VOA慢速英语2020 接触追踪者努力阻止冠状病毒的传播

Contact Tracers Work to Stop the Spread of the Coronavirus

Around the world, special health workers are playing a part in efforts to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.They are serving as contact tracers.

在世界各地，专门的卫生工作者正在努力防止冠状病毒的传播。他们正在充当接触追踪者的角色。 

Contact tracing¹ involves investigative and nursing skills, among others.Tracers seek information from COVID-19 patients about their contacts with other people.The goal is to create a map of every place an infected person has been and whom they have met.

接触追踪除其他外，尤其要涉及一定的调查和护理技能。接触追踪者从新冠肺炎患者那里获取与其他人接触的信息。目标是创建一张路线图，记录感染者去过的每个地方以及他们见过的人。

Some countries have developed national systems.In the United States, programs are created by the states.

一些国家已经制定了全国性的方法。但在美国各州只能创建自己的计划。 

Mackenzie Bray² is a contact tracer in the state of Utah.

麦肯齐·布雷是犹他州的一名接触追踪者。 

She usually investigates sexually-passed diseases³.Now, she is one of 130 people at the Salt Lake County⁴ health department ordered to track coronavirus cases in the Salt Lake City area.The investigators⁶, many of them nurses,each work on 30 to 40 cases at a time.They try to talk to every person who came within 1.8 meters of the infected person for 10 minutes or more.

布雷通常会做这类工作来追踪患有性传播疾病的人的接触情况。现在，她是盐湖城卫生部门受命在盐湖城地区追踪冠状病毒病例的130人之一。调查人员中有很多是护士，每人每次要处理30到40个病例。他们试图与每一个曾与感染者距离1.8米以内的人交谈10分钟或更长时间。

On one recent case, Bray called a retired⁷ man just confirmed to have COVID-19.She said she asked him many questions about whom he had been around in the seven days before the call.She also suggested that he go through his bank statements to help him remember which stores he might have visited.

在最近的一个病例中，布雷给一名刚刚确认患有新冠肺炎的退休男子打电话。她说，她问了他很多问题关于他在打电话之前的7天里接触了什么人。她还建议他查看一下自己的银行对账单，以帮助他记起自己可能去过哪些商店。

During the call, the mans wife said that family members had come to the couples home on Mothers Day.Bray asked if the group had shared food or drinks.The answer was yes.Suddenly, the contact tracer had more people to call.

在电话中，这名男子的妻子说，他们的家人在母亲节那天来过家里。布雷问他们是否共享食物或饮料。答案是肯定的。突然间，接触追踪者需要打电话给更多的人进行调查。

Tracers try to contact every person who came within two meters of an infected person.They remain in touch with some of the people throughout the 14-day virus incubation period.A single telephone call can take 30 minutes or more as tracers must ask a long list of questions.

追踪者试图与每一个曾与感染者相距两米以内的人取得联系。在14天的病毒潜伏期期间，他们与一些人保持联系。一个电话可能需要进行30分钟甚至更长时间，因为追踪者必须问一长串的问题。

Some experts estimate⁸ that 300,000 contract tracers might be needed in the U.S. to limit the spread of the coronavirus.States like Utah say they have enough,but other states say they need hundreds or even thousands more.

一些专家估计，美国可能需要30万名接触追踪者来限制冠状病毒的传播。像犹他州这样的州说他们人员足够，但其他州说他们还需要更多数百甚至数千的人员补足。

The contact tracers often deal with a lot of conflicting information.Language and culture barriers can add misunderstanding into the data.Sometimes people do not answer questions from tracers truthfully, by accident or purposely.

接触追踪者经常要处理很多相互矛盾的信息。语言和文化障碍会增加数据中的误解。有时人们偶然或故意地没有如实回答追踪者的问题。

Health investigator⁵ Maria DiCaro was in contact with one infected man who suddenly stopped returning DiCaro s calls.She discovered he had been sleeping in his car because of marriage problems.DiCaro found out when she questioned the mans child.

健康卫生调查员玛丽亚·迪卡罗曾与一名受感染的男子保持联系，该男子突然停止回复迪卡罗的电话。她发现因为他遇到了婚姻问题，一直睡在他的车里。迪卡罗在询问这名男子的孩子时发现了这一点。

DiCaro said she needs people to cooperate⁹ with her.No one is legally required to answer questions.So, she has found that treating people with kindness works¹⁰ better than strong words.

迪卡罗说，她需要有人跟她合作。法律上并没有强制要求任何人必须回答问题。因此，她发现善待他人比言辞强硬更有效。

Bray, the Utah investigator, said,"People sometimes think contact tracing is black and white but there is a lot of gray that goes into it."

犹他州的调查员布雷说，“人们有时认为追踪接触是非黑即白的，但这里面有很多灰色成分。” 

Anissa Archuleta and members of her family were exposed to a man infected with coronavirus at a birthday party.DiCaro called the family every day for two weeks.During that time, the family was tested and found not to have the coronavirus.But, DiCaro learned¹¹ a lot about the family.

在一个生日派对上，阿尼萨·亚克莱塔和她的家人接触了一名感染了冠状病毒的男子。迪卡罗连续两周每天都给她们一家打电话。在此期间，对该家庭进行了检测，发现他们没有感染冠状病毒。但是，迪卡罗对这个家庭产生更多的了解。

After a while, Archuleta began asking DiCaro about how she was doing and thanked her for caring about her and her family.

过了一会儿，亚克莱塔开始询问迪卡罗的近况，并感谢她对自己和家人的关心。 

DiCaro said it made her feel good to hear the praise and thanks for her work.

迪卡罗说，听到对她工作的赞扬和感谢让她感觉很高兴。 

"Its nice to be appreciated," she said.

迪卡罗说: “被人欣赏是件好事。” 

Im Mario Ritter Jr.

小马里奥·里特为您播报。 

1 tracing   

追踪； 追查； 描摹； 摹图

参考例句：

• She is tracing laboriously now. 她正在费力地写。
• He knew they were tracing him. 他知道他们正在追踪他。

2 bray   

n.驴叫声, 喇叭声；v.驴叫

参考例句：

• She cut him off with a wild bray of laughter.她用刺耳的狂笑打断了他的讲话。
• The donkey brayed and tried to bolt.这头驴嘶叫着试图脱缰而逃。

3 diseases   

n.疾病( disease的名词复数 )；弊端；恶疾；痼疾

参考例句：

• Smoking is a causative factor in several major diseases. 抽烟是引起几种严重疾病的病因。
• The illness frequently coexists with other chronic diseases. 这种病往往与其他慢性病同时存在。

4 county   

n.县，郡

参考例句：

• When the good news reached there,the whole county rejoiced.喜讯传到那里时，全县的人都欢欣鼓舞起来。
• In that year county after county fell to the enemy.那一年一个又一个的县城沦入敌人手中。

5 investigator   

n.研究者，调查者，审查者

参考例句：

• He was a special investigator for the FBI.他是联邦调查局的特别调查员。
• The investigator was able to deduce the crime and find the criminal.调查者能够推出犯罪过程并锁定罪犯。

6 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

8 estimate   

n.估计，估量；评价，看法；vt.估计，估量

参考例句：

• We estimate the cost to be five thousand dollars.我们估计费用为5000美元。
• The lowest estimate would put the worth of the jewel at ＄200.按最低的评估这块宝石也值200美元。

9 cooperate   

vi.合作，协作，相配合

参考例句：

• We hope we can cooperate even more closely in the future.希望我们今后能更加密切地合作。
• I hope you can cooperate on this matter.我希望你在这件事上能给予合作。

10 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

11 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。