聪明的蘑菇

聪明的蘑菇　The Smart Mushroom

一头奶牛正在草地上啃着多汁的野草。这时，她发现了一丛蘑菇。

While grazing on some juicy grass in the meadow,a cow comes upon a cluster of mushrooms.

啃草

Grazing

食物！

Food!

“不要吃我！”最大个的蘑菇喊道，“我正在为孩子们制作食物呢。”

“Don’t eat me!” shouts the biggest

mushroom,“I’m making food for the children.”

“你在制作食物？” 奶牛不敢相信地问，“你除了水和纤维就没别的了，而我能够为孩子们制造牛奶！”

“You’re making food?” asks the cow in

disbelief.“You’re nothing but water and fiber; I,on the other hand,make milk for children.”

水和纤维

Water and fiber

牛奶和牛肉

Milk and meat

“你的确很棒！”蘑菇说,“人们需要吃牛奶和牛肉，不过，我可不仅仅是由水和纤维组成的。事实上，我还提供很多对人有益的营养物质，没准儿跟你一样多，甚至比你还多呢。”

“That’s great,”says the mushroom.“We need your milk and meat,but please,I’m more than just water and fiber.I actually offer many goodies as well,perhaps as many as,or even more than,you.”

“不可能。”奶牛回答，“牛奶和牛肉一直是人们摄取营养的最佳来源。不管孩子还是大人，全家人都需要我。”

蘑菇说：“没错，的确是，但你至少需要花上一两年，才能变成一块又美味又有营养的牛排呀！”

“Impossible,” replies the cow.“My milk and meat are the best source of nutrition for the whole family,and it has always been that way.”

“Yes,that’s true,but it takes you at least a year or two to turn into a tasty and nutritious steak,”says the mushroom.

有营养的牛排

Nutritious steak

两个星期

Two weeks

“难道你花的时间就少？”

蘑菇回答：“我只需要两个星期。”

奶牛大声说：“不可能。没什么东西两个星期就长成了。”

“And you take much less time?”

“It only takes me two weeks,” answers the mushroom.

“That can’t be true.Nothing grows in two weeks,” asserts the cow.

“真的，我没骗你。只要有足够的废料，比如像你的粪便，或者一些稻草和枯树枝，两个星期我就长好了。”

“这么说来，你是以我的废弃物为生的？”

“对啊，不光是你的废弃物，我们还能依靠其他植物和动物留下的任何废弃物生活;我们从废弃物中摄取营养，不断成长，并把废弃物转化成可以给其他生物吃的食物。”

“我真的很难想象！你把废弃物，包括我的粪便变成食物？谁愿意吃那种东西啊？”

‘Well,that’s all the time I need to grow,as long as there’s enough waste,like your manure,or some straw and old tree limbs.”

“So you live off my waste?”

“Yes,and off whatever is left by other plants and animals; we feed off it and grow and turn it into food for others to eat.”

“I don’t understand! You turn waste,including mine,into food? Who would want to eat that?”

废弃物

Waste

一公顷土地养活两头奶牛

2 sisters/hectare

“不是你想的那样！我们能够把废弃物转化成蛋白质，同样一年的时间，我们在一公顷土地上生产出的蛋白质比你用牛肉生产的蛋白质多一千倍呢。”

“多一千倍？你就吹牛吧！”

“差别就在，我们蘑菇可以每两个星期收获一次，而你的牛肉得等两年后才长成。再说，一公顷土地只能养活两头奶牛，却能种植成千上万的蘑菇。”

“It’s not waste anymore! We convert it into protein and can make a thousand times more protein per hectare each year than you could ever make with your meat.”

“I think you’re exaggerating.A thousand times more?”

“The difference is that I can be harvested every 2 weeks,and you only after two years.Plus,you can only have 2 sisters on each hectare,whereas I could have thousands all in the same area.”

奶牛回答说：“我们可以生产足够的食物，来消灭这世上的饥荒。”

“你们当然可以，在人们的饮食中你们是一个重要的组成部分。可你会吃到我们为你提供的营养食品。更重要的是，你会发现它味道好极了！”蘑菇补充道。

“你的意思是，你先将废物变成蛋白质，然后我吃掉这些蛋白质，这样我们就能一起为全世界生产出足够的食物。真是完美的合作！”

……这仅仅是开始！……

“We can produce enough food to stamp out hunger from this world,” replies the cow.“Of course you are,and an important part too.You’ll eat the excellent food we process for you.What’s more,you’ll find it delicious,” adds the mushroom.

“That means that you eat first,then I eat,and then together we make enough food for the whole world.That’s great!”

...AND IT HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN! ...

……

这仅仅是开始……

...AND IT HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN! ...