RE5 Unit 12B · THE RUSH FOR WHITE GOLD (白金狂潮)

Reading 12B · THE RUSH FOR WHITE GOLD (白金狂潮)

从科尔多瓦大清真寺到阿尔罕布拉宫：八百年安达卢斯启蒙文明与多元共存辉煌。

Paragraph A

One early Saturday morning in La Paz, Avro Garcia Linera, the silver-haired vice president of Bolivia,

在拉巴斯一个清冽的周六清晨，满头银发的玻利维亚副总统阿尔瓦罗·加西亚·利内拉（Álvaro García Linera），在他那间可俯瞰巍峨安第斯群山的办公室外宽敞的会客厅里接待了我。这位政治家在自己国内一向以坚定的马克思主义理论家著称，然而今天，他却以一位雄辩的资本推销员姿态出现在我面前。

greets me in the spacious salon outside his office overlooking Plaza Morello.

The politician is known in his country as a Marxist ideologue,

but today he presents himself as a capitalist pitchman.

The pitch in question involves lithium.

Garcia Linera speaks of his country's natural resource in a simultaneously factual and awestruck way.

Paragraph B

A mere four years from now, he predicts, it will be the engine of our economy.

他向我展示了装在透明塑料罐中的高纯度精炼碳酸锂样品。“这就是我们的未来，”他语气激昂地宣称，“玻利维亚将为全球蓬勃发展的电动汽车产业提供不可或缺的动力命脉，带领我们这个贫困的安第斯高原国度一举跃入工业现代化的新纪元。”

All Bolivians will benefit, he continues, taking them out of poverty,

guaranteeing their stability in the middle class, and training them in scientific and technological fields

so that they become part of the intelligentsia in the global economy.

Paragraph C

But as the vice-president knows, no pitch about lithium as Bolivia's economic salvation is complete

然而副总统心知肚明，任何将锂矿描绘为玻利维亚“经济救星”的宏图大计，都无法绕开孕育这种“白金”的超现实神秘之境——乌尤尼盐沼（Salar de Uyuni）。这是全球最大的天然盐沼，海拔高达3,650米，面积超过一万平方公里。这片眩目的纯白平原浩瀚平坦至极，以至于美国宇航局（NASA）常年利用其表面反光来校准对地观测卫星。

without addressing the source of that lithium.

The Salar deu Uni.

The 10,000 square kilometer salt flat, one of the country's most magnificent landscapes,

will almost certainly be altered, if not forever damaged, by mining the resource underneath it.

Have you been to the Salar deu Uni? Garcia Linera asks.

When I reply that I'll be heading there soon, the vice-president loses his air of detachment

and seems full of nostalgia.

When you go to the Salar, he instructs me.

Paragraph D

It takes a day to drive from the world's highest capital city to the world's largest salt flat.

据估算，乌尤尼盐沼蕴藏着高达900万吨的锂储量——大约占到全球已知探明总储量的15%。数十年来，这片秘境几乎未受工业侵扰，严酷的高原海拔、刺骨的刺骨寒风，以及当地民众对外国掠夺者的强烈抵触，共同筑起了一道屏障。这种抵触情绪最早可追溯至西班牙殖民时期对波托西银矿的血腥洗劫。

The route passes steadily downhill through small villages until leveling out at about 3,600 meters

into a mostly vacant stretch of land, occasionally animated by llamas.

By late afternoon, the salt flat can be seen across the plain.

I reach the Salar, Spanish for salt flat, just before sunset.

Paragraph E

that this is the middle of nowhere.

如今，全球向清洁能源的绿色转型以及对可充电电池的爆发式需求，将狂热的“淘锂潮”一路吹到了玻利维亚的高原腹地。世界各大汽车制造巨头纷纷押注数千亿美元研发电动汽车，而放眼当今世界，若没有锂，根本找不到任何可替代的规模化储能方案。

The spectacle seems unreal.

Kilometers of whitewashed level terrain, its starkness perfected by the cloudless blue sky

and the Andean peaks in the distance.

