英文科普阅读材料双语—宇宙4篇

个宇宙组成

predicts a multiverse made of up to 10 to the 500 universes.

那可是一个

1

后面跟着

500

个零啊！

That’s a one followed by 500 zeroes,

一个如此大的数字，在我们可观测的宇宙中，

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a number so vast that if every atom in our observable

universe

相当于每个原子里都有一个不同的宇宙，

had its own universe

并且所有这些宇宙中的每一个原子都还有

and all of the atoms in all of those universes

自己的宇宙，

each had their own universe,

你如此重复绕两遍，

and you repeated that for two more cycles,

你还是位于一个非常小的部分，在这整体上即是

you’d still be at a tiny fraction of the total —

一兆，兆，兆，兆，兆，兆，兆，兆 ，兆，兆，兆，兆，兆，

兆，兆里

namely, one trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion

trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillionth.

可即使是这样一个数字还是如此微小

But even that number is minuscule compared to

与另外一个数字相比

—

无限相比

another number: infinity.

有些物理学家认为，时空连续体（时间

+

空间的四维空间）

Some physicists think the space-time continuum

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就是无限，它包含了一个无限的

is literally infinite, and that it contains an infinite number

所谓的有着各种性质的

‘< /p>

口袋宇宙

’

of so-called pocket universes with varying properties.

你的脑袋被绕晕了吗？

How’s your brain doing?

不过量子力学还要来加一重笔，

But quantum theory adds a whole new wrinkle.

我的意思是，这个理论已经无可非议地被证实是正确的了，

I mean, the theory’s been proven true beyond all doubt,

但如何去理解这个理论却没这么简单

but interpreting it is baffling.

并且有些物理学家认为如果你想真正理解它，

And some physicists think you can only un-baffle it

你只能想象每一分钟都有

if you imagine that huge numbers of parallel universes

大量的平行宇宙诞生，

are being spawned every moment,

并且这些宇宙许多都与我们所在的这个世界十分相似，

and many of these universes would actually be very like the

world we’re in,

也许会包括着你的各种复制版本

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would include multiple copies of you.

在其中的一个宇宙，你会荣誉地毕业并且与你梦想的人结婚，

I

n one such universe, you’d graduate with honors and marry

the person of your dreams.

而在其它宇宙中，或许就没有如此幸运了

In another, not so much.

当然也有部分科学家会认为这是一派胡言

There are still some scientists who would say, hogwash.

他们认为关于有几个宇宙的唯一有意义的答案是，

The only meaningful answer to the question of how many

universes there are is one,

一个，只有一个宇宙

only one universe.

甚至一些哲学家和神秘主义者认为

And a few philosophers and mystics

我们的宇宙都可能只是一个幻象

might argue that even our own universe is an illusion.

所以，你可以看出来，

So, as you can see,

现在在这个问题上没有统一的答案，

right now there is no agreement on this question,

是的，还没有

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not even close.

我们知道的是，这个答案介于零与无限之间

All we know is, the answer is somewhere between zero and

infinity.

嗯，我想我们还知道另外一件事：

Well, I guess we know one other thing:

这是一个学习物理的好机会。

This is a pretty cool time to be studying physics.

我们大概正在面对着

We just might be undergoing

人类历史上最大的知识理论体系的变化。

the biggest paradigm shift in knowledge that humanity has

ever seen.

二、科学家在自然界中发现宇宙的第一个分子

How

Scientists

Found

the

Universe’s

First

Type

Molecule

Scientists have just detected the universe’s first molecule

科学家们刚刚探测到了宇宙中第一个分子

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of

using a telescope that we fly around the world on a plane,

借助我们环游世界的飞机上的一个望远镜

and that’s a real sentence.

这不是在开玩笑

Just let that sink in a little bit.

让我们消化一下

That’s the world we live in these days.

它就发生在我们生活的这个世界

The molecule in question is called helium hydride

我所说的这种分子被称作氢化氦

and the fact that we finally detected it in space

而且我们终于太空中探测到它的这一事实

confirms some of our theories about the behavior of the early

universe,

证实了我们有关早期宇宙行为的理论

and could help us understand more about

并且能够帮助我们更好地理解

how first stars and galaxies formed.

最早的恒星和星系是如何形成的

If we start at the literal beginning

如果从宇宙起源开始说

the universe was a small singularity,

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宇宙曾经是一个小小的奇点

a point of infinite temperature and density.

有着无穷大的温度和密度

Maybe one second after the big bang

大概在宇宙大爆炸后的一秒

which was something akin to an explosion but we can’t exactly

describe it as that

这个过程与普通爆炸类似

但不完全一样

we’ve got a flaming hot soup of particl

es

我们得到了一碗燃烧的

“

粒子热汤

”

about five and half BILLION degrees celsius, to be precise.

确切来说是温度约

55

亿摄氏度的

“

汤

”

A couple minutes in,

几分钟内

the universe is mostly helium

宇宙中几乎充满了氦

but everything is ionized

但是它们都是电离态的

because there are too many high-

energy photons, they’r

e flying

around

这是因为有太多飞来飞去的高能光子

immediately knocking off any electrons that may want to bind to

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the nuclei

迅速地撞击任何可能与各种元素的原子核结合的电子

of different elements to make them neutral.

