世界卫生组织说，这样高强度的噪声污染严重危害健康,而且会增加心血管疾病和高血压的风险。

Governor Fashola hoped his city's roads would be a little quieter. He contrasted the constant honking in Lagos to the relative quiet of European roads. He said he recently spent ten days in Europe and, "did not hear the sound of a horn while driving". He asked: "Can you imagine that we can drive in Lagos without horns?" However, a Lagos blogger defended the use of the horn as part of the city's culture. He said: "Honking is a beautiful trend in this part of the world, and it is a trend that every class of people in the country embraces." Apart from making other drivers aware of danger, he said people honk⁴ to greet friends and celebrate weddings and other happy occasions.

州长法仕拉先生希望他所在城市的道路安静一些。他将拉各斯的持续不断的鸣笛声与相对安静的欧洲道路做了对比。他说，他最近在欧洲花了十天，在开车的时候没有听到喇叭的声音。他问道，你能想象我们在拉各斯开车不鸣笛的状况吗？然而, 拉各斯博主为喇叭的使用辩护，称喇叭是城市文化的一部分。他说，鸣笛在这个世界的部分地区是一种美好的趋势。而且国家的每个阶层的人都很喜欢这种趋势。除了让其他司机意识到危险,他说,人们在一些欢乐的场合下也会鸣笛，例如欢迎朋友和庆祝婚礼。

1 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

2 cacophony   

n.刺耳的声音

参考例句：

• All around was bubbling a cacophony of voices.周围人声嘈杂。
• The drivers behind him honked,and the cacophony grew louder.后面的司机还在按喇叭，且那刺耳的声音越来越大。

3 screeches   

n.尖锐的声音( screech的名词复数 )v.发出尖叫声( screech的第三人称单数 )；发出粗而刺耳的声音；高叫

参考例句：

• The boy's screeches brought his mother. 男孩的尖叫声招来了他母亲。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The woman's screeches brought the police. 这个妇女的尖叫声招来了警察。 来自辞典例句

4 honk   

n.雁叫声，汽车喇叭声

参考例句：

• Don't honk the horn indiscriminately.不要乱鸣喇叭！
• While passing another vehicle,you must honk your horn.通过另一部车时必须鸣按喇叭。

5 honking   

v.（使）发出雁叫似的声音，鸣（喇叭），按（喇叭）( honk的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Cars zoomed helter-skelter, honking belligerently. 大街上来往车辆穿梭不停，喇叭声刺耳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Flocks of honking geese flew past. 雁群嗷嗷地飞过。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》