新托福听写训练 第11期

I like to start discuss today lecture by challenging some of the myths about certain animals considered to be predators² of human. Take the case of wolf, people fear wolves because the tales of how wolves attack and eat people walking into the woods. In fact, if you encountered the wolves in the wild, it will probably run away. Another animal wrongly accuse to harming people is the giant octopus³. Stories have been told about the terrifying giant octopus attacking and eating an entire ship. But unless you are the crab⁴ or some such, you don't have much to fear for a giant octopus, even the hungry one. One myth probably get by such stories concerns the size of octopus.

?Biologists report that on average it has an arm standard on 2 and half meters, large certainly but hardly a ship eating size. Far from being an attacker, the giant octopus have a number of talents that make it specially⁵ adapt escaping, it has no skeletal structure, so despite its large size, it can squeeze to a hole whole as small as five centimeters wide and if it's caught. For example, in the mouth of the shark, it can pull away leaving one or more its arms. They will grow back or it has been pursued, it squirts black ink which some scientists believe that takes on the form of another octopus and thus confuse the predator¹. And if that is not enough, the giant octopus has the chameleon⁶ like ability to change the skin colors to match its surrounding.

1 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

2 predators   

n.食肉动物( predator的名词复数 )；奴役他人者（尤指在财务或性关系方面）

参考例句：

• birds and their earthbound predators 鸟和地面上捕食它们的动物
• The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement. 捕食性动物的眼睛能感觉到最细小的动静。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 octopus   

n.章鱼

参考例句：

• He experienced nausea after eating octopus.吃了章鱼后他感到恶心。
• One octopus has eight tentacles.一条章鱼有八根触角。

4 crab   

n.螃蟹，偏航，脾气乖戾的人，酸苹果；vi.捕蟹，偏航，发牢骚；vt.使偏航，发脾气

参考例句：

• I can't remember when I last had crab.我不记得上次吃蟹是什么时候了。
• The skin on my face felt as hard as a crab's back.我脸上的皮仿佛僵硬了，就象螃蟹的壳似的。

5 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

6 chameleon   

n.变色龙，蜥蜴；善变之人

参考例句：

• The chameleon changes colour to match its surroundings.变色龙变换颜色以适应环境。
• The chameleon can take on the colour of its background.变色龙可呈现出与其背景相同的颜色。