大学英语精读第四册

Unit1

Text

Twocollege-ageboys,unawarethatmakingmoneyusuallyinvolves

hardwork,aretemptedbyanadvertisementthatpromisesthemaneasy

waytoearnalotofmoney.Theboyssoonlearnthatifsomethingseems

togoodtobetrue,itprobablyis.

BIGBUCKSTHEEASYWAY

JohnG.Hubbell

"Yououghttolookintothis,"Isuggestedtoourtwocollege-age

sons."Itmightbeawaytoavoidtheindignityofhavingtoaskformoney

allthetime."Ihandedthemsomemagazinesinaplasticbagsomeone

badhungonourdoorknob.Amessageprintedonthebagoffered

leisurely,

lucrativework("BigBuckstheEasyWay!")ofdeliveringmoresuch

bags.

"Idon'tmindtheindignity,"theolderoneanswered.

"Icanlivewithit,"hisbrotheragreed.

"Butitpainsme,"Isaid,"tofindthatyoubothhavebeen

panhandlingsolongthatitnolongerembarrassesyou."

2

Theboyssaidtheywouldlookintothemagazine-deliverything.

Pleased,Ilefttownonabusinesstrip.BymidnightIwascomfortably

settledinahotelroomfarfromhome.Thephonerang.Itwasmywife.

Shewantedtoknowhowmydayhadgone.

"Great!"Ienthused."Howwasyourday?"Iinquired.

"Super!"Shesnapped."Justsuper!Andit'sonlygettingstarted.

Anothertruckjustpulledupoutfront."

"Anothertruck?"

"Thethirdonethisevening.Thefirstdeliveredfourthousand

MontgomeryWards.ThesecondbroughtfourthousandSears,Roebucks.

Idon'tknowwhatthisonehas,butI'msureitwillbefourthousandof

something.Sinceyouareresponsible,Ithoughtyoumightliketoknow

what'shappening.

WhatIwasbeingblamedfor,itturnedout,wasanewspaperstrike

whichmadeitnecessarytohand-delivertheadvertisinginsertsthat

normallyareincludedwiththeSundaypaper.Thecompanyhadpromised

ourboys$600fordeliveringtheseinsertsto4,000housesbySunday

morning.

"Pieceofcake!"ouroldercollegesonhadshouted.

"Sixhundredbucks!"Hisbrotherhadechoed,"Andwecandothe

jobintwohours!"

"BoththeSearsandWardadsarefournewspaper-sizepages,"my

3

wifeinformedme."Therearethirty-twothousandpagesofadvertisingon

ourporch.Evenaswespeak,twobigguysarecarryingarmloadsofpaper

upthewalk.Whatdowedoaboutallthis?"

"Justtelltheboystogetbusy,"Iinstructed."They'recollegemen.

They'lldowhattheyhavetodo."

AtnoonthefollowingdayIreturnedtothehotelandfoundan

urgentmessagetotelephonemywife.Hervoicewasunnaturallyhighand

quavering.Therehadbeenseveralmoretruckloadsofadinserts."They're

fordepartmentstores,dimestores,drugstores,grocerystores,autostores

andsoon.Somearewholemagazinesections.Wehavehundredsof

thousands,maybemillions,ofpagesofadvertisinghere!Theyare

crammedwall-to-wallallthroughthehouseinstackstallerthanyour

oldestson.There'sonlyenoughroomforpeopletowalkin,takeoneeach

oftheeleveninserts,rollthemtogether,sliparubberbandaroundthem

andslidethemintoaplasticbag.Wehaveenoughplasticbagstosupply

everytakeoutrestaurantinAmerica!"Hervoicekeptrising,asifworking

itswayoutoftherangeofthehumanear."Allthismustbedeliveredby

seveno'clockSundaymorning."

"Well,youhadbettergetthoseguysbandingandslidingasfastas

theycan,andI'lltalktoyoulater.Gotalunchdate.

WhenIreturned,therewasanotherurgentcallfrommywife.

