評(píng)論
打印
Some abilities, of course, decrease with age.
當(dāng)然，一些能力會(huì)隨著年齡的增長(zhǎng)而變差。
Those include abilities at tasks
這些包括完成
requiring physical strength and stamina,
需要體力和耐力，
ambition, and the power of novel reasoning
野心及在特定情況下有創(chuàng)意的推理力
in a circumscribed situation,
的這類(lèi)任務(wù)的能力，
such as figuring out the structure of DNA,
如想出DNA的結(jié)構(gòu)，
best left to scientists under the age of 30.
最好還是留給30歲以下的科學(xué)家去做。
Conversely, valuable attributes
相反的，隨著年齡的增加
that increase with age include experience,
會(huì)更有價(jià)值的，包括經(jīng)驗(yàn)，
understanding of people and human relationships,
了解人和人之間的關(guān)系，
ability to help other people
不被自我意識(shí)影響地
without your own ego getting in the way,
去幫助其他人，
and interdisciplinary thinking about large databases,
以及跨學(xué)科地思考大型數(shù)據(jù)庫(kù)的能力，
such as economics and comparative history,
如經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)和比較歷史等事情，
best left to scholars over the age of 60.
最好留給年齡超過(guò) 60歲的學(xué)者來(lái)做。
Hence older people are much better than younger people
因此，老年人比年輕人
at supervising, administering, advising,
在監(jiān)督、管理、咨詢(xún)、
strategizing, teaching, synthesizing,
戰(zhàn)略規(guī)劃、教學(xué)、綜合，
and devising long-term plans.
及制定長(zhǎng)期計(jì)劃上更擅長(zhǎng)。
I've seen this value of older people
我在老年人身上看到這個(gè)價(jià)值
with so many of my friends in their 60s,
包括我那些60多歲，
70s, 80s and 90s,
70多歲，80多歲和90多歲的朋友們，
who are still active as investment managers,
這些人依然是活躍的投資管理人，
farmers, lawyers and doctors.
農(nóng)民、律師和醫(yī)生。
In short, many traditional societies
總之，許多傳統(tǒng)社會(huì)
make better use of their elderly
比我們現(xiàn)代化大社會(huì)，
and give their elderly more satisfying lives
更好地利用他們的老年人
than we do in modern, big societies.
也給老人更滿(mǎn)足的生活。
Paradoxically nowadays,
矛盾的是，現(xiàn)在，
when we have more elderly people than ever before,
當(dāng)我們比以往任何時(shí)候，
living healthier lives and with better medical care
有更多的老年人健康地生活
than ever before,
和有更好的醫(yī)療照顧，
old age is in some respects more miserable
變老在某些方面反而
than ever before.
比以往任何時(shí)候更慘。
The lives of the elderly are widely recognized
老人生活狀態(tài)被公認(rèn)
as constituting a disaster area
構(gòu)成了現(xiàn)代美國(guó)社會(huì)
of modern American society.
的一個(gè)災(zāi)難性的部分。
We can surely do better by learning
我們當(dāng)然可以做得更好，
from the lives of the elderly
通過(guò)學(xué)習(xí)在傳統(tǒng)的社會(huì)中
in traditional societies.
老人的生活。
But what's true of the lives of the elderly
但，對(duì)傳統(tǒng)社會(huì)
in traditional societies
老人生活來(lái)說(shuō)是對(duì)的事情，
is true of many other features
對(duì)許多其他
of traditional societies as well.
傳統(tǒng)社會(huì)的特點(diǎn)來(lái)說(shuō)也是對(duì)的。
Of course, I'm not advocating that we all give up
當(dāng)然，我不主張我們都放棄
agriculture and metal tools
農(nóng)業(yè)和金屬工具
and return to a hunter-gatherer lifestyle.
并返回狩獵采集的生活方式。
There are many obvious respects
在許多明顯的方面
in which our lives today are far happier
我們今天的生活遠(yuǎn)比
than those in small, traditional societies.
在那些小的、傳統(tǒng)的社會(huì)更快樂(lè)。
To mention just a few examples,
舉幾個(gè)例子，
our lives are longer, materially much richer,
比在傳統(tǒng)社會(huì)中人的生活。
and less plagued by violence
我們活得更久，物質(zhì)更豐富，
than are the lives of people in traditional societies.
也少受暴力迫害。
But there are also things to be admired
但傳統(tǒng)社會(huì)中的人們
about people in traditional societies,
的一些事情也值得敬佩，
and perhaps to be learned from them.
或許應(yīng)該向他們學(xué)習(xí)。
Their lives are usually socially much richer
他們的生活通常在社交上
than our lives,
比我們的生活更豐富
although materially poorer.
雖然物質(zhì)上比較貧乏。
Their children are more self-confident,
他們的孩子們更自信
more independent, and more socially skilled
更獨(dú)立，和在社會(huì)上更熟練，
than are our children.
比起我們的孩子。
They think more realistically about dangers than we do.
他們比我們更實(shí)際地對(duì)待危險(xiǎn)。
They almost never die of diabetes, heart disease,
他們幾乎從來(lái)不會(huì)死于糖尿病、心臟病、
stroke, and the other noncommunicable diseases
中風(fēng)和其他非傳染性疾病，
that will be the causes of death of almost
而這些將會(huì)是我們今天
all of us in this room today.
在這里的所有人的死因。
Features of the modern lifestyle predispose us to those diseases,
現(xiàn)代生活方式的特點(diǎn)讓我們更容易患上這些疾病，
and features of the traditional lifestyle
而傳統(tǒng)生活方式的特點(diǎn)
protect us against them.
保護(hù)我們免受這些疾病的傷害。
Those are just some examples of what we can learn
這些只是幾個(gè)例子來(lái)說(shuō)明我們能
from traditional societies.
從傳統(tǒng)社會(huì)中學(xué)習(xí)什么。
I hope that you will find it as fascinating
我希望你會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)，
to read about traditional societies
了解傳統(tǒng)社會(huì)
as I found it to live in those societies.
和我覺(jué)得在這些社會(huì)中生活一樣引人入勝。
Thank you.
謝謝。
