我认为《伟大工程巡礼》这部纪录片很好。这部纪录片介绍了世界各地的伟大的工程奇迹。更重要的是，不仅仅是世界的工程奇迹，而是宏大建筑工程背后的，不为人知的事件，包括建筑工程从规划，到设计，再到建设施工，直至最后建成，这期间少有人知的事件。其中介绍的工程，其中一些还创造了历史。

举例来说，其中有几集介绍了一个城市发展的奇迹——迪拜。

迪拜，50年前的荒滩渔村，今天的特大城市，不仅是中东沙漠里的一颗明珠，阿联酋最大的城市，更是世界城市发展史上的奇迹。

《伟大工程巡礼——迪拜棕榈岛》介绍了棕榈岛具有的时代意义：发展旅游业。迪拜是以石油为经济基础，但是，石油终有一天将会开采完毕。石油采完后，迪拜何去何从？迪拜的上层决策者想到了旅游收入。起初，当地人决定建造一个圆形的人工岛，但这仅仅将海岸线延长了几公里。后来有建筑师想到建造一个棕榈树形状的人工岛，这一想法一经提出，立即遭到了民众的质疑。不仅仅是民众，而且多数建筑师都认为这不可能实现。当地政府也对此表示了质疑，同时提出了极高的要求——全部用沙石建造。这又是一个难题。还有一些难题，例如人工岛内的海水不流动的

问题，最终全部解决。迪拜棕榈岛最终展现在世人面前。

《伟大工程巡礼——迪拜帆船酒店》介绍了迪拜帆船酒店的建造历程。因形似帆船而得名。至今为止，迪拜帆船酒店仍然是世界上唯一的七星级酒店。暂且不谈迪拜帆船酒店的建造历程，跟随影片参观其内部的场景，有如身临其境。首先，迪拜帆船酒店建在一人工岛上，人工岛同样由沙土和岩石建造，同样历经了种种挑战。出入帆船酒店，有两种交通方式。一是走与之相连的跨海大桥，这是一项平常的选择。还有一种选择，让人感觉不可思议：驾驶直升机去。在帆船酒店顶部，一块空地，被用作直升机停机坪。因此可以搭乘直升机去。停机坪只是其一。在帆船酒店内部，还有高尔夫球场和其它一些让人难以想象的场地。跟谁镜头参观，有一种身历其境的感受。其次，帆船酒店内部的场景也让人感觉难以想象。几个空中平台，距离地面二三百米，悬在半空中。在那里面就餐，感觉自然是难以想象的。在镜头里看，不可能有那样的感觉。在八十几层的空中，可能有类似的感觉。还有其中一个大厅，建在水下，顶部是玻璃，再向上是海水，让人有一种置身海底的感觉。在那里面就餐，又必然是一种特殊的感觉。可以看着海底的景观，在那

里面就餐。尽管没有去过那里，但是看过影片之后，仍有一种特殊的感觉。跟随镜头走进其中的房间，内部的珍贵花卉，有些几乎没有人见过。还有一些，无法用言语来表达，看过之后自然有那样的感觉。

第二篇：【整理】伟大工程巡礼

Megastructures.Beijing.Olympic.Stadium

You can't host the Olympics without a world-class facility and, for 2008, China's gearing up to do the honors by building one of the world's largest enclosed facilities - the Beijing National Stadium. 42,000 tons of twisted steel and a stadium to seat 90,000 people - one of the biggest and most ambitious constructions projects ever attempted in modern China. Against the backdrop of China's rush to the Olympics, examine the unique features of the "bird's nest" stadium, following its design, engineering and construction up until the ultimate test, where Games organizers will find out if this ambitious project is ready in time for the Opening Ceremony of the XXIX Olympiad.

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -1

In the centre of Beijing lies a daring new design, 42,000 tons of steel beams woven together into the shape of a bird?s nest. It?s the stunning vision of an international team of architects and engineers, and it takes centre stage in one of the biggest events of the decade, the 2008 Olympic Games.

Come inside, Beijing?s Olympic Stadium.

