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科学美国人60秒 SSS 古代口香糖为考古学家提供了值得深思的东西

时间:2020-03-10 23:46:03

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(单词翻译)

This is Scientific American's 60-second Science, I'm Christopher Intagliata.

这里是科学美国人——60秒科学系列,我是克里斯托弗·因塔格里塔。

You're probably not too interested in what some people call ABC gum—already been chewed. But for archaeologists, such gum—a?s long as it's really old—is a genetic1 gold mine.

你可能对某些人称为ABC口香糖——嚼过的口香糖——不太感兴趣。但对考古学家来说,只要这种口香糖真的古老,那它就是“基因金矿”。

"It's a bit like Jurassic Park." Natalija Kashuba, a graduate student in archaeology2 at Uppsala University in Sweden. She's referring to that famous clip from the movie, about how Jurassic Park scientists extract blood from a mosquito trapped in amber3, "and bingo, dino DNA5."

“这有点像侏罗纪公园。”瑞典乌普萨拉大学的考古学研究生娜塔利亚·卡舒巴说到。她指的是电影中那个著名片段,即侏罗纪公园的科学家如何从被困在琥珀中的蚊子身上提取血液……“太棒了,恐龙的DNA。”

Except in this case it's human DNA, and it's trapped not in amber, but in exceptionally old chewing gums found at the site of an ancient hunting and fishing village on the west coast of Sweden. The samples look just like chewed-up wads of modern-day gum. But don't think Wrigley's—this detritus6 is black, sticky tar7 distilled8 from birch bark. Kashuba has tasted modern-day versions and isn't eager to try it again. "Not unless I'm paid for it."

不过这个案例中谈论的是人类DNA,其没有被困在琥珀中,而是意外出现在古老的口香糖中,这些口香糖是人们在瑞典西海岸一个古老渔猎村庄的遗址上发现的。样本看上去就像嚼过的一团现代口香糖。但不要以为那是箭牌口香糖——这种残余物是从桦树皮中蒸馏出来的黑色粘性焦油。卡舒巴尝过现代版的焦油,她不急于再次尝试。“除非有人付钱让我尝。”

So why chew something so unpleasant? Maybe because their gum wasn't for fresh breath. "You could use it to seal your boat, or like seal your pots ... so it's an everyday-use type of substance." Many of the gums have teeth marks, too—so perhaps they chewed it to help shape it and in turn developed a habit, despite the taste, that today's tobacco chewers might relate to.

那为什么要嚼这么难吃的东西呢?或许是因为他们的“口香糖”并不是用来清新口气的。“你可以用它来封船或封罐子,它就是一种日常使用的物质。”许多这种“口香糖”上都有牙印,也许他们咀嚼它是为了帮助其塑形,继而形成了一种习惯,尽管味道并不好,这可能是如今咀嚼烟草的人会有的习惯。

Kashuba's team extracted and sequenced DNA from the ancient gum, and they found genetic evidence of three different gum chewers—two women and a man. It's the oldest human DNA found in Scandinavia, dating to about 8,000 B.C. And because it more closely resembles the DNA of hunter-gatherers from western Europe than from eastern Europe, it also provides hints about how people ended up in what's now Sweden.

卡舒巴团队从古代“口香糖”中提取并测序了DNA,他们发现了三名不同咀嚼者的基因证据——两名女性和一名男性。这是在斯堪的纳维亚发现的最古老的人类DNA,年代可追溯到公元前8000年左右。因为相比于东欧,这种DNA与西欧捕猎-采集者的更为类似,所以它也为人类如何来到如今的瑞典提供了线索。

The results are in the journal Communications Biology.

研究结果发表在《通讯·生物学》期刊上。

The gum could still hold other clues about ancient diets or the bacteria these people had in their mouths. So given that we can learn so much from chewing gum, is it really so bad to stick it to the bottom of chairs and tables? You know, for the benefit of future archaeologists?

这种“口香糖”还可以提供其它线索,比如古代饮食或古代人口腔中的细菌。既然我们能从口香糖中了解到这么多信息,那把它粘在桌椅下面真的那么不好吗?为了未来古老学家的利益?

"No, I still think this one should not be spatted10 out anyplace just like that. So I think you should definitely throw it in the bin4. But I won't blame these guys... who spat9 it out 10,000 years ago. They did a good job then."

“我仍然认为不应该随地乱吐口香糖。我认为绝对应该将它扔进垃圾桶。但我不会责怪一万年前吐口香糖的那些人。他们当时做得很好。”

Thanks for listening for Scientific American — 60-Second Science. I'm Christopher Intagliata.

谢谢大家收听科学美国人——60秒科学。我是克里斯托弗·因塔利亚塔。


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 genetic PgIxp     
adj.遗传的,遗传学的
参考例句:
  • It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
  • Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。
2 archaeology 0v2zi     
n.考古学
参考例句:
  • She teaches archaeology at the university.她在大学里教考古学。
  • He displayed interest in archaeology.他对考古学有兴趣。
3 amber LzazBn     
n.琥珀;琥珀色;adj.琥珀制的
参考例句:
  • Would you like an amber necklace for your birthday?你过生日想要一条琥珀项链吗?
  • This is a piece of little amber stones.这是一块小小的琥珀化石。
4 bin yR2yz     
n.箱柜;vt.放入箱内;[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件
参考例句:
  • He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
  • He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。
5 DNA 4u3z1l     
(缩)deoxyribonucleic acid 脱氧核糖核酸
参考例句:
  • DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.脱氧核糖核酸储存于细胞的细胞核里。
  • Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code.基因突变是指DNA密码的改变。
6 detritus J9dyA     
n.碎石
参考例句:
  • Detritus usually consists of gravel, sand and clay.岩屑通常是由砂砾,沙和粘土组成的。
  • A channel is no sooner cut than it chokes in its own detritus.一个河道刚被切割了不久,很快又被它自己的碎屑物质所充塞。
7 tar 1qOwD     
n.柏油,焦油;vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于
参考例句:
  • The roof was covered with tar.屋顶涂抹了一层沥青。
  • We use tar to make roads.我们用沥青铺路。
8 distilled 4e59b94e0e02e468188de436f8158165     
adj.由蒸馏得来的v.蒸馏( distil的过去式和过去分词 );从…提取精华
参考例句:
  • The televised interview was distilled from 16 hours of film. 那次电视采访是从16个小时的影片中选出的精华。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Gasoline is distilled from crude oil. 汽油是从原油中提炼出来的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
9 spat pFdzJ     
n.口角,掌击;v.发出呼噜呼噜声
参考例句:
  • Her parents always have spats.她的父母经常有些小的口角。
  • There is only a spat between the brother and sister.那只是兄妹间的小吵小闹。
10 spatted 53893772755c912dbe74eaa0a00a7c46     
adj.穿着鞋罩的v.猜疑(是)( suspect的过去式和过去分词 )( spat的过去式和过去分词 );发出呼噜呼噜声;咝咝地冒油;下小雨
参考例句:
  • The mud spatted all over my body. 泥点溅了我一身。 来自互联网

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