经济学人34:艾滋病 伙计们,请一起行动

 　　Science and Technolgy

　　科技

　　AIDS

　　艾滋病（获得性免疫缺乏综合症）

　　Get your act together, guys

　　伙计们，请一起行动

　　Two UN reports on AIDS are coming out this month. That is one too many

　　本月联合国将发布了两份关于艾滋病的报告，其中一份实在多余

　　SOMETHING odd is going on in the international AIDS establishment. December 1st has been designated (as it is every year) to be "World AIDS Day". That is a signal for the United Nations to put out a report on the state of the epidemic¹. This year, though, there are to be two reports.

　　国际艾滋病机构发生了件奇怪的事情：每年12月1日被认定为"国际艾滋病日"。联合国也会在每年这个时候发布一份有关艾滋病状况的报告。然而今年会有两份这样的报告。

　　On November 21st UNAIDS, an agency created in 1996 to deal specifically with the then-newish disease, published its assessment² of the situation. This reaffirmed what has become clear recently: that the epidemic is being beaten back by the widespread deployment³ of drugs, in combination with changes in the behaviour of those most at risk. The annual number of deaths has fallen to 1.8m, from its peak of 2.2m in 2005. New infections have also fallen, from a peak of 3.2m in 1997 to 2.7m last year. The report went on to outline what it calls an investment framework, designed to deal with the epidemic in the most cost-effective way. This builds on an analysis published in the Lancet in June by Bernhard Schwartl?nder, UNAIDS's director of evidence, strategy and results. It attempts to prescribe, for each part of the world, the mixture of drug treatment, condom-promotion, prophylactic⁴ circumcision and so on that will bring most benefit to the fight.

　　UNAIDS，是一家1996年建立的特别处理这种在当时还是非常罕见的疾病（艾滋病）的机构，今年11月21日，其发布了一份关于艾滋病现状的评估。这份评估再次重申了近期发生的一些明显的变化：那就是通过药物的配置普遍广泛，以及在那些具有较高危险的行为上所做出的改变，使得艾滋病正在一步步被击退。其中。每年该病的死亡人数已经从在2005年最高峰时的220万下降到现在的180万。同时，新感染的人数也从1997年最高峰时段的320万回落到去年的270万。该篇报道也勾画了一份所谓的投资构架，目的是以最经济的方法解决艾滋病问题。该投资构架是以 Bernhard Schwartl?nder，这位在UNAIDS搜集证据，制定策略以及结果分析部门的主管在今年六月的Lancet杂志所发表的分析文章为基础所提出的。这项构想尝试为世界各个地区提供一种混合的方案，包括药物治疗，加强避孕套的宣传，倡导具有预防效果的环切手术等一些措施，争取掌握这场疾病战斗的主动权。

　　On November 30th, however, a joint⁵ report by the World Health Organisation⁶ (WHO), the United Nations' Children's Fund (UNICEF) and-you've guessed it-UNAIDS comes out. What it will say is still under wraps. But WHO and UNICEF are also sponsors of UNAIDS, so the duplication of effort looks odd.

　　然而，就在晚些时候，国际健康组织（WHO）、联合国儿童基金会（UNICEF）和，也许你已经猜到了，UNAIDS在11月30日联手发布了一份联合报告。报告的内容尚未对外公布。但是，由于国际健康组织和联合国儿童基金会同时也是UNAIDS的赞助商，所以这样的重复工作确实有点奇怪。

　　Both sides seem miffed by the other's actions. Michel Sidibé, the head of UNAIDS, described the production of separate reports as "costly⁷ and inefficient⁸". Gottfried Hirnschall, the WHO's director of HIV/AIDS, says it had been agreed that in 2011 the three organisations would work together and jointly⁹ release a single report.

　　双方都对对方的行为表示不满。 UNAIDS主席 Michel Sidibé认为这样的两份独立却又类似的报告既浪费又达不到效果。WHO负责HIV/AIDS项目的主管 Gottfried Hirnschall称三家组织早已达成一致在2011将一起发表一份报告。

　　Though the AIDS epidemic has been knocked back by the huge sums of money now being thrown at it (about $15 billion a year at the moment, in poor and middle-income countries), continued success requires an uninterrupted supply of drugs-and therefore of the cash to pay for them. The state of the world's economy means politicians are looking for any excuse to save money. Not a good moment to be squabbling.

　　尽管依靠巨额的投资（大约每年有150亿美元的专款基金投入到中低收入地区）已经遏制住艾滋病的蔓延，进一步的成功需要持续不断的药物供应，还有因此而带来的资金支持。而就目前的全球经济情况看，政客们都在寻找合适的借口缩减投资，所以现在可不是一个争吵的时候。

1 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

2 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

3 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

4 prophylactic   

adj.预防疾病的；n.预防疾病

参考例句：

• Vaccination and other prophylactic measures can be carried out.可以采取疫苗接种和其他预防措施。
• The region began to use quinine successfully as a prophylactic.该地区开始成功地用奎宁作为预防剂。

5 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

6 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

7 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

8 inefficient   

adj.效率低的，无效的

参考例句：

• The inefficient operation cost the firm a lot of money.低效率的运作使该公司损失了许多钱。
• Their communication systems are inefficient in the extreme.他们的通讯系统效率非常差。

9 jointly   

ad.联合地，共同地

参考例句：

• Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。
• She owns the house jointly with her husband. 她和丈夫共同拥有这所房子。