返回首页

SeanDavis_2017X-_我们能解决全球变暖吗？从臭氧层保护中学到的经验_
So, I'm a climate scientist, and if this room is representative of the country we live in, that means about 60 percent of you, so maybe from about there over, don't strongly trust me for information on the causes of climate change. 我是一位气候科学家, 如果这个房间代表我们所处的国家, 那么大约你们中的60%, 差不多从那里一直到我的右边, 不相信我在气候变化上的观点。
representative:n.代表; adj.典型的;
Now, I promise to tell the truth tonight, but just to humor that demographic , 我保证今晚说的都是真话, 但是为了那些不相信我的人,
humor:n.幽默;心情;情绪;脾气;v.迎合;迁就; demographic:adj.人口统计学的;人口学的;
I've started this talk with a falsehood . 我会从一句假话谈起。
falsehood:n.说谎;假话;不真实;错误的信仰;
[The Paris Climate Accord is a product of the recognition that climate change is a global problem ...] [巴黎气候协定是对 气候变化的全球共识的产物]
Accord:n.协议;协定;一致;和谐;v.一致;给予;相符;协调; recognition:n.识别;认识;承认;认可; global:adj.全球的;总体的;球形的;
This statement was not made by President Obama. 是里根总统说的。
statement:n.声明;陈述,叙述;报表,清单;
It was made by President Reagan, and it wasn't about climate change and the Paris Climate Accord. 而且,它不是关于气候变化 和巴黎气候协定的,
It was actually about the Montreal Protocol and stratospheric ozone depletion . 它其实是关于蒙提利尔协定 和平流层臭氧损耗的。
Montreal:n.蒙特利尔(加拿大东南部港市); Protocol:n.协议;草案;礼仪;vt.拟定;vi.拟定; stratospheric:adj.平流层的;同温层的; ozone:n.[化学]臭氧;新鲜的空气; depletion:n.消耗;损耗;放血;
Now, I'm sure that many of you aren't familiar with this environmental problem, but you should be, because it's a rare environmental success story . 我很确定你们当中很多人 不太熟悉臭氧层问题, 但你们应该熟悉, 因为这是一个很罕见的 成功的环保案例。
familiar:adj.熟悉的;常见的;亲近的;n.常客;密友; success story:n.获得巨大成功的人(或事物);
And it's worth revisiting , because sometimes, we need to examine the world we've avoided in order to find guidance for the choices we make today. 这值得我们从中学习, 因为有时,我们需要从 所避免的环境灾难中学习, 才能更好地做出当下的选择。
revisiting:v.再访;重游;重提;再次讨论;(revisit的现在分词)
So let's go back to the 1970s, when some questionable choices were made: first of all -- hoo -- hairstyles . (Laughs) 让我们回到1970年代。 在那个时代,人们 做出了一些不当的选择: 首先是发胶。 （笑声）
questionable:adj.可疑的;有问题的; first of all:adv.首先; hairstyles:n.发型;发式;(hairstyle的复数)
Second of all, objectively terrible quantities of hairspray , and third, CFCs, chlorofluorocarbons , man-made chemicals that were used as propellant in aerosol spray cans. 其次,客观地说, 质量糟糕的喷发定型剂。 第三,CFC,也就是氯氟烃。 CFC是人造的化学品, 被用作喷雾剂中的压缩气体。
objectively:adv.客观地; quantities:n.数量;数目;大量;大宗;(quantity的复数) hairspray:n.头发定型剂; chlorofluorocarbons:n.[有化]含氯氟烃;氯氟化碳(chlorofluorocarbon的复数); man-made:adj.人造的;人工的;合成的; chemicals:n.化学制品;化学品;(chemical的复数) propellant:n.推进物;推进燃料;发射火药;adj.推进的; aerosol:n.[物化]气溶胶;气雾剂;喷雾器;浮质;adj.喷雾的;喷雾器的;
And see, it turns out these CFCs were a problem because they were destroying the ozone layer . 后来,人们发现CFC引发了一个问题, 因为它会破坏臭氧层。
ozone layer:n.臭氧层;
Now I'm sure most of you have heard of the ozone layer, but why does it matter? 我很确定大多数人都听说过臭氧层, 为什么我们要在意臭氧层呢？
