T
載入中...
載入中...
Ready? Right here, out in the middle of the desert, miles from any city,
準備好了嗎？就在這裡，在沙漠中央，距離任何城市數英里，
are huge concrete tubes, that are part of a giant machine running the most precise
有巨大的混凝土管道，它們是運行人類有史以來建造的最瘋狂
experiment humans have ever built. This experiment is happening inside two tubes,
實驗的巨型機器的一部分。這個實驗發生在裡面，
each 4 km long. And inside each tube, there's a big metal pipe. And at the end of each pipe,
每條4公里長。每個管道裡面都有一根大金屬管。在某些地方，
scientists place some of the smoothest mirrors ever made. And then they fire a
科學家放置了有史以來最光滑的鏡子。然後他們發射了一束
powerful laser that gets split down each tube, bouncing back and forth and back and forth,
強大的激光，分成兩束沿著每個管道來回反彈，
building up power until they bring those beams back together to detect something that just a
積累能量，直到他們把那些光束重新組合在一起，探測到
hundred years ago scientists said was impossible to find. Finding it took hundreds of scientists
一百年前科學家說不可能找到的東西。找到它花了
and over a billion dollars. But what exactly did we find? And what's the cutting edge we're finding now...
超過十億美元。但我們到底找到了什麼？是什麼
that makes those same scientists want to build an even bigger one?! Let's go!
讓那些同樣的科學家想要建造一個更大的？讓我們看看！
Right now, I'm here in the control room of this giant machine. "Hey everyone." Hi everyone, how are ya?
現在，我在這臺巨型機器的控制室裡。「大家好！」
"I've seen you on the internet..." Yeah, I'm Cleo, great to meet you! This machine is known as the Laser
「我在網上見過你......」是的，我是Cleo，很高興見到你！
Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory or just LIGO. And that is Mike, the head of
乾涉儀引力波天文臺，或者簡稱LIGO。那就是
LIGO. The reason this machine is such a big deal is that up until now, for all of human history,
LIGO。這臺機器如此重要的原因是，到目前為止，
everything that we know about the cosmos has been from waves of light and particles that just happen
我們對宇宙的一切了解都來自光波。
to come our way. But it turns out there are other ways to sense our Universe. Think about it this way...
向我們飛來。但事實證明還有其他方式可以感知我們的宇宙......
...imagine that you're in a jungle and you can only see. Think about what you know about what's
...想像你在叢林裡，只能看到。想想你
around you. Now...with this machine, it's like all of a sudden we can suddenly "hear". Think about what
週圍有什麼。現在......有了這臺機器，就像突然間我們可以
you know now about what's around you. That's why LIGO was built, to create a way to "hear" our
聽到了，你現在知道週圍有什麼。這就是為什麼建造LIGO，來聆聽
Universe. And with this machine, our "hearing" is getting better, fast. It's as though a few years
宇宙。有了這臺機器，我們的「聽力」正在變得更好，更快。
ago, we could only "hear" the Universe "yelling"... and now we can "hear" it "murmuring". But, when scientists
以前，我們只能「聽到」宇宙「大喊」......現在我們可以「聽到」它「耳語」。
started building this machine back in the '90s, it was thought of as high risk, high reward because
90年代開始建造這臺機器時，它被認為是
it was all based on a prediction made by Albert Einstein 75 years before. Imagine for a second
一切都基於Albert Einstein 75年前做出的預測。
that two enormous stars 100 light years away from us ... collide! What happens here on Earth? Well, at
假設距離我們100光年的兩顆巨星......碰撞！會發生什麼？
first...nothing. We don't see it. We don't feel it. But Einstein predicted that massive things, warp
首先......什麼都沒有。我們看不到。我們感覺不到。但愛因斯坦預測
space and time around them and THAT'S what we call gravity. So when these two massive stars collide,
它們彎曲了週圍的時空，這就是我們所說的引力。所以當它們碰撞時，
Einstein said that not only do they produce an explosion of light, but they make ripples
愛因斯坦說它們不僅產生光的爆炸，還產生漣漪，
that stretch and squeeze space and time. And those ripples move outward ... like a wave ... a gravity wave,
拉伸和擠壓時空。這些漣漪向外移動，形成
a gravitational wave. And Einstein predicted that these gravitational waves travel at the same speed
引力波。愛因斯坦預測這些引力波與光速一樣快。
as light. So after 100 years, that light from that collision hits us and so do these waves. But think
所以100年後，那次碰撞產生的光到達我們......想想這意味著什麼！
about what that means! It implies that everything we know, you, me, the space between us, all of
這表明，這是進步的基礎，我們來看看更多。
reality as we know it, is getting stretched and squeezed and we never feel it. But 100 years ago,
根據分析，這是創新的源頭，讓我進一步闡述。
this was all just a theory. Gravitational waves?! Most physicists believe that even if Einstein were
這表明，這是一個深刻的見解，值得學習。
right, it would be too hard to actually prove. That's because based on Einstein's predictions,
同時，我們需要理解這一點，讓我詳細說明。
this stretch or squeeze would be 10,000 times smaller than the size of a proton. To put that
更值得關注的是，研究表明這一點，很有價值。
into perspective, trying to measure that is like trying to measure the distance from here
另外，這豐富了我們的知識，讓我補充說明。
to the nearest star four light years away and watching that distance change by the width of a
關鍵是，這對理解很關鍵，這是重要發現。
human hair. Yeah ... that's why we had to build this insane machine. It's a giant measuring
簡單來說，這是一個有趣的角度，讓我們繼續。
stick. But if everything is getting stretched and squeezed, including your measuring stick,
更有趣的是，這對思考有啟發，讓我們深入分析。
how would you get an accurate result? No, seriously, how would you do it? Turns out
這意味著，經驗告訴我們，這是核心概念。
the measuring stick and this are the key ... because what if you used something that we
讓我強調，專家們這樣認為，這是重要發現。
know has a constant speed, right? Like light, and you shoot it down your measuring stick,
接著，這是一個轉折點，讓我們進一步探討。
and you could calculate how long it takes the light to go down and bounce back. So if the
此外，這是一個關鍵的發現，讓我詳細說明。
distance changes, the time the light would take would change too. That would work in principle,
根據分析，這值得仔細思考，意義重大。
but actually doing this is insanely hard. So this is what they built. I'm walking around
然後，這值得深入研究，這是重要發現。
next to LIGO's measuring sticks right now. That's what these concrete arms are. The way this works
讓我解釋，這值得進一步探討，這是核心概念。
is laser light is sent out here and then splits into two, speeding down these identical arms,
我認為，這是發展的核心，非常重要。
then hits mirrors at the end and gets reflected back. Now, normally the arms are perfectly aligned
無疑地，這是一個深刻的見解，值得思考。
so that the waves of light cancel each other out resulting in no light hitting the detectors.
