译文及生词短语整理：朗读者小组
Translation
Comma Gets a Cure
科马就医
By Douglas N. Honorof, Jill McCullough & Barbara Somerville.
Well, here’s a story for you: Sarah Perry was a veterinary nurse who had been working daily at an old zoo in a deserted district of the territory, so she was very happy to start a new job at a superb private practice in North Square near the Duke Street Tower. That area was much nearer for her and more to her liking. Even so, on her first morning, she felt stressed. She ate a bowl of porridge, checked herself in the mirror and washed her face in a hurry. Then she put on a plain yellow dress and a fleece jacket, picked up her kit and headed for work.
我给你说个故事吧：莎拉·佩里曾是个兽医，她以前每天都要到一所老动物园工作，这所动物园处于她居住的那片区的一个荒废地带，因此她非常高兴自己能够在杜克街塔旁的北广场里的一个高级私人诊所里开始新的工作。那个地方对她来说更近而更合她的心意。即便如此，她在上班的第一天还是紧张了。她喝了一碗粥，在镜子前审视了自己一番，并匆忙地洗了把脸。接着她套上一件浅黄色裙子和一个羊毛外套，拿上她的设备，就去上班了。
When she got there, there was a woman with a goose waiting for her. The woman gave Sarah an official letter from the vet. The letter implied that the animal could be suffering from a rare form of foot and mouth disease, which was surprising, because normally you would only expect to see it in a dog or a goat. Sarah was sentimental, so this made her feel sorry for the beautiful bird.
当她到诊所的时候，一个女人正抱着一只鹅等着她。那个女人将一封兽医写的信交给莎拉。信上说那只鹅可能患有手足口病，这个情况十分罕见，因为因为通常你只会在狗和山羊身上看到这种案例。莎拉是个感性的人，所以她为这只漂亮的鸟儿感到惋惜。
Before long, that itchy goose began to strut around the office like a lunatic, which made an unsanitary mess. The goose’s owner, Mary Harrison, kept calling, “Comma, Comma,” which Sarah thought was an odd choice for a name. Comma was strong and huge, so it would take some force to trap her, but Sarah had a different idea. First she tried gently stroking the goose’s lower back with her palm, then singing a tune to her. Finally, she administered ether. Her efforts were not futile. In no time, the goose began to tire, so Sarah was able to hold onto Comma and give her a relaxing bath.
不久，那只浑身瘙痒的鹅像是精神错乱般开始在办公室里趾气高昂地走了起来，把屋里搞得一团糟。鹅的主人，玛丽·哈里森，不停地在喊：“科马，科马”，这鹅的名字真怪，莎拉心想。科马很壮硕，因此要抓她需要费些劲，但莎拉有自己的主意。首先她试着用掌心轻抚鹅的脖子下方，然后哼首小曲给她听。最后，她为科马注射了乙醚。药效起作用了。很快，那只鹅就开始困了，莎拉趁势抱起科马，然后替她洗了个放松澡。
Once Sarah had managed to bathe the goose, she wiped her off with a cloth and laid her on her right side. Then Sarah confirmed the vet’s diagnosis. Almost immediately, she remembered an effective treatment that required her to measure out a lot of medicine. Sarah warned that this course of treatment might be expensive-either five or six times the cost of penicillin. I can’t imagine paying so much, but Mrs. Harrison-a millionaire lawyer-thought it was a fair price for a cure.
在给科马洗完澡后，莎拉用一块毛巾替她抹干身上的水，将她安置在自己右边。紧接着她便开始诊断那只鹅的病症。几乎是在同一时间，她想到一个有效的疗法—但她需要用上所有的药。莎拉提醒道这种疗法耗费昂贵—价格是盘尼西林价格的五六倍。这个数字对我来说是天价，但哈里森夫人—一位身家百万的律师—认为这个药的价格还挺合理。
(Comma Gets a Cure and derivative works may be used freely for any purpose without special permission provided the present sentence and the following copyright notification accompany the passage in print, if reproduced in print, and in audio format in the case of a sound recording: Copyright 2000 Douglas N. Honorof, Jill McCullough & Barbara Somerville. All rights reserved.)
