你是孤獨的嗎？（在這個宇宙中）：英語精讀講義

Are you alone in the universe?

你在宇宙中是孤獨的嗎？

Or are you connected to anything?

還是說你與萬物皆有聯繫？

First of all, you're part of a group of mammals that's still very young, 表達脈絡

首先，你屬於一個仍然非常年輕的哺乳動物群體，

but we can make YouTube videos already

但我們已經能製作 YouTube 影片了，

and build large hadron colliders.

還能建造大型強子對撞機。

We've also split the atom

我們也分裂了原子，

and invented Pokémon.

還發明了寶可夢。

We stem from an ancient life form 片語搭配

我們源自一種古老的生命形式，

that began living about 3 and 1/2 billion years ago.

大約在 35 億年前就開始生存了。

We feel like we're in control of this planet, 文法

我們感覺自己掌控著這個星球，

but we aren't really.

但實際上並沒有。

One little asteroid or one creative virus

一顆小行星或一種變異病毒，

is really all it would take to kill us off for good. 講解

就足以將我們徹底抹殺。

Humanity credits itself with being able to destroy the planet, 片語搭配

人類自以為有能力毀滅地球，

but even with all our nuclear toys, 慣用語

但即使動用我們所有的核玩具，

we would probably just cause a huge mass extinction at best. 片語搭配

頂多也就是引發一場巨大的生物大滅絕。

Maybe we could kill 90% of everything living on this planet.

也許我們能消滅地球上 90% 的生物。

Big deal. 語氣意圖

沒什麼大不了的。

A few million years later,

幾百萬年後，

life would be back everywhere.

生命又會重現生機，遍布各處。

Most microscopic life and life below the surface

大多數微觀生命和地表以下的生命，

wouldn't even be disturbed that much, probably.

甚至可能都不會受到太大干擾。

On a geological time scale, 片語搭配

在地質時間尺度上，

our impact on Earth is kind of laughable. 語氣意圖

我們對地球的影響其實有些可笑。

We're actually not that powerful.

我們真的沒有那麼強大。

We live on this tiny wet rock

我們住在這個潮濕的小岩石上，

that speeds through space following a massive ball of burning plasma.

跟著一團巨大的燃燒電漿在太空中飛馳。

One day, this ball of plasma will stop burning

總有一天，這團電漿會停止燃燒，

and most likely kill us in the process. 片語搭配

並極有可能在這個過程中殺死我們。

If we survive the death of the Sun

如果我們能在太陽的消亡中倖存下來

and colonize the galaxy,

並在銀河系中殖民，

theoretically, we could survive until the last star in the universe goes out. 片語動詞

理論上，我們可以一直活到宇宙中最後一顆恆星熄滅。

After that, life becomes pretty impossible.

在那之後，生命幾乎就無法存在了。

Okay, so everything has an end.

好吧，萬物皆有終結。

Where does this leave you as an individual? 慣用語

那麼作為個體的你該何去何從呢？

At one point in your life, 片語搭配

在你生命中的某個時刻，

for about half an hour,

大約有半個小時的時間，

you were only one single cell inside your mother's womb,

你只是母親子宮裡的一個單細胞，

a creature just 0.1 mm in diameter.

一個直徑僅 0.1 公釐的生物。

Today, you consist of about 50 trillion cells. 片語搭配

今天，你由大約 50 兆個細胞組成。

50 trillion incredibly complex little biological machines

50 兆個極其複雜的小型生物機器，

that are much bigger and more complex than the average bacteria. 文法

它們比一般的細菌要大得多，也複雜得多。

They operate by the laws of physics and chemistry

它們遵循物理和化學定律運作，

and use micro machines to build proteins,

使用微型機器來構建蛋白質、

make energy usable devour food, 文法

轉化可用能量、吞噬食物、

transport resources,

運輸資源、

transmit information,

傳遞資訊，

or reproduce.

