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当前位置:首页 -> 12级英语阅读 - > 纽约:百年古树将被克隆
纽约:百年古树将被克隆
添加时间:2014-07-24 08:55:38 浏览次数: 作者:未知
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  • Squat1, homely2, dwarfed3 by the stately oaks and poplars nearby and unnoticed by the tourists passing in horse-drawn carriages, it's a tree that only birds and nut-hungry squirrels could love.

    But on Thursday, the 100-year-old European beech4 on Central Park's Cherry Hill was the center of attention - chosen by New York city officials as the first of 25 "historical" trees to be cloned as part of a plan announced last year to add a million new trees to streets, parks and public spaces over the next decade.

    Agriculture students from a Queens high school rode hydraulic-powered tree-trimmers' buckets to upper branches of the 60-foot tree and snipped5 off 6- to 12-inch sections of new growth, to be sent to a scientific tree nursery in eastern Oregon. If all goes well, the genetic6 copies will be sent back in two years to New York for replanting.

    "We want to break the stereotype7 of New York as skyscrapers8 and sidewalks," Parks Commissioner9 Adrian Benape said. "New York abounds10 in historical trees."

    The target trees include nine different species. All were selected by borough11 foresters as historical for having existed for at least a century - either as fixtures12 of the urban landscape or as having special significance to local communities.

    City partners in the cloning effort include the Central Park Conservancy, a private group that manages the 840-acre park; Bartlett Tree Experts, a century-old Connecticut-based company that has tree care contracts in New York, 25 other states, Canada, England and Ireland; the nonprofit Tree Fund, and the Coleman Co., a camping equipment maker13, whose coolers would be used to ship the cuttings to Oregon.

    David McMaster, a Bartlett vice14 president, said the cloning would target several "Olmsted trees," dating from the creation of Central Park by famed architect Frederick Law Olmsted in the late 1850s.

    Benape said being less than beautiful had no bearing on the European beech tree's potential contribution to a greener Gotham.

    "Like the other trees to be cloned, it has withstood the test of time and the indignities15 of urban life," he said. "These trees as a result tend to be hardier16 species, inherently disease resistant17. They are a great reaffirmation of the importance of nature in New York City - trees so good that people are looking to clone them."

