蚂蚁会爆炸（蚂蚁会自然死亡吗）

　　For centuries, the great British loo (british expression for toilet) has been a matter of envy to the rest of the world. Thanks to the efforts of pioneers like the legendary Thomas Crapper, they have long since led the world in comfort and hygiene. Now, however, that could be about to change. 　　According to Daily Mail on July 14, from next week, shoppers in Rochdale in the Greater Manchester town who push open the cubicle door expecting the reassuring sight of a modern, clean lavatory could instead be faced with little more than a hole in the ground. Bosses of the Greater Manchester town's Exchange mall said he got the idea after attending a cultural awareness course run by a local Muslim community activist. 　　With one in ten of Rochdale's population of Pakistani or Bangladeshi origin, center managers say they have been told some members of the local Asian community prefer them for cultural reasons. 　　News of the introduction of squat toilets was met by disbelief of the local inhabitants, however, "It's absolutely ludicrous - Thomas Crapper would be turning in his grave! We in Britain are rightly proud of our toilets, and the onus is on people who come to this country to appreciate them for what they are," a resident said. 　　据美国《探索新闻》7月15日报道，美国生态学家马克-莫菲特近日称，搞自杀式爆炸的恐怖分子不仅在人类中存在，蚂蚁也会采用极为戏剧化的方式自杀，和敌人同归于尽。 　　在莫菲特出版的新书《蚁群历险记》中，他描述并展示了某些种群的蚂蚁如何使用自杀式爆炸来清除异类的过程。在马来群岛婆罗洲森林里的一棵大树上，莫菲特在柱状白蚁巢穴附近设置了陷阱。他在树干洒些蜂蜜以吸引蚂蚁出现。 　　他在书中描述了接下来发生的场景：一个小时后，织叶蚁和另一种木蚁同时发现了诱饵，它们立即向大树靠近。其中一只爬上树干但是又下来了。另外一只爬得更高些，还想超过一只柱状白蚁。正在我按下快门的一刹那，柱状白蚁发生‘自爆’，白蚁自身和另外一只蚂蚁同时被一种黄色胶质液体固定在了一起。 　　莫菲特还在书中描述了一种通过全体自杀来自卫的特殊蚁群。 　　约有8只蚂蚁组成敢死队，在夜间用自己的身躯和沙土牢牢封堵住蚁穴入口，同时不断查缺补漏直到蚁穴没有任何缝隙。在外面到第二天黎明，8只蚂蚁几乎全部死亡——原因不明，大概这些蚂蚁都属于老弱病残类。随后蚁穴成员出来将同伴的尸体清理干净并开始准备新一天的觅食行动。到了第二天晚上，又会有更多蚂蚁接替前一天牺牲同伴的工作。 　　为了便于理解蚂蚁的这种自杀行为，莫菲特建议我们把一个蚂蚁群体看作是一个组织。舍弃不重要的部分来保全整个群体。群体更庞大，伤亡相应越少，他说。