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Samuelson's paper was seminal but not wholly original.
薩繆爾森的論文是開創(chuàng)性的，但不是完全原創(chuàng)的。
A similar model was described in 1947 by Maurice Allais, then working in a bureau of mining statistics in Paris, but his contribution had the “misfortune to be written in French”, as one scholar has noted.
1947年，類似的模型曾由當時正在巴黎的一個礦業(yè)統(tǒng)計機構(gòu)工作的莫里斯·阿萊（Maurice Allais）對其做過描述。但是，正如一位學者指出的那樣，他的貢獻“的不幸是用法語寫成的”。
The neverendingness of these models plays havoc with a lot of economic common sense.
這類模型的無窮無盡干擾了許多經(jīng)濟學共識。
Economists know in their bones that budget constraints eventually bind and that accounts must be settled at the end of the day.
經(jīng)濟學家從骨子里知道，預算約束終將收緊，賬戶必須要在當天結(jié)清。
But what if the end never quite arrives?
但是，如果這種終結(jié)永不到來呢？
Such parables may seem too contrived to be illuminating.
這類寓言似乎太過勉強而不具有啟發(fā)性。
Surely the islanders benefit from a Ponzi scheme only because the story arbitrarily denies them any way to save for their future.
的確，島民們從龐氏騙局中獲益，僅僅是因為這個故事武斷地否決了他們?yōu)槲磥泶驽X的任何辦法。
If the young could instead acquire a durable asset, they could take care of themselves in their old age by selling it for the things they need.
如果年輕人可以獲得某種持久的資產(chǎn)作為代替，他們就可以通過為了自己所需要的東西而出售這種資產(chǎn)的方式，在自己老了的時候照看自己。
Instead of eating a cacao fruit, islanders could plant it to grow a new tree, which they could later rent or sell to young climbers when they retire.
代之以吃掉可可數(shù)的果實，島民們可能將果實種在地中，讓其長成一棵在他們退休時可以將其租賃或是賣給年輕的攀樹者的新樹。
In most cases, this kind of saving and investing does indeed serve people far better.
在大多數(shù)情況下，這類儲蓄和投資在為人們服務(wù)方面要好很多。
Capital accumulation enlarges the economy's productive capacity, thereby creating wealth, unlike Ponzi schemes, which merely spread it around.
資本積累擴大了經(jīng)濟體的生產(chǎn)能力，因而，創(chuàng)造了財富，這是它與僅僅是讓財富流轉(zhuǎn)龐氏騙局的不同之處。
Saving and investing both store value and add to it, turning one cacao fruit into a whole tree.
儲蓄和投資都是儲值和增值，把一粒可可果實變成了一棵大樹。
Retirees can therefore expect to get more out of their investment than they put in.
因而，退休之人就可以預期從他們的投資中收獲比當初投入的還要多的東西。
In some unusual cases, however, other factors may weigh in the Ponzi scheme's favour.
然而，在某些不常見的情況下，其他一些要素可能在龐氏騙局的恩惠中占據(jù)重要地位。
First, saving and investing may run into sharply diminishing returns.
首先，儲蓄和投資可能遭遇大幅減少的回報。
If a society is eager to transfer resources into the future, it will accumulate a large stock of capital, which may depress the return on further investment.
如果某個社會急于將資源轉(zhuǎn)移至未來，它將積累大量的資本，這些資本可能壓制進一步投資的回報。
Think of an orchard too densely packed with trees, each getting in the others' light and denuding their soil.
想像一個被過密地種上了樹的果園，每一棵數(shù)都在爭奪其他的樹的陽光，掠奪其他的樹的土壤。
譯文來源考研英語時事閱讀
