Influencing many aspects of our culture, thought and being.

影響著我們文化、思想和做人的許多方面。

Ever-present in design, art, music, science, technology, religion,

永遠存在於設計、藝術、音樂、科學、技術、宗教中。

but what is the Moon?

但月球是什麼？

It depends who you ask.

這取決於你問誰。

The ancient Mesopotamians would speak of Nanna,

古代美索不達米亞人會說到娜娜。

the god of the Moon and creator of all things.

月亮之神和萬物的創造者。

While a present day cosmologist might describe

雖然現在的宇宙學家可能會描述

the stabilising influence of our Earth's tilt.

我們的地球傾斜的穩定影響。

And most of us picture the Moon as being closer than it actually is.

而我們大多數人把月球想象成比實際更近的樣子。

Hmm, quite a squeeze for a textbook.

嗯，挺擠的一本教科書。

Strangely, the Sun is 400 times further away from the Earth

奇怪的是，太陽離地球的距離是地球的400倍。

than the Moon

比月球

and is 400 times its size.

並且是其體積的400倍。

This means that, viewed from the Earth,

這意味著，從地球上看。

they appear to be exactly the same size.

他們似乎是完全相同的大小。

Science fiction writer Isaac Asimov described this natural quirk as

科幻小說家艾薩克-阿西莫夫將這種天然的怪癖描述為

'the most unlikely coincidence imaginable.'

"最不可能的巧合想象。

These correlations didn't go unnoticed

這些關聯性並沒有被忽視

by early star-gazing cultures.

由早期的觀星文化。

Notably, 108 is an auspicious number for Hindus

值得注意的是，108是印度教徒的吉利數字

who count 108 marma points, or sacred places in the body.

誰算108個瑪穴，或身體的聖地。

Many believe the Moon affects our bodies.

很多人認為月亮會影響我們的身體。

We know its push and pull affects the tides

我們知道它的推力和拉力會影響潮汐的變化

and we are organic creatures made largely of water

我們是有機物，主要是由水組成的。

who evolved in an ecosystem reliant on this celestial neighbour.

他們在一個依賴這個天體鄰居的生態系統中進化。

What about the Moon's effect on our state of mind?

月亮對我們心境的影響呢？

The word lunacy is derived from the Latin word lunaticus,

瘋子這個詞來自拉丁語lunaticus。

meaning moonstruck.

意思是月球被擊中。

Statistics do show a consistent rise in crime rates around a full moon.

統計數據確實顯示，滿月前後犯罪率會持續上升。

Scientists prefer to attribute this to convenient light levels

科學家們更願意將其歸結為方便的光照水準。

for the plying of nefarious activity.

為從事邪惡活動的活動。

And it's not only our minds in question -

而這不僅僅是我們的思想問題----。

the perceived connection between fertility and the cycles of the Moon

生育力和月相之間的聯繫。

goes back a long time.

可以追溯到很久之前。

Perhaps that's just because the lunar and menstrual cycles

也許這只是因為月球和月經週期的關係

correlate so closely.

相關性如此之強。

In the ancient world, the Moon was generally personified as male

在古代世界，月亮一般被人格化為男性

with the shift to female deities and ideas happening more recently,

與最近發生的向女性神靈和觀念的轉變。

relatively speaking.

相對而言，。

If the Moon is female, there has been no shortage of historical characters

如果說月亮是女性，那麼歷史上的人物也不乏其人。

trying to fathom her mysteries

捉摸不透

to harness this elusive beacon of the natural world.

駕馭這個自然界難以捉摸的燈塔。

So it's nice to hear Nasa has just announced an initiative

所以很高興聽到美國國家航空航天局剛剛宣佈了一項舉措。

to put a woman on the Moon by 2024,

到2024年將一名女性送上月球。

aptly-named Artemis, after Greek god Apollo's twin sister.

阿耳忒彌斯（Artemis），是希臘阿波羅神的孿生妹妹。

And the Moon's many faces continue

月亮的許多面孔繼續

with some seeing her as a harbinger of doom.

有人認為她是末日的預兆。

The Maori people call the Moon Hina, the man-eater,

毛利人稱月球希納為 "食人者"。

who was the bringer of death.

帶來死亡的人。

Then there's the melancholic reflective Moon.

還有憂鬱的反射月。

Around the turn of the 18th Century,

大約在18世紀初。

as we adjusted to the brave new world of science and discovery,

當我們適應了科學和發現的勇敢新世界時。

artists became increasingly focused on our place in the natural world.

藝術家們越來越關注我們在自然界中的位置。

Paintings from the likes of Caspar David Friedrich

卡斯帕爾-大衛-弗里德里希等人的畫作。

and Joseph Wright of Derby

和德比的約瑟夫-賴特

turned to the Moon as a central theme -

轉而以月球為中心主題--

often with small human figures,

常有小人兒的身影。

their backs to the viewer in quiet reflection.

他們背對著觀眾靜靜地思考。

Finally in July 1969, we successfully landed two men on the Moon

終於在1969年7月，我們成功地讓兩個人登上了月球。

and we discovered what she'd been silently gazing upon

我們發現了她一直默默注視的東西

for all this time.

這段時間以來，。

So what is the Moon?

那麼月球是什麼呢？

Male, female, a life support system, or a bringer of death?

男的、女的，是生命維持系統，還是帶來死亡？

Inducer of madness, a conspiracy, a symbol of peace?

瘋狂的誘導者，陰謀，和平的象徵？

What if it's all these things?

如果是這些東西呢？

Embodying all the light and shade of human experience.

體現了人類經驗的所有光影。

It seems the Moon is whatever we choose to see -

看來月亮是我們選擇看到的任何東西--。

a constant reflection of us.

不斷地反映出我們。

Thanks for watching! :)

謝謝你的觀看!:)

Don't forget to subscribe and click the bell to receive notifications for new videos. See you again soon!

不要忘記訂閱並點擊鈴鐺接收新視頻的通知。我們很快會再見面的