TED演講者：Dean Lomax / 丁·洛·馬克斯

演講標(biāo)題：A giant Jurassic sea dragon, unearthed / 侏羅紀(jì)巨大 “海龍” 的出土

內(nèi)容概要：Among the dinosaurs, giant sea dragons roamed the ancient ocean. Millions of years later, paleontologist Dean R. Lomax and his team freed the remains of one of these colossal creatures from the Earth. Settle in to learn about the once-in-a-lifetime discovery of the 10-meter-long Rutland ichthyosaur: the largest and most complete ichthyosaur ever unearthed in Britain and one of the greatest finds in the country's paleontological history.

在恐龍時(shí)代，巨大的海龍?jiān)诠爬系暮Ｑ笾绣塾?。?shù)百萬(wàn)年后，古生物學(xué)家 河丁·洛·馬克斯 （Dean R. Lomax）和他的團(tuán)隊(duì)從地球上發(fā)掘了這些巨大生物之一的遺骸。來(lái)了解一下這條 10 米長(zhǎng)的拉特蘭魚龍的千載難逢的發(fā)現(xiàn)：這是英國(guó)出土的最大、最完整的魚龍，也是英國(guó)古生物史上最偉大的發(fā)現(xiàn)之一。

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【1】Paleontology.

古生物學(xué)。

【2】I know what you're all thinking.

我知道你們?cè)谙胧裁础?/p>

【3】'"Jurassic Park."

《侏羅紀(jì)公園》

【4】Maybe Ross from "Friends."

也許是《老友記》里面的羅斯。

【5】(Laughter) Perhaps even Indiana Jones?

（笑聲） 或者印第安納·瓊斯 （Indiana Jones） (《奪寶奇兵》系列電影的主角)？

【6】But that's archaeology.

但那是考古學(xué)。

【7】Let me show you some real paleontology.

讓我給你看一些真正的古生物學(xué)。

【8】Now, first of all, let's take a step back in time.

那么,首先, 讓我們把時(shí)間往前拉一點(diǎn)。

【9】Not quite to the Jurassic, at least not yet, but to January 21, 2021, when I received an email about a curious discovery made in Rutland in the Midlands.

不是拉到侏羅紀(jì)時(shí)代, 至少不用往前拉那么多, 就在 2021 年的 1 月 21 日, 我收到了一封郵件, 關(guān)于在中部地區(qū)拉特蘭 的一個(gè)奇怪的發(fā)現(xiàn)。

【10】As a paleontologist, you can probably imagine, I get countless messages and emails from people saying, "Oh, we've made a cool fossil discovery."

作為一個(gè)古生物學(xué)家, 你應(yīng)該能想像得到 我曾收到過很多短信和郵件, 說:“我發(fā)現(xiàn)了一個(gè)超酷的化石?！?/p>

【11】Being completely honest, most of the time, it turns out to be, well, a weird shaped rock,

老實(shí)說,它們中的絕大多數(shù) 其實(shí),只是一塊奇形怪狀的石頭,

【12】(Laughter) But, little did I know this email would change my life.

（笑聲） 但是,當(dāng)時(shí)我并不知道 這封郵件會(huì)改變我的生活。

【13】The find had been made Rutland Water Nature Reserve by Joe Davis, who works for the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust who run the reserve in partnership with Anglian Water, who own the land.

喬·戴維斯 （Joe Davis） 在拉特蘭水域自然保護(hù)區(qū)發(fā)現(xiàn)了它, 他在萊斯特郡和拉特蘭 野生動(dòng)物信托組織工作, 并且他與擁有這片土地的盎格魯水務(wù) 公司合作管理著這片保護(hù)區(qū)。

【14】Whilst doing some routine maintenance in one of the Reserve's lagoons, he'd lowered the water levels and Joe had spotted by chance this structure.

當(dāng)時(shí)他在對(duì)保護(hù)區(qū)中的一個(gè)瀉湖 做一些日常的管理, 當(dāng)他把水位降低的時(shí)候, 他偶然間發(fā)現(xiàn)了這樣一個(gè)特殊的結(jié)構(gòu)。

【15】Unsure of what to make of it, he thought, "Could this be a bit of old pipe, maybe?

由于不確定是什么東西,他想: “可能是一些水管？

【16】Or perhaps, is this a dinosaur skeleton?” he joked.

