ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Louise Leakey - Paleoanthropologist
Louise Leakey hunts for hominid fossils in East Africa, in the family tradition.

Why you should listen

Louise Leakey is the third generation of her family to dig for humanity's past in East Africa. In 2001, Leakey and her mother, Meave, found a previously unknown hominid, the 3.5-million-year-old Kenyanthropus platyops, at Lake Turkana -- the same region where her father, Richard, discovered the "Turkana Boy" fossil, and near Tanzania's Olduvai Gorge, where her grandparents, Louise and Mary Leakey, discovered the bones of Homo habilis.

In August 2007 Louise and Meave, both National Geographic Explorers-in-Residence, dug up new H. habilis bones that may rewrite humanity's evolutionary timeline. We imagine that we evolved from apes in an orderly progression from ape to hominid to human, but the Leakeys' find suggests that different species of pre-humans actually lived side by side at the same time for almost half a million years.

More profile about the speaker
Louise Leakey | Speaker | TED.com
TED2008

Louise Leakey: A dig for humanity's origins

人類起源的探究--Louise Leakey

Filmed:
808,496 views

Louise Leakey問道“我們是誰?”這個問題把帶到了東非大裂谷,她在那兒發掘人類的進化起源,並且提出了令人震驚的關於我們的祖先的新觀點。
- Paleoanthropologist
Louise Leakey hunts for hominid fossils in East Africa, in the family tradition. Full bio

