VOA慢速英语2014 Dreadnoughtus:最巨大的恐龙之一

 

AS IT IS 2014-09-13 Dreadnoughtus: A Giant Among Dinosaurs Dreadnoughtus:最巨大的恐龙之一

The dinosaur¹ lay undiscovered for perhaps 77 million years after it died. Then, in 2005, an American scientist found some of its fossilized remains² in the Patagonia area of southern Argentina.

Kenneth Lacovara says the first bones he saw were just a collection of small pieces. But additional digging resulted in the recovery of huge bones. Mr. Lacovara is both a paleontologist and a geologist³. He realized his find was something enormous. The dinosaur may be among the largest land animals that ever lived.

Mr. Lacovara is with Drexel University in Pennsylvania. He led an international research team that uncovered, studied and described the fossils of the huge dinosaur. Their work took place over a total of nine years. Their report on the creature, called a Sauropod, appeared in the journal Scientific Reports.

A Sauropod had thick legs and a small head, and grew to great heights. The paleontologist said the animal weighed more than 59,000 kilograms and was 26 meters long while it lived. He said its stomach was larger than a big horse. And this creature was young -- and still growing. Sudden major floods appear to have killed it.

The research team now has 200 fossilized bones. That represents 45 percent of all bones in the body and 70 percent of those behind its head. The discovery gives the researchers a rare chance to study the structure, growth rate and movements of its species, a grouping known as titanosaurs.

Kenneth Lacovara named the dinosaur Dreadnoughtus schrani – “Dread”, for short. The first name calls up images of huge battleships of a century ago. The second name honors Adam Schran, who provided donor⁴ support.

The scientist has said people often express surprise that the Dreadnoughtus ate plants. And it seems it had to eat a lot of plants to get enough food to survive and grow. He said the animal spent much of its day standing⁵ in one place. He noted⁶ that it probably could eat leaves from many trees without moving. 

But Mr. Lacovara told Drexel University officials that the dinosaur could have been migratory⁷. After eating all the plants in sight, it needed to move to new areas to find enough food to survive and grow.          

In addition to bones, the researchers also found other body parts, including the remains of neck tendons and teeth.  The countless⁸ objects fill most of Mr. Lacovara’s laboratory at Drexel.  The neck measured 11 meters. And the tail extended nine meters.  That tail could serve as a powerful weapon when needed.

Dreadnoughtus did not need to kill other creatures to eat. But Mr. Lacovara does not think the big dinosaur was harmless. He said he would not have wanted to be closed into a room with it.

1 dinosaur   

n.恐龙

参考例句：

• Are you trying to tell me that David was attacked by a dinosaur?你是想要告诉我大卫被一支恐龙所攻击？
• He stared at the faithful miniature of the dinosaur.他凝视著精确的恐龙缩小模型。

2 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

3 geologist   

n.地质学家

参考例句：

• The geologist found many uncovered fossils in the valley.在那山谷里，地质学家发现了许多裸露的化石。
• He was a geologist,rated by his cronies as the best in the business.他是一位地质学家，被他的老朋友们看做是这门行当中最好的一位。

4 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

5 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 migratory   

n.候鸟，迁移

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• This does not negate the idea of migratory aptitude.这并没有否定迁移能力这一概念。

8 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。