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Hello this week we've got a lot to cover including a historic space launch
嗨 本周我们有很多事情要报道 包括一次载入史册的空间发射
a breakthrough in manmade DNA and what religion and pornography have in common.
一次人造DNA的重大突破 以及宗教和色情有何共同之处
So let's get to it.
让我们开始吧
It's the end of an era at NASA but also the start of a new one last week NASA's and discovery
这对NASA（美国国家航空航天局）来说 是一个时代的结束 但同时也是另一个新时代的开端 上周 NASA宣布
the first of its three retired space shuttles to its final destination at the National Air and Space Museum.
首批三个退休的航空飞船到达了它们最后的目的地 国家航空航天博物馆
and in the next week or two a huge step will be taken in the replacement of the space shuttle program.
在下周或下下周 航空飞船商业化替代项目将迈出巨大一步
Early in May the private spaceflight company SpaceX is expected to launch
最早在五月 私营航天公司 SpaceX(太空探索技术公司)预计会发射
its new cargo vehicle The Dragon from Cape Canaveral to rendezvous with the International Space Station.
其新的航空飞船——龙飞船 发射地点位于佛罗里达州卡纳维拉尔角空军基地
If successful the Dragon will be the first private spacecraft to birth with the ISS and offload cargo.
让它与ISS(国际空间站)进行对接 如果成功的话 龙飞船将是第一个 私营的航空飞船
The launch was originally scheduled for this coming Monday
与ISS对接并卸货 这次发射本来是定在 下周一
that earlier this week SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted that
但这周的早些时候 SpaceX的创始人伊隆·马斯克表示
he wanted to spend more time testing the code that the Dragon will use to dock with the ISS.
龙飞船与ISS对接用的代码需要再测试一下 以保证对接成功
This is how we disseminate information now apparently lift off is now tentatively scheduled for May 7
飞船新的发射时间暂定为5月7号
and its marquee contest SpaceX already has a 1.6 billion dollar contract with Nasa to fly 12 missions to the ISS,
经过层层选拔 SpaceX已经与NASA签订了价值16亿美元的合同 未来龙飞船将为其执行12次飞往ISS的任务
but a lot is riding on how this first one goes.
但是主要取决于这次的首发能否成功
In addition it is launching and getting into orbit successfully
除了成功发射并进入预定轨道
SpaceX will also have to prove their time and space craft can perform some tricky maneuvers before actually docking
SpaceX还必须证明 在与ISS对接之前 航空飞船能胜任棘手的机动飞行
essentially taking one long lap around the ISS at about twenty seven thousand kilometers per hour.
基本上就是以大约27000km/h的速度绕ISS一大圈
If all goes well Dragon will dock on day four of the mission unloading more than 500 kilograms of equipment
如果一切顺利 龙飞船将在任务的第四天与ISS对接 卸下超过500公斤的设备
and some nonessential supplies so don't worry it's not like the six astronauts aboard the ISS
和一些非必须的补给品 所以不要着急 ISS上的6个宇航员并不会
are in danger of running out of water oxygen or anything if the test fails.
因为用完了水 氧气或任何其它东西就处于危险境地 如果试验失败的话
The plan is for the dragon to stay docked for 18 days at which point it will return to Earth with 660 kilograms of cargo,
计划是让龙飞船对接后在节点仓待18天 然后带着660千克的货物返回地球
which is notable because that more weight than the Russian Soyuz capsules can carry.
这是非常了不起的 因为这证明它比俄罗斯的联盟号航空飞船 更能装
SpaceX isn't the only company that's developing a taxi cargo service for Nasa,
SpaceX不是唯一一家为NASA提高太空巴士服务的公司
but it's the first to demonstrate that it can launch vehicle into space and return it safely to earth,
但是 它是第一家证明自己可以发射飞船到太空 并成功返回地球的
which it did in December 2010.
早在2010年的12月它就这么做了
The company is also working on a prototype seven-person crew cabin for the Dragon
这家公司同时也在开发一个用龙飞船承载的7人座客舱
that could be ready for testing within a year or two.
