Source: National Geographic en Español
https://www.ngenespanol.com/ciencia/salen-muones-de-la-muralla-de-xian/
Publishing Date: February 2, 2023
Translation Tools: DeepL and MateCat
La muralla de Xian está soltando muones, una partícula subatómica muy inestable que había permanecido en su interior por más de medio milenio.
Los ingenieros chinos se han destacado, desde hace miles de años, por compartir una misma intención: proteger los bienes de sus monarcas. Particularmente, aquellos de las ciudades más grandes. Por ello, la élite en el poder invirtió un capital significativo en megaproyectos como la Gran Muralla China, que intentaron replicar en torno a ciudades poderosas en más de una ocasión.
Tal es el caso de la muralla de Xi’an, al centro de la actual China, que funge como capital de la provincia Shaanxi. Alrededor de la ciudad, se construyó una barrera de 12 metros de alto y 18 metros de grosor, para salvaguardar los tesoros de la Dinastía Ming. 2 mil años más tarde, parece ser que esta fortaleza colosal está expidiendo extrañas partículas subatómicas, conocidas como muones. Esto es lo que sabemos.
The wall of Xian is releasing muons, a very unstable subatomic particle that had remained inside it for more than half a millennium.
Chinese engineers have stood out for thousands of years for sharing the same intention: to protect the property of their monarchs. Particularly those of the largest cities. For this reason, the ruling elite invested significant capital in megaprojects such as the Great Wall of China, which they tried to replicate around powerful cities on more than one occasion.
Such is the case of the wall of Xi'an, in the center of present-day China, which serves as the capital of Shaanxi province. Around the city, a barrier 12 meters high and 18 meters thick was built to safeguard the treasures of the Ming Dynasty. 2,000 years later, it seems that this colossal fortress is giving off strange subatomic particles, known as muons. Here's what we know.
The Xian Wall is releasing muons, a very unstable subatomic particle that had remained inside it for more than half a millennium.
Chinese engineers have stood out, for thousands of years, for sharing the same intention: to protect the assets of their monarchs. Particularly, those of the larger cities. Therefore, the ruling elite invested significant capital in mega-projects such as the Great Wall of China, which they tried to replicate around powerful cities on more than one occasion.
Such is the case of the Xi'an Wall, in the center of present-day China, which serves as the capital of Shaanxi Province. Around the city, a barrier 12 meters high and 18 meters thick was built, to safeguard the treasures of the Ming Dynasty. 2,000 years later, it appears that this colossal fortress is spewing out strange subatomic particles, known as muons. Here is what we know.
¿Qué son los muones?
Los muones conviven con los electrones y otras partículas subatómicas. Se les caracteriza, de entre la familia de los leptones, por ser particularmente inestables. Durante años, un equipo de investigadores se dedicó a analizar este tipo de actividad sobre la muralla de Xian. Ahora, con tecnología de penetración y escaneo, finalmente lograron tomar una imagen que lo confirma: la estructura de 6 siglos contiene muones en su interior.
El estudio se publicó recientemente en Journal of Applied Physics, y muestra —en la imagen de más alta resolución hasta ahora— cómo es que la muralla de Xian se ha conservado a la perfección gracias a estas partículas inestables.
Resulta ser que la muralla de Xian no es la única estructura antigua que rebosa en muones. Algunas de las ruinas mejor conservadas hasta nuestros días también cuentan con ellos. Por esta razón, el análisis de estas partículas ha interesado a arqueólogos alrededor del mundo: en términos de conservación del patrimonio, podrían ser la clave para entender cómo preservar la herencia que dejaron las civilizaciones anteriores.
No sólo eso: como los estudios se llevan a cabo con escaneos, la técnica resulta ser muy poco invasiva con los monumentos históricos:
«LAS CIUDADES CULTURALES, COMO XI’AN, TIENEN UNA LARGA HISTORIA Y PODRÍAN BENEFICIARSE DE TÉCNICAS INNOVADORAS UTILIZADAS PARA INVESTIGAR, CONSERVAR Y PROTEGER GRANDES SITIOS HISTÓRICOS», CONCLUYEN LOS AUTORES EN EL ESTUDIO.
What are muons?
Muons coexist with electrons and other subatomic particles. They are characterized, among the lepton family, as being particularly unstable. For years, a team of researchers has been analyzing this type of activity on the Xian wall. Now, with penetration and scanning technology, they finally managed to take an image that confirms it: the 6-century-old structure contains muons in its interior.
