【英语时差8，16】鱿鱼之嘴

 Ya?l: I've got a good trivia question for you, Don.

Don: OK, Ya?l.

Y: What animal's beak¹ is one of the hardest known organic substances?

D: Umm . . . I don't know. The bald eagle?

Y: Nope. It's the giant squid. A squid beak can reportedly snap through a steel cable.

D: That's actually sort of surprising . . . because aren't squid's bodies normally squishy and soft?

Y: Yes. And that's exactly what's puzzled scientists . . . how can such a hard beak be attached to a squid's soft, jello-like tissue without falling off or cutting the squid to bits? What the researchers found is that squids can control the amount of water that gets into their beaks². Because virtually no water is allowed into the tip, it stays very hard and stiff. There's more water inside the lower parts of the beak, making it gradually softer. At its base, the beak is soft enough to blend right into the squid's body.

D: Nature never fails to amaze.

Y: No doubt. And the discovery could inspire the invention of new building materials that mimic³ the squid beak's gradations of stiffness and flexibility⁴. Engineers are also concerned with joining together different materials like metals, ceramics⁵ and plastics. Learning more about squid beaks could help scientists create adhesives⁶ that bond with metal on one side and plastic on the other, for example.

D: I wonder if squids know how dynamic their beaks are?

Y: You'd have to ask them.  

1 beak   

n.鸟嘴，茶壶嘴，钩形鼻

参考例句：

• The bird had a worm in its beak.鸟儿嘴里叼着一条虫。
• This bird employs its beak as a weapon.这种鸟用嘴作武器。

2 beaks   

n.鸟嘴( beak的名词复数 )；鹰钩嘴；尖鼻子；掌权者

参考例句：

• Baby cockatoos will have black eyes and soft, almost flexible beaks. 雏鸟凤头鹦鹉黑色的眼睛是柔和的，嘴几乎是灵活的。 来自互联网
• Squid beaks are often found in the stomachs of sperm whales. 经常能在抹香鲸的胃里发现鱿鱼的嘴。 来自互联网

3 mimic   

v.模仿，戏弄；n.模仿他人言行的人

参考例句：

• A parrot can mimic a person's voice.鹦鹉能学人的声音。
• He used to mimic speech peculiarities of another.他过去总是模仿别人讲话的特点。

4 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。

5 ceramics   

n.制陶业；陶器

参考例句：

• an exhibition of ceramics by Picasso 毕加索陶瓷作品展
• The ceramics bore the imprint of Luca della Robbia. 陶器上印有卢卡·德拉·罗比亚的字样。

6 adhesives   

黏合剂( adhesive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• These include dyes, adhesives, solvents, detergents, metals, and other foreign materials. 其中包括染料，粘合剂，溶剂，洗涤剂、金属等外界物质。
• Preparation, properties and kinds of polyurethane adhesives were described. 综述了聚氨酯胶粘剂的合成、特性和种类。