评论
打印
5 The new experiment
5 新实验
A few days later，John asked Mary to look at another experiment．He took her into a long，quiet room at the back of the factory．The room was full of the noises of small animals．
几天以后，约翰让玛丽去观看另一个实验。他将她带进工厂后面一个僻静的长屋子里。屋子里充满小动物的叫声。
'I've been testing the waste products，'he said．'Here，look at this．'He gave her a sheet of paper．'Some of these rats have had the waste products in their food and drinking water．There's no real problem yet． One or two have become ill，but not many．There's nothing very serious．'
“我一直在测试这些废料，”他说，“看这东西。”他递给她一张纸。“这其中一些老鼠已经食用了搀有废料的食物和饮用水。还没有出现真正的问题。有一两只已经病了，但不多。情况不是很严重。”
Mary read the results carefully．She didn't like this kind of experiment，but she knew it was necessary． And John was right；no rats had died，and not very many were ill．
玛丽仔细地读着实验结果。她不喜欢这种实验，但是她知道这有必要。而且约翰是对的。还没有老鼠死亡，生病的也不多。
'So what do you want to show me?'she asked．
“那么你想证明什么？”她问。
'This，'he said．He opened a box by the window．'These ten rats have had the waste products in their drinking water for two weeks now． I gave them a lot—five parts per million．They're going to have babies today．If the babies are OK， we've got nothing to worry about．'
“这一点，”他说。他打开靠近窗户的一个箱子。“这10只老鼠喝了搀有废料的水到现在已经有两个星期了。我给了它们许多——一百万分之五。它们今天要下小崽儿了。如果它们的小崽儿没问题，我们就不用担心了。”
'Oh，John，'she said．'What an awful thing to do！'
“哦，约翰，”她说，“做这样的事真可怕。”
'I know，I know，'he said． But he wasn't listening．'Look，'he said excitedly．'Some of them have been born al-ready！'
“我知道，我知道，”他说。但他并没有在听。“看呀，”他兴奋地说，“有些已经生下了。”
He lifted some of the baby rats out of the box and looked at them through a magnifying glass．
他从箱子里提出几只鼠崽儿，用放大镜观看它们。
'Oh dear，'he said at last， sadly．Perhaps there is a prob-lem．Look！'
“哦，我的天啊，”他最后懊丧地说，“也许有问题。你瞧！”
Mary looked through the magnifying glass．She began to feel ill．There was a long silence．
玛丽透过放大镜观看。她开始感到不好受。沉默了很长一段。
