(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
Palestinians Turn Organic Waste into Gas for Cooking
Rural communities in developing countries often have trouble securing dependable supplies of energy for cooking and lighting. But energy exists every where organic waste is breaking down. It is just a question of how to harness or make use of it.
A Palestinian community in the West Bank has been successfully testing a device that turns food and animal wastes into biogas. The village of al-Awja has no running water or electric power. Solar panels provide energy from the sun, but not enough for cooking equipment. But as in many other parts of the world, villagers keep chickens, cows or other animals.
Recently, about 40 families started using portable devices that turn food and animal waste into methane gas. The European Union and the Peres Center for Peace provided money to pay for the devices.
One villager says, "This is a very good machine... The machine provides us with 70 to 80 percent of the gas that we need for our household."
An Israeli company, HomeBioGas, designed the machine, called a bio-digester. Anaerobic bacteria are added to the device the first time it is used. The bacteria helps break down organic waste. The bio-digester creates enough methane for cooking three meals a day. It also produces about 10 liters of liquid organic fertilizer.
Biogas is smokeless and has no smell. In addition to cooking, biogas can be used to heat water and for lighting devices. A built-in, hand-powered grinder helps break down the solid parts in household waste.
The HomeBioGas system is designed for areas where the daily temperature does not drop below 15 degrees Celsius. The price is about $2,500, a somewhat pricey amount for most families. So, communities must depend on aid from governments or private donors.
But the designers note the system can also be useful in more wealthy communities that have organic waste which can be turned into clean energy.
I'm Jonathan Evans.
词汇解析
1.rural 农村的；乡下的；田园的
Municipal town and rural parish gradually made fresh threads of connection.
城市和乡村逐渐形成了千丝万缕的新关系。
2.turn into 变为；变成
We saw their hope turn into a snare, and their rejoicing into weeping.
我们看到他们的希望化为泡影，他们的欢乐变成哀泣。
3.household 家用的；日常的
A vacuum cleaner is a handy household tool.
吸尘器是一种使用方便的家庭用具。
4.smokeless 无烟的；无烟制品
There are chemical fuels that are clean and smokeless.
有些化学燃料是清洁无烟的。
内容解析
1.Rural communities in developing countries often have trouble securing dependable supplies of energy for cooking and lighting. But energy exists every where organic waste is breaking down. It is just a question of how to harness or make use of it.
make use of 利用；应用；使用
I do not see why we should not make use of this analogy.
我不明确我们为什么不能利用这种类比。
They make use of advertisements to plug the new product.
他们利用广告广为宣传这种新产品。
2.Biogas is smokeless and has no smell. In addition to cooking, biogas can be used to heat water and for lighting devices. A built-in, hand-powered grinder helps break down the solid parts in household waste.
The HomeBioGas system is designed for areas where the daily temperature does not drop below 15 degrees Celsius. The price is about $2,500, a somewhat pricey amount for most families. So, communities must depend on aid from governments or private donors.
break down 分解；崩溃；瓦解
The virus caused the computer to break down.
病毒导致计算机出故障了。
When rates of inflation get out of hand, financial markets often break down.
当通货膨胀迅猛异常以致失去控制时，金融市场就常常会陷入崩溃之中。
参考译文
巴勒斯坦人变有机废弃物为可供烹饪的燃气
发展中国家的一些农村地区在做饭和照明能源的供应方面很难得到保障。但是有机废物分解的地方就可以产生能源，问题是如何利用这些废弃物。
一处位于约旦河西岸的巴勒斯坦地区成功试行了一种可以将食物垃圾和动物粪便转化为沼气的设备。al-Awja村庄不通水电，而吸收阳光才能产生能源的太阳能电池板，也不足以满足人们做饭时的燃料需求。然而，这里跟其它的地方一样，村民们自己饲养鸡、奶牛等家禽。
最近，约有40个家庭开始使用这台可将食物垃圾和动物粪便转化为沼气的便携式设备。欧盟和佩雷斯和平中心为人们购买这些设备提供了资金援助。
一位村民表示，“这种机器太棒了！它为我们提供70%~80%家庭所需燃气。”
一家以色列的家用沼气公司（HomeBioGas）设计出名为生物沼气池的设备。该设备在初次使用时添加了厌氧细菌。厌氧细菌有助于分解有机废物。这种生物沼气池能够为人们的一日三餐提供充足的燃气。此外，它还能产生约10升的液态有机肥。
生物沼气无烟无味。除用于烹饪外，沼气还能用来烧水和照明。内置的手动砂轮机有助于粉碎相对坚硬的生活垃圾。这种家用沼气系统是专为日常温度高于15摄氏度的地区设计的。它的价格大约为2500美元，对大多数家庭来说还是有些昂贵。因此，这些地区还需要政府或私人捐赠者的帮助。
此外，设计师还指出，这套系统也同样可以应用到那些相对富裕的地区，将有机废物转化为清洁的能源。
我是乔纳森·埃文斯。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
