VOA慢速英语2009-SCIENCE IN THE NEWS - Working to Improve the

VOICE ONE:

This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Doug Johnson. This week, we tell about Everglades National Park in the American state of Florida. We also tell about an effort to improve the condition of this important natural treasure.

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VOICE ONE:

When many people think of Florida, images of sandy coastlines or theme park rides come to mind. But about an hour south of Miami lies a natural wilderness¹ different from anywhere else in the United States.

Everglades National Park is the largest subtropical wilderness in the country. The park is home to several rare and endangered species. It is also the third largest national park in the lower forty-eight states, after Death Valley and Yellowstone. More than one million people visit the Everglades each year.

VOICE TWO:
　
An egret in a cypress² swamp

In nineteen forty-seven, President Harry³ Truman spoke⁴ at a ceremony establishing the Everglades National Park. He said the goal of creating the park was to protect forever a wild area that cannot be replaced.

The Everglades is considered one of the great biological wonders of the world. The expansive wetlands stretch across more than six hundred thousand hectares. It is a place where plants and animals from the Caribbean Sea share an ecosystem⁵ with native North American species.

Nine different environments exist within the Everglades. They include mangrove⁶ and cypress swamps, estuaries⁷ and coastal⁸ marshes⁹.

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VOICE ONE:

In the nineteen-forties, Marjory Stoneman Douglas wrote a book called, "The Everglades: River of Grass." She described the area as, "the liquid heart of Florida."

Unlike most other national parks, Everglades National Park was created to protect an ecosystem from damage. The Everglades is home to thirty-six species that are considered threatened or protected. They include the Florida panther, the American crocodile and the West Indian manatee¹⁰. In addition, more than three hundred fifty bird species and three hundred species of fresh and saltwater fish live within the park. The Everglades is also home to forty species of mammals and fifty reptile¹¹ species.

VOICE TWO:

Exotic plants can also be found in the Everglades. They include what is said to be the largest growth of mangrove trees in the western half of the world. Gumbo-limbo trees, known for their peeling red skin, strangler figs¹² and royal palms are also among the area's plant life. The Everglades is also home to the country's largest living mahogany tree. Sawgrass grows in some areas of the park. Be careful – it is very sharp, with teeth just like a saw. It can grow up to four meters tall.

With about one and one-half meters of rainfall each year, plants and trees never stop growing in the Everglades. That is why it is hard to tell a powerful storm, Hurricane Andrew, caused severe damage to the area in nineteen ninety-two.

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VOICE ONE:
　
An American crocodile

The dry, winter season is the favorite of most visitors, when insects like mosquitoes are less of a problem. The rainy season lasts from June to November. There are many ways to explore the Everglades. Visitors could see alligators¹³ while hiking the Anhinga Trail. The Everglades is the only place on Earth where fresh water alligators and saltwater crocodiles live in the same area. Visitors using canoes or airboats are likely to see large groups of wading¹⁴ birds like the wood stork¹⁵ or great blue heron. It is even possible to see flamingos¹⁶ in the Everglades.

Some might enjoy riding bicycles through Shark Valley, while others may want to move slowly through shallow waters where insects and wildlife can be seen up-close. Park guides also lead visitors on tours with tram cars.

VOICE TWO:

This spring, Everglades National Park launched a visitation program to what was once a highly restricted military base. Park officials are working to recover a missile base used in the nineteen sixties. The base played a part in the nuclear tensions between the United States and the Soviet¹⁷ Union.

The government built the Florida base shortly after the discovery of Soviet missiles about three hundred kilometers away, on the island of Cuba. Tensions were high during the Cuban missile crisis. But missiles stored at the American base were never fired.

The base was closed and all missile equipment was removed in the nineteen seventies. Today only the buildings remain.

This year, the historic area had many visitors, including former American service members who remember the missile crisis. The park hopes to offer more trips next spring, to help support the history for those who lived through it and for future generations.

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VOICE ONE:

Experts say changes to the Everglades are threatening several different kinds of wildlife. They say the threats are a result of actions the United States government began more than fifty years ago, and settlers began even earlier.

The National Park Service says early colonial settlers and land developers thought the Everglades had little value. The settlers had plans to remove water from the area and in the eighteen eighties developers began digging drainage canals. At the time, they did not understand the complexity¹⁸ of the Everglades' ecosystem. As a result, they were not prepared for all the work and caused environmental problems. The ecosystem, however, was able to survive.

VOICE TWO:

Even larger efforts to drain the wetlands continued between nineteen oh five and nineteen ten. Large areas were changed to farmland. This led to increased development, with more people moving to the Everglades and also more visitors.

More changes came in nineteen forty-eight, when Congress approved the Central and South Florida Project. As part of the plan, the Army Corps¹⁹ of Engineers built roads, canals and water-control systems throughout South Florida. The aim of the project was to provide water and flood protection for developed areas and agriculture. Workers built a huge system of waterways and pumping stations to control the overflow²⁰ of Lake Okeechobee, north of the Everglades.

VOICE ONE:

Today, fifty percent of south Florida's early wetland areas no longer exist. Populations of wading birds have been reduced by ninety percent. Whole populations of animals are in danger of disappearing. The endangered creatures include the manatee, the Miami blackhead snake, the wood stork and the Florida panther.

In recent years, environmental experts have learned about the damage to the Everglades. They say the natural balance of plants and animals has been destroyed.