"Didyouhaveanicelunch?"sheaskedsweetly.Ihadhada

4

marveloussteak,butknewbetterbynowthantosayso.

"Awful,"Ireported."Somesortofsourfish.Eel,Ithink."

"Good.Yourcollegesonshavehiredtheiryoungerbrothersand

sistersandacoupleofneighborhoodchildrentohelpforfivedollars

each.

Assemblylineshavebeensetup.Inthelanguageofdiplomacy,thereis

'movement.'"

"That'sencouraging."

"No,it'snot,"shecorrected."It'sverydiscouraging.They'rebeenas

itforhours.Plasticbagshavebeenfilledandpiledtotheceiling,butall

thishasn'tmadeadent,notadent,inthesituation!It'salmostasifthe

insertskeepreproducingthemselves!"

"Anotherthing,"shecontinued."Yourcollegesonsmustlearnthat

onedoesnotgetthebestoutofemployeesbythreateningthemwith

bodilyharm.

ObtaininganaudiencewithsonNO.1,1snarled,"I'llkillyouif

threatenoneofthosekidsagain!Idiot!Youshouldbeofferingabonusof

adollareveryhourtotheworkerwhofillsthemostbags.

"Butthatwouldcutintoourprofit,"hesuggested.

"Therewon'tbeanyprofitunlessthosekidsenableyoutomakeall

thedeliveriesontime.Iftheydon't,youtwowillhavetoremoveallthat

paperbyyourselves.Andtherewillbenoeatingorsleepinguntilitis

removed."

5

Therewasashort,thoughtfulsilence.Thenhesaid,"Dad,youhave

justworkedaprofoundchangeinmypersonality."

"Doit!"

"Yes,sir!"

Bythefollowingevening,therewasmuchformywifetoreport.The

bonusprogramhadworkeduntilsomeonedemandedtoseethecolorof

cash.Thensomeactivistontheworkforceclaimedthattheworkershad

nobusinesssettlingfor$5andafewcompetitivebonuseswhilethe

bossedcollectedhundredsofdollarseach.Theorganizerhaddeclared

thatalltheworkerswereentitledto$5perhour!Theywouldnotwork

anotherminuteuntilthebossesagreed.

Thestrikelastedlessthantwohours.Inmediation,theparties

agreedon$2perhour.Gradually,thehugestacksbegantoshrink.

Asitturnedout,thejobwascompletedthreehoursbeforeSunday's

7a.m.deadline.BythetimeIarrivedhome,theboyshadalreadysettled

theiraccounts:$150inlaborcosts,$40forgasoline,andalikeamount

forgifts-boxesofcandyforsaintlyneighborswhohadvolunteered

stationwagonsandhelpindeliveryanddozenrosesfortheirmother.

This

leftthemwith$185each—abouttwo-thirdstheminimumwageforthe

91hourstheyworked.Still,itwas"enough",asoneofthemputit,to

enablethemto"avoidindignity"forquiteawhile.

Allwentwellforsomeweeks.ThenoneSaturdaymorningmy

6

attentionwasdrawntotheoddgoings-onofourtwoyoungestsons.They

keptcarryingcartonaftercartonfromvariouscornersofthehouseoutthe

frontdoortocurbside.Iassumedtheirmotherhadenlistedthemto

removejunkforatrashpickup.ThenIoverheardthemdiscussing

finances.

"Geez,we'regoingtomakealotofmoney!"

"We'regoingtoberich!"

Investigationrevealedthattheywereoffering"forsaleorrent"our

entirelibrary.

"No!No!"Icried."Youcan'tsellourbooks!"

"Geez,Dad,wethoughtyouweredonewiththem!"

"You'renever'done'withbooks,"Itriedtoexplain.

"Sureyouare.Youreadthem,andyou'redonewiththem.That'sit.