或者繁殖。

They communicate, duplicate, commit suicide,

它們交流、複製、自殺、

fight off intruders, 片語動詞

抵禦入侵者，

and fulfill super specialized duties

並履行超級專業化的職責，

for the greater good of keeping you alive, 慣用語

為了讓你活下去這個更偉大的利益，

so you can have babies.

這樣你才能繁衍後代。

But where is the you part in this 表達脈絡

但如果你是由數兆個小東西組成的，

if you're made of trillions of little things?

那「你」這部分到底在哪呢？

The basic information for you is stored in the DNA,

你的基本資訊儲存在 DNA 中，

a molecule that encodes the genetic instructions 文法

這是一種編碼遺傳指令的分子，

used in the development and functioning of all known living things.

用於所有已知生物的發育和運作。

If you were to unravel it, 文法

如果你把它解開，

it would be 2 m long.

它會有 2 公尺長。

If you combined all the little DNA strings in all your cells,

如果你把你所有細胞中的小 DNA 鏈連接起來，

you'd get a string so long that it would stretch to Pluto and back to Earth. 講解

你會得到一條極長的鏈條，足以從冥王星延伸到地球再繞回去。

That's pretty long.

那可是相當長了。

And your DNA is a direct connection to your very first ancestor.

而且你的 DNA 與你最初的祖先有著直接的聯繫。

Take a second to think about this. 語氣意圖

花一秒鐘想想這件事。

In every cell of your body,

在你身體的每個細胞裡，

there's a little string of stuff that's been there in various forms 文法

都有一小串物質，它們以各種形式存在了

for 3.4 billion years.

34 億年。

It evolved,

它演化，

it mutated,

它突變，

it duplicated trillions of times,

它複製了數兆次，

but it directly connects you to the first living being on this planet. 片語搭配

但它將你與這個星球上的第一個生物直接聯繫在一起。

We could say you touched every living being that came before you 語氣意圖

我們甚至可以說，你的 DNA

with your DNA.

觸碰過你之前出現的所有生物。

But you are more than your DNA. 表達脈絡

但你不僅僅是你的 DNA。

Your body is made of 7 octillion atoms.

你的身體由 7000 億億億個原子組成。

That's 7 billion billion billions.

也就是 7 的後面跟著 27 個零。

Roughly 93% of the mass of the human body

人體質量的大約 93%

is made up of just three elements: 片語動詞

僅由三種元素組成：

oxygen, carbon, and hydrogen.

氧、碳和氫。

Oxygen and hydrogen are predominantly found in water,

氧和氫主要存在於水中，

which makes up about 60% of the body by weight. 用詞

水按重量算約占人體的 60%。

Carbon is maybe the most important element for life.

碳可能是對生命最重要的元素。

It can easily bond with other atoms,

它可以輕鬆地與其他原子結合，

which allows for the building of long complex chains of molecules, 片語搭配

從而構建出長而複雜的分仔鏈，

which make up the solid part of you.

構成了你身體的固體部分。

The remaining 7% is a tour of the periodic table of elements. 慣用語

剩餘的 7% 則是元素週期表的一次巡禮。

Nitrogen, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur,

氮、鈣、磷、鉀、硫、

sodium, chlorine, magnesium, iron, fluorine,

鈉、氯、鎂、鐵、氟、

zinc, copper, iodine, selenium, chromium,

鋅、銅、碘、硒、鉻、

manganese, molybdenum, cobalt, lithium, strontium,

錳、鉬、鈷、鋰、鍶、

aluminum, silicon, lead, vanadium, arsenic, and bromine.

鋁、矽、鉛、釩、砷和溴。

Ooh.

