SSS 2008-04-21
时间：2018-12-24 作者：英语课 分类：Scientific American(四)月
This is Scientific American’s 60-Second Science. I’m Adam Hinterthuer. Got a minute?
You’ve probably heard about mercury contamination in fish. But a new study says that the toxin 1 has climbed out of the water. Researchers from the College of William & Mary say landlubbing insects near the Shenandoah River have elevated levels of mercury in their blood, and so do the birds that eat them. The report appears in the April 18th issue of the journal Science. The scientists tested mercury in 13 insect-eating bird/ species and found that 12 had dangerously higher levels. They then examined the birds’ food supply-literally snatching spiders, moths 2 and grasshoppers 3 out of the mouths of babies in their nests. These tasty morsels 4 all contained mercury. And spiders which sit higher up the insect food chain had even more mercury than fish collected from the river. The news is alarming since mercury can cause reproductive failure and even death at low concentrations. The researchers now want to know how a problem thought to be confined to a single ecosystem 5 is spreading. They speculate that contaminated aquatic 6 insects or maybe polluted floodwaters are helping 7 mercury creep out of the river and take to the wing.
Thanks for the minute for Scientific American’s 60-Second Science. I’m Adam Hinterthuer.
- Experts have linked this condition to a build-up of toxins in the body.专家已把这一病症与体内毒素的积累联系起来。
- Tests showed increased levels of toxin in shellfish.检验表明水生有壳动物的毒素水平提高了。
- The moths have eaten holes in my wool coat. 蛀虫将我的羊毛衫蛀蚀了几个小洞。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- The moths tapped and blurred at the window screen. 飞蛾在窗帘上跳来跳去，弄上了许多污点。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
- Grasshoppers die in fall. 蚱蜢在秋天死去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- There are usually a lot of grasshoppers in the rice fields. 稻田里通常有许多蚱蜢。 来自辞典例句
- They are the most delicate morsels. 这些确是最好吃的部分。 来自辞典例句
- Foxes will scratch up grass to find tasty bug and beetle morsels. 狐狸会挖草地，寻找美味的虫子和甲壳虫。 来自互联网
- This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
- We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。