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NathalieCabrol_2015-_火星为何有可能保留了生命起源的秘密_
Well, you know, sometimes the most important things come in the smallest packages. 你们知道吗, 有时最重要的信息会通过最细微的事物传达。
I am going to try to convince you, in the 15 minutes I have, that microbes have a lot to say about questions such as, "Are we alone?" 在接下来15分钟里,我将很确定的告诉你们: 微生物可以从很大程度上解释这样的问题,比如, “我们是独一无二生命的吗？”
I am going to:我将要做什么事情 convince:v.使确信;使相信;说服,劝说; microbes:n.细菌,[微]微生物;微生物类(microbe的复数形式);
and they can tell us more about not only life in our solar system but also maybe beyond, and this is why I am tracking them down in the most impossible places on Earth, in extreme environments where conditions are really pushing them to the brink of survival . 微生物能告诉我们的还有很多,不仅是关于我们太阳系以内的生物, 可能还包括以外的, 这就是为什么我正在地球上最恶劣的环境中寻找它们的踪迹, 那些极端的环境会 把微生物推向生存危机的边缘。
solar system:[天]太阳系; tracking:n.追踪,跟踪;v.跟踪;(track的现在分词) extreme:adj.极端的;极度的;偏激的;尽头的;n.极端;末端;最大程度;极端的事物; brink:n.(峭壁的)边缘; survival:n.幸存,残存;幸存者,残存物;
Actually, sometimes me too, when I'm trying to follow them too close. 有时候试图追踪得太紧,连我自己也会面临生命危险。
But here's the thing: 然而重点是:
We are the only advanced civilization in the solar system, but that doesn't mean that there is no microbial life nearby . 我们是太阳系里唯一的高级文明物种, 但这并不意味着附近没有微生物生命。
advanced:adj.先进的; v.前进; (advance的过去式和过去分词形式) civilization:n.文明;文明社会;文明世界;(特定时期和地区的)社会文明; microbial:adj.微生物的;由细菌引起的; nearby:adj.附近的,邻近的;adv.在附近;prep.在…附近;
In fact, the planets and moons you see here could host life -- all of them -- and we know that, and it's a strong possibility. 事实上,大家看到的这些行星和卫星 我们确信,都可能孕育着生命, 而且可能性还很高。
And if we were going to find life on those moons and planets, then we would answer questions such as, are we alone in the solar system? 如果我们能够在那些行星和卫星上找到生命, 那么我们就能回答这样的问题,比如, 在太阳系里我们是唯一生物吗？
Where are we coming from? 我们是从哪里来的呢？
Do we have family in the neighborhood ? 我们的邻居中有我们的同类吗？
neighborhood:n.附近;地区;街坊;adj.附近的;
Is there life beyond our solar system? 太阳系以外有没有生命呢？
And we can ask all those questions because there has been a revolution in our understanding of what a habitable planet is, and today, a habitable planet is a planet that has a zone where water can stay stable , 我们之所以能够提出这些问题 是因为我们对于“可居住星球”的理解有了革命性的发展, “适居行星”如今的定义是 一个具有可储存稳定状态水地域的行星,
revolution:n.革命;旋转;运行;循环; habitable:adj.可居住的;适于居住的; stable:n.马厩;牛棚;adj.稳定的;牢固的;坚定的;vi.被关在马厩;赶入马房;
but to me this is a horizontal definition of habitability , because it involves a distance to a star, but there is another dimension to habitability , and this is a vertical dimension. 但是对我来说,这是可居住性的横向定义, 因为这可以涉及到另一个星球, 其实可居住性还有另一个维度的定义, 一个纵向的维度。
horizontal:n.水平线;水平面;横线;水平位置;adj.水平的;与地面平行的;横的; definition:n.定义;清晰度;(尤指词典里的词或短语的)释义;解释; habitability:n.可居住;适于居住; involves:v.包含;需要;牵涉;牵连;影响;(使)参加,加入(involve的第三人称单数) dimension:n.方面;[数]维;尺寸;次元;容积vt.标出尺寸;adj.规格的; vertical:n.垂直线;垂直位置;adj.竖的;垂直的;直立的;纵向的;
