Mark Pagel: How language transformed humanity

Prevoditelj: Katarina Smetko Recezent: Tilen Pigac - EFZG

Each of you possesses

Svatko od vas posjeduje

the most powerful, dangerous and subversive trait

najmoćniju, najopasniju i najrazorniju sposobnost

that natural selection has ever devised.

koju je prirodna selekcija ikad stvorila.

It's a piece of neural audio technology

Radi se o moždanoj audiotehnologiji

for rewiring other people's minds.

za povezivanje u umovima drugih ljudi.

I'm talking about your language, of course,

Govorim o jeziku, naravno,

because it allows you to implant a thought from your mind

jer on vam omogućava da neku svoju misao

directly into someone else's mind,

usadite izravno u mozak nekog drugog,

and they can attempt to do the same to you,

a drugi mogu pokušati učiniti to isto vama,

without either of you having to perform surgery.

i čak nećete morati ni na operaciju.

Instead, when you speak,

Umjesto toga, kad govorite,

you're actually using a form of telemetry

koristite jedan oblik telemetrije

not so different

koji se ne razlikuje značajno

from the remote control device for your television.

od principa rada daljinskog upravljača.

It's just that, whereas that device

No, dok spomenuti uređaj

relies on pulses of infrared light,

radi pomoću valova infracrvenog svjetla,

your language relies on pulses,

jezik se oslanja na valove,

discrete pulses, of sound.

diskretne valove zvuka.

And just as you use the remote control device

Jednako kao što koristite daljinski upravljač

to alter the internal settings of your television

kako biste prilagodili unutarnje postavke televizora

to suit your mood,

tako da odgovaraju vašem raspoloženju,

you use your language

tako koristite i jezik

to alter the settings inside someone else's brain

da biste prilagodili postavke u nečijem mozgu

to suit your interests.

kako bi odgovarale vašim interesima.

Languages are genes talking,

Jezici su geni koji govore,

getting things that they want.

koji dobivaju stvari koje žele.

And just imagine the sense of wonder in a baby

Zamislite samo čuđenje djeteta

when it first discovers that, merely by uttering a sound,

kad otkrije da se, samo zato što je proizvelo zvuk,

it can get objects to move across a room

predmeti kreću kroz sobu,

as if by magic,

kao čarolijom,

and maybe even into its mouth.

a možda mu čak dođu i u usta.

Now language's subversive power

Razorna moć jezika

has been recognized throughout the ages

stoljećima je poznata

in censorship, in books you can't read,

u cenzuri, knjigama koje ne smijete čitati,

phrases you can't use

izrazima koje ne smijete koristiti

and words you can't say.

i riječima koje ne smijete izgovarati.

In fact, the Tower of Babel story in the Bible

U stvari, biblijska priča o Kuli babilonskoj

is a fable and warning

bajka je i upozorenje

about the power of language.

na moć jezika.

According to that story, early humans developed the conceit

Prema toj priči, prvi ljudi razvili su ideju

that, by using their language to work together,

da, ako budu koristili jezik kako bi zajedno radili,

they could build a tower

mogu izgraditi kulu

that would take them all the way to heaven.

koja bi sezala sve do raja.

Now God, angered at this attempt to usurp his power,

A Bog, razljućen tim pokušajem uzurpiranja njegove moći,

destroyed the tower,

uništio je kulu

and then to ensure

a zatim, kako bi osigurao

that it would never be rebuilt,

da nikad neće biti ponovno sagrađena,

he scattered the people by giving them different languages --

razdvojio je ljude tako što im je dao različite jezike --

confused them by giving them different languages.

zbunio ih je tako što im je dao različite jezike.

And this leads to the wonderful irony

To nas dovodi do divne ironije

that our languages exist to prevent us from communicating.

da jezik postoji kako bi nas spriječio da komuniciramo.

Even today,

Čak i danas,

we know that there are words we cannot use,

znamo da postoje riječi koje ne smijemo koristiti,

phrases we cannot say,

izrazi koje ne smijemo izgovarati,

because if we do so,

jer ako to učinimo,

we might be accosted, jailed,

možemo doživjeti protivljenje,

or even killed.

biti zatvoreni ili čak ubijeni.

And all of this from a puff of air

A sve to zbog daška zraka

emanating from our mouths.

koji je izišao iz naših usta.

Now all this fuss about a single one of our traits

Cijela ova strka oko jedne jedine ljudske osobine

tells us there's something worth explaining.

znači da tu ima nešto što vrijedi objasniti.

