50 恐龙和鸟：谁是谁的祖先？
DATE=5-23-01
TITLE=SCIENCE REPORT - Dinosaurs and Birds
BYLINE=Mario Ritter
(Start at 59")This is the VOA Special English Science Report.
A debate has continued in the scientific community concerning the (1) ancestors of modern birds. Some scientists believe birds developed from the ancient creatures called (2) dinosaurs. Others believe birds developed separately.
A recent discovery seems to support the idea that birds developed from dinosaurs. Nature magazine has published a report by Chinese and American researchers. It describes the first clear evidence of a dinosaur with feathers. Ji Qiang of the Chinese (3) Academy of (4) Geological Sciences in Beijing and Mark Norell of the American Museum of Natural History in New York wrote the report.
（5）Fossils are the mineral remains of bones buried millions of years ago. The fossil of a feather-covered dinosaur was discovered in Liaoning Province in northeastern China. Several fossils of dinosaurs with feathers have been found in this area of China. But, it is not always easy to confirm fossil discoveries.
Last year, we reported that a fossil dinosaur with feathers was found to be false. But, this most recent discovery appears to be (6) confirmed.
The dinosaur was about a meter long. It walked on two legs and had a feather-like covering all over its body. The small dinosaur did not have wings and could not fly. But some of its bone structure was similar to that of birds. The animal lived about one- hundred- thirty- million years ago.
Hans-Dieter Sues of the Royal Ontario Museum in (7) Toronto, Canada says the fossil evidence shows that non-flying dinosaurs had a feather covering. Mister Sues says the most recent fossils (8)provide strong evidence that birds developed from dinosaurs.
Both Chinese and American researchers now believe that feathers developed to keep dinosaurs warm. They believe that some dinosaurs may have been warm-blooded like mammals and birds are today. For many years, （9）paleontologists studying dinosaurs have thought that some dinosaurs may have been warm-blooded. Now the confirmed discovery of a non-flying dinosaur with feathers appears to support that theory.
The theory that feathers covered many dinosaurs requires a great change in the way we imagine those ancient creatures. In the Latin language, "dinosaur" means "terrible （10）lizard." Instead, dinosaurs may have looked like terribly large birds.
This VOA Special English Science Report was written by Mario Ritter.
注释：
(1) ancestor[????????? ]n.祖先, 祖宗
(2) dinosaur[ ????????? ]n.恐龙
(3) academy[ ???????? ]n. (高等)专科院校, 研究院
(4) geological[???????????????]adj.地质学的, 地质的
(5) fossil[ ????? ]n.化石, 僵化的事物adj.化石的, 陈腐的
(6) confirmed[???????????]adj.证实的, 惯常的
(7) Toronto[?????????? ]n. 多伦多（加拿大）
(8) provide[ ???????? ]v.供应, 供给
(9) paleontologist[ ?????????????????]n.古生物学家
(10) lizard[ ?????? ]n.[动]蜥蜴
51 美国鳄鱼的成功生存报道
DATE=5-30-01
TITLE=EXPLORATIONS #1954 - Alligators Success Story
BYLINE=Paul Thompson
VOICE ONE:
This is Steve Ember.
VOICE TWO:
And this is Shirley Griffith with the VOA Special English program, EXPLORATIONS. Not too long ago, the American (1) alligator was in danger of (2) disappearing from the Earth. Today we tell the success story of this animal.
(((THEME)))
VOICE ONE:
When Spanish explorers reached what would become the southern State of Florida, they found a long, （3）fierce green animal. It had a wide head and a large mouth that opened to show up to eighty teeth. The (4) Spanish explorers called this dangerous creature "El lagarto." The words mean, "the lizard." In time the Spanish words would change to the modern English word, "alligator."
For many years, the huge green animals were hunted and their (5) territory destroyed. Their tough, beautiful skin was made into shoes, belts and other (6) leather products. Their natural territory was used to build roads, streets, homes and cities. For years the American alligators were disappearing faster than they could reproduce. Scientists knew the animal was in danger of disappearing from the Earth.
In Nineteen-Sixty-Seven, Congress approved a law that would protect the American alligator. The United States Fish and (7) Wildlife Service announced rules for saving the animals.
VOICE TWO:
To better understand the situation, come with us for a few minutes. We will take you to a large hole filled with water that is the home of an American alligator.
The water hole is in the extreme southern part of the state of (8) Florida. It is in a land area protected by the federal government -- the (9) Everglades National Park.
((MUSIC BRIDGE)))
VOICE ONE:
A large green animal slowly comes to the surface of the water. At first, only its eyes and front of its long nose can be seen above the water. It moves very slowly in the water without effort. Its long tail moves slowly from side to side. From its nose to the end of its tail it is almost three (10) meters long.
