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LucyCooke_2018W-_树懒！全世界最慢最怪的哺乳动物_
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| Hello. |
大家好。 |
| Well, I'm here to talk to you about my animal muse : the sloth . |
我今天想和大家讲讲 我的动物界缪斯: 树懒。 |
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muse:n.沉思;冥想;vt.沉思;沉思地说;vi.沉思;凝望; sloth:n.怠惰,懒惰;[脊椎]树懒;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| I've been documenting the strange lives of the world's slowest mammal for the last 10 years. |
我一直在记录这个世界上 最慢的哺乳动物的奇特生活, 并持续了十年之久。 |
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mammal:n.哺乳动物;
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| I still remember the first time I saw one. |
我仍然记得第一次见到树懒时的情景。 |
| I was fascinated by their freaky biology . |
我被它们怪异的生物特点迷住了。 |
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freaky:adj.畸形的;捉摸不定的(等于freakish); biology:n.(一个地区全部的)生物;生物学;
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| I mean, what's not to love about an animal that's born with a fixed grin on its face? |
换句话说,有什么理由不去喜爱一种 天生会咧嘴笑的动物呢？ |
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grin:v.咧嘴笑;露齿而笑;咧着嘴笑;n.咧着嘴笑;露齿的笑;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| And the need to hug. |
而且它们生来就想去拥抱。 |
| But sloths are massively misunderstood . |
但是树懒被深深地误解了。 |
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sloths:n.怠惰,懒惰;[脊椎]树懒; massively:adv.大量地;沉重地;庄严地; misunderstood:adj.被误解的;v.误解,误会(misunderstand的过去式);
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| They've been saddled with a name that speaks of sin and damned for their languorous lifestyle, which people seem to think has no place amongst the fittest in the fast-paced race for survival . |
它们背负着罪恶的名声, 并因懒散的生活方式而受到谴责, 在快节奏的生存竞争中, 人们似乎认为 这种动物不可能生存下去。 |
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saddled:v.给(马)备鞍;(saddle的过去分词和过去式) sin:n.罪恶;罪行;过错;过失;恶行;v.犯戒律;犯过失; damned:adj.该死的; v.该死,混账; (damn的过去分词和过去式) amongst:prep.在…之中;在…当中(等于among); fast-paced:adj.快节奏的;快速的;快步调的; survival:n.幸存,残存;幸存者,残存物;
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| Well, I'm here to tell you that we've got this animal all wrong -- and how understanding the truth about the sloth may help save us and this planet we both call home. |
我想要告诉大家的是, 我们完完全全误解了它, 理解关于树懒的事实 也许会帮助我们拯救 这个家一般的星球。 |
| I traced sloth-based slander back to a Spanish conquistador called Valdés, who gave the first description of a sloth in his encyclopedia of the New World. |
对树懒的诽谤可以追溯到 一位名叫瓦尔德斯的 西班牙征服者那里, 他在自己的《新世界百科全书》中 首次对树懒进行了描述。 |
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traced:v.发现;追踪;追究;描绘;记述;(trace的过去分词和过去式) slander:v.诽谤;诋毁;中伤;n.口头诽谤; conquistador:n.征服者;西班牙征服者; description:n.说明;形容;描写(文字);类型; encyclopedia:n.百科全书(亦是encyclopaedia);
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| He said the sloth was "the stupidest animal that can be found in the world ... |
他说树懒是 “世界上已知的最愚蠢的动物… |
| I have never seen such an ugly animal or one that is more useless." |
我从没见过如此丑陋 或更一无是处的动物。” |
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ugly:adj.丑陋的;邪恶的;令人厌恶的;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| Tell us what you really think, Valdés. |
瓦尔德斯,请告诉我们你的真实想法。 |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| I'd like to have a word about Valdés's drawing skills. |
我想对瓦尔德斯的绘画技术评论几句。 |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| I mean, what is that? |
更直白点说,这画的是什么啊？ |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| I've never seen an illustration of a sloth that's more useless. |
我从未见过比这更没价值的树懒画像了。 |
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illustration:n.插图;图解;示例;图示;
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| (Laughter) |
(笑声) |
| But I mean, on the plus side, he has given the sloth a remarkably humanlike face, and sloths do have remarkably humanlike faces. |
但往好处想, 他给了树懒一张和人类相似的脸, 而树懒的脸的确非常像人脸。 |
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remarkably:adv.非常;极为;格外;出乎意料地