Motorcycles and 4x4s drive across the roadless surface, destinations unknown.

Here and there, solitary people wander about, gazing into what the Bolivian vice-president calls

the infinite table of snowy white.

Paragraph F

Somewhere out of sight on infinity's edge, bulldozers are plowing evaporation pools in the Salar,

在远离游客视线的无垠盐原尽头，推土机正在盐壳上犁挖出一座座巨型蒸发池。玻利维亚国有锂业公司已斥资逾十亿美元兴建试验工厂和蒸发池群，他们下定决心：这一次必须由玻利维亚人自己——而非跨国资本巨头——牢牢掌控锂工业化的每一个核心环节。

long and precise excavations like a grid of enormous swimming pools.

The bulldozers will be moving this way soon.

How soon? No one can say with any certainty.

Here is what we do know.

First, that underneath the world's biggest salt flat lies another wonder.

One of the world's greatest lithium deposits, perhaps 17% of the planet's total.

Paragraph G

people live in poverty, envisions a pathway out of its economic misfortune.

然而，摆在眼前的技术与自然挑战堪称艰巨。从盐沼中提纯锂需要将富含矿物质的地下卤水抽入巨大的室外浅池中，依靠高原阳光与干燥劲风在12至18个月内蒸发水分以浓缩盐分。但与智利北部阿塔卡马极度干旱的荒漠相比，玻利维亚的高原雨季和多云气候使得卤水蒸发速率极其缓慢。

The salt flat had long been regarded by Bolivians as little more than a geographical anomaly.

While surrounding mountains are celebrated in indigenous stories, the Salar has never had

cultural significance, says Eugenie's mayor, Patricio Mendoza.

People were afraid that if they took a walk on it, they might get lost and die of thirst,

or their llamas would damage their hooves on the salt.

Paragraph H

The Salar's fortunes changed in the 1980s, when a La Paz tour operator named Juan Casada

乌尤尼盐沼的命运最早在20世纪80年代初现转机，当时拉巴斯的一位旅行社老板在盐沼上建造了一座完全由盐砖砌成的“盐旅馆”。如今，风格各异的奢华盐晶酒店与成群的四驱越野车，每年接待数以万计的国际游客，他们纷至沓来，只为在雨季盐原积水时拍摄如梦似幻的“天空之镜”倒影。

Valda laid eyes on it.

Casada was searching for a tourist destination to rival Lake Titicaca.

When he beheld the Salar, he experienced a revelation, recalls his daughter Lucia.

You can find lakes anywhere, she says, but you cannot find a salt flat like this anywhere

else in the world.

He knew he could sell this place.

Paragraph I

entirely out of blocks of salt in Colchani, a village at the eastern edge of the Salar.

曾经闭塞贫困的乌尤尼当地社区，如今在很大程度上依赖蓬勃发展的生态旅游业维生。客栈老板、越野车司机和手工艺人深感忧虑：一个不断扩张的大规模工业开采园区——伴随着丑陋的排污管道、柴油发电机组和化学精炼车间——很可能会彻底摧毁吸引全球旅行者心驰神往的原生态纯净景观。

Adventurous foreigners began to show up to bask in the great pale desert.

Weddings, yoga lessons, and automobile races would eventually be staged on it.

Today, the salt hotels are typically full, and Uyuni has become a vacation land, bustling

with college-age backpackers.

Maybe 90% of our economy is tourism, Mendoza says, all of which is to say that in Bolivia's

Paragraph J

morose history of economic disappointments, the Salar provides a happy, if modest, exception.

纵观玻利维亚令人沮丧的经济历史——白银、锡矿和天然气的掠夺性繁荣无一例外肥了外国列强，却将本国人民遗留在深渊般的贫困中——乌尤尼盐沼被视为改写国运的骄傲例外。然而，玻利维亚本土的地质学家与化学家却警告：乌尤尼卤水的天然化学构成带来了异乎寻常的技术死结。

But now comes Bolivia's future, in the form of lithium.