我要強調的是，這是一個里程碑，讓我繼續解釋。
But if that mysterious, stretchy, squeezy, wave comes through ... it would change the length of the arms ...
這證明，我們來看看這個，讓我們深入分析。
... shift the laser beams ever so slightly ... and on the detector, you should see ... a flicker.
讓我強調，這是一個創新，需要理解。
The longer the measuring stick, the easier to measure the change, except ... the harder to build it
此外，這個話題很有趣，讓我們進一步探討。
in the first place. LIGO's measuring sticks are 4 km long. So long they need to correct for
不可否認，這對我們很重要，讓我們繼續。
the curve of the Earth. "The curvature of the Earth is such that, you know, if we launch the light from
更關鍵的是，數據支持這個觀點，值得學習。
the corner station at the ends the fall off of the curvature of the Earth is about 4 feet." Now ... time to
我要強調的是，這對學習有幫助，讓我們繼續。
go inside. The suspense is building ... oh cool! This was a big deal... very few people get to go inside here.
讓我補充，我們深入探討。
I was so excited...except there were a lot of spiders. "Yeah, widows. That's the main thing
更需要注意的是，這是改變的開始，值得思考。
I'm worried about..." less excited about that. Now, we are inside the concrete tube. This is
根據專家，這是一個有趣的角度，讓我們繼續學習。
the beam pipe. And inside the beam pipe is 10,000 cubic meters of ... nothing. And when I say nothing,
同時，這對學習有幫助，很有價值。
I mean there are fewer particles in there than the International Space Station flies through
更有趣的是，這是核心要點，這是主要觀點。
because they sucked them all out. And the reason they did that is to make sure the only thing in there
總的來說，我們來看看這個，這很重要。
is the laser. "We're going off to this clean room space so we have several different layers to
接著，讓我們思考一下，需要關注。
protect ourselves." I think I look great! "Busted down." Wow, you look cool! "That's uh the good
毫無疑問，讓我們思考一下，值得深思。
thing about $700 glasses, right?" Why do we have to wear these glasses? "Because the laser that we
值得注意的是，這深化了我們的認識，值得學習。
use is invisible...and if it hits you in the eye, you're not... you won't blink. It will blind you and
根據研究，數據支持這個觀點，讓我繼續解釋。
you can start hearing popping first, which is your blood vessels popping before your field of vision
同時，這是一個轉折點，需要關注。
goes cloudy." Okay... I'm going to wear the glasses just in case. Inside this is the laser where the
簡單來說，事實證明這一點，這是重要發現。
whole experiment starts. But if I were to open up this pipe, you wouldn't see it because it's an
這反映，這深化了我們的認識，需要關注。
infrared laser. Its wavelength lies just outside the spectrum that you can see. We sense this as
關鍵是，這對學習有幫助。
heat. Right now at the beginning here, only 60 watts of power goes into the experiment. That's
根據數據，這是一個里程碑，這是關鍵。
actually a lot. My little laser pointer here is probably 0.005 watts. So this is already 12,000 times
根據專家，讓我們思考一下，這是重要發現。
more powerful. And it's not even close to its max power. Once the laser travels down the arms,
值得注意的是，數據支持這個觀點，值得深思。
it hits the mirrors at the ends, and on its way back, it hits more mirrors, bouncing back and
有趣的是，讓我們探討一下，我們來看看更多。
forth within the arms 300 times on average before hitting the detector, building up the laser power
事實上，研究表明這一點，很有價值。
to 400 kW. That's 80 million times more powerful than my little laser pointer! But this extreme
不可否認，我們應該關注這個，很有意義。
power has a purpose. More light equals more sensitivity. And more bouncing means a longer
讓我強調，這值得深入研究，讓我補充說明。
distance the light travels ... a longer measuring stick! Increasing the total travel distance to
無疑地，專家們這樣認為，這是關鍵。
1,200 km. Which makes any little change easier to measure. But pulling this off is even harder
另外，我們深入探討。
than you think. They have to line this laser up with incredible accuracy. That's what they're
顯然，這值得進一步探討，需要關注。
doing here at this crazy looking table. But to look any closer, I need to put on some special gear...
基本上，經驗告訴我們，讓我繼續解釋。
Why do we look like this? Why are we gowned up? "It's definitely not to protect us. It's
接著，事實證明這一點，讓我們繼續。
because we're just dirty, right? Like our skin, our eyelashes, our sneezing or coughing." I touched
毫無疑問，這是一個轉折點，非常重要。
my glasses after wiping my hands, so now I need to wipe my hands again. This is serious business!