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| This sloth I photographed in Costa Rica, I think looks a lot like Ringo Starr. |
我在哥斯达黎加拍摄的这只树懒, 长得很像林戈·斯塔尔。 |
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Costa:n.[解剖]肋骨;叶脉;[昆]前缘脉;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| But then, sloths do bear an uncanny resemblance to the The Beatles . |
但树懒和披头士乐队之间 确实有着不可思议的相似之处。 |
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uncanny:adj.神秘的;离奇的;可怕的; resemblance:n.相似;相似之处;相似物;肖像; Beatles:n.披头士合唱(摇滚乐队);
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| Particularly pleased with Paul, actually, on there. |
尤其是这只像保罗的树懒。 |
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Particularly:adv.特别地,独特地;详细地,具体地;明确地,细致地;
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| But like The Beatles, sloths are also extremely successful. |
但就像披头士乐队那样, 树懒同样非常成功。 |
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extremely:adv.非常,极其;极端地;
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| They come from an ancient line of mammals , and there were once dozens of species including the giant ground sloth, which was the size of a small elephant |
它们起源于一种古老的哺乳动物系, 其中曾包含多个物种, 包括大地懒,它有一头小象那么大, |
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mammals:n.哺乳动物;(mammal的复数) species:n.[生物]物种;种类; giant:n.巨人;伟人;巨兽;adj.巨大的;特大的
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| and one of the only animals big enough to eat avocado pits whole and disperse them. |
是为数不多的大到能吃下整个牛油果 并传播其种子的动物之一。 |
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avocado:n.鳄梨;鳄梨树; pits:n.维修区(pit的复数); v.除去…的核; disperse:v.分散;驱散;疏散;散布;adj.分散的;弥散的
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| So ... (Laughter) |
所以… （笑声） |
| Some of you have worked it out already. |
你们有些人已经意识到了。 |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| That means that without sloths, there might be no avocado on toast today, leaving hipsters everywhere totally bereft at breakfast. |
这意味着若没有树懒, 如今的吐司上可能就没有牛油果, 这会让各地的嬉皮士在 吃早餐时顿失乐趣。 |
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toast:n.干杯; v.为…干杯; hipsters:n.时髦人群;穿低腰裤者(hipster的复数); bereft:adj.丧失的;被剥夺的;失去亲人的;v.失去…的(bereave的过去式);
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| (Applause) |
（掌声） |
| Today, there are six surviving species, and they fall into two groups. |
如今,有六种存活的树懒物种, 它们可以被分为两类。 |
| You've got your Bradypus three-toed sloths, they're the ones with the Beatles haircuts and the Mona Lisa smiles. |
其中有三趾树懒, 它们拥有披头士的发型 和蒙娜丽莎的微笑。 |
| Then, there are the two-toed sloths. |
另外还有两趾树懒。 |
| They look a little bit more like a cross between a Wookiee and a pig. |
它们看起来更像是 伍基人和猪的杂交品种。 |
| They live in the jungles of Central and South America , and they're extremely prolific . |
它们生活在中美洲和南美洲的丛林里, 并且数量众多。 |
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South America:n.南美洲; prolific:adj.多产的;丰富的;
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| There was a survey that was done in the 1970s in a Panamanian tropical forest that found that sloths were the most numerically abundant large animal. |
曾经有项针对1970年代 巴拿马热带森林的研究, 发现树懒是数量最多的大型动物。 |
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survey:n.调查;测量;审视;纵览;vt.调查;勘测;俯瞰;vi.测量土地; Panamanian:n.巴拿马人;adj.巴拿马的; tropical:adj.热带的;热情的;酷热的; numerically:adv.数字上;用数字表示; abundant:adj.丰富的;充裕的;盛产;
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| They took up one quarter of the mammalian biomass . |
它们占据了哺乳动物生物量的四分之一。 |
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mammalian:adj.哺乳类动物的;n.哺乳类; biomass:n.(单位面积或体积内的)[生态]生物量;
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| Now, that's an awful lot of sloths and suggests they're doing something very right indeed. |
树懒的数量实在惊人, 这意味着它们确实有正确的生存之道。 |
| So what if , rather than deriding the sloth for being different, we tried to learn from it instead? |
所以,与其嘲笑树懒的与众不同, 我们向它们取点经也许会更好？ |
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what if:如果…怎么办? deriding:v.嘲笑;愚弄;(deride的现在分词)
