双语畅销书《艾伦图灵传》第5章:解谜接力赛(73)
日期:2018-05-14 13:51

(单词翻译:单击)

Nor was there any pretence at heroism in Bletchley circles.
在布莱切利的圈子里,没有任何的英雄主义的虚伪。
It was not simply that Intelligence traditionally represented the most gentlemanly war work;
不仅是因为情报工作是最绅士的军事工作,
not simply that the unspoken agreement was that of doing one's bit while making as little fuss as possible.
也不仅是因为大家心里都只是想着做好自己的事、少惹麻烦,
For at the higher levels, the cryptanalytic work was intensely enjoyable.
而是因为更高层次上的原因,那就是密码分析工作其实是很有意思的。
Being paid, or otherwise rewarded, seemed almost a curiosity.
不但有钱拿,有荣誉,还能满足好奇心。
It was also something of a holiday even from professional mathematics,
对于专业数学家而言,能够把一些基本的想法付诸实践,
for the kind of work required was more on the line of ingenious application of elementary ideas, rather than pushing back the frontiers of scientific knowledge.
而不是一味地埋在超前的知识当中,这简直就像度假一样有趣。
It was like a solid diet of the hard puzzles in the New Statesman, with the difference that no one knew that solutions existed.
这就像是纯粹地在解一道《新政客》中的谜题,不同的只是,没有人知道是否真的有解。
Nor was there anything heroic about the scheme that Alan devised in 1940 for protecting his savings against imminent disaster.
1940年,艾伦有一个计划,要保护他的积蓄不受眼下灾难的影响,但他的方案却很搞笑。
David Champernowne had observed that silver was one thing that had gained in real value during the First World War.
晨佩侬注意到,在一战期间,白银可以用来保存货币价值。
Both he and Alan invested accordingly in silver bullion, but while 'Champ' prudently kept his in the bank, Alan typically decided to go the whole hog with a Burying Procedure.
于是,他和艾伦都要投资银块,但当晨佩侬谨慎地把他的白银存入银行时,艾伦却以他的个性不出所料地决定,把他的"埋藏程序"做个彻底。

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