经济学人322:海洋生物学 气味与识别

 　　Science and technology

　　科学技术

　　Marine¹ biology

　　海洋生物学

　　Scents³ and sensibility

　　气味与识别

　　Turtles love a smell that humans loathe⁴. For them, it means dinner

　　海龟喜欢一种人类讨厌的味道，对它们来说，这表示大餐

　　JELLYFISH may not be most people's idea of a tasty snack, but if you are a loggerhead turtle, they are top of the menu.

　　水母或许不符合大多数人对于美味小食的定义，但如果你变成一只红海龟，水母便成了顶级美食。

　　Though jellyfish can swim, they are not exactly the greyhounds of the ocean, so they are easily caught.

　　虽然水母可以游动，但它们可算不上海洋中的快艇，所以要逮它们很容易。

　　And since munching⁵ a large jellyfish can keep a turtle going for days, loggerheads love them when they can find them.

　　而吃上一只大水母能让一只海龟维持好几天，所以红海龟一旦发现水母便会大快朵颐。

　　Yum！

　　味道好极了！

　　The best place to do so is in an upwelling zone.

　　上升流区是海龟大快朵颐的最佳地点。

　　This is an area where the wind's action draws cold, nutrient-rich water to the surface.

　　在这种区域里，水流会在海风的作用下将富含营养物质的冷水带到海洋表面，

　　That encourages the growth of planktonic⁷ algae⁸, and thus of everything that feeds on such plankton⁶, or feeds on what feeds on them—including jellyfish, and also various molluscs and crustacea that loggerheads enjoy as an appetiser.

　　这有利于浮游藻类生长，因此也有利于以这些浮游生物为食的动物，或以这些动物为食的动物生长，包括水母，还有各种各样的软体动物和甲壳动物，这些都是红海龟的最爱。

　　And upwelling zones do, indeed, attract turtles.

　　所以上升流区确实会吸引海龟，

　　But nobody knows how, for such zones are scattered⁹, local and often temporary phenomena¹⁰, and locating them in the wide expanse of the sea is hard.

　　但没人知道海龟是怎样找到上升流区的，这些区域都是局部性的，非常分散，且常常只是暂时现象，要想在宽广的海洋中找到它们绝非易事。

　　Courtney Endres, a biologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel¹¹ Hill, however, thought the reptiles¹² might be smelling such zones from afar.

　　然而考特尼恩德斯认为两栖动物离很远便能通过气味察觉到上升流区，她是美国北卡罗来纳州立大学的一名生物学家。

　　She knew from an experiment she conducted a few years ago that loggerheads have a good sense of smell.

　　她是从几年前进行的试验中发现红海龟拥有良好的嗅觉。

　　She also knew, because passing sailors frequently comment on the fact, that upwelling zones tend to stink¹³.

　　她还了解到上升流区往往会发出异味，因为经过上升流区的水手们经常会提到这一事实。

　　Specifically, they stink of cabbages.

　　明确的说，是卷心菜的异味。

　　That is because many planktonic algae, when crunched¹⁴ up during the process of being eaten, release a substance called dimethylsulphoniopropionate.

　　这是由于浮游藻类在被吃掉的过程中被咬碎时，会释放出一种叫做硫代甜菜碱的物质，

　　This quickly degrades into another chemical, dimethyl sulphide, which generations of those subjected to unimaginative school lunches will instantly recognise.

　　该物质很快会降解为另一种化学物质-二甲基硫化物，闻到这种物质产生的气味会立刻让人想起千篇一律的学校午餐的气味。

　　But to loggerheads it is the smell of a banquet.

　　但这对红海龟来说是盛宴的气息。

　　Ms Endres and her colleague Kenneth Lohmann showed this by collecting 11 loggerhead hatchlings from local beaches and testing them to see which smells most interested them.

　　恩德斯及其同事肯尼斯罗曼通过实验表明了这点。她们在当地海滩上抓了11只红海龟的幼龟，并测试它们对哪种气味最感兴趣。

　　The young turtles were each put in a tank of seawater that had various scents blown across its surface.

　　每只幼龟被分别放入一个装有海水的水缸中，并将各种各样的气味吹过水面，

　　These included cinnamon, jasmine, lemon—and dimethyl sulphide.

　　包括肉桂，茉莉，柠檬，以及二甲基硫化物。

　　When a turtle came up for air , the researchers recorded how long it sniffed¹⁵ around.

　　当海龟到水面上换气时，研究人员记录了它们露出水面的时间。

　　They found, as they report in Experimental Biology, that the animals spent an average of five seconds breathing air scented¹⁶ with lemon,jasmine or cinnamon, all pleasant odours from a human point of view.

　　他们发现，从人类的角度上看，柠檬，茉莉，或肉桂都是很悦人的气味，而海龟在呼吸含有以上气味的空气时，平均只在水面停留了五秒钟，

　　That was no different from the amount of time they spent at the surface when no scent² was used at all.

　　与在其呼吸没有气味的空气时的停留时间没什么不同。

　　When the air was scented with dimethyl sulphide, however, they spent an average of ten seconds breathing in the stinky scent of cabbages—or upwellings.

