Edith Widder: The weird and wonderful world of bioluminescence

翻译人员: Bear Jin 校对人员: Angelia King

So I want to take you on a trip

我想带大家去一趟

to an alien world.

外星世界的旅行。

And it's not a trip

但是这不是一场

that requires light-years of travel,

距离为光年的旅行，

but it's to a place

但是它是一个

where it's defined by light.

诠释光的地方。

So it's a little-appreciated fact

在那里还不太有人懂得欣赏

that most of the animals in our ocean

海洋里大多数

make light.

会发光的动物。

I've spent most of my career

我用了大部分职业生涯

studying this phenomenon called bioluminescence.

研究生物体发光的这个现象。

I study it because I think understanding it

我研究它是因为我知道它

is critical to understanding life in the ocean

会是理解海底那些常发光的

where most bioluminescence occurs.

生命体的关键。

I also use it as a tool

我同时也把它作为一种工具

for visualizing and tracking pollution.

来可视化和跟踪污染物。

But mostly I'm entranced by it.

但最主要的是我为之而着迷。

Since my my first dive in a deep-diving submersible,

自从我第一次用深海潜艇下潜，

when I went down and turned out the lights

当我深入海底并关灯的霎那

and saw the fireworks displays,

看到了焰火般的演出，

I've been a bioluminescence junky.

我是一个生物发光的上瘾者。

But I would come back from those dives

但是我会还原这些潜水经历

and try to share the experience with words,

并试着用语言的表达形式分享给大家，

and they were totally inadequate to the task.

但是它们并不代表这所有的工作。

I needed some way to share the experience directly.

我需要用某种方式来直接的分享这份经验。

And the first time I figured out that way

第一次我想出了这个方法

was in this little single-person submersible

那就是用小型单人潜水艇

called Deep Rover.

它取名为深河。

This next video clip,

这下一个视频剪辑，

you're going to see how we stimulated the bioluminescence.

你将看到我们如何刺激生物体发光。

And the first thing you're going to see

第一个你将看到的是

is a transect screen

一个样带屏幕

that is about a meter across.

它的对角长度大约有一米。

(Video) Narrator: In front of the sub,

（录像）讲解员：在潜艇前方，

a mess screen will come into contact

一个巨大的屏幕会接触到

with the soft-bodied creatures of the deep sea.

深海中的软体生物。

With the sub's lights switched off,

随着潜艇的灯光关闭，

it is possible to see their bioluminescence --

我们就有可能看到那些生物发光体--

the light produced when they collide with the mesh.

当它们撞网的时候光被激发出来。

This is the first time

这是第一次

it has ever been recorded.

它被记录下来。

Edith Widder: So I recorded that with an intensified video camera

伊迪丝·威德：我用一个能模拟

that has about the sensitivity

肉眼在完全黑暗的环境下

of the fully dark-adapted human eye.

的特殊摄像机来记录下对这发光生物的感知。

Which means that really is what you would see

它意味着你事实上能看到的景象

if you took a dive in a submersible.

如果你用潜艇潜入的话。

But just to try to prove that fact to you,

只是为了试着用事实证明给大家，

I've brought along some bioluminescent plankton

我带来了一些能发光的浮游生物

in what is undoubtedly a foolhardy attempt

明显无疑是一次用生物见证

at a live demonstration.

的鲁莽的尝试。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

So, if we could have the lights down

所以，如果我们能把光线暗下来

and have it as dark in here as possible,

尽量保持黑暗状态，

I have a flask

我有一个烧瓶

that has bioluminescent plankton in it.

里面有能生物体发光的浮游生物。

And you'll note there's no light coming from them right now,

你能注意到现在还没有发出光来，

either because they're dead --

要不就是它们全死了--

(Laughter)

（笑声）

or because I need to stir them up in some way

要不就是我需要稍微摇晃它们

for you to see what bioluminescence really looks like.

才能看到生物发光体是什么样子的。

(Gasps)

（感叹声）

Oops. Sorry.

哦，意外。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I spend most of my time working in the dark; I'm used to that.

我花很多时间在黑暗中工作，我已经习惯了。

Okay.

好的。

So that light

这光

was made by a bioluminescent dinoflagellate,

是来自于一种生物体发光的腰鞭毛虫，

a single-celled alga.

一种单细胞海藻。

So why would a single-celled alga

为什么这种单细胞海藻

need to be able to produce light?

就能发光呢？

Well, it uses it to defend itself from its predators.

嗯，它用发光来保护自己远离捕食者。

The flash is like a scream for help.

