VOA标准英语2008年-Australian Conference Promotes Radical Building

Office blocks modeled on termite¹ nests and buildings that can resist climate change have been the focus at a conference by some of Australia's most influential² designers in Melbourne. They are calling for radical³ changes to the way that buildings are constructed. Architects have said that the natural world should be a great source of inspiration. From Sydney, Phil Mercer reports.

Australian designers have said this is the beginning of the "biological age." A conference in Melbourne has heard that their professional attention needs to be diverted from creating items society really does not need - such as stackable chairs that turn into a piece of sculpture, fancy sunglasses and exotic cars.

What they want to see are designs that harness the forces of nature, through buildings covered in plants that can draw carbon dioxide out of the air, and floating cities that preserve fertile land for farming.

Mick Pearce, a Zimbabwean architect living in Melbourne, has been inspired by the humble⁴ termite.

"Rather like blood circulating in our veins⁵, inside the termites⁶ nest it is air that is moved by external temperature and pressures," Pearce explained. "The termites nest is a system like our bodies. It's self regulating temperature-wise and that, in a way, is an excellent model for a building. It's an extension to our metabolism⁷, if you like, and this means you can build a building and use far less energy."

In Zimbabwe, Mick Pearce has constructed offices built on such principles that have employed vertical⁸ tunnels for ventilation and consume about 10 percent of the electricity of a normal air-conditioned building. He has also designed a similar structure - called Council House Two - which has become one of Melbourne's most energy efficient buildings, using the sun and the wind for heat and cooling.

The environmentally friendly building in the heart of Australia's second biggest city consumes only 15 percent of the energy of a regular office tower and about 30 percent of the water.

Lindsay Johnson, governor of Architecture Australia, a body representing the profession, was a keynote speaker at the design conference. He says taking inspiration from the natural world has become imperative⁹.

"This is the way to go and basically we all have to really think about how we're going to live without depending on oil or coal," Johnson said. "The really badly designed buildings of the recent past which have depended on fossil fuels to make them habitable will become a thing of the past. I think everybody will have to adapt to this."

Climate change and Australia's response to it have become major points of discussion. The driest inhabited continent is one of the world's worst per capita emitters of greenhouse gases. Some scientists have warned that Australia was facing a ten-fold increase in heat waves as a shifting climate increases temperatures.

1 termite   

n.白蚁

参考例句：

• The termite control was also probed into further in this text.本文还进一步探讨了白蚁的防治方法。
• Termite often destroys wood.白蚁经常破坏树木。

2 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

3 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

4 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

5 veins   

n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理

参考例句：

• The blood flows from the capillaries back into the veins. 血从毛细血管流回静脉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I felt a pleasant glow in all my veins from the wine. 喝过酒后我浑身的血都热烘烘的，感到很舒服。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 termites   

n.白蚁( termite的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Termites are principally tropical in distribution. 白蚁主要分布在热带地区。 来自辞典例句
• This spray will exterminate the termites. 这种喷剂能消灭白蚁。 来自辞典例句

7 metabolism   

n.新陈代谢

参考例句：

• After years of dieting,Carol's metabolism was completely out of whack.经过数年的节食，卡罗尔的新陈代谢完全紊乱了。
• All living matter undergoes a process of metabolism.生物都有新陈代谢。

8 vertical   

adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置

参考例句：

• The northern side of the mountain is almost vertical.这座山的北坡几乎是垂直的。
• Vertical air motions are not measured by this system.垂直气流的运动不用这种系统来测量。

9 imperative   

n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的

参考例句：

• He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。
• The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。