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TaniaSimoncelli_2014X-_我是怎么在基因专利大战中获胜的_
It was an afternoon in the fall of 2005. 那是 2005 年秋日的一个下午。
I was working at the ACLU as the organization's science advisor. 我时任 ACLU（美国公民自由联盟）的科学顾问。
I really, really loved my job, but I was having one of those days where I was feeling just a little bit discouraged . 我真的非常喜欢我的工作, 但是那段时间我时常 感到有一点点受挫。
discouraged:adj.泄气的; v.阻拦; (discourage的过去分词和过去式)
So I wandered down the hallway to my colleague Chris Hansen's office. 于是我经过走廊晃荡到同事克里斯·汉森的办公室。
colleague:n.同事,同僚;
Chris had been at the ACLU for more than 30 years, so he had deep institutional knowledge and insights . 克里斯在 ACLU 供职三十多年了, 他对机构有深刻的了解和想法。
institutional:adj.制度的; insights:n.洞察力;眼力;深刻见解(insight的复数);
I explained to Chris that I was feeling a little bit stuck. 我向克里斯解释我为什么觉得有些举步维艰。
I had been investigating a number of issues at the intersection of science and civil liberties -- super interesting. 我当时在调查一系列 处在科学和公民自由十字路口的问题——非常有意思。
investigating:v.调查;研究;审查;(investigate的现在分词) issues:n.重要议题;争论的问题;v.宣布;公布;发出;(issue的第三人称单数和复数) intersection:n.交叉;十字路口;交集;交叉点; civil:adj.公民的;民间的;文职的;有礼貌的;根据民法的; liberties:n.自由(liberty的复数);
But I wanted the ACLU to engage these issues in a much bigger way, in a way that could really make a difference . 但是我希望 ACLU 能够在更高的层面参与这些问题。 以一种能真正做出改变的方式。
engage:v.吸引,占用;使参加;雇佣;使订婚;预定; make a difference:有影响,有关系;
So Chris cut right to the chase, and he says, "Well, of all the issues you've been looking at, what are the top five?" 克里斯开门见山地说, “那好,所有你正在考虑的问题里面,排前五位的是什么？”
'"Well, there's genetic discrimination , and reproductive technologies , and biobanking, and ... “我想应该是遗传歧视, 生育技术, 生物样本库,还有……
genetic:adj.基因的;遗传学的; discrimination:n.歧视;区别,辨别;识别力; reproductive:adj.生殖的;再生的;复制的; technologies:n.技术;科技(technology的复数);
oh, there's this really cool issue, functional MRI and using it for lie detection , and ... 哦,这个真的很酷, 功能性 MRI（核磁共振成像）,用它来测谎,还有……
functional:adj.功能的; detection:n.侦查,探测;发觉,发现;察觉;
oh, and of course, there's gene patents ." 哦,当然,还有基因专利。”
patents:n.[专利]专利(patent的复数形式);专利权;
'"Gene patents?" “基因专利？”
'"Yes, you know, patents on human genes ." “是的,你知道的,授予人类基因专利。”
genes:n.基因;(gene的复数)
'"No! “不可能！
You're telling me that the US government has been issuing patents on part of the human body? 你是说,美国政府 正在对人身体的部分授予专利？
issuing:n.发行物;争论点;期刊号;v.发行(issue的ing形式);分配;流出;
That can't be right." 这怎么可能嘛。”
I went back to my office and sent Chris three articles. 我回到我的办公室,给克里斯发了三篇文章。
And 20 minutes later, he came bursting in my office. 20分钟以后,他冲进我的办公室。
bursting:adj.充满的;渴望的;v.爆炸;猛然打开;突然开始(burst的现在分词);
'"Oh my god! You're right! Who can we sue?" “天哪！你说中了！我们可以起诉谁？”
(Laughter) （笑声）
Now Chris is a really brilliant lawyer, but he knew almost nothing about patent law and certainly nothing about genetics . 克里斯是一名杰出的律师, 但是他几乎完全不懂专利法, 而且肯定不懂遗传学。
genetics:n.遗传学;
