时间:2018-12-24 作者:英语课 分类:Scientific American(五)月


英语课

This is Scientific American’s 60-second Science. I'm Adam Hinterthuer. Got a minute?       


The Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard 1 and a fearsome predator 2. It has long been thought that some of its hunting prowess was due to a mouth teeming 3 with bacteria. An attack that didn't immediately kill the dragon’s victim, often a deer but sometimes a person, would cause fatal bacterial 4 infections. But a report released May 18th by the Proceedings 5 of the National Academy of Sciences finds a more likely cause of death. The animal has evolved a “sophisticated combined arsenal 6 killing 7 apparatus”.


First, the animal has razor-sharp serrated teeth, perfect for tearing flesh and causing massive wounds, but wait, there’s more. When the researchers performed an MRI of the dragon, they found in its jaws 8 what they called the most structurally 9 complex reptile 10 venom 11 gland 12 known. The gland has openings between the lizard’s teeth and releases chemicals that both dilate 13 blood vessels 14 and prevent blood clotting 15. The inevitable 16 result is massive blood loss. This new information does help to clean up the foul-mouthed reputation of the Komodo dragon, but it is little solace 17 for its unfortunate prey 18.

Thanks for the minute for Scientific American's 60-Second Science. I'm Adam Hinterthuer.


"Would you tell us a little bit more about the Komodo dragon, Doctor?"

"Happy to.  The Komodo dragon is the world's largest living lizard. It's a ferocious 19 kind of ora, found on the steep-sloped Island of Komodo, in the Lesser 20 Sunda chain of the Indonesian Archipelago and the nearby islands of Rinca, Padar and Floras 21."


“Where do they come from?"

 