What gold meant to earlier eras and petroleum to the previous century, lithium may eclipse

in the coming years.

Long used in medication to treat bipolar disorders, and in items as varied as ceramics and nuclear

weapons, it has emerged as an essential component for the batteries in computers, cell phones,

and other electronic devices.

Paragraph K

tons, representing a roughly 10% increase year by year since 2015.

与智利阿塔卡马沙漠纯净度极高的锂卤水截然不同，玻利维亚的锂矿层富含极高浓度的镁杂质。乌尤尼盐沼中镁与锂的比例高达约21比1，而智利仅为5比1。由于镁离子和锂离子具有相似的化学特性，要将二者彻底分离需要历经极其复杂、造价高昂的化学沉淀工序。

Meanwhile, in the same period, lithium prices nearly tripled, a clear reflection of how fast

demand has been rising.

That will likely intensify as electric cars become more popular.

One version of the Tesla Model S runs on a battery pack with about 65 kg of lithium compounds,

the equivalent of what's in 10,000 cell phones.

The investment firm also projects that every time electric vehicle sales replace a percentage

Paragraph L

of all vehicles sold, the demand for lithium increases by 70,000 metric tons a year.

“对我们而言，将镁与锂高效分离是最大的技术瓶颈，”试验工厂的一位玻利维亚化学工程师坦言，“如果我们无法经济有效地去除高浓度镁杂质，我们最终产出的碳酸锂就无法达到电动汽车电池制造商所要求的99.5%的高严苛电池级纯度。”

Given that France and the United Kingdom have already announced that they'll ban the

full of cars running on gas or diesel by 2040, it would seem evident that a country

abounding with lithium need never fear poverty.

However, Bolivia first faces several hurdles, and the most daunting is a scientific one.

Producing battery-grade lithium from brine involves separating out sodium chloride,

potassium chloride, and magnesium chloride.

Paragraph M

Bolivia's lithium deposits have a relatively high magnesium content.

此外，提纯过程中产生的数百万吨镁渣和强酸强碱化学废料将何去何从？智利和阿根廷的开采活动引发了严格的环保审查，但这些国家的法规与监管执行力相对成熟。而在玻利维亚，环境保护的制度体系仍显脆弱且资金严重匮乏。

While the ratio of magnesium in Chile is 5 to 1, in yoyuni, it's 21 to 1, says

Bolivian chemical engineer Miguel Parra, four times the concentration, so it's a much

simpler operation for them.

For us, separating magnesium from lithium is the biggest challenge.

Paragraph N

magnesium waste?

在所有生态隐患中，水资源消耗尤为令人揪心。在本身就极度干旱的高原生态系统中，提锂需要消耗不可思议的天量水体。数以百万升计的地下含矿卤水被蒸发消散于稀薄的高原大气层中，极可能会拉低补给地下淡水层的承压水位，从而对当地藜麦种植户和野生动植物赖以生存的水源造成毁灭性枯竭。

The Bolivian government claims that it has a unique processing method that will

somehow reduce waste, but just how much is speculative.

The environmental impact in Chile and Argentina is low, claims Bolivian

geologist Juan Benavides, but we're not able to extrapolate really because the

magnesium content in Bolivian lithium is very high.

All we know is that the lithium regulations and laws in Argentina and Chile

are more stringent than in Bolivia.

Paragraph O

the lithium.

尽管玻利维亚政府坚称开采所耗费的水源90%为天然咸卤水而非珍贵的地下淡水，但独立的国际水文专家依然深表怀疑。在一个降水本就极其罕见而蒸发却永不停歇的脆弱高原生态中，水资源年复一年势必成为被极度透支的最核心命脉。

Two rivers flow into the salt flat.

One is thin enough to be a creek.

The other, shallow enough to wait across.

Both are crucial to the local growers of quinoa, of which Bolivia is the world's

second largest supplier, after Peru.

Though the Bolivian government insists that 90% of the water it uses will come from

salt water, rather than underground, some experts are skeptical.