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

00:18
Who are we?
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我們是誰?
00:20
That is the big question.
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這是一個很大的問題
00:22
And essentially實質上 we are just an upright-walking直立行走, big-brained大右腦,
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而實質上我們只是直立行走的,有更大大腦的
00:28
super-intelligent超級智能 ape.
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超級智能的大猩猩
00:30
This could be us.
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這就是我們
00:32
We belong屬於 to the family家庭 called the Hominidae人科.
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我們屬於名為“人科”的的家庭
00:35
We are the species種類 called Homo智人 sapiens智人 sapiens智人,
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我們是名為“智人”的物種
00:39
and it's important重要 to remember記得 that,
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並且記住那個很重要
00:41
in terms條款 of our place地點 in the world世界 today今天
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就我們在當今世界上所處的位置
00:44
and our future未來 on planet行星 Earth地球.
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和我們在地球的未來而言
00:47
We are one species種類
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我們是
00:51
of about five and a half thousand mammalian哺乳動物 species種類
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今天地球上所存在的
00:55
that exist存在 on planet行星 Earth地球 today今天.
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大約一千五百種哺乳動物之一
00:57
And that's just a tiny fraction分數 of all species種類
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而那只是曾經生存在這個星球上的所有物種的
01:00
that have ever lived生活 on the planet行星 in past過去 times.
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極其微小的一部份
01:04
We're one species種類 out of approximately,
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我們是
01:07
or let's say, at least最小 16 upright-walking直立行走 apes類人猿
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過去六百萬年到八百萬年存在過的
01:11
that have existed存在 over the past過去 six to eight million百萬 years年份.
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大約或者說至少16種直立行走的物種之一
01:14
But as far as we know, we're the only upright-walking直立行走 ape
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但就我們所知 我們是現今世界上所存的除了波诺波黑猿外
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that exists存在 on planet行星 Earth地球 today今天, except for the bonobos倭黑猩猩.
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唯一直立行走的物種
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And it's important重要 to remember記得 that,
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記住這個很重要
01:22
because the bonobos倭黑猩猩 are so human人的,
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因為波諾波黑猿太像人了
01:24
and they share分享 99 percent百分 of their genes基因 with us.
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他們與我們有99%相同的基因
01:29
And we share分享 our origins起源 with a handful少數 of the living活的 great apes類人猿.
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而且起源都是少數的居住类人猿
01:33
It's important重要 to remember記得 that we evolved進化.
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記住我們由猿進化而來
01:37
Now, I know that's a dirty word for some people,
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我知道那對於一些人來說很難聽
01:39
but we evolved進化 from common共同 ancestors祖先
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但我們是和大猩猩 黑猩猩 還有波諾波黑猿
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with the gorillas大猩猩, the chimpanzee黑猩猩 and also the bonobos倭黑猩猩.
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由共同的祖先進化而來的
01:54
We have a common共同 past過去, and we have a common共同 future未來.
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我們有共同的過去 而且我們有共同的未來
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And it is important重要 to remember記得 that all of these great apes類人猿
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所有這些偉大的物種都經歷過
02:03
have come on as long and as interesting有趣 evolutionary發展的 journey旅程
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像我們一樣的漫長而有趣的進化歷程
02:08
as we ourselves我們自己 have today今天.
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記住這些很重要
02:11
And it's this journey旅程 that is of such這樣 interest利益 to humanity人性,
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並且這對人類來說是一個很有意義的旅程
02:15
and it's this journey旅程 that has been the focus焦點
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這個旅程成爲了我家三代人
02:18
of the past過去 three generations of my family家庭,
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一直關注的焦點
02:21
as we've我們已經 been in East Africa非洲 looking for the fossil化石 remains遺跡
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我們一直在東非尋找我們祖先的動物化石
02:24
of our ancestors祖先 to try and piece together一起 our evolutionary發展的 past過去.
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試圖拼合我們的進化史
02:29
And this is how we look for them.
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我們是這樣尋找的
02:31
A group of dedicated專用 young年輕 men男人 and women婦女 walk步行 very slowly慢慢地
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一群具有獻身精神的年輕人
02:36
out across橫過 vast廣大 areas of Africa非洲,
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在廣袤的非洲地區緩慢行走
02:39
looking for small fragments片段 of bone, fossil化石 bone, that may可能 be on the surface表面.
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尋找可能在地表上的骨骼碎片化石
02:46
And that's an example of what we may可能 do as we walk步行 across橫過
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舉個例子
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the landscape景觀 in Northern北方 Kenya肯尼亞, looking for fossils化石.
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我們在肯尼亞北部尋找化石時
02:53
