Michael Dickinson: How a fly flies

Translator: Joseph Geni Reviewer: Morton Bast

譯者: Joan Liu 審譯者: Hao-Wei Chang

I grew up watching Star Trek. I love Star Trek.

我看著《星際爭霸戰》長大。 我超愛《星際爭霸戰》。

Star Trek made me want to see alien creatures,

《星際爭霸戰》讓我想要看外星生物，

creatures from a far-distant world.

從遙遠星球來的生物。

But basically, I figured out that I could find

但事實上，我發現我可以在地球上

those alien creatures right on Earth.

找到這些外星生物。

And what I do is I study insects.

我所作的就是研究昆蟲。

I'm obsessed with insects, particularly insect flight.

我迷上了昆蟲， 尤其是昆蟲飛行。

I think the evolution of insect flight is perhaps

我認為昆蟲飛行的演化

one of the most important events in the history of life.

大概是生命史上最重要的事。

Without insects, there'd be no flowering plants.

如果沒有昆蟲， 就不會有開花植物。

Without flowering plants, there would be no

沒有開花植物， 就不會有聰明、

clever, fruit-eating primates giving TED Talks.

吃水果的靈長類在TED演講。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Now,

現在，

David and Hidehiko and Ketaki

大衛、希地可和科踏希

gave a very compelling story about

說了一個很令人信服的故事，

the similarities between fruit flies and humans,

故事關於果蠅與人的相似處。

and there are many similarities,

我們真的有許多相似之處，

and so you might think that if humans are similar to fruit flies,

所以你也許會認為 如果人跟果蠅是相似的，

the favorite behavior of a fruit fly might be this, for example --

那麼果蠅最喜歡的行為可能是這個

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

but in my talk, I don't want to emphasize on the similarities

但在我的演講中， 我不想強調果蠅與人的相似之處，

between humans and fruit flies, but rather the differences,

我反而要談兩者間不同的部份，

and focus on the behaviors that I think fruit flies excel at doing.

而且我要強調果蠅擅長的行為。

And so I want to show you a high-speed video sequence

所以我想要給你們看一段高速影片，

of a fly shot at 7,000 frames per second in infrared lighting,

是在紅外光照明下 以每秒 7 千幅拍攝果蠅飛行的影片，

and to the right, off-screen, is an electronic looming predator

在右邊螢幕外， 有個電子虛擬獵食者

that is going to go at the fly.

會飛去捕食果蠅。

The fly is going to sense this predator.

果蠅會感受到這個獵食者。

It is going to extend its legs out.

牠會伸長它的腿。

It's going to sashay away

牠會以搖曳生姿飛走

to live to fly another day.

然後多活一天。

Now I have carefully cropped this sequence

我仔細裁剪了這個影片

to be exactly the duration of a human eye blink,

讓他的速度跟 人類眨眼速度一樣，

so in the time that it would take you to blink your eye,

所以在你眨眼所需要的時間中，

the fly has seen this looming predator,

果蠅會看到這個獵食者、

estimated its position, initiated a motor pattern to fly it away,

估計位置、開始運動並飛走，

beating its wings at 220 times a second as it does so.

以每秒拍動翅膀 220 次的速度飛走。

I think this is a fascinating behavior

我認為這是一個令人著迷的行為，

that shows how fast the fly's brain can process information.

這表示果蠅的大腦 可以如此快速地處理資訊。

Now, flight -- what does it take to fly?

飛行需要什麼？

Well, in order to fly, just as in a human aircraft,

嗯，要能夠飛翔， 就得像人類的飛機一樣，

you need wings that can generate sufficient aerodynamic forces,

你需要可以產生 足夠空氣動力的翅膀，

you need an engine sufficient to generate the power required for flight,

你需要能夠產生 足夠飛行所需能量的發動機，

and you need a controller,

且你需要一個控制器。

and in the first human aircraft, the controller was basically

在人類第一架飛機上，控制器基本上是

the brain of Orville and Wilbur sitting in the cockpit.

坐在駕駛艙的奧維爾和威爾伯的大腦。

Now, how does this compare to a fly?

這跟果蠅比較起來是如何呢？

Well, I spent a lot of my early career trying to figure out

嗯，我早期的研究 花了很多時間試圖找出

how insect wings generate enough force to keep the flies in the air.

昆蟲翅膀如何生成 足夠的能量使果蠅得以維持在空中。

And you might have heard how engineers proved

你也許聽說過工程師如何證明

that bumblebees couldn't fly.

