英语听书《海底两万里》第309期 第23章 珊瑚王国(6)

 　　In the zoophyte branch, class Alcyonaria, one finds the order Gorgonaria, which contains three groups: sea fans, isidian polyps, and coral polyps.  在植虫动物门、翡翠纲中，有矾花这一目，这一目包含矾花、木贼和珊瑚三科。

　　It's in this last that precious coral belongs, an unusual substance that, at different times, has been classified in the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms.  珊瑚属于珊瑚科，是一种奇怪的东西，曾经先后被分人矿物、植物和动物类。

　　Medicine to the ancients, jewelry¹ to the moderns, it wasn't decisively placed in the animal kingdom until 1694, by Peysonnel of Marseilles. 在古代它是治病的药方，在近代是装饰的珍宝，一直封1694年：，马赛人皮桑尼尔才明确地把它们作为动物分类。

　　A coral is a unit of tiny animals assembled over a polypary that's brittle² and stony³ in nature.  珊瑚是一群聚集在易碎的和石质伪珊瑚树上的微生物的总体。

　　These polyps have a unique generating mechanism⁴ that reproduces them via the budding process, and they have an individual existence while also participating in a communal⁵ life.  这些珊瑚虫有一种独特的繁殖力，像枝芽滋生一样，它们有自己本身的生命，同时又有共同的生命，

　　Hence they embody⁶ a sort of natural socialism.  所以这种情形好像是一种自然的社会主义；

　　I was familiar with the latest research on this bizarre zoophyte 我知道最近关于这种奇怪的植虫动物的研究结果，

　　which turns to stone while taking on a tree form,  照生物学家的很正确的观察，

　　as some naturalists⁷ have very aptly observed-and nothing could have been more fascinating to me than to visit one of these petrified⁸ forests that nature has planted on the bottom of the sea. 珊瑚虫在分支繁殖中就起矿化作用，对我来说，去参观大自然种植在海底下的一处石质森林，实在是最有兴趣不过的了。

　　We turned on our Ruhmkorff devices and went along a coral shoal in the process of forming, which, given time, will someday close off this whole part of the Indian Ocean.  兰可夫探照器使用起来，我们沿着正在形戌的珊瑚层走去，这些珊瑚脉经过相当的时间，有一夭将要把印度洋的这一部分海面封闭起来。

　　Our path was bordered by hopelessly tangled⁹ bushes, formed from snarls¹⁰ of shrubs¹¹ all covered with little star-shaped, white-streaked flowers.  路旁尽是错杂的小珊瑚树所形成的混乱的珊瑚树丛，枝权上遮满白光闪闪的星状小花。

　　Only, contrary to plants on shore, these tree forms become attached to rocks on the seafloor by heading from top to bottom. 不过，跟陆地上的植物正相反，固定在海底岩石上的珊瑚树的枝权，全是从上到下发展的。

　　Our lights produced a thousand delightful¹² effects while playing over these brightly colored boughs¹³.  灯光在色彩很鲜艳的枝叶中间照来照去，发生无穷的美丽迷人的景象。

1 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

2 brittle   

adj.易碎的；脆弱的；冷淡的；(声音)尖利的

参考例句：

• The pond was covered in a brittle layer of ice.池塘覆盖了一层易碎的冰。
• She gave a brittle laugh.她冷淡地笑了笑。

3 stony   

adj.石头的，多石头的，冷酷的，无情的

参考例句：

• The ground is too dry and stony.这块地太干，而且布满了石头。
• He listened to her story with a stony expression.他带着冷漠的表情听她讲经历。

4 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

5 communal   

adj.公有的，公共的，公社的，公社制的

参考例句：

• There was a communal toilet on the landing for the four flats.在楼梯平台上有一处公共卫生间供4套公寓使用。
• The toilets and other communal facilities were in a shocking state.厕所及其他公共设施的状况极其糟糕。

6 embody   

vt.具体表达，使具体化；包含，收录

参考例句：

• The latest locomotives embody many new features. 这些最新的机车具有许多新的特色。
• Hemingway's characters plainly embody his own values and view of life.海明威笔下的角色明确反映出他自己的价值观与人生观。

7 naturalists   

n.博物学家( naturalist的名词复数 )；（文学艺术的）自然主义者

参考例句：

• Naturalists differ much in determining what characters are of generic value. 自然学者对于不同性状决定生物的属的含义上，各有各的见解。 来自辞典例句
• This fact has led naturalists to believe that the Isthmus was formerly open. 使许多自然学者相信这个地蛱在以前原是开通的。 来自辞典例句

8 petrified   

adj.惊呆的；目瞪口呆的v.使吓呆，使惊呆；变僵硬；使石化(petrify的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• I'm petrified of snakes. 我特别怕蛇。
• The poor child was petrified with fear. 这可怜的孩子被吓呆了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 tangled   

adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Your hair's so tangled that I can't comb it. 你的头发太乱了，我梳不动。
• A movement caught his eye in the tangled undergrowth. 乱灌木丛里的晃动引起了他的注意。

10 snarls   

n.（动物的）龇牙低吼( snarl的名词复数 )；愤怒叫嚷（声）；咆哮（声）；疼痛叫声v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的第三人称单数 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说

参考例句：

• I don't know why my hair snarls easily. 我不知道我的头发为什么容易缠结。 来自辞典例句
• She combed the snarls out of her hair. 她把头发的乱结梳理通。 来自辞典例句

11 shrubs   

灌木( shrub的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gardener spent a complete morning in trimming those two shrubs. 园丁花了整个上午的时间修剪那两处灌木林。
• These shrubs will need more light to produce flowering shoots. 这些灌木需要更多的光照才能抽出开花的新枝。

12 delightful   

adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的

参考例句：

• We had a delightful time by the seashore last Sunday.上星期天我们在海滨玩得真痛快。
• Peter played a delightful melody on his flute.彼得用笛子吹奏了一支欢快的曲子。

13 boughs   

大树枝( bough的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The green boughs glittered with all their pearls of dew. 绿枝上闪烁着露珠的光彩。
• A breeze sighed in the higher boughs. 微风在高高的树枝上叹息着。