经济学人精读丨换脸app惹争议

原文:http://mp.weixin.qq.com/s?__biz=MzI5MzQ0NjMyMw==&mid=2247486575&idx=1&sn=13382d05198aa79e69ba0d6d82ecd224&chksm=ec70bbb3db0732a562024a654fa0d2edd2246ad460052d55e25bac712c4794fbb470c7efe2bd#rd
前段时间,换脸app因其隐私条款而引发巨大争议,2019年9月7日的《经济学人》中有篇文章对此进行了报道,我从中选出第一段和大家分享,希望你们能喜欢:


原文
①On the night of August 30th, soon after ZAO—an app whose name means "to make"—was launched, it proved so wildly popular that its servers crashed repeatedly. ②Almost as rapidly, a sudden backlash from its many fans nearly unmade it. ③Technology-news outlets and meticulous netizens who had combed through the terms of its user agreement found that by signing up, users had granted ZAO "completely free", "irrevocable" and "perpetual" rights to all content they uploaded to its platform.




精读


①On the night of August 30th, soon after ZAO—an app whose name means "to make"—was launched, it proved so wildly popular that its servers crashed repeatedly.

8月30日晚,在其发布不久之后,一款名为ZAO(意思是“制造”)的app迅速走红,以至于其服务器多次崩溃。

①句讲了换脸app ZAO 的火爆程度。


句首先通过 on the night of August 30th 点明时间8月30日晚;然后通过 soon after 引出更确切的时间soon after ZAO was launched,ZAO发布后不久。


launch 的含义比较广泛,它在这里指 to make sth available for the first time 使某物首次可以被获得到,即“发布推出公布”,后面可以加新产品新书等。比如苹果将于北京时间9月11日发布最新款的iPhone手机,用英语就可以说:
Apple will launch its latest version of iPhones on September 11th.


文中 soon after ZAO was launched 的意思就是:ZAO发布后不久。


ZAO是神马东西呢?ZAO后面通过一个「同位语+定语从句」的结构进行介绍an app whose name means "to make"
(ZAO是) 一款其名字含义是“制造”的app。

我们把这三部分合起来再看一遍:
On the night of August 30th, soon after ZAO—an app whose name means "to make"—was launched...
8月30日晚,在ZAO(一款app,其名字的意思是“制造”)发布不久之后,……

接下来作者在主干部分交代了重点事件:
it proved so wildly popular that its servers crashed repeatedly
这款app异常火爆,以至于其服务器多次崩溃

这部分有一个大结构:so...that...,表示“太...以至于...”,用于修饰某事程度之深。

prove 在这里可以看成系动词,类似 beturn out,用来引出某种结果比如:
Most of the foreign media reports on Hong Kong proves prejudiced.
外媒关于香港的报道中,大都带有偏见。


文中 prove so wildly popular 的意思是:这款app异常火爆wildly作副词,修饰形容词popular,表示“异常火爆的”,相当于extremely popular.)

到底有多火爆呢?后面通过that引出:that its servers crashed repeatedly 以至于其服务器反复崩溃。

server指“服务器”;crash的意思比较广泛,在交通事故中,可以指“撞车坠机”,如:The plane crashed soon after take-off. 飞机起飞后不久就坠机了。在金融领域,可以表示“(股市)崩溃崩盘”,可以同 collapse 替换,比如:America's stockmarket crashed after the escalation of trade war. 贸易战升级后,美国股市崩盘了。在计算机方面,crash可以表示“瘫痪”,文中 its servers crashed 的意思就是:其服务器瘫痪了。

repeatedly可以通过repeat去理解,repeat是“重复”的意思,所以repeatedly就是“反复地”,相当于again and again.

表示“多次发生某事”“多次做某事”,我们可以用到以下表达:
1)again and again
They hit him again and again after he shouted "I support Hong Kong police".
他喊出“我支持香港警察”之后,他们一遍又一遍地打他。

2)repeated
Many food deliverers drive against the flow despite repeated safety warnings.
很多外卖骑手不理会多次安全警告,还是逆行。

3)recurrent / recurring
In America, shootings are a recurrent problem.
在美国,枪击是一个经常出现的问题。

4)over and over again
She practised the lines over and over again until they were word perfect.
她一遍遍地练习台词(lines),直到滚瓜烂熟。
(word-perfect: 背得一字不差的。)

②Almost as rapidly, a sudden backlash from its many fans nearly unmade it.

