常春藤解析英語 10 When the Solar Winds Blow　眩爛

by Ilse Van Wyck

We usually associate blowing winds with bad weather, but on a cosmic level, solar winds are the creators of some of the most spectacular sights nature has to offer.

Solar winds are streams of charged particles that _(1)_ from the upper atmosphere of a star. When these particles bounce into the Earth's atmosphere, they transfer their energy to the atoms around them. _(2)_, these atmospheric atoms release their energy. This spectacle can be seen near the North or South Poles in the form of _(3)_ light displays that will put any man-made lights to shame.

When this phenomenon occurs in the Northern hemisphere, it is called aurora borealis or more _(4)_, the Northern Lights. The name comes from Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn and Boreas, the Greek name for the north wind. In the mythologies of different cultures, auroras are _(5)_ the anger of the gods or ancestors playing games. In Latvian folklore, auroras were believed to be the spirits of dead warriors who come to warn people _(6)_ impending natural disasters.

Auroras are usually only seen in the polar regions, but the most significant aurora _(7)_ in recorded history in 1859 could be seen as far south as Japan and the USA. The New York Times apparently reported, "Ordinary print could be read by the light (of the aurora)."

If you feel lucky, a visit to the North Pole during March, April, September, or October might just reward you with nature's magnificent light show.

1. (A) recover　(B) escape　(C) withdraw　(D) originate

2. (A) Since then　(B) Soon afterwards　(C) Short after　(D) Enough soon

3. (A) breathtaking　(B) breath-taken　(C) breath-taker　(D) breathtakingly

4. (A) perfectly (B) frankly (C) commonly (D) regularly

5. (A) linked to　(B) familiar to　(C) designed to　(D) likely to

6. (A) over　(B) of　(C) for　(D) with

7. (A) observing　(B) was observed　(C) observed　(D) for observing

原來如此

1. Solar winds are streams of charged particles that originate from the upper atmosphere of a star.

理由：

a.(A) recover vi. 恢復(fù)

recover from...　　從……(疾病)中恢復(fù)

(B) escape vi. 逃跑

escape from...　　從……逃跑

(C) withdraw vi. 撤退;不參加

withdraw from...　從……撤退;不參加……(活動(dòng)、比賽等)

例： After the operation, Jack withdrew from his social activities for a while.

(手術(shù)后，杰克有一段時(shí)間沒參加社交活動(dòng)。)

(D) originate vi. 發(fā)源

originate from/in...　　源自于……

例： These drums originate from the northern region of Africa.

(這些鼓源自于非洲北部。)

b. 根據(jù)語意，可知應(yīng)選 (D)。

2. Soon afterwards, these atmospheric atoms release their energy.

理由：

a.(A) since then　　從此之后，自那時(shí)起

注意:

since then 須用來修飾完成式的主要子句。

例： We met in 1985. Since then, we've been the best of friends.

(我們 1985 年認(rèn)識(shí)，從此之后一直是好朋友。)

(B) soon afterwards　　不久之后

= soon after

= shortly after

例： David got a job at the prestigious company. Shortly after, however, his wife left him for a garbage man.

(戴維在那家名聲顯赫的公司找到工作。不久之后，他老婆卻為了一個(gè)垃圾工人離開他。)

(C) short after 的用法錯(cuò)誤，正確應(yīng)為 shortly after。

(D) Enough soon 用法錯(cuò)誤，因 enough 修飾形容詞或副詞時(shí)，采后位修飾，即 enough 恒置于該形容詞或副詞之后，而不可置于其前，故正確用法應(yīng)為 soon enough 。

例： We'll get there soon enough. Don't worry about the time.

(我們很快就到。別擔(dān)心時(shí)間問題。)

b. 根據(jù)上述用法，可知應(yīng)選 (B)。

3. This spectacle can be seen near the North or South Poles in the form of breathtaking light displays...

理由：

a.(A) breathtaking a. 令人嘆為觀止的

例： The breathtaking view is the main reason we live in this apartment building.

(我們住這棟公寓大樓的主因，是因?yàn)檫@里有令人嘆為觀止的景色。)

(B) 無 breath-taken 的用法。

(C) breath-taker a. 令人嘆為觀止的事物

(D) breathtakingly adv. 令人嘆為觀止地

b. 空格后為名詞 light displays，可知空格應(yīng)置入形容詞加以修飾，故選 (A)。

4. ..., it is called aurora borealis or more commonly, the Northern Lights.

理由：

a.(A) perfectly adv. 完美地

注意:

形容詞 perfect 或副詞 perfectly 本身已有最高級的涵義，故無比較級或最高級的用法。

例： On weekends, I'm perfectly happy staying at home with a good book and my iPod.

(周末時(shí)，我最喜歡待在家里看書聽 iPod。)

(B) frankly adv. 坦白地

(C) commonly adv. 通常地

(D) regularly adv. 有規(guī)律地

b. 根據(jù)語意，可知應(yīng)選 (C)。

5. ..., auroras are linked to the anger of the gods or ancestors playing games.

理由：

a.(A) be linked to...　　與……有關(guān)聯(lián)

例： Researchers have found that a diet high in sugar and grains is linked to many major diseases.

(研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，糖分與谷類過多的飲食與許多重大疾病有關(guān)。)

(B) be familiar to...　　是……熟悉的

例： That language is not familiar to me. Do you understand any of it?

= I am not familiar with that language. Do you understand any of it?

(我對這語言不熟。你了解這語言嗎?)

(C) be designed to V　　被設(shè)計(jì)來……

(D) be likely to V　　有可能……

b. 根據(jù)語意、用法，可知應(yīng)選 (A)。

6. ...the spirits of dead warriors who come to warn people of impending natural disasters.