I doubt懷疑 many許多 of you in the audience聽眾 can see
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我不確定你們觀眾是否能看到
02:56
the fossil化石 that's in this picture圖片,
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圖片中的化石
02:59
but if you look very carefully小心, there is a jaw, a lower降低 jaw,
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但是如果你仔細看的話 這兒有個
03:02
of a 4.1-million-year-old-million歲 upright-walking直立行走 ape
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410萬年歷史的直立行走的動物的下顎
03:05
as it was found發現 at Lake Turkana圖爾卡納 on the west西 side.
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在西部的圖爾卡納湖發現的
03:09
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
03:12
It's extremely非常 time-consuming耗時的, labor-intensive勞動密集型
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這個工作很花時間 勞動量很大
03:15
and it is something that is going to involve涉及 a lot more people,
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當拼合歷史時
03:19
to begin開始 to piece together一起 our past過去.
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會涉及更多的人
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We still really haven't沒有 got a very complete完成 picture圖片 of it.
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我們仍然沒有得到全貌
03:25
When we find a fossil化石, we mark標記 it.
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當我們找到化石時 做好標記
03:29
Today今天, we've我們已經 got great technology技術: we have GPS全球定位系統.
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今天我們有先進的技術 有GPS(全球定位系統)
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We mark標記 it with a GPS全球定位系統 fix固定,
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我們用GPS定位做標記
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and we also take a digital數字 photograph照片 of the specimen標本,
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還給標本拍數碼照片
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so we could essentially實質上 put it back on the surface表面,
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以便基本上能夠把標本還原在地表上
03:41
exactly究竟 where we found發現 it.
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就在我們發掘到的地方
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And we can bring帶來 all this information信息 into big GISGIS packages, today今天.
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如今我們還能把信息放入GIS(地理信息系統)軟件里
03:47
When we then find something very important重要,
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當我們發現重要的東西時
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like the bones骨頭 of a human人的 ancestor祖先,
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比如人類祖先的骨骼
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we begin開始 to excavate挖掘 it extremely非常 carefully小心 and slowly慢慢地,
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就開始用牙籤和漆刷
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using運用 dental牙齒 picks精選 and fine paintbrushes油畫刷.
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小心緩慢的挖掘
04:00
And all the sediment沉澱 is then put through通過 these screens屏幕,
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並且所有的沉澱物都要經過篩子過濾
04:03
and where we go again through通過 it very carefully小心,
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還會很小心的再過濾
04:05
looking for small bone fragments片段, and it's then washed.
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尋找曉得骨骼碎片 然後清洗
04:09
And these things are so exciting扣人心弦. They are so often經常 the only,
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這些事情令人興奮
04:13
or the very first time that anybody任何人 has ever seen看到 the remains遺跡.
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這是他們面世
04:18
And here's這裡的 a very special特別 moment時刻, when my mother母親 and myself
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這是我母親和我挖掘
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were digging挖掘 up some remains遺跡 of human人的 ancestors祖先.
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人類祖先遺骨的特殊時刻
04:27
And it is one of the most special特別 things
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這是跟母親一起做的
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to ever do with your mother母親.
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最特殊的事情之一
04:31
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
04:35
Not many許多 people can say that.
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不是所有人都能這樣
04:38
But now, let me take you back to Africa非洲, two million百萬 years年份 ago.
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現在 讓我帶你去兩百萬年前的非洲
04:44
I'd just like to point out, if you look at the map地圖 of Africa非洲,
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我聲明一下 你看到的非洲地圖
04:49
it does actually其實 look like a hominid原始人 skull頭骨 in its shape形狀.
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確實形似古人類頭骨
04:58
Now we're going to go to the East African非洲人 and the Rift裂痕 Valley.
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現在我們去東非和大裂谷
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It essentially實質上 runs運行 up from the Gulf海灣 of Aden亞丁,
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起於亞丁灣
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or runs運行 down to Lake Malawi馬拉維.
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延伸到馬拉維湖
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And the Rift裂痕 Valley is a depression蕭條.
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大裂谷是一個凹地是一個盆地
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It's a basin盆地, and rivers河流 flow down from the highlands高地 into the basin盆地,
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河流帶著沉澱物從高地流入盆地
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carrying攜帶 sediment沉澱, preserving the bones骨頭 of animals動物 that lived生活 there.
