時差N小時:在野外動物會救助其他動物于危難

Even without the guidance of organized religion,some animal sinstinctively know that it's a goodthing to help others.

即使沒有類似人類宗教的指引，有些動物仍能本能地救助處于危難中的其它動物。

For example, when a bird spots a predator, insteadof just flying away, it calls out in alarm andwarnseveryone in the vicinity.

比如，一只小鳥發(fā)現(xiàn)了捕食者，它就會發(fā)出叫聲以警示和提醒附近其它的小動物們。

When a dolphin is injured, other dolphins help itswim up to the surface and get some air.

如果一只海豚受傷了，那么其他海豚也會幫助它一直游到岸邊以呼吸新鮮空氣。

And in a lab experiment that was setup so that one rat had to sit on a platform or else his ratfriends would get an electrical shockwhen they tried to feed, the rats quickly learned to cooperateand take turns sitting on theplatform.

在類似試驗中，一只老鼠必須要坐在一個平臺上以防止它的朋友們試圖進(jìn)食時被電擊，很快老鼠們就學(xué)會了如何協(xié)作，它們輪流坐在平臺上以防止同伴被電擊。

You might think that evolution would work against this kind of altruism since, insteadofconcentrating on their own survival, animals spend time and energy helping others.

因為這些動物們不僅僅只關(guān)心自己的生命，也會花費(fèi)時間與精力去幫助其他動物。所以，你可能會認(rèn)為進(jìn)化過程會有悖于這種利他主義。

But evolutionists suggest that when animals help animals who are their genetic relatives, orwho are likely to return the favor later on, they are actually helping their species to survivethe processof natural selection.

但進(jìn)化論者認(rèn)為，當(dāng)動物們在幫助那些遺傳親屬，或可能會在稍后回報其所提供的這種幫助時，它們實際上是在幫助它們的種群能夠在自然選擇的過程中存活下來。

Some animals will even sacrifice their own lives to insure the survival of the larger group.

某些動物甚至?xí)奚约旱纳员Ｈ蠓N群的存活。

The worker honeybee, for example, will die defending her hive if necessary.

比如說工蜂，在保護(hù)蜂巢的過程中就會不惜犧牲生命。

Even acts that seem selfish may end up helping the group in the long run.

甚至，某些看上去貌似自私的行為實際長遠(yuǎn)看來也有助于種群存活。

For instance, whenthere isn't enough food to go around, wasps and termites will cannibalizetheir nest-mates.

比如說，當(dāng)附近沒有足夠的食物時，黃蜂和白蟻就會對它們同族的伙伴進(jìn)行蠶食。

Gruesome as this may seem, it insures the colony's survival through tough times.

也許聽上去很可怕，但實際上這保證了艱難時期種群的存活。

Although here at A Moment of Science, we don't condone human cannibalism, we still hopethatthese examples of altruism in animals will give you some food for thought.

我們《科學(xué)一刻》欄目雖然不能寬恕人類自相殘殺的行為，但我們希望，這些存在于動物之間的利他主義將會帶給大家一些發(fā)人深省的思想。