Well, quite simply, the ozone layer is earth's sunscreen , and it's really fragile . 简单来说,臭氧层是地球的防晒霜, 而且它十分脆弱。
sunscreen:n.(防晒油中的)遮光剂; fragile:adj.脆的;易碎的;
If you could take all of the ozone, which is mostly about 10 to 20 miles up above our heads, and compress it down to the surface of the earth, it would form a thin shell only about two pennies thick, about an eighth of an inch. 臭氧大多都处于 地面以上20至25公里处, 若你取得地球上所有臭氧, 然后把它们压缩在地球表面, 它会形成大概有两个分币厚的薄层, 大概3毫米厚。
compress:vi.受压缩小;vt.压缩,压紧;精简; shell:n.壳;炮弹;壳层;骨架;v.脱壳;剥壳;采集贝壳;用壳体包被;short.shewill;
And that thin shell does an amazing amount of work, though. 而这薄薄一层臭氧其实十分重要。
It filters out more than 90 percent of the harmful UV radiation coming from the sun. 它能抵御超过90%源自太阳的 有害紫外线辐射。
filters:n.过滤器; v.过滤; (filter的第三人称单数和复数) radiation:n.辐射;放射线;放射疗法;
And while I'm sure many of you enjoy that suntan that you get from the remaining 10 percent, it causes a lot of problems: cataracts , damage to crops, damage to immune systems and also skin cancer . 虽然我知道很多人都喜欢晒太阳, 但即使是剩下10%的 紫外线辐射也能造成很多麻烦: 如白内障, 损害农作物, 损伤免疫系统, 以及皮肤癌。
suntan:n.晒黑;土黄色军服;棕色; cataracts:n.[眼科]白内障;[水文]大瀑布,洪水(cataract的复数形式); immune:adj.免疫的;免于…的,免除的;n.免疫者;免除者; cancer:n.癌症;恶性肿瘤;
It's not an exaggeration to say that a threat to the ozone layer is a threat to human safety. 对臭氧层的威胁 就是对人类安全的威胁, 并不是夸大其词。
exaggeration:n.夸张;夸大之词;夸张的手法;
And actually, ironically , it was human safety that motivated the invention of CFCs in the first place . 讽刺的是,正是处于对人类安全的担忧, 促成了氟利昂的发明。
ironically:adv.讽刺地;说反话地; motivated:adj.有动机的; v.使产生动机; in the first place:首先;起初;
You see, in the early days of refrigeration , refrigerators used toxic and flammable chemicals like propane and ammonia . 在电冰箱刚刚投入使用时, 会使用有毒,易燃的化学品, 如丙烷和氨。
early days:初期;为时尚早;前期; refrigeration:n.制冷;冷藏;[热]冷却; toxic:adj.有毒的;中毒的; flammable:adj.易燃的;可燃的;可燃性的;n.易燃物; propane:n.[有化]丙烷; ammonia:n.[无化]氨,阿摩尼亚;
For good reason, the refrigeration industry wanted a safe alternative , and they found that in 1928, when a scientist named Thomas Midgley synthesized the first commercially viable CFCs. 所以制冷工业想要一个 更安全的替代物, 他们在1928年找到了它。 一位叫做Thomas Midgley的科学家 率先合成了商业上可用的CFC。
alternative:adj.供选择的;选择性的;交替的;n.二中择一;供替代的选择; synthesized:adj.合成的;综合的;v.合成(synthesize的过去分词);综合; commercially:adv.商业上;通商上; viable:adj.可行的;能养活的;能生育的;
And in fact, Midgley famously inhaled CFCs and blew out a candle to demonstrate , at a scientific conference , that they were safe and nonflammable . 事实上,Midgley在一场学术论坛上 亲自吸入了CFC并用其吹灭了一支蜡烛, 来证明CFC十分安全并不易燃。
famously:adv.著名地;极好地; inhaled:v.吸入;吸气;(inhale的过去分词和过去式) demonstrate:vt.证明;展示;论证;vi.示威; scientific:adj.科学的,系统的; conference:n.会议;研讨会;商讨会;体育协会(或联合会) nonflammable:adj.不燃烧的;不易燃烧的;
And in fact, as a scientist, I can tell you there is no way you could get away with that kind of antic today. 其实,作为一名科学家,我可以告诉你, 现在你可没办法像他这样演示。
get away with:侥幸成功,侥幸逃脱; antic:adj.古怪的;滑稽可笑的;n.滑稽动作;丑角;vi.扮小旦;做滑稽动作;
I mean, wow. 真的,这让人感觉不可思议。
But really, at the time, 而在那时,