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保存著曾經生活在那兒的動物的遺骨
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If you want to become成為 a fossil化石, you actually其實 need to die somewhere某處
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如果要變成化石 你要在你的骨骼能夠
05:26
where your bones骨頭 will be rapidly急速 buried隱藏.
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迅速被掩埋的地方死亡
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You then hope希望 that the earth地球 moves移動 in such這樣 a way
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然後期待土壤移動
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as to bring帶來 the bones骨頭 back up to the surface表面.
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能把你的骨骼帶回地表
05:33
And then you hope希望 that one of us lot
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然後期待我們中的一員能夠
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will walk步行 around and find small pieces of you.
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在這兒饒走 找到你的一些碎片
05:39
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
05:40
OK, so it is absolutely絕對 surprising奇怪 that we know as much
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好了 現在能知道這麼多關於我們祖先的事情
05:43
as we do know today今天 about our ancestors祖先,
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相當讓人驚訝
05:46
because it's incredibly令人難以置信 difficult,
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因為這些太難了
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A, for these things to become成為 -- to be -- preserved罐頭,
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首先 這些東西要被保藏
05:51
and secondly其次, for them to have been brought back up to the surface表面.
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其次 要被帶回地表
05:54
And we really have only spent花費 50 years年份 looking for these remains遺跡,
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我們花費了五十年尋找這些遺物
05:59
and begin開始 to actually其實 piece together一起 our evolutionary發展的 story故事.
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然後開始拼合我們的進化史
06:02
So, let's go to Lake Turkana圖爾卡納, which哪一個 is one such這樣 lake basin盆地
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讓我們去圖爾卡納湖 一個湖泊盆地
06:07
in the very north of our country國家, Kenya肯尼亞.
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在我的祖國肯尼亞的北部
06:09
And if you look north here, there's a big river that flows流動 into the lake
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如果你向北看 有一條大河流入這個湖
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that's been carrying攜帶 sediment沉澱 and preserving the remains遺跡
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帶著曾經在這兒生活過的動物的
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of the animals動物 that lived生活 there.
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沉澱物和保藏的遺骨
06:18
Fossil化石 sites網站 run up and down both lengths長度 of that lake basin盆地,
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化石遺址就是這個湖泊盆地
06:22
which哪一個 represents代表 some 20,000 square廣場 miles英里.
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也就是大約20,000平方英里
06:27
That's a huge巨大 job工作 that we've我們已經 got on our hands.
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這是我們手頭的巨大的工作
06:29
Two million百萬 years年份 ago at Lake Turkana圖爾卡納,
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在兩百萬年前的圖爾卡納湖
06:33
Homo智人 erectus直立人, one of our human人的 ancestors祖先,
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我們的祖先之一 直立猿人
06:36
actually其實 lived生活 in this region地區.
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居住在這個地區
06:38
You can see some of the major重大的 fossil化石 sites網站 that we've我們已經 been working加工
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你能看到我們在北面工作的主要的化石遺址的一部份
06:41
in the north. But, essentially實質上, two million百萬 years年份 ago,
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但事實上 兩百萬年前
06:46
Homo智人 erectus直立人, up in the far right corner,
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直立猿人 和另外三種人類的祖先
06:49
lived生活 alongside並肩 three other species種類 of human人的 ancestor祖先.
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居住在遠處的右上角
06:57
And here is a skull頭骨 of a Homo智人 erectus直立人,
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這是一個直立猿人的頭蓋骨
07:00
which哪一個 I just pulled off the shelf there.
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我剛從架子上拿下的
07:02
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
07:06
But it is not to say that being存在 a single species種類 on planet行星 Earth地球 is the norm規範.
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但不是說只有這一個物種
07:12
In fact事實, if you go back in time,
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事實上 如果你回到從前
07:14
it is the norm規範 that there are multiple species種類 of hominids原始人
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有多種原始人類或者人類祖先
07:19
or of human人的 ancestors祖先 that coexist共存 at any one time.
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在同一時間共存
07:21
Where did these things come from?
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他們來源於哪兒呢?
07:24
That's what we're still trying to find answers答案 to,
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那就是我們一直試圖尋找的答案
07:27
and it is important重要 to realize實現 that there is diversity多樣
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意識到所有不同物種之間有差異性
07:31
in all different不同 species種類, and our ancestors祖先 are no exception例外.
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我們的祖先也不例外 是很重要的
07:37
Here's這裡的 some reconstructions重建 of some of the fossils化石
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這是在圖爾卡納湖發掘的
07:43
that have been found發現 from Lake Turkana圖爾卡納.
