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时间:2019-12-10 06:05:18

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(单词翻译)

 

This is Scientific American's 60-second Science, I'm Jason Goldman.

Imagine you're an aphid, a tiny insect that sucks plant sap for a living. You're munching2 away when a cow comes along to munch1 on the same plant you're on. You feel its warm breath. So you drop to the ground to avoid being eaten and run away.

The ground is a scary place for an aphid, but it's better than a cow's mouth. But if you're an especially small, young aphid, also known as a nymph, scampering3 over cracks, stones and twigs4 is really difficult.

Luckily, young aphids have a solution. They climb aboard the back of a larger aphid that's also making an escape and h??itch5 a ride, cowboy style.

"Sometimes there's a pile of nymphs at the beginning that climb on the adult, sometimes even eight or nine nymphs that all climb on the adult."

University of Haifa entomologist Moshe Gish.

Thanks to a series of experiments, Gish learned that the nymphs actively6 s?eek out adults after dropping to the ground. It's not that they just try to climb onto any old thing they find nearby.

For the adults, the nymphs are a bit of a nuisance.

"There is some disadvantage for the adult. It slows it down."

The grownups try to toss off their riders, like a mechanical bull at a college bar. And they'll toss off a relative just the same as they will an unrelated nymph. But somehow, evolution has allowed this piggyback riding behavior to persist.

"Probably the cost that the adult pays for that delay is not high enough to balance the benefit that the colony gets from saving a few nymphs."

In other words, the advantage to the younger bugs7 outweighs8 the cost imposed on the older ones. The entire colony benefits. The results are in the journal Frontiers in Zoology9.

Aphids are some of agriculture's most important pests, but to Gish they are also a part of a fascinating, important ecosystem10.

"Most people think of aphids — if we think of aphids — they think of aphids as tiny dots on their plants that kill off their plants. But there's a whole world there...all the interactions with the host plants and there's a chemical warfare11 between aphids and their host plants. It's coevolution and it's an arms race. There's a lot of action going on between the aphids and the plants, and the aphids and their predators12, and the aphids and the elements. It's a whole world."

Thanks for listening for Scientific American — 60-Second Science. I'm Jason Goldman.


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1 munch E1yyI     
v.用力嚼,大声咀嚼
参考例句:
  • We watched her munch through two packets of peanuts.我们看她津津有味地嚼了两包花生米。
  • Getting them to munch on vegetable dishes was more difficult.使他们吃素菜就比较困难了。
2 munching 3bbbb661207569e6c6cb6a1390d74d06     
v.用力咀嚼(某物),大嚼( munch的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • He was munching an apple. 他在津津有味地嚼着苹果。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Munching the apple as he was, he had an eye for all her movements. 他虽然啃着苹果,但却很留神地监视着她的每一个动作。 来自辞典例句
3 scampering 5c15380619b12657635e8413f54db650     
v.蹦蹦跳跳地跑,惊惶奔跑( scamper的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • A cat miaowed, then was heard scampering away. 马上起了猫叫,接着又听见猫逃走的声音。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
  • A grey squirrel is scampering from limb to limb. 一只灰色的松鼠在树枝间跳来跳去。 来自辞典例句
4 twigs 17ff1ed5da672aa443a4f6befce8e2cb     
细枝,嫩枝( twig的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Some birds build nests of twigs. 一些鸟用树枝筑巢。
  • Willow twigs are pliable. 柳条很软。
5 itch 9aczc     
n.痒,渴望,疥癣;vi.发痒,渴望
参考例句:
  • Shylock has an itch for money.夏洛克渴望发财。
  • He had an itch on his back.他背部发痒。
6 actively lzezni     
adv.积极地,勤奋地
参考例句:
  • During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
  • We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。
7 bugs e3255bae220613022d67e26d2e4fa689     
adj.疯狂的,发疯的n.窃听器( bug的名词复数 );病菌;虫子;[计算机](制作软件程序所产生的意料不到的)错误
参考例句:
  • All programs have bugs and need endless refinement. 所有的程序都有漏洞,都需要不断改进。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
8 outweighs 62d9db1e030eaef3a86321f2e4a5724d     
v.在重量上超过( outweigh的第三人称单数 );在重要性或价值方面超过
参考例句:
  • Her need to save money outweighs her desire to spend it on fun. 她省钱的需要比她花钱娱乐的愿望更重要。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Its clarity in algebraic and analytical operations far outweighs any drawbacks. 文化代数和解析运算中的清晰性远远胜过任何缺点。 来自辞典例句
9 zoology efJwZ     
n.动物学,生态
参考例句:
  • I would like to brush up my zoology.我想重新温习一下动物学。
  • The library didn't stock zoology textbooks.这家图书馆没有动物学教科书。
10 ecosystem Wq4xz     
n.生态系统
参考例句:
  • 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。
11 warfare XhVwZ     
n.战争(状态);斗争;冲突
参考例句:
  • He addressed the audience on the subject of atomic warfare.他向听众演讲有关原子战争的问题。
  • Their struggle consists mainly in peasant guerrilla warfare.他们的斗争主要是农民游击战。
12 predators 48b965855934a5395e409c1112d94f63     
n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 );奴役他人者(尤指在财务或性关系方面)
参考例句:
  • birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
  • The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

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