It?s early morning in China?s capital, Beijing. Today, workers must raise a gigantic massive twisted steel to the top of this structure, 70 meters in the air. It?s the last piece of the puzzle to complete the steel skeleton of this unusual arena. Its steel roof is 320 meters long and 297 meters wide, and covers a massive bowl that seats 91,000 spectators.

It is the largest stadium ever built in China. And it is the center of the biggest sporting event in Chinese history, the 2008 Summer Olympics. But even more impressive than its sheer size is its unprecedented design. It?s an ambitious plan that calls for giant curving beams which crisscross in an intricate pattern of woven steel. They give the building its nickname -- the Bird?s Nest.

No building like this one has ever been attempted before in the world.

As the design evolved, it?s quite clear that it was going to be a major challenge to engineer it, and to fabricate it, and to assemble it. It is very, very complicated.

This one, whether its twists and turns and complications is certainly one of the ones that?s way out on the edge, first of its kind in China, first of its kind in the world.

The steel structure of Bird?s Nest is so huge…maybe it is one of the biggest steel structure in the world. In the future, I will not see any other projects more difficult than this Bird?s Nest.

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -2

The Bird's Nest must have all the bells and whistles of any Olympic stadium. Giant screens, shops and great views of the field, but it also faces some unique challenges. It sits right in the middle of a seismic region, so the fragile-looking design must be strong enough to withstand dangerous earthquakes and it must be eco-friendly.

In a city with massive air pollution, officials have mandated that this Olympics be the green Olympics. To fit this green mandate, the steel roof is skinned with hi-tech membranes, which let in sunlight to conserve energy, keep the noise in, and the rain and wind out. State-of-the-art systems conserve energy and water and regulate heat. The building's facade isn't enclosed, allowing natural ventilation. The radical design meant new building techniques would have to be invented. All well up against the immovable deadline of the 2008 Summer Olympics. It was a huge challenge.

"We have so many, so many pressure. All these pressure also were big challenge for me."

The challenge began in July, 2001. Beijing is in the final running to be the Olympics' next host.

"The games of the 29th Olympiads in 2008 are awarded to the city of Beijing."

It's a badge of honor for every nation, but has even greater significance for an emerging modern power.

"The most important thing is that we know that we are accepted by the world."

But as the citizens of Beijing celebrate, the city planners begin to worry. There are few venues up to par for the prestigious sporting

event. China must design and build new sports arenas, and fast. To make space, traditional alleyways called Hutongs must be torn down, a piece of history lost forever. It's controversial, but some think the building boom will bring benefits to the city.

"They have improved so much of the infrastructure. This is actually about an Olympics acting as a catalyst for the regeneration of Beijing."

Over the next seven years, twelve Olympic venues will need to be built, along with new high-rises, roads, public transport and even a new airport terminal to accommodate the thousands of Olympic guests.

skin

To become covered with or as if with skin:

使覆盖：变得覆有皮肤或好象覆有皮肤：

In January the pond skins over with ice.

一月份池塘覆盖了一层冰

State-of-the-art

using the most modern and recently developed methods, materials, or knowledge

state-of-the-art technology

well up

涌出, 涌现

Olympiad

(四年一次的)奥林匹克世界运动大会, 四年周期

alleyway

A narrow passage between buildings.

小巷，小街：建筑物之间狭窄的过道

catalyst

催化剂

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -3

Construction projects that will radically transform Beijing?s skyline. For the Olympics' main stadium, the city wants a stunning design worthy of the event. In 2002 officials announce a global competition.

Among the dozens of entrants, our Swiss architects: Jacques Herzog and Pierre De Meuron. They are drawn to the challenge of working in Beijing.

This was the opportunity for us to do major building in Beijing which was really public, really a new place. China is about to get back to where it once was to become the most influential culture in the world. To be a part of that, energy is another amazing moment in our lives.

The Pulitzer Prize winning architects are best known for converting London's Tate Modern Museum. They've also designed other sports venues such as the famous Allianz Arena in Munich. But this job is one of their most challenging yet. They have no idea how the Chinese will react.