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一些化石的復原
07:46
But I was very lucky幸運 to have been brought up in Kenya肯尼亞,
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很幸運我在肯尼亞長大
07:49
essentially實質上 accompanying隨同 my parents父母 to Lake Turkana圖爾卡納
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陪同我父母去圖爾卡納湖
07:53
in search搜索 of human人的 remains遺跡.
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搜尋人類遺物
07:55
And we were able能夠 to dig up, when we got old enough足夠,
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當我們年齡足夠大時 我們能夠挖掘化石
07:58
fossils化石 such這樣 as this, a slender-snouted細長,snouted crocodile鱷魚.
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像這樣的一個狹吻鱷魚
08:03
And we dug up giant巨人 tortoises, and elephants大象 and things like that.
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挖掘大象龜 大象那樣的東西
08:07
But when I was 12, as I was in this picture圖片,
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但當我十二歲時 正如在圖片里那樣
08:09
a very exciting扣人心弦 expedition遠征 was in place地點 on the west西 side,
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在西部一次令人激動的探險
08:13
when they found發現 essentially實質上 the skeleton骨架 of this Homo智人 erectus直立人.
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當他們發現直立猿人的骨骼時
08:20
I could relate涉及 to this Homo智人 erectus直立人 skeleton骨架 very well,
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我對這個骨架記憶猶新
08:24
because I was the same相同 age年齡 that he was when he died死亡.
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因為我當時跟他死去時的年齡一樣大
08:30
And I imagined想像 him to be tall, dark-skinned皮膚黝黑的.
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而且我想像他很高 深色皮膚
08:34
His brothers兄弟 certainly當然 were able能夠 to run long distances距離
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他的兄弟當然能跑很遠捕獵
08:39
chasing prey獵物, probably大概 sweating出汗 heavily嚴重 as they did so.
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可能汗流浹背
08:42
He was very able能夠 to use stones石頭 effectively有效 as tools工具.
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他也能使用石頭作為工具
08:47
And this individual個人 himself他自己, this one that I'm holding保持 up here,
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而他自己 我要說
08:51
actually其實 had a bad back. He'd他會 probably大概 had an injury as a child兒童.
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實際上很不幸 可能小孩時受過傷
08:56
He had a scoliosis脊柱側彎 and therefore因此 must必須 have been looked看著 after
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他脊椎側凸
09:00
quite相當 carefully小心 by other female, and probably大概 much smaller,
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必須被其他女性小心地照顧
09:04
members會員 of his family家庭 group, to have got to where he did in life, age年齡 12.
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他可能是家裡較小的成員 才12歲
09:10
Unfortunately不幸 for him, he fell下跌 into a swamp沼澤
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很不幸的是他陷入沼澤
09:13
and couldn't不能 get out.
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不能出來
09:15
Essentially實質上, his bones骨頭 were rapidly急速 buried隱藏
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他的骨骼被掩埋
09:18
and beautifully精美 preserved罐頭.
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而且保存地很完整
09:20
And he remained保持 there until直到 1.6 million百萬 years年份 later後來,
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一直在那兒直到160萬年後
09:25
when this very famous著名 fossil化石 hunter獵人, KamoyaKamoya KimeuKimeu,
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當著名的化石發掘者Kamoya Kimeu
09:29
walked along沿 a small hillside山坡
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沿著小坡走過時
09:32
and found發現 that small piece of his skull頭骨 lying說謊 on the surface表面
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發現地表上在卵石中間他的頭蓋骨碎片
09:36
amongst其中包括 the pebbles卵石, recognized認可 it as being存在 hominid原始人.
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認出了這是原始人類
09:42
It's actually其實 this little piece up here on the top最佳.
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這是頂部的小碎片
09:44
Well, an excavation挖掘 was begun開始 immediately立即,
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發掘即刻開始
09:48
and more and more little bits of skull頭骨
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越來越多的頭蓋骨碎片
09:50
started開始 to be extracted提取 from the sediment沉澱.
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從沉澱物種被發掘出來
09:54
And what was so fun開玩笑 about it was this:
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有趣的是
09:56
the skull頭骨 pieces got closer接近 and closer接近 to the roots of the tree,
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頭蓋骨碎片越來越接近樹根
10:02
and fairly相當 recently最近 the tree had grown長大的 up,
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樹最近長大了
10:04
but it had found發現 that the skull頭骨 had captured捕獲 nice不錯 water in the hillside山坡,
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但發現頭蓋骨獲取山坡的水分
10:09
and so it had decided決定 to grow增長 its roots in and around this,
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所以樹根就長在了這裡面和周圍
10:12
holding保持 it in place地點 and preventing防止 it from washing洗滌 away down the slope.
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樹根抓著頭蓋骨 避免了頭蓋骨被沖下土坡
10:17
We began開始 to find limb bones骨頭; we found發現 finger手指 bones骨頭,
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我們找到了肢干骨頭 指骨
10:22
the bones骨頭 of the pelvis骨盆, vertebrae椎骨, ribs肋骨, the collar bones骨頭,
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盆骨 脊椎 肋骨 鎖骨
10:25
things that had never, ever been seen看到 before in Homo智人 erectus直立人.
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之前從來沒見過這樣的直立猿人
10:30
It was truly exciting扣人心弦.
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相當讓人興奮
10:32
He had a body身體 very similar類似 to our own擁有,