Thenyoumightaswellmakealittlemoneyfromthem.Wewantedto

avoidtheindignityofhavingtoaskyoufor"

NewWords

buck

n.(si.)U.S.dollar

plastic

a.塑料的

n.(pl)塑料

7

doorknob

n.门把手

leisurely

a.unhurried从容的，慢慢的

leisure

n.freetime空闲时间,闲暇

lucrative

a.profitable有利的；赚钱的

pain

vt.causepainto

panhandle

vi.(AmE)beg.esp.onthestreets

delivery

n.delivering(ofletters,goods,etc.)投递；送交

8

enthuse

vi.showenthusiasm

inquire

vt.ask

super

a.(colloq.)wonderful,splendid;excellent

snap

vt.say(sth.)sharply厉声说

insert

n.插页

normally

ad.intheusualconditions;ordinarily通常

company

n.公司

echo

9

vt.sayordowhatanotherpersonsaysordoes;repeat附和；重复

ad

n.(shortfor)advertisement

inform

vt.tell;giveinformation告知

porch

n.(AmE)veranda门廊

armload

n.asmuchasonearmorbotharmscanhold;armful

walk

n.apathspeciallyarrangedorpavedforwalking人行道

unnaturally

ad.inanunnaturalway不自然地

quaver

vi.(ofthevoiceorsound)shake;tremble颤抖

10

truckload

n.asmuchorasmanyasatruckcancarry

departmentstore

n.storesellingmanydifferentkindsofgoodsinseparatedepartments

百货公司

dime

n.coinofU.S.andCanadaworthtencents

dimestore

n.(AmE)astoresellingalargevarietyoflow-pricedarticles;variety

store廉价商品店；小商口店

drugstore

n.(AmE)astorethatsellsnotonlymedicine,butalsobeautyproducts,

film,magazines,andfood药店，杂货店

grocery

n.astorethatsellsfoodandhouseholdsupplies食品杂货店

ii

section

n.partofsubdivisionofapieceofwriting,book,newspaper,etc.;

portion(文章等的)段落；节；部分

cram

vt.filltoofull;forceorpressintoasmallspace把...塞满；把...塞

进

stack

n.anorderly;heaporgroupofthings一叠（堆、垛等）

band

n.flat,thinpieceofmaterial带；带状物

vt.tieupwithaband捆扎

rubberband

n.橡皮筋

takeout

a.（餐馆）出售外卖菜的

range

12

n.thedistanceatwhichonecanseeorhear（听觉、视觉等）的范围

marvel（l）ous

a.wonderful;astonishing

steak

n.牛排；大块肉（或鱼）片

sour

a.酸的

eel

n.鳗鲫

diplomacy

n.外交

encouraging

a.鼓舞人心的

dent

n.ahollowinahardsurfacemadebyabloworpressure;initial

13

progress凹痕，凹坑，初步进展

reproduce

vt.producetheyoungof(oneselforone'sownkind)生殖，繁殖

bodily

a.ofthehumanbody;physical

harm

n.damageorwrong伤害

audience

n.thepeoplegatheredinaplacetohearorsee;achancetobeheard观

众；听众；陈述意见的机会

snarl

vt.speakinaharshvoice咆哮着说

bonus

n.anextrapaymenttoworkers奖金

thoughtful

14

a.givetoorindicatingthought沉思的，思考的

cash

n.moneyincoinsornotes现金

activist

n.apersontakinganactivepartesp.inapoliticalmovement激进分子

workforce

n.totalnumberofworkersemployedinaparticularfactory,industryor

area工人总数；劳动人口

competitive

a.竞争的

organizer

n.personwhoorganizesthings组织者

mediation

n.调解

party

15

n.oneofthepeopleorsidesinanagreementorargument一方；当事

人

gradually

ad.slowlyandbydegrees.

gradual

a.

