Tag: Climate Change

Categories
Current Events Science Theocratic

jíduān tiānqì

jíduān (jí·duān extreme · extremity → [extreme] 极端 極端)
tiānqì (tiān·qì {sky → [weather]} · {air → [weather]} → [weather] 天气 天氣) 👈🏼 Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[Notes: Tap/click on a Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to reveal its “flashcard”; tap/click on a “flashcard” or its Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to hide the “flashcard”. 📖 📄 📘 icons mean 📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and 📘 Reveal None re all the “flashcards” in the heading, paragraph, etc. that they are placed at the beginning of.]

At the time of this writing, jw.org was featuring the article “Extreme Weather—Can the Bible Help You to Cope?”. To correspond with the English expression “extreme weather”, the Mandarin version uses this week’s MEotW, “jíduān (jí·duān extreme · extremity → [extreme] 极端 極端) tiānqì (tiān·qì {sky → [weather]} · {air → [weather]} → [weather] 天气 天氣)”.

Interesingly, the “jí (extremity | extreme (adj) | extremely; {to the extreme} 极 極)” in “jíduān (jí·duān {[is] extreme} · end; extremity → [[is] extreme; exceedingly; absolute | extreme; extremity | exceedingly; extremely] 极端 極端)” is also used in “Běijí (Běi·jí North · {Extremity → [Pole]} 北极 北極)” (“North Pole”) and in “Nánjí (Nán·jí South · {Extremity → [Pole]} 南极 南極)” (“South Pole”).

Extreme Weather Expressions in Context

Here are the English and Mandarin versions of the above-mentioned article’s first paragraph, which contains many expressions related to the topic of extreme weather:

English:

Are you one of the millions who have been affected by extreme weather? Dangerous weather and its damaging effects come in many forms. Hurricanes, typhoons, cyclones, and tornadoes often cause storm surges, flooding, or wind damage. Heavy rain may trigger landslides, and storms can bring lightning strikes that start destructive wildfires. Droughts, heat waves, and winter storms can be equally devastating.

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Quánqiú (Quán·qiú (across) entire · globe → [worldwide] 全球) chéngqiān (chéng·qiān {coming to be} · {thousands} 成千)‐shàngwàn (shàng·wàn {up to} · {tens of thousands} 上万 上萬) de (’ 的) rén (people 人) shòudào (shòu·dào {have been subjected to} · {arriving at} 受到) jíduān (jí·duān extreme · extremity → [extreme] 极端 極端) tiānqì (tiān·qì {sky → [weather]} · {air → [weather]} → [weather] 天气 天氣) yǐngxiǎng (yǐng·xiǎng relfections · sounds → [affecting] 影响 影響), nǐ (you 你) yě (also 也) shì (are 是) qízhōng (qí·zhōng them · among 其中) zhī (’s 之) yī (one 一) ma ([? ptcl for “yes/no” questions] 吗 嗎)? Jíduān (Jí·duān extreme · extremity → [extreme] 极端 極端) tiānqì (tiān·qì {sky → [weather]} · {air → [weather]} → [weather] 天气 天氣) kěyǐ (kě·yǐ can · [suf] 可以) dàilái (dài·lái bring · {to come} 带来 帶來) gèzhǒng (gè·zhǒng various · {kinds of} 各种 各種) zāihài (zāi·hài calamities · harm 灾害 災害), zàochéng (zào·chéng make · {to come to be} 造成) yánzhòng (yán·zhòng {tight → [severe]} · {weighty → [serious]} → [severe] 严重 嚴重) de (’s 的) pòhuài (pò·huài damaging · {to be ruined} 破坏 破壞). Lìrú (Lì·rú examples · like → [for example] 例如), jùfēng (jù·fēng hurricane · winds → [hurricanes] 飓风 颶風), táifēng (tái·fēng typhoon · winds → [typhoons] 台风 颱風), qìxuán (qì·xuán air · circlings → [cyclones] 气旋 氣旋), hé ({(together) with} → [and] 和 和/龢) lóngjuǎn‐fēng ((lóng·juǎn dragon · spool → [tornado] 龙卷 龍捲)‐(fēng winds 风 風) → [tornadoes]) jīngcháng (jīng·cháng regularly · often 经常 經常) huì (will 会 會) zàochéng (zào·chéng make · {to come to be} 造成) fēngbào‐cháo ((fēng·bào wind · {being violent} → [storm] 风暴 風暴)‐(cháo tides 潮) → [storm surges]), hóngshuǐ (hóng·shuǐ flood · waters → [floods] 洪水), hé ({(together) with} → [and] 和 和/龢) fēngzāi (fēng·zāi wind · disasters → [wind damage] 风灾 風災); dàyǔ (dà·yǔ {big → [heavy]} · rain 大雨) kěnéng (kě·néng maybe · {being able} → [possibly] 可能) yǐnfā (yǐn·fā {will draw (out)} · {to send out} → [will trigger] 引发 引發) ní‐shí‐liú ((ní mud 泥)‐(shí rock 石)‐(liú flows 流) → [landslides]) (tǔ‐shí‐liú ((tǔ soil 土)‐(shí rock 石)‐(liú flows 流) → [debris flows (Tw)])); léidiàn (léi·diàn thunder · {electricity → [lightning]} 雷电 雷電) kěnéng (kě·néng maybe · {being able} → [possibly] 可能) yǐnfā (yǐn·fā {will draw (out)} · {to send out} → [will spark] 引发 引發) yánzhòng (yán·zhòng {tight → [severe]} · {weighty → [serious]} → [severe] 严重 嚴重) de (’s 的) huǒzāi (huǒ·zāi fire · disasters → [wildfires] 火灾 火災); hànzāi (hàn·zāi drought · disasters → [droughts] 旱灾 旱災), rèlàng (rè·làng heat · waves 热浪 熱浪), yǐjí ({as well as} 以及) bàofēng‐xuě ((bào·fēng violent · wind → [storm] 暴风 暴風)‐(xuě snows 雪) → [snowstorms]) yě (also 也) kěyǐ (kě·yǐ can · [suf] 可以) dàilái (dài·lái bring · {to come} 带来 帶來) yánzhòng (yán·zhòng {tight → [severe]} · {heavy → [serious]} → [serious] 严重 嚴重) de (’ 的) pòhuài (pò·huài damaging · {to be ruined} 破坏 破壞).

