2月12日是英國(guó)生物學(xué)家、進(jìn)化論奠基人達(dá)爾文的誕辰紀(jì)念日，這一天也被定為“達(dá)爾文日”。很多地方會(huì)在每年的這一天慶祝這個(gè)日子，向這位偉大人物致敬，并借此機(jī)會(huì)讓大眾更加了解進(jìn)化論、以及演化研究在人類(lèi)知識(shí)上的應(yīng)用。如果你不想在這天和別人聊起這位著名的生物學(xué)家時(shí)答不上話，就快來(lái)看看以下十件關(guān)于達(dá)爾文的事情吧。

1

Darwin was born on the same day as Abraham Lincoln.

達(dá)爾文與亞伯拉罕·林肯出生于同一日。

Both Darwin and Lincoln were born on February 12th， 1809， but in much different settings. While Americas 16th president was born in a rude log cabin in the Kentucky wilderness， Darwin was born in a grand house on an estate overlooking the River Severn and the medieval market town of Shrewsbury， England.

達(dá)爾文和林肯都出生于1809年2月12日，但他們出生的背景大不相同。美國(guó)第16任總統(tǒng)林肯出生于肯塔基州荒原上的一間簡(jiǎn)陋木屋，達(dá)爾文則出生于一座英國(guó)大宅，其所在莊園可以俯瞰塞文河和中世紀(jì)市鎮(zhèn)什魯斯伯里。

2

He waited more than 20 years to publish his groundbreaking theory on evolution.

達(dá)爾文等了二十多年才公布他那具有開(kāi)創(chuàng)意義的進(jìn)化論。

Darwins five-year voyage around the world on the HMS注1 Beagle， which ended in 1836， provided him with invaluable research that contributed to the development of his theory of evolution and natural selection. However， concerned about how the public and church would react to his new idea， he did not present his theory on evolution until 1858 when he made a joint announcement with British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace， who was about to go public with a similar concept to Darwins. The next year， Darwin published his work， On the Origin of Species.

達(dá)爾文乘坐英國(guó)皇家海軍艦艇小獵犬號(hào)環(huán)游世界，并在1836年結(jié)束了長(zhǎng)達(dá)五年的旅行。這次旅行為他提供了寶貴的研究素材，助其發(fā)展了進(jìn)化論和自然選擇理論。然而，由于不知道公眾和教會(huì)對(duì)這一新思想會(huì)做出何種反應(yīng)，達(dá)爾文一直沒(méi)有公布自己的進(jìn)化論。直到1858年，他才與即將公布相似理論的英國(guó)博物學(xué)家阿爾弗雷德·拉塞爾·華萊士共同發(fā)表了一份聯(lián)合聲明。第二年，達(dá)爾文出版了著作《物種起源》。

注1：HMS是Her/His Majestys Ship（英國(guó)皇家海軍艦船）的縮寫(xiě)。

3

Darwin suffered from unknown illnesses.

達(dá)爾文患有未知疾病。

For much of his adult life， Darwin repeatedly suffered from stomach pains， vomiting， severe boils， trembling and other symptoms， particularly during times of stress such as attending meetings or making social visits. The cause of Darwins illness remained unknown， and attempts at treatment had little success.

成年以后的大部分時(shí)間，達(dá)爾文都飽受胃疼、嘔吐、嚴(yán)重的癤子、顫抖以及其他癥狀的反復(fù)折磨，尤其是在壓力大的時(shí)候——比如參加會(huì)議或是進(jìn)行社交拜訪。達(dá)爾文的病因一直不明，所進(jìn)行的治療也收效甚微。

4

He listed pros and cons when deciding whether to marry.

達(dá)爾文列出婚姻的利弊以決定是否結(jié)婚。

Darwin in 1838 made a list with two columns， separating the upsides and downsides of marriage. In the“Marry” column： “children，” “constant companion（and friend in old age）…better than a dog anyhow” and“someone to take care of house.” In the “Not Marry”column： “freedom to go where one liked，” “conversation of clever men at clubs” and “l(fā)oss of time.” He married his cousin Emma Wedgwood in 1839.

1838年，達(dá)爾文列了一張分為兩欄的表，分別寫(xiě)出結(jié)婚的好處與壞處。“結(jié)婚”那欄寫(xiě)著：“子女”、“一直有人作伴（及晚年仍有朋友）……怎樣都比一只狗強(qiáng)”以及“有人照料家事”;而“不結(jié)婚”那欄寫(xiě)著：“喜歡去哪就去哪的自由”、“在俱樂(lè)部與才智優(yōu)越的男人聊天”以及“損失時(shí)間”。1839年，他娶了表姐愛(ài)瑪·韋奇伍德為妻。

5

He dropped out of medical school.

他從醫(yī)學(xué)院輟學(xué)。

Darwins father was a successful doctor who prepared his son to follow in his footsteps. After spending the summer of 1825 serving as an apprentice in his fathers practice， he entered one of Britains top medical schools at the University of Edinburgh. Darwin， however， hated the sight of blood and was bored with the lectures. He left medical school and dashed his fathers dreams.

