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MunirVirani_2012S-_为什么我喜欢秃鹫_
I would like to talk to you about a very special group of animals. 我想和大家聊聊 一种非常不寻常的动物。
There are 10,000 species of birds in the world. 地球上总共有一万种鸟类。
species:n.[生物]物种;种类;
Vultures are amongst the most threatened group of birds. 秃鹫是他们中最濒临灭绝的一种。
Vultures:n.兀鹫;秃鹫;趁火打劫的人;(vulture的复数) amongst:prep.在…之中;在…当中(等于among);
When you see a vulture like this, the first thing that comes to your mind is, these are disgusting , ugly , greedy creatures that are just after your flesh , associated with politicians . (Laughter) (Applause) 每当你看到秃鹫就像这只,首先 浮现在你脑海中一定是,这是一些令人厌恶, 贪得无厌并且追逐腐肉的可怕生物, 让人禁不住联想到政客们。（笑声）（掌声）
disgusting:adj.令人不快的;令人厌恶的;v.使作呕;使厌恶;使反感;(disgust的现在分词) ugly:adj.丑陋的;邪恶的;令人厌恶的; greedy:adj.贪婪的;贪吃的;渴望的; creatures:n.生物;动物;(具有某种特征的)人(creature的复数) flesh:n.肉;肉体;v.喂肉给…;发胖; associated:adj.有关联的; v.联想; (associate的过去分词和过去式) politicians:n.政治家;(蔑)政客;(美)政治贩;(politician的复数)
I want to change that perception . I want to change those feelings you have for these birds, because they need our sympathy . They really do. (Laughter) 我想改变这种看法。我想改变 大家对秃鹫的这些不好的联想,因为 他们需要我们的同情。他们真的很需要。（笑声）
perception:n.感知;知觉;看法;洞察力; sympathy:n.同情;慰问;赞同;
And I'll tell you why. 让我来告诉大家为什么。
First of all , why do they have such a bad press? 首先,为什么他们会给我们留下这种坏印象呢？
First of all:adv.首先;
When Charles Darwin went across the Atlantic in 1832 on the Beagle , he saw the turkey vulture, and he said, "These are disgusting birds with bald scarlet heads that are formed to revel in putridity." (Laughter) 1832年 查尔斯 达尔文在搭乘贝格尔号穿越大西洋的 旅途中,发现了土耳其秃鹫, 他当时说道,“这些令人恶心的,长着猩红色 秃头的鸟儿们总是沉湎于腐肉中不可自拔. （笑声）
Atlantic:adj.大西洋的;巨人阿特拉斯的;n.大西洋; Beagle:n.(一种猎兔用)小猎犬;密探;警官;vi.打探消息;由小猎犬指引追猎; bald:adj.秃顶的;秃头的;无毛的; scarlet:adj.深红的;鲜红色的;罪孽深重的;淫荡的;n.猩红色;红衣;绯红色;鲜红色布; revel:vi.狂欢;陶醉;n.狂欢;闹饮;喜庆狂欢活动;
You could not get a worse insult , and that from Charles Darwin. (Laughter) 你很难找到比这更恶毒的侮辱了,这些话可是查尔斯 达尔文说的。（笑声）
insult:v.侮辱;辱骂;损害;n.侮辱;凌辱;无礼;
You know, he changed his mind when he came back, and I'll tell you why. 你们知道吗,达尔文返回英国之后就改变他的看法, 我马上会告诉你们为什么。
They've also be associated with Disney — (Laughter) — personified as goofy , dumb , stupid characters. 秃鹫还曾经被迪斯尼看上—（笑声）— 像高飞狗一样,被人格化,变成了麻木的,愚蠢的动画角色。
Disney:n.迪斯尼(美国动画影片制作家及制片人); personified:表现; goofy:adj.傻瓜的,愚笨的; dumb:adj.哑的,无说话能力的;不说话的,无声音的;
More recently , if you've been following the Kenyan press — (Laughter) (Applause) (Cheers) — these are the attributes that they associated the Kenyan MPs with. But I want to challenge that. 而最近,如果你留意过肯尼亚的新闻 ——（笑声）（掌声）（欢呼）—— 肯尼亚的国会议员们被讽刺为像秃鹫一般 贪婪和愚蠢。但是我想叫板它。
recently:adv.最近;新近; attributes:v.把…归因于; n.属性; (attribute的第三人称单数和复数)
I want to challenge that. Do you know why? 我要质疑它。你们知道为什么吗？