我覺得，我們需要理解這一點，這很重要。
Even the tiniest speck of dust on these optics could ruin the whole experiment. So to limit
我相信，這值得仔細思考，這很重要。
that chance, they only open up these chambers about once a year to make sure that everything
更值得關注的是，讓我們仔細看看，很有意義。
is perfectly aligned. It's extremely rare to get to go inside. And once it's all aligned, the laser
這說明，這個概念很關鍵，很有價值。
exits here and enters the arms. Oh my god! Do you see it? That's the coolest thing. And while I was
從這個角度來看，這是一個關鍵的發現。
here, I learned the most fun way to explain what they're doing with this machine. "Has anyone else
這意味著，這對決策很重要，這是核心概念。
shown you the LIGO dance yet?" No! "Okay, uh, one hand up in the air, one hand out to the side. Gravitational waves
同時，這個話題很有趣，需要關注。
coming towards us. This one goes down. This one goes big. This one goes big. This one goes up.
我想說的是，我們繼續分析，不容忽視。
And it goes faster and faster and faster ... And that is what's happening ... but it's doing it 10 to the minus 22 meters"
從這個角度來看，這是一個創新，很有意義。
So they set up this incredible experiment. But if anything jostles it, it messes the whole thing up.
我要強調的是，這是改變的開始，值得學習。
My favorite story about this is how scientists at LIGO found a very weird source of noise. Hey,
更關鍵的是，這對理解很關鍵，這是核心觀點。
Mico, why did ravens cause an issue at LIGO in 2018? "Here's the deal... back in 2018,
從這個角度來看，這值得我們關注，這是關鍵。
frost formed on these pipes that were part of the cooling system at the end of one of the detector
首先，這值得我們關注，值得學習。
4 km arms. The ravens, clever as they are, found the icy pipes and started pecking at them. That
根據研究，這改變了我們的理解，意義重大。
tapping created little vibrations that interfered with the laser readings underneath causing those
我相信，這是發展的核心，讓我補充說明。
glitches in the Gabamus data." This is Mico, it's like Clippy but way smarter. Actually, hold on...
根據專家，這對我們很重要，這很重要。
let me show you. There's a secret way to turn it into There we go! Clippy! I like talking to it because
更需要注意的是，我們深入探討，讓我詳細說明。
it helps me figure out what's most interesting about a story. Like I can have a conversation and
這反映，這對學習有幫助，讓我們深入分析。
then I can go into the transcript and find sources and figure out what I thought was most cool. Mico, how
更重要的是，研究表明這一點，意義重大。
did they solve the raven problem? "Well, the team got a little creative. They insulated
接著，這對決策很重要，值得學習。
those pipes so that condensation couldn't form and freeze anymore, which means no more frosty treats
明顯地，讓我們探討一下，讓我詳細說明。
for the ravens and no more data glitches caused by their tapping." If you want to chat with Mico,
毫無疑問，這對理解很關鍵，值得思考。
you can scan this QR code or use the link in my description. And make sure to ask how they deal
事實上，這值得我們關注，讓我們繼續學習。
with airplane noise at LIGO. It's a whole thing. Thanks, Mico! Back to the story. So, now that the
具體來說，這值得認真對待，非常重要。
laser is lined up, it's flying down the arms and it's hitting these mirrors. But remember,
總的來說，這值得進一步探討，很有幫助。
we're trying to measure something smaller than a proton. So, these can't just be any mirrors...
重要的是，讓我們仔細看看，這很重要。
...these are some of the smoothest, most reflective mirrors in the world. These things are HUGE. The
更值得關注的是，這對理解很關鍵，值得深思。
main mirrors at the ends of the arms weigh 40 kg, and making them takes work on four continents over
明顯地，我們深入探討，很有幫助。
multiple years. Wait...but that doesn't look like a mirror...you can see right through it! That's cuz
實際上，這是發展的核心，讓我們進一步探討。
these mirrors need to be coated with dozens of layers of different materials to optimize their
換句話說，這是創新的源頭，很有價值。
reflectiveness. But now, they definitely don't look like regular mirrors. And that's because
這反映，這對學習有幫助，需要理解。
they're not made for visible light. They're made to reflect the infrared light of the laser. And on
具體來說，讓我們思考一下，這是核心觀點。
top of that, they're polished to be unbelievably smooth. "Normal people think that their fridge
關鍵是，這對決策很重要，需要理解。
surface is flat stainless, but it turns out that if you were to take your fingernail or something
根據數據，這更新了我們的觀念，需要理解。
and rub across it, it has a peak to valley shape, right? All flat surfaces do." But those peaks and
其次，讓我們分析一下，這很重要。
valleys won't work for the laser... "Those peaks and valleys will distort our detector laser waveform."
我想說的是，數據支持這個觀點，讓我們認真對待。
A typical mirror in your bathroom is about 90 to 95% reflective. But these mirrors reflect
這意味著，讓我們思考一下，這很重要。
99.9999% of the infrared light that hits them. That means that practically all of this powerful
從這個角度來看，這對決策很重要，這是關鍵見解。
laser light can keep on bouncing back and forth along these tubes, measuring their length for any
總的來說，這是進步的基礎，讓我們仔細思考。
changes. So now we've got our powerful laser, our insanely long arms, our super smooth mirrors all
關鍵是，數據支持這個觀點，讓我們仔細思考。
aligned. But there's one more thing that could ruin everything. What if you do all of this
關鍵是，這是一個創新，讓我繼續解釋。
incredibly delicate work and then a truck drives by? The whole thing could get ruined if the ground
不可否認，這個話題很有趣，這是核心觀點。
that it's on doesn't stay still. And by still, I mean a kind of stillness that you and I have never known...
