ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Keith Bellows - Traveler
On the heels of a long and bruising camel ride, Keith Bellows became fascinated with the "SUV of the sand," and with the many thorny aspects of their personalities (and mating habits) most of us would rather not dwell upon.

Why you should listen

As the former editor of National Geographic Traveler, Keith Bellows stepped away from the human aspects of travel for a moment to present one of his other fascinations: animal design. And not just the beautiful, photogenic aspects of that design either. After a harrowing breakdown in the Sahara with one water bottle to share among four people, Bellows was forced to make a rendezvous via camel ride, and became certain that this animal was, in addition to being a "mean son-of-a-bitch," the most perfectly designed creature on Earth.

Convinced by the organizers that bringing a live camel to the TED Conference was not a wise idea, Bellows did the next best thing, and drafted a National Geographic film crew to go to the Washington Zoo. They returned with a film of Suki, a 2,000-pound creature in the midst of rut, with shocking capabilities lurking in his spinning tail and rear-facing genitalia, all gleefully outlined in the film. But though this creature may seem unsavory, he's perfectly adapted to survival in the harshest environments around, and critical to the survival of the nomads that call the desert home.

 

More profile about the speaker
Keith Bellows | Speaker | TED.com
TED2002

Keith Bellows: The camel's hump

Keith Bellows在駱駝峰上

Filmed:
215,303 views

Keith Bellows高興地講述駱駝設計的神奇,他稱這種極其重要的生物是"沙漠的越野車",雖然他不能帶一隻活生生的駱駝來TED,但他帶了他的攝影團隊與一隻處於發情期的駱駝來了一次親密接觸!
- Traveler
On the heels of a long and bruising camel ride, Keith Bellows became fascinated with the "SUV of the sand," and with the many thorny aspects of their personalities (and mating habits) most of us would rather not dwell upon. Full bio

