读者文摘:宠物们在想什么(3)

13 I dream bigger if I'm a large dog.

大狗做梦更大。

Little dogs have shorter, more frequent dreams than big dogs. You can see it happening if you watch dogs sleep:

小狗与大狗相比做梦更短，更频繁。看狗睡觉时你就可以发现。

"When they start to dream, their breathing becomes irregular and you can see their eyes moving back and forth¹ under their closed lids," Coren says.

科伦说，“当狗开始做梦时，他们的呼吸变得不规则，你可以看到它们的眼睛在紧闭的眼皮下来回移动。”

A pug might have five or six one-minute dreams every 90 minutes, but a Saint Bernard is more likely to have a four-minute dream every 45 minutes.

一只哈巴狗每九十分钟可能会做五六个一分钟的梦，但是一只圣伯纳德狗更可能每45分钟做一个4分钟的梦。

Researchers know because they can scan dogs' brains just as they can ours.

研究人员知道，因为他们可以扫描狗类的大脑，就像他们扫描人类的大脑一样。

14 I can detect cancer. Several studies have shown that dogs can detect whether a person has certain types of cancer,

狗可以侦测癌症。几个研究表明，狗可以侦测一个人是否患有某种癌症，

including breast, colorectal, lung, ovarian, prostate, and skin cancer. How? By sniffing² a person's breath, urine, or blood.

包括包括乳腺癌、结肠癌、肺癌、卵巢癌、前列腺癌和皮肤癌。如何做到的？通过闻一个人的呼吸、尿液或血液。

Given a dog's acute sense of smell, scientists think canines³ can pick up on volatile⁴ organic compounds that cancer cells give off.

鉴于狗狗敏锐的嗅觉，科学家们认为，犬科动物可以闻到癌细胞释放的挥发性有机物。

Unfortunately, dogs have not proved to be reliable diagnosticians; they get bored and lose interest in sniffing samples after a short while.

不幸的是，狗还没有被证明是可靠的诊断专家；闻样本时，过一会儿他们就会感到无聊，失去兴趣。

Now we turn to cat. 15 I'm not sure whether you're a cat or a human.

现在我们来说说猫。我不确定你是一只猫或者一个人。

While dogs play with humans differently than they do with fellow canines, cats don't adjust their social behavior much for us.

尽管狗和人类相处的方式与他们的同类不同，但是猫不怎么会为人类调整他们的社会行为。

"Putting their tails up in the air, rubbing around our legs, and sitting beside us and grooming⁵ us are exactly what cats do to each other,"

猫会把尾巴竖起来，在我们的腿上蹭来蹭去，坐在我们身边给我们梳洗，这就是猫对待彼此的方式。”

John Bradshaw, a University of Bristol anthrozoologist and the author of Cat Sense: How the New Feline⁶ Science Can Make You a Better Friend to Your Pet, told National Geographic⁷.

布里斯托尔大学的人类动物学家、《猫的常识：新的猫科动物科学如何让你成为宠物更好的朋友》的作者约翰·布拉德肖告诉《国家地理》杂志。

16 I like spending time with you. They don't always show it, but cats like us— they really, really like us.

我喜欢和你待在一块。他们并不总是会表现出来，但是猫喜欢我们，他们真的很喜欢我们。

"Cats can be incredibly social," Udell says.

尤德尔说，“猫的社交能力非常强。”

"In fact, in recent tests of cat preferences, the majority of pet and shelter cats preferred human interaction over toys, food, and even catnip."

“实际上，最近的有关猫的偏好的实验发现，相比于玩具，食物，甚至是猫薄荷，大多数的宠物和收容猫更喜欢和人类互动。

17 And I don't like being ignored.

我不喜欢被忽略。

"Cats will more frequently approach and play with a person who is attentive⁸ to them compared to a person who is ignoring them,"

“相比忽略猫的人们，猫会更经常靠近关心它们的人，和这些人玩耍。”

says Kristyn Vitale, PhD, a researcher in the Human-Animal Interaction Lab at Oregon State University.

俄勒冈州立大学人与动物互动实验室的研究员克里斯廷·瓦伊塔尔博士说。

Then again, she says, sometimes cats want to be left alone.

她还说，有时猫想要自己待着。

Vitale says if a cat is showing signs of aggression⁹ (dilated pupils, a fast-twitching tail, fur standing¹⁰ on end, hissing¹¹, or growling), just walk away.

瓦伊塔尔说，如果一只猫表现出攻击的迹象(瞳孔放大、尾巴快速抽动、毛发竖起、发出嘶嘶声或咆哮)，那就走开。

"It's better to end the interaction before an incident occurs that may lead to a strain in the relationship," she says.

她说，“当冲突发生之前，最好是结束互动，否则可能会导致关系紧张。”

18 Yes, I'm talking to you. Bradshaw says the feral cats he's studied rarely meow.

是的，我在和你说话。布拉德肖说，他研究的野猫很少喵喵叫。

Domesticated¹² cats, on the other hand, meow all the time—to get the attention of humans.

另一方面，家养的猫则经常叫-为了得到人类的注意。

1 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。

2 sniffing   

n.探查法v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的现在分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说

参考例句：

• We all had colds and couldn't stop sniffing and sneezing. 我们都感冒了，一个劲地抽鼻子，打喷嚏。
• They all had colds and were sniffing and sneezing. 他们都伤风了，呼呼喘气而且打喷嚏。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

3 canines   

n.犬齿( canine的名词复数 )；犬牙；犬科动物

参考例句：

• For example, the teeth are more primitive. There are large canines and unusually shaped incisors. 譬如，牙齿更为原始，有大的犬齿和非常合适的门齿。 来自辞典例句
• Well-to-canines can attend doggy daycare centers while their owners work. 富人家的狗在主人上班的时候可以去狗狗托管中心。 来自互联网

4 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

5 grooming   

n. 修饰, 美容，（动物）梳理毛发

参考例句：

• You should always pay attention to personal grooming. 你应随时注意个人仪容。
• We watched two apes grooming each other. 我们看两只猩猩在互相理毛。

6 feline   

adj.猫科的

参考例句：

• As a result,humans have learned to respect feline independence.结果是人们已经学会尊重猫的独立性。
• The awakening was almost feline in its stealthiness.这种醒觉，简直和猫的脚步一样地轻悄。

7 geographic   

adj.地理学的，地理的

参考例句：

• The city's success owes much to its geographic position. 这座城市的成功很大程度上归功于它的地理位置。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Environmental problems pay no heed to these geographic lines. 环境问题并不理会这些地理界限。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

8 attentive   

adj.注意的，专心的；关心(别人)的，殷勤的

参考例句：

• She was very attentive to her guests.她对客人招待得十分周到。
• The speaker likes to have an attentive audience.演讲者喜欢注意力集中的听众。

9 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

10 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

11 hissing   

n. 发嘶嘶声, 蔑视 动词hiss的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The steam escaped with a loud hissing noise. 蒸汽大声地嘶嘶冒了出来。
• His ears were still hissing with the rustle of the leaves. 他耳朵里还听得萨萨萨的声音和屑索屑索的怪声。 来自汉英文学 - 春蚕

12 domesticated   

adj.喜欢家庭生活的；（指动物）被驯养了的v.驯化( domesticate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He is thoroughly domesticated and cooks a delicious chicken casserole. 他精于家务，烹制的砂锅炖小鸡非常可口。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The donkey is a domesticated form of the African wild ass. 驴是非洲野驴的一种已驯化的品种。 来自《简明英汉词典》