DEEP-SEA DREDGINGS.

Men have ever been strangely charmed by the unknown and the seemingly inaccessible¹. The astronomer² exhibits the influence of this charm as he constructs larger and larger telescopes, that he may penetrate³ more and more deeply beyond the veil which conceals⁵ the greater part of the universe from the unaided eye. The geologist⁶, seeking to piece together the fragmentary records of the past which the earth’s surface presents to him, is equally influenced by the charm of mystery and difficulty. And the microscopist who tries to force from nature the secret of the infinitely⁷ little, is led on by the same strange desire to discover143 just those matters which nature has been most careful to conceal⁴ from us.

The energy with which in recent times men have sought to master the problem of deep-sea sounding and deep-sea dredging is, perhaps, one of the most striking instances ever afforded of the charm which the unknown possesses for mankind. Not long ago, one of the most eminent⁸ geographers⁹ of the sea spoke¹⁰ regretfully about the small knowledge men have obtained of the depths of ocean. ‘Greater difficulties,’ he remarked, ‘than any presented by the problem of deep-sea research have been overcome in other branches of physical inquiry¹¹. Astronomers¹² have measured the volumes and weighed the masses of the most distant planets, and increased thereby¹³ the stock of human knowledge. Is it creditable to the age that the depths of the sea should remain in the category of unsolved problems? that its “ooze and bottom” should be a sealed volume, rich with ancient and eloquent¹⁴ legends and suggestive of many an instructive lesson that might be useful and profitable to man?‘

Since that time, however, deep-sea dredging has gradually become more and more thoroughly¹⁵ understood and mastered. When the telegraphic cable which had lain so many months at the bottom of the Atlantic was hauled on board the ‘Great Eastern’ from enormous depths, men were surprised and almost startled by the narrative¹⁶. The appearance of the ooze-covered cable as it was slowly raised towards the surface, and the strange thrill which ran through those144 who saw it and remembered through what mysterious depths it had twice passed; its breaking away almost from the very hands of those who sought to draw it on board; and the successful renewal¹⁷ of the attempt to recover the cable,—all these things were heard of as one listens to a half-incredible tale. Yet when that work was accomplished¹⁸ deep-sea dredging had already been some time a science, and many things had been achieved by its professors which presented, in reality, greater practical difficulties than the recovery of the Atlantic Cable.

Recently, however, deep-sea researches have been carried on with results which are even more sensational¹⁹, so to speak, than the grappling feat²⁰ which so surprised us. Seas so deep that many of the loftiest summits of the Alps might be completely buried beneath them have been explored. Dredges weighing with their load of mud nearly half a ton have been hauled up without a hitch²¹ from depths of some 14,000 feet. But not merely has comparatively rough work of this sort been achieved, but by a variety of ingenious contrivances men of science have been able to measure the temperature of the sea at depths where the pressure is so enormous as to be equivalent to a weight of more than 430 tons on every square foot of surface.

The results of these researches are even more remarkable²² and surprising, however, than the means by which they have been obtained. Sir Charles Lyell has fairly spoken of them as so astonishing ‘that they have to the geologist almost a revolutionary character.’ Let us consider a few of them.

145

No light can be supposed to penetrate to the enormous depth just spoken of. Therefore, how certainly we might conclude that there can be no life there. If, instead of dealing²³ with the habitability of planets, Whewell, in his ‘Plurality of Worlds,’ had been considering the question whether at depths of two or three miles living creatures could subsist²⁴, how convincingly would he have proved the absurdity²⁵ of such a supposition. Intense cold, perfect darkness, and a persistent²⁶ pressure of two or three tons to the square inch,—such, he might have argued, are the conditions under which life exists, if at all, in those dismal²⁷ depths. And even if he had been disposed to concede the bare possibility that life of some sort may be found there, then certainly, he would have urged, some new sense must replace sight—the creatures in these depths can assuredly have no eyes, or only rudimentary ones.

But the recent deep-sea dredgings have proved that not only does life exist in the very deepest parts of the Atlantic, but that the beings which live and move and have their being beneath three miles of water have eyes which the ablest naturalists²⁸ pronounce to be perfectly²⁹ developed. Light, then, of some sort must exist in those abysms, though whether the home of the deep-sea animals be phosphorescent, as Sir Charles Lyell suggests, or whether light reaches these creatures in some other way, we have no present means of determining.