And that is how and why

A to je kako se i zašto

did this remarkable trait evolve,

razvila ova fantastična sposobnost

and why did it evolve

te zašto se razvila

only in our species?

samo u našoj vrsti?

Now it's a little bit of a surprise

Malo je iznenađujuće da,

that to get an answer to that question,

da bismo dobili odgovor na to pitanje,

we have to go to tool use

moramo proučiti korištenje alata

in the chimpanzees.

kod čimpanza.

Now these chimpanzees are using tools,

Čimpanze koriste alate

and we take that as a sign of their intelligence.

i mi to smatramo znakom njihove inteligencije.

But if they really were intelligent,

Ali ako su zaista inteligentne,

why would they use a stick to extract termites from the ground

zašto koriste štap za vađenje termita iz tla,

rather than a shovel?

a ne lopatu?

And if they really were intelligent,

Ako su doista inteligentne,

why would they crack open nuts with a rock?

zašto orahe razbijaju kamenom?

Why wouldn't they just go to a shop and buy a bag of nuts

Zašto ne bi otišle u trgovinu i kupile vrećicu

that somebody else had already cracked open for them?

s plodovima koje je već netko drugi izvadio umjesto njih?

Why not? I mean, that's what we do.

Zašto ne? Mislim, tako mi to radimo.

Now the reason the chimpanzees don't do that

Razlog zašto čimpanze to ne rade

is that they lack what psychologists and anthropologists call

jest da nemaju ono što psiholozi i antropolozi zovu

social learning.

društvenim učenjem.

They seem to lack the ability

Izgleda da nemaju sposobnost

to learn from others

učenja od drugih

by copying or imitating

kopiranjem ili imitiranjem

or simply watching.

ili jednostavnim promatranjem.

As a result,

Rezultat toga

they can't improve on others' ideas

jest da one ne mogu poboljšavati tuđe ideje

or learn from others' mistakes --

ni učiti na tuđim pogreškama --

benefit from others' wisdom.

imati koristi od tuđe mudrosti.

And so they just do the same thing

I zato neprestano ponavljaju

over and over and over again.

istu stvar.

In fact, we could go away for a million years and come back

Zapravo, mogli bismo otići na milijun godina i vratiti se

and these chimpanzees would be doing the same thing

i čimpanze bi i dalje radile iste stvari

with the same sticks for the termites

s istim štapovima za termite

and the same rocks to crack open the nuts.

i istim kamenjem za razbijanje oraha.

Now this may sound arrogant, or even full of hubris.

Ovo možda zvuči arogantno ili čak oholo.

How do we know this?

Kako to znamo?

Because this is exactly what our ancestors, the Homo erectus, did.

Jer su upravo tako postupali naši preci, Homo erectus.

These upright apes

Ti uspravni primati

evolved on the African savanna

evoluirali su u afričkoj savani

about two million years ago,

prije otprilike dva milijuna godina,

and they made these splendid hand axes

i izrađivali su sjajne ručne sjekire

that fit wonderfully into your hands.

koje su izvrsno odgovarale obliku ruke.

But if we look at the fossil record,

Ali ako pogledamo fosilne ostatke,

we see that they made the same hand axe

vidimo da su neprestano izrađivali

over and over and over again

jednake ručne sjekire

for one million years.

kroz milijun godina.

You can follow it through the fossil record.

To se može pratiti u fosilnim ostacima.

Now if we make some guesses about how long Homo erectus lived,

Ako pretpostavimo koliko je dugo živio Homo erectus,

what their generation time was,

koje je bilo trajanje jedne generacije,

that's about 40,000 generations

to je oko 40.000 generacija

of parents to offspring, and other individuals watching,

prenošenih s roditelja na potomke, i uz druge pojedince,

in which that hand axe didn't change.

tijekom kojih se ta ručna sjekira nije promijenila.

It's not even clear

Nije jasno

that our very close genetic relatives, the Neanderthals,

niti jesu li naši bliski genski rođaci, Neandertalci,

had social learning.

imali moć društvenog učenja.

Sure enough, their tools were more complicated

Naravno, njihovi alati bili su složeniji

than those of Homo erectus,

od onih koje je izrađivao Homo erectus,

but they too showed very little change

ali ni oni se nisu mnogo mijenjali

over the 300,000 years or so

kroz nekih 300.000 godina,

that those species, the Neanderthals,

koliko je ta vrsta, Neandertalci,

lived in Eurasia.

