Cows release a toxic gas into the air. A change in their diet may help the planet.
牛隻會釋放有毒氣體進入空氣，改變他們的飲食可能可以拯救地球。
One cow can release up to 500 liters of methane each day. Cows produce more toxic gas than any other livestock.
每天，一隻牛可以釋放高達500公升的甲烷，這個量遠大於其它的牲畜。
For centuries, farmers living near the ocean have been feeding their cows seaweed. Little did they realize that their animals' seaweed diet might be good for the planet.
數世紀以來，住在海邊的農夫用海草來餵牛。他們不知道這樣讓牛吃海草可能對地球很好。
As a cow digests food, its stomach produces methane. The greenhouse gas is a main cause of climate change. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, livestock, like cows and sheep, emit nearly 15% of the greenhouse gas caused by human activity.
當牛在消化食物時，牠的胃會產生甲烷。這種溫室氣體是造成氣候變遷的主要因子。根據聯合國糧食及農業組織，牲畜，例如牛和羊，排放的溫室氣體佔因人類活動產生的溫室氣體的15%。
| Emit /iˈmɪt/ v. 排放；釋放 | 延伸 |
|---|---|
| The alarm emits infared ray to detect any intruder. | Emission n. 釋放 Emissary n. 使者 |
Animals release more toxic gas than the world's cars and airplanes combined. Worse, methane is 30 times more damaging to the environment than the global-warming gas carbon dioxide, or CO2.
動物釋放的有毒氣體比全球的車量和飛機加起來還多。更遭的是，甲烷對環境的破壞是另一種地球暖化氣體，二氧化碳，的30倍。
Scientists estimate it would take 450,000 acres of red seaweed—about twice the size of New York City—to feed the 92 million cows in the U.S
科學家預估大約需要45萬英畝(約4047平方米)的紅海藻，大約是紐約市的兩倍大，來餵養美國9200萬的牛隻。
Scientists say adding seaweed to a cow's diet can reduce the amount of toxic gas it releases. Rob Kinley, of James Cook University, in Australia, is one of the scientists researching the seaweed diet. He tested more than 40 kinds of ocean plants before finding a red algae he calls "super seaweed."
科學家說在牛的飲食中增加海藻可以減少他們釋放的有毒氣體。澳洲詹姆士庫克大學的羅伯肯利，是研究海藻飲食的科學家之一，他測了40幾種海生植物直到他找到一種紅色海草，並稱之為「超級海藻」。
Cows that eat the plant release 99% less methane than other cows. "This is a huge punch to emissions from agriculture," Kinley told TFK.
吃了該超級海藻的牛可以減少釋放99%的甲烷。「這可是對農業釋放氣體的大衝擊。」肯利告訴TKF。
Kinley says red seaweed only needs to make up 2% of a cow's diet for it to work. The problem: There is not enough red algae to feed the world's 1.5 billion cows. "Whoever can grow it would be a real pioneer," Kinley says.
利說，只要牛隻的飲食的2%是紅海藻就能達到效果。但問題是，沒有那麼多的紅海藻可以餵養世界上15億的牛隻。肯利說：「任何可以將之種出來的一定是真正的拓荒者。」
| Pioneer /ˌpaɪəˈnɪr/ n. 先驅；拓荒者 | 延伸 |
|---|---|
| The doctor was a pioneer of heart surgeon. | Pioneering a. 開創性的 Pious a. 虔誠的 |
The farming industry is eager to get started. But Kinley says more testing is needed to determine the full range of benefits seaweed might offer. "The complete elimination of methane without negative impacts on the production of milk and beef," he says, "that's the best you can ever get."
農業已經躍躍欲試。但肯利卻說還需要更多的測試來了解海藻的所能提供的所有好處。「完全不排放甲烷又不對牛隻產乳及牛肉量造成負面的影響，」他說：「這就是最好的結果。」
出处:Time for kids