或者 “這是一個(gè)恐龍的骨頭？” 他笑著想道。

【17】Luckily, Joe thought to himself, "Well, could it be an important discovery?"

幸運(yùn)的是, 喬自言自語(yǔ)道: “這會(huì)是一個(gè)重要的發(fā)現(xiàn)嗎？”

【18】So crucially, he sought expert advice.

最重要的是,他尋求了專家的建議。

【19】When these photos pinged into my inbox, I immediately recognized them as large vertebrae from the spine of an ichthyosaur, or as it’s colloquially known as a sea dragon.

當(dāng)這些照片發(fā)送到我郵箱里的時(shí)候, 我立刻就認(rèn)出來(lái) 它們是來(lái)自魚龍, 也就是大家所熟知 的海龍的椎骨的 一些巨大的椎骨。

【20】Now, I do need to clear that name up just a little bit, because, I'm sorry to say, they're not dragons.

現(xiàn)在我必須澄清一下這個(gè)名字, 因?yàn)?很遺憾地說,它們不是龍。

【21】Sorry.

對(duì)不起。

【22】They're also not swimming dinosaurs.

它們也不是游泳的恐龍。

【23】They’re not the Loch Ness Monster on tour either.

它們也不是正在巡演的尼斯湖水怪。

【24】And they're most definitely not, as the BBC dubbed them "Sea dragon dinosaur dolphin fossils."

當(dāng)然,它們也不是 BBC 所說的那樣 “海龍－恐龍－海豚化石。”

【25】(Laughter) Terrible.

（笑聲） 真糟糕。

【26】Ichthyosaurs are in fact an awesome group of ancient marine reptiles that lived in the prehistoric seas as dinosaurs reigned supreme on the land.

魚龍其實(shí)是 很神奇的一種古代海洋爬行動(dòng)物。 當(dāng)恐龍正在統(tǒng)治著大陸時(shí), 它們生活在史前海域。

【27】Like modern-day whales and dolphins, they gave birth to live young, and they breathed air.

就像現(xiàn)代的鯨魚和海豚一樣, 他們生出新的生命, 并且呼吸著空氣。

【28】Unfortunately, ichthyosaurs went extinct around 90 million years ago.

不幸的是,魚龍大概在 九千萬(wàn)年前就滅絕了。

【29】Our Rutland ichthyosaur lived during the early Jurassic, around about 180 million years ago.

我們的拉特蘭魚龍 生活在侏羅紀(jì)早期, 大概一億八千萬(wàn)年前。

【30】This is a time when Rutland was deep underwater, covered by an ancient tropical sea.

那里拉特蘭還在海底深處, 被古老的熱帶海洋所覆蓋。

【31】Now I spent most of my professional career of around 14 years studying thousands of ichthyosaurs.

我大部分的職業(yè)生涯, 大概有 14 年, 都在研究著數(shù)以千計(jì)的魚龍。

【32】And this has been a great pleasure to travel around the world, study lots and lots of ichthyosaurs.

并且,研究著許許多多的魚龍 同時(shí)還能環(huán)游世界,是一件很快樂的事。

【33】And so when I received these photos, I immediately knew that this could be something very special indeed.

因此,當(dāng)我一看到這些照片, 我立刻就能知道 這些東西確實(shí)很特別。

【34】But of course, just looking at photos, it's hard to know exactly whether this is going to be something unique or is it just a few vertebrae?

當(dāng)然,只是看圖片的話, 很難看出這些究竟是一些特別的東西, 還是說只是一些椎骨？

【35】After speaking to fellow marine reptile expert Dr. Mark Evans, who was also sent details of the find, we decided to visit the site in February.

在和同樣收到照片的海洋爬行動(dòng)物專家 馬克·埃文斯 （Mark Evans）博士討論之后, 我們決定前去一探究竟。

【36】And I led a mini excavation, a bit of an exploratory dig to see what we could uncover.

我領(lǐng)導(dǎo)了一次小型挖掘, 一種探索性的挖掘 來(lái)看看我們能挖出什么。

【37】On a cold day in February, where the ground was literally frozen right beneath our feet, after spending so much time meticulously removing the Jurassic clay from around the skeleton, we were blown away

在二月寒冷的一天, 我們腳下的地面被凍得十分僵硬, 花了很長(zhǎng)時(shí)間清理掉骨頭上 來(lái)自侏羅紀(jì)時(shí)代的泥土以后, 我們都興奮了起來(lái),

【38】because we revealed what appeared to be a gigantic skeleton unlike anything ever found in Britain before.

