小故事背诵达人 谁有脑子？

Who's Got Brains?

谁有脑子？

In the hospital, where their family member lay gravely ill, the relatives gathered in the waiting room. Finally, the doctor came in looking tired and somber¹.

家属全部聚集在医院的等候室，守着他们病重的家人。最后，医生带着疲倦而严峻的面容出现了。

"I'm afraid I am the bearer of bad news," he said as he surveyed the worried faces.

“恐怕有坏消息要告诉你们。他边说边环视”着众人担忧的脸庞：

"The only hope left for your loved one at this time is a brain transplant.

“到了这个地步，你们亲爱的家人唯一的希望就是进行大脑移植，

It's an experimental procedure, risky², and you will have to pay for the brain yourselves."

但这项手术还在实验阶段，风险很大，而且脑袋的钱你们得自行负担。”

The family members sat silent as they absorbed the news.At length, someone asked, "Well, how much does a brain cost?"

听到这个消息，家属全都静静地坐着。最后有人问道：“那么，一颗脑袋要多少钱？”

The doctor quicklyresponded, "$2,000 for a female brain, and $5,000 for a male brain."

医生很快回答：“女人的脑袋一颗2000 元，男人的脑袋一颗5000 元。”

The moment turned awkward. Men in the room tried not to smile, avoiding eye contact with the women, but some actually smirked³.

气氛变得很尴尬。等候室的男性家属忍住不笑，避免接触到女性家属的眼神，但还是有些人不太自然地在偷笑。

A girl, unable to control her curiosity, blurted⁴ out the question everyone wanted to ask, "Why is the male brain so much more?"

有个女孩控制不了好奇心，大家都想问的问题被她一下子脱口而出："男人的脑袋为什么贵那么多？”

The doctor smiled at her childish innocence⁵ and then to the entire group said,

医生对她的赤子之心报以微笑，接着对全部的人说道：

"It's a standard pricing procedure. We have to mark the female brains down, because they've been used."

“这是标准的定价方式。我们不得不调降女人脑袋的价格，是因为它们一直都在使用。”

1 somber   

adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的

参考例句：

• He had a somber expression on his face.他面容忧郁。
• His coat was a somber brown.他的衣服是暗棕色的。

2 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

3 smirked   

v.傻笑( smirk的过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He smirked at Tu Wei-yueh. 他对屠维岳狞笑。 来自子夜部分
• He smirked in acknowledgement of their uncouth greetings, and sat down. 他皮笑肉不笑地接受了他的粗鲁的招呼，坐了下来。 来自辞典例句

4 blurted   

v.突然说出，脱口而出( blurt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She blurted it out before I could stop her. 我还没来得及制止，她已脱口而出。
• He blurted out the truth, that he committed the crime. 他不慎说出了真相，说是他犯了那个罪。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。