26.Defenders of science have also voiced their concerns at meetings such as “The Flight from Science and Reason,” held in New York City in 1995, and “Science in the Age of (Mis)information,”which assembled last June near Buffalo.
[句子主干]Defenders of science have also voiced…, and…, which assembled last June…
[语法难点]
有省略。held in New York City in 1995是非限定性定语从句，省略了which was，修饰的是前面的the flight from science。
[句子翻译]
科学捍卫者还通过各种会议上表达了他们的忧虑，比如1995年在纽约举行的“飞离科学与理性”大会，去年6月在布法罗附近召开的“信息（迷信）时代的科学”大会等。
[翻译技巧]
defenders of science译为“科学的捍卫者”。the flight from science and reason译为“飞离科学和理性”。reason译为“理性”。

27.This development and its strong implications for US politics and economy in years ahead - has enthroned the South as America's most densely populated region for the first time in the history of the nation's head counting.
[句子主干]      This development…has enthroned the South …
[语法难点]
有省略。ahead是补足语。有一系列词如ahead，alive，alone都只能作补足语或表语而不能作定语。实际上在ahead前面加上which were的话，ahead就成了表语，句子意义则没有任何变化。
[句子翻译]
这一发展趋势及其对今后美国政治经济的重大影响使得南方首次成了美国人口普查史上人口最密集的地区。
[翻译技巧]
strong implications译为“重大影响”。For the first time in the history指“历史上第一次”。head counting译为“人口普查”。

28.Unlike most of the world's volcanoes, they are not always found at the boundaries of the great drifting plates that make up the earth's surface; on the contrary, many of them lie deep in the interior of a plate.。
[句子主干]Unlike…, they are not always found…that make up…; on the contrary, many of them…
[语法难点]
unlike…分句是状语结构，修饰的是they（the world’s volcanoes）。该句结构其实并不复杂，因为on the contrary将句子分成清晰独立的两个部分。讲一个阅读时的小技巧，在看到on the contrary这样表明逻辑顺序的连词时，就可以在阅读时有所取舍。像on the contrary，必然强调的是后面的部分，所以之前的部分可以不看。
[句子翻译]
与大多数火山不同的是，它们都不位于形成地球表面的巨大漂移板块的连接处，许多反倒藏在板块的深处。
[翻译技巧]
most of译为“大多数”；drifting plate译为“大陆板块”；make up指“组成”。

29．But even more important, it was the farthest that scientists had been able to look sin to the past, for what they were seeing were the patterns and structures that existed 15 billion years ago.
[句子主干]  But even more important, it was…had been able to…, for what they were seeing were…
[语法难点]
有套和从句。该句的总体结构是“主句＋for＋原因状语从句”。主句是强调句，强调的内容是the farthest。在原因状语从句中，“what they were seeing”是从句的主语，“that existed 15 billion years ago”为定语从句，修饰前面的“the patterns and structures”。
[句子翻译]
但更为重要的是，这是科学家们所能观测到的最遥远的过去的景象，因为他们看到的是150亿年前宇宙云的形状和结构。
[翻译技巧]
pattern应当译为“形状，形态”，而不能译为“模式，方式，图案”。合理利用增字法，使译文更加流畅。

30．The existence of the giant clouds was virtually required for the Big Bang, first put forward in the 1920s, to maintain its reign as the dominant explanation of the cosmos.
[句子主干] The existence…was…required for the Big Bang…to maintain its reign as the dominant explanation of the cosmos.
[语法难点]
有插入语。该句结构简单，不过由于中间插入了一个过去分词短语first put forward in the 1920s，修饰“Big Bang”，致使结构难辨。
[句子翻译]
巨大的宇宙云的存在，实际上是使二十年代首创的大爆炸论得以保持其宇宙起源论的主导地位所必不可少的。
[翻译技巧]
该句翻译的难点在词汇。was required for 应该译为“所必须的”，而不该译成“是……的前提”。“virtually”应该译为“实际上，事实上，实质上”。Big Bang是“大爆炸”的意思，指的是关于宇宙形成的一种学说。可见如果缺乏相应的知识背景，要准确地翻译就会比较困难。

31. Astrophysicists working with ground-based detectors at the South Pole and balloon-borne instruments are closing in on such structures, and may report their findings soon.
[句子主干]Astrophysicists…are closing in on such structures. And may report…
[语法难点]
有并列从句。本句为and引导的并列句，两个并列谓语分别是“are closing in on such structures”和“may report their findings soon”，它们的主语Astrophysicists后面有一个由分词短语充当的定语“working with ground-based detectors at the South Pole and balloon-borne instruments”。
[句子翻译]
天体物理学家使用南极陆基探测器及球载仪器，正越来越近地观测这些云系，也许不久会报告他们的观测结果。
[翻译技巧]
本句翻译的难点在于词汇的正确理解和表达，“ground-based detectors”应该理解成“架设在地面上的探测仪”，“balloon-borne instruments”则意为“用气球运载的仪器”，“are closing in on”原意为“从四面八方包围上来，笼罩”，应该译为“正越来越近地，越来越接近”，不应该译为“密切注意，密切关注”，特别值得强调的是“structures”不要翻译成“结构”，而要结合上下文译成“云系，团状物质”。