VOA标准英语2012--Rwanda's 'Specialty Coffee' Under Attack by Stink Bugs

Rwanda's 'Specialty¹ Coffee' Under Attack by Stink² Bugs⁴

Rwanda is gaining a worldwide reputation for its bourbon and other specialty coffee, a crop grown in the country's rich volcanic⁵ soils. Specialty coffee comprises almost one-third of Rwanda's agricultural exports. But a sizable portion of the crop is being compromised by a defect called "potato taste." There is growing evidence that potato taste may be in part caused by the antestia, or "stink bug³."
At the beginning of January, University of California entomologist Thomas Miller⁶ joined a team of Rwandan researchers to examine the causes and impacts of potato taste, and its possible connection to the antestia bug. Cathy Majtenyi asked Professor Miller more about his research trip.
MAJTENYI: "Describe what is meant by specialty coffee."
MILLER: "Ordinary coffee does not have any taste qualifications, but specialty coffee is very much like the wine industry: the taste and smell and odor is everything. And they have strict standards that they use to judge the quality of the coffee crop. Usually the bourbon variety of arabica coffee is the one that they use for that. Specialty coffees usually are determined⁸ by the buyers. They are based on this very strict, what they call "cupping" taste process. Specialty coffee has very high standards, and in fact it is very common to lose upwards⁹ of a third or a fourth of the crop because it does not meet the standards."
MAJTENYI: "Potato taste" has been defined as a defect that compromises the quality of coffee and is threatening to deter⁷ international buyers from purchasing Rwandan coffee. Tell me more about potato taste and what causes this defect."
MILLER: "Potato taste is something that the tasters come up with. For want of a better word, they have dozens and dozens of characteristic potato flavors: walnut¹⁰, berry, cedar¹¹, a whole bunch of them. To me, it tastes like old toenails. It has to do with the subtle aroma¹² and taste of the coffee. For some reason, potato taste is peculiar¹³ to this East African area. It may have something to do with the volcanic soil. It may have something to do with the insect complex that is unique here. The exact cause of potato taste is not really known because there are so many elements that go into the final taste of coffee.
MAJTENYI: "You and your team were in Rwanda under the auspices¹⁴ of the Global Knowledge Initiative. You indicated that you wanted to learn more about potato taste and its possible connection with the antestia bug. What are you doing with the knowledge that you gained?"
MILLER: "Global Knowledge Initiative hopes at the end of this process to put in place the steps necessary to address the potato taste problem broadly. They asked me to participate because I am giving them advice on how to include work on the bug, because there is a loose association between potato taste and the bug. We are collecting biological samples in collaboration¹⁵ with the industry here and the university (National University of Rwanda). We are designing approaches to put together teams to address the issue. My purpose is to help them collaborate¹⁶ and connect with other people in the world who can weigh in on this problem."

1 specialty   

n.(speciality)特性，特质；专业，专长

参考例句：

• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town.贝雕是该城的特产。
• His specialty is English literature.他的专业是英国文学。

2 stink   

vi.发出恶臭；糟透，招人厌恶；n.恶臭

参考例句：

• The stink of the rotten fish turned my stomach.腐烂的鱼臭味使我恶心。
• The room has awful stink.那个房间散发着难闻的臭气。

3 bug   

n.虫子；故障；窃听器；vt.纠缠；装窃听器

参考例句：

• There is a bug in the system.系统出了故障。
• The bird caught a bug on the fly.那鸟在飞行中捉住了一只昆虫。

4 bugs   

adj.疯狂的，发疯的n.窃听器( bug的名词复数 )；病菌；虫子；[计算机]（制作软件程序所产生的意料不到的）错误

参考例句：

• All programs have bugs and need endless refinement. 所有的程序都有漏洞，都需要不断改进。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 volcanic   

adj.火山的；象火山的；由火山引起的

参考例句：

• There have been several volcanic eruptions this year.今年火山爆发了好几次。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

6 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

7 deter   

vt.阻止，使不敢，吓住

参考例句：

• Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
• Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。

8 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

9 upwards   

adv.向上，在更高处...以上

参考例句：

• The trend of prices is still upwards.物价的趋向是仍在上涨。
• The smoke rose straight upwards.烟一直向上升。

10 walnut   

n.胡桃，胡桃木，胡桃色，茶色

参考例句：

• Walnut is a local specialty here.核桃是此地的土特产。
• The stool comes in several sizes in walnut or mahogany.凳子有几种尺寸，材质分胡桃木和红木两种。

11 cedar   

n.雪松，香柏(木)

参考例句：

• The cedar was about five feet high and very shapely.那棵雪松约有五尺高,风姿优美。
• She struck the snow from the branches of an old cedar with gray lichen.她把长有灰色地衣的老雪松树枝上的雪打了下来。

12 aroma   

n.香气，芬芳，芳香

参考例句：

• The whole house was filled with the aroma of coffee.满屋子都是咖啡的香味。
• The air was heavy with the aroma of the paddy fields.稻花飘香。

13 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

14 auspices   

n.资助，赞助

参考例句：

• The association is under the auspices of Word Bank.这个组织是在世界银行的赞助下办的。
• The examination was held under the auspices of the government.这次考试是由政府主办的。

15 collaboration   

n.合作，协作；勾结

参考例句：

• The two companies are working in close collaboration each other.这两家公司密切合作。
• He was shot for collaboration with the enemy.他因通敌而被枪毙了。

16 collaborate   

vi.协作，合作；协调

参考例句：

• The work gets done more quickly when we collaborate.我们一旦合作，工作做起来就更快了。
• I would ask you to collaborate with us in this work.我们愿意请你们在这项工作中和我们合作。