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本文节选自《经济学人》一篇名为 “Thanks, Albert” (谢谢你，阿尔伯特)的文章。本文写于爱因斯坦的广义相对论发表一百周年之际，概括了其给世界带来的深刻改变。作为一篇天文类科普文章，本文深入浅出地阐释了广义相对论的成就。读者可以了解天文物理知识，也可以积累天文学物理学常见词汇。 I.①Most scientific findings are sedimentary, slowly building upon the edifice of understanding. ②Rare is the idea that marks a fundamental change to a system of thought, forcing the rest of science to bend to its own vision. ③However, on November 25th 1915 Albert Einstein published a theory that did just that. ④The ten equations of his general theory of relativity set out a new concept of gravity—as the warping of the fabric of space and time in the presence of mass. II.①The world has much to thank Einstein for. ②Because of him, scientists think of space as relative: what you measure depends on your vantage point, and on what mass is around you. ③An understanding of gravity’s most subtle effects informs both the exalted and the everyday.④Relativity permitted the New Horizons mission this year to steer a space probe through a 150km-wide “keyhole” near Pluto. ⑤A more quotidian example of the extraordinary precision of relativity comes from satellite-navigation systems. ⑥Einstein’s theory shows that satellites experience an ever-so-slightly different stretching of space-time in orbit than people do on the surface of the Earth—so the positional data streamed to smartphone users, and the time-stamps used for transactions in industries from banking to energy, must take in relativistic adjustments. III.①The theory has yielded odd surprises. ②It predicted, and then helped explain, the black holes that have captured public imagination. ③Efforts to join relativity with quantum mechanics, in a field called string theory, are shedding light on science that is wholly unconnected to the heavens, including materials that conduct electricity without resistance and new kinds of information processing. IV.①Relativity’s most overlooked triumph, though, has been to reframe the sorts of questions that stargazers ask. ②After the invention of telescopes in the early 17th century, astronomy concerned itself chiefly with discrete objects in the cosmos. ③But the implications of stretchy space-time quickly raised bigger questions: by the 1970s, relativity had become integral to describing the Big Bang. ④Not since Johannes Kepler’s “Mysterium Cosmographicum”, a 16th-century attempt to reveal the structure of the cosmos, were thinkers so inspired to consider the universe as a whole: its organising principles, its ultimate origins and what makes it tick. V.①The restoration of this inquiry was not simply a matter of philosophy.②General relativity came with its own experimental checks, some of which took decades to carry out. ③As it has passed these tests, relativity has set the stage for what is known as “precision cosmology”.④Exceptionally detailed theory lined up with ever-better observational data to furnish predictions about physical phenomena far away both in space and in time. VI. ①That is an astonishing leap in perspective from just ten equations.