shrink(shrank,shrunk)

vi.becomelessorsmaller减少；变小

deadline

n.fixedlimitoffinishingapieceofwork最后期限

stationwagon

n.小型客车，客货两用车

minimum（pl.minimaorminimums）

n.thesmallestpossibleamount,number,etc.最低限度的量、数等

minimumwage

16

n.thelowestwagepermittedbylaworbyagreementforcertainwork

法定最工资

odd

a.strange;unusual

goings-on

n.activities,usu.ofanundesirablekind

carton

n.acardboardboxforholdinggoods纸板箱（或盒）

curbside

n.theareaofsidewalkatornearcurb（curb:人行道的镶边石）

enlist

vt.obtainthesupportandhelpof;causetojointhearmedforces取

得……的支持和帮助；征募

trash

n.wastematerialtobethrownaway;rubbish垃圾

17

pickup

n.asmalllighttruckwithanopenbackusedforlightdeliveries小卡

车；轻型货车

overhear

vt.hearbychance;hearwithouttheknowledgeofthespeaker(s)无意中

听到；偷听到

finance

n.moneymatters;(usedinpl.)money;(scienceof)themanagementof

funds财政；钱财；金融

geez

int.哎呀，呀

sale

n.theactofsellingsth.

Phrases&Expressions

pullup

bringorcometoastop(使)停下

18

apieceofcake

(informal)sth.veryeasytodo

evenas

justatthesamemomentas

knowbetterthan

bewiseorexperiencedenoughnot(todosth.)明事理而不至于

beat

beoccupiedwith,bedoing

makeadent(in)

makelessbyaverysmallamount;reduceslightly;makeafirststep

towardssuccess(in)减少一点；取得初步进展

cutinto

reduce;decrease减少

havenobusiness

havenorightorreason无权，没有理由

19

settlefor

accept,althoughnotaltogethersatisfactory(无可奈何地)满足于

settleone'saccount

paywhatoneowes结帐

quiteawhile

afairlylongtime

draw(sb.'s)attentionto

makesb.notice,orbeawareof

forsale

intendedtobesold

forrent

availabletoberented

bedonewith

stopdoingorusing;finish做完，不再使用

20

may/might/couldaswell

withequalorbettereffect不妨，还不如，最好

ProperNames

MontgomeryWard

蒙哥马利―沃德百货公司

Sears,Roebuck

西尔斯一罗百克百货公司

Unit2

Text

Isthereanythingwecanlearnfromdeer?Duringthe"energycrisis"

of1973-1974thewriterofthisessaywaslivinginnorthernMinnesota

andwasabletoobservehowdeersurvivewhenwinterarrives.The

lessonshelearnsabouthewaydeerconserveenergyturnoutapplicable

tooureverydaylife.

DEERANDTHEENERGYCYCLE

Somepersonssaythatlovemakestheworldgoround.Othersofa

lessromanticandmorepracticalturnofmindsaythatitisn'tlove;it's

money.Butthetruthisthatitisenergythatmakestheworldgoround.

21

Energyisthecurrencyoftheecologicalsystemandlifebecomespossible

onlywhenfoodisconvertedintoenergy,whichinturnisusedtoseek

morefoodtogrow,toreproduceandtosurvive.Onthiscyclealllife

depends.

Itisfairlywellknownthatwildanimalssurvivefromyeartoyearby

eatingasmuchastheycanduringtimesofplenty,thesummerandfall,

storingtheexcess,usuallyintheformoffat,andthenusingthese

reservesoffattosurviveduringthehardtimesinwinterwhenfoodis

scarce.Butitisprobablylesswellknownthatevenwiththeirstoredfat,

wildanimalsspendlessenergytoliveinwinterthaninsummer.

Agoodcaseinpointisthewhiter-taileddeer.Likemostwildlife,

deerreproduce,grow,andstorefatinthesummerandfallwhenthereis

plentyofnutritiousfoodavailable.Aphysicallymaturefemaledeerin

goodconditionwhohasconceivedinNovemberandgivenbirthtotwo

fawnsduringtheendofMayorfirstpartofJune,mustsearchforfoodfor

thenecessaryenergynotonlytomeetherbody'sneedsbutalsoto

producemilkforherfawns.Thebestmilkproductionoccursatthesame

timethatnewplantgrowthisavailable.Thisisgoodtiming,becausemilk

productionisanenergyconsumingprocess—itrequiresalotoffood.