熊蜂飛不起來。

Well, the problem was in thinking that the insect wings

嗯，這個思考邏輯的問題是

function in the way that aircraft wings work. But they don't.

認為兩者翅膀的運作方式一樣。 但事實上不然。

And we tackle this problem by building giant,

我們研究的方法是建造巨大模型，

dynamically scaled model robot insects

按動態比例建造巨大機器昆蟲

that would flap in giant pools of mineral oil

並在礦物油巨型池當中拍打翅膀，

where we could study the aerodynamic forces.

這樣我們可以研究空氣動力。

And it turns out that the insects flap their wings

我們發現昆蟲以 一種非常聰明的方法拍動翅膀，

in a very clever way, at a very high angle of attack

有非常大的攻角，

that creates a structure at the leading edge of the wing,

使翅膀前沿產生一個像龍捲風的結構

a little tornado-like structure called a leading edge vortex,

叫作前緣渦，

and it's that vortex that actually enables the wings

而且正是這個翅膀上的前緣渦

to make enough force for the animal to stay in the air.

讓動物能夠產生足以停留在空中的動力。

But the thing that's actually most -- so, what's fascinating

但是實際上迷人的

is not so much that the wing has some interesting morphology.

並不是這個構造有多稀奇。

What's clever is the way the fly flaps it,

而是聰明的果蠅如何拍打它，

which of course ultimately is controlled by the nervous system,

這當然最終是 受中樞神經系統控制，

and this is what enables flies to perform

而這也是果蠅可以執行

these remarkable aerial maneuvers.

這些高超飛行技巧的原因。

Now, what about the engine?

那麼引擎呢？

The engine of the fly is absolutely fascinating.

果蠅的引擎絕對令人著迷。

They have two types of flight muscle:

牠們有兩種類型的飛行肌：

so-called power muscle, which is stretch-activated,

所謂的能量肌肉，這是牽張啟動，

which means that it activates itself and does not need to be controlled

也就是說它可以自我啟動

on a contraction-by-contraction basis by the nervous system.

不需要中樞神經 不斷收縮來控制。

It's specialized to generate the enormous power required for flight,

這是由飛行所需 巨大的力量所專一化出來的，

and it fills the middle portion of the fly,

這肌肉充滿了果蠅中間的部分，

so when a fly hits your windshield,

所以當一隻果蠅撞到你的擋風玻璃時，

it's basically the power muscle that you're looking at.

基本上你看到的 就是這些能量肌肉的動作。

But attached to the base of the wing

但在機翼的基部

is a set of little, tiny control muscles

有一套小小的微型控制肌肉，

that are not very powerful at all, but they're very fast,

它們不大有力但速度非常快，

and they're able to reconfigure the hinge of the wing

它們能夠以每一拍擊為基礎

on a stroke-by-stroke basis,

重新配置機翼轉軸，

and this is what enables the fly to change its wing

這使果蠅得以調整翅膀

and generate the changes in aerodynamic forces

來產生及更改空氣動力，

which change its flight trajectory.

並連帶改變其飛行軌跡。

And of course, the role of the nervous system is to control all this.

當然，中樞神經系統控制這一切。

So let's look at the controller.

所以讓我們來看看控制器。

Now flies excel in the sorts of sensors

果蠅在這方面

that they carry to this problem.

有各種非常精巧的感應器。

They have antennae that sense odors and detect wind detection.

牠們有天線可以感受氣味和風向。

They have a sophisticated eye which is

牠們有複雜的眼睛，

the fastest visual system on the planet.

是這個星球上最快的視覺系統。

They have another set of eyes on the top of their head.

牠們在頭頂上有另一對眼睛，

We have no idea what they do.

但目前我們還不清楚它們的用處。

They have sensors on their wing.

牠們的翅膀上有感應器。

Their wing is covered with sensors, including sensors

牠們的翅耪上充滿了感應器，

that sense deformation of the wing.

包括感應機翼變形的感應器。

They can even taste with their wings.

牠們甚至可以 用翅膀偵測味道。

One of the most sophisticated sensors a fly has

果蠅最複雜的感應器之一

is a structure called the halteres.

是一種被稱為「平衡棒」的構造。

The halteres are actually gyroscopes.

平衡棒其實就是陀螺儀。

These devices beat back and forth about 200 hertz during flight,

這個構造在飛行時 大約以 200 赫茲的速度擺動

and the animal can use them to sense its body rotation

使動物可以用它們偵測身體旋轉，

and initiate very, very fast corrective maneuvers.