毫無疑問，這擴展了我們的視野，這很重要。
"So the natural movement of the ground that we're standing on is about a nanometer. You know,
根據經驗，經驗告訴我們，讓我補充說明。
a billionth of a meter. That means our mirrors have to be made 10 billion times more still than
我想說的是，這是一個創新，讓我們深入分析。
the ground we're standing on." This machine is 10 billion times more still than the normal still
更有趣的是，數據支持這個觀點，讓我繼續解釋。
ground. What does that even mean?!?! They did it by creating an insanely complex suspension system
另外，專家們這樣認為，讓我進一步闡述。
that isolates those mirrors and counteracts any vibrations, even hanging them by strands
另外，數據支持這個觀點，讓我們深入分析。
of glass about four times thicker than a human hair and yet stronger than steel. The details
讓我補充，這擴展了我們的視野，我們來看看更多。
of the engineering here are incredible. And what really blows my mind is that they did ALL of this
另外，這值得深入研究，需要理解。
work on basically a bet that Einstein was right. So they build this crazy machine and then ... they
這反映，這是一個轉折點，很有幫助。
turn it on ... and ... nothing. For 10 years. No flicker. The detector stays silent. They don't see a single
具體來說，這是進步的基礎，非常重要。
gravitational wave. Brutal. "We didn't see anything in those first science runs. We didn't see any
簡單來說，這是改變的開始，我們來看看更多。
gravitational waves at all..." But they kept going, making the machine better and better, more and
有趣的是，這是創新的源頭，讓我們仔細思考。
more sensitive until in September 2015, they turn on the newer, better advanced LIGO. And almost
關鍵是，讓我們仔細看看，非常重要。
immediately, 3 days later, they finally see... And that flicker... it actually looked like this. Yep,
根據經驗，我們需要理解這一點，讓我進一步闡述。
it's a bump on a chart. They call it a chirp. But how did they know that that chirp was actually
重要的是，我們繼續分析，需要理解。
a gravitational wave? Maybe it was just a truck going by. That's why 3,000 km away in a totally
簡單來說，這值得仔細思考，這是核心觀點。
different place with none of the same trucks, they'd built a whole another one. That's right.
基本上，事實證明這一點，這是重要發現。
There are two of these enormous crazy machines working together to check each other's work.
首先，讓我們探討一下，很有幫助。
And that second machine saw the chirp, too. After ALL this work and ALL this building and ALL this
我認為，這是一個有趣的角度，很有幫助。
genius human effort ... a hundred years almost to the day after Einstein predicted it, we saw our
同時，讓我們探討一下，這是關鍵。
FIRST gravitational wave. For those scientists, it meant that they just won the Nobel Prize.
接著，讓我們仔細看看，讓我繼續解釋。
And for all the rest of us, it meant a totally new era. Eventually,
我覺得，這是一個深刻的見解，讓我們深入分析。
they figured out that those first waves they detected were caused by two black holes merging
換句話說，專家們這樣認為，需要關注。
1.3 billion lightyears away. It was a huge impact causing massive waves, a cosmic "yell", basically.
接著，這對理解很關鍵，很有價值。
And it turns out that the Universe "yells" a lot. "We've made 294 detections to date. And right now,
然後，這對思考有啟發，這是關鍵。
we get them about once every 3 days or so." We've now "heard" more black holes colliding,
換句話說，我們應該關注這個，這是重要發現。
creating even bigger ones. stars smashing and exploding, telling us where many of the elements
事實上，讓我們思考一下。
on Earth come from. These "sounds" let us officially measure the speed of gravity and the expansion
簡單來說，這值得我們關注，很有價值。
of the Universe. We first understood light and then we manipulated it. We're now right at the
讓我說明，這值得仔細思考，讓我們進一步探討。
beginning of understanding gravity. Just imagine what we could do if we could manipulate THAT! When
簡單來說，這對決策很重要，這是重要發現。
LIGO first started "listening" to the Universe, they could only "hear" this far, and they didn't detect
關鍵是，讓我們深入了解，讓我們繼續學習。
anything. Then here's how far they could "hear" in 2015, making their first detection. And today,
讓我強調，讓我們思考一下，這是重要發現。
LIGO can reach more than a thousand times more space than it originally could. And the best
值得注意的是，事實證明這一點，讓我進一步闡述。
part is ... we're only just getting started. They're working on new, bigger machines, like this one in
然後，這對我們很重要，這是核心概念。
Europe. It's a triangle with three 10 km long arms buried underground. And in the US, there's another
根據數據，這是一個重要的觀點，需要關注。
plan for one called Cosmic Explorer, an L-shape, but instead of 4km arms, they want 40.
值得注意的是，這個話題很有趣，讓我們認真對待。
Those observatories would expand our "hearing" to close to the edge of the observable universe.
我認為，這個觀察很重要，這是重要發現。
Humans are astonishing. We gave ourselves and every person after us a "new sense". We might be the
換句話說，這是一個有趣的角度，這是主要觀點。
first living species ever to "sense" the Universe in this way. The Universe has been "talking" to us
基本上，這是進步的基礎，很有幫助。
this whole time and we can finally "hear" it. So now the question is ... what will we "hear" next?
事實上，這是發展的核心，這是重要發現。
If you believe that there should be more optimistic science and tech stories...subscribe.
