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唐大旻
塑料的危害已经由海洋延伸至了天空。美国研究人员在落基山脉收集雨水进行分析时，意外发现样本中竟然含有不同颜色的塑料微粒。这些微塑料可能来源于废弃垃圾和纤维降解，它们虽无法用肉眼观测，却有着难以估量的危害。“塑料雨”是怎么形成的？它会对环境和人们的生活造成什么影响？一起来听今天的讲解。
本篇课程首发于2019年8月25日
文本难度：
话题难度：
Microplastics falling out of sky
microplastics 微塑料
macroeconomics
fall out of ，out of用来强调来源，表原因 out of love/ fear/ the sky
① We rely on plastic in almost every aspect of our lives, but now the versatile material is seriously harming marine life, damaging the world economy and threatening the health of adults and children alike.
rely on
plastic塑料的材质是uncountable, plastics塑料制品；plastic smile 假笑
versatile material: 全能材质
marine life 海洋生物
harm marine life
damage the world economy
threaten the health of adults and children alike
a and b alike既有a也有b
② In a worrying development, U.S. scientists have discovered evidence that plastic is actually falling out of the sky with rainfall in far-flung regions across the country, such as the Rocky Mountains.
far-flung regions: 偏远地区 fling扔， 甩
the Rocky Mountains: 美国西部
③ Entitled "It is raining plastic", the report issued by the U.S. Geological Survey examined rainwater samples collected in various areas of Colorado and found that plastic, in various colours, was present in 90 percent of the studied specimens.
研究基本信息-
examine ... samples ... and found that...
the studied specimen(s)
it is raining plastic
it is raining cats and dogs. 倾盆大雨
rainstorm
rainwater
rainfall 降雨过程；降雨量
save something for a raining day 未雨绸缪
raincheck
④ Using microscopic identification, the researchers deduced that the main source of these microplastics is most likely dumped garbage, while plastic fibres from degraded synthetic clothing is also a contributing factor.
the main source
a contributing factor
⑤ Environmental experts believe that there now are up to 5.25 trillion fragments of plastic debris in our oceans, and this figure could triple in the next five years, as a consequence of the surge in single-use consumer plastic products.
up to : as many as
debris: 残骸
surge 激增，多贬义
single-use: 一次性
trillion
⑥ The scientific community is still unsure exactly how all this plastic will impact our health, although a number of studies are in progress to investigate it.
address this concern 回应这个担忧
in progress = underway = ongoing
1.microplastics /ˈmaɪkrəʊˌplæstɪks, ˈmaɪkroʊˌplæstɪks/ n. 微塑料 micro-微小的
Microsoft 微软
microscope n. 显微镜
macro-宏大的
macroeconomics n. 宏观经济学
2.out of 来源于，原因是 do something out of fear/love 由于恐惧/爱做某事
3.plastic /ˈplæstɪk/ n. 塑料材质 adj. 用塑料制成的 plastics /ˈplæstɪks/ n. 泛指塑料制品
plastic bottle/bag 塑料瓶/塑料袋
plastic smile 假笑
4.versatile /ˈvɝːsətəl, ˈvɜːsətaɪl/ adj. 多种用途的 the versatile material 用途广泛的材料
5.marine life n. 海洋生物（包括动物、植物及微生物等的总和）（=marine creature)
6.threaten /ˈθretən/ vt. 威胁
7.alike /əˈlaɪk/ adv. 两者都 A and B alike 既有A也有B
8.a worrying development 一项令人担忧的发展 an unexpected development 一项令人意想不到的发展
9.far-flung /ˌfɑːˈflʌŋ, ˌfɑːrˈflʌŋ/ adj. 偏远的，边陲的 fling /flɪŋ/ v. 扔，甩
10.the Rocky Mountains 落基山脉
11.entitle /ɪnˈtaɪtəl/ vt. 给……命名，给……提名 the report entitled “It is Raining Plastic”
这份题为《天降塑料》的报告
12.rain /reɪn/ v. 下雨 关于rain的表达：
rain cats and dogs 倾盆大雨
rainwater n. 雨水
rainfall n. 降雨；降雨量
hourly rainfall 每小时的降雨量
Meteorologists will need to measure hourly rainfall [or measure rainfall hourly, every hour, etc.] to inform their local disaster prevention and relief authority.
气象学家需要每小时测量一次降雨量，以通知当地的防灾救灾部门。
precipitation /prɪˌsɪpɪˈteɪʃən, priːˌsɪpəˈteɪʃən/ n. 多形容固态的雪、冰雹的降水量
save something for a rainy day 未雨绸缪
rain check n. （体育比赛因雨改期再赛时）可延期使用的票
I’ll take a rain check. 委婉地拒绝对方的邀请，但是暗示之后有机会可以参加
13.issue /ˈɪʃuː, ˈɪsjuː/ vt. 发布
14.the U.S. Geological Survey 美国地质调查局
15.specimen /ˈspesɪmən, ˈspesəmɪn/ n. 样品；标本；样本
16.dumped garbage 被丢弃的垃圾
17.degraded synthetic clothing 合成纤维面料衣物降解后的塑料纤维
18.a contributing factor 一个次要原因 主要原因：the main reason/cause/source/factor
19.deduce /dɪˈdʒuːs, dɪˈduːs/ v. 推断，推论
20.up to (= as many as) 高达，最多
21.debris /ˈdebriː, ˈdeɪbriː; dəˈbriː/ n. 碎片，残片 plastic debris 塑料碎片
construction debris n. 建筑废墟
22.a consequence of sth. 某事的结果
23.surge /sɜːdʒ, sɝːdʒ/ n. 激增 a surge in the number of incoming refugees 入境难民数量的激增
24.single-use /ˌsɪŋɡəlˈjuːs/ adj. 一次性的 single-use plastic products 一次性塑料制品
SUP(Single-Use Plastics) 一次性塑料制品
25.the scientific community 科学界
26.in progress 正在进行中 相似表达：underway, ongoing
A number of studies are in progress to investigate it.
There are a number of ongoing studies to investigate it.
以上两句话是“许多相关研究正在进行中。” 的两种表达方式。
