Lesson 18-1??????? Porpoises

There has long been a superstition among mariners that porpoises will save drowning men by pushing them to the surface, or protect them from sharks by surrounding them in defensive formation. Marine Studio biologists have pointed out that, however intelligent they may be, it is probably a mistake to credit dolphins with any motive of lifesaving. On the occasions when they have pushed to shore an unconscious human being they have much more likely done it out of curiosity or for sport, as in riding the bow waves of a ship. In 1928 some porpoises were photographed working like beavers to push ashore a waterlogged mattress. If, as has been reported, they have protected humans from sharks, it may have been because curiosity attracted them and because the scent of a possible meal attracted the sharks.

porpoise?/?p??rp?s/?海豚

superstition??/?su?p?r?st??n/??迷信;迷信觀念

mariner?/?m?r?n?r/? 水手

drown??/dra?n/??淹死，溺死;

defensive?/d??fens?v/??防御的;防守的;保護(hù)的

formation?/f??r?me??n/??隊(duì)形,??組成;編隊(duì)

marine??/m??ri?n/??海的;海生的;海產(chǎn)的

?studio?/?stu?dio?/??工作室;演播室? ? ?Marine Studio? 海洋攝影室

biologist??/ba??ɑ?l?d??st/??生物學(xué)家

dolphin?/?dɑ?lf?n/?海豚

credit? 認(rèn)為是…的功勞

motive?/?mo?t?v/?動(dòng)機(jī);目的;原因

unconscious?/?n?kɑ?n??s/??無(wú)意識(shí)的;昏迷的;不省人事的

curiosity?/?kj?ri?ɑ?s?ti/? ?n. 好奇心;求知欲;

bow?船頭，船首

beaver??/?bi?v?r/? n. 海貍;? ? ? ? ? ?v.? 埋頭苦干

ashore?/?????r/?向岸上,? 在岸上的

waterlogged?/?w??t?rl??ɡd/? ?水澇的;水淹的;水浸的;

mattress?/?m?tr?s/??床墊

scent?/sent/??氣味;香味;香水;