Page 3 - Science Focus (Issue 018)

Cover Design –

The Fascinating World of
Animal Behavior Inspired by the article The Fascinating

܆ࠦணࠇ { World of Animal Behavior in this issue (P.22–25),
the cover shows an elephant’s trunk (upper
ණΥਢl൴˷ ซ྅ٙ right), a leaf-cutter ant (left) and the fungus
ਗي Бމኪ garden of leaf-cutter ants (bottom right). In
fact, animals behave in a way that is more
complicated than we might think – they grow
crops, perform complex courtship rituals, and
mourn for their deceased family members.
From this point of view, the anthropomorphic
animal villagers in Animal Crossing: New
Horizons don’t actually sound that far-fetched…

取材自今期文章〈集合啦！超乎想像的動物行為
學〉（第 22–25 頁），封面展示的是象鼻（右上）、切
葉蟻（左）和切葉蟻的真菌花園（右下）。動物行為其
實比我們想像中複雜：牠們會種植農作物、進行複雜
的求偶儀式，也會哀悼死去的家庭成員。由此可見，《集
合啦！動物森友會》中以擬人形式登場的動物村民其
The fungus garden of leaf-cutter ants 切葉蟻的真菌花園
Photo credit 相片來源: Austin Lynch 實並不是完全天馬行空……

What’s Happening in Hong Kong? ࠰ಥ߅Ҧݺਗ

Are you bored of staying at home? You can have some fun in the following astronomical
event. Stay safe and healthy!
你對足不出戶的日子厭倦了嗎？我們挑選了以下的天文現象讓你觀賞，安全和健康第一！

Geminid Meteor Shower — ᕐɿࢭݴ݋ڠ ķ
December 13–14, 2020 ϋ ˜ Ї ˚

This year, the Geminids are expected to peak 今年雙子座流星雨的高峰期預計是 12 月13日
on the night between December 13 (Sun) and
December 14 (Mon), and the best observation （日）晚上至 12 月 14 日（一）凌晨，最佳觀賞時間
time will be around 03:00. You may also try 是上午三時左右，你亦可以嘗試於前後一晚觀賞。
the nights before or after. Theoretically, there 理論上，每小時預計最多會有約 150 顆流星在夜空
could be up to 150 meteors per hour (subject
to light pollution level, weather conditions, etc.). 劃過（亦受光害、天氣等因素影響）。當晚的月相是
The Moon will be in a new moon phase so the 新月（農曆三十），因此觀測不會受月光影響。
moonlight won’t affect our observation.
Q: Will there be an outburst like a fireworks ਪj 這次流星雨會不會像煙花匯演一樣如雨落下？
display? ഈj 恐怕不會，那大概只是日本動畫《你的名字》裡
A: No, probably not. Sorry to disappoint you, 面的情景。香港太空館指出，即使在理想情況
but it won’t be anything like the Japanese
animation, Your Name. There may only be 下，每小時也可能只有 20–30 顆可見的流星。
20–30 meteors visible per hour even under
ideal conditions, according to the Hong Kong ਪj 流星雨看起來是怎樣的？
Space Museum. ഈj 流星會看似從天空上的一點從外散發，該點稱
Q: What does a meteor shower look like? 為「輻射點」。由於這次流星雨的輻射點位處
A: The meteors appear to radiate from a point in
the sky, called “radiant”. The radiant this time 於雙子座內，因此被命名為「雙子座流星雨」。
is located within the constellation Gemini, so 隨著輻射點移向天頂，我們將能更容易觀測到
the meteor shower is named Geminids. We 流星，因為它們不再受地平線的物體或煙霞阻
can observe the meteors more easily as the
radiant moves towards the zenith, because 擋；但你亦不用只盯著輻射點，因為流星應該
they won’t be blocked by the objects or 會在整個夜空出現。
haze near the horizon. But you don’t have to
stare at the radiant because the meteors will
probably appear everywhere in the sky.