TED演讲：试验 排除错误和万能神力(3)

 　　I'm not even telling you the story because I think we should be running more carefully controlled randomized trials in all aspects of public policy,  我跟你说这个故事也不是因为我认为，我们在公共政策的各个方面，做随机抽样试验时，应该更小心，

　　although I think that would also be completely awesome¹.  虽然我觉得这样做真的很好。

　　I'm telling you this story because Archie Cochrane, all his life, fought against a terrible affliction,  我告诉你这个故事是因为阿奇·卡克伦的一生， 都在与一种可怕的痛苦做斗争。

　　and he realized it was debilitating² to individuals and it was corrosive³ to societies.  而且他认识到这是一种削弱个人和腐蚀社会的东西。

　　And he had a name for it. He called it the God complex.  他为它取了个名字，他把它称为“万能神力”。

　　Now I can describe the symptoms of the God complex very, very easily.  现在我可以来描述一下“万能神力”的症状，非常非常简单。

　　So the symptoms of the complex are, no matter how complicated the problem,  “万能神力”的症状是：无论问题多么复杂，

　　you have an absolutely overwhelming belief that you are infallibly right in your solution. 你还是绝对彻底地相信，你的解决方案是准确无误的。

　　Now Archie was a doctor, so he hung around with doctors a lot.  阿奇是个医生，他一直和医生们在一起。

　　And doctors suffer from the God complex a lot.  医生就常常患有这种毛病。

　　Now I'm an economist⁴, I'm not a doctor, but I see the God complex around me all the time in my fellow economists⁵.  我是个经济学家，我不是医生，我身边的经济学家们，也经常会出现这种“万能神力”的症状。

　　I see it in our business leaders. 我看见它存在于我们的商业领袖身上。

　　I see it in the politicians we vote for -- people who, in the face of an incredibly complicated world,  我们看见它存在于我们推选的政客身上——这些人面对这及其复杂的情况时，

　　are nevertheless absolutely convinced that they understand the way that the world works.  仍然绝对坚信，他们知道这个世界是怎样运转的。

　　And you know, with the future billions that we've been hearing about, the world is simply far too complex to understand in that way. 而你们知道，我们在这里听到的未来的数十亿人的种种，用那种方法来理解这个复杂的世界显然是太简单化了。

1 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

2 debilitating   

a.使衰弱的

参考例句：

• The debilitating disease made him too weak to work. 这个令他衰弱的病，使他弱到没有办法工作。
• You may soon leave one debilitating condition or relationship forever. 你即将永远地和这段霉运说拜拜了。

3 corrosive   

adj.腐蚀性的；有害的；恶毒的

参考例句：

• Many highly corrosive substances are used in the nuclear industry.核工业使用许多腐蚀性很强的物质。
• Many highly corrosive substances are used in the nuclear industry.核工业使用许多腐蚀性很强的物质。

4 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

5 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》