2016年1月9号托福阅读答案_2016年托福阅读：大海啸Megatsunami

　　Scientists Debate Evidence of Ancient Megatsunami
　　Reading Passage
　　By
　　Michael Casey, for National Geographic
　　Try to read the passage first, and then check if you understand the chosen words and sentences well.
　　For nearly a decade, geologist Dallas Abbott and her colleagues have been trying to prove that an enormous space rock, possibly an asteroid, smashed into the Indian Ocean about 10,000 years ago and created a megatsunami, a set of giant waves that washed over the east coast of Africa. Such a tsunami could have created waves as high as 300 feet (91 meters)—three times larger than the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 that left 230,000 dead.
　　Words:
　　Enormous adj. 巨大的
　　Asteroid n. 小行星
　　Smash v. 猛撞
　　Megatsunami n. 大海啸
　　Sentence:
　　Such a tsunami could have created waves as high as 300 feet (91 meters)—three times larger than the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 that left 230,000 dead.
　　这样的海啸能够制造300英尺的波浪(91米)，是2004年造成230,000人死亡的印度洋海啸的三倍之多。
　　The proof, Abbott contends, lies in sandy wedge-shaped features called chevrons in Madagascar, as well as what might be a deep ocean crater between Madagascar and Australia. The idea is that either a huge impact, or a large landslide from a volcano on the island Réunion, sparked the tsunami that created the chevrons.
　　Words:
　　Contend v. 声称
　　Wedge-shaped 楔形的
　　Madagascar 马达加斯加
　　Landslide n. 山崩
　　Spark v. 闪现，激励
　　Chevron n. 山形袖章
　　Sentence：
　　The idea is that either a huge impact, or a large landslide from a volcano on the island Réunion, sparked the tsunami that created the chevrons.
　　这个观点是巨大的撞击或是R岛上火山山崩引起了产生山形袖章的海啸。
　　Now, Abbott and an international team of researchers have presented further evidence to back up their theory: a geo-chemical fingerprint from Madagascar that firms up the date for the massive tsunami. The study of ancient megatsunamis has been controversial, though; not only is it hard to detect evidence that literally washes away, but also to establish proof of a tsunami's cause—such as an impact or earthquake—occurring at the same time.
　　Words:
　　Back up 支持
　　Fingerprint n. 指纹
　　Massive adj. 巨大的
　　Wash away 冲走
　　Sentence:
　　The study of ancient megatsunamis has been controversial, though; not only is it hard to detect evidence that literally washes away, but also to establish proof of a tsunami's cause—such as an impact or earthquake—occurring at the same time.
　　可是古代大海啸的研究是有争议性的，不仅仅是因为很难去探测那些实在地 被冲走的证据，还因为确定海啸的原因-比如说是撞击或是地震-是发生在同一时间的。

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