达人英语

False banana: Is Ethiopia's enset 'wondercrop' for climate change?

    近来，科学家发现，埃塞俄比亚一种名叫“恩赛特蕉”的主要作物，有望解决非洲甚至全球的粮食问题。恩赛特蕉是何物？又因何能“当此大任”？

    False banana: Is Ethiopia's enset 'wondercrop' for climate change?

    假香蕉：埃塞俄比亚的“恩赛特蕉”是应对气候变化的“神奇作物”吗?

    Scientists say the plant enset, an Ethiopian staple, could be a new superfood and a lifesaver in the face of climate change. The banana-like crop has the potential to feed more than 100 million people in a warming world, according to a new study.

一些科学家称，埃塞俄比亚一种名为“恩赛特蕉”的主要作物或将成为一种新的“超级食物”，一种可以应对气候变化的救星。一项新的研究显示，在全球变暖的情况下，这种类似香蕉的作物也许能养活1亿多人。

    Enset or "false banana" is a close relative of the banana. The banana-like fruit of the plant is inedible, but the starchy stems and roots can be fermented and used to make porridge and bread.

    恩赛特蕉，又称“假香蕉”，是香蕉的近亲。它形似香蕉的果实是不能吃的，但它含有淀粉的茎和根可以在发酵后用于制作粥和面包。

Study researcher Dr James Borrell, said planting enset as a buffer crop for lean times could help boost food security. "It's got some really unusual traits that make it absolutely unique as a crop," he said. "You plant it at any time, you harvest it at any time and it's perennial. That's why they call it the tree against hunger."

研究人员詹姆斯·博雷尔博士称，在歉收时期，将恩赛特蕉当做一种缓冲作物来种植，可以显著提高粮食安全。他说：“恩赛特蕉有一些很不寻常的特征，绝对是一种独特的作物。你可以在任何时候种它，在任何时候采集它，它还是一种多年生植物。这就是为什么人们称它为‘对抗饥饿的树’。”

    There is growing interest in seeking new plants to feed the world, given our reliance on a few staple crops. Nearly half of all the calories we eat come from three species - rice, wheat and maize.

    鉴于我们对少数几种主要作物的依赖，人们对于寻找新的作物来养活全人类的兴趣越来越大。我们摄入的所有热量中，近一半都来自三个物种：水稻、小麦和玉米。

"We need to diversify the plants we use globally as a species because all our eggs are in a very small basket at the moment," said Dr Borrell.

博雷尔博士说：“作为一个需要不断繁衍的物种，人类需要在全球范围内让植物更多样化，因为目前我们所有的鸡蛋都在一个非常小的篮子里。”