新奇事件簿 撒哈拉沙漠曾是地球历史上最危险地区（在线收听）

A team of paleontologists has uncovered what they believe was the most dangerous place in the history of the Earth. It is not a crime-ridden, inner-city ghetto or a hellish war zone. It was an area of the Sahara Desert in Morocco that 100 million years ago was a scary place to be. The team of fossil hunters said an area near the Morocco-Algeria border was home to a terrifying array of ferocious predators - rather like the beasts from Jurassic Park, but on steroids. The paleontologists have dubbed the area as being the "most dangerous place in the history of planet Earth". Their claim is based on the discovery of an array of fossils found in ancient rock formations called the Kem Kem group deep in the Sahara.

一组古生物学家发现了他们认为是地球历史上最危险的地方。这个地方不是犯罪猖獗的贫民区，也不是地狱般的战区。而是摩洛哥撒哈拉大沙漠的一个区域，一亿年前，这里曾是一个可怕的地方。化石勘探团队称摩洛哥和阿尔及利亚边境附近的一个地区是一群可怕的凶猛食肉动物的家园，它们很像《侏罗纪公园》里的野兽，但更加极端。古生物学家们将这个区域称为“地球历史上最危险的地方”。他们的这种说法是基于在位于撒哈拉沙漠深处Kem Kem group的古岩层中发现的一系列化石。

Professor David Martill wrote about the significance of the study. He said: "This is the most comprehensive piece of work on fossil vertebrates from the Sahara in almost a century." He added: "This place was filled with absolutely enormous fish...probably four or even five times larger than today's....There was an enormous freshwater saw shark...with the most fearsome of teeth. They are like barbed daggers, but beautifully shiny." Dr Nizar Ibrahim, lead author of the report into the research, said it was a truly inhospitable habitat. He said it was, "a place where a human time-traveller would not last very long". He said the study provides "a window into Africa's age of dinosaurs".

David Martill教授写到了这项研究的意义。他表示：“这是近一个世纪以来对撒哈拉沙漠脊椎动物化石最全面的研究。”他补充道：“这个地方到处都是非常巨大的鱼类，可能是现在鱼类的四倍，甚至是五倍......那里曾有一只巨大的淡水锯鲨......长有最可怕的牙齿。它们像是带刺的匕首，但闪耀着漂亮的光芒。”该研究报告的主要作者Nizar Ibrahim博士称，这确实是一个不适宜居住的栖息地。他称这里是“一个人类时间旅行者都不会呆太久的地方”。他表示该研究提供了“一扇了解非洲恐龙时代的窗户”。