普通高中课程标准实验教科书 英语选修9 Unit 3 Australia-Using

Reading and discussing

Before you read the following text, read the title and look at the pictures. Discuss with a partner what you expect to read about in the text.

                                                  AUSTRALIA’S DANGEROUS CREATURES

       Australia is home to more than 170 different kinds of snake and 115 of these are poisonous. In fact, Australia has more kinds of venomous snake than any other country in the world. Luckily, the poison of most snakes can kill or paralyze² only small creatures.A few varieties, however, can kill humans, so it is just as well that snakes are very shy and usually attack only if they are disturbed and feel threatened.

 

      There are also approximately 2,000 different kinds of spider in Australia and, like snakes, most have a poisonous bite. However, the majority have no effect on humans or cause only mild sickness.Only a few have venom¹ that is powerful enough to kill a human being. While a small number of Australians are bitten by spiders each year, most recover without any medical treatment.

       The seas around Australia contain over 160 different kinds of shark, which vary³ in size from just 20 centimetres to over 14 metres. However, although they look dangerous because of their wide mouths and sharp teeth, all but two or three kinds are harmless⁴ to humans.

        Another potentially dangerous sea animal is the jellyfish. Most kinds of poisonous jellyfish can cause severe pain to anyone who touches them but the poison of the box jellyfish can actually kill a human, especially if that person has a weak heart. The tiniest amount of poison from a box jellyfish can kill in less than five minutes and it is probably the most poisonous animal in the world.

        There is one other dangerous animal in Australia worth mentioning, and that is the crocodile. Although two types of crocodile live in Australia, only the saltwater crocodile has been known to kill humans. This crocodile moves very quickly when it sees something it considers to be food, and from time to time a crocodile has snatched⁵ someone before he or she is even aware that the crocodile is there.

         You might think that with all these dangerous animals Australia is an unsafe place to live in or visit. However, this is far from the truth. There are no more than a handful⁶ of shark attacks each year and only three deaths have been reported in the last five years.Similarly⁷, in the last three years there have been only two reported deaths from crocodile attacks. Since 1956, when an anti-venom treatment for redback spider bites was developed, there have been no deaths from redbacks, and since 1981 when a treatment was developed for funnelweb spider poison, there have been no deaths from this spider either. Treatments for jellyfish stings⁸ and s~aakebites have also been developed and in the last five years there have been only three deaths from jellyfish stings and about the same number from snakebites.

1 venom   

n.毒液，恶毒，痛恨

参考例句：

• The snake injects the venom immediately after biting its prey.毒蛇咬住猎物之后马上注入毒液。
• In fact,some components of the venom may benefit human health.事实上，毒液的某些成分可能有益于人类健康。

2 paralyze   

vt.使瘫痪，使丧失作用，使呆若木鸡

参考例句：

• The fear that you might make a mistake or fail in your efforts can paralyze your progress.担心你可能会犯错或者你的努力将会失败，这会阻碍你的进步。
• The snake uses its venom to stun or paralyze its victims.蛇用其毒液使受害者失去知觉或瘫痪。

3 vary   

vi.变化，有不同；vt.改变，使不同

参考例句：

• Cherries vary in colour from almost black to yellow.樱桃的颜色由近乎黑到黄各不相同。
• Old people don't like to vary their habits.老年人不喜欢改变他们的习惯。

4 harmless   

adj.无害的，无恶意的

参考例句：

• This experiment was harmless to the animals.这个试验不会对动物造成伤害。
• He was a harmless sort.他是一个不怀恶意的人。

5 snatched   

突然伸手拿取，攫取，抓住( snatch的过去式和过去分词 )； 抓紧时间做； 乘机获得； 夺去

参考例句：

• The boy snatched a piece of cake and ate it hungrily. 男孩抢过一块饼便贪婪地吃起来。
• The thief snatched her handbag and ran. 盗贼抢了她的手提包就跑。

6 handful   

n.一把；少量，少数，一小撮

参考例句：

• We invited 30 people, but only a handful came.我们邀请了30人，但是只到了几个人。
• He pulled out a handful of coins from his pocket.他从口袋里掏出一把硬币。

7 similarly   

adv.类似地，相似地

参考例句：

• He was late and I similarly was delayed.他迟到了，我也晚了。
• These two pages are similarly glued together.这两页好像粘在一起了。

8 stings   

螫伤处( sting的名词复数 )； （某些昆虫的）毒刺； （身体或心灵的）剧痛； （警察为抓捕罪犯而设的）圈套

参考例句：

• Falsehood like a nettle stings those who meddle with it. 谎言似荨麻，玩弄会刺手。
• This cream contains a mild analgesic to soothe stings and bites. 这种乳膏含有一种性能平和的止痛剂，能缓解被螫咬后的疼痛。