When John Todd was a child, he loved to explore the woods around his house, observing how nature solved problems. A dirty stream, for example, often became clear after flowing through plants and along rocks where tiny creatures lived. When he got older, John started to wonder if this process could be used to clean up the messes people were making.
约翰・托德小时候喜欢探索他家周围的树林，观察大自然是如何解决问题的。例如，一个脏溪流经过植物和岩石时常常会变得清澈，那些生活在那里的微小生物居然起到了作用。

After studying agriculture, medicine, and fisheries in college, John went back to observing nature and asking questions. Why can certain plants trap harmful bacteria (细菌)? Which kinds of fish can eat cancer-causing chemicals? With the right combination of animals and plants, he figured, maybe he could clean up waste the way nature did. He decided to build what he would later call an eco-machine.
在大学学习农业、医学和渔业后，约翰回归到观察大自然并提出问题。为什么某些植物能够吸附有害细菌？哪种鱼可以吃掉致癌化学物质？他认为，通过合适的动植物组合，也许他可以像大自然那样清理污染。他决定建造一个后来被称为生态机器的东西。

The task John set for himself was to remove harmful substances from some sludge (污泥). First, he constructed a series of clear fiberglass tanks connected to each other. Then he went around to local ponds and streams and brought back some plants and animals. He placed them in the tanks and waited. Little by little, these
约翰给自己设定的任务是从一些污泥中清除有害物质。他首先建造了一系列相互连接的透明玻璃纤维罐。然后他四处寻找当地的池塘和溪流，带回一些植物和动物。他把它们放进罐子里然后等待。一点一点地，这些.
different kinds of life got used to one another and formed their own ecosystem. After a few weeks, John added the sludge.
不同种类的生命逐渐适应彼此并形成了自己的生态系统。几周后，约翰添加了污泥。

He was amazed at the results. The plants and animals in the eco-machine took the sludge as food and began to eat it! Within weeks, it had all been digested, and all that was left was pure water.
他对结果感到惊讶。生态机器中的植物和动物将污泥视为食物并开始食用它！几周后，所有污泥都被消化了，只留下纯净的水。

Over the years, John has taken on many big jobs. He developed a greenhouse — like facility that treated sewage (污水) from 1,600 homes in South Burlington. He also designed an eco-machine to clean canal water in Fuzhou, a city in southeast China.
多年来，约翰承担了许多重要的工作。他设计了一个类似温室设施的场所，处理了南伯灵顿1600户家庭的污水。他还设计了一个用于清洁中国东南部城市福州运河水的生态机器。

“Ecological design” is the name John gives to what he does. “Life on Earth is kind of a box of spare parts for the inventor,” he says. “You put organisms in new relationships and observe what’s happening. Then you let these new systems develop their own ways to self-repair.”
“生态设计”是约翰给自己的工作的命名。“地球上的生命就像是给发明者的备用零件盒，”他说。“你把生物放在新的关系中，观察发生的事情。然后让这些新系统发展出自我修复的方式。”

1. What can we learn about John from the first two paragraphs?
   A. He was fond of traveling. B. He enjoyed being alone.
   C. He had an inquiring mind. D. He longed to be a doctor.
   答案：C

2. Why did John put the sludge into the tanks?
   A. To feed the animals. B. To build an ecosystem.
   C. To protect the plants. D. To test the eco-machine.
   答案：D

3. What is the author’s purpose in mentioning Fuzhou?
   A. To review John’s research plans. B. To show an application of John’s idea.
   C. To compare John’s different jobs. D. To erase doubts about John’s invention.
   答案：B

4. What is the basis for John’s work?
   A. Nature can repair itself. B. Organisms need water to survive.
   C. Life on Earth is diverse. D. Most tiny creatures live in groups.
   答案：A