Da gibt es extreme Unterschiede zu unserer restlichen Art zum Denken,und da so Stück für Stück, das zu erfahren ist ein gro?artiges Erlebnis, und das ist ein pers?nliches Erlebnis, weil man selber an seine Grenze kommt.

They decide to consult one of the China?s leading artists--Ai Weiwei who inspires them to push the limits.

They are very different from all the architects I know, they would start from zero. There's nothing in their mind when they start.

He was always encouraging us to go beyond this or that, but to really take this as a chance to do something that couldn't be done somewhere else.

They come up with a concept inspired by old Chinese art with sweeping lines arranged around a circular vessel.

We were clear that we want something else and it should be really an object for the people but something which has more a character of, like a big pot or a big vessel for people to go in.

But though the inspiration is ancient, the team wants the building to be a contemporary icon and a public space for the people.

Pulitzer Prize

普利兹克奖（Pritzker Architecture Prize）是每年一次颁给建筑师个人的奖项，有建筑界的诺贝尔奖之称。

19xx年由普利兹克家族的杰伊·普利兹克和他的妻子辛蒂发起，凯悦基金会（Hyatt Foundation）所赞助的针对建筑师个人颁布的奖项。每年约有五百多名从事建筑设计工作的建筑师被提名，由来自世界各地的知名建筑师及学者组成评审团评出一个个人或组合，以表彰其在建筑设计创作中所表现出的才智、洞察力和献身精神，以及其通过建筑艺术为人类及人工环境方面所作出的杰出贡献，被誉为建筑学届的诺贝尔奖。

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -4

A new place like, perhaps comparable to Paris' the Eiffel Tower which was also made for an event but then became an icon of the city. The idea was much more a design idea of the membrane or something which has a kind of inviting quality; the way people can go in and go out the space, especially people can entertain themselves. They can dance, they can sing, they can Taichi, they can use this space. And the Chinese people would love to do that. They use public space and that?s perhaps so, so what makes the stadium really Chinese.

But the architects need to do more than just come up with the stunning design. They need to be confident that it can be engineered into an Olympic arena. They team up with engineering experts from Arab and England and China?s Architectural Design & Research Group. It should be a building you never see before in the world.

Together they refine the plans to win the commission and collectively hold their breath. In April 2003, the jury casts the vote. Out of 13 finalists, Herzog and De Meuron?s daring design is chosen to be the Olympics? main stadium. The Chinese say it looks like a bird?s nest and the nickname sticks. The ambitious design comes with a hefty price tag--260 million pounds.

The city designates 3,000 acres of land for the Olympic Park surrounding the Bird's Nest. It will set on an important site at the north end of an ancient and powerful line, known as the Imperial Axis that connects the gates of China?s cultural monuments--Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. Now the line will intersect the main stadiums of the Olympics, the Bird's Nest and its sister stadium, the National Aquatic Center, nickname the Water Cube. After its design, a blue transparent cube covered with water bubbles. They want in developing area of Beijing, a contemporary building as a symbol of the Beijing Olympic, as a symbol of new Beijing. The Bird's Nest design is unlike any other on earth, but now

they?ve got to build it, with the strictest of deadline's looming, the opening ceremonies in summer 2008.

On December the 24th, 2003, construction on the Bird?s Nest Stadium kicks off, with a grand breaking ceremony and the countdown begins.

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -5

Within a few months, workers are already to pour the concrete foundation.

But right from the start, engineers need to confront one of the major challenges of building in Beijing. China is surrounded by some of the deadliest fault lines in the world and the stadium must be earthquake-proof. In 1976, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit the city of Tangshan, not far from Beijing. It ravaged the city, killing 250 thousand people. It was the deadliest earthquake of the 20th century.

The basic problem with earthquake design is that the building is just so large, that what is gonna happen at one end of it might be different from what's happening at the other end at any moment and time. So it?s not just gonna shake very happily together in exactly the same frequency and exactly the same time.

