ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sarah Parcak - Satellite archaeologist + TED Prize winner
Like a modern-day Indiana Jones, Sarah Parcak uses satellite images to locate lost ancient sites. The winner of the 2016 TED Prize, her wish is to protect the world’s shared cultural heritage.

Why you should listen

There may be hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of undiscovered ancient sites across the globe. Sarah Parcak wants to locate them. As a space archaeologist, she analyzes high-resolution imagery collected by satellites in order to identify subtle changes to the Earth’s surface that might signal man-made features hidden from view. A TED Senior Fellow and a National Geographic Explorer, Parcak wrote the textbook on satellite archaeology and founded the Laboratory for Global Observation at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Her goal: to make the world's invisible history visible once again.

In Egypt, Parcak's techniques have helped locate 17 potential pyramids, and more than 3,100 potential forgotten settlements. She's also made discoveries in the Viking world (as seen in the PBS Nova special, Vikings Unearthed) and across the Roman Empire (as shown in the BBC documentary, Rome’s Lost Empire). Her methods also offer a new way to understand how ancient sites are being affected by looting and urban development. By satellite-mapping Egypt and comparing sites over time, Parcak has noted a 1,000 percent increase in looting since 2009. It’s likely that millions of dollars worth of artifacts are stolen each year. Parcak hopes that, through her work, unknown sites can be protected to preserve our rich, vibrant history.

As the winner of the 2016 TED Prize, Parcak asked the world to help in this important work. By building a citizen science platform for archaeology, GlobalXplorer.org, Parcak invites anyone with an internet connection to help find the next potential looting pit or unknown tomb. GlobalXplorer launched on January 30, 2017, with volunteers working together to map Peru. Other countries will follow, as the platform democratizes discovery and makes satellite-mapping rapid and cost-effective. 

 