Thecostcannotbemetunlesstheregionhasamplefoodresources.

Asthesummerprogressesandthefawnsgrow,theybecomeless

dependentontheirmother'smilkandmoredependentongrowingplants

22

asfoodsources.Theadultmalesspendthesummergrowingantlersand

gettingfat.Bothmalesandfemalescontinuetoeathighqualityfoodin

thefallinordertodepositbodyfatforthewinter.Inthecaseofdoesand

fawns,agreatdealofenergyisexpendedeitherinmilkproductionorin

growing,andfatisnotaccumulatedasquicklyasitisinfullgrown

males.

Fatreservesarelikebankaccountstobedrawnoninthewinterwhen

foodsuppliesarelimitedandsometimesdifficulttoreachbecauseof

deepsnow.

Asfallturnsintowinter,otherchangestakeplace.Fawnslosetheir

spottedcoat.Haironallthedeerbecomesdarkerandthicker.Thechange

inthehaircoatsisusuallycompletebySeptemberandmaximumhair

depthsarereachedbyNovemberorDecemberwhentheweatherbecomes

cold.

Butinaddition,natureprovidesafurthersafeguardtohelpdeer

survivethewinter-aninternalphysiologicalresponsewhichlowerstheir

metabolism,orrateofbodilyfunctioning,andhenceslowsdowntheir

expenditureofenergy.Thedeerbecomesomewhatslowanddrowsy.The

heartratedrops.Animalsthathibernatepracticeenergyconservationtoa

greaterextremethandeerdo.Althoughdeerdon'thibernate,theydothe

samethingwiththeirseasonalrhythmsinmetabolism.Deerspendmore

energyandstorefatinthesummerandfallwhenfoodisabundant,and

spendlessenergyandusestoredfatinthewinterwhenfoodisless

23

available.

Whenthe"energycrisis"firstcamein1973-1974,1waslivingwith

myfamilyinacabinontheedgeofanareawheredeerspendthewinter

innorthernMinnesota,observingthedeerastheirbehaviorchangedfrom

moreactivityinsummerandfalltolessaswinterprogressed,followedby

anincreaseagaininthespringasthesnowmelted.Itwasinterestingand

ratheramusingtolistentotheadvicegivenontheradio:"Driveonly

whennecessary,"weweretold."Putonmoreclothestostaywarm,and

turnthethermostatonyourfurnacedown."Meanwhilewewatchedthe

deerreducetheiractivity,growawintercoatofhair,andreducetheir

metabolismastheyhaveforthousandsofyears.Itisbiologically

reasonablefordeertoreducetheircostoflivingtoincreasetheirchance

ofsurvivinginwinter.

Noteverywinteriscriticalfordeerofcourse.Ifthewinterhaslight

snow,survivalandproductivitynextspringwillbehigh.Butifdeep

snowscomeandtheweatherremainscoldforseveralweeks,thenthe

deermustspendmoreenergytomoveabout,foodwillbehardertofind,

andtheymustthendependmoreontheirfatreservestopullthem

through.

Ifsuchconditionsgoonfortoolongsomewilldie,andonlythelargest

andstrongestarelikelytosurvive.Thatisafundamentalruleoflifefor

wild,freewanderinganimalsuchasdeer.

Yes,life-anddeath,too—isacyclethatgoesroundandround,and

24

whenanimalsdietheirbodiesbecomefoodforotherlifeformstouseby

convertingthemintoenergy.

Andthecyclecontinues.