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他的身體跟我們很像
10:37
and he was on the threshold of becoming變得 human人的.
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他處於進化為人類的起點
10:41
Well, shortly不久 afterwards之後, members會員 of his species種類
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後來 他的同類
10:45
started開始 to move移動 northwards向北 out of Africa非洲,
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開始從北部走出非洲
10:48
and you start開始 to see fossils化石 of Homo智人 erectus直立人
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你開始在佐治亞 中國 印度尼西亞部份地區
10:51
in Georgia格魯吉亞, China中國 and also in parts部分 of Indonesia印度尼西亞.
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看到直立猿人化石
10:57
So, Homo智人 erectus直立人 was the first human人的 ancestor祖先 to leave離開 Africa非洲
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所以 直立猿人是第一個走出非洲的人類祖先
11:02
and begin開始 its spread傳播 across橫過 the globe地球.
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然後開始遍佈全球
11:04
Some exciting扣人心弦 finds認定, again, as I mentioned提到,
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正如我提到的 一些令人興奮的發現
11:09
from Dmanisi德馬尼西, in the Republic共和國 of Georgia格魯吉亞.
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來自格魯吉亞的馬尼西的
11:12
But also, surprising奇怪 finds認定
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也是令人驚訝的發現
11:14
recently最近 announced公佈 from the Island of Flores弗洛雷斯 in Indonesia印度尼西亞,
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最近宣佈 在印度尼西亞的佛咯勒斯島
11:17
where a group of these human人的 ancestors祖先 have been isolated孤立,
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一組被隔離的人類祖先
11:22
and have become成為 dwarfed所繪, and they're only about a meter儀表 in height高度.
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成為侏儒 他們大約只有一米高
11:26
But they lived生活 only 18,000 years年份 ago,
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他們只生存於18,000年前
11:30
and that is truly extraordinary非凡 to think about.
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這個很值得我們研究
11:33
Just to put this in terms條款 of generations,
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就世代而言
11:36
because people do find it hard to think of time,
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因為記時間比較難
11:38
Homo智人 erectus直立人 left Africa非洲 90,000 generations ago.
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直立猿人在90,000代以前離開非洲
11:43
We evolved進化 essentially實質上 from an African非洲人 stock股票.
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我們都從非洲血統進化而來
11:46
Again, at about 200,000 years年份 as a fully-fledged羽翼豐滿 us.
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我們經歷了20萬年才成熟
11:51
And we only left Africa非洲 about 70,000 years年份 ago.
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我們離開非洲只有7萬年
11:55
And until直到 30,000 years年份 ago, at least最小 three upright-walking直立行走 apes類人猿
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並且直到3萬年前
12:00
shared共享 the planet行星 Earth地球.
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至少三個直立行走的物種存在於地球
12:02
The question now is, well, who are we?
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問題現在是 我們是誰?
12:05
We're certainly當然 a polluting污染, wasteful浪費, aggressive侵略性 species種類,
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我們當然是污染環境 浪費資源 好鬥的物種
12:10
with a few少數 nice不錯 things thrown拋出 in, perhaps也許.
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可能還夾雜著一些好品質
12:13
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
12:14
For the most part部分, we're not particularly尤其 pleasant愉快 at all.
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對於大部份人來說 我們不是特別滿意
12:20
We have a much larger brain than our ape ancestors祖先.
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我們有比猿類祖先更大的大腦
12:23
Is this a good evolutionary發展的 adaptation適應, or is it going to lead us
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這是好的適應性進化
12:29
to being存在 the shortest-lived壽命最短 hominid原始人 species種類 on planet行星 Earth地球?
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或者這將導致我們成為地球上最短暫存在的人種?
12:34
And what is it that really makes品牌 us us?
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到底是什麽造就了我們?
12:37
I think it's our collective集體 intelligence情報.
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我認為是我們的集體智慧
12:39
It's our ability能力 to write things down,
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是我們記錄事情的能力
12:42
our language語言 and our consciousness意識.
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我們的語言 我們的意識
12:44
From very primitive原始 beginnings開始, with a very crude原油 tool工具 kit套件 of stones石頭,
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最原始的開始我們有石頭工具
12:51
we now have a very advanced高級 tool工具 kit套件, and our tool工具 use
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現在我們有先進的工具
12:56
has really reached到達 unprecedented史無前例 levels水平:
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而且工具的使用達到了空前的水平
12:59
we've我們已經 got buggies越野車 to Mars火星; we've我們已經 mapped映射 the human人的 genome基因組;
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我們能到達火星 也繪製出了人類基因
13:03
and recently最近 even created創建 synthetic合成的 life, thanks謝謝 to Craig克雷格 Venter腹部.
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最近甚至創造了人造生命 歸功于Craig Venter
13:07
And we've我們已經 also managed管理 to communicate通信 with people
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而且我們也能夠
13:11
all over the world世界, from extraordinary非凡 places地方.
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在全世界範圍交流通訊
13:14
Even from within an excavation挖掘 in northern北方 Kenya肯尼亞,
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即使在肯尼亞北部的遺跡洞穴
13:18
we can talk to people about what we're doing.