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

00:17
[SHIT拉屎]
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00:19
This is arguably按理說 the back end結束 of the design設計 of animals動物.
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這被認為是動物的最終產物。
00:22
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
00:25
But the reason原因 I put this up here is because
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但我把這個字寫上來的原因是
00:28
when I was in Africa非洲 last year, my wife妻子 and I were driving主動 around,
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我去年在非洲和妻子開著車閒晃的時候
00:32
we had this wonderful精彩 guide指南,
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遇到一個很棒的導遊
00:34
who showed顯示 us something that surprised詫異 both of us,
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他給我們看了個讓我們倆都很驚奇的東西,
00:38
and it was very revealing揭示 in terms條款 of the fascination魅力
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而這以動物創造物之魅力的角度來看
00:41
that comes with the design設計 of animals動物.
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是非常具有啟發性的。
00:43
It turns out that in about the 1880s, the missionaries傳教士 came來了 to Africa非洲
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1880年代左右,傳教士來到非洲
00:47
to spread傳播 the word of Christianity基督教,
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宣傳基督教、
00:49
to teach English英語 to the natives當地人.
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教原住民英文。
00:51
And they brought blackboards黑板 and chalk粉筆.
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他們帶來了黑板和粉筆。
00:53
And I'd like you to imagine想像 that that's a blackboard黑板,
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我希望你們想像這是塊黑板,
00:55
and I just used some chalk粉筆 on there.
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而我剛剛用了粉筆寫字。
00:58
And they brought quite相當 a bit of this stuff東東.
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他們帶了蠻多這些東西的。
01:00
But over the years年份, the blackboards黑板 were fine,
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但經過幾年以後黑板還很好,
01:03
but they ran out of chalk粉筆.
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但粉筆不夠了。
01:05
And this is a real真實 crisis危機 for them.
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對他們來說這是個危機。
01:08
And that's where the hyena鬣狗 comes in.
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這是土狼起作用的時候。
01:11
The hyena鬣狗 is probably大概 the most perfectly完美 designed設計
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土狼大概是這世界上腐肉動物中
01:13
scavenging清除 animal動物 in the world世界.
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設計得最完美的。
01:15
It strip-mines帶狀地雷 carcasses屍體, and it has amazing驚人 teeth,
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牠們攫食動物屍體
01:19
because it enables使 the hyena鬣狗 to essentially實質上 eat bones骨頭.
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且擁有讓牠們可以吃骨頭的驚人牙齒。
01:24
Now, the end結束 product產品 of that action行動 is up on the board here.
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現在,上述動作的最終產物在這個板子上。
01:30
And what the missionaries傳教士 would do is, they'd他們會 walk步行 around
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這些傳教士會到處走
01:34
and they'd他們會 pick up hyena鬣狗 shit拉屎.
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並撿起土狼糞。
01:37
And the incredible難以置信 thing about hyena鬣狗 shit拉屎 is, it makes品牌 great chalk粉筆.
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土狼糞最驚奇的部分是:它是很棒的粉筆。
01:41
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
01:42
Now, that's not what I'm here to talk about,
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這不是我來這要講的東西,
01:44
but it is a fascinating迷人 aspect方面 of animal動物 design設計.
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但這的確是動物設計中令人著迷的一面。
01:48
What I'm here to talk about is the camel駱駝.
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我是來講駱駝的。
01:51
When I started開始 talking to Richard理查德
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我剛開始跟理察說
01:53
about what I was going to speak說話 about,
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我要來這講什麼的時候,
01:55
I had recently最近 come back from Jordan約旦,
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我剛從約旦回來
01:57
where I had an amazing驚人 experience經驗 with a camel駱駝.
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在那我跟駱駝有一段驚奇的經驗。
02:01
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
02:04
And we were in the desert沙漠 --
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我們那時在沙漠中。
02:06
Richard理查德 Wurman沃爾曼: That's the end結束 of this talk!
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理察沃爾曼:這個演說就結束了!
02:07
Keith基思 Bellows風箱: Yeah, yeah.
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Keith Bellows:是啊是啊。
02:08
We were in the desert沙漠, in Wadi河道 Rum朗姆酒, in a small Jeep吉普車.
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我們開著吉普車在瓦迪拉姆的沙漠上。
02:11
There were four of us -- two Bedouin貝都因人 drivers司機 --
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我們有四個人,其中兩個是貝多因司機。
