周末好。
今天再分享一篇經濟學人的重點筆記。這篇文章也是上個月知新共學翻譯群的英譯中練習。但我隱去了大部分社群專屬筆記內容,這份筆記主要挑選個別難句子長句子,以及值得注意或積累的好詞好句。希望對大家有所幫助。
評論區會置頂獲得此篇文章雙語及音頻的方式,文末還有一首好聽的歌。希望你能耐心看到底部。
Hassled recruiters have to sort through reams of applications that vastly outnumber the jobs available.?心煩意亂的招聘人員必須要翻閱數量遠超過空缺職位的大批簡歷。
sort through,翻查;歸整,比如She sorted through her suitcase for something to wear. 她翻遍衣箱找件穿的。
大量的某事物,下次可以試試reams of sth., 只不過這個詞組大多表示文字上的大量,比如每次看這個公眾號,都能收獲reams of notes大量的筆記。
還有一個piles of sth | a pile of sth,意思也很類似:a lot of something 一大堆某物,大量某物,比如我每天都會收到很多用戶的信息:piles of messages from followers
applications后面跟了一個定語從句,謂語outnumber,注意這個構詞法:out-作為前綴有“超過”的意思,outnumber“(在數量上)比…多”,還有outpace 超過…的速度,趕過;outperform (效益上)超過,勝過; outplay 技術優于…,勝過,outdo 比……做得好;outshine 使……相形見絀。
For example, Johnson & Johnson (J&J), a consumer-goods company, receives 1.2m applications for 25,000 positions every year.?例如,消費品公司強生每年招聘的2.5萬個職位要收到120萬份申請。
這句的詞沒有什么難的,唯一需要注意的是For的譯法。英語里面難翻譯的是介詞,需要靈活使用的也是介詞。很多英文介詞可以處理成中文里的動詞,比如of the people, by the people, for the people, 民有,民治,民享。
還有之前翻譯群遇到的:
Milder slowdowns have scared the government off the path of prudence before.以前經濟增速放緩幅度沒這么大時,政府就嚇得舍棄了審慎之路。
這里就可以把for ... positions 翻譯成一個小句子,忘掉for吧,比如:
……每年只提供2.5萬個職位/招聘崗位,但是卻收到了120萬份簡歷。
每年需要招聘的崗位只有2.5萬個,收到的簡歷卻有120萬份。
數字放在句末也是很方便的翻譯技巧,這樣比較方便組句,特別適合中文語感不好的親。特別是句子比較長的時候,試著中文用數字收尾,句子會簡練、節奏感好很多。比如:
This year 38m Chinese took international trips, 18% more than in the same period last year. In 2011, they spent $73 million while travelling abroad, third only to Germans and Americans.今年上半年,中國出境游達3800萬人次,同比增長18%。2011年中國游客海外旅游消費達730億美元,僅次于德美游客,居世界第三位。
再比如:
Fewer new companies are being started.
fewer放到最后去,新成立的公司越來越少,順順的。越來越少的公司被成立?成立了?很別扭。
AI-enabled systems can scan applications far more quickly than humans and work out whether candidates are a good fit.?配備AI的系統會以比人快得多的速度審查申請,并確定候選人是否合適。
-enabled配有(某種設備或技術)的;可以使用(某種系統、裝置或設計),比如Find out more about our free Internet-enabled software. 請了解更多有關我們的免費因特網軟件的信息。
再get一個寫作句式:sb/sth is a good/perfect fit. 某人/某物很適合,比如The dress was a perfect fit. 這條連衣裙非常合身。
Oddly enough, they may also inject more humanity into hiring. 說來奇怪,它們還可能讓招聘更為人性化。
get一個寫作句式:strangely/oddly/curiously etc enough奇怪的是,說來奇怪,比如Strangely enough, I didn’t feel at all nervous when I faced the audience. 奇怪的是,我面對聽眾時一點也不感到緊張。
以往我們遇到“讓……更……”的時候,第一反應是用形容詞或副詞比較級,在上一篇推送中>>>分享兩個英文句子的翻譯思路,我們提到過,比較級和動賓結構在翻譯中通常可以互換。比如這里的,使招聘過程更加人性化,如果不用比較級,用動賓結構就可以是inject more humanity into hiring。
注意inject的這個固定用法:inject sth into sth增加〔氣氛、興趣等〕,比如Traditional handbag makers are injecting more fun into their designs. 傳統的手袋制作者在他們的設計中注入了更多有趣的元素。
舉一反三,還可以去推導出類似的套路,比如:
inject humanity into sth 讓…更人性化
讓產品更人性化:inject humanity into products
市場大樓能讓一個地區更富有生氣。A market building can inject new life into an area.
According to Athena Karp of HiredScore, a startup that uses algorithms to screen candidates for J&J and others, only around 15-20% of applicants typically hold the right qualifications for a job, but they are rarely told why they were not hired, nor are they pointed to more suitable jobs.?創業公司HiredScore利用算法為強生等公司篩選候選人,該公司的雅典娜卡普(Athena Karp)說,通常只有約15%到20%的申請者擁有適合職位的資質,但很少有人告訴他們為什么不被錄用,也沒有人為他們指出更合適的工作。她說,技術的幫助“讓候選人重拾尊嚴”。
這句話比較長,基本上是兩個并列的完整句,中間用連詞but連接。
Typically這個詞,在修飾形容詞的時候,一般是“典型地,特別地”意思,比如a delightful, typically Dutch hotel 舒適的、典型荷蘭風格的酒店。
修飾動詞的時候,一般是“通常”的意思,比如Women in developing countries typically have their first child when they are very young. 發展中國家的女性通常都很早生育。
這句話還涉及到Nor放句首的倒裝,也不,用于否定句之后,引導另一含相似意義的否定句。比如:It was not my fault, nor his. 那不是我的錯,也不是他的。
Pymetrics, a startup whose clients include companies such as Unilever, a consumer-goods giant, and Nielsen, a research firm, offers a set of games for candidates to play, usually at an early stage of the recruitment process, that ignore factors such as gender, race and level of education. 創業公司Pymetrics擁有消費品巨頭聯合利華和研究公司尼爾森等客戶,它通常會在招聘早期階段讓候選人玩一套游戲。
先劃分意群:
Pymetrics,(主語)?a startup(同位語)?whose(定語從句)?clients include companies such as Unilever,(同位語)?a consumer-goods giant, and Nielsen, (同位語)a research firm, /offers(謂語)?a set of games(賓語)?for candidates to play(賓補), usually at an early stage of the recruitment process,(插入語)?that (定語從句,先行詞games)ignore factors such as gender, race and level of education.
