赖世雄英语新闻听力通 第66期:谁是罪魁祸首

 (DUBLIN, AP)The fungus¹ blamed for the Irish Potato Famine was not the culprit after all.

（美联社都柏林电）被认为造成爱尔兰马铃薯荒的那种真菌，其实并不是罪魁祸首。

During the 1840s,blight² raced through Ireland's potato crop, lleading to a famine that killed at least 1 million people.

19世纪40年代时，枯萎病迅速蔓延爱尔兰的马铃薯作物，因而引发一场粮荒，至少有一百万人饿死。

The answer to the question of what caused the blight could help scientists fend³ off similar epidemics⁴ in the future.

如果可以找出造成作物枯萎的原因，将有助于科学家预防未来发生类似的传染病。

1 fungus   

n.真菌，真菌类植物

参考例句：

• Mushrooms are a type of fungus.蘑菇是一种真菌。
• This fungus can just be detected by the unaided eye.这种真菌只用肉眼就能检查出。

2 blight   

n.枯萎病；造成破坏的因素；vt.破坏，摧残

参考例句：

• The apple crop was wiped out by blight.枯萎病使苹果全无收成。
• There is a blight on all his efforts.他的一切努力都遭到挫折。

3 fend   

v.照料（自己），（自己）谋生，挡开，避开

参考例句：

• I've had to fend for myself since I was 14.我从十四岁时起就不得不照料自己。
• He raised his arm up to fend branches from his eyes.他举手将树枝从他眼前挡开。

4 epidemics   

n．流行病

参考例句：

• Reliance upon natural epidemics may be both time-consuming and misleading. 依靠天然的流行既浪费时间，又会引入歧途。
• The antibiotic epidemics usually start stop when the summer rainy season begins. 传染病通常会在夏天的雨季停止传播。