英语听力：自然百科 徒步南非之花园大道 The Garden Route—8

 

 

It's believed that our species, Homo sapines, has wandered African lands for at least a quarter of a million years. But maybe this was the place where evolutionary¹ leap took palce. This is what a courteous² team of 15 scienists are investigating. And it appears that the rich pickings of this coastline may have been the key to modern man.

-So this is 13B.

-This is the cynical³ point cave 13B.

-What was it about this cave, this location 13B?

-This is a very special place on the south coast, becuase here you have a vegatation region, that's unique, and of course the marine⁴ shellfish, as we all now know, are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and together they form a package of protein and carbenhydrate. It's a key part of the modern human nutrition. And they had it here, so we began as a coastal⁵ species.

-Paint the picture for me. How many people would have lived in this cave?

-Anywhere between 10 to 20 people could have been living in this cave at the time. Usually when people expand their diet to marine foods, the group size goes up as does the population size.

-Because the facility is going up.

-Exactly. And also they can reduce their mobility⁶, so they stop moving about the landscape line, because the food is right here. And if you think about that, you have a larger group, which means that your interpersonal relationships are more challenging and that was adequate selection on things like coordination⁷, langague and your ability to get along with other people, which is the hard mark of the human activation⁸.

 

 

To be allowed to step into the pinnacle-point cave and see Professor Marina's work has been an honor. In years to come, this site might just become a visitor attraction to rival the pyramids and Stohehenge.

1 evolutionary   

adj.进化的；演化的，演变的；[生]进化论的

参考例句：

• Life has its own evolutionary process.生命有其自身的进化过程。
• These are fascinating questions to be resolved by the evolutionary studies of plants.这些十分吸引人的问题将在研究植物进化过程中得以解决。

2 courteous   

adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的

参考例句：

• Although she often disagreed with me,she was always courteous.尽管她常常和我意见不一，但她总是很谦恭有礼。
• He was a kind and courteous man.他为人友善，而且彬彬有礼。

3 cynical   

adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的

参考例句：

• The enormous difficulty makes him cynical about the feasibility of the idea.由于困难很大，他对这个主意是否可行持怀疑态度。
• He was cynical that any good could come of democracy.他不相信民主会带来什么好处。

4 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

5 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

6 mobility   

n.可动性，变动性，情感不定

参考例句：

• The difference in regional house prices acts as an obstacle to mobility of labour.不同地区房价的差异阻碍了劳动力的流动。
• Mobility is very important in guerrilla warfare.机动性在游击战中至关重要。

7 coordination   

n.协调，协作

参考例句：

• Gymnastics is a sport that requires a considerable level of coordination.体操是一项需要高协调性的运动。
• The perfect coordination of the dancers and singers added a rhythmic charm to the performance.舞蹈演员和歌手们配合得很好，使演出更具魅力。

8 activation   

n. 激活，催化作用

参考例句：

• A computer controls the activation of an air bag.电脑控制着气囊的启动。