     12级    英文科普 


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    1 squat [skwɒt] 2GRzp   第8级
    vi. 蹲,蹲下;蹲坐;蹲伏 vt. 使蹲坐,使蹲下 n. 蹲坐,蜷伏
    参考例句:
    • For this exercise you need to get into a squat. 在这次练习中你需要蹲下来。
    • He is a squat man. 他是一个矮胖的男人。
    2 homely [ˈhəʊmli] Ecdxo   第9级
    adj.家常的,简朴的;不漂亮的
    参考例句:
    • We had a homely meal of bread and cheese. 我们吃了一顿面包加乳酪的家常便餐。
    • Come and have a homely meal with us, will you? 来和我们一起吃顿家常便饭,好吗?
    3 dwarfed [] cf071ea166e87f1dffbae9401a9e8953   第7级
    vt.(使)显得矮小(dwarf的过去式与过去分词形式)
    参考例句:
    • The old houses were dwarfed by the huge new tower blocks. 这些旧房子在新建的高楼大厦的映衬下显得十分矮小。
    • The elephant dwarfed the tortoise. 那只乌龟跟那头象相比就显得很小。 来自《简明英汉词典》
    4 beech [bi:tʃ] uynzJF   第12级
    n.山毛榉;adj.山毛榉的
    参考例句:
    • Autumn is the time to see the beech woods in all their glory. 秋天是观赏山毛榉林的最佳时期。
    • Exasperated, he leaped the stream, and strode towards beech clump. 他满腔恼怒,跳过小河,踏步向毛榉林子走去。
    5 snipped [snɪpt] 826fea38bd27326bbaa2b6f0680331b5   第10级
    v.剪( snip的过去式和过去分词 )
    参考例句:
    • He snipped off the corner of the packet. 他将包的一角剪了下来。 来自辞典例句
    • The police officer snipped the tape and untied the hostage. 警方把胶带剪断,松绑了人质。 来自互联网
    6 genetic [dʒəˈnetɪk] PgIxp   第7级
    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。
    7 stereotype [ˈsteriətaɪp] rupwE   第7级
    n.固定的形象,陈规,老套,旧框框
    参考例句:
    • He's my stereotype of a schoolteacher. 他是我心目中的典型教师。
    • There's always been a stereotype about successful businessmen. 人们对于成功商人一直都有一种固定印象。
    8 skyscrapers ['skaɪˌskreɪpəz] f4158331c4e067c9706b451516137890   第7级
    n.摩天大楼
    参考例句:
    • A lot of skyscrapers in Manhattan are rising up to the skies. 曼哈顿有许多摩天大楼耸入云霄。
    • On all sides, skyscrapers rose like jagged teeth. 四周耸起的摩天大楼参差不齐。
    9 commissioner [kəˈmɪʃənə(r)] gq3zX   第8级
    n.(政府厅、局、处等部门)专员,长官,委员
    参考例句:
    • The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest. 专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
    • He was tapped for police commissioner. 他被任命为警务处长。
    10 abounds [əˈbaundz] e383095f177bb040b7344dc416ce6761   第7级
    v.大量存在,充满,富于( abound的第三人称单数 )
    参考例句:
    • The place abounds with fruit, especially pears and peaches. 此地盛产水果,尤以梨桃著称。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
    • This country abounds with fruit. 这个国家盛产水果。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
    11 borough [ˈbʌrə] EdRyS   第10级
    n.享有自治权的市镇;(英)自治市镇
    参考例句:
    • He was slated for borough president. 他被提名做自治区主席。
    • That's what happened to Harry Barritt of London's Bromley borough. 住在伦敦的布罗姆利自治市的哈里·巴里特就经历了此事。
    12 fixtures ['fɪkstʃəz] 9403e5114acb6bb59791a97291be54b5   第7级
    (房屋等的)固定装置( fixture的名词复数 ); 如(浴盆、抽水马桶); 固定在某位置的人或物; (定期定点举行的)体育活动
    参考例句:
    • The insurance policy covers the building and any fixtures contained therein. 保险单为这座大楼及其中所有的设施保了险。
    • The fixtures had already been sold and the sum divided. 固定设备已经卖了,钱也分了。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
    13 maker [ˈmeɪkə(r)] DALxN   第8级
    n.制造者,制造商
    参考例句:
    • He is a trouble maker. You must be distant with him. 他是个捣蛋鬼,你不要跟他在一起。
    • A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman. 家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。
    14 vice [vaɪs] NU0zQ   第7级
    n.坏事;恶习;[pl.]台钳,老虎钳;adj.副的
    参考例句:
    • He guarded himself against vice. 他避免染上坏习惯。
    • They are sunk in the depth of vice. 他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。
    15 indignities [ɪnˈdɪgnɪti:z] 35236fff3dcc4da192dc6ef35967f28d   第10级
    n.侮辱,轻蔑( indignity的名词复数 )
    参考例句:
    • The soldiers who were captured suffered many indignities at the hands of the enemy. 被俘的士兵在敌人手中受尽侮辱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
    • What sort of indignities would he be forced to endure? 他会被迫忍受什么样的侮辱呢? 来自辞典例句
    16 hardier [ˈhɑ:diə] fcf70bcabb392c207431e8f36824a930   第9级
    能吃苦耐劳的,坚强的( hardy的比较级 ); (植物等)耐寒的
    参考例句:
    • Theoretically, experiments with genes that confer resistance to disease or herbicides could create hardier weeds. 从理论上说,用含有抗病或抗除草剂的基因进行试验,可能产生更难于对付的杂草。
    • Similar fruit to Black Mission, but hardier and a smaller size tree than Mission. 类似加洲黑,但比加洲黑强壮,果比加洲黑更小的尺寸。
    17 resistant [rɪˈzɪstənt] 7Wvxh   第7级
    adj.(to)抵抗的,有抵抗力的
    参考例句:
    • Many pests are resistant to the insecticide. 许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
    • They imposed their government by force on the resistant population. 他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

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