但很快,粉丝们又突然发起了强烈的抵制,这差点毁掉了这款app。

②句进行转折,讲了粉丝对这款app的抵制。


as 在这里 表示“同样和...一样”,as rapidly 呼应前面的 soon after,它就等于 as rapidly (as it quickly became wildly popular),意思是:迅速走红一样,人们也迅速对它发起了抵制。


这句话的主干是:a sudden backlash nearly unmade it
突然的抵制几乎毁了这款app.


unmake 在这里是作者玩的一个文字梗,为了和①句里的 make 相呼应,达到一种语言效果。意思上相当于 ruin / destroy.


backlash 的意思是 a strong negative reaction by a number of people against recent events 大众对某事的强烈负面反应,可以根据语境翻译成“抵制、抗议”等。后面加介词against,表示“对...的抵制”,加介词from,表示“来自...的抵制”。文中 a sudden backlash from its many fans 的意思是:来自很多粉丝的突然抵制,说人话就是:很多粉丝突然对这款app发起了抵制。


下面我们汇总一下跟“反应”有关的表达:
1)reaction 反应(后面加to/against)
I was stunned by the news, and my initial reaction was anger.


2)response 反应、反响(后面加介词to)
Many luxury brands' insulting act has provoked a strong response from the Chinese.
很多奢饰品牌的辱华行为引起了中国人的强烈反应。


3)feedback 反馈,回馈(后面加介词on)
It is important to give students regular feedback on their performance.
对学生的学习表现作定期反馈是很重要的。


4)backlash 强烈抵制
There is a strong backlash against free trade in America.
美国现在掀起了强烈的反对自由贸易的情绪。


5)overreaction 过度反应
It's an overreaction for America to clamp down on Huawei.
美国打压华为,有些过度反应了。


③Technology-news outlets and meticulous netizens who had combed through the terms of its user agreement found that by signing up, users had granted ZAO "completely free", "irrevocable" and "perpetual" rights to all content they uploaded to its platform.

科技新闻媒体和严谨的网民仔细研究了ZAO的用户协议条款,他们发现,通过注册,用户授予了ZAO“完全免费”、“不可撤销”和“永久的”的权利以使用其上传内容。

③句对②句进行展开,讲了为什么app会遭到用户抵制。


这句话的大结构为:Technology-news outlets and meticulous netizens found that, (by signing up), users had granted ZAO rights to...
科技新闻媒体和细心的网民发现,通过注册,用户会给予ZAO某种权利。


这句话的主语有两个,分别是:
  1. Technology-news outlets 科技新闻媒体
  2. meticulous netizens 细心的网民


outlet 通过构词“out+let”可以理解成“让某物出去”,所以它本义是“出口排放管”的意思,比如 a waste water outlet 污水排放口。由此引申出“(情感的)发泄途径(思想的)表达方式”,比如,find an outlet for one's ambition 找到了施展抱负的机会,也可以引申出“经销店商店”的意思(让货物出去),常和store替换,文中引申为“媒体”(让新闻出去),technology-news outlet 就是“科技新闻媒体”的意思了。


meticulous 简单说就是 careful 的意思,“仔细的小心谨慎的”,比如:
He was meticulous in his use of words.
他用词很谨慎。
文中 meticulous netizens 指“细心的网民”。


主语后面又跟了一个who引导的定语从句,对其进行补充修饰:
who had combed through the terms of its user agreement
他们仔细研究了ZAO的用户协议条款


term最常见的意思是“学期、任期”,比如 during his second term in office... 在他的第二个任期内...,此外也可以表示协议中的“条款”,比如,under the terms of the agreement 根据协议条款,文中terms of user agreement 就是“用户协议条款”的意思。


comb through 在这里是个非常生动的表达,我们都知道comb作名词指“梳子”,梳头的时候梳子会遍历头发,所以作动词讲comb也有“遍历彻底搜查”的意思,用英文解释是to search sth carefully,后面可以直接加名词,也可以先加介词through再加名词。比如女生买口红时:
My girlfriend combed the shops for the right lipstick shades(colors).
我女朋友跑遍商店寻找她满意的口红色号。
Comb the shops给人的感觉是,就像梳子梳遍头发一样跑遍每一家商店,很有画面感。

文中combed through the terms of its user agreement则表示:仔细浏览了用户协议(user agreement)的每一个条款(terms)。

回到主干部分,by signing up的意思是“通过注册”,sign up表示“注册”,“登录”可以说 log in.


主干的谓语部分为:grant ZAO rights to...
给予ZAO某些权力


grant 简单说就是 give 的意思,grant ZAO rights就是“授予ZAO一些权力”。


rights前面还有三个形容词修饰,分别是:
  1. completely free 完全免费的
  2. irrevocable 不可撤销的
  3. perpetual 永久性的


具体是干什么的权利呢?rights后面通过介词to引出:
rights to all content they uploaded to its platform.
使用他们上传至平台上的全部内容的权力。


这部分的核心是 rights to all content,(使用)全部内容的权利,they uploaded to its platform这部分是定语从句,修饰all content,意思是“使用他们上传至平台上的全部内容的权利”。
upload 指“上传”,其反义词为 download 下载。
注意right表示“权利”时后面加介词to,再加名词或动名词,比如 the right to freedom of expression 言论自由权。




今天就到这里,感谢阅读!
“阅读原文”一起来充电吧!