I knew something about genetics, but I wasn't even a lawyer, let alone a patent lawyer. 我懂一点遗传学,但我连律师都不是, 更别说专利律师了。
let alone:更不必说;听任;不打扰;
So clearly we had a lot to learn before we could file a lawsuit . 所以很显然,在打官司之前,我们需要学很多东西。
lawsuit:n.诉讼;[法]官司;诉讼案件;
First, we needed to understand exactly what was patented when someone patented a gene. 首先,我们需要搞清楚当有人为基因申请专利时, 究竟是什么被授予了专利。
patented:adj.专利的;
Gene patents typically contain dozens of claims , but the most controversial of these are to so-called " isolated DNA" -- namely , a piece of DNA that has been removed from a cell. 基因专利通常包含几十条要求, 但是最矛盾的是所谓的“离体 DNA”—— 也就是从细胞中移出的 DNA 片段。
typically:adv.代表性地;作为特色地; claims:v.宣称; n.声明; (claim的第三人称单数和复数) controversial:adj.有争议的;有争论的; so-called:adj.所谓的;号称的; isolated:adj.偏远的; v.隔离,孤立,脱离; namely:adv.也就是;即是;换句话说;
Gene patent proponents say, "See? We didn't patent the gene in your body, we patented an isolated gene." 基因专利的支持者称, “看见了吗？我们没有对你身体中的基因申请专利, 我们是为离体的基因申请专利。”
proponents:n.支持者;建议者(proponent的复数);
And that's true, but the problem is that any use of the gene requires that it be isolated. 这话是没错, 但问题在于,无论如何,要使用基因,就必须先进行分离。
And the patents weren't just to a particular gene that they isolated, but on every possible version of that gene. 而被授予专利的,并非他们分离的某个特定的基因, 而是那个基因每一种可能的版本。
So what does that mean? 那么这意味着什么呢？
That means that you can't give your gene to your doctor and ask him or her to look at it, say, to see if it has any mutations , without permission of the patent holder . 这意味着你不能把你的基因给医生, 然后请他/她检查, 比如说,检查是否有变异, 如果你没有专利持有者的授权。
mutations:n.[遗]突变;变化;转变(mutation的复数形式); holder:n.持有人;所有人;固定器;(台,架等)支持物;
It also means that the patent holder has the right to stop anyone from using that gene in research or clinical testing. 这也意味着专利持有者有权阻止任何人 使用该基因从事研究或临床试验。
clinical:adj.临床的;诊所的;
Allowing patent holders , often private companies, to lock up stretches of the human genome was harming patients . 允许专利持有者, 通常是私有企业, 关起开发人类基因组的大门,会损害患者的利益。
holders:n.[专利]持有人(holder的复数); stretches:v.拉长; n.一片; (stretch的第三人称单数和复数) genome:n.基因组;染色体组; patients:n.接受治疗者,病人;(patient的复数)
Consider Abigail, a 10-year-old with long QT syndrome , a serious heart condition that, if left untreated , can result in sudden death . 比如,阿比盖尔, 一个10岁的孩子,患有长 QT 综合症, 这是一种严重的心脏疾病,如果不治疗, 可能引发猝死。
syndrome:n.[临床]综合征;综合症状;并发症状;校验子;并发位; untreated:adj.未经处理的;未经治疗的; sudden death:n.突然死亡法(比赛出现平局时在加时赛中先得分者即为胜方);
The company that obtained a patent on two genes associated with this condition developed a test to diagnose the syndrome. 有个公司拥有与这种疾病有关的两个基因的专利, 他们开发了一种针对此病症的检验方法。
obtained:v.获得(obtain的过去分词); associated:adj.有关联的; v.联想; (associate的过去分词和过去式) diagnose:vt.诊断;断定;vi.诊断;判断;
But then they went bankrupt and they never offered it. 但随后公司倒闭了,还没来得及推出这项检测服务。
bankrupt:adj.破产;倒闭;完全缺乏(有价值的东西);n.(经法院判决的)破产者;v.使破产;
So another lab tried to offer the test, but the company that held the patents threatened to sue the lab for patent infringement . 于是另一个实验室尝试提供这种检测, 但是这家持有专利的公司起诉那个了实验室 专利侵权。
