Part I
Professor: When land gets developed for human use, the landscape changes. We don't see as many types of vegetation, trees, grasses and so forth. This in turn leads to other losses: the loss of animals that once lived there. Err...but these are the obvious changes, but there are also less obvious changes like the climate.
One interesting case of this...of...changes in the local land use causing changes in climate, specifically the temperature, is in Florida. Now what comes to mind when you think of the state of Florida?
Student A: Sunshine, beaches.
Student B: Warm weather, oranges...
当你们想到佛罗里达州时会想到什么？
1. landscape|ˈlændskeɪp|
noun. everything you can see when you look across a large area of land, especially in the country 风景，景色，景观
E.g.: the woods and fields that are typical features of the English landscape
具有典型英国风景特征的森林与田野
2. in turn
as a result of sth in a series of events 相应地；转而；继而；反过来
E.g.: Increased production will, in turn, lead to increased profits.
增加生产会继而增加利润。
3. come to mind
if sth comes/springs to mind , you suddenly remember or think of it 突然记起或想到
E.g.: When discussing influential modern artists, three names immediately come to mind.
在讨论现代有影响的艺术家时，一下子有三个名字出现在脑海中。
Part II
Professor: Yes, exactly. Florida has long had a great citric industry; large growth of oranges, lemons and the like. Florida's winter is very mild; the temperature doesn't often get below freezing. But there are some areas in Florida that do freeze. So in the early1900s, farmers moved even further south in Florida, to areas that were even less likely to freeze. Obviously, freezing temperatures are danger to the crops. A bad bout of cold weather, a long spell of frosts could ruin a farmer's entire crop.
Anyway, before these citric growers moved south, much of the land in south Florida, was what we called wetlands. Wetlands are areas of marshy, swampy land, areas where water covers the soil, or is present either at or near the surface of the soil for a large part of the year. Wetlands have their own unique ecosystems, with plants and animals with special and interesting adaptations. Very exciting! But it's not what we are talking about today. Emm...where was I?
湿地是泥泞湿软的土地，是一年中大部分时间有水淹没地表，或者有水存在于或接近于土壤表面的区域。
1. citric |ˈsɪtrɪk|
adj. relating to fruit such as lemons, oranges and limes 柠檬的；酸橙的；柑橘类水果的
E.g.: Citric acid can be extracted from the juice of oranges, lemons, limes or grapefruit.
柠檬酸可以从橙汁、柠檬汁、酸橙汁或者柚子汁中提取。
2. and the like
if you mention particular things or people and then add and the like, you are indicating that there are other similar things or people that can be included in what you are saying 等等；以及诸如此类
E.g.: Many students are also keeping fit through jogging, aerobics, weight training, and the like.
很多学生还通过慢跑、有氧体操、负重训练等方式来健身。
3. bout|baʊt|
noun. a short period of great activity; a short period during which there is a lot of a particular thing, usually sth unpleasant 一阵，一小段时间，一次
E.g.: A half-hour daily walk can be more beneficial than one hard bout of exercise a week.
每天散步半小时会比一周剧烈运动一次对身体更有益。
4. spell|spel|
noun. a short period of time during which sth lasts （持续的）一段时间
E.g.: She went to the doctor complaining of dizzy spells.
她去找医生看病，说自己一阵一阵地头昏。
5. crop|krɑ:p|
noun. the amount of grain, fruit, etc. that is grown in one season （谷物、水果等一季的）收成，产量
E.g.: Each year it produces a fine crop of fruit.
这里每年水果都大丰收。
6. marshy|ˈmɑːrʃi|
adj. marshy land is always wet and muddy 沼泽般的;湿软的;泥泞的
E.g.: The surrounding land is low and marshy.
周围的地低洼而多沼泽。
7. swampy|ˈswɑmpɪ|
adj. a swampy area of land is always very wet 地面湿软的，沼泽地的
E.g.: An ox as grazing in a swampy meadow.
一头牛在一块泥泞的草地上吃草。
Part III
Student A: Farmers moved south?
Professor: Oh, yes. Farmers moved south. But the land was not suitable for farming. You can't grow oranges in wetlands, so farmers had to transform the wetlands into lands suitable for farming. To do that, you have to drain the water from the land, move the water elsewhere, and divert to the water sources such as rivers.
Hundreds of miles of drainage canals were built in the wetlands. Now these areas, the new areas the farmers moved to, used to be warm and unlikely to freeze. However, recently the area has become susceptible to freezes. And we are trying to understand why.
Student B: Is it some global temperature change or weather pattern like El Nino, or something?
数百英里的排水渠建在湿地上。
1. drain|dreɪn|
verb. to make liquid flow away from sth; to flow away （使）流走，流出
E.g.: She pulled out the plug and the water drained away.
她拔掉塞子，让水流走了。
2. divert|daɪˈvɜ:t|
verb. to make sb/sth change direction 使转向；使绕道；转移
E.g.: Northbound traffic will have to be diverted onto minor roads.
