宇宙时空之旅：未知世界（2020）

Cosmos: Possible Worlds S01E04

Part 2 Aug. 24, 2022, 10:55 a.m.

Darwin presented the evidence for a oneness with all life.
虽然人类自夸有更高等的神奇出身
That despite our pretensions to a mystical higher birth,
我们其实是其他动植物的亲戚
we were actually relatives to the other beasts and vegetables.
一如任何其他生物都是自然界的一部分
As much a part of the natural world as any other living thing.
孟德尔发现有法则在控制
Mendel discovered that there were laws governing the
生命讯息代代相传的方式
way life's messages were passed on.
这个代课老师发现了全新的科学领域
The substitute teacher had invented a whole new field of science.
但整整35年都无人得知
But nobody noticed for 35 years.
他至死都不知道世人将会把他
He died never knowing that the world would come to see him
视为科学史上的巨人
as a giant in the history of science.
孟德尔的研究在20世纪初
Mendel's work was resurrected at the beginning of
获得复兴他最有力的捍卫者莫过于
the 20th century and he had no more vigorous defender
英国动物学家威廉·贝特森
than the British zoologist William Bateson.
是贝特森给致力于研究
It was Bateson who named the new field of science devoted
这些因子的新科学领域命名
to studying these factors.
亦即遗传学
Genetics.
贝特森和同事们从事
Bateson and his colleagues worked on developing
动植物新品种的研发
new breeds of plants and animals.
他认为科学和自♥由♥是不可分割的
He believed that science and freedom were indivisible
这也是他管理实验室的方式
and that's how he ran his laboratory.
尼古拉·伊万诺维奇·瓦维洛夫
Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov,
是俄♥国♥访问植物学家
a visiting botanist from Russia,
他把贝特森的信条铭记在心
took Bateson's credo deeply to heart.
他想利用遗传学这个新学科
He wanted to use the new field of genetics to learn
学会如何喂饱世人
how to feed the world.
他正在度蜜月但他热爱科学
He was on his honeymoon but science was his passion.
瓦维洛夫从小就充满紧迫感
Even as a child, Vavilov had a sense of urgency.
时间太少要做的事情太多这是他一辈子的口头禅
"Too little time, too much to do," was his lifelong refrain.
他完全无法预知未来的发展
How could he have known what was coming?
地球是单一有机体
The idea that our planet is a single organism,
一个统一的整体对许多人来说这是空洞的感性说法
a unity, has a ring of hollow sentimentality for many people.
但这就是科学事实
But it's just a scientific fact.
这里即将有事发生在偏远的秘鲁南部
Something is about to happen here, in remote Southern Peru,
在公元1600年2月19日下午5点
in the year 1600 on February 19 at 5:00 PM.
毫无防备的人们和遥远的外国首都
Unsuspecting multitudes and distant foreign capitals
永远不会知道这个事件将如何遍及全世界
will never know how this event reached around the world
折磨并杀死他们
to torment and kill them.
硫酸和火山灰的可怕混合物
This nasty mixture of sulfuric acid and volcanic ash
将阻挡太阳光照射地球
will block the sun's rays from reaching Earth.
部分阳光将在平流层这里被吸收
Some of the sunlight will be absorbed here in the stratosphere.
于埃纳普蒂纳火山喷发至今仍是有史以来
The eruption of Huaynaputina volcano remains to this day
南美最大规模的火山爆发
the largest explosion in South America in recorded history.
冬天来了
Winter is coming.
这是火山冬天
Volcanic winter.
对于俄♥国♥百姓来说
For the people of Russia,
这带来了六个世纪以来最糟糕的冬天
it brought the worst winter in six centuries.
长达两年即使夏天的晚上
For two years, even the summer temperatures would fall
气温都会降到零度以下
below freezing at night.
两百万人俄♥国♥人口的三分之一
Two million people, a third of Russia's population,
将死于由此酿成的饥荒
would die from the resulting famine.
这导致沙皇鲍里斯戈东诺夫的垮台
It led to the downfall of the Tsar Boris Godunov and
全都是因为8000英里外秘鲁的一座火山爆发
all because of a volcano that erupted 8,000 miles away in Peru.
这不是俄♥国♥历史上最后一场饥荒
This was not the last famine in Russian history.
干旱和饥荒屡屡发生
Drought and famines occur frequently.
但直到近三个世纪后
But it wasn't until nearly three centuries later,
1♥8♥9♥1年同样可怕的极度苦难才再次出现
in 1♥8♥9♥1, that the magnitude of suffering was again as ghastly.
那年的冬天提早降临庄稼歉收
Winter came early that year and the crops failed.
沙皇亚历山大三世没有及时反应
Tsar Alexander III was slow to respond.
虽然有几百万人挨饿
Wealthy Russian merchants continued to export grain at
富裕的俄♥国♥商人仍继续出口谷物牟利
a profit even as millions went hungry.
沙皇只为饥饿的人♥民♥提供"饥荒面包"
All the Tsar had to offer his starving subjects was "famine bread."
混合了苔藓杂草树皮和果壳的悲惨食物
A miserable mixture of moss, weeds, bark and husks.
50万俄♥国♥人丧生
