I'm Neil.

我是尼爾。

And I'm Sam.

而我是山姆。

'No one is too small to make a difference'.

'沒有人是太小的，可以有所作為'。

Do you know who said that, Sam?

你知道這是誰說的嗎，山姆？

Wasn't it climate change activist Greta Thunburg?

這不是氣候變化活動家Greta Thunburg嗎？

That's right! She went on to say  this in her message to world leaders.

這就對了!她在給世界各國領導人的致辭中繼續這樣說。

'I don't want you to be hopeful.

'我不希望你抱有希望。

I want you to act as if your house is on fire, because it is.'

我想讓你表現得像你的房子著火了一樣，因為它確實著火了'。

Her speech reflected the feelings of many young people around the world who

她的講話反映了全世界許多年輕人的感受，他們

think that not enough action is being taken on climate change.

認為在氣候變化方面沒有采取足夠的行動。

And they might be right, judging by the record-breaking temperatures that hit

他們可能是對的，從創下紀錄的溫度來看，他們是對的。

Canada and the north-west of the United States in July this year.

今年7月，加拿大和美國西北部。

Greta Thunberg's plea to 'act like your house is on fire' became a reality for

格雷塔-圖恩伯格 "表現得像你的房子著火了 "的請求成為現實。

residents of the small town of Lytton, Canada, which burned to the ground in

加拿大Lytton小鎮的居民，該鎮在2008年被燒成了廢墟。

a shocking wildfire - a fire that is burning strongly and out of control.

一場觸目驚心的野火--火勢猛烈燃燒，無法控制。

So, was the Lytton wildfire yet another climate change wake-up call?

那麼，萊頓的野火是否又是一個氣候變化的警鐘呢？

A wake-up call is the expression used to describe a shocking event that should

喚醒是用來描述一個令人震驚的事件的表達方式，應該

make people realise that action is needed to change something.

使人們認識到需要採取行動來改變一些東西。

Maybe not, according to some climatologists who, worryingly, say that what happened in

也許不是，根據一些氣候學家的說法，令人擔憂的是，他們說，發生在中國的事情

Lytton should not even have been possible. So, in this programme, we'll be

萊頓甚至不應該有這種可能。是以，在這個節目中，我們將

asking if scientists have dangerously misunderstood the realities of climate change.

詢問科學家是否對氣候變化的現實有危險的誤解。

But first it's time for my quiz question

但首先是我的問答問題的時間

and it's about that extreme weather in Canada. It broke records when the

它是關於加拿大的極端天氣。它打破了記錄，當

temperature in Lytton hit an all-time high on the 1st of July but just how

萊頓的氣溫在7月1日達到了歷史最高點，但究竟如何

hot did it get? Was it

它變熱了嗎？它是否

a) 39.6 degrees,

a) 39.6度。

b) 49.6 degrees or c) 59.6 degrees Celsius?

b) 49.6度或c) 59.6攝氏度？

All those temperatures look really  high, especially for snowy Canada!  

所有這些溫度看起來真的很高，特別是對於多雪的加拿大來說！這是很重要的。

I'll say a) 39.6 degrees C.

我說a）39.6攝氏度。

OK Sam, we'll find out the answer later on.

好吧，山姆，我們以後會知道答案的。

Seeing your hometown burned  to the ground is bad enough,

看到自己的家鄉被燒成一片廢墟已經很糟糕了。

but perhaps even worse, was the fact  that the wildfires were so unexpected.

但也許更糟糕的是，野火是如此出人意料。

According to weather pattern modelling done  by a team of Oxford University researchers,

根據牛津大學的一個研究小組所做的天氣模式模擬。

such extreme heat was  impossible, in theory at least.

至少在理論上，這樣的極端高溫是不可能的。

The research team was led by  climatologist Geert Jan van Oldenborgh.

該研究小組由氣候學家Geert Jan van Oldenborgh上司。

Here he is in conversation with BBC World  Service programme, Science in Action.

在這裡，他與BBC世界服務節目《科學在行動》對話。

This is a wake-up call beyond the  wake-up calls that we've had before.