Individual Extreme Weather Expressions

While the above paragraphs show several English and Mandarin expressions related to extreme weather used in context, below is a table of several of the individual English expressions used above, along with their corresponding Mandarin expressions:

English Mandarin
extreme weather jíduān (jí·duān extreme · extremity → [extreme] 极端 極端) tiānqì (tiān·qì {sky → [weather]} · {air → [weather]} → [weather] 天气 天氣)
hurricanes jùfēng (jù·fēng cyclone; hurricane; typhoon · winds → [hurricanes; typhoons] 飓风 颶風)
typhoons táifēng (tái·fēng typhoon · winds → [typhoons] 台风 颱風)
cyclones qìxuán (qì·xuán air · circlings → [cyclones] 气旋 氣旋)
tornadoes lóngjuǎn‐fēng ((lóng·juǎn dragon · spool → [tornado; waterspout] 龙卷 龍捲)‐(fēng winds 风 風) → [tornadoes; twisters | cyclones; hurricanes])
storm surges fēngbào‐cháo ((fēng·bào wind · {being violent} → [storm] 风暴 風暴)‐(cháo tides 潮) → [storm surges])
flooding hóngshuǐ (hóng·shuǐ flood · waters [→ [floods]] 洪水)
wind damage fēngzāi (fēng·zāi wind · disaster; calamity [→ [wind damage]] 风灾 風災)
heavy rain dàyǔ (dà·yǔ {big → [heavy]} · rain 大雨)
landslides ní‐shí‐liú ((ní mud 泥)‐(shí rock 石)‐(liú flows 流) → [mud-rock flows; rockslides; mudslides; landslides]) (tǔ‐shí‐liú ((tǔ soil [→ [land]] 土)‐(shí rock 石)‐(liú flows 流) → [debris flows (Tw); mud-rock flows; rockslides; mudslides; landslides]))
lightning léidiàn (léi·diàn thunder · {electricity → [lightning]} 雷电 雷電)
wildfires huǒzāi (huǒ·zāi fire · calamities; disasters [→ [wildfires]] 火灾 火災)
droughts hànzāi (hàn·zāi drought · disasters; calamities → [droughts] 旱灾 旱災)
heat waves rèlàng (rè·làng heat · waves 热浪 熱浪)
winter storms bàofēng‐xuě ((bào·fēng violent · wind → [storm] 暴风 暴風)‐(xuě snows 雪) → [snowstorms; blizzards])

Hopefully, the information in this post will help you to be better equipped to speak with Mandarin-speaking people who are concerned about climate change (qìhòu (qì·hòu {air → [weather]} · conditions → [climate] 气候 氣候) biànhuà (biàn·huà changing · transforming 变化 變化)) and about the increasingly frequent and extreme extreme weather we are seeing in these last days.

