听力文摘：曾经的山顶洞人

Sometime Cavemen

曾经的山顶洞人

From the bestselling novel "Clan¹ of the Cave Bear" to the 1981 movie "Caveman", pop-culture tends to misrepresent prehistoric² people as cave dwelling³ brutes⁴. But even the most speculative⁵ recreations of early human society are based on a few essential facts. For instance, cavemen made their homes in caves, right?

从畅销小说“洞熊家族”到1981年的电影“山顶洞人”，流行文化倾向于将史前人类曲解为住山洞的野兽。但是关于早期人类社会的最玄妙的再创作也是基于一些基本的事实。例如，山顶洞人将家安在洞穴中，对吗？

Well, not exactly. According to archeological evidence, prehistoric human ancestors such as Homo habilis, Homo erectus, and Homo ergaster were nomadic⁶.

好吧，这是不准确的。根据考古学的证据，史前的人类祖先，例如能人, 智人和山顶洞人都是居无定所的游民。

Rather than settle in one place for long periods of time, they were constantly on the move in search of food and shelter. In other words, the term "caveman" is a bit misleading, since our stone age ancestors did not set up permanent homes in caves.

他们不会长期驻扎在一个地方，相反，为了寻找食物和躲风避雨的住所，他们总是在迁徙。换句话说，“山顶洞人”这个名词带有误导性，因为我们在旧石器时代的祖先没有在山洞里建造长期的家。

Then why are prehistoric people so often referred to as cavemen? There are several reasons. First, much evidence of prehistoric civilization is found in caves because the natural shelter helps preserve artifacts.

那么为什么史前人类被频频称作山顶洞人呢？有以下几个原因。首先，在山洞中发现了史前文明的大量证据， 因为天然的屏障帮助保存了这些人造物品。

The earliest cave dwellers⁷ date to the Paleolithic period, around 2.5 million years ago, and evidence suggests that these ancient nomads⁸ used caves as temporary shelters during their seasonal⁹ wanderings. The caves often lay on valley slopes and provided excellent views of animal migration¹⁰ routes.

最早的山洞住处要追溯到250万年前的旧石器时代， 有证据显示这些远古时代的人在季节性迁徙过程中，将山洞用作临时遮风避雨之地。这些山洞通常在山谷的斜坡上，是观察动物迁徙途径的绝好视角。

But there is no evidence that Stone Age peoples set up shop in caves for very long. Even Neanderthals, who lived in relatively¹¹ cold regions of ancient Europe, used caves only for temporary shelter.

但是没有证据显示石器时代的人们在山洞里建造了长久居所，即使是住在古欧洲相对寒冷地区的穴居人也没有，他们只是将山洞用作临时遮风避雨之地。

Our more immediate¹² ancestors did, of course, eventually move indoors. But permanent dwellings¹³ came about only with the invention of agriculture and animal husbandry. Before those world-changing inventions, prehistoric people were forced to follow their food away from the warmth and shelter of the cave.

当然，我们的直系祖先最终搬入室内。但那是在发明农业和动物饲养之后才出现的长久固定住处。在这些改变世界的发明出现之前，史前人类被迫随着温暖地区的食物和遮风避雨的山洞而四处迁徙。

1 clan   

n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派

参考例句：

• She ranks as my junior in the clan.她的辈分比我小。
• The Chinese Christians,therefore,practically excommunicate themselves from their own clan.所以，中国的基督徒简直是被逐出了自己的家族了。

2 prehistoric   

adj.（有记载的）历史以前的，史前的，古老的

参考例句：

• They have found prehistoric remains.他们发现了史前遗迹。
• It was rather like an exhibition of prehistoric electronic equipment.这儿倒像是在展览古老的电子设备。

3 dwelling   

n.住宅，住所，寓所

参考例句：

• Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
• He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。

4 brutes   

兽( brute的名词复数 )； 畜生； 残酷无情的人； 兽性

参考例句：

• They're not like dogs; they're hideous brutes. 它们不像狗，是丑陋的畜牲。
• Suddenly the foul musty odour of the brutes struck his nostrils. 突然，他的鼻尖闻到了老鼠的霉臭味。 来自英汉文学

5 speculative   

adj.思索性的，暝想性的，推理的

参考例句：

• Much of our information is speculative.我们的许多信息是带推测性的。
• The report is highly speculative and should be ignored.那个报道推测的成分很大，不应理会。

6 nomadic   

adj.流浪的；游牧的

参考例句：

• This tribe still live a nomadic life.这个民族仍然过着游牧生活。
• The plowing culture and the nomadic culture are two traditional principal cultures in China.农耕文化与游牧文化是我国传统的两大主体文化。

7 dwellers   

n.居民，居住者( dweller的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes. 城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They have transformed themselves into permanent city dwellers. 他们已成为永久的城市居民。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 nomads   

n.游牧部落的一员( nomad的名词复数 )；流浪者；游牧生活；流浪生活

参考例句：

• For ten years she dwelled among the nomads of North America. 她在北美游牧民中生活了十年。
• Nomads have inhabited this region for thousands of years. 游牧民族在这地区居住已有数千年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 seasonal   

adj.季节的，季节性的

参考例句：

• The town relies on the seasonal tourist industry for jobs.这个城镇依靠季节性旅游业提供就业机会。
• The hors d'oeuvre is seasonal vegetables.餐前小吃是应时蔬菜。

10 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

11 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

12 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

13 dwellings   

n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The development will consist of 66 dwellings and a number of offices. 新建楼区将由66栋住房和一些办公用房组成。
• The hovels which passed for dwellings are being pulled down. 过去用作住室的陋屋正在被拆除。 来自《简明英汉词典》