Lesson 12 Four Laws of Ecology
全文翻译
生态学的四条规律
巴里·康芒纳
生态学的第三条规律：自然最知道状况
依据我的经验，这条规律会遭到强烈反对，由于它好像与一种根深蒂固的观念相矛盾，这种观念觉得，人类具备超凡的能力。现代技术最常见时尚的特点之一就是，它旨在“改造自然”——提供粮食、衣物、住处与各种交通和交流方法，这类东西比起人类在自然中可获得的要好得多。直截了当地说，生态学的第三条规律觉得，自然系统里其他人为的重大改变都可能对生态系统产生破坏用途。虽然这种看法有点极端，但我觉得，假如从一个特定的适合语境去理解，它将对大家非常有价值。
我发现，用类比的办法来讲解这个原则非常有用。假定你打开你的表盖，闭上眼，然后把一支铅笔插进裸露的机件中。几乎可以一定，这只手表被弄坏了，但也并不是绝对这样。大概这只手表本来就没被校正，而铅笔的随便插入碰巧使它得到了所需要的精确校正。然而，这种结果太不可能了。问题的重点在于：为何?答案不言而喻：手表的制造投入了很多现代技术职员称之为“研究和开发”的工作。这就意味着,而不合成含有奇数个碳链的脂肪酸。这就意味着，后者过去被试验过并被发现不符合需要。同样，含有氮和氧原子的有机化合物，在生物中特别稀少。这就警告大家，人工引入这种物质是非常危险的。状况确实这样，由于这种物质一般都是有毒的，而且常常致癌。除此之外，依据在自然界里没办法找到DDT这一事实，我觉得，在过去的某个地方某个时期，某个不幸的细胞合成了这个分子，并且死亡了。
一个生物有机体产生一种有机物质时，在自然界某处肯定存在一种可以分解那种物质的酶，这是自然生态系统化学反应的一个事实。事实上，有机物质如不可以降解就不可能合成，再循环也因降解而得到强化。因此，当一种新的人造有机物质被合成后，假如它的分子结构与自然界中存在的有机物质的分子结构大相径庭时，大概没有降解这种物质的酶，这种物质总是就会累积起来。
基于这类考虑，我觉得，大家应该慎重对待每一种人工制造的、自然界没的、对任何有机物有强烈用途的有机化学物，将它看成对其他生命形式会产生潜在危险的物质。在实质操作层面，这个看法意味着谨慎对待所有人工制造的、具备生物活性的有机化合物，就像对待药物一样。当亿万磅的物质被很多生产并被广泛地散布到生态系统中，对大家察看不到的很多物质产生影响的时候，再慎重也为时已晚。而这正是大家对待洗涤剂、杀虫剂、除草剂的方法。由此而常常产生的灾难性后果进一步论证了“自然最知道状况”这一论断。
生态学的第四条规律：没不收费的午餐
依据我的经验，已经证明这一定义可以十分明确地讲解环境问题，因此我借用了这个原本是经济学范围的定义。这个“规律”来自于一个为经济学家们所熟悉的故事，说的是一位因石油致富的实业大王认定他创造新财富需要经济学来指导。因此，他命令他的顾问们写出一套包括所有经济学智慧的多卷本书来，违者处死。当这部鸿篇巨著呈上来时，实业大王却非常不耐烦，又发出一道命令——把所有些经济学常识缩减成一个单行本。故事就顺着如此一条脉络进步下去，这种故事都应如此的。假如他们还想活命的话，就得根据需要把整个经济学浓缩成一句话。这就是“免费午餐”规律的由来。
在生态学里，正如在经济学里一样，这一规律警示大家，有得必有失。从某种意义上说，最后这条规律包括了前三条规律。由于全球的生态系统是一个互相连接的整体，在此系统中，没所谓的得到或失去，对此系统不可进行全方位的改变，人类需要付出代价才能从生态系统中获得东西。代价的付出可以拖延但不可以完全回避。目前的环境危机警告大家，对自然应偿还的债务，大家已拖欠太久。
以上所述是对地球生命之网的怎么看。我已依据已有事实，运用逻辑学的种种关系，把这一怎么看进步成了一个综合的概括性结论。换句话说，这种努力是科学的。
然而，非常难忽略一个让人难堪的事实，即从所有这类——生态学的四条规律-脱胎而来的最后的概括性结论是已经被不少非科学研究范围的大家所广泛认同的理念。沃尔特·惠特曼的诗歌明确地描述了所有生命都深陷其中的复杂之网与人类在其中的地位。可以从《白鲸》一书中获悉很多有关环境和生物的物理特质之间的相互用途的常识。马克·吐温不只对美国密西西比河以西的环境特点了如指掌，而且对科学与生活现实脱节的问题进行了相当尖锐的批评。正如批评家利奥·马克斯提醒大家的那样：“任何熟知美国经典作家作品的人，都可能曾对大家近来称之为生态学的东西有兴趣。”
不幸的是，这种文学传统并不足以使大家免于生态灾难。毕竟，美国的每一个技师、工业家、农业家或者官员，这类对环境问题采取容忍态度或者参与破坏环境的人，起码都读过一点爱默生、棱罗、梅尔维尔、惠特曼与马克·吐温的作品。他们中间的很多人还是野营者、观鸟者，或者热衷捕鱼的人，因此在某种程度上，他们对生态科学要阐释的自然有切身的认识。尽管这样，他们中的多数入依旧对环境危机感到惊异，毫无思想筹备。显然他们没认识到梭罗热爱的树林马克·吐温笔下的河流、梅尔维尔描写的海洋正遭受侵犯。
因污染而变得愈加浓的烟气能够帮助大家认识到这一点。如利奥·马克斯所说，“从某种意义上讲，当今的环境危机为这种富于想象力的理念提供了一种确切、可以量化的基础。”大家努力证明，通过人类和自然界进行有意识的接触得出的这类简单的概括性结论在生态科学的事实和理论原则方面是具备靠谱基础的，这一点可能就是这一努力的主要价值。因此，这类简单的概括性结论与科学结合就成为修补环境危机给自然导致的破坏的工具。