Think of it as conditions in the subsurface of a planet where you are very far away from a sun, but you still have water, energy, nutrients , which for some of them means food, and a protection. 把它想成 某个行星次地表的环境,在那里你离恒星很远, 但你仍旧有水、能量、营养, 对于其中一些生物来说, 这意味着食物和保护。
subsurface:adj.地下的;表面下的;n.地表下岩石; nutrients:营养盐;[食品]营养素;
And when you look at the Earth, very far away from any sunlight , deep in the ocean, you have life thriving and it uses only chemistry for life processes . 当我们再观察地球, 在远离阳光的深海里, 你会找到欣欣向荣的生命, 它们的生命过程只涉及到化学反应。
sunlight:n.日光; thriving:v.兴旺发达;繁荣;旺盛;茁壮成长;(thrive的现在分词) processes:n.过程; v.处理(process的第三人称单数形式);
So when you think of it at that point, all walls collapse . 因此当你这样考虑,所有的围墙都坍塌了。
collapse:vi.倒塌;瓦解;暴跌;vt.使倒塌,使崩溃;使萎陷;折叠;n.倒塌;失败;衰竭;
You have no limitations , basically . 你基本上不受任何限制了。
limitations:n.局限性;(限制)因素;边界(limitation的复数形式); basically:adv.主要地,基本上;
And if you have been looking at the headlines lately, then you will see that we have discovered a subsurface ocean on Europa , on Ganymede, on Enceladus, on Titan , 如果你最近有看新闻头条, 你就会了解到我们发现了冰下海洋 在木卫二、木卫三、土卫二和土卫六上,
Europa:n.欧罗巴(腓尼基王阿革诺耳之女);[天]木卫二; Titan:n.巨人;提坦;太阳神;
and now we are finding a geyser and hot springs on Enceladus, 现在我们又在土卫二上发现了间歇泉和温泉。
geyser:n.喷泉;[水文]间歇泉;(英)烧水锅炉;
Our solar system is turning into a giant spa. 我们的太阳系正在变成一个巨大的温泉浴场。
giant:n.巨人;伟人;巨兽;adj.巨大的;特大的
For anybody who has gone to a spa knows how much microbes like that, right? 去泡过温泉的人应该知道里边能有多少微生物,对吧？
(Laughter) （笑声）
So at that point, think also about Mars . 在这个前提下,再来想想火星。
Mars:n.火星
There is no life possible at the surface of Mars today, but it might still be hiding underground. 现在的火星表面不可能有生命, 但地下仍可能潜藏着生命。
So, we have been making progress in our understanding of habitability, but we also have been making progress in our understanding of what the signatures of life are on Earth. 我们不仅在进一步理解宜居性, 我们也在进一步了解 地球上有哪些生命的印记。
signatures:n.签名;鲜明特征(signature的复数);
And you can have what we call organic molecules , and these are the bricks of life, and you can have fossils , and you can minerals , biominerals, which is due to the reaction between bacteria and rocks, and of course you can have gases in the atmosphere . 我们有所谓的 有机分子 , 这些是生命大厦的建筑材料, 我们有化石, 还有矿物质、生物矿物质, 生物矿物质是由细菌和岩石发生反应所产生的, 当然,我们还有大气中的气体。
organic:adj.有机的;不使用化肥的;绿色的;有机物的;n.分子有机体; molecules:n.[化学]分子,微粒;[化学]摩尔(molecule的复数); fossils:n.[古生]化石(fossil复数形式); minerals:n.矿物;矿产,矿产品(mineral的复数);矿物质; reaction:n.反应,感应;反动,复古;反作用; bacteria:n.[微]细菌; atmosphere:n.大气;气氛;气压;风格;
And when you look at those tiny green algae on the right of the slide here, they are the direct descendants of those who have been pumping oxygen a billion years ago in the atmosphere of the Earth. 看看幻灯片右边 那些微小的绿藻, 它们是十亿年前往地球大气中 输送氧气的生物的直系后裔。
algae:n.[植]藻类;[植]海藻; descendants:n.后裔;后代;子孙;派生物;(descendant的复数) pumping:v.用泵输送;涌出;奔流;快速摇动;(pump的现在分词)
