经济学人242:司法的学问 该吃午餐了

 　　Science and technology

　　科学技术

　　The science of justice

　　司法的学问

　　I think it's time we broke for lunch…

　　该吃午餐了

　　Court rulings depend partly on when the judge last had a snack

　　法庭判决结果一定程度上取决于法官上一次吃点心的时间

　　AROUND the world, courthouses are adorned¹ with a statue of a blindfolded³ woman holding a set of scales and a sword:

　　世界各地的法院都装饰有一尊女子的雕像，这个女人被蒙住双眼，手持一架天平和一把剑。

　　Justice personified.

　　她是正义的化身。

　　Her sword stands for the power of the court, her scales for the competing claims of the petitioners⁴.

　　剑代表着法庭的权力，而天平代表着上诉人的竞争性权利主张。

　　The blindfold² represents the principle that justice should be blind.

　　眼罩代表着司法的盲目性原则。

　　The law should be applied⁵ without fear or favour, with only cold reason and the facts of the case determining what happens to the accused.

　　也就是说应用法律应该毫无畏惧和偏袒之心，只有冷静的推理和案件事实才能决定如何处理被告。

　　Lawyers, though, have long suspected that such lofty ideals are not always achieved in practice, even in well run judicial⁶ systems free from political meddling⁷.

　　然而，律师们一直以来都怀疑在实践中这种崇高的理想是否总能实现，就连在那些不受政治干涉、运转良好的司法体系里都是如此。

　　Justice, say the cynics, is what the judge had for breakfast. Now they have proof.

　　犬儒主义者说：司法就是法官的早餐。而且现在他们有了证据。

　　A paper in the Proceedings⁸ of the National Academy of Sciences describes how Shai Danziger of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and his colleagues followed eight Israeli judges for ten months as they ruled on over 1,000 applications made by prisoners to parole boards.

　　美国国家科学院学报一篇文章描述了内盖夫本-古里安大学的舍夷?丹齐格和他的几个同事追踪8位以色列法官10个月的事情，在这10个月里法官们裁判了囚犯向假释裁决委员会提出的1000多分申请。

　　The plaintiffs were asking either to be allowed out on parole or to have the conditions of their incarceration⁹ changed.

　　申请人要么请求准许假释要么请求改善狱中居住条件。

　　The team found that, at the start of the day, the judges granted around two-thirds of the applications before them.

　　调查小队发现，早晨法官所阅申请的约2/3得到了批准。

　　As the hours passed, that number fell sharply, eventually reaching zero.

　　而随着中午的临近，批准的数量急剧减少，最终接近于0。

　　But clemency¹⁰ returned after each of two daily breaks, during which the judges retired¹¹ for food.

　　但是在每天的两餐休息时间过后，仁慈又重新降临。

　　The approval rate shot back up to near its original value, before falling again as the day wore on.

　　批准率回到了接近于早晨的水平，并随着时间的消逝再次下跌。

　　To be sure, mealtimes were not the only thing that predicted the outcome of the rulings.

　　当然，用餐时间并非预测判决结果的唯一因素。

　　Offenders¹² who appeared prone¹³ to recidivism¹⁴ were more likely to be turned down, as were those who were not in a rehabilitation¹⁵ programme.

　　那些看起来容易再犯的犯人更可能被拒，那些没有参与罪犯改過自新项目的也是一样。

　　Happily, neither the sex nor the ethnicity of the prisoners seemed to matter to the judges.

　　而令人高兴的是，据一个司法专家组成的独立小组评定，

　　Nor did the length of time the offenders had already spent in prison, nor even the severity of their crimes.

　　法官似乎不考虑罪犯的性别、种族、入狱时间长短甚至是他们罪行的严重程度。

　　But after controlling for recidivism and rehabilitation programmes, the meal-related pattern remained.

　　剔除了累犯和改过自新计划这些因素之后，与就餐相关的模式依然存在。

　　The researchers offer two hypotheses for this rise in grumpiness.

　　研究人员就这种暴躁情绪的产生给出了两种假设。

　　One is that blood-sugar level is the crucial variable.

