什麼是地震上雙語閲讀

Earthquakes also called temblors, can be so tremendously destructive, it’s hard to imagine they occur by the thousands every day around the world, usually in the form of small tremors.

地震的另一個表達是“temblors”，是有可能造成極大破壞力的災難。但其實你知道嗎？世界上各個角落每天都在發生着的小型地震多到難以計數。

Some 80 percent of all the planet’s earthquakes occur along the rim of the Pacific Ocean, called the "Ring of Fire" because of the preponderance of volcanic activity there as well. Most earthquakes occur at fault zones, where tectonic plates—giant rock slabs that make up the Earth’s upper layer—collide or slide against each other. These impacts are usually gradual and unnoticeable on the surface; however, immense stress can build up between plates. When this stress is released quickly, it sends massive vibrations, called seismic waves, often hundreds of miles through the rock and up to the surface. Other quakes can occur far from faults zones when plates are stretched or squeezed.

世界上80%的地震和火山發生在環太平洋火山地震帶上。大多數地震發生在斷層帶——也就是大陸板塊的交界處，當兩塊板塊移動相撞的時候就會引發地震或火山爆發這類地質災害。儘管我們並無法感覺到板塊之間碰撞力量的積聚，但是當板塊摩擦力量積聚到一定程度的時候就會引起迅速的釋放。當地震發生的時候，地震波會通過巖石從數百里外傳達到地表引起振動。而不發生在斷層帶上的地震則屬於另一類地震，它們是由板塊擴張或壓縮所引起的`。 wｗＷ

Scientists assign a magnitude rating to earthquakes based on the strength and duration of their seismic waves. A quake measuring 3 to 5 is considered minor or light; 5 to 7 is moderate to strong; 7 to 8 is major; and 8 or more is great.

根據地震的強度和地震波的輻射範圍，科學家把地震分成不同的級別：3-5級是輕震，5-7級是中級強度，7-8級被定義為大地震，8級以上就是特大地震了。

On average, a magnitude 8 quake strikes somewhere every year and some 10,000 people die in earthquakes annually. Collapsing buildings claim by far the majority of lives, but the destruction is often compounded by mud slides, fires, floods, or tsunamis. Smaller temblors that usually occur in the days following a large earthquake can complicate rescue efforts and cause further death and destruction.

一般來説，每年都會發生一次八級地震，而年均地震死亡人數也會在1萬人的樣子。地震引起的房屋倒塌通常造成了絕大多數的傷亡，而地震帶來的危害卻不止於此，還包括由此引發的泥石流、火災、洪災和海嘯。在一次大地震過後的數日裏總是會發生一些規模稍小的餘震，有的餘震也同樣會造成傷亡。

Loss of life can be avoided through emergency planning, education, and the construction of buildings that sway rather than break under the stress of an earthquake.

想要減少地震傷亡，一方面可以通過實施緊急預案和地震知識普及教育，另一方面，提高房屋的抗震係數也顯得同樣重要：因為高抗震係數的建築物可以在地震來襲之時搖而不倒。