The animal is hungry. But it is in no hurry. It caught and killed a small deer several days before. It attacked the deer that had come to the water to drink. Then it hid the dead deer under water. Now the alligator wants to eat.
It is the hot dry summer season now. There has been little rain for several weeks. The huge (11) reptile dug this large hole that is filled with water.
VOICE TWO:
Digging the hole has taken the alligator several years. Each year the hole became bigger and deeper. Digging was slow hard work. As the animal dug with its short legs, it pushed away the plants it found. Some of the plants grew around the outside of the hole. Seeds from trees blew into the area and grew where the alligator had pushed dirt and mud out of the hole. Now, the huge water filled hole was (12) surrounded by many different kinds of plants and trees.
Millions of liters of water are just below the surface of the ground, so the large hole is always filled with fresh, clear water. In the dry season, other animals come here for the needed liquid. Other animals and birds are able to survive the dry season because of the water hole. And, the other animals became a fresh supply of food for the dark green alligator, which did not have to leave home to hunt.
VOICE ONE:
This alligator is a large (13) female. Several weeks before, she had built a nest above the water. She had laid almost forty eggs. Each egg was just a little larger than that of a chicken.
She had covered the nest with wet plants and mud. She had been carefully guarding the nest since she placed the eggs there. The sun and plants had kept the (14) nest and the eggs warm.
Early this morning she heard the sound young alligators make when they have left the egg. Because the eggs were so well protected by the nest, the young alligators cannot climb out.
VOICE TWO:
The mother alligator opens the nest area to permit the small reptiles to enter the water. They weigh only about sixty grams each. They are about twenty centimeters long. As the young leave the nest, birds come to the area. Within an hour, birds eat twelve of them.
The mother alligator tries to protect her young. She will protect them for almost three years. But even an alligator cannot protect all of the young that leave the nest. Until they grow large enough, the young alligators are in danger of being eaten by birds and other animals.
Yet in time, each of the young alligators that survive will become a fierce looking animal up to four meters long. Each one will be a ruler of its own small area. Each one will be a dangerous (15) hunter.
(((MUSIC BRIDGE)))
VOICE ONE
The story we just told could have taken place ten thousand years ago. Or it could be taking place today. The alligator is a very ancient and successful creature. It has not changed much since the time huge reptiles called (16) dinosaurs ruled the Earth.
The Everglades National Park is home to many thousands of these huge green animals. When the alligators began to disappear, scientists started to understand the effect of the animals on the environment of the Everglades area.
Without the alligators to help provide water, other animals could not survive the dry season. Without the water holes dug by the alligators, fewer plants and trees would grow in the area. Scientists discovered that one kind of turtle places its eggs near the alligator's nest. The （17）turtle depends on the alligator to survive. The turtle is only one of several animals that need the water provided by the alligator.
VOICE TWO:
The American alligator is a real success story. It is a good example of how federal and state laws helped an animal increase in numbers.
In Nineteen-Sixty-Seven, the Federal Government declared the alligator to be endangered. Laws were passed that said it could no longer be hunted. The government also approved laws to make it illegal to buy and sell products made from alligator skin.
Government scientists began projects in Louisiana, Florida, Georgia Texas and South Carolina. These are states where the alligator is found in the wild.
The projects called for some alligators to be raised on farms. More than 150 alligator farms were built in the states of Florida, Louisiana, and Texas. All of these farms were linked to a central program that supervised the project to increase the number of alligators.
VOICE ONE
Scientists started the farms by collecting eggs and young alligators from their natural area. These alligators were cared for and protected.
The young alligators were returned to natural areas when they became large enough to survive on their own. About seventeen percent of the alligators raised on farms were returned to the wild. Others were kept on the farms to reproduce.
In a little more than ten years, the number of the animals surviving increased. (18) Government records now show that more than three- hundred- fifty- thousand alligators live on farms. Many of these farms no longer belong to the government. They are businesses that use the alligator as a crop.
Leather products from the alligator can once again be found for sale. Some eating-places offer alligator meat. However the farms and alligator products still are carefully controlled.
VOICE TWO:
The federal government also learned that helping the alligator recover called for educating the public about what can be a very dangerous animal. In the past, alligators were killed if they came anywhere near a population center. Now, special workers remove them if possible and take them back to wild areas.
The public has been taught about how to live with alligators. For example, Alabama now has about thirty-five thousand alligators living in natural areas. State records show there have been only five recorded alligator attacks on people. While these attacks were serious, no one was killed.
VOICE ONE:
In Nineteen-Eighty-Seven, the federal government declared the American alligator to be fully recovered. It was no longer considered to be an （19）endangered animal. Yet many protection (20) measures remain in place to make sure the population of alligators does not decrease.
