2021年经济学人 《我们创造的生活》书评

Life as We Made It. By Beth Shapiro.

《我们创造的生活》，作者：贝丝·夏皮罗。

Humans are a force of nature.

人类是自然界的一种力量。

This paradoxical thought is the glue that holds “Life as We Made It” together.

这一矛盾的想法就像胶水，将《我们创造的生活》一书中的内容凝聚在一起。

But it is not the environment-changing effects of human activity on land, sea and air that intrigue¹ Beth Shapiro -- or not directly.

但激发起贝丝·夏皮罗兴趣的并不是人类活动对陆地、海洋和空气这些环境的变化所造成的影响——或者说这些并没有直接激发她。

Instead, she looks at how people have altered living organisms themselves, exerting an evolutionary² pressure on other species.

相反，她关注的是人类如何改变生物体本身，从而对其他物种施加进化压力。

If turning aurochs into cattle, wolves into dogs or teosinte into maize³ sounds like a sideshow compared with transforming the composition of the atmosphere, looting the oceans or destroying the rainforests, consider a few facts.

如果说，与改变大气成分、掠夺海洋或破坏雨林相比，把古代野牛变成家牛、把狼变成狗或者把墨西哥类蜀黍变成玉米这种事听起来无关紧要，请仔细思考几个事实。

The most common species of bird is Gallus gallus, the domestic chicken.

最常见的鸟类是原鸡，一种家养的鸡。

Even excluding people themselves, the biomass of domesticated⁴ mammals exceeds that of the wild sort by a factor of 14.

即使不把人类本身算在内，家养哺乳动物的生物量也比野生哺乳动物的生物量高出14倍。

A third of Earth’s dry land (deserts and ice caps included) is devoted⁵ either to growing domesticated plants for human consumption or to the nutrition of domestic animals.

地球上三分之一的旱地(包括沙漠和冰盖)要么用于种植供人类食用的驯化植物，要么用于给家畜提供营养。

How this came about, and where it is leading, are Dr Shapiro’s topics.

这是如何发生的，以及它将走向何方，就是夏皮罗博士的主题。

Her day job is as an evolutionary molecular⁶ biologist -- a recent field, but one just old enough in 1999, when her research career got going, for lots of the good stuff to have been snaffled already.

她白天的工作是进化分子生物学家——这是一个最近才出现的领域，但也已足够古老，因为在1999年她的研究生涯刚开始的时候，有很多好东西已经被抢走了。

Mammoths, musk⁷ oxen, giant sloths⁸, dogs, wolves, horses and even Neanderthals were all jealously guarded by other researchers.

猛犸象、麝牛、巨型树懒、狗、狼、马、甚至尼安德特人，都被其他研究人员小心翼翼地把守着。

But, as her supervisor⁹ at Oxford¹⁰ pointed¹¹ out, no one was studying bison.

但是，正如她在牛津大学的导师所指出的那样，没有人在研究野牛。

Bison, it transpires¹², offer an excellent insight into human influence on other species’ evolution.

现在看来，野牛为人类对其他物种进化的影响提供了极好的洞见。

They started in Asia but migrated to North America during the last Ice Age.

它们起源于亚洲，但在上一个冰河时期迁徙到了北美。

For 100,000 years they thrived.

它们繁荣生长了10万年。

Then people followed them across Beringia, and the massacre¹³ began.

然后，人们跟着它们穿过了白令陆桥，拉开的屠杀的帷幕。

Unlike many other large American mammals, bison were not exterminated¹⁴ by the new arrivals.

与许多其他大型美洲哺乳动物不同的是，野牛并没有因为这些新来者而灭绝。

Instead, they evolved.

相反，他们进化了。

Being large, and thus an easy target, was bad.

体型大就会很容易成为目标，这是不利于生存的。

Being small, and better able to survive in the marginal habitats into which they were driven, was good.

体型小，能够使它们在被驱赶至的边缘栖息地更好地生存，这是有利的。

So evolution shrank them by 30%.

因此进化使它们的体积缩小了30%

Later, a second wave of humans arrived, this time by sea from the east.

后来，第二波人类抵达，这一次他们自东方海上而来。

The diseases they brought, particularly smallpox¹⁵, ran riot among the human population, permitting an explosion in the bison’s.

他们带来的疾病，尤其是天花，在人类中肆虐，使得野牛的数量激增。

But the newcomers also brought guns, railways and eventually another massacre.

但这些新来者也带来了枪支、铁路，并最终带来了另一场屠杀。

The last chapter of the bison’s story involves a human change of heart.

