名人认知系列 文人骚客10：A Sci-Fi Writer: Arthur Clarke 科幻作家：阿瑟·克拉克

A Sci-Fi Writer: Arthur Clarke

科幻作家：阿瑟·克拉克

Born in western England, on December 16th, 1917, the son of a farmer, Arthur Clarke became addicted¹ to science fiction after buying his first copies of the magazine “Amazing Stories”. He began writing for his school magazine in his teens.

1917年12月16日，阿瑟·克拉克出生于英格兰西部 的一个农民家庭。在买了一本叫做《惊奇故事集》的杂志 后，他与科幻结下了不解之缘。10多岁时，他就开始向学 校的杂志投稿。

His father died when he was thirteen. After attending schools in his home country, Arthur Clarke moved to London. There he pursued his early interest in space sciences. He worked as a clerk, and at that time he wrote his first short stories and scientific articles on space travel.

13岁那年，克拉克的父亲过世。结束了求学生涯 的克拉克离开故乡搬到伦敦。在伦敦，他开始对空间科学萌生兴趣。那时，还是小职员的他发表了一些早期作 品，大多是关于太空旅行的短篇故事和科学作品。

With the onset² of the second World War he joined the Royal Air Force, eventually becoming an officer in charge of the first radar³ talk-down equipment during its experimental trials. Serving in the wartime Royal Air Force, he wrote a memo⁴ about the possibility of using satellites to revolutionize communications. In 1945, the UK periodical magazine “ Wireless⁵ World”published his landmark⁶ technical paper “Extra-terrestrial Relays” in which he first set out on the principles of satellites communication with satellites in geostationary or bits, a speculation⁷ that was realized 25 years later.

二战爆发后，克拉克加入了皇家空军，最终成为 负责首次雷达无线电降落设备试验的军官。在皇家空军 服役期间，他论证了利用卫星技术革新通讯方式的可能 性。1945年，英国期刊《无线电世界》发表了他的一篇 划时代的科技论文《地外通讯》。在文中，克拉克首次 提出利用地球同步卫星进行通讯的原则，25年后，这一 设想变成现实。

His detailed⁸ descriptions of space shuttles, supercomputers and rapid communications systems inspired millions of readers. When asked why he never patented his idea for communication satellites, he said: “I did not get a patent because I never thought it will happen in my lifetime.”

克拉克关于宇宙飞船、超级计算机和快速通讯系 统的详细描述激发了无数读者的灵感。当被问及为什么 没有为卫星通讯的想法申请专利时，这位科幻大师回答 道：“我没有想到卫星通讯能在我的有生之年变成现实。”

During the evolution of his discovery, he worked with scientists and engineers in the USA in the development of spacecraft and launch systems, and addressed the United Nations during their deliberations on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space.

在克拉克发展通讯理论时，他与研究空间飞船起落 系统的美国科学家密切合作，并且呼吁联合国制定《和 平应用外大空条约》。

Clarke’s fiction, such as Childhood’s End, The City and The Stars, The Nine Billion Names of God, inspired real-life space exploration. The first moon landing in 1969 was an event that Clarke predicted decades earlier.

克拉克的小说，《比如童年的终结》，《城市和星星》，《神的九十亿个名字》等，激发了人们在现实生活中探索 太空的想法。1969年人类首次登月，克拉克早在几十年 前就预言过了。

Clarke's another novel, The Fountains of Paradise, helped spark the real-world efforts to build a space elevator from Earth to orbit. The idea is still being pursued, even though its realization⁹ may still be decades away.

克拉克的另一篇小说《天堂的喷泉》，激发了人们 在地球和地球轨道之间建造空间电梯的想法。直到今天, 人们仍在为这个想法努力，即使真正实现它可能是几十 年之后的事情。

In an interview with The associated Press, Clarke said he did not regret having never traveled to space himself, though he arranged to have DNA¹⁰ from his hair sent into orbit. “One day, some super civilization may encounter this relic¹¹ from the vanished species and I may exist in another time，” he said.

在接受美联社采访时，克拉克表示，虽然他没有机 会进入太空旅行，但他并不觉得遗憾，因为他的头发的 样本已被送到地球轨道中。他说：“有一天，一些超级文 明国家会发现这些早已灭绝的物种的头发，这样，我就 可以在另一个时间重获新生了。”

Since the 1960s Clarke had battled with a severe disease called post-polio syndrome¹² and sometimes used a wheelchair. It was a difficult time. And he never gave up fighting with the disease. Unfortunately he died in 2008 after suffering breathing problems.

上世纪60年代以来，克拉克一直饱受小儿麻痹症 后遗症的折磨。有时不得不坐轮椅。但他从未放弃与疾病抗争。不幸的是，2008年他因呼吸道疾病与世长辞。

In the wake of Clarke’s death, NASA said countless¹³ young people were inspired by “his hopeful vision of how spaceflight would transform societies, economies and humankind itself.”

克拉克去世时，美国宇航局这样评价他：“他对宇航技术 改变社会、经济和人类本身充满希望的远见曾激励了无数 年轻人。”

1 addicted   

adj.沉溺于....的，对...上瘾的

参考例句：

• He was addicted to heroin at the age of 17.他17岁的时候对海洛因上了瘾。
• She's become addicted to love stories.她迷上了爱情小说。

2 onset   

n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始

参考例句：

• The drug must be taken from the onset of the infection.这种药必须在感染的最初期就开始服用。
• Our troops withstood the onset of the enemy.我们的部队抵挡住了敌人的进攻。

3 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

4 memo   

n.照会，备忘录；便笺；通知书；规章

参考例句：

• Do you want me to send the memo out?您要我把这份备忘录分发出去吗？
• Can you type a memo for me?您能帮我打一份备忘录吗？

5 wireless   

adj.无线的；n.无线电

参考例句：

• There are a lot of wireless links in a radio.收音机里有许多无线电线路。
• Wireless messages tell us that the ship was sinking.无线电报告知我们那艘船正在下沉。

6 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

7 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

8 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

9 realization   

n.实现；认识到，深刻了解

参考例句：

• We shall gladly lend every effort in our power toward its realization.我们将乐意为它的实现而竭尽全力。
• He came to the realization that he would never make a good teacher.他逐渐认识到自己永远不会成为好老师。

10 DNA   

(缩)deoxyribonucleic acid 脱氧核糖核酸

参考例句：

• DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.脱氧核糖核酸储存于细胞的细胞核里。
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code.基因突变是指DNA密码的改变。

11 relic   

n.神圣的遗物，遗迹，纪念物

参考例句：

• This stone axe is a relic of ancient times.这石斧是古代的遗物。
• He found himself thinking of the man as a relic from the past.他把这个男人看成是过去时代的人物。

12 syndrome   

n.综合病症；并存特性

参考例句：

• The Institute says that an unidentified virus is to blame for the syndrome. 该研究所表示,引起这种综合症的是一种尚未确认的病毒。
• Results indicated that 11 fetuses had Down syndrome. 结果表明有11个胎儿患有唐氏综合征。

13 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。