IELTS Listening Part 4: A Lecture on Urban Heat Islands

Part Four. You will hear a lecture about urban heat islands.

第四部分。你将听到一场关于城市热岛的讲座。

You have some time to look at questions thirty-one to forty.

你有一些时间阅读第三十一至第四十题。

Now listen carefully and answer questions thirty-one to forty.

现在请仔细听，并回答第三十一至第四十题。

Good morning, everyone. Today we're looking at urban heat islands.

大家早上好。今天我们来了解城市热岛。

Have you ever noticed that cities feel hotter than the countryside?

你们有没有注意到，城市总感觉比乡村更热？

Well, that's not just your imagination.

其实，这并不只是你的错觉。

On summer nights, a city can be up to ten degrees warmer!

在夏天的夜晚，城市的温度可以高出多达十度！

Scientists call this the urban heat island effect.

科学家把这称为城市热岛效应。

So, what causes it? There are three main reasons.

那么，是什么造成的呢？主要有三个原因。

First, dark surfaces like roads and roofs absorb heat during the day,

第一，道路和屋顶这类深色表面在白天吸收热量，

and then they slowly release it again at night.

然后在夜里慢慢释放出来。

Second, cities have fewer trees and less open water to cool the air.

第二，城市里能给空气降温的树木和水面更少。

And third, there's us! Cars, factories and air conditioners all produce heat.

第三，就是我们自己！汽车、工厂和空调都会产生热量。

Ironically, the hotter it gets, the more air conditioning we use.

讽刺的是，天气越热，我们开空调就越多。

This matters, because extreme heat can be dangerous.

这一点很重要，因为极端高温可能很危险。

Elderly people living alone are especially at risk during heatwaves.

独居老人在热浪期间尤其危险。

Hot cities also use more energy, and the air quality gets worse.

炎热的城市还会消耗更多能源，空气质量也会变差。

The good news is that there are simple solutions!

好消息是，有一些简单的解决办法！

Some cities are painting roofs white to reflect the sunlight.

一些城市把屋顶刷成白色来反射阳光。

In one study, white roofs cooled the rooms below by up to two degrees.

一项研究发现，白色屋顶能让下方房间的温度最多降低两度。

Green roofs, covered in plants, can work even better.

种满植物的绿色屋顶效果可能更好。

But the most effective solution is still the oldest one: planting trees.

但最有效的办法仍然是最古老的那个：种树。

One large tree can cool the air as much as several air conditioners.

一棵大树给空气降温的效果，相当于好几台空调。

Next week, we'll look at how one city turned itself into a garden.

下周，我们来看一座城市是如何把自己变成花园的。

Thanks, everyone. See you then!

谢谢大家，到时见！

That is the end of Part Four.

第四部分到此结束。