Paragraph P

Oscar Bolivian Chavez, a Bolivian geologist.

与此同时，乌尤尼盐沼还是包括珍稀安第斯火烈鸟在内的多种特有动物的重要繁育栖息地。成群结队的粉红火烈鸟依靠浅水矿物潟湖中的微藻为食。工业开采的巨响震动、潜在的化学泄漏以及水位急剧下降，可能永远摧毁它们延续了数千年的古老筑巢繁育秘境。

They'll need vast quantities more than any other mine in Bolivia.

And finally, there's the unspoiled natural wonder of the Salar itself.

Though revered by human visitors for its boundless austerity, it is also a

breeding ground for several animal species such as the Chilean flamingo.

Our plant is located far away from these sanctuaries.

Paragraph Q

Garcia Linera says, adding, this demonstrates our commitment to the environment.

玻利维亚正伫立在命运的历史十字路口。这个国家能否负责任地合理开发这片“白金”，真正战胜制度性的代际贫困；还是说，这场淘锂热潮终将重蹈数百年来的覆辙，留下一地鸡毛的生态荒原与背弃的誓言？所有的答案，皆深埋在乌尤尼盐沼那片眩目无垠的白垩盐壳之下。

I thought about these unanswered questions as I headed once again through

the colorless daydream of the Salar, an illusion of simplicity that apparently

goes on forever, but in fact, cannot.

💡 审辩式思维 (Critical Thinking: Cultural Synthesis)

1. How did Moorish architecture and language continue to influence Spanish culture long after the Reconquista?

玻利维亚等发展中国家在开发锂矿等战略资源时，应坚持百分之百自主国营，还是借助外国跨国巨头的资金与技术加速工业化？

思维指引 (Sample Perspective):
• 自主国营主权视角 (Resource Sovereignty)：历史上的波托西银矿与锡矿狂潮让外国资本掠尽财富，本国人民却陷入世代贫困；唯有由国家完全控股并主导全产业链研发，才能确保矿产红利真正反哺国民福利。
• 务实国际合作视角 (Technical Pragmatism)：乌尤尼盐沼卤水镁锂比极高（21:1），自主提纯技术壁垒极高且试错成本巨大；若过分封闭排外，可能错失全球新能源汽车电池供应链窗口期，沦为守着金山的落后者。

2. The Ecological Price of the Green Energy Transition: As the global demand for clean electric vehicles surges, is it ethical to deplete water aquifers and disrupt pristine Andean ecosystems like Salar de Uyuni to supply battery metals?

为实现全球低碳出行，消耗极度缺水高原的地下水资源并破坏火烈鸟栖息地以开采锂电池原料，在生态伦理上是否合理？

思维指引 (Sample Perspective):
• 绿色转型的空间代价：发达都市通过普及电动汽车减少尾气碳排放，却将庞大的水资源透支、尾矿污染与生态退化隐患转嫁给了南美原住民与偏远盐沼；
• 闭环循环与严格环保要求：未来的全球绿色供应链必须强制推行锂电池闭环回收，并要求采矿企业采用直接提锂（DLE）等低耗水新工艺，不能以破坏一地的水生态为代价来实现另一地的环保目标。

📝 课文理解深度练习 (Comprehension & Skills)

Reading Comprehension: Multiple Choice (P.231) Reading Comprehension: Chronology of al-Andalus (P.232) Reading Skill: Author Tone and Evaluative Language (P.233)

预习练习得分: 0 / 20 题

Reading Comprehension Part A: Multiple Choice (P.231)

READING COMPREHENSION · GIST

1. What is the central conflict that is explored in this article?

READING COMPREHENSION · REFERENCE

2. The word 'it' in the second sentence of paragraph C refers to:

READING COMPREHENSION · DETAIL

3. The author would probably NOT describe the Salar de Uyuni as:

READING COMPREHENSION · DETAIL

4. The main reason the Bolivian government wants to extract lithium in Salar de Uyuni is:

READING COMPREHENSION · APPLICATION

5. According to the information in paragraph O, if the percentage of electric vehicles sold goes from 3% to 5% in one year, the demand for lithium will probably increase by ______ metric tons.

