壹苹派生活美语　动物铭印现象：成长的关键过程

　　In fact, imprinting has been used by humans for centuries in the domestication of animals. For example, rice farmers in China have long been training ducklings to follow a stick. This method has been used to lead them to rice paddies to control the snail population. However, before the 1930s, no scientific studies had been done to explain this phenomenon. In order to understand the science behind the imprinting process, Konrad Lorenz, an Austrian zoologist, carried out a famous experiment on young geese.

　　事实上，几个世纪以来人类一直都有在驯养动物时利用铭印现象。例如，中国的稻农长期以来一直在训练小鸭跟随棍子。这种方法被用来将牠们引导至稻田来控制蜗牛的数量。然而，在 1930 年代之前，没有任何科学研究来解释这种现象。为了了解铭印现象过程背后的科学原理，奥地利动物学家康拉德．洛伦兹在幼鹅身上进行了一项著名的实验。

生活必备字词：

population　n. 动物总数

scientific　a. 科学的

experiment　n. 实验

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本文节录自《常春藤生活英语》杂志，完整内容请见一月号。