野牛故事的最后一章谈及人类心意的转变。

Having reduced the species to a handful of individuals (125, Dr Shapiro estimates), Homo sapiens set about saving it -- at another price to its gene¹⁶ pool.

在将该物种减少到为数不多的个体（夏皮罗博士估计为125个）后，智人开始拯救它——代价是污染野牛的基因库。

Most bison today are privately¹⁷ owned and raised for their meat.

如今的大多数野牛都是私人所有的，为了获得野牛肉而饲养它们。

They are selectively bred, not least for docility¹⁸, and share some cattle genes¹⁹ after crossbreeding that happened a bit over 100 years ago.

人类对野牛进行选择性繁殖，主要是为了培育温顺的个性，并且在100多年前发生的杂交后，野牛也拥有着一些家牛基因。

Even the few remaining “wild” bison are intensively managed and carry cattle genes.

即使是仅存的少数“野生”野牛也被集中管理着，并且携带着家牛的基因。

Shrunk, tamed, crossbred and eaten, are bison now a domesticated species?

缩小、驯养、杂交、被食用，现在的野牛能算是驯化物种了吗？

The answer is ambiguous; but the bison’s tale certainly matches that of other, clearly domesticated organisms, from cattle and sheep to wheat and peanuts.

答案并不明确；但野牛的故事与其他明确的驯化生物的故事——从牛羊到小麦和花生——毫无疑问是一致的。

Turning these (and dozens of similarly modified types of creature) into people, as Dr Shapiro summarises their edible²⁰ fates, while harnessing others as workhorses, has permitted human domination of Earth.

正如夏皮罗博士所总结的它们被食用的命运那般，用这些生物(以及几十种类似的改良生物)来喂养人类，同时将其他生物驯化为劳力，使得人类得以统治地球。

But it has also unleashed²¹ a demon²².

但这也释放出了恶魔。

For it is only by continually improving the yield of domesticated species that all those extra mouths can be fed.

因为只有不断提高驯化物种的产量，才能喂饱所有那些额外的嘴。

So far, selective breeding has kept up.

到目前为止，选择性育种还在继续。

But more is now needed.

但现在还需要更多的手段。

Though the engineering of genomes for agricultural purposes has, in the view of many, got off to a rocky start, new techniques can cut to the chase, circumventing²³ the requirement for generations of selective breeding.

尽管在许多人看来，用于农业目的的基因组工程起步并不顺利，但这些新技术可以直接切入关键点，不再需要经历几代的选择性育种来达到目的。

Those same techniques promise other things besides.

除了这些，同样的技术还能带来其他好处。

One is the idea of de-extinction -- the creation of simulacra of organisms that no longer exist, such as mammoths, about which Dr Shapiro has written eloquently²⁴ in the past.

一个是灭绝动物复活的想法，即创造不再存在的生物的拟像，比如猛犸象，夏皮罗博士过去曾撰文清晰有力地阐述过这一点。

Another is the modification²⁵ of human beings themselves.

另一个则是人类自身的改造。

That is a big and tortuous²⁶ topic, and she does not dwell on it.

这是一个庞大又冗杂的话题，对此她没有详述。

But in an age when “technology” has become synonymous with the information kind, it is worth being reminded that other sorts are available.

但是，在这个“技术”已经成为信息的同义词的时代，值得提醒的是，还有其他的方式可用。

And with one of them people can, if they so choose, remake themselves.

只要人们愿意，选择其中的一种，就可以由此重塑自己。

1 intrigue   

vt.激起兴趣，迷住；vi.耍阴谋；n.阴谋，密谋

参考例句：

• Court officials will intrigue against the royal family.法院官员将密谋反对皇室。
• The royal palace was filled with intrigue.皇宫中充满了勾心斗角。

2 evolutionary   

adj.进化的；演化的，演变的；[生]进化论的

参考例句：

• Life has its own evolutionary process.生命有其自身的进化过程。
• These are fascinating questions to be resolved by the evolutionary studies of plants.这些十分吸引人的问题将在研究植物进化过程中得以解决。

3 maize   

n.玉米

参考例句：

• There's a field planted with maize behind the house.房子后面有一块玉米地。
• We can grow sorghum or maize on this plot.这块地可以种高粱或玉米。

4 domesticated   

adj.喜欢家庭生活的；（指动物）被驯养了的v.驯化( domesticate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He is thoroughly domesticated and cooks a delicious chicken casserole. 他精于家务，烹制的砂锅炖小鸡非常可口。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The donkey is a domesticated form of the African wild ass. 驴是非洲野驴的一种已驯化的品种。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