Categories
Culture Current Events Language Learning Theocratic

huánjìng

huánjìng (huán·jìng surrounding; encircling · {(set of) boundaries → [(bounded) place; area] → [condition; situation; circumstances]} → [environment; surroundings; circumstances; situation; context | environmental] 环境 環境) ← Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[Notes: Tap/click on a Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to reveal its “flashcard”; tap/click on a “flashcard” or its Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to hide the “flashcard”. 📖 📄 📘 icons mean 📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and 📘 Reveal None re all the “flashcards” in the heading, paragraph, etc. that they are placed at the beginning of.]

At the time of this writing, the main page of jw.org was featuring the following headline in support of a global campaign:

English

Can the Environment Be Saved?

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Huánjìng (Huán·jìng Surrounding · {(Set of) Boundaries → [(Bounded) Area] → [Situation]} → [Environmental] 环境 環境) Wèntí (Wèn·tí Asking · Problems → [Problems] 问题 問題) Yǒu ({Will Have} 有) Jiějué (Jiě·jué {Having Been Untied → [Having Been Solved]} · {Having Been Decided} → [Having Been Solved] 解决 解決) de (’s 的) Yì (One 一) Tiān (Sky → [Day] 天) Ma ([? ptcl for “yes/no” questions] 吗 嗎)?

Screenshot of jw.org (CHS) on 2023-09-16, with _“环境 (Huánjìng)”_ circled

“Huánjìng (Huán·jìng surrounding; encircling · {(set of) boundaries → [(bounded) place; area] → [condition; situation; circumstances]} → [environment; surroundings; circumstances; situation; context | environmental] 环境 環境)”, which is used in Mandarin to mean “environment” or “environmental”, is this week’s MEotW.

Morphemic Breakdown

How does “huánjìng (huán·jìng surrounding; encircling · {(set of) boundaries → [(bounded) place; area] → [condition; situation; circumstances]} → [environment; surroundings; circumstances; situation; context | environmental] 环境 環境)” “work” as an expression? Its first morpheme “huán ({(chain) link} | ring; circle | surround; encircle 环 環)” refers to a “ring” or a “circle”, for example, a link in a chain. In fact, it used to be used on our organization’s publications’ Publishers’ Pages to correspond to the “part” in “part of a worldwide Bible educational work”, by referring to the publication as a figurative link in a chain. An example can be seen in the screenshot below, which shows part of the Publishers’ Page for the Mandarin Bible Teach book:

Screenshot of _Bible Teach_ book Publishers’ Page (CHS+_Pīnyīn_) on the WOL, with “环 (_huán_)” circled

In the context of “huánjìng (huán·jìng surrounding; encircling · {(set of) boundaries → [(bounded) place; area] → [condition; situation; circumstances]} → [environment; surroundings; circumstances; situation; context | environmental] 环境 環境)”, “huán ({(chain) link} | ring; circle | surround; encircle 环 環)” means “surrounding” or “encircling”, like a ring or a circle around someone would be.

The other morpheme, “jìng ({[(set of)] boundaries; borders} [→ [[(bounded)] place; area; territory] [→ [condition; situation; circumstances]]] 境)”, literally means “boundary” or “border”, and can be used to effectively mean “a set of boundaries/borders”. This, in turn, can effectively mean “(bounded) place; area; territory”, which can effectively mean “condition; situation; circumstances”.

When the two morphemes are put together in “huánjìng (huán·jìng surrounding; encircling · {(set of) boundaries → [(bounded) place; area] → [condition; situation; circumstances]} → [environment; surroundings; circumstances; situation; context | environmental] 环境 環境)”, they mean something like “surrounding situation”, which works to mean “environment”.

Another expression in which “jìng ({[(set of)] boundaries; borders} [→ [[(bounded)] place; area; territory] [→ [condition; situation; circumstances]]] 境)” appears is past MEotW “yǔjìng (yǔ·jìng language · {(set of) boundaries → [(bounded) place] → [situation]} → [context] 语境 語境)”, which means “language situation”, which means “context”, as in the textual context of a written expression, or the spoken context of something that is said. As discussed in that post and in other posts, such context, not characters, is the real key to dealing with the many homophones in Mandarin.

