15年 职称英语考试 理工B 补全短文 15年新增 第九篇 Lightening Strikes 英汉对译.docVIP

第九篇 Lightening Strikes Three years ago a bolt of lightning all but destroyed Lyn Miller’s house in Aberdeen—with her two children inside. “There was a huge rainstorm,” she says, recalling the terrifying experience. “My brother and I were outside desperately working to stop floodwater from coming in the house. Suddenly I was thrown to the ground by an enormous bang. When I picked myself up, the roof and the entire upper storey of the house had been demolished. The door was blocked by rubble, but we forced our way in and found the children, thankfully unharmed. Later I was told to be struck by lightning is a chance in a million.” In fact, it’s calculated at one chance in 600,000. Even so, Dr Mark Keys of AER Technology, an organisation that monitors the effects of lightning, thinks you should be sensible. “I wouldn’t go out in a storm—but then I’m quite a careful person.” He advises anyone who is unlucky enough to be caught in a storm to get down on the ground and curl up into a ball, making yourself as small as possible. Lightning is one of nature’s most awesome displays of sheer power. No wonder the ancient Greeks thought it was Zeus, father of the gods, throwing thunderbolts around in anger. 250 years ago, Benjamin Franklin, the American scientist and statesman，proved that lightning is a form of electricity, but scientists still lack a complete understanding of how it works. Occasionally there are warning signs. Positive electrical charges streaming upwards from trees or church spires may glow and make a buzzing noise, and people’s hair can stand on end. And if you fear lightning, you’ll be glad to know that a company in America has manufactured a hand-held lightning detector which can detect it up to 70 kms away, sound a warning tone and monitor the storm’s approach. Nancy Wilder was playing golf at a club in Surrey when she was hit by a bolt of lightning. Mrs Wilder’s heart stopped beating, but she was resuscitated and, after a few days in hospital, where she wa