If there is one theory which geologists³⁰ have thought more justly founded than all others, it is the view that146 the various strata³¹ of the earth were formed at different times. A chalk district, for example, lying side by side with a sandstone district, has been referred to a totally different era. Whether the chalk was formed first, or whether the sandstone existed before the minute races came into being which formed the cretaceous stratum³², might be a question. But no doubt existed in the minds of geologists that each formation belonged to a distinct period. Now, however, Dr. Carpenter and Professor Thomson may fairly say, ‘We have changed all this.’ It has been found that at points of the sea-bottom only eight or ten miles apart, there may be in progress the formation of a cretaceous deposit and of a sandstone region, each with its own proper fauna³³. ‘Wherever similar conditions are found upon the dry land of the present day,’ remarks Dr. Carpenter, ‘it has been supposed that the formation of chalk and the formation of sandstone must have been separated from each other by long periods, and the discovery that they may actually co-exist upon adjacent surfaces has done no less than strike at the very root of the customary assumptions with regard to geological time.’11

Even more interesting, perhaps, to many, are the results which have been obtained respecting the varying temperatures of deep-sea regions. The peculiarity³⁴ just considered is, indeed, a consequence of such varia147tions; but the fact itself is at least as interesting as the consequences which flow from it. It throws light on the long-standing controversy³⁵ respecting the oceanic circulation. It has been found that the depths of the equatorial and tropical seas are colder than those of the North Atlantic. In the tropics the deep-sea temperature is considerably³⁶ below the freezing-point of fresh water; in the deepest part of the Bay of Biscay the temperature is several degrees above the freezing-point. Thus one learns that the greater part of the water which lies deep below the surface of the equatorial and tropical seas comes from the Antarctic regions, though undoubtedly³⁷ there are certain relatively³⁸ narrow currents which carry the waters of the Arctic seas to the tropics. The great point to notice is that the water under the equatorial seas must really have travelled from polar regions. A cold of 30 degrees can be explained in no other way. We see at once, therefore, the explanation of those westerly equatorial currents which have been so long a subject of contest. Sir John Herschel failed to prove that they are due to the trade winds, but Maury failed equally to prove that they are due to the great warmth and consequent buoyancy of the equatorial waters. In fact, while Maury showed very convincingly that the great system of oceanic circulation is carried on despite the winds, Herschel proved in an equally convincing manner that the overflow³⁹ conceived by Maury should result in an easterly instead of a westerly current. Recently the theory was put forward that the continual process of148 evaporation⁴⁰ going on in the equatorial regions leads to an indraught of cold water in bottom-currents from the polar seas. Such currents coming towards the equator, that is, travelling from latitudes⁴¹ where the earth’s eastwardly⁴² motion is less to latitudes where that motion is greater, would lag behind, that is, would have a westwardly⁴³ motion. It seems now placed beyond a doubt that this is the true explanation of the equatorial ocean-currents.

Such are a few, and but a few, among the many interesting results which have followed from the recent researches of Dr. Carpenter and Professor Thomson into the hitherto little-known depths of the great sea.

(From the Spectator, December 4, 1869.)

1 inaccessible   

adj.达不到的，难接近的

参考例句：

• This novel seems to me among the most inaccessible.这本书对我来说是最难懂的小说之一。
• The top of Mount Everest is the most inaccessible place in the world.珠穆朗玛峰是世界上最难到达的地方。

2 astronomer   

n.天文学家

参考例句：

• A new star attracted the notice of the astronomer.新发现的一颗星引起了那位天文学家的注意。
• He is reputed to have been a good astronomer.他以一个优秀的天文学者闻名于世。

3 penetrate   

v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解

参考例句：

• Western ideas penetrate slowly through the East.西方观念逐渐传入东方。
• The sunshine could not penetrate where the trees were thickest.阳光不能透入树木最浓密的地方。

4 conceal   

v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽

参考例句：

• He had to conceal his identity to escape the police.为了躲避警方，他只好隐瞒身份。
• He could hardly conceal his joy at his departure.他几乎掩饰不住临行时的喜悦。

5 conceals   

v.隐藏，隐瞒，遮住( conceal的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He conceals his worries behind a mask of nonchalance. 他装作若无其事，借以掩饰内心的不安。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Drunkenness reveals what soberness conceals. 酒醉吐真言。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 geologist   

n.地质学家

参考例句：

• The geologist found many uncovered fossils in the valley.在那山谷里，地质学家发现了许多裸露的化石。
• He was a geologist,rated by his cronies as the best in the business.他是一位地质学家，被他的老朋友们看做是这门行当中最好的一位。

7 infinitely   

adv.无限地，无穷地

参考例句：

• There is an infinitely bright future ahead of us.我们有无限光明的前途。
• The universe is infinitely large.宇宙是无限大的。

8 eminent   

adj.显赫的，杰出的，有名的，优良的

参考例句：

• We are expecting the arrival of an eminent scientist.我们正期待一位著名科学家的来访。
• He is an eminent citizen of China.他是一个杰出的中国公民。

9 geographers   

地理学家( geographer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Geographers study the configuration of the mountains. 地理学家研究山脉的地形轮廓。
• Many geographers now call this landmass Eurasia. 许多地理学家现在把这块陆地叫作欧亚大陆。

10 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

11 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。

12 astronomers   

n.天文学者，天文学家( astronomer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Astronomers can accurately foretell the date,time,and length of future eclipses. 天文学家能精确地预告未来日食月食的日期、时刻和时长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Astronomers used to ask why only Saturn has rings. 天文学家们过去一直感到奇怪，为什么只有土星有光环。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 thereby   

adv.因此，从而

参考例句：

• I have never been to that city,,ereby I don't know much about it.我从未去过那座城市，因此对它不怎么熟悉。
• He became a British citizen,thereby gaining the right to vote.他成了英国公民，因而得到了投票权。