infringement:n.侵犯;违反;
So as a result , for 2 years, no test was available. 所以,结果是, 两年内,没有人提供这种检测服务。
as a result:结果;
During that time, 在此期间,
Abigail died of undiagnosed long QT. 阿比盖尔因未诊断出长 QT 症去世。
undiagnosed:adj.[临床]未确诊的;尚未找出原因的;
Gene patents clearly were a problem and were harming patients. 基因专利明显是个问题,并且在损害患者的利益。
But was there a way we could challenge them? 但是我们有没有办法挑战他们呢？
Turns out that the Supreme Court has made clear through a long line of cases, that certain things are not patent eligible . 其实,（美国）最高法院 通过一系列的判例已经清楚地表明, 有些东西是不能申请专利的。
Supreme Court:最高法院; eligible:adj.合格的,合适的;符合条件的;有资格当选的;n.合格者;适任者;有资格者;
You can't patent products of nature -- the air, the water, minerals , elements of the periodic table . 你不能为自然界的产物申请专利—— 空气、水、矿产、周期表里的元素。
minerals:n.矿物;矿产,矿产品(mineral的复数);矿物质; elements:n.要素;基本部分;少量;一群;(element的复数) periodic table:n.元素周期表;
And you can't patent laws of nature -- the law of gravity, E = mc2. 你也不能为自然规律申请专利—— 引力定律,E=mc2 （质能方程）,
These things are just too fundamental and must remain free to all and reserved exclusively to none. 这些东西太基础了,必须对所有人免费开放, 不该被任何人独自占有。
fundamental:n.基础; adj.十分重大的; reserved:adj.内向的; v.预订,预约; (reserve的过去分词和过去式) exclusively:adv.唯一地;专有地;排外地;
It seemed to us that DNA, the most fundamental structure of life, that codes for the production of all of our proteins , is both a product of nature and a law of nature, regardless of whether it's in our bodies or sitting in the bottom of a test tube . 对我们来说,似乎 DNA, 生命最本质的结构, 掌控所有蛋白质生产的编码, 既是自然界的产物,也是自然规律, 无论它是在我们的体内, 还是沉在一根试管底部。
structure:n.结构;构造;建筑物;vt.组织;构成;建造; proteins:n.[生化]蛋白质(protein复数); regardless:adj.不管的; v.不顾后果地; test tube:adj.人工授精的;在试验管中作成的;n.试管;试验管;人工受精;
As we delved into this issue, we traveled all over the country to speak with many different experts -- scientists, medical professionals , lawyers, patent lawyers. 我们不断深入这个问题, 在国内四处奔波,和许多专家交流—— 科学家、医疗专家、律师、专利律师。
delved:vi.钻研;探究;挖;vt.钻研;探究;挖;n.穴;洞; professionals:n.[管理]专业人员(professional的复数);
Most of them agreed that we were right as a matter of policy , and, at least in theory, as a matter of law. 绝大多数都同意,在政策层面我们是正确的, 并且在法律层面,至少在理论上是正确的。
policy:n.政策,方针;保险单;
All of them thought our chances of winning a gene-patent challenge were about zero. 但他们全都认为 我们挑战基因专利授权的成功概率 几乎为零。
Why is that? 为什么呢？
Well, the patent office had been issuing these patents for more than 20 years. 因为专利局签发这些专利 已经超过 20 年了。
There were literally thousands of patents on human genes. 毫不夸张地说,现在已经有上千个人类基因专利。
literally:adv.按字面:字面上:确实地:
The patent bar was deeply entrenched in the status quo , the biotech industry had grown up around this practice, and legislation to ban gene patents had been introduced year after year in Congress , and had gone absolutely nowhere . 专利律师已经深陷其中, 生物技术产业已经通过这个司法实践壮大, 禁止基因专利的立法提案 年年在国会被提出, 但很显然根本没出国会的门。