živjela u Euraziji.

Okay, so what this tells us

Dakle, to nam govori da,

is that, contrary to the old adage,

suprotno od stare izreke,

"monkey see, monkey do,"

"majmun radi što majmun vidi",

the surprise really is

iznenađenje je zapravo

that all of the other animals

da nijedna druga životinja

really cannot do that -- at least not very much.

zapravo nema tu sposobnost -- barem ne u znatnijoj mjeri.

And even this picture

Čak i ova fotografija

has the suspicious taint of being rigged about it --

izgleda nekako sumnjivo namješteno --

something from a Barnum & Bailey circus.

kao nešto iz cirkusa Barnum & Bailey.

But by comparison,

No, za usporedbu,

we can learn.

mi možemo učiti.

We can learn by watching other people

Možmo učiti gledanjem drugih ljudi

and copying or imitating

i kopiranjem i imitiranjem

what they can do.

onoga što oni rade.

We can then choose, from among a range of options,

Mi možemo, dakle, od niza mogućnosti

the best one.

izabrati najbolju.

We can benefit from others' ideas.

Možemo imati koristi od tuđih ideja.

We can build on their wisdom.

Možemo nadograditi njihovu mudrost.

And as a result, our ideas do accumulate,

Kao rezultat toga, naše ideje se nakupljaju

and our technology progresses.

i naša tehnologija napreduje.

And this cumulative cultural adaptation,

A ta kumulativna kulturna adaptacija,

as anthropologists call

kako antropolozi to zovu,

this accumulation of ideas,

to nakupljanje ideja,

is responsible for everything around you

izvor je svega oko vas

in your bustling and teeming everyday lives.

u vašoj ubrzanoj svakodnevici.

I mean the world has changed out of all proportion

Svijet se nevjerojatno promijenio

to what we would recognize

u odnosu na nešto što bismo prepoznali

even 1,000 or 2,000 years ago.

prije 1.000 ili 2.000 godina.

And all of this because of cumulative cultural adaptation.

A sve to zbog kumulativne kulturne adaptacije.

The chairs you're sitting in, the lights in this auditorium,

Stolice na kojima sjedite, svjetla u ovoj dvorani,

my microphone, the iPads and iPods that you carry around with you --

moj mikrofon, iPadovi i iPodovi koji nosite sa sobom

all are a result

svi su rezultat

of cumulative cultural adaptation.

kumulativne kulturne adaptacije.

Now to many commentators,

Mnogi komentatori

cumulative cultural adaptation, or social learning,

kumulativnu kulturnu adaptaciju, ili društveno učenje,

is job done, end of story.

smatraju gotovim poslom, krajem priče.

Our species can make stuff,

Naša vrsta zna izrađivati stvari,

therefore we prospered in a way that no other species has.

dakle napredovali smo kao nijedna druga vrsta.

In fact, we can even make the "stuff of life" --

Zapravo možemo izrađivati čak i "stvari za život" --

as I just said, all the stuff around us.

kao što sam upravo rekao, sve stvari oko nas.

But in fact, it turns out

Ali, zapravo, izgleda da

that some time around 200,000 years ago,

prije otprilike 200.000 godina,

when our species first arose

kad se naša vrsta tek pojavila

and acquired social learning,

i usvojila društveno učenje,

that this was really the beginning of our story,

to je zapravo bio početak naše priče,

not the end of our story.

a ne njezin kraj.

Because our acquisition of social learning

Jer naše usvajanje društvenog učenja

would create a social and evolutionary dilemma,

stvorilo bi društvenu i evolucijsku dilemu,

the resolution of which, it's fair to say,

čije razrješenje bi, možemo s popriličnom sigurnošću reći,

would determine not only the future course of our psychology,

utvrdilo ne samo daljnji razvoj naše psihologije,

but the future course of the entire world.

već i daljnji razvoj cijelog svijeta.

And most importantly for this,

A ono što je najvažnije,

it'll tell us why we have language.

reći će nam zašto imamo jezik.

And the reason that dilemma arose

Razlog zbog kojeg se pojavila ta dilema

is, it turns out, that social learning is visual theft.

jest taj što ispada da je društveno učenje zapravo vizualna krađa.

If I can learn by watching you,

Ako ja mogu učiti tako što te gledam,

I can steal your best ideas,

mogu ukrasti tvoje najbolje ideje

and I can benefit from your efforts,

i mogu imati koristi od tvog rada,

without having to put in the time and energy that you did

a da nisam morao uložiti vrijeme i energiju koji su tebi

into developing them.

bili potrebni da bi ih razvio.

