TED演讲： 语言如何改变人类(9)

 　　Language really is the voice of our genes¹. 语言的确是我们基因的声音

　　Now having evolved language, though, we did something peculiar², even bizarre. 尽管我们有发达的语言，但我们也做了件特殊，甚至可以说是件奇怪的事

　　As we spread out around the world, we developed thousands of different languages. 当我们分散到全世界，我们发展出成千上万种语言

　　Currently, there are about seven or 8,000 different languages spoken on Earth. 目前，全球大约有七千到八千种在使用的语言

　　Now you might say, well, this is just natural. 也许你觉得这是很自然的事

　　As we diverge³, our languages are naturally going to diverge. 当我们越分散，语言也越高度分化

　　But the real puzzle and irony⁴ is that the greatest density⁵ of different languages on Earth 但真正令人困惑并且讽刺的是，世界上最密集的语言分布区域

　　is found where people are most tightly packed together. 恰恰是人口最密集聚居的地方

　　If we go to the island of Papua New Guinea, 在巴布新几内亚

　　we can find about 800 to 1,000 distinct human languages, 那里有八百到一千种独特的人类语言

　　different human languages, spoken on that island alone. 不同的人类语言，仅仅在那一座岛上

　　There are places on that island where you can encounter a new language every two or three miles. 岛上一些地方，你每走上两三英里就能碰上一种新语言

　　Now, incredible as this sounds, I once met a Papuan man, and I asked him if this could possibly be true. 更神奇的是，有次我碰上一个巴布人，问他这是不是真的

　　And he said to me, "Oh no. They're far closer together than that." 他说：“不，不是。比这要近多了。”

　　And it's true; there are places on that island where you can encounter a new language in under a mile. 这是真的，岛上有些地方，一英里之内就能发现另一语言的使用

　　And this is also true of some remote oceanic islands. 同样在一些遥远的大洋小岛上也是这样

　　And so it seems that we use our language, not just to cooperate, 这样看来我们利用语言不仅仅是为了合作

　　but to draw rings around our cooperative groups and to establish identities, 也是在集团周围划分界限确立身份

　　and perhaps to protect our knowledge and wisdom and skills from eavesdropping⁶ from outside. 也许是保护我们的知识，智慧和技能，以防落入外人之手

　　And we know this because when we study different language groups and associate them with their cultures, 我们也深知如此，因为当我们研究不同的语言群落，他们有着各自的文化

　　we see that different languages slow the flow of ideas between groups. 会发现不同的语言，减缓了群落间想法的交流

　　They slow the flow of technologies. And they even slow the flow of genes. 也阻碍了技术交流，甚至是基因交流

1 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

2 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

3 diverge   

v.分叉，分歧，离题，使...岔开，使转向

参考例句：

• This is where our opinions diverge from each other.这就是我们意见产生分歧之处。
• Don't diverge in your speech.发言不要离题。

4 irony   

n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄

参考例句：

• She said to him with slight irony.她略带嘲讽地对他说。
• In her voice we could sense a certain tinge of irony.从她的声音里我们可以感到某种讥讽的意味。

5 density   

n.密集，密度，浓度

参考例句：

• The population density of that country is 685 per square mile.那个国家的人口密度为每平方英里685人。
• The region has a very high population density.该地区的人口密度很高。

6 eavesdropping   

n. 偷听

参考例句：

• We caught him eavesdropping outside the window. 我们撞见他正在窗外偷听。
• Suddenly the kids,who had been eavesdropping,flew into the room. 突然间，一直在偷听的孩子们飞进屋来。