02:14
and you can just imagine想像, this expanse廣闊 is an ocean海洋 of sand,
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然後你可以想像,這個沙海
02:18
105 degrees, one water bottle瓶子.
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華氏105度、只有一個水壺。
02:21
And we were driving主動 in what they told us
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我們坐在一輛他們說是他們
02:24
was their very, very best最好 Jeep吉普車. Didn't look like it to me.
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最好最好的吉普車。我看起來不怎麼像。
02:28
And as we started開始 to go through通過 the desert沙漠, the Jeep吉普車 broke打破 down.
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就當我們正在穿越沙漠時,吉普車故障了。
02:34
The guys got out, they put the hood引擎罩 up,
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這些人出去,把敞篷架起來,
02:36
they started開始 working加工 under the hood引擎罩,
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在敞篷下面修理車子,
02:38
got it going again. About a hundred yards, it broke打破 down.
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車子修好了,大約一百碼後車子又故障了。
02:40
This went on about six or seven times,
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上述狀況重複了六或七次,
02:42
and we were getting得到 more and more alarmed驚慌,
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我們越來越不安,
02:44
and we were also getting得到 deeper更深 and deeper更深 into the desert沙漠.
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且我們正往沙漠越來越深處開去。
02:46
And eventually終於, our worst最差 nightmare惡夢 happened發生:
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最後,我們最糟的惡夢發生了:
02:49
they flooded the engine發動機.
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引擎熄火了。
02:51
And they said, "Ah, no problem問題! We just get out and walk步行."
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然後他們說:「啊,沒問題!我們出去用走的。」
02:55
And we said, "We get out and walk步行?"
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我們說:「我們出去用走的?」
02:57
One water bottle瓶子 -- remember記得, guys -- four people.
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一個水壺,記得嗎,有四個人。
02:59
And they said, "Yeah, yeah, we'll walk步行. We'll find some camels駱駝."
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他們說:「是啊是啊,我們用走的。我們會找到一些駱駝的。」
03:03
So we got out and walked, and sure enough足夠,
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所以我們出去用走的,然後真的
03:05
about half a mile英里, we came來了 over the crest波峰 of this hill爬坡道,
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大約走了半哩路後,我們走過峰頂,
03:07
and there was a huge巨大 gathering蒐集 of Bedouin貝都因人 with their camels駱駝.
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看到一大群貝多因人和他們的駱駝。
03:10
The guy went up and started開始 dickeringdickering,
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這個人走上去跟他們討價還價,
03:12
and 10 dollars美元 later後來, we had four camels駱駝.
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付了十塊錢後我們有了四頭駱駝。
03:15
They went down like elevators電梯; we got on them. They went back up,
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牠們像電梯般蹲下,我們坐上去。牠們站起來,
03:18
and the Bedouin貝都因人 -- each Bedouin貝都因人, four of them --
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然後那些貝多因人,每一個貝多因人,總共四個,
03:21
got behind背後 each of the camels駱駝 with a little whip鞭子.
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各帶了一條小鞭子來到駱駝後面。
03:24
And they started開始 slashing削減 away at the back of the camels駱駝,
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然後他們開始鞭打駱駝後面,
03:27
and they started開始 galloping舞動.
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駱駝就開始奔跑。
03:28
And if you've ever been on a camel駱駝,
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如果你有騎過駱駝就會知道
03:29
it is a very, very uncomfortable不舒服 ride.
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那是非常非常不舒服的。
03:32
There's also one other aspect方面 about these camels駱駝.
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還有另一點是
03:35
About every一切 10 steps腳步, they lean back
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大約每十步,駱駝會往後傾
03:37
and try to take a chunk out of your leg.
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試圖在你腿上咬一口。
03:39
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
03:40
So we kept不停 on going,
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我們繼續走,
03:42
and this camel駱駝 kept不停 on trying to take a chunk out of my leg.
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這些駱駝繼續試圖咬我們的腿。
03:45
And eventually終於, three miles英里 later後來, we arrived到達 at our destination目的地,
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最後,三哩路後,我們到達目的地,
03:48
where a Jeep吉普車 was supposed應該 to meet遇到 us.
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理論上會有一台吉普車在那等我們。
03:50
And the camels駱駝 come down again like elevators電梯,
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駱駝再次像電梯般蹲下,
03:52
we sort分類 of clumsily笨拙 get off,
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我們七手八腳的下來,
03:54
and they -- obviously明顯 -- try to take another另一個 chunk out of my leg.
