VOA标准英语2010年-Australian, New Zealand Scientists Con

The researchers will sail for Antarctica early next month, in an expedition funded by the Australian and New Zealand governments.
 
The scientists hope their journey to the Southern Ocean will help to disprove Japan's claims that whales have to be killed to properly study them.
 
During their six-week voyage, researchers will employ a range of techniques to unlock some of the secrets of the giant marine¹ mammals.
 
They will fire darts² from small air rifles to collect blubber and skin for genetic³ testing, and to attach satellite-tracking tags to monitor the whales. Samples of dung will also be gathered, photographs taken, and acoustic⁴ instruments will record the animals' distinctive⁵ calls.
 
Nick Gales⁶ from the Australian Antarctic Division leads the expedition. He thinks it will show that Japan's arguments for whale hunting are misguided.

"Anyone can always come up with a project that you have to kill an animal to measure something," he said.  "But the important question is whether or not you need that information and our view very strongly is that, you know, all of that type of information that is relevant to the conservation and management of whales can be gathered using new and very powerful non-lethal tools."

Japan says there are genuine scientific reasons for why it needs to kill hundreds of whales each year in Antarctic waters.
 
Critics, including the Australian and New Zealand governments, say such arguments are a cover for the sale and consumption of whale meat, which is banned under an international moratorium⁷ on commercial hunting.
 
Japan's whaling fleet is currently on its annual hunt in the icy waters of the Southern Ocean, where it aims to catch about 1,000 whales.

 

1 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• 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。

2 darts   

n.掷飞镖游戏；飞镖( dart的名词复数 )；急驰，飞奔v.投掷，投射( dart的第三人称单数 )；向前冲，飞奔

参考例句：

• His darts trophy takes pride of place on the mantelpiece. 他将掷镖奖杯放在壁炉顶上最显著的地方。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I never saw so many darts in a bodice! 我从没见过紧身胸衣上纳了这么多的缝褶！ 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 genetic   

adj.遗传的，遗传学的

参考例句：

• It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
• Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。

4 acoustic   

adj.听觉的，声音的；(乐器)原声的

参考例句：

• The hall has a fine acoustic.这个大厅的传音效果很好。
• Animals use a whole rang of acoustic, visual,and chemical signals in their systems of communication.动物利用各种各样的听觉、视觉和化学信号来进行交流。

5 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。

6 gales   

龙猫

参考例句：

• I could hear gales of laughter coming from downstairs. 我能听到来自楼下的阵阵笑声。
• This was greeted with gales of laughter from the audience. 观众对此报以阵阵笑声。

7 moratorium   

n.(行动、活动的)暂停(期)，延期偿付

参考例句：

• The government has called for a moratorium on weapons testing.政府已要求暂停武器试验。
• We recommended a moratorium on two particular kinds of experiments.我们建议暂禁两种特殊的实验。