噢。

By the way, 表達脈絡

順帶一提，

this also means you're about 0.5% metal, 慣用語

這也意味著你身上大約有 0.5% 是金屬，

no matter what your favorite music is. 文法

不管你最喜歡什麼類型的音樂。

Anyway, these elements perform various functions 表達脈絡

總之，這些元素發揮著各種功能，

like enabling oxygen transport,

比如促進氧氣運輸、

building of bones and cell structures,

構建骨骼和細胞結構、

carrying signals,

傳遞訊號、

driving chemical reactions,

驅動化學反應，

and a lot more.

以及許多其他功能。

Your body is in a constant state of transition. 片語搭配

你的身體處於一種不斷的過渡狀態中。

Every 16 days,

每 16 天，

75% of you has been replaced

你的 75% 就已經被替換掉了，

because a healthy human exchanges about 100% of their water 文法

因為一個健康的人在這段時間內

in that time period.

會交換掉大約 100% 的水分。

Each year,

每年，

about 98% of your atoms are replaced by new ones,

你大約 98% 的原子會被新的原子替換，

and every 5 years,

而每隔 5 年，

close to all of the atoms that make up your body 片語搭配

構成你身體的幾乎所有原子

weren't there 5 years ago.

在 5 年前都不在那裡。

So, you could call yourself a temporary collection of atoms. 語氣意圖

所以，你可以把自己稱為原子的臨時集合體。

But, where did these atoms come from? 表達脈絡

但是，這些原子是從哪裡來的呢？

In the beginning of the universe,

在宇宙之初，

there were mostly hydrogen and helium atoms.

幾乎全是氫原子和氦原子。

Enormous gas clouds formed over millennia

數千年來，巨大的氣體雲形成

and grew denser and denser until they collapsed under their own gravity, 講解

並變得越來越稠密，直到它們在自身重力下坍縮，

giving birth to the first stars. 慣用語

孕育出了第一批恆星。

In the cores of these stars,

在這些恆星的核心，

hydrogen was converted into helium under extreme conditions. 片語搭配

氫在極端條件下轉化為氦。

After millions of years,

數百萬年後，

the hydrogen became exhausted and the stars began dying. 用詞

氫被耗盡，恆星開始消亡。

Under super extreme conditions,

在超級極端的條件下，

all elements we know today were created

我們今天知道的所有元素

a fraction of a second before they died 片語搭配

都是在它們死亡並爆發成超新星前的

and exploded in supernovas.

幾分之一秒內創造出來的。

They shot most of their contents into space 用詞

它們將大部分物質噴射到太空中，

while the cores collapsed and became black holes.

而核心坍縮成了黑洞。

All these elements traveled through space

所有這些元素在太空中穿梭了

for who knows how long until they arrived at a different cloud 語氣意圖

不知多久，直到它們抵達另一片雲，

that was slowly forming a new star,

這片雲正慢慢形成一顆新的恆星，

our Sun.

也就是我們的太陽。

These elements that once were the insides of a star

這些曾經是恆星內部的元素

formed planets and found their way onto Earth, 慣用語

形成了行星，並最終來到了地球上，

where they enabled life to begin. 文法

讓生命的開始成為可能。

So, we are directly connected to the first stars 表達脈絡

所以，我們與宇宙中誕生的第一批恆星

ever born in the universe.

有著直接的聯繫。

We are part of the universe.

我們是宇宙的一部分。

The idea of being a deeply connected minuscule part

作為龐大結構中一個息息相關的微小部分，

of an enormous structure is really mind-blowing. 用詞

這個想法真的很讓人震撼。

We don't know what all this means

我們不知道這一切意味著什麼，

or if it means anything at all. 文法

或者它究竟有沒有意義。

We know that we're made of little parts

我們知道我們是由微小的部分組成的，

that connect us to everything in the universe,

這些部分將我們與宇宙中的萬物聯繫在一起，

to the beginning of everything.

與一切的開端聯繫在一起。

And this is kind of a nice thought.

這是一種非常美妙的想法。

You are not alone. 表達脈絡

你並不孤獨。

You never were.

你從來都不孤獨。

You never will be.

你也永遠不會孤獨。