When they did that, they poisoned 90 percent of the life at the surface of the Earth, but they are the reason why you are breathing this air today. 当时它们制造的氧气, 毒害了地球表面百分之九十的生命, 但却造就了现如今你们呼吸的这种空气。
But as much as our understanding grows of all of these things, there is one question we still cannot answer, and this is, where are we coming from? 但是随着我们对所有这些事情的认知不断增长, 我们仍然有一个问题无法回答, 那就是:我们是从哪里来的？
And you know, it's getting worse, because we won't be able to find the physical evidence of where we are coming from on this planet, and the reason being is that anything that is older than four billion years is gone. 事实上情况正在变糟, 因为我们永远无法找到实物证据 证明我们起源于这个星球上的何处, 原因是四十亿年前的所有事物都不在了。
physical:adj.[物]物理的;身体的;物质的;符合自然法则的;n.体格检查; evidence:n.证据,证明;迹象;明显;v.证明;
All record is gone, erased by plate tectonics and erosion . 所有记录都消失了, 被板块运动和侵蚀抹得一干二净。
erased:v.清除;消除;消灭;擦掉,抹掉(erase的过去分词和过去式) plate tectonics:n.板块运动;板块构造学;大地构造学; erosion:n.侵蚀,腐蚀;
This is what I call the Earth's biological horizon. 我把这个称为“地球的生物视野”。
biological:adj.生物学的;生物的;与生命过程有关的;加酶的;n.[药]生物制品;
Beyond this horizon we don't know where we are coming from. 超出了这个视界范围,我们看不到我们的起源。
So is everything lost? Well, maybe not. 那么是否所有证据都丢失了呢？也许并没有。
And we might be able to find evidence of our own origin in the most unlikely place, and this place in Mars. 我们也许会在最不可能的地方找到我们的起源, 这个地方就是火星。
origin:n.起源;起因;源头;出身; unlikely:adj.不大可能发生的;非心目中的;非想象的;难以相信的;
How is this possible? 这是如何做到的呢？
Well clearly at the beginning of the solar system, 我们知道,太阳系刚诞生的时候,
at the beginning of:在…的开始;
Mars and the Earth were bombarded by giant asteroids and comets , and there were ejecta from these impacts all over the place. 火星和地球被巨大的小行星和彗星撞击过, 这些强力撞击形成的喷出物到处都是。
bombarded:v.轰炸(bombard的过去分词); adj.被轰击的; asteroids:n.[天]小行星(asteroid的复数); comets:n.[天]彗星(comet的复数); ejecta:n.喷出物;排泄物; impacts:n.影响; v.有影响,有作用;
Earth and Mars kept throwing rocks at each other for a very long time. 地球和火星曾经很长一段时间一直向对方丢岩石。
Pieces of rocks landed on the Earth. 一片片岩石落到地球上。
Pieces of the Earth landed on Mars. 一片片地球碎片落在火星上。
So clearly, those two planets may have been seeded by the same material. 很明显,这两个行星有可能是由同种物质孕育形成的。
seeded:adj.已播种了的;去籽的;
So yeah, maybe Granddady is sitting there on the surface and waiting for us. 所以是的,有可能老祖宗正坐在火星表面等着我们呢。
But that also means that we can go to Mars and try to find traces of our own origin. 但这也意味着,我们可以在火星上试试寻找人类起源的蛛丝马迹。
traces:v.跟踪;探索;n.痕迹;踪迹;(trace的复数和第三人单数)
Mars may hold that secret for us. 火星有可能为我们保存了这个秘密。
This is why Mars is so special to us. 这就是为什么火星对我们如此重要。
But for that to happen, 但是寻找的前提是:
Mars needed to be habitable at the time when conditions were right. 火星在曾经条件适宜的时候必须具备可居住性。
So was Mars habitable? 那么,火星曾经具有宜居性吗？
We have a number of missions telling us exactly the same thing today. 如今,一系列的研究行动正告诉着我们同一个答案。
missions:n.任务; v.给…交代任务; (mission的复数)
At the time when life appeared on the Earth, 当地球上出现生命的时候,
Mars did have an ocean, it had volcanoes , it had lakes, and it had deltas like the beautiful picture you see here. 火星确实有过海、火山、湖泊, 还拥有过图中那样的美丽三角洲。
