《经济学人》双语：与太阳能对应的“星星能”是什么
《经济学人》双语：与太阳能对应的“星星能”是什么？
文/Irene-自由英语之路
【本篇内容简述】
【Para1】引入：从科罗拉多州的克里德引讲起，19世纪末，一万人淘银矿造就了克里德，但也是是歹徒和骗子的聚集地。现在，环境保护主义者和居民正在寻找另一种能振兴经济的闪光资源：星星能。
【Para2】“黑暗天空保护区”：非营利组织建立的，国际黑暗天空协会希望城镇控制光污染，认证了130多个夜空场所；其中有14个在科罗拉多州。
【Para3&4】克里德的优势：约95%的土地为公共土地，如森林，悬崖，更容易笼罩在黑暗中；原始的黑色夜空开发旅游，能吸引更多的游客，夏天旺季，其他季节是淡季。
【Para5】结尾与评论：自由主义者的厌恶被人指手画脚和各类条条框框。最后一句耐人寻味，外面有奇观，所以不要害怕黑暗。
标题：
Dim the lights
Star power
Campaigns to lessen light pollution reveal how the West is changing
昏暗的灯光
星星能
减少光污染的运动揭示了西方是如何变化的
Rural Colorado hopes to cash in on its dark skies
科罗拉多州的乡村地区希望在黑暗的天空中获利
原文日期：2021年9月4日
Paragraph 1：
IT IS CALLED Colorado’s last boom town. Ten thousand people stampeded into Creede in the late 1800s in search of the silver hidden within the San Juan Mountains.
它被称为科罗拉多州最后的繁荣城市。19世纪末，一万人涌入克里德，寻找隐藏在圣胡安山脉中的白银。
The town was the epitome of the Wild West, a hangout for outlaws and conmen. But more than the shoot-outs and gamblers, it was the mines that made Creede.
该镇是荒野西部的缩影，是歹徒和骗子的聚集地。但不仅仅只是枪战和赌徒，是矿井造就了克里德。
For nearly 100 years its prosperity was tied to the price of silver. The town’s last mine closed in 1985 and only about 300 people remain. Ghost towns and the creaky remnants of old mining camps litter the mountains.
近100年来，它的繁荣与白银价格息息相关。该镇上的最后一座矿山于1985年关闭，只剩下大约300人。鬼城和古老的采矿营地留下的吱吱作响的遗迹散落在群山之中。
Now environmentalists and residents are looking to another sparkly resource to revive the economy: the stars.
现在，环境保护主义者和居民正在寻找另一种能振兴经济的闪光资源：星星。
Paragraph 2:
Headwaters Alliance, a local non-profit organisation, wants to create a “dark-sky reserve” in aptly named Mineral County, which includes Creede.
当地非营利组织源头联盟希望在与名字对应的矿产县（Mineral County，包括Creede）建立一个“黑暗天空保护区”。
The campaign is not unique to southern Colorado. Dark-sky communities are cropping up around the American West.
这项运动并非科罗拉多州南部独有。黑暗的天空社区正在美国西部出现。
The International Dark-Sky Association (IDA), based in Tucson, wants towns to curb their light pollution, which harms nocturnal wildlife and obscures the stars.
位于图森的国际黑暗天空协会（IDA）希望城镇控制光污染，因为光污染会伤害夜间活动的野生动物，并使星星模糊。
The IDA has certified more than 130 dark-sky places globally since 2001; 14 of them are in Colorado.
自2001年以来，国际黑暗天空协会已在全球范围内认证了130多个夜空场所；其中有14个在科罗拉多州。
Paragraph 3:
Creede may have an easier time dimming the lights than other towns. Around 95% of Mineral County is public land.
克里德可能比其他城镇更容易调暗灯光。矿业县约95%的土地为公共土地。
The Rio Grande National Forest and thejagged cliffs of the San Juans envelop visitors in darkness.
格兰德河国家森林和圣胡安山脉参差不齐的悬崖将游客笼罩在黑暗中。
Alex Handloff, who is leading the effort to create the reserve, has equipped volunteer “Astro-rangers” with meters to measure the light emitted in different parts of the county.
