每日英语练习 - 2026-07-08（星期三）
📌 今日主题
AI 数据中心的热岛效应：人工智能背后的环境代价 — 科技新闻片段 选自 Al Jazeera 深度报道，探讨 AI 数据中心的巨大能耗及其对周边环境的热影响。
🎬 视频/音频资源
- 🎥 YouTube（AI数据中心对环境气候的影响）：https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aS-BiR7X9tA
- 🎥 YouTube（Are data centers a climate threat?）：https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Js-hZPtspJc
- 📄 原文出处：https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/6/11/how-much-heat-does-an-ai-data-centre-produce-and-where-are-they-located
📝 英文原文
Every time someone uses ChatGPT, Gemini or Claude, the request is handled in a data centre — a vast facility full of specialised computers that run 24 hours a day. AI data centres use powerful chips that perform thousands of calculations in parallel, and running large models continuously makes them much more energy hungry than typical servers used to browse the web.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), data centres consumed about 415 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity in 2024, about 1.5 percent of global supply, growing at about 15 percent a year. That figure is projected to nearly double to 945 TWh by 2030.
Among the most energy-intensive are hyperscale data centres — the largest facilities of their kind, built by major tech companies to support cloud computing and AI at a global scale. They typically house at least 5,000 servers and require between 100 and 300 megawatts of electricity to operate — enough to power hundreds of thousands of homes.
That energy generates enormous amounts of heat. A study led by Cambridge researchers found that land surface temperatures around AI data centres rise by an average of 2 degrees Celsius, with some areas recording increases as high as 9°C. Researchers have called this the “data heat island effect.”
The study used NASA satellite data to measure land surface temperature globally from 2004 to 2024 and cross-referenced it with more than 11,000 AI data centre locations worldwide. It found that more than 340 million people living within 10 kilometres of a data centre could be affected by the temperature increases — an impact researchers described as having a “remarkable influence on communities and regional welfare.”
🔍 重点词汇
| 单词/短语 | 音标 | 中文释义 | 例句 |
|---|---|---|---|
| data centre | /ˈdeɪtə ˈsentər/ | 数据中心 | AI data centres are expanding rapidly around the world. |
| hyperscale | /ˈhaɪpər skeɪl/ | 超大规模的 | Hyperscale data centres consume massive amounts of electricity. |
| energy-intensive | /ˈenərdʒi ɪnˈtensɪv/ | 高能耗的 | Training large AI models is extremely energy-intensive. |
| heat island effect | /hiːt ˈaɪlənd ɪˈfekt/ | 热岛效应 | The data heat island effect can raise local temperatures by several degrees. |
| satellite data | /ˈsætəlaɪt ˈdeɪtə/ | 卫星数据 | NASA satellite data helped researchers measure temperature changes. |
| cross-referenced | /krɔːs ˈrefrənst/ | 交叉对照 | The study cross-referenced data from thousands of locations. |
| in parallel | /ɪn ˈpærəlel/ | 并行地 | AI chips perform thousands of calculations in parallel. |
| projected | /prəˈdʒektɪd/ | 预计的 | Energy consumption is projected to nearly double by 2030. |
| remarkable influence | /rɪˈmɑːrkəbəl ˈɪnfluəns/ | 显著影响 | The study found a remarkable influence on local communities. |
| localised warming | /ˈloʊkəlaɪzd ˈwɔːrmɪŋ/ | 局部升温 | Localised warming from data centres can be detected up to 10km away. |
| megawatt | /ˈmeɡəwɑːt/ | 兆瓦 | A single hyperscale data centre can require 300 megawatts of power. |
| welfare | /ˈwelfer/ | 福祉，福利 | The temperature increases affect the welfare of nearby residents. |
💡 实用表达
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“Every time someone uses…” — 用来引出一种常见场景，口语中非常实用
- 例：Every time someone orders food delivery, an AI predicts the delivery time.
-
“enough to power hundreds of thousands of homes” — 用类比让抽象数字变得直观
- 例：This solar farm generates enough energy to power 50,000 homes.
-
“a growing body of evidence suggests that…” — 学术/新闻常用开头，表示”越来越多的证据表明”
- 例：A growing body of evidence suggests that remote work improves productivity.
-
“could be affected by…” — 讨论影响时的标准表达
- 例：Millions of people could be affected by rising sea levels.
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“has been called…” / “researchers have called this…” — 介绍新概念或新术语的常用句式
- 例：Researchers have called this phenomenon the “AI divide.”
🎯 练习步骤
- 通读全文：先完整读一遍英文原文，理解大意
- 精读标记：逐句阅读，标记不熟悉的词汇和表达
- 跟读练习：大声朗读 3 遍，注意断句、重音和语调
- 脱稿复述：合上文本，用自己的话复述大意（中英文都可以）
- 结构化输出：用以下框架组织你的复述：
- 这段话在说什么？（一句话概括）
- 主要观点是什么？（列 2-3 个要点）
- 我的感受/看法？（一句话）
🗣️ 口才小贴士
使用”数字类比法”让抽象概念更生动——这篇新闻中，“enough to power hundreds of thousands of homes”把枯燥的 300 兆瓦变成了人人都能理解的画面。当你需要描述复杂数据或抽象概念时，找一个生活化的类比对象（家庭、足球场、游泳池等），让你的听众立刻”看见”数字背后的意义。例如：“这个 AI 模型一天的运算量，相当于全世界每个人同时做 100 道数学题。” —— 类比是最好的翻译器。