Half a million Russians perished,
贵族和富人则是大啖
while the aristocracy and the wealthy feasted on fresh
法国南部的新鲜草莓和英国的浓缩奶油
strawberries from the south of France and clotted cream from England.
俄♥国♥革命还要再等30年才会爆发
The Russian Revolution would not explode for another 30 years,
但许多历史学家认为这次饥荒
but many historians believe that this famine
点燃了一根漫长的引信
was the spark that ignited the long fuse.
这给我们故事的主角
It was to make a lasting impression on the hero of
尼古拉·瓦维洛夫留下难以抹灭的印象
our story, Nikolai Vavilov.
这是瓦维洛夫一家
This is the Vavilov family.
父母天生贫穷但一路苦拼
The parents were born into poverty but had worked their
挤进上等的中产阶级
way up into the upper middle class.
他们的四个孩子长大都成为科学家
All four of the children would grow up to become scientists.
谢尔盖成了物理学家
Sergey became a physicist.
尼古拉长大后成为植物学家
Nikolai grew up to be a botanist.
别靠近我
Don't come near me.
如果你碰我我就跳下去
If you touch me, I'll jump.
就算是小时候瓦维洛夫也绝不退缩
Even as a boy, Vavilov was never one to back down.
1911年俄♥国♥是全球最大谷物出口国
In 1911, Russia was the largest grain exporter on Earth,
虽然俄♥国♥的农作方法已经过时
despite the fact that its farming methods were antiquated.
整个俄♥国♥只有在彼得洛夫斯基研究所
The Petrovsky Institute was the only place in Russia where
科学家希望能通过新兴科学
scientists could hope to modernize food production
遗传学让食品生产现代化
through the new science of genetics.
但这件事仍然具有争议性
But it was still a matter of controversy.
今天的辩论主题是
Debate topic for today,
植物选择算不算一门科学
is plant selection a science or not?
这不是科学
It is not a science.
没人比农夫更懂
A farmer knows best.
几千年来农人都在播种更大的种子
He's been sowing the larger seeds and crossbreeding
用最肥的动物杂交育种
the fattest animals for thousands of years.
我们科学家有什么能提供给他们
What do we scientists have to offer them?
除了让农民困惑的花俏方程式
Except fancy equations to confuse the peasants.
他们不想要那个他们想要面包
They don't want that. They want bread.
农民有智慧值得我们尊重
The farmer has wisdom and is worthy of our respect.
但可惜缺乏科学的预测能力
But tragically, he lacks the predictive powers of science.
他们无法预见哪些性状是显性
They cannot foretell which traits will dominate
或者是隐性的
or which will be recessive.
农夫是在赌博
The farmer plays roulette and he's about as successful
胜率跟一个普通赌徒没两样
as the average gambler.
孟德尔让农夫有可能知道赔率
Gregor Mendel made it possible for him to know the odds.
知道球将落在哪个号♥码上
To know what number the ball will land on.
当孟德尔以数学表达自己的理论那一刻
The moment Mendel expressed his ideas mathematically,
农业就成为一门科学
agriculture became a science and our only hope
也是我们有效率地喂饱自己...
to efficiently feed ourselves.
和全世界的唯一希望
And feed the world.
1914年第一次世界大战期间
In 1914, during the First World War,
瓦维洛夫开始想要知道
Vavilov began to wonder.
驯化的植物是从哪里来的
Where did the domesticated plants come from?
祖先是谁
Who were their ancestors?
他在一封情书中写道
In a love letter he wrote...
我真心深信科学
I really believe deeply in science.
这是我的生命也是我人生的目标
It is my life and the purpose of my life.
就算是为了最微小的科学我也会毫不犹豫献出自己的生命
I do not hesitate to give my life even for the smallest bit of science.
第一次世界大战揭露了
The First World War revealed the deep cracks in
俄♥国♥社会的深深裂痕激起了革命和内战的爆发
Russian society and spurred the outbreak of revolution and civil war.
瓦维洛夫建立了他的400座科学研究所中的第一座
Vavilov established the first of his 400 scientific
农民和工人的子女
institutes where the children of peasants and
在这些机构里成了科学家
laborers became scientists.
这一切都是为了达成瓦维洛夫终结饥荒的梦想
All in the service of Vavilov's dream of ending famine.
1920年瓦维洛夫大胆提出一条新自然法则
In 1920, Vavilov dared to propose a new law of nature.
同志们相同的基因
Comrades, the same genes perform the
在不同品种的植物中执行相同功能
same functions in different species of plants.
这是因为它们拥有共同祖先
This is because they share a common ancestor.
为了了解进化并
In order to understand evolution and to guide our
以科学方法指导育种工作我们必须前往
breeding work scientifically, we must go to the oldest
可能仍有这些共同祖先生活的最古老农业国家
agricultural countries where these common ancestors may still live.
只要有尼古拉·瓦维洛夫这样的人
Russia shall not perish as long as there are
苏维埃就不会灭亡
people like Nikolai Vavilov!
瓦维洛夫现在举世闻名
Vavilov was now world famous.
我一点都不特别