2020考研英语：《经济学人》中英读译Day75

英语阅读能力依靠什么？必然是词汇的积累，但，仅仅是词汇的积累是不够了，更应该了解英语句式，不同句型所表达意义。如何培养自己的阅读语感呢？那么就跟着聚创考研信息网小编每天学一点英语，一起为考研筑起坚实的地基。阅读是需要积累的，就像我们需要经常和人沟通才会促进我们的表达能力一样~小伙伴跟着小编一起，每天坚持打卡，培养英语阅读能力及语感，了解文章一些经典词汇的用法。

经济学人:脸书的未来:下一个雅虎？(1)

 

"Big tobacco" is what the bosses of several large technology firms have started calling Facebook in private and in public.The company has spent the past year fending off critics who claim it is addictive, bad for democracy and overdue for a regulatory reckoning.Being compared to the tobacco giants is one of the business world's more toxic insults, but it is not the only unflattering analogy circulating.A lower blow is the suggestion that Facebook may become like Yahoo, the once high-flying internet firm that plunged.

 

译文

几家大型科技公司的老板们已经开始在私底下和公开场合称脸书是“烟草大公司”。这家公司在过去一年的时间里都在躲避那些批评声，他们称脸书让人上瘾，不利于民主，监管部门监管不到位。将一家公司与烟草巨头相比较，这在商业界中是最为恶毒的侮辱，但这并不是针对脸书的唯一个耿直的类比。更low的一击是暗示脸书可能成为下一个雅虎，一家曾经非常成功而现在却没落的互联网公司。

Even a year ago the idea would have been unthinkable.The social-networking giant, which runs Instagram, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger as well as its own core service, was thriving.But since January it has become mired in a series of controversies, misjudgments and missteps.It became clear that it had done too little to stop Russian interference in America's election in 2016.It had to admit that it had shared the personal data of 90m users with outside firms without permission. It later suffered a data breach affecting 50m users.

 

译文

即便是在一年前，这种想法还是无法想象的。当时，这家运营着Instagram、WhatsApp、Facebook Messenger和公司自身核心服务的社交网络巨头还在蓬勃发展。但自一月以来，这家公司陷入了一系列争议、误判和失误的泥潭之中。很明显这家公司在阻止俄罗斯干涉2016年美国选举中几乎无所作为。它不得不承认，公司在未经用户的许可下和其他外部公司共享了九千万用户的个人数据。之后它又碰上了涉及五千万用户的数据外泄。

The past week has brought more bad news.Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's chief executive, has been forced onto the airwaves to defend his second-in-command, Sheryl Sandberg,after the New York Times on November 14th published a report alleging that they had tried to downplay the extent of Russian electoral interference to the firm's board of directors,and hired lobbyists and the kind of "opposition-research" firms commonly used in political campaigns, to deflect blame onto other firms and to tarnish critics.The revelations have cemented the idea that Facebook is "grossly mismanaged", says an advertising executive. Its shares have fallen by 27% since the start of the year.

 

译文

过去一周的坏消息更多。脸书CEO马克·扎克伯格被迫接受电视采访为公司的副主管雪莉·桑德伯格辩护，此前11月14日《纽约时报》曾发表一篇报道宣称他们曾试图向公司董事会弱化俄罗斯干涉选举的程度，并聘请说客以及那些政治运动中普遍使用的“反向研究”将责任推给其他公司并抹黑那些评论人士。一位广告经理表示，这些披露更让人们认为脸书的“管理极其不善”。自今年年初，公司股价下跌27%。

The comparison to Yahoo is imperfect. Even at its peak Yahoo never boasted a business as large and profitable as Facebook's.And the competitive landscape was different. One of the main reasons Yahoo declined is because it lost out to a powerful rival, Google, in online search;Marissa Mayer, its boss from 2012 until its sale to Verizon last year, was unable to restore advertisers' or employees' confidence as users left.

 

译文

把脸书比作雅虎并不恰当。即便是在巅峰时期，雅虎的规模和利润均无法于脸书相匹敌。两家的竞争格局也不一样。雅虎衰败的主要原因之一是因为它在在线搜索领域输给了强大竞争对手谷歌；自2012年到去年威瑞森收购该公司，CEO玛丽莎·梅耶尔都没能挽回广告商或员工们因客户流失而失去的信心。

Today there is no company that truly competes with Facebook's suite of apps,partly because it has hoovered up competitors such as Instagram, the wildly successful photo app that is at the centre of its future plans.But people who watched Yahoo's collapse see ominous similarities.

 

译文

如今没有一家公司真的可以与脸书的app相竞争，部分原因是因为脸书收购了它的竞争对手，如Instagram，这个非常成功的拍照app是脸书未来计划的核心。但是目睹了雅虎崩塌的人们看到了不祥的相似性。

 

注释

1.addictive 上瘾的

Cigarettes are highly addictive.

香烟非常容易使人上瘾。

 

2.insult 侮辱

Their behaviour was an insult to the people they represent.

他们的行为是对他们所代表的人们的一种侮辱。

 

3.high-flying 成功的

a high-flying career woman

事业成功的职业女性

 

4.interference 干涉

They resent foreign interference in the internal affairs of their country.

他们憎恶对他们国家内政的外来干涉。

考研英语复习没有头绪？

想要提升自己的英语实力？

那就快来围观聚创考研辅导班的英语课程哦

2020考研英语全程班

不仅有189课时的名师视频讲解、配套的讲义

还包含资料下载、基础及强化等

根据最新大纲，实行全年更新的模式

单课时低至1.5元！

更多优惠内容大家可点击以下图片了解详情。

推荐阅读：

1、【汇总】2020考研英语阅读题库

2、考研英语基础差，要用什么参考书？陈正康词汇书好用吗？