北行车辆将不得不绕次要道路行驶。
3. susceptible |səˈseptəbl|
adj. very likely to be influenced, harmed or affected by sb/sth 易受…影响的;易为…左右的
E.g.: Some of these plants are more susceptible to frost damage than others.
这些植物中有一些较其他的易受霜冻危害。
4. El Nino
a set of changes in the weather system near the coast of northern Peru and Ecuador that happens every few years, causing the surface of the Pacific Ocean there to become warmer and having severe effects on the weather in many parts of the world 厄尔尼诺现象，南美洲西海岸每隔数年一次海温升高的现象，导致太平洋水温上升，严重影响全球多处气候；El Nino 在西班牙语的意思为圣婴，所以也译作“圣婴现象”。
E.g.: Some people link the world warming to the El Nino Phenomenon.
有些人把全球气温上升跟厄尔尼诺现象联系在一起。
Part IV
Professor: Well, there are two theories. One idea is as you suggest that major weather patterns, something like El Nino, are responsible. But the other idea and this is the one that I personally subscribe to, is that the changes in the temperature pattern have been brought about by the loss of the wetlands.
Student A: Well, how would the loss of wetlands make a difference?
Professor: Well, think about what we've been studying so far. We discussed the impact of landscapes on temperature, right? What effects does the body of water have on an area?
Student A: Oh, yeah. The bodies of water tend to absorb the heat during the day, and then they release the heat at night.
Professor: Yes, exactly. What you just said is what I want you all to understand. Bodies of water release heat and moisture back into the environment. So places near large bodies of water are generally milder, err...slightly warmer than those without water. And what I, and others think is that the loss of the wetlands has created the situation where the local temperatures in the area are now slightly different, slightly colder than they were 100 years ago, before the wetland were drained.
而我和其他一些人的想法是，湿地的丧失造成了现在该地区的温度略有不同，比100年前湿地被排干之前要略微低一些。
1. subscribe to
to agree with or support an opinion, a theory, etc. 同意；赞成
E.g.: The authorities no longer subscribe to the view that disabled people are unsuitable as teachers.
当局不再支持残疾人不适宜做教师的观点。
2. bring about
to make sth happen 导致；引起
E.g.: What brought about the change in his attitude?
是什么使他改变了态度？
3. body |ˈbɑ:di|
noun. a body of water is a large area of water, such as a lake or a sea 一片，一泓（水域）
E.g.: It is probably the most polluted body of water in the world.
这很可能是世界上受污染最严重的一片水域。
Part V
Student B: Emm...do we know what the temperature was like back then?
Professor: Well, we were able to estimate this. We have data about South Florida's current landscape, emm...the plant cover. And we were able to reconstruct data about its landscape prior to 1900. Then we enter those data, information about what the landscape look like before and after the wetlands were drained. We enter the data into a computer weather model. This model can predict temperatures. And when all the data were entered, an overall cooling trend was predicted by the model.
Student B: How much colder does it get now?
Professor: Well, actually the model shows a drop of only a few degrees Celsius. But this is enough to cause dramatic damage to crops. If temperatures over night are already very close to the freezing point, then this drop of just a few degrees can take the temperature below freezing. And freezing causes frosts, which kill crops. These damaging frosts wouldn't happen if the wetlands were still in existence, just a tiny temperature difference can have major consequences.
如果湿地还在的话，那么这些破坏性的霜冻就不会发生，要知道即便只是微小的温差也会产生巨大的影响。
1. cover |ˈkʌvə(r)|
noun. trees and plants that grow on an area of land （生长在一个地区的）树木植物，自然植被
E.g.: The total forest cover of the earth is decreasing.
地球上森林覆盖的总面积正在减少。
2. enter |ˈentə(r)|
verb. to enter information into a computer or database means to record it there, for example by typing it on a keyboard （向计算机或数据库中）输入，写入
E.g.: When a baby is born, they enter that baby's name into the computer.
每当有婴儿降生，他们就将婴儿的名字输入电脑。
3. Celsius|ˈselsiəs|
adj. of or using a scale of temperature in which water freezes at 0˚ and boils at 100˚ 摄氏的
E.g.: It will be a mild night, around nine degrees Celsius.
晚间天气温和，温度约九摄氏度。
Fahrenheit|ˈfærənhaɪt|
adj. of or using a scale of temperature in which water freezes at 32˚ and boils at 212˚ 华氏温度计的，华氏的（冰点为32度，沸点为212度）
E.g.: By mid-morning, the temperature was already above 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
到早上10点钟，温度已经超过100华氏度了。
4. dramatic |drəˈmætɪk|
adj. sudden, very great and often surprising 突然的；巨大的；令人吃惊的
E.g.: The announcement had a dramatic effect on house prices.
这项公告对房屋价格产生了巨大的影响。
5. frost 霜, mist/fog 雾, dew 露水, hail 冰雹