Another Usage Example

Coming back to “huánjìng (huán·jìng surrounding; encircling · {(set of) boundaries → [(bounded) place; area] → [condition; situation; circumstances]} → [environment; surroundings; circumstances; situation; context | environmental] 环境 環境)”, the section of jw.org currently containing the above-quoted headline links to an article (English/Mandarin) that contains the nice usage example below:

English:

The Bible speaks of a government that can and will solve all the earth’s environmental problems. It says that “the God of heaven will set up a kingdom,” a government to administer all of earth’s affairs. (Daniel 2:44) Under that world government, people “will not cause any harm or any ruin” to one another or to the earth.—Isaiah 11:9.

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng (the) Holy · Scriptures → [the Bible] 圣经 聖經) tándào (tán·dào {talks about} · {arriving at} 谈到 談到) yǒu ({(there) is having} → [(there) is] 有) yí (one 一) ge ([mw] 个 個/个) zhèngfǔ (zhèng·fǔ political · {seat of government} → [government] 政府) kěyǐ (kě·yǐ able · [suf] 可以) chèdǐ (chè·dǐ {penetrating to} · bottom → [thoroughly] 彻底 徹/澈底) jiějué (jiě·jué {to untie → [to solve]} · {to decide} → [to solve] 解决 解決) dìqiú (dì·qiú earth · globe 地球) de (’s 的) huánjìng (huán·jìng surrounding · {(set of) boundaries → [(bounded) area] → [situation]} → [environmental] 环境 環境) wèntí (wèn·tí asking · problems → [problems] 问题 問題). Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng (the) Holy · Scriptures → [the Bible] 圣经 聖經) shuō (says 说 說/説): “Tiānshang (Tiān·shang heaven · upon 天上) de (’s 的) Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝) yào (will 要) shèlì (shè·lì {set up} · {make to stand} 设立 設立) yí (one 一) ge ([mw] 个 個/箇/个) yǒngbú (yǒng·bú forever · not 永不) mièwáng (miè·wáng {will be extinguished} · {will die} 灭亡 滅亡) de (’s 的) wángguó (wáng·guó king’s · nation → [kingdom] 王国 王國).” (Dànyǐlǐshū (Dànyǐlǐ·shū Daniel · Book 但以理书 但以理書) 2:44) Zhèige (Zhèi·ge this · [mw] 这个 這個) Wángguó (Wáng·guó King’s · Nation → [Kingdom] 王国 王國) huì (will 会 會) tǒngzhì (tǒng·zhì {gather together → [command]} · rule 统治 統治) zhěnggè (zhěng·gè whole · [mw] 整个 整個) dìqiú (dì·qiú earth · globe 地球). Zài (at 在) zhèige (zhèi·ge this · [mw] 这个 這個) Wángguó (Wáng·guó King’s · Nation → [Kingdom] 王国 王國) de (’s 的) tǒngzhì (tǒng·zhì {gathering together → [commanding]} · ruling → [rule] 统治 統治) xià (under 下), búhuì (bú·huì (there) not · will → [(there) will not] 不会 不會) zài (anymore 再) yǒu ({be having} → [be] 有) rén (people 人) pòhuài (pò·huài damaging · {to be ruined} 破坏 破壞) huánjìng (huán·jìng surrounding · {(set of) boundaries → [(bounded) area] → [situation]} → [environment] 环境 環境) huò (or 或) shānghài (shāng·hài hurting · harming 伤害 傷害) qítā (qí·tā them · otherwise’s → [other] 其他) rén (people 人). (Yǐsàiyàshū (Yǐsàiyà·shū Isaiah · Book 以赛亚书 以賽亞書) 11:9)

(For reference, here are the Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus links for the scriptures cited above: Dànyǐlǐshū (Dànyǐlǐ·shū Daniel · Book 但以理书 但以理書) 2:44; Yǐsàiyàshū (Yǐsàiyà·shū Isaiah · Book 以赛亚书 以賽亞書) 11:9.)

Categories
Current Events Science

jùfēng

jùfēng (jù·fēng cyclone; hurricane; typhoon · wind → [hurricane; typhoon] 飓风 颶風) ← Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

During the week preceding the date of this post, Hurricane Ian hit the USA. As NBC News reported on the afternoon of Oct. 1, 2022:

The death toll from Hurricane Ian rose Saturday to more than 77 as one of strongest and costliest storms to ever hit the U.S. pushed northward from the Carolinas leaving in its wake a trifecta of misery—dangerous flooding, power outages and massive destruction.

At the time of this writing, jw.org was featuring the related article “Extreme Weather—Can the Bible Help You to Cope?”. The Mandarin version of this article uses this week’s MEotW, “jùfēng (jù·fēng cyclone; hurricane; typhoon · wind → [hurricane; typhoon] 飓风 颶風)”, to translate the English word “hurricane”.

