VOA慢速英語：研究證實怪異古化石可能來自某種動物

Study Confirms Unusual Fossils Came from an Animal

研究證實怪異古化石可能來自某種動物

科學(xué)家們表示，他們已經(jīng)證實來自5億多年前的怪狀化石是某種動物遺骸。

That would make it one of the earliest known creatures.

這將使其成為最古老的已知生物之一。

The fossils are found within rocks. They are round with many lines, and look similar to the markings of a leaf.

這些化石是在巖石里被發(fā)現(xiàn)的。它們是圓形的，有很多線條，看去上類似于樹葉的印痕。

The fossils were first described in 1947. They have been found in Australia and Russia. Some are very small; others are over a meter long.

這些化石最初于1947年在澳大利亞和俄羅斯被發(fā)現(xiàn)。有些非常小，還有些有一米多長。

Scientists have named the mysterious ancient organism that left these fossils behind "Dickinsonia."

科學(xué)家們將留這些下化石的神秘古生物命名為狄更遜水母(Dickinsonia)。

But what exactly was it?

但是它們究竟是什么呢?

In the past, some scientists suggested it was an animal. Others believed it was a single-celled organism called a protist.

過去，一些科學(xué)家認(rèn)為它是某種動物，另一些人認(rèn)為這是一種叫做原生生物的單細(xì)胞生物。

Researchers presented evidence that Dickinsonia was an animal in a recent paper. The paper appeared in the publication Science.

研究人員在最新的論文中提出了狄更遜水母是某種動物的證據(jù)。這篇論文發(fā)表在《科學(xué)》期刊上。

The most important evidence was that Dickinsonia fossils found in Russia contained carbon-bearing substances produced by animals.

最重要的證據(jù)是俄羅斯發(fā)現(xiàn)的狄更遜水母化石含有動物產(chǎn)生的含碳物質(zhì)。

Experts not connected to the study called that evidence strong. They also said most scientists who had studied the fossils already believed that Dickinsonia was probably an animal.

未涉及這項研究的專家稱證據(jù)確鑿。他們還說，大多數(shù)研究過這些化石的科學(xué)家都已經(jīng)相信狄更遜水母可能是一種動物。

Douglas Erwin is with the Smithsonian Institution. He said he is sure the fossils are from an animal.

道格拉斯·歐文(Douglas Erwin)就職于史密森尼學(xué)會。他說他確信這些化石是來自動物。

It is not clear when Dickinsonia lived. Some fossils are about 558 million years old, said Jochen Brocks of the Australian National University in Canberra. He was one of the researchers involved in the study.

目前尚不清楚狄更遜水母生活在什么年代。澳大利亞堪培拉國立大學(xué)的約亨·布拉克(Jochen Brocks)稱有些化石已經(jīng)有大約5.58億年之久。布拉克是這項研究的研究人員之一。

Brocks considers Dickinsonia to be "the very oldest animal that we can be sure about. He added that it is about 2 million years older than another widely accepted animal fossil.

布拉克認(rèn)為狄更遜水母是我們可以確定的最古老的動物。他補充說，它比另一種廣受認(rèn)可的動物化石大約早200萬年。

Brocks said scientists do not know much about what Dickinsonia looked like. But he said they do know it was "soft and flexible."

布拉克表示，科學(xué)家對狄更遜水母的外表不太了解。但他表示，他們確信它非常柔然有彈性。

Dickinsonia was not the first animal on Earth. Analysis of the genetic materials of living animals suggests that animals first appeared more than 720 million years ago. But scientists have never found fossils that old.

狄更遜水母并非地球上最早的生物。對活體動物遺傳物質(zhì)的分析表明，動物最早出現(xiàn)在7.2億多年前。但是科學(xué)家們從未發(fā)現(xiàn)過這么古老的化石。

I'm Susan Shand.

蘇珊·珊德報道。