A. mineB. criteriaC. catalogedD. candidateE. delay F. anticipatingG. comprisedH. perceivingI. initiativeJ. compounds K. unfavorable |
What Lies Beneath
“Earth” has always been an odd choice of name for the third planet from the Sun. After all, an alien (外星人) examining it through a telescope would note that two-thirds of its surface is
A new
The attempt is happening now for two reasons. One is that, the longer scientists
The second one is technological. Marine biologists discover about 2,000 new species a year, a rate hardly changed since Darwin’s day. Ocean Census is
Exactly what the new effort might turn up, of course, is impossible to forecast. But history suggests it will be fruitful. Half a century ago scientists detected hot openings on the sea bed that were home to organisms living happily in conditions that, until then, had been thought
More practical benefits can’t be ignored. Many drugs, for example, come originally from biological
To help make use of its data, Ocean Census plans to make it attainable to scientists and the public without charge, who will be able to search it for anything valuable or unexpected.
A. applications | B. connections | C. emotions | D. identify | E. intervene | F. notifications |
G. sacred | H. shared | I. specialize | J. stressed | K. technological |
Animal Communication
Many pet owners long to talk with their animals. After all, if pets were able to talk, people could take care of them more easily and have closer emotional
One such app is called MeowTalk. Using voice recognition software, this app recognizes different sounds a cat makes and offers English translations of them. For example, one type of sound might mean “feed me” while another could be translated “let me outside.” The app can use machine learning to assess its translations and improve at recognizing one particular cat’s voice. In other words, it can
In the future, MeowTalk could connect to a smart collar that would hear the cat meow and play the translation out loud. Perhaps if the cat is outside and needs to be let in, it could even send
For dogs, a Japanese company called Inupathy has developed a harness (保护带) with a heart rate monitor and an app. The heart rate monitor is used to assess a dog’s
The most obvious use of this technology is to help pet owners
There are other
Anyone who interacts regularly with animals could benefit from understanding their animals better. Thus these
A. motivate B. accidentally C. highlighting D. plantations E. engaging F. apparent G. purpose H. sensitive I. increasingly J. decent K. treat |
Ball- Rolling Bumble Bees Just Wanna Have Fun
Playtime isn’ t just for children. Lab- kept bumble bees roll small wooden balls around for no
“It is super cool,” says Elizabeth Tibbetts, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Michigan. “We usually think about insects as being so different that they lack complex behaviors.” But not everyone is convinced the behavior is in fact play.
Lars Chittka, a behavioral ecologist at Queen Mary University of London, and his colleagues
Because play implies a capacity to experience emotions, documenting it in insects could have