volcanoes:n.火山爆发,火山;火山群(volcano复数); deltas:n.(河流的)[地理]三角洲(delta的复数形式);
This picture was sent by the Curiosity rover only a few weeks ago. 这张照片是仅仅几周前由好奇号发送回来的。
Curiosity:n.好奇,好奇心;珍品,古董,古玩; rover:n.漫游者; n.(Rover)人名; n.罗孚(汽车品牌);
It shows the remnants of a delta, and this picture tells us something: water was abundant and stayed founting at the surface for a very long time. 照片显示一个三角洲的残骸,而且告诉我们: 水资源曾经很丰富, 并且很长一段时间在地表保持喷涌状态。
remnants:n.残余;残留物(remnant的复数);adj.残存的; abundant:adj.丰富的;充裕的;盛产;
This is good news for life. 这对于生命是个好消息。
Life chemistry takes a long time to actually happen. 生命化学要用很长时间才能真正发生。
So this is extremely good news, but does that mean that if we go there, life will be easy to find on Mars? 所以这是非常好的消息, 但是这是否表示如果我们去火星,就能轻松找到生命呢？
extremely:adv.非常,极其;极端地;
Not necessarily . 并不见得。
necessarily:adv.必要地;必定地,必然地;
Here's what happened: 事情是这样的:
At the time when life exploded at the surface of the Earth, then everything went south for Mars, literally . 当生命在地球表面爆发时, 火星上的一切是背道而驰的, 真的是完全相反。
exploded:adj.分解的; v.爆炸; (explode的过去分词和过去式) literally:adv.按字面:字面上:确实地:
The atmosphere was stripped away by solar winds, 大气被太阳风一揭而散,
stripped:adj.剥去的;v.剥夺;脱衣;把…剪成条状;(strip的过去式和过去分词)
Mars lost its magnetosphere , and then cosmic rays and U.V. bombarded the surface and water escaped to space and went underground. 火星失去了它的磁层, 接着宇宙射线和紫外线冲击了地表 然后水资源逃离到了空间中和地层下。
magnetosphere:n.磁气圈;磁层; cosmic rays:n.宇宙线;
So if we want to be able to understand, if we want to be able to find those traces of the signatures of life at the surface of Mars, if they are there, 所以如果我们想要了解, 如果我们想要在火星表面找到那些生命印记的蛛丝马迹, 如果它们在那里的话,
we need to understand what was the impact of each of these events on the preservation of its record. 我们需要了解这每一个事件 对于火星保存的记录有过怎样的影响。
preservation:n.保存,保留;
Only then will we be able to know where those signatures are hiding, and only then will we be able to send our rover to the right places where we can sample those rocks that may be telling us something really important about who we are, 只有这样我们才能知道那些生命的印记藏在哪里了, 只有到那时我们才能将火星车发送到正确的地点, 在那里提取那些可能蕴含重要信息的岩石, 并借此解开关于我们是谁的秘密,
or, if not, maybe telling us that somewhere, independently , life has appeared on another planet. 不然,或许它能告诉我们在某个地方 生命曾在另一个星球上独立地出现过。
independently:adv.独立地;自立地;
So to do that, it's easy. 那么为了做到这件事,其实很简单。
You only need to go back 3.5 billion years ago in the past of a planet. 你仅需要回到35亿年前 回到一个行星的过去。
We just need a time machine . 我们只需要一个时光机。
time machine:n.时间机器;
Easy, right? 很简单,对吧？
Well, actually, it is. 事实上的确很简单。
Look around you -- that's planet Earth. 看看你的周围——答案是地球。
This is our time machine. 这就是我们的时光机。
Geologists are using it to go back in the past of our own planet. 地质学家正在利用这个时光机返回我们星球的过去。
Geologists:n.[地质]地质学家(geologist的复数形式);
I am using it a little bit differently. 我所使用的方式稍有不同。