②Einstein’s theory, and the intervening century of experimentation, provided a way to satisfy one of the most fundamental yearnings: to understand what is out there in the universe, how it all began and humanity’s place in it. 1.*sedimentary [sed?'mentr?] a. 沉淀的 2.*edifice ['ed?f?s] n. 大厦 3.*warping ['w??p??] n. 翘曲 4.*vantage point ['vɑ?nt?d?] n. 有利位置 5.*exalted [?g'z??lt?d] a. 崇高的 6.*quotidian [kw?'t?d??n] a. 平日的 7.probe [pr??b] n. 探测器 8.*quantum mechanics ['kw?nt?m] [m?'k?n?ks] n. 量子力学 9. conduct ['k?nd?kt] v. [僻]导电 10.*discrete [d?'skri?t] a. 离散的 11.integral [??nt?ɡr?l] a. 必须的 12.tick [t?k] v. [僻]运转 13.line up with v. 与…对齐 14.furnish ['f??n??] v. 提供 15.intervening [,?nt?'vin??] a. 介于中间的。派生自intervene [?nt?'vi?n] v. 插入，干预 （注：标“*”的为超纲词汇） I.①Most scientific findings are sedimentary, slowly building upon the edifice of understanding. ②Rare is the idea that marks a fundamental change to a system of thought, forcing the rest of science to bend to its own vision. ③However, on November 25th 1915 Albert Einstein published a theory that did just that. ④The ten equations of his general theory of relativity set out a new concept of gravity—as the warping of the fabric of space and time in the presence of mass. 翻译：大多数的科学发现都是日积月累的，慢慢建立在人类知识的大厦之上。鲜有某种科学观点标志着一种思想体系的根本性转变，迫使其他科学屈从于自己的构想。然而，爱因斯坦在1915年11月25日发表的一种理论就实现了这一点。他的广义相对论的十个方程重新定义了重力——在质量的作用下对时空结构的扭曲。 点评：I段借其与众不同之处引出爱因斯坦的相对论及其深远影响。①②句运用对比，指出大多数的科学发现是基于前人成果（sedimentary），鲜有彻底推翻前人思想体系（a fundamental change to a system of thought）的科学研究。③句话锋一转，引出广义相对论就有这样深刻的影响。④句概括广义相对论的核心——a new concept of gravity并在破折号后通俗地解释其含义。注意，这是一篇科普文章，这就要求本文既要包含专业的天文术语，又要对其进行通俗易懂的解释。 II.①The world has much to thank Einstein for. ②Because of him, scientists think of space as relative: what you measure depends on your vantage point, and on what mass is around you. ③An understanding of gravity’s most subtle effects informs both the exalted and the everyday.④Relativity permitted the New Horizons mission this year to steer a space probethrough a 150km-wide “keyhole” near Pluto. ⑤A more quotidian example of the extraordinary precision of relativity comes from satellite-navigation systems. ⑥Einstein’s theory shows that satellites experience an ever-so-slightly different stretching of space-time in orbit than people do on the surface of the Earth—so the positional data streamed to smartphone users, and the time-stamps used for transactions in industries from banking to energy, must take in relativistic adjustments. 翻译：世界上很多改变都应该感谢爱因斯坦。他使科学家认为空间是相对的：你测量的结果取决于你的有利位置以及你周围的质量。对于重力最微妙的影响的理解既启发了高端的科研工作也启发了日常的科技产品。相对论使得今年的“新视野”计划能够通过冥王星附近绵延150公里的“重力锁眼” 控制一个太空探测器。极其精密的相对论还可以应用于日常生活，如在卫星导航系统中的应用。爱因斯坦的理论表明，卫星在运行轨道上经历的时空比人们在地球表面经历的有着极其轻微的延展——使得传输给智能手机用户的位置数据以及银行和能源等行业所使用的交易时间戳都必须进行相对性的调整。 点评：II段以“总——分”结构具体阐释广义相对论的深远影响。①句照应文章标题“Thanks, Albert”讲世界上很多改变都要归功于爱因斯坦。②③句概述其影响——使科学家认为空间是相对的，对科学研究和日常科技都有启发。④⑤⑥句以实例证明了广义相对论在“高端科研工作”和“日常科技产品”两大方面的应用。 III.