the first time going there
My first visit to East Africa was in 1960.David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet · 2020 — Capítulo 4 de 10 · 2'17" · C1
Grzimek Charts the Serengeti, Explained: come crashing down
The plains look empty one morning and full the next: a million wildebeest, then zebra and gazelle, gone over the horizon a few days later. "You can be forgiven for thinking that these plains are endless" names the illusion. A scientist and his son follow the herds and show the grassland is finite, or the ecosystem comes crashing down.
Qué pasa
On a first visit to East Africa in 1960, the Serengeti seems like endless plains. One spot can be empty of animals; the next morning a million wildebeest appear, then the herds vanish over the horizon. Bernhard Grzimek and his son follow them by plane and map the route across rivers and borders. The herds need an enormous area of healthy grassland, or the ecosystem comes crashing down.
Atento a
inconceivable thatthe very existenceempty ofswallow up
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Ahora
Expresión de la escena
come crashing down
collapse all at once
After the missing space is named, come crashing down drops the whole ecosystem, not just the herds.
If the grant disappears, the lab plan will come crashing down.
También en esta escena
- inconceivable that
impossible even to imagine
- the very existence
existence itself, nothing less
- empty of
containing none of them
- swallow up
engulf so nothing stays out
- this wasn't true
that claim was false
Todo lo marcado en esta escena
28 notas en 20 frases
looked impossible at the time
Back then, it seemed inconceivable that we, a single species,appositive: The phrase renames we; seemed is already the verb, and might comes next.
Back then, it seemed inconceivable that we, a single species,Stress the middle of inconceivable and keep seemed light.
Back then, it seemed inconceivable that we, a single species,be capable of doing it
might one day have the power to threaten the very existence of the wilderness.existence itself, nothing less
After one species is named, the very existence makes the threat about whether the wild can continue at all.
might one day have the power to threaten the very existence of the wilderness.plains with no visible end
The Maasai word "Serengeti" means "endless plains."a fitting way to describe it
To those who live here, it's an apt description.relative clause: It narrows those to people who live here before the judgment.
To those who live here, it's an apt description.containing none of that thing
You can be in one spot on the Serengeti, and the place is totally empty of animals, and then, the next morning...250,000 of them
A quarter of a million zebra.500,000 of them
Half a million gazelle.beyond where you can see
and they're gone... over the horizon.Keep they're short and give the weight to gone.
and they're gone... over the horizon.that thought is understandable
You can be forgiven for thinking that these plains are endless when they could swallow up such a herd.engulf so nothing stays out
swallow up lets the plains engulf the herd, which is why the endless mistake sounds reasonable.
You can be forgiven for thinking that these plains are endless when they could swallow up such a herd.when-clause: The when-clause supplies the scale that excuses the endless idea.
You can be forgiven for thinking that these plains are endless when they could swallow up such a herd.dummy it: It holds the place; the hard task is to explain, and Grzimek did it.
It took a visionary scientist, Bernhard Grzimek, to explain that this wasn't true.mapped them on the move
charted them maps the herds while they cross river, wood, and border, said like a plain account of the method.
They charted them as they moved across rivers, through woodlands, and over national borders.across country lines
They charted them as they moved across rivers, through woodlands, and over national borders.a very large area of something
They discovered that the Serengeti herds required an enormous area of healthy grassland to function.Join an to enormous; don't pause between them.
They discovered that the Serengeti herds required an enormous area of healthy grassland to function.if that vast room is missing
That without such an immense space,collapse all at once
After the missing space is named, come crashing down drops the whole ecosystem, not just the herds.
the herds would diminish and the entire ecosystem would come crashing down.Strike crashing and let down fall after it.
the herds would diminish and the entire ecosystem would come crashing down.nowhere near without a limit
far from unlimited closes a simple point: the wild is not distant, it simply is not limitless.
The point for me was simple: the wild is far from unlimited.the conclusion I personally drew
The point for me was simple: the wild is far from unlimited.must be protected by someone
It's finite. It needs protecting.Grzimek Charts the Serengeti, explicado
What's really going on
The name endless plains is what people who live there already call the Serengeti, and the migration makes it feel true. A place can be totally empty of animals, and the next morning hold one million wildebeest, a quarter of a million zebra, and half a million gazelle. A few days later they are gone over the horizon. "You can be forgiven for thinking that these plains are endless when they could swallow up such a herd." The flight by Bernhard Grzimek and his son is the correction. The herds do not disappear into nowhere. They cross rivers, woodlands, and national borders, and they need that enormous area of healthy grassland to keep going. "Without such an immense space, the herds would diminish and the entire ecosystem would come crashing down." The last point is plain: "the wild is far from unlimited." It is finite, and it needs protecting. The huge numbers and the warning are the same observation.
Theme
SurvivalWithout an immense area of healthy grassland, the herds would diminish and the entire ecosystem would come crashing down.
PhilosophyThe wild looks endless, but the point is that it is far from unlimited: finite, and in need of protection.
Escucha con atención
- seemed inconceivable — Stress the middle of inconceivable and keep seemed light.
- they're gone — Keep they're short and give the weight to gone.
- an enormous — Join an to enormous; don't pause between them.
- come crashing down — Strike crashing and let down fall after it.
The Maasai word "Serengeti" means "endless plains."The local name already says the plains go on without end, which is how the place feels to people who live there.
You can be forgiven for thinking that these plains are endless when they could swallow up such a herd.A herd that huge can disappear into the landscape, so calling the plains endless is an understandable mistake.
It took a visionary scientist, Bernhard Grzimek, to explain that this wasn't true.Only Grzimek's work showed that the plains are not actually endless; vanishing over the horizon was not proof of infinity.
the herds would diminish and the entire ecosystem would come crashing down.If the grassland is not vast enough, the animal numbers fall and the whole system fails at once, not slowly.
The point for me was simple: the wild is far from unlimited.The conclusion of the visit: wilderness has a limit, however huge the herds look.
Preguntas sobre esta escena
Why do the Serengeti plains seem endless?
A spot can be totally empty of animals, then hold one million wildebeest, a quarter of a million zebra, and half a million gazelle, and a few days later they are gone over the horizon. A place that can swallow up such a herd looks endless, and the Maasai name means "endless plains."
What did Bernhard Grzimek and his son find?
They followed the herds by plane and charted them across rivers, woodlands, and national borders. The herds needed an enormous area of healthy grassland to function. The idea that the plains were endless was not true.
What happens without that immense space?
The herds would diminish and the entire ecosystem would come crashing down. The grassland has to be huge and healthy for the migration to keep working.
Why does the wild need protecting here?
Because it is far from unlimited. The point is simple: the wild is finite, and it needs protecting.
David Attenborough: Una vida en nuestro planeta · 10 capítulos
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