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牠們,當然的,試圖在我們腿上咬一口。
03:57
And I've developed發達 a very wonderful精彩 relationship關係
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到這個時候
04:00
with this creature生物 by this point,
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我已經跟這生物有了不錯的關係,
04:02
and I've realized實現 that this is a mean son兒子 of a bitch婊子.
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我了解到這真是個可惡的爛東西。
04:06
And much meaner寡情, by the way, than the Bedouin貝都因人 who greeted歡迎 me
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比接待我們的貝多因人還可惡
04:09
and tried試著 to sell me one of his 26 daughters女兒
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這個貝多因人還試圖賣給我他26個女兒中的一個
04:12
to take back to the States狀態.
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帶回美國。
04:14
So as we talked, Richard理查德 and I,
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所以理查和我聊了一下,
04:16
I said, "You know, maybe I should bring帶來 a camel駱駝.
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我說:「或許我應該帶一頭駱駝來。
04:18
I think the camel駱駝 is the best最好 designed設計 animal動物 in the world世界."
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我認為駱駝是這世上設計得最好的動物。」
04:20
And he kind of went, "Nah. I don't think we want to be bringing使 a camel駱駝."
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然後他大概說:「不了。我覺得我們不想要帶一頭駱駝。」
04:23
And you should be really glad高興 we decided決定 not to bring帶來 the camel駱駝.
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你應該要非常慶幸我們沒有帶駱駝來。
04:26
So I did the next下一個 best最好 thing.
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所以我做了下一個可行的事,
04:29
I went to the Washington華盛頓 Zoo動物園. Richard理查德 said,
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我去了華盛頓動物園。理查說:
04:32
"I want you to get up close and personal個人 with this camel駱駝.
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「我要你非常接近這隻駱駝。
04:35
I want you to inspect檢查 its mouth, look at its teeth.
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我要你檢查牠的嘴巴、看看牠的牙齒。
04:38
Go underneath it. Go above以上 it. Go around it.
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到牠下面、到牠上面、在牠四周晃晃。
04:41
Pull its tail尾巴 up; take a look in there.
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拉牠的尾巴、看看裡面有什麼。
04:44
I want you to get as close to that camel駱駝 as you possibly或者 can."
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我要你盡你所能的靠近這頭駱駝。」
04:47
So, I got a National國民 Geographic地理 film電影 crew船員. We went down there,
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所以我邀請了國家地理雜誌的攝影團隊。我們去了那裡,
04:52
and I took one look at this camel駱駝.
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我看了這頭駱駝。
04:56
It is a 2,000 pound creature生物 who is in rut發情.
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牠是個兩千磅正在發情的動物。
05:01
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
05:04
Now, if you've ever seen看到 a 2,000 pound camel駱駝 in a rut發情,
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現在,如果你有看過一頭兩千磅的駱駝在發情,
05:06
it is a scary害怕, scary害怕 thing to behold不料.
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是非常恐怖的,看起來很恐怖的。
05:10
And if Richard理查德 thought I was getting得到 in the ring with that camel駱駝,
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如果理查認為我和那頭駱駝有好關係,
05:14
someone有人 was smoking抽煙 Bedouin貝都因人 high grade年級.
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他絕對是在大吸貝多因了。
05:16
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑聲)
05:17
So we got as close to it as possible可能,
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我們盡可能的靠近,
05:21
and I'm going to share分享 this -- Chris克里斯, if you want to roll this film電影 --
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然後我要分享這個。克理斯可以幫我放影片嗎
05:24
and then I'm going to show顯示 you a little bit more
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然後我再給你們看一些
05:26
about the design設計 of camels駱駝.
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關於駱駝的設計的東西。
05:27
Do you want to roll the film電影?
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請放
06:07
(Video視頻) Hello你好. This is Keith基思 Bellows風箱 with the National國民 Geographic地理 Camel駱駝 Investigation調查 Unit單元.
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(影片):哈囉。這是Keith Bellows與國家地理雜誌調查小組。
06:10
I'm here to look at the ultimate最終 desert沙漠 machine.
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我來這看最棒的沙漠機器。
06:23
And you'll你會 note注意 I started開始 chewing咀嚼 gum
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你們可以看到我開始嚼口香糖
06:25
because I was around this camel駱駝 all day.
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因為我整天都跟駱駝在一起。
06:27
Senior前輩 Keeper管理人: That's it, that's it, OK. No! See, now he's getting得到 a little overexcited過度興奮.
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資深管理員:這就是了。喔不!牠看起來有點太興奮了。
06:30
So we'll need to be very careful小心 around him. Don't let him get you.
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所以我們在他附近需要非常小心。不要讓牠對你怎麼樣。
06:56
Now, you can see copious豐富 amounts of saliva唾液 in there. [Unclear不清楚]
