---
url: https://gaojian.site/new-concept/book-4/40-waves.md
description: 新概念英语第四册：Waves。精读、词块回忆、双向译练、句法、逻辑与FSRS复习。
---

# 40 · 海浪

### 第1段

Waves are the children of the struggle between ocean and atmosphere, the ongoing signatures of infinity. Rays from the sun excite and energize the atmosphere of the earth, awakening it to flow, to movement, to rhythm, to life. The wind then speaks the message of the sun to the sea and the sea transmits it on through waves—an ancient, exquisite, powerful message.
These ocean waves are among the earth's most complicated natural phenomena. The basic features include a crest the highest point of the wave, a trough the lowest point, a height the vertical distance from the trough to the crest, a wave length the horizontal distance between two wave crests, and a period which is the time it takes a wave crest to travel one wave length.
Although an ocean wave gives the impression of a wall of water moving in your direction, in actuality waves move through the water leaving the water about where it was. If the water was moving with the wave, the ocean and everything on it would
be racing in to the shore with obviously catastrophic results.
An ocean wave passing through deep water causes a particle on the surface to move in a roughly circular orbit, drawing the particle first towards the advancing wave, then up into the wave, then forward with it and then—as the wave leaves the particles behind—back to its starting point again.
From both maturity to death, a wave is subject to the same laws as any other "living" thing. For a time it assumes a miraculous individuality that, in the end, is reabsorbed into the great ocean of life.
The undulating waves of the open sea are generated by three natural causes: wind, earth movements or tremors, and the gravitational pull of the moon and the sun. Once waves have been generated, gravity is the force that drives them in a continual attempt to restore the ocean surface to a flat plain.

中文理解：海浪，是海洋与大气相互搏击的产物，是无穷无尽的世界不断留下的印记。阳光激发地球的大气，赋予它能量，使它开始流动，有了节奏，也有了生命。风再把太阳的讯息带给海洋，海洋则通过波浪继续传递这古老、精妙而有力的讯息。
海浪是地球上最复杂的自然现象之一。它的基本特征包括：波峰，即波浪的最高点；波谷，即最低点；波高，即从波谷到波峰的垂直距离；波长，即相邻两个波峰之间的水平距离；以及周期，即一个波峰前进一个波长所需的时间。
海浪看起来像一堵朝你移来的水墙，但实际上，是波浪穿过水体，而水大体仍留在原处。
如果水也跟着波浪一起移动，那么海洋和海面上的一切都会不断涌向岸边，后果显然将是灾难性的。
海浪经过深水区时，会使水面上的一个水质点沿大致圆形的轨道运动：先朝着迎面而来的波浪移动，再升入浪中，随后随浪向前；当波浪继续前进、把水质点留在身后时，水质点又回到出发的位置。
从成熟到消亡，波浪与其他任何“有生命”的东西一样，遵循相同的规律。它会在一段时间里显出奇妙的个体性，最终却又融回生命的大海。
远洋中起伏的波浪，来自三个自然因素：风、地球运动或震动，以及月球和太阳的引力。波浪一旦形成，重力便不断驱动它们，力图让海面重新恢复平坦。

* **the struggle between**：……之间的相互作用；undefined

* **energize the atmosphere**：为大气赋予能量；文中是能量传递，也可比喻使人振奋。

* **transmits it on**：把它继续传递；transmit可用于信号或能量，it的指代要明确。

* **natural phenomena**：自然现象；phenomenon单数，phenomena复数。

* **basic features**：基本特征；undefined

* **vertical distance**：垂直距离；比较波高时方向是垂直，不是沿波面量。

* **horizontal distance**：水平距离；undefined

* **gives the impression**：给人以印象；印象可能与机制不同，本课正要区分。

* **in actuality**：实际上；用来纠正表象，不是给无依据判断加力度。

* **catastrophic results**：灾难性后果；undefined

* **a particle on the surface**：表面上的质点；undefined

* **a roughly circular orbit**：近似圆形轨道；roughly限定近似，不是精确圆形。

* **advancing wave**：迎面推进的波；undefined

* **leaves the particles behind**：把质点留在后面；注意不是粒子被永远抛弃，而是说明波与粒子运动不同。

* **starting point**：起点；说明回到原位，与波已前进形成对照。

* **is subject to**：受……支配；to是介词，区别于subject某人to某事的使承受。

* **For a time**：在一段时间里；undefined

* **gravitational pull**：引力作用；of引出引力来源，pull不一定是人的拉扯。

* **in a continual attempt**：不断试图；undefined

* **restore the ocean surface**：使海面恢复；to表示恢复后的状态，不是把物品交给谁的所有情况。

#### Waves are the children of the struggle between ocean and atmosphere, the ongoing signatures of infinity.

主系表结构，逗号后面为主语的补充说明，所以翻译的时候把主语放到了后面.

#### Rays from the sun excite and energize the atmosphere of the earth, awakening it to flow, to movement, to rhythm, to life.

