Hyperloop: the train of the future? “超級高鐵”：未來的交通工具？
本集內容
Hyperloop: the train of the future??“超級高鐵”：未來的交通工具？
學習要點
有關“speed 速度”的詞匯
邊看邊答
What is the Hyperloop?
文字稿
We're heading through the Nevada desert, north of Las Vegas, for a glimpse of what its backers claim is the future of transport.
This is Hyperloop - an attempt to send passengers hurtling at 700 miles an hour through a vacuum tube.
Many think that's far-fetched, but this project got the backing last year of Virgin with Sir Richard Branson becoming chairman.
In this 500-metre test track, they say they have shown that the technology works, though they've not yet put any human beings on board.
The head of engineering, a space scientist recruited from NASA, sees no reason why people might be scared.
Anita Sengupta, Head of Engineering, Virgin Hyperloop One
“The Hyperloop is a maglev train in a vacuum system, or in a vacuum tube. And so you can also think of it as an aircraft flying at 200,000 feet so people don't have any issue flying in aeroplanes and people don’t have any issue going in maglev trains. This is simply combining the two and allows you to be more energy efficient.”
The Virgin Hyperloop team have said they could take passengers from London to Edinburgh in 50 minutes or cut the journey between New York and Boston to under half an hour.
我們正駛過拉斯維加斯北部的內華達沙漠，這是為了一睹被其支持者稱作“未來交通工具”的真面目。
這是“超級高鐵”，設計者嘗試讓列車在真空管道中以每小時700英里的速度乘載旅客高速移動。
很多人覺得這一概念不切實際，但該項目在去年得到了維珍集團的資助，理查德·布蘭森爵士成為了該機構的董事長。
在這條500米長的試行軌道上，該公司稱他們已經證明了這項技術能成功運作，雖然列車還未進行任何載人試驗。
該項目的工程部主管是從美國航空航天局招募過來的一位航空科學家，她認為人們沒有理由對這項技術感到恐懼。
阿妮塔 · 森古普塔? 維珍 “超級高鐵”項目工程部主管
“‘超級高鐵’是在真空系統或真空管道中行駛的磁懸浮列車。因此，你也可以把它看成一架在20萬英尺高空中疾馳的飛行器。既然人們對搭飛機沒有任何擔憂，那么也不應該對坐磁懸浮列車這件事懷有顧慮。這項技術只是結合了二者從而使人們的出行變得更節能?！?/p>
維珍集團的“超級高鐵”團隊說，使用該技術可以在50分鐘內把乘客從倫敦送到愛丁堡，此外，它還可以把紐約到波士頓之間的行車時間縮短到半小時以內。
詞匯
glimpse
短暫的體驗
hurtling
急速地移動
miles an hour
英里每小時
test track
試行軌道
cut the journey
縮短行程（時間）
你知道嗎？
The word ‘maglev’ is a portmanteau of the words ‘magnetic’ and ‘levitation’. This is because the system uses magnets to levitate the train. This reduces friction and increases speed. The first maglev train operated in Hamburg, Germany in 1979.
英語單詞“磁懸浮”是由詞語“magnetic 磁力的”和“levitation 飄浮”組成的合成詞。這樣說的原因是該系統利用磁鐵使列車懸于空中。這項技術可以減少摩擦力并增加行駛速度。1979年，在德國漢堡，世界上第一輛磁懸浮列車成功運行。
問題答案
The Hyperloop is a maglev train in a vacuum tube.
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