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現在,你可以看到周圍有非常多口水。
07:03
I call myself the unstable不穩定 stable穩定 boy男孩.
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我叫我自己「不穩定的穩定男孩」。
07:05
Their nose鼻子 -- you can see his nose鼻子 is flared喇叭形 right now.
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牠們的鼻子─你們可以看到牠的鼻子現在呈喇叭型。
07:08
When they're in rut發情 -- they're similar類似 to seals密封件
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當牠們在發情的時候,牠們很像海豹。
07:11
in the way, like, a seal密封 has to open打開 its nose鼻子 to breathe呼吸.
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就是說海豹也會把鼻子張開來呼吸。
07:17
And they're similar類似. They have to kind of consciously自覺 open打開 their nose鼻子.
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牠們也相似。牠們需要有意識的張開鼻子。
07:21
Ears耳朵? They are small. But they have excellent優秀 hearing聽力.
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耳朵呢?耳朵很小但他們的聽力非常好。
07:26
But not a big -- for instance, in zebras斑馬, they have a huge巨大 ear
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但不是像斑馬那樣的大耳朵,
07:31
that's very mobile移動, so they can actually其實 turn them both around.
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牠們的耳朵是可以動的。
07:36
And they use them in the same相同 way we use our binocular雙眼 vision視力.
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就像我們用我們的雙眼一樣,
07:39
They use them to pinpoint查明 sound聲音.
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牠們可以用耳朵指向聲音。
07:42
The desert's沙漠的 extremely非常 windy有風 as well as being存在 very cold.
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在沙漠上風很大且非常冷。
07:45
So not only do they have the very long eyelashes睫毛,
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所以牠們不但必須有很長很長的睫毛,
07:49
but there's the secondary次要 -- I guess猜測 you'd call it the [unclear不明] or whatever隨你.
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還有第二層的─我猜應該叫做...隨便你叫什麼。
07:56
It's this hair頭髮 that's above以上 the eyes眼睛, and below下面 it it's longer.
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就是眼睛上部有毛髮,下部有一層更長的。
08:01
Most people think that the humps store商店 water.
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大部分人認為駝峰是裝水的。
08:04
They don't. They store商店 fat脂肪.
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但不是的,駝峰裝脂肪的。
08:09
But -- now, I'm not a chemist化學家, but basically基本上 what happens發生 is
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但是─我不是化學家,但基本上就是
08:13
the fat脂肪 is oxidized氧化 by their breathing呼吸.
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脂肪在牠們的呼吸過程中被氧化,
08:18
And that will turn it into actually其實 usable可用 water.
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然後就會被轉換成可用的水。
08:24
Like a lot of predators大鱷, they walk步行 on their toes腳趾.
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就像大部分的食肉動物一樣,牠們用腳指頭走路。
08:27
But there's a big, fat脂肪 pad in there that squishessquishes out.
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但那邊有個很厚的墊子會被壓出來。
08:32
They're like sun太陽 shoes, but, you know, with sand.
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就像是太陽鞋。你知道的,用在沙灘上的。
08:37
Hooves? They don't have traditional傳統 hooves,
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蹄?牠們沒有傳統的蹄,
08:42
but they do have one, like, big nail.
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但牠們有很大的指甲。
08:45
You can't really see too clear明確. The fur's皮毛的 kind of grown長大的 over.
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你看不大清楚。毛把它蓋住了。
08:48
But they use their tails尾巴 a lot, especially特別 in rut發情.
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但牠們很常用牠們的尾巴,尤其是在發情的時候。
08:51
He will urinate排尿 and spin his tail尾巴
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牠會小便且甩牠的尾巴
08:55
to spread傳播 the urine尿 around
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將尿往外灑
08:58
and make him more attractive有吸引力.
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這樣讓牠更具吸引力。
09:01
I don't know why that would be, but it works作品 for them. (Laughter笑聲)
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我不知道為什麼會這樣,但似乎是有用的。
09:04
So, what the hell地獄.
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所以,管牠的。
09:07
Now, they will also defecate大便 in certain某些 areas.
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好,牠們還會在固定地方大便。
09:10
Generally通常, they poop船尾 wherever哪裡 they want to,
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大部分時候他們隨地大便,
09:13
but during their rut發情, they will defecate大便 in perimeter周長 areas.
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但在發情的時候牠們會在周圍大便。
09:20
I don't know if you've read or heard聽說 about the sub-sonic次聲波 sounds聲音 from elephants大象 --
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我不知道你有沒有讀過或聽過大象的超低音聲音
09:26
you know what I mean, like, "Br-r-rBR-RR!"
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你知道的就是「爾厄爾」的聲音。
09:29
These big, big rumbling隆隆 sounds聲音. He will do the same相同 thing.
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這個隆隆聲,牠也會發。