Because MPs do not keep the environment clean. (Laughter) 因为国会议员们 不能保持自然环境的清洁。（笑声）
MPs do not help to prevent the spread of diseases . 不能阻止疾病的传播。
diseases:n.[医]病(disease的复数);[医]疾病;[植保]病害;疾病种类;
They are hardly monogamous . (Laughter) (Applause) 几乎没人遵守一夫一妻制度。（笑声）（掌声）
monogamous:adj.一夫一妻的;[动]单配的;
They are far from being extinct . (Laughter) 他们离灭绝还很远。（笑声）
extinct:adj.灭绝的,绝种的;熄灭的;vt.使熄灭;
And, my favorite is, vultures are better looking. (Applause) (Laughter) 并且,这条我最喜欢,秃鹫比议员们好看多了。（掌声）（笑声）
So there's two types of vultures in this planet. 在这个世界上有两大类秃鹫。
There are the New World vultures that are mainly found in the Americas, like the condors and the caracaras , and then the Old World vultures, where we have 16 species. From these 16, 11 of them are facing a high risk of extinction . 新大陆的秃鹫主要生长在 美洲大陆,像是美洲秃鹫和委内瑞拉秃鹫, 而在其他的大陆,那里 总共有16种秃鹫,他们中的11种正面临着 灭绝的风险。
mainly:adv.大多;大部分;主要地;首要地; condors:n.秃鹫,秃鹰; caracaras:n.(产于中南美洲吃腐肉的)长腿兀鹰; Old World:adj.古代世界的,古时的;从前的,以前的; extinction:n.绝种;
So why are vultures important? First of all, they provide vital ecological services. They clean up. 所以为什么说秃鹫重要呢？首先, 秃鹫对生态循环做出了至关重要的作用。他们净化环境。
vital:adj.至关重要的;生死攸关的;有活力的; ecological:adj.生态的,生态学的;
They're our natural garbage collectors . 秃鹫是我们的大自然垃圾清道夫。
garbage:n.垃圾;废物; collectors:n.收藏家;收集者;聚集剂;[电子]集电极(collector的复数);
They clean up carcasses right to the bone. 他们会把尸体上的肉吃的干干净净只剩白骨。
carcasses:n.尸体;兽体(carcass的复数形式);
They help to kill all the bacteria . They help absorb anthrax that would otherwise spread and cause huge livestock losses and diseases in other animals. 他们能消灭所有尸体上的细菌,他们能吸收炭疽病毒 阻止病毒的传播与扩散 从而使大量的家畜和动物远离死亡和疾病。
bacteria:n.[微]细菌; absorb:v.吸收;使并入;吞并;同化;理解;吸收;耗费;承受; anthrax:n.炭疽,炭疽热; livestock:n.家畜;牲畜;
Recent studies have shown that in areas where there are no vultures, carcasses take up to three to four times to decompose , and this has huge ramifications for the spread of diseases. 最近的研究还显示在那些 没有秃鹫生存的地区,尸体的分解会多花 三到四倍的时间,这给疾病的传播与扩散 提供了更多的机会。
decompose:v.腐烂;(使)分解; ramifications:n.(众多复杂而又难以预料的)结果,后果;(ramification的复数)
Vultures also have tremendous historical significance . 秃鹫还有非常多的历史意义。
tremendous:adj.极大的,巨大的;惊人的;极好的; historical:adj.历史的;史学的;基于史实的; significance:n.意义;重要性;意思;
They have been associated in ancient Egyptian culture. 他们和古埃及文化有着密切的联系。
Nekhbet was the symbol of the protector and the motherhood , and together with the cobra , symbolized the unity between Upper and Lower Egypt. 奈库贝特女神在古埃及文化中象征着监护人 和母性,通常和眼镜蛇女神维阿杰特一起出现, 象征着上埃及和下埃及的团结和统一。
protector:n.保护器;保护者;保护装置;防御者; motherhood:n.母性;母亲身份; cobra:n.眼镜蛇;(澳)头颅; symbolized:象征,作为…的象征(symbolize的过去式和过去分词); unity:n.团结;一致;联合;个体; Upper:adj.上面的;内陆的;n.靴面;兴奋剂;
In Hindu mythology , Jatayu was the vulture god, and he risked his life in order to save the goddess Sita from the 10-headed demon Ravana. 在印度教神话中,秃鹫之神名为雅达尤, 他冒着生命危险 从10头恶魔罗波那手中救出了西妲女神。