The study was recently published in the Journal of Applied Physics, and shows - in the highest resolution image so far - how the Xian wall has been perfectly preserved thanks to these unstable particles.
It turns out that the Xian wall is not the only ancient structure brimming with muons. Some of the best-preserved ruins to this day also have them. For this reason, the analysis of these particles has interested archaeologists around the world: in terms of heritage conservation, they could be the key to understanding how to preserve the heritage left by previous civilizations.
Not only that: because the studies are carried out with scans, the technique turns out to be very non-invasive with historical monuments:
"CULTURAL CITIES, SUCH AS XI'AN, HAVE A LONG HISTORY AND COULD BENEFIT FROM INNOVATIVE TECHNIQUES USED TO INVESTIGATE, CONSERVE AND PROTECT GREAT HISTORICAL SITES," THE AUTHORS CONCLUDE IN THE STUDY.
What are muons?
Muons coexist with electrons and other subatomic particles. They are characterized, among the family of leptons, as being particularly unstable. For years, a team of researchers dedicated themselves to analyzing this type of activity on the wall of Xian. Now, with penetration and scanning technology, they finally managed to take an image that confirms it: the 6-century-old structure contains muons inside it.
The study, recently published in the Journal of Applied Physics, shows - in the highest-resolution image yet - how the Xian wall has been perfectly preserved thanks to these unstable particles.
It turns out that the Xian Wall is not the only ancient structure that overflows with muons. Some of the best preserved ruins to this day also feature them. For this reason, the analysis of these particles has interested archaeologists around the world: in terms of heritage conservation, they could be the key to understanding how to preserve the heritage left by previous civilizations.
Not only that: as the studies are carried out with scans, the technique turns out to be very non-invasive with historical monuments:
“CULTURAL CITIES, SUCH AS XI'AN, HAVE A LONG HISTORY AND COULD BENEFIT FROM INNOVATIVE TECHNIQUES USED TO RESEARCH, CONSERVE AND PROTECT LARGE HISTORICAL SITES,” THE AUTHORS CONCLUDE IN THE STUDY.
The Xian Wall is releasing muons, a very unstable subatomic particle that had remained inside it for more than half a millennium.
Chinese engineers have stood out, for thousands of years, for sharing the same intention: to protect the assets of their monarchs. Particularly, those of the largest cities. Therefore, the ruling elite invested significant capital in megaprojects such as the Great Wall of China, which they tried to replicate around powerful cities on more than one occasion.
Such is the case of the Xi'an Wall, in the center of present-day China, which serves as the capital of Shaanxi Province. Around the city, a barrier 12 meters high and 18 meters thick was built, to safeguard the treasures of the Ming Dynasty. 2,000 years later, it looks like this colossal fortress is spewing out strange subatomic particles, known as muons. Here is what we know.
What are muons?
Muons coexist with electrons and other subatomic particles. They are characterized, among the lepton family, as being particularly unstable. For years, a team of researchers dedicated themselves to analyzing this type of activity on the Xian Wall. Now, with penetration and scanning technology, they finally managed to take an image that confirms it: the 6-century-old structure contains muons in its interior.
The study was recently published in the Journal of Applied Physics, and shows - in the highest resolution image so far - how the Xian wall has been perfectly preserved thanks to these unstable particles.
It turns out that the Xian wall is not the only ancient structure that overflows with muons. Some of the best-preserved ruins to this day also have them. For this reason, the analysis of these particles has interested archaeologists around the world: in terms of heritage conservation, they could be the key to understanding how to preserve the heritage left by previous civilizations.
Not only that: as the studies are carried out with scans, the technique turns out to be very non-invasive with historical monuments:
“CULTURAL CITIES, SUCH AS XI'AN, HAVE A LONG HISTORY AND COULD BENEFIT FROM INNOVATIVE TECHNIQUES USED TO RESEARCH, CONSERVE AND PROTECT LARGE HISTORICAL SITES,” THE AUTHORS CONCLUDE IN THE STUDY.
For this project, I used DeepL and MateCat to compare their versions of translation. Both of them had a very similar translation from Spanish to English, with just a few words that were different. However, I personally think that MateCat has a more accurate translation for specific words (counting the context and not just for translation in itself) and also respects more the grammar structure of the source text. Even though it is not bad/wrong from DeepL to omit some commas, I consider maintaining them better to keep order.
One thing that I need to put emphasis on is the aspect that both of them translated the tittle without proper capitalization; maybe it is because the tittle was long and both took it as if it were a sentence. This small error reminded me that no matter how good a translation tool is, we need to check it personally too.