领导建立保护区的亚历克斯·汉德洛夫为志愿者“太空漫游者”配备了仪表，以测量该县不同地区发出的光。
Paragraph 4:
In addition to the environmental benefits of darkness, Creede residents hope their pristine night skies will draw more tourists to help prop up the town’s post-mining economy.
除了黑暗对环境的好处外，克里德居民希望他们原始的夜空能吸引更多的游客来支持该镇采矿后的经济。
Campers and hikers visit in the summer, but the rest of the year is lonelier, says Jan Crawford, one of the first supporters of the reserve.
保护区的首批支持者之一简·克劳福德说，夏令营和徒步旅行者在夏天来访，但每年剩下的淡季时间更冷清孤独。
“There is a joke”, Ms Crawford offers, that “there’s a $50 bill that floats around Creede and just goes from one place to another all winter long.”
克劳福德女士说道：“有一个玩笑说有一张50美元的钞票在克里德河畔飘荡，整个冬天都在从一个地方飘到另一个地方。”
But floods of people are not wanted either. Mineral County’s population has grown by 22% in the past decade, though locals suggest that is due, in part, to better people-counting.
但人们也不希望有大量人涌入。矿产县的人口在过去十年中增长了22%，尽管当地人认为部分原因是由于人流量的增加。
As more Americans move West, small towns are puzzling over how to encourage economic growth without sacrificing their rural charms.
随着越来越多的美国人向西迁移，小城镇正在困惑于如何在不牺牲其乡村魅力的情况下鼓励经济增长。
Focusing on dark skies, Mr Handloff suggests, is the kind of “low-impact” tourism that might strike the right balance.
汉德洛夫认为，关注黑暗的天空是一种“低影响”的旅游业，可能会达到刚好的平衡。
Paragraph 5:
Some residents are still wary. Many small-town Coloradans share a libertarian aversion to being told what to do—even with something as small as the kind of porch light they install.
一些居民仍然保持警惕。许多小镇上的科罗拉多人都有一种自由主义者的厌恶感，他们不愿意被告知该做什么，即使是他们安装的门廊灯这样的小东西。
More than anything else, though, preserving the night sky means getting comfortable with near-total blackness. “There’s wonders out there,” says Ms Crawford, “so don"t be afraid of the dark.”
不过，最重要的是，保护夜空意味着要适应近乎完全的黑暗。”克劳福德女士说：“外面有奇观，所以不要害怕黑暗。”
（恭喜读完本篇，英语阅读量517左右）
本文出自《The Economist》United States版块，仅供个人学习交流使用。
【重点词汇】（9个）
cash in
兑现；收到……货款
stampede into
促使匆忙做某事
hangout/hat/If a place is a hangout for a particular group of people, they spend a lot of time there because they can relax and meet other people there.
n. 常去的地方；聚集地
curb/kb/
v. 控制；勒住
nocturnal/nktnl/
adj. 夜的；夜曲的；夜间发生的
obscure/bskj/
v. 使…模糊不清，掩盖；隐藏；
jagged/dɡd/with rough, pointed, often sharp edges.
adj. 锯齿状的；参差不齐的
meter/mit(r)/a device that measures and records the amount.
n. 仪表(熟词偏义：常见的意思是“米”)
floods of
大量
【重点句子】（3个）
It was the mines that made Creede.
是矿井造就了克里德。
Light pollution harms nocturnal wildlife and obscures the stars.
光污染会伤害夜间活动的野生动物，并使星星模糊。
There’s wonders out there, so don"t be afraid of the dark.
外面有奇观，所以不要害怕黑暗。
【重点词根】（1+3个）
obscure=ob-向上 + scur-盖上 + -e 模糊的。
词根scure- 源自拉丁语 -scurus "covered."= shield, 表示“盖上”，如：
chiaroscuro/kiɑrskr/ n. 明暗对比法；明暗对比效果（文学，音乐等）
escutcheon/sktn/ n. 电灯开关板；锁眼盖；门把手盖板；盾形饰牌
scute/skjut/ n. 鳞甲, 盾板
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