More profile about the speaker
Sarah Parcak | Speaker | TED.com
TED2012

Sarah Parcak: Archaeology from space

莎拉帕爾卡: 從太空探索過去

Filmed:
1,129,965 views

TED研究員莎拉帕爾卡介紹"太空考古"領域是如何運用衛星影像尋找古文明的線索。
- Satellite archaeologist + TED Prize winner
Like a modern-day Indiana Jones, Sarah Parcak uses satellite images to locate lost ancient sites. The winner of the 2016 TED Prize, her wish is to protect the world’s shared cultural heritage. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:16
When I was a child兒童 growing生長 up in Maine緬因州,
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我從小在緬因州長大
00:18
one of my favorite喜愛 things to do
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兒時我最愛做的一件事就是到海邊撿拾沙海膽(海錢)
00:20
was to look for sand dollars美元 on the seashores海岸 of Maine緬因州,
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兒時我最愛做的一件事就是到海邊撿拾沙海膽(海錢)
00:24
because my parents父母 told me it would bring帶來 me luck運氣.
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因為我爸媽說撿拾它們會帶來好運
00:26
But you know, these shells砲彈, they're hard to find.
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但想也知道這些貝殼很難找
00:29
They're covered覆蓋 in sand. They're difficult to see.
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它們被埋在沙子裡,很難發現
00:32
However然而, overtime隨著時間的推移, I got used to looking for them.
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無論如何,久而久之我就抓到訣竅了
00:36
I started開始 seeing眼看 shapes形狀
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我開始依據它們的形狀和圖案
00:37
and patterns模式 that helped幫助 me to collect蒐集 them.
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幫助我找尋沙海膽
00:41
This grew成長 into a passion for finding發現 things,
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我對尋寶的熱愛也就此產生了
00:44
a love for the past過去 and archaeology考古學.
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我迷上了與過去有關的事物和考古學
00:47
And eventually終於 when I started開始 studying研究 Egyptology埃及學,
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終於,在我開始研究埃及古物學後
00:50
I realized實現 that seeing眼看 with my naked eyes眼睛 alone單獨 wasn't enough足夠.
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我發現光用肉眼探尋是不夠的
00:55
Because all of the sudden突然 in Egypt埃及
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因為在埃及,我眼中的沙灘忽然間
00:57
my beach海灘 had grown長大的 from a tiny beach海灘 in Maine緬因州
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從緬因州的小沙灘變成了一條八百英哩長的尼羅河沙灘
01:01
to one eight hundred miles英里 long
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從緬因州的小沙灘變成了一條八百英哩長的尼羅河沙灘
01:03
next下一個 to the Nile尼羅河,
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從緬因州的小沙灘變成了一條八百英哩長的尼羅河沙灘
01:05
and my sand dollars美元 had grown長大的
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而我的沙海膽也變得和城市一樣巨大
01:07
to the size尺寸 of cities城市.
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而我的沙海膽也變得和城市一樣巨大
01:09
This is really what brought me to using運用 satellite衛星 imagery意象.
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就是因為這樣,我才開始使用衛星影像
01:13
For trying to map地圖 the past過去, I knew知道 that I had to see differently不同.
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如果想把過去完整的呈現出來,我就得從不同的角度看事情
01:17
So I want to show顯示 you an example of how we see differently不同
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所以我想舉個例子,讓各位知道我們是如何用紅外線來進行另類觀測
01:20
using運用 the infrared紅外線.
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所以我想舉個例子,讓各位知道我們是如何用紅外線來進行另類觀測
01:22
This is a site現場 located位於 in the eastern Egyptian埃及人 delta三角洲
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這是尼羅河三角洲東部的邦狄克斯
01:26
called Bendix本迪克斯.
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這是尼羅河三角洲東部的邦狄克斯
01:27
And the site現場 visibly明顯地 appears出現 brown棕色,
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這個地點看起來呈現褐色
01:29
but when we use the infrared紅外線
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但如果我們用用紅外線加工處理
01:31
and we process處理 it, all of the sudden突然, using運用 false color顏色,
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並加上假色影像
01:36
the site現場 appears出現 as bright pink.
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這個地點瞬間變成了亮粉色
01:38
What you are seeing眼看
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現在你們看到的
01:40
are the actual實際 chemical化學 changes變化 to the landscape景觀
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是古代埃及人築屋的建材和活動對地表造成的化學轉變
01:43
caused造成 by the building建造 materials物料 and activities活動
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是古代埃及人築屋的建材和活動對地表造成的化學轉變
01:46
of the ancient Egyptians埃及人.
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是古代埃及人築屋的建材和活動對地表造成的化學轉變
01:48
What I want to share分享 with you today今天
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今天我想和各位分享的
01:51
is how we've我們已經 used satellite衛星 data數據
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是我們如何藉由衛星資料
01:54
to find an ancient Egyptian埃及人 city,
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找到了一座消失了幾千年的埃及古城---伊塔威
01:56
called ItjtawyItjtawy,
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找到了一座消失了幾千年的埃及古城---伊塔威
01:58
missing失踪 for thousands數千 of years年份.
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找到了一座消失了幾千年的埃及古城---伊塔威
02:00
ItjtawyItjtawy was ancient Egypt's埃及 capital首都
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伊塔威曾是古埃及的首都
02:03
for over four hundred years年份,
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維持了超過四百年之久
02:05
at a period of time called the Middle中間 Kingdom王國
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這段時間大約在四千多年前古埃及的中王國時期
02:07
about four thousand years年份 ago.
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這段時間大約在四千多年前古埃及的中王國時期
02:09
The site現場 is located位於 in the Faiyum法尤姆 of Egypt埃及
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伊塔威的地點位於埃及的法尤姆市
02:12
and site現場 is really important重要 because in the Middle中間 Kingdom王國
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它的位置非常重要
02:14
there was this great renaissance再生 for ancient Egyptian埃及人 art藝術,
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因為在中王國時期,曾有一次偉大的古埃及文藝復興
02:17
architecture建築 and religion宗教.
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包括藝術、建築和宗教層面
02:20
Egyptologists埃及古物學者 have always known已知 the site現場 of ItjtawyItjtawy
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埃及學家早就知道伊塔威的大概位置
02:23
was located位於 somewhere某處 near the pyramids金字塔
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約莫位於某兩任法老所建的金字塔群附近
02:26
of the two kings國王 who built內置 it, indicated指示 within the red circles here,
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也就是圖中的紅色圈圈裡
02:30
but somewhere某處 within this massive大規模的 flood洪水 plane平面.
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在這廣大沖積平原中的某處
02:32
This area is huge巨大 --
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這個區域非常的寬廣
02:34
it's four miles英里 by three miles英里 in size尺寸.
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長寬各為四英哩和三英哩
02:36
The Nile尼羅河 used to flow right next下一個 to the city of ItjtawyItjtawy,
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尼羅河曾流經伊塔威旁邊
02:39
and as it shifted and changed and moved移動 over time to the east,