因?yàn)槲覀兺诔鰜?lái)的像巨大骨頭的東西 跟我們之前在英國(guó) 挖出來(lái)的完全不一樣。

【39】Clearly, this was a big deal.

很明顯,這是一件大事。

【40】But we had to be very quick to contain our excitement.

但是我們必須迅速 抑制住我們的興奮。

【41】Because due to the damp wintery conditions and the fact that this was a super fragile skeleton, it meant it wasn't the right time to collect this ichthyosaur.

因?yàn)槎痉浅３睗? 并且這是一個(gè)超級(jí)大的骨架, 這意味著現(xiàn)在并不是 發(fā)掘這條魚龍的時(shí)候。

【42】So unfortunately, might seem a little bit counterintuitive, but we had to rebury the ichthyosaur.

所以,雖然看起來(lái)有點(diǎn)反直覺, 但是我們不得不把魚龍重新埋起來(lái)。

【43】And we had to cover it with plastic sheets and then Jurassic clay.

我們不得不用塑料把它包裹起來(lái), 然后用侏羅紀(jì)時(shí)期的泥土蓋起來(lái)。

【44】Because you have to remember, this, of course, is an active nature reserve.

因?yàn)榈弥?這是一個(gè) “活的” 保護(hù)區(qū)。

【45】And so the nature reserve, they had to raise the water levels.

并且這個(gè)保護(hù)區(qū) 還得把水位升上去。

【46】Then the ichthyosaur went back under the water, but it was actually protected.

然后,這條魚龍就重新回到水里去了, 至少它被保護(hù)起來(lái)了。

【47】And then waiting for what felt like millions of years.

假裝它等了幾百萬(wàn)年。

【48】(Laughter) In six months we were back on site, but this time with a superb team of paleontologists.

（笑聲） 六個(gè)月后我們又回到了現(xiàn)場(chǎng), 但這次我們帶來(lái)了更專業(yè) 的古生物學(xué)家的隊(duì)伍。

【49】When we arrived on site, we had to pick up where we left off.

當(dāng)我們到現(xiàn)場(chǎng)的時(shí)候, 我們不得不從上次中斷的地方重新開始。

【50】And so we removed those plastic sheets, remove the Jurassic clay, and start to expose some more of the skeleton.

打開塑料袋,把侏羅紀(jì)時(shí)期的土移開, 然后再開始挖掘出更多的骨架。

【51】We were overly ambitious in February.

我們?cè)诙路莸臅r(shí)候太過自信了。

【52】We thought, based on that little dig that we did, the one-day excavation, we thought, OK, we could probably get the entire skeleton out of the ground in just one week.

我們想:在我們已經(jīng)挖掘的基礎(chǔ)上, 就是上次挖了一天, 我們想:行吧,我們可能只需要 一星期就能把整個(gè)骨架給挖出來(lái)吧。

【53】Yeah, we were wrong.

對(duì)的,我們錯(cuò)了。

【54】The skeleton was much larger, more important and more complete than any of us would have imagined.

這個(gè)骨架比我們所有人想像 的都更大,更重要,更完整。

【55】And it doubled our time on site.

它使我們?cè)诂F(xiàn)場(chǎng)的時(shí)間增加了一倍。

【56】We spent 14 and a half days altogether, spread over three weeks, and this was also working very long hours, from sunrise to sunset.

在三周的時(shí)間里我們 一共花費(fèi)了十四天半, 并且每天工作很長(zhǎng)時(shí)間, 從日出到日落。

【57】Whilst the team was excavating the ichthyosaur, we also had to look out for all sorts of other pieces in the surrounding matrix of the ichthyosaur.

并且在我們?cè)诎l(fā)掘魚龍的時(shí)候, 我們還得小心它在 這條魚龍附近的基石里的其他部分。

【58】So in my hand here, I'm actually holding one of the isolated teeth from this ichthyosaur.

在我手里拿著的 其實(shí)是魚龍的一顆牙齒。

【59】We also found hundreds of these squid-like ammonites, we found lots of fossil shells, and these are all really important because they help to build up this bigger picture of the ancient Jurassic ecosystem in which this ichthyosaur lived.

