26. We really learned a lot!我們真的學到了很多！

No new words!

**********

Let’s look again at what we learned in this book. Let’s look at some things for the second time. We studied a lot of animals in this book, didn’t we? We studied where the different animals live now and where they lived millions of years ago. We learned that there is nearly nowhere in the world where animals cannot live. Animals live in North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and even Antarctica.

我們再來看看我們在這本書裡學到了什麼。我們再次來看看一些內容。我們在這本書裡學習了很多動物，不是嗎？我們學習了不同動物現在生活的地方和它們幾百萬年前生存的地方。我們瞭解到世界上幾乎沒有動物不能生存的地方。動物生活在北美洲、南美洲、歐洲、非洲、亞洲，甚至南極洲。

We saw that some animals live in trees. Other animals live in holes in the ground. Some animals live with people and some live in forests and other wild places. Still other animals live in seas, rivers and muddy places. Large animals live everywhere in the world except for places that are really, really cold or really, really hot. Only the very smallest of animals can live in those places.

我們看到有些動物生活在樹上。有些動物生活在洞穴裡。有些動物和人生活在一起，而有些動物生活在森林裡和其他野外地方。還有些動物生活在海洋裡、河流裡和泥沼裡。除了極寒或極熱之地，世界上到處都是大型動物。只有非常小的動物才能生活在那些極寒或極熱之地。

We learned that animals come in every shape, size and color that we can think of. We studied some very large animals like elephants, whales and buffaloes. We learned about some of the smallest animals like ants, mosquitoes and butterflies.

我們瞭解到動物有各種體型、大小和顏色，正如我們所能想象的那樣。我們學習了一些非常大型的動物，比如大象、鯨魚和水牛。我們學習了一些最小型的動物，比如螞蟻、蚊子和蝴蝶。

We learned that some animals do not live very long. Some insects do not even live as long as one day! However, some large animals, like some kinds of turtles, can live longer than people. People usually live for eighty or ninety years but many large turtles live to be over one hundred years old!

我們瞭解到有些動物不能活很久。有些昆蟲甚至活不了一天！但是有些大型動物，比如海龜，比人活得還久。人通常活到八、九十歲，然而許多大海龜活到一百歲以上！

Those large animals need to live in places where there is lots of food for them to feed on. Nearly everything that is living now, or lived before, can be food for animals. However, some animals will only eat special kinds of food. Other animals, like pigs, will eat nearly anything.

那些大型動物需要生活有很多可食用食物的地方。幾乎所有現在活著或過去活過的生物都能成為動物的食物。但是有些動物只吃特定種類的食物。其他動物，比如豬，幾乎什麼都吃。

We learned that many animals can be useful for people and that people use animals in many different ways. Cows give us meat and milk. Buffaloes can help farmers with the work on their farms. Dogs and cats can be our friends. Bees can produce the honey that we like to eat. Bees also help us to grow more food by bringing the male and female parts of plants together so the plants can then produce fruits and vegetables.

我們瞭解到許多動物對人類有用，人類以各種各樣的方式使用動物。奶牛給我們提供牛肉和牛奶。水牛能幫助農民幹農活。貓狗能成為我們的朋友。蜜蜂分泌出我們喜歡吃的蜂蜜。蜜蜂把植物的雄蕊和雌蕊結合在一起，這樣植物就能產出果實和蔬菜。

We learned that most animals need to be able to look after themselves. An animal can learn to look after itself while it is still very young. We saw that a few animals like snakes, some fish and some insects do not stay with their families. Those young animals go off on their own to look for food. Most other animals like monkeys, whales and ants, stay in large family groups. It is easier for an animal to protect itself if it stays inside a large group

我們瞭解到大多數動物需要能夠照顧自己。動物在還很幼小的時候就可以學會照顧自己。我們看到少數動物，比如蛇、有些魚和昆蟲，不和它們的種群待在一起。那些動物幼崽獨自出去覓食。大多數其他動物，比如猴子、鯨魚和螞蟻，都以大部落群居。待在一個大種群內的動物更容易保護自己。

A young animal like a baby gray whale does not have to look after itself. The adult gray whales, especially the females, will feed and protect the young gray whales.