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| We humans are obsessed with speed. |
我们人类痴迷于速度。 |
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obsessed:v.使痴迷;使迷恋;使着迷;(obsess的过去式和过去分词)
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| Busyness is a badge of honor, and convenience trumps quality in our quest for quick. |
忙碌是荣誉的勋章, 当我们追求快捷时, 便利胜过质量。 |
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Busyness:n.繁忙; badge:n.徽章;证章;标记;v.授给…徽章; convenience:n.方便;便利;适宜;便利的事物(或设施); trumps:n.王牌; v.出王牌赢(牌); (trump的第三人称单数和复数) quest:n.追求;寻找;vi.追求;寻找;vt.探索;
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| Our addiction to the express life is choking us and the planet. |
我们对快节奏生活的沉迷 正在使我们和这个星球窒息。 |
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addiction:n.瘾;嗜好;入迷; express:v.表达; adj.特快的; n.特快列车; v.使用快速服务; choking:adj.窒息的;闭紧的;v.(使)窒息;使停止呼吸;说不出话来;(choke的现在分词)
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| We idolize animals like the cheetah, the " Ferrari of the animal kingdom," |
我们崇拜像猎豹这样的动物, “动物王国的法拉利” |
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idolize:vt.极端崇拜;把...当偶像崇拜;vi.崇拜偶像; Ferrari:n.法拉利;
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| capable of doing naught to 60 in three seconds flat. |
能在三秒内完成从0到60的加速动作。 |
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capable:adj.能干的,能胜任的;有才华的; naught:n.[数]零;无价值;adj.无价值的;无用的;
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| Well, so what? |
但这又怎样？ |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| (Applause) |
（掌声） |
| So what? |
又能怎样？ |
| The sloth, on the other hand , can reach a leisurely 17 feet a minute with the wind behind it. |
树懒却截然不同, 在风的助推下,它可以达到 每分钟17英尺的速度。 |
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on the other hand:另一方面; leisurely:adj.悠闲的;从容的;adv.悠闲地;从容不迫地;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| But being fast is costly . |
但高速需要付出高昂的代价。 |
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costly:adj.昂贵的;代价高的;
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| The cheetah is speedy , but at the expense of strength. |
猎豹速度很快,但需要牺牲力量。 |
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speedy:adj.快的;迅速的;敏捷的; at the expense of:以…为代价;由…支付费用;
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| They can't risk getting in a fight, so they lose one in nine kills to tougher predators like hyenas . |
它们不能冒险打架, 因此,它们九次捕猎中会有一次 输给鬣狗等更优秀的掠食者。 |
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predators:n.捕食性动物;实行弱肉强食的人(或机构);掠夺者;(predator的复数) hyenas:n.土狼(hyena的复数形式);
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| No wonder they're laughing. |
难怪它们在发笑。 |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| The sloth, on the other hand, has taken a more stealthy approach to dinner. |
树懒则完全相反, 采取了一种更隐秘的方式去进食。 |
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stealthy:adj.鬼鬼祟祟的;秘密的; approach:n.方法;路径;v.接近;建议;着手处理;
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| They survive by capturing and consuming static leaves. |
它们通过捕获和食用 静态的叶子来生存。 |
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capturing:v.俘虏;捕获;攻占;夺得;(capture的现在分词) consuming:adj.消费的;强烈的;v.消耗(consume的ing形式); static:adj.静止的; n.[物]静电(干扰);
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| But you see, leaves don't want to be eaten any more than antelope do, so they're loaded full of toxins and very hard to digest . |
但是想想看, 树叶不愿意像羚羊那样被吃掉, 所以叶子中富含毒素,很难被消化。 |
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antelope:n.羚羊;羚羊皮革; toxins:n.[毒物]毒素,毒质;毒素类(toxin的复数); digest:n.摘要;文摘;概要;汇编;v.消化;领会;领悟;理解;
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| So in order to consume them, the sloth has also had to become an athlete -- a digesting athlete. |
为了消化树叶, 树懒也不得不成为一名运动员—— 一名消化运动员。 |
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consume:v.消耗;吃;毁灭;烧毁; athlete:n.运动员,体育家;身强力壮的人; digesting:n.蒸煮;v.消化;吸收;接受,领会(digest的现在分词);
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| The sloth's secret weapon is a four-chambered stomach and plenty of time. |