entrenched:adj.根深蒂固的;v.使处于牢固地位;牢固确立;(entrench的过去式和过去分词) status quo:n.现状;原来的状况; biotech:abbr.生物技术;生物科技(biotechnology); legislation:n.立法;法律; year after year:年复一年地;每年; Congress:n.国会;代表大会;会议;社交; absolutely:adv.绝对地;完全地; nowhere:v.无处; n.无处; adj.不存在的;
So the bottom line : courts just weren't going to be willing to overturn these patents. 所以归根结底: 法院就是不愿意去推翻这些专利。
the bottom line:底线;本质内容;最底线; overturn:vt.推翻;倾覆;破坏;vi.推翻;倾覆;n.倾覆;周转;破灭;
Now, neither Chris nor I were the type to shy away from a challenge, and hearing, "Being right just isn't enough," 只不过,我和克里斯都不是那种遇到挑战就退缩的人, 听到“站在正义一边还不够,”
seemed all the more reason to take on this fight. 这就更值得我们去为此战斗。
all the more:更加;越发;
So we set out to build our case. 所以我们着手准备自己的案件。
Now, patent cases tend to be: Company A sues Company B over some really narrow , obscure technical issue. 现在,专利案通常是:公司 A 起诉公司 B, 只针对一些非常局限、隐晦的技术问题。
narrow:adj.狭窄的; v.使窄小; n.峡谷; (场所,物品等的)狭窄部分; obscure:n.朦胧; adj.无名的; v.使模糊; technical:adj.工艺的,科技的;技术上的;专门的;
We weren't really interested in that kind of case, and we thought this case was much bigger than that. 我们对那种案件并不十分感兴趣, 我们认为这个案件要比那些重大得多。
This was about scientific freedom, medical progress, the rights of patients. 这个案件关乎科学自由,医疗进步, 患者权利。
scientific:adj.科学的,系统的;
So we decided we were going to develop a case that was not like your typical patent case -- more like a civil rights case. 所以我们决定要做和你们通常看到的 专利案不同的事情—— 它更像是针对公民权利的申诉。
civil rights:na.公民权;
We set out to identify a gene-patent holder that was vigorously enforcing its patents and then to organize a broad coalition of plaintiffs and experts that could tell the court about all the ways that these patents were harming patients and innovation . 我们着手寻找这样一个基因专利持有者: 他要非常强硬地推行专利; 然后组织一个广泛的原告和专家联盟 来告诉法庭 这些专利侵害病人、阻碍创新的种种劣迹。
identify:v.识别:鉴定:确认:发现: vigorously:adv.精神旺盛地,活泼地; enforcing:v.强制执行;强迫;迫使;(enforce的现在分词) organize:v.组织;安排;处理;分配;管理; coalition:n.联合;结合,合并; plaintiffs:n.原告;起诉人;(plaintiff的复数) innovation:n.创新,革新;新方法;
We found the prime candidate to sue in Myriad Genetics, a company that's based in Salt Lake City, Utah . 我们发现 Myriad Genetics可以作为起诉的主要目标。 这是一家总部设在犹他州盐湖城的公司。
prime:adj.主要的; v.极好地; n.初期; v.使准备好; Myriad:adj.无数的;种种的;n.无数,极大数量;无数的人或物; Utah:n.美国犹他州;
Myriad held patents on two genes, the BRCA1 and the BRCA2 genes. Myriad 持有两个基因的专利, 他们开发了一种针对此病症的检验方法。
Women with certain mutations along these genes are considered to be at a significantly increased risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer . 携带有这两个基因某些变异的女性 罹患乳腺癌和卵巢癌 的风险会显着升高。
significantly:adv.意味深长地;值得注目地; ovarian:adj.[解剖]卵巢的;子房的; cancer:n.癌症;恶性肿瘤;
Myriad had used its patents to maintain a complete monopoly on BRCA testing in the United States. Myriad 公司使用他们的专利来维持 美国境内化验 BRCA 的全面垄断地位。
maintain:v.维持;保持;维修;保养;坚持(意见); monopoly:n.垄断;垄断者;专卖权; United:adj.联合的; v.联合,团结; (unite的过去分词和过去式)
It had forced multiple labs that were offering BRCA testing to stop. 他们强行叫停了数个提供 BRCA化验的实验室。
multiple:adj.数量多的;多种多样的;n.倍数; labs:n.实验室;实验大楼;(lab的复数)