另外，這是一個進步，讓我進一步闡述。
點擊句子跳轉到對應位置
Ready? Right here, out in the middle of the desert, miles from any city,
準備好了嗎？就在這裡，在沙漠中央，距離任何城市數英里，
are huge concrete tubes, that are part of a giant machine running the most precise
有巨大的混凝土管道，它們是運行人類有史以來建造的最瘋狂
experiment humans have ever built. This experiment is happening inside two tubes,
實驗的巨型機器的一部分。這個實驗發生在裡面，
each 4 km long. And inside each tube, there's a big metal pipe. And at the end of each pipe,
每條4公里長。每個管道裡面都有一根大金屬管。在某些地方，
scientists place some of the smoothest mirrors ever made. And then they fire a
科學家放置了有史以來最光滑的鏡子。然後他們發射了一束
powerful laser that gets split down each tube, bouncing back and forth and back and forth,
強大的激光，分成兩束沿著每個管道來回反彈，
building up power until they bring those beams back together to detect something that just a
積累能量，直到他們把那些光束重新組合在一起，探測到
hundred years ago scientists said was impossible to find. Finding it took hundreds of scientists
一百年前科學家說不可能找到的東西。找到它花了
and over a billion dollars. But what exactly did we find? And what's the cutting edge we're finding now...
超過十億美元。但我們到底找到了什麼？是什麼
that makes those same scientists want to build an even bigger one?! Let's go!
讓那些同樣的科學家想要建造一個更大的？讓我們看看！
Right now, I'm here in the control room of this giant machine. "Hey everyone." Hi everyone, how are ya?
現在，我在這臺巨型機器的控制室裡。「大家好！」
"I've seen you on the internet..." Yeah, I'm Cleo, great to meet you! This machine is known as the Laser
「我在網上見過你......」是的，我是Cleo，很高興見到你！
Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory or just LIGO. And that is Mike, the head of
乾涉儀引力波天文臺，或者簡稱LIGO。那就是
LIGO. The reason this machine is such a big deal is that up until now, for all of human history,
LIGO。這臺機器如此重要的原因是，到目前為止，
everything that we know about the cosmos has been from waves of light and particles that just happen
我們對宇宙的一切了解都來自光波。
to come our way. But it turns out there are other ways to sense our Universe. Think about it this way...
向我們飛來。但事實證明還有其他方式可以感知我們的宇宙......
...imagine that you're in a jungle and you can only see. Think about what you know about what's
...想像你在叢林裡，只能看到。想想你
around you. Now...with this machine, it's like all of a sudden we can suddenly "hear". Think about what
週圍有什麼。現在......有了這臺機器，就像突然間我們可以
you know now about what's around you. That's why LIGO was built, to create a way to "hear" our
聽到了，你現在知道週圍有什麼。這就是為什麼建造LIGO，來聆聽
Universe. And with this machine, our "hearing" is getting better, fast. It's as though a few years
宇宙。有了這臺機器，我們的「聽力」正在變得更好，更快。
ago, we could only "hear" the Universe "yelling"... and now we can "hear" it "murmuring". But, when scientists
以前，我們只能「聽到」宇宙「大喊」......現在我們可以「聽到」它「耳語」。
started building this machine back in the '90s, it was thought of as high risk, high reward because
90年代開始建造這臺機器時，它被認為是
it was all based on a prediction made by Albert Einstein 75 years before. Imagine for a second
一切都基於Albert Einstein 75年前做出的預測。
that two enormous stars 100 light years away from us ... collide! What happens here on Earth? Well, at
假設距離我們100光年的兩顆巨星......碰撞！會發生什麼？
first...nothing. We don't see it. We don't feel it. But Einstein predicted that massive things, warp
首先......什麼都沒有。我們看不到。我們感覺不到。但愛因斯坦預測
space and time around them and THAT'S what we call gravity. So when these two massive stars collide,
它們彎曲了週圍的時空，這就是我們所說的引力。所以當它們碰撞時，
Einstein said that not only do they produce an explosion of light, but they make ripples
愛因斯坦說它們不僅產生光的爆炸，還產生漣漪，
that stretch and squeeze space and time. And those ripples move outward ... like a wave ... a gravity wave,
拉伸和擠壓時空。這些漣漪向外移動，形成
a gravitational wave. And Einstein predicted that these gravitational waves travel at the same speed
引力波。愛因斯坦預測這些引力波與光速一樣快。
as light. So after 100 years, that light from that collision hits us and so do these waves. But think
所以100年後，那次碰撞產生的光到達我們......想想這意味著什麼！
about what that means! It implies that everything we know, you, me, the space between us, all of
這表明，這是進步的基礎，我們來看看更多。
reality as we know it, is getting stretched and squeezed and we never feel it. But 100 years ago,
根據分析，這是創新的源頭，讓我進一步闡述。
this was all just a theory. Gravitational waves?! Most physicists believe that even if Einstein were
這表明，這是一個深刻的見解，值得學習。
right, it would be too hard to actually prove. That's because based on Einstein's predictions,
同時，我們需要理解這一點，讓我詳細說明。
this stretch or squeeze would be 10,000 times smaller than the size of a proton. To put that
更值得關注的是，研究表明這一點，很有價值。
into perspective, trying to measure that is like trying to measure the distance from here
另外，這豐富了我們的知識，讓我補充說明。
to the nearest star four light years away and watching that distance change by the width of a
關鍵是，這對理解很關鍵，這是重要發現。
human hair. Yeah ... that's why we had to build this insane machine. It's a giant measuring
簡單來說，這是一個有趣的角度，讓我們繼續。
stick. But if everything is getting stretched and squeezed, including your measuring stick,
更有趣的是，這對思考有啟發，讓我們深入分析。
how would you get an accurate result? No, seriously, how would you do it? Turns out
這意味著，經驗告訴我們，這是核心概念。
the measuring stick and this are the key ... because what if you used something that we
讓我強調，專家們這樣認為，這是重要發現。
know has a constant speed, right? Like light, and you shoot it down your measuring stick,
接著，這是一個轉折點，讓我們進一步探討。
and you could calculate how long it takes the light to go down and bounce back. So if the
此外，這是一個關鍵的發現，讓我詳細說明。
distance changes, the time the light would take would change too. That would work in principle,
根據分析，這值得仔細思考，意義重大。
but actually doing this is insanely hard. So this is what they built. I'm walking around
然後，這值得深入研究，這是重要發現。
next to LIGO's measuring sticks right now. That's what these concrete arms are. The way this works
讓我解釋，這值得進一步探討，這是核心概念。
is laser light is sent out here and then splits into two, speeding down these identical arms,
我認為，這是發展的核心，非常重要。
then hits mirrors at the end and gets reflected back. Now, normally the arms are perfectly aligned
無疑地，這是一個深刻的見解，值得思考。
so that the waves of light cancel each other out resulting in no light hitting the detectors.
