国家地理:为了结束这场流行病 我们必须相信科学(11)

Pew's surveys also reflect a deep racial divide in attitudes toward science. Black adults, according to the poll conducted earlier this year, are less likely than the general population to trust medical scientists. They are also less likely to have confidence in new COVID-19 treatments or vaccines²; just 54 percent of Black respondents would "definitely" or "probably" get a COVID-19 vaccine¹, compared with 74 percent of whites and Hispanics. This distrust, exacerbated³ by the substandard care many Black patients get in doctor's offices and emergency rooms, is especially troubling in the context of COVID-19, which kills Blacks at more than twice the rate at which it kills whites.

皮尤的调查还反应了不同种族对科学的态度也有很大分歧。根据今年稍早做的民意调查，成年黑人比一般人口更不信任医学家。他们对新的COVID-19治疗方法或疫苗也不太有信心；只有54%的黑人受访者“肯定”或“大概”会接种COVID-19疫苗，白人和西班牙裔则有74%。许多黑人病患在诊疗室和急诊室受到的次等待遇加剧了他们的不信任，这在COVID-19的情况中尤其令人忧心，因为这个疾病在黑人中的致死率是白人的两倍以上。

The racial and political divides in how science is viewed are especially insidious⁴ now, when skeptics could undermine whatever progress scientists make in the coronavirus fight. In the worst-case scenario⁵, if enough doubters ignore control measures and vaccines, that could strip science of its ability to protect us altogether.

不同种族与政治立场的人在看待科学上的分歧态度，现在格外危险，因为怀疑论者可能破坏科学家在对抗新冠病毒上所取得的任何进展。在最坏的情况下，如果够多的怀疑论者不顾防疫措施且不施打疫苗，那就可能剥夺科学保护我们所有人的能力。

I'd like to believe Andrews is right about this being a teachable moment -- maybe not so much for those of us already fixed⁶ in our views, but for those whose childhood is being shaped by the coronavirus. These children -- whom some are calling Generation C -- might grow up with less patience for the polarization fogging our responses today. Let's say they spend their formative years watching the scientific process up close. And let's say that in the end, scientists actually do save the day.

我想要相信安德鲁斯是对的，这是一个教育机会--或许不怎么适用于我们这些有既定成见的人，但却能用在那些正受新冠病毒影响的儿童身上。等到他们长大，这些儿童--有人称之为C世代--可能比较无法容忍造成我们今日应变方式不清的两极分化。假设他们在人格养成时期近距离看见了科学过程；又假设到最后，科学家真的拯救了世界。

Now it's the year 2040, and Gen C is all grown up. Suddenly a new pandemic emerges. Based on what they learned by living through COVID-19 at an impressionable age, these young adults recognize the urgency of the new outbreak, quickly dismissing any claims that it's a hoax⁷. They put on masks, maintain social distance, get vaccinated⁸ as soon as a vaccine is developed (and it's developed quickly, because scientists have also learned a thing or two in the interim⁹, as have politicians). They follow experts' recommendations because they know it's the best way to protect not only themselves but also their neighbors from a plague similar to the one they grew up with that killed hundreds of thousands of people around the world.

到了2040年，C世代都长大了。世界上突然出现一种新的大流行病。他们曾在易受影响的年龄期经历COVID-19，根据他们在当时学到的教训，这些年轻人知道新疫情的急迫性，并迅速扬弃任何称它是骗局的主张。他们戴上口罩、保持社交距离、一旦疫苗研发出来就立即注射（而且疫苗研发速度快，因为科学家从上次疫情以来也学到了一些新事情，政治人物也是）。他们遵循专家的建议，因为明白这是最好的方法，不仅保护自己也保护邻居，不受类似于他们成长过程中那场造成全世界上百万人丧命的瘟疫侵害。

1 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

2 vaccines   

疫苗，痘苗( vaccine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His team are at the forefront of scientific research into vaccines. 他的小组处于疫苗科研的最前沿。
• The vaccines were kept cool in refrigerators. 疫苗放在冰箱中冷藏。

3 exacerbated   

v.使恶化，使加重( exacerbate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The symptoms may be exacerbated by certain drugs. 这些症状可能会因为某些药物而加重。
• The drugs they gave her only exacerbated the pain. 他们给她吃的药只是加重了她的痛楚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 insidious   

adj.阴险的，隐匿的，暗中为害的，（疾病）不知不觉之间加剧

参考例句：

• That insidious man bad-mouthed me to almost everyone else.那个阴险的家伙几乎见人便说我的坏话。
• Organized crime has an insidious influence on all who come into contact with it.所有和集团犯罪有关的人都会不知不觉地受坏影响。

5 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

6 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。

7 hoax   

v.欺骗，哄骗，愚弄；n.愚弄人，恶作剧

参考例句：

• They were the victims of a cruel hoax.他们是一个残忍恶作剧的受害者。
• They hoax him out of his money.他们骗去他的钱。

8 vaccinated   

[医]已接种的，种痘的，接种过疫菌的

参考例句：

• I was vaccinated against tetanus. 我接种了破伤风疫苗。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child? 你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

9 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。