It charged a lot of money for its test -- over 3,000 dollars. 他们对化验收取高额费用—— 超过三千美元。
It had stopped sharing its clinical data with the international scientific community . 他们停止向国际科学界共享临床数据。 还有可能最糟糕的,
community:n.社区;[生态]群落;共同体;团体;
And perhaps worst of all, for a period of several years, 还有可能最糟糕的, 曾经有几年,
Myriad refused to update its test to include additional mutations that had been identified by a team of researchers in France. Myriad 拒绝在他们的化验中增加 由法国的一个研究团队鉴别出来的新变异类型。
update:vt.使现代化;更新;n.现代化;更新的信息; additional:adj.附加的,额外的; identified:v.确认;认出;找到;发现;说明身份;(identify的过去式和过去分词)
It has been estimated that during that period, for several years, as many as 12 percent of women undergoing testing received the wrong answer -- a negative test result that should have been positive . 据估计,在此期间, 数年间, 有近 12% 接受化验的女性 得到了错误的结果—— 也就是本应该是阳性的阴性结果（假阴性）。
estimated:adj.估计的;预计的;估算的; undergoing:v.经历,经受(变化、不快的事等);(undergo的现在分词) negative:adj.[数]负的;消极的;否定的;阴性的;n.否定;负数;[摄]底片;v.否定;拒绝; positive:adj.积极的;[数]正的,[医][化学]阳性的;确定的;n.正数;[摄]正片;
This is Kathleen Maxian. 这是卡瑟琳·马克西安。
Kathleen's sister Eileen developed breast cancer at age 40 and she was tested by Myriad. 卡瑟琳的姐姐艾琳 40 岁得了乳腺癌。 她曾做过 Myriad 的化验,
The test was negative. 结果是阴性。
The family was relieved . 这家人松了口气。
relieved:adj.释然的; v.缓解;
That meant that Eileen's cancer most likely didn't run in the family, and that other members of her family didn't need to be tested. 这说明艾琳的癌症很可能不会在家族中重现。 她的家人也不需要再接受化验。
But two years later, 但是两年后,
Kathleen was diagnosed with advanced-stage ovarian cancer. 卡瑟琳被诊断出晚期卵巢癌。
It turned out that Kathleen's sister was among the 12 percent who received a false-negative test result. 原来卡瑟琳的姐姐就是那 12% 得到了假阴性结果的病人之一。
Had Eileen received the proper result, 如果艾琳得到了正确的化验结果,
Kathleen would have then been tested, and her ovarian cancer could have been prevented. 卡瑟琳就也会去做化验, 她的卵巢癌就可能得到预防。
Once we settled on Myriad, we then had to form a coalition of plaintiffs and experts that could illuminate these problems. 我们确定目标为 Myriad 后, 就需要组建一个 能够陈述这些问题的原告和专家团。
settled:adj.稳定的; v.结束; (settle的过去分词和过去式) illuminate:照明;照亮;照射;解释;使容光焕发;
We ended up with 20 highly committed plaintiffs: genetic counselors , geneticists who had received cease and desist letters, advocacy organizations , four major scientific organizations that collectively represented 我们找到了 20 位非常积极的原告: 遗传学咨询顾问, 收到叫停信件的遗传学家: 支持我们的组织, 四个主要科学组织,集中代表了
highly:adv.高度地;非常;非常赞许地; committed:adj.坚信的; v.做出错事; (commit的过去分词和过去式) counselors:n.辅导员;顾问(counselor的复数形式); geneticists:n.遗传学者; cease:v.(正式)停止;结束;中断;平息;n.(正式)不停地;不间断地;连续地; desist:vi.停止;断念; advocacy:n.主张;拥护;辩护; organizations:n.组织,构造,有机体(organization的复数);组织机构;
more than 150,000 scientists and medical professionals, and individual women who either couldn't afford Myriad's test, or who wanted to obtain a second opinion but could not, as a result of the patents. 超过 15 万名科学工作者和医疗专家, 以及无力支付 Myriad 的检测 或者希望有其他选择,但因为专利原因 无法实现的女性个体。