　　然而在空气中含有二甲基硫的气味时，海龟在这种散发着卷心菜或者说上升流异味的空气中平均停留了十秒钟。该报道刊登在《实验生物学》上。

　　That does not prove that loggerheads smell their way to the table, of course. But it makes the hypothesis plausible¹⁷.

　　当然，这并不能证明红海龟能顺着气味找到它们的餐桌，但是这让以上假设似乎可以说得通。

　　For turtles, it seems, the perfumes of Araby hold little charm.

　　看来阿拉伯香水对海龟也不会有什么吸引力，

　　The scent of cabbages, by contrast, is as attractive as the odour of roasting chicken is to a hungry human.

　　相比之下，卷心菜的气味之于海龟的吸引力就像烤鸡之于饿汉。

　　1.feed on 喂养

　　Can enlightened man feed on the fruits of enlightened innovation?

　　已启蒙的人可以以启蒙创新的果实为食吗？

　　Vampire¹⁸ bats feed on the blood of large birds, cattle, horses and pigs.

　　吸血蝙蝠以大型鸟类，牛，马以及猪的血液为食。

　　2.subject to 受制于,易于

　　Already americans are subject to de-facto capital controls.

　　如今美国已经受到变相的资本控制。

　　The advance estimate is subject to two revisions in coming months.

　　这个预先估计在未来的几个月中需要受到两次修订。

　　3.come up 发生；上来；提到

　　A new problem had come up.

　　发生了一个新的问题。

　　Two-headed monsters or the ability to breathe underwater rarely come up when I'm sleeping.

　　双头怪物或者能在水下呼吸之类的，从来就没有在我的梦中发生过。

1 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

2 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

3 scents   

n.香水( scent的名词复数 )；气味；（动物的）臭迹；（尤指狗的）嗅觉

参考例句：

• The air was fragrant with scents from the sea and the hills. 空气中荡漾着山和海的芬芳气息。
• The winds came down with scents of the grass and wild flowers. 微风送来阵阵青草和野花的香气。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 loathe   

v.厌恶，嫌恶

参考例句：

• I loathe the smell of burning rubber.我厌恶燃着的橡胶散发的气味。
• You loathe the smell of greasy food when you are seasick.当你晕船时，你会厌恶油腻的气味。

5 munching   

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

6 plankton   

n.浮游生物

参考例句：

• Plankton is at the bottom of the marine food chain.浮游生物处于海洋食物链的最底层。
• The plankton in the sea feeds many kinds of animals. 海的浮游生物成为很多种动物的食物。

7 planktonic   

[医] 浮游生物的

参考例句：

• Warmer Winters: Are Planktonic Algal Populations in Sweden's Largest Lakes Affected? 暖冬：瑞典最大湖泊的浮游藻类种群是否受到影响？
• They eat planktonic crustaceans and fish larvae. 以浮游的甲壳动物和鱼类幼体为食。

8 algae   

n.水藻，海藻

参考例句：

• Most algae live in water.多数藻类生长在水中。
• Algae grow and spread quickly in the lake.湖中水藻滋蔓。

9 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

10 phenomena   

n.现象

参考例句：

• Ade couldn't relate the phenomena with any theory he knew.艾德无法用他所知道的任何理论来解释这种现象。
• The object of these experiments was to find the connection,if any,between the two phenomena.这些实验的目的就是探索这两种现象之间的联系，如果存在着任何联系的话。

11 chapel   

n.小教堂，殡仪馆

参考例句：

• The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
• She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午，她在小教堂的演出，可以说是登峰造极。

12 reptiles   

n.爬行动物，爬虫( reptile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Snakes and crocodiles are both reptiles. 蛇和鳄鱼都是爬行动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Birds, reptiles and insects come from eggs. 鸟类、爬虫及昆虫是卵生的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

13 stink   

vi.发出恶臭；糟透，招人厌恶；n.恶臭

参考例句：

• The stink of the rotten fish turned my stomach.腐烂的鱼臭味使我恶心。
• The room has awful stink.那个房间散发着难闻的臭气。

14 crunched   

v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的过去式和过去分词 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄

参考例句：

• Our feet crunched on the frozen snow. 我们的脚嘎吱嘎吱地踩在冻雪上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He closed his jaws on the bones and crunched. 他咬紧骨头，使劲地嚼。 来自英汉文学 - 热爱生命

15 sniffed   

v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说

参考例句：

• When Jenney had stopped crying she sniffed and dried her eyes. 珍妮停止了哭泣，吸了吸鼻子，擦干了眼泪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The dog sniffed suspiciously at the stranger. 狗疑惑地嗅着那个陌生人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 scented   

adj.有香味的；洒香水的；有气味的v.嗅到(scent的过去分词)

参考例句：

• I let my lungs fill with the scented air. 我呼吸着芬芳的空气。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The police dog scented about till he found the trail. 警犬嗅来嗅去，终于找到了踪迹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

17 plausible   

adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的

参考例句：

• His story sounded plausible.他说的那番话似乎是真实的。
• Her story sounded perfectly plausible.她的说辞听起来言之有理。

18 vampire   

n.吸血鬼

参考例句：

• It wasn't a wife waiting there for him but a blood sucking vampire!家里的不是个老婆，而是个吸人血的妖精！
• Children were afraid to go to sleep at night because of the many legends of vampire.由于听过许多有关吸血鬼的传说，孩子们晚上不敢去睡觉。