树懒的秘密武器是一个四腔胃 和大量的时间。 |
| They have the slowest digestion rate of any mammal. |
它们的消化速度 是所有哺乳动物中最慢的。 |
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digestion:n.消化;领悟;
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| And it can take up to a month to process a single leaf, which gives their liver plenty of time to process those toxins. |
它们会花上一个月的时间 去消化一片树叶, 这让它们的肝脏有足够的时间 来处理这些毒素。 |
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process:v.处理;加工;列队行进;n.过程,进行;方法,adj.经过特殊加工(或处理)的; liver:n.肝;(动物供食用的)肝;
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| So, sloths aren't lazy. |
所以树懒并不懒。 |
| No, they're busy. |
相反,它们很忙碌。 |
| Digesting. |
忙着消化。 |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| Yeah, really busy. |
是的,非常忙。 |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| Hard at work, that sloth, very hard at work. |
努力工作,这只树懒, 它正在非常努力地工作。 |
| And of course, leaves have little calorific value, so sloths have evolved to spend as little energy as possible. |
当然,树叶没有多少热量, 所以树懒已经进化到 在消化时消耗尽可能少的能量。 |
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calorific:adj.发热的,生热的; evolved:v.(使)逐渐形成;进化;进化形成;(evolve的过去分词和过去式)
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| They do about 10 percent of the work of a similar-sized mammal and survive on as little as 100 calories a day, thanks to some ingenious adaptations . |
它们所消耗的能量只相当于 类似大小的哺乳动物的10%, 并且每天只摄入100卡路里, 这都要归功于其独特的适应力。 |
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calories:n.[物]卡路里(热量单位,calorie的复数); ingenious:adj.有独创性的;机灵的,精制的;心灵手巧的; adaptations:n.适应;改编(adaptation的复数);
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| The Bradypus, three-toed sloths, they've got more neck bones than any other mammal, even a giraffe. |
慢性子的三趾树懒, 它们的颈骨比任何哺乳动物都要多, 甚至比长颈鹿还多。 |
| Which means they can turn their head through 270 degrees and graze all around them, without having to actually bother with the effort of moving their body. |
这意味着它们可以270度地转头, 观察周围的情况, 无需费力去移动身体。 |
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graze:vt.放牧;擦伤;vi.吃草;擦伤;n.放牧;轻擦; bother:v.烦扰,打扰;使…不安;操心,麻烦;n.麻烦;烦恼;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| It also means that they are surprisingly good swimmers . |
这也意味着它们是惊人的游泳好手。 |
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surprisingly:adv.令人惊讶地;出乎意料地 swimmers:n.游泳者(swimmer的复数形式);白色有光绒面呢;
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| Sloths can bob along in water three times faster than they can move on land, kept afloat by ... |
树懒能在水中快速移动, 其速度比陆地移动速度快三倍, 因胃胀气 |
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afloat:adj.在海上的;飘浮的;浸满水的;在传播的;adv.在海上;飘浮著;浸满水;
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| trapped wind. |
而浮动。 |
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trapped:adj.受困的;受限制的;v.使落入险境;使陷入困境;(trap的过去分词和过去式)
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| So -- |
所以… |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| sloths are the only mammal that we know of that don't do flatulence . |
树懒是我们已知的唯一一种 不会肠胃胀气的哺乳动物。 |
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flatulence:n.[内科]肠胃气胀;浮夸;自负;
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| When they need to expel gas, it's actually reabsorbed into their bloodstream and expelled orally as a sort of mouth fart . |
当它们需要排出气体时, 气体实际上会被重新吸收到血液中, 然后作为一种“口腔屁”从口排出。 |
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reabsorbed:vi.再吸附;重吸收; bloodstream:n.[生理]血流,血液的流动; expelled:v.把…开除(或除名);驱逐出境;排出;喷出;(expel的过去分词和过去式) orally:adv.口头上地;口述地; fart:v.放屁;(尤指)放响屁;n.放屁;(尤指)放响屁;讨厌的人;蠢人;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| Turning their lives upside down saves further energy. |
它们倒挂的生活方式 可以节省更多的能量。 |
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upside down:adj.颠倒的;乱七八糟的;
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| They have about half the skeletal muscle of a terrestrial mammal. |
它们的骨骼肌大约为 陆地哺乳动物的一半。 |