Such shaking can cause severe damage to rigid buildings like those made with concrete. They decide to build the steel frame as a separate structure without touching the concrete bowl within. If a concrete were to crack in a quake, the steel frame would be unaffected. They also divide the bowl into 6 isolated sections that can move independently.

And we have flexible zones between them, flexible joints between them. And there is quite a large gap between each of those sections. They can then move independently if there is an earthquake, so for instance one corner of the stadium would be able to wobble in one way, and the center in the section alongside might be ought to move in another way. And by doing this, we can allow the building to absorb the energy of an earthquake without shaking itself to pieces.

If an earthquake strikes, the shaking of the parts won?t collapse the entire stadium. But working in an earthquake zone isn?t the only challenge. Designers have to satisfy the strict guidelines of the Olympics. The stadium will need to have high-tech systems, giant

screens and world-class seating with great views of the field, coming up with the interior design plan falls to the British partner, Arup. J Parrish has been designing stadiums for 30 years from the inside-out.

Pour concrete foundation 字面意思：浇灌混凝土地基

fault lines 断层线:断层面与地面的交线

at any moment and time=at any moment and (at any) time

flexible joint 柔性接头, 挠性连接

wobble摇晃：以不均衡或摇摆状态移动或旋转，不稳定地从一边到另一边

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -6

The very first step of designing a building was to look at its heart, the seating bowl, we looked at forms of stadium bowl it could be, where are all the seats, how they arranged, how much space do we give people, what quality of view do we set, and it then generates several forms of the building. It sets the height of the concourses; it sets the balance of facilities, where do we have premier facilities, where do we have general facilities, where is the V-Vip box, how do we put in the giant screens, all the things that you have in a typical stadium.

Using state-of-the-art technology, Parrish calculates the seating arrangements in the concrete bowl. To make the most efficient use of materials and space, and above all, to ensure that spectators will enjoy watching the event. Each seat will be as close to the action as possible, with no seat more than 142 meters from the center of the field.

I think people are gonna find very unusual for building this size as they share intimacy that they can do experience when they are inside the bowl and they?re watching events. We work really hard to generate that atmosphere and that excitement.

With the design phase complete, the work on the concrete bowl can finally begin. By May, 2004, construction is underway. But it doesn?t get far before an unexpected catastrophe strikes.

On May 23rd, 2004, at Paris? Charles de Gaulle Airport, the daring new terminal 2E suddenly collapses with no warning, just one year after its

opening. First, two cracks appear inside the terminal wall, then a piece of concrete falls off, just minutes later, the ceiling crashes to the ground. It kills four travelers, by coincidence, two of them Chinese. The fatal collapse shocks the engineering profession. But it hits home even harder in Beijing.

The terminal roof had a similar design to the Bird?s Nest, without interior supports. The tragedy hangs over the heads of the Bird?s Nest team, and they worry about how this will affect their building.

It was a difficulty time for all of us and we had, you know, to prove in many kind of expert-panel meetings, that a, our ceiling is safe, design meets all the standards. In the beginning we worried a lot.

Their worst fears are realized, China suspends all work on the Bird?s Nest. Beijing?s officials re-examine the safety of the Bird?s Nest design.

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -7

The retractable roof amounting to an eighth of the cost is put under the most intense scrutiny. As the team awaits the result of the review, the weeks turn into months. With a tight construction schedule, any delays could be disastrous.

After five long months, the officials finally gave the go-ahead to continue the work, but reduce the number of seats and cancel the original retractable roof design, concerned about costs as well as safety. Working with the officials, the architects redesign the stadium.

They come up with an open air design that retains the shape and style of the original. It makes the stadium cheaper and safer, but also more eco-friendly, since it will require less steel. They are back on track, but time is not on their side. The Bird's Nest team must finish the bowl before the winter hits, or the concrete will freeze. Henry Zhang of the national stadium wastes no time and assembles thousands of workers, the construction accelerates.

The crew must force the concrete to defy gravity. It needs to be pumped up from the bottom of the forms through reinforced steel beams which strengthen the concrete. But the thick wires are slowing them down and they still have four floors left to go.