1 lizard
n.蜥蜴,壁虎
  • A chameleon is a kind of lizard.变色龙是一种蜥蜴。
  • The lizard darted out its tongue at the insect.蜥蜴伸出舌头去吃小昆虫。
2 predator
n.捕食其它动物的动物;捕食者
  • The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
  • Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴,它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。
3 teeming
adj.丰富的v.充满( teem的现在分词 );到处都是;(指水、雨等)暴降;倾注
  • The rain was teeming down. 大雨倾盆而下。
  • the teeming streets of the city 熙熙攘攘的城市街道
4 bacterial
a.细菌的
  • Bacterial reproduction is accelerated in weightless space. 在失重的空间,细菌繁殖加快了。
  • Brain lesions can be caused by bacterial infections. 大脑损伤可能由细菌感染引起。
5 proceedings
n.进程,过程,议程;诉讼(程序);公报
  • He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
  • to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼
6 arsenal
n.兵工厂,军械库
  • Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
  • We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。
7 killing
n.巨额利润;突然赚大钱,发大财
  • Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
  • Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。
8 jaws
n.口部;嘴
  • The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。
  • The scored jaws of a vise help it bite the work. 台钳上有刻痕的虎钳牙帮助它紧咬住工件。
9 structurally
在结构上
  • The house roof was (structurally) unsound. 这屋顶(结构)不牢固。
  • Pinhole on shot-hole damage is never structurally significant. 针孔和蛀洞所造成的危害对结构的影响不大。
10 reptile
n.爬行动物;两栖动物
  • The frog is not a true reptile.青蛙并非真正的爬行动物。
  • So you should not be surprised to see someone keep a reptile as a pet.所以,你不必惊奇有人养了一只爬行动物作为宠物。
11 venom
n.毒液,恶毒,痛恨
  • The snake injects the venom immediately after biting its prey.毒蛇咬住猎物之后马上注入毒液。
  • In fact,some components of the venom may benefit human health.事实上,毒液的某些成分可能有益于人类健康。
12 gland
n.腺体,(机)密封压盖,填料盖
  • This is a snake's poison gland.这就是蛇的毒腺。
  • Her mother has an underactive adrenal gland.她的母亲肾上腺机能不全。
13 dilate
vt.使膨胀,使扩大
  • At night,the pupils dilate to allow in more light.到了晚上,瞳孔就会扩大以接收更多光线。
  • Exercise dilates blood vessels on the surface of the brain.运动会使大脑表层的血管扩张。
14 vessels
n.血管( vessel的名词复数 );船;容器;(具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的)人
  • The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
15 clotting
v.凝固( clot的现在分词 );烧结
  • The study was also based only on the one anti-clotting drug. 所用抗血栓药物也仅限于一种。 来自互联网
  • A plasma protein that is converted into thrombin during blood clotting. 凝血原酶一种血浆蛋白质,在血液凝聚时转化成凝血''。'酵'。''''。'素'。''。 来自互联网
16 inevitable
adj.不可避免的,必然发生的
  • Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
  • The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。
17 solace
n.安慰;v.使快乐;vt.安慰(物),缓和
  • They sought solace in religion from the harshness of their everyday lives.他们日常生活很艰难,就在宗教中寻求安慰。
  • His acting career took a nosedive and he turned to drink for solace.演艺事业突然一落千丈,他便借酒浇愁。
18 prey
n.被掠食者,牺牲者,掠食;v.捕食,掠夺,折磨
  • Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
  • The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。
19 ferocious
adj.凶猛的,残暴的,极度的,十分强烈的
  • The ferocious winds seemed about to tear the ship to pieces.狂风仿佛要把船撕成碎片似的。
  • The ferocious panther is chasing a rabbit.那只凶猛的豹子正追赶一只兔子。
20 lesser
adj.次要的,较小的;adv.较小地,较少地
  • Kept some of the lesser players out.不让那些次要的球员参加联赛。
  • She has also been affected,but to a lesser degree.她也受到波及,但程度较轻。
21 floras
n.(某地区或某时期的)植物群,植物区系,植物志( flora的名词复数 )
  • Floristics is the study of floras, including the preparation of Floras. 植物区系学是研究植物区系的一门学科,其中包括编写植物志。 来自辞典例句
  • We shall appreciate this difficulty more clearly, by looking to certain existing faunas and floras. 通过观察某些现存的动物群和植物群,我们就能更清楚地了解这种困难了。 来自辞典例句
标签: SSS bacterial
学英语单词
-nese
1-naphthylamine hydrochloride
abjustment
Abū Rubayq
alkalinizations
amocarzine
arctic region
autocompounded current transformer
ayyub
azatropylidene
backlog depreciation
be enveloped in
beaumontoside
by right of something
chatham str.
cold dishes
conforming imputation
contingent transaction
cross tolerance
customerinquiry
dative sickness
dehorted
delay set counter
die arrangement for continuous compaction
direct-axis transient voltage
direness
dollar value at point of exportation
doublepressing
drinkings
dropping vessel
dry salted fish
duty of assured clause
ecosophers
ego trip
eructing
face masks
faint with
femaleless
fire-bucket
flexible shaft coupling
foredated
getting away
halmyrogenic
instantaneous cut
integrand
Kaschau
kinorhyncha
kiwifruit
lecturin'
lithophile element
local transaction program
Louis III
magnetic device
measure of transcendence
mileage recorder
militarus
molybdenum complex
myohypertrophia kymoparalytica
naphthalene poisoning
octal indication
open future
open-cavity
optical fiber measurement
period-to-date quantity adjusted
phase wave
phlebodium aureums
pinch-in effect
polluter-pays
proximal point algorithm
puccinia noli-tangere
Pull your chain
pycnanthemum virginianums
rattlers
read untrue
reeling furnace
relocatable linking loader
replays
sale fees
Saxifraga divaricata
semipolitician
side action
single shot trigger
single-sideband
sinopontius aesthetascus
sizing roller
soft snap
spooneristic
steady-state heating
supporter combustion
supporting information
tambay
tetanic induced current
TLC-scanner
trentepholia (mongoma) pennipes
Truth In-lending Act
undercut slope
unimanual palpation
unshunned
vibratory hopper feeder
welders' siderosis
with (an) effort
Zǎbrani