精美英文欣赏:搞笑的诺贝尔奖 Ig Nobel Prize(上)

Ig Nobel Prize

搞笑的诺贝尔奖

Some people covet¹ it, others flee from it. Some laugh with it, others laugh at it. Many praise it, a few criticize it, others are just confused.

有些人企图得到它，有些人对它避之不及。有些人和它一起笑，有些人嘲笑它。很多人赞扬它，很少人批评它，还有些人感到困惑。

And many people are madly in love with it. It is the Ig Nobel Prize.

很多人疯狂地爱上了它。它是搞笑诺贝尔奖。

We've been awarding Ig Nobel Prizes since 1991. Each year, ten Ig Nobel Prizes are awarded. The selection criterion is simple.

搞笑诺贝尔奖在1991年首次颁发。每年，都有颁发10个诺贝尔奖项。

The prizes are for "achievements that cannot or should not be reproduced." Examine that phrase carefully.

获奖标准并不复杂。获奖者所取得成就应该是无法复制的。审核这个标准的过程很仔细。

It covers a lot of ground. It says nothing about whether a thing is good or bad.

这个奖的覆盖面很大，可能是好的事物也可能是不好的。

After something has been discovered or created, no one can later become the first to have made that discovery or creation.

一旦有东西被发现或者被创造出来，就不存在发现或创造该事物的第一人了。

The "firstness" cannot be repeated.

第一性是不能被重复的。

Thus, Don Featherstone (Ig Nobel Art Prize, 1996), the creator of the plastic pink flamingo², clearly qualifies under the "cannot be repeated" phrase.

因此，唐·费瑟斯通（1996年搞笑诺贝尔艺术奖得主），塑料粉红色火烈鸟的创造者，严格遵守“不能重复“这一标准。

Similarly, Anders Barheim and Hogne Sandvik (Ig Nobel Biology Prize, 1996), who discovered that sour cream stimulates³ the appetite of leeches⁴, but that garlic often kills them, clearly qualify under the "cannot be repeated" phrase.

同样，安德斯·Barheim和Hogne·山特维克（1996年搞笑诺贝尔生物学奖的主），他们发现，酸奶油刺激水蛭的食欲，但是大蒜常能杀死癌细胞，显然这也符合“不能重复”这一标准。

Jacques Benveniste (Ig Nobel Chemistry Prize, 1991 and 1998) discovered that water molecules⁵ remember things and that the memories can be transmitted over telephone lines.

雅克·本闻尼斯特（1991年和1998年搞笑化学诺贝尔奖得主）发现水有记忆功能，而且这些记忆信息还可以通过电话线和因特网进行传递。

1 covet   

vt.垂涎；贪图(尤指属于他人的东西)

参考例句：

• We do not covet anything from any nation.我们不觊觎任何国家的任何东西。
• Many large companies covet these low-cost acquisition of troubled small companies.许多大公司都觊觎低价收购这些陷入困境的小公司。

2 flamingo   

n.红鹳，火烈鸟

参考例句：

• This is the only species of flamingo in the region,easily recognized by its pink plumage.这是那个地区唯一一种火烈鸟，很容易凭粉红色的羽毛辨认出来。
• In my family,I am flamingo in the flock of pigeons.在家里，我就像一只被困在鸽笼里的火烈鸟。

3 stimulates   

v.刺激( stimulate的第三人称单数 )；激励；使兴奋；起兴奋作用，起刺激作用，起促进作用

参考例句：

• Exercise stimulates the body. 运动促进身体健康。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Alcohol stimulates the action of the heart. 酒刺激心脏的活动。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 leeches   

n.水蛭( leech的名词复数 )；蚂蟥；榨取他人脂膏者；医生

参考例句：

• The usurers are leeches;they have drained us dry. 高利贷者是吸血鬼，他们吸干了我们的血汗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Does it run in the genes to live as leeches? 你们家是不是遗传的，都以欺压别人为生？ 来自电影对白

5 molecules   

分子( molecule的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The structure of molecules can be seen under an electron microscope. 分子的结构可在电子显微镜下观察到。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules. 在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。