评论
打印
Now listen to part of the lecture on the topic you just read about.
现在来听一段有关你刚刚读到的话题的演讲。
Of course there are some negative consequences of selling fossils in the commercial market, but they have been greatly exaggerated.
当然在商业市场卖化石有一些消极的后果，但是它们被极力夸大了。
The benefits of commercial fossil trade greatly outweigh the disadvantages.
商业化石交易的好处大大超过了它的坏处。
First of all, the public is likely to have greater exposure to fossils as a result of commercial fossil trade, not less exposure.
首先，因为商业化石交易，公众能更好地而不是更少地接触化石。
Commercial fossil hunting makes a lot of fossils available for purchase,
商业化石寻找使得许多化石都能买到，
and as a result, even low-level public institutions like public schools and libraries can now routinely buy interesting fossils and display them for the public.
所以，即使是像公立学校和图书馆这样的低层公共机构现在通常也能买到有趣的化石并把它们展示给公众。
As for the idea that scientists will lose access to really important fossils, that's not realistic either.
关于科学家们会失去接触非常重要的化石的机会一说，也不现实。
Before anyone can put a value on a fossil, it needs to be scientifically identified, right?
在任何人给一个化石冠上价值前，它都需要被科学地鉴定，对吗？
Well, the only people who can identify fossils,
那么，唯一能鉴定化石的人，
who can really tell what a given fossil is or isn't, are scientists, by performing detailed examinations and tests on the fossils themselves.
能真正辨别一个化石是真是假的人就是在化石上做详细的检查和测验的科学家们。
So even if a fossil is destined to go to a private collector, it has to pass through the hands of scientific experts first.
所以，即使一个化石注定要被私人收藏家所拥有，它首先也必须经过科学专家的手。
This way, the scientific community is not going to miss out on anything important that's out there.
这样，科学界不会错过在那里的任何重要的东西。
Finally, whatever damage commercial fossil collectors sometimes do, if it weren't for them, many fossils would simply go undiscovered,
最后，不管商业化石收藏者有时候会带来的什么样的损失，如果不是他们，许多化石都不会被发现，
because there aren't that many fossil collecting operations that are run by universities and other scientific institutions.
因为大学和其他科学机构没有组织很多的化石收集作业。
Isn't it better for science to at least have more fossils being found,
对于科学来说，比起很多的化石完全不被发现这样不是更好吗？
even if we don't have all the scientific data we'd like to have about their location and surroundings than it is to have many fossils go completely undiscovered?
至少有更多的化石被发现，即使我们不能拥有全部想要的关于它们的位置和环境的科学数据。
