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科学美国人60秒 SSS Squid's Glowing Skin Patterns May Be Code

时间:2020-05-06 08:32:29

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(单词翻译)

Humboldt squid can rapidly change the pigmentation and luminescence patterns on their skin by contracting and relaxing their muscles, possibly to communicate.

Full Transcript1 

More than 1,500 feet below the surface of the ocean, it’s darker than a moonless night. But even in this murky2 world, there’s constant activity—including groups of Humboldt squid, each the size of a small adult human, darting3 around in search of fish.

“You can think of them as little rocket ships. They jet through the water. And they engage in these feeding frenzies4. They’re always looking out for an opportunity to eat.”

Stanford University biologist Ben Burford. He says feeding in a group requires careful navigation.

“These animals are cannibalistic; they’re pretty aggressive. So there’s probably some risk to group living. We think a lot of the communication they do in these groups helps with that. Like, imagine driving in heavy traffic with a bunch of aggressive drivers, say down in Los Angeles. Thank goodness you have turn signals and brake lights and horns on your cars, because that prevents a lot of catastrophe5 from happening.”

Burford thinks Humboldt squid communicate in the dark ocean by using their own form of signaling. They do it by turning their bodies into animated6 message boards. How? Like other cephalopods, they can rapidly change the pigmentation patterns on their skin by contracting and relaxing their muscles. What’s more, their bodies can glow.

“They’re creating a bioluminescent backlighting for their pigmentation patterns. So it becomes somewhat like an e-reader, something you can actually read in the dark. They’re essentially7 just, you know, selectively revealing and concealing8 different parts of a glowing body, producing these patterns on top of a glowing body.” 

Burford suspected that the squids could be combining different pigmentation patterns to create complex signals.

“So each of those elements could mean something. And they might have the potential to combine them to generate more meanings.”

To find out, his team attached cameras to remotely operated vehicles in order to study the squids’ behavior. 

“We looked at how they arranged their patterns in sequence during prey9-capture events.”

The researchers found preliminary evidence that the sequence of patterns varies consistently in specific contexts. For example, the squid tended to flicker10 when many other squid were around or darken when pursuing prey, only to change their pattern just before striking.

The study is in the Proceedings11 of the National Academy of Sciences. [Benjamin P. Burford and Bruce H. Robison, Bioluminescent backlighting illuminates12 the complex visual signals of a social squid in the deep sea]

Burford eventually hopes to do underwater experiments in which the squid are shown playbacks of their visual signaling—virtual glowing squid, if you will. Their reactions should be illuminating13.

—Susanne Bard14

[The above text is a transcript of this podcast.]


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1 transcript JgpzUp     
n.抄本,誊本,副本,肄业证书
参考例句:
  • A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
  • They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。
2 murky J1GyJ     
adj.黑暗的,朦胧的;adv.阴暗地,混浊地;n.阴暗;昏暗
参考例句:
  • She threw it into the river's murky depths.她把它扔进了混浊的河水深处。
  • She had a decidedly murky past.她的历史背景令人捉摸不透。
3 darting darting     
v.投掷,投射( dart的现在分词 );向前冲,飞奔
参考例句:
  • Swallows were darting through the clouds. 燕子穿云急飞。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Swallows were darting through the air. 燕子在空中掠过。 来自辞典例句
4 frenzies ced12cd0ff4bec931ee663d57f5c5452     
狂乱( frenzy的名词复数 ); 极度的激动
参考例句:
5 catastrophe WXHzr     
n.大灾难,大祸
参考例句:
  • I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
  • This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。
6 animated Cz7zMa     
adj.生气勃勃的,活跃的,愉快的
参考例句:
  • His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion.他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。
  • We had an animated discussion over current events last evening.昨天晚上我们热烈地讨论时事。
7 essentially nntxw     
adv.本质上,实质上,基本上
参考例句:
  • Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
  • She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。
8 concealing 0522a013e14e769c5852093b349fdc9d     
v.隐藏,隐瞒,遮住( conceal的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Despite his outward display of friendliness, I sensed he was concealing something. 尽管他表现得友善,我还是感觉到他有所隐瞒。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • SHE WAS BREAKING THE COMPACT, AND CONCEALING IT FROM HIM. 她违反了他们之间的约定,还把他蒙在鼓里。 来自英汉文学 - 三万元遗产
9 prey g1czH     
n.被掠食者,牺牲者,掠食;v.捕食,掠夺,折磨
参考例句:
  • Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
  • The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。
10 flicker Gjxxb     
vi./n.闪烁,摇曳,闪现
参考例句:
  • There was a flicker of lights coming from the abandoned house.这所废弃的房屋中有灯光闪烁。
  • At first,the flame may be a small flicker,barely shining.开始时,光辉可能是微弱地忽隐忽现,几乎并不灿烂。
11 proceedings Wk2zvX     
n.进程,过程,议程;诉讼(程序);公报
参考例句:
  • 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
12 illuminates 63e70c844c6767d7f38403dcd36bb8a5     
v.使明亮( illuminate的第三人称单数 );照亮;装饰;说明
参考例句:
  • The light shines on from over there and illuminates the stage. 灯光从那边照进来,照亮了舞台。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The sun illuminates the sky. 太阳照亮了天空。 来自《简明英汉词典》
13 illuminating IqWzgS     
a.富于启发性的,有助阐明的
参考例句:
  • We didn't find the examples he used particularly illuminating. 我们觉得他采用的那些例证启发性不是特别大。
  • I found his talk most illuminating. 我觉得他的话很有启发性。
14 bard QPCyM     
n.吟游诗人
参考例句:
  • I'll use my bard song to help you concentrate!我会用我的吟游诗人歌曲帮你集中精神!
  • I find him,the wandering grey bard.我发现了正在徘徊的衰老游唱诗人。

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