Earth Hour success 'vote for action'
文章来源: 文章作者: 发布时间:2009-06-27 03:25 字体: [ ]  进入论坛
(单词翻译:双击或拖选)

For environmental activists1, the message was clear: Earth Hour was a huge success.

Now they say nations have a mandate2 to tackle climate change.

"The world said 'yes' to climate action, now governments must follow," the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said a day after hundreds of millions of people worldwide followed its call to turn off lights for a full hour.

From an Antarctic research base and the Great Pyramids of Egypt, from the Colosseum in Rome to the Empire State building in New York, illuminated3 patches of the globe went dark Saturday night to highlight the threat of climate change.

Time zone by time zone, nearly 4,000 cities and towns in 88 countries dimmed nonessential lights from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm.

WWF called the event, which began in Australia in 2007 and grew last year to 400 cities worldwide, "the world's first-ever global vote about the future of our planet".

"Last night's message from the masses was loud and clear: Delay no more, real action now!" Kim Carstensen, the leader of WWF's Global Climate Initiative, said in a statement yesterday.

Negotiators from 175 countries gathered yesterday in Bonn for the latest round in an effort to craft a deal to control emissions4 of the heat-trapping gases responsible for global warming.

German boy and girl scouts6 yesterday presented the top UN climate official, Yvo de Boer, with a blue "ballot7 box" symbolically8 representing the world's vote the night before to save the earth.

"If the world keeps polluting ... we will lose our future," a young Girl Scout5 told de Boer.

The climate chief thanked the young people as well as the WWF for mobilizing the massive show of support.

"I wouldn't be surprised if that was actually the largest public demonstration9 that there has ever been on an issue like this," he said.

Earth Hour officially began when the Chatham Islands, 800 km east of New Zealand, switched off its diesel10 generators11. At Scott Base in Antarctica, New Zealand's 26-member winter team resorted to minimum safety lighting12 and switched off appliances and computers.

In Australia, Sydney's glittering harbor was bathed in shadows as lights dimmed on the steel arch of the city's iconic Harbour Bridge and the nearby Opera House.

Landmarks13 across China joined in.

Beijing's Olympic icons14 - the Bird's Nest and Water Cube - went dark for an hour.

More than 1,800 buildings in Hong Kong joined, including the International Finance Center and Tsing Ma Bridge. Tourist attraction Symphony of Lights, a Guinness-record winning daily light show in Victoria Harbor, was suspended to show support.

Zhou Teng, 28, an employee of an education consultancy firm, had a candlelight dinner with her husband at a restaurant along Shanghai's Huangpu River.

"We are here not for romance, but to support the campaign," she said.

As the sun moved west, the Great Pyramids and Sphinx in Egypt darkened. So did the Acropolis in Athens and the Colosseum in Rome.

In Paris, the Eiffel Tower, Louvre and Notre Dame15 Cathedral were among 200 monuments and buildings that went dark. The Eiffel Tower, however, only extinguished its lights for five minutes for security reasons because visitors were on the tower.

The celebration then crossed the Atlantic, where crowds at New York's Times Square watched as many of the massive billboards16, including the giant Coca-Cola display, darkened. The Majestic17 Theater marquee at the home of The Phantom18 of the Opera went dark, along with the marquees at other Broadway shows.

Mikel Rouse, 52, a composer who lives and works nearby came to watch.

"C'mon, is it really necessary? ... All this ridiculous advertising19 ... all this corporate20 advertising taking up all that energy seems to be a waste," Rouse said.

Hundreds of other cities also joined in, from Chicago to San Francisco to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, where the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue that watches over the city was darkened, along with the beachfront of the famed Copacabana.

Questions:

1. How many cities and towns participated in Earth Hour this year?

2. Which Beijing buildings turned off their lights?

3. What did the UN’s top climate change official say about this year’s Earth Hour?

Answers:

