國家地理:為了結(jié)束這場流行病 我們必須相信科學(xué)(1)

If a theme runs through the books and articles I've written over the past 40 years, it's a fascination with what scientists have learned about the human body. A long career spent explaining biomedical research has led me to a deep respect for the scientific process. Despite its occasional missteps and self-corrections, I believe it ultimately moves us toward a clearer understanding of the world and how to thrive in it.

如果我過去40年所寫的書籍和文章有一共同主題，那是因?yàn)槲覍?duì)人體的科學(xué)新發(fā)現(xiàn)感到著迷。闡明生物醫(yī)學(xué)研究的漫長職業(yè)生涯，使我對(duì)科學(xué)過程產(chǎn)生深深的敬意。即使科學(xué)偶有失誤和自我修正，我相信它終會(huì)讓我們更加清楚理解這個(gè)世界，并懂得如何在其中蓬勃發(fā)展。

So as scientists first scrambled to figure out the never-before-seen coronavirus, I was primed to follow their advice about how to keep safe, based on the hypothesis that the virus was transmitted mostly by droplets from coughs and sneezes lingering on surfaces. I dutifully wiped down countertops, refrained from touching my face, and washed my hands so emphatically that the little diamond in my wedding ring shone like never before.

因此，當(dāng)科學(xué)家最初忙亂地研究前所未見的新冠病毒，并假設(shè)病毒主要通過留在表面上的咳嗽與噴嚏飛沫傳播，據(jù)此做出安全建議時(shí)，我很自然地就遵循了。我聽話地擦拭了廚房的臺(tái)面、忍住不摸自己的臉，并且使勁洗手，以至于我結(jié)婚戒指上的小鉆石從來沒有像現(xiàn)在這樣閃閃發(fā)光。

And then, about two and a half weeks after my city, New York, shut down restaurants, Broadway plays, and the largest public school system in the country, scientists switched to a different message -- that everyone should wear a mask. This was a startling about-face. The initial advice, confidently delivered, had been not to wear a mask, unless you were a frontline health-care worker. The revision was largely based on a new hypothesis, that the coronavirus spread mostly through the air.

之后，在我所居住的紐約市關(guān)閉了餐館、百老匯戲劇和美國最大的公立學(xué)校系統(tǒng)大約兩周半后，科學(xué)家改提出了不同看法--每個(gè)人都應(yīng)該戴口罩。這是一個(gè)驚人的大轉(zhuǎn)變。最初的建議是信心滿滿地告訴大家不必戴口罩，除非你是第一線的醫(yī)護(hù)人員。后來的修正有很大一部分是根據(jù)新冠病毒主要通過空氣傳播這一新假設(shè)。