Language and Humanity

語(yǔ)言和人類

Good morning, everyone.

大家早上好。

In today's lecture, we're going to discuss the relationship between language and humanity. As we all know, language is very powerful.

在今天的課上，我們將討論語(yǔ)言和人類之間的關(guān)系。眾所周知，語(yǔ)言是非常強(qiáng)大的。

It allows you to put a thought from your mind directly in someone else's mind.

它可以讓你把你的想法直接放在別人的大腦里。

Languages are like genes talking, getting things they want.

語(yǔ)言就像會(huì)說(shuō)話的基因，得到他們想要的東西。

And you just imagine the sense of wonder in a baby when it first discovers that, merely by uttering a sound, it can get objects to move across a room as if by magic, and maybe even into its mouth.

你可以想象，當(dāng)一個(gè)嬰兒第一次發(fā)現(xiàn)，僅僅通過(guò)發(fā)出一個(gè)聲音，它就能讓物體像中了魔法一樣在房間里移動(dòng)，甚至可能進(jìn)入它的嘴里。

Now we need to explain how and why this remarkable trait, you know, human's ability to do things with language, has evolved, and why did this trait evolve only in our species?

現(xiàn)在我們需要解釋這個(gè)顯著的特征，也就是人類用語(yǔ)言做事的能力，是如何進(jìn)化的，為什么進(jìn)化，為什么這個(gè)特征只在我們?nèi)祟惿砩线M(jìn)化？

In order to get an answer to the question, we have to go to tool use in the chimpanzees.

為了得到這個(gè)問(wèn)題的答案，我們必須研究黑猩猩的工具使用。

Chimpanzees can use tools, and we take that phenomenon as a sign of their intelligence.

黑猩猩可以使用工具，我們把這種現(xiàn)象作為它們智力的標(biāo)志。

But if they really were intelligent, why would they crack open nuts with a rock?

但如果他們真的聰明，他們?yōu)槭裁匆檬^砸開(kāi)堅(jiān)果呢？

Why wouldn't they just go to a shop and buy a bag of nuts that somebody else had already cracked open for them?

他們?yōu)槭裁床蝗ド痰曩I一袋別人已經(jīng)打開(kāi)的堅(jiān)果呢？

Why not? I mean, that's what we do.

為什么不呢？我是說(shuō)，我們就是這么做的。