理由：

a. 本空格測試下列固定詞組：

warn sb of/about sth　　警告某人某事

例： I warned him of the dangers of eating raw pork, but he just wouldn't listen.

(我警告過他吃生豬肉的危險(xiǎn)，但他就是不聽。)

b. 根據(jù)上述，可知應(yīng)選 (B) of。

7. ...the most significant aurora observed in recorded history in 1859 could be seen...

理由：

a. 本句省略了關(guān)系代名詞 which，本句實(shí)等于：

...the most significant aurora which was observed in recorded history in 1859 could...

b. 限定修飾的形容詞子句中，若關(guān)系代名詞為主詞時(shí)，該形容詞子句可化簡為分詞詞組，原則如下：

1) 刪除關(guān)系代名詞;

2) 之后的動(dòng)詞改為現(xiàn)在分詞;若動(dòng)詞為 be 動(dòng)詞，變成現(xiàn)在分詞 being 后可省略。

例： The fish (which were) tested were full of toxic chemicals.

(被檢驗(yàn)的魚證實(shí)充滿了有毒化學(xué)物質(zhì)。)

c. 根據(jù)上述用法，可知應(yīng)選 (C) observed。

精解字詞詞組

1. associate A with B　　將 A 與 B 聯(lián)想在一起

例： People often associate Barbie dolls with little girls.

(人們經(jīng)常把芭比娃娃和小女孩聯(lián)想在一起。)

2. on a/an + adj. + level　　從……的角度

例： On a spiritual level, the husband and wife are made for each other.

(從精神層面來看，那對夫妻是天生一對。)

3. bounce into...　　(彈跳著)進(jìn)入……;意外闖進(jìn)……

例： The child watched as her ball bounced into the middle of the street.

(那小女孩看著球彈進(jìn)路中間。)

例： My mother-in-law bounced into our lives when she came for a visit and never left.

(我岳母來訪后就從此沒離開，意外闖進(jìn)我們的生活。)

4. transfer A to B　　將 A 轉(zhuǎn)移到 B

例： Let's transfer all of your money to that bank. I'm sure it's safe.

(我們把你所有的錢轉(zhuǎn)進(jìn)那家銀行吧。我確定它很安全。)

5. in the form of...　　以……的形式

= in the shape of...

例： She received a gift in the form of a winning lottery ticket.

(她收到一張中獎(jiǎng)的樂透作為禮物。)

6. put...to shame　　使……黯然失色∕相形見絀

例： Mindy put all of the other girls to shame with her stunning looks and personality.

(曼蒂的絕佳容貌與好個(gè)性讓其它女生黯然失色。)

7. reward sb with sth　　以某物獎(jiǎng)賞某人

例： Parents shouldn't reward their children with candy. They should use hugs and kisses instead.

(父母不該用糖果來獎(jiǎng)賞孩子，而應(yīng)該用擁抱和親吻。)

單字小鋪

1. solar a. 太陽的

2. cosmic a. 宇宙的

3. spectacular a. 壯觀的

4. charged a. 帶電的

5. particle n. 粒子

6. atom n. 原子

7. atmospheric a. 大氣的

8. spectacle n. 奇觀

9. phenomenon n. 現(xiàn)象

10. hemisphere n.(地球的)半球

11. aurora borealis n. 北極光

= the Northern Lights

aurora australis n. 南極光

= the Southern Lights

aurora n. 極光;曙光

12. mythology n. 神話

13. ancestor n. 祖先

14. folklore n. 民間傳說

15. impending a.(尤指不好的事)逼近的，即將發(fā)生的

16. significant a. 重大的;相當(dāng)數(shù)量的

17. apparently adv. 清楚地

18. magnificent a. 壯觀的，華麗的

中文翻譯&標(biāo)準(zhǔn)答案

我們通常將流動(dòng)的風(fēng)與壞天氣聯(lián)想在一起，但若從宇宙的角度來看，太陽風(fēng)卻能創(chuàng)造出自然界最壯麗的奇景。

太陽風(fēng)是從恒星上層大氣射出的帶電粒子流。當(dāng)這些粒子進(jìn)入地球的大氣層，它們會(huì)將能量轉(zhuǎn)移到周圍的原子上。不久之后，這些大氣中的原子會(huì)釋放出能量。這般景象會(huì)以令人驚艷的光影演出出現(xiàn)在南北兩極，讓任何人造光芒為之遜色。

當(dāng)這光景出現(xiàn)在北半球時(shí)，就稱作 aurora borealis(北極光)，或更通俗的說法是 the Northern Lights。它得名于羅馬的黎明女神 Aurora，與希臘的北風(fēng)之神 Boreas。在不同文化的神話中，極光與眾神的憤怒或老祖先的游戲有關(guān)。在拉脫維亞的民間傳說中，極光則據(jù)信是殉難戰(zhàn)士的靈魂前來警告人們天災(zāi)將近。

極光通常只在兩極地區(qū)出現(xiàn)，但歷史記載中最盛大的極光出現(xiàn)在 1859 年，連遠(yuǎn)在南方的日本及美國都看得見。當(dāng)時(shí)《紐約時(shí)報(bào)》清楚報(bào)導(dǎo)了：『一般刊物都可在其(北極光的)光芒下清楚閱讀。』

如果你覺得自己運(yùn)氣不錯(cuò)，在三、四、九或十月來一趟北極之旅，那么大自然可能賞你一場眩爛奪目的光影表演。

標(biāo)準(zhǔn)答案：

1. (D)　2. (B)　3. (A)　4. (C)　5. (A)

6. (B)　7. (C)