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但後來改變了流向並往東移
02:43
it covered覆蓋 over the city.
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覆蓋了整座城市
02:45
So, how do you find a buried隱藏 city
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我們該如何在寬廣的平原中尋找一座埋藏在地底的城市呢?
02:48
in a vast廣大 landscape景觀?
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我們該如何在寬廣的平原中尋找一座埋藏在地底的城市呢?
02:51
Finding查找 it randomly隨機 would be the equivalent當量
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漫無目的的尋找只會像大海撈針一樣不切實際
02:53
of locating定位 a needle in a haystack草垛,
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漫無目的的尋找只會像大海撈針一樣不切實際
02:55
blindfolded蒙住眼睛 wearing穿著 baseball棒球 mitts手套.
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漫無目的的尋找只會像大海撈針一樣不切實際
02:58
So what we did is we used NASANASA topography地形 data數據
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因此我們採用太空總署的地形資料
03:02
to map地圖 out the landscape景觀, very subtle微妙 changes變化.
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繪出地表景物上極細微的變化
03:04
We started開始 to be able能夠 to see where the Nile尼羅河 used to flow.
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由此可見尼羅河曾經流過的地方
03:08
But you can see in more detail詳情 -- and even more interesting有趣 --
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你會發現更多的細節,更有趣的是
03:11
this very slight輕微 raised上調 area
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紅色圈圈中這個微微高起的區域
03:14
seen看到 within the circle up here, which哪一個 we thought could possibly或者 be
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很有可能是伊塔威的所在位置
03:16
the location位置 of the city of ItjtawyItjtawy.
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很有可能是伊塔威的所在位置
03:18
So we collaborated合作 with the Egyptian埃及人 scientists科學家們
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於是我們和埃及科學家合作
03:21
to do coring取心 work, which哪一個 you see here.
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進行岩層採樣,就像這張圖
03:24
When I say coring取心, it's like ice coring取心, but instead代替 of
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岩層採樣就像研究不同時期氣候變遷的冰層採樣
03:26
layers of climate氣候 change更改 you're looking for layers of human人的 occupation佔用.
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只是我們關注的是岩層中人類活動的遺跡
03:30
And five meters down,
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向下延伸五公尺
03:32
underneath a thick layer of mud,
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在厚厚的泥層下
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we found發現 a dense稠密 layer of pottery陶器.
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我們找到了一層布滿陶器的岩層
03:37
What this shows節目 is that at this possible可能 location位置
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這表示此地可能是伊塔威的所在位置
03:40
of ItjtawyItjtawy, five meters down,
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往地下延伸五公尺的地方
03:42
we have of layer of occupation佔用 for several一些 hundred years年份
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我們找到了這片藏有數百年前人類活動遺跡的岩層
03:45
dating約會 to the Middle中間 Kingdom王國, dating約會 to the exact精確 period of time
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時間可追溯到中王國時期,伊塔威存在的確切時間
03:47
we think ItjtawyItjtawy is.
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時間可追溯到中王國時期,伊塔威存在的確切時間
03:49
We also found發現 work stone --
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同時我們也找到了工藝石材
03:52
carnelian瑪瑙, quartz石英 and agate瑪瑙 that shows節目
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光玉隨、石英和瑪瑙
03:55
that there was a jewelers珠寶商 workshop作坊 here.
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顯示這裡曾經有一間珠寶工坊
03:57
These might威力 not look like much,
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這些石頭看上去或許不太相符
03:58
but when you think about the most common共同 stones石頭
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但想想中王國時期製造珠寶最常用的石材
04:01
used in jewelry首飾 from the Middle中間 Kingdom王國,
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但想想中王國時期製造珠寶最常用的石材
04:03
these are the stones石頭 that were used.
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這些石頭也包含其中
04:06
So, we have a dense稠密 layer of occupation佔用
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現在我們有了一片富藏人類遺跡的岩層
04:08
dating約會 to the Middle中間 Kingdom王國 at this site現場.
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它的年代追溯到了中王國時期
04:10
We also have evidence證據 of an elite原種 jewelers珠寶商 workshop作坊,
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我們也有證據顯示這裡曾有一間高檔的珠寶工坊
04:13
showing展示 that whatever隨你 was there was a very important重要 city.
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這表示,這裡曾經存在著一座非常重要的城市
04:17
No ItjtawyItjtawy was here yet然而,
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雖然目前伊塔威的遺址尚未完整考掘
04:18
but we're going to be returning回國 to the site現場
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但我們近期內將會回到那裏,並重現它的完整樣貌
04:20
in the near future未來 to map地圖 it out.
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但我們近期內將會回到那裏,並重現它的完整樣貌
04:23
And even more importantly重要的,
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更重要的是
04:25
we have funding資金 to train培養 young年輕 Egyptians埃及人
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我們募款訓練年輕的埃及人
04:27
in the use of satellite衛星 technology技術
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教他們如何利用衛星科技
04:29
so they can be the ones那些 making製造 great discoveries發現 as well.
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這樣他們也能成為探索偉大秘密的一員
04:33
So I wanted to end結束 with my favorite喜愛 quote引用
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最後,我想用我最愛的名言來為我的演講做結
04:36
from the Middle中間 Kingdom王國 --
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這句話來自古埃及中王國時代
04:38
it was probably大概 written書面 at the city of ItjtawyItjtawy four thousand years年份 ago.
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大約誕生於四千多年前的伊塔威
04:42
"Sharing分享 knowledge知識 is the greatest最大 of all callings呼召.
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"世上最偉大的使命莫過於與他人分享知識"
04:45
There's nothing like it in the land土地."
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"世上最偉大的使命莫過於與他人分享知識"
04:47
So as it turns out, TEDTED was not founded成立 in 1984 AD廣告.
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很顯然,TED不是在西元一九八四年時成立的
04:53
(Laughter笑聲)
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[ 笑聲 ]
04:55
Making製造 ideas思路 actually其實 started開始 in 1984 BC公元前
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西元前一九八四年的一座城市中,創造想法早已開始萌芽
05:01
at a not-lost-for-long不,永遠失去長 city, found發現 from above以上.
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而這座城市才消失不久,也被我們從空中找到了
05:04
It certainly當然 puts看跌期權 finding發現 seashells貝殼 by the seashore海濱 in perspective透視.
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它證明了在海邊撿貝殼的方法是可行的
05:08
Thank you very much.
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謝謝各位!
05:10
(Applause掌聲)
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[ 掌聲 ]
05:12
Thank you.
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謝謝!
05:13
(Applause掌聲)
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[ 掌聲 ]
Translated by Vivian Mig
Reviewed by June-Hao Hou