　　其一是血糖浓度是关键的变量，

　　This, though, predicts that the precise amount of time since the judge last ate will be what matters.

　　可是这样就有人会猜测距法官上一次用餐的准确时间是重要的因素。

　　In fact, it is the number of cases he has heard since his last break, not the number of hours he has been sitting, which best matches the data.

　　而事实上，与调查数据最匹配的不是法官坐在那儿工作的时间长短，而是他上一次休息用餐后所审理的案件数量。

　　That is consistent with a second theory, familiar from other studies, that decision making is mentally taxing and that,

　　这就和第二种假设一致起来，即决策是一项耗费心神的劳动，

　　if forced to keep deciding things, people get tired and start looking for easy answers.

　　如果人们被迫一直做决定，那他们会变得疲惫而开始寻找简单的解决办法，这是其他研究也得出的结论。

　　In this case, the easy answer is to maintain the status quo by denying the prisoner's request.

　　既然如此，那简单的解决办法就是拒绝犯人的申请，维持现状。

　　Two further findings buttress¹⁶ the idea that it is the psychological load of decision making which matters.

　　还有另外两个发现可以支持这种精神负担作用的观点。

　　First, the average unfavourable decision took less time to arrive at than the average favourable¹⁷ one.

　　首先，通常作不利的决定比作有利的决定花费的时间短，前者约为5.2分钟，后者约为7.4分钟。

　　Second, it also took more time to explain.

　　其次，后者所花费的解释时间也更长。

　　Written verdicts in favourable rulings averaged 90 words, compared with just 47 for unfavourable ones.

　　有利决定的书面判决通常有90个单词，而不利判决书只有47个单词。

　　In truth, these results, though disturbing, are unsurprising.

　　事实上，尽管这些调查结果令人不安，却是意料之中的事。

　　Judges may be trained to confine themselves to the legally relevant facts before them.

　　法官接受的训练是将自己限制在面前的法律事实范围内。

　　But they are also human,

　　但他们也是凡人，

　　and thus subject to all sorts of cognitive¹⁸ biases¹⁹ which can muddy their judgment²⁰.

　　因而也会让各种认知偏见模糊了他们的判断力。

　　Other fields are familiar with human imperfectibility, and take steps to ameliorate it.

　　人性的弱点在其他领域也很常见，人们会采取措施改进这一点。

　　Pilots, for instance, are given checklists to follow, partly in order to combat the effects of fatigue²¹.

　　例如飞行员需要遵循一些清单，其部分原因是为了抵抗疲劳。

　　Lorry drivers in the European Union are not allowed to drive for more than four and a half hours without taking a break.

　　欧盟也不允许卡车司机连续驾驶4.5小时以上。

　　Dr Danziger's co-author, Jonathan Levav of Columbia University in New York, wonders whether the law should consider similar arrangements.

　　丹齐格教授的合著者哥伦比亚大学的乔奈森·勒瓦夫设想司法界是否也能考虑作类似的安排。

　　Some, of course, already do.

　　当然，有些地方已经这样做了。

　　English judges, legendary²² for their prandial proclivities²³, are way ahead of him.

　　英国的法官早就想到了这点，所以他们因爱好吃饭而闻名。

1 adorned   

[计]被修饰的

参考例句：

• The walls were adorned with paintings. 墙上装饰了绘画。
• And his coat was adorned with a flamboyant bunch of flowers. 他的外套上面装饰着一束艳丽刺目的鲜花。

2 blindfold   

vt.蒙住…的眼睛；adj.盲目的；adv.盲目地；n.蒙眼的绷带[布等]； 障眼物，蒙蔽人的事物

参考例句：

• They put a blindfold on a horse.他们给马蒙上遮眼布。
• I can do it blindfold.我闭着眼睛都能做。

3 blindfolded   

v.（尤指用布）挡住（某人）的视线( blindfold的过去式 )；蒙住（某人）的眼睛；使不理解；蒙骗

参考例句：

• The hostages were tied up and blindfolded. 人质被捆绑起来并蒙上了眼睛。
• They were each blindfolded with big red handkerchiefs. 他们每个人的眼睛都被一块红色大手巾蒙住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 petitioners   

n.请求人，请愿人( petitioner的名词复数 )；离婚案原告

参考例句：

• Petitioners suggest that anything less than certainty, that any speculation, is irresponsible. 申诉者认为不准确的事或推断都是不负责任的。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• The judge awarded the costs of the case to the petitioners. 法官判定由这起案件的上诉人支付诉讼费用。 来自辞典例句