With less than six months before winter, hundreds of tons of concrete must be poured at the site. By November 15th, 2005, in just five months, the bowl of the Bird's Nest is complete, just in time before winter?s deep freeze. Just two years after the first ground is broken, the concrete bowl is finally ready for its daring outer facade.

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -8

For the Olympic stadium team, the most challenging part of the construction is about to begin--building the steel structure that makes it “the Bird's Nest”.

October 28th 2005, the first steel pillar is ready to be hoisted into place. Before the team could get to this point, engineers have to first solve a fundamental construction riddle---how to weave 42, 000 tons of steel into the shape of a Bird's Nest? Arup Sport specializes in designing sports venues, but they've never made anything quite like this one.

"Right from the start, we were thinking, well how do we build this, how do we trade these elements."

The architects? plans call for massive beams the twist and turn around the 300 meter wide stadium, it needs to look random to create the Bird's Nest illusion, but at the same time, the beams have to support each other and carry the heavy load safely, so that this artistic vision can stand on its own, the design is so complex that paper blue prints aren't sufficient, engineers have to turn to aerospace software to build up a three-dimensional picture to organize the beams.

"I don't think that this would have ever taken shape if anyone had to design this on paper, who with a slide rule, this building exists because of computer aided design and the new abilities to use computer models and to be able to feed computer data over into the manufacturing spheres well. "

The first set of beams is on the outside, 24 pillars in the form of trusses encircling the concrete bowl. They serve as the bones of the structure, just like a human skeleton, this backbone keeps the building from falling down, but in the case of the Bird's Nest, the skeleton is on the outside and is also the building's facade.

You can take it as an example, you can take old cathedrals which are

made out of stone, there, the outside, the inside, that the structure, the space is one unit of this big, there's something of that equal the national stadium, it gives you a much more powerful idea of space.

A second set of beams fills in the empty spaces between the beams in the first set, like the tendons in a human body that hold the bones of the skeleton together. They link all the beams to form a braided structure.

slide rule

n.(=sliding rule)计算尺

计算尺：一种由两个标有对数的尺子组成的装置，这两个尺子可以相互沿边缘滑动，用于将乘、除和其他更复杂的计算化简为相应量的加、减运算

aided design

辅助设计

truss

【工】构架, 桁架, 钢梁

primary truss

主桁架

quadrangular truss

四角形桁架

roof truss

支持屋顶的三角形桁架

tendon

腱：将肌肉连接在其骨骼关节处的粗硬的无弹性的纤维状组织束

braided

Produced by or as if by braiding.

编织的：编织成的或似编织成的

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -9

A third set of beams supports the stairways that connect the multiple levels and provides a frame for the roof membrane covering.

Its main purpose is to break down all the gaps that you get between the structure and the second system into areas that are small enough that we input the roof.

When seen from the sky, the interlocking beams give the stadium its Bird's Nest illusion.

It's a brilliant description. The impact that it has when you see it is one of very organized chaos, it's really rather delightful.

But this revolutionary design places unusual demands on the beams. The beams must physically twist and curve as it wraps around the stadium. Before construction can begin, the team must make sure the steel is strong enough to bear the load, especially around the curved edges where it has the most twist.

They climb to the top of the building, and then they change direction, it?s almost the right angle and then they cross the stadium, and then curve back down again.

That's over 300 meters from one end to the other, wrapped around with the same side up at all times, once again the team will have to try something new, engineer a special steel strong enough to handle the stress of the curves, yet flexible enough to withstand earthquakes.

The Bird's Nest team revisits the seismic tests to refine their steel design, how strong the steel needs to be, how thick the plates, how big the welds. Arup's structural engineer Michael Kwok creates computer models to study how severe shaking might distress the structure.

This model is effectively simulating the worst seismic events that happened in Beijing.

After dozens of scenarios and some number crunching, they calculate the right flexibility for the steel. Steel is a dream material for architects. It can be easily customized to fit any need, add carbon for strength or iron for flexibility.