NewWords

Deer

n.(sing,orpl.)鹿

romantic

a.belongingtoorsuggestingromance;fancifulnotpractical浪漫的；

幻想的

turn

n.anaturaltendency;inclination(天生)倾向

currency

n.moneythatisactuallyinuseinacountry通货，货币

ecological

a.oforconcerninginterrelationshipoforganismsandtheirenvironment

生态的

25

ecology

n.生态学

convert

vt.change(fromoneform,use,etc.intoanother);cause(aperson)to

changehisbeliefs,etc.使转变；使改变信仰(等)

excess

n.thepartthatismorethanenough;theconditionofexceedingwhatis

usualornecessary过量；过度

reserve

n.sth.thatisbeingorhasbeenstoredforlateruse储备（物）

scarcea.notavailableinsufficientquantity缺乏的

wildlife

n.animalsandplantswhichliveandgrowwild

nutritious

a.fullgrownanddeveloped成熟的；成年的

26

female

a.ofthesexthatgivesbirthtoyoung女（性）的；雌的

n.afemaleperson,animalorplant

conceive

vt.becomepregnantwith（young）;form（anidea,plan,etc.）inthemind

怀（胎）;构思

fawn

n.ayoungdeerlessthanayearold

timing

n.selectionformaximumeffectoftheprecisemomentforbeginningor

doingsth.时机的选择

consume

vt.eatordrink;use;useup消耗；消费

region

n.aplace,spaceorarea;apartofthebody地区；(身体的)部位

ample

27

a.plentiful充裕的

resource

n.(pl.)possessions(esp.ofacountry),intheformofwealthandgoods,

thathelponetodowhatonewants资源

dependent

a.relying(onanother)forsupport

male

a.ofthesexthatdoesnotgivebirthtoyoung男(性)的；雄的

n.amaleperson,animalorplant

antler

n.thesolid,bonyhornofamaledeer鹿角，茸角

deposit

vt.putorstoreforsafekeeping;(esp.ofaliquid,ariver)leavelying(a

layerofmatter)存放；使沉积

doe

n.afully-grownfemaledeer

28

expend

vt.spendoruseup花费；耗尽

accumulate

v.makeorbecomegreaterinnumberorquantity;collectorgather积

累；积聚

account

n.asumofmoneykeptinabankwhichmaybeaddedtoortakenfrom

帐户；存款

spotted

a.markedwithspots

depth

n.thestateordegreeofbeingdeep深；深度，厚度

safeguard

n.ameansofprotectionagainststh.unwanted预防措施

internal

29

a.oforintheinside,esp.ofthebody内部的;体内的

physiological

a.生理的；生理学的

metabolism

n.新陈代谢

hence

ad.therefore因此，所以

expenditure

n.expendingorusingup;theamountofmoney,time,etc.expended花

费；用光；支出额，费用

somewhat

ad.bysomedegreeoramount;alittle有点，稍微

drowsy

a.sleepyorhalfsleepy;makingonesleepy困倦的；催眠的

hibernate

30

vi.(ofsomeanimals)passthewholeofthewinterinastatelikesleep冬

眠

extreme

n.eitherendofanything;highestdegree极端

seasonal

a.dependingontheseason;changingwiththeseasons季节性的

rhythm

n.节奏

abundant

a.morethanenough充足的；丰富的

cabin

n.asmallroughlybuilt,usu.woodenhouse小木屋；茅舍

melt

v.cause(asolid)tobecomeliquid;(ofasolid)becomeliquid(使)融

化；(使)熔化

31

amusing

a.funny逗人笑的；引起乐趣的

amuse

vt.causetolaughorsmile

thermostat

n.anautomaticdeviceforregulatingtemperature恒温器

biologically

ad.生物学上

biologicala.

survival

n.thefactorlikelihoodofsurviving幸存

productivity

n.theabilityorcapacitytoproduce,productiveness生产力；生产率;

