英语听书《海底两万里》第217期 第16章 在海底平原散步(8)

 　　All these wonders I glimpsed in the space of a quarter of a mile, barely pausing, following Captain Nemo whose gestures kept beckoning¹ me onward².  约在四分之一海里的空间内，我没有停步，几乎不断地看到这些珍品。尼摩船长向我招手，我跟着他走。

　　Soon the nature of the seafloor changed.  不久，脚下的土壤变了性质。

　　The plains of sand were followed by a bed of that viscous³ slime Americans call ooze,which is composed exclusively of seashells rich in limestone⁴ or silica. 接连细沙平原的是一片胶粘的泥地，单独由硅土或石灰贝壳构成，美国人管它叫“乌兹”。

　　Then we crossed a prairie of algae⁵, open-sea plants that the waters hadn't yet torn loose, whose vegetation grew in wild profusion⁶.  接昔我们跑过一段海藻地，它们是未经海水冲走的海产植物，繁殖力很强。

　　Soft to the foot, these densely⁷ textured⁸ lawns would have rivaled the most luxuriant carpets woven by the hand of man.  这种纤维紧密的草坪，踩在脚下软绵绵的，刁”以和人工织出的最柔软的地毯媲美。

　　But while this greenery was sprawling⁹ under our steps, it didn't neglect us overhead.  但是，不只我们脚下是绿草如茵，连我们头上也是一片翠绿。

　　The surface of the water was crisscrossed by a floating arbor¹⁰ of marine¹¹ plants belonging to that superabundant algae family that numbers more than 2,000 known species. 水面上轻飘飘地浮着一层海产植物，全部是取之不尽的海藻类，这类植物，我们已经知道的，至少有二千多种。

　　I saw long ribbons of fucus drifting above me, some globular, others tubular:  我看见水中浮着很长的海带（有些作球形，有些作管状）、红花藻、

　　Laurencia, Cladostephus with the slenderest foliage¹², Rhodymenia palmata resembling the fan shapes of cactus¹³. 叶子很纤细的薛苔、很像仙人掌的蔷薇藻。

　　I observed that green-colored plants kept closer to the surface of the sea, while reds occupied a medium depth,  我注意到较近海面的一层是青绿色的海草，在更深一些的地方是红色的海草，

　　which left blacks and browns in charge of designing gardens and flowerbeds in the ocean's lower strata¹⁴. 黑色或赭色。的水草就在最深处，形成海底花园和草地。

1 beckoning   

adj.引诱人的，令人心动的v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• An even more beautiful future is beckoning us on. 一个更加美好的未来在召唤我们继续前进。 来自辞典例句
• He saw a youth of great radiance beckoning to him. 他看见一个丰神飘逸的少年向他招手。 来自辞典例句

2 onward   

adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先

参考例句：

• The Yellow River surges onward like ten thousand horses galloping.黄河以万马奔腾之势滚滚向前。
• He followed in the steps of forerunners and marched onward.他跟随着先辈的足迹前进。

3 viscous   

adj.粘滞的，粘性的

参考例句：

• Gases are much less viscous than liquids.气体的粘滞性大大小于液体。
• The mud is too viscous.You must have all the agitators run.泥浆太稠，你们得让所有的搅拌机都开着。

4 limestone   

n.石灰石

参考例句：

• Limestone is often used in building construction.石灰岩常用于建筑。
• Cement is made from limestone.水泥是由石灰石制成的。

5 algae   

n.水藻，海藻

参考例句：

• Most algae live in water.多数藻类生长在水中。
• Algae grow and spread quickly in the lake.湖中水藻滋蔓。

6 profusion   

n.挥霍；丰富

参考例句：

• He is liberal to profusion.他挥霍无度。
• The leaves are falling in profusion.落叶纷纷。

7 densely   

ad.密集地；浓厚地

参考例句：

• A grove of trees shadowed the house densely. 树丛把这幢房子遮蔽得很密实。
• We passed through miles of densely wooded country. 我们穿过好几英里茂密的林地。

8 textured   

adj.手摸时有感觉的, 有织纹的

参考例句：

• The shoe's sole had a slightly textured surface. 鞋底表面稍感粗糙。
• Shallow burial seems to preserve chalky textured porosity. 浅埋藏似能保留具白垩状结构的孔隙。

9 sprawling   

adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）

参考例句：

• He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
• a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇

10 arbor   

n.凉亭；树木

参考例句：

• They sat in the arbor and chatted over tea.他们坐在凉亭里，边喝茶边聊天。
• You may have heard of Arbor Day at school.你可能在学校里听过植树节。

11 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

12 foliage   

n.叶子，树叶，簇叶

参考例句：

• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage.小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。
• Dark foliage clothes the hills.浓密的树叶覆盖着群山。

13 cactus   

n.仙人掌

参考例句：

• It was the first year that the cactus had produced flowers.这是这棵仙人掌第一年开花。
• The giant cactus is the vegetable skycraper.高大的仙人掌是植物界巨人。

14 strata   

n.地层（复数）；社会阶层

参考例句：

• The older strata gradually disintegrate.较老的岩层渐渐风化。
• They represent all social strata.他们代表各个社会阶层。