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Sarah Parcak - Satellite archaeologist + TED Prize winner
Like a modern-day Indiana Jones, Sarah Parcak uses satellite images to locate lost ancient sites. The winner of the 2016 TED Prize, her wish is to protect the world’s shared cultural heritage.

Why you should listen

There may be hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of undiscovered ancient sites across the globe. Sarah Parcak wants to locate them. As a space archaeologist, she analyzes high-resolution imagery collected by satellites in order to identify subtle changes to the Earth’s surface that might signal man-made features hidden from view. A TED Senior Fellow and a National Geographic Explorer, Parcak wrote the textbook on satellite archaeology and founded the Laboratory for Global Observation at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Her goal: to make the world's invisible history visible once again.

In Egypt, Parcak's techniques have helped locate 17 potential pyramids, and more than 3,100 potential forgotten settlements. She's also made discoveries in the Viking world (as seen in the PBS Nova special, Vikings Unearthed) and across the Roman Empire (as shown in the BBC documentary, Rome’s Lost Empire). Her methods also offer a new way to understand how ancient sites are being affected by looting and urban development. By satellite-mapping Egypt and comparing sites over time, Parcak has noted a 1,000 percent increase in looting since 2009. It’s likely that millions of dollars worth of artifacts are stolen each year. Parcak hopes that, through her work, unknown sites can be protected to preserve our rich, vibrant history.

As the winner of the 2016 TED Prize, Parcak asked the world to help in this important work. By building a citizen science platform for archaeology, GlobalXplorer.org, Parcak invites anyone with an internet connection to help find the next potential looting pit or unknown tomb. GlobalXplorer launched on January 30, 2017, with volunteers working together to map Peru. Other countries will follow, as the platform democratizes discovery and makes satellite-mapping rapid and cost-effective. 

 

More profile about the speaker
Sarah Parcak | Speaker | TED.com