1998年考研真题英语二(204)阅读理解翻译

1 第一篇阅读理解

1.1 原文:

  Few creations of big technology capture(vt.赢得;激起 n.捕获) the imagination like giant(adj.巨大的) dams(n.水坝 vt.建坝).Perhaps it is humankind’s long suffering at the mercy of(任由某⼈、某事物摆布或控制) flood(n.洪水) and drought(n.干旱) that makes the idea of forcing the waters to do our bidding so fascinating.But to be fascinated is also, sometimes, to be blind. Several giant dam projects threaten to do more harm than good.
  The lesson(n.课程;经验;教训) from dams is that big is not always beautiful.It(代指前面那句话) doesn’t help that building a big,powerful dam has become a symbol(n.符号;象征) of achievement for nations and people striving(v.努力;奋斗 n.努力;奋斗) to assert(v.断言;坚持自己的主张) themselves(assert oneself 坚持主张).Egypt’s(埃及) leadership in the Arab world was cemented(n.水泥;胶合剂 vt.加强;巩固) by the Aswan High Dam.Turkey’s bid(v.投标;努力 n.投标;努力) for First World status includes the giant Ataturk Dam.
  But big dams tend not to work as intended.The Aswan Dam, for example, stopped the Nile flooding(尼罗河) but deprived(v.剥夺;使丧失) Egypt of the fertile(adj.肥沃的) silt(n.泥沙) that floods left – all in return for a giant reservoir(n.水库) of disease which is now so full of silt that it barely(adv.几乎不) generates electricity(发电).
  And yet, the myth(n.神话;神话故事) of controlling the waters persists(v.坚持;持续存在).This week, in the heart of civilized Europe,Slovaks(n.斯洛文尼亚) and Hungarians(n.匈牙利) stopped just short of(stopped just short of 差一点就) sending in the troops(n.军队 v.成群结队;集群) in their contention(n.争夺 content vt.满足;adj.满意) over a dam on the Danube.The huge complex(adj.复杂的 n.建筑物) will probably have all the usual problems of big dams. But Slovakia is bidding for independence(n.独立) from the Czechs(n.捷克), and now needs a dam to prove(vt.证明;证实) itself.
  Meanwhile, in India, the World Bank has given the go-ahead(n.批准;许可) to the even more wrong-headed(adj.执迷不悟的 问题头,所以意思是:执迷不悟的) Narmada Dam.And the bank has done this even though(尽管) its advisors(n.顾问;提供意见者) say the dam will cause hardship for the powerless and environmental destruction(n.破坏).The benefits are for the powerful, but they are far from(远离) guaranteed(guarantee n.保证;保障 v.保证;保障).
  Proper(adj.恰当的 adv.彻底的), scientific study of the impacts(n.影响) of dams and of the cost and benefits of controlling water can help to resolve these conflicts.Hydroelectric power(水力发电) and flood control and irrigation(n.灌溉;水利) are possible without building monster(adj.巨大的) dams.But when you are dealing with(应对;处理) myths, it is hard to be either proper, or scientific.It is time that(该是…的时候了) the world learned the lessons of Aswan. You don’t need a dam to be saved.

1.2 译文:

