宇宙时空之旅（2014）

Cosmos: A SpaceTime Odyssey S01E06

Part 3 April 25, 2021, 12:40 p.m.

呼出氧分子
and exhaling molecules of oxygen.
我做的恰恰相反
And I'm doing the opposite.
与雪花和指纹不同
Unlike snowflakes and fingerprints,
同种原子或分子
atoms or molecules of the same kind
是完全相同的
are utterly identical to one another.
每一次呼吸
With every breath we take,
我们吸入的分子
we inhale as many molecules as there are stars
多如可见宇宙中所有星系里的恒星
in all the galaxies in the visible universe.
我们呼出的气体在空气中流通
And every breath we exhale is circulated through the air,
跨越大♥陆♥逐渐相互混合
and mixed gradually across the continents,
被其他生物吸入
it becomes available for others to breathe.
和我一起呼吸
Breathe with me.
我们刚刚吸入大约一亿个分子
We all just inhaled about 100 million molecules
这些分子曾穿越过
that once passed through the lungs
前人的肺
of everyone who ever lived before us.
想想看这种原子的转世轮回
Think of it... This kind of atomic reincarnation
是我们与遥远祖先的另一联♥系♥
is another link to our distant ancestors,
包括那些让我们踏上
including those who first launched us on our explorations
探索隐藏世界之路的祖先
of the unseen universes.
这些世界如你我一样真实
These universes are as real as you or me,
它们包围着你我
and they surround us.
在某个时间点我们领悟到了
There was a moment when we awakened
看问题想问题的新方式
to a new way of thinking and seeing.
那就是在2500年前
It happened about 2,500 years ago on the Greek islands
在东西罗马帝国中间的希腊小岛上
that lie between the empires of the east and west.
在那里商人游客和水手自♥由♥融合
There, merchants, tourists and sailors freely mingled,
讲述伟大国王与神灵的故事
exchanging tales of great kings and gods.
在米利都等爱奥尼亚城镇
In Ionian cities and towns like Miletus,
即现今的土耳其
in what is now Turkey,
我们当代生活方式的基本元素
the most fundamental elements of the way we live now
最早在这里出现
first appeared.
在这里生活场景第一次被搬上舞台
Here, for the first time, reenactments of aspects of life
由专业人士编写并演绎
created and executed by professionals
希望可以以此触碰到
with the expectation of touching something deep
观众内心深处情感
within the hearts of the audience,
或是逗他们开心一笑
or just making them laugh...
最早的话剧戏剧和喜剧在这里上演
The first plays, dramas and comedies, were performed.
另一全新的概念也在此诞生
Here also was born a radical new idea...
那就是民治政♥府♥
Government by the people.
模糊的民♥主♥概念不如现今完备
The first inklings, imperfect then as now, of a democracy,
以及普通百姓
and the notion that the ordinary citizen
也能拥有某种权利的想法
might possess certain rights,
都诞生于彼时彼地
come to us from this time and place.
但在我看来这个古老世界带给我们的
But in my view, the most revolutionary innovation of all
最具革命性的新思想是
to come to us from this ancient world
自然事件并不是
was the idea that natural events
反复无常的神灵对人类的惩罚或奖励
were neither punishment nor reward from capricious gods.
无需借助超自然
The workings of nature could be explained
来解释自然活动
without invoking the supernatural.
最早提出这个观点的人
The first person to express this thought
名为泰勒斯
was a man named Thales.
打雷或地震
When the thunder clapped or the Earth quaked,
并不是因为你的所作所为
it was not because something you did
触犯了苛刻的神灵
had somehow displeased the very demanding gods.
而是自然过程的结果
No, it was the result of natural processes
它是可以被我们理解的
that we were capable of understanding.
尽管据说他写过的著作都没能流传
Though none of the books he is said to have written survive,
泰勒斯提出的观点至今影响着我们
Thales kindled a flame that still burns to this day:
那就是宇宙由混沌而来
The very idea of cosmos out of chaos,
这是一个遵循自然定律的
a universe governed by the order of natural laws
可知的宇宙
that we can actually figure out.
这是一场由泰勒斯开始的史诗级的探险
This is the epic adventure that began in the mind of Thales.
