【英语时差8,16】耐辐射异常球菌（上）

Conan the Bacterium¹. That’s the playful name given by biologists to an organism whose official moniker is “Deinococcus radiodurans.” D. radiodurans is microscopic², but that doesn’t mean it’s a pushover. It can take heat, cold, long periods of desiccation. In fact, D. radiodurans is so tough that you can’t even kill it with intense radiation–almost a sure-kill treatment for living things. Let’s use ourselves as an example. Very high-energy photons are called “gamma rays,” and they are measured in rads. Moderate energy photons, such as those coming from the sun and landing on you right now, aren’t too dangerous. Gamma rays, however, are another matter. About one thousand rads of gamma rays will kill a person.

1 bacterium   

n.(pl.)bacteria 细菌

参考例句：

• The bacterium possibly goes in the human body by the mouth.细菌可能通过口进入人体。
• A bacterium is identified as the cause for his duodenal ulcer.一种细菌被断定为造成他十二指肠溃疡的根源。

2 microscopic   

adj.微小的，细微的，极小的，显微的

参考例句：

• It's impossible to read his microscopic handwriting.不可能看清他那极小的书写字迹。
• A plant's lungs are the microscopic pores in its leaves.植物的肺就是其叶片上微细的气孔。