China has taken a new step in very fast ground transport. In 2026 the country showed a full-size prototype of a high-temperature superconducting maglev train. Its top speed is designed to reach six hundred kilometres an hour, almost twice as fast as the fastest trains now in service.
A maglev train has no wheels. Magnets lift the whole train a few centimetres above the track and then push it forward. Because nothing touches the rail, there is almost no friction and very little noise. Ordinary high-speed trains lose much of their power to the contact between wheel and steel.
The word superconducting matters here. In a superconducting material, electric current can flow without resistance, so strong magnetic fields can be produced without wasting energy as heat. Earlier designs needed extremely cold liquid helium. The new one uses liquid nitrogen, which is both cheaper and easier to handle.
Engineers still face real problems. Keeping the magnets cool enough on a long journey takes power, and the track must be built to a very precise shape. A single line also costs far more than a normal railway. This is why the plan is to use maglev first on busy routes of about one thousand kilometres, such as the one between Beijing and Shanghai.
Even so, the race has already started. Japan is building its own line to connect Tokyo and Nagoya, and several other countries are studying the idea. A train that floats may one day change how far people are willing to travel in a single morning.
Words to know:
- superconducting (adj. 超导的)
- maglev (n. 磁悬浮)
- prototype (n. 样机，原型)
- friction (n. 摩擦，摩擦力)
- resistance (n. 阻力，电阻)
- helium (n. 氦)
- nitrogen (n. 氮)
- precise (adj. 精确的，精准的)
长难句拆解 · 过去分词作后置定语 + 介词短语作状语
原文：Its top speed is designed to reach six hundred kilometres an hour, almost twice as fast as the fastest trains now in service.
拆解：主干是 Its top speed is designed to reach six hundred kilometres an hour（它的最高时速被设计为达到六百公里）。主句是被动语态 be designed to do，表示「被设计为做某事」。逗号后的 almost twice as fast as… 是形容词性的补充说明，用来比较。注意倍数表达法：「twice as + 形容词原级 + as」，这里 fast 用的是原级而不是比较级。now in service 是后置定语修饰 the fastest trains，in service 意为「在运营中、在役」。
直译：它的最高时速被设计为达到六百公里，几乎是目前运营中最快列车的两倍。
同义替换 · 雅思阅读利器
雅思阅读最爱把原文的词换成另一个说法来出题，认出这些替换，定位就能快一半。
- a full-size prototype → a complete working model（full-size ＝ 全尺寸的）
- almost twice as fast as → nearly double the speed of（倍数比较的两种说法）
- has no wheels → does not run on wheels（否定表达的转换）
- almost no friction → hardly any rubbing between surfaces（friction ＝ 摩擦）
- lose much of their power → waste a large part of their energy（lose ＝ waste）
- without resistance → with no opposition to the flow（resistance ＝ 阻力）
- far more than a normal railway → much more expensive than an ordinary line（far ＝ much，修饰比较级）
阅读自测 · 3 题
- T / F / NG：高温超导磁浮样车的设计最高时速是目前运营中最快列车的两倍。（判断正误并说明依据）
- 简答：新方案用哪种冷却剂替代了早期设计中的液氦？
- 选词填空：The track must be built to a very ____ shape.（供选：precise / precious / previous）
参考答案与解析
- TRUE。原文说 Its top speed is designed to reach six hundred kilometres an hour, almost twice as fast as the fastest trains now in service，其中 almost twice as fast as 明确表达了两倍，与题目一致。注意题目保留了 almost 这个词；如果把题目写成「恰好是两倍」，因原文有 almost 的限定，就应判为 NOT GIVEN。
- 液氮（liquid nitrogen）。原文说 The new one uses liquid nitrogen, which is both cheaper and easier to handle。不要误答成液氦，液氦是早期设计使用的冷却剂。
- precise。precise 意为「精确的」，与 shape 搭配表示轨道形状必须极为精确。precious 意为「珍贵的」，previous 意为「先前的」，均不能与 shape 搭配表达此处含义。
中文译文
中国在超高速地面交通上又迈出一步。2026 年，中国展示了一列全尺寸的高温超导磁浮列车样车。它的设计最高时速可达六百公里，几乎是目前投入运营的最快列车的两倍。
磁浮列车没有车轮。磁体把整列车抬离轨道几厘米，然后推动它向前。由于没有任何部件接触轨道，摩擦几乎为零，噪音也极小。普通高铁有相当一部分动力损耗在车轮与钢轨的接触上。
这里的关键词是「超导」。在超导材料中，电流可以无阻力地流动，因此能产生强磁场而不以热量形式浪费能量。早期设计需要极冷的液氦。新方案改用液氮，成本更低，也更容易操作。
工程师仍面临实际问题。长途运行中让磁体保持足够低温需要耗电，轨道也必须修建在极精确的形状上。单条线路的造价还远高于普通铁路。正因如此，磁浮的计划是先用于一千公里左右的繁忙线路，例如北京到上海这一条。
即便如此，竞赛已经展开。日本正在修建连接东京与名古屋的线路，另有若干国家在研究这一构想。一列浮起来的列车，或许有朝一日会改变人们愿意在一个上午之内走出多远。