多产

fundamental

32

a.basic;mostimportant

Phrases&Expressions

goround

functionsmoothly

intheformof

以…形式

inpoint

appropriate;pertinent适用的；相关的

in(good)condition

ingoodhealth,physicallyfit

givebirth(to)

bear;(fig.)produce生(孩)子，产(仔)；产生，引起

drawon

takeoruseasasource禾ll用；动用

slowdown

33

(causeto)gomoreslowlythanusual;(causeto)live,work,etc.ina

lessactiveandintenseway(使)慢下来；(使)放松

turndown

reducetheforce,speed,loudness,etc.of(sth.)byusingcontrols减

弱；关小，调低

moveabout

travelaround;gofromoneplacetoanother

pullthrough

help(sb.)tosurviveaperiodofdangerorcrisis使渡过危险或危机

ProperName

Minnesota

明尼苏达(美国州名)

34

Unit2

Text

Isthereanythingwecanlearnfromdeer?Duringthe"energycrisis"

of1973-1974thewriterofthisessaywaslivinginnorthernMinnesota

andwasabletoobservehowdeersurvivewhenwinterarrives.The

lessonshelearnsabouthewaydeerconserveenergyturnoutapplicable

tooureverydaylife.

DEERANDTHEENERGYCYCLE

Somepersonssaythatlovemakestheworldgoround.Othersofa

lessromanticandmorepracticalturnofmindsaythatitisn'tlove;it's

money.Butthetruthisthatitisenergythatmakestheworldgoround.

Energyisthecurrencyoftheecologicalsystemandlifebecomespossible

onlywhenfoodisconvertedintoenergy,whichinturnisusedtoseek

morefoodtogrow,toreproduceandtosurvive.Onthiscyclealllife

depends.

Itisfairlywellknownthatwildanimalssurvivefromyeartoyearby

eatingasmuchastheycanduringtimesofplenty,thesummerandfall,

storingtheexcess,usuallyintheformoffat,andthenusingthese

reservesoffattosurviveduringthehardtimesinwinterwhenfoodis

scarce.Butitisprobablylesswellknownthatevenwiththeirstoredfat,

35

wildanimalsspendlessenergytoliveinwinterthaninsummer.

Agoodcaseinpointisthewhiter-taileddeer.Likemostwildlife,

deerreproduce,grow,andstorefatinthesummerandfallwhenthereis

plentyofnutritiousfoodavailable.Aphysicallymaturefemaledeerin

goodconditionwhohasconceivedinNovemberandgivenbirthtotwo

fawnsduringtheendofMayorfirstpartofJune,mustsearchforfoodfor

thenecessaryenergynotonlytomeetherbody'sneedsbutalsoto

producemilkforherfawns.Thebestmilkproductionoccursatthesame

timethatnewplantgrowthisavailable.Thisisgoodtiming,becausemilk

productionisanenergyconsumingprocess—itrequiresalotoffood.

Thecostcannotbemetunlesstheregionhasamplefoodresources.

Asthesummerprogressesandthefawnsgrow,theybecomeless

dependentontheirmother'smilkandmoredependentongrowingplants

asfoodsources.Theadultmalesspendthesummergrowingantlersand

gettingfat.Bothmalesandfemalescontinuetoeathighqualityfoodin

thefallinordertodepositbodyfatforthewinter.Inthecaseofdoesand

fawns,agreatdealofenergyisexpendedeitherinmilkproductionorin

growing,andfatisnotaccumulatedasquicklyasitisinfullgrown

males.

Fatreservesarelikebankaccountstobedrawnoninthewinterwhen

foodsuppliesarelimitedandsometimesdifficulttoreachbecauseof

deepsnow.

Asfallturnsintowinter,otherchangestakeplace.Fawnslosetheir

36

spottedcoat.Haironallthedeerbecomesdarkerandthicker.Thechange

inthehaircoatsisusuallycompletebySeptemberandmaximumhair

depthsarereachedbyNovemberorDecemberwhentheweatherbecomes

cold.

