纪录片《熟食造就了人类吗》 第15期：古人的饮食起居

The gas given off contains two carbon isotopes¹.

释放出的气体包含两种碳同位素

The ratio of one to the other will indicate

两种同位素之间的比例可以说明

whether our ancestors were foraging² in woods

我们的祖先是在森林中觅食

or going out to the grass-rich plains.

还是去绿草如茵的平原觅食

The result will reveal the sort of food eaten by ancient humans

结果将揭示古人类食用食物的种类

and the environment in which they lived.

以及他们所生存的环境

So far, Julia's research has revealed

迄今为止 朱莉娅的研究表明

that in the period leading up to the evolution of habilis,

我们祖先在进化成能人之前

there was a massive change in the lifestyle of our ancestors.

生活方式发生了巨大变化

The results tell us that our ancestors changed

结果告诉我们人类祖先

from a forest-orientated kind of diet and environment,

从森林导向的饮食起居方式

to one which concentrated on the grasslands³.

向草原导向的生活方式转变

It's telling us that our ancestors ate

由此我们知道他们

animals which ate the grasses.

曾食用食草动物

But it's not just the tooth enamel⁴

但不仅仅牙釉质

which shows a change in the diet of our ancestors -

显示了我们祖先的饮食变化

it's the tooth's shape itself which shows

牙齿形状本身也给出了

clues as to what they ate.

他们食用何物的线索

1 isotopes   

n.同位素；同位素( isotope的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the many isotopes of carbon 碳的诸多同位素
• Tritium is one of the mildest radioactive isotopes. 氚是最和缓的放射性同位素之一。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 foraging   

v.搜寻（食物），尤指动物觅（食）( forage的现在分词 )；（尤指用手）搜寻（东西）

参考例句：

• They eke out a precarious existence foraging in rubbish dumps. 他们靠在垃圾场捡垃圾维持着朝不保夕的生活。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The campers went foraging for wood to make a fire. 露营者去搜寻柴木点火。 来自辞典例句

3 grasslands   

n.草原，牧场( grassland的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Songs were heard ringing loud and clear over the grasslands. 草原上扬起清亮激越的歌声。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Grasslands have been broken and planted to wheat. 草原已经开垦出来，种上了小麦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 enamel   

n.珐琅，搪瓷，瓷釉；(牙齿的)珐琅质

参考例句：

• I chipped the enamel on my front tooth when I fell over.我跌倒时门牙的珐琅质碰碎了。
• He collected coloured enamel bowls from Yugoslavia.他藏有来自南斯拉夫的彩色搪瓷碗。