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It's an incredible idea. But most experts now believe that today's birds are the direct descendants of ancient dinosaurs.
這是一個很不可思議的觀點。但是大多數專家認為今天的鳥類是古代恐龍的直系后代。
So does that mean birds actually are dinosaurs?
這么說鳥類是恐龍？
Yes. Absolutely.
是的，當然。
How can you be sure about that？
你怎么如此肯定？
You have evidence from the skeletal anatomy. You have evidence from the shape of the eggs and the microstructure of the eggshell, the discovery about a wealth of feathered dinosaurs, animals that are unquestionably dinosaurs and yet have feathers. They looked just like the feathers on modern birds.
你能從骨骼解剖圖里找到證據，從卵的形狀、卵殼在掃描電鏡下的微觀結構找到證據。發現大量長有羽毛的動物，毫無疑問這種動物就是恐龍，長有羽毛的恐龍。他們看起來就像現代的鳥類。
It's a discovery that revolutionizes the way we see dinosaurs. Even some tyrannosaurs were feathered. But the relationship between birds and dinosaurs can tell us much more than simply what they may have looked like.
這個發現徹底改變了我們對恐龍的看法。有些霸王龍竟然也長有羽毛。鳥和恐龍的關系會為我們揭開更多奧秘，而不是僅僅展示外貌上的相似。
So does this mean that we can use living birds to help us understand dinosaurs?
那么這意味著我們能利用活著的鳥類幫助我們了解恐龍嗎？
Absolutely. You know you have 10,000 living species of birds that are providing you an enormous amount of information that you can use to understand the biology of the ancient dinosaurs.
當然。你也知道世界上有10000種鳥類，這就為我們研究古代恐龍的生物學提供了大量的信息。
It's quite amazing. But it also makes a certain degree of sense when really you look at them.
這太令人驚奇了。但當你真正觀察它們的時候，在一定程度上也合情理。
If we want to learn about how the ancient dinosaurs moved and even how quickly they ran, few animals can tell us more than ostriches. They evolved on an early branch of the avian family tree. And like dinosaurs they are related to, they are large, bipedal and flightless.
如果我們想要了解古代恐龍如何運動，了解他們跑得多快，那就沒什么能比鴕鳥帶來更多信息。鴕鳥是由早期的鳥類家族分支進化而來。正如與之關系密切的恐龍一樣，鴕鳥個頭巨大，兩足且不能飛翔。
I have some living dinosaurs here to take a look at.
我這兒有一些活恐龍可供觀察。
Hello, ladies.
嗨，女士們。
They're all ladies, are they?
他們都是雌恐龍，是嗎?
Yes. Yes. They are a bit more manageable when they are females.
是的，是的。雌恐龍才更容易控制。
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