A common moth pest had a slur in its name; now it's getting a makeover

A common moth¹ pest had a slur² in its name; now it's getting a makeover

Transcript³

An invasive moth responsible for hundreds of millions of dollars damage has a new name. Up until now, this moth's common name contained a derogatory term for Romani people.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

OK. This is a real situation. You've got the common name for a widely recognized forest pest, and that common name contains a racial slur. So how do you rename it? Jane Lindholm of Vermont Public Radio has the story of a moth who's getting a makeover. And we should warn, we are going to identify that slur in this story.

JANE LINDHOLM, BYLINE⁴: Last summer where I live in western Vermont, some of our normally lush green forests turned into post-apocalyptic landscapes as millions of marauding caterpillars⁶ chewed their way through the foliage⁷, stripping trees bare and raining poop down on unsuspecting hikers. Jessica Ware⁸ is president of the Entomological Society of America.

JESSICA WARE: They basically, like the Very Hungry Caterpillar⁵, are just chewing their way through deciduous⁹ forests. But it's actually, like, a very huge economic devastation¹⁰ that we're talking about for Lymantria dispar.

LINDHOLM: And we've been talking about Lymantria dispar a lot in places this moth is doing damage, except people have been using its common name, Gypsy Moth. And Ware says that's a problem.

WARE: There's no need, really, in 2022 to have racial slurs¹¹ in insect names.

LINDHOLM: So last year, the Entomological Society ramped¹² up an initiative to address this and other insects in need of rebranding. The core group for this moth included 57 people of diverse backgrounds and lots of public suggestions and input¹³. And not to keep you waiting, this moth now has an official new name - Spongy Moth. The egg masses of this species are kind of spongy-looking as they overwinter on trees. And that name fits well with what the moth is called in other languages and countries.

MAGDA MATACHE: I love the new name, Spongy Moth.

LINDHOLM: Magda Matache is a Romani scholar and director of The Roma Program at Harvard University. She was part of the core group working to change the old name.

MATACHE: It equated¹⁴ our people to insects. And, second, Gypsy is considered a racial slur by many Romani people. It carries a very painful history, and it is offensive.

LINDHOLM: Of course, changing the name of one insect is just a small step in combating anti-Romani racism¹⁵.

MATACHE: But yet it is an extraordinary step that can push others to demand name change of businesses, events, websites, fashion collections, cakes, drinks, food that include the G-word.

LINDHOLM: And not just the G-word. Americans are still coming to terms with name changes for all kinds of things, from national parks to academic and community buildings to birds. It can take a while for these new names to catch on and for people to stop saying, you know, the thing that used to be called, whatever. But for this moth, the current multiyear outbreak we're in is actually a good thing. It gives people a lot of opportunity to practice the new name - Spongy Moth. For NPR News, I'm Jane Lindholm in Vermont.

1 moth   

n.蛾，蛀虫

参考例句：

• A moth was fluttering round the lamp.有一只蛾子扑打着翅膀绕着灯飞。
• The sweater is moth-eaten.毛衣让蛀虫咬坏了。

2 slur   

v.含糊地说；诋毁；连唱；n.诋毁；含糊的发音

参考例句：

• He took the remarks as a slur on his reputation.他把这些话当作是对他的名誉的中伤。
• The drug made her speak with a slur.药物使她口齿不清。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 caterpillar   

n.毛虫，蝴蝶的幼虫

参考例句：

• A butterfly is produced by metamorphosis from a caterpillar.蝴蝶是由毛虫脱胎变成的。
• A caterpillar must pass through the cocoon stage to become a butterfly.毛毛虫必须经过茧的阶段才能变成蝴蝶。

6 caterpillars   

n.毛虫( caterpillar的名词复数 )；履带

参考例句：

• Caterpillars eat the young leaves of this plant. 毛毛虫吃这种植物的嫩叶。
• Caterpillars change into butterflies or moths. 毛虫能变成蝴蝶或蛾子。 来自辞典例句

7 foliage   

n.叶子，树叶，簇叶

参考例句：

• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage.小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。
• Dark foliage clothes the hills.浓密的树叶覆盖着群山。

8 ware   

n.(常用复数)商品，货物

参考例句：

• The shop sells a great variety of porcelain ware.这家店铺出售品种繁多的瓷器。
• Good ware will never want a chapman.好货不须叫卖。

9 deciduous   

adj.非永久的；短暂的；脱落的；落叶的

参考例句：

• Overgrown deciduous shrubs can be cut back at this time of year.过于繁茂的落叶灌木可以在每年的这个时候修剪。
• Deciduous trees shed their leaves in autumn.落叶树木在秋天落叶。

10 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 slurs   

含糊的发音( slur的名词复数 )； 玷污； 连奏线； 连唱线

参考例句：

• One should keep one's reputation free from all slurs. 人应该保持名誉不受责备。
• Racial slurs, racial jokes, all having to do with being Asian. 种族主义辱骂，种族笑话，都是跟亚裔有关的。

12 ramped   

土堤斜坡( ramp的过去式和过去分词 )； 斜道； 斜路； （装车或上下飞机的）活动梯

参考例句：

• With the arrival of George Lucas, the pace has ramped up. 随着乔治·卢卡斯的到来，速度大大加快。
• They also sold corporate bonds as the global financial crisis ramped up. 在全球金融危机加剧之际，他们还抛售了公司债券。

13 input   

n.输入(物)；投入；vt.把(数据等)输入计算机

参考例句：

• I will forever be grateful for his considerable input.我将永远感激他的大量投入。
• All this information had to be input onto the computer.所有这些信息都必须输入计算机。

14 equated   

adj.换算的v.认为某事物（与另一事物）相等或相仿( equate的过去式和过去分词 )；相当于；等于；把（一事物） 和（另一事物）等同看待

参考例句：

• Production costs for the movie equated to around 30% of income. 这部电影的制作成本相当于收益的30%。
• Politics cannot be equated with art. 政治不能同艺术等同起来。

15 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。