並啟動非常、非常快速地糾正動作。

But all of this sensory information has to be processed

但所有感官資訊 都需要經由大腦處理，

by a brain, and yes, indeed, flies have a brain,

是的，果蠅有大腦的，

a brain of about 100,000 neurons.

一個大約有 10 萬神經元的大腦。

Now several people at this conference

已經有一些人在這次會議中

have already suggested that fruit flies could serve neuroscience

提出果蠅可以作為神經科學的模型，

because they're a simple model of brain function.

因為牠們具有簡單的大腦。

And the basic punchline of my talk is,

然後我的演講的結語會是：

I'd like to turn that over on its head.

我想要直接反駁它。

I don't think they're a simple model of anything.

我不認為牠們是任何東西的簡單模型。

And I think that flies are a great model.

我認為果蠅是一個偉大的模型。

They're a great model for flies.

牠們是為飛行而生的偉大模型。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

And let's explore this notion of simplicity.

且讓我們研究一下這種簡單的想法。

So I think, unfortunately, a lot of neuroscientists,

所以我認為很多的神經學家

we're all somewhat narcissistic.

都不幸地有些自戀。

When we think of brain, we of course imagine our own brain.

當我們想到大腦時， 我們當然想自己的大腦。

But remember that this kind of brain,

但請記住這種腦，

which is much, much smaller

體積小很多很多的腦

— instead of 100 billion neurons, it has 100,000 neurons —

— 它沒有 1 千億神經元，它只有 1 萬神經元 —

but this is the most common form of brain on the planet

但這是這個星球上最常見的大腦形式

and has been for 400 million years.

而且已經存在 4 億年了。

And is it fair to say that it's simple?

說它簡單公平嗎？

Well, it's simple in the sense that it has fewer neurons,

嗯，以神經元數量來說是簡單的，

but is that a fair metric?

但這是一個公平的指標嗎？

And I would propose it's not a fair metric.

我認為這不是一個公平的指標。

So let's sort of think about this. I think we have to compare --

讓我們來想一想。 我們必須進行比較 ——

(Laughter) —

（笑聲） ——

we have to compare the size of the brain

我們要比較大腦大小

with what the brain can do.

與大腦可以做什麼。

So I propose we have a Trump number,

假設我們有王牌數，

and the Trump number is the ratio of this man's

王牌數是這個男人可以做的事

behavioral repertoire to the number of neurons in his brain.

跟大腦中神經元數目的比值。

We'll calculate the Trump number for the fruit fly.

我們也可以計算出果蠅的王牌號。

Now, how many people here think the Trump number

現在，有多少人在這裡覺得果蠅的

is higher for the fruit fly?

王牌數會比較高？

(Applause)

（掌聲）

It's a very smart, smart audience.

真是很聰明、很聰明的觀眾。

Yes, the inequality goes in this direction, or I would posit it.

雖然這比較不完全恰當， 但至少我認為是這樣的。

Now I realize that it is a little bit absurd

好，我知道比較人和果蠅的行為

to compare the behavioral repertoire of a human to a fly.

是有點荒謬。

But let's take another animal just as an example. Here's a mouse.

但讓我們看另一種動物：一隻小鼠。

A mouse has about 1,000 times as many neurons as a fly.

一隻小鼠的神經元數目大約是果蠅的 1 千倍。

I used to study mice. When I studied mice,

我以前研究過小鼠。 當我還在研究小鼠時，

I used to talk really slowly.

我講話速度慢很多。

And then something happened when I started to work on flies.

這在當我開始研究果蠅時產生了變化。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

And I think if you compare the natural history of flies and mice,

我覺得如果你比較果蠅和小鼠的自然史，

it's really comparable. They have to forage for food.

它們是可比的。 牠們都要覓食。

They have to engage in courtship.

牠們都要求愛。

They have sex. They hide from predators.

牠們都會發生性關係。 牠們都要躲避獵食者。

They do a lot of the similar things.

牠們做很多類似的事情。

But I would argue that flies do more.

但我想說果蠅做更多。

So for example, I'm going to show you a sequence,

例如，我要給你們看一段影片，

and I have to say, some of my funding comes from the military,

我不得不說， 我的一些資金來源來自軍方，

so I'm showing this classified sequence

所以，我給你們這部機密影片，

and you cannot discuss it outside of this room. Okay?

請你們離開這裡後必須絕口不提。好嗎？

So I want you to look at the payload

所以想要你們看看果蠅尾巴

at the tail of the fruit fly.