individual:n.个人;有个性的人;adj.单独的;个别的; afford:v.给予,提供;买得起;
One of the major challenges we had in preparing the case was figuring out how best to communicate the science. 我们在准备案件期间遇到的主要挑战是, 搞清楚如何最有效地阐述科学观点。
So in order to argue that what Myriad did was not an invention, and that isolated BRCA genes were products of nature, we had to explain a couple of basic concepts, like: 所以,为了辩明Myriad 的成果并不属于创新, 以及离体的 BRCA 基因是自然界的产物, 我们必须解释一些基本概念,比如:
What's a gene? What's DNA? 基因是什么？DNA 是什么？
How is DNA isolated, and why isn't that an invention? 如何分离 DNA,以及为什么这不是创新？
We spent hours and hours with our plaintiffs and experts, trying to come up with ways of explaining these concepts simply yet accurately . 我们和原告以及专家团花费了无数日夜, 努力寻找能够简洁又不失准确地解释这些概念的方式。
come up with:提出;想出;赶上; accurately:adv.精确地,准确地;
And we ended up relying heavily on the use of metaphors , like gold. 我们最终非常依赖比喻, 比如说黄金。
relying:v.依赖;信任;指望(rely的现在分词); metaphors:n.隐喻(metaphor的复数形式);
So isolating DNA -- it's like extracting gold from a mountain or taking it out of a stream bed. 因此,分离 DNA —— 就像从大山中挖出黄金, 或者从溪流河床里淘出黄金。
isolating:adj.孤立的;绝缘的;v.使隔离;使绝缘(isolate的ing形式); extracting:n.提取;萃取;撷取;adj.拔出的(extract进行式);
You might be able to patent the process for mining the gold, but you can't patent the gold itself. 你或许可以为采集黄金的流程申请专利, 但你不能为黄金本身申请专利。
process:v.处理;加工;列队行进;n.过程,进行;方法,adj.经过特殊加工(或处理)的;
It might've taken a lot of hard work and effort to dig the gold out of the mountain; you still can't patent it, it's still gold. 你可能要靠无数艰辛努力 才能从山中挖到黄金; 但你仍旧不能为它申请专利,黄金还是黄金。
And the gold, once it's extracted , can clearly be used for all sorts of things that it couldn't be used for when it was in the mountain; you can make jewelry out of it for example -- still can't patent the gold, it's still gold. 而黄金,一旦被挖掘出来, 显然可以被用于各种 它藏在山中时不能实现的用途; 比如,你可以把它做成珠宝—— 但仍然不能为金子申请专利,金子还是金子。
extracted:adj.萃取的;引出的;v.提取(extract的过去式及过去分词);
So now it's 2009, and we're ready to file our case. 然后就到了 2009 年,我们准备起诉了。
We filed in federal court in the Southern District of New York, and the case was randomly assigned to Judge Robert Sweet. 我们向纽约南区的联邦法庭递交了诉讼, 然后案子被随机分配给了法官罗伯特·斯威特。
federal:adj.联邦的;同盟的;联邦政府的;联邦制的;adv.联邦政府地; randomly:adv.随便地,任意地;无目的,胡乱地;未加计划地; assigned:v.分配(某物);分派;指定;委派;(assign的过去分词和过去式)
In March 2010, Judge Sweet issued his opinion -- 152 pages -- and a complete victory for our side. 2010 年 3 月,斯威特法官宣布了他的判决意见。 152 页。 我方完胜。
issued:v.宣布;公布;发出;将…诉诸法律;(issue的过去分词和过去式)
In reading the opinion, we could not get over how eloquently he described the science in the case. 在判决意见里, 我们对他在案子中如此雄辩地陈述科学事实激动不已。
eloquently:adv.善辩地;富于表现力地; described:v.描述;形容;把…称为;做…运动;(describe的过去分词和过去式)
I mean, our brief -- it was pretty good, but not this good. 我是说,我们的简述——挺不错的, 但没有这么出彩。
How did he develop such a deep understanding of this issue in such a short time ? 他是如何在这么短的时间内 做出如此深刻的理解？
short time:adj.短暂的;快速的(shorttime的变形);
We just could not comprehend how this had happened. 我们真的无法想象一切是怎么发生的。
