新概念英语第四册34-01

文章关于 British Medical System

New words and expressions 生词短语辨析

skeptical adj.: 怀疑的

creedal : [宗教]信条

skeptic : 怀疑论者，无神论者，怀疑宗教的人

be skeptical about 对……产生怀疑 I’m skeptical about his words.

distrustful :怀疑的，不相信的 doubtful :怀疑的； juberous :怀疑的

forefathers n.:祖先

fervently adv.:热情地 intense adj.:热情的

full-blooded adj. : 热血澎湃的 cold-blooded adj.:对…无动于衷

enthusiastic adj.:积极的 passion n.:[宗教]狂热

passionate adj.: [宗教]狂热的 He has a fervent love for books.

curative adj.:治病的

curative effect: 疗效 How about the curative effect?

cure n.v.: 治疗，治愈

cure sb. cure of cancer

beyond cure :不可救药 cure-all 治百病的万灵药，百宝丹 magic bullet 魔药

astronomical adj.: 天文学的

disaster :灾难 astrology: 占星术 astronaut :宇航员

catastrophe n.: 大灾难 astronomy n.:天文学 astronomical figures :天文数字

sign n.: 迹象

tangible adj.: 实实在在的

tangible assets 有形资产 intangible assets : 无形资产

Lesson34

This is a sceptical age, but although our faith in many of the things in which our forefathers fervently believed has weakened, our confidence in the curative properties of the bottle of medicine remains the same as theirs. This modern faith in medicines is roved by the fact that the annual drug bill of the Health Services is mounting to astronomical figures and shows no signs at present of ceasing to rise. The majority of the patients attending the medical out-patients departments of our hospitals feel that they have not received adequate treatment unless they are able to carry home with them some tangible remedy in the shape of a bottle of medicine, a box of pills, or a small jar of ointment, and the doctor in charge of the department is only too ready to provide them with these requirements. There is no quicker method of disposing of patients than by giving them what they are asking for, and since most medical men in the Health Services are overworked and have little time for offering time-consuming and little-appreciated advice on such subjects as diet, right living, and the need for abandoning bad habits, etc., the bottle, the box, and the jar are almost always granted them.

Nor is it only the ignorant and ill-educated person who has such faith in the bottle of medicine, especially if it be wrapped in white paper and sealed with a dab of red sealing-wax by a clever chemist. It is recounted of Thomas Carlyle that when he heard of the illness of his friend, Henry Taylor, he went off immediately to visit him, carrying with him in his pocket what remained of a bottle of medicine formerly prescribed for an indisposition of Mrs Carlyle's. Carlyle was entirely ignorant of what the bottle in his pocket contained, of the nature of the illness from which his friend was suffering, and of what had previously been wrong with his wife, but a medicine that had worked so well in one form of illness would surely be of equal benefit in another, and comforted by the thought of the help he was bringing to his friend, he hastened to Henry Taylor's house. History does not relate whether his friend accepted his medical help, but in all probability he did. The great advantage of taking medicine is that it makes no demands on the taker beyond that of putting up for a moment with a disgusting taste, and that is what all patients demand of their doctors-- to be cured at no inconvenience to themselves.

KENNETH WALKER WALKER Patients and Doctors

参考译文

这是一个怀疑重重的时代，但是尽管我们对祖先所笃信的许多事情的信仰已经减退，然而我们对瓶内药物疗效的信心仍与祖辈一样坚定。卫生部门每年医药费用支出已达天文数字且目前还没有停止上升迹象的这个事实，证明现代人对药品是深信不疑的。来医院门诊部求治的极大部分病人认为，如果他们不随身带回一些实实在在的药物比如一瓶药水、一盒丸药或一小罐油膏，他们就觉得没有得到应有的治疗，而主管门诊部的医生也很乐意满足病人的这种要求。处理病人最快的方法是病人要什么药就给什么药。因为卫生部门的大多数医务人员都工作过分劳累，几乎抽不出时间向病人提出既费时间又不大太受欢迎的关于饮食限制、生活规律、克服不良习惯等的忠告，所以

病人得到的差不多总是一些瓶瓶罐罐而已。

不只是那些缺乏知识作没有受过良好教育的人们对药物如此信赖，他们对聪明的药剂师用白纸袋包装起来，并在袋口封上一块红色封口蜡的药物尤为深信不疑。据说，Thomas Carlyle有过这样的事情：当他听到朋友Henry Taylor患病时，马上跑去探望他，衣袋里带着一瓶他的夫人的药，这瓶药是她日前患小恙时配来吃剩的。Carlyle全然不知道他袋里装的是什么药，也不清楚他朋友患的是什么病，他妻子以前有什么不舒服。但是他认为一种药对一种疾病有用对另一种疾病必然同样管用，他想到能为朋友带去帮助而宽慰，于是便急冲冲地向Henry Taylor家走去。这个故事并未说明他的朋友是否接受了他的药物帮助，但很可能是接受了。服药的最大优点是，仅要求服药者暂

时忍受一下令人讨厌的苦味，这也正是所有病人对医生提出的要求，也就是在不给病人带来任何不便的情况下治愈疾病。