的有效載荷。

Watch it very closely,

仔細看，

and you'll see why my six-year-old son

你們會懂為什麼我的六歲兒子

now wants to be a neuroscientist.

現在想要成為一個神經學家。

Wait for it.

等一下。

Pshhew.

噓。

So at least you'll admit that if fruit flies are not as clever as mice,

所以至少你們得承認， 如果果蠅沒有小鼠聰明，

they're at least as clever as pigeons. (Laughter)

牠們至少達到鴿子的等級。 （笑聲）

Now, I want to get across that it's not just a matter of numbers

現在，我想要傳達的不只是數字，

but also the challenge for a fly to compute

還有果蠅大腦要用少量神經元

everything its brain has to compute with such tiny neurons.

計算這所有資訊所面臨的挑戰。

So this is a beautiful image of a visual interneuron from a mouse

這是小鼠視覺中間神經元的美麗影像，

that came from Jeff Lichtman's lab,

這來自傑夫·歷之曼的實驗室，

and you can see the wonderful images of brains

你們可以看到他在他的演講中

that he showed in his talk.

使用的精彩大腦影像。

But up in the corner, in the right corner, you'll see,

在右上角你們將看到，

at the same scale, a visual interneuron from a fly.

在同樣的比例之下 一隻果蠅的視覺中間神經元。

And I'll expand this up.

我把這展開。

And it's a beautifully complex neuron.

它是一個精美複雜的神經元。

It's just very, very tiny, and there's lots of biophysical challenges

它真是非常、 非常地小， 這必須克服許多生物物理的挑戰，

with trying to compute information with tiny, tiny neurons.

才能用極為微小的神經元來計算資訊。

How small can neurons get? Well, look at this interesting insect.

神經元能有多小？ 那麼，讓我們看看這個有趣的昆蟲。

It looks sort of like a fly. It has wings, it has eyes,

牠看起來有點像果蠅。牠有翅膀，牠有眼睛，

it has antennae, its legs, complicated life history,

牠有天線，牠有腿， 也有複雜的生活史。

it's a parasite, it has to fly around and find caterpillars

牠是一種寄生蟲， 牠要到處飛，並尋找毛毛蟲

to parasatize,

當作寄主，

but not only is its brain the size of a salt grain,

牠的大腦很小，

which is comparable for a fruit fly,

跟果蠅可相比較，

it is the size of a salt grain.

它也只有鹽粒大小。

So here's some other organisms at the similar scale.

所以這裡是一些其它類似規模的物種。

This animal is the size of a paramecium and an amoeba,

這個動物是草履蟲和變形蟲大小，

and it has a brain of 7,000 neurons that's so small --

牠的大腦大約有 7 千神經元 —

you know these things called cell bodies you've been hearing about,

你知道有種叫做細胞體的東西，

where the nucleus of the neuron is?

就是神經元的細胞核所在的地方？

This animal gets rid of them because they take up too much space.

這種動物沒有細胞體， 因為它們太佔空間了。

So this is a session on frontiers in neuroscience.

這是神經科學研究的新領域。

I would posit that one frontier in neuroscience is to figure out how the brain of that thing works.

我認為神經科學其中 一個新領域就是要研究這類大腦的運作。

But let's think about this. How can you make a small number of neurons do a lot?

但讓我們想一想。 如何讓少量的神經元做很多事？

And I think, from an engineering perspective,

我認為，從工程的角度看，

you think of multiplexing.

要多功能。

You can take a hardware and have that hardware

你們可以拿一個硬體，並用該硬體

do different things at different times,

在不同的時間做不同的事情

or have different parts of the hardware doing different things.

或用不同部分的硬體做不同的事情。

And these are the two concepts I'd like to explore.

這些是我想要探討的兩個概念。

And they're not concepts that I've come up with,

但不是我想出來的概念，

but concepts that have been proposed by others in the past.

而是過去由其他人提出的概念。

And one idea comes from lessons from chewing crabs.

一個想法是來自於咀嚼螃蟹的經驗。

And I don't mean chewing the crabs.

我不是指吃螃蟹。

I grew up in Baltimore, and I chew crabs very, very well.

我在巴爾的摩長大， 我非常、非常會吃螃蟹。

But I'm talking about the crabs actually doing the chewing.

但我說的螃蟹的咀嚼。

Crab chewing is actually really fascinating.