灰鯨的幼崽不需要照顧自己。成年灰鯨，尤其是母鯨，會給小灰鯨餵食並保護它們。

We learned that some animals, like snakes and turtles, have cold blood. Animals with cold blood find it difficult to move around in the mornings while it is still cold. Those animals have to wait until their blood gets to the right temperature before they can move around well.

我們瞭解到有些動物，比如蛇和海龜，它們的血液很涼。天冷的時候，涼血的動物早上很難四處活動。那些動物得等到它們的血液達到正常溫度後才能四處活動。

Animals like snakes have long, thin bodies. Those thin bodies help the snakes move around in places where there are lots of trees, small plants and grass. Animals that are not so thin cannot move around so well. We saw that the world’s largest snake lives in South America and that that snake feeds itself by hunting and killing other animals. That snake can even kill and eat baby monkeys!

像蛇這樣的動物有細長的身體。那樣細的身體幫助蛇在樹木、矮小植物和草叢茂盛的地方四處移動。身體沒這麼細的動物移動起來就沒這麼靈活。我們瞭解到世界上最大的蛇生活在南美洲，它靠捕殺其他動物來養活自己。那種蛇甚至能捕殺併吞下小猴子。

We learned about some kinds of animals that lived millions of years ago but are not living now. We learned that when life becomes too difficult for some animals, those kinds of animals die out. Many kinds of animals that lived just one hundred years ago are not living now. Most of those kinds of animals died out because of what people did, like changing forests into farms.

我們瞭解到有些種類的動物生活在幾百萬年前，但是現在沒有活著了。我們瞭解到當有些動物的生存變得太過艱難時，哪些種類的動物就滅絕了。很多生存在一百年前的動物現在都不再活著了。大多數那些種類的動物滅絕是因為人類的行為，比如把森林變成農場。

However, it was not what people did that killed all the dinosaurs. There were no people around during the time of the dinosaurs. All the dinosaurs died out because of something else. The dinosaurs died out around seventy or eighty million years ago. Many, many other kinds of animals and plants died out around the same time.

但是並不是人類讓所有恐龍滅亡的。恐龍生活的年代並沒有人類存在。所有恐龍的滅絕是因為別的原因。恐龍大約在七八千萬年前滅絕。很多很多其他動植物也在同一時期滅絕。

We know now that if we do not do things to protect the world’s animals and plants, many more animals and plants will die out. If too many animals and plants die out… so will people!

我們現在知道，如果我們不行動起來保護世界上的動植物，就會有更多動植物滅絕。如果太多動植物滅絕……那麼人類也會如此！

**********

Lee and Pat are talking about this book.

李和佩特正在談論這本書

Lee

Well, that’s it! Now we know all about animals.

Pat

No we don’t. We didn’t learn about all the different kinds of animals. We only learned about some of them. There are thousands and thousands of different kinds of animals in the world!

Lee

I know. I know that. I just said it because that’s the name of this book – ‘All about animals’. I learned everything I need to know through this book.

Pat

That’s a silly thing to say! I learned a lot too, but I didn’t learn everything I need to know about animals.

Lee

I don’t think it’s silly. I’m going to look through the book for a second time. When I read things for a second time, I really start to understand and remember them.

Pat

I know. I never remember things if I only read them only one time. I always need to read them a second time.

Lee

You’re not as clever as you often say you are, are you?

Pat

Well, I’m cleverer than you. I think two or three times isn’t enough for you to understand and remember things. I think you need to read things about eighty or ninety times before you understand and remember them.

Lee

That’s silly! Nobody reads things eighty or ninety times! I can understand and remember everything after I read them two or three times.

Pat

No, you can’t!

Lee

Yes, I can!

Pat

No, you can’t. And you always find it really difficult to read all the way through big books like this. You’re only good at reading really thin books with not many words.

Lee

I don’t only read thin books. I often read big books by myself at home or down by the river. You don’t know that. You don’t see me when I’m reading by myself.

Pat

Down by the river?