If I can watch which lure you use to catch a fish,

ako mogu gledati koji mamac koristiš da bi ulovio ribu,

or I can watch how you flake your hand axe

ili mogu gledati kako obrađuješ ručnu sjekiru

to make it better,

kako bi je poboljšao,

or if I follow you secretly to your mushroom patch,

ili ako ako te potajno slijedim do mjesta gdje ima gljiva,

I can benefit from your knowledge and wisdom and skills,

mogu imati koristi od tvojeg znanja, mudrosti i vještina,

and maybe even catch that fish

i možda čak mogu i uloviti tu ribu

before you do.

prije tebe.

Social learning really is visual theft.

Društveno učenje je vizualna krađa.

And in any species that acquired it,

I kod svake vrste koja ga je usvojila,

it would behoove you

primoralo bi vas

to hide your best ideas,

da skrivate svoje najbolje ideje

lest somebody steal them from you.

kako vam ih netko ne bi ukrao.

And so some time around 200,000 years ago,

I tako, prije otprilike 200.000 godina,

our species confronted this crisis.

naša se vrsta susrela s tom krizom.

And we really had only two options

Zapravo imamo samo dvije mogućnosti

for dealing with the conflicts

za razrješavanje sukoba

that visual theft would bring.

koje bi prouzrokovala vizualna krađa.

One of those options

Jedna od tih mogućnosti

was that we could have retreated

bila je da se vratimo nazad

into small family groups.

u male obiteljske skupine.

Because then the benefits of our ideas and knowledge

Jer tako bi korist od naših ideja i znanja

would flow just to our relatives.

prelazila na naše rođake.

Had we chosen this option,

Da smo izabrali tu mogućnost,

sometime around 200,000 years ago,

prije nekih 200.000 godina,

we would probably still be living like the Neanderthals were

vjerojatno bismo još uvijek živjeli poput Neandertalaca

when we first entered Europe 40,000 years ago.

kad smo tek došli u Europu prije 40.000 godina.

And this is because in small groups

Razlog tome je taj što u malim skupinama

there are fewer ideas, there are fewer innovations.

ima manje ideja, manje inovacija.

And small groups are more prone to accidents and bad luck.

Uz to, male skupine sklonije su nezgodama i nesrećama.

So if we'd chosen that path,

Dakle, da smo izabrali taj put,

our evolutionary path would have led into the forest --

naš evolucijski put vodio bi u šumu --

and been a short one indeed.

i bio bi zaista kratak.

The other option we could choose

Druga mogućnost koju smo mogli izabrati

was to develop the systems of communication

bila je da razvijemo sustave komunikacije

that would allow us to share ideas

koji bi nam omogućili da dijelimo ideje

and to cooperate amongst others.

i da surađujemo jedni s drugima.

Choosing this option would mean

Ako izaberemo ovu mogućnost, to znači

that a vastly greater fund of accumulated knowledge and wisdom

da bi znatno veća količina nakupljenog znanja i mudrosti

would become available to any one individual

postala dostupna svakom pojedincu

than would ever arise from within an individual family

nego što bi ikad nastala unutar pojedine obitelji

or an individual person on their own.

ili od bilo kojeg pojedinca.

Well, we chose the second option,

Eto, izabrali smo drugu mogućnost

and language is the result.

i jezik je rezultat toga.

Language evolved to solve the crisis

Jezik se razvio kako bi riješio krizu

of visual theft.

vizualne krađe.

Language is a piece of social technology

Jezik je društvena tehnologija

for enhancing the benefits of cooperation --

za povećavanje koristi od suradnje --

for reaching agreements, for striking deals

za postizanje dogovora, za sklapanje poslova

and for coordinating our activities.

i za usklađivanje naših aktivnosti.

And you can see that, in a developing society

Vidimo da, u društvu koje se razvija,

that was beginning to acquire language,

koje je tek počinjalo usvajati jezik,

not having language

neimanje jezika

would be a like a bird without wings.

bilo bi poput ptice bez krila.

Just as wings open up this sphere of air

Baš kao što krila omogućavaju pticama

for birds to exploit,

da iskorištavaju sferu zraka,

language opened up the sphere of cooperation

tako je jezik omogućio ljudima

for humans to exploit.

da iskoriste sferu suradnje.

