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But sometimes drug companies
不过有时候 制药公司
are not the first people to see that.
并不是最先意识到这一点的人
In the UK, one third of all women
在英国 三分之一的育年龄妇女
of reproductive age take the contraceptive pill.
都会服用避孕药物
Worldwide, a hundred million rely on it,
全世界 约有一亿人依赖这种药物
but it almost never reached the market.
但最初 它差一点未能进入市场
In the 1950s, research into contraception was illegal
在20世纪50年代 研发避孕药
in many parts of the world and where it was legal,
在许多国家是非法的 即便在合法国家
pharmaceutical firms feared a moral backlash.
制药公司也害怕遭遇道德问题
Despite this, independent researchers did discover
除此之外 独立研究人员也发现了
how to synthetically create female hormones.
合成制造女性荷尔蒙的方法
They realised giving these to women as a pill
他们意识到 给女性服用药物
would change their fundamental biology
可以改变她们的生理状态
and stop them ovulating,
使其停止排卵
preventing them from getting pregnant.
从而避免怀孕
Pharmaceutical companies were reluctant
制药公司当时对于这一项目的支持
to back the project,
并不情愿
so when one did get behind it,
所以当一个制药公司着手支持该项目时
the pill was brought to the market
这种药物只是作为
as a drug for heavy periods,
治疗月经过多的药剂进入市场
but women soon cottoned on to its real potential.
不过女人们很快发现了它的真实作用

重点解释

preventing them from getting pregnant.从而避免怀孕

prevent from阻止； 防止

I was prevented from going by urgent business.

我因急事不能去。

I was prevented from going by urgent business.

我因急事不能去。

but women soon cottoned on to its real potential.不过女人们很快发现了它的真实作用

cotton on开始理解

He didn't seem to cotton on to me then.

当时他似乎并不喜欢我。

I don't cotton on to what you are saying.

我不明白你在说什么。