TED演讲:诺贝尔奖是如何运作的(1)

 　　What do a seventeen-year-old Pakistani, a Norwegian explorer, a Tibetan monk¹, and an American pastor² have in common? 一个17岁的巴基斯坦人，一位挪威探险家，一个西藏和尚和一名美国牧师之间有什么相同之处呢？

　　They were all awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. 那就是他们都被授予了诺贝尔奖。

　　Among the top prestigious³ awards in the world, 在世界上最负声望的奖项中，

　　this prize has honored some of the most celebrated⁴ and revered⁵ international figures and organizations in history. 此奖被颁发给历史上最有名望和受人尊敬的国际人物以及组织。

　　To understand how it all got started, we have to go back to the 1800s. 为了了解它的起源，我们需要追溯到19世纪。

　　Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel was then mostly known for the invention of dynamite⁶, 瑞典化学家阿尔弗雷德·诺贝尔因炸药的发明而为人所知，

　　a breakthrough which launched his career as a successful inventor and businessman. 这个重大成就让他以一位成功发明家和商人的身份开创了自己的事业。

　　30 years later, he had become extremely wealthy, but never married, and had no children. 30年后，他变得极其富有，却从未结婚，也没有儿女。

　　When his will was opened after his death, 他辞世后遗嘱被公开，

　　it came as a surprise that his fortune was to be used for five prizes in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and peace. 人们很惊讶，因为他的财富都被用于设立物理、化学、医药、文学与和平五个领域的奖项。

　　These prizes illustrated⁷ his lifelong commitment to sciences and his passion for literature. 这些奖项诠释了他对科学的毕生追求以及对文学的热爱。

　　But what about peace? 但是和平奖又怎么解释呢？

　　Because Nobel's name was tied to inventions used in the war industry, 由于诺贝尔的名字与军工发明联系在一起，

　　many have assumed that he created the peace prize out of regret. 许多人猜测他设立和平奖是出于愧疚。

　　However, this is all speculation⁸ as he never expressed any such sentiments,  然而，这皆是猜测而已，他从未表达过此想法，

　　and his inventions were also used for constructive⁹ purposes. 而且他的发明也用于建设目的。

　　Instead, many historians connect Alfred Nobel's interest for the peace 反之，许多历史学家把阿弗雷德·诺贝尔对和平的兴趣

　　cause to his decade-long friendship and correspondence with an Austrian pacifist named Bertha Von Suttner. 归结于他和一位名叫贝尔塔·冯·苏特纳的澳大利亚和平主义者之间长达十年的友谊和通信。

　　Von Suttner was one of the leaders of the international peace movement, 冯·苏特纳是世界和平运动的领导人之一，

　　and in 1905, after Nobel's death, she became the first woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. 1905年诺贝尔逝世后，她成为了获得诺贝尔和平奖的第一名女性。

　　Nobel's will outlined three criteria¹⁰ for the Peace Prize, 和其它瑞典奖项不同，诺贝尔和平奖在挪威举行，

　　which unlike the other Sweden-based prizes, would be administered in Norway. 诺贝尔的遗嘱概括了和平奖的三项标准：

　　Disarmament, peace congresses, and brotherhood¹¹ between nations. 取消或裁减常备军队，和平大会以及促进民族团结友好。

　　These standards have since been expanded to include other ways of promoting peace, 这些标准已经扩展到其它促进和平的方式，

　　such as human rights and negotiations¹². 例如人权和磋商。

　　And the prize doesn't just have to go to one person. 这一奖项并非只颁发给个人。

　　About a third of Noble Peace Prizes have been shared by two or three laureates. 三分之一的和平奖都由两至三位获奖者共享。

　　So how do nominations¹⁴ for the prize work? 那么奖项的提名是如何运作的呢？

　　According to the Nobel Foundation, 根据诺贝尔基金会规定，

　　a valid¹⁵ nomination¹³ can come from a member of a national assembly, state government, or an international court. 有效的提名可以由挪威议会、州立政府或者国际法院的成员提出。

　　Eligible¹⁶ nominators also include university rectors, 有资格的提名者可以是大学校长，

　　professors of the social sciences, history, philosophy, law, and theology, and previous recipients¹⁷ of the Peace Prize. 社会科学、哲学、法学、神学的教授，以及诺贝尔和平奖的历届获奖人。

　　But if you want to know more about who was recently nominated, you'll have to be patient. 但是如果你想知道更多关于最近谁被提名的消息，你最好耐心些。

　　All information about nominations remains¹⁸ secret for 50 years. 所有提名者的信息都会保密五十年。

　　Take Martin Luther King Jr. 就拿马丁·路德金来说吧。

　　We didn't actually know who nominated him until 2014. 事实上我们在2014年之前都不知道是谁提名了他。

　　His nominators turned out to be the Quakers, 他的提名者被证实是贵格会，

　　who had won the prize previously¹⁹, and eight members of the Swedish Parliament. 也就是前任获奖者以及瑞典议会的八名成员。

1 monk   

n.和尚，僧侣，修道士

参考例句：

• The man was a monk from Emei Mountain.那人是峨眉山下来的和尚。
• Buddhist monk sat with folded palms.和尚合掌打坐。

2 pastor   

n.牧师，牧人

参考例句：

• He was the son of a poor pastor.他是一个穷牧师的儿子。
• We have no pastor at present:the church is run by five deacons.我们目前没有牧师：教会的事是由五位执事管理的。

3 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

4 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

5 revered   

v.崇敬，尊崇，敬畏( revere的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• A number of institutions revered and respected in earlier times have become Aunt Sally for the present generation. 一些早年受到尊崇的惯例，现在已经成了这代人嘲弄的对象了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Chinese revered corn as a gift from heaven. 中国人将谷物奉为上天的恩赐。 来自辞典例句

6 dynamite   

n./vt.(用)炸药(爆破)

参考例句：

• The workmen detonated the dynamite.工人们把炸药引爆了。
• The philosopher was still political dynamite.那位哲学家仍旧是政治上的爆炸性人物。

7 illustrated   

adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• His lecture was illustrated with slides taken during the expedition. 他在讲演中使用了探险时拍摄到的幻灯片。
• The manufacturing Methods: Will be illustrated in the next chapter. 制作方法将在下一章说明。

8 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

9 constructive   

adj.建设的，建设性的

参考例句：

• We welcome constructive criticism.我们乐意接受有建设性的批评。
• He is beginning to deal with his anger in a constructive way.他开始用建设性的方法处理自己的怒气。

10 criteria   

n.标准

参考例句：

• The main criterion is value for money.主要的标准是钱要用得划算。
• There are strict criteria for inclusion in the competition.参赛的标准很严格。

11 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

12 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

13 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

14 nominations   

n.提名，任命( nomination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nominations are invited for the post of party chairman. 为党主席职位征集候选人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Much coverage surrounded his abortive bids for the 1960,1964, and 1968 Republican Presidential nominations. 许多消息报道都围绕着1960年、1964年和1968年他为争取提名为共和党总统候选人所做努力的失败。 来自辞典例句

15 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

16 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

17 recipients   

adj.接受的；受领的；容纳的；愿意接受的n.收件人；接受者；受领者；接受器

参考例句：

• The recipients of the prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者的姓名登在报上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The recipients of prizes had their names printed in the paper. 获奖者名单登在报上。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

18 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

19 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。