训练答案
Ⅱ.
A.
1.The third law is nature knows the best.Because the general knowledge is that human knows better and the modern technology isintended to“improve on nature.”
2.Research and development means that over the years numerous watchmakers who are all aught by their predecessors,have triedout various detailed arangements of watch works and have discarded those that are not compatible with the overall operation of thesystem and retained the better features.It plays a role of a very restricted selection,in which the last chosen one best fts the system.
3.It means that the evolving process every living thing has undergone is very intricate and highly selective.It is carried on asdescribed inthe text:“In that time,a staggering number of new individual living things have been produced,ffording in each casethe opportunity to try out the suitability of some random genetic change.If the change damages the viability of the organism,it islikely to kill it before the change can be passed on to future generations.”
4.The organic compound is man-made and will nevertheless become active in a living system.Myis very likely to be harmful to thenature.
5.An enzyme breaks down the natural substances.
6 Because these compounds have strong actions on any other organism and are likely to damage other forms of life.
7.The fourth law of ecology is that there is no such thing as a free bnch
8.Because the interaction between human and nature widely acknowledged in literature is stll not applied to environmentalprotection.
9.The four laws arouse scientific awareness of the enyironmental crisis and therefore become tools.
B.
1.Analogy.Yes,it is effective.Thtoug corhparing the evolution process to the making of watch,readers can better understand theevolution process.
2.The writers uses examples of DDT,detergents,insecticides and herbicides to explain.
3.It is to explain the concept of “there is no free lunch.”
4.These names represent understanding of the four laws from the perspective of literature.Al these works exhibit the beauty of thenature and a poetic ideal of harmony between human and nature.
5.The author ends with a quotation and a promising solution.It is effective since it makes its readers reflect more on the practicaleffect of the four laws.
Ⅲ.
