美語情景對話 第1027期:Climate Change 氣候變化

Paul: So have you seen all these freakish weather events on the news all around the world?

保羅：你看到全世界都出現反常天氣的報道了嗎？

Amy: Yeah, yeah. I'm trying to pay attention, yeah. It's been pretty bad in some places. I think, it's been the wettest January on record in the UK at the moment.

艾米：看到了。我一直在關注這個問題。有些地方的情況非常糟糕。現在是英國有史以來最潮溼的一月份。

Paul: Right, right, right. So do you think it's kind of indicative of climate change? Are you a climate change believer or a climate change denier?

保羅：對，沒錯。你認爲這是不是表明出現了氣候變化？你是氣候變化相信者還是氣候變化否認者？

Amy: I think it's hard to deny really. I think what humans do to the planet is going to have some effect and science is science, you know. It's backed up by evidence and facts and scientists don't tend to say things until they know it's true or as true as it can be. So yeah, I'm definitely a believer in climate change, I think. We are affecting things on the planet. How about you?

艾米：我認爲很難去否認。人類對這個星球所做的事情一定會產生影響，科學就是科學。這是由證據和事實支持的理論，科學家在弄清楚事實以後纔會公開說明。我當然相信氣候變化。我們正在影響這個星球。你呢？

Paul: I've read quite a lot about it. And yes, there is a science to support it but there's also a lot of science to — not to deny it but there's definitely a lot of questions that aren't answered yet. It's a very sort of complex issue. I mean, these global systems of weather and you've got all these like organic processes going on that we just don't really understand. And then trying to explain all these complex events by saying it's climate change, it's...I mean, what worries me is that by denying it, it seems to also be a sort of justification for us to continue living the way we are, which worries me a lot. Whether it's true or not, I think we need to be thinking about how we can live better. And that means, living in ways that are less, sort of, damaging on our environment.

保羅：我看過很多相關文章。有科學支持這種說法，但是也有很多科學依據……雖然沒有否認氣候變化，但是現在仍有很多問題沒有答案。這是一個非常複雜的問題。我們並不太瞭解地球的天氣系統，還有這些有機過程。不能僅僅用氣候變化來解釋如此複雜的事件，令我擔心的是，如果否認氣候變化，這就好像成爲了我們繼續這種生活方式的正當理由，這令我非常擔心。無論氣候變化是真還是假，我認爲我們都要認真思考怎樣才能過更好的生活。也就是說，用對環境損害較小的方式去生活。

Amy: Yeah, I agree. I agree. I've also read a bit about weather systems that are perhaps not—because of climate of change, every planet has weather systems that come and go. And I understand that part but I also fully agree that we have to stop being so destructive. I think it's pretty clear. You can't continue cutting down acres and acres and acres of really valuable resources like the rainforest. I mean, we need that to breathe, so it just doesn't make sense. Yeah, I think we definitely have to stop being so destructive.

艾米：對，我同意。我同意你的觀點。我也看過一些有關天氣系統的文章，作者認爲可能這並不是氣候變化，因爲每個星球都有變化無常的天氣系統。我理解這點，但是我完全同意我們必須要停止這種極具破壞性的行爲。我認爲這很明顯。不能再繼續大面積砍伐熱帶雨林等寶貴的資源了。我們需要樹木改善我們的呼吸，所以砍伐森林這種行爲沒有道理。我認爲我們必須停止這種破壞性行爲。

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重點講解：
1. on record 有記錄的；有記載的；
例句：It was the coldest winter on record.
那是有史以來最冷的冬天。
2. back up 支持，證實（某種說法）；
例句：Radio signals received from the galaxy's centre back up the black hole theory.
從該星系中心收到的無線電信號證實了黑洞理論。
3. cut down 砍倒(樹木)；
例句：A vandal with a chainsaw cut down a tree.
一個故意破壞公物的人用鏈鋸伐倒了一棵樹。
4. make sense (行爲方式)有道理，合乎情理；
例句：It doesn't make sense to argue with him.
和他爭論沒有任何意義。