And we take this utterly for granted,

I to u potpunosti uzimamo zdravo za gotovo,

because we're a species that is so at home with language,

zato što smo vrsta koja je tako naviknuta na jezik.

but you have to realize

Ali morate shvatiti

that even the simplest acts of exchange that we engage in

da i najjednostavnija komunikacija u kojoj sudjelujemo

are utterly dependent upon language.

u potpunosti ovisi o jeziku.

And to see why, consider two scenarios

A da bismo vidjeli zašto, zamislite dva scenarija

from early in our evolution.

iz ranih stadija naše evolucije.

Let's imagine that you are really good

Zamislimo da znate izrađivati

at making arrowheads,

stvarno dobre vrhove strelica,

but you're hopeless at making the wooden shafts

ali vam nikako ne ide izrađivanje drvenih tijela strelica

with the flight feathers attached.

s perima za usmjeravanje leta.

Two other people you know are very good at making the wooden shafts,

Poznajete još dvoje ljudi kojima ide izrađivanje drvenih tijela,

but they're hopeless at making the arrowheads.

ali nikako im ne ide izrađivanje vrhova strelica.

So what you do is --

Dakle ono što ćete učiniti jest --

one of those people has not really acquired language yet.

jedan od tih ljudi još nije baš usvojio jezik.

And let's pretend the other one is good at language skills.

A zamislimo da drugi ima dobre jezične vještine.

So what you do one day is you take a pile of arrowheads,

Tako ćete jednog dana uzeti hrpu vrhova strelica,

and you walk up to the one that can't speak very well,

i doći do onoga koji ne govori baš dobro,

and you put the arrowheads down in front of him,

i spustit ćete vrhove strelica pred njega

hoping that he'll get the idea that you want to trade your arrowheads

u nadi da će shvatiti da želite prodati svoje vrhove

for finished arrows.

za gotove strijele.

But he looks at the pile of arrowheads, thinks they're a gift,

Ali on pogleda hrpu vrhova strelica, misli da je to dar,

picks them up, smiles and walks off.

podigne ih, nasmiješi se i otiđe.

Now you pursue this guy, gesticulating.

Vi krenete za njim gestikulirajući.

A scuffle ensues and you get stabbed

Nastane gužva i bivate ubodeni

with one of your own arrowheads.

jednim od svojih vrhova strelica.

Okay, now replay this scene now, and you're approaching the one who has language.

U redu, sad ponovimo tu scenu, ali prilazite onome koji ima jezik.

You put down your arrowheads and say,

Spustite svoje vrhove strelica i kažete,

"I'd like to trade these arrowheads for finished arrows. I'll split you 50/50."

"Želim prodati ove vrhove za gotove strijele. Dijelimo pola-pola."

The other one says, "Fine. Looks good to me.

A drugi kaže, "Može, meni se to čini u redu.

We'll do that."

Učinit ćemo tako."

Now the job is done.

Posao obavljen.

Once we have language,

Kad imamo jezik,

we can put our ideas together and cooperate

možemo ujediniti ideje i raditi zajedno

to have a prosperity

kako bismo postigli blagostanje

that we couldn't have before we acquired it.

koje ne bismo mogli imati prije nego smo usvojili jezik.

And this is why our species

I zato je naša vrsta

has prospered around the world

bila tako uspješna u cijelom svijetu

while the rest of the animals

dok ostatak životinja

sit behind bars in zoos, languishing.

još boravi u zoološkim vrtovima i slabi.

That's why we build space shuttles and cathedrals

Zato smo mi izgradili svemirske letjelice i katedrale,

while the rest of the world sticks sticks into the ground

dok ostatak svijeta štapom kopa po tlu

to extract termites.

kako bi izvadili termite.

All right, if this view of language

U redu, ako je ovaj pogled na jezik

and its value

i njegovu vrijednost

in solving the crisis of visual theft is true,

za rješavanje krize vizualne krađe ispravan,

any species that acquires it

tada bi svaka vrsta koja ga usvoji

should show an explosion of creativity and prosperity.

trebala imati eksploziju kreativnosti i blagostanja.

And this is exactly what the archeological record shows.

I upravo to pokazuju arheološki dokazi.

If you look at our ancestors,

Ako pogledate naše pretke,

the Neanderthals and the Homo erectus, our immediate ancestors,

Neandertalce i Homo erectusa, naše izravne pretke,

they're confined to small regions of the world.

oni su ograničeni na male regije u svijetu.

