A long shot?_其他_趣味英语-查字典英语网

A long shot?

Hole-in-one?

That is a really long shot, but never mind hole-in-ones for the moment. Here are media examples of “long shot”:

1. A plan to drop concrete balls into the mouth of a “mud volcano” in East Java to stem its flow should go into action next week, Indonesian scientists say.

Hot mud and gas have been spewing out of the ground since May 2006; experts warn the torrent could continue for months, if not years, to come.

But the government-approved scheme could halt the flow within two to three months, the team behind the plan says.

Other geophysicists said it was a “long shot”, but “could be worth a try”.

Dr Umar Fauzi, who developed the idea with a team at the Bandung Institute of Technology, told the BBC News website the work was due to begin on 7 February, following approval from the government and the team managing the disaster.

Engineers will drop 1,000 1.5m-long metal chains into the mouth of the mud leak. Each chain has four concrete balls suspended from it; two with a 20cm diameter and two with a 40cm diameter.

They will begin slowly, Dr Fauzi explained; perhaps dropping five to 10 chains on the first day, then slowly increasing the number until they insert up to 50 chains per day.

“We aim to lower the chains deep down into the neck of the crater,” he said. “This will not plug the volcano, but will force the mud to flow around the chain-balls, decreasing the mud’s energy and slowing its flow.”