【天學網：英語趣聞】全球變暖讓人進化成啥樣子?

Humans may evolve bizarre features such as webbed feet and eyes like cats in response to changing environments, a scientist claims.

一名科學家稱，為適應變化得環境，人類將逐漸進化出奇異的特徵，諸如有蹼的的腳和貓一般的眼睛。

Dr Skinner, a paleoanthropologist at the University of Kent worked with artist Quentin Devine to helpvisualise how humans could look in the future.

肯特大學古人類學家斯金納博士與藝術家昆特-迪瓦恩一同協作，構想未來人們的樣貌。

Some changes could take place very quickly as some humans already have a genetic mutation that produces webbing. Other changes to allow humans to live in extreme conditions might only take place over hundreds of generations of natural selection, or require genetic engineering.

有些變化或許很快就會發生，因為已經有人基因變異產生了足蹼。其它變化讓人們可以在極端條件下生存，要歷經數百代人的自然選擇、或是通過基因工程才會發生。

To adapt to a "water world", Dr Skinner expects humans would develop webbed hands and eyes like those of cats to help us see in the poor lighting conditions underwater.

為了適應「水世界」，斯金納博士預計稱人們會長出足蹼和貓眼，有助我們在光線微弱的水下也能看見。

Dr Skinner said eventually there could be a complete loss of teeth and a reduction in jaw and mouth size down to something you can fit a straw into, which would result in our faces becoming smaller.

斯金納博士說人們最終會完全喪失牙齒、下顎與嘴巴都會變小，小到只容得下一根麥管，臉也會因而變小。

Our noses and face size would increase to help warm inhaled cold air in the nasopharynx.

我們的鼻子和臉都會變大，以助吸入鼻咽的冷空氣變暖。

Regular foraging in shallow waters could lead us to develop artificial "gills" to help us breathe, extracting oxygen from the water and delivering it to the bloodstream. This would also lead to our lung capacity becoming greatly reduced, and our rib cages shrinking.

經常在淺水域覓食會引人逐步形成人工「魚鰭」以助呼吸、從水中汲取氧氣、血液循環系統。這也會引得肺活量大減、胸腔萎縮。

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