The Lost Continent 遗失的大陆-6

On August 2nd, 1492, as Columbus finally set off on his epic¹ voyage to cross the Atlantic Ocean, he had not one but two goals in mind--crossing the endless expanse of an uncharted sea, and discovering the mysteries of an island called Antillia. History has recorded only scant² evidence of the events of Columbus's momentous³ journey. We do know that when his expedition was 12 days out from the Canary Islands and 2, 000 miles from Spain, he ordered his tiny 3-ship fleet to set a northwesterly course in precisely⁴ the direction that Antillia was thought to be. Two days later, he ordered the ships to turn west again, and two days after that, they set a course southwest. After 6 days of searching, Columbus abandoned what appeared to have been a frantic⁵ search for Antillia. The decision probably saved the expedition. Columbus had made a potentially fatal error. In common with the mapmakers he had estimated the size of the world based on calculations of Arabic scholars.

The problem is that that measurement's made in Arabic miles which's much longer than Italian miles with the result that, the, er, all the geographical⁶ thinkers take the earth to be much much smaller than it really was.

On the 12th, October after nearly three months at sea, Columbus and his men finally made landfall. They had crossed the vast ocean and reached the Americas. Returning to Spain a hero, Columbus managed to persuade the King and Queen to support 3 further voyages to colonize⁷ the New World. But Antillia and its legendary⁸ riches were never found. Its name now lives on in a chain of islands in the Caribbean Sea, the Antilles.
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expanse: n. 广阔的区域，宽广
northwesterly: adj. 位于西北方的，向西北的
colonize: v. 拓殖，使殖民化

1 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

2 scant   

adj.不充分的，不足的；v.减缩，限制，忽略

参考例句：

• Don't scant the butter when you make a cake.做糕饼时不要吝惜奶油。
• Many mothers pay scant attention to their own needs when their children are small.孩子们小的时候，许多母亲都忽视自己的需求。

3 momentous   

adj.重要的，重大的

参考例句：

• I am deeply honoured to be invited to this momentous occasion.能应邀出席如此重要的场合，我深感荣幸。
• The momentous news was that war had begun.重大的新闻是战争已经开始。

4 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

5 frantic   

adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的

参考例句：

• I've had a frantic rush to get my work done.我急急忙忙地赶完工作。
• He made frantic dash for the departing train.他发疯似地冲向正开出的火车。

6 geographical   

adj.地理的；地区(性)的

参考例句：

• The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
• These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。

7 colonize   

v.建立殖民地，拓殖；定居，居于

参考例句：

• Around 700 Arabs began to colonize East Africa.公元700年阿拉伯人开始把东非变为殖民地。
• Japan used to colonize many countries in Asia.日本曾经殖民过许多亚洲国家。

8 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。