The Book Of Life
生命之书
So far, scientists have named about 1.8 million living species, and that’s just a small number of what probably exists on Earth. With so many plants, animal, and other living things covering the planet, it can be tough to figure out what type of grass is growing by the roadside or what kind of bird just flew by.
到目前为止，科学家已经命名了大约180万种活的物种，这可能只是地球上存在的一小部分。正因为地球上有这么多植物、 动物和其他生物， 所以很难断定路边生长的草是什么类型， 或者刚刚从身边飞过的鸟是什么种类。
A soon-to-be-started Web site might help. An international term of researchers has announced the creation of Web-based Encyclopedia of Life (EoL). The project aims to list every species on Earth in a single, easy-to-use reference guide.
一个即将启动的网站可能会有所帮助。国际术语的研究人员宣布将创建基于网络的《生命百科全书》（Encyclopedia of Life，EoL），该项目旨在为地球上的每一个物种提供一个简单易用的参考指南。
To get the encyclopedia started, the creators will use information from scientific databases that already exist. And eventually, in special sections of the site, non-scientists with specialized knowledge will come to help. Bird-watchers, for example, will be able to input what birds they’ve seen and where. To make sure the encyclopedia is accurate, scientists will review much of the information added to it.
为了启动百科全书，创作者将使用已有的科学数据库中的信息。最后，网站的特别之处在于具有专业知识的非科学家将提供帮助。例如，鸟类观察者将能够输入他们看到的鸟类以及地点。为了确保百科全书的准确性，科学家们将审查添加到其中的大部分信息。
As the EoL develops, you might find it useful for school projects, The site will feature special pages for kids who are studying ecosystems in their neighborhoods. Another convenient feature of the EoL is that you’ll be able to pick the level of detail you want to see to match your interests, age, and knowledge.
随着EoL的发展，你可能会发现它对学校项目很有用。该网站将为研究社区生态系统的孩子们提供专门页面。EoL的另一个便利功能是，你可以根据自己的兴趣、年龄和知识选择想要查看的详细程度。
It now takes years for scientists to collect all the data they need to describes and analyze species. The creators of the Encyclopedia of Life hope that their new tool will speed up that process.
现在，科学家们需要耗费数年时间来收集描述和分析物种所需的所有数据。《生命百科全书》的创作者希望他们的新工具能加快这一过程。
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