評(píng)論
打印
Evolutionists still clung to the theory that a fish evolved into the first five-fingered land walking ancestor
進(jìn)化論者依然堅(jiān)持認(rèn)為因?yàn)楦珊担~(yú)進(jìn)化成了最早的五趾陸行祖先
as a result of drought, even though they knew there was a gap in the story,
盡管他們知道這一理論中還有一個(gè)很大的漏洞
but without new evidence no one could come up with a better idea.
但是如果沒(méi)有新的證據(jù)，誰(shuí)都無(wú)法提出更合理的解釋
But then in 1981 along came palaeontology's avenging angel.
可是后來(lái)，到了1981年，古生物學(xué)界的“復(fù)仇天使”降臨了
Jenny Clack had long dreamed of embarking on the quest to find out why we first walked on the land,
Jenny Clack一直夢(mèng)想著找出我們涉足陸地的原因
but when she arrived in Cambridge it seemed a remote hope.
但當(dāng)她來(lái)到劍橋時(shí)，看起來(lái)卻是希望渺茫
I had just finished my thesis when I started work here and was looking around for another project
來(lái)這里工作時(shí)，我剛完成我的論文，正準(zhǔn)備聯(lián)系下一個(gè)項(xiàng)目
and a colleague of mine said don't worry, something will turn up and I didn't believe him.
我的一位同事說(shuō)：“別擔(dān)心，有些東西會(huì)突然出現(xiàn)的”，我一點(diǎn)都不相信他
What turned up was the notebook of a geology student who had visited Greenland in 1970.
這突然出現(xiàn)的東西是一位地質(zhì)系學(xué)生的記錄本，他曾于1970年去過(guò)格陵蘭
In one corner he'd made an extraordinary note that showed though he knew about rocks, he knew little of fossils.
在一個(gè)角落里發(fā)現(xiàn)了他那本很特別的記錄本，從中可以看出雖然他很了解巖石，但他并不了解化石
He'd written that he had found remains of ichthyostega, Jarvik's legendary first tetrapod
他寫(xiě)道他發(fā)現(xiàn)了魚(yú)石螈的遺骸，也就是Jarvik找到的第一只頗具傳奇色彩的四足動(dòng)物
of which only one complete specimen existed anywhere in the world.
目前世界各地只找到了一具完整的標(biāo)本
He's noted, "Ichthyostega bones and skull bones common," and
他寫(xiě)道：“魚(yú)石螈骨骼和頭骨很常見(jiàn)”
early tetrapod specimens are not common anywhere, particularly not Devonian tetrapods on a mountain in Greenland
不管在什么地方，早期四足動(dòng)物標(biāo)本都不是很常見(jiàn)，尤其是格陵蘭山區(qū)并沒(méi)有發(fā)現(xiàn)泥盆紀(jì)四足動(dòng)物
and to see this in his notebook just set the bells ringing. We have to go there.
他的記錄雖然語(yǔ)焉不詳，但卻是一石激起千層浪。我們必須去那兒。