I use planet Earth to go in very extreme environments where conditions were similar to those of Mars at the time when the climate changed, and there I'm trying to understand what happened. 我用地球去到非常极端的环境, 过去在气候变化的时候 那里的环境条件和火星上的非常相似, 在那里,我正试图理解曾经发生过什么。
What are the signatures of life? 有什么生命的印记？
What is left? How are we going to find it? 留下了什么？我们要如何找到它？
So for one moment now I'm going to take you with me on a trip into that time machine. 那么现在暂且由我带领你们和我一起 进行一次时光机旅行。
And now, what you see here, we are at 4,500 meters in the Andes , but in fact we are less than a billion years after the Earth and Mars formed. 现在大家看到的是,我们在4500米的安第斯山脉上, 但事实上我们处在地球和火星形成后不到十亿年的时间。
Andes:n.安第斯山脉;
The Earth and Mars will have looked pretty much exactly like that -- volcanoes everywhere, evaporating lakes everywhere, minerals, hot springs, and then you see those mounds on the shore of those lakes? 地球和火星应该看起来差不多就是这个样子: 到处都是火山,到处都是热气腾腾的湖泊, 矿物质,温泉, 你们看到那些湖边的土丘了吗？
evaporating:adj.蒸发作用的;v.蒸发(evaporate的ing形式); mounds:n.小丘;小山岗;一堆;许多;大量;(mound的复数)
Those are built by the descendants of the first organisms that gave us the first fossil on Earth. 那些是由首个微生物的后代建造的, 它们给了我们地球上的第一枚化石。
organisms:n.[生物]生物体(organism的复数);[生物]有机体;
But if we want to understand what's going on, we need to go a little further. 但是如果我们要了解正在发生什么,我们需要前进得更远一些。
And the other thing about those sites is that exactly like on Mars three and a half billion years ago, the climate is changing very fast, and water and ice are disappearing . 和火星三十五亿年前很像的一点是, 那些地方的气候正迅速变化,水和冰正在消融。
sites:n.网站(site的复数);遗址,举办地点;v.使...位于(site的单三形式); disappearing:v.消失;不复存在;灭绝;丢失(disappear的现在分词)
But we need to go back to that time when everything changed on Mars, and to do that, we need to go higher. 但是我们需要回到火星上一切都已变迁的时候, 为此,我们需要向更高处前进。
Why is that? 为什么呢？
Because when you go higher, the atmosphere is getting thinner, it's getting more unstable , the temperature is getting cooler, and you have a lot more U.V. radiation . 因为当你到了更高处, 大气会变得更稀薄,更不稳定, 温度会降得更低,你会得到更多的紫外线辐射。
unstable:adj.不稳定的;变化莫测的;(行为、情绪)反复无常的 radiation:n.辐射;放射线;放射疗法;
Basically, you are getting to those conditions on Mars when everything changed. 基本上, 你会更接近火星上一切都改变时的环境条件。
So I was not promising anything about a leisurely trip on the time machine. 我没有保证这次时光旅行会是一个安逸的旅行。
leisurely:adj.悠闲的;从容的;adv.悠闲地;从容不迫地;
You are not going to be sitting in that time machine. 在这个时光机里,你不会光坐着。
You have to haul 1,000 pounds of equipment to the summit of this 20,000-foot volcano in the Andes here. 你要把1000磅的设备拖到安第斯山脉上 20000英尺高的火山山顶。
haul:v.拉; n.大批赃物; summit:n.峰会;山顶;顶点;最高点;
That's about 6,000 meters. 差不多有6000米。
And you also have to sleep on 42-degree slopes and really hope that there won't be any earthquake that night. 而且你要在42度的斜坡上睡觉, 并且希望那晚不要发生任何地震。
slopes:n.倾斜,斜坡;[数]斜率;山坡翱(slope的复数形式);
But when we get to the summit, we actually find the lake we came for. 但是当我们到达峰顶,我们找到了我们此行想要寻找的湖泊。