Lee

Yes. It’s very quiet down there. If I have nowhere else to go, I often get a book and go down there to read by myself.

Pat

Well, I often read by myself too. I don’t read down by the river, but I read in in lots of other places like my bedroom. I read by myself much more than you do.

Lee

No, you don’t!

Pat

Yes, I do!

Lee

No, you don’t!

Pat

Yes, I do. I read about all kinds of things.

Lee

So do I. I read about all kinds of things, too. I read about everything except the things only girls are interested in.

Pat

That’s a silly thing to say! Girls are interested in the same things as boys!

Lee

No, they aren’t!

Pat

Yes, they are!

Lee

No, they aren’t. Boys are more interested in animals, especially wild animals, than girls are. Like me. I love animals. When I grow up, I’m going to be an animal doctor.

Pat

Well, I’m going to be a doctor who can help sick people. People are much more important than animals.

Lee

No, they aren’t. Animals are just as important as people. We learned that in this book.

Pat

No, we didn’t. There’s nowhere in this book where it says that. How can you say that animals are just as important as people?

Lee

Because that’s what I think. I think animals are more interesting, too. I think animals are really, really, really, really interesting!

李

好吧，就這樣！現在我們知道關於動物的所有知識。

佩特

不，我們還不知道。我們沒有了解所有不同種類的動物。我們只知道其中一些。世界上有成千上萬不同種類的動物。

李

我知道。我知道啊。我這樣說是因為那是這本書的名稱《關於動物》。通過這本書，我學到了我需要知道的所有知識。

佩特

那樣說真可笑！我也學到了很多東西，不過我並沒有學到所有我需要知道的關於動物的知識。

李

我覺得那不可笑！我要再看一遍這本書。我看第二遍時就真的開始理解並記住書裡的內容了。

佩特

我知道了。如果我只看一遍，我永遠記不住書裡的內容。我總是需要再看一遍。

李

你經常說自己聰明，你沒你說的那樣聰明，是吧？

佩特

好吧，我比你聰明。我覺得你看兩三遍還不足以理解並記住書裡的內容。我覺得你需要看八、九十遍才能理解並記住書裡的內容。

李

那真可笑！沒有人看八、九十遍書！我看兩三遍就能理解並記住一切。

佩特

不，你不能！

李

我能！

佩特

不，你不能。你總是發現看這樣一本厚書真的很難。你只擅長看很薄的書，裡面字不多。

李

我不只看很薄的書。我經常獨自在家裡或河邊看很厚的書。你不知道而已。我獨自看書時你看不到我。

佩特

在河邊？

李

是的。那裡很安靜。如果我沒有其他地方去，我經常帶著書去那裡獨自看。

佩特

好吧，我也經常獨自看書。我不在河邊看書，可是我在其他很多地方看書，比如我的臥室。我獨自一人看得書比你多得多。

李

不，你沒有！

佩特

有，我就有！

李

不，你沒有！

佩特

有，我就有。我看各種各樣的書。

李

我也是。我也看各種各樣的書。除了只有女生感興趣的書，我什麼書都讀。

佩特

那樣說真可笑！女生和男生的興趣一樣。

李

不，不一樣。

佩特

是的，一樣的。

李

不，不一樣。男生比女生對動物更感興趣，尤其是野生動物。比如我，我愛動物。等我長大，我打算成為一名獸醫。

佩特

好吧，我打算成為一名醫生，能夠幫助病人。人比動物更重要。

李

不，不是的。動物和人同樣重要。我們在這本書裡學到的。

佩特

不，不是的。這本書裡沒有哪個地方那樣說。你怎麼能說動物和人同樣重要呢？

李

因為我是那樣想的。我覺得動物也很有趣。我覺得動物真的、真的、真的很有趣！

**********

Questions

1. Which kinds of animals can live in very, very hot places?

2. How small are some of the smallest animals?

3. In what ways do we use some animals?

4. Do all animals live in family groups?

5. Did the dinosaurs die out because of people?

6. What doesn’t Lee want to read about?

7. Who wants to work with animals?

8. What would you like to read about next?

**********

THE END