英译汉翻译练习2课堂讲解

Passage Two

We’ve all agonized over difficult decisions. Go to college or backpack around Europe? Buy or rent? Apple pie or death by chocolate?

我们常对做艰难决定倍感痛苦。去上大学还是做背包客旅游欧洲？买房还是租房？吃苹果馅饼还是美味诱人的巧克力甜点？

Well, agonize no more—because a study in the journal Science suggests that simply washing your hands after making a tough choice can keep you from second-guessing.

好消息，你可能不会再为此痛苦了。美国著名的《科学》期刊最新刊登的一份研究报告发现：做出艰难决定之后，去洗一下手，这个简单的动作便可以让你远离事后“纠结”的痛苦。

The researchers recruited 40 undergraduates. Participants were asked to select 10 CDs they would like to own and rank them by preference after browsing 30 CD covers as if they were in a music store. Then, participants completed a product survey that asked for evaluations of a liquid soap; half merely examined the bottle

before answering, whereas others tested the soap by washing their hands. Afterwards, participants were asked to rank the 10 CDs again. For those who merely examined the soap, their preferences changed. In contrast, for those who washed their hands, their decisions were unaffected.

研究人员选取了40名本科生作为被试，让他们浏览30张CD封面，从中选取打算购买的10张，并按照喜欢程度从高至低依次排序，如同身临其境于一家音像制品商店。在完成这个任务之后，研究人员又让被试执行了第二个任务：对一种液体肥皂进行产品效果评价。有一半被试查看了一下瓶子和肥皂液，做出了评价。余下的另一半被试通过洗手，检验了液体肥皂的效果，做出了评价。随后研究人员又让被试再次查看他们之前已经挑选出的10张CD，重新按照喜欢程度排序。结果发现那些只是仅仅检查了瓶子和肥皂液的被试，他们的喜好排序改变了；而那些洗过手的被试，他们的喜好排序未发生任何改变。

A study with a different choice task, cleaning manipulation, and measure replicated this finding. 85 students responded to a consumer

survey about four fruit jams. They were subsequently offered a choice between two jars as a sign of the sponsor’s appreciation. After their choice, participants completed a product survey about a wipe; half merely examined the wipe, whereas others tested it by cleaning their hands. Then, they were offered a chance to reconsider their choice of jams.

Researchers found that subjects who cleaned their hands right after making their choice didn't look back. They made peace with their picks and moved on—whereas those who didn't have access to wipe spent more time trying to justify which jam they took home.

一个类似实验再次验证了这一结论。85名学生被试受邀参加四种果酱消费调查。任务完成后主办方出于感谢让他们在两瓶果酱中任选一瓶免费带回家。挑选过后，他们又参加了一种湿巾纸产品的效果评价。一半的被试只是查看了一下湿巾纸，做出了评价。余下的另一半被试用湿巾纸擦擦手，检验了这种湿巾纸的效果，做出了评价。随后主办方让他们再次在两瓶果酱中做出选择。研究人员发现那些用湿巾纸擦手的

被试对他们已经做出的选择毫不动摇，他们平静地拿走了之前选择好的果酱回家了。而那些没有用湿巾纸擦手的被试则又开始抉择究竟要带那一种果酱回家。

So if you want to avoid rethinking the past, lather and rinse. And if necessary, repeat.

因此如果你想避免选择过后的事后纠结，那么用肥皂洗手吧，如果必要，请重复。

翻译总结：

此篇英语文章比较简单，属于科技论文文体。在翻译中注意实验术语的表达，例如：被试，测试者，研究人员等。

Replicate vt. 复制

Antiseptic adj. 防腐的，抗菌的；非常整洁的

Death By Chocolate is a marketing term for various desserts that feature chocolate (especially dark chocolate or cocoa) as the primary ingredient. The trademark in the