With California in the grip of drought, farmers throughout the state are using a mysterious and some say foolhardy tool for locating underground water: dowsers, or water witches.
Practitioners of dowsing use rudimentary tools — usually copper sticks or wooden “divining rods” that resemble large wishbones — and what they describe as a natural energy to find water or minerals underground.
While both state and federal water scientists disapprove of dowsing, California “witchers” are busy as farmers seek to drill more groundwater wells because of the state’s record drought that persists despite recent rain.
Photo: Reuters
照片：路透
The nation’s fourth-largest winemaker, Bronco Wine, says it uses dowsers on its 16,200 hectares of California vineyards, and dozens of smaller farmers and homeowners looking for wells on their property also pay for dowsers.
(Liberty Times)
苦於久旱不雨，加州各地農民啟用一種神秘、也有人說是有勇無謀的工具，尋找地下水源：水源占卜師，或稱水巫師。
水源占卜的從業者使用簡陋的工具—通常是銅棍或木製的「占卜棒」，長得像大一號的鳥類胸叉骨—以及他們所謂的自然能量，去尋找地下水源或礦物。
雖然該州與聯邦水源科學家都不認同水源占卜，但由於加州雖然近來有雨，破紀錄的乾旱仍然持續，農人們尋求鑽鑿出更多地下水源，因此「水巫師們」還是很忙。
全美國第四大酒廠「布朗克葡萄酒」說，它利用水源占卜師搜尋一萬六千兩百公頃的加州葡萄園，幾十個小農與民宅屋主也付費請水源占卜師在他們的地產上找水。
（自由時報／翻譯：詹立群）
Many animals spend the winter in a deep, low-energy state known as “hibernation.” When food becomes scarce and cold conditions drain body heat, bats, hedgehogs, and some ground squirrels retreat to safe shelters. Their bodies slow down to save energy: heart rates drop, breathing becomes shallow, and body temperature falls. Plenty of preparation goes into hibernation. Shorter days and falling temperatures provoke these animals to eat more and store fat, which sustains the brain and other organs. Inside the body, hormones guide this seasonal change, triggering specific behavior and switching the system to energy-saving mode. Hibernation is not the only winter survival
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