  在重⼤技术所创造的东⻄中很少能有像⼤型⽔坝这样激起⼈们想象⼒的。可能正是因为⼈类⻓期以来遭受旱涝灾害的摆布才使得⼈们如此痴迷于治理江河、供我驱策的理想。但让⼈着迷有时也就使⼈盲
⽬。有⼏个巨型⼤坝项⽬就有弊⼤于利的危险
  建造⼤坝的教训是：⼤的未必总是美的。但这个教训也⽆法阻⽌修建⾼⼤雄伟的⼤坝已成为那些寻求证明⾃我的国家和⼈⺠的伟⼤成就的象征。埃及由于建造了阿斯旺⼤坝⽽巩固了在阿拉伯世界的领导地位。⼟⽿其⼒图跻身第⼀世界的努⼒中也包括修建阿塔特克⼤坝
  但是⼤坝往往不会按照预期来运作。以阿斯旺⼤坝为例,它阻⽌了尼罗河洪⽔泛滥,但也使埃及失去了洪⽔冲击过后留下的肥沃⼟壤,换回来的却是⼀个问题不断的⼤型⽔库,现在这个⽔库积满了淤泥,⼏乎不能发电了。
  不过,控制⽔的神话还在继续。本周，在⽂明的欧洲腹地，斯洛伐克⼈和匈⽛利⼈就因争夺多瑙河上的⼀处⽔坝⽽争执不休，差点动⽤了军队。这个⼤型⼯程可能会出现⼤坝的所有常⻅问题。但斯洛伐克正在寻求脱离捷克⽽独立,现在他们需要建⼀个⼤坝来证明⾃⼰的实⼒
  对于⽔坝的影响作⽤%⽔坝控制⽔流的成本和收益进⾏恰当⽽科学的研究有助于解决这些冲突。即使不建⼤型⽔坝,进⾏⽔⼒发电,治理洪⽔以及引⽔灌溉也是可能的。但当你相信神话时就很难做到合理或科学,现在是世界吸取阿斯旺⼤坝教训的时候了,⼈们未必⾮要通过修建⼤坝来拯救⾃⼰

2 第二篇阅读理解

2.1 原文

  Well, no gain without pain(不劳无获), they say. But what about pain without gain? Everywhere you go inAmerica, you hear tales(n.讲述;描述) of corporate(n.合伙公司 adj.公司的) revival(n.复兴;振兴).What is harder to establish(vt.建立;确立;确定) is whether the productivity(n.生存力;生产率) revolution(n.革命) that businessmen assume(v.假定;认为;装出) they are presiding over(preside over 掌管或领导某事物) is for real.
  The official statistics are mildly(adv.轻微地;温和地;和善地;委婉地) discouraging(adj.令人沮丧的). They show that, if you lump(lump…together 把…合在一起考虑) manufacturing(n.制造业) and services together, productivity has grown on average by 1.2% since 1987.That is somewhat(adv.稍微) faster than the average during the previous decade(n.十年). And since 1991, productivity has increased by about 2% a year which is more than twice the 1978-87 average.The trouble is that part of the recent acceleration is due to the usual rebound(vi.反弹 n.反弹;复兴) that occurs(vi.发生) at this point in a business cycle(n.自行车;周期), and so is not conclusive(adj.决定性的;令人信服的) evidence of a revival in the underlying(adj.潜在的) trend(n.趋势;走向 vi.趋势).There is, as Robert Rubin, the treasury secretary(财政部长), says, a “disjunction” between the mass of(mass of 大量) business anecdote(n.传闻;轶事) that points to a leap(n.跳跃;激增 v.跳跃;激增) in productivity and the picture(n.图片;状况 vt.描述;用图片表示) reflected by the statistics.
  Some of this can be easily explained. New ways of organizing the workplace – all that re-engineering(重建;重新规划;再设计 engineering n.工程;工程学) and downsizing(v.(公司)裁员;减小规模) – are only one contribution to the overall(adj.总体的;全面的) productivity of an economy,which is driven by many other factors(n.因素 v.因式分解) such as joint(adj.联合的 n.接点) investment in equipment(n.设备) and machinery, new technology, and investment in education and training.
Moreover(adv.此外), most of the changes that companies make are intended to keep them profitable(adj.有利可图的 profit n.利益 v.获益), and this need not always mean increasing productivity:switching to new markets or improving quality can matter just as much(matter just as much 具有同等重要性).
  Two other explanations are more speculative(adj.猜想的;推测的). First, some of the business restructuring(n.重组 v.重组;重建) of recent years may have been ineptly(adv.无能地;不适当地) done.
Second, even if it was well done, it may have spread much less widely(spread widely 广泛传播) than people suppose(n.认为;料想).
  Leonard Schlesinger, a Harvard academic(adj.学术的;学业的 n.高等院校教师) and former(adj.以前的) chief executive(chief executive 首席执行官, chief n.最高领导人 adj.主要的) of Au Bong Pain, a rapidly(adv.迅速) growing chain(n.链子 vt.用铁链固定) of bakery(n. 面包) cafes, says that much “re-engineering” has been crude(n.原油;石油 adj.粗糙的).In many cases, he believes, the loss of revenue(n.收入;收益) has been greater than the reductions in cost. His colleague, Michael Beer, says that far too many companies have applied re-engineering in a mechanistic fashion(in a … fashion 以…的方式), chopping(chop n.砍;切碎 v.砍;切碎) out costs without giving sufficient(n.足量 adj.足够的;充足对的) thought to long-term profitability(n.获利).BBDO’s Al Rosenshine is blunter(blunt n.钝器 vt.使减弱 adj.直言的;不锋利的).He dismisses(vt.解雇;不予考虑) a lot of the work of re-engineering consultants(n.顾问) as mere rubbish(n.垃圾 vt.消灭 adj.无用的) – “the worst sort of ambulance(n.救护车) chasing(ambulance chase 劳而无获(追逐救护车对病人没任何帮助,所以以为不劳而获))”.

