外刊精读 ｜ 我们应该如何看待黄金？

　　

　　今天是小芳老师陪你精读外刊的第124天

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　　When it comes to first impressions, we all want to make a good one. And that’s why we tend to focus on our best traits and qualities. However, we often fall into the trap of thinking that everything about us needs to be perfect. But that’s just unrealistic. We all have imperfections. It’s part of being human. And while it’s easy to believe that our ‘supposed flaws and imperfections’ make us less attractive, here are some that can actually make us seem more appealing to others:

　　From the tombs of ancient pharaohs to the medals around Olympians’ necks, we humans have long been mesmerised by gold. In fact, it’s hard to think of another substance with such universal appeal. In everything from monarchs’ crowns to Oscar winners’ statuettes, gold screams pre-eminence. It’s all over our culture, from golden tickets to gold discs, from golden handcuffs to comedy gold.

　　Originally formed from the debris of stars, gold’s physical properties are extraordinary. It can be easily bent into different shapes, but has a much higher melting point than tin or lead. It never rusts or tarnishes and is a great conductor, making it perfect for electronics. Tiny slivers are almost certainly in your mobile phone.

　　As metals go, it’s pretty rare. In fact, all the gold ever found in the world could probably fit into a cube 23 metres long on each side. And this rarity has often made it popular as currency. Of course, you can’t pay many bartenders with gold coins nowadays, but it’s still one of the safest assets to hold in a market crash, and nations still hoard it to prove their strength.

　　But take a closer look at gold, and its crown begins to slip. We love this stuff, but we love it too much. Just ask King Midas, who paid the price with his daughter. The Spanish Conquistadors terrorised the Americas for gold. Their brutality towards the Incas, Maya and Aztecs delivered 100 tonnes to Spanish kings, worth around ￡5 billion at today’s prices. Most of it was melted down, destroying countless works of art and jewellery.

　　In the 19th century, gold seduced men and women in a different way, as they hurried to wild frontiers like California and southern Australia for gold rushes. Although some did strike it lucky – Bernhardt Holtermann discovered a gold specimen weighing more than 289 kilograms in Australia in 1872 – many found only a few flakes, while the real fortunes were made by those selling them shovels.

　　Indigenous people also suffered terribly, often attacked and forced off their land to make way for this new industry. Gold and war often go hand in hand. Some conflicts are fuelled by gold disputes – South Africa’s brutal Boer War of 1899 to 1902 being one example – while in World War II, both the Nazis and the Japanese stole huge quantities of gold. Much of it was never recovered.

　　

　　When states aren’t stealing gold, robbers are. The biggest UK heist was the Brink’s-Mat robbery of 1983, when six armed men attacked a warehouse next to Heathrow Airport. They escaped with 6,800 gold bars packed into 76 cardboard boxes. Most of the gang were never caught, and most of the gold has yet to be recovered. It’s thought that some of it was melted down and mixed with copper to hide its origins.

　　As well as being stolen and smuggled, gold is continually plundered from the earth. Gold mining is notoriously energy-intensive, producing as much carbon each year as the emissions from about 28 million cars. Unless it’s done very carefully, mining can contaminate rivers, wreck ecosystems and send highly toxic pollutants like mercury into the air. Unregulated small-scale mining also lures millions of people, many of them children, into dangerous work in some of the world’s poorest countries. So next time you want to add a little bling to a loved one’s birthday, you might want to consider the journey that gold has been on.

　　Humanity’s obsession with this dazzling metal has driven us to violence, exploitation and destruction. Perhaps if we appreciated gold’s dark side, we might use it more wisely.

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　　单词

　　Gold - 金

　　Pre-eminence - 卓越，卓著

　　Melting point - 熔点

　　Rusts - 生锈

　　Conductor - 导体

　　Rarity - 稀有性

　　Currency - 货币

　　Market crash - 市场崩溃

　　Hoard - 囤积

　　Seduced - 诱惑

　　Frontiers - 边界

　　Indigenous - 土著的，本土的

　　Plundered - 掠夺

　　Mining - 采矿

　　Carbon emissions - 碳排放

　　Contaminate - 污染

　　Unregulated - 未受管制的

　　Small-scale mining - 小规模采矿

　　Exploitation - 开采，剥削

　　Destruction - 破坏

　　长句

　　1."Originally formed from the debris of stars, gold’s physical properties are extraordinary. It can be easily bent into different shapes, but has a much higher melting point than tin or lead. It never rusts or tarnishes and is a great conductor, making it perfect for electronics. Tiny slivers are almost certainly in your mobile phone."

　　解析：这个长难句是一个复合句，包含一个主句和一个从句。主句为：“Originally formed from the debris of stars, gold’s physical properties are extraordinary.” 这个主句中包含了一个过去分词短语“Originally formed from the debris of stars”，该短语用来修饰主语“gold's physical properties”。这个从句是一个并列句，包括三个并列的分句，分别解释了黄金的三个性质：容易弯曲、高熔点和良好的导电性。从句为：“It can be easily bent into different shapes, but has a much higher melting point than tin or lead. It never rusts or tarnishes and is a great conductor, making it perfect for electronics. Tiny slivers are almost certainly in your mobile phone.”

　　2. "Gold and war often go hand in hand. Some conflicts are fuelled by gold disputes – South Africa’s brutal Boer War of 1899 to 1902 being one example – while in World War II, both the Nazis and the Japanese stole huge quantities of gold. Much of it was never recovered."

　　解析：这个长难句是一个复合句，包含一个主句和两个从句。主句为：“Gold and war often go hand in hand.” 该主句中使用了常见的英语表达方式，即两个名词短语通过并列连词“and”连接，表示两个事物有密切联系。接下来的两个从句分别说明了战争和黄金之间的关系。第一个从句为：“Some conflicts are fuelled by gold disputes – South Africa’s brutal Boer War of 1899 to 1902 being one example.” 这个从句解释了一些冲突是由于黄金争端而引起的，并给出了一个例子。第二个从句为：“while in World War II, both the Nazis and the Japanese stole huge quantities of gold. Much of it was never recovered.” 这个从句说明了在二战期间，纳粹和日本盗取了大量黄金，其中许多从未被找回。

　　回答问题

　　Reading Questions：

　　What is one of the unique properties of gold that makes it useful for electronics?

　　a) it can be easily melted

　　b) it is a great conductor

　　c) it never rusts

　　d) it is very common

　　Why did the Spanish Conquistadors terrorize the Americas?

　　a) to find gold

　　b) to explore new lands

　　c) to spread Christianity

　　d) to make alliances with indigenous people

　　What are some of the negative impacts of gold mining?

　　a) it produces no carbon emissions

　　b) it does not harm ecosystems

　　c) it can contaminate rivers and release toxic pollutants

　　d) it provides safe and stable employment opportunities

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　　答案

　　BAC

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