6 molecular   

adj.分子的；克分子的

参考例句：

• The research will provide direct insight into molecular mechanisms.这项研究将使人能够直接地了解分子的机理。
• For the pressure to become zero, molecular bombardment must cease.当压强趋近于零时，分子的碰撞就停止了。

7 musk   

n.麝香, 能发出麝香的各种各样的植物，香猫

参考例句：

• Musk is used for perfume and stimulant.麝香可以用作香料和兴奋剂。
• She scented her clothes with musk.她用麝香使衣服充满了香味。

8 sloths   

懒散( sloth的名词复数 )； 懒惰； 树獭； （经济）停滞。

参考例句：

• Mummies of pleistocene ground sloths, with original skin, hair, tendons and claws have been found. 还发现了保存原有皮肤，毛发，腱和爪的更新世时期地面树懒的木乃伊。
• He was inspired by fossils of armadillos and sloths. 犰狳和树懒化石让他获得了灵感。

9 supervisor   

n.监督人，管理人，检查员，督学，主管，导师

参考例句：

• Between you and me I think that new supervisor is a twit.我们私下说，我认为新来的主管人是一个傻瓜。
• He said I was too flighty to be a good supervisor.他说我太轻浮不能成为一名好的管理员。

10 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

11 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

12 transpires   

（事实，秘密等）被人知道( transpire的第三人称单数 )； 泄露； 显露； 发生

参考例句：

• Let's wait and see what transpires. 我们等着瞧会发生什么事吧。
• This new machine sometimes transpires a lot of hot vapor. 这部机器有时排出大量的热气。

13 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

14 exterminated   

v.消灭，根绝( exterminate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It was exterminated root and branch. 它被彻底剪除了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The insects can be exterminated by spraying DDT. 可以用喷撒滴滴涕的方法大量杀死这种昆虫。 来自《用法词典》

15 smallpox   

n.天花

参考例句：

• In 1742 he suffered a fatal attack of smallpox.1742年，他染上了致命的天花。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child?你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

16 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

17 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

18 docility   

n.容易教，易驾驶，驯服

参考例句：

• He was trying to plant the seed of revolt, arouse that placid peasant docility. 他想撒下反叛的种子，唤醒这个安分驯良的农民的觉悟。 来自辞典例句
• With unusual docility, Nancy stood up and followed him as he left the newsroom. 南希以难得的顺从站起身来，尾随着他离开了新闻编辑室。 来自辞典例句

19 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

20 edible   

n.食品，食物；adj.可食用的

参考例句：

• Edible wild herbs kept us from dying of starvation.我们靠着野菜才没被饿死。
• This kind of mushroom is edible,but that kind is not.这种蘑菇吃得，那种吃不得。

21 unleashed   

v.把（感情、力量等）释放出来，发泄( unleash的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The government's proposals unleashed a storm of protest in the press. 政府的提案引发了新闻界的抗议浪潮。
• The full force of his rage was unleashed against me. 他把所有的怒气都发泄在我身上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 demon   

n.魔鬼，恶魔

参考例句：

• The demon of greed ruined the miser's happiness.贪得无厌的恶习毁掉了那个守财奴的幸福。
• He has been possessed by the demon of disease for years.他多年来病魔缠身。

23 circumventing   

v.设法克服或避免（某事物），回避( circumvent的现在分词 )；绕过，绕行，绕道旅行

参考例句：

• They found a way of circumventing the law. 他们找到了规避法律的途径。
• This viewpoint sees the Multinational Corporation as capable of circumventing or subverting national objectives and policies. 这种观点认为，跨国公司能够遏制和破坏国家的目标和政策。 来自辞典例句

24 eloquently   

adv. 雄辩地(有口才地, 富于表情地)

参考例句：

• I was toasted by him most eloquently at the dinner. 进餐时他口若悬河地向我祝酒。
• The poet eloquently expresses the sense of lost innocence. 诗人动人地表达了失去天真的感觉。

25 modification   

n.修改，改进，缓和，减轻

参考例句：

• The law,in its present form,is unjust;it needs modification.现行的法律是不公正的，它需要修改。
• The design requires considerable modification.这个设计需要作大的修改。

26 tortuous   

adj.弯弯曲曲的，蜿蜒的

参考例句：

• We have travelled a tortuous road.我们走过了曲折的道路。
• They walked through the tortuous streets of the old city.他们步行穿过老城区中心弯弯曲曲的街道。