①The theory has yielded odd surprises. ②It predicted, and then helped explain, the black holes that have captured public imagination. ③Efforts to join relativity with quantum mechanics, in a field called string theory, are shedding light on science that is wholly unconnected to the heavens, including materials thatconduct electricity without resistance and new kinds of information processing. 翻译：这一理论还带来了奇特的惊喜。相对论预测并帮助解释了吸引公众想象力的黑洞。弦论领域的科学家努力将相对论与量子力学相结合，以阐明与天文学完全无关的科学，包括无电阻导电材料和新的信息处理技术。 点评：III段补充广义相对论出人意料的影响。①句以odd surprises概括全段。②③句例证①句：其中②句讲黑洞的预测和解释都依靠广义相对论，吸引公众想象力的黑洞是为一个surprise；③句讲量子力学与广义相对论结合产生了与天文毫无关联的成果，是为另一个surprise，足以显示广义相对论的影响深远。 IV.①Relativity’s most overlooked triumph, though, has been to reframe the sorts of questions that stargazers ask. ②After the invention of telescopes in the early 17th century, astronomy concerned itself chiefly with discrete objects in the cosmos. ③But the implications of stretchy space-time quickly raised bigger questions: by the 1970s, relativity had become integral to describing the Big Bang. ④Not since Johannes Kepler’s “Mysterium Cosmographicum”, a 16th-century attempt to reveal the structure of the cosmos, were thinkers so inspired to consider the universe as a whole: its organising principles, its ultimate origins and what makes it tick. 翻译：然而，相对论最易被人们忽视的成就是它重构了观星者探究的问题。17世纪初人类发明望远镜之后，天文学开始主要关注宇宙中散落着的星体。但延展的时空的含义很快就引出了更宏观的问题：到20世纪80年代，相对论在阐释宇宙大爆炸理论时已经不可或缺。在16世纪约翰尼斯·开普勒试图揭示宇宙结构的《宇宙的秘密》之后，还没有哪一理论能在如此大的程度上启发思想家们将宇宙看作一个整体：思考其组织原理、最初起源及运行动力。 点评：IV段介绍广义相对论最容易让人忽视的成就——重构（reframe）了人们思考宇宙的方式。①句概括全段，以most overlooked triumph引出下文。②句追溯历史，介绍人们过去思考宇宙的方式——关注宇宙中的分散天体（discrete objects in the cosmos）。③句转而讲相对论对大爆炸理论的启发和解释，暗示人们受其影响开始将宇宙看作一个整体去研究。④句将广义相对论与开普勒的著作《宇宙的秘密》相比，明确指出其对人们思维方式的重大启发——将宇宙看作一个整体（consider the universe as a whole）。 V.①The restoration of this inquiry was not simply a matter of philosophy.②General relativity came with its own experimental checks, some of which took decades to carry out. ③As it has passed these tests, relativity has set the stage for what is known as “precision cosmology”.④Exceptionally detailed theory lined up with ever-better observational data tofurnish predictions about physical phenomena far away both in space and in time. 翻译：这种探究的恢复不仅仅是哲学命题。广义相对论是伴随着对它的实验验证一起到来的，其中一些实验花费了几十年时间。因为已经通过了这些验证，相对论为所谓的“精确宇宙学”搭建了舞台。详尽的理论加上日益完善的观察数据，预测了在遥远的空间和时间之外的物理现象。 点评：V段以实验结果证明IV段，说明广义相对论并不只是一种模糊的定性哲学，而是经过实验验证的精确理论。①句以否定形式not simply a matter of philosophy引出下文。②③句介绍广义相对论经受住了实验的验证，并为“精确宇宙学”（precision cosmology）做了准备，证明①句，说明广义相对论不仅仅是模糊的定性哲学，而是精确的定量理论。④句介绍广义相对论在精确学科中的应用，再次证明①句。 VI. ①That is an astonishing leap in perspective from just ten equations.②Einstein’s theory, and the intervening century of experimentation, provided a way to satisfy one of the most fundamental yearnings: to understand what is out there in the universe, how it all began and humanity’s place in it. 翻译：这是仅仅始于十个方程的视角上的惊人飞跃。爱因斯坦的理论及其之后一百年的实验过程提供了一种方式来满足人类一种最基本的渴望：理解宇宙中发生了什么、这一切是如何开始的以及人类在其中的位置。 点评：VI段收束全文，概括广义相对论以及由此生发的科研成果的重要意义。①句高度赞扬一百年间人们从广义相对论出发，经过不懈努力所取得的成果是an astonishing leap。②句解释①句，广义相对论以及由此生发的科研成果对全人类的重大意义——满足人类探索宇宙的基本渴求（to satisfy one of the most fundamental yearnings）。 2017真题同源外刊赏读第 140篇 张剑考研英语黄皮书 |
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