TED演讲:我们的大问题(3)

 　　Now, let me spend the rest of my time on the third big problem,  现在，让我把余下的时间花在对第三个重大问题的探讨上。

　　because it's more subtle and perhaps difficult to grasp.  因为这个问题更加微妙，也可能难以把握。

　　Think about some time in your life --  试着回忆一下你生命中的某些时刻——

　　some people might never have experienced it  有些人可能从未体会过——

　　but some people, there are just those moments that you have experienced where life was fantastic. 但有些人在他们生命的某些时刻体会到生命的美妙。

　　It might have been at the moment of some great, creative inspiration  它可能是当你进入心流体验时

　　you might have had when you just entered this flow stage.  所经历的很棒的、产生创造性灵感的时候。

　　Or when you understood something you had never done before.  或者是当你弄懂了某件以往从未涉足的事情的时刻。

　　Or perhaps in the ecstasy¹ of romantic love.  或者是浪漫爱情中那销魂迷醉的时刻。

　　Or an aesthetic² experience -- a sunset or a great piece of art.  或者是一种对美感的欣赏——如一次落日，或一幅名画。

　　Every once in a while we have these moments,  时不时的，我们便会经历这样的时刻，

　　and we realize just how good life can be when it's at its best.  我们意识到，生命最美好的时刻是多么令人陶醉。

　　And you wonder, why can't it be like that all the time?  然后你就想，为什么生活不能总是那么美好呢?

　　You just want to cling onto this.  你就是想抓住此刻不放。

　　And then, of course, it drifts back into ordinary life and the memory fades.  然后呢，当然，生活又回到了常态，美好记忆悄然消退。

　　And it's really difficult to recall, in a normal frame of mind, just how good life can be at its best. 对我们来说，以一颗平常之心是非常难以回想生活在最精彩的时候是多么的美好，

　　Or how bad it can be at its worst.  或在最差劲的时候是多么的糟糕。

　　The third big problem is that life isn't usually as wonderful as it could be. 第三个重大问题是，生命通常达不到它可能达到的美妙状态。

　　I think that's a big, big problem.  我想这是一个非常，非常大的问题。

　　It's easy to say what we don't want.  我们很容易指出出我们不喜欢的东西。

　　Here are a number of things that we don't want 以下都是我们避之而不及的东西

　　illness, involuntary death, unnecessary suffering, cruelty,  疾病、非自愿死亡、不必要的痛苦、残酷、

　　stunted³ growth, memory loss, ignorance, absence of creativity.  发育停滞、健忘症、无知，以及缺乏创造力。

　　Suppose we fixed⁴ these things -- we did something about all of these.  假设我们解决了这些问题——我们对所有这些都采取些措施。

　　We were very successful. We got rid of all of these things. 我们对此非常成功。我们摆脱了所有这些难题。

　　We might end up with something like this,  我们可能会变成这样。

　　which is -- I mean, it's a heck of a lot better than that.  我的意思是，这将比原来的境况要好一百倍，

　　But is this really the best we can dream of?  但是，这真的是我们能想到的最好结果吗？

　　Is this the best we can do?  这真的是我们所能做的最好程度吗？

　　Or is it possible to find something a little bit more inspiring to work towards?  还是有可能找到一些更加鼓舞人心的目标来为之奋斗？

　　And if we think about this,  如果我们这样想，

　　I think it's very clear that there are ways in which we could change things, 我认为，有一点非常明确，那就是如果想改变现状，

　　not just by eliminating negatives, but adding positives. 除了消除负面因素，还可以增加积极因素。

　　On my wish list, at least, would be:  至少在我的愿望清单上会有——

　　much longer, healthier lives, greater subjective⁵ well-being,  更长久、更健康的幸福，更美满的康乐安宁，

　　enhanced cognitive⁶ capacities, more knowledge and understanding,  更强的认知能力，更多的知识和领悟力，

　　unlimited⁷ opportunity for personal growth  超越目前人类生物极限的无限的个人成长机会，

　　beyond our current biological limits, better relationships,  更好的人际关系，

　　an unbounded potential for spiritual, moral and intellectual development. 更宽广的精神，道德以及才智方面的发展空间。

　　If we want to achieve this, what, in the world, would have to change?  如果我们想达到这些目标，世界应如何改变？

　　And this is the answer -- we would have to change.  答案是——该改变的是我们。

　　Not just the world around us, but we, ourselves.  不仅仅改变我们周围的世界，更应该改变我们自己。

　　Not just the way we think about the world, but the way we are -- our very biology.  不仅仅改变我们看待世界的方式，还有我们自身存在的方式——我们自身的生物特性。

　　Human nature would have to change.  人类本质必须要改变。

1 ecstasy   

n.狂喜，心醉神怡，入迷

参考例句：

• He listened to the music with ecstasy.他听音乐听得入了神。
• Speechless with ecstasy,the little boys gazed at the toys.小孩注视着那些玩具，高兴得说不出话来。

2 aesthetic   

adj.美学的，审美的，有美感

参考例句：

• My aesthetic standards are quite different from his.我的审美标准与他的大不相同。
• The professor advanced a new aesthetic theory.那位教授提出了新的美学理论。

3 stunted   

adj.矮小的；发育迟缓的

参考例句：

• the stunted lives of children deprived of education 未受教育的孩子所过的局限生活
• But the landed oligarchy had stunted the country's democratic development for generations. 但是好几代以来土地寡头的统治阻碍了这个国家民主的发展。

4 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

5 subjective   

a.主观(上)的，个人的

参考例句：

• The way they interpreted their past was highly subjective. 他们解释其过去的方式太主观。
• A literary critic should not be too subjective in his approach. 文学评论家的看法不应太主观。

6 cognitive   

adj.认知的，认识的，有感知的

参考例句：

• As children grow older,their cognitive processes become sharper.孩子们越长越大，他们的认知过程变得更为敏锐。
• The cognitive psychologist is like the tinker who wants to know how a clock works.认知心理学者倒很像一个需要通晓钟表如何运转的钟表修理匠。

7 unlimited   

adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的

参考例句：

• They flew over the unlimited reaches of the Arctic.他们飞过了茫茫无边的北极上空。
• There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris.在技术方面自以为是会很危险。