SSS 2008-12-01
时间：2019-01-08 作者：英语课 分类：Scientific American(十二)月
This is Scientific American's 60-Second Science. I'm Cynthia Graber. This will just take a minute.
It may look like just another animal. But one kind of lowly sea slug actually has the solar power abilities of a plant. Bizarre but true, the sea slug carries out photosynthesis 1. This finding was published in the Proceedings 2 of the National Academy of Sciences.
Usually, plants perform photosynthesis by way of tiny organelles called plastids. Plastids convert sunlight, water and carbon dioxide into usable nutrients 3. Then animals eat the plants. But the sea slug goes about it slightly differently.
It has at least one gene 4 necessary for photosynthesis—so far it’s the only animal known with this ability. But it needs some help, the gene itself isn’t enough. So sea slugs eat algae 5. They slit 6 open the organisms and suck out the cytoplasm. The slugs digest most of the algae, but those plastids remain whole and undigested. And then the plastids keep on doing what they do, which is convert sunlight to usable energy. Once the sea slug has eaten enough algae, and gained enough plastids, it can live off just sunlight for up to nine months. When it comes to energy, this slug needs no plug.
Thanks for the minute for Scientific American's 60-Second Science. I'm Cynthia Graber.
- In apple trees photosynthesis occurs almost exclusively in the leaves.苹果树的光合作用几乎只发生在叶内。
- Chloroplasts are the structures in which photosynthesis happens.叶绿体就是光合作用发生的地方。
- He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
- to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼
- a lack of essential nutrients 基本营养的缺乏
- Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream. 营养素被吸收进血液。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
- The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。
- 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。