来源：《用美国小孩的方法学英语最有效》

　　Stop That Pacing, Fido 费兜，安静！

麦兜安静

　　Stop That Pacing, Fido

　　If you are planning a picnic, watch your pets. If your dog paces and your cat twitches, make other plans. It may rain that day. If you want to wash your car, go outside early in the day and look for a spider. If you see a spider spinning a web, get out your soap and bucket. There will most likely be fair weather。

　　If you would rather fly a kite, look at the stars the night before. If they are bright, find your kite and string. It will be windy the next day. But if you are more in the mood for a swim, listen to the crickets. By counting their chirps, you can tell if it is warm enough。

　　What do animals know about weather? Dampness collects in the air before rain. It makes each hair in an animal's fur swell. That is why your pets move about restlessly. Spiders do not like dampness in the air, either. A spiderweb will not stick to a damp surface. So if a spider is spinning a web, the air must be dry。

　　How can stars help you plan your fun? Stars are most easily seen when winds high in the air blow dust and clouds away. These winds will drop to the ground the next day, making it windy. What about those crickets? Count the number of times a cricket chirps in 15 seconds. Then add 37 to find out how warm it is. If you hear 35 chirps, it is 72 degrees。

　　Words and Phrases 单词和短语

　　picnic ['piknik] n. 郊游，野餐

　　twitch [twitʃ] v. 抽动，颤动，抽搐

　　spider ['spaidə] n. 蜘蛛

　　spin [spin] v. 纺织，结网

　　cricket ['krikit] n. 蟋蟀

　　chirp [tʃə:p] n. 唧唧声，喳喳声；v. 鸟叫；虫鸣

　　dampness ['dæmpnis] n. 潮湿，湿气

　　swell [swel] v. 肿胀，膨胀，鼓起

　　restlessly ['restlisli] adv. 不安地，慌张地

　　spiderweb ['spaidəweb] n. 蛛网

　　译 文

　　费兜，安静！

　　如果你计划去野餐，请事先观察你的宠物。如果你的宠物狗来回不停地踱步，或者你的宠物猫不停地抽搐，那么请你改变计划吧。如果你想给爱车洗个澡，你还是先出门观察一只蜘蛛吧，如果这只蜘蛛正在织网，那么拿起你的肥皂和水桶去给你的爱车洗澡去吧，因为今天一定是一个好天气。

　　如果明天你想去放风筝，请在头一天晚上先观察星相，如果星星明亮可见，那么就准备好你的风筝和线吧，因为明天一定是一个风和日丽的日子。如果你心血来潮想去游泳，那么去之前，先留心倾听蟋蟀的叫声吧。通过数蟋蟀的叫声，你能判断气温是否适宜游泳。

　　是什么让动物们知道天气呢？通常下雨前空气中会聚集潮气，这些潮气让动物们的皮毛膨胀，这就是你的宠物们坐立不安的原因。蜘蛛也不喜欢潮湿的空气，蛛网表面如果潮湿的话，根本粘不到猎物。因此如果你看见一只蜘蛛在织网，那么空气一定是干燥的。

　　星星又是怎样帮你判断天气呢？通常如果高空中有风的话，它会把高空中的灰尘与云层吹散，这样星星就能清晰可见。这些风在次日会下落到地面，那么第二天就是一个起风的日子。蟋蟀又是怎样判断气温的呢？通过数蟋蟀的叫声，然后把十五秒钟内蟋蟀叫声的数量加上三十七，你就会得知当天的气温。比如蟋蟀十五秒内叫三十五声，那么那天的气温就是七十二华氏度。