经济学人 | The Unexamined Mind 无法检验的思维(1)

本期选自《经济学人》The Unexamined Mind一文第二段,其中多处出现了连字符现象。鉴于小伙伴们翻译时很难想到用连字符给自己的译文增色,本期便从这篇文章的几个词入手,给大家系统讲解一下连字符的适用范围以及应用方法;顺便再给大家扩充一下中译英词汇库,让自己的译文可以像《经济学人》一样,美美哒。

原文:

Successful science fiction necessarily plays on real hopes and fears. In the 1960s and 1970s, when HAL and Eddie were dreamed up, attempts to create artificial intelligence (AI) were floundering, so both hope and fear were hypothetical. But that has changed. The invention of deep learning, a technique which uses special computer programs called neural networks to churn through large volumes of data looking for and remembering patterns, means that technology which gives a good impression of being intelligent is spreading rapidly. Applications arrange from speech-to-text transcription to detecting early signs of blindness. AI now runs quality control in factories and cooling systems in data centres. Governments hope to employ it to recoginise terrorist propaganda sites and remove them from the web. And it is central to attempts to develop self-driving vehicles. Of the ten most valuable quoted companies in the world, seven say that have plans to put deep-learning-based AI at the heart of their operations.

(一)表达扩展:

1)play on/upon 利用(感情、恐惧等)

Play upon people’s superstitious beliefs

利用人们的迷信思想

The plan can be defeated if you play upon its weakness.

你如果利用这项计划的弱点就可以使之失败。

2)dream up:If you dream up a plan or idea, you work it out or create it in your mind. <口>凭空想出;虚构出

Dream up an extraordinary name

凭空想出一个奇特的名字

The raid was dreamed up by the journalists who reported it.

这次袭击是写报道的记者们虚构出来的。

3)flounder: If something is floundering, it has many problems and may soon fail completely 陷入困境

What a pity that his career was left to flounder

真遗憾,他的事业陷入了困境。

4)hypothetical:If something is hypothetical, it is based on possible ideas or situations rather than actual ones. 假设的

Let's look at a hypothetical situation in which Carol, a recovering alcoholic, gets invited to a party.

我们来假设一下这样一个情景,卡罗尔,一个正在康复中的嗜酒者,被邀情去参加一场聚会。

5)churn(大量而艰苦)处理

PLoS One already churns through 4,000 papers a month, putting its referees under tremendous strain, he says.

他说道,PLoS One现在一个月有投稿论文4000份,这使得他们的评审员承受着巨大的压力。

6)arrange:If you arrange things somewhere, you place them in a particular position, usually in order to make them look attractive or neat. 布置,排列,把……分类 → 熟词生义

She arranged flowers well.

她插花插得好。

这里,arrange…from…to…可以处理成从……到……应有尽有

7)runs quality control → 替换常用表达control the quality for/of

8)it is central toput...at the heart of their operations 以……为核心/是……核心所在

9)technique, technology 的区别

Technique 指针对音乐、艺术、体育、写作等方面的技巧、工艺、方法;

Technology 尤指指科学知识在实践(或某一行业的实践)中的总体运用,通常为工业技术或科学技术

The film reflected a growing sophistication both in cinematic technique and subject-matter.

影片反映了电影技巧和题材方面的日臻完善。

A technology for extracting petroleum from shale

页岩采油技术。



(二)翻译技巧:连字符(-)

一)适用范围:

1、用于复合词

这一类最常见了,比如world-famous, up-to-date, shoe-maker, editor-in-chief, freeze-dry, two-thirds

2、用于词缀(或组合词素)与词根(或词)之间

这一类也很常见,如:anti-art, mid-VVictorian, Pan-American, co-worker

3、用以避免单词在语义或语音上发生混淆或用以分隔

常见的如co-op(与coop相别),re-cover(与recover相别),re-tire(与retire相别),anti-icer,semi-independent

4、用于两个比分之间或两个比赛对手之间

The Liverpool-Arsenal match, John Eden downed Albert Smith 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2.

5、用于两地名、两数字或两时间之间,意为“至”

The London-Manchester express has been derailed.

Refer to pages 131-149 for a table on income.

