離開
進入《中英對照讀新聞》Field rats help sniff out mines in Mozambique 田鼠幫忙偵測莫三比克的地雷
◎ 俞智敏
Large field rats from Western Africa are being used in Mozambique to detect landmines that still threaten hundreds of thousands of people and hamper economic activity 13 years after the end of a brutal war that claimed up to one million lives.
在一場奪走了上百萬條人命的殘酷戰爭結束十三年後，來自西非的大型田鼠現正在莫三比克被用來偵測地雷，這些地雷至今仍威脅成千上萬人的生命並且妨礙經濟發展。
Apopo, a Belgian de-mining research group train rats and their handlers, saying that the animals have a highly developed sense of smell, are easy to tame and train and cheap and easy to maintain.
比利時掃雷研究組織Apopo專門訓練大鼠及其保育員，他們表示這些具有高度敏銳嗅覺的動物，容易馴養和訓練，而且後續照顧也相當便宜和容易。
The rats have quaint names like Nelson, inspired by South Africa's first black president Nelson Mandela and not Britain's most famous naval hero.
這些老鼠有著古怪的名字如尼爾森，這個靈感是來自南非首位黑人總統尼爾森．曼德拉，而不是英國最著名的海軍英雄。
Nelson, his whiskers bristling with anticipation, leads his trainer across a field. Held by a lead he sniffs for explosives and then starts burrowing -- a sign that a landmine lies underneath. After this human beings take over and defuse and remove the mine.
因期待而豎起鬍鬚的尼爾森帶著訓練師穿過一塊田野。在導繩牽制下，他嗅聞火藥的味道，然後開始挖掘─這是地下埋有地雷的跡象。然後便由人類接手，拆去雷管並移除地雷。
新聞辭典
sniff out：（如動物透過嗅覺般）偵測出來、找出。如He can sniff out trouble.（他能察覺出問題所在。）或 If there's anything to that rumor, she will sniff it out.（假如那個謠言有任何憑據，她就能找得出來。）
hamper：妨礙、阻撓（行動）。如He hampered the investigation by refusing to cooperate.（他以拒絕合作的方式阻礙調查進行。）hamper 亦可指用來盛裝衣物或食物的有蓋大籃子。
claim：在此指造成…的結果，如The fire claimed many victims.（那場火災造成許多人喪生。）claim亦指（對應享權利的）要求或索賠，如claim a reward（要求報酬），或claim her luggage at the station（到車站去領她的行李），claimed the inheritance（要求領取遺產）等。claim亦可作名詞，lay claim to 指主張、宣稱為己有。