The Bird's Nest will need both to support its 42,000 tons of steel, the team creates a brand-new steel for the Bird's Nest called Q-460, never before used in China.

interlocking

联锁的

wrap sth round/around sb/sth

缠绕或围住某人[某物]（加以遮盖或保护）

Wrap a scarf round your neck.

weld (n)焊接

Vt 焊接; 熔接; 锻接

使紧密团结; 结合; 使连成整体

He welded the broken rod.

他焊接一根断了的杆子。

We were welded into a fighting collective.

我们结成一个战斗集体。

number crunching

If you refer to number crunching, you mean activities or processes concerned with numbers or mathematical calculation, for example in finance, statistics, or computing. (INFORMAL)

The computer does most of the number crunching.

customize

To make or alter to individual or personal specifications:

定做：按照个人的规格制作或改制：

customize a van.

定做一辆大马车

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -10

The newly engineered steel will stand up to Beijing?s earthquakes.

It is designed specifically for the codes for Beijing, the Bird's Nest can wobble quite happily and the flexibility of the steel will allow that to happen without it damaging the structure. We never know just how strong an earthquake is gonna be and at the moment, we generally don?t know when they are going to arrive. If there is an earthquake, let?s hope the building behaves very well.

But for the construction crew the challenges are just beginning. They still have to build it. The task will be more complex than anything they?ve ever attempted.

Creating the curved beams will require some ingenuity. The engineers come up with the box design to create the right aesthetic and to bear the heavy loads.

Four steel plates 1.2 meters on the side are bent into required shape and welded together to form a twisted box section.

It is actually like the world?s biggest jigsaw, but they've been cut out to particular shape(s), which are not simple rectangles.

These puzzle pieces will be assembled to create the Bird's Nest. But first the team must move them from distant factories in Shanghai to the Bird's Nest construction site.

The trucks must cross 6 cities and five provinces.

Once on site, workers weld the boxes together to form even larger sections forming a truss, some of them up to 12 meters long. Then an 800-ton-crane hoists the beams to the top. Positioning the massive sections up to 350 tons requires great skill. Finally they will spend 2 or 3 days of welding the joints, to secure them in place.

An incredibly complex task and you?ve got to remember that much of it is carried out 20, 30, 40 and more meters in the air as well.

engineered (adj)

engineer (vt)

To plan, construct, or manage as an engineer.

设计，制造：以工程师的身份设计、建造或管理

ingenuity

机灵, 独创性, 精巧, 灵活性

jigsaw also jigsaw puzzle)

picture, map, etc pasted on cardboard or wood and cut into irregular shapes that have to be fitted together again 拼图玩具:

do a jigsaw 做拼图游戏

rectangle

A four-sided plane figure with four right angles.

矩形，长方形：具有四个边的方形，有四个直角

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -11

The welds must be perfect, for they will hold the steel structure in place .Over 1000 skilled welders are trained for the job.

Pu Kuili, from the Hunan Province, was one of them. Kuili spends most of his time at the highest point on the roof, 70 meters above the ground and lives with a very great danger of falling to his death. Despite safety measures, at least two workers are accidently killed during construction.

It?s slow, difficult and uncomfortable work. The Q-460 steel is extremely hard and must be heated to over 100 degrees centigrade, much higher than normal, and the welding areas are difficult to reach.

It takes a full day to weld a meter long seam and there are 320 kilometers of them. After a year of backbreaking work, all the beams are in place but not all of the seams have been welded together. A few were left open to release stress caused by different temperatures during construction. The remaining holes must be welded before the Bird?s Nest will be one seamless structure. The work will be harder than usual, and they will have to weld the seams at a relatively constant temperature, that?s because steel expands and contracts.

The carefully welded seams must hold up throughout Beijing?s dramatic weather shifts over the seasons for the life of the building. So the open seams in this massive structure must be welded at the midpoint on Beijing?s temperature scale. In the heat of the summer, the welding must take place at night, and it must be welded at about the same temperature.

backbreaking

Demanding great exertion, especially physical exertion; arduous and exhausting.

