2006年VOA标准英语-Higher and Faster, But Not for Everyone

By Paul Sisco
Washington, DC
19 July 2006
 
watch Roller Coaster report
 
  
  
The latest roller coasters at U.S. amusement parks are now higher and faster than ever -- and more are being built.  It's a boom for thrill seekers, but are these rides safe? 

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Thousands at amusements parks scurry¹ around, line up, and climb into all sorts of contraptions to be lifted and dropped, tossed and turned, twisted and terrified -- all summer long.  The question is, why?

  
  
"Pure adrenaline, excellent," says one rider. “I feel like I'm falling off a cliff, but I know inside I'm safe.”

  
  
Are you?  Industry spokesman Alan Ramsay, Vice² President of Ripley Entertainment Inc., says yes. “You have a greater chance playing billiards³ requiring a hospital visit than you do riding an amusement ride or device.”

In the United States, an average of four people are killed in amusement ride accidents every year, but new technology is raising safety concerns for one U.S. Congressman⁴.  Representative Edward Markey says the danger must be acknowledged. "As each year goes by, the rides become faster and more dangerous and advertise as such." 

Rep. Edward Markey  
  
Yet that is exactly what riders want. "Speed, acceleration⁵, g-forces, the biggest and the fastest. Biggest-fastest-steepest anything," say riders.

The thirst for bigger thrills has brought furious competition to the multi-billion dollar amusement park industry. The title of world's fastest and tallest roller has changed six times in the past 10 years. One roller coaster in Ohio, in America's Midwest, was "IT" for thrill seekers, until the Kingda Ka roller coaster began operating at the New Jersey⁶ Great Adventure park last year. 

Engineer Michael Reitz says the goal was to build taller and faster. 'We wanted to build the tallest, fastest ride in the world.  That was the goal and we did it.'

It rises up nearly 140 meters, dives, and reaches a screaming 220 kilometers an hour in three and a half seconds.   Park officials won't talk its effects, or g-forces, on this ride, but the gravitational force on the body is said to be similar to that experienced by elite⁷ racecar drivers.

  
  
Despite several recent incidents, a fatality⁸ of unknown cause on a roller coaster at Disney World and an accident injuring 20 when a roller coaster in Ohio suddenly stopped in mid-ride, the construction boom and race to new heights show no sign of ending any time soon.  There are at least 17 major roller coasters under construction and on track to thrill riders in the U.S. in 2007. 

1 scurry   

vi.急匆匆地走；使急赶；催促；n.快步急跑，疾走；仓皇奔跑声；骤雨，骤雪；短距离赛马

参考例句：

• I jumped on the sofa after I saw a mouse scurry by.看到一只老鼠匆匆路过,我从沙发上跳了起来。
• There was a great scurry for bargains.大家急忙着去抢购特价品。

2 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

3 billiards   

n.台球

参考例句：

• John used to divert himself with billiards.约翰过去总打台球自娱。
• Billiards isn't popular in here.这里不流行台球。

4 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

5 acceleration   

n.加速，加速度

参考例句：

• All spacemen must be able to bear acceleration.所有太空人都应能承受加速度。
• He has also called for an acceleration of political reforms.他同时呼吁加快政治改革的步伐。

6 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

7 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

8 fatality   

n.不幸，灾祸，天命

参考例句：

• She struggle against fatality in vain.她徒然奋斗反抗宿命。
• He began to have a growing sense of fatality.他开始有一种越来越强烈的宿命感。