可以在近一两年内进入测试阶段
I'd totally voluntier to be one of Dragon's first passengers but you now the air sickness.
我非常愿意成为龙飞船的首批志愿乘客之一 但是你知道 我有晕机症
Next big news in the world a synthetic biology a field that we talked about a few weeks ago.
下一个大新闻发生在合成生物学领域 我们几周前也谈论过
This week SynBio saw maybe it's biggest advance yet,
这周合成生物学也许会见证它有史以来最大的进步
with news that synthetic alternatives to DNA and RNA can not only replicate but also adapt overtime.
据报导 DNA和RNA的合成替代品不仅能 自我复制 还更持久
These man-made alternatives called xenonucleic acids or XNA's have been around for a few years,
这些人工合成的替代物叫作Xenonucleic acids 即XNAs 关于XNAs的讨论已经有些年头了
the ones that were talking about have the same genetic code is DNA with the bases
它们与DNA有相同的基因序列
A G T and C but the sugars that make up the backbones are different
都是由A G T C组成 但主要组成成分糖类是不同的
and they actually make XNA's structurally stronger than DNA.
相较于DNA 组成XNAs的糖类确实使得其结构更加强壮
The first breakthrough came last week when an international team of chemists said that they created enzymes
最早的突破发生在上周 一个国际化学家研究团队 声称他们创造了 生物酶
that replicate XNA molecules just like the enzymes that replicate DNA.
可以合成XNA分子 就像 合成DNA的生物酶
The team put these polymers enzymes to work copying DNA into XNA and then use them to copy the XNA's back over and over.
研究团对使用这些高分子聚合酶 将DNA复制成XNA 然后又用它们将XNA反向转录成DNA 如此往复
This kind of replication is exactly what polymerases are doing with DNA in your cells right now,
这种复制和此刻你的细胞里聚合酶作用于DNA的方式是一样的
but it's never been done with anything other than DNA or RNA in like the history of the world.
也许XNAs显得微不足道 相对于DNA 或RNA在人类历史上扮演的角色
In another, possibly even cooler experiment, the scientist tested whether XNA's could adapt under pressure.
但是下面这个试验也许会颠覆你的想法 科学家们测试XNAs在下面的情况中能否适应
In this case, they wanted to see if random sequences of an XNA molecule could evolve to bind to two specific target proteins,
他们想知道 随机序列的XNA分子 是否能进化以绑定 两种特殊的标靶蛋白分子
they used their new enzymes to produce batches of XNA segments
他们使用新的聚合酶生产批量的 XNA段
and then selected the ones that found their target successfully,
然后将与标靶成功结合的选出来
those segments were then replicated by the new enzymes and the new copies were put to the same task.
这些选出来的XNA段与新的生物酶合成 然后让新合成的复制品做同样的试验
After eight generations the resulting XNA sequences had essentially been bred to
八次试验后 新的XNA基本上
bind perfectly with the proteins much like we breed animals and plants.
能很完美地与蛋白质绑定 就像我们哺乳动物和植物一样
This research means that life doesn't necessarily depend on two molecules DNA and RNA.
这项研究意味着生命并不是只能要依赖 DNA和RNA两种分子
There could be all kinds of other maybe simpler maybe better ways of storing and sharing genetic information in the universe.
宇宙中也许还有其它很多更简单更好的方式储存 和分享基因信息
So when we find extraterrestrial life, and we will.
所以当我们找到外星生物（生命科学将迎来更大突破） 我们一定会找到的
The code that it will carrying its alien blood could look a lot like XNA.
外星生物血液中携带的编码信息也许就如同XNA
Finally new discoveries about two things that make your brain turn off. religion and porn.
最后 我们来说说关于两件事的发现 它们会颠覆你对 宗教和色情的看法
Let's start out with the porn because that's the kind of day I'm having the Journal of Sexual Medicine reports this week
让我们从色情开始说起 因为那天也是我 看到这周《性医学杂志》报告的日子
that when women watch porn they stop using their visual cortex the part of the brain
报告说当女人观看色情作品 她们会停止使用大脑视觉皮层
that's responsible not just for observing but also processing what's observed.