2.2 译文

  人们说,不劳无获。但是，如果付出了却没有收获会怎样呢?在美国，无论你走到哪里都会听到企业复苏的讲述。但难以确定的是商业人士认为自己主导的这场生产力革命是否确有其事
  官方统计数据让人有些沮丧。这些数据表明,如果把制造业和服务业合起来算,1987 年以来生产力平均增长 1.2%这比上一个十年的平均增长速度略快自 1991年来,生产力每年约增长 2%4这是 1978 至 1987 年的平均增长速度的两倍多。问题在于,近年出现的生产力快速增长现象部分是由于商业周期到一定阶段通常会出现的反弹造成的，因而它不是经济复苏已经是潜在趋势的确凿证据。正如财政部长罗伯特·鲁宾所说的:大量有关生产力飞跃增长的商业传闻与统计数据所反映的情况之间存在着"脱节"。
  这其中的一些原因很容易解释。企业重组的新方法—所有那些重新规划和缩小规模的做法–只能对一个经济的整体生产力做出一方面的贡献，而生产力的发展还受到许多其它因素的驱动，如设备机械上的联合投资、新技术、以及教育和培训上的投资。另外，公司大部分的改革是为了赢利,而赢利并不一定意味着提高生产力:转向新的市场或改善产品质量也会有同样的功效。
  其他两种解释带有很大的猜测性。种解释认为,近年来的一些企业重组也许效果并不好。另一种解释则认为，即使有成效,效果也没能像人们设想的那样广泛
  哈佛学者，快速发展的面包咖啡连锁店 Au Bon Pain 前任总裁莱昂纳多·施莱辛格说,“重新规划”大多是粗糙的。他认为在很多情况下，企业收益的损失超出了成本的降低。他的同事迈克·比尔说，太多的公司采用了机械的方式进行重组,没有充分考虑长期赢利能力就削减成本。BBDO的艾尔·罗森夏恩更是直言不讳。他对重组顾问所做的许多工作不屑一顾，将其视为垃圾一“典型的劳而无获’