這是一個超越我們以前的警醒的電話。

Yes, it's a very big shock  in the sense that we thought  

是的，這是一個非常大的震驚，因為我們認為

we knew that how heat waves  react to global warming

我們知道，熱浪對全球變暖的反應是怎樣的

and within which boundaries they 

以及他們在哪些範圍內

are increasing. Of course  they're increasing in temperature

正在增加。當然，它們的溫度在增加

but it's a gradual process, we  thought. And then you get this thing  

但這是一個漸進的過程，我們認為。然後你得到這個東西

and it's not gradual at all, it's a huge jump.

而且這根本不是漸進式的，是一個巨大的跳躍。

Professor van Oldenborgh had been studying the impact of global warming on

範-奧爾登博格教授一直在研究全球變暖對人類的影響。

heatwaves - short periods of time when the weather is much hotter than usual.

熱浪 - 短時間內天氣比平時熱得多。

Along with other climatologists, he thought that climate change was gradual

與其他氣候學家一樣，他認為氣候變化是逐漸發生的

- changing or happening slowly over a long period of time.

- 在很長一段時間內緩慢變化或發生。

But the Canadian heatwaves  caused him to think again.

但加拿大的熱浪使他重新思考。

Instead of being gradual, the temperature saw

溫度不是逐漸升高，而是看到

a jump - or a sudden increase - of five degrees

躍升--或突然增加--五度

and it's this sudden jump that's got Professor van Oldenborgh and his team worried.

而正是這種突然的跳躍讓範-奧登堡教授和他的團隊感到擔憂。

By collecting data from all over the world, climatologists tried to

通過收集來自世界各地的數據，氣候學家們試圖

predict changes in the pattern of global warming.

預測全球變暖模式的變化。

But as Geert Jan van Oldenborgh told BBC World Service's Science in Action, the

但是，正如Geert Jan van Oldenborgh告訴BBC世界服務社的 "科學行動 "節目的那樣。

heatwave in Lytton, didn't fit these predictions at all.

萊頓的熱浪，根本不符合這些預測。

Everything looked like a nice, regular, gradual trend like we're used to up to

一切看起來都像一個漂亮的、有規律的、漸進的趨勢，就像我們所習慣的那樣，直到

last year, and then you suddenly break all your

去年，你突然打破了你所有的

records by four or five degrees. I mean, this is something that's not supposed to

記錄了四或五度。我的意思是，這是不應該發生的事情。

happen, and it has really shaken our confidence in how well we understand the

這確實動搖了我們的信心，使我們對自己的理解有了很大的提高。

effect of climate change on heatwaves.

氣候變化對熱浪的影響。

Despite all his research, Professor van Oldenborgh

儘管他進行了所有的研究，但範-奧爾登堡教授

is still unable to explain such extreme

仍然無法解釋這種極端的

and sudden changes in the

和突然的變化。

climate. And this, he says, has

氣候。他說，這已經

shaken his confidence - made him

動搖了他的信心--使他

doubt something that

懷疑的東西

he was certain was true.

他確信這是真的。

And it's this lack of understanding worrying

而正是這種缺乏理解的情況讓人擔心

researchers because, as the story of the

研究人員，因為，作為

town of Lytton shows, the

萊頓鎮顯示，。

effects of climate change may be even worse than expected.

氣候變化的影響可能比預期的還要糟糕。

Maybe it's time we all took notice of Greta Thunberg's wake-up call to take

也許現在是時候讓我們都注意到格蕾塔-坦伯格的警醒，讓我們採取

action on climate change.

關於氣候變化的行動。

Especially if even cold,  northern countries like Canada,

特別是如果即使像加拿大這樣寒冷的北方國家。

or Britain, for that matter, can  experience such extreme changes.

或英國，都能經歷這樣的極端變化。

Speaking of which Neil, what was  the answer to your quiz question?

說到這裡，尼爾，你的測驗問題的答案是什麼？

Ah yes! In my quiz question, I asked you  exactly how high the temperature reached

啊，是的!在我的問答題中，我問你究竟溫度達到了多高？

in the Canadian town of Lytton. What did you say, Sam?

在加拿大的萊頓鎮。你說什麼，山姆？

I thought it was a) 39.6  degrees Celsius. Was I right?

我以為是a）39.6攝氏度。我說的對嗎？

Well, you were close but,  in fact, it got even hotter,

嗯，你很接近，但事實上，它變得更熱了。

actually reaching 49.6 degrees Celsius,

實際達到49.6攝氏度。

the highest temperature ever recorded in Canada by at least 5 degrees.