5 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

6 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

7 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

8 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

9 incarceration   

n.监禁，禁闭；钳闭

参考例句：

• He hadn't changed much in his nearly three years of incarceration. 在将近三年的监狱生活中，他变化不大。 来自辞典例句
• Please, please set it free before it bursts from its long incarceration! 请你，请你将这颗心释放出来吧！否则它会因长期的禁闭而爆裂。 来自辞典例句

10 clemency   

n.温和，仁慈，宽厚

参考例句：

• The question of clemency would rest with the King.宽大处理问题，将由国王决定。
• They addressed to the governor a plea for clemency.他们向州长提交了宽刑的申辨书。

11 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。

12 offenders   

n.冒犯者( offender的名词复数 )；犯规者；罪犯；妨害…的人（或事物）

参考例句：

• Long prison sentences can be a very effective deterrent for offenders. 判处长期徒刑可对违法者起到强有力的威慑作用。
• Purposeful work is an important part of the regime for young offenders. 使从事有意义的劳动是管理少年犯的重要方法。

13 prone   

adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的

参考例句：

• Some people are prone to jump to hasty conclusions.有些人往往作出轻率的结论。
• He is prone to lose his temper when people disagree with him.人家一不同意他的意见,他就发脾气。

14 recidivism   

n.累犯，再犯

参考例句：

• Many areas and work units have experienced no recidivism at all for as long as ten or more years.不少地区和单位出现了连续几年、十几年没有发生重新犯罪的好典型。
• It needs to supplement the personality factor to confirm the ordinary recidivism.在普通累犯成立的条件中,应增加罪犯的人格因素。

15 rehabilitation   

n.康复，悔过自新，修复，复兴，复职，复位

参考例句：

• He's booked himself into a rehabilitation clinic.他自己联系了一家康复诊所。
• No one can really make me rehabilitation of injuries.已经没有人可以真正令我的伤康复了。

16 buttress   

n.支撑物；v.支持

参考例句：

• I don't think they have any buttress behind them.我认为他们背后没有什么支持力量。
• It was decided to buttress the crumbling walls.人们决定建造扶壁以支撑崩塌中的墙。

17 favourable   

adj.赞成的，称赞的，有利的，良好的，顺利的

参考例句：

• The company will lend you money on very favourable terms.这家公司将以非常优惠的条件借钱给你。
• We found that most people are favourable to the idea.我们发现大多数人同意这个意见。

18 cognitive   

adj.认知的，认识的，有感知的

参考例句：

• As children grow older,their cognitive processes become sharper.孩子们越长越大，他们的认知过程变得更为敏锐。
• The cognitive psychologist is like the tinker who wants to know how a clock works.认知心理学者倒很像一个需要通晓钟表如何运转的钟表修理匠。

19 biases   

偏见( bias的名词复数 )； 偏爱； 特殊能力； 斜纹

参考例句：

• Stereotypes represent designer or researcher biases and assumptions, rather than factual data. 它代表设计师或者研究者的偏见和假设，而不是实际的数据。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• The net effect of biases on international comparisons is easily summarized. 偏差对国际比较的基本影响容易概括。

20 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

21 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

22 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

23 proclivities   

n.倾向，癖性( proclivity的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Raised by adoptive parents,Hill received early encouragement in her musical proclivities. 希尔由养父母带大，从小，她的音乐爱好就受到了鼓励。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Whatever his political connections and proclivities, he did not care to neglect so powerful a man. 无论他的政治关系和脾气如何，他并不愿怠慢这样有势力的人。 来自辞典例句