09:32
You can actually其實 see, right here, it will vibrate顫動.
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你可以看到,在這裡,會震動。
09:35
We weigh稱重 our animals動物.
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我們會幫我們的動物秤重。
09:38
Unfortunately不幸, he's a very aggressive侵略性 animal動物,
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不幸的是牠是非常具侵略性的動物,
09:42
so he's actually其實 destroyed銷毀 some of the scales.
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所以牠其實弄壞了幾個磅秤。
09:45
We had these big things that I weigh稱重 the bison野牛 on, for instance.
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我們有大磅秤用來秤北美野牛的,
09:48
I'm guessing揣測 that he -- well, he's at least最小 1,600 pounds英鎊.
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我猜大約至少有一千六百磅,
09:51
But I would put him closer接近 to 2,000.
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可能快要兩千磅。
09:54
He's basically基本上 a walking步行 mulch護根 pile.
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他基本上是個會走路的挖土機。
09:57
We're kind of like buds, but I'm also a male as well and he's -- KBKB: He sees看到 you as competition競爭? Senior前輩 Keeper管理人: Yeah, exactly究竟.
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我們有點像是好夥伴,但我是男的牠也是。對就是這樣。
10:02
And it makes品牌 him very dangerous危險 at this time of year.
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這讓他在年度的這個時候非常危險。
10:05
Don't even think about it. Don't think about it!
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不要想,根本就不要想。
10:08
But now, we're going to meet遇到 -- out! Out!
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但是現在,我們要來看─出來!出來!
10:15
Out!
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出來!
10:18
No.
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不。
10:21
Out!
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出來!
10:47
(Applause掌聲)
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(掌聲)
10:48
KBKB: What I didn't show顯示 you was -- you got that swinging擺盪 thing going?
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我沒有給你們看的是,你記得那個甩尾巴的動作嗎?
10:53
Well -- and you're glad高興 I didn't show顯示 you this.
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嗯,你應該慶幸我沒有給你們看。
10:56
One of the other things about the camel's駱駝 beautiful美麗 design設計
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另外一個駱駝設計的很棒的部分是
10:59
is that its penis陰莖 points backwards向後.
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牠的陰莖是向後指的。
11:01
That way the camel駱駝 can dip its tail尾巴 in the stream,
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這樣的話駱駝可以把牠的尾巴浸在尿液中,
11:05
and just whacker好大 the entire整個 area around him.
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然後直接重擊他四周所有的區域。
11:09
And that's how he really marks分數 his territory領土.
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這事牠如何劃牠的勢力範圍。
11:12
Now, what you also didn't see was that --
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現在,你們也沒有看到
11:14
and you may可能 have noticed注意到 in the pen鋼筆 beside him
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你們可能有發現牠旁邊的圍欄中
11:17
and, by the way, the camel's駱駝 name名稱 is Suki索奇.
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喔對,這頭駱駝的名字叫Suki。
11:20
In the pen鋼筆 beside him is Jasmine茉莉花.
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在牠旁邊圍欄中的叫Jasmine。
11:22
Jasmine茉莉花 has been his mate伴侶 for some time.
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Jasmine已經是牠的伴侶一陣子了。
11:24
But on this particular特定 occasion場合, it was very, very clear明確
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但在這次狀況中,非常非常明顯的,
11:28
that as horny角質 as Suki索奇 was, Jasmine茉莉花 was having none沒有 of it.
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不管Suki有多性感,Jasmine完全不為所動。
11:33
And so we started開始 thinking思維.
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所以我們開始想,
11:35
Well, if poor較差的 old Suki索奇 is in search搜索 of a mate伴侶,
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可憐的老Suki在找伴侶,
11:39
what would Suki索奇 do to find the perfect完善 mate伴侶?
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Suki會怎麼樣尋找牠的完美伴侶呢?
11:42
So I'm going to show顯示 you another另一個 film電影.
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所以我要給你們看另外一部影片。
11:43
But before I do, I just want to mention提到 that
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但在我放給你們看之前我要先說
11:46
this animal動物 truly is a sort分類 of the SUVSUV of the sand,
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這動物真的是沙漠中的越野車,
11:50
the ship of the desert沙漠. It's so vital重要 to the inhabitants居民 of the areas
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沙漠上的方舟,對駱駝出沒區的居民來說非常重要。
11:58
in which哪一個 the camel駱駝 is found發現 -- largely大部分 Mongolia蒙古 and Sahara撒哈拉 --
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主要是蒙古和沙哈拉沙漠
12:01
that there are 160 words in Arabic阿拉伯 to describe描述 the camel駱駝.
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在阿拉伯語中,大約有160個單字來形容駱駝。
12:07
And if this is a creature生物 that was designed設計 by committee委員會,