3 第三篇阅读理解

3.1 原文

  Science has long had an uneasy relationship with other aspects of culture.Think of Gallileo’s17th-century trial for his rebelling belief before the Catholic Church or poet William Blake’s harsh remarks against the mechanistic worldview of Isaac Newton. The schism between science and the humanities has, if anything, deepened in this century.
  Until recently, the scientific community was so powerful that it could afford to ignore its critics – but no longer. As funding for science has declined, scientists have attacked “anti-science” in several books, notably Higher Superstition, by Paul R. Gross, a biologist at the University of Virginia, and Norman Levitt, a mathematician at Rutgers University; and The Demon-Haunted World, by Carl Sagan of Cornell University.
  Defenders of science have also voiced their concerns at meetings such as “The Flight from Science and Reason," held in New York City in 1995, and “Science in the Age of (Mis) information," which assembled last June near Buffalo.
  Anti-science clearly means different things to different people. Gross and Levitt find fault primarily with sociologists, philosophers and other academics who have questioned science’s objectivity. Sagan is more concerned with those who believe in ghosts, creationism and other phenomena that contradict the scientific worldview.
  A survey of news stories in 1996 reveals that the anti-science tag has been attached to many other groups as well, from authorities who advocated the elimination of the last remaining stocks of smallpox virus to Republicans who advocated decreased funding for basic research
  Few would dispute that the term applies to the Unabomber, whose manifesto, published in 1995, scorns science and longs for return to a pre-technological utopia. But surely that does not mean environmentalists concerned about uncontrolled industrial growth are anti-science, as an essay in US News & World Report last May seemed to suggest.
  The environmentalists, inevitably, respond to such critics. The true enemies of science, argues Paul Ehrlich of Stanford University, a pioneer of environmental studies, are those who question the evidence supporting global warming, the depletion of the ozone layer and other consequences of industrial growth.
  Indeed, some observers fear that the anti-science epithet is in danger of becoming meaningless. “The term 'anti-science’ can lump together too many, quite different things," notes Harvard University philosopher Gerald Holton in his 1993 work Science and Anti-Science. “They have in common only one thing that they tend to annoy or threaten those who regard themselves as more enlightened."

3.2 译文

  科学与文化其他方面的关系一直都很紧张。想想看,17世纪伽利略为他叛逆性的信仰而遭受天主教会的审判，还有诗人威廉·布莱克对艾萨克·牛顿的机械论世界观所发表的尖锐批判。本世纪，如果说(自然)科学与人文科学之间有什么的话，那就是裂痕更深了。
  以前,科学界如此之强大以至于可以对批评者置之不理–但现在不同了随着科研基金减少,科学家开始在几本著作中抨击“反科学”势力,特别是弗吉尼亚大学生物学家保罗·R·格罗斯和拉特格斯大学的数学家诺曼·莱维特合著的高级迷信》及康奈尔大学的卡尔·萨根著的《鬼怪出没的世界》。
  科学的捍卫者们也在一些会议上表达了他们的担忧。比如，1995 年在纽约举行的“逃离科学与理性”会议,以及去年6月在布法罗附近召开的“(伪)信息时代的科学”会议。
  显然，反科学对不同的人有不同的含义。格罗斯和莱维特主要挑那些质疑科学客观性的社会学家、哲学家和其他科研人员的毛病。而萨根则更关注那些相信鬼怪、上帝造物论和其他违背科学世界观的现象的人。
  1996 年对新闻报道的调查表明反科学的标签也贴在了许多其他群体上,从提倡消灭最后残存的天花病毒库的官方人士到倡议削减基础研究基金的共和党人。
  将该术语用在在美国制造一连串炸弹爆炸事件的人身上,也不会有人反对。这个人在 1995 年公开发表蔑视科学、渴望回到前技术时代的理想社会的声明。当然，这并不意味着,对不加控制的工业发展表示担忧的环保主义者也是反科学的，而去年5月份刊登在《美国新闻和世界报导》的一篇文章似乎暗示是这么回事。
  环保主义者必定会对这些批评做出反应。作为环境研究的先驱者，斯坦福大学的保罗·埃利希认为,科学的真正的敌人是那些对证明全球变暖、臭氧层耗竭和其他工业增长后果的证据提出质疑的人，
  的确,一些观察者担心反科学这个称号面临失去意义的危险。哈佛大学的哲学家杰拉尔德·霍尔顿在其 1993 年的著作《科学与反科学》中写道:“'反科学’词可以涵盖很多截然不同的内容。它们惟一的共同之处就是会激怒或威胁那些自以为比别人更有见识的人。”