Note that while one who is familiar with the Mandarin expression “dàfēng (dà·fēng {big → [strong]} · wind [→ [fresh gale]] 大风 大風)” (literally, “big wind”) might assume that the first morpheme in “jùfēng (jù·fēng cyclone; hurricane; typhoon · wind → [hurricane; typhoon] 飓风 颶風)” is the same as the first morpheme (meaning “huge; gigantic”) in “jùdà (jù·dà huge; gigantic · big 巨大)”, actually, the first morpheme in “jùfēng (jù·fēng cyclone; hurricane; typhoon · wind → [hurricane; typhoon] 飓风 颶風)” is a different one that specifically means “cyclone; hurricane; typhoon”.

A Tropical Cyclone by Any Other Name…

The English jw.org article mentioned above also mentions hurricanes, typhoons, and cyclones. The corresponding expressions used in the Mandarin version are, respectively, “jùfēng (jù·fēng hurricane · winds → [hurricanes] 飓风 颶風)”, “táifēng (tái·fēng typhoon · winds → [typhoons] 台风 颱風)”, and “qìxuán (qì·xuán air · circlings → [cyclones] 气旋 氣旋)”. What though, are the differences between hurricanes, typhoons, and cyclones?

The US government’s National Ocean Service explains it like this:

The only difference between a hurricane and a typhoon is the location where the storm occurs.

…

Hurricanes and typhoons are the same weather phenomenon: tropical cyclones. A tropical cyclone is a generic term used by meteorologists to describe a rotating, organized system of clouds and thunderstorms that originates over tropical or subtropical waters and has closed, low-level circulation.

The weakest tropical cyclones are called tropical depressions. If a depression intensifies such that its maximum sustained winds reach 39 miles per hour, the tropical cyclone becomes a tropical storm. Once a tropical cyclone reaches maximum sustained winds of 74 miles per hour or higher, it is then classified as a hurricane, typhoon, or tropical cyclone, depending upon where the storm originates in the world. In the North Atlantic, central North Pacific, and eastern North Pacific, the term hurricane is used. The same type of disturbance in the Northwest Pacific is called a typhoon. Meanwhile, in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean, the generic term tropical cyclone is used, regardless of the strength of the wind associated with the weather system.

Structure

Some might also find the following information interesting, on the structure and behaviour of tropical cyclones like hurricanes, etc.:

The main parts of a tropical cyclone are the rainbands, the eye, and the eyewall. Air spirals in toward the center in a counter-clockwise pattern in the northern hemisphere (clockwise in the southern hemisphere), and out the top in the opposite direction.

In the very center of the storm, air sinks, forming an “eye” that is mostly cloud-free.

Supercharged by Climate Change

Regarding hurricanes and similar storms, one thing that may be worthwhile to bring up in the field is that they are being made more destructive and difficult to predict by human-caused climate change.

An article on NASA’s website summarizes the situation and explains the basic mechanism:

Due to global warming, global climate models predict hurricanes will likely cause more intense rainfall and have an increased coastal flood risk due to higher storm surge caused by rising seas. Additionally, the global frequency of storms may decrease or remain unchanged, but hurricanes that form are more likely to become intense.

As surface temperatures rise, more liquid water evaporates from the land and ocean. Evaporation adds moisture to the air. How much water vapor the air can hold is based on its temperature. Warmer air temperatures can hold more water vapor. The increased moisture in the air leads to more intense rainfall, especially during extreme events.

In a hurricane, spiraling winds draw moist air toward the center, fueling the towering thunderstorms that surround it. As the air continues to warm due to climate change, hurricanes can hold more water vapor, producing more intense rainfall rates in a storm.

Moreover, …most models show that climate change brings a slight increase in hurricane wind intensity. This change is likely related to warming ocean temperatures and more moisture in the air, both of which fuel hurricanes.

Another article, on the Yale Climate Connections website, discusses a phenomenon called rapid intensification:

Rapid intensification, defined as an increase of wind speed of at least 35 mph in 24 hours, has recently garnered a lot of attention…

…human-caused warming significantly increases extreme tropical cyclone intensification rates…

Rapid intensification is one of the least well-predicted tropical cyclone processes and also one of the most dangerous, because storms that intensify quickly tend to catch people off guard.

By the way, the Mandarin expression currently used on jw.org to translate “climate change” is “qìhòu (qì·hòu {air → [weather]} · conditions → [climate] 气候 氣候) biànhuà (biàn·huà changing · transforming 变化 變化)”.