纪录片《为何无法预测地震》 第4期:地震的规律

This is Parkfield,

这里是帕克菲尔德

a tiny hamlet in the middle of California.

加州中部的一个小村落

Few people ever come here, and even fewer stay.

人迹罕至 居民更是少之又少

But this village lies on

但是这座村庄位于

top of the infamous¹ San Andreas Fault,

恶名昭著的圣安地列斯断层的顶部

and once looked like it held the key

而且曾一时被认为是

to understanding earthquakes.

了解地震的关键地

It all began when a team of geologists² led by John Langbein

故事要从一队由约翰·朗拜领导的地质学家

noticed something unusual about little Parkfield.

发现帕克菲尔德的一些反常现象说起

It was, er, in the '70s and early '80s it was recognised

上世纪70到80年代初 人们发现

that there was a sequence of magnitude six earthquakes

连续数次的六级地震

that repeated the same stretch of the San Andreas Fault

反复发生在圣安地列斯断层带同一段断层上

every 20-odd years

每次地震间隔20多年

and it didn't take too much imagination to extrapolate and say

所以不用多想就能推断说

the next one ought to be in the late '80s.

下一次地震应该会发生在80年代后期

The village had always suffered from earthquakes,

帕克菲尔德一直饱受地震侵袭

but these quakes followed a very distinct pattern.

而这些地震遵循一条非常独特的规律

Langbein's team decided³ to use Parkfield

朗拜的团队决定利用帕克菲尔德

for a bold and unprecedented⁴ experiment.

进行一次大胆而空前的实验

To see what happened to the ground

来研究地震发生前

before an earthquake struck.

地面的变化

Estimating that the quake would occur

由于估计地震会在

between 1987 and 1993,

1987到1993年间发生

scores of geologists descended⁵ onto Parkfield.

大量地质学家涌入帕克菲尔德

1 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

2 geologists   

地质学家，地质学者( geologist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Geologists uncovered the hidden riches. 地质学家发现了地下的宝藏。
• Geologists study the structure of the rocks. 地质学家研究岩石结构。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

5 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。