这亮光就像求救的尖叫。

It's what's known as a bioluminescent burglar alarm,

这可以理解为一种生物荧光的防盗警报器。

and just like the alarm on your car or your house,

就想你车上或家里的那种警报器一样，

it's meant to cast unwanted attention onto the intruder,

它是为了把一些多余注意力投射给入侵者，

thereby either leading to his capture

从而或者误导它的注意力

or scaring him away.

或者吓走它。

There's a lot of animals that use this trick,

有很多动物用这个把戏，

for example this black dragonfish.

比如这黑海蛾鱼，

It's got a light organ under its eye.

在它的眼睛下有一个发光的器官。

It's got a chin barbel.

它有着颏须。

It's got a lot of other light organs you can't see, but you'll see in here in a minute.

它还有很多其它你看不到的发光器官，但是你过一会儿就可以看到。

So we had to chase this in the submersible for quite sometime,

有些时候我们不得不提速潜艇来追赶它，

because the top speed of this fish is one knot,

因为这种鱼的最高游速是每小时一海里，

which was the top speed of the submersible.

也是潜艇的最高游速。

But it was worth it,

但这是值得的，

because we caught it in a special capture device,

因为我们用特制的设备捕获了它，

brought it up into the lab on the ship,

把它带到了船上的实验室，

and then everything on this fish lights up.

接着鱼身上所有的光都亮起来了。

It's unbelievable.

多么难以置信啊。

The light organs under the eyes are flashing.

眼部下方的发光器官闪烁着。

That chin barbel is flashing.

颏须闪烁着。

It's got light organs on its belly that are flashing,

闪烁的发光器官还覆盖在它的腹部，

fin lights.

鳍也发着光。

It's a scream for help; it's meant to attract attention.

它在尖叫求救；这意味着攻击的警告。

It's phenomenal.

太神奇了。

And you normally don't get to see this

你平常是看不到这些的，

because we've exhausted the luminescence when we bring them up in nets.

因为当我们拉起渔网的时候，它们的冷光已经耗尽了。

There's other ways you can defend yourself with light.

还有其他方法用光来保护自己。

For example, this shrimp

比如，这虾

releases its bioluminescent chemicals into the water

把自身的生物发光的化学物质释放到水中

just the way a squid or an octopus would release an ink cloud.

就和乌贼或章鱼会释放墨汁雾一样的。

This blinds or distracts the predator.

这会让捕食者失明或者受到干扰。

This little squid is called the fire shooter

这个小乌贼叫做火枪乌贼

because of its ability to do this.

因为它会做这个。

Now it may look like a tasty morsel,

现在它可能看起来像美味佳肴，

or a pig's head with wings --

或者带翅膀的猪头--

(Laughter)

（笑声）

but if it's attacked,

但是如果它被攻击的话，

it puts out a barrage of light --

它就会释放出一连串的光--

in fact, a barrage of photon torpedoes.

事实上，像一连串发光的鱼雷。

I just barely got the lights out in time

我几乎不能及时的捕捉下这些光

for you to be able to see those gobs of light

来让你们能看清这些撞击到

hitting the transect screen

样带屏幕随之

and then just glowing.

发光的液体。

It's phenomenal.

太神奇了。

So there's a lot of animals in the open ocean --

广阔的大海中有很多生物--

most of them that make light.

它们大多数会发光。

And we have a pretty good idea, for most of them, why.

我们也，对它们大多数，为什么发光有了深入的了解。

They use it for finding food, for attracting mates,

它们以此来寻找食物，来吸引同伴，

for defending against predators.

来抵御捕食者。

But when you get down to the bottom of the ocean,

但是当你下潜到海底的时候，

that's where things get really strange.

那里才是事情变得真的奇怪的地方。

And some of these animals

一些动物

are probably inspiration for the things you saw in "Avatar,"

可能会让你想起“阿凡达”的一些事物。

but you don't have to travel to Pandora to see them.

但是你不必到潘多拉星球才能看到它们。

They're things like this.

它们就像这样。

This is a golden coral, a bush.

这是金色的珊瑚，灌木。

It grows very slowly.

它的生长极其的缓慢。

In fact, it's thought that some of these

事实上，它们中的一些被认定为

are as much as 3,000 years old,

大约3000多年的年龄，

which is one reason that bottom trawling should not be allowed.

这也是为什么深海捕鱼是不被允许的。

The other reason is this amazing bush glows.

另外一个原因是这神奇的灌木会发光。

So if you brush up against it,

如果你刷动它的话，

any place you brushed against it,

刷动任何位置，

you get this twinkling blue-green light

你会看到这闪耀的蓝绿色的光

that's just breathtaking.

多么窒息的美丽啊。

And you see things like this.

