The hidden worlds within natural history museums - Joshua Drew

自然博物館裏隱藏的世界 - 約書亞‧德魯

譯者: Yingying Zhao 審譯者: Melody Tang

When you think of natural history museums,

當你想到自然歷史博物館時

you probably picture exhibits filled with ancient lifeless things,

你可能會想起各種古老 又毫無生命的陳列品

like dinosaurs

比如，恐龍

meteroites,

隕石

and gemstones.

和寶石

But behind that educational exterior,

在充滿教育意義的外表的背後

which only includes about 1% of a museum's collection,

這些僅僅占博物館收藏品的1%

there are hidden laboratories where scientific breakthroughs are made.

這裏隱藏著 進行許多科學技術突破的實驗室

Beyond the unmarked doors,

在沒有標示的門後

and on the floors the elevators won't take you to,

在搭乘電梯無法到達的樓層上

you'd find windows into amazing worlds.

你會發現一個讓你 進入令人驚奇的世界的窗口

This maze of halls and laboratories is a scientific sanctuary

這個由走廊和實驗室構建而成的 迷宮堪稱科研的聖殿

that houses a seemingly endless variety of specimens.

因為它儲藏著無窮而多樣的標本

Here, researchers work to unravel mysteries of evolution,

在這裡，科研人員致力於 解開進化論的謎團

cosmic origins,

宇宙的起源

and the history of our planet.

和地球的歷史

One museum alone may have millions of specimens.

任何一座自然歷史博物館 都可能有數百萬的標本

The American Museum of Natural History in New York City

座落於紐約市的 美國自然歷史博物館

has over 32,000,000 in its collection.

收藏的標本就超過三千兩百萬件

Let's take a look at just one of them.

讓我們看一看其中的一件

Scientists have logged exactly where and when it was found

科學家們準確地記錄下 找到這件標本的時間和地點

and used various dating techniques to pinpoint when it originated.

並採用各種年代測定技術， 精確判斷它發源於何時

Repeat that a million times over, and these plants,

他們重複以上步驟一百萬次以上，這些植物們

animals,

動物們，

minerals,

礦物質，

fossils,

化石，

and artifacts present windows into times and places around the world

和手工藝品所呈現的是世界各地在不同時期的樣貌

and across billions of years of history.

並且跨越數十億年的歷史

When a research problem emerges,

當一個研究問題浮現時

scientists peer through these windows and test hypotheses about the past.

科研家們透過這些標本 所呈現的畫面

並測試對過去的假設

For example, in the 1950s, populations of predatory birds,

例如，在1950年代， 捕食鳥類

like peregrine falcons,

例如，游隼，

owls,

貓頭鷹，

and eagles started to mysteriously crash,

和老鷹的數量開始 毫無緣由地驟減

to the point where a number of species, including the bald eagle,

若干鳥類甚至瀕臨滅絕

were declared endangered.

其中包括禿頭鷹

Fortunately, scientists in The Field Museum in Chicago

萬幸的是，美國芝加哥 自然歷史博物馆的科學家們

had been collecting the eggs of these predatory birds for decades.

幾十年來一直在收集這些 捕食鳥類所產的卵

They discovered that the egg shells used to be thicker

他們發現蛋殼以前比較厚

and had started to thin around the time

而從殺蟲劑DDT開始 被用於農作物上時

when an insecticide called DDT started being sprayed on crops.

蛋殼開始變薄

DDT worked very well to kill insects,

DDT殺蟲效果非常顯著

but when birds came and ate those heaps of dead bugs,

但當鳥類吃了成堆的這些死蟲

the DDT accumulated in their bodies.

DDT進而在鳥類體內堆積

It worked its way up the food chain

DDT成為了食物鏈的一部分

and was absorbed by apex predator birds in such high concentrations

位於食物鏈頂端的捕食鳥類吸收了高濃度的DDT

that it thinned their eggs

以至於產下的蛋殼都變薄了

so that they couldn't support the nesting bird's weight.

薄得無法承受巢鳥的重量

碎雞蛋遍地都是，

There were omelettes everywhere

until scientists from The Field Museum in Chicago,

直到美國芝加哥自然歷史博物馆的科學家們

and other institutions,

和其他機構的專家

helped solve the mystery and save the day.

一起解開了謎團， 挽救了局面

America thanks you, Field Museum.

美國感謝您，自然歷史博物館

Natural history museums windows into the past

自然歷史博物館給了我們 窺視歷史的窗口

have solved many other scientific mysteries.

從而解決了許多其他科研的謎團

Museum scientists have used their collections

博物館科學家們曾利用館藏

to sequence the Neanderthal genome,

計算出穴居人的染色體序列

discover genes that gave mammoths red fur,

發現了猛瑪象的紅毛基因

and even pinpoint where ancient giant sharks gave birth.

甚至精確的定位 古老巨鯊的分娩的地方

There are about 900 natural history museums in the world,

世界各地大約有900座 自然歷史博物館

and every year they make new discoveries and insights

每一年，它們都會有新的發現和

有關於地球的過去，現在， 和未來的見解

into the Earth's past, present and future.

Museum collections even help us understand how modern threats,

博物館藏品甚至能幫助 我們理解現世的危機

such as global climate change,

例如，全球氣候變化 正在影響著我們的世界

are impacting our world.

For instance, naturalists have been collecting samples

舉個例子，在過去的100年裏，

for over 100 years from Walden Pond,

自然學家從瓦爾登湖採集樣本

famously immortalized by Henry David Thoreau.

瓦爾登湖因為美國先驗論者 大衛‧梭羅而聞名於世

Thanks to those naturalists, who count Thoreau among their number,

由於這些自然學家參考了 梭羅的紀錄

we know that the plants around Walden Pond

我們才知道瓦爾登湖一帶的植物

are blooming over three weeks earlier than they did 150 years ago.

比起150年前， 開花期提早了3個星期

Because these changes have taken place gradually,

因為這些變化發生得很緩慢

one person may not have noticed them over the span of a few decades,

人們在幾十年間可能無法 察覺這類變化

but thanks to museum collections,

但是多虧了博物館的藏品

we have an uninterrupted record showing how our world is changing.

我們才有連續的紀錄， 向我們展示世界不斷的變化

So the next time you're exploring a natural history museum,

所以下一次當你探索一所 自然歷史博物館時

remember that what you're seeing is just one gem

記住，你所看到的只是 巨大科研寶藏中的

of a colossal scientific treasure trove.

一個寶石

Behind those walls and under your feet are windows into forgotten worlds.

在那些牆的背後，在你的腳下， 是進入被人遺忘的世界的窗口

And who knows?

誰知道呢

One day some future scientist may peer through one and see you.

也許在未來某天，科學家們 會從其中的一個窗口看到你

（音樂）