(单词翻译:单击)
背景介绍
【Background】
北京的夏天正在向酷热的顶峰冲击。为了抵抗炎热，无论商场、办公场所还是家里，空调成为主角。而随着空调的普及，长时间呆在空调房中所带来的不适和疾病也越来越普及，空调病成为现代都市人一年一度的季节性疾病。
所谓“空调病”其实是一种长时间呆在空调环境下，因空气不流通、环境得不到改善而引起的一系列病症，表现为头晕、发热、盗汗、身子发虚、记忆力减退以及皮肤发紧发干、易过敏、皮肤变差等症状。
一般来说，引起空调病的原因主要有两个，一是室内的密封环境和空调本身的内部环境容易滋生各种细菌、霉菌；据统计，在开着空调五六个小时的密封的室内，氧气下降13.2％，大肠杆菌升高1.2％，红霉色菌升高1.11％，白喉菌升高0.5％，其他对呼吸道有害的细菌也有不同程度的增加，细菌的增加会让人更加容易染上疾病；另一个原因是夏季空调室内的温度大大低于外面的温度，长时间呆在空调环境里，会使得人体表面的毛孔收缩，不能正常排汗，一旦遭遇到周围的环境温度发生突然的变化，就会引起内分泌的紊乱。
医生表示，“如果不注意，无论身体素质如何，有空调的地方就有染上空调病的可能！”，因此，在夏季预防“空调病”和预防中暑同样重要。
摘自百度贴吧
英文原文
【Transcript】
Less use of air conditioners would be better for us all
A strict no-air-conditioning ban was enforced for 87,000 Taiwanese students taking the college entrance examinations this month despite temperatures in many areas reaching 34 to 36 degrees Celsius.
Although this long-term practice is being promoted as a pragmatic means to ensure fairness, since air conditioning is not available at all exam locations, rather than for environmental reasons, it nevertheless offers a good opportunity for the country to reconsider its addiction to air conditioning.
If students can manage without A/C in the heat of examinations, could not the rest of the population go cold turkey once in a while? If not 'Off,' then 'Down,' since air conditioners consume energy and contribute to climate change in proportion to each degree they are set below ambient temperature.
Vehicle A/C systems can be a cause of sinusitis in some people, while poorly maintained air conditioning may lead to the proliferation of micro-organisms such as Legionella pneumophila, the cause of Legionnaires' disease.
The problem with new high-tech machines is that they present a sizable contribution to man-made climate change. Cooling agents such as CFCs and their modern replacements are greenhouse gases with far more global-warming potential than carbon dioxide should they leak into the atmosphere.
It is everyone's responsibility to minimize his or her own contribution to the problem.
【Glossary】
ban:禁令；禁止
如：A ban on the importation of drugs had been issued recently.
最近已经发布了禁止，进口毒品的法令。
addiction：成癮；入迷
如：Drug addiction is a dangerous canker in society.
吸毒成瘾是腐蚀社会的一大祸害。
proportion：比例；比率
如：Her head is out of proportion to the size of her body.
她的头部与身体大小不成比例。
ambient：周遭的，环绕的
如：Ambient sound;
四周的声音;
ambient air.
周围的空气
to go cold turkey：是痛下决心戒除坏习惯
(可可英语版权所有,未经允许请勿转载)