6、用于单词移行时

但注意:

1)单音节词不移行

Strengths不作streng-

ths

Clothes不作Clo-

thes

2)屈折变化形式不宜移行→屈折变化即词形变化

Faster不宜作fast-

er

Looking不宜作look-

ing

3)数字、缩略词不宜移行

27,583不宜作27-

583

UNESCO不宜作UNES-

CO

4)易引起歧义的词不宜移行

Extractor不宜作Ex-

tractor

Earnest不宜作Ear-

nest

Legend不宜作Leg-

end

5)移行后行尾不宜只剩一个字母

Alone不宜作A-

lone

Open不宜作O-

pen

6)有词缀的词应在词缀与词根处移行

Disappear 换行时应写作 Dis-

appear

Beloved 换行时应写作 Be-

loved

7)复合词应在复合成分之间移行(原有连字号的,可在行尾用双连字号或在下一行行首加一连字号)

Heart-sick 换行时应写作 Heart-

(-) sick

Up-to-date 换行时应写作 Up-

(-) to-date

7、用于拼词

“What’s your name?” “John, J-o-h-n, John.”

二)复合词中的连字符

本期所讨论的可以精简译文的连字符手段主要围绕连字符的第一个适用范围——复合词展开。

那么怎么定义复合词?自造复合词的适用范围有哪些?

在这里,复合词是指用连字符把两个或两个以上的单词连接起来,构成新的形容词性合成词。使用得当,可以避免歧义、减轻累赘。

以下介绍几种常用复合词修饰语的种类,汉译英时可以参照这个范围进行组词:

1、“名词-名词”

Knee-jerk reaction直接的反馈 → 突出反馈速度之快

Value-for-money moon cakes物超所值的月饼 → 替代常用的定语从句表达方式moon cakes which have good quality but inexpensive prices

Hot-water bottle用来装热水的瓶子 → 避免歧义(a hot water bottle一个热的水瓶)

2、“名词-分词”,即“名词-动词现在时”

A session of moon-gazing and tea-drinking赏月和饮茶 → 替代从句when …gaze moon and drink tea

Money-producing assets可以钱生钱的资产 → 替代从句the assets that can produce money

3、“名词-形容词”

A non-waistline-friendly meal一顿容易使人发胖的饭 → 替代make people fat

Market-driven education以市场为导向的教育

Chili-tolerant people耐辣的人 → 替代people being tolerant of chili

4、“形容词-(名词+ed)

A narrow-minded man一个心胸狭窄的人

A left-handed person一个左撇子

5、“形容词/副词+分词

A good-looking boy一个帅小伙

A badly-lighted room一间光线昏暗的房间

A well-meaning proposal一条善意的建议

6、多词性合成形容词→ 替代较长的句子

Never-before-seen price从来没有看到过的价格

Straight-from-the-heart lyrics发自内心而创作的歌词

Yet-to-graduate university students即将毕业的大学生

Low-and-moderate-income persons中低收入人群

A life-and-death struggle一场生死殊斗

A wait-and-see policy一种观望政策

练习:

六塔五跨连续斜拉桥

钢桁梁悬索桥

防腐桥系统

自定义的说明要求

要想买到好厨具,你的最佳选择莫过于旅馆和酒店的厨具供应商,他们出售的东西物美价廉,做工专业,而且经久耐用。

参考答案:

six-tower five-span continuous cable-stayed bridge

steel-truss suspension bridge

corrosion-free bridge system

customer-specific requirement

One of the best places to shop for value-for-money kitchenware is in a hotel-and-restaurant-supply house where object are sturdy, professional, and made for hard use.



参考译文:

成功的科幻作品必然会利用真实的希望和恐惧。上世纪六七十年代哈儿和艾迪被创作出来时,创造人工智能(以下简称AI)的尝试陷入了困境,因此希望和恐惧都是假想出来的。但这已经改变。随着深度学习技术(名为“神经网络”的专用电脑程序处理大量数据以寻找并记住其中的模式)的诞生,给人“聪慧”印象的科技正在快速传播。从语音转录文字到检测早期失明症兆,各种智能应用应有尽有。如今AI已被用于控制工厂的质检程序和数据中心的冷却系统。政府希望运用AI识别恐怖分子的宣传网站并将之从网络上删除。另外,AI也是自动驾驶汽车研发的核心所在。在全球市值最高的十大上市公司中,有七家表示已计划将基于深度学习的AI技术作为核心事务。

参考资料:《英汉大词典》(陆谷孙)

《浅议英语连字符连接的复合词》(张懿)

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