是加拿大有史以來的最高溫度，至少提高了5度。

Phew, that is hot! Ugh well, we'd better recap the vocabulary

唷，這可真夠熱的!呃......好吧，我們最好回顧一下詞彙。

from this programme, because we might

從這個方案中，因為我們可能

be hearing these words a lot more in the future.

今後將更多地聽到這些話。

Let's start with a wildfire, which is an

讓我們從野火開始，它是一種

out-of-control fire that  is burning the countryside.

失控的大火正在燒燬鄉村。

A wake-up call is an event which should make people realise that action needs to

喚醒是一個事件，它應該使人們意識到需要採取行動。

be taken to change a situation.

為改變現狀而採取的措施。

A heatwave is a period of days or weeks when

熱浪是指在幾天或幾周內有以下情況的時期

the weather is much hotter than usual.

天氣比平時熱得多。

A jump is a sudden increase.

跳躍是一種突然的增長。

Whereas gradual means happening slowly over a long time.

而漸進意味著在很長一段時間內慢慢發生。

And finally if something shakes your confidence

最後，如果有什麼事情動搖了你的信心

it makes you doubt something that you

它讓你懷疑你的東西

thought was true.

認為是真的。

That's it for our look at one  of the hottest years on record.

我們對有記錄以來最熱的年份之一的觀察就到此為止。

Bye for now.

暫時再見。

Bye!

再見！

Hello. This is 6 Minute English  from BBC Learning English. I’m Neil.

你好。這裡是BBC學習英語的6分鐘英語。我是Neil。

And I’m Sam.

而我是山姆。

These days, our lives are filled with

這些天來，我們的生活中充滿了

devices that were unimaginable  only a few years ago

幾年前還無法想象的設備

– the sorts of things you read  about in science-fiction novels,

- 你在科幻小說中讀到的那種東西。

but never thought you’d own.

但從未想過你會擁有。

Yes, like those robots that vacuum  your floor or voice-activated lights

是的，就像那些為你的地板吸塵的機器人或聲控燈一樣。

– we call many of these things ‘smart tech’.

- 我們把這些東西中的許多稱為 "智能技術"。

But while they can help with  the little tasks at home,

但是，雖然他們可以幫助完成家裡的小任務。

some people are wondering whether  they can help fight climate change.

一些人在想，他們是否能幫助對抗氣候變化。

Yes, smart homes, regulating things like the  temperature, are a step in the right direction.

是的，智能家居，調節溫度等事物，是朝著正確方向邁出的一步。

Using AI to learn when the house is occupied  and the optimal time to fire up the heating,

使用人工智能來了解房屋何時被佔用以及啟動暖氣的最佳時間。

is one way to limit wasteful use of resources.

是限制浪費資源的一種方式。

The problem comes from the origin of the  energy which powers these home systems.

問題來自於為這些家庭系統提供動力的能源的來源。

If it’s fossil fuels, then  digging them up – an informal way

如果是化石燃料，那麼挖掘它們--一種非正式的方式

of saying removing something from the earth

的說從地球上移走的東西

- and burning them creates carbon emissions.

- 而燃燒它們會產生碳排放。

I suppose that’s why many people are trying  to find more renewable forms of energy

我想這就是為什麼許多人正在努力尋找更多的可再生能源形式。

to reduce their carbon footprint.

以減少他們的碳足跡。

Well, it’s interesting that  you mentioned carbon footprint,  

嗯，你提到碳足跡很有意思。

because my question is about that today.

因為我的問題是關於今天的問題。

How many tonnes of carbon dioxide  are humans responsible for emitting  

人類要對排放多少噸二氧化碳負責？

into the atmosphere every year?

每年進入大氣層的數量？

Is it more than: a) 30 billion; b) 40 billion; or c) 50 billion?

是否超過了：a）300億；b）400億；或c）500億？

Well, Neil, that all sounds like a lot to me,

好吧，尼爾，這一切對我來說聽起來很重要。

but I’ll go straight down the middle and say

但我要直接從中間走，說

b) 40 billion tonnes.

b) 400億噸。

OK, Sam, we’ll find out the correct  answer at the end of the programme.

好的，山姆，我們將在節目結束時找出正確答案。

So, you mentioned earlier that people are  looking into ways to use more renewable energy,

所以，你剛才提到，人們正在研究如何使用更多的可再生能源。

but there are also some problems  with that form of energy production.

