三伏天是一年中最热的时候，人们常常开玩笑说“命是空调给的”。在英国，热浪严重影响了火车的运行，而且因为温度太高，很多火车的空调都坏了。
It's too hot for air conditioning
by Sarah Knapton
For evening commuters crushed into overcrowded train carriages en route to London's Waterloo station, the announcement was arguably the final straw. "We're sorry that the air conditioning on this train is not working. This is due to the heat."
commuter /kəˈmjuːtə(r)/ n. （较远距离）上下班往返的人
crush /krʌʃ/ v. 挤入、塞进
overcrowded /ˌəʊvəˈkraʊdɪd/ adj. 过度拥挤的（由crowded加上表示过度的前缀over-）
carriage /ˈkærɪdʒ/ n. （火车）车厢
en route /ˌɒnˈruːt/ 在…的路上
announcement /əˈnaʊnsmənt/ n. 通告（由announce加后缀-ment变成名词）
arguably /ˈɑːɡjuəbli/ adv. 可论证地、可以说
straw /strɔː/ n. 稻草
air conditioning 空调系统
As Britain recorded its hottest ever July day, with temperatures soaring above 38°C for only the second time since records began, the rail network descended into chaos with train companies cancelling hundreds of services and travellers forced to endure sweltering conditions as air conditioning units failed.
record /rɪˈkɔːd/ v. 记录、记载
soar /sɔː(r)/ v. 快速升高
record /ˈrekɔːd/ n. 记录、纪录（注意它做名词和做动词时发音不同）
network /ˈnetwɜːk/ n. 网络
descend /dɪˈsend/ v. 下降（这里指变差）
chaos /ˈkeɪɒs/ n. 混乱
service /ˈsɜːvɪs/ n. （长途汽车、火车等）车次
force /fɔːs/ v. 迫使
endure /ɪnˈdʒʊə(r)/ v. 遭受、忍受
swelter /ˈsweltə(r)/ v. 热得难受
condition /kənˈdɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 情况、状态
fail /feɪl/ v. 出故障、坏了
London North Eastern Railway cancelled dozens of services between London and the North, while Southeastern and Southern imposed restricted timetables, which cut journeys by one quarter and significantly reduced speeds amid fears that tracks would buckle（弯曲变形） in the extreme heat.
impose /ɪmˈpəʊz/ v. 强行实施
restricted /rɪˈstrɪktɪd/ adj. 受限制的
timetable /ˈtaɪmˌteɪb(ə)l/ n. 时刻表（由time和table组成）
cut /kʌt/ v. 削减、减少
significantly /sɪɡˈnɪfɪk(ə)ntli/ adv. 显著地（由significant加后缀-ly变成副词）
amid /əˈmɪd/ prep. 在…当中
track /træk/ n. 铁道、铁轨
extreme /ɪkˈstriːm/ adj. 极端的、极度的
Commuter trains from London to Luton were also cancelled after train wires overheated, while passengers who did travel were left sweltering in carriages with sealed windows and broken air conditioning units.
wire /waɪə(r)/ n. 电线
overheat /ˌəʊvəˈhiːt/ v. 过热、使过热（由heat加上表示过度的前缀over-）
seal /siːl/ v. 封闭、密封
South Western Railway admitted its air conditioning units 'sometimes struggle' in very high temperatures, while Southeastern said it only had cooling systems on fewer than half of trains. And a spokesman for Chiltern Railways said: "We are working as hard as we can to ensure that all our trains have working air cooling systems. In particularly hot conditions like today, it can become less effective."
struggle /ˈstrʌɡ(ə)l/ v. 吃力地做某事
cool /kuːl/ v. 冷却、使凉爽
spokesman /ˈspəʊksmən/ n. 发言人
ensure /ɪnˈʃʊə(r)/ v. 确保
effective /ɪˈfektɪv/ adj. 有效果的（由effect加后缀-ive变成形容词）
Nick King, network services director at Network Rail, said Britain's rail network was not engineered to cope with temperatures as high as 38°C. When asked why Nairobi and Mumbai could run trains effectively at temperatures of up to 50°C but Britain could not, Mr King said: "We set our railway around a norm UK temperature of 27°C, so we stress our tracks to deal with movement in that range band."
engineer /ˌendʒɪˈnɪə(r)/ v. 设计制造
cope /kəʊp/ v. 成功应付
Nairobi /naɪˈrəʊbi/ n. 内罗毕（非洲国家肯尼亚的首都）
Mumbai /mʌmˈbaɪ/ n. 孟买（印度城市）
effectively /ɪˈfektɪvli/ adv. 有效地（由effective加后缀-ly变成副词）
norm /nɔːm/ n. 常态
stress /stres/ v. 施加压力、使受压
deal with 处理、应对
movement /ˈmuːvmənt/ n. 移动（由move加后缀-ment变成名词）
band /bænd/ n. 数字范围、取值范围
Engineering experts said that Britain could return to its old system of leaving spaces between lengths of rail track, which would allow the steel to expand in the heat, and not crack in the cold. Between the 1930s and 1950s, lengths of track were welded（焊接） together to make the journey smoother, and to avoid the traditional 'clickety-clack' noise of trains.
length /leŋθ/ n. 细长的一段
steel /stiːl/ n. 钢
expand /ɪkˈspænd/ v. 增大、膨胀
crack /kræk/ v. 开裂
Professor Roger Kemp at Lancaster University said: "The easy solution would be to divide the rails into sections and install them with gaps between them – as was done in the early 20th century. When the temperature increases, the gaps close up without an increase in rail stresses."
divide /dɪˈvaɪd/ v. 分割、分开
increase /ɪnˈkriːs/ v. 增加、升高
increase /ˈɪnkriːs/ n. 增加、升高（注意它做名词和做动词时发音不同）
stress /stres/ n. 压力
The scorching（炎热的） temperatures gripping the UK and much of Europe come against a backdrop（背景） of global warming of 1°C since the Industrial Revolution driven by greenhouse gas emissions.
grip /ɡrɪp/ v. 紧紧抓住
global /ˈɡləʊb(ə)l/ adj. 全球的、全世界的
warm /wɔːm/ v. 变暖
industrial /ɪnˈdʌstriəl/ adj. 工业的（由industry加后缀-al变成形容词）
revolution /ˌrevəˈluːʃ(ə)n/ n. 革命
drive /draɪv/ v. 驱使、推动
greenhouse /ˈɡriːnhaʊs/ n. 温室（由green和house组成）
emission /ɪˈmɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 排放
Richard Allan, Professor of Climate Science at University of Reading, said: "Heatwaves such as this one are becoming more intense due to the warming effect of our emissions of greenhouse gases. Global warming did not cause this heatwave but it certainly made it worse."
heatwave /ˈhiːtˌweɪv/ n. 热浪（由heat和wave组成）
intense /ɪnˈtens/ adj. 强烈的、剧烈的
cause /kɔːz/ v. 造成
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