主谓宾结构，后面跟伴随状语. awakening it 中的 it 指 the atmosphere，其实可以将这个伴随状语里面 to 所连的名词词组理解成宾补.

#### The wind then speaks the message of the sun to the sea and the sea transmits it on through waves—an ancient, exquisite, powerful message.

主谓宾结构，后面同位语作补充说明该信息如何. 这句话改自 Drew Kampion，原文为：The wind speaks the message of the sun to the sea and the sea transmits it on through waves. The wave is the messenger, water the medium. 后半句是省略句，连接词 and 和系动词均予以省略.

#### These ocean waves are among the earth's most complicated natural phenomena.

主系表结构，among 和 one of 后面的名词都应用复数，都是夹在很多之中，用单数就有语法错误了.

#### The basic features include a crest the highest point of the wave, a trough the lowest point, a height the vertical distance from the trough to the crest, a wave length the horizontal distance between two wave crests, and a period which is the time it takes a wave crest to travel one wave length.

主谓宾结构，四个名词所附带的括号都是原文本身用作解释说明的.

which is the time it takes a wave crest to travel one wave length 句中，it takes…length 的括号没有斜体，表定语从句.

该段翻译完全是自作主张，对于学科英语，一定要遵循术语翻译，不要自我创造.

附中国科普博览网站《从麦浪说起》（节选）

微风吹来，麦穗摆动，此起彼伏，形成阵阵麦浪，滚动着向前传播。这种摆动，在物理学上叫横波，它的特点是，波动起伏与波浪的传播方向垂直。

波浪有大有小，那么用什么标准来衡量波浪的大小呢?下面用一个规则的波面，引出关于波浪的一些专用名词，它们都是用来衡量波浪大小的，叫做波浪要素。

波面的最高点叫波峰；波面的最低点叫波谷；相邻的波峰和波谷之间的垂直距离叫做波高，波高的单位是米。

相邻的两个波峰或者两个波谷间的水平距离是波长，波长的单位也是米。

波浪起伏一次需要的时间叫波周期。周期是连续两个波峰通过一个固定点所历经的时间间隔，单位是秒。

#### Although an ocean wave gives the impression of a wall of water moving in your direction, in actuality waves move through the water leaving the water about where it was.

复合句，主句为主谓结构，前面是让步状语从句. 主句 leaving…was 为伴随状语，该状语中，where 引导的宾语从句作为介词 about 的宾语.

#### If the water was moving with the wave, the ocean and everything on it would

be racing in to the shore with obviously catastrophic results.

复合句，主句为主谓宾结构，前面是条件状语从句.

主句谓语动词部分为 race to 词组，加上情态动词 would be，和表 race 的方向的介词 in 一起构成谓语.

#### An ocean wave passing through deep water causes a particle on the surface to move in a roughly circular orbit, drawing the particle first towards the advancing wave, then up into the wave, then forward with it and then—as the wave leaves the particles behind—back to its starting point again.

复合句，主句为主谓宾+宾补结构，破折号中间插入了时间状语从句.

此句描述了海浪的运动情况，表达得其实也不是很清楚，不过可以专门阅读有关描述海浪运动的文献予以进一步理解. 这里引入了水质点的概念，water particle. 质点即将物体简化后得到的只有质量而不计大小、形状的一个几何点，是讨论物体运动时一种理想化的模型. 右图我加了注释，比较便于了解1. how to draw the particle towards the wave, and 2. how the wave could leave the particles behind. 把水质点翻译成小颗粒或者微粒的情况，会让人贻笑大方，不知所云.

#### From both maturity to death, a wave is subject to the same laws as any other "living" thing.

简单句，主谓宾结构. be subject to 的用法可以参考词典加以了解，这个在生活中经常用到，可以表达受到什么的影响，或者需要遵守什么.

#### For a time it assumes a miraculous individuality that, in the end, is reabsorbed into the great ocean of life.

复合句，主谓宾结构，带一个 that 引导的定语从句.

#### The undulating waves of the open sea are generated by three natural causes: wind, earth movements or tremors, and the gravitational pull of the moon and the sun.

简单句，主谓宾结构，后面是 causes 因素的同位语.

open sea 是开阔的海，自然概念，可译作远洋，而公海是法律上的概念，公海公约 （Convention on the High Seas）中对公海的定义为“all parts of the sea that are not included in the territorial sea or in the internal waters of a State.（不属领海或一国内水域之海洋所有各部分）”. 而 tremor 是学术名词震颤，不能译为震动等.

#### Once waves have been generated, gravity is the force that drives them in a continual attempt to restore the ocean surface to a flat plain.

复合句，主句是主系表结构，后面有 that 引导的定语从句，而最前面是 once 引导的条件状语从句.

#### 原稿资料出处

\[1] 中国科普博览网，从麦浪说起 http://www.kepu.net.cn/gb/earth/ocean/abc/abc20201.html

## 学完这一课

保留一个主动作，用平行短语增强节奏，但别改变事实关系。

[Nce · 本册复习台](/new-concept/book-4/review) · [三册选择地图](/new-concept/)

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