TED演讲：试验 排除错误和万能神力(1)

 　　It's the Second World War. A German prison camp.  这是二战期间，一个德国集中营。

　　And this man, Archie Cochrane, is a prisoner of war and a doctor, and he has a problem.  这个人，阿奇·卡克伦，是战俘也是一名医生，他遇到了一个问题。

　　The problem is that the men under his care are suffering from an excruciating and debilitating¹ condition that Archie doesn't really understand.  这个问题是他看护的人们正在承受病痛和衰弱的煎熬。阿奇不明白是怎么回事。

　　The symptoms are this horrible swelling² up of fluids under the skin.  这种症状是皮肤下面有可怕水肿。

　　But he doesn't know whether it's an infection, whether it's to do with malnutrition³. He doesn't know how to cure it. 他不知道这是一种感染，还是营养不良造成的。他不知道怎样提供治疗。

　　And he's operating in a hostile environment.  他是在一个充满敌意的环境里工作。

　　And people do terrible things in wars. The German camp guards, they've got bored.  而人们常常在战争期间做可怕的事情。德国集中营的守卫无聊的时候。

　　They've taken to just firing into the prison camp at random⁴ for fun.  他们会对着集中营随意扫射，来寻开心。

　　On one particular occasion, one of the guards threw a grenade into the prisoners' lavatory⁵ while it was full of prisoners. 特别是有一次，一个守卫朝犯人的厕所里扔了枚手榴弹，里面满是犯人。

　　He said he heard suspicious laughter.  他说他听到了可疑的笑声。

　　And Archie Cochrane, as the camp doctor, was one of the first men in to clear up the mess.  而阿奇·卡克伦，作为集中营的医生，是第一个进去处理惨状的人。

　　And one more thing: Archie was suffering from this illness himself. 另外， 阿奇自己也受着这个疾病的困扰，

　　So the situation seemed pretty desperate.  所以情况是非常危急。

　　But Archie Cochrane was a resourceful person. 但是阿奇·卡克伦 是一个足智多谋的人。

　　He'd already smuggled⁶ vitamin C into the camp, and now he managed to get hold of supplies of marmite on the black market.  他已经将维生素C带到了集中营，现在他又想办法从黑市上弄到了一些马麦。

　　Now some of you will be wondering what marmite is.  你们中的一些人也许会问马麦是什么。

　　Marmite is a breakfast spread beloved of the British.  马麦是英国人热爱的早餐面包酱。

　　It looks like crude oil. It tastes ... zesty⁷.  它看上去象天然油。味道很浓。

　　And importantly, it's a rich source of vitamin B12.  更重要的是，它含有丰富的维他命B12。

1 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。

2 swelling   

n.肿胀

参考例句：

• Use ice to reduce the swelling. 用冰敷消肿。
• There is a marked swelling of the lymph nodes. 淋巴结处有明显的肿块。

3 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。

4 random   

adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动

参考例句：

• The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。

5 lavatory   

n.盥洗室，厕所

参考例句：

• Is there any lavatory in this building?这座楼里有厕所吗？
• The use of the lavatory has been suspended during take-off.在飞机起飞期间，盥洗室暂停使用。

6 smuggled   

水货

参考例句：

• The customs officer confiscated the smuggled goods. 海关官员没收了走私品。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Those smuggled goods have been detained by the port office. 那些走私货物被港务局扣押了。 来自互联网

7 zesty   

adj.引起极大的快乐或兴奋的，有兴趣的

参考例句：

• Macaroni Parmesan Cheese Topping, and Sage Gravy will appeal to their zesty personalities. 意大利的通心面、士和美味肉汁一定很合他们的口味。 来自互联网
• This zesty and refreshing wine offers a freshly cut grass nose, herbaceous green bean. 这款爽口的葡萄酒引出绿豆般清新的香气。 来自互联网