国家地理:为什么病毒让我们措手不及(5)

What's it been like to watch the coronavirus pandemic unfold nearly three decades after I wrote that a pandemic would unfold in pretty much this way? It's induced a strange vertigo¹, to be honest. It's also sparked an unfamiliar² kind of solipsism, enough to make me wonder: If I had made the case for surveillance and preparation more forcefully back then -- that is, if I had written a better book -- would we be here now?

在我写过一场大流行会以这种方式爆发的三十年后，亲眼目睹冠状病毒大流行的发生是什么感觉？老实说，这引起了一种奇怪的眩晕。它还引发了一种陌生的唯我主义，这足以让我怀疑：如果我当时能更有力地阐明监测和准备的理由--也就是说，如果我写了一本更好的书，我们现在还会是这样的处境吗？

Still, there's something enlightening about reading the book's stories about the epidemics³ from the last century, when new viruses kept emerging, raging through a population, and eventually dying out. But never since the 1918-19 influenza⁴ pandemic has any been on this scale, and never with this ferocious⁵ mixture of transmissibility and lethality⁶. We almost learned the right lessons in the 1990s, and then we ignored them; maybe this time, with prediction having become reality, the lessons will stick.

阅读这本书中关于上世纪的流行病的故事，还是有所启发的，当时新的病毒不断出现、在人群中肆虐，最终消声匿迹。但自1918至1919年的流感大流行以来，从未发生如此大规模的疫情，也从未发生传染性和致死率都这么高的疫情。在20世纪90年代我们几乎学到教训，后来却又忽略它们；或许这一次，眼看预测已经变成现实，我们终于会记取教训。

1 vertigo   

n.眩晕

参考例句：

• He had a dreadful attack of vertigo.他忽然头晕得厉害。
• If you have vertigo it seems as if the whole room is spinning round you.如果你头晕，就会觉得整个房间都旋转起来

2 unfamiliar   

adj.陌生的，不熟悉的

参考例句：

• I am unfamiliar with the place and the people here.我在这儿人地生疏。
• The man seemed unfamiliar to me.这人很面生。

3 epidemics   

n．流行病

参考例句：

• Reliance upon natural epidemics may be both time-consuming and misleading. 依靠天然的流行既浪费时间，又会引入歧途。
• The antibiotic epidemics usually start stop when the summer rainy season begins. 传染病通常会在夏天的雨季停止传播。

4 influenza   

n.流行性感冒，流感

参考例句：

• They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施
• Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

5 ferocious   

adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的

参考例句：

• The ferocious winds seemed about to tear the ship to pieces.狂风仿佛要把船撕成碎片似的。
• The ferocious panther is chasing a rabbit.那只凶猛的豹子正追赶一只兔子。

6 lethality   

n.致命性，毁坏性

参考例句：

• Modern weapons have greater range, accuracy, speed, and lethality than anything ever dreamed of before. 现代的武器比从前所梦想的任何武器射得更远，射得更准，速度更快，而且更具有杀伤力。 来自辞典例句
• The Mk 46 provides long-range lethality while engaging small, high-speed, surface targets. 该系统在舰船遭遇小型高速水面目标时将提供远距离的致命杀伤力。 来自互联网