我們還發(fā)現(xiàn)了幾百個(gè) 像魷魚一樣的菊石, 我們發(fā)現(xiàn)了許多化石貝殼, 而且它們都非常非常重要 因?yàn)樗鼈儙椭覀儊?lái)建立 古侏羅紀(jì)生態(tài)系統(tǒng), 也就是這個(gè)魚龍生活的地方的圖景。

【60】The team also had to move fast as well.

考古隊(duì)伍還必須要盡快。

【61】This really was quite a race against time, because once we exposed the skeleton, there was more chance that it could end up degrading further.

這真的是一場(chǎng)與時(shí)間的賽跑, 因?yàn)橐坏覀儼压羌馨l(fā)掘出來(lái), 它們就更有可會(huì)進(jìn)一步分解。

【62】So team members like Dr. Emma Nicholls here, had to apply a consolidant, a thin glue that seeps into the bones and helps them to become more robust to remove the skeleton out of the ground.

所以隊(duì)伍中的成員,像艾瑪·尼科爾斯 （Emma Nicholls）博士不得不加固它, 為了能把骨架完整地從地上移開, 向骨架中滲入一層薄薄的膠水。

【63】Once we fully exposed the skeleton, we then could eventually record all of our measurements and get a full data set.

一旦我們把完整的骨架發(fā)掘出來(lái)了, 我們才能得到完整的 數(shù)據(jù)并把它記錄下來(lái),

【64】For example, like for the skull.

例如,像這個(gè)骨頭。

【65】Nigel here, who I co-led the excavation with, so Nigel focused on the conservation side of things, ensuring that the ichthyosaur remains safe and secure throughout the entire excavation,

奈杰爾 （Nigel）在這與我共同領(lǐng)導(dǎo)挖掘, 奈杰爾負(fù)責(zé)這里的保護(hù)工作, 為了確保魚龍?jiān)谡麄€(gè)挖掘過程中 都是安全的。

【66】Nigel is holding an ichthyosaur, a regular-size ichthyosaur skull.

奈杰爾拿著的 是一個(gè)常規(guī)尺寸的魚龍頭骨。

【67】Look at the size comparison to this Jurassic giant that we're excavating.

看看它和我們正在挖掘的 這只侏羅紀(jì)巨獸的體型對(duì)比。

【68】Pretty phenomenal.

相當(dāng)驚人。

【69】And this ichthyosaur, I should say, that Nigel's holding, this is actually of a species I named after him a few years ago, called Ichthyosaurs larkini.

這條魚龍,就是奈杰爾拿著的, 實(shí)際上是我?guī)啄昵耙?他的名字命名的一種魚龍, 叫作拉基尼魚龍。

【70】Whilst on site, one of the team members, Steve Dey, created a wonderful photogrammetry model, which, photogrammetry is an interesting technique where you take thousands of photos and put them together and build a three-dimensional model.

同時(shí)在現(xiàn)場(chǎng)的 隊(duì)伍中的一名成員, 史蒂夫·戴伊（Steve Dey）, 制作出了一個(gè)非常 厲害的攝影測(cè)量模型, 攝影測(cè)量是一個(gè)有趣的技術(shù), 你拍攝幾千張圖片, 然后把它們放一起, 建一個(gè)三維模型。

【71】Now what you're looking at first of all here, is a base model that we made back in February.

你所看到的第一個(gè) 是我們?cè)诙路葑龅囊粋€(gè)基礎(chǔ)模型。

【72】But watch this little video.

但是看這條短片。

【73】As we begin to zoom in, you can see some of the spine that we exposed in February.

當(dāng)我們開始放大的時(shí)候, 你可以看到一些我們 在二月份發(fā)掘的脊椎。

【74】It's pretty cool, it's three-dimensional.

看起來(lái)很酷,它是三維的模型。

【75】But now watch, you can superimpose the entire skeleton that we'd revealed in the summer.

但現(xiàn)在,你可以把我們 在夏天發(fā)現(xiàn)的整個(gè)骨架疊加起來(lái)。

【76】Here's the main excavation.

這是主要發(fā)掘的部分。

【77】Now we can zoom in and you can look at all of the finer details of the bones and the three-dimensionality of them.