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skeletal:adj.骨骼的,像骨骼的;骸骨的;骨瘦如柴的; muscle:n.肌肉;力量;v.加强;使劲搬动;使劲挤出; terrestrial:adj.地球的;陆地的,[生物]陆生的;人间的;n.陆地生物;地球上的人;
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| They don't really have so many of the extensor muscles that are the weight-bearing muscles; instead, they rely on retractor muscles to pull themselves along. |
它们并没有那么多的伸肌, 也就是负重肌; 取而代之的, 它们依靠牵缩肌来拉动自己。 |
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extensor:n.伸肌; muscles:n.肌肉(muscle的复数); retractor:n.[外科]牵开器;收缩筋;食言的人;
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| They have long, hooked claws and a high fatigue resistance , so they can literally hook on and hang like a happy, hairy hammock for hours on end. |
它们有长长的、钩状的爪子 和很强的抗疲劳能力, 所以它们可以像快乐的毛茸茸吊床一样, 一挂就是好几个小时。 |
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hooked:adj.弯曲的; v.(使)钩住,挂住; (hook的过去分词和过去式) claws:n.(动物或禽类的)爪,脚爪; v.(用爪子或手指甲)抓,撕,挠(claw的第三人称单数和复数) fatigue:n.疲劳;劳累;厌倦;(金属或木材的)疲劳;v.疲劳;使疲乏;(士兵)担任杂役; resistance:n.电阻;抵抗;阻力;抗力; literally:adv.按字面:字面上:确实地: hammock:n.吊床;吊铺;吊带;vt.睡吊床;
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| And sloths can do almost anything in this inverted position. |
树懒在倒挂时 几乎可以做任何事情。 |
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inverted:v.(使)倒转,颠倒,倒置;(invert的过去分词和过去式)
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| They sleep, eat and even give birth. |
它们可以睡觉,吃饭,甚至生育。 |
| Their throat and blood vessels are uniquely adapted to pump blood and to swallow food against the force of gravity. |
它们独特的喉咙和血管, 能够克服重力地 输送血液和吞咽食物。 |
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vessels:n.血管(vessel的复数);船舶;容器; uniquely:adv.独特地;珍奇地; adapted:adj.适于…的; v.使适应,使适合; (adapt的过去分词和过去式) pump:n.抽水机;泵;打气筒;v.用泵输送;涌出;奔流;快速摇动; swallow:v.吞下;咽下;吞没;相信;n.吞;咽;燕;一次吞咽的量;
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| They have sticky bits on their ribs that prevent their enormous stomach from crushing their lungs. |
它们的肋骨上有粘性物质, 可以防止巨大的胃挤压肺部。 |
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sticky:adj.粘的;粘性的; ribs:n.[解剖]肋骨;排骨(rib的复数); enormous:adj.庞大的,巨大的;凶暴的,极恶的; crushing:adj.惨重的,毁坏性的;v.压碎;压坏;压伤;挤压变形;(crush的现在分词)
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| And their fur grows the opposite direction, so they can drip dry after a tropical drenching . |
它们的皮毛逆向生长, 所以在热带地区淋湿后水可以滴干。 |
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drip:n.滴落;滴落(的液体);水滴;v.(液体)滴下; drenching:n.湿透;
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| The only problem is, if you turn a sloth the other way up, gravity removes its dignity . |
唯一的问题是,如果你把树懒倒过来, 重力会剥夺它们的尊严。 |
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dignity:n.尊严;高贵;
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| They can't hold themselves upright . |
它们站不直。 |
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upright:n.立柱;adj.直立的;挺直的;竖直的;垂直的;adv.竖立着;垂直着;
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| And so they drag their bodies along as if mountaineering on a flat surface. |
所以它们拖着身体走, 就像在平地上登山一样。 |
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drag:v.拖曳;生拉硬拽;拖动;n.拖累;令人厌烦的人;累赘;绊脚石; mountaineering:n.登山;登山运动;爬山;v.登山(mountaineer的ing形式);
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| And I think this is why the early explorers like Valdés thought so poorly of them, because they were observing sloths the wrong way up and out of context . |
我想这就是为什么像瓦尔德斯 这样的早期的探险家 对它们误解很深的原因, 因为他们观察树懒的方式是错误的, 并且脱离了实际场景。 |
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explorers:n.探险者;勘探者;考察者;(explorer的复数) observing:adj.观察的;注意的;观察力敏锐的;v.观察;遵守(observe的现在分词); context:n.环境;上下文;来龙去脉;
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| I've spent many happy hours mesmerized by moving sloths. |
在观察树懒移动时, 我度过了很多快乐时光。 |
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mesmerized:v.施催眠术,迷住,迷惑(mesmerize的过去式);adj.着迷的;
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| Their lack of muscle hasn't impeded their strength or agility . |
它们肌肉的匮乏 并没有妨碍力量和灵活性。 |