CFCs were a really remarkable invention. CFC是一项十分卓越的发明。
remarkable:adj.卓越的;非凡的;值得注意的;
They allowed what we now know as modern-day refrigeration and air-conditioning and other things. 它促成了当代的制冷技术, 还有空调等等。
modern-day:adj.当代的;今日的; air-conditioning:n.空调系统;空气调节;
So it wasn't actually until over 40 years later, in the 1970s, when scientists realized that CFCs would break down high in the atmosphere and damage the ozone layer. 直到四十年之后的1970年代, 科学家们才意识到CFC 会在大气层的高处降解, 破坏臭氧层。
atmosphere:n.大气;气氛;气压;风格;
And this finding really set off a lot of public concern . 这个发现引发了公众的担忧。
concern:v.涉及,关系到;使担心;n.关系;关心;关心的事;
It led, ultimately , to the banning of CFC usage in aerosol spray cans in the US and a few other countries in 1978. 最后在1978年, 美国和一些其他国家禁止 在喷雾剂中使用CFC。
ultimately:adv.最终;最后;归根结底;终究; banning:n.禁止;禁令;v.禁止;取缔;限制(ban的ing形式);adj.禁止的; usage:n.使用;利用;利用率;惯用法;
Now, the story doesn't end there, because CFCs were used in much more than just spray cans. 而故事可没在那时结束, 因为CFC不止被用在喷雾剂中。
In 1985, scientists discovered the Antarctic ozone hole , and this was a truly alarming discovery. 在1985年,科学家发现了 南极上空的臭氧层空洞, 这是一项十分让人警醒的发现。
Antarctic:adj.南极(地方)的;n.南极地区;网络释义:南极的;南极区;南极地带的; ozone hole:n.臭氧洞;
Scientists did not expect this at all. 科学家们完全没有预料到。
Before the Antarctic ozone hole, scientists expected maybe a five or 10 percent reduction in ozone over a century. 在此前, 科学家们预期一个世纪中 大概会有5%至10%的 臭氧衰减。
reduction:n.减少;缩小;降低;减价;折扣;缩图;
But what they found over the course of less than a decade was that more than a third of the ozone had simply vanished , over an area larger than the size of the US. 但他们发现,在不到十年中, 在面积超过美国的地区上方, 超过三分之一的臭氧消失了。
vanished:v.消失了;突然消失;消亡;绝迹;(vanish的过去分词和过去式)
And although we now know that CFCs are the root cause of this ozone hole, at the time, the science was far from settled . 虽然我们现在知道CFC 是臭氧层空洞的祸根, 当时,学术上还远远没有定论。
settled:adj.稳定的; v.结束; (settle的过去分词和过去式)
Yet despite this uncertainty , the crisis helped spur nations to act. 而尽管有这样的不确定性, 那场危机却得以 促使各个国家采取行动。
despite:prep.尽管,不管;n.轻视;憎恨;侮辱; uncertainty:n.不确定,不可靠; crisis:n.危机;危险期;决定性时刻;adj.危机的;用于处理危机的; spur:v.刺激;激励;促进;鞭策;n.刺激;激励;鞭策;靴刺;
So that quote that I started this talk with, about the Montreal Protocol, from President Reagan -- that was his signing statement when he signed the Montreal Protocol after its unanimous ratification by the US Senate . 回到我开始时引用里根总统 关于蒙特利尔协定的那句话—— 那是美国参议院一致通过之后, 里根总统签订协议时候的声明。
quote:v.引用;报价;举例说明;开价;为(企业的股份)上市;n.引用; unanimous:adj.全体一致的;意见一致的;无异议的; ratification:n.批准;承认,认可; Senate:n.参议院,上院;(古罗马的)元老院;
And this is something that's truly worth celebrating. 这是一件真正值得庆祝的事。
In fact, yesterday was the 30th anniversary of the Montreal Protocol. 其实,昨天就是蒙特利尔协定 签订的三十周年。
(Applause) （掌声)
Because of the protocol, ozone-depleting substances are now declining in our atmosphere, and we're starting to see the first signs of healing in the ozone layer. 因为这项协定, 大气层中侵害臭氧的物质正在减少, 而我们也已经看到了 臭氧层恢复的初步征兆。
