时间:2018-12-16 作者:英语课 分类:VOA标准英语2013年(七月)


英语课

 


Tall, Stinky Plant is a Draw At US Botanic Garden



An American royal was celebrated 1 on Monday. It's called the titan arum, more commonly known as the Corpse 2 Flower. It's famous for its unique odor - something like rotting flesh - which it uses to attract pollinators. Botanist 3 Bob Willeby, at the U.S. Botanic Garden, says it takes a lot of energy for the plant to create such a large bloom, two to three meters tall.


“This is an unusual occurrence, it happens infrequently throughout the United States in the world in general," he said. 


It’s becoming more common, though, as colleges and universities acquire titan arums for their science programs. The plant, native to Indonesia, thrives in hot, humid climates. 


Anticipation 4 was high when the Botanic Garden announced the imminent 5 flowering of its titan arum last week. But it didn't bloom until Sunday. When the crowd entered the gardens Monday morning, something was missing. 


Some of the visitors were disappointed. “It’s not stinky," said one girl. 


Botanic Garden Educator Todd Brethauer said the stench occurs in cycles.


“The peak production of the chemicals, based on studies done in Germany and Japan, occurs around midnight and then it starts to taper 6 off about four o’clock in the morning," he said. 


This is to attract pollinators, like dung beetles 7 and flies, rather than bees and butterflies.  They frequent sweet-smelling flowers.   


Although visitors were not able to appreciate the anticipated odor, they were still content to see the incredible plant in all its glory. 


Only a few lucky people were able to witness the blooming of the titan. The plant collapses 8 after 24 to 48 hours. 




1 celebrated
adj.有名的,声誉卓著的
  • He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
  • The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。
2 corpse
n.尸体,死尸
  • What she saw was just an unfeeling corpse.她见到的只是一具全无感觉的尸体。
  • The corpse was preserved from decay by embalming.尸体用香料涂抹以防腐烂。
3 botanist
n.植物学家
  • The botanist introduced a new species of plant to the region.那位植物学家向该地区引入了一种新植物。
  • I had never talked with a botanist before,and I found him fascinating.我从没有接触过植物学那一类的学者,我觉得他说话极有吸引力。
4 anticipation
n.预期,预料,期望
  • We waited at the station in anticipation of her arrival.我们在车站等着,期待她的到来。
  • The animals grew restless as if in anticipation of an earthquake.各种动物都变得焦躁不安,像是感到了地震即将发生。
5 imminent
adj.即将发生的,临近的,逼近的
  • The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
  • The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。
6 taper
n.小蜡烛,尖细,渐弱;adj.尖细的;v.逐渐变小
  • You'd better taper off the amount of time given to rest.你最好逐渐地减少休息时间。
  • Pulmonary arteries taper towards periphery.肺动脉向周围逐渐变细。
7 beetles
n.甲虫( beetle的名词复数 )
  • Beetles bury pellets of dung and lay their eggs within them. 甲壳虫把粪粒埋起来,然后在里面产卵。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • This kind of beetles have hard shell. 这类甲虫有坚硬的外壳。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
8 collapses
折叠( collapse的第三人称单数 ); 倒塌; 崩溃; (尤指工作劳累后)坐下
  • This bridge table collapses. 这张桥牌桌子能折叠。
  • Once Russia collapses, the last chance to stop Hitler will be gone. 一旦俄国垮台,抑止希特勒的最后机会就没有了。
学英语单词
Abū Fulah
accessory gear
acetins
actifs
Adrados
advice-boat
alanineketoacidtransaminase
ampere meter
badly-decomposed
baked clay
Bang Pa Han
brazenface
burr and chip relief
cathode noise
ceiling plan
compiled language
complex adjustment
description language
diary fatigue
differential freight rate agreement
distance range
distressingnesses
distributed function terminal
downbeat
dyspneic respiration
eco-resorts
elastomeric seal
explosive power
exponent transform
flexibility of wood
forgetting error
ginnee
hanafizes
Hatshetsup
heteromorphic homologues
high alkalinity
hole gauge
IASLIC
immunomodulatory
implementation procedures
in transition
input-data strobe
internal and external
Irano-
jennison
labrea
land of promise
large-tailed antshrikes
lead-minings
liquation process
luminous surface
marketing researcher
minor telephone office
mislaird
momentary aspect
Mulgathing
multi-stemmed
multiple measurements
nist-traceable
non-viral
Ordram
pelagophile
pentlandites
phallomere
photosensitization disease
pigpens
plank board
postact
potpourris
predominancy
present serviceability rating
prevalence
primary program operator interface task
proportionated
pulpal wall
raik
re-use of forms
responser speed
ring resonator length
river bed profile
rodmen
Satanizing
scavenging compressor
screw plate
seedling selection
selvedge mark
slap-dab
slavatas
small hole
SNOMED
snow white and the seven dwarfs
steam valve bronze
structure initialization
summer
take no prisoners
tapetum cell
tennist
terezin
Transportation Secretary
traveling-salesman
upbreathing
Vitis quinquangularis