艰苦的：要求很大的努力，特别是身体的费力；艰苦的和使人筋疲力尽的

temperature scale

温(度)标

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -12

Over 3 nights, the welders will have to work without a break.

August 26th 2006, at the stroke of midnight, more than 400 welders begin work on the nightshift.

The first night is a success, but on the second night the team gets unexpected news. Weather forecasters predict a storm will roll in. If it hits Beijing, the carefully calculated plan will be compromised. The team stands on edge as experts monitor the storm.

Luckily the rain moves off course and doesn?t make it to Beijing. A crisis is averted and the welding work is completed without a hitch.

On August 31, welders finish closing the steel structure. Now the Bird?s Nest can expand and contract or breathe. The workers who help build the Bird?s Nest are proud of their accomplishment.

Just 10 months after the first beam was raised, the Bird?s Nest steel structure is now one. With the seams welded, the team must now remove the bracing. It will be the stadium's big test, a major turning point that will spell success for the building or an unthinkable disaster. September 2006…

hitch

An impediment or a delay:

妨碍或耽搁耽搁：

a hitch in our plans.

我们计划耽搁一阵

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -13

After three years, the Bird's Nest team is about to face the greatest challenge of their careers--making the Bird's Nest stand on its own.

Until now, the building has been on crutches, 78 support columns evenly spaced out around the stadium, temporarily support its

42,000-ton massive steel. Now in a process called the “unloading”, the team must remove them before the steel structure will stand by itself. It will take one week. The operation is about to begin.

This is a very decisive moment in the whole construction process, you know, if the whole structure is standing up, and if the calculation of the engineers will correct in the end.

A lifting jack will lift each beam and temporarily bear the heavy load of up to 300 tons. When the supports are removed, the jacks will slowly descend. The main structure will sink into itself, up to 30 centimeters. It's all part of the engineers' plan. Now the team holds its breath for the result. If it sinks further or any cracks appear in the steel, it?s a signal that there are serious problems in the design or construction.

The operation is carefully choreographed, but the team is anxious, and they've got a big audience. The unloading is broadcast as a live report on Beijing Central Television Station--BTV. The engineers monitor the process.

We were very anxious to see what the final reading will be in terms of this, how the structure will settle.

The process is excruciatingly slow. The hydraulics go up, the supports are removed. And the commander gives the signal to lower the jacks. Slowly, they descend. The steel sinks millimeter by millimeter. They must do this in 35 steps, until finally the steel skeleton of the Bird?s Nest bears its own weight.

crutch

A device used for assistance or support; a prop:

支撑物：用来辅助站立或支撑的器具；支柱

space out :to arrange objects or events so that they have equal spaces or periods of time between them

Try to space out your classes and study in between.

jack

A usually portable device for raising heavy objects by means of force applied with a lever, screw, or hydraulic press.

千斤顶，起重机：通过杠杆、螺丝钉或水的压力把重物提起的便携式装置

jack lift

用千斤顶压出或拔出器拔出(零件)

choreograph

To plan out or oversee the movement, development, or details of; orchestrate:

安排或指导?的动作、发展或细节；精心编制：

advance people who choreographed the candidate's whistle-stop tour. 为候选人短暂停留的巡视作安排的先遣人员

excruciating

Very intense or extreme:

极度地：非常强烈的或极度的：

wrote with excruciating precision.

高度精确地写出

hydraulics

The physical science and technology of the static and dynamic behavior of fluids.

水力学：研究液体静态和动态行为的一门物理科学和技术

water hydraulics 水压技术, 水压学

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -14

After one week, the team removes the final support.

The last column was taken off, we felt ?Oh!?, you know, you know the feeling.

It's exciting that moment when the structure has taken shape, and you, the thing that you have been working on for so many years, it's now a reality, and there it is, and you go "Wow".

At 11:10 AM, on September 17th, freed of its supports, the steel settles into its final position. As the stress is redistributed, the Bird's Nest sinks a whopping 26.5 centimeters into itself. At long last, it stands on its own.

It's like a baby could run or walk by himself without his parents, you realize the Bird's Nest has become a real huge building in China-that's the moment.

