Words & phrases
医药
yī yào
medicine; medical field
调查
diào chá
investigate; investigation
整理
zhěng lǐ
organise; put in order
本草纲目
běn cǎo gāng mù
Compendium of Materia Medica
Model sentences
李时珍认真研究医药知识。
lǐ shí zhēn rèn zhēn yán jiū yī yào zhī shí。
Li Shizhen carefully studies medical knowledge.
观察植物时，我们只记录看见的特征。
guān chá zhí wù shí， wǒ men zhǐ jì lù kàn jiàn de tè zhēng。
When observing plants, we record only the features we see.
调查不只是查书，也包括实地观察。
diào chá bù zhǐ shì chá shū， yě bāo kuò shí dì guān chá。
Investigation involves direct observation as well as consulting books.
两份资料说法不同时，要比较来源和证据。
liǎng fèn zī liào shuō fǎ bù tóng shí， yào bǐ jiào lái yuán hé zhèng jù。
When two sources differ, compare their origins and evidence.
她把每天的观察记录按日期整理好。
tā bǎ měi tiān de guān chá jì lù àn rì qī zhěng lǐ hǎo。
She organises each day's observation notes by date.
《本草纲目》整理了大量医药资料。
《 běn cǎo gāng mù 》 zhěng lǐ le dà liàng yī yào zī liào。
The Compendium of Materia Medica organises a large amount of medical information.
李时珍
李时珍从小接触医药，长大以后，希望把有关药物的知识整理得更清楚。
lǐ shí zhēn cóng xiǎo jiē chù yī yào， zhǎng dà yǐ hòu， xī wàng bǎ yǒu guān yào wù de zhī shí zhěng lǐ de gèng qīng chu。
Li Shizhen encounters medicine from childhood and later hopes to organise knowledge about medicinal substances more clearly.
他阅读许多书，发现有些记载不完整，有些名称容易混淆，于是认真比较不同的记录。
tā yuè dú xǔ duō shū， fā xiàn yǒu xiē jì zǎi bù wán zhěng， yǒu xiē míng chēng róng yì hùn xiáo， yú shì rèn zhēn bǐ jiào bù tóng de jì lù。
He reads widely and carefully compares records whose descriptions are incomplete or whose names may be confused.
遇到弄不清的地方，他不愿凭想象补上，而是继续查书，并向有经验的人请教。
yù dào nòng bù qīng de dì fang， tā bù yuàn píng xiǎng xiàng bǔ shàng， ér shì jì xù chá shū， bìng xiàng yǒu jīng yàn de rén qǐng jiào。
When something is unclear, he continues reading and consulting experienced people rather than filling the gap with imagination.
他走访不同地方，观察植物的叶子、花和生长环境，把所见所闻记在本子上。
tā zǒu fǎng bù tóng dì fang， guān chá zhí wù de yè zi、 huā hé shēng zhǎng huán jìng， bǎ suǒ jiàn suǒ wén jì zài běn zi shàng。
He visits different places, observing plants’ leaves, flowers and habitats and recording what he sees and hears.
两种植物即使看起来相似，也可能有不同的特征；他把需要核对的地方留在记录里。
liǎng zhǒng zhí wù jí shǐ kàn qǐ lái xiāng sì， yě kě néng yǒu bù tóng de tè zhēng； tā bǎ xū yào hé duì de dì fang liú zài jì lù lǐ。
Plants that look alike may still differ, so he records the features that need further checking.
有时，一次询问带来的答案又产生新的疑问，他便把两种说法并排记下，留待继续查找。
yǒu shí， yí cì xún wèn dài lái de dá àn yòu chǎn shēng xīn de yí wèn， tā biàn bǎ liǎng zhǒng shuō fǎ bìng pái jì xià， liú dài jì xù chá zhǎo。
Sometimes an answer raises another question, so he records both accounts for further investigation.
整理资料时，他把名称、描述和已有记载放在一起，一次次修改不清楚的地方。
zhěng lǐ zī liào shí， tā bǎ míng chēng、 miáo shù hé yǐ yǒu jì zǎi fàng zài yì qǐ， yí cì cì xiū gǎi bù qīng chu de dì fang。
He brings names, descriptions and earlier records together, repeatedly revising unclear passages.
这项工作不是一两天就能完成的，漫长的查访和写作终于汇成了《本草纲目》。
zhè xiàng gōng zuò bú shì yī liǎng tiān jiù néng wán chéng de， màn cháng de chá fǎng hé xiě zuò zhōng yú huì chéng le 《 běn cǎo gāng mù 》。
This work takes far more than a few days; years of research and writing eventually become the Compendium of Materia Medica.
书页背后，是一次次提问、观察和比较，也是一位研究者长期积累的心血。
shū yè bèi hòu， shì yí cì cì tí wèn、 guān chá hé bǐ jiào， yě shì yí wèi yán jiū zhě cháng qī jī lěi de xīn xuè。
Behind its pages lie repeated questions, observations and comparisons, and a researcher’s sustained effort.
Conversation
A 这两片叶子相似，就一定是同一种植物吗？
zhè liǎng piàn yè zi xiāng sì， jiù yí dìng shì tóng yī zhǒng zhí wù ma？
If these leaves look similar, must they be from the same kind of plant?
B 不一定，还需要核对别的特征。
bù yí dìng， hái xū yào hé duì bié de tè zhēng。
Not necessarily. We need to check other features.
A 观察记录里先写什么？
guān chá jì lù lǐ xiān xiě shén me？
What should go into the observation record first?
B 日期、地点，还有真正看到的样子。
rì qī、 dì diǎn， hái yǒu zhēn zhèng kàn dào de yàng zi。
Date, place and what we actually see.
A 两个资料说得不一样怎么办？
liǎng gè zī liào shuō de bù yí yàng zěn me bàn？
What if two sources say different things?
B 比较来源和证据，不急着下结论。
bǐ jiào lái yuán hé zhèng jù， bù jí zhe xià jié lùn。
Compare their sources and evidence without rushing to conclude.
