How Climate Change Will Cause More Simultaneous Disasters
氣候變遷 將使更多災難同時發生
By John Schwartz

Global warming is posing such wide-ranging risks to humanity, involving so many types of phenomena, that by the end of this century some parts of the world could face as many as six climate-related crises at the same time, researchers say.
全球暖化對人類構成相當廣泛的危險，包含非常多種現象。研究人員說，到本世紀結束之際，世上部分地區可能同時面臨多達六種與氣候有關的危機。

This chilling prospect is described in a paper published Monday in Nature Climate Change, a respected academic journal, that shows the effects of climate change across a broad spectrum of problems, including heat waves, wildfires, sea level rise, hurricanes, flooding, drought and shortages of clean water.
備受尊崇的學術期刊「自然氣候變遷」周一（19日）刊出一篇報告，描述這個令人戰慄的前景，呈示氣候變遷效應在廣泛範圍造成的問題，包括熱浪、野火、海平面上升、颶風、洪水、乾旱和乾淨用水短缺等。

Such problems are already coming in combination, said the lead author, Camilo Mora of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. He noted that Florida had recently experienced extreme drought, record high temperatures and wildfires – and also Hurricane Michael, the powerful Category 4 storm that slammed into the Panhandle this summer. Similarly, California is suffering through the worst wildfires the state has ever seen, as well as drought, extreme heat waves and degraded air quality that threatens the health of residents.
報告主要作者、馬諾夏威夷大學的凱米洛．摩拉說，這些問題已經同時出現。他指出，佛州日前經歷極端乾旱、破紀錄高溫和野火，此外還有今夏橫掃西佛羅里達地區、威力強大的四級颶風麥可。同樣地，加州正遭遇該州歷來最嚴重的野火，加上乾旱、極端熱浪和威脅居民健康的劣化空氣品質。

Things will get worse, the authors wrote. The paper projects future trends and suggests that, by 2100, unless humanity takes forceful action to curb the greenhouse gas emissions that drive climate change, some tropical coastal areas of the planet, like the Atlantic coast of South and Central America, could be hit by as many as six such crises at a time.
作者寫道，狀況將會更糟。這篇報告預測未來趨勢並指出，到2100年時，除非人類採取強制性行動抑制造成氣候變遷的溫室氣體排放，否則地球上部分熱帶地區的沿海地帶，像是中南美洲的大西洋岸，可能同時遭受多達六種災害侵襲。

That prospect is “like a terror movie that is real,” Mora said.
摩拉說，這種前景「就像恐怖電影成真」。

The authors include a list of caveats about the research: Since it is a review of papers, it will reflect some of the potential biases of science in this area, which include the possibility that scientists might focus on negative effects more than positive ones.
報告的作者針對這項研究提出了一些但書：既然這是檢視整理既有相關報告後所獲致的結論，難免會反映這個領域中可能存在的部分科學成見，包括科學家強調負面效應甚於正面效應的可能性。

New York can expect to be hit by four climate crises at a time by 2100 if carbon emissions continue at their current pace, the study says, but if emissions are cut significantly that number could be reduced to one. The troubled regions of the coastal tropics could see their number of concurrent hazards reduced from six to three.
這份研究報告指出，如果碳排放以目前的速度持續下去，到2100年時紐約恐將同時遭遇四種氣候危機。但如果排放量顯著減少，紐約的危機種類可減至一種，而那些易受影響的熱帶沿海地區則可將同時發生的災害種類由六種減至三種。

The paper explores the ways that climate change intensifies hazards and describes the interconnected nature of such crises. Greenhouse gas emissions, by warming the atmosphere, can enhance drought in places that are normally dry, “ripening conditions for wildfires and heat waves,” the researchers say. In wetter areas, a warmer atmosphere retains more moisture and strengthens downpours, while higher sea levels increase storm surge and warmer ocean waters can contribute to the overall destructiveness of storms.
這篇報告探討氣候變遷如何使災害增強，並描述這些危機的相互連結特性。溫室氣體排放使大氣層暖化，可能從而使平日乾燥的地方更加乾旱，研究人員說，「這也促成了野火和熱浪出現的條件」。在較潮濕的地區，溫暖的大氣層保留更多水氣，增加降雨量，而升高的海平面增加暴風雨生成，更溫暖的海水則會助長暴風雨的整體破壞力。

原文參照：
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/19/climate/climate-disasters.html

2018-12-02 聯合報．D4．紐約時報賞析 莊蕙嘉

說文解字看新聞 莊蕙嘉

氣候變遷讓世界面臨愈來愈劇烈的災害威脅，這篇文章出現許多氣候及天氣相關字詞，是值得一再閱讀的英語新聞。

simultaneous意為「同時發生」，倒數第二段的concurrent為同義詞，國際會議和記者會常見的simultaneous interpreting是「同步口譯」，指口譯人員在講者說話的同時， 將翻譯語言透過麥克風傳送到收聽者的耳機。另外consecutive interpreting是「逐步口譯」，翻譯人員在講者每講一段話停頓時翻譯內容。

大西洋的颶風hurricane，太平洋的颱風typhoon和印度洋的氣旋風暴cyclone，性質是一樣的，都是指由低氣壓發展而成的熱帶氣旋，各國對其強度則有不同的分級標準。文中第三段提到的Category 4是美國對颶風的分級，共一至五級，數字愈大威力愈強。