Hindu:adj.印度的;印度教的;n.印度人;印度教教徒; mythology:n.神话;神话学;神话集; demon:n.恶魔;魔鬼;精力充沛的人;邪恶的事物;
In Tibetan culture, they are performing very important sky burials. In places like Tibet, there are no places to bury the dead, or wood to cremate them, so these vultures provide a natural disposal system. 在西藏文化中,秃鹫尤其显得重要 天葬。在那些类似西藏的地方,既没有条件 土葬,也没有木材去进行火葬, 所以秃鹫为当地人提供了一种天然的尸体处理系统。
Tibetan:adj.西藏的;藏族的;n.西藏人;藏语; performing:adj.表演的;演奏的;v.做;执行;演出;运转(perform的现在分词) bury:v.埋葬;隐藏; cremate:vt.火葬;烧成灰; disposal:n.处理;清除;去掉;(企业、财产等的)变卖;
So what is the problem with vultures? 那么秃鹫都面临着哪些问题呢？
We have eight species of vultures that occur in Kenya, of which six are highly threatened with extinction. 肯尼亚生长着八种秃鹫, 其中的六种正濒临灭绝。
occur:v.发生;出现;存在于;出现在; highly:adv.高度地;非常;非常赞许地;
The reason is that they're getting poisoned, and the reason that they're getting poisoned is because there's human-wildlife conflicts . The pastoral communities are using this poison to target predators , and in return, the vultures are falling victim to this. 很多秃鹫被毒死,中毒的原因 是因为在肯尼亚正在发生的 人类与野生动物之间对于生存空间的争夺。牧人们 使用毒药来对付掠食动物, 掠食动物被毒死之后,秃鹫们随之成为了下一个受害者。
conflicts:n.冲突; v.抵触; pastoral:adj.牧师的;牧人的;田园生活的;乡村的;n.牧歌;田园诗;田园景色; communities:n.社区;社会;团体;共有(community的复数) predators:n.捕食性动物;实行弱肉强食的人(或机构);掠夺者;(predator的复数) victim:n.受害人;牺牲品;牺牲者;
In South Asia, in countries like India and Pakistan, four species of vultures are listed as critically endangered , which means they have less than 10 or 15 years to go extinct, and the reason is because they are falling prey by consuming livestock that has been treated with a painkilling drug like Diclofenac . 在南亚,一些国家类似于印度和巴基斯坦, 四种秃鹫被列为极度濒临灭绝中, 这意味着在他们将会在10到15年之内彻底灭绝, 灭绝的原因是因为秃鹫们 食用了那些生前曾被喂食过 含有双氯芬酸成分止疼药的家畜。
critically:adv.精密地;危急地;批评性地;用钻研眼光地; endangered:v.使遭危险;危及;危害;(endanger的过去分词和过去式) prey:n.猎物;受害者;受骗者;v.折磨;掠夺;捕食(on,upon);损害(on,upon); consuming:adj.消费的;强烈的;v.消耗(consume的ing形式); treated:v.以…态度对待;把…看作;(treat的过去分词和过去式) painkilling:adj.止痛的; Diclofenac:n.双氯芬酸;双氯灭痛;
This drug has now been banned for veterinary use in India, and they have taken a stand. 现在含有双氯芬酸的兽药已经被禁止在印度使用, 印度政府表现出了积极的态度。
banned:v.明令禁止;取缔;禁止(某人)做某事;(ban的过去分词和过去式) veterinary:adj.兽医的;n.兽医(等于veterinarian);
Because there are no vultures, there's been a spread in the numbers of feral dogs at carcass dump sites , and when you have feral dogs, you have a huge time bomb of rabies . The number of cases of rabies has increased tremendously in India. 因为秃鹫数量的骤减,野狗开始 在牲畜尸体掩埋场周围泛滥成灾, 在野狗泛滥的地区,狂犬病就像定时炸弹一样 随时都会爆发。狂犬病案例的数量 在印度出现了惊人的增长。
feral:adj.野生的;凶猛的;阴郁的; dump:v.倾倒;抛售;抛弃;转存;n.垃圾场;转储;转存;废物堆; sites:n.网站(site的复数);遗址,举办地点;v.使...位于(site的单三形式); time bomb:定时炸弹; rabies:n.[内科]狂犬病,恐水病; tremendously:adv.非常地;可怕地;惊人地;
