OK, Jack. Before we plan our presentation about refrigeration, let's discuss what we've discovered so far.
好了,杰克。在我们计划有关冷藏的演讲之前,让我们先讨论一下我们目前的发现。
Fine, Annie. Though I have to admit I haven't done much research yet.
好的,安妮。但我不得不承认我还没有做太多的研究。
Nor me. But I found an interesting article about icehouses.
我也是。但我发现了一篇关于冰窖的有趣文章。
I'd seen some 18th- and 19th-century ones here in the UK, so I knew they were often built in a shady area or underground, close to lakes that might freeze in the winter.
我在英国看到过一些建于18世纪和19世纪的冰窖,所以我知道它们通常建在阴凉的地方或地下,靠近冬天可能会结冰的湖泊。
Then blocks of ice could be cut and stored in the icehouse.
然后,冰块可以被切割并储存在冰窖中。
But I didn't realise that insulating the blocks with straw or sawdust meant they didn't melt for months.
但我没有意识到,用稻草或锯末给冰块隔热意味着它们几个月都不会融化。
The ancient Romans had refrigeration, too.
古罗马人也有制冷设施。
I didn't know that.
我不知道。
Yes, pits were dug in the ground, and snow was imported from the mountains – even though they were at quite a distance.
是的,他们在地上挖坑,从山上运来了雪,尽管它们相距很远。
The snow was stored in the pits.
雪被储存在坑里。
Ice formed at the bottom of it.
冰在坑的底部形成。
Both the ice and the snow were then sold.
古罗马人出售冰和雪。
The ice cost more than the snow and my guess is that only the wealthy members of society could afford it
冰比雪贵,我猜只有社会上有钱的人才买得起。
I wouldn't be surprised. I also came across an article about modern domestic fridges.
我不惊讶。我还看到了一篇关于现代家用冰箱的文章。
Several different technologies are used, but they were too complex for me to understand.
它们使用了几种不同的技术,但它们太复杂了,我无法理解。
You have to wonder what happens when people get rid of old ones.
你一定想知道,当人们扔掉旧冰箱的时候会发生什么。
You mean because the gases in them are harmful for the environment?
你是说冰箱里面的气体对环境有害吗?
Exactly. At least there are now plenty of organisations that will recycle most of the components safely, but of course some people just dump old fridges in the countryside.
一点儿没错。至少现在有很多组织可以安全地回收大部分零部件,但当然也有一些人把旧冰箱扔到乡下。
It's hard to see how they can be stopped unfortunately.
不幸的是,很难想象如何才能阻止他们。
In the UK we get rid of three million a year altogether!
在英国,我们每年总共扔掉300个旧冰箱!
That sounds a lot, especially because fridges hardly ever break down.
这听起来很多,尤其是因为冰箱几乎从来不会坏。
That's right. In this country we keep domestic fridges for 11 years on average, and a lot last for 20 or more.
没错。在这个国家,我们的家用冰箱平均使用寿命是11年,许多冰箱的使用寿命是20年甚至更长时间。
So if you divide the cost by the number of years you can use a fridge, they're not expensive, compared with some household appliances.
因此,如果你用价格除以冰箱使用年限,与一些家用电器相比,它们并不贵。
True. I suppose manufacturers encourage people to spend more by making them different colours and designs.
没错。我认为制造商制造不同颜色和设计风格的冰箱是为了鼓励人们更多地消费。
I'm sure when my parents bought their first fridge they had hardly any choice!
我敢肯定,当我父母买他们的第一台冰箱时,他们几乎别无选择!
Yes, there's been quite a change.
是的,发生了很大的变化。