現(xiàn)在我們可以放大, 然后你可以看到骨骼更多的細(xì)節(jié), 以及它們的三維模型。

【78】And like magic, now we remove the Jurassic clay.

現(xiàn)在我們移開侏羅紀(jì)時(shí)期的泥土。

【79】Now we zoom out and are able to see just how complete this ichthyosaur is.

我們?cè)倏s小畫面 就能看到這條魚龍有多么完整。

【80】So you start from the very tip of the snout all the way down to the penny-sized vertebrae.

你可以從最前面的鼻尖 一直往下到硬幣大小的椎骨。

【81】Pretty cool.

非?？?。

【82】And we're even able to pick out individual bones and look at them in three dimensions like this.

我們甚至能夠挑出其中的一個(gè)骨頭, 然后像這樣觀察它們的三維模型。

【83】This is the sort of techniques that are sort of revolutionizing paleontology.

這是一種技術(shù), 一種能夠徹底改變古生物學(xué)的技術(shù)。

【84】We're able to capture all of this data whilst the ichthyosaur sat in the ground.

魚龍還在地上 我們就能獲得所有的數(shù)據(jù)。

【85】So before we've even removed anything.

我們甚至都不需要移開任何東西。

【86】Now we've taken that out of the ground, we still have this data, and we can send that to our colleagues all around the world.

我們就把它從地上 “拿” 起來(lái)了, 我們還擁有這些數(shù)據(jù), 我們就能把它發(fā)給 我們世界各地的同事。

【87】Of course, now fully uncovered -- it’s me taking a nap -- It's time to literally get this Jurassic giant out of the ground.

現(xiàn)在,已經(jīng)完全發(fā)掘出來(lái)了— 這是我在打盹— 現(xiàn)在是時(shí)候把這個(gè)侏羅紀(jì)的 龐然大物從地下發(fā)掘出來(lái)了。

【88】Much easier said than done when you're dealing with such a complete and very heavy fossil weighing several tons.

當(dāng)你在應(yīng)對(duì)這個(gè)重達(dá)幾噸 并且的完整的化石時(shí), 你會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)說的比做的簡(jiǎn)單。

【89】The first port of call was to create a trench all the way around the skeleton.

要做的第一件事 就是圍著骨架旁邊挖一個(gè)壕溝。

【90】And the reason for that is that we needed to get right on underneath the skeleton so that we could begin the process of plaster jacketing.

因?yàn)槲覀冃枰谡麄€(gè)骨架的下方, 這樣我們就可以開始做石膏護(hù)套了。

【91】So those white bits you can see in the image, that's not snow, although it was very cold a few days on site, that's actually plaster.

所以你在圖片上看到的 這些白點(diǎn),它們不是雪, 雖然在現(xiàn)場(chǎng)的那幾天很冷, 那些其實(shí)是石膏。

【92】Plaster jacketing is an important process in the field of paleontology.

石膏護(hù)套是古生物學(xué)中 一個(gè)重要的過程。

【93】We use these protective plaster jackets that essentially care for and secure the bones and the surrounding matrix so that we can take them out of the field and into the lab so that we can analyze the fossil and the matrix and work out what's going on.

我們使用這些石膏護(hù)套 本質(zhì)上是保護(hù)周圍的基石, 這樣我們才能把它們 從野外帶到實(shí)驗(yàn)室, 才能分析化石以及基石, 然后再推演出發(fā)生了什么事。

【94】We also had to, for the bigger skull block and the body block, we also had to create a wooden frame to help support the immense weight.

我們?yōu)榱说玫礁蟮墓菈K和軀塊, 有時(shí)候也不得不做一個(gè)木制框架。

【95】After various challenges on site, we finally managed to remove the entire skeleton after dissecting it into several more manageable blocks.

經(jīng)過現(xiàn)場(chǎng)的各種挑戰(zhàn), 在將其分解成更容易處理的幾塊后, 我們終于移出了整個(gè)骨架。

【96】But this one block here, which is the main body block, this weighed one and a half tons.

但是在這里的這一塊, 是軀體的主要部分, 這一塊重達(dá)一噸半。

【97】It's actually being removed, which is quite nice, it's actually being removed by Joe Davis, who found the ichthyosaur.

