改变世界的17种物质_BEC初级作文_BEC初级-查字典英语网

改变世界的17种物质

ETHANOL — C2H6O

If your head is swimming, you're seeing double and suddenly finding everyone attractive, chances are that ethanol is to blame. Worldwide, about two billion people enjoy ethanol, the intoxicant in alcohol. The average Australian, for example, drinks about 10 L of pure alcohol each year. Historians suspect that it was accidentally discovered when our ancestors' grain stores were drenched with rain and fermented by the Sun. The liquor reduces inhibitions, alters moods, impairs judgment and boosts sexual desire. Alcohol consumption is the third largest risk factor for disease in developed countries.

乙醇C2H6O

如果你正感到头晕，眼前出现重影，而且突然感觉每个人都那么可亲，这八成是乙醇的功劳。在全球范围，大约有二十亿人享用乙醇，这种可致醉的醇类化合物。例如，在澳大利亚，平均每人每年饮用十升纯酒精。历史学家们怀疑，由于我们的祖先存储的谷物被雨淋湿后又被阳光发酵，因此偶然发现了这种物质。这种液体可以减少抑制，调节心境，影响判断力，并增进性欲。酒精消费是发达国家第三大危险的致病因素。

SULPHURIC ACID — H2SO4

A country's production of sulphuric acid is a good indication of its industrial might, because at some stage nearly every manufactured good comes into contact with this highly corrosive stuff. It's used in mining, steel production, oil refining and chemical synthesis, and in the manufacture of fertilizers, detergents and plastics. No wonder it's nicknamed "the king of chemicals". Sulphuric acid was discovered in the 8th century, but it only became economically viable in 1746, when English chemist John Roebuck developed a way to produce it in bulk. In 2005 world production of sulphuric acid was estimated at 193 million tones.