Kenya is going to have one of the largest wind farms in Africa: 353 wind turbines are going to be up at Lake Turkana. 肯尼亚即将拥有全非洲最大规模的风力发电厂: 353台涡轮发电机即将被安装在图尔卡纳湖区。
turbines:n.[动力]涡轮;[动力]涡轮机(turbine的复数);[动力]汽轮机;
I am not against wind energy, but we need to work with the governments, because wind turbines do this to birds. They slice them in half. 我不反对开发风能,但是我们应该呼吁 政府重新考虑这项决定,因为风力涡轮机 会对鸟类造成威胁。高速的扇叶会把鸟儿“切”成两半。
slice:n.片; v.切成片; (很容易地)切开;
They are bird-blending machines. 它们简直就是鸟类粉碎机。
In West Africa, there's a horrific trade of dead vultures to serve the witchcraft and the fetish market. 在西非,一些人毫无怜悯的叫卖 死去的秃鹫来满足巫术和收藏的需求。
horrific:adj.可怕的;令人毛骨悚然的; witchcraft:n.巫术;魔法; fetish:n.恋物(等于fetich);迷信;偶像;
So what's being done? Well, we're conducting research on these birds. We're putting transmitters on them. 我们正在做什么呢？我们正在研究 这些秃鹫。我们在它们身上安装定位器。
conducting:v.组织;安排;实施;指挥;引导;导游(conduct的现在分词) transmitters:n.信号传送器;传送者(transmitter的复数形式);
We're trying to determine their basic ecology, and see where they go. 我们试图去查明秃鹫与周围环境的关系（生态学） 并且了解秃鹫的行踪。
determine:v.决定;确定;测定;查明;形成;影响;裁决;安排;
We can see that they travel different countries, so if you focus on a problem locally , it's not going to help you. 我们发现它们会在不同的国家之间旅行,所以 如果只是关注一个地区,你很难取得什么进展。
locally:adv.在本地;局部地;在地方上;
We need to work with governments in regional levels. 我们需要去和整个地区的政府们打交道。
regional:adj.地区的;局部的;整个地区的;
We're working with local communities. 我们正努力与当地的居民们沟通。
We're talking to them about appreciating vultures, about the need from within to appreciate these wonderful creatures and the services that they provide. 我们正在尽力让他们了解到秃鹫的益处, 并且发自内心得去感激这些 奇妙的生物和他们为自然所做的贡献。
appreciating:v.欣赏;感激;感谢;理解(appreciate的现在分词) appreciate:v.欣赏;感激;感谢;理解;
How can you help? You can become active, make noise. You can write a letter to your government and tell them that we need to focus on these very misunderstood creatures. Volunteer your time to spread the word. Spread the word. 你们能做些什么呢？你们可以行动起来, 制造声势。你们可以写信给你们的政府 并且告诉他们,我们需要去关注这些被严重 误解的生物。花些时间 告诉你身边的人。尽可能多的人。
misunderstood:adj.被误解的;v.误解,误会(misunderstand的过去式); Volunteer:n.志愿者;志愿兵;adj.志愿的;v.自愿;
When you walk out of this room, you will be informed about vultures, but speak to your families, to your children, to your neighbors about vultures. 当你走出这个房间的时候,你们就是 秃鹫达人了,不但要告诉你的家人们,还要 告诉你们的邻居们有关秃鹫的故事。
informed:adj.见多识广的; v.通知; (inform的过去分词和过去式)
They are very graceful . Charles Darwin said he changed his mind because he watched them fly effortlessly without energy in the skies. 它们是那么的优雅。查尔斯 达尔文曾说到 他改变了自己的看法,在他看到秃鹫们在空中 优雅而又浑然天成的身姿之后。
graceful:adj.优雅的;优美的; effortlessly:adv.轻松地;毫不费劲地;
Kenya, this world, will be much poorer without these wonderful species. 肯尼亚,全世界,都将会有很大的损失 如果失去了这些奇妙的物种。
Thank you very much. (Applause) 非常感谢。（鼓掌）