阻止它们变为中性

But things have calmed down since then.

此后

万物开始平静下来

In the almost 14 billion years since the Big Bang,

在大爆炸后的近

140

亿年里

the universe has cooled and expanded,

宇宙持续冷却且不断膨胀

and as far as we know, will continue to do so.

据我们所知

这种情况会一直持续下去

About 380,000 years in,

大约经过了

38

万年

give or take a few

—

everything cooled and slowed down enough

或者更久

当所有事物足够冷却和缓慢时

that electrons were able to stably bind to a helium nucleus

电子就能够与氦核结合

and Ta-da we have the first stable atom.

这样

就形成了第一个稳定的原子

So we have stable helium

所以我们有了一个稳定的氦原子

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and a bunch of unstable H+,

和一堆不稳定的氢离子

the ionized form of hydrogen th

at hasn’t gained its electron yet,

氢离子就是失去了电子的氢

and it’s looking for a friend to share an electron with

它在寻找一个可以共享电子的伙伴

And would you lookee there, it’s helium with two electrons

你看

这是带两个电子的氦原子

and hydrogen thinks it just might want one!

而氢离子正好想要一个电子

So, the two get together

于是

两者结合在一起

to form the universe’s very first molecule: helium hydride

就变成了宇宙中第一个的分子：氢化氦

This is where the chemistry stops just being fun to think about on

the atomic level.

自此

化学研究不再仅仅满足于原子层面

It has galactic, nay, UNIVERSAL consequences.

它带来了银河级

不

宇宙级的影响

As things continue to cool down,

随着万物温度持续降低

neutral hydrogen atoms become common

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中性的氢原子变得常见

because their electron can finally stay attached

因为它们的电子总能找到附着的地方

And energetically speaking, it’s now more efficient

同时

从能量的角度来说

对氢原子来说

for hydrogen to form molecules with itself, forming H2

与自身结合

形成氢气分子的效率更高

than it is to glom on to helium to form helium hydride.

而不是与氦原子结合成氢化氦

That means helium hydride starts to disappear,

这意味着氢化氦会开始消失

giving way to high amounts of molecular hydrogen.

释放出大量的氢气分子

which is, arguably, the beginning of our modern universe

这可能是我们现代宇宙的开端

—

being a fundamental component of things like H2O,

氢气分子像水成为一种基本的成分

vital for being like us, of course.

当然

这对人类等生物至关重要

For astronomers,

对天文学家而言

helium hydride is an essential in- between step from the

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beginning to the now.

氢化氦的形成是一个连接宇宙起源与现在的必要步骤

It’s also thought that the formation and then breakdown of this

molecule

同时

人们认为

氢化氦的形成与分解

could have been one of the main mechanisms

可能是宇宙最初

through which all the hot gases of the universe

通过内部热气体冷却到一定程度

cool down enough to form stars in the first place.

而形成恒星的主要机制之一

And while scientists first started studying

早在

1925

年< /p>

科学家就开始

the creation of helium hydride in the lab, back in 1925,

在实验室里研究氢化氦的合成

astronomers have not been able to find traces of it in space until

now.

但直到现在

宇航员才在太空中找到它的踪迹

This latest news is the first time helium hydride

这条新闻是氢化氦首次

has been detected in its natural environment.

在自然环境中被探测到

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Researchers used the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared

Astronomy

研究人员使用了平流层红外天文观测台

or SOFIA, which is basically a high- altitude plane

名为

“

索菲亚

”

它主要是一架高空飞机

carrying a bunch of exciting equipment that helps us look at

space.

搭载着许多厉害的设备

帮助我们观察太空

SOFIA carries one particular instrument called

“

索菲亚

”

载有一个特殊设备

the German Receiver for Astronomy at Terahertz frequencies,

名为德国太赫兹频率太空接收器

or GREAT for short

或简称为

GREAT

which researchers pointed at white-hot dying stars.

研究人员用它瞄准了快要消亡的白热恒星

And dingdingding, there it is,

看

这就是

helium hydride hanging out in planetary nebula NGC 7027.

附着在行星状星云

NGC 7027

上的氢化氦

It’s importa

nt to point out that

需要指出的是

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that the helium hydride being proclaimed in the headlines

标题中提到的氢化氦

is not actually the exact same molecule from the beginning of our

universe.

实际上与宇宙起源之初形成的那个并不相同

I mean, yes, they’re both helium hydride,

我是说

没错

它们都是氢化氦

but it’

s not the same helium hydride molecule

但其分子结构是不一样的

—

all of those first helium hydride molecules

所有在宇宙起源之时形成的

made at the beginning of the universe

最初的氢化氦

have long since been broken apart

早都已经被分解了

and these are ones that exist

而现存的这些氢化氦

because these star environments are

是因为这些恒星周围的环境温度

hot enough to inoinize hydrogen

高到足够电离氢原子

and make it possible for helium hydride to exist again.

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