ozone-depleting:臭氧消耗物质; substances:n.[物]物质;基本内容;物品药物(substance的复数); declining:v.减少;下降;衰弱;谢绝;婉言拒绝;(decline的现在分词) healing:n.康复; adj.痊愈中的; v.(使)康复,复原; (heal的现在分词)
And furthermore , because many of those ozone-depleting substances are also very potent greenhouse gases, the Montreal Protocol has actually delayed global warming by more than a decade. 而且,因为很多侵害臭氧的物质 同时也是强力的温室气体, 蒙特利尔协定将全球变暖的发生 推迟了十年。
furthermore:adv.此外;而且; potent:adj.有效的;强有力的,有权势的;有说服力的; greenhouse:n.温室;暖房; global warming:n.全球(气候)变暖;地球大气层变暖;
That's just wonderful. 那太棒了。
But I think it's worth asking the question, as we face our current environmental crisis, global warming, what lessons can we learn from Montreal? 但我觉得我们应该思索这个问题, 特别是当我们面对当下 全球变暖的环境问题时, 我们可以从蒙特利尔协定中学到什么？
Are there any? I think there are. 有值得借鉴之处吗？我觉得有。
First, we don't need absolute certainty to act. 首先,我们并不需要 百分之百确定才采取行动。
When Montreal was signed, we were less certain then of the risks from CFCs than we are now of the risks from greenhouse gas emissions . 当蒙特利尔协定签订时, 我们对于CFC的危害远不如 我们现在对温室气体的危害来的确定。
greenhouse gas:n.温室气体(尤指二氧化碳); emissions:n.(光、热、气等的)发出,排放;排放物;散发物;(emission的复数)
A common tactic that people who oppose climate action use is to completely ignore risk and focus only on uncertainty. 有些反对针对气候变化 采取行动的人常用的说辞 就是无视风险而单单强调不确定性。
tactic:n.策略,战略;adj.按顺序的,依次排列的; oppose:v.反对(计划、政策等);抵制;阻挠;(在竞赛中)与…对垒; ignore:v.驳回诉讼;忽视;不理睬;
But so what about uncertainty? 不确定又如何呢？
We make decisions in the face of uncertainty all the time, literally all the time. 我们每时每刻都在面对不确定性。 真的,每时每刻。
in the face of:面对; literally:adv.按字面:字面上:确实地:
You know, I'll bet those of you who drove here tonight, you probably wore your seat belt . 我想你们很多人都是开车来这里的, 你们大概系了安全带。
bet:n.打赌;赌注;预计;估计;v.下赌注(于);用…打赌;敢说;八成儿; seat belt:n.(汽车或飞机上的)安全带;
And so ask yourself, did you wear your seat belt because someone told you with a hundred percent [certainty] 请想一下, 你系安全带是因为有人告诉你, 你有百分之百的可能
that you would get in a car crash on the way here? 会在来这儿的路上出车祸吗？
car crash:n.车祸;
Probably not. 大概不是。
So that's the first lesson. 所以这就是我们学到的第一件事。
Risk management and decision making always have uncertainty. 风险管理和决策制定永远都 伴随着不确定性。
management:n.管理;管理人员;管理部门;操纵;经营手段;
Ignoring risk and focusing only on uncertainty is a distraction . 忽视风险而专注于不确定性 只会分散我们的注意力。
Ignoring:v.忽略,忽视;(ignore的现在分词); distraction:n.注意力分散;消遣;心烦意乱;
In other words, inaction is an action. 换句话说,不做选择也是一种选择。
inaction:n.不活动;迟钝;
Second, it takes a village to raise a healthy environment. 第二,创造健康的环境 需要来自多方的努力。
The Montreal Protocol wasn't just put together by industry and governments or environmental advocacy groups and scientists. 蒙特利尔协定不仅仅 是由行业机构和政府 或是环保活动家和科学家单独制定的,
put together:..放在一起;组合;装配; advocacy:n.主张;拥护;辩护;
It was put together by all of them. 而是由他们所有人一起制定的。
They all had a seat at the table, and they all played an important role in the solution . 他们都有所参与, 都在解决臭氧层问题中发挥了重要作用。