1.My experienceproves that some people willstrongly reject this principle for it appears to diverge from an idea firmly held bypeople that human beings have the unique ability and power to do anything that is needed:human beings know better than nature.
2.Most people may regard this statement unusual and unacceptable.However,I believe,it contains many good points so that it
deserves our attention if we can properly define the situation and relate it to the correspondent situation,and events,instead ofconsidering it independent of the context.
3.What is useful for the sake of our argument is the universally observed fact that when mutation frequency is increased by x-raysor other means,almost all the mutations cause harm to the livingthings and the great majority of the mutations are so damaging thatthey kill the living thing before it is fully formed.
4.The fact is that nature has carried out research and development for about two or three billion years for the survival anddevelopment of every living thing.
5.In this way,when a new man-made organic substance is synthesized with a molecular structure that is very different from thetypes which are synthesized in nature,most likely no corresponding enzyme is capable of degrading this substance,and consequentlythe substance tends to continue to stay as a harmful element.
6.It is impossible to avoid dangers or risks caused by such man-madesubstances when billions of pounds of them are produced andscattered far and wide into the ecosplayystem.In the ecosplayystem,they can bring about negative impacts on numerous organisms that wedo not observe in our research.
7.In spite of the factjust mentioned,we can'tignore the fact that people who firmly believe in the four laws of ecology are notengaged in scientific study.In other words,they are actually not scientists.This fact is rather embartassing .
8.Mark Twain not only provided remarkable first-hand information and knowledge abolt the pature of the environment of the partwest of the Misissippi River,but criticized directly and sharply the irrelevant aspeets of science which lose connection to the realitiesof life.
IV.
A.
1.works:the working parts or mechanism
2.compatible with:that can work well together
3.close:similar
4.agent:a chemical or substance that makes other substances change
5.screen out to sift through a coanse mesh so as to separate finer from coarser parts
6.found wanting proven to be not good enough for a particular purpose
7.on pain of death:at the risk of bringing death upon oneself
8.tome:a large heavy book
9.in this vein:in this particular style or way
10.camper:a person who vacations at a campsite
B.
1.extensively existing and spreading
2.be harmful
3.significant and basic changes
4.ability to continue to live
5.are made up of
6.the things that have been mentioned
7.produce by combining different things
8.spread
9.involved in a complicated way
10.direct and sharp
C.
1.有机化学
2.有机化合物
3.蛋白质
4.合成
5.脂肪酸
6.碳链
7.氧原子
8.致癌的
9.酶
10.洗涤剂
11.杀虫剂
12.除草剂
D.
1.impossible意为“不可能的”,强调“不会发生，不会存在”,另外，impossible还用于表示“极难应对的”;improbable意为“不可能”,强调“不太可能，未必会发生”,也可用来表示“奇异的，荒谬的”。如：It seems improbable that they could havedriven home in less than ten minutes.
2.technician意为“技师，技术员”,强调“善于某一范围的技术”,而technologst意为“技术专家”,强调“学会某技术的专业常识”。如：As a technologist,Mr.Jobs was different because he was not anengineer—and that was his great strength.
3.Economics意为“经济学”或“经济原因”,指跟财政、税收有关的学科或范围。Economy意为“经济”,指“社会物质生产、流通、交换等活动”,也指国家的经济结构，如：China is a newly emerging economy.。
4.obviously表示“显然”时，强调“基于显而易见的事实”,而apparently表示“显然”时，强调“依据所听到或看到的进行推断，不确定是不是真实”。如：I was not there,but apparently it was a good party.
V.See the translation of the text.
VI.
1.The author starts with a personal experience relating to the passing of Steve Jobs,which is learnt from her iPhone.In this waytheauthor connects herself and the reader through the same device they use in daily life.
2.Paragraph 2 is a transitional paragraph,from her own experience to the life deeds of Steve Jobs.
3.The last two paragraphs mainly focus on Jobs'influence on us as an innovator.
4.Prometheus brings fire to human,whichchanges their life and civilization.In the metaphorical comparison,Jobs also brings fire toApple technology.He changed our notion of technology.
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