宏浩翻譯有限公司

By analyzing what came out of Neandertals, researchers have verified that at least some of them mixed vegetation into their meaty diet.

藉由分析尼安德塔人的排泄物，研究人員證實至少有部分尼安德塔人在肉食為主的飲食中也混雜植物。

When it comes to Neandertal diets, the consensus has been：they ate meat. Lots of meat. But now it looks like Neandertals chomped on a fair amount of veggies, too.

論及尼安德塔人的飲食，一般認為他們吃肉。許多的肉。不過，現在看來尼安德塔人也攝取數量可觀的蔬菜。

Researchers have had a tough time discerning the Neandertals’ diet. They evaluated carbon and nitrogen isotopes in bones, but those only correspond to some general kinds of proteins. Even plant remains in Neandertal teeth could have gotten there because a tasty animal carcass itself contained traces of a last vegetarian meal.

研究人員過去難以辨認尼安德塔人的飲食。他們分析尼安德塔人骨頭裡碳和氮的同位素，但那些只符合某些一般蛋白質。就連殘留在尼安德塔人齒縫中的植物殘渣，都可能含有相同的同位素反應，因為尼安德塔人吃的動物中，有些可能上一餐就是吃植物。

So the researchers relied on foolproof evidence—they studied Neandertal fecal remains from a site in southern Spain called El Salt. Neandertals made it their home about 50,000 years ago.

因此，研究人員依據最簡單的證據做判讀——他們在西班牙南部一個叫鹽城的地方，研究尼安德塔人遺留的糞便。尼安德塔人約於5萬年前在此建立家園。

The researchers analyzed the samples for chemical compounds that can only result from metabolizing cholesterol from meat or from metabolizing plants. All five samples showed evidence of meat consumption. But two revealed the digestion of plants. Meaning that Neandertals did try vegetation, likely tubers and nuts.

研究人員分析樣本中的化合物，這些化合物只有在膽固醇或植物被人體吸收後才會釋放。所有的5個樣本都顯示尼安德塔人攝取肉類。但其中2個出現食用植物的反應。這意謂尼安德塔人確實嘗試攝取植物，可能是塊莖類和堅果類。

The scientists intend to use the same technique to examine soil samples at a 1.8 million-year-old site in Tanzania. In the hopes that any remaining poop may deliver an ancestral-diet scoop.

科學家打算用相同技術檢驗泥土樣本，樣本在坦尚尼亞，距今有180萬年歷史。希望發現任何糞便遺跡，或許可能透露出遠古祖先飲食樣貌的訊息。

新聞辭典

isotope：名詞，同位素。文中提到的「同位素分析」，是考古學家利用人骨中的碳和氮同位素分析，藉以了解古代先民的飲食習慣。國內學者亦有以「同位素分析」研究恆春半島史前人的飲食習慣。

side of：美式英語用法，主餐外的附帶小菜。例如：a hamburger with a side of fries.（漢堡附帶的薯條。）

scoop ：名詞，1.一鏟或一杓的量；2.新聞的獨家消息，內幕。本文的用法是一語雙關，既是考古學家挖一鏟泥土分析，又暗示可以從中挖出先人飲食習慣的內幕。例 句：The Liberty Times always has the latest scoop.（自由時報總是有最新的內幕消息。）

宏浩翻譯引用 http://iservice.ltn.com.tw/Service/english/english.php?engno=811595&day=2014-09-09