2018年高考英语上海卷 - 阅读理解B
How Do You Move a Giant Sequoia?
如何移动巨型红杉？
The logistics of excavating and relocating town’s century-old, living sequoia tree. Inhabitants of Boise, Idaho, watched with trepidation earlier this year as the city's oldest, tallest resident moved two blocks. The 105-year-old sequoia tree serves as a local landmark, not only for its longevity but also because renowned naturalist and Sierra Club cofounder John Muir provided the original seedling. So, when Saint Luke's Health System found that the 10-story-tall-conifer stood in the way of its planned hospital called tree-moving firm Environmental Design.
挖掘并重新安置镇上有着百年历史的红杉的流程。今年早些时候，爱达荷州博伊西的居民忐忑不安地看着这个城市最年长、最高大的居民搬离两个街区。这棵有105年历史的红杉是当地的地标，不仅因为它的长寿，而且因为著名的博物学家和塞拉俱乐部的联合创始人约翰·缪尔提供了最初的幼苗。因此，当圣卢克健康系统发现这棵10层楼高的针叶树坐落在计划建造的医院位置时给一家名为“环境设计”的移树公司打了电话。
The Texas-based company has developed and patented scooping and lifting technology to move massive trees. Weighing in at more than 800, 000 pounds, the Boise sequoia is its largest undertaking yet. “I [had] lost enough sleep over this,” says David Cox, the company's Western region vice president — and that was before the hospital mentioned the tree's distinguished origin. Before the heavy lifting began, the team assessed the root system and dug a five-foot-deep cylinder , measuring 40 feet in diameter, around the trunk to protect all essential roots. After encapsulating the root ball in wire mesh, the movers allowed the tree to acclimate to its new situation for seven months before relocating it. The illustration details what followed. — Leslie Nemo
这家总部位于得克萨斯州的公司开发了一项挖掘和吊起技术，并获得了专利，以移动巨大的树木。博伊西红杉重达80多万磅，是其迄今为止最大的项目。该公司西部地区副总裁大卫·考克斯表示：“我（已经）为此失眠了。”——这是在医院提到这棵树的独特来源之前。在开始重吊之前，团队评估了根系，并在树干周围挖了一个5英尺深、直径40英尺的圆柱体，以保护所有重要的根系。在将根球封装在铁丝网中后，搬运工人让这棵树适应了七个月的新环境，然后才将其重新安置。图中详细说明了接下来的情况。-莱斯利·尼莫
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Mark A. Merit and his team at Environmental Design installed underneath the root ball a platform of seven-inch-diameter, 44-foot-long steelbars and, just below the rods, a first set of uninflated airbags ( shown in gray).The team also dug a shallow ramp.
1.马克·A·梅里特和他的环境设计团队在根球下方安装了一个直径7英寸、长44英尺的平台，在杆的正下方安装了第一组未充气的安全气囊（以灰色显示）。团队还挖了一个浅斜坡。 -
In roughly 15 minutes, the movers inflated the airbags to about three feet in diameter to raise the root ball to the surface of the hole.
2.在大约15分钟内，搬运者将气囊充气至直径约3英尺，以将根球提升至孔洞表面。 -
By underinflating the front bags, the team allowed the platform carrying the tree to roll up the ramp and out of the hole while staying level, A trailer hauled the tree along as team members removed the airbags from the back of the platform and replaced them in the front. They repeated the process until the tree arrived at the edge of its new home.
3.通过给前面的袋子充入适量空气，团队允许载着树的平台在保持水平的情况下滚上斜坡并离开洞。一辆拖车将树拖走，团队成员从平台后部取下安全气囊，并在前面更换。他们重复这一过程，直到树到达新家的边缘。 -
There a second set of partially inflated bags (shown in white) waited inside the hole. Soil surrounding the sequoia in its original location was relocated as well, because trees are more likely to survive a transplant when they move with their original soil.
4.在洞里等待着第二组部分充气的袋子（白色显示）。红杉原址周围的土壤也被重新安置，因为当树木与原土壤一起迁移时，它们更可能在移植后存活下来。 -
Using the first set of airbags, the movers rolled the platform into the new hole.
5.使用第一套安全气囊，搬运工人将平台滚入新洞。 -
The bags waiting there were then inflated further to take the weight of the sequoia while the transportation bags were deflated and removed from under the tree.
6.然后，等待在那里的袋子被进一步充气，以承受红杉的重量，同时运输袋被放气并从树下取出。 -
The white bags were then deflated in about half an hour to lower the sequoia's root ball to the bottom of its hole, The bags were removed, but the metal bars were left with the tree because they rust and degrade over a number of years.
7.然后在大约半小时内将白色袋子放气，将水杉的根球降到洞底。袋子被移除，但金属棒留在了树上，因为它们会生锈并在数年后降解。 -
For the next five years the local park service will monitor and maintain the tree in its new home.
8.在接下来的五年里，当地的公园管理部门将在新家里监测和维护这棵树。
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