5月20日，唐谦及其同事在《美国国家科学院院刊》上发表了一项关于蟑螂的研究。分析表明，德国小蠊是2100年前从一种亚洲物种进化而来的，原产于现在的印度或缅甸。以下是外媒报道。
The cockroach that emerged from your sink drain and scuttled under the fridge? The nocturnal critter was most likely a German cockroach, and its ancestors were pestering people more than 2,000 years ago in southern Asia, a new study found.
从水槽排水管冒出来、躲在冰箱下面的蟑螂？一项新研究发现，这种夜间活动的动物很可能是德国小蠊，其祖先早在2000多年前就在南亚骚扰人类。
German cockroaches, scientifically known as Blattella germanica, are ubiquitous in cities in the United States and around the world. The hardy pests first appeared in scientific records from 250 years ago in Europe, hence the German moniker, but little is known about their origin.
德国小蠊，学名为Blattella germanica，在美国和世界各地的城市中随处可见。这种顽强的害虫最早出现在250年前的欧洲科学记录中，因此得名德国小蠊，但人们对它们的起源知之甚少。
To figure out how cockroaches got there and spread to other parts of the world, first study author Dr. Qian Tang and his collaborators asked scientists and pest control experts around the globe for local specimens.
为了弄清蟑螂是如何到达那里并传播到世界其他地方的，第一作者唐谦博士及其同事向世界各地的科学家和害虫防治专家索要了当地的样本。
Using genomic data from the samples, Tang was surprised to learn that the modern cockroach's lineage goes back much further than 18th century Europe. The insect evolved from the wild Asian cockroach 2,100 years ago, according to his research.
利用样本中的基因组数据，唐谦惊讶地发现现代蟑螂的血统可以追溯到18世纪以前的欧洲。根据他的研究，这种昆虫是从2100年前的野生亚洲蟑螂进化而来的。
Around that time, Tang and his colleagues speculate, people in what is now India or Myanmar began planting crops in the Asian roach's natural habitat. The insects adapted — shifting their diets to include human food — and then shifted their territory into human households.
唐谦及其同事推测，大约在那时，现在的印度人或缅甸人开始在亚洲蟑螂的自然栖息地种植农作物。昆虫适应了环境，改变了饮食习惯，开始吃人类的食物，然后将领地转移到人类家里。
Next, Tang wants to sequence the full genomes of his hundreds of specimens to learn how German cockroaches have adapted so successfully to the human environment. The insects also demonstrate social behaviors, communicating with one another about where to find food.
接下来，唐谦希望对数百个样本进行全基因组测序，以了解德国蟑螂如何适应人类环境。这些昆虫还表现出社会行为，彼此交流在哪里寻找食物。
1.pester vt.打扰，纠缠
释义：If you say that someone is pestering you, you mean that they keep asking you to do something, or keep talking to you, and you find this annoying.
例：Journalists pestered neighbors for information.
记者缠着邻居打听消息。
2.ubiquitous adj.十分普遍的，无所不在的
释义：If you describe something or someone as ubiquitous, you mean that they seem to be everywhere.
例：Ubiquitous network is changing the traditional anti-corruption pattern.
无处不在的网络，正在改变传统反腐格局。
3.figure out
弄清楚，弄明白
释义：If you figure out a solution to a problem or the reason for something, you succeed in solving it or understanding it.
例：I can’t figure out how to do this.
我弄不懂怎样做这件事。
计算（数量或成本）
例：Have you figured out how much the trip will cost?
旅行要花多少费用你算出来没有？
常见搭配：
figure on计划，打算，预料到
释义：If you figure on something, you plan that it will happen or assume that it will happen when making your plans.
例：I hadn’t figured on getting home so late.
我没有估计到这么晚才回家。
4.evolve from
进化，演化
例：The three species evolved from a single ancestor.
这三种生物从同一祖先进化而来。
逐渐形成，逐步发展
例：The idea evolved from a drawing I discovered in the attic.
这种想法是从我在阁楼里发现的一幅画得到启发的。
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