发送电子邮件也会产生碳足迹么？

 　　You might not realise it, but sending even a short email has an impact on the environment.

　　你可能没有意识到，即使是发送一封小小的邮件也会对环境产生影响。

　　Scientists estimate that an email adds about four grams (0.14 ounces) of carbon dioxide equivalent into the atmosphere.

　　科学家估计，发送一封邮件相当于向大气中排放约4克的二氧化碳。

　　That means that hitting 'send' on 65 mails is equal to driving an average-sized car a 0.6 miles (1km).

　　这意味着，发送65封邮件所产生的二氧化碳相当于一辆普通大小的汽车行驶1公里产生的二氧化碳。

　　This is according to a McAfee study the 'Carbon Footprint of Spam', which also found each time you copy someone else, another six grams of CO2 is added.

　　据迈克菲（一款杀毒软件）“垃圾邮件的碳足迹”研究发现，每次转发邮件同样也会增加6克的二氧化碳。

　　A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases produced to directly and indirectly¹ support human activities, usually expressed in equivalent tons of carbon dioxide.

　　碳足迹是人类活动直接或间接地向大气中排放温室气体的总量，通常也用同等数量的二氧化碳的吨数来表示。

　　The average person sends and receives 125 emails every day.

　　每人平均每天收发125封邮件。

　　发送电子邮件也会产生碳足迹么？

　　When sending emails, greenhouse gases are produced in running the computer, server and routers, and when when the equipment was manufactured.

　　发送邮件时，电脑、服务器、路由器的运行会产生温室气体，同时制造这些设备时也会产生二氧化碳。

　　Receiving a spam message, even if you do not open it, has an environmental impact of 0.3 gCO2.

　　收到一条垃圾信息，即使你没有打开，大气中也会增加0.3克二氧化碳。

　　The global carbon footprint from spam annually² is equivalent to the greenhouse gases pumped out by 3.1 million passenger cars using two billion gallons of gasoline in a year.

　　每年全球垃圾邮件的碳排放量相当于310万辆客车每年消耗20亿加仑的汽油所排出的二氧化碳。

　　Sending emails is just one activity on a long list of seemingly harmless everyday actions contribute to emissions³ of CO2.

　　发送邮件只是人类日常生活中看似无害却会排放二氧化碳的众多行为中的一项。

　　For example, typing in a non-essential Google inquiry⁴ on an energy-efficient laptop leaves a footprint of 0.2 gCO2e. On an old desktop⁵ computer, it is 4.5 gCO2e.

　　例如，用节能笔记本在谷歌上搜索一般的问题会产生0.2克的二氧化碳，而用老式电脑则会产生4.5克二氧化碳。

　　Sending a text message isn't a less harmful method of communication either, as it comes at a cost of about 0.014 gCO2e.

　　发送短信同样会对环境产生影响，因为会产生约0.014克二氧化碳。

　　A trip to the grocery store also leaves behind a large print as well.

　　去一趟小卖部也会产生大量碳足迹。

　　Plastic grocery bags each have a carbon footprint of 10 gCO2e, but the paper ones are even worse at 40 gCO2e each.

　　制造小卖部的一个塑料袋会产生10克二氧化碳当量，而每个纸质袋子二氧化碳当量则高达40克。

　　Store-bought bottled water has nearly 1,150 times the emissions attached to it than a glass poured from the tap.

　　店里买瓶装水比用玻璃瓶从水龙头接水产生的碳排放量高1150倍。

　　A one-pint size bottle is responsible for 160 gCO2e compared to 0.14 gCO2e for tap water.

　　1品脱的瓶装水要消耗160克二氧化碳当量，而等量的自来水只会产生0.14克二氧化碳当量。

　　A large cappuccino comes with a footprint of 235 gCO2e, partly because of the emissions from raising the cow which produced the milk.

　　一杯大杯的卡布奇诺咖啡的碳排量为235克。（因为其中加入的奶来自养殖的奶牛，而养殖奶牛也会产生二氧化碳。）

　　For a cup of home-made black tea or coffee for which just enough water was boiled, the figure is 21 gCO2e.

　　自制一杯红茶或者咖啡需要的开水，会产生21克的二氧化碳。

　　With the holiday season here, gift giving can contribute greatly to the release of CO2.

　　假日里，送礼也会产生大量的二氧化碳。

　　Splurging on $100 of clothes each month will set you back 0.5 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year.

　　每月花费100美元（约638元人民币）购买衣服，每年将产生0.5吨的二氧化碳。

　　Throw in a $1,000 furniture purchase once a year and you're up to almost a ton.

　　每年花费1000美元（约6380元人民币）购买家具，所产生的二氧化碳多达一吨。

　　And of course, the bigger the TV, the bigger the cost in greenhouse-gas emissions.

　　毋庸置疑，电视屏幕越大，产生的温室气体就越多。

　　Watching two hours of tube on a 24-inch plasma⁶ screen pumps out 440 gCO2e, which is about the same as driving a car for 1.6 km.

　　24英寸等离子屏播放两个小时所产生的二氧化碳达440克，相当于一辆汽车开1.6千米所产生的二氧化碳。

　　The footprint is 68 gCO2e and 176 gCO2e respectively for two hours watched on a 15- or a 32-inch LCD screen.

　　15英寸和32英寸的液晶显示器播放两个小时，所产生的二氧化碳分别为68克和176克。

　　A mile of cycling fueled by a meal of bananas would be responsible for 65 gCO2e, compared to 260 gCO2e for a mile powered by cheeseburgers.

　　食用香蕉和食用芝士汉堡后骑行1英里所产生的二氧化碳当量分别是65克和260克。

　　Vocabulary

　　plasma: 等离子

1 indirectly   

adv.间接地，不直接了当地

参考例句：

• I heard the news indirectly.这消息我是间接听来的。
• They were approached indirectly through an intermediary.通过一位中间人，他们进行了间接接触。

2 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

3 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

4 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

5 desktop   

n.桌面管理系统程序；台式

参考例句：

• My computer is a desktop computer of excellent quality.我的计算机是品质卓越的台式计算机。
• Do you know which one is better,a laptop or a desktop?你知道哪一种更好，笔记本还是台式机？

6 plasma   

n.血浆，细胞质，乳清

参考例句：

• Keep some blood plasma back for the serious cases.留一些血浆给重病号。
• The plasma is the liquid portion of blood that is free of cells .血浆是血液的液体部分，不包含各种细胞。