達(dá)爾文的父親是一名成功的醫(yī)生，他打算讓兒子繼承家業(yè)。1825年夏天，達(dá)爾文在他父親的診所當(dāng)學(xué)徒，之后入讀愛(ài)丁堡大學(xué)內(nèi)的英國(guó)頂尖醫(yī)學(xué)院。但達(dá)爾文討厭看見(jiàn)血，又覺(jué)得課堂枯燥無(wú)味，于是離開(kāi)了醫(yī)學(xué)院，使他父親的夢(mèng)想破滅。

6

Darwin was a divinity student.

Darwin was a conventional Christian for much of his life. He studied at the University of Cambridge to become an Anglican clergyman， just before the Beagle voyage. Later in life， he described himself as agnostic， not atheist.

在其一生中很長(zhǎng)一段時(shí)間，達(dá)爾文都是一個(gè)傳統(tǒng)的基督徒。就在乘坐小獵犬號(hào)開(kāi)始環(huán)球旅行之前，他曾就讀于劍橋大學(xué)，以期成為英國(guó)圣公會(huì)牧師。后來(lái)，他形容自己是一名不可知論者，而不是無(wú)神論者。

7

He dined on exotic animals.

珍禽異獸也是達(dá)爾文的盤(pán)中餐。

Darwin not only studied a variety of animals from around the globe， he ate them as well. As a student at Cambridge， he formed the Gourmet Club for the purpose of dining on “birds and beasts， which were before unknown to human palate.” Darwin ate hawk and bittern but couldnt choke down a brown owl that was served. While circling the globe on the HMS Beagle， Darwin continued his adventurous eating by trying some armadillo， ostrich and puma.

達(dá)爾文不僅研究世界各地的各種動(dòng)物，他還會(huì)品嘗它們。在劍橋讀書(shū)期間，他曾為了“享用人類(lèi)味蕾未曾觸及的飛禽走獸”而成立了“美食家俱樂(lè)部”。達(dá)爾文會(huì)吃老鷹和麻鴉，但端上來(lái)的棕色貓頭鷹卻令他無(wú)法下咽。在乘坐皇家海軍艦艇小獵犬號(hào)進(jìn)行環(huán)球旅行期間，達(dá)爾文繼續(xù)他的美食冒險(xiǎn)，試吃了犰狳、鴕鳥(niǎo)和美洲獅。

8

He didnt create the phrase “survival of the fittest.”

“適者生存”一語(yǔ)并非達(dá)爾文所創(chuàng)。

Although associated with Darwins theory of natural selection， the phrase “survival of the fittest” was actually first used by English philosopher Herbert Spencer in his 1864 Principles of Biology， to connect his economic and sociological theories with Darwins biological concepts. Darwin first adopted the phrase in his fifth edition of On the Origin of Species， published in 1869.

雖然“適者生存”這個(gè)詞與達(dá)爾文的自然選擇理論有關(guān)，但實(shí)際上最早使用這一說(shuō)法的是英國(guó)哲學(xué)家赫伯特·斯賓塞。他在1864年出版的《生物學(xué)原理》中使用該詞把他的經(jīng)濟(jì)和社會(huì)學(xué)理論與達(dá)爾文的生物概念聯(lián)系起來(lái)。在1869年出版的第五版《物種起源》中，達(dá)爾文才首次使用了“適者生存”一詞。

9

He lost three of his children.

達(dá)爾文失去了三個(gè)孩子。

Darwin and his wife had ten children， but three of them died at young ages—two as infants and one at age ten. Darwin was known to be quite devoted to his children.

達(dá)爾文和他的妻子總共生了十個(gè)孩子，但其中三個(gè)幼年夭折——兩個(gè)是嬰兒，另一個(gè)在10歲時(shí)去世。據(jù)知達(dá)爾文相當(dāng)疼愛(ài)他的孩子。

10

Darwin is buried inside Westminster Abbey.

達(dá)爾文葬于倫敦威斯敏斯特教堂。

注2：約翰·赫歇爾（1792—1871）英國(guó)著名天文學(xué)家、數(shù)學(xué)家、化學(xué)家及攝影師。

After Darwin passed away on April 19th， 1882， his family began preparations to bury him in the village where he had spent the last 40 years of his life. However， Darwins friends and colleagues wanted to give him the high honor of burial inside Londons Westminster Abbey. After newspapers and the public widely agreed， the Dean of Westminster gave his approval. A week after his death， Darwin was laid to rest in Englands most respected church near fellow scientists John Herschel注2 and Isaac Newton.

1882年4月19日達(dá)爾文去世后，他的家人開(kāi)始準(zhǔn)備把他葬于他度過(guò)人生最后40年的那個(gè)村莊，但他的朋友和同事為了給予他崇高的榮譽(yù)，想把他葬于倫敦的威斯敏斯特教堂內(nèi)。在得到報(bào)紙和公眾的廣泛認(rèn)可后，威斯敏斯特教堂牧師團(tuán)長(zhǎng)同意了這一請(qǐng)求。在其去世一周后，達(dá)爾文被安葬于英國(guó)最受尊敬的教堂內(nèi)，與約翰·赫歇爾和艾薩克·牛頓等科學(xué)家為鄰。