READING COMPREHENSION · VOCABULARY

6. The word 'morose' in paragraph J (or L) is closest in meaning to:

READING COMPREHENSION · INFOGRAPHICS

7. According to the infographic, the greatest amount of lithium is extracted in:

Reading Comprehension Part B: Chronological Milestones (P.232)

INFOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS · 1

1. Which continent has the greatest amount of lithium deposits?

INFOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS · 2

2. Which country is the leading exporter of lithium?

INFOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS · 3

3. From which source—brine or hard rock—has lithium most commonly been obtained in recent years?

INFOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS · 4

4. In which part of Australia are most of the country's lithium deposits located?

sec_rc_c

MATCHING PARAGRAPHS · 1

1. Which paragraph contains a description of where Bolivia will get the water it needs for the extraction process?

MATCHING PARAGRAPHS · 2

2. Which paragraph contains an example of an industry that will use a lot of lithium in the future?

MATCHING PARAGRAPHS · 3

3. Which paragraph contains a comparison between countries of the environmental effects of magnesium waste?

MATCHING PARAGRAPHS · 4

4. Which paragraph contains a history of the uses of lithium?

MATCHING PARAGRAPHS · 5

5. Which paragraph contains an explanation of why extracting lithium in Bolivia is more expensive than in Chile?

MATCHING PARAGRAPHS · 6

6. Which paragraph contains arguments that local wildlife may not be impacted by lithium extraction?

sec_rs

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

a. has fairly few practical uses

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

b. is in high demand

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

c. has been used to treat bipolar disorder

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

d. is melted using smelters

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

e. has a market of 40,000 metric tons a year

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

f. is found in deposits containing magnesium

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

g. is mined in Peru

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

h. is used in electronics

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

i. has recently tripled in price

READING SKILL · VENN DIAGRAM

j. is a symbol of immortality

🎯 12B 核心词汇综合闯关 (Practice & Collocations)

Part A: Sentence Completion (P.234) Part B: Cultural & Religious Definitions (P.234) Part C: Collocations with Violate (P.234)

词汇精练得分: 0 / 14 题

Vocabulary Practice Part A: Sentence Completion (P.234)

VOCABULARY PRACTICE · PART A

1. There are few places that can ______ the beauty of Salar de Uyuni.

VOCABULARY PRACTICE · PART A

2. Stretching out toward a seemingly ______ horizon, it is all that's left of prehistoric lakes.

VOCABULARY PRACTICE · PART A

3. While the lithium may prove to be Bolivia's economic ______, this area also yields salt.

VOCABULARY PRACTICE · PART A

4. Factory workers ______ to add iodine and the product is sealed into bags as table salt.

VOCABULARY PRACTICE · PART A

5. Despite having this incredible natural resource, it is not fully ______.

VOCABULARY PRACTICE · PART A

6. Only a few families have a ______ to working the salt flats.

Vocabulary Practice Part B: Religious & Cultural Terms (P.234)

VOCABULARY IN CONTEXT · 1

1. A revelation is a(n) ______ fact.

VOCABULARY IN CONTEXT · 2

2. If you assure someone, you cause them to be ______ about something.

VOCABULARY IN CONTEXT · 3

3. A version of something is a particular form that ______.

VOCABULARY IN CONTEXT · 4

4. If you are skeptical about something, you ______ it.

Vocabulary Practice Part C: Collocations with Violate (P.234)

WORD LINK · ROOT -VERS-

1. reverse

WORD LINK · ROOT -VERS-

2. averse

WORD LINK · ROOT -VERS-

3. adverse

WORD LINK · ROOT -VERS-

4. diversion

🏆 12B 学习通关打卡与证书

Reading Explorer 5 · Unit 12B 通关证明

恭喜完成《THE RUSH FOR WHITE GOLD》课文深度精读与核心词汇全方位通关。

0 / 41 题