VOICE TWO:

Recently, the Obama administration promised three hundred sixty million dollars to pay for Everglades restoration this year. The administration is also asking that Congress approve an additional two hundred seventy-eight million dollars for next year.

The money will help to support projects approved by the government nine years ago. The projects include improving wetlands in the Picayune Strand²¹ in Southwest Florida and repairs to Lake Okeechobee's dike²². Until now, the state of Florida has spent the most money on the project.

VOICE ONE:
　
A Burmese python

Another threat biologists have been battling for years in the Everglades is the area's population of Burmese pythons. Officials believe there are as many as one hundred fifty thousand of these large snakes in the Everglades. But the snakes are a foreign species, native to Southeast Asia. Owners of pythons left their unwanted snakes in the Everglades years ago.

Biologists say adult pythons are able to eat small deer and bobcats. When pythons are found in the Everglades, they are often killed. Scientists are now experimenting with other ways to remove the snakes, including trapping methods and offering payments to hunters.

The future of the Everglades is not clear. However efforts to protect the area are continuing so people that from all over the world may continue visiting this biological treasure.

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VOICE TWO:

This SCIENCE IN THE NEWS program was written by Brianna Blake, who was also our producer. I'm Doug Johnson.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Faith Lapidus. Read and listen to our programs at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for more news about science in Special English on the Voice of America.

1 wilderness   

n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

2 cypress   

n.柏树

参考例句：

• The towering pine and cypress trees defy frost and snow.松柏参天傲霜雪。
• The pine and the cypress remain green all the year round.苍松翠柏，常绿不凋。

3 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 ecosystem   

n.生态系统

参考例句：

• This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
• We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。

6 mangrove   

n.(植物)红树，红树林

参考例句：

• It is the world's largest tidal mangrove forest.它是世界上最大的红树林沼泽地。
• Many consider this the most beautiful mangrove forest in all Thailand.许多人认为这里是全泰国最美丽的红树林了。

7 estuaries   

（江河入海的）河口，河口湾( estuary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We also recognize the diversity and complexity of controlling in fluences in estuaries. 我们也认识到在河湾内控制影响的多样性和复杂性。
• Estuaries also contribute to economy through tourism and fishing. 河口还为人类提供了休闲和教育的场所。

8 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

9 marshes   

n.沼泽，湿地( marsh的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Cows were grazing on the marshes. 牛群在湿地上吃草。
• We had to cross the marshes. 我们不得不穿过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 manatee   

n.海牛

参考例句：

• We watched dolphin,manatee,sea lion and whale shows.我们看了海豚、海牛、海狮和鲸的表演。
• One of the most extraordinary river creatures is Amazonian manatee.其中河里最特别的生物之一要数亚马孙海牛。

11 reptile   

n.爬行动物；两栖动物

参考例句：

• The frog is not a true reptile.青蛙并非真正的爬行动物。
• So you should not be surprised to see someone keep a reptile as a pet.所以，你不必惊奇有人养了一只爬行动物作为宠物。

12 figs   

figures 数字，图形，外形

参考例句：

• The effect of ring dyeing is shown in Figs 10 and 11. 环形染色的影响如图10和图11所示。
• The results in Figs. 4 and 5 show the excellent agreement between simulation and experiment. 图4和图5的结果都表明模拟和实验是相当吻合的。

13 alligators   

n.短吻鳄( alligator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Two alligators rest their snouts on the water's surface. 两只鳄鱼的大嘴栖息在水面上。 来自辞典例句
• In the movement of logs by water the lumber industry was greatly helped by alligators. 木材工业过去在水上运输木料时所十分倚重的就是鳄鱼。 来自辞典例句

14 wading   

（从水、泥等）蹚，走过，跋( wade的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The man tucked up his trousers for wading. 那人卷起裤子，准备涉水。
• The children were wading in the sea. 孩子们在海水中走着。

15 stork   

n.鹳

参考例句：

• A Fox invited a long-beaked Stork to have dinner with him.狐狸请长嘴鹳同他一起吃饭。
• He is very glad that his wife's going to get a visit from the stork.他为她的妻子将获得参观鹳鸟的机会感到非常高兴。

16 flamingos   

n.红鹳，火烈鸟（羽毛粉红、长颈的大涉禽）( flamingo的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Flamingos stand in a salt lake in Larnaca, Cyprus. 塞浦路斯的拉纳卡市一个盐湖中的火烈鸟。 来自互联网
• The research started researchers studied greater flamingos and in a bird sanctuary in southern Spain. 研究人员在西班牙南部的一个鸟类保护区对大型火烈鸟进行研究。 来自互联网

17 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

18 complexity   

n.复杂(性)，复杂的事物

参考例句：

• Only now did he understand the full complexity of the problem.直到现在他才明白这一问题的全部复杂性。
• The complexity of the road map puzzled me.错综复杂的公路图把我搞糊涂了。

19 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

20 overflow   

v.(使)外溢，(使)溢出；溢出，流出，漫出

参考例句：

• The overflow from the bath ran on to the floor.浴缸里的水溢到了地板上。
• After a long period of rain,the river may overflow its banks.长时间的下雨天后，河水可能溢出岸来。

21 strand   

vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地）

参考例句：

• She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears.她把一缕散发夹到了耳后。
• The climbers had been stranded by a storm.登山者被暴风雨困住了。

22 dike   

n.堤，沟；v.开沟排水

参考例句：

• They dug a dike along walls of the school.他们沿校墙挖沟。
• Fortunately,the flood did not break the dike.还好，这场大水没有把堤坝冲坏。