solution:n.解决方案;溶液;溶解;解答;
And I think in this regard, we're actually seeing some encouraging signs today. 我想在这个方面, 我们在今天也做得很好。
We see not just environmental groups concerned about climate change but also civic and religious groups, the military and businesses. 我们不仅看到环保组织 致力于对抗气候变化, 还有公民运动和宗教组织, 军事组织和商业组织。
concerned:adj.有关的;关心的;v.关心;与…有关;(concern的过去时和过去分词) civic:adj.市的;公民的,市民的; religious:adj.宗教的;虔诚的;严谨的;修道的;n.修道士;尼姑; military:adj.军事的;军人的;适于战争的;n.军队;军人;
So wherever you find yourself on that spectrum , we need you at the table, because if we're going to solve global warming, it's going to take actions at all levels, from the individual to the international and everything in between. 所以不管你是谁, 我们需要你的参与, 因为解决全球变暖 需要各个层面的行动, 从个人到国际, 还有两者之间的每个层面。
spectrum:n.光谱;频谱;范围;余象; individual:n.个人;有个性的人;adj.单独的;个别的;
Third lesson: don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. 第三点: 不要拘泥于完美而止步不前。
While Montreal has become the brake pedal for stopping ozone depletion, at its beginning, it was more just like a tap on the brakes. 虽然蒙特利尔协定最终 成为了臭氧损耗的休止符, 在最开始,它的效果并不明显。
pedal:v.踩踏板;骑车;n.踏板;脚蹬子;adj.脚的;脚踏的;
It was actually the later amendments to the protocol that really marked the decision to hit the brakes on ozone depletion. 其实是之后对协定的修正 真正阻止了臭氧损耗。
amendments:n.修正(amendment的复数);修正案;
So to those who despair that the Paris Climate Accord didn't go far enough or that your limited actions on their own won't solve global warming, 所以对那些悲观主义者, 他们觉得巴黎气候协定做的远远不够, 或是一个人的努力解决不了全球变暖,
despair:v.绝望;失去希望;丧失信心;n.绝望; limited:adj.有限的; n.高级快车; v.限制; (limit的过去分词和过去式)
I say don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. 我会说,不要拘泥于完美而止步不前。
And finally , I think it helps us to contemplate the world we've avoided. 最后,我想这有助于 我反思所避免的危害。
finally:adv.终于;最终;(用于列举)最后;彻底地; contemplate:v.沉思;注视;思忖;预期;
Indeed, the world we have avoided by enacting the Montreal Protocol is one of catastrophic changes to our environment and to human well-being . 的确,我们通过蒙特利尔协定避免的 是对环境和人类的 灾难性的变化。
enacting:v.通过(法律);扮演;担任…角色;演出;发生;(enact的现在分词) catastrophic:adj.灾难的;悲惨的;灾难性的,毁灭性的; well-being:n.幸福;康乐;
By the 2030s, we'll be avoiding millions of new skin cancer cases per year with a number that would only grow. 到2030年,我们会避免每年 数以百万计的皮肤癌病例 这个数字只会增长。
If I'm lucky, I'll live long enough to see the end of this animation and to see the ozone hole restored to its natural state. 如果我够幸运,就能够 见证这场变化的结尾, 看到臭氧层恢复到它原初的状态。
animation:n.活泼,生气;激励;卡通片绘制; restored:adj.精力充沛的;精力恢复的;v.修复;恢复健康;(restore的过去分词和过去式)
So as we write the story for earth's climate future for this century and beyond, we need to ask ourselves, what will our actions be so that someone can stand on this stage in 30 or 50 or a hundred years to celebrate the world that they've avoided. 所以,当我们在这个世纪以及未来 书写地球气候的历史时。 我们要问自己,我们要做什么 才能让30,50,或者100年后, 有人能够站在这个舞台上, 庆祝他们避免的种种灾害。
Thank you. 谢谢。
(Applause) （掌声）