【英语时差8,16】猫薄荷是什么？（下）

 Lactones carry chemical messages inside a body, and nepetalactone carries its message straight to the pleasure center of a cat’s brain, where it can randomly¹ excite the cat’s neural² circuits associated with sex, playing, hunting, and feeding. Although a cat may try to eat catnip or a catnip toy, it is only the smell of catnip that transfers the drug to a cat’s brain, not the actual ingestion. This is why a small amount of catnip inside a toy can make a cat happy again and again. It’s also why a cat will sometimes be more interested in the cardboard box that a catnip toy came in than the actual toy–the cardboard might carry more of the smell. If your cat seems unaffected by catnip, don’t worry. A cat’s sensitivity to catnip is genetically³ determined⁴, and some don’t respond at all.

1 randomly   

adv.随便地，未加计划地

参考例句：

• Within the hot gas chamber, molecules are moving randomly in all directions. 在灼热的气体燃烧室内，分子在各个方向上作无规运动。 来自辞典例句
• Transformed cells are loosely attached, rounded and randomly oriented. 转化细胞则不大贴壁、圆缩并呈杂乱分布。 来自辞典例句

2 neural   

adj.神经的，神经系统的

参考例句：

• The neural network can preferably solve the non- linear problem.利用神经网络建模可以较好地解决非线性问题。
• The information transmission in neural system depends on neurotransmitters.信息传递的神经途径有赖于神经递质。

3 genetically   

adv.遗传上

参考例句：

• All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。
• Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物

4 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。