Forensic experts have developed an unusual way of dating elephant tusks in a bid to stop the illegal trade of ivory.
為了阻止非法象牙交易，法醫專家已發展出確定象牙年代的獨特方式。
Only the sale of antique ivory from before 1947 is permitted in the EU but there is no accurate method of identifying it from modern ivory.
歐盟只允許1947年以前骨董象牙的銷售，然而卻沒有鑑定新象牙的精確方法。
Now a scientist at Edinburgh Zoo has come up with the test which, it could be said, owes its success to the Cold War.
現在愛丁堡動物園的一名科學家想出檢測方法，可以說，該檢測的成功應歸功於冷戰。
The 1950s saw widespread nuclear weapons testing which caused a rise in the levels of a certain chemical in the atmosphere. The amount of carbon 14 doubled by 1965 and can be found in the bones and tusks of animals.
1950年代廣泛的核武試爆造成大氣中某種化學物質的濃度上升。到了1965年，大氣中碳14的量增加一倍，而且能在動物的骨骼與牙齒內發現。
If an ivory sample displays a high level of the matter then it proves it came from an animal alive after the introduction of nuclear testing in the 50s and is therefore being sold illegally.
如果一個象牙樣本顯示該物質（碳14）濃度高，就證明它來自一個存活於50年代核子試爆開始後的動物，因此是非法販賣。
新聞辭典
date︰動詞，確定…年代。名詞有（口語）預約的活動之意，例句︰It’s a date.（就這麼說定、一言為定。）
in a bid to︰片語，企圖、爭取。AOL revamped its logo in a bid to revive the brand. （美國線上為了提振品牌，改換了形象標章。）
owe（to）︰動詞，應歸功於。例句︰She owes her success to hard work.（她把成功歸因於辛勤工作。）
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