今天我们的生活越来越离不开网络。互联网能发展到今天，海底电缆功不可没。正是它们把各大洲的网络连起来，才有了这张连通全球的互联网。
The cables that give us the internet
by Rob Verger
It's easy to forget that the internet isn't magic, and that it relies on very physical infrastructure to work.
rely /rɪˈlaɪ/ on 依靠
physical /ˈfɪzɪk(ə)l/ adj. 客观存在的
infrastructure /ˈɪnfrəˌstrʌktʃə(r)/ n. 基础设施
Hundreds of thousands of miles of undersea internet cables snake under the world's oceans, crossing the Atlantic, Pacific, and along the coast of South America. These insulated, garden hose-like lines carry the bulk of the world's international data traffic. Send an email overseas, and the information is likely traveling through a fiber optic cable.
mile /maɪl/ n. 英里（=1.6公里）
undersea /ˌʌndəˈsiː/ adj. 海面之下的、海底的（由under和sea组成）
cable /ˈkeɪb(ə)l/ n. 电缆、线缆
snake /sneɪk/ v. 蛇行、蜿蜒前行
insulate /ˈɪnsjuleɪt/ v. 使绝缘
hose /həʊz/ n. （塑料或橡胶的）软质水管
the bulk of something 某事物的大部分
data /ˈdeɪtə/ n. 数据
overseas /ˌəʊvəˈsiːz/ adv. 海外地、国外地
fiber /ˈfaɪbə(r)/ n. 纤维（fiber optic /ˈɒptɪk/ 意思是“光纤的”）
These hundreds of cables have to come on land eventually – that's not only how they connect networks, but it's how they receive the electricity they need to keep the data flowing. There are landing points all over the world, in places like Spain, India, and, yes, Guam.
eventually /ɪˈventʃuəli/ adv. 最终
connect /kəˈnekt/ v. 连接
network /ˈnetwɜːk/ n. 网络
land /lænd/ v. 着陆、登岸
Spain /speɪn/ n. 西班牙
India /ˈɪndiə/ n. 印度
Guam /ɡwɑːm/ n. 关岛
Guam – the Pacific island about 2,600 kilometers from Japan – is a key landing spot for cables crossing the biggest ocean in the world. And now the island is getting four new cables, and a new, storm-resistant facility to manage them.
key /kiː/ adj. 关键的
resistant /rɪˈzɪst(ə)nt/ adj. 抵抗的、抗拒的（由resist加后缀-ant变成形容词；storm-resistant就是抗暴风雨的）
facility /fəˈsɪləti/ n. 设施
The steel-reinforced concrete building designed to withstand the forces of typhoons（台风）, earthquakes and tsunamis（海啸） will come online in Piti, Guam, next year. The architectural protector of the cables will hold up against 275-kph wind gusts that last three seconds, or sustained winds of 250 kph.
steel /stiːl/ n. 钢
reinforce /ˌriːɪnˈfɔːs/ v. 强化、加固
concrete /ˈkɒŋkriːt/ n. 混凝土
withstand /wɪðˈstænd/ v. 承受
force /fɔːs/ n. 力量
earthquake /ˈɜːθkweɪk/ n. 地震
architectural /ˌɑːkɪˈtektʃ(ə)r(ə)l/ adj. 建筑的（由architecture加后缀-al变成形容词）
protector /prəˈtektə(r)/ n. 保护物（由protect加上表示人或物的后缀-or）
hold up 承受得住
kph = kilometers per hour 公里/小时
gust /ɡʌst/ n. 阵风、一阵狂风
sustain /səˈsteɪn/ v. 持续
If all goes according to engineers' plans, the facility's metal doors could survive a 1.2-meter-long board winging at them at 275 kilometers per hour, and the electronics and generators will be elevated high enough off the ground that they shouldn't flood even in a big storm. That's crucial, because the structure will power the repeaters, or "optical（光学的） pumps" that the cables need to boost the laser signal as it travels through the fiber, losing energy over distance.
survive /səˈvaɪv/ v. 幸存下来
wing /wɪŋ/ v. 飞行
electronics /ˌelekˈtrɒnɪks/ n. 电子器件
generator /ˈdʒen(ə)reɪtə(r)/ n. 发电机
elevate /ˈelɪveɪt/ v. 升高、抬高
crucial /ˈkruːʃ(ə)l/ adj. 至关重要的
structure /ˈstrʌktʃə(r)/ n. 结构体、建筑物
power /paʊə(r)/ v. 提供能量
repeater /rɪˈpiːtə(r)/ n. 转发器
or /ɔː(r)/ conj. 也就是
boost /buːst/ v. 增加、增强
laser /ˈleɪzə(r)/ n. 激光
signal /ˈsɪɡn(ə)l/ n. 信号
So why Guam? Multiple subsea cables – like the one that stretches from California to Hawaii to Micronesia to Indonesia – already land in Piti, on the west coast of the island. Much of the traffic that arrives on Guam through these cables then transits to other cables, meaning that Guam functions as a hub, like a highway interchange（立交桥） in the Pacific. And of course people who live on Guam can use the web thanks to cables like these.
multiple /ˈmʌltɪp(ə)l/ adj. 多个的、很多的
subsea /sʌbˈsiː/ adj. 海面之下的、海底的（由sea加上表示低于的前缀sub-）
stretch /stretʃ/ v. 延伸
California /ˌkælɪˈfɔːniə/ n. 加利福尼亚州（美国西部的州）
Hawaii /həˈwaɪiː/ n. 夏威夷
Micronesia /ˌmaɪkrəˈniːziə/ n. 密克罗尼西亚（西太平洋的岛国）
Indonesia /ˌɪndəˈniːʒə/ n. 印度尼西亚（东南亚国家）
transit /ˈtrænzɪt/ v. 穿过、穿行
function /ˈfʌŋkʃ(ə)n/ v. 起作用
hub /hʌb/ n. 中枢、枢纽
highway /ˈhaɪweɪ/ n. 干线公路、高速公路
The cables that will come into this building will further connect Guam with places like Hong Kong and Los Angeles (a new one between the U.S. and Guam is called SxS and will span more than 9,600 kilometers). It will also be a landing point for new submarine data cables that will connect between Guam and Japan, Hong Kong, Australia, and the U.S.
Los /lɒs/ Angeles /ˈændʒəliːz/ 洛杉矶（美国西部城市）
span /spæn/ v. 跨越
submarine /ˌsʌbməˈriːn/ adj. 海面之下的、海底的
（如果您发现某些行的最后一个单词被分成两半了，请把您使用的浏览器升级到最新版本就能正常显示了。）
网友评论