When we think about famous figures in the history of science, the name of Charles Darwin often comes up.
当我们想到科学史上的著名人物时，查尔斯·达尔文的名字经常出现。
Sam(山姆)
Darwin is most famous for his theory of evolution, the idea that animals change and adapt in response to their environment. In the 1830s he visited the Galapagos, a string of islands in the Pacific Ocean famous because of the unique animals living there.
It was while in the Galapagos, observing small birds called finches, that Darwin started forming his theory of evolution. But today, the animals of the Galapagos face the same pressures as animals across the world because of the effects of man-made climate change.
Warming sea waters and more frequent extreme weather events are affecting animals as much as humans, so, in this programme, we’ll be asking ‘can animals evolve to deal with climate change?’.
But first I have a question for you, Sam, and it’s about Charles Darwin’s trip to the Galapagos. In 1831, Darwin set sail around the world, collecting samples of.
flora and fauna, the plants and animals, of the places he visited. But what was(他访问过的地方的动植物，植物和动物。但是什么)
the name of the ship he sailed in? a) HMS Beagle; b) HMS Victory c) SS Great Britain.
他航行的船的名字？a） HMS Beagle；b） HMS Victory c） SS 大不列颠。
Sam(山姆)
Hmm, maybe it was B. HMS Victory.
嗯，也许是 B. HMS Victory。
Rob(罗伯)
Are you sure?
是否确定？
Sam(山姆)
No.
不。
Rob(罗伯)
OK. I’ll reveal the correct answer later in the programme. Now, it may have been the Galapagos finches that started Charles Darwin thinking about how animals adapt to their environment but, as naturalist, Kiyoko Gotanda explained to BBC World Service programme The Climate Question, Darwin’s first impression of the small birds wasn’t very good:
When Darwin got to the Galapagos Islands, he actually wasn’t that interested in the finches – they were kind of a drab colour and didn’t have a very interesting song. He sampled, though, the finches from different islands, and so when he got back to England he was looking at all the variation in beak shape and size, and body size and shape, and he was recalling how certain finches were found on certain islands but not on other islands.
In contrast to more colourful birds like Galapagos parrots, the finches Darwin observed were drab, dull and boring-looking, with little colour.
与加拉帕戈斯鹦鹉等色彩斑斓的鸟类相比，达尔文观察到的雀类单调、沉闷、无聊，几乎没有颜色。
Sam(山姆)
Instead, what Darwin noticed were variations in the finches’ beak – the hard, pointed part of a bird’s mouth. Finches born with a beak that could help them get more food were more likely to survive and have babies. Over time, as the birds passed on their successful genes, they adapted to fit in with their environment – what we know as evolution.
So, if animals can evolve to survive their environment, can they also evolve to cope with the impact humans are having on the climate?
那么，如果动物可以进化到在环境中生存，那么它们是否也能进化到应对人类对气候的影响呢？
Sam(山姆)
Well, there’s already some evidence to show they can. Studies on birds in the Brazilian Amazon and red deer on the Isle of Rum, in Scotland, show warmer temperatures have caused animals to evolve smaller bodies. It’s easier to keep cool when you’re small!
American conservationist Thor Hanson records and measures anole lizards in the Caribbean. He wants to see how the effects of man-made climate change, in this case hurricanes, is affecting the lizards. Listen to what Thor found out as he speaks with presenters of BBC World Service’s The Climate Question.
What you can see is that large toe pads and strong front legs give some lizards a tighter grip.
你可以看到的是，大脚趾垫和强壮的前腿让一些蜥蜴抓得更紧。
Kate Lamble(凯特·兰布尔)
When they do start to let go and their body starts flapping in the air like a flag, smaller back legs reduce the drag, and allow them to cling on and survive the hurricane.
So the survivors were those lizards with those characteristics, and they passed those traits along to their offspring.
所以幸存者是那些具有这些特征的蜥蜴，它们将这些特征传递给了他们的后代。
Rob(罗伯)
Thor’s lizards developed stronger front legs and smaller back legs, allowing them to cling on, hold on to something tightly, when hurricanes pass through.
雷神的蜥蜴发展出更强壮的前腿和更小的后腿，当飓风经过时，它们可以紧紧抓住某些东西。
Sam(山姆)
It’s this trait, a genetically-determined characteristic, that allows the lizards to survive, and is passed on to their babies. Thor checked other areas of the Caribbean where hurricanes were frequent and found the same traits in lizards there, proof of evolution in action. But whereas we often think of evolution happening over hundreds, even thousands of years, the changes in the Caribbean lizards happened in around forty years, something that would have surprised Charles Darwin. Which reminds me of your question, Rob.
Yes, I asked you for the name of the ship Darwin sailed around the world in. Darwin’s ship was called the HMS Beagle and, appropriately enough, it was named after an animal - a beagle is a type of dog. OK, let’s recap the vocabulary from this programme about evolution, the way living things adapt to their environment and pass these adaptations on to their children.
是的，我问你达尔文环游世界的船的名字。达尔文的船被称为 HMS Beagle，恰如其分地，它以一种动物的名字命名 —— 比格犬是一种狗。好了，让我们回顾一下这个节目中关于进化的词汇，即生物适应环境并将这些适应传递给孩子的方式。
Sam(山姆)
Flora and fauna is another way of saying the plants and animals of a place.
动植物是一个地方植物和动物的另一种说法。
Rob(罗伯)
Drab means dull and colourless in appearance.
单调的意思是外观暗淡无色。
Sam(山姆)
A bird’s beak is the hard, pointed part of its mouth.
鸟的喙是它嘴巴坚硬而尖锐的部分。
Rob(罗伯)
To cling on means to hold on very tightly.
紧紧抓住意味着紧紧抓住。
Sam(山姆)
And finally, a trait is a genetically-determined characteristic. Once again, our six minutes are up! Join us again soon for more interesting topics and useful vocabulary here at 6 Minute English. Goodbye for now!
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