The design has held up, the construction is a success. The Bird's Nest has entered its final stage. But there's no time to relax, there is much to do before the building is complete, the stadium remains a hollow steel shell and it must be fitted with the features that will make it an Olympic stadium. Like high-tech screens, concourses, shops, the countdown clock in Tiananmen Square is a reminder for locals and visitors, citizens eagerly follow the progress. With the Olympics just one year away, the excitement in the air is palpable.

During the last Olympic Games in Athens, construction was running behind schedule, it was a race against the clock to complete the venues before opening day, Beijing doesn't want to make the same mistake.

whopping

Exceptionally large:

出奇大的：

“yet another whopping pay raise”(Lee Atwater)

“但是另一项巨大支付又增加了”(李·阿特沃特)

palpable

Capable of being handled, touched, or felt; tangible:

可触知的：摸得着的，可凭触觉感觉的，可以感觉到的；可察觉的：

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -15

Autumn 2007, Beijing's National Stadium is in its final push to the finish line. The team must complete the last bit of construction, skinning the roof. Just as birds filling the spaces in their nests, workers will have to fill the spaces between the beams of the Bird's Nest Stadium with a transparent membrane called ETFE.

For the workers doing the installing, it's challenging. The seemingly random pattern of beams creates spaces that are irregular with lots of different shapes and sizes. And workers must fit them--the old fashioned way--by hand. They must be careful as they could easily slide off the curved edges and they can't be afraid of heights.

This membrane provides rain and wind protection. It also saves energy. Sunshine filters through the roof to light the building. The construction is on track. But a bigger problem is on people's minds.

The building boom is coming at a price. Over one hundred new cars hit the road everyday and traffic is often at a standstill. Olympic officials are concerned about the air quality in Beijing and wonder how it might affect athletes' performances in an open arena.

The city must do everything it can to combat the pollution. So Beijing will spend six billion pounds to move industrial polluters, plant hundreds of trees and reroute traffic.

With the world watching, Beijing's mandate for a green Olympics is put to the test. The Bird's Nest must also pass its real world trials, from its network of green systems, like the geothermal heating and rainwater capture system to feed the grass on the field, to its state of the art electronics to broadcast the action around the world, and the cutting-edge lighting system with different settings for different occasions.

The architects and engineers must make sure each functions in sink and see the stadium systems come together.

random pattern

无规(则)晶体点阵, 无规图样

filter through

慢慢传开; 渗透

at a price (adv)

以很高代价

at a standstill

停止, 停顿

mandate

(书面)命令

put to the test (v).

使受试验

geothermal

地热的：属于或关于地球内热的

cutting edge (adj)

e.g : cutting-edge scientific discoveries

【整理】 伟大工程巡礼 -16

In April 2007, architects Herzog and de Meuron return once again to the Bird's Nest to check on its progress. Their vision now stands before them in steel and concrete.

"This is clearly my impression, and this is so much more powerful, and so much more elegant, the silver and the blank and this more brown Chinese red, it?s fantastic."

"The most amazing thing is that it just really realizes exactly how we want it, so if you don't like it, it's because we messed it up!"

“The stadium will become part of the memory of the Olympic in Beijing in China, we say "New Beijing, New Olympic", I think Bird's Nest could become this, uh this symbol, yeah.”

For Li Xinggang, it's been a long six years of his life.

"I worked for this project, I was 33 years old to 39 years old, I worked from a young man to, to a, to a middle-aged man, yeah, for this project."

After six years of grueling schedules and hundreds of thousands of man hours, 42-thousand tons of concrete and steel are designed, engineered, assembled and welded into place. "

"The opening day, I think I will be inside the stadium, together with all the people and that will be an exciting night!"

And the Bird's Nest is ready for its final debut!

Mega-structures returns to China after the break, with a visit to Yangshan's Deep Ocean Port, one of the world's biggest construction projects.

grueling

Physically or mentally demanding to the point of exhaustion: 折磨的，使精疲力尽的：对生理或心理上的要求达到极限的：

a grueling campaign.

令人精疲力尽的比赛