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When I think of alcohol the images that spring to mind
一想到酒 我就會頓時聯想到
are bars the clatter of glasses the pouring of liquids.
酒吧里的觥籌交錯和杯中美酒
And alcohol is just a sort of product that we have created.
酒就是人類制造的一種產品
But thats not true is it?
但事實并非如此
In fact you have to go back 80 million years
其實 八千萬年前
to its first and most simple use a poison.
酒的最初功效很簡單 就是毒藥
This is a war between different types of bugs of micro-organisms.
它是不同病菌和微生物競爭產生的結果
I've come to a cherry orchard in Kent to meet Dr Quain
此次我來到肯特的櫻桃園咨詢奎恩博士
an expert in microbiology.
他是位微生物學專家
We talk about yeast bacteria fungi.
說到酵母 細菌和真菌
What they want is to survive and beat off competitors.
物競天擇適者生存的法則同樣適用于它們
Rotting fruit contains sugars-glucose fructose-things that bugs want.
腐爛的水果含有葡萄糖和果糖
But yeast has been pretty damn clever.
但是酵母非常狡猾
What it said was "I'm gonna take some of that sugar
酵母說"我要吃點糖"
"and I'm gonna make something which is a by-product of eating sugar."
"因此我會制造一種新的副產物"
And that by-product is alcohol.
其實就是乙醇
