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████    重点词汇
████    难点词汇
████    生僻词
████    词组 & 惯用语

[学习本文需要基础词汇量：4,000 ]
[本次分析采用基础词汇量：5,000 ]

These light-producing photophores beneath

their eyes may be used to
search out prey in the darkness.

Most bioluminescence in the deep sea
is blue or greenish-blue,

but a very few predatory fish
produce red light.

With this,
red prey becomes obvious in the darkness.

Red light is rare down here

and most animal eyes can't see it.

Only these fish can do so.

This gives them a sniper scope,
a headlight invisible to their targets.

This copepod, un-alarmed,
takes no avoiding action.

Bioluminescence is useful
in escape as well as attack.

A shrimp senses a threat.

lt spins in the water,
releasing a bioluminescent glue.

This acts like a burglar alarm,

startling the attacking fish
and leaving it

illuminated in the dark and

vulnerable to its own predators.

These twinkling lights in the darkness
are produced by copepods.

They probably flash like this
to communicate with one another

and confuse their predators.

The most sensitive eyes in the ocean

belong to an ostracod
called Gigantocypris.

lt's the size of a pea,
but that's enormous for an ostracod.

Copepods are a favourite prey

and it actively searches for
their flashes in the darkness.

But this copepod has a way of
confusing a hunting Gigantocypris.

lt discharges a packet
of bioluminescent liquid.

The flash is delayed, like a depth charge.

Spinning, confused, in the water,

Gigantocypris chases after the flashes.

And the copepod slips away
unseen into the darkness.

The ultimate bioluminescent
defence mechanism

has to be the light show created

by the deep sea jellyfish, Periphylla.

That, presumably,
is the way it scares away its enemies.

These bright lights
are all produced by firefly squid.

Normally, they live way down
at around three hundred metres,

beyond the reach of these
Japanese fishermen's nets.

But for a few months each Spring
they come to the surface every night.

The brightest lights come from

the bioluminescent tips of
their two front tentacles.

But it's only in the dark of the deep sea

that you can really appreciate
the full complexity of their displays.

lt's not just their tentacles,

but their whole bodies that are
covered in photophores.

The exact function is not clear.

The bright tentacle tips may be for
attracting mates or dazzling predators.

The rest may be camouflage

providing counter shading for the squid
as they journey up into the twilight zone.

Every night in the season

hundreds of thousands of squid journey up
into the shallow water to spawn.

Before dawn,
they will return to the depths

leaving their eggs to develop
in the shallows.

The daily cycle of the sun has a profound


知识点

重点词汇
pea [pi:] n. 豌豆 n. (Pea)人名；(意)佩亚 {gk cet4 cet6 ky :5226}

illuminated [ɪˈlu:mɪneɪtɪd] adj. 被照明的 v. 照明；启发；兴奋（illuminate的过去分词） { :5388}

startling [ˈstɑ:tlɪŋ] adj. 令人吃惊的 {toefl :5455}

spawn [spɔ:n] n. 卵；菌丝；产物 vt. 产卵；酿成，造成；大量生产 vi. 产卵；大量生产 {toefl gre :6476}

twilight [ˈtwaɪlaɪt] adj. 黎明，黄昏；薄暮；衰退期；朦胧状态 n. 黄昏；薄暮；衰退期；朦胧状态 {cet6 ielts :6896}

glue [glu:] n. 胶；各种胶合物 vt. 粘合；似胶般固着于 {gk cet4 cet6 ky toefl ielts :7268}

burglar [ˈbɜ:glə(r)] n. 夜贼，窃贼 {gk cet6 ky toefl ielts :7271}

tentacles ['təntəkəlz] n. [动] 触手；[动] 触须（tentacle的复数） { :7471}

tentacle [ˈtentəkl] n. 触手，[动] 触须，[动] 触角 {toefl ielts :7471}

unseen [ˌʌnˈsi:n] n. （事前未看过原文的）即席翻译 adj. 看不见的，未看见的；未经预习的 { :8001}

sniper [ˈsnaɪpə(r)] n. 狙击兵 { :8073}

headlight [ˈhedlaɪt] n. 汽车等的前灯；船上的桅灯；矿工和医生用的帽灯 { :8074}

dazzling [ˈdæzlɪŋ] adj. 耀眼的；眼花缭乱的 v. 使…眼花（dazzle的ing形式） {toefl :8568}

Lt [ ] abbr. 书信电报（letter message）；数据处理（Language Translation） { :9242}

predatory [ˈpredətri] adj. 掠夺的，掠夺成性的；食肉的；捕食生物的 {toefl :11039}

squid [skwɪd] n. 鱿鱼；乌贼；枪乌贼 {gk :11582}

camouflage [ˈkæməflɑ:ʒ] n. 伪装，掩饰 vt. 伪装，掩饰 vi. 伪装起来 {toefl gre :12127}

twinkling [ˈtwɪŋklɪŋ] n. 闪烁；瞬间 adj. 闪烁的；闪亮的 v. 闪烁（twinkling的ing形式） { :12769}


难点词汇
firefly [ˈfaɪəflaɪ] n. [昆] 萤火虫 {gre :16424}

jellyfish [ˈdʒelifɪʃ] n. 水母；[无脊椎] 海蜇；软弱无能的人 {toefl :18731}

copepod ['kəʊpəpɒd] n. 桡足动物 adj. 桡脚类动物的 { :37069}

copepods [kəʊp'pɒdz] 桡足类 { :37069}

bioluminescent [baɪə'lu:mɪnsnt] adj. 生物性发光的 { :38615}

bioluminescence [ˌbaɪəʊlu:mɪˈnesns] n. 生物体之发光 { :39300}


复习词汇
darkness [ˈdɑ:knəs] n. 黑暗；模糊；无知；阴郁 {gk :2508}


生僻词
ostracod ['ɒstrəˌkɒd] n. 介形亚纲动物

photophores [ ] n. 【动】(发光动物的)发光器官 [网络] 发光体


词组
a packet [ ] [网络] 一包；小包；在手边放一包

a packet of [ ] det. 一包 [网络] 一盒；一袋；是一袋

before dawn [ ] [网络] 黎明之前；爱在暴风的日子；破晓之前

burglar alarm [ˈbə:ɡlə əˈlɑ:m] n. 防盗铃 [网络] 防盗警报器；防盗报警器；防盗警钟

firefly squid [ ] 萤乌贼

flash in [ ] 将底片成正片再曝光以改变其(清晰度或色调)

in the darkness [ ] [网络] 在黑暗中；黑暗之中；我在黑暗中

invisible to [ ] [网络] 不可见的；看不见的；不成见的

predatory fish [ ] [网络] 掠食性鱼类；捕食性鱼类；食鱼性鱼

scare ... away [ ] [网络] 吓跑；把…吓跑；吓走

scare away [skeə əˈwei] <非正>使（某人）望而却步，吓跑…

shallow water [ ] un. 浅水 [网络] 浅水区；浅水区域；浅水湿地

the twilight zone [ ] [网络] 阴阳魔界；暮光领域；迷离境界

twilight zone [ˈtwailait zəun] na. 【无线】半阴影区 [网络] 阴阳魔界；微明区；新阴阳魔界



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