the.lost.world-第57部分

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he　baby　just　lay　there　on　the　ground；　breathing　shallowly；　jaws　still　locked　around　Eddie's　boot。　〃Jeez；〃　Eddie　said。
　　　　〃Aggressive　little　guy；　isn't　he；〃　Sarah　said。　〃Right　from　birth。。。〃
　　　　Eddie　looked　down　at　the　tiny；　razor…sharp　jaws。　They　hadn't　penetrated　the　leather。　The　baby　held　on　firmly。　With　the　butt　of　his　rifle；　he　poked　the　infant's　head　a　couple　of　times。　It　had　no　effect　at　all。　The　baby　lay　on　the　ground；　breathing　shallowly。　Its　big　eyes　blinked　slowly　as　they　stared　up　at　Eddie；　but　it　did　not　release　its　grip。
　　　　They　heard　the　distant　roars　of　the　parents；　somewhere　to　the　north。　〃Let's　get　out　of　here；〃　Malcolm　said。　〃We've　seen　what　we　came　here　to　see。　We've　got　to　find　where　Dodgson　went。〃
　　　　Thorne　said；　〃I　think　I　saw　a　track　up　the　trail。　They　might　have　gone　off　there。〃
　　　　〃We　better　have　a　look。〃
　　　　They　all　started　back　to　the　car。
　　　　〃Wait　a　minute；〃　Eddie　said；　looking　down　at　his　foot。　〃What　am　I　going　to　do　about　the　baby？〃
　　　　〃Shoot　it；〃　Malcolm　said；　over　his　shoulder。
　　　　〃You　mean　kill　it？〃
　　　　Sarah　said；　〃It's　got　a　broken　leg；　Eddie；　it's　going　to　die　anyway。〃
　　　　〃Yeah；　but　…　〃
　　　　Thorne　called；　〃We're　going　back　up　the　trail；　Eddie；　and　if　we　don't　find　Dodgson；　we'll　take　the　ridge　road　going　toward　the　laboratory。　Then　down　to　the　trailer　again。〃
　　　　〃Okay；　Doc。　I'm　right　behind　you。〃　Eddie　lifted　his　rifle；　turned　it　in　his　hands。
　　　　〃Do　it　now；〃　Sarah　said；　climbing　into　the　Explorer。　〃Because　you　don't　want　to　be　here　when　Momma　and　Poppa　get　back。〃

Gambler's　Ruin

Driving　up　the　trail；　Malcolm　stared　at　the　dashboard　monitor；　as　the　image　flicked　from　one　camera　view　to　another。　He　was　looking　for　Dodgson　and　the　rest　of　his　party。
　　　　Over　the　radio；　Levine　said；　〃How　bad　was　it？〃
　　　　〃They　took　one　egg；〃　Malcolm　said。　〃And　we　had　to　shoot　one　of　the　babies。〃
　　　　〃So；　a　loss　of　two。　Out　of　a　total　hatching　brood　of　what；　six？〃
　　　　〃That's　right。〃
　　　　〃Frankly；　I'd　say　it's　a　minor　matter；〃　Levine　said。　〃As　long　as　you　stop　those　people　from　doing　anything　more。〃
　　　　〃We're　looking　for　them　now；〃　Malcolm　said　morosely。
　　　　Harding　said；　〃It　was　bound　to　happen；　Ian。　You　know　you　can't　expect　to　observe　the　animals　without　changing　anything。　It's　a　scientific　impossibility。〃
　　　　〃Of　course　it　is；〃　Malcolm　said。　〃That's　the　greatest　single　scientific　discovery　of　the　twentieth　century。　You　can't　study　anything　without　changing　it。〃
　　　　Since　Galileo；　scientists　had　adopted　the　view　that　they　were　objective　observers　of　the　natural　world。　That　was　implicit　in　every　aspect　of　their　behavior；　even　the　way　they　wrote　scientific　papers；　saying　things　like　〃It　was　observed。。。〃　As　if　nobody　had　observed　it。　For　three　hundred　years；　that　impersonal　quality　was　the　hallmark　of　science。　Science　was　objective；　and　the　observer　had　no　influence　on　the　results　he　or　she　described。
　　　　This　objectivity　made　science　different　from　the　humanities；　or　from　religion…fields　where　the　observer's　point　of　view　was　integral；　where　the　observer　was　inextricably　mixed　up　in　the　results　observed。
　　　　But　in　the　twentieth　century；　that　difference　had　vanished。　Scientific　objectivity　was　gone；　even　at　the　most　fundamental　levels。　Physicists　now　knew　you　couldn't　even　measure　a　single　subatomic　particle　without　affecting　it　totally。　If　you　stuck　your　Instruments　in　to　measure　a　particle's　position；　you　changed　its　velocity。　If　you　measured　its　velocity；　you　changed　its　position。　That　basic　truth　became　the　Heisenberg　uncertainty　principle：　that　whatever　you　studied　you　also　changed。　In　the　end；　it　became　clear　that　all　scientists　were　participants　in　a　participatory　universe　which　did　not　allow　anyone　to　be　a　mere　observer。
　　　　〃I　know　objectivity　is　impossible；〃　Malcolm　said　impatiently。　〃I'm　not　concerned　about　that。〃
　　　　〃Then　what　are　you　concerned　about？〃
　　　　〃I'm　concerned　about　the　Gambler's　Ruin；〃　Malcolm　said；　staring　at　the　monitor。