螃蟹的咀嚼實在令人著迷。

Crabs have this complicated structure under their carapace

螃蟹在其甲殼下有個複雜的結構

called the gastric mill

叫作胃磨機，

that grinds their food in a variety of different ways.

以各種不同方式磨牠們的食物。

And here's an endoscopic movie of this structure.

而這是內鏡下看到的這種結構的影片。

The amazing thing about this is that it's controlled

令人驚訝的是它是由一組非常小的神經元控制，

by a really tiny set of neurons, about two dozen neurons

約有 20 多個神經元可以

that can produce a vast variety of different motor patterns,

產生多種不同的運動模式，

and the reason it can do this is that this little tiny ganglion

它可以這樣做的原因 是這個螃蟹身上的小小神經節

in the crab is actually inundated by many, many neuromodulators.

實際上是被許多 神經調節物質所包圍。

You heard about neuromodulators earlier.

你們剛剛已經聽過神經調節物質了。

There are more neuromodulators

這個結構中可以改變、支配神經元的

that alter, that innervate this structure than actually neurons in the structure,

神經調節物質比 構造中的神經元還多，

and they're able to generate a complicated set of patterns.

且它們能夠生成複雜的模式。

And this is the work by Eve Marder and her many colleagues

這是由伊娃·碼德和 她許多同事們的研究，

who've been studying this fascinating system

他們研究這個有趣的系統，

that show how a smaller cluster of neurons

可以說明一小群神經元如何

can do many, many, many things

可以做很多、 很多、 很多的事情，

because of neuromodulation that can take place on a moment-by-moment basis.

由於神經調節可以時時刻刻地進行。

So this is basically multiplexing in time.

所以這基本上是時間復用。

Imagine a network of neurons with one neuromodulator.

想像一個只有一個神經調節物質的神經網絡。

You select one set of cells to perform one sort of behavior,

你選擇一組細胞執行一個行為、

another neuromodulator, another set of cells,

另一個神經調節物質、另一組細胞、

a different pattern, and you can imagine

另一種模式，你可以想像

you could extrapolate to a very, very complicated system.

你可以推到一個非常、 非常複雜的系統。

Is there any evidence that flies do this?

有任何證據說果蠅這麼做嗎？

Well, for many years in my laboratory and other laboratories around the world,

嗯，多年來在我和其它世界各地實驗室，

we've been studying fly behaviors in little flight simulators.

我們在研究微小飛行模擬器的飛行行為。

You can tether a fly to a little stick.

你可以將果蠅綁到小棒子上。

You can measure the aerodynamic forces it's creating.

你可以側量牠產生的空氣動力。

You can let the fly play a little video game

你可以讓果蠅玩個小遊戲，

by letting it fly around in a visual display.

讓牠在視覺影像間飛行。

So let me show you a little tiny sequence of this.

讓我給你們看一個小小的影片。

Here's a fly

這裡是一隻果蠅

and a large infrared view of the fly in the flight simulator,

和一個大型飛行模擬的紅外視圖

and this is a game the flies love to play.

和這個果蠅喜歡玩的遊戲。

You allow them to steer towards the little stripe,

你允許牠們飛向小條紋，

and they'll just steer towards that stripe forever.

牠們就會一直飛向那區。

It's part of their visual guidance system.

這是牠們視覺引導的一部份。

But very, very recently, it's been possible

但最近，已經可以藉由改變生理

to modify these sorts of behavioral arenas for physiologies.

來改變行為的範疇。

So this is the preparation that one of my former post-docs,

這是我之前一個博士後研究員的作法，

Gaby Maimon, who's now at Rockefeller, developed,

蓋柏·買夢，他現在洛克菲勒，

and it's basically a flight simulator

他建造這個基本上是一種飛行模擬器，

but under conditions where you actually can stick an electrode

在實驗中你可以把電極置入

in the brain of the fly and record

果蠅大腦中

from a genetically identified neuron in the fly's brain.

並從一個已被辨別基因的神經元中紀錄。

And this is what one of these experiments looks like.

這實驗看起來像這樣。

It was a sequence taken from another post-doc in the lab,

這是另一個 博士後研究員貝蒂娜·靴諾

Bettina Schnell.

的實驗影片。

The green trace at the bottom is the membrane potential

在底部的綠色是果蠅腦內的

of a neuron in the fly's brain,

一個神經元的膜電位。

and you'll see the fly start to fly, and the fly is actually

你們將看到果蠅開始飛，

controlling the rotation of that visual pattern itself

且果蠅是靠自身翅膀運動來控制

by its own wing motion,

視覺模式中的旋轉。

and you can see this visual interneuron

你們可以看到這個視覺中間神經元

respond to the pattern of wing motion as the fly flies.