At this altitude , this lake is experiencing exactly the same conditions as those on Mars three and a half billion years ago. 在这个高度上,这一湖泊正经历着 跟三十五亿年前火星上一模一样的环境条件。
altitude:n.海拔;海拔高度;高程;(海拔高的)高处;
And now we have to change our voyage into an inner voyage inside that lake, and to do that, we have to remove our mountain gear and actually don suits and go for it . 现在我们要改变路线, 开始一段湖内的旅程, 为此,我们要脱掉登山用具, 穿上潜水服,然后就下水吧。
voyage:v.航行;远行;(尤指)远航;n.航行;(尤指)航海; inner:n.内部;射中接近靶心部分的一发;adj.里面的;向内的;内部的;接近中心的; gear:n.齿轮; v.适合; go for it:努力争取;加油;
But at the time we enter that lake, at the very moment we enter that lake, we are stepping back three and a half billion years in the past of another planet, and then we are going to get the answer came for. 但是,当我们进入湖中的时候,就在我们踏入湖里的那一刻, 我们正在返回到 三十五亿年前的另一个星球上, 接着我们就要找到我们此行要找的答案。
Life is everywhere, absolutely everywhere. 到处都是生命,完完全全到处都是。
absolutely:adv.绝对地;完全地;
Everything you see in this picture is a living organism. 你们在这个照片里看到的一切都是活生生的微生物。
Maybe not so the diver , but everything else. 也许这个潜水员并不是,但所有其他都是。
diver:n.潜水者;跳水的选手;潜鸟;
But this picture is very deceiving . 但这个照片很有欺骗性。
deceiving:v.欺骗;蒙骗;诓骗;欺骗(自己);误导(deceive的现在分词)
Life is abundant in those lakes, but like in many places on Earth right now and due to climate change, there is a huge loss in biodiversity . 生命在那些湖泊里十分丰富, 但是正如现在地球上很多地方,由于气候变化 生物多样性遭受了巨大损失。
abundant in:富于;富有; biodiversity:n.生物多样性;
In the samples that we took back home, 36 percent of the bacteria in those lakes were composed of three species , and those three species are the ones that have survived so far. 在我们带回去的那些样本里, 那些湖里36%的细菌都是由三种物种组成的, 并且它们是迄今为止存活下来的仅有的物种。
composed:adj.由…组成的; v.组成; (compose的过去分词和过去式) species:n.[生物]物种;种类;
Here's another lake, right next to the first one. 这是另一个湖,就在第一个的旁边。
The red color you see here is not due to minerals. 大家所看到的这个红色并不是由矿物质产生的,
It's actually due to the presence of a tiny algae. 而是由里面的某种微小藻类而产生。
presence:n.存在;出席;参加;风度;仪态;
In this region , the U.V. radiation is really nasty . 在这个区域,紫外线放射非常严重。
region:n.地区;范围;部位; nasty:adj.极差的:令人厌恶的:不友好的:n.令人不愉快的事物:
Anywhere on Earth, 11 is considered to be extreme. 地球上的任何地方,紫外线指数达到11都意味着极端数值。
During U.V. storms there, the U.V. Index reaches 43. 在那里的紫外线风暴中,紫外线指数达到了43。
Index:n.指标;指数;索引;指针;v.做索引;指出;编入索引中;
SPF 30 is not going to do anything to you over there, and the water is so transparent in those lakes that the algae has nowhere to hide, really, and so they are developing their own sunscreen , and this is the red color you see. 防晒指数30在那里起不到任何作用, 并且那些湖泊里的水清澈到 水藻完全没有地方藏身, 所以它们形成了自己的防晒层, 也就是你所看到的这个红色。
transparent:adj.透明的;显然的;坦率的;易懂的; nowhere:v.无处; n.无处; adj.不存在的; sunscreen:n.(防晒油中的)遮光剂;
But they can adapt only so far, and then when all the water is gone from the surface, microbes have only one solution left: 但它们只能适应到这个程度, 当所有的水都从地表消失了之后, 微生物就只能通过一种途径继续生存下去:
adapt:vt.使适应;改编;vi.适应; solution:n.解决方案;溶液;溶解;解答;
They go underground. 到地下去。