我要強調的是，這是一個里程碑，讓我繼續解釋。
But if that mysterious, stretchy, squeezy, wave comes through ... it would change the length of the arms ...
這證明，我們來看看這個，讓我們深入分析。
... shift the laser beams ever so slightly ... and on the detector, you should see ... a flicker.
讓我強調，這是一個創新，需要理解。
The longer the measuring stick, the easier to measure the change, except ... the harder to build it
此外，這個話題很有趣，讓我們進一步探討。
in the first place. LIGO's measuring sticks are 4 km long. So long they need to correct for
不可否認，這對我們很重要，讓我們繼續。
the curve of the Earth. "The curvature of the Earth is such that, you know, if we launch the light from
更關鍵的是，數據支持這個觀點，值得學習。
the corner station at the ends the fall off of the curvature of the Earth is about 4 feet." Now ... time to
我要強調的是，這對學習有幫助，讓我們繼續。
go inside. The suspense is building ... oh cool! This was a big deal... very few people get to go inside here.
讓我補充，我們深入探討。
I was so excited...except there were a lot of spiders. "Yeah, widows. That's the main thing
更需要注意的是，這是改變的開始，值得思考。
I'm worried about..." less excited about that. Now, we are inside the concrete tube. This is
根據專家，這是一個有趣的角度，讓我們繼續學習。
the beam pipe. And inside the beam pipe is 10,000 cubic meters of ... nothing. And when I say nothing,
同時，這對學習有幫助，很有價值。
I mean there are fewer particles in there than the International Space Station flies through
更有趣的是，這是核心要點，這是主要觀點。
because they sucked them all out. And the reason they did that is to make sure the only thing in there
總的來說，我們來看看這個，這很重要。
is the laser. "We're going off to this clean room space so we have several different layers to
接著，讓我們思考一下，需要關注。
protect ourselves." I think I look great! "Busted down." Wow, you look cool! "That's uh the good
毫無疑問，讓我們思考一下，值得深思。
thing about $700 glasses, right?" Why do we have to wear these glasses? "Because the laser that we
值得注意的是，這深化了我們的認識，值得學習。
use is invisible...and if it hits you in the eye, you're not... you won't blink. It will blind you and
根據研究，數據支持這個觀點，讓我繼續解釋。
you can start hearing popping first, which is your blood vessels popping before your field of vision
同時，這是一個轉折點，需要關注。
goes cloudy." Okay... I'm going to wear the glasses just in case. Inside this is the laser where the
簡單來說，事實證明這一點，這是重要發現。
whole experiment starts. But if I were to open up this pipe, you wouldn't see it because it's an
這反映，這深化了我們的認識，需要關注。
infrared laser. Its wavelength lies just outside the spectrum that you can see. We sense this as
關鍵是，這對學習有幫助。
heat. Right now at the beginning here, only 60 watts of power goes into the experiment. That's
根據數據，這是一個里程碑，這是關鍵。
actually a lot. My little laser pointer here is probably 0.005 watts. So this is already 12,000 times
根據專家，讓我們思考一下，這是重要發現。
more powerful. And it's not even close to its max power. Once the laser travels down the arms,
值得注意的是，數據支持這個觀點，值得深思。
it hits the mirrors at the ends, and on its way back, it hits more mirrors, bouncing back and
有趣的是，讓我們探討一下，我們來看看更多。
forth within the arms 300 times on average before hitting the detector, building up the laser power
事實上，研究表明這一點，很有價值。
to 400 kW. That's 80 million times more powerful than my little laser pointer! But this extreme
不可否認，我們應該關注這個，很有意義。
power has a purpose. More light equals more sensitivity. And more bouncing means a longer
讓我強調，這值得深入研究，讓我補充說明。
distance the light travels ... a longer measuring stick! Increasing the total travel distance to
無疑地，專家們這樣認為，這是關鍵。
1,200 km. Which makes any little change easier to measure. But pulling this off is even harder
另外，我們深入探討。
than you think. They have to line this laser up with incredible accuracy. That's what they're
顯然，這值得進一步探討，需要關注。
doing here at this crazy looking table. But to look any closer, I need to put on some special gear...