但這種形式的能源生產也有一些問題。

Yes – for example, many of these technologies  rely on certain weather conditions,

是的--例如，許多這些技術都依賴於某些天氣條件。

which affect the levels of energy production.

這影響了能量生產的水準。

Dr Enass Abo-Hamed, CEO of H2go,  is working on a project on Orkney,

H2go的首席執行官Enass Abo-Hamed博士正在奧克尼島上進行一個項目。

an island off the coast of Scotland, testing  ways of storing renewable forms of energy.

蘇格蘭海岸外的一個島嶼，測試儲存可再生形式的能源的方法。

Here she is on the BBC World Service programme  Crowd Science, speaking with Graihagh Jackson,

在這裡，她在BBC世界服務節目Crowd Science中與Graihagh Jackson對話。

talking about the limitations  of renewable energy sources.

談及可再生能源的侷限性。

Renewable energy is intermittent by its nature  because it’s dependant and relying on the weather.

可再生能源就其性質而言是間歇性的，因為它依賴和依靠天氣。

When the Sun shines and when the wind blows,  

當太陽照耀，當風吹拂。

and these by nature are not  24-hour 7 reliable constant.

而這些在本質上不是24小時的可靠常數。

And that means that demand doesn’t always  meet supply of renewables – it can mean

而這意味著需求並不總是滿足可再生能源的供應--這可能意味著

that we get blackouts, but  on the other hand, it means

我們得到了停電，但在另一方面，這意味著

that when the Sun is up and we  are producing all that power or  

當太陽昇起時，我們正在生產所有的電力或

when the wind is blowing and were producing power,

當風在吹，並且在發電的時候。

we might not be able to use that energy -  there’s no demand for it - and so it’s wasted.

我們可能無法使用這些能源--對它沒有需求--所以它被浪費了。

So, Dr Enass Abo-Hamed said the  renewable energy is intermittent,

是以，Enass Abo-Hamed博士說，可再生能源是間歇性的。

which means that something is not  continuous or has many breaks.

這意味著某些東西是不連續的或有許多斷裂。

She also said that because there isn’t  always a steady stream of energy,

她還說，因為並不總是有源源不斷的能量。

we can get blackouts – periods  of time without energy.

我們可能會出現停電--一段時間內沒有能源。

People like Dr Enass Abo-Hamed are trying to find  solutions to make renewable energy storage devices

像Enass Abo-Hamed博士這樣的人正在努力尋找解決方案，以使可再生能源存儲裝置

– which would make the supply  of energy more constant.

- 這將使能量的供應更加穩定。

Smart tech can also help with this  problem with renewable sources.

智能技術也可以通過可再生資源幫助解決這個問題。

Now, of course, not only can  computers be used to design

當然，現在不僅可以用計算機來設計

efficient models, but smart tech can also be

高效模型，但智能技術也可以是

used to improve performance

用來提高性能

after things like wind  turbines have been installed.

在像風力渦輪機這樣的東西被安裝之後。

Here is Graihagh Jackson, science  broadcaster and podcaster,

以下是科學廣播員和播客員Graihagh Jackson。

speaking about how smart  tech can improve efficiency

談到智能技術如何提高效率

on BBC World Service programme, Crowd Science:

在BBC世界服務節目《人群科學》中。

Some engineers use something called a digital  twin. This is really interesting, actually.

一些工程師使用一種叫做數字孿生的東西。這真的很有趣，實際上。

This is where lots of sensors  are attached to the wind turbine,

這是很多傳感器連接到風輪機上的地方。

so it can be modelled on a  computer in real time. And then,

所以它可以在計算機上實時建模。然後。

using machine learning, you can  then simulate what’s happening

使用機器學習，你就可以模擬正在發生的事情。

to the wind turbine in specific  weather conditions. And

在特定的天氣條件下，對風力渦輪機的影響。而且

this is important because it means they can  make sure they’re performing their best.

這一點很重要，因為這意味著他們可以確保自己的表現是最好的。

Graihagh Jackson used the  expression 'in real time', which means

Graihagh Jackson使用了 "實時 "這一表述，這意味著

without delay or live.

毫不遲疑，不留餘地。

And she also mentioned machine learning,

而且她還提到了機器學習。

which is the way computers change their  behaviour based on data they collected.