你能看到像这样的东西。

This looks like something out of a Dr. Seuss book --

它就好像从瑟斯博士书中跳出来的一样--

just all manner of creatures all over this thing.

所有生物的特点都集中在这上面。

And these are flytrap anemones.

这些是捕蝇海葵。

Now if you poke it, it pulls in its tentacles.

如果你戳它的话，它会收回它的触角。

But if you keep poking it,

但是如果你一直戳它的话，

it starts to produce light.

它就会开始发光。

And it actually ends up looking like a galaxy.

它事实上最后看起来像一个银河系。

It produces these strings of light,

它发出雾状的光，

presumably as some form of defense.

类似于某些保护的方式。

There are starfish that can make light.

还有能发光的海星。

And there are brittle stars that produce bands of light

有能发出条纹光的海蛇尾

that dance along their arms.

舞动着它们的发光的带状手臂。

This looks like a plant,

这看上去像一株植物，

but it's actually an animal.

但其实它是个动物。

And it anchors itself in the sand

它在它的基底部吹起个气球

by blowing up a balloon on the end of its stock.

来把自己固定在沙子中。

So it can actually hold itself in very strong currents,

以此它能在很强的水流中站住，

as you see here.

就像你这里看到的一样。

But if we collect it very gently, and we bring it up into the lab

但是如果我们很小心的收集，并把它带回到实验室中

and just squeeze it at the base of the stock,

挤压它的基底部，

it produces this light

它发出了这种

that propagates from stem to the plume,

从茎杆往枝干传播的光，

changing color as it goes,

传播的同时还变换色彩，

from green to blue.

从绿色到蓝色。

Colorization and sound effects

声效和音效

added for you viewing pleasure.

只为了增加你观看的乐趣。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

But we have no idea why it does that.

但是我们完全不知道为什么它要这么做。

Here's another one. This is also a sea pen.

这是另外一个。这也是个海笔。

It's got a brittle star hitching a ride.

它搭着海蛇尾的顺风车。

It's a green saber of light.

它发出着金属般的绿色的光。

And like the one you just saw,

就像你刚看到的那个一样，

it can produce these as bands of light.

它能发出那种条状的光纹。

So if I squeeze the base,

所以如果我挤压底部，

the bands go from base to tip.

光带从底部传到顶部。

If I squeeze the tip, they go from tip to base.

如果我挤压顶部，它们就从顶部传到底部。

So what do you think happens if you squeeze it in the middle?

那如果我挤压中部的话你们觉得会发生什么？

(Gasps)

（感叹声）

I'd be very interested in your theories about what that's about.

我会对你认为这是什么的理论感兴趣的。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

So there's a language of light in the deep ocean,

在深海有一种光的语言，

and we're just beginning to understand it,

而我们才刚刚开始了解它。

and one way we're going about that

我们了解的其中一个方法

is we're imitating a lot of these displays.

是我们对它们的行为作出效仿。

This is an optical lure that I've used.

这是我曾用过的一个视觉诱饵。

We call it the electronic jellyfish.

我们叫它电子水母。

It's just 16 blue LEDs

它有16个蓝色发光二极管

that we can program to do different types of displays.

能让我们编程出不同的显示方式。

And we view it with a camera system I developed called Eye-in-the-Sea

我们用我开发的叫做海之眼的摄影系统观测它

that uses far red light that's invisible to most animals,

这系统利用了大多数动物不可见的远红外光线，

so it's unobtrusive.

所以这不会引起其注意。

So I just want to show you

我想给大家看

some of the responses we've elicited

一些我们整合过的

from animals in the deep sea.

一些深海动物的反应。

So the camera's black and white.

这摄像是黑白的。

It's not high-resolution.

它分辨率不是很高。

And what you're seeing here is a bait box

这里你看到的是一个诱饵盒子

with a bunch of -- like the cockroaches of the ocean --

有着一堆--像海里的蟑螂--

there are isopods all over it.

类似甲壳类动物的东西。

And right in the front

正前方

is the electronic jellyfish.

是电子水母。

And when it starts flashing,

当它开始闪烁的时候，

it's just going to be one of the LEDs that's flashing very fast.

只有一个发光二极管快速的闪着光。

But as soon as it starts to flash --

但是当它开始闪光的时候--

and it's going to look big, because it blooms on the camera --

它会看起来很巨大，因为它在镜头前发光--

I want you to look right here.

我想让大家注意这里。

There's something small there that responds.

有一些小的东西作出了回应。

We're talking to something.

我们说的这些东西。

It looks like a little of string pearls basically --

它基本上看起来像一小串珍珠，

in fact, three strings of pearls.

事实上，三串珍珠。

And this was very consistent.