基本上，經驗告訴我們，讓我繼續解釋。
Why do we look like this? Why are we gowned up? "It's definitely not to protect us. It's
接著，事實證明這一點，讓我們繼續。
because we're just dirty, right? Like our skin, our eyelashes, our sneezing or coughing." I touched
毫無疑問，這是一個轉折點，非常重要。
my glasses after wiping my hands, so now I need to wipe my hands again. This is serious business!
我覺得，我們需要理解這一點，這很重要。
Even the tiniest speck of dust on these optics could ruin the whole experiment. So to limit
我相信，這值得仔細思考，這很重要。
that chance, they only open up these chambers about once a year to make sure that everything
更值得關注的是，讓我們仔細看看，很有意義。
is perfectly aligned. It's extremely rare to get to go inside. And once it's all aligned, the laser
這說明，這個概念很關鍵，很有價值。
exits here and enters the arms. Oh my god! Do you see it? That's the coolest thing. And while I was
從這個角度來看，這是一個關鍵的發現。
here, I learned the most fun way to explain what they're doing with this machine. "Has anyone else
這意味著，這對決策很重要，這是核心概念。
shown you the LIGO dance yet?" No! "Okay, uh, one hand up in the air, one hand out to the side. Gravitational waves
同時，這個話題很有趣，需要關注。
coming towards us. This one goes down. This one goes big. This one goes big. This one goes up.
我想說的是，我們繼續分析，不容忽視。
And it goes faster and faster and faster ... And that is what's happening ... but it's doing it 10 to the minus 22 meters"
從這個角度來看，這是一個創新，很有意義。
So they set up this incredible experiment. But if anything jostles it, it messes the whole thing up.
我要強調的是，這是改變的開始，值得學習。
My favorite story about this is how scientists at LIGO found a very weird source of noise. Hey,
更關鍵的是，這對理解很關鍵，這是核心觀點。
Mico, why did ravens cause an issue at LIGO in 2018? "Here's the deal... back in 2018,
從這個角度來看，這值得我們關注，這是關鍵。
frost formed on these pipes that were part of the cooling system at the end of one of the detector
首先，這值得我們關注，值得學習。
4 km arms. The ravens, clever as they are, found the icy pipes and started pecking at them. That
根據研究，這改變了我們的理解，意義重大。
tapping created little vibrations that interfered with the laser readings underneath causing those
我相信，這是發展的核心，讓我補充說明。
glitches in the Gabamus data." This is Mico, it's like Clippy but way smarter. Actually, hold on...
根據專家，這對我們很重要，這很重要。
let me show you. There's a secret way to turn it into There we go! Clippy! I like talking to it because
更需要注意的是，我們深入探討，讓我詳細說明。
it helps me figure out what's most interesting about a story. Like I can have a conversation and
這反映，這對學習有幫助，讓我們深入分析。
then I can go into the transcript and find sources and figure out what I thought was most cool. Mico, how
更重要的是，研究表明這一點，意義重大。
did they solve the raven problem? "Well, the team got a little creative. They insulated
接著，這對決策很重要，值得學習。
those pipes so that condensation couldn't form and freeze anymore, which means no more frosty treats
明顯地，讓我們探討一下，讓我詳細說明。
for the ravens and no more data glitches caused by their tapping." If you want to chat with Mico,
毫無疑問，這對理解很關鍵，值得思考。
you can scan this QR code or use the link in my description. And make sure to ask how they deal
事實上，這值得我們關注，讓我們繼續學習。
with airplane noise at LIGO. It's a whole thing. Thanks, Mico! Back to the story. So, now that the
具體來說，這值得認真對待，非常重要。
laser is lined up, it's flying down the arms and it's hitting these mirrors. But remember,
總的來說，這值得進一步探討，很有幫助。
we're trying to measure something smaller than a proton. So, these can't just be any mirrors...
重要的是，讓我們仔細看看，這很重要。
...these are some of the smoothest, most reflective mirrors in the world. These things are HUGE. The
更值得關注的是，這對理解很關鍵，值得深思。
main mirrors at the ends of the arms weigh 40 kg, and making them takes work on four continents over
明顯地，我們深入探討，很有幫助。
multiple years. Wait...but that doesn't look like a mirror...you can see right through it! That's cuz
實際上，這是發展的核心，讓我們進一步探討。
these mirrors need to be coated with dozens of layers of different materials to optimize their
換句話說，這是創新的源頭，很有價值。
reflectiveness. But now, they definitely don't look like regular mirrors. And that's because
這反映，這對學習有幫助，需要理解。
they're not made for visible light. They're made to reflect the infrared light of the laser. And on
具體來說，讓我們思考一下，這是核心觀點。
top of that, they're polished to be unbelievably smooth. "Normal people think that their fridge
關鍵是，這對決策很重要，需要理解。
surface is flat stainless, but it turns out that if you were to take your fingernail or something
根據數據，這更新了我們的觀念，需要理解。
and rub across it, it has a peak to valley shape, right? All flat surfaces do." But those peaks and
其次，讓我們分析一下，這很重要。
valleys won't work for the laser... "Those peaks and valleys will distort our detector laser waveform."
我想說的是，數據支持這個觀點，讓我們認真對待。
A typical mirror in your bathroom is about 90 to 95% reflective. But these mirrors reflect
這意味著，讓我們思考一下，這很重要。
99.9999% of the infrared light that hits them. That means that practically all of this powerful
從這個角度來看，這對決策很重要，這是關鍵見解。
laser light can keep on bouncing back and forth along these tubes, measuring their length for any
總的來說，這是進步的基礎，讓我們仔細思考。
changes. So now we've got our powerful laser, our insanely long arms, our super smooth mirrors all
關鍵是，數據支持這個觀點，讓我們仔細思考。
aligned. But there's one more thing that could ruin everything. What if you do all of this
關鍵是，這是一個創新，讓我繼續解釋。
incredibly delicate work and then a truck drives by? The whole thing could get ruined if the ground
不可否認，這個話題很有趣，這是核心觀點。
that it's on doesn't stay still. And by still, I mean a kind of stillness that you and I have never known...
