修复师让化石“活”了起来

重庆 彭乙莎

化石被发现时通常被包裹在层层的岩石中， 很少有人能认出它们是什么。修复师必须移除周围的积物，才能让古老的生物尽可能呈现出最原始的状态。 当然，这需要修复师们极大的专注和耐心。

题材体裁文化遗产记叙文458★★★文章词数难度建议用时7分钟

Restorer Luo Yongming, 51, sits unmoving for almost an hour, staring into the microscope as he uses a pneumatic pen on a crinoid fossil. Crinoids are a family of marine animals that still exist today as starfish and sea urchins, and the part Luo is cleaning is only 3 to 4 centimeters long. For most people, the process is repetitive and boring, but not for Luo.“Touching species from ancient times and trying to restore them to their original states is like talking to history and preserving ancestral memories. The more I restore, the more I feel the magic,” he said.

When Luo was young, he played in the mountains around the factory where his father worked. He found many stones containing fossilized insects, which first aroused his interest. He later studied mining at college and then joined a geological prospecting team after graduation.

In 1998, a friend brought a crinoid fossil for restoration to the office next to Luo's at the geological investigation research institute. Seeing the elderly researchers wearing reading glasses and trembling as they handled the fossil, Luo offered to help. “They were worried I would damage it, but I told them I could do engraving, so they agreed to let me try. It turned out that I did better than them,” he said.

In 2007, he started hunting for fossils, restoring them by himself. When construction began at the geological museum in 2016, Luo helped collect samples from the public. He has worked there since 2019. When found, fossils are usually wrapped in layers of stone.“Each layer may represent one year of sedimentation, and some bones are covered by rocks 2 to 3 kilometers thick,” he said.

The most difficult part is to tell the bone from the rock. The pneumatic pen should not touch fossils directly when rock is being removed. “Some bones, such as teeth or the bones of some fish, are as thin as a needle. That's when we need a microscope.”

For some precious fossils, experts will use needles to remove the surrounding rock,which is safer but slower. They take a break every half an hour to maintain precision. It takes between a week and several months to restore a fossil. “Learning how to do it is not the problem, but it's difficult to stay enthusiastic, patient and focused,” Luo said. One huge crinoid fossil—one of the major pieces displayed at the museum—is 12.5 meters long and 8.2 meters wide and was assembled from more than 300 pieces. The work was done by seven restorers over 40 days.

“We should respect every fossil as it is a piece of history. We aim to present the creature in its most original state, and to encourage the audience to think,” he said.

Reading Check

1. What made Luo interested in the fossils at first?

A. The guidance of his father.

B. Studying mining at college.

C. Many stones of fossilized insects he found.

D. A crinoid fossil for restoration of Luo's friend.

2. Which of the following words can best describe Luo's job?

A. Stressful.B. Well-paid.

C. Dangerous.D. Demanding.

3. Why is it difficult to tell the bone from the rock?

A. Some fossils are too small for restorers.

B. The rock surrounding fossils is thick.

C. The pneumatic pen can't touch fossils directly.

D. Some instruments could not be used to detect fossils.

4. What quality should a fossil restorer have according to Luo?

A. Patient and precise.B. Courageous and skillful.

C. Intelligent and passionate.D. Knowledgeable and diligent.

Language Study

Ⅰ. Difficult sentence in the text

Seeing the elderly researchers wearing reading glasses and trembling as they handled the fossil, Luo offered to help. 看到这些上了年纪的研究人员戴着老花镜，颤抖地处理着化石时，罗主动提出帮忙。

【点石成金】 本句是一个复合句，as引导时间状语从句；seeing在句子中作时间状语，

wearing、trembling是seeing的宾语补足语。Ⅱ. Text-centered chunks

stare into 凝视；注视

offer to do 主动去做……

take a break 休息一下

encourage sb to do 鼓励某人做……