comprehend:v.理解;包含;由…组成;
So it turned out, 后来我们才发现,
Judge Sweet's clerk working for him at the time, was not just a lawyer -- he was a scientist. 当时斯威特法官手下的助手 不仅仅是一个律师—— 他还是个科学家。
He was not just a scientist -- he had a PhD in molecular biology . 他又不仅仅是个科学家—— 他是分子生物学博士。
molecular:adj.[化学]分子的;由分子组成的; biology:n.(一个地区全部的)生物;生物学;
(Laughter) （笑声）
What an incredible stroke of luck! 我们真是太走运了！
incredible:adj.难以置信的,惊人的; stroke:n.中风;笔画;钟声;抚摩;v.抚摩(动物的毛皮);轻抚;轻挪;轻触;
Myriad then appealed to the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit . Myriad 随后 向美国联邦巡回上诉法庭上诉。
appealed:v.上诉;申诉;有吸引力;呼吁;吁请;恳求;(appeal的过去分词和过去式) Appeals:n.[法]上诉; v.有吸引力(appeal的单三形式); Circuit:n.环行路线;电路;线路;巡回赛;v.巡回;周游;
And here things got really interesting. 然后事情就变得非常有意思了。
First, in a pivotal moment of this case, the US government switched sides. 首先,本案中的一个关键时刻, 美国政府倒戈了。
pivotal:adj.关键的;中枢的;枢轴的;n.关键事物;中心事物;
So in the district court the government submitted a brief on Myriad's side. 在地区法庭上,政府递交了一份简述支持 Myriad。
district court:n.(美国)地区法院; submitted:v.提交;顺从;投降;表示;认为;建议;(submit的过去分词和过去式)
But now in direct opposition to its own patent office, the US government files a brief that states that is has reconsidered this issue in light of the district court's opinion, and has concluded that isolated DNA is not patent eligible. 但是这回美国政府直接反对了它自己的专利局, 政府递交了一份摘要声明, 他们基于地区法庭的判决,重新考虑了问题, 并认定离体 DNA不具备申请专利的条件。
opposition:n.反对党;对立;在野党;对抗; reconsidered:v.重新考虑;重新审议;(reconsider的过去分词和过去式) in light of:根据;鉴于;从…观点; concluded:v.断定:得出结论:终止:达成:缔结(协定)(conclude的过去分词和过去式)
This was a really big deal, totally unexpected . 这件事意义非凡, 完全出人意料。
unexpected:adj.意外的,想不到的;
The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit hears all patent cases, and it has a reputation for being very, very pro-patent. 联邦巡回上诉法庭 受理过所有的专利案例, 对专利持坚决支持态度也是众所周知。
So even with this remarkable development, we expected to lose. 所以即使取得了如此长足的进步, 我们仍然觉得会败诉。
remarkable:adj.卓越的;非凡的;值得注意的;
And we did. 我们是败诉了。
Sort of. 差不多吧。
Ends up split decision, 2 to 1. 结果是 2 比 1 的意见。
split:v.分离;使分离;劈开;离开;分解;n.劈开;裂缝;adj.劈开的;
But the two judges who ruled against us, did so for completely different reasons. 但是两位反对我们的法官 选择了完全不同的理由。
The first one, Judge Lourie, made up his own novel , biological theory -- totally wrong. 第一位,法官洛里, 胡编乱造了他自己的生物理论 —— 完全是胡说八道。
novel:adj.新奇的;异常的;n.小说; biological:adj.生物学的;生物的;与生命过程有关的;加酶的;n.[药]生物制品;
(Laughter) （笑声）
He decided Myriad had created a new chemical -- made absolutely no sense. 他觉得 Myriad 制造了一种新化学物质 —— 驴唇不对马嘴。
chemical:n.化学制品,化学药品;adj.化学的;
Myriad didn't even argue this, so it came out of the blue . Myriad 竟然对这一点没有争议,真是令人大跌眼镜。
out of the blue:突然地;意外地;
The other, Judge Moore, said she basically agreed with us that isolated DNA is a product of nature. 另一位,法官莫尔, 说她基本同意我们说的离体 DNA 是自然界的产物。
basically:adv.主要地,基本上;
But she's like, "I don't want to shake up the biotech industry." 但是她声称“我不想动摇生物技术产业的根基”,等等。