對果蠅翅膀運動作出回應。

So for the first time we've actually been able to record

所以我們第一次實際記錄

from neurons in the fly's brain while the fly

果蠅執行像是飛行這樣的複雜行為時

is performing sophisticated behaviors such as flight.

腦內的神經元狀況。

And one of the lessons we've been learning

我們一直在學習的是

is that the physiology of cells that we've been studying

我們多年來在靜止果蠅身上

for many years in quiescent flies

研究到的細胞生理

is not the same as the physiology of those cells

與正在做一些像是

when the flies actually engage in active behaviors

飛行或行走等主動行為時的

like flying and walking and so forth.

果蠅細胞生理是不同的。

And why is the physiology different?

為什麼細胞生理會不同呢？

Well it turns out it's these neuromodulators,

事實是就是這些神經調節物質，

just like the neuromodulators in that little tiny ganglion in the crabs.

就像是在螃蟹神經節上 的神經調節物質一樣。

So here's a picture of the octopamine system.

這是章魚涎胺系統的圖片。

Octopamine is a neuromodulator

章魚涎胺是一種神經調節物質，

that seems to play an important role in flight and other behaviors.

它似乎在飛行和其他行為中具有重要的功用。

But this is just one of many neuromodulators

但這只是果蠅大腦裡多種

that's in the fly's brain.

神經調節物質的一種而已。

So I really think that, as we learn more,

所以我真的認為，當我們瞭解更多後，

it's going to turn out that the whole fly brain

我們會發現整個果蠅大腦

is just like a large version of this stomatogastric ganglion,

就像這個放大版本的胃腸神經節，

and that's one of the reasons why it can do so much with so few neurons.

這就是牠可以用 少量神經元執行大量功能的原因之一。

Now, another idea, another way of multiplexing

現在，另一個想法，另一種多工的方式

is multiplexing in space,

是在空間上的多工，

having different parts of a neuron

讓神經元的不同部分

do different things at the same time.

在同一時間做不同的事情。

So here's two sort of canonical neurons

所以這裡是兩種典型的神經元排列，

from a vertebrate and an invertebrate,

一個是脊椎動物、 另一個是無脊椎動物，

a human pyramidal neuron from Ramon y Cajal,

從拉蒙·卡哈身上來的人類錐體神經元

and another cell to the right, a non-spiking interneuron,

和在右側的細胞是 無動作電位中間神經元，

and this is the work of Alan Watson and Malcolm Burrows many years ago,

這是很多年前， 艾倫 · 華生和瑪律科姆 · 巴路士的研究，

and Malcolm Burrows came up with a pretty interesting idea

瑪律科姆 · 巴路士有一個很有趣的想法

based on the fact that this neuron from a locust

是基於這個來自於蝗蟲的神經元

does not fire action potentials.

不會觸發動作電位。

It's a non-spiking cell.

它是一個無動作電位細胞。

So a typical cell, like the neurons in our brain,

所以一個典型的細胞， 像我們的大腦中的神經元，

has a region called the dendrites that receives input,

有個叫作樹突的部份會接收訊號，

and that input sums together

這些訊號加總在一起

and will produce action potentials

會產生動作電位，

that run down the axon and then activate

這個電位會透過軸突傳遞然後

all the output regions of the neuron.

啓動輸出區域的所有神經元。

But non-spiking neurons are actually quite complicated

但無動作電位神經元其實是相當複雜，

because they can have input synapses and output synapses

因為它們輸入突觸和輸出突觸合而為一，

all interdigitated, and there's no single action potential

但卻沒有單一的動作電位

that drives all the outputs at the same time.

可以在同一時間產生輸出。

So there's a possibility that you have computational compartments

所以你有可能有不同的計算區域

that allow the different parts of the neuron

使神經元的不同部分

to do different things at the same time.

在同一時間做不同的事情。

So these basic concepts of multitasking in time

這些基本的在時間上、

and multitasking in space,

空間上的多工處理，

I think these are things that are true in our brains as well,

我認為在我們的大腦中也成立，

but I think the insects are the true masters of this.

但我認為昆蟲才是真正的行家。

So I hope you think of insects a little bit differently next time,

所以，我希望你能對昆蟲另眼相看，

and as I say up here, please think before you swat.

正如我所說： 在打牠前請記得想想牠的神奇之處。

(Applause)

（掌聲）