普通高中课程标准实验教科书 英语选修8 Unit 3 Reading

　　THE PROBLEM OF THE SHRIKES

　　When I called up my mother in the countryside on the telephone she was very upset. "There are some snakes in our courtyard," she told me. "Snakes come near the house now and then, and they seem to have made their home here, not far from the walnut tree. Can you get rid of them please?" I felt very proud. Here was a chance for .me to distinguish myself by inventing something merciful that would catch snakes but not harm them. I knew my parents would not like me to hurt these living creatures!

　　The first thing I did was to see if there were any products that might help me, but there only seemed to be powders designed to kill snakes. A new approach was clearly needed. I set about researching the habits of snakes to find the easiest way to trap them. Luckily these reptiles are small and that made the solution easier.

　　Prepared with some research findings, I decided on three possible approaches: firstly, removing their habitat; secondly, attracting them into a trap using male or female perfume or food; and thirdly cooling them so that they would become sleepy and could be easily caught. I decided to use the last one. I bought an ice-cream maker which was made of stainless steel. Between the outside and the inside walls of the bowl there is some jelly, which freezes when cooled. I put the bowl into the fridge and waited for 24 hours. At the same time I prepared some ice-cubes.

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