SCIENCE IN THE NEWS

SCIENCE IN THE NEWS
By

Broadcast: Tuesday, August 24, 2004

So how was it able to find enough food to get so big so fast? Peter Mackovicky of the Field Museum also took part in the study. He says T. rex at fourteen might have started to hunt slower but bigger animals. Or, he says, the dinosaurs² might have traveled in groups in which the younger, faster T. rexes were the hunters.

VOICE ONE:

Greg Erickson and his team also made another discovery: T. rexes apparently³ lived only about thirty years. In fact, they say Sue⁴ was just twenty-eight. They say her bones were in bad condition when she died, which was why scientists had thought she was close to one hundred.

Professor Erickson says the news about Tyrannosaurus rex is that it "lived fast and died young."

(MUSIC: "Only the Good Die Young"/Billy Joel)

VOICE TWO:

You are listening to SCIENCE IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English.

 
Graphic⁵ Image
Several years ago, a study came out about a small dinosaur¹ called Archaeopteryx (ar-kee-OP-tur-ix). Archaeopteryx lived in Europe almost one hundred fifty million years ago, during the Jurassic period. It had feathers and was about the size of a crow, making it the oldest bird ever found. The study said bones from the animal proved that it could fly.

Since that report, however, experts have continued to debate the flight issue. Did Archaeopteryx really fly? Now, paleontologists at the Natural History Museum in London have reported new findings in Nature magazine.

They took X-ray pictures of the structure that held the brain in the small creature. They used C.T., or computed⁶ tomography, imaging. With about one thousand images of the braincase, they were able to build their own copy of the brain.

VOICE ONE:

The researchers say their model shows the Archaeopteryx brain was built like that of modern birds. It had similarly developed areas that controlled sight and movement. Also, the part of the ear that controlled balance was structured like that of birds today.

There were dinosaurs that flew before Archaeopteryx appeared. However, the only ones found did not have feathers; they were flying reptiles⁷. Archaeopteryx has been widely seen as a link between reptiles and birds. But the new study suggests that it was more like a bird than scientists have thought.

Angela Milner led the study. She says it shows that the flight ability of Archaeopteryx was more developed than scientists have believed. She says this could mean that feathered dinosaurs flew millions of years earlier than is now thought. The only known fossils⁸ of Archaeopteryx came from a find in Germany in eighteen sixty-one.

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VOICE TWO:

Monkeys work hard when they know they will get something good in return. Now scientists have discovered a way to make monkeys -- and possibly humans -- into even harder workers. They temporarily suppressed⁹ a gene¹⁰ linked to what is known as reward learning. With the gene blocked, the monkeys lost their ability to expect a reward.

The scientists work at the National Institute of Mental Health, in the United States. Their findings appeared last week in the Proceedings¹¹ of the National Academy of Sciences.

VOICE ONE:

First, a team of scientists taught laboratory monkeys a computer game. This game rewarded the animals with sweet liquid. Then, the scientists injected a chemical into the brains of the monkeys. This substance temporarily blocked the gene known as D-two. That gene normally produces receiver cells for the brain chemical dopamine. Dopamine helps animals and humans experience pleasure and happiness.

Doctor Barry Richmond led the study. He says monkeys, like humans, will delay work when they know they will not get a reward. Doctor Richmond says the monkeys in the study were more or less tricked into working harder for a few months. He says they became "workaholics."

They could no longer judge how many times they had to play the computer game before they got a reward. As a result, the monkeys worked faster and made fewer mistakes.

VOICE TWO:

Doctor Richmond says this study could lead to important discoveries for public health. He says the findings may be of interest in the study of mental disorders¹³. For example, he says "people who are depressed¹⁴ often feel nothing is worth the work." But people with obsessive-compulsive disorder¹² work continually. They repeat activities again and again even after they get rewarded.

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VOICE ONE

Finally, an experiment at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, might get students to work harder. Or at least more creatively. Each of the one thousand six hundred first-year students is getting an Apple iPod. An iPod is a small digital player that can hold thousands of songs. But it can also record other material, including written information.

Duke officials hope the half-million-dollar experiment will increase the creative uses of technology in education. The iPods will come with information about the school. Students will also download materials from their professors through a Web site.

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VOICE ONE:

SCIENCE IN THE NEWS was written by Jill Moss¹⁵, Nancy Steinbach and Caty Weaver¹⁶, who was also our producer. This is Sarah Long.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Doug Johnson. To send us a question or comment by e-mail, write to [email protected]. Our postal¹⁷ address is VOA Special English, Washington D.C., two-zero-two-three-seven, U.S.A. Join us again next week for more news about science, in Special English, on the Voice of America.

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 dinosaurs   

n.恐龙( dinosaur的名词复数 )；守旧落伍的人，过时落后的东西

参考例句：

• The brontosaurus was one of the largest of all dinosaurs. 雷龙是所有恐龙中最大的一种。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. 恐龙绝种已有几百万年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

4 sue   

vt.控告，起诉；vi.请求，追求，起诉

参考例句：

• If you don't pay me the money,I'll sue you.如果你不付给我钱，我就告你。
• The war criminals sue for peace.战犯求和。

5 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

6 computed   

adj.[医]计算的，使用计算机的v.计算，估算( compute的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He computed that the project would take seven years to complete. 他估计这项计划要花七年才能完成。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Resolving kernels and standard errors can also be computed for each block. 还可以计算每个块体的分辨核和标准误差。 来自辞典例句

7 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》

8 fossils   

n.化石( fossil的名词复数 )；老顽固；食古不化的人；老古董（老人）

参考例句：

• fossils over two million years old 两百多万年的化石
• 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。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 suppressed   

被抑制的，被忍住的

参考例句：

• The rebellion was brutally suppressed. 起义遭到了残酷的镇压。
• Members of these sects are ruthlessly persecuted and suppressed. 这些教派的成员遭到了残酷的迫害和镇压。

10 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

11 proceedings   

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 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

13 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

15 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

16 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

17 postal   

adj.邮政的，邮局的

参考例句：

• A postal network now covers the whole country.邮路遍及全国。
• Remember to use postal code.勿忘使用邮政编码。