文中出現數次的humanity譯為人類，帶有「人性、人道」的概念。humankind也是人類，多用在相對於自然、動物的物種概念中。human作形容詞指人（類）的、人性的，作名詞時就是人，是可數名詞。

A Tulip May Spring Up On London’s Skyline
倫敦天際 可能冒出一朵鬱金香
By Palko Karasz

A glass tulip perched a thousand feet above London may be the next striking addition to the British capital’s ever-changing skyline, according to plans announced by architect Norman Foster’s studio.
根據建築師諾曼．福斯特工作室宣布的計畫，位於倫敦上空1000英呎處的一朵玻璃鬱金香，可能是英國首都不斷變化的天際線下一個令人矚目的新景象。

When a bullet-shaped skyscraper, a creation of the Foster studio that quickly became known as the Gherkin, opened in 2004, its curved lines made it a curiosity in the city’s skyline. The building, officially 30 St Mary Axe, was a bold addition to London’s historic financial center, known as the City.
當福斯特工作室的創作之一、很快就被稱為「小黃瓜」的子彈形摩天大樓在2004年啟用時，它的曲線使它成為城市天際線的一朵奇葩，這座大樓正式名稱為「聖瑪莉艾克斯30號」，對於歷史悠久、被稱為金融城的倫敦金融中心而言，是個突出醒目的新增事物。

Since then, the race to stand out on the London horizon has sped up, with unusually shaped towers known – officially or not – as the Shard, the Cheese Grater and the Walkie Talkie. At the same time, the Gherkin became less visible, almost enclosed in a thicket of other skyscrapers that is only going to grow in coming years.
從那時起，從倫敦地平線脫穎而出的競爭加速了，出現了被稱作「碎片」、「起司刨絲器」與「對講機」的奇特形狀高樓，不論這些是否為正式名稱。與此同時，小黃瓜就變得不那麼顯眼了，幾乎被一堆未來幾年只會越來越多的其他摩天大樓給包圍了。

The proposed new tower, the Tulip, would raise the aesthetic stakes, with a glass structure like a closed tulip blossom, echoing the shape of the Gherkin, on an elongated concrete stem, high above its neighbors.
擬建的這座新高樓鬱金香將會提升美學風格，它的玻璃結構就像一朵待放的鬱金香，形狀則類似小黃瓜，並高踞於一根遠高過鄰近建築的細長水泥花梗之上。

With Brexit sowing fears about where the City, and Britain as a whole, are headed, the plan to build the Tulip by 2025, comes as an optimistic statement about London’s future.
由於英國脫歐令人對金融城乃至整個英國發展方向感到擔憂，計畫在2025年前建成鬱金香則是對倫敦前途感到樂觀的一種宣示。

“Continuing the pioneering design of 30 St Mary Axe, the Tulip is in the spirit of London as a progressive, forward-thinking city,” Foster said in a statement.
福斯特在一份聲明中說道：「鬱金香持續著聖瑪莉艾克斯30號的開創性設計，秉承著倫敦作為一個進步、前瞻城市的精神。」

The project is a partnership between the J. Safra Group, the owner of the Gherkin, and Foster and Partners. A formal planning application was submitted to the City authorities last month, and construction could begin in 2020 if permission is granted, though a spokeswoman for the project declined to discuss how it might be financed.
這項計畫是小黃瓜業主瑞士嘉盛集團與福斯特建築事務所的合夥事業。正式計畫申請已於上月提交金融城當局，若獲批准可能在2020年開始興建，不過計畫發言人拒絕討論資金如何籌措。

Visitors would be able to ride in glass “gondola pods” revolving around the outside of the summit. Inside would be viewing platforms, restaurants and a bar, and a glass chute for people to slide from one level to another.
訪客將能搭乘圍繞著頂點外部旋轉玻璃「吊艙」，內部則有一些觀景台、餐廳與一家酒吧，還有一個供人們從一個樓層滑至另個樓層的玻璃滑道。

There would be an interactive exhibition on the history of London, in keeping with the local authorities’ drive to infuse cultural experiences into the financial district.
為配合地方當局向金融區注入文化經驗的行動，還會有一項有關倫敦歷史的互動展覽。

At just over 305 meters tall (around 1,000 feet) the Tulip would not quite match London’s tallest structure, the Shard, designed by Renzo Piano, which is almost 310 meters.
鬱金香的高度略高於305公尺（約1000英呎），比倫佐．皮亞諾所設計、近310公尺高的倫敦最高建築「碎片」略遜一籌。

For centuries, St. Paul’s, the domed 17th-century cathedral, was the tallest structure in London and the highest vantage point for viewing a low-rise city. At about 365 feet tall, it was not surpassed until the 1960s.
曾經有數世紀之久，建於17世紀的聖保羅圓頂大教堂一直是倫敦的最高建築，也是俯瞰這座低矮城市的最高位置，而它約365英呎的高度直到1960年代才被超越。

原文參照：
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/20/world/europe/tulip-gherkin-london-skyline.html

2018-12-02 聯合報．D4．紐約時報賞析 陳韋廷