泰勒斯去世仅一世纪后
Only a century following Thales' death,
另一位天才出现了
another genius came along.
智慧超群的他
And he, more than any other,
是第一位发现
was the first to discover the existence
我们周围存在隐藏宇宙的人
of the hidden universes that surround us.
阿布德拉的德谟克利特是位真正的科学家
Democritus of Abdera was a true scientist,
一个热切渴望了解宇宙
a man with a passionate desire to know the cosmos
探索趣事的人
and to have fun.
他说过没有享乐的生活
This is the man who once said, "A life without parties
就像一条没有尽头的路
would be like an endless road without an end."
就是这样吗
You mean, that's it?
宇宙里就只有这些吗
That's all there is?
虚空中的一堆原子
Just a bunch of atoms in a void?
对
Yep.
想想看
Well, think about it.
世界一定是由
The world has to be made
虚空中无数不可见的粒子组成
of countless indivisible particles in a void.
不然事物无法移♥动♥ 生长分♥裂♥ 改变
Otherwise, nothing could move or grow, be divided or changed.
如果没有原子和允许它们移♥动♥的空隙
Without atoms and empty space for them to move in,
世界将是固态的静止的毫无生机
the world would be solid ,static and dead.
所以不要伤感朋友们
So, don't be sad, my friends.
想想原子的不同排列
Just think of the infinite possibilities
带给我们的无限可能吧
that arise from different arrangements of those atoms.
敬给这只杯子
Here's to the atoms
和这杯酒中的原子
in this cup and in this wine...
以及它们带给我们的快乐吧
And to the laughter they make possible.
在杯子的黏土中
Dispersed through the clay of the cup
分布着微观矿物粒子
are microscopic mineral grains,
和各种晶体
different kinds of crystals,
每种都有自己特有的原子结构
each with its own distinctive atomic architecture.
矿物质结构很精致
Mineral structures are exquisite,
但形式却是有限的
but they have a limited repertoire.
一粒石英是由三个原子
A grain of quartz is a lattice of the same three atoms
无变化重复排列组成的晶格
repeated, without variation, over and over again.
就算是相对复杂的黄玉晶格
Even a relatively complex mineral lattice like topaz,
由十来个原子构成
composed of ten or so atoms,
也只能来来回♥回♥重复一模一样的
can only repeat the identical atomic structure
原子结构
again and again.
要想让物质进入另一个维度
To lift a matter into another dimension
让它脱离晶格无限重复的束缚
to free it from the lattice prison of endless repetition,
这种原子必须能够与各个方向的
you need an atom that can bond in all directions
同种原子
with other atoms like itself
以及其他种原子结合
as well as with atoms of different kinds.
请看碳原子
Behold the carbon atom...
地球生命的必需元素
the essential element for life on Earth.
为什么
Why?
碳原子很特殊
Carbon is special
它可以同时结合四个原子
because it can bond with up to four other atoms at a time.
它可以和很多种其他原子结合
It can connect with many different kinds of atoms,
也可以和碳原子结合
as well as other carbon atoms.
它可以连成环环连成链
It can curl into rings and string together into chains,
可形成远比晶体复杂的分子
building molecules far more complex than any crystal.
其他原子都不具备这等灵活性
No other atom has the same flexibility.
即便是有类似化学性质的原子
Even atoms that have similar chemical properties,
例如硅原子
like silicon,
它形成的分子不如碳原子多样
can't form the amazing variety of molecules built on carbon.
我们称为蛋白质的碳基分子
The carbon-based molecules we call proteins,
生命的必需品
the molecules of life,
毫不夸张地说它由几十万原子构成
contain literally hundreds of thousands of atoms.
碳原子支撑着
Carbon atoms are the backbone of the molecules
组成地球生命的分子
that make every living thing on Earth,
包括我们
including us.
这就是石头和生命体的区别
That's the difference between rocks and living things.
生命体可以制♥造♥体积庞大结构复杂的分子
Life can make enormous molecules of stunning size and complexity,
让物质得以创新进化
freeing matter to improvise, evolve,
甚至爱
and even love.
别紧张孩他爸
Take it easy, dad.
他并没有真正碰到她
He never actually touched her.