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impeded:v.阻碍;阻止;(impede的过去分词和过去式) agility:n.敏捷;灵活;机敏;
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| Nature's zen masters of mellow move like " Swan Lake" in slow mo -- |
大自然的禅师们老练的动作 就像慢动作中的“天鹅湖”—— |
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mellow:adj.圆润的,柔和的;成熟的;芳醇的;v.使成熟;使柔和;成熟; Swan:n.天鹅;天鹅星座;vi.游荡,闲荡;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| with the core control of a tai chi master. |
并有太极大师一般的核心控制。 |
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core:n.核心;要点;果心;[计]磁心;vt.挖...的核;
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| This one has fallen asleep mid-move, which is not uncommon . |
这只树懒在移动时睡着了, 这并不罕见。 |
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uncommon:adj.不寻常的;罕有的;adv.非常地;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| But you're probably wondering: |
但你可能会好奇: |
| How does a dangling bag of digesting leaves avoid being eaten? |
正在消化树叶的倒垂着的树懒 如何避免被吃掉？ |
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dangling:v.悬垂;悬挂;提着;来回摆动着;(dangle的现在分词)
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| Good question. |
这是个好问题。 |
| Well, this is one of the sloth's main predators. |
这是树懒的主要捕食者之一。 |
| It's the harpy eagle. |
美洲角雕。 |
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harpy:n.鸟身女妖;残酷贪婪的人;
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| It can fly at speeds of up to 50 miles per hour, has talons the size of a grizzly bear's, razor-sharp eyesight , and that ring of feathers focuses sound so that it can hear the slightest leaf rustle . |
它能以50英里每小时的速度飞行, 爪子有灰熊那么大, 视力敏锐, 那圈羽毛会使声音汇集, 所以它能听到最细微的树叶沙沙声。 |
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talons:n.爪;[建]爪饰;如爪的手; grizzly:adj.灰色的;n.灰熊; razor-sharp:adj.锋利的;犀利的; eyesight:n.视力;目力; slightest:adj.极不重要的,最少的; rustle:vi.发出沙沙声;vt.使…沙沙作响;n.沙沙声;急忙;飒飒声;
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| The sloth, on the other hand, has poor hearing, bad eyesight, and running from danger is clearly not an option . |
树懒却完全相反, 听力糟糕,视力不好, 逃离危险显然不是一项可行选择。 |
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option:n.选择;可选择的东西;
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| No, they survive by wearing an invisibility cloak worthy of Harry Potter. |
不,它们靠穿一件 哈利波特那样的隐形衣生存。 |
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invisibility:n.看不见;看不见的东西;难看见; cloak:n.斗蓬;宽大外衣;托词;vt.遮掩;隐匿; worthy:adj.值得的; n.杰出人物;
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| Their fur has grooves that attract moisture and act as tiny hydroponic gardens for algae , and they also attract a host of invertebrates . |
它们的皮毛有吸引水分的凹槽, 就像海藻的微型水培园, 因此也吸引了大量的无脊椎动物。 |
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grooves:n.细槽,[建]凹槽(groove的复数); moisture:n.水分;湿度;潮湿;降雨量; hydroponic:adj.水栽的,水耕法的; algae:n.[植]藻类;[植]海藻; invertebrates:n.[无脊椎]无脊椎动物(invertebrate的复数);
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| So they are their own slow-moving , miniature ecosystem . |
所以它们本身便是 缓慢移动的微型生态系统。 |
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slow-moving:adj.滞销的;动作缓慢的; miniature:adj.微型的,小规模的;n.缩图;微型画;微型图画绘画术;vt.是…的缩影; ecosystem:n.生态系统;
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| They become one with the trees. |
它们与树木融为一体。 |
| And we think that their movements are so slow, they slip under the radar of the monstrous harpy as it's flying about the canopy , scanning for action. |
我们认为它们的动作非常缓慢, 所以能逃过巨大的美洲角雕 在树荫上方盘旋时搜索猎物的雷达。 |
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slip:v.溜;下降;滑落;n.纸条;衬裙; under the radar:坠入琴网;雷达之下;在雷达下; monstrous:adj.巨大的;怪异的;荒谬的;畸形的; canopy:n.天篷;华盖;遮篷;苍穹;vt.用天蓬遮盖;遮盖;
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| Sloths are stealth ninjas , and they rarely leave the safety of the canopy -- except to defecate , which they do about once a week at the base of a tree. |
树懒是隐秘的忍者, 它们很少离开安全的树荫—— 除了排便时, 它们每周在树下进行一次排便。 |
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ninjas:n.忍者(ninja的复数形式); rarely:adv.很少地;难得;罕有地; defecate:v.澄清;除去污物;排便;