這就是計算機根據其收集的數據改變其行為的方式。

And she also said 'simulate' – produce  a computer model of something.

她還說了'模擬'--製作某物的計算機模型。

So, while there are issues with the  reliability of the source of renewable energy,

是以，雖然可再生能源來源的可靠性存在問題。

it’s clear that people are working  on solutions such as energy storage

很明顯，人們正在研究能源儲存等解決方案。

to make sure there is always a supply.

以確保始終有供應。

And that computers can be  used to design and operate

而且，計算機可以用來設計和操作

technology as efficiently as possible.

儘可能有效地利用技術。

Much in the same way that  AI can be used in your home

與人工智能可以在你的家中使用的方式一樣

to make it run as efficiently as possible.

以使其儘可能有效地運行。

Yes – all in the hope of  reducing your carbon footprint.

是的--都是希望減少你的碳足跡。

Which reminds me of your quiz question, Neil.

這讓我想起了你的測驗問題，尼爾。

Yes, in my quiz question, I asked Sam how many  tonnes of carbon dioxide humans produce each year!

是的，在我的問答問題中，我問薩姆，人類每年產生多少噸的二氧化碳!

And I went for b) 40 billion tonnes.

而我選擇了b）400億噸。

Which is… the correct answer! Well done, Sam!

這就是......正確的答案!幹得好，薩姆!

Wow – I guessed right – but  all three of those numbers

哇 - 我猜對了 - 但這三個數字都是

sound really really high!

聽起來真的很高大上!

Let’s recap the vocabulary from  today’s programme about smart tech

讓我們回顧一下今天節目中關於智能科技的詞彙

and climate change, starting with 'dig something up'

和氣候變化，從'挖東西'開始

– an informal expression which means  to remove something from the ground.

- 一個非正式的說法，意思是把東西從地上移走。

'Intermittent' is used to describe something  that is not continuous or steady.

間歇性 "是用來描述不連續或不穩定的東西。

'Blackouts' are periods of time without  energy, for example, electricity.

停電 "是指在一段時間內沒有能源，例如電力。

'In real time' means 'without delay' or 'live'.

實時 "意味著 "沒有延遲 "或 "現場"。

'Machine learning' is the process  by which computers learn

機器學習 "是計算機學習的過程。

and change behaviour based on data.

並根據數據改變行為。

And finally, 'simulate' means  produce a computer model.

最後，"模擬 "意味著產生一個計算機模型。

And that’s all for this programme. Bye for now!

本節目就到此為止。暫時再見

Goodbye!

再見!

Hello. This is 6 Minute English  from BBC Learning English. I’m Neil.

你好。這裡是BBC學習英語的6分鐘英語。我是Neil。

And I’m Georgina.

而我是喬治娜。

With no end in sight to the coronavirus pandemic,

由於冠狀病毒大流行沒有結束的跡象。

many people can’t wait for the year 2020 to end.

許多人迫不及待地想在2020年結束。

But with coronavirus dominating  the newspaper headlines,

但是隨著冠狀病毒佔據了報紙的頭條。

attention has moved away from  an equally serious global issue

人們的注意力已經從一個同樣嚴重的全球問題上轉移開了

which has quietly been getting worse – climate change.

這一點已經悄悄地變得更糟--氣候變化。

August 2020 saw the hottest temperature  recorded anywhere in modern times

2020年8月出現了近代以來任何地方記錄的最熱的溫度

- 54.4 degree Celsius in  California’s Death Valley.

- 加州死亡谷的54.4攝氏度。

The same month also saw  record amounts of ice melting

同月還出現了創紀錄的冰雪融化量

into the oceans around Greenland and the Arctic

進入格陵蘭島和北極周圍的海洋

- huge icebergs breaking away from the

- 巨大的冰山脫離了

edge of the ice sheet – a thick layer of ice

冰原邊緣 - 一層厚厚的冰層

which has covered a large area for a long time.

這在很長一段時間內覆蓋了大片地區。

Greenland’s ice sheet is  three times the size of Texas

格陵蘭島的冰層是德克薩斯州的三倍大小

and almost 2 kilometres thick.

並有近2公里的厚度。

Locked inside is enough water  to raise sea levels by 6 metres.

鎖定在裡面的水足以使海平面上升6米。

But global heating and melting  polar ice has many scientists