Shownotes Transcript
Hello everybody, and welcome to a new episode of News Bites!
I'm Trevor Tortomasi…
And I'm Paz Bueno.
In today's news:
Young bats, radio telescopes, and a new baby rhino.
All that and more, coming up next.
台南社區大學徵求自願者 幫忙養蝙蝠 Tainan Community University Wants Volunteers to Help Bats
Have you ever seen bats flying around in Taiwan?
You might see them eating bugs that fly around lights in the park at night.
Or you might see them hanging upside-down (倒吊著) and sleeping in dark places during the day.
Either way, they are pretty common (常見的)…
Even just in Taiwan, there are 30 species of bats (三十種蝙蝠).
But that doesn't mean they don't need help!
And now, Tainan Community University is looking for volunteers to care for young bats (照顧小蝙蝠).
That's because Taiwan's bat population is going down, as cities develop. 這就是因為隨著城市發展，台灣的蝙蝠數量越來越少。
One researcher at the university says, the bats breeding season starts this month, and lasts until June or July. 台南社區大學的研究員說，蝙蝠的繁殖季節就從這個月開始，直到六，七月結束。
He says many young bats get lost (迷路) from their families, and need help before they can get back into the wild.
Of course, you should never, ever try to touch a wild bat (野生的蝙蝠).
They can carry diseases (病毒), and they will bite you!
But, from far away, we can appreciate how helpful they are.
Scientists say one bat can eat more than 1,000 mosquitoes and other insects per day!
So, if you're in Tainan, and are old enough to volunteer, this might be your chance to see them up close.
Otherwise, if you're walking around at night, just look up!
人工智慧 控制世界最大天文望遠鏡 Artificial Brain to Control World's Largest Telescope
In English, the word "telescope" (天文望遠鏡) usually makes us think of something that helps us see into space with our eyes.
But really, a telescope can be anything that helps us take small, faraway things, and make them bigger and easier to understand… even sounds!
To hear faraway sounds, we use a "radio telescope" (無線電望遠鏡).
A radio telescope can use a dish (碟型天線) and an antenna (天線).
So, to hear things really far away, scientists are putting hundreds of dishes and antennas over a large area (面積廣大的地方).
This place is called the Square Kilometer Array (平方公里陣列), or the S.K.A., in Australia (澳洲).
Scientists will be able to take all the data from the S.K.A. and put it together, to make clearer sounds and images for us to understand space. 科學家會把這些天線接收的資訊轉成更清楚的聲音和畫面，讓我們更了解外太空。
There's one big problem, though…
That's too many radio telescopes for any group of scientists to control (控制) by themselves!
So they're creating an artificial intelligence (人工智慧) to control most of the array for them.
This "artificial brain" will help make sure that each dish, and every antenna, are all working in perfect harmony. 這個【人工腦袋】會幫忙確認每一台天線都能完美發揮作用。
The S.K.A. started construction (建築) in 2019, and should be finished around 2027.
And the first artificial brain should be ready to test in 2024.
That means scientists have a lot of time to make sure it works as perfectly as possible.
So let's hope that in five years, we'll be hearing and seeing a lot more clearly!
罕見蘇門答臘犀牛 在印尼出生 Rare Sumatran Rhino Born in Indonesia
You've probably seen pictures of a rhinoceros (犀牛), or "rhino", before.
Most rhinos have thick (厚的), grey skin over their whole bodies, to protect them (保護) from other dangerous animals.
But one kind of rhino looks a lot more like other mammals, because it has more fur! 其中一種犀牛長得比較像其他哺乳類動物，因為牠有很多毛！
This rare (罕見的) animal is called a Sumatran rhino.
But they are so rare that animal researchers estimate there are only around 80 of them left in the whole world. 研究人員估計，這種犀牛少到全球只剩下80隻。
But recently, at an animal sanctuary (動物保護區) in Indonesia, a Sumatran rhino has finally had a baby!
The baby's mother was brought into the sanctuary in the year 2005, but has struggled (很困難) to have a baby, until now.
Workers at the sanctuary are very happy that the world can have at least one more of this special animal.
And if we take good care of the environment, there could be even more!
So, in today's News Bites:
Tainan Community University is looking for volunteers to care for young bats.
That's because Taiwan's bat population is going down, as cities develop.
Researchers say many young bats get lost from their families, and need help before they can get back into the wild.
And,
Scientists are putting hundreds of dishes and antennas over a large area in Australia, called the Square Kilometer Array, or the S.K.A.
They have created an artificial brain to help control it, so that they can collect more data about outer space.
And,
Recently, at an animal sanctuary in Indonesia, a Sumatran rhino has finally had a baby.
Animal researchers estimate there are only around 80 of them left in the whole world.
Workers at the sanctuary are very happy that the world can have at least one more of this special animal.
And that's today's episode of News Bites!