發(fā)現(xiàn)新的凝膠狀動物

山東 李全忠

在一次水下探索過程中，美國的科學(xué)家們在波多黎各附近水域發(fā)現(xiàn)一種新的凝膠狀物種。

Scientists have discovered a new species of ctenophore（櫛水母） near Puerto Rico. It was discovered two and a half miles below sea level by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration（NOAA） Fisheries research team. It was found during an underwater expedition using a remotely operated vehicle in 2015 and filmed by a highdefinition camera.

NOAA Fisheries scientists Mike Ford and Allen Collins spotted the ctenophore and recognized it as a new species. This is the first time NOAA scientists have identified a new species using only highdefinition video, according to NOAA.

“The cameras on the Deep Discoverer robot are able to get high-resolution images and measure structures less than a millimeter. We don't have the same microscopes as we would in a lab, but the video can give us enough information to understand the morphology （形態(tài)學(xué)） in detail, such as the location of their reproductive parts and other aspects,” Collins said.

The scientists also said there was another unique quality to the discovery. During the expedition,they were not able to gather any samples, so the video evidence is all they have.

“Naming of organisms is guided by international code, but some changes have allowed descriptions of new species based on video—certainly when species are rare and when collection is impossible,” Ford said. “When we made these observations, we were 4,000 meters down, using a remote vehicle, and we did not have the capabilities to take a sample.”

The researchers said that they did not initially have a long look at the animal, so there is still a lot about this new species that they do not know yet. Their findings were recently published in the journal Plankton & Benthos Research.

“We're not sure of its role in the ecosystem yet,” Ford said. “We can consider that it serves similar roles to other ctenophores near the ocean floor and it also has some similarities to other ctenophores in open ocean areas,” he said.

Reading Check

1. How did scientists carry out the discovery?

A. By analysing data.

B. By using high-tech tools.

C. By cooperating with many nations.

D. By understanding the morphology.

2. What do we know about the expedition?

A. It's run by Puerto Rico.

B. It's controlled by a robot.

C. It happened beneath the sea.

D. It functioned better in a lab.

3. What's Ford's attitude to the new species' function in the ecosystem?

A. Positive. B. Passive. C. Uncertain. D. Encouraging.

Language Study

Difficult sentence

“Naming of organisms is guided by international code, but some changes have allowed descriptions of new species based on video—certainly when species are rare and when collection is impossible,” Ford said. 福特說：“生物的命名以國際規(guī)范為指導(dǎo)，但一些變化使得基于視頻的新物種描述成為可能——當(dāng)然是在物種稀少且無法采集的時候。 ”

【點石成金】本句為一個主從復(fù)合句，引號內(nèi)為直接引語，作said的賓語，其中，but連接兩個并列句，when又引導(dǎo)時間狀語從句。

Cultural Background

NOAA 是什么

NOAA 是National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 的縮寫，指美國國家海洋和大氣管理局，隸屬于美國商業(yè)部下屬的科技部門，主要關(guān)注地球的大氣和海洋變化，提供對災(zāi)害性天氣的預(yù)警，提供海圖和空圖等，管理對海洋和沿海資源的利用和保護(hù)，研究如何改善和保護(hù)環(huán)境。