aMoS [002] 南美食人鱼

南美洲的食人鱼

这篇听了好几遍，仍然有不少地方没听懂，只好读原文了。大致讲的就是南美洲的食人鱼，piranha（发音：peh'ra:na）的故事，据说是水底最凶残的动物，比鲨鱼都残暴。不过，再残暴也没有人类残暴，它们吃掉的人，跟人类吃掉的它们相比，还是少很多。

文中提到两部电影：①《大白鲨》（Jaws），美国1975年上映的惊悚电影，导演是大名鼎鼎的斯皮尔伯格，讲的是人鲨大战的故事。②《食人鱼》（paranha），1978年在美国上映，导演Joe Dante，讲的人人鱼大战的故事。

这篇没听出来的单词很多啊我……（抓狂）

swear off: 发誓再也不干某事，戒掉
knock-off: 仿品
piranha /peh'ra:na/: 南美食人鱼
abound: 富于，有很多
prowess: 本事，勇敢
oval-shaped: 椭圆形，卵形的
carnivorous /kar'nivorous/: 食人的
razor sharp: 如剃刀般锋利
cutting shears: 大剪刀
in schools: 成群
commotion: 骚动
jaguar /'jagjueh/: 美洲虎
to have the last laugh: 笑到最后

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音频下载及链接：

3种语速的音频文件已上传百度云：链接 | 密码: ez6k（在百度云点击MP3文件名可直接在线听）（原始语速来自A Moment of Science官网，1.5倍及2.0倍语速版本为我个人后期调整的）

本期文章原始音频、配图及文本均来自A Moment of Science官网：链接

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文本：

（参照源网页的文字、根据实际录音内容修改而成）：

The movie Jaws was so frightening that many people who saw the film swore off swimming in the ocean. Consequently, when most people think of fearsome sea creatures, sharks come immediately to mind.

Less well remembered is the movie Piranha, a Jaws knock-off that featured deadly tropical fish terrorizing a small-town river. But while Piranha, the movie, may have been toothless, in real life its featured predators put sharks and all other aquatic creatures to shame when it comes to underwater ferocity.

Piranha are native to South American freshwater rivers. Although legends abound about their eating prowess, most of the 20 species of piranha are actually vegetarian. They are flat, oval-shaped fish that grow from 10 to approximately 24 inches in length.

The four species of piranha that are carnivorous, however, certainly earn their reputation as fierce fish. These meat-eaters have powerful jaws and razor sharp teeth that fit together like cutting shears when they bite. Piranha travel and hunt in schools of about 20 fish, and can engage in impressive feeding frenzies when aroused by blood or commotion in the water. Carnivorous piranha will eat anything from other fish to large mammals such as cows and even jaguars that wander too far into the water.

Although flesh-eating piranhas sometimes attack people, humans tend to have the last laugh. In South America and elsewhere, piranha are considered a fine eating fish. It’s safe to say that many more piranha are eaten by people than the other way around.