4 第四篇阅读理解

4.1 原文

  Emerging(emerge v.出现;暴露;脱离) from the 1980 census(n.人口普查;人口调查) is the picture(n.图像;图片) of a nation developing more and more regional(adj.地区的;局部的 n.邮票;地区性人物;)
competition, as population growth in the Northeast and Midwest reaches a near standstill(n.停滞 adj.停顿的 任然(still)站着(stand)表示停滞).
  This development – and its strong implications(n.可能的影响;牵连;含义) for US politics and economy in years ahead(adv.在前面 years ahead在未来几年) – has enthroned(v.登基;使即位) the South as America’s most densely(adv.密集地) populated(v.生活于;居住于 adj.有人口居住的地方) region for the first time in the history(for the first time in the history 史⽆前例第⼀次) of the nation’s head counting(head counting 人口调查 头(head)的数量(count)就是人口调查).
  Altogether(adv.总而言之), the US population rose in the 1970s by 23.2 million people – numerically(adv. 在数字上地) the third-largest growth ever recorded in a single decade. Even so, that gain adds up to only 11.4 percent, lowest in American annual(adj.每年的;一年的 n.年报) records except(除了…) for the Depression(n.抑郁;沮丧) years.
  Americans have been migrating(migrate v.迁移;移动) south and west in larger numbers since World War Ⅱ, and the pattern(n.模式;方式 vt.构成图案) still prevails(v. 盛行;流行;普遍存在).
  Three sun-belt(阳关地带) states – Florida, Texas and California – together had nearly 10 million more people in 1980 than a decade earlier. Among large cities, San Diego moved from 14th to 8th and San Antonio from 15th to 10th – with Cleveland and Washington. D. C., dropping out of the top 10.
  Not all that shift can be attributed to the movement out of the snow(n.积雪;雪花) belt(n.地区;地带;腰带;传送带 v.飞奔), census officials say. Nonstop waves(n.波浪;热潮 v.挥手) of immigrants(n.移民) played a role, too – and so did bigger crops(n.作物;庄稼 v.裁剪;种地;有收成) of babies as yesterday’s
“baby boom”(boom n.暴涨 v.繁荣 adj.繁荣的) generation reached its child bearing years(reach one’s child bearing years 达到生育年龄)
  Moreover(adv. 此外), demographers(n.人口统计学家) see the continuing shift south and west as joined by(be joined by 伴随着…) a related(n.联系 adj.相关的) but newer phenomenon: More and more, Americans apparently(adv.显然;看来) are looking not just for places with more jobs but with fewer people, too. Some instances(n.例子 v.举…为例)–
  Regionally(adv.区域性), the Rocky Mountain states reported the most rapid growth rate – 37.1 percent since 1970 in a vast(adj.巨大的 n.大海) area with only 5 percent of the US population.
  Among states, Nevada and Arizona grew fastest of all: 63.5 and 53.1 percent respectively(adv.各自;分别地). Except for Florida and Texas, the top 10 in rate of growth is composed(v.组成;作曲;使镇静) of Western states with 7.5 million people – about 9 per square(n.正方形 adj.平方 vt.使成正方形) mile(n.英里 adv.以很大距离).
  The flight(n.航班;飞翔 vt.在空中飞行) from(the flight from 逃离) overcrowdedness(过于拥挤 crowdedness n.拥挤度) affects the migration from snow belt to more bearable(adj.可忍受的) climates(n.气候;倾向)
  Nowhere do 1980 census statistics dramatize(v.戏剧化;夸张;将…改编成剧本 drama n.戏剧) more the American search for spacious(adj.宽敞的) living than in the Far West. There, California added 3.7 million to its population in the 1970s, more than any other state.
   In that decade, however, large numbers also migrated from California, mostly to other parts of the West. Often they chose --and still are choosing - somewhat colder climates such as Oregon, Idaho and Alaska in order to escape smog(n.烟雾), crime(v.指控犯罪 n.罪) and other plagues(n.灾害;瘟疫 v.折磨) of urbanization(n.城市化) in the Golden State.
  As a result, California’s growth rate dropped during the 1970s, to 18.5 percent – little more than two thirds the 1960s’ growth figure and considerably(adv.相当多的) below that of other Western states.

