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Groovin’ With the Grapes 跟着音乐向上长!

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Who doesn’t appreciate all that music can do for us? Listening to a good song energizes, inspires, and soothe the human soul.But interestingly, researchers discovered not long ago that music affects farm animals in good ways, too. Chickens and cows exposed to Beethoven or Bach produce more eggs and better milk. And evidence is starting to come in to show that exposure to music can also help produce stronger, healthier plants.

谁不喜欢音乐带给我们的种种好处呢?听首好歌能激励、启发并舒缓我们的心灵。但有趣的是，研究人员在不久前发现音乐对牧场牲畜也有正面影响。听贝多芬或巴哈音乐的鸡只与牛群可以生产更多的蛋、更优质的牛奶。而且开始有证据显示，接触音乐的植物也会长的更强壮更健康呢!

Deep in the Tuscan valley of northern Italy, Carlo Cognozzi’s grape vines grow stronger and healthier than his neighbors’. He plays classical music to his vineyards. Not only does the music appear to keep wild animals at bay, but it also seem to offer protection from insects and even harmful bacteria. Equally amazed is the fact that the grapes mature in ten days now rather than the usual twenty!

在意大利北部托斯卡尼省的山谷深处，卡罗西诺吉种的葡萄比邻居种的来得好。因为他在葡萄园里拨放古典音乐。音乐似乎不仅能让野生动物不敢靠近，也能保护植物不受到害虫甚至害菌的侵袭。同样令人惊奇的是，这些原本需要二十天才能成熟的葡萄现在只需要十天就够了。

Experiments at other locations are also showing very promising results. At the Ohara Brewery in Japan, yeast and proteins used in the brewing of sake become more active when exposed to music by Mozart. The result is a much tastier sake. In North America, farmers have spectacularly increased the yields of soybean, kidney bean, and bell pepper crops. For example, fifty bell peppers can now be produced per plant instead of the usual five.

其他地方的实验也显示了非常有利的结果。在日本的小原酿酒厂，酿造清酒所用的酵母和蛋白质在听了莫扎特的音乐后，其活性会增强，于是能酿造出更顺口的清酒。而在北美，农夫用同样的方法大大的增加了黄豆、蚕豆还有甜椒的产量；例如现在一株甜椒能生产五十个果实，而非以往的五个!

Why any of this is so is still a mystery. Researchers speculate that music relaxes plants so that they can absorb more water and nutrients. Whatever the explanation, obtaining greater yields from plants without the use of chemical fertilizer sounds just like music to our ears.

这些现象的成因至今仍是个谜。研究人员推测这是因为音乐能让植物放松，促使它们吸收更多的水分及养分。但无论是何种解释，能不使用化学肥料就获得更高的产量，听起来就像是一项福音。

−by Laara Hinnegan

Vocabulary

单词发音

promising [ˋprɑmɪsɪŋ] adj. 有希望的，有前途的

yield [jild] n. 产量；收获量

fertilizer [ˋfɝtl͵aɪzɚ] n. 肥料

speculate [ˋspɛkjə͵let] v. 推测

absorb [əbˋsɔrb] v. 吸收

mature [məˋtjʊr] v. 成熟

More Information

单词发音

groove [gruv] v.【俚】使极快活；尽情享受

come in 在某事物中起作用

vineyard [ˋvɪnjɚd] n. 葡萄园

keep something or someone at bay 不使……迫近  to prevent something or someone unpleasant from coming too near you or harming you

brewery [ˋbruərɪ] n. 啤酒厂，酿造厂

yeast [jist] n. 酵母

brewing [ˋbruɪŋ] n. 酿造

sake [sɑke] n. 日本清酒

music to one's ears 佳音; 好消息  something pleasing to hear about

soybean  [ˋsɔɪˋbin] n.大豆

kidney [ˋkɪdnɪ] bean  菜豆﹐ 四季豆

bell pepper  灯笼椒