But when our species arose

Ali kad se naša vrsta uzdigla

about 200,000 years ago,

prije otprilike 200.000 godina,

sometime after that we quickly walked out of Africa

neko vrijeme nakon toga brzo smo izišli iz Afrike

and spread around the entire world,

i proširili se po cijelom svijetu

occupying nearly every habitat on Earth.

i nastanili se gotovo u svakom staništu na Zemlji.

Now whereas other species are confined

Dok su druge vrste vezane

to places that their genes adapt them to,

za mjesta na koja su prilagođene genima,

with social learning and language,

pomoću društvenog učenja i jezika,

we could transform the environment

mi smo mogli preobraziti okoliš

to suit our needs.

kako bi odgovarao našim potrebama.

And so we prospered in a way

Tako smo napredovali

that no other animal has.

kao nijedna druga životinja.

Language really is

Jezik je doista

the most potent trait that has ever evolved.

najmoćnija osobina koja se ikad razvila.

It is the most valuable trait we have

To je najvrednija sposobnost koju imamo

for converting new lands and resources

za pretvaranje nove zemlje i resursa

into more people and their genes

u još više ljudi i njihovih gena

that natural selection has ever devised.

nego što je prirodni odabir ikad stvorio.

Language really is

Jezik je zaista

the voice of our genes.

glas naših gena.

Now having evolved language, though,

Sad kad smo razvili jezik,

we did something peculiar,

učinili smo nešto neobično,

even bizarre.

čak bizarno.

As we spread out around the world,

Kako smo se širili po cijelom svijetu,

we developed thousands of different languages.

razvili smo tisuće različitih jezika.

Currently, there are about seven or 8,000

Trenutno se na svijetu govori

different languages spoken on Earth.

oko sedam ili osam tisuća različitih jezika.

Now you might say, well, this is just natural.

Mogli biste reći da je to sasvim prirodno.

As we diverge, our languages are naturally going to diverge.

Kako se udaljavamo, i naši jezici se prirodno udaljavaju.

But the real puzzle and irony

Ali prava zagonetka i ironija

is that the greatest density of different languages on Earth

jest to da je najveća raznolikost jezika na Zemlji

is found where people are most tightly packed together.

prisutna kod ljudi koji žive vrlo blizu jedni drugih.

If we go to the island of Papua New Guinea,

Ako odemo na otok Papua Nova Gvineja,

we can find about 800 to 1,000

pronaći ćemo 800 do 1.000

distinct human languages,

zasebnih ljudskih jezika,

different human languages,

različitih ljudskih jezika,

spoken on that island alone.

koji se govore samo na tom otoku.

There are places on that island

Postoje mjesta na tom otoku

where you can encounter a new language

gdje možete čuti novi jezik

every two or three miles.

svakih četiri ili pet kilometara.

Now, incredible as this sounds,

Koliko god nevjerojatno to zvučalo,

I once met a Papuan man, and I asked him if this could possibly be true.

jednom sam upoznao čovjeka s Papue i pitao ga je li moguće da je to istina.

And he said to me, "Oh no.

A on mi je odgovorio, "Ma ne.

They're far closer together than that."

Oni su na mnogo manjoj udaljenosti."

And it's true; there are places on that island

I to je istina, postoje mjesta na tom otoku

where you can encounter a new language in under a mile.

gdje možete čuti novi jezik nakon manje od dva kilometra.

And this is also true of some remote oceanic islands.

A tako je i na nekim udaljenim oceanskim otocima.

And so it seems that we use our language,

I tako izgleda da koristimo naš jezik,

not just to cooperate,

ne samo kako bismo surađivali,

but to draw rings around our cooperative groups

već i da bismo ogradili grupe u kojima surađujemo

and to establish identities,

te da bismo utvrdili svoj identitet

and perhaps to protect our knowledge and wisdom and skills

i možda i zaštitili svoje znanje, mudrost i vještine

from eavesdropping from outside.

od prisluškivanja izvana.

And we know this

A to znamo

because when we study different language groups

zato što, kad proučavamo različite skupine jezika,

and associate them with their cultures,

i povezujemo ih s njihovim kulturama,

we see that different languages

vidimo da različiti jezici

slow the flow of ideas between groups.

usporavaju protok ideja između grupa.

They slow the flow of technologies.

Usporavaju protok tehnologija.

And they even slow the flow of genes.

I usporavaju čak i protok gena.

Now I can't speak for you,

Ne znam kako vi,

but it seems to be the case

ali izgleda

that we don't have sex with people we can't talk to.

da se ne seksamo s ljudima s kojima ne možemo razgovarati.