1. Almost 4,000.

2. The Bird’s Nest and Water Cube.

3. He said he wouldn’t be surprised if this was the largest public demonstration ever about climate change.



点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 activists 90fd83cc3f53a40df93866d9c91bcca4     
n.(政治活动的)积极分子,活动家( activist的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
  • Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》
2 mandate sj9yz     
n.托管地;命令,指示
参考例句:
  • The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
  • The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。
3 illuminated 98b351e9bc282af85e83e767e5ec76b8     
adj.被照明的;受启迪的
参考例句:
  • Floodlights illuminated the stadium. 泛光灯照亮了体育场。
  • the illuminated city at night 夜幕中万家灯火的城市
4 emissions 1a87f8769eb755734e056efecb5e2da9     
排放物( emission的名词复数 ); 散发物(尤指气体)
参考例句:
  • Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
  • Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。
5 scout oDGzi     
n.童子军,侦察员;v.侦察,搜索
参考例句:
  • He was mistaken for an enemy scout and badly wounded.他被误认为是敌人的侦察兵,受了重伤。
  • The scout made a stealthy approach to the enemy position.侦察兵偷偷地靠近敌军阵地。
6 scouts e6d47327278af4317aaf05d42afdbe25     
侦察员[机,舰]( scout的名词复数 ); 童子军; 搜索; 童子军成员
参考例句:
  • to join the Scouts 参加童子军
  • The scouts paired off and began to patrol the area. 巡逻人员两个一组,然后开始巡逻这个地区。
7 ballot jujzB     
n.(不记名)投票,投票总数,投票权;vi.投票
参考例句:
  • The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
  • The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。
8 symbolically LrFwT     
ad.象征地,象征性地
参考例句:
  • By wearing the ring on the third finger of the left hand, a married couple symbolically declares their eternal love for each other. 将婚戒戴在左手的第三只手指上,意味着夫妻双方象征性地宣告他们的爱情天长地久,他们定能白头偕老。
  • Symbolically, he coughed to clear his throat. 周经理象征地咳一声无谓的嗽,清清嗓子。
9 demonstration 9waxo     
n.表明,示范,论证,示威
参考例句:
  • His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
  • He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。
10 diesel ql6zo     
n.柴油发动机,内燃机
参考例句:
  • We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
  • My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。
11 generators 49511c3cf5edacaa03c4198875f15e4e     
n.发电机,发生器( generator的名词复数 );电力公司
参考例句:
  • The factory's emergency generators were used during the power cut. 工厂应急发电机在停电期间用上了。
  • Power can be fed from wind generators into the electricity grid system. 电力可以从风力发电机流入输电网。 来自《简明英汉词典》
12 lighting CpszPL     
n.照明,光线的明暗,舞台灯光
参考例句:
  • The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
  • The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。
13 landmarks 746a744ae0fc201cc2f97ab777d21b8c     
n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 );目标;(标志重要阶段的)里程碑 ~ (in sth);有历史意义的建筑物(或遗址)
参考例句:
  • The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句
14 icons bd21190449b7e88db48fa0f580a8f666     
n.偶像( icon的名词复数 );(计算机屏幕上表示命令、程序的)符号,图像
参考例句:
  • Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons. 用图标来区分重要的文本项。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
  • Daemonic icons should only be employed persistently if they provide continuous, useful status information. 只有会连续地提供有用状态信息的情况下,后台应用程序才应该一直使用图标。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
15 dame dvGzR0     
n.女士
参考例句:
  • The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
  • If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会,你就要跟那个夫人结婚。
16 billboards 984a8d026956f1fd68b7105fc9074edf     
n.广告牌( billboard的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Large billboards have disfigured the scenery. 大型告示板已破坏了景色。 来自辞典例句
  • Then, put the logo in magazines and on billboards without telling anyone what it means. 接着我们把这个商标刊在杂志和广告看板上,却不跟任何人透漏它的涵意。 来自常春藤生活英语杂志-2006年4月号
17 majestic GAZxK     
adj.雄伟的,壮丽的,庄严的,威严的,崇高的
参考例句:
  • In the distance rose the majestic Alps.远处耸立着雄伟的阿尔卑斯山。
  • He looks majestic in uniform.他穿上军装显得很威风。
18 phantom T36zQ     
n.幻影,虚位,幽灵;adj.错觉的,幻影的,幽灵的
参考例句:
  • I found myself staring at her as if she were a phantom.我发现自己瞪大眼睛看着她,好像她是一个幽灵。
  • He is only a phantom of a king.他只是有名无实的国王。
19 advertising 1zjzi3     
n.广告业;广告活动 a.广告的;广告业务的
参考例句:
  • Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
  • The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。
20 corporate 7olzl     
adj.共同的,全体的;公司的,企业的
参考例句:
  • This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
  • His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。
TAG标签:
发表评论
请自觉遵守互联网相关的政策法规,严禁发布色情、暴力、反动的言论。
评价:
表情:
验证码:点击我更换图片