国家地理-2008-05-05 Vampire Bats 恐怖的吸血蝙蝠

Here are some happy vampire¹ bats. What's causing all this giddiness? A great, big, fat meal has arrived. You can practically hear these bats going "Oh, boy! Oh, boy!" Better yet, the victim is asleep. This is gonna be like, well, taking blood from a sleeping pig.

The bats have heat sensors² in their noses. This thermal³ process lets us see what the bat sees. The bat wants to feed where the pig's skin glows white hot. Let the dining commence. Like two wildcatters fighting over a fresh oil strike, these bats battle over a particularly rich feeding spot. Four vampire bats, one sleeping pig. Why doesn't the pig wake up? Because the bat's teeth are razor-sharp and cut painlessly. The bats can sip⁴ to their hearts' content with the pig none the wiser. The bat's saliva⁵ actually prevents the blood from clotting⁶. As the bat sips⁷, the blood runs up a glue on the underside of its tongue. Mother Nature thinks out everything. These vampire bats can feast for a full half hour, drinking half their weight in blood.

In a month of feedings, five vampire bats can guzzle⁸ almost a gallon of pig's blood. In this case, it's the bats making a pig of themselves, not the pig.

1. giddiness: n. 晕眩
feeling slightly sick and unable to balance, because everything seems to be moving

2. thermal: adj
relating to or caused by heat

3. wildcatter: n.
A wildcatter is a person who drills oil wells in areas that are not in advance known to be oil fields.

4. razor-sharp: adj.
as sharp as a razor

5. be none the wiser: idiom
to not be aware of something

6. saliva: n. 唾液
Saliva is the watery⁹ liquid that forms in your mouth and helps you to chew and digest food.

7. guzzle: v.
to eat or drink a lot of something, eagerly and quickly - usually showing disapproval¹⁰

8. make a pig of oneself: infml

to eat too much

1 vampire   

n.吸血鬼

参考例句：

• It wasn't a wife waiting there for him but a blood sucking vampire!家里的不是个老婆，而是个吸人血的妖精！
• Children were afraid to go to sleep at night because of the many legends of vampire.由于听过许多有关吸血鬼的传说，孩子们晚上不敢去睡觉。

2 sensors   

n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句

3 thermal   

adj.热的，由热造成的；保暖的

参考例句：

• They will build another thermal power station.他们要另外建一座热能发电站。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

4 sip   

v.小口地喝，抿，呷；n.一小口的量

参考例句：

• She took a sip of the cocktail.她啜饮一口鸡尾酒。
• Elizabeth took a sip of the hot coffee.伊丽莎白呷了一口热咖啡。

5 saliva   

n.唾液，口水

参考例句：

• He wiped a dribble of saliva from his chin.他擦掉了下巴上的几滴口水。
• Saliva dribbled from the baby's mouth.唾液从婴儿的嘴里流了出来。

6 clotting   

v.凝固( clot的现在分词 )；烧结

参考例句：

• The study was also based only on the one anti-clotting drug. 所用抗血栓药物也仅限于一种。 来自互联网
• A plasma protein that is converted into thrombin during blood clotting. 凝血原酶一种血浆蛋白质，在血液凝聚时转化成凝血''。'酵'。''''。'素'。''。 来自互联网

7 sips   

n.小口喝，一小口的量( sip的名词复数 )v.小口喝，呷，抿( sip的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• You must administer them slowly, allowing the child to swallow between sips. 你应慢慢给药，使小儿在吸吮之间有充分的时间吞咽。 来自辞典例句
• Emission standards applicable to preexisting stationary sources appear in state implementation plans (SIPs). 在《州实施计划》中出现了固定污染的排放标准。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

8 guzzle   

v.狂饮，暴食

参考例句：

• Melissa had guzzled gin and tonics like they were lemonade.梅利莎像喝柠檬汽水一样大口地喝着加奎宁水的杜松子酒。
• Pigs guzzle their food.猪总是狼吞虎咽地吃东西。

9 watery   

adj.有水的，水汪汪的；湿的，湿润的

参考例句：

• In his watery eyes there is an expression of distrust.他那含泪的眼睛流露出惊惶失措的神情。
• Her eyes became watery because of the smoke.因为烟熏，她的双眼变得泪汪汪的。

10 disapproval   

n.反对，不赞成

参考例句：

• The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
• They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。