VOA慢速英语2021--倾听蜘蛛网的声音

The sound is strange and not of this earth.

Let's listen.

But this sound is very much of this earth. That is what a spiderweb sounds like. Well, that is what a mathematical model of a spiderweb sounds like.

Markus Buehler is an engineering professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He said from communicating to building, spiderwebs offer much information about their creators.

He explained to Reuters that spiders use "vibrations² as a way to communicate with the environment" and with other spiders.

He said, "We have recorded these vibrations from spiders and used artificial intelligence to learn these vibrational³ patterns. Buehler then explained the scientists connected those patterns with certain actions, "...basically learning the spider's language."

Buehler and his researchers created 3D models of spiderwebs when the spiders were doing different things -- such as making and repairing their webs as well as hunting and feeding. They then listened for patterns in the spider signals and recreated the sounds using computers and mathematical processes.

"Spiders are a whole different animal," said Buehler. He explained they can hear and see things that we cannot with our human ears and eyes. So, by using science and math to turn vibrations into music, we begin to experience and better understand the world of the spider.

Buehler hopes his team's work could help humans to understand the language of a spider and one day communicate with them.

The music, said Buehler, is what "... the spider would also experience. And so, we can begin to feel a little bit like a spider in that way."

There are more than 47,000 kinds of spiders. They all create these webs to provide housing and catch food. Scientists say silk, the material created to from a spiderweb, is five times stronger than steel.

Buehler said that understanding the living structure of a spiderweb could lead to improvements of man-made materials and structures.

Words in This Story

spiderweb -n. the silken web spun⁴ by most spiders and used as a resting place and a trap for prey⁵

artificial intelligence-n. a branch of computer science dealing⁶ with the simulation of intelligent behavior in computers

vibration¹ -n. a continuous slight shaking movement : a series of small, fast movements back and forth⁷ or from side to side

pattern -n. the regular and repeated way in which something happens or is done

3D -n. a three-dimensional form

1 vibration   

n.颤动，振动；摆动

参考例句：

• There is so much vibration on a ship that one cannot write.船上的震动大得使人无法书写。
• The vibration of the window woke me up.窗子的震动把我惊醒了。

2 vibrations   

n.摆动( vibration的名词复数 )；震动；感受；（偏离平衡位置的）一次性往复振动

参考例句：

• We could feel the vibrations from the trucks passing outside. 我们可以感到外面卡车经过时的颤动。
• I am drawn to that girl; I get good vibrations from her. 我被那女孩吸引住了，她使我产生良好的感觉。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 vibrational   

adj.振动的，摇摆的

参考例句：

• However, heating energizes the vibrational, rotational, and electronic motions all at once. 但是，加热会一下子把振动、转动和电子运动统统加强。 来自英汉非文学 - 科技
• Such photons will excite the higher vibrational levels of the OH molecule. 这种光子会激发OH分子的较高振动能级。 来自辞典例句

4 spun   

v.纺，杜撰，急转身

参考例句：

• His grandmother spun him a yarn at the fire.他奶奶在火炉边给他讲故事。
• Her skilful fingers spun the wool out to a fine thread.她那灵巧的手指把羊毛纺成了细毛线。

5 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

6 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

7 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。