And those microbes, the rocks you see in that slide here, well, they are actually living inside rocks and they are using the protection of the translucence of the rocks to get the good part of the U.V. 你们在图上里看到的这些岩石, 其实那些微生物正生活在岩石里, 而且它们正利用着岩石的半透明性对它们的保护 来合理的利用紫外线,
translucence:n.半透明;
and discard the part that could actually damage their DNA. 并摒弃紫外线可能会破坏它们DNA的部分。
discard:v.丢弃; n.被抛弃的人(或物); (尤指纸牌游戏中)垫出的牌;
And this is why we are taking our rover to train them to search for life on Mars in these areas, because if there was life on Mars three and a half billion years ago, it had to use the same strategy to actually protect itself. 这就是为什么我们训练火星车 在这些地方探索火星生命, 因为如果三十五亿年前火星上曾经有生命, 它们必然要用同样的方法来保护自己。
strategy:n.策略;行动计划;部署;战略;
Now, it is pretty obvious that going to extreme environments is helping us very much for the exploration of Mars and to prepare missions. 现在,非常明显地, 去极端环境可以很大程度上帮助我们 进行火星的探测和任务准备。
obvious:adj.明显的;显著的;平淡无奇的; exploration:n.探索;勘探;探险;[医]探查术;
So far, it has helped us to understand the geology of Mars. 到目前为止,这帮助我们了解了火星的地质情况。
geology:n.地质学;地质情况;
It has helped to understand the past climate of Mars and its evolution, but also its habitability potential . 帮助我们了解到火星过去的气候和气候变迁, 也帮助我们了解了火星的宜居性潜能。
potential:n.潜能;可能性;[电]电势;adj.潜在的;可能的;势的;
Our most recent rover on Mars has discovered traces of organics . 我们最近的一个火星探测车发现了有机物的痕迹。
organics:n.有机物(organic的复数);
Yeah, there are organics at the surface of Mars. 是的,火星地表有有机物。
And it also discovered traces of methane . 它还发现了甲烷的印记。
methane:n.[有化]甲烷;[能源]沼气;
And we don't know yet if the methane in question is really from geology or biology . 我们还不知道那里的甲烷 是在地质过程中生成的还是通过生物过程产生的。
biology:n.(一个地区全部的)生物;生物学;
Regardless , what we know is that because of the discovery, the hypothesis that there is still life present on Mars today remains a viable one. 不论如何,我们知道因为这个发现, 现如今火星上还有生命存在的假设 仍然是有望能被证实。
Regardless:adj.不管的; v.不顾后果地; hypothesis:n.假设; still life:静物;静物画; viable:adj.可行的;能养活的;能生育的;
So by now, I think I have convinced you that Mars is very special to us, but it would be a mistake to think that Mars is the only place in the solar system that is interesting to find potential microbial life. 所以现在,我想我已经让你们相信了火星对我们有很特殊的意义, 但是把火星看成太阳系中 唯一可能找到潜在微生物生命的地方是一个错误的想法。
convinced:adj.坚信; v.使确信; (convince的过去分词和过去式)
And the reason is because Mars and the Earth could have a common root to their tree of life, but when you go beyond Mars, it's not that easy. 原因是虽然火星和地球 在生命树上可能拥有相同的根基, 但是谈到火星以外的星球,就并不是那么简单了。
Celestial mechanics is not making it so easy for an exchange of material between planets, and so if we were to discover life on those planets, it would be different from us. 天体力学上星球间物质的交换 并非那样容易, 所以如果我们能在那些星球上找到生命, 那里的生命将和我们不同。
Celestial:adj.天上的,天空的;n.神仙,天堂里的居民; mechanics:n.机械师;机械修理工;技工;力学;机械学;(mechanic的复数) exchange:n.交换;交流;交易所;兑换;v.交换;交易;兑换;
It would be a different type of life. 它们会是不同种类的生命。