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| Now, this risky and energetic behavior has long been a mystery, and there are lots of theories as to why they do it. |
长期以来,这种冒险而又 充满活力的行为一直是个谜, 为了研究它们为何如此行动 诞生了很多理论。 |
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energetic:adj.精力充沛的;充满活力的;需要能量的;积极的;
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| But I think they're leaving surreptitious scented messages for potential mates . |
但我认为它们是在给潜在的伴侣 留下隐秘的气味信息。 |
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surreptitious:adj.秘密的;鬼鬼祟祟的;暗中的; scented:adj.散发着浓香的;芬芳的;v.嗅出;闻到;觉察出;(scent的过去分词和过去式) potential:n.潜能;可能性;[电]电势;adj.潜在的;可能的;势的; mates:n.朋友; v.交配;
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| Because, you see, sloths are generally silent, solitary creatures , except for when the female is in heat. |
因为,试想一下,树懒通常是 沉默又孤独的生物, 只有在雌性发情的时候才是例外。 |
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generally:adv.通常;普遍地,一般地; solitary:adj.孤独的;独居的;n.独居者;隐士; creatures:n.生物;动物;(具有某种特征的)人(creature的复数) female:adj.女性的;雌性的;柔弱的,柔和的;n.女人;[动]雌性动物;
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| She will climb to the top of a tree and scream for sex. |
它们会爬到树顶为交配尖叫。 |
| In D-sharp. |
用升D调。 |
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| Don't believe me? |
不相信我？ |
| (Sound of sloth scream) |
（树懒的尖叫声） |
| D-sharp. |
升D调。 |
| This and only this note will get the male's attention. |
只有这个信号才能引起雄性的注意。 |
| It mimics the sound of the kiskadee flycatcher. |
它模仿了蝇霸鹟的声音。 |
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mimics:v.模仿; n.会模仿的人(或动物); (mimic的第三人称单数和复数)
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| So the female remains covert , even when yodeling for sex at the top of her lungs. |
所以雌性仍然很隐蔽, 即便当它们为寻找配偶 放声大叫时也是如此。 |
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covert:n.隐藏处; adj.隐蔽的; yodeling:n.岳德尔唱法(瑞士一带一种民间小调的唱腔); v.用真假嗓音反复变换地唱(yodel的ing形式);
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| Her clandestine booty calls will carry for miles across the canopy, and males will beat a slow path towards her. |
她隐秘的交配信号将会传至 几英里外的树冠上, 雄性便会慢慢靠近。 |
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clandestine:adj.秘密的,私下的;偷偷摸摸的; booty:n.赃物;战利品;掠夺物;(赢得,购买,得到的)贵重物品;
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| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| I think scented messages in her dung will help send Romeo up the right tree so that he doesn't waste precious energy scaling the wrong one. |
我想她粪便里的气味信息会 帮助罗密欧爬上正确的树, 这样他就不会浪费宝贵的精力 去攀登错误的树。 |
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dung:vt.施粪肥于;n.粪; Romeo:n.年轻的男情人;风流放荡的男子; precious:adj.宝贵的;珍贵的;矫揉造作的; scaling:n.缩放比例; v.剥落;
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| Sex, by the way , is the only thing that sloths do swiftly . |
顺便说一句,交配是树懒唯一 能迅速完成的事情。 |
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by the way:顺便说一下; swiftly:adv.很快地;敏捷地;即刻;
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| I've seen them do it in the wild, and it's over and done with in a matter of seconds. |
我曾经在野外见过它们交配, 几秒钟内就结束了。 |
| But then, why waste precious energy on it, particularly after that journey ? |
但,为什么要浪费 这么宝贵的精力在交配上呢, 毕竟花了这么长的旅途？ |
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journey:n.旅行;行程;vi.旅行;
|
| (Laughter) |
（笑声） |
| Unlike other mammals, sloths don't also waste time maintaining a constant warm body temperature. |
跟其他哺乳动物不同的是, 树懒也不会浪费时间来保持恒温。 |
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maintaining:n.维护;保养;v.维持;保养;(maintain的现在分词)
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| Energy from the sun is free, so they bask in the sun like lizards and wear an unusually thick coat for the tropics to keep that heat in. |
来自太阳的能量是免费的, 所以它们像蜥蜴一样晒太阳, 在热带地区穿一件厚得不寻常 的外套以保持热量。 |
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bask:vi.晒太阳;取暖;愉快或舒适;vt.使…晒太阳;使暖和而舒适; lizards:n.[动]蜥蜴,蜥蜴爬虫类动物;(lizard的复数) unusually:adv.非常;异乎寻常地;显著地; tropics:n.热带地区;