14 eloquent   

adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的

参考例句：

• He was so eloquent that he cut down the finest orator.他能言善辩，胜过最好的演说家。
• These ruins are an eloquent reminder of the horrors of war.这些废墟形象地提醒人们不要忘记战争的恐怖。

15 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

16 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

17 renewal   

adj.(契约)延期，续订，更新，复活，重来

参考例句：

• Her contract is coming up for renewal in the autumn.她的合同秋天就应该续签了。
• Easter eggs symbolize the renewal of life.复活蛋象征新生。

18 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

19 sensational   

adj.使人感动的，非常好的，轰动的，耸人听闻的

参考例句：

• Papers of this kind are full of sensational news reports.这类报纸满是耸人听闻的新闻报道。
• Their performance was sensational.他们的演出妙极了。

20 feat   

n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的

参考例句：

• Man's first landing on the moon was a feat of great daring.人类首次登月是一个勇敢的壮举。
• He received a medal for his heroic feat.他因其英雄业绩而获得一枚勋章。

21 hitch   

v.免费搭(车旅行)；系住；急提；n.故障；急拉

参考例句：

• They had an eighty-mile journey and decided to hitch hike.他们要走80英里的路程，最后决定搭便车。
• All the candidates are able to answer the questions without any hitch.所有报考者都能对答如流。

22 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

23 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

24 subsist   

vi.生存，存在，供养

参考例句：

• We are unable to subsist without air and water.没有空气和水我们就活不下去。
• He could subsist on bark and grass roots in the isolated island.在荒岛上他只能靠树皮和草根维持生命。

25 absurdity   

n.荒谬，愚蠢；谬论

参考例句：

• The proposal borders upon the absurdity.这提议近乎荒谬。
• The absurdity of the situation made everyone laugh.情况的荒谬可笑使每个人都笑了。

26 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

27 dismal   

adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的

参考例句：

• That is a rather dismal melody.那是一支相当忧郁的歌曲。
• My prospects of returning to a suitable job are dismal.我重新找到一个合适的工作岗位的希望很渺茫。

28 naturalists   

n.博物学家( naturalist的名词复数 )；（文学艺术的）自然主义者

参考例句：

• Naturalists differ much in determining what characters are of generic value. 自然学者对于不同性状决定生物的属的含义上，各有各的见解。 来自辞典例句
• This fact has led naturalists to believe that the Isthmus was formerly open. 使许多自然学者相信这个地蛱在以前原是开通的。 来自辞典例句

29 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

30 geologists   

地质学家，地质学者( geologist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Geologists uncovered the hidden riches. 地质学家发现了地下的宝藏。
• Geologists study the structure of the rocks. 地质学家研究岩石结构。

31 strata   

n.地层（复数）；社会阶层

参考例句：

• The older strata gradually disintegrate.较老的岩层渐渐风化。
• They represent all social strata.他们代表各个社会阶层。

32 stratum   

n.地层，社会阶层

参考例句：

• The coal is a coal resource that reserves in old stratum.石煤是贮藏在古老地层中的一种煤炭资源。
• How does Chinese society define the class and stratum?中国社会如何界定阶级与阶层？

33 fauna   

n.(一个地区或时代的)所有动物，动物区系

参考例句：

• This National Park is an area with unique fauna and flora.该国家公园区域内具有独特的动物种群和植物种群。
• Fauna is a biological notion means all the animal life in a particular region or period. 动物群是一个生物学的概念，指的是一个特定时期或者地区的所有动物。

34 peculiarity   

n.独特性，特色；特殊的东西；怪癖

参考例句：

• Each country has its own peculiarity.每个国家都有自己的独特之处。
• The peculiarity of this shop is its day and nigth service.这家商店的特点是昼夜服务。

35 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

36 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

37 undoubtedly   

adv.确实地，无疑地

参考例句：

• It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
• He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。

38 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

39 overflow   

v.(使)外溢，(使)溢出；溢出，流出，漫出

参考例句：

• The overflow from the bath ran on to the floor.浴缸里的水溢到了地板上。
• After a long period of rain,the river may overflow its banks.长时间的下雨天后，河水可能溢出岸来。

40 evaporation   

n.蒸发，消失

参考例句：

• Be careful not to lose too much liquid by evaporation.小心不要因蒸发失去太多水分。
• Our bodies can sweat,thereby losing heat by evaporation.我们的身体能出汗，由此可以蒸发散热。

41 latitudes   

纬度

参考例句：

• Latitudes are the lines that go from east to west. 纬线是从东到西的线。
• It was the brief Indian Summer of the high latitudes. 这是高纬度地方的那种短暂的晚秋。

42 eastwardly   

向东，从东方

参考例句：

43 westwardly   

向西，自西

参考例句：