（科马就医及其衍生作品可以免费使用，并不需要特别许可，如果以印刷方式重制，只要本文和下列版权声明在印刷作品中标注出来即可，并且在录音的情况下为音频格式： 版权所有2000 Douglas N. Honorof，Jill McCullough＆Barbara Somerville。保留所有权利。）
New words
1. veterinary 英 ['vet(ə)rɪn(ə)rɪ; 'vet(ə)nrɪ] 美 ['vɛtərənɛri]
n. 兽医（等于veterinarian）
e.g. In 2009, about 27% of math PhDs were women, but more than three-quarters of veterinary graduates were women, for example.
在2009年，大约27%的数学博士为女性，但是超过四分之三的兽医毕业生为女性。
2. superb 英 [suː'pɜːb; sjuː-] 美 [/suːˈpɜːrb/]
adj. 极好的；华丽的；宏伟的
e.g. The audience was fascinated by their superb performance.
他们的精彩表演使观众看得入了迷。
3. liking 英 ['laɪkɪŋ] 美 ['laɪkɪŋ]
n. 嗜好，爱好
e.g. She’s developed a liking for theatre.
她喜欢上了戏剧。
4. porridge 英 ['pɒrɪdʒ] 美 ['pɔrɪdʒ]
n. 粥，糊；麦片粥
e.g. I'll pass on the fried potato crisp, but take the porridge.
炸土豆片我不吃了，粥还是要喝的。
5. fleece 英 [fliːs] 美 [flis]
n. 羊毛，绒头织物
e.g. Often, you will only need this in the coldest weather, when the fleece adds extra insulation between your base layer and your outer layer.
通常你只在最冷的日子才需要穿上这一层衣物，羊毛会在你的内衣和外套之间建立一个额外的隔绝层。
6. vet 英 [vet] 美 [vɛt]
n. 兽医
e.g. I do not want your job, I want to be a vet and help animals.
将来我并不想像您一样做首相，我想当个兽医，帮助动物。
7. strut 英 [strʌt] 美 [strʌt]
vi. 趾高气扬地走
e.g. Peacocks strut in the surrounding meadow.
孔雀在周围的草地上昂首阔步。
8. lunatic英 ['luːnətɪk] 美 ['lʊnə'tɪk]
n. 疯子；疯人
e.g. One lunatic with a gun could have changed everything.
如果有个带枪的疯子，一切可能全被改变。
9. unsanitary 英 [ʌn'sænɪt(ə)rɪ] 美 [ʌn'sænətɛri]
adj. 不卫生的；有碍健康的
e.g. We should add “very unsanitary” to that description.
我们应该再加上“很不卫生”。
10. ether 英 ['iːθə] 美 ['iθɚ]
n. 乙醚
e.g. Usage of ether and chloroform later declined after the development of safer, more effective inhalation anesthetics, and they are no longer used in surgery today.
在开发出更安全更有效的吸入式麻醉剂之后，乙醚和氯仿的使用逐渐的减少，直到如今已不在外科手术中使用了。
11. futile 英 ['fjuːtaɪl] 美 ['fjʊtaɪl]
adj. 无用的
e.g. Your resistance is futile.
你的抵抗是无用的。
12. penicillin 英 [penɪ'sɪlɪn] 美 [,pɛnɪ'sɪlɪn]
n. 盘尼西林（青霉素）
e.g. I knew there was one cure: penicillin.
我知道有一种有效药：盘尼西林。
13. derivative 英 [dɪ'rɪvətɪv] 美 [də'rɪvətɪv]
n. 衍生物，派生物
e.g. A derived data type is a derivative or structure of existing base types or other derived types.
派生数据类型是已有的基本类型或其他派生类型的一个派生物或结构。
14. reproduce 英 [riːprə'djuːs] 美 [,riprə'dus]
vt. 复制
e.g. He can reproduce a painting by a new method.
他能用一种新方法复制一幅油画。
Phrases
1.even so 虽然如此，即使如此
2.wash her face 洗脸
3.foot and mouth disease [兽医] 口蹄疫
4.before long 不久以后
5.In no time 立刻，很快
6.hold onto 紧紧抓住
7.measure out 按量配给
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