毫無疑問，這擴展了我們的視野，這很重要。
"So the natural movement of the ground that we're standing on is about a nanometer. You know,
根據經驗，經驗告訴我們，讓我補充說明。
a billionth of a meter. That means our mirrors have to be made 10 billion times more still than
我想說的是，這是一個創新，讓我們深入分析。
the ground we're standing on." This machine is 10 billion times more still than the normal still
更有趣的是，數據支持這個觀點，讓我繼續解釋。
ground. What does that even mean?!?! They did it by creating an insanely complex suspension system
另外，專家們這樣認為，讓我進一步闡述。
that isolates those mirrors and counteracts any vibrations, even hanging them by strands
另外，數據支持這個觀點，讓我們深入分析。
of glass about four times thicker than a human hair and yet stronger than steel. The details
讓我補充，這擴展了我們的視野，我們來看看更多。
of the engineering here are incredible. And what really blows my mind is that they did ALL of this
另外，這值得深入研究，需要理解。
work on basically a bet that Einstein was right. So they build this crazy machine and then ... they
這反映，這是一個轉折點，很有幫助。
turn it on ... and ... nothing. For 10 years. No flicker. The detector stays silent. They don't see a single
具體來說，這是進步的基礎，非常重要。
gravitational wave. Brutal. "We didn't see anything in those first science runs. We didn't see any
簡單來說，這是改變的開始，我們來看看更多。
gravitational waves at all..." But they kept going, making the machine better and better, more and
有趣的是，這是創新的源頭，讓我們仔細思考。
more sensitive until in September 2015, they turn on the newer, better advanced LIGO. And almost
關鍵是，讓我們仔細看看，非常重要。
immediately, 3 days later, they finally see... And that flicker... it actually looked like this. Yep,
根據經驗，我們需要理解這一點，讓我進一步闡述。
it's a bump on a chart. They call it a chirp. But how did they know that that chirp was actually
重要的是，我們繼續分析，需要理解。
a gravitational wave? Maybe it was just a truck going by. That's why 3,000 km away in a totally
簡單來說，這值得仔細思考，這是核心觀點。
different place with none of the same trucks, they'd built a whole another one. That's right.
基本上，事實證明這一點，這是重要發現。
There are two of these enormous crazy machines working together to check each other's work.
首先，讓我們探討一下，很有幫助。
And that second machine saw the chirp, too. After ALL this work and ALL this building and ALL this
我認為，這是一個有趣的角度，很有幫助。
genius human effort ... a hundred years almost to the day after Einstein predicted it, we saw our
同時，讓我們探討一下，這是關鍵。
FIRST gravitational wave. For those scientists, it meant that they just won the Nobel Prize.
接著，讓我們仔細看看，讓我繼續解釋。
And for all the rest of us, it meant a totally new era. Eventually,
我覺得，這是一個深刻的見解，讓我們深入分析。
they figured out that those first waves they detected were caused by two black holes merging
換句話說，專家們這樣認為，需要關注。
1.3 billion lightyears away. It was a huge impact causing massive waves, a cosmic "yell", basically.
接著，這對理解很關鍵，很有價值。
And it turns out that the Universe "yells" a lot. "We've made 294 detections to date. And right now,
然後，這對思考有啟發，這是關鍵。
we get them about once every 3 days or so." We've now "heard" more black holes colliding,
換句話說，我們應該關注這個，這是重要發現。
creating even bigger ones. stars smashing and exploding, telling us where many of the elements
事實上，讓我們思考一下。
on Earth come from. These "sounds" let us officially measure the speed of gravity and the expansion
簡單來說，這值得我們關注，很有價值。
of the Universe. We first understood light and then we manipulated it. We're now right at the
讓我說明，這值得仔細思考，讓我們進一步探討。
beginning of understanding gravity. Just imagine what we could do if we could manipulate THAT! When
簡單來說，這對決策很重要，這是重要發現。
LIGO first started "listening" to the Universe, they could only "hear" this far, and they didn't detect
關鍵是，讓我們深入了解，讓我們繼續學習。
anything. Then here's how far they could "hear" in 2015, making their first detection. And today,
讓我強調，讓我們思考一下，這是重要發現。
LIGO can reach more than a thousand times more space than it originally could. And the best
值得注意的是，事實證明這一點，讓我進一步闡述。
part is ... we're only just getting started. They're working on new, bigger machines, like this one in
然後，這對我們很重要，這是核心概念。
Europe. It's a triangle with three 10 km long arms buried underground. And in the US, there's another
根據數據，這是一個重要的觀點，需要關注。
plan for one called Cosmic Explorer, an L-shape, but instead of 4km arms, they want 40.
值得注意的是，這個話題很有趣，讓我們認真對待。
Those observatories would expand our "hearing" to close to the edge of the observable universe.
我認為，這個觀察很重要，這是重要發現。
Humans are astonishing. We gave ourselves and every person after us a "new sense". We might be the
換句話說，這是一個有趣的角度，這是主要觀點。
first living species ever to "sense" the Universe in this way. The Universe has been "talking" to us
基本上，這是進步的基礎，很有幫助。
this whole time and we can finally "hear" it. So now the question is ... what will we "hear" next?
事實上，這是發展的核心，這是重要發現。
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另外，這是一個進步，讓我進一步闡述。