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如果這是一種由委員會設計的動物,
12:09
it's certainly當然 been like no committee委員會 I've ever been on.
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那麼這個委員會跟我曾經參加過的委員會大相逕庭。
12:12
So here's這裡的 what Suki索奇 would do in search搜索 of a mate伴侶.
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所以這是Suki如何找尋牠的伴侶。
12:18
Can you roll it, please?
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可以請你幫我放嗎?
12:20
(Video視頻) Camel駱駝 seeking camel駱駝.
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(駱駝找駱駝)
12:22
Lusty精力充沛 beast desires慾望 attractive有吸引力 & sincere真誠 mate伴侶.
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(健壯的野獸徵具吸引力且真誠的伴侶)
12:25
I'm seven ftFT., 2,000 lbs., with brown棕色 hair頭髮/eyes眼睛, long legs ...
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(我高七呎、重兩千磅、有咖啡色眼睛和頭髮、長腿...)
12:27
and I'm very well ... hung.
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(然後我有...巨根)
12:34
I'm TEDTED Camel駱駝.
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(我是TED駱駝)
12:36
The perfect完善 desert沙漠 machine.
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(完美的沙漠機器)
12:40
I'm smartly巧妙 designed設計.
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(我是聰明的設計)
12:42
Eyelashes睫毛 that keep out sand and a third第三 eyelash睫毛 that works作品 like a
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(眼睫毛會隔離沙子且有第三層睫毛
12:45
windshield擋風玻璃 wiper雨刮器.
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作用像雨刷)
12:49
A distinguished傑出的 nose鼻子,
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(一個特別的鼻子)
12:52
with nostrils鼻孔 lined to filter過濾 out sand and dust灰塵,
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(鼻孔排列可以過濾沙和塵)
12:56
and a groove that catches漁獲 moisture濕氣.
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(和會抓住水分的凹槽)
13:00
Amazingly令人驚訝的是 full充分 lips嘴唇
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(驚人的豐唇)
13:04
that allow允許 me to eat practically幾乎 anything that grows成長.
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(讓我可以吃幾乎所有生長的東西)
13:09
Callouses on my knees膝蓋 that let me kneel下跪 comfortably舒服.
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(膝上的繭讓我可以舒服地跪下)
13:15
Leathery似皮革的 chest胸部 pads that beat擊敗 the heat.
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(皮革胸墊可以抵擋炎熱)
13:18
Short fur毛皮 that keeps保持 my skin皮膚 cool.
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(短毛讓皮膚涼爽)
13:22
Long legs that allow允許 heat to escape逃逸.
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(長腿能夠散熱)
13:27
And my hump駝峰?
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(我的駝峰呢?)
13:30
Ogden奧格登 Nash納什 once一旦 wrote:
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(Ogden Nash曾寫到:)
13:32
"the camel駱駝 has a single hump駝峰; the dromedary單峰駝 two,
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(「駱駝有一個峰;單峰駱駝有兩個峰,
13:34
or else其他 the other way around. I'm never sure. Are you?"
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還是是相反。我從來不是很確定。你確定嗎?」)
13:37
Here's這裡的 a hint暗示:
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(這裡有個提示:)
13:39
BactarianBactarian,
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(雙峰駱駝)
13:41
Dromedary單峰駝.
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(單峰駱駝)
13:46
My hump駝峰 contains包含 up to 80 lbs. of fat脂肪 -- but doesn't store商店 H2O.
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(我的駝峰含有八十磅的脂肪,但沒有水。)
13:50
I'm built內置 to last.
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(我耐力強。)
13:55
I'm the go-to animal動物 when the oasis綠洲 is dry.
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(綠洲枯竭時我是救星。)
13:59
I usually平時 won't慣於 sweat until直到 my body身體 reaches到達 105 degrees F --
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(基本上我不會流汗,除非溫度高達華氏105度,)
14:01
enough足夠 to fry an egg.
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(可以煎蛋的溫度。)
14:04
I'm able能夠 to lose失去 40 percent百分
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(我可以瘦掉體重的百分之四十)
14:06
of my weight重量 without dying垂死.
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(也不會死亡。)
14:09
(Most animals動物 would if they lost丟失 half that much.)
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(大部分動物如果瘦那麼多會死的。)
14:13
I'll drink five to seven gallons加侖 of water a day.
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(我可以一天喝掉五到七加侖的水)
14:19
But go without for more than a month.
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(但接下來一個月都不用喝。)
14:21
I'm powerful強大.
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(我是強壯的。)
14:23
Able能夠 to pack up to 400 lbs.
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(可以承載400磅)
14:25
of cargo貨物,
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(的貨物。)
14:28
outrun逃脫 a horse
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(我跑得比馬快。)
14:32
and cover 26 miles英里 on a good day.
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(一天可以跑26英哩。)
14:34
Camelot柯萊特.
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(亞瑟王)