这部分区域不仅负责 观察 同时也处理所观察到的信息
I don't know if you've seen porn, but there's not a whole lot there to process.
不知道你是否曾看过色情作品 但观看时大脑并没有很多的信息要处理
Anyway, 12 women were given PET scans have their brains while they watched 3 videos.
言归正传 研究者让12位女性观看3个视频 同时用PET扫描她们的大脑
the first was a totally unsexy nature documentary the second showed some kinda r-rated action
第一个是完全没有性意义的自然纪录片 第二个里面有一些限制级的动作
and the third was what the team of Dutch physicians called high-intensity erotic film
第三个被荷兰医生团队称作高强度性爱电影
only when the woman watch the porn did the blood flow to their visual cortex drop dramatically.
只有当女性看到色情场面时 流到她们视觉皮层的血液 才会显著地下降
The researchers believe that this is because the blood was redirected to regions of the brain involved in sexual arousal
研究者们相信 这是因为血液转而流向 大脑性唤起的区域
and also because porn and I quote "Does not require precise scanning"
同时也是因为研究者所说的 “大脑不需要接收所有视觉细节”
Like I said not a lot to actually process there.
像我之前说的 并没有很多信息要处理
the researchers noted though, that the visual cortex is also the region of the brain associated with anxiety,
尽管研究者指出 大脑视觉皮层同时也和 负责大脑焦虑的区域有关联
which might suggest that sexual arousal can quiet anxious behavior. Sex good, anxiety bad.
这意味着性唤起可以平复人的焦虑行为 性生活和谐 焦虑感就会减少
As for religion let me be the one to tell you, you don't have a god spot
至于宗教 让我来告诉你吧 你并没有一个上帝点
that's the term some researchers have been using to describe a hypothetical region of the brain,
这是一些研究者用来描述 大脑中的一个假想的区域
supposedly associated with spirituality,
认为与人的灵性有关
but research at the University of Missouri has confirmed earlier studies that say that no such spot exists
但密苏里大学的调查确证 早先的研究说明这样的点不存在
instead spirituality is just something that your whole brain does together.
相反 所谓灵性是与你的整个大脑相关的
Still some regions of the brain contribute to this more than others.
也许某些区域比其它区域影响更大
Lead scientist Brick Johnstone, what an amazing name,
首席科学家Brick Johnstone 这真是个神奇的名字
anyway he studied 20 people with severe injuries to the right parietal lobe
言归正传 他调查了20个右顶叶受过严重伤害的人
that's the area just above your right ear that's responsible for things like spatial relationships and self-awareness.
右顶叶就在你右耳正上方 负责 空间关系和自我意识
He found that subjects with the most severe injuries there, felt most associated with and closest to a higher power.
他发现右顶叶区域受伤最严重的地方 与更高的权利联系最为密切
This kind of makes sense because the whole right side your brain tends to be dedicated to you and for looking out for yourself.
这说得通因为人整个的右脑 都倾向于为你自己着想并使你以自己为中心
And a lot of research has found that monks and nuns and the like
还有许多研究证实 修道士和修女及类似的人
tend to use that self centered part of their brains a lot less.
使用大脑以自我为中心的部分少得多 我主要想说的是
The main thing is; there's no like structural part of the brain that's responsible for religion and spirituality.
大脑中并没有专门的区域负责宗教和灵性
Thanks for watching this episode of scishow news,
感谢观看这期的SciShow
if you want more news and other science stuff or to be a smarter person you can go to youtube.com/scishow and subscribe.
如果你想了解更多的新闻和其它科学消息 或变得更聪明 欢迎至Youtube.com/SciShow订阅我们
And if you have questions or suggestions for us.
如果有任何疑问或建议
You can reach us on Facebook or Twitter or of course in the comments below.
你可以在Facebook Twitter或者 下面的评论区找到我们
We'll see you next time.
下期见！