4.2 译文

  1980 年美国人口普查显示出这样一幅图像:随着东北部和中西部人口增长近乎停滞,地区间的竞争越来越激烈了
  这一发展–以及它对今后美国政治和经济的强大影响–使南部地个区在美国人口普查史上首次成为人口最密集的地区
  20 世纪 70 年代,美国人口总共增长了 2 320 万–从数字上看,这是有历史记载以来 10 年期间内人口增长的第三高。即使如此，人口总数也只增加了 11.4%,除了大萧条时期,这是美国年度记录中最低的增长率
  第二次世界大战以来,更多的美国人口向南部和西部地区迁移，而且这种模式如今仍然盛行。
  佛罗里达、得克萨斯和加利福尼亚这三个阳光地带的州,1980 年的人口比前10 年增加了近1000 万。在大城市中,圣地亚哥从第 14 位上升到第8位,圣安东尼奥从第15 位升到第 10 位,而克利夫兰和华盛顿特区则被挤出了前 10 位。
  人口普查官员说,所有这些人口迁移并非都是因要迁出冰雪地带而产生的。不断的移民热潮,还有因“婴儿潮”一代到了生育年龄而生育的大批婴儿,都发挥着各自作用，
  而且，人口学家发现，向南部和西部地区的不断迁移还伴随着一种相关却又较新颖的现象:显然,越来越多的美国人不再寻找只是工作机会更多的地方,而是人口也较少的地方。例证如下:
  从区域上看,洛基山脉各州公布的 37.1%是自 1970 年以来最高的人口增长率，而以前这片广阔的土地上的人口仅占美国总人口的 5%。
  从各州情况看,内华达和亚利桑那是增长最快的两个州:其增长率分别为 63.5%和 53.1%。除了佛罗里达州和得克萨斯州外,处于人口增长率前 10 位的都是西部各州,共有 750 万人–每平方英里约9个人。
  从人口过度稠密地区的逃离,影响了以前那种从寒冷地带到气候宜人地区的迁徙趋势。
  1980年的官方统计显示，没有比美国偏远西部( the Far West)更能证明这种为了寻找更广阔的生活空间而迁移的取向了。最西部的加利福尼亚州在 70 年代人口增加了 370万，比其他任何州都多。
  同时,70年代也有大批的人从加利福尼亚迁出，大多数去了西部其他的地方他们常常选择—现在依然选择–气候较冷的地区,如俄勒冈、爱达荷和阿拉斯加,为的是躲开“金州”加利福尼亚州)的烟雾、犯罪和城市化带来的其他困扰。
  结果,加利福尼亚的人口增长率在 70年代降到了 18.5%–只有 60 年代增长率的 2/3,也大大低于西部其他各州。

