TED演讲:科学解释之新探(6)

 　　If the axis-tilt¹ theory had been refuted,  倘若“地轴倾斜”理论被观察否定了

　　its defenders² would have had nowhere to go.  它的支持者们就无路可退了

　　No easily implemented³ change could make that tilt 没有什么信手拈来的变动能让地轴的倾斜

　　cause the same seasons in both hemispheres.  在两个半球产生相同的季节

　　The search for hard-to-vary explanations is the origin of all progress. 对难以修改的解释的探寻是所有进步之源

　　It's the basic regulating principle of the Enlightenment. 这是启蒙运动的基本纲领

　　So, in science, two false approaches blight⁴ progress.  在科学领域，有两种错误阻碍进步

　　One is well known: untestable theories.  第一种众所周知:无法验证的空头理论

　　But the more important one is explanationless theories.  但更重要的却是不带解释的理论

　　Whenever you're told that some existing statistical⁵ trend will continue,  每当别人告诉你某个统计数据趋势将会延续下去

　　but you aren't given a hard-to-vary account of what causes that trend, 而又不给你一个难以改动的好解释，告诉你这趋势为什么存在

　　you're being told a wizard did it.  他几乎就是在说某个大仙做了个法就成这样了

　　When you are told that carrots have human rights  当别人说胡萝卜也是有人权的

　　because they share half our genes⁷ --  因为我们有一半基因胡萝卜也有

　　but not how gene⁶ percentages confer rights -- wizard.  却不说明相同基因的比重怎么引出人权--大仙又来了

　　When someone announces that the nature-nurture debate  当有人宣布认知论中经久不息的“先天-后天”大辩论

　　has been settled because there is evidence  已经解决了，因为有证据说明

　　that a given percentage of our political opinions are genetically⁸ inherited, 某个百分比的政治主张是先天遗传的

　　but they don't explain how genes cause opinions, they've settled nothing. 但他们却不解释基因怎么导致某些意见，它们就什么也没解决。

　　They are saying that our opinions are caused by wizards, 他们只是说我们的主张是变来的

　　and presumably so are their own.  估计他们自己的也是变来的

　　That the truth consists of hard to vary assertions about reality 真理体现在对现实提出的无法轻易改动的论断

　　is the most important fact about the physical world. 这是物质世界中最重要的一个事实

　　It's a fact that is, itself, unseen, yet impossible to vary. Thank you. 这一事实本身其实也是看不见的，但却不可能被东改西改。谢谢大家。

1 tilt   

v.(使)倾侧；(使)倾斜；n.倾侧；倾斜

参考例句：

• She wore her hat at a tilt over her left eye.她歪戴着帽子遮住左眼。
• The table is at a slight tilt.这张桌子没放平，有点儿歪.

2 defenders   

n.防御者( defender的名词复数 )；守卫者；保护者；辩护者

参考例句：

• The defenders were outnumbered and had to give in. 抵抗者寡不敌众，只能投降。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• After hard fighting,the defenders were still masters of the city. 守军经过奋战仍然控制着城市。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

4 blight   

n.枯萎病；造成破坏的因素；vt.破坏，摧残

参考例句：

• The apple crop was wiped out by blight.枯萎病使苹果全无收成。
• There is a blight on all his efforts.他的一切努力都遭到挫折。

5 statistical   

adj.统计的，统计学的

参考例句：

• He showed the price fluctuations in a statistical table.他用统计表显示价格的波动。
• They're making detailed statistical analysis.他们正在做具体的统计分析。

6 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

7 genes   

n.基因( gene的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪

8 genetically   

adv.遗传上

参考例句：

• All the bees in the colony are genetically related. 同一群体的蜜蜂都有亲缘关系。
• Genetically modified foods have already arrived on American dinner tables. 经基因改造加工过的食物已端上了美国人的餐桌。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 基因与食物