万物简史 第513期:丰富多彩的生命(9)

 And that was just plants. 那只是植物部分。

There was also all the fauna¹ of the new worlds — kangaroos, kiwis, raccoons, bobcats, mosquitoes, and other curious forms beyond imagining. 还有新世界的全部动物群——袋鼠呀，鹬鸵呀，浣熊呀，红猫呀，蚊子呀，还有别的难以想像的奇特东西。

The volume of life on Earth was seemingly infinite, as Jonathan Swift noted² in some famous lines: 地球上的生命量似乎是永无尽头的，正如乔纳森·斯威夫特在一首著名的诗里指出的：

So, naturalists³ observe, a flea⁴ Hath smaller fleas⁵ that on him prey⁶; 所以，博物学家注意到，一个跳蚤捕食较小的跳蚤；

And these have smaller still to bite 'em And so proceed ad infinitum. 较小的跳蚤还有更小的跳蚤可以咬。哪是尽头谁知晓。

All this new information needed to be filed, ordered, and compared with what was known. 所有这些新的信息都需要归档、整理并与已知的信息进行比较。

The world was desperate for a workable system of classification. 世界迫切需要一个可行的分类体系。

Fortunately there was a man in Sweden who stood ready to provide it. 幸亏瑞典有个人已经准备停当。

His name was Carl Linne (later changed, with permission, to the more aristocraticvon Linne), 他的名字叫卡尔·林奈（后来经过允许又改名为更有贵族味的冯·林奈），

but he is remembered now by the Latinized form Carolus Linnaeus. 但现在人们只记得他已经拉丁化的名字Carolus Linnaeus。

He was born in 1707 in the village of Rashult in southern Sweden, the son of a poor but ambitious Lutheran curate, 他生于瑞典南部的拉舒尔特村，父亲是个贫穷而又雄心勃勃的路德教助理牧师。

and was such a sluggish⁷ student that his exasperated⁸ father apprenticed⁹ him (or, by some accounts, nearly apprenticed him) to a cobbler. 他在学业上很懒惰，因此他的父亲又气又恼，把他送到（据有的说法，是差一点把他送到）补鞋匠那里去当学徒。

Appalled¹⁰ at the prospect¹¹ of spending a lifetime banging tacks¹² into leather, 想到自己一辈子要往皮子里敲钉子，小林奈不寒而栗，

young Linne begged for another chance, which was granted, and he never thereafter wavered from academic distinction. 恳求再给他一次机会。他的要求得到满足。此后，他始终坚持要在学术上作出成绩。

He studied medicine in Sweden and Holland, though his passion became the natural world. 他在瑞典和荷兰攻读医学，虽然他渐渐对大自然产生了兴趣。

In the early 1730s, still in his twenties, he began to produce catalogues of the world's plant and animal species, using a system of his own devising, and gradually his fame grew. 18世纪30年代，他使用自己制定的体系，开始为世界上植物和动物的物种编制目录。他的名气渐渐响起来。

 

1 fauna   

n.(一个地区或时代的)所有动物，动物区系

参考例句：

• This National Park is an area with unique fauna and flora.该国家公园区域内具有独特的动物种群和植物种群。
• Fauna is a biological notion means all the animal life in a particular region or period. 动物群是一个生物学的概念，指的是一个特定时期或者地区的所有动物。

2 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

3 naturalists   

n.博物学家( naturalist的名词复数 )；（文学艺术的）自然主义者

参考例句：

• Naturalists differ much in determining what characters are of generic value. 自然学者对于不同性状决定生物的属的含义上，各有各的见解。 来自辞典例句
• This fact has led naturalists to believe that the Isthmus was formerly open. 使许多自然学者相信这个地蛱在以前原是开通的。 来自辞典例句

4 flea   

n.跳蚤

参考例句：

• I'll put a flea in his ear if he bothers me once more.如果他再来打扰的话，我就要对他不客气了。
• Hunter has an interest in prowling around a flea market.亨特对逛跳蚤市场很感兴趣。

5 fleas   

n.跳蚤( flea的名词复数 )；爱财如命；没好气地（拒绝某人的要求）

参考例句：

• The dog has fleas. 这条狗有跳蚤。
• Nothing must be done hastily but killing of fleas. 除非要捉跳蚤，做事不可匆忙。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

7 sluggish   

adj.懒惰的，迟钝的，无精打采的

参考例句：

• This humid heat makes you feel rather sluggish.这种湿热的天气使人感到懒洋洋的。
• Circulation is much more sluggish in the feet than in the hands.脚部的循环比手部的循环缓慢得多。

8 exasperated   

adj.恼怒的

参考例句：

• We were exasperated at his ill behaviour. 我们对他的恶劣行为感到非常恼怒。
• Constant interruption of his work exasperated him. 对他工作不断的干扰使他恼怒。

9 apprenticed   

学徒，徒弟( apprentice的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• I was apprenticed to a builder when I was fourteen. 14岁时，我拜一个建筑工人为师当学徒。
• Lucius got apprenticed to a stonemason. 卢修斯成了石匠的学徒。

10 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

12 tacks   

大头钉( tack的名词复数 )； 平头钉； 航向； 方法

参考例句：

• Never mind the side issues, let's get down to brass tacks and thrash out a basic agreement. 别管枝节问题，让我们讨论问题的实质，以求得基本一致。
• Get down to the brass tacks,and quit talking round the subject. 谈实质问题吧，别兜圈子了。