Gambler's　Ruin　was　a　notorious　and　much…debated　statistical　phenomenon　that　had　major　consequences　both　for　evolution；　and　for　everyday　life。　〃Let's　say　you're　a　gambler；〃　he　said。　〃And　you're　playing　a　coin…toss　game。　Every　time　the　coin　es　up　heads；　you　win　a　dollar。　Every　time　it　es　up　tails；　you　lose　a　dollar。〃
　　　　〃Okay。〃
　　　　〃What　happens　over　time？〃
　　　　Harding　shrugged。　〃The　chances　of　getting　either　heads　or　tails　is　even。　So　maybe　you　win；　maybe　you　lose。　But　in　the　end；　you'll　e　out　at　zero。〃
　　　　〃Unfortunately；　you　don't；〃　Malcolm　said。　〃If　you　gamble　long　enough；　you'll　always　lose　…　the　gambler　is　always　ruined。　That's　why　casinos　stay　in　business。　But　the　question　is；　what　happens　over　time？　What　happens　in　the　period　before　the　gambler　is　finally　ruined？〃
　　　　〃Okay；〃　she　said。　〃What　happens？〃
　　　　〃If　you　chart　the　gambler's　fortunes　over　time；　what　you　find　is　the　gambler　wins　for　a　period；　or　loses　for　a　period。　In　other　words；　everything　in　the　world　goes　in　streaks。　It's　a　real　phenomenon；　and　you　see　it　everywhere：　in　weather；　in　river　flooding；　in　baseball；　in　heart　rhythms；　in　stock　markets。　Once　things　go　bad；　they　tend　to　stay　bad。　Like　the　old　folk　saying　that　bad　things　e　in　threes。　plexity　theory　tells　us　the　folk　wisdom　is　right。　Bad　things　cluster。　Things　go　to　hell　together。　That's　the　real　world。〃
　　　　〃So　what　are　you　saying？　That　things　are　going　to　hell　now？〃
　　　　〃They　could　be；　thanks　to　Dodgson；〃　Malcolm　said；　frowning　at　the　monitor。　〃What　happened　to　those　bastards；　anyway？〃

King

There　was　a　buzzing；　like　the　sound　of　a　distant　bee。　Howard　King　was　dimly　aware　of　it；　as　he　came　slowly　back　to　consciousness。　He　opened　his　eyes；　and　saw　the　windshield　of　a　car；　and　the　branches　of　trees　beyond。
　　　　The　buzzing　was　louder。
　　　　King　didn't　know　where　he　was。　He　couldn't　remember　how　he　got　here；　what　had　happened。　He　felt　pain　in　his　shoulders；　and　at　his　hips。　His　forehead　throbbed。　He　tried　to　remember　but　the　pain　distracted　him；　prevented　him　from　thinking　clearly。　The　last　thing　he　remembered　was　the　tyrannosaur　in　front　of　him　on　the　road。　That　was　the　last　thing。　Then　Dodgson　had　looked　back　and　…
　　　　King　turned　his　head；　and　cried　out　as　sudden；　sharp　pain　ran　up　his　neck　to　his　skull。　The　pain　made　him　gasp；　took　his　breath　away。　He　closed　his　eyes；　wincing。　Then　he　slowly　opened　them　again。
　　　　Dodgson　was　not　in　the　car。　The　driver's　door　hung　wide　open；　a　dappled　shadow　across　the　door　panel。　The　keys　were　still　in　the　ignition。
　　　　Dodgson　was　gone。
　　　　There　was　a　streak　of　blood　across　the　top　of　the　steering　wheel。　The　black　box　was　on　the　floor　by　the　gearshift。　The　open　driver's　door　creaked　a　little；　moved　a　little。
　　　　In　the　distance；　King　heard　the　buzzing　again；　like　a　giant　bee。　It　was　a　mechanical　sound；　he　now　realized。　Something　mechanical。
　　　　It　made　him　think　of　the　boat。　How　long　would　the　boat　wait　at　the　river？　What　time　was　it；　anyway？　He　looked　at　his　watch。　The　crystal　was　smashed；　the　hands　fixed　at　1：54。
　　　　He　heard　the　buzzing　again。　It　was　ing　closer。
　　　　With　an　effort；　King　pushed　himself　away　from　the　seat；　toward　the　dashboard。　Streaks　of　electric　pain　shot　up　his　spine；　but　quickly　subsided。　He　took　a　deep　breath。
　　　　I'm　all　right；　he　thought。　At　least；　I'm　still　here。
　　　　King　looked　at　the　open　driver's　door；　in　the　sunlight。　The　sun　was　still　high。　It　must　still　be　sometime　in　the　afternoon。　When　was　the　boat　leaving？　Four　o'clock？　Five　o'clock？　He　couldn't　remember　any　more。　But　he　was　certain　that　those　Spanish　fishermen　wouldn't　hang　around　once　it　started　to　get　dark。　They'd　leave　the　island。
　　　　And　Howard　King　wanted　to　be　on　the　boat　when　they　did。　It　was　the　only　thing　he　wanted　in　the　world。　Wincing；　he　raised　himself　up；　and　painfully　slid　over　to　the　driver's　seat。　He　settled　himself　in；　took　a　deep　breath；　and　then　leaned　over；　and　looked　out　the　open　door。
　　　　The　car　was　hanging　over　empty　space；　supported　by　trees。　He　saw　a　steep　jungle　hillside；　falling　away　beneath　him。　It　was　dark　beneath　the　canopy　of　trees。　He　felt　dizzy；　just　looking　down。　The　ground　must　be　twenty　or　thirty　feet　below　him。　He　saw　scattered　green　ferns；　and　a　few　dark　boulders。　He　twisted　his　body　to　look　more。
　　　　And　then　he　sa