But in the end, it might be just us, it might be us and Mars, or it can be many trees of life in the solar system. 但是到最后,也有可能就只有我们, 或者只有我们和火星, 或者也可能太阳系里有很多生命树。
I don't know the answer yet, but I can tell you something: 我还不知道答案,但是我能告诉大家的是:
No matter what the result is, no matter what that magic number is, it is going to give us a standard by which we are going to be able to measure the life potential, abundance and diversity beyond our o wn solar system. 不论答案如何,不论那个神奇的数字是几, 这将会给我们带来一个标准, 我们将可以利用这个标准衡量我们太阳系以外的 生命的潜能、丰富性和多样性。
No matter what:不管什么…;
And this can be achieved by our generation. 这是可以在我们这一代实现的。
This can be our legacy , but only if we dare to explore . 这可以成为我们的遗赠,但前提是我们敢于探索。
legacy:n.遗赠,遗产; explore:v.探索:探测:探险:
Now, finally , if somebody tells you that looking for alien microbes is not cool because you cannot have a philosophical conversation with them, let me show you why and how you can tell them they're wrong. 现在,最后, 如果有人告诉你寻找外星微生物不是那么酷, 因为你不能和它们进行一场有意义的对话, 我来告诉你,为什么你能以及如何能告诉他们,这是错的。
finally:adv.终于;最终;(用于列举)最后;彻底地; philosophical:adj.哲学的(等于philosophic);冷静的;
Well, organic material is going to tell you about environment, about complexity and about diversity. 有机物质会告诉你 有关环境,复杂度以及多样性的信息。
complexity:n.复杂性;难以理解的局势
DNA, or any information carrier, is going to tell you about adaptation , about evolution, about survival, about planetary changes and about the transfer of information. DNA,或者任何其他信息载体,会告诉你有关适应性, 进化,生存,行星变迁, 以及信息传递的内容。
adaptation:n.适应;改编;改编本,改写本; planetary:adj.行星的; transfer:n.转移;调任;调离;[体]转会球员;v.调任;调走;转学;转移;
All together, they are telling us what started as a microbial pathway , and why what started as a microbial pathway sometimes ends up as a civilization or sometimes ends up as a dead end. 所有的加在一起,它们能告诉我们 什么是微生物途径的开端, 以及为什么有时候一些微生物途径的开端 会最终形成一个文明, 另一些时候则会最终走到尽头。
pathway:n.路,道;途径,路径;
Look at the solar system, and look at the Earth. 看看太阳系,再看看地球。
On Earth, there are many intelligent species, but only one has achieved technology . 地球上有很多智慧的物种, 但只有一个物种实现了科技发展。
intelligent:adj.有才智的;悟性强的;聪明的;有智力的 technology:n.技术;工艺;术语;
Right here in the journey of our own solar system, there is a very, very powerful message that says here's how we should look for alien life, small and big. 就在我们自己太阳系的旅程里, 有一个非常、非常强有力的信息: 这就是我们应当如何寻找外星生命,无论生命大小。
journey:n.旅行;行程;vi.旅行;
So yeah, microbes are talking and we are listening, and they are taking us, one planet at a time and one moon at a time, towards their big brothers out there. 微生物在叙述,我们在聆听, 并且它们正把我们带领到 一个个行星,一个个卫星, 带到它们外面的那些大哥哥那里。
And they are telling us about diversity, they are telling us about abundance of life, and they are telling us how this life has survived thus far to reach civilization, intelligence , technology and, indeed, philosophy . 它们在告诉我们多样性的信息, 它们在告诉我们生命的丰富性, 它们在告诉我们生命是如何存活至今 来取得文明、 智能、科技,甚至是,哲学。
intelligence:n.智力;智慧;才智;(尤指关于敌国的)情报; philosophy:n.哲学;哲理;人生观;
Thank you. 谢谢大家。
(Applause) （鼓掌）