注意與stage搭配的介詞:at an early stage of 在…的早期階段,stage表示“階段”時,介詞用at,偶爾也用in。
The project is in its final stages. 項目到了收尾階段。
At this late stage, there is little we can do. 到了這個后期階段,我們沒有多少辦法了。
And its middle class is thought by many to be in the early stages of the journey to prosperity that created hundreds of millions of Chinese consumers. 中國的繁榮催生出數億消費者,很多人認為印度的中產階級也已從通往繁榮的路上起步。
Some,大約,差不多,用于數詞前。
Instead they test candidates for some 80 traits such as memory and attitude to risk. 這套游戲無視性別、種族和受教育水平等因素,而測試候選人的約80種特點,如記憶力和對風險的態度。
特點特性,Trait,更多指人的個性的特征,特性,特點。
注意test的介詞搭配,底下這幾個詞組容易混淆:
test sb. For sth. 給誰做什么檢查,比如:They tested her for diabetes. 他們給她做了糖尿病檢查。The water should be tested for lead. 這水應該檢測含鉛量。
test sb on sth,比如:We’re being tested on grammar tomorrow. 我們明天測驗語法。
test sth against sth,比如:The theory was then tested against the results of the study. 這個理論接著對照研究結果進行了檢驗。
Pymetrics then uses machine learning to measure applicants against top performers and predict their suitability for a role.?Pymetrics隨后利用機器學習將申請者與業績最優者做比較,并預測他們對于某個職位的適合度。
繼續注意介詞搭配,against有對比的含義,measure sb / sth against sb / sth 將…與…作比較?,比如:Measured against our budget last year, $2.7 million seems small.相比于我們去年的預算,270 萬美元似乎少了一點。
In the past, there was no way of redirecting them to other jobs as they became available. 招聘人員經常會遇到資質良好,但不適合所申請職位的候選人。過去,如果公司日后出現新的崗位空缺,并沒有辦法把這些人引導到新崗位上。
積累寫作句式:there is no way of doing sth 沒有辦法做某事…,比如:There's no way of knowing if the treatment will work.沒有辦法知道這種治療方法是否有效。
redirect(以新的方式或目的)重新使用,比如:Resources are being redirected to this important new project. 為這一重要的新項目重新調配了資源。
近義詞repurpose,比如下面這個句子,也出現于這篇文章:
AI will make it possible to “repurpose candidates we have attracted before”, says Sjoerd Gehring, vice-president of talent acquisition for J&J. AI將有可能“重新利用我們之前曾吸引到的候選人。”
repurpose重新利用;改變…的用途;為…找到新用途,比如:The company's role is to repurpose print data for use on the Web. 這間公司的職責是將印刷品資料轉成電子版以供網路使用。
But there is a risk that workers will try to game the system.但是也會有員工鉆系統空子的風險。
積累寫作詞組:game the system鉆制度的空子
再積累一個寫作句式:there is a risk that...后面這個是同位語從句,裝risk的具體內容。
All this points to a broader issue in AI: transparency.?所有這些都指向了AI中一個更普遍的問題:透明度。
再積累一個寫作句式:All this points?to a broader issue in...?一般前面可以羅列一些背景數據什么的,然后來這么一句承上啟下的,以上種種都反映了某個領域里一個更為普遍的問題。
Accenture is rolling out a custom-built tool called Job Buddy which tells employees how vulnerable their job is to automation and predicts what training they might need so they can develop the right skills for the future.?埃森哲正在推出一款名為“工作伙伴”(Job Buddy)的定制工具,它會告訴員工他們的工作受到自動化的威脅有多大,并預測他們可能需要哪些培訓,以獲得適應未來的技能。
句子比較長,先劃分意群:
?Accenture(主語)?is rolling out (謂語)a custom-built tool(賓語)?called Job Buddy(后置定語)?which (定語從句)tells (從句謂語)employees(直賓)?how vulnerable their job is to automation(賓語從句)?and predicts(從句謂語2)?what training they might need(從句賓語從句2)?so they can develop the right skills for the future.(結果狀語)
我們平時說推出某個產品服務,會想到launch,這句話提供了一個替換詞組roll out,比如?The company expects to roll out the new software in September.公司希望在九月份推出這款新軟件。
custom-built tool 定制工具,注意custom-:按“顧客要求專門…的”,custom-made定做的,比如a custom-made suit一套定做的套裝。
注意區分“定制”和“訂制”。前者是指根據客戶的個性化需求而制作,后者側重預訂。
我們說什么人或事物容易受到什么傷害,可以用這個詞組be vulnerable to sth 容易受到…的攻擊;易感染某種疾病的?,比如Children are most vulnerable to abuse within their own home.兒童在自己家里最容易受到虐待。?