47 What does “thickies” mean in the passage?
(A)Those who are sloppy
(B)Those who are stupid
(C)Those who are heavy
(D)Those who are dark

Johnson Kinyago, a sun-dried曬乾 Masai马赛人 herder放牧人, has two sons. 

“One is a genius—he can identify every animal and find water anywhere. 

So he’s with the goats,” he says proudly. 

“The other is stupid so he’s in school.” 

At a cattle牛 market in Laikipia in northern Kenya, other Masai elders nod their approval. 

Herding牧群 is for bright sparks 精明的人, school for “thickies傻瓜,” all of them say. 

Only 35% of Masai children attend school. 

The reason is that pastoralists畜牧主義 depend on their children’s labor, so even if persuaded of the merits優點 of school, few could spare額外 their ablest能够 offspring子嗣. 

The result is an illiteracy rate of over 90%, leaving the Masai vulnerable to abuse from their more worldly neighbors. With their stretched拉伸 ear lobes, their ochre赭石-stained 沾汙 warriors武士, and gap-toothed brides, the Masai live much as they have for centuries, but in a world which has changed radically. 

When their—illiterate—forebears祖先 made peace with the first British settlers, they unwittingly signed away 90% of their land. 

The remaining留下 arid乾旱 patch地區 no longer不再 supports their swollen膨脹 population.

During a recent three-year drought, more than 89% of their animals died, and the proud Masai are now humiliatingly耻辱 dependent on food aid. 

sloppy翻譯：過濕的, 過稀的, 缺乏關照的, 草率的，馬虎的, （衣服）寬大的，鬆鬆垮垮