它正在被我們移出來(lái),這非常好, 其實(shí)是它的發(fā)現(xiàn)者喬·戴維斯 （Joe Davis）把它移出來(lái)的。

【98】And this was an interesting moment for the team because it's quite an emotional moment, because we'd spent and invested so much time and energy into this ichthyosaur excavation that this moment captured that final piece where we're removing this from its final resting place, 180 million years ago.

現(xiàn)在是在非常有趣的一刻, 因?yàn)檫@是令人激動(dòng)的一刻, 因?yàn)槲覀円呀?jīng)花費(fèi)了很多時(shí)間和精力 來(lái)發(fā)掘這條魚龍, 這時(shí)候我們從這條魚龍 在一億八千萬(wàn)年前最后安息的地方 得到了最后一部分。

【99】On January 10, 2022, this is almost one year after Joe had made that incredible discovery, Angling Water and the University of Manchester issued a joint press release announcing the find.

在 2022 年 1 月 10 日, 這幾乎是在喬做出重大發(fā)現(xiàn)的一年后, 保護(hù)區(qū)和曼徹斯特大學(xué) 發(fā)布了聯(lián)合新聞稿,宣布這一發(fā)現(xiàn)。

【100】Here’s Joe and I on the BBC Breakfast Studio chatting about this discovery and revealing it to the world.

這是喬和我在 BBC 早間新聞工作室討論這一發(fā)現(xiàn), 并且展示給全世界。

【101】Amazingly, this story went viral.

令人驚訝的是, 這個(gè)故事在網(wǎng)上瘋傳。

【102】We were picked up on a multitude of different platforms, TV, radio, newspaper, it went viral all across social media.

我們?cè)诤芏嗖煌钠脚_(tái)被提到, 電視、廣播、報(bào)紙, 在所有的媒體瘋傳。

【103】We were thrilled to bits with this, it was amazing, amazing response about our beautiful ichthyosaur.

我們對(duì)此興奮不已, 這是對(duì)我們美麗的魚龍的驚人反應(yīng)。

【104】But one of the things is, is why do you think exactly did this ichthyosaur get so much interest?

但是其中的問題是, 你認(rèn)為為什么這只魚龍 會(huì)引起這么大的興趣呢?

【105】First of all, everybody loves a cool fossil, especially when it's big and it's complete.

首先, 每個(gè)人都喜歡很酷的化石, 尤其是當(dāng)化石很大并且很完整的時(shí)候。

【106】So you've got a massive tick there.

所以你才會(huì)有這么大的反應(yīng)。

【107】But genuinely, this ichthyosaur was an apex predator at the very top of its food chain in the Jurassic sea.

但是說真的, 這條魚龍是一個(gè)頂級(jí)捕食者, 在侏羅紀(jì)時(shí)代的海中 處于食物鏈的頂端。

【108】So again, another big tick.

所以,這又是一個(gè)原因。

【109】And admittedly the photograph is very cool, although it is me again laying down.

誠(chéng)然,照片很酷, 盡管還是我躺下的那張照片。

【110】(Laughter) But on top of that, one thing it's important to highlight is the very fact that Britain is the birthplace of ichthyosaurs.

（笑聲） 但是有一件更重要的事 是事實(shí)上,英國(guó)是魚龍的發(fā)源地。

【111】This ichthyosaur specimen in the photo, this was the first ichthyosaur specimen brought to the attention of science, found by Mary and Joseph Anning more than 200 years ago in the Lyme Regis on the Dorset coast.

照片中的魚龍標(biāo)本 是第一個(gè)引起科學(xué)界 注意的魚龍標(biāo)本, 是瑪麗和約瑟夫·安寧 （Joseph Anning） 200 多年前 在多塞特海岸的萊姆里吉斯發(fā)現(xiàn)的。

【112】Nowadays, finding ichthyosaur fossils in the UK, generally they're found on the Somerset, the Dorset and the Yorkshire coastlines.

如今,在英國(guó)發(fā)現(xiàn)魚龍化石 通常是在薩默塞特, 多塞特郡和約克郡的海岸線。

【113】And that's because you have the constant erosion of the foreshore and the cliffs.

這是因?yàn)榍盀┖蛻已虏粩嗍艿角治g。

【114】You might be lucky to find, say, the isolated one or two vertebrae on the beach if you go looking.

