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Once, when I was in college, I saw a cockroach crawl out of the sink drain in my dorm.
上大学的时候，有一次我看到一只蟑螂从我宿舍的水槽排水管里爬出来。
Like, out of the depths of the sewer, and into my dorm room.
感觉像是……从下水道的深处爬上来，爬到我的宿舍的。
I have never been the same. Ever.
从那以后我就有了阴影，挥之不去的那种。
But it turns out, roaches could do some good in the world because their genetic code,
但事实证明，蟑螂还是能给这个世界带来好处的，因为他们的遗传密码，
which was recently fully sequenced, provides surprising insight into their seemingly eternal survival.
前不久我们已经完全提取排列出来了，非常能够说明它们为何具有看似永恒的生存能力这一问题。
Now we have a better idea of just why cockroaches are so freaking hard to kill: THEY'RE EVOLVING.
现在，对灭蟑螂为何如此困难，我们已经有了更深刻的了解：因为它们在进化。
Not only can cockroaches multiply seemingly infinitely, regenerate from traumatizing wounds,
蟑螂不仅可以看似无限地繁殖，可以从创伤伤口中再生，
fit into any crevice, survive incredibly forceful physical extermination, evolve to evade chemical apocalypse,
任何缝隙能都钻进去，在难以置信的强力物理灭绝中生存下来，进化出逃脱化学末日的能力，
but despite their inherent gross factor, they may also hold an important key to help us understand how to improve our own biology.
而且，除开它们固有的主要特点，它们或许也能为我们掌握如何改善我们人类自身提供重要的启示。
Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences have sequenced the entire genome of the American cockroach for the first time ever, and their genome is surprisingly huge.
中国科学院的研究人员率先排列出了美洲大蠊的整个基因组，发现它们的基因组大得惊人。
The research team found genes indicating that when under stress,
研究小组发现，它们的基因表明，面对压力时，
female cockroaches can lay unfertilized eggs that will still hatch due to parthenogenesis--which is quite literally virgin birth.
雌性蟑螂可以产下未受精的卵，这些卵仍然可以孵化，因为蟑螂是孤雌生殖生物 - 毫不夸张地说就是未经过受精的生殖方式。
(This gives a whole new meaning to, "Jesus, cockroaches!")
（这就赋予了“天啦，蟑螂！”这句话全新的含义）
This is observed in other insects too, like certain kinds of wasps, bees and ants, as well as some reptiles,
这种生殖方式其他昆虫也有，比如某些种类的黄蜂，蜜蜂和蚂蚁以及一些爬行动物，
and only requires one parent's genetic code.
只需要父母一方的基因。
No sex required.
完全不需要考虑性别。
Just crazy science coolness.
从科学的角度来看简直霸气得不行！
This reproductive method means that when mom detects an environment she suspects may not allow her to live much longer,
这种生殖方法意味着当蟑螂妈妈发觉周围的环境不利于它继续存活下去时，
she'll just plop down some ready-made eggs to make sure her genes survive.
她就会产一些现成的虫卵，确保她的基因能够延续下去。
You may think you've killed one cockroach,
你可能觉得你灭了一只蟑螂，
but unbeknownst to you, there are more spawning elsewhere….
但你不知道的是，其他地方还有更多的卵......
Additionally, the research team uncovered the genes and genetic regulation pathways responsible for the cockroach's ability to regenerate limbs.
此外，研究小组还发现了让蟑螂能够重新长出四肢的基因和遗传调控途径。
Offshoots of this research have lead to the development of a drug in China that's based on an ethanol found in cockroaches,
在这项研究的基础上，有研究团队在中国研发出了一种用蟑螂体内的乙醇制成的药物，
and is being touted as potentially useful in human medicine for wound healing and tissue repair.
还声称这种药或许可以用于人类医学中的伤口愈合和组织修复。
They also identified the genes responsible for in-body anti-microbial production,
他们还提取出了蟑螂体内负责体内抗菌的基因，
which keeps cockroaches safe while they're rooting around in the sewage and trash.
正是这种基因让蟑螂能够安全地生活在污水和垃圾环境中。
This could be part of the reason that cockroaches have a tendency to become resistant to our extermination methods.
蟑螂之所以对我们灭蟑螂的手段有免疫的趋势，部分原因恐怕就在于此。
While the genome that was recently sequenced is that of the American cockroach,
尽管研究人员最近排列出的基因组是美洲大蠊的基因组，
other research has indicated that its cousin the German cockroach has evolved to dislike the taste of the poison bait we've been putting out to kill it--
有研究表明，这种蟑螂的近亲德国蟑螂已经进化得不喜欢我们一直用来消灭它们的有毒诱饵的味道了 -
instead of tasting irresistibly sweet, it now tastes bitter to them, and they avoid it,
它们已经不再觉得蟑螂药是甜得让它们欲罢不能了，而是觉得药水是苦的，所以它们会远离蟑螂药，
so we're having a hard time finding something that could kill it.
正因为如此，我们才很难研发出能够消灭它们的东西。
Now that we have a better understand of the cockroach genome,
既然现在我们对蟑螂的基因组已经有了更深入的了解，
we might be able to kill them more effectively which is something we'd like to do because they're gross and they spread plague.
我们或许能够更有效地消灭它们，这正是我们想做的事情，因为它们不仅恶心，还会传播瘟疫。
Now seriously, they carry hell of diseases.
而且，它们还会传播各种疾病。
But, another point in the cockroach's favor, they can help us improve our robotics.
不过，蟑螂还有另外一个好处，那就是，它们可以帮助我们改进我们的机器人技术。
These tiny bugs can withstand over 900 times their body weight in crushing force,
这些小虫子能够承受超过自重900倍的压力，
and are able to squeeze into so many places (LIKE DORM ROOMS) by compressing themselves to almost a third of their full size.
而且能够把自己的体型缩小将近三分之二然后挤进任何角落（比如我们的宿舍）。
Both of these superpowers are due to their exoskeleton, which is hard but also "jointed" and flexible.
这两个超能力都来源于它们的外骨骼，这种外骨骼既坚硬，又是铰链式的结构，所以很“灵活”。
Experts say that if we could make bots with these features,
专家说，制造出具备这些功能的机器人，
we could revolutionize fields like search and rescue,
将会给搜救等领域带来天翻地覆的变化，
with the bots able to access areas of disaster zones that humans and other traditional search animals could never penetrate.
因为那样一来，机器人就能够进入人类和传统搜救动物永远无法到达的灾区。
There's still a long way to go in this area of research,
虽然在这方面我们还有很长的路要走，
but it's going to be interesting to see what we can learn from animals like this,
但是，看到蟑螂这样的动物能带给我们的启发，
and what we can take from their genetic mechanisms to use for our own benefit, no matter how gross they might be.
以及我们可以从他们的遗传机制中学过来为我们所用的东西，也还是挺有意思的。
For more exciting facts about our arthropod friends, make sure you subscribe,
想了解更多有关节肢动物的有趣内容，一定记得订阅噢，
and check out this video on the bugs that may be in your food.
查看这个视频，了解你吃的食物中可能存在的虫子。
Turns out, people who seem allergic to chocolate or coffee may just be reacting to the pieces of cockroach that find their way in there during the manufacturing process.
事实证明，那些看似对巧克力或者咖啡过敏的人可能只是对在生产过程中遗留在其中的蟑螂身体的某个部分过敏。
Yup, I just ruined everything.
嗯，我实在是太坏了。
Thank for watching!
感谢您的收看！