14:38
Jackie成龍 O. once一旦 said that traveling旅行 by camel駱駝
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(Jackie O.曾經說過騎駱駝)
14:40
made製作 riding騎術 an elephant seem似乎 like taking服用 a jet噴射 plane平面.
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(讓騎大象像是坐噴射機。)
14:47
Yet然而 my large, soft柔軟的 feet allow允許 me to navigate導航 sand.
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(但我的又大有軟的腳掌讓我可以在沙上行走。)
14:52
(Is that why the Bedouin貝都因人 claim要求 I can dance舞蹈?)
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(那是為什麼貝多因人說我會跳舞嗎?」
14:57
I'm a good provider提供商, too.
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(我還是個很好的供應者。)
14:59
Bedouins貝都因人 call the camel駱駝 the Gift禮品 of God.
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(貝多因人說我是上天的禮物)
15:01
No surprise.
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(沒什麼好驚訝的)
15:03
Tents帳篷 and rugs地毯 are made製作 of my hair頭髮.
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(帳篷和地毯是用我的毛做的。)
15:05
My dried bones骨頭 are prized珍貴 as a sort分類 of ivory象牙.
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(我乾掉的骨頭跟象牙一樣珍貴。)
15:07
My dung is burned as fuel汽油. My milk牛奶 is used for cheese起司.
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(我的糞可以當燃料;我的乳可以做起司。)
15:09
"Camels駱駝 are like angels天使," a Bedouin貝都因人 once一旦 said.
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(「駱駝就像天使一樣」一個貝多因人曾經這麼說)
15:14
(Applause掌聲)
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(掌聲)
15:16
Thank you. I just want to leave離開 you with one last thought,
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謝謝。我最後要給你們一個想法,
15:20
which哪一個 is probably大概 the most important重要 thing to take away.
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大慨是今天要講的最重要的東西。
15:25
Humans人類 -- the animal動物 -- are pretty漂亮 lucky幸運 creatures生物 because, by and large,
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人類─一種動物─是非常幸運的生物因為大至上來說
15:31
we really don't have to adapt適應 to our environment環境;
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我們不需要適應環境,
15:35
we adapt適應 our environment環境 to us.
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我們要環境適應我們。
15:37
And we've我們已經 seen看到 that repeatedly反复 through通過 this conference會議 --
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這在這個會議中一再地看到
15:40
not just this year, but in past過去 years年份.
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不只今年,前幾年都是。
15:42
But this creature生物 that you've just seen看到
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但你們剛剛看到的這個生物
15:45
ultimately最終 adapts適應, and keeps保持 adapting適應 and adapting適應.
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完全地適應、適應、適應環境。
15:48
And I think when you look at the animal動物 kingdom王國,
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我覺得當你看看動物界
15:50
that is one of the most remarkable卓越 things.
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那是非常值得注意的。
15:52
It doesn't have an environment環境 that adapts適應 to it;
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環境不一定要適應動物,
15:54
it has to adapt適應 to the environment環境.
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動物可以適應環境。
15:56
Ricky瑞奇, thank you very much for having me.
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Ricky謝謝你讓我來。
15:58
RWRW: That's terrific了不起. Thank you.
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RW:很棒。謝謝你。
Translated by Joan Liu
Reviewed by Allison Shu

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Keith Bellows - Traveler
On the heels of a long and bruising camel ride, Keith Bellows became fascinated with the "SUV of the sand," and with the many thorny aspects of their personalities (and mating habits) most of us would rather not dwell upon.

Why you should listen

As the former editor of National Geographic Traveler, Keith Bellows stepped away from the human aspects of travel for a moment to present one of his other fascinations: animal design. And not just the beautiful, photogenic aspects of that design either. After a harrowing breakdown in the Sahara with one water bottle to share among four people, Bellows was forced to make a rendezvous via camel ride, and became certain that this animal was, in addition to being a "mean son-of-a-bitch," the most perfectly designed creature on Earth.

Convinced by the organizers that bringing a live camel to the TED Conference was not a wise idea, Bellows did the next best thing, and drafted a National Geographic film crew to go to the Washington Zoo. They returned with a film of Suki, a 2,000-pound creature in the midst of rut, with shocking capabilities lurking in his spinning tail and rear-facing genitalia, all gleefully outlined in the film. But though this creature may seem unsavory, he's perfectly adapted to survival in the harshest environments around, and critical to the survival of the nomads that call the desert home.

 

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Keith Bellows | Speaker | TED.com