5 第五篇阅读理解

5.1 原文

  Scattered(v.分散 n.散落) around the globe are more than 100 small regions of isolated(isolate v.(使)隔离 n.分隔物 adj.单独的;隔离的) volcanic(adj.火山的 n.火山岩) activity known to geologists(n.地质学家) as hot spots(spots n.斑点 v.发现;看见 hot spots 热点地区;危险的地区). Unlike most of the world’s volcanoes(n.火山), they are not always found at the boundaries(n.边界;界限) of the great drifting(v.漂流 n.流动;趋势) plates(n.盘子;板块 vt.覆盖;电镀) that make up the earth’s surface(n.表面 vt.浮出水面;出现 adj.表面的), on the contrary(词组 相反地), many of them lie(v.躺;撒谎 n.谎言;位置) deep in the interior(n.内部 adj.内部的) of a plate. Most of the hot spots move only slowly, and in some cases the movement of the plates past them has left trails(left trails 遗留…的痕迹) of dead volcanoes. The hot spots and their volcanic trails are milestones(n.里程碑;转折点) that mark(v.标记;做记号 n.标记;斑点) the passage(n.推移;通过 v.前进) of the plates.
  That the plates are moving is now beyond dispute(beyond prep.超出;除…之外;超出…之外 dispute n.争端;争辩 v.争端;争辩 beyond dispute 毋庸置疑;无需讨论). Africa(n. 非洲) and South America, for example, are moving away from each other as new material(n.材料 adj.物质的) is injected(vt.(给…)注射;增加;投入(资金)) into the sea floor between them. The complementary(adj.互补的;补充的) coastlines(n.海岸线) and certain(pron.某些 adj.确定;某事;某人) geological features(n.特点;特征 v.以…为特色) that seem to span(n.跨度;范围 vt.跨越) the ocean(n.大海;海洋) are reminders(n.提醒;通知单) of where the two continents(n.大陆;洲 adj.禁欲的) were once joined. The relative(adj.相对的;相关联的 n.亲戚;亲属) motion(n.移动;运动 v.做运动) of the plates carrying(v.携带 n.携带) these continents has been constructed(vt.建筑;建造 n.建造物) in detail(in detail 详细地), but the motion of one plate with respect(n.尊重;重视 vt.尊重;慎重对待;不轻视) to another cannot readily be translated into motion with respect to the earth’s interior(n.内部 adj.内部的). It is not possible to determine whether both continents are moving in opposite(adj.相反的) directions or whether one continent is stationary(adv.静止的;固定的) and the other is drifting away from it. Hot spots, anchored(v.固定) in the deeper layers of the earth, provide the measuring instruments(n.仪表;乐器;工具) needed to resolve the question. From an analysis of the hot-spot population(n.人口) it appears that(it appears that 似乎…) the African plate is stationary and that it has not moved during the past 30 million years.
  The significance(n.意义;重要性) of hot spots is not confined(vt.限制;禁闭 n.范围;边界) to their role as a frame of reference(as a frame of reference 参照标准). It now appears that they also have an important influence on the geophysical processes that propel(vt.推进;驱动) the plates across the globe. When a continental plate come to rest over a hot spot, the material rising from deeper layers creates a broad dome. As the dome grows, it develops deep fissures (cracks), in at least a few cases the continent may break entirely along some of these fissures, so that the hot spot initiates the formation of a new ocean. Thus just as earlier theories have explained the mobility of the continents, so hot spots may explain their mutability (inconstancy).

5.2 译文

  地球上散落分布着一百多个互不相连的比较小的火山活动区，被地质学家称为热点。和世界上大多数火山不同的是,它们并不总是在构成地球表层的巨大漂流板块之间的交界处被发现;相反,许多热点深藏于板块内部。大多数热点只缓慢地移动,有时,经过这些热点的板块运动留下了死火山的痕迹，热点及其火山痕迹是标志板块迁移的里程碑。
  板块漂移这一理论现在是毋庸置疑的。以非洲和南美洲为例，由于有新的物质注入二者之间的海底,两大洲正在彼此分离。但互相吻合的海岸线和某些似乎跨越海洋的相同地质特征会使人联想到这两个大陆曾经是连在一起的。携带这些大陆的板块相对运动已经能够被详细地阐述出来,但一个板块相对另一板块的运动还不能轻易地解释为相对于地球内部的运动。人们不能确定两个大陆是在朝相反的方向运动，还是一个大陆静止不动而另一个从它身边漂移开去。位于地球更深层的热点提供了解决该问题所需要的测量仪器。从热点地区的人口情况分析来看,非洲板块似乎是静止不动的，在过去 3000 万年里都没有移动过
  热点的重要性不仅限于作为参照体系这一作用。现在看来，它们还对推动板块在地球表面漂移这一地球物理演变中有重要影响。当大陆板块漂移到热点上方,来自地球深层的物质便形成了巨大的圆顶状隆起物。随着这个圆顶的增长，板块出现深深的裂缝。至少有几次，大陆可能会沿着其中的一些裂缝完全裂开,因此这个热点就引发了一个新的海洋的形成这样,正像早期的理论解释了大陆的移动性一样,热点理论或许能解释大陆板块的不稳定性。