环球英语 — 265：Encyclopedia of Life

　　Voice 1
Thank you for joining us for today’s Spotlight¹. I’m Joshua Leo.
Voice 2
And I’m Ruby² Jones. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Have you ever heard of a Yeti Crab³?
Voice 2
Do you know the scientific name for rice?
Voice 1
Do you have questions about plants or animals that you want answered?
Voice 2
Humans share the earth with about one point eight million [1,800,000] different kinds of plants and animals. These kinds of living things, or species⁴, fill the earth. There are almost too many different species to even imagine! If a person wanted to learn about new plants or animals, where would they start looking?
Voice 1
Imagine being able to find information about all of the earth’s many different kinds of plants and animals on one Internet website. Would this even be possible?
Voice 2
Well, the Smithsonian Institution of the United States thinks that it is! The Institution has started a new project. It is called the Encyclopedia⁵ of Life. The idea is to create a website devoted⁶ to helping⁷ people learn about the many different kinds of plants and animals. This website will have a page for each of the one point eight million [1,800,000] known living species on earth! The Encyclopedia of Life will serve as a teaching⁸ tool. It will help scientists, teachers, students, and communities to gain a better understanding of life on this planet⁹.
Voice 1
It may take up to ten years to complete the Encyclopedia of Life project. But, people should be able to begin searching parts of the website in the year 2008.
Voice 2
When the project is finished, it will offer more information than any other scientific resource. No other complete record of all the species exists. And the information will be offered to anyone who has an interest in learning¹⁰ more about the planet.
Voice 1
Scientists from around the world will join together to complete this project. Tens of thousands of experts will add their own research. Groups that work with plants and animals will also add information. Some of these groups include the African Wildlife Foundation¹¹, the Australian Plant Name Index¹², Bio-invasion in China, the Budapest Zoo, the Museum of Bacteria, as well as many other groups. The Encyclopedia of Life will truly be a global project. And all of the information included on the website will be confirmed by scientists for correctness.
Voice 2
The creators of the Encyclopedia of Life project hope that people will use the website in many different ways. They hope that teachers will use it to teach their students about nature. They hope that scientists will use it to share and compare information about different species. And they hope that scientists from around the world will work together to make the website grow. The website will unite the scientific community around the world.
Voice 1
And finally, the creators hope that common citizens will use the website. Imagine someone walking through the forest and seeing a plant or an animal that she had never seen before. She could easily search the Encyclopedia of Life website by using the Internet. The Encyclopedia of Life website can act as a field guide for people interested in learning more about the plants and animals in their communities.
Voice 2
So, what is the scientific name for rice?
Voice 1
Well, according to the Encyclopedia of Life, the scientific name for rice is “oryza sativa.” It is the main food for billions of people around the world. Rice fields cover about nine percent [9%] of the earth’s farm land!
Voice 2
Ok, so what exactly is a Yeti crab? Are you as interested as I am?
Voice 1
There is an example page on the Encyclopedia of Life website that describes this animal. It is the newest member of the crab family. These sea animals have a hard shell, and two hand-like claws. Scientists only recently discovered it. It lives deep in the ocean off the coast of Easter Island, Chile. And, from the pictures, it looks like it is covered with hair!
Voice 2
The Encyclopedia of Life will have a whole website page devoted to the Yeti Crab. It will include information about where the Yeti Crab lives. It will provide the history of the crab, what the crab eats, and what eats the crab. There will also be information about any danger to the crabs¹³ from people.
Voice 1
The website will offer different ways to learn about different species. There will be films, maps, and detailed¹⁴ pictures included on many of the website pages. And, the website will be offered in many different languages. You could say that there is something for everyone included on the website! Just remember, the Encyclopedia of Life website will not be ready for official searching until 2008.
Voice 2
The Encyclopedia of Life website is an important project. The richness of life on earth will be yours to explore! Websites like this encourage learning. They help make people interested in living things. According to the Encyclopedia of Life, scientists are making the website,
“...so that child and adult can experience that thrill and excitement of learning and exploring every day. The website will provide access to the information necessary to better understand our environment and humanity’s role on this planet.”
Voice 1
The people involved in the Encyclopedia of Life project understand that many of the earth’s resources are starting to disappear. Some species of animals are starting to die out. The same is true for some plant species.
Voice 2
That is why it is so important for people to learn more about them. The more people know, the more people will want to work to save them in the future. The Encyclopedia of Life website will offer information that will help people make wise decisions about saving¹⁵ and protecting our natural world.
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 ruby   

n.红宝石，红宝石色

参考例句：

• She is wearing a small ruby earring.她戴着一枚红宝石小耳环。
• On the handle of his sword sat the biggest ruby in the world.他的剑柄上镶有一颗世上最大的红宝石。

3 crab   

n.螃蟹，偏航，脾气乖戾的人，酸苹果；vi.捕蟹，偏航，发牢骚；vt.使偏航，发脾气

参考例句：

• I can't remember when I last had crab.我不记得上次吃蟹是什么时候了。
• The skin on my face felt as hard as a crab's back.我脸上的皮仿佛僵硬了，就象螃蟹的壳似的。

4 species   

n.物种，种群

参考例句：

• Are we the only thinking species in the whole of creation?我们是万物中惟一有思想的物种吗？
• This species of bird now exists only in Africa.这种鸟现在只存在于非洲。

5 encyclopedia   

n.百科全书

参考例句：

• The encyclopedia fell to the floor with a thud.那本百科全书砰的一声掉到地上。
• Geoff is a walking encyclopedia.He knows about everything.杰夫是个活百科全书，他什么都懂。

6 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

7 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

8 teaching   

n.教学，执教，任教，讲授；(复数)教诲

参考例句：

• We all agree in adopting the new teaching method. 我们一致同意采取新的教学方法。
• He created a new system of teaching foreign languages.他创造了一种新的外语教学体系。

9 planet   

n.行星

参考例句：

• Neptune is the furthest planet from the sun. 海王星是离太阳最远的行星。
• Rubbish, however, is only part of the problem of polluting our planet. 然而, 垃圾只是我们这个星球的污染问题的一个方面。

10 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

11 foundation   

n.[pl.]地基；基础；基金会；建立，创办

参考例句：

• The foundation of the university took place 600 years ago.这所大学是600年前创办的。
• The Foundation gives money to help artists.那家基金会捐款帮助艺术家。

12 index   

n.食指；索引；标志；指数；v.把...编索引

参考例句：

• Performonce is an index of ability.成绩是能力的标志。
• Manner of walking gives an index to one's charactor.走路的姿态可反应出人的性格。

13 crabs   

n.蟹( crab的名词复数 )；阴虱寄生病；蟹肉v.捕蟹( crab的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• As we walked along the seashore we saw lots of tiny crabs. 我们在海岸上散步时看到很多小蟹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The fish and crabs scavenge for decaying tissue. 鱼和蟹搜寻腐烂的组织为食。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

15 saving   

n.节省，节约；[pl.]储蓄金，存款

参考例句：

• Energy saving is term strategic policy of our country.节约能源是我国长期的战略国策。
• Old-fashioned housewives were usually very saving.旧时的家庭主妇通常都很节俭。