Today, visitors to the southern state of Florida can see many alligators at the Everglades National Park. Park workers show visitors alligator water holes, young alligators, and huge adults. Alligators can also be seen in great numbers in many other areas where they live in the wild.
VOICE TWO:
The alligator is a success story today because of the work of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Yet it is only one animal the agency is working to help survive. Five- hundred- eleven animals are on the list of those that need help if they are to survive into the future.
(((THEME)))
VOICE ONE:
This program was written and produced by Paul Thompson. Our studio engineer was Keith Holmes. This is Steve Ember.
VOICE TWO:
And this is Shirley Griffith. Join us again next week for another EXPLORATIONS program in Special English on the Voice of America.
注释：
(1) alligator[?????????? ]n.产于美洲的鳄鱼
(2) disappear[ ????????? ]vi.消失, 不见
(3) fierce[ ???? ]adj.凶猛的, 猛烈的
(4) Spanish[ ????????]adj.西班牙的, 西班牙人的n.西班牙人, 西班牙语
(5) territory[ ????????? ]n.领土, 版图, 地域
(6) leather[ ????? ]n.皮革, 皮革制品
(7) wildlife[??????????]n.野生动植物
(8) Florida[ ???????? ]n.佛罗里达(美国州名)
(9) everglade[ ??????????]n.湿地, 沼泽地
(10) meter[ ???????]n.米, 公尺
(11) reptile[ ?????????]n.爬虫动物, 卑鄙的人adj.爬行的, 爬虫类的
(12) surround[ ?????????]v.包围, 环境v.围绕
(13) female[ ???????? ]n.女性, 女人
(14) nest[??????]n.巢, 窝
(15) hunter[ ?????? ]n.猎人
(16) dinosaur[ ??????????]n.恐龙
(17) turtle[ ?????? ]n.海龟
(18) government[??????????? ]n.政府
(19) endangered[???????????]adj.（生命等）有危险的,有灭绝危险的
(20) measure[ ????? ]n.尺寸, 量度器, 量度标准v.测量, 测度
52 海豚的自我意识
DATE=5-30-01
TITLE=SCIENCE REPORT - Dolphins' Self-Recognition
BYLINE=Jill Moss
(Start at 59")This is the VOA Special English Science Report.
Many people believe that (1) dolphins are among the (2) smartest animals on Earth. Dolphins are warm-blooded sea animals. Recently, scientists discovered that dolphins could do something that humans can do. They say dolphins can （3）recognize themselves in a mirror, a shiny piece of glass.
Scientists Diana Reiss and Lori Marino discovered this special skill. They did separate studies with two bottlenose dolphins at the New York Aquarium in (4) Brooklyn, New York. Their findings were published in a National (5) Academy of Sciences publication.
The researchers say their study proves that dolphins have a high level of intelligence. Mizz Reiss and Mizz Marino say that dolphins have a level of self-knowledge because they are able to recognize themselves in mirrors. This level of self-knowledge has been identified only in humans and one other kind of animal - the great (6) apes.
The two researchers discovered this by using a test created thirty years ago by scientist Gordon Gallop. Mister Gallop placed a mark on animals. He wanted to find out if the animals were able to recognize themselves in a mirror. He found that when animals study the marking in a mirror, they show signs of self-recognition.
Mizz Reiss and Mizz Marino tested the two dolphins many times with two markers. They used one marker filled with ink that made real marks. They also used a marker filled with water that did not make a mark. Each dolphin repeatedly swam to the mirror to inspect the place where it had been marked with ink. The scientists say the dolphins turned and （7）positioned themselves to get a better look in the mirror.
Mizz Reiss says that most animals either refuse to look at a mirror. Or they react (8) aggressively as if the image were another animal.
Experts say this new research provides more information about how the brain develops. During the past sixty- million years, the brains of dolphins and （9）primates have developed differently. Primates include humans, apes and monkeys. For example, dolphin brains lack a front part, or lobe, found in primate brains. Also, one area of dolphin brains is organized differently from that of primates. Mizz Reiss says that even though these animals have developed differently over time, their brains have developed a similar intelligence.
This VOA Special English Science Report was written by Jill Moss.
注释：
(1) dolphin[???????? ]n.海豚
(2) smart[ ??????]n.刺痛, 痛苦adj.巧妙的, 聪明的
(3) recognize[ ?????????? ]v.认可, 承认vi.具结
(4) Brooklyn[ ???????? ]n.布鲁克林(美国纽约市西南部的一区)
(5) Academy[????????? ]n.(高等)专科院校, 研究院
(6) ape[ ??? ]n.猿
(7) position[????????? ]n.位置, 职位
(8) aggressive[ ?????????]adj.好斗的, 敢做敢为的
(9) primate[????????? ]n.首领,灵长类的动物
