Foundations Reading 6B

Chap 12

第12章

Reading 6B FATAL ATTRACTION A hungry fly speeds through a forest. It smells nectar and lands on a green leaf. It starts to drink the sweet liquid. Suddenly, the fly's world turns green. The two sides of the leaf close against each other. Long green teeth lock together around it. The fly has been caught by a Venus flytrap. There is no escape. The Venus flytrap is perhaps the most famous killer plant. However, scientists have only recently started to understand how it hunts and eats. After years of study, plant scientist Alexander Volkov believes he now knows the Venus flytrap's secret. "This," says Volkov, "is an electrical plant." There are three small hairs along each of the Venus flytrap's two leaves. When an insect touches a hair, it creates an electrical signal in the leaf. The insect can continue feeding—for now. But if it touches another hair within 20 seconds, the trap snaps shut. This system allows the plant to tell the difference between a drop of water, for example, and a moving creature. Once trapped, an insect has little chance of survival. Instead of nectar, the Venus flytrap now releases a different liquid—one that slowly eats away at the insect. Ten days later, almost nothing is left. The plant's leaves open again, and the Venus flytrap is ready for its next meal.

阅读6B 致命诱惑 一只饥饿的苍蝇飞快地穿过森林。 它闻着花蜜的味道，落在一片绿叶上。 它开始喝甜的液体。 突然，苍蝇的世界变绿了。 叶子的两边互相靠得很近。 它周围长着绿色的牙齿。 这只苍蝇被捕蝇草抓住了。 无法逃脱。 捕蝇草可能是最著名的杀手植物。 然而，科学家们最近才开始了解它是如何狩猎和进食的。 经过多年的研究，植物科学家亚历山大·沃尔科夫认为他现在知道了捕蝇草的秘密。 沃尔科夫说：“这是一座发电厂。” 捕蝇草的两片叶子上各有三根小毛。 当昆虫触碰毛发时，它会在叶子中产生电信号。 目前，这种昆虫可以继续进食。 但如果它在20秒内碰到另一根头发，陷阱就会自动关闭。 例如，该系统使植物能够区分一滴水和一个移动的生物。 一旦被困住，昆虫几乎没有生存的机会。 金星捕蝇草现在释放出一种不同的液体，而不是花蜜，这种液体会慢慢吃掉昆虫。 十天后，几乎什么都没有留下。 植物的叶子又开了，捕蝇草已经准备好下一餐了。

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