(Laughter)

(Smijeh)

Now we have to counter that, though,

Sad to moramo usporediti

against the evidence we've heard

s dokazima koje smo imali

that we might have had some rather distasteful genetic dalliances

da smo prilično neukusno genetski dangubili

with the Neanderthals and the Denisovans.

s Neandertalcima i Denisovancima.

(Laughter)

(Smijeh)

Okay, this tendency we have,

U redu, ta sklonost koju imamo,

this seemingly natural tendency we have,

ta naizgled prirodna sklonost koju imamo,

towards isolation, towards keeping to ourselves,

da se izoliramo, da se držimo za sebe,

crashes head first into our modern world.

izravno se sukobljava s modernim svijetom.

This remarkable image

Ova zadivljujuća slika

is not a map of the world.

nije karta svijeta.

In fact, it's a map of Facebook friendship links.

Zapravo, to je karta prijateljstava na Facebooku.

And when you plot those friendship links

A kad prikažete ta prijateljstva

by their latitude and longitude,

po njihovoj dužini i širini,

it literally draws a map of the world.

doslovno biva iscrtana karta svijeta.

Our modern world is communicating

Naš suvremeni svijet komunicira

with itself and with each other

sam sa sobom i s nama

more than it has

više nego što je to bio slučaj

at any time in its past.

ikad u prošlosti.

And that communication, that connectivity around the world,

I ta komunikacija, ta povezanost u cijelom svijetu,

that globalization

ta globalizacija

now raises a burden.

sada postaje teret.

Because these different languages

Jer ti različiti jezici

impose a barrier, as we've just seen,

predstavljaju prepreku, kao što smo upravo vidjeli,

to the transfer of goods and ideas

dobara i ideja

and technologies and wisdom.

i tehnologija i mudrosti.

And they impose a barrier to cooperation.

I predstavljaju prepreku komunikaciji.

And nowhere do we see that more clearly

Najjasnije to vidimo

than in the European Union,

u Europskoj uniji,

whose 27 member countries

u čijih se 27 zemalja članica

speak 23 official languages.

govore 23 službena jezika.

The European Union

Europska unija

is now spending over one billion euros annually

sada troši preko milijarde eura godišnje

translating among their 23 official languages.

na prevođenje na svoja 23 službena jezika,

That's something on the order

To je negdje oko

of 1.45 billion U.S. dollars

1,45 milijardi američkih dolara

on translation costs alone.

samo za troškove prevođenja.

Now think of the absurdity of this situation.

Razmislite o apsurdnosti ove situacije.

If 27 individuals

Ako 27 ljudi

from those 27 member states

iz tih 27 zemalja

sat around table, speaking their 23 languages,

sjedi za stolom i govori svoja 23 jezika,

some very simple mathematics will tell you

jednostavnom matematikom zaključit ćete

that you need an army of 253 translators

da je potrebna vojska od 253 prevoditelja

to anticipate all the pairwise possibilities.

kako bi se mogli prevoditi svi parovi jezika.

The European Union employs a permanent staff

Europska unija ima oko 2.500

of about 2,500 translators.

stalno zaposlenih prevoditelja.

And in 2007 alone --

A samo u 2007. godini --

and I'm sure there are more recent figures --

a siguran sam da postoje i noviji podaci --

something on the order of 1.3 million pages

negdje oko 1,3 milijuna stranica

were translated into English alone.

prevedeno je samo na engleski jezik.

And so if language really is

Ako jezik doista jest

the solution to the crisis of visual theft,

rješenje krize vizualne krađe,

if language really is

ako jezik zaista jest

the conduit of our cooperation,

vodič naše suradnje,

the technology that our species derived

tehnologija koju je stvorila naša vrsta

to promote the free flow and exchange of ideas,

kako bi promicala slobodan tijek i razmjenu ideja

in our modern world,

u našem suvremenom svijetu,

we confront a question.

suočavamo se s jednim pitanjem.

And that question is whether

A to je pitanje

in this modern, globalized world

možemo li si u ovom modernom, globaliziranom svijetu

we can really afford to have all these different languages.

stvarno priuštiti da imamo toliko različitih jezika.

To put it this way, nature knows no other circumstance

Recimo to ovako, u prirodi nisu poznate druge okolnosti

in which functionally equivalent traits coexist.

u kojima istovremeno postoje funkcionalno ekvivalentne sposobnosti.

One of them always drives the other extinct.

Uvijek izumru sve osim jedne.

