Shownotes Transcript
Hello everybody, and welcome to a new episode of News Bites!
I'm Ryan Drillsma…
And I'm Trevor Tortomasi.
In today's news:
A snake with two heads, cows learning to use the bathroom, and a very pricey video game.
All that and more, coming up next.
國小生遇上雙頭蛇 Two-Headed Snake Spotted in Chiayi
Have you ever seen a snake in the wild?
你有看過野生的蛇嗎？
Are you scared of snakes? How about a snake with two heads?!
That's what students in one elementary school discovered recently when they were cleaning their school.
They found the creature at 7 AM, near the place where they raise the flag (升旗).
It must have been a big surprise.
The snake was found at Dayou Elementary School in Chiayi County's Zhongpu Township.
News reports say the school's principal took out a broom (掃把) and used it to push the snake into a bucket (桶子).
The principal said he was not scared of snakes, but he called the fire department anyway, so experts (專家) could come and take it away safely.
The snake was only around 10 centimeters long.
Experts discovered it was a Formosan wolf snake. They knew this because of the black and white stripes (黑白條紋) all over its body.
The head of the rescue team decided to donate it to a university for research.
救援團隊決定把雙頭蛇捐給大學研究部門。
But why did the snake have two heads?
It is likely two twin snakes (雙胞胎) were supposed to be born. Twins usually start as one, but they separate (分開) as they grow, before they are born.
But this set of snakes did not separate.
Although the snake has two heads, both of its heads probably share organs (器官).
Unfortunately, this kind of animal does not usually survive for long in the wild, so it is best that the university takes care of it.
雙頭蛇在野外不會存活很久，所以由大學來照顧它是最理想的。
小牛練習上廁所 Cows Learn to Use MooLoo
As people, we have to go to the toilet in certain places.
If we didn't have bathrooms… the earth would be very dirty.
Even some animals go to the toilet in certain places; cats use a bathroom we call a "litterbox" (貓沙盆) and dogs usually go outside in people's gardens.
But do cows go to the toilet in a certain place?
Not usually, but some farmers in Germany are trying to make cows use a bathroom.
They have to go to the toilet in a special area of their barn. 牛廁所就在穀倉的一個角落。
And the farmers are calling it the 'MooLoo'.
They say it will be better for the environment.
The farmers recently did a research experiment and found that 11 out of 16 calves were able to go to the toilet in a MooLoo after just 15 training sessions. 農夫最近做了一項實驗，他們發現經過15次的訓練課程之後，16頭小牛裡面，有11頭學會了去上廁所。
Cows make around 30 kilograms of waste (大便) per day.
That's the same weight as a nine-year-old child!
But leaving it around a field (田野之中) can be bad for the environment.
It can increase greenhouse gas emissions.
因為牛糞會增加溫室氣體的排放。
It can also turn soil (土壤) bad so that plants cannot grow there, and it can make rivers polluted (污染的).
But what happens to all the waste once it goes into the MooLoo?
Once it is treated - meaning the bad parts are taken out - it can be used to actually help plants grow.
And gas (氣體) from the waste can even be used as fuel for cars, or turned into energy to power homes!
What an a-moo-zing idea!
牛糞散發的沼氣還可以集合起來發電，推動汽車，提供家庭用電。看起來讓牛上廁所，真是好主意!
稀有的遊戲片賣大錢 Rare Video Game Sells for Big Bucks
A classic video game has been sold for a lot of money.
A copy of the original Legend of Zelda game for the Nintendo was donated to a U.S. charity organization.
The game was in its original packaging (原包裝), and had never been opened.
The charity auctioned it off for 411,000 U.S. dollars.
原版薩爾達傳說遊戲片在美國賣四十一萬美金。
That amount was a record for any item sold by the charity organization online.
The money will be used to help create a job training center (就業培訓中心) in the U.S. state of Connecticut.
The Legend of Zelda first came out in 1986.
Dozens of games in that series have since been released.
薩爾達傳說遊戲系列1986年開始，現在有二十多個遊戲。
So, in today's News Bites:
Students in Chiayi found a snake with two heads.
The principal called the fire department to rescue it.
Now, a university has taken it for research.
And,
Cows are learning to use a special bathroom.
It's called a MooLoo.
This is better for the environment, and their waste can be turned into energy!
And,
A classic video game has been sold for a lot of money.
An original copy of The Legend of Zelda was auctioned off for 411,000 U.S. dollars.
And that's today's episode of News Bites!