如果你去找,你可能會(huì)在海灘 幸運(yùn)地發(fā)現(xiàn)一兩個(gè)椎骨。

【115】But still finding a complete skeleton, and especially anything large on the coastline is incredibly rare.

但是,發(fā)現(xiàn)一個(gè)完整的骨架, 特別是在沿線上發(fā)現(xiàn)巨大的東西, 還是很罕見的。

【116】This is why finding the Rutland ichthyosaur in the center of the UK in an unusual exposure is so extraordinarily rare.

這就是為什么以如此罕見 的方式在英國(guó)的中心 發(fā)現(xiàn)拉特蘭魚龍是如此不同尋常。

【117】So what next for this significant specimen?

那么,我們下一步該對(duì) 這個(gè)如此重要的標(biāo)本做什么呢？

【118】Well, despite ongoing plans to try to replace the Rutland Water Nature Reserve with “Joerassic Park” --

好吧,除了把拉特蘭水域自然保護(hù)區(qū)改成 “侏羅紀(jì)公園” 這個(gè)正在進(jìn)行中的計(jì)劃—

【119】(Laughter) I'm sorry, I'm sorry.

（笑聲） 對(duì)不起,對(duì)不起。

【120】I apologize.

抱歉。

【121】Compose myself.

讓我自己平靜一下。

【122】No, the next major step is for Nigel to clean and conserve the entire skeleton.

不,下一個(gè)重要的步驟是 讓奈杰爾清潔并保存整個(gè)骨架。

【123】And this is going to take at least two years to get to that point.

這可能要花費(fèi)兩年的時(shí)間 才能做到這一點(diǎn)。

【124】At that stage, then, me and the rest of the team are able to study the ichthyosaur in as much detail as possible and then prepare it for its eventual display at Rutland, where it will then attract,

在這個(gè)階段, 我和我們隊(duì)伍中的 其他成員會(huì)盡可能多地 學(xué)習(xí)古生物學(xué)更多的細(xì)節(jié), 然后準(zhǔn)備它在拉特蘭的最終展覽。 希望在那里,

【125】hopefully millions of people will travel around the world to come and see this specimen, marvel at this Jurassic giant, and understand the hidden history right beneath their feet.

它會(huì)吸引世界各地的數(shù)百萬(wàn)人 來(lái)這里參觀這個(gè)標(biāo)本, 并驚嘆于這個(gè)侏羅紀(jì)時(shí)期的巨物, 并且了解,就隱藏在他們腳下的歷史。

【126】What an incredible journey.

多么不可思議的旅程啊。

【127】With most fossil finds, there's always an element of luck involved.

在大多數(shù)的化石發(fā)現(xiàn)中, 總有一些幸運(yùn)的因素在里面。

【128】You know, being in the right place at the right time.

就像,對(duì)的地點(diǎn),在對(duì)的時(shí)間。

【129】People search their entire lives for something like this and never even come close.

有的人一生都在尋找這樣的東西, 但是他們甚至永遠(yuǎn)都沒有機(jī)會(huì)接近。

【130】The funny thing is, Joe wasn't even looking for this.

有趣的是,喬沒有在找這些東西。

【131】He genuinely stumbled upon this exceptional discovery.

這真的是他偶然間的發(fā)現(xiàn)。

【132】At ten meters long, the Rutland ichthyosaur is the most complete skeleton of a large prehistoric reptile ever found in the UK.

這個(gè)十米長(zhǎng)的 拉特蘭魚龍,是在英國(guó)發(fā)現(xiàn)的 最完整的史前爬行動(dòng)物的骨架。

【133】This once-in-a-lifetime discovery represents one of the greatest finds in British paleontological history.

這個(gè)千載難逢的發(fā)現(xiàn) 代表著英國(guó)古生物學(xué) 史上最偉大的發(fā)現(xiàn)之一。

【134】On a personal level, leading this excavation and revealing this Jurassic giant has been one of the highlights of my career.

在個(gè)人層面上, 領(lǐng)導(dǎo)這次發(fā)掘, 并且揭開這個(gè)侏羅紀(jì)巨獸的面紗 是我事業(yè)中的高光時(shí)刻之一。

【135】Thank you all very much for letting me share this journey with you.

非常感謝各位能夠 讓我跟你們分享這個(gè)旅程。

【136】(Applause)