評論
打印
Cowboys drive 5 million cattle from Texas to the railroad in Kansas.
牛仔們要將500萬頭牛，從德克薩斯一直趕到堪薩斯的鐵路沿線
The largest migration of livestock in US History.
這是美國歷史上最大規(guī)模的家畜遷徙
But one simple invention will soon threaten the cowboy's entire way of life.
不過一個簡單的發(fā)明很快將會對整個牛仔生活方式構(gòu)成威脅
Barbed wire.
鐵絲網(wǎng)
In just 20 years two and a half million new settlers flood into the west.
短短20年內(nèi) 250萬新移民蜂擁來到西部
New farms cover half a billion acres of open range.
5億英畝的野牧場被辟為農(nóng)場
A new battle rages,Cattle rancher versus homesteader.
新的戰(zhàn)斗初現(xiàn)端倪，牛仔與自耕農(nóng)之戰(zhàn)
Cowboys like Teddy Blue and farmers are on a collision course.
像泰迪·布魯這樣的牛仔和耕種者之間沖突在所難免
They'd plant the crop next to the trail.
他們在牛仔的趕牛沿線種有莊稼
When the cattle got into their wheat,they'd come out waving a shotgun yelling for damages.
一旦牛群踩進了麥田，他們就會揮舞獵槍跳出來要求賠償損失
Boundary disputes are violent, often deadly.
地界爭端導致暴力沖突，常有人死亡
One farmer is determined to find a cheap and effective way to keep livestock off his land,Joseph Glidden.
一名農(nóng)夫下決心要找到一個花費少且行之有效的方法將牲畜擋在他的地界外，他的名字叫約瑟夫·格利登
When we think about innovation in America,we often think about a big audacious projects like the Apollo project,but there's another strain to American innovation.
一談及美國人的創(chuàng)新，我們常常想到的是像阿波羅登月這樣的宏大工程，但美國的創(chuàng)新還有另一種來源
That's the local inventor.
那就是平民發(fā)明家
An individual genius with some passion in the middle of the night coming up with that big transformative idea.
一個天資聰穎的人憑著一股熱情在某個深夜腦子里突然蹦出一個偉大而具有革新性的想法
In the fall of 1873, Glidden has a breakthrough.
1873年秋天格利登有了重大突破
Using a coffee grinder he crudely fashions some steel barbs.
他用磨咖啡機大致地擰出了一些鋼絲刺
His problem: how to secure them.
現(xiàn)在問題是如何把它們固定好
Glidden's solution: bind the barbs between two links of wire.
格利登的方法是用鐵刺連接兩股鋼絲
His design cuts the price of fencing by 70%.
他的設(shè)計使圍籬的費用降低了70%
Within 10 years, Glidden sells enough to go around the world 25 times, carving the Plains into countless ranches and farms and blocking the cattle trails.
不到10年，格利登的銷售收入足以支付25次環(huán)球旅行，大平原被分隔成不計其數(shù)的牧場和耕地，放牧線路也被完全隔斷
The open range is closed forever.
沒有圍籬的開放牧場從此退出歷史舞臺
This single invention made possible the settling of the west much sooner and more efficiently than it would have occurred otherwise.
單憑這樣一個發(fā)明，就使西部墾荒的速度和效率大大提高比采用其他方式來得更快更好
Teddy blue rides one of the last cattle drives to the railroad.
泰迪·布魯最后一次趕著牛群來到了鐵路
The heyday of the cowboy on the open range lasts only 20 years.
牛仔們在開放大草原上的鼎盛時期只持續(xù)了不過20年
But settling the Great Plains will mark the end of one way of life
大平原拓荒潮雖然標志著一種生活方式的結(jié)束