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| Sloths have a freakishly low metabolism . |
树懒的新陈代谢非常慢。 |
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freakishly:adv.反常地;见异思迁地; metabolism:n.[生理]新陈代谢;
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| And we think that this might be one of the reasons that they can sometimes recover from injuries that would kill most animals. |
我们认为这可能是 它们会从可能会杀死其他动物的伤害中 恢复过来的原因。 |
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injuries:n.伤害,损伤;挫伤;(injury的复数)
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| This sloth recovered from a double amputation , and I've known sloths that have managed to survive even power line electrocutions . |
这只树懒从截肢中恢复过来, 我还知道有些树懒甚至能在 电源线触电中存活下来。 |
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amputation:n.截肢(术),切断(术);删除,削减; power line:n.电力线;输电线; electrocutions:n.电刑;电死;
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| And we now think that a low metabolism may well be key to surviving extinction . |
我们现在认为,低代谢水平很可能 是物种避免灭绝的关键。 |
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extinction:n.绝种;
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| Researchers at Kansas University who were studying mollusks found that a high metabolism predicted which species of mollusk had gone extinct. |
堪萨斯大学的研究人员 在研究软体动物时发现, 可通过高新陈代谢预测 哪些种类的软体动物 已经灭绝。 |
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Kansas:n.堪萨斯州(美国州名); mollusks:n.[无脊椎]软体动物(mollusk的复数);[无脊椎]软体动物类; predicted:v.预言;预告;预报;(predict的过去分词和过去式)
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| Sloths have been around on this planet in one shape or another for over 40 million years. |
树懒在这个星球上以各种形态 存在了4000万年。 |
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have been around:见识(很)多;世故(很)深;遍布全球;世故深;遍布各地;
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| The secret to their success is their slothful nature. |
它们成功的秘诀在于其懒惰的天性。 |
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slothful:adj.怠惰的,懒惰的;迟钝的;
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| They are energy-saving icons. |
它们是节能的象征。 |
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energy-saving:adj.节省能源的;
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| And I founded the Sloth Appreciation Society to both promote and protect their slow, steady , sustainable lives. |
我成立了树懒欣赏协会, 以提倡和保护它们缓慢、稳定、 可持续的生活。 |
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Appreciation:n.升值;欣赏;感谢;增值; promote:v.促进;推动;促销;提升;晋升; steady:adj.稳定的; v.使稳定; v.稳定地; n.关系固定的情侣; sustainable:adj.可以忍受的;足可支撑的;养得起的;可持续的;
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| I'm a pretty speedy character. |
我是个急性子。 |
| I'm sure you've guessed. |
我相信你们都猜到了。 |
| And the sloths have taught me a lot about slowing down. |
树懒使我明白了很多放慢节奏的好处。 |
| And I think that the planet would benefit if we all took a slowly digested leaf out of their book. |
我们认为地球将会因此受益, 假如我们都从它们的书中 慢慢地消化一片叶的话。 |
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digested:v.消化;领会;领悟;理解;(digest的过去分词和过去式)
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| How about we all embrace our inner sloth by slowing down, being more mindful , reducing wasteful convenience, being economical with our energy, recycling creatively and reconnecting with nature. |
我们为何不放慢脚步, 拥抱内心的懒惰呢？ 更加用心, 减少不必要的便利, 节约能源, 创造性地回收利用, 与自然重新建立联系。 |
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embrace:n.拥抱,怀抱;v.拥抱;乐意采纳(思想、建议等);信奉;包括; inner:n.内部;射中接近靶心部分的一发;adj.里面的;向内的;内部的;接近中心的; mindful:adj.留心的;记住的;警觉的; wasteful:adj.浪费的,不经济的;奢侈的; economical:adj.经济的;节约的;合算的; recycling:n.(资源,垃圾的)回收利用;v.回收;再循环利用(recycle的现在分词); creatively:adv.创造性地;有创造力地; reconnecting:n.重新连线中;正在重新连接;v.再接合(reconnect的现在分词);
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| Otherwise, I fear, it will be us humans that turn out to be "the stupidest animals that can be found in the world." |
否则,我担心, 我们人类最终才是 “地球上已知的最愚蠢的动物。” |
| Thank you very much. |
谢谢！ |
| May the sloth be with you! |
愿树懒与你同在！ |
| (Applause) |
（掌声） |