And we see this in the inexorable march

I to vidimo u nezaustavljivom kretanju

towards standardization.

prema standardizaciji.

There are lots and lots of ways of measuring things --

Postoje mnogi načini mjerenja stvari --

weighing them and measuring their length --

vaganja i mjerenja duljine --

but the metric system is winning.

ali metrički sustav pobjeđuje.

There are lots and lots of ways of measuring time,

Postoje mnogi načini mjerenja vremena,

but a really bizarre base 60 system

ali bizaran sustav s bazom 60,

known as hours and minutes and seconds

poznatiji kao sati i minute i sekunde

is nearly universal around the world.

gotovo je univerzalan u cijelom svijetu.

There are many, many ways

Postoji zaista mnogo načina

of imprinting CDs or DVDs,

snimanja CD-a ili DVD-a,

but those are all being standardized as well.

ali i oni se standardiziraju.

And you can probably think of many, many more

I vjerojatno se možete sjetiti još mnogih primjera

in your own everyday lives.

iz svakodnevnog života.

And so our modern world now

I tako se naš suvremeni svijet

is confronting us with a dilemma.

danas suočava s dilemom.

And it's the dilemma

A to je dilema

that this Chinese man faces,

s kojom se suočava ovaj Kinez,

who's language is spoken

čiji jezik u svijetu

by more people in the world

govori više ljudi

than any other single language,

nego bilo koji drugi jezik,

and yet he is sitting at his blackboard,

a on ipak sjedi ispred ploče

converting Chinese phrases

i pretvara rečenice na kineskom

into English language phrases.

u rečenice na engleskom jeziku.

And what this does is it raises the possibility to us

Rezultat toga jest povećanje mogućnosti za nas

that in a world in which we want to promote

da u svijetu u kojem želimo promovirati

cooperation and exchange,

suradnju i razmjenu,

and in a world that might be dependent more than ever before

i u svijetu koji bi mogao više nego ikad

on cooperation

ovisiti o suradnji

to maintain and enhance our levels of prosperity,

kako bi zadržao i povisio naše razine napretka,

his actions suggest to us

njegovi postupci nam govore

it might be inevitable

da bi moglo biti neizbježno

that we have to confront the idea

da se moramo sučiti s idejom

that our destiny is to be one world with one language.

da je naša sudbina da budemo jedan svijet s jednim jezikom.

Thank you.

Hvala.

(Applause)

(Pljesak)

Matt Ridley: Mark, one question.

Matt Ridley: Mark, jedno pitanje.

Svante found that the FOXP2 gene,

Svante je otkrio da gen FOXP2,

which seems to be associated with language,

za koji se čini da je povezan s jezikom,

was also shared in the same form

u istom obliku

in Neanderthals as us.

dijelimo i mi i Neandertalci.

Do we have any idea

Imaš li kakvu ideju

how we could have defeated Neanderthals

kako smo mogli pobijediti Neandertalce

if they also had language?

ako su i oni imali jezik?

Mark Pagel: This is a very good question.

Mark Pagel: Ovo je vrlo dobro pitanje.

So many of you will be familiar with the idea that there's this gene called FOXP2

Mnogima od vas poznata je ideja da postoji gen zvan FOXP2,

that seems to be implicated in some ways

za koji se čini da je na neki način povezan

in the fine motor control that's associated with language.

s finom motorikom koja je povezana s jezikom.

The reason why I don't believe that tells us

Razlog zašto ja ne vjerujem da nam to govori

that the Neanderthals had language

da su Neandertalci imali jezik

is -- here's a simple analogy:

jest -- evo jednostavne analogije:

Ferraris are cars that have engines.

Ferrariji su automobili koji imaju motore.

My car has an engine,

Moj automobil ima motor,

but it's not a Ferrari.

ali on nije Ferrari.

Now the simple answer then

Jednostavan odgovor na to

is that genes alone don't, all by themselves,

jest da sami geni, samostalno,

determine the outcome

ne određuju ishod

of very complicated things like language.

tako kompliciranih stvari kao što je jezik.

What we know about this FOXP2 and Neanderthals

Ono što znamo o genu FOXP2 i Neandertalcima

is that they may have had fine motor control of their mouths -- who knows.

jest da su možda imali finu motoriku u ustima -- tko zna.

But that doesn't tell us they necessarily had language.

Ali to ne znači nužno da su imali jezik.

MR: Thank you very much indeed.

MR: Hvala vam puno.

(Applause)

(Pljesak)