这是非常一致的。

This was in the Bahamas at about 2,000 feet.

这是在巴哈马群岛下2000英尺深。

We basically have a chat room going on here,

我们在这里有个聊天室，

because once it gets started, everybody's talking.

因为一旦它运作，每个人都在说话。

And I think this is actually a shrimp

我以为这其实是一个虾米

that's releasing its bioluminescent chemicals into the water.

向水中释放出生物体发光的化学物质。

But the cool thing is, we're talking to it.

但是有趣的事，我们和它在交谈。

We don't know what we're saying.

我们不知道我们说了些什么。

Personally, I think it's something sexy.

个人觉得，这是一些性感的东西。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And then finally,

接着最后，

I want to show you some responses that we recorded

我想给大家看一些我们

with the world's first deep-sea webcam,

用世界首台深海摄像头录下的一些发光反应，

which we had installed in Monterey Canyon last year.

这些是我们去年在蒙特里峡谷安装的。

We've only just begun to analyze all of this data.

我们已经开始分析所有的这些数据。

This is going to be a glowing source first,

起初这就像一个发光源，

which is like bioluminescent bacteria.

就好像生物荧光细菌。

And it is an optical cue

这是一个视觉关于

that there's carrion on the bottom of the ocean.

深海底部有腐肉的提示。

So this scavenger comes in,

所以这食腐动物到来，

which is a giant sixgill shark.

这是一个巨型的灰六鳃鲨。

And I can't claim for sure

我不能确定是不是

that the optical source brought it in, because there's bait right there.

这视觉的光源吸引它过来，还是因为有诱饵在那里。

But if it had been following the odor plume,

但是如果我们跟踪这气味痕迹，

it would have come in from the other direction.

它可能会来自另外一个方向。

And it does actually seem to be trying

它的确在试着

to eat the electronic jellyfish.

吃掉这个电子水母。

That's a 12-foot-long giant sixgill shark.

这是只12尺长，巨大的灰六鳃鲨。

Okay, so this next one is from the webcam,

好了，这接下来视频是

and it's going to be this pinwheel display.

它是旋转型的展示台，

And this is a burglar alarm.

这是个防盗报警器。

And that was a Humboldt squid,

那是个洪堡鱿鱼，

a juvenile Humboldt squid, about three feet long.

一个幼年的洪堡鱿鱼，大约3英尺长。

This is at 3,000 feet in Monterey Canyon.

这是在蒙特里峡谷水下3000英尺。

But if it's a burglar alarm, you wouldn't expect it to attack the jellyfish directly.

如果这是个防盗报警器，你不能指望它直接攻击这水母。

It's supposed to be attacking what's attacking the jellyfish.

它本应当要去攻击那个水母。

But we did see a bunch of responses like this.

但是我们的确观察到一系列像这样的发光反应。

This guy is a little more contemplative.

这家伙需要更多时间思考。

"Hey, wait a minute.

“嗨，等一下。

There's supposed to be something else there."

这里本来应该是另外一个东西。”

He's thinking about it.

它在思考这个问题。

But he's persistent.

但是它是固执的。

He keeps coming back.

它一直来回游动。

And then he goes away for a few seconds

接着它离开了几秒钟

to think about it some more,

来更好的思考这个问题，

and thinks,

并想到，

"Maybe if I come in from a different angle."

“也许如果我从不同角度攻击的话。”

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Nope.

算了。

So we are starting to get a handle on this,

我们开始着手做这些，

but only just the beginnings.

但是仅仅是开始阶段。

We need more eyes on the process.

我们需要对流程有更多的关注。

So if any of you ever get a chance to take a dive in a submersible,

所以如果你们中任何一个有机会做潜艇下潜的话，

by all means, climb in and take the plunge.

想办法，冒险试试。

This is something that should be on everybody's bucket list,

这是一件应该在每个人愿望单上的事，

because we live on an ocean planet.

因为我们生活在一个海洋星球。

More than 90 percent, 99 percent,

我们星球上90%以上的，99%，

of the living space on our planet

的生物栖息的地方

is ocean.

是海洋。

It's a magical place

这是个神奇的地方

filled with breathtaking light shows

充斥着窒息的光影表演

and bizarre and wondrous creatures,

奇怪而惊人的生物，

alien life forms

外星式的生命形式

that you don't have to travel to another planet to see.

让你不用穿越到另一个星球去目睹。

But if you do take the plunge,

但是如果你真的冒险尝试，

please remember to turn out the lights.

请记住关灯。

But I warn you,

但是，我警告大家，

it's addictive.

这是会上瘾的。

Thank you.

谢谢

(Applause)

（掌声）