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我們也能告訴人們我們在做什麽
13:20
As Al Gore血塊 so clearly明確地 has reminded提醒 us,
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Al Gore清楚地提醒了我們
13:24
we have reached到達 extraordinary非凡 numbers數字
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我們在這個星球上
13:28
of people on this planet行星.
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有太多的人口
13:30
Human人的 ancestors祖先 really only survive生存 on planet行星 Earth地球,
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人類祖先確實只存在于地球
13:33
if you look at the fossil化石 record記錄,
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如果你看化石記錄
13:35
for about, on average平均, a million百萬 years年份 at a time.
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平均存活大約一百萬年
13:38
We've我們已經 only been around for the past過去 200,000 years年份 as a species種類,
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我們只是200,000年來的一個物種
13:42
yet然而 we've我們已經 reached到達 a population人口 of more than six and a half billion十億 people.
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而現在人口已經超過六十五億
13:47
And last year, our population人口 grew成長 by 80 million百萬.
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去年人口增長了八千萬
13:50
I mean, these are extraordinary非凡 numbers數字.
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我的意思是說這些數字特別龐大
13:53
You can see here, again, taken採取 from Al Gore's戈爾的 book.
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再看看這兒 從AI Gore的書中摘取的
13:58
But what's happened發生 is our technology技術
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但是我們技術的改變已經
14:00
has removed去除 the checks檢查 and balances結餘 on our population人口 growth發展.
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失去了隊人口增長的約束和平衡
14:05
We have to control控制 our numbers數字, and I think this is as important重要
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我們不得不控制人口數量
14:09
as anything else其他 that's being存在 doneDONE in the world世界 today今天.
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這跟世界上其他任何所做的事情一樣重要
14:11
But we have to control控制 our numbers數字,
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不得不控制人口數
14:13
because we can't really hold保持 it together一起 as a species種類.
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因為我們作為一個物種不能團結在一起
14:18
My father父親 so appropriately適當 put it,
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我父親適當地指出
14:21
that "We are certainly當然 the only animal動物 that makes品牌 conscious意識 choices選擇
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我們是唯一能夠有意識的做出
14:25
that are bad for our survival生存 as a species種類."
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不利於自身生存的選擇的物種
14:27
Can we hold保持 it together一起?
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我們能夠團結嗎?
14:33
It's important重要 to remember記得 that we all evolved進化 in Africa非洲.
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記住我們在非洲演變很重要
14:37
We all have an African非洲人 origin起源.
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我們都起源於非洲
14:41
We have a common共同 past過去 and we share分享 a common共同 future未來.
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我們有共同的過去和未來
14:45
Evolutionarily進化 speaking請講, we're just a blip曇花一現.
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進化學上講 我們只是一個標誌
14:49
We're sitting坐在 on the edge邊緣 of a precipice懸崖,
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我們處在斷崖的邊緣
14:52
and we have the tools工具 and the technology技術 at our hands
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手中有工具和技術
14:59
to communicate通信 what needs需求 to be doneDONE
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團結一致
15:01
to hold保持 it together一起 today今天.
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互相交流需要做什麽
15:05
We could tell every一切 single human人的 being存在 out there, if we really wanted to.
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如果願意我們能告訴在那兒的每個人
15:08
But will we do that, or will we just let nature性質 take its course課程?
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但我們會那樣做 或者我們只是順其自然?
15:15
Well, to end結束 on a very positive note注意,
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好了 做個樂觀的總結
15:18
I think evolutionarily進化 speaking請講,
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我想進化學角度講
15:20
this is probably大概 a fairly相當 good thing, in the end結束.
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這最終可能是一件相當好的事情
15:23
I'll leave離開 it at that, thank you very much.
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就講到這裡 非常感謝
15:25
(Applause掌聲)
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(掌聲)
Translated by du kai
Reviewed by Shelley Krishna R. TSANG

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Louise Leakey - Paleoanthropologist
Louise Leakey hunts for hominid fossils in East Africa, in the family tradition.

Why you should listen

Louise Leakey is the third generation of her family to dig for humanity's past in East Africa. In 2001, Leakey and her mother, Meave, found a previously unknown hominid, the 3.5-million-year-old Kenyanthropus platyops, at Lake Turkana -- the same region where her father, Richard, discovered the "Turkana Boy" fossil, and near Tanzania's Olduvai Gorge, where her grandparents, Louise and Mary Leakey, discovered the bones of Homo habilis.

In August 2007 Louise and Meave, both National Geographic Explorers-in-Residence, dug up new H. habilis bones that may rewrite humanity's evolutionary timeline. We imagine that we evolved from apes in an orderly progression from ape to hominid to human, but the Leakeys' find suggests that different species of pre-humans actually lived side by side at the same time for almost half a million years.

More profile about the speaker
Louise Leakey | Speaker | TED.com