Butinaddition,natureprovidesafurthersafeguardtohelpdeer

survivethewinter-aninternalphysiologicalresponsewhichlowerstheir

metabolism,orrateofbodilyfunctioning,andhenceslowsdowntheir

expenditureofenergy.Thedeerbecomesomewhatslowanddrowsy.The

heartratedrops.Animalsthathibernatepracticeenergyconservationtoa

greaterextremethandeerdo.Althoughdeerdon'thibernate,theydothe

samethingwiththeirseasonalrhythmsinmetabolism.Deerspendmore

energyandstorefatinthesummerandfallwhenfoodisabundant,and

spendlessenergyandusestoredfatinthewinterwhenfoodisless

available.

Whenthe"energycrisis"firstcamein1973-1974,1waslivingwith

myfamilyinacabinontheedgeofanareawheredeerspendthewinter

innorthernMinnesota,observingthedeerastheirbehaviorchangedfrom

moreactivityinsummerandfalltolessaswinterprogressed,followedby

anincreaseagaininthespringasthesnowmelted.Itwasinterestingand

ratheramusingtolistentotheadvicegivenontheradio:"Driveonly

whennecessary,"weweretold."Putonmoreclothestostaywarm,and

turnthethermostatonyourfurnacedown."Meanwhilewewatchedthe

37

deerreducetheiractivity,growawintercoatofhair,andreducetheir

metabolismastheyhaveforthousandsofyears.Itisbiologically

reasonablefordeertoreducetheircostoflivingtoincreasetheirchance

ofsurvivinginwinter.

Noteverywinteriscriticalfordeerofcourse.Ifthewinterhaslight

snow,survivalandproductivitynextspringwillbehigh.Butifdeep

snowscomeandtheweatherremainscoldforseveralweeks,thenthe

deermustspendmoreenergytomoveabout,foodwillbehardertofind,

andtheymustthendependmoreontheirfatreservestopullthem

through.

Ifsuchconditionsgoonfortoolongsomewilldie,andonlythelargest

andstrongestarelikelytosurvive.Thatisafundamentalruleoflifefor

wild,freewanderinganimalsuchasdeer.

Yes,life-anddeath,too—isacyclethatgoesroundandround,and

whenanimalsdietheirbodiesbecomefoodforotherlifeformstouseby

convertingthemintoenergy.

Andthecyclecontinues.

NewWords

Deer

n.(sing,orpL)鹿

romantic

38

a.belongingtoorsuggestingromance;fancifulnotpractical浪漫的；

幻想的

turn

n.anaturaltendency;inclination(天生)倾向

currency

n.moneythatisactuallyinuseinacountry通货，货币

ecological

a.oforconcerninginterrelationshipoforganismsandtheirenvironment

生态的

ecology

n.生态学

convert

vt.change（fromoneform,use,etc.intoanother）;cause（aperson）to

changehisbeliefs,etc.使转变;使改变信仰（等）

excess

n.thepartthatismorethanenough;theconditionofexceedingwhatis

39

usualornecessary过量；过度

reserve

n.sth.thatisbeingorhasbeenstoredforlateruse储备（物）

scarcea.notavailableinsufficientquantity缺乏的

wildlife

n.animalsandplantswhichliveandgrowwild

nutritious

a.fullgrownanddeveloped成熟的；成年的

female

a.ofthesexthatgivesbirthtoyoung女（性）的；雌的

n.afemaleperson,animalorplant

conceive

vt.becomepregnantwith(young);form(anidea,plan,etc.)inthemind

怀(胎);构思

fawn

40

n.ayoungdeerlessthanayearold

timing

n.selectionformaximumeffectoftheprecisemomentforbeginningor

doingsth.时机的选择

consume

vt.eatordrink;use;useup消耗；消费

region

n.aplace,spaceorarea;apartofthebody地区；(身体的)部位

ample

a.plentiful充裕的

resource

n.(pl.)possessions(esp.ofacountry),intheformofwealthandgoods,

thathelponetodowhatonewants资源

dependent

a.relying(onanother)forsupport

41

male

a.ofthesexthatdoesnotgivebirthtoyoung男(性)的；雄的

n.amaleperson,animalorplant

antler

n.thesolid,bonyhornofam