2020年经济学人 美国新冠肺炎激增(3)

Given the rise in cases, however, it seems unlikely that the death rate will remain stagnant¹ for much longer. Deaths for patients infected weeks ago will probably start to pile up. Some morgues in Arizona and Texas are running out of capacity and are already seeking refrigerated trucks, just as those in New York City did months ago. Uncontrolled community transmission among young people is likely to result in a spread in nursing homes, where a large share of fatalities² occurs among the more vulnerable elderly. Should hospital capacity become strained, as appears to be the case in Houston, the quality of care could deteriorate³ and result in increased deaths as well.

然而，鉴于病例的增加，死亡率似乎不太可能再停滞太久。几周前感染的病人的死亡可能会使死亡率开始增加。亚利桑那州和德克萨斯州的一些停尸房已经没有容量了，他们已经开始寻找冷藏卡车，就像几个月前纽约市的停尸房的情况一样。在年轻人中不受控制的社区传播很可能导致疫情在养老院蔓延，在那里，死亡很大一部分是发生在较脆弱的老年人身上。如果医院的容量变得紧张，就像休斯顿的情况一样，医疗质量可能会恶化，并导致死亡人数增加。

Denial has not proved to be a particularly effective virus-suppression strategy. When polled by YouGov last week, a third of Americans who had voted for Mr Trump⁴ said they thought covid-19 was either a minor⁵ problem nationwide or not a problem at all. A recent Gallup poll showed that 94% of Democrats⁶ say they always or very often wear a mask when outside their homes compared with 46% of Republicans (and 68% of independents). To many voters, worry about the virus transmuted⁷ into coded disapproval⁸ of the president; maskwearing is seen as a talisman⁹ of deranged¹⁰ coastal¹¹ liberalism.

否认并不是一种特别有效的病毒抑制策略。YouGov上周进行的民意调查显示，三分之一投票支持特朗普的美国人表示，他们认为新冠肺炎只是一个全国性的小问题，或者根本不是问题。最近的一项盖洛普民意测验显示，94%的民主党人说他们总是或经常离家时戴口罩，而共和党人的这一比例为46%（无党派人士为68%）。对许多选民来说，对病毒的担忧演变成了对总统的暗地里的不赞同；佩戴口罩被看作是混乱的沿海自由主义的护身符。

Mr Abbott, who while running for governor bragged¹² about how many times he had sued Barack Obama’s administration, is facing a mild insurrection in Texas from counties over his imposition of a mask requirement. Localised control, which once appeared to be a compensating¹³ feature of the American system, may now be working against containment¹⁴. Confusing back-and-forths between Mr Newsom and counties in California have hindered timelier action there too. These are co-ordination problems that the federal government ought to solve. But throughout the crisis the White House has not seemed interested. Once again, states and cities will probably have to do the hard work alone.

阿博特在竞选州长时吹嘘自己曾多次起诉巴拉克奥巴马政府，但由于他强制要求戴口罩，德克萨斯州正面临一场来自各县的温和起义。局部控制曾一度被认为是美国体系的一个补偿特征，现在可能不利于遏制疫情。纽森和加州各县之间的混乱也阻碍了美国采取更及时的行动。这些都是联邦政府应该解决的协调方面的问题。但在整个危机中，白宫似乎并不感兴趣。各州和各城市可能不得不再次独自完成这项艰巨的工作。

1 stagnant   

adj.不流动的，停滞的，不景气的

参考例句：

• Due to low investment,industrial output has remained stagnant.由于投资少，工业生产一直停滞不前。
• Their national economy is stagnant.他们的国家经济停滞不前。

2 fatalities   

n.恶性事故( fatality的名词复数 )；死亡；致命性；命运

参考例句：

• Several people were injured, but there were no fatalities. 有几个人受伤，但没有人死亡。
• The accident resulted in fatalities. 那宗意外道致多人死亡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 deteriorate   

v.变坏；恶化；退化

参考例句：

• Do you think relations between China and Japan will continue to deteriorate?你认为中日关系会继续恶化吗？
• He held that this would only cause the situation to deteriorate further.他认为，这只会使局势更加恶化。

4 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

5 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

6 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 transmuted   

v.使变形，使变质，把…变成…( transmute的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It was once thought that lead could be transmuted into gold. 有人曾经认为铅可以变成黄金。
• They transmuted the raw materials into finished products. 他们把原料变为成品。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

8 disapproval   

n.反对，不赞成

参考例句：

• The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
• They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。

9 talisman   

n.避邪物，护身符

参考例句：

• It was like a talisman worn in bosom.它就象佩在胸前的护身符一样。
• Dress was the one unfailling talisman and charm used for keeping all things in their places.冠是当作保持品位和秩序的一种万应灵符。

10 deranged   

adj.疯狂的

参考例句：

• Traffic was stopped by a deranged man shouting at the sky.一名狂叫的疯子阻塞了交通。
• A deranged man shot and killed 14 people.一个精神失常的男子开枪打死了14人。

11 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

12 bragged   

v.自夸，吹嘘( brag的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He bragged to his friends about the crime. 他向朋友炫耀他的罪行。
• Mary bragged that she could run faster than Jack. 玛丽夸口说她比杰克跑得快。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 compensating   

补偿，补助，修正

参考例句：

• I am able to set up compensating networks of nerve connections. 我能建立起补偿性的神经联系网。
• It is desirable that compensating cables be run in earthed conduit. 补偿导线最好在地下管道中穿过。

14 containment   

n.阻止，遏制；容量

参考例句：

• Your list might include such things as cost containment,quality,or customer satisfaction.你的清单上应列有诸如成本控制、产品质量、客户满意程度等内容。
• Insularity and self-containment,it is argued,go hand in hand.他们争论说，心胸狭窄和自我封闭是并存的。