 |
|
 |
|
 |
||||
|
||||||||
| New Google Ocean Takes Google Earth Beyond the "Dirt" Ocean in Google Earth, which launched today, builds on the free, popular 3-D mapping software Google Earth by allowing users to navigate underwater in unprecedented clarity. New "layers" to the satellite-based software include topographic maps of the seafloor; locations of shipwrecks and algal blooms; and even maps of the tiny phytoplankton that provide the bulk of the ocean’s food chain. Within the layers, users can explore multimedia features that combine data and maps with videos, quizzes, and other interactives. The new fish-eye view—accessible via a free upgrade—aims to provide a public platform for users to talk about the oceans, said John Hanke, director of Geo Products at Google. "It really is a means... [of] raising geographical awareness of oceans and … the pressures that are being put on life in the ocean," he added. Into the Blue The idea first came to well-known marine biologist Sylvia Earle at a conference in Madrid, Spain, a few years ago, when she addressed Hanke during a presentation. "I just blurted it out," Earle, a National Geographic explorer-in-residence, recalled. "I said, I hope someday, John, you’ll finish [Google Earth]. You’ve done a great job with the dirt, but there’s all that water out there—the world is blue." Earle, who narrates the introductory video, suggested from the start that the program go beyond maps: "You need to be able to touch and dive in and see what’s there," she said. The resulting product is a vibrant panorama, from videos of bluefin tuna on the hunt to quizzes about sea life—from leopard seals to nudibranchs. Clicking on the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean layer, for instance, combines maps of the region with videos and Web links showing reefs’ colorful denizens. In addition to National Geographic, several well-known marine institutions and initiatives, such as the Census of Marine Life, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Monterey Bay Aquarium, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution have contributed data. Why the Ocean Matters For Earle, Google Earth’s high-tech porthole to the oceans has an urgent import: The seas’ health is declining, and less than one percent of the world’s marine waters are protected. "This is another major breakthrough in showing the people of the world why the ocean matters," Earle said. For instance, "the ocean provides the oxygen we breathe, much of the food the world eats, and drives the climate we need to survive—but it is still largely a mystery," Tom McCann, spokesperson for the nonprofit organization Ocean Conservancy, said in an email. "We hope the addition of Ocean in Google Earth will inspire more people to explore the seas they depend on every day," added McCann, whose organization has provided Google data about marine reserves in the Pacific Ocean. The new program will also make on-the-ground conservation work easier, added Enric Sala, a marine ecologist and National Geographic fellow. "It allows us to [get] critical information … in almost real time, in a way that is so much more exciting than dry written reports," Sala said. "We are now using a jet instead of a bicycle. ..." 新谷歌海洋將谷歌地圖帶進了海底世界 探索海洋不再需要潛水衣 谷歌地球上的海洋從今天起將會升級為3-D版，免費向用戶開放，這種3-D地圖軟件讓用戶可以潛入海底，感受一個從未有過的清晰的海底世界。 由衛(wèi)星傳送的這些新版圖層包括海底的地形圖，失事船只殘骸以及藻花的位置，甚至還能看到作為海底食物鏈主體的微小浮游植物的圖片。 有了這些圖層，用戶就可以搜索到多媒體影像，這些影像中結(jié)合了數(shù)據(jù)和圖片，以視頻，測試以及其它一些交互方式展現(xiàn)出來。 谷歌地理方面主管約翰·漢克表示，用戶可以免費升級使用，我們的目標是為用戶提供一個公共的平臺，可以在這里討論我們的海洋。 “這是一個加深對海洋的認識的途徑，也讓我們認識到海洋正給我們的生活和生命帶來的壓力究竟有多大�！� 深入海洋 這個想法是在多年前由著名海洋生物學家席薇亞·厄爾在西班牙馬德里的一次會議上首次提出的，并將這一想法告訴了漢克. “我只是突然想到了這個”這位國家地理學的人類居住環(huán)境探索家厄爾回憶到。 ”我告訴約翰，我希望有一天你能完成“谷歌地球”，在陸地方面你已經(jīng)完成了一項出色的工作，但是陸地外面卻是被水包圍的，要知道，這個世界是藍色的“ 我們的地球有72%的面積被海洋覆蓋 漢克表示，厄爾的意見“一針見血的指出，如果僅僅止步于海岸線，是沒有任何意義的�！� 厄爾在那段介紹視頻中作了解說，從一開始就指出這個新的程序遠遠超越了地圖，“大家可以親身感受，可以潛入水底，去看看那里究竟有些什么�！� 這是一幅活的全景圖，包括了從捕捉金槍魚的視頻到對海洋生物的測試 ，從海豹到裸鰓亞目動物。 如果點擊墨西哥灣或者加勒比海的圖層，就會立刻出現(xiàn)一個將這一地區(qū)所有地圖結(jié)合起來的視頻，以及一系列關于當?shù)鼐用裆畹木W(wǎng)頁鏈接。 除了國家地理以外，還有其它一此知名的海洋協(xié)會以及權(quán)威機構(gòu)，如海洋生物普查，斯克里普斯海洋研究所，蒙特利爾海洋館，以及伍茲霍爾海洋研究所也都為谷歌地球提供了數(shù)據(jù)。 為何海洋有了麻煩？ 厄爾認為，谷歌地球?qū)Ｑ蟮母呖萍继剿饔兄鴺O大的必要性：因為海洋的”健康“狀況正在逐步下降，而世界上僅有不到1%的海洋正受到保護。 “而為人們展示出為什么海洋出現(xiàn)了這些問題也是谷歌地球此次的另外一個重要突破點�！� 例如，“海洋為人類提供賴以生存的氧氣，食物，以推動氣候的循環(huán)，但海洋對我們來說，仍然像謎一樣，”海洋保護協(xié)會的發(fā)言人湯姆·邁凱恩在自己的郵件中寫到。 “我希望谷歌地球的這次升級能夠激起更多的人探索海洋的興趣”，同時，他所在的海洋保護協(xié)會也為谷歌地球提供了太平洋的海洋數(shù)據(jù)。 這個新的程序也為大地保護工作提供了便利，一位海洋生態(tài)學家同時也是國家地理成員的安瑞科·薩拉補充到。 “它以一種更加有趣的方式實時的給我們提供了重要信息。” 她做了一個比喻：“我們現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)坐上了直升機，而不用再騎自行車了...” |
| 外語招生最新熱貼: |
【責任編輯：蘇婧 糾錯】 |
|
閱讀上一篇：為什么我們要撒如此多的謊呢？ |
|
閱讀下一篇：時尚辣媽：買東西三大“殺價”絕招 |
|
| 【育路網(wǎng)版權(quán)與免責聲明】 | |
| ① 凡本網(wǎng)注明稿件來源為"原創(chuàng)"的所有文字、圖片和音視頻稿件，版權(quán)均屬本網(wǎng)所有。任何媒體、網(wǎng)站或個人轉(zhuǎn)載、鏈接、轉(zhuǎn)貼或以其他方式復制發(fā)表時必須注明"稿件來源：育路網(wǎng)"，違者本網(wǎng)將依法追究責任； | |
| ② 本網(wǎng)部分稿件來源于網(wǎng)絡，任何單位或個人認為育路網(wǎng)發(fā)布的內(nèi)容可能涉嫌侵犯其合法權(quán)益，應該及時向育路網(wǎng)書面反饋，并提供身份證明、權(quán)屬證明及詳細侵權(quán)情況證明，育路網(wǎng)在收到上述法律文件后，將會盡快移除被控侵權(quán)內(nèi)容。 | |
|
大學英語---