The third, Judge Bryson, agreed with us. 第三位,法官布里森, 同意我们。
So now we sought review by the Supreme Court. 于是我们申请最高法院复审。
sought:v.seek(寻求、寻找)的过去式和过去分词形式;
And when you petition the Supreme Court, you have to present a question that you want the Court to answer. 当你向最高法院情愿时, 你需要提出一个希望法院回应的问题。
petition:n.请愿;请愿书;祈求;[法]诉状;vi.请愿;请求;vt.请愿;请求;恳求;
Usually these questions take the form of a super-long paragraph, like a whole page long with lots and lots of clauses , " wherein this" and "therefore that." 通常这些问题都是长长的一段话, 从句套从句,可以写满一页, “其中包括”、“由此得知”,等等。
clauses:n.[法]条款(clause的复数形式);[计]子句; wherein:adv.在其中;在何处;
We submitted perhaps the shortest question presented ever. 我们提交了可能是有史以来最短的问题。
Four words: 四个词:
Are human genes patentable ? 能否授予人类基因专利？
patentable:adj.可以取得专利的;
Now when Chris first asked me what I thought of these words, 克里斯第一次问我觉得这个问题靠不靠谱时,
I said, "Well, I don't know. 我说,“我不知道。
I think you have to say, 'Is isolated DNA patentable?'" 我想你可能得说,‘能否授予离体 DNA 专利？’”
'"Nope. “非也。
I want the justices to have the very same reaction that I had when you brought this issue to me seven years ago." 我希望大法官的反应能和我在七年前 你跟我提这个问题时一模一样。”
justices:n.公平;公正;司法制度;审判;(justice的复数) reaction:n.反应,感应;反动,复古;反作用;
Well, I certainly couldn't argue with that. 好吧,我当然没理由反驳。
The Supreme Court only hears about one percent of the cases that it receives, and it agreed to hear ours. 最高法院只受理大约 1% 收到的案件, 他们接受了我们的。
The day of the oral argument arrives, and it was really, really exciting -- long line of people outside, people had been standing in line since 2:30 in the morning to try to get into the courthouse . 口头辩论那天到来时,真的是太激动人心了—— 法庭外排起了长队, 人们从凌晨 2:30 起就开始排队, 希望能挤进法庭。
oral:adj.口头的; n.(尤指外语考试中的)口试; (大学里的)口试; courthouse:n.法院;(美)县政府所在地;
Two breast cancer organizations, 两个乳腺癌的组织,
Breast Cancer Action and FORCE, had organized a demonstration on the courthouse steps. 乳腺癌行动组织和 FORCE, 在法庭台阶上组织声援。
organized:adj.有组织的; v.组织; (organize的过去分词和过去式) demonstration:n.示范;演示;论证;证明;
Chris and I sat quietly in the hallway, moments before he was to walk in and argue the most important case of his career . 克里斯和我坐在走廊里一声不响, 随后他走进法庭, 为他职业生涯中最重要的案件辩护。
career:n.职业;事业;生涯;经历;
I was clearly more nervous than he was. 我显然比他更紧张。
But any remaining panic subsided as I walked into the courtroom and looked around at a sea of friendly faces: our individual women clients who had shared their deeply personal stories, 但是当我走进法庭时,所有的慌张都不见了。 我看到周围都是熟悉的面孔: 我们的一位位女性客户, 她们毫无保留地分享了自己的亲身经历;
panic:adj.恐慌的;n.惊恐;恐慌;惶恐不安;v.惊慌失措; subsided:vi.平息;减弱;沉淀;坐下; courtroom:n.法庭;审判室; clients:n.委托人;当事人;客户机;(client的复数) personal:adj.个人的;身体的;亲自的;n.人事消息栏;人称代名词;
the geneticists who had taken huge chunks of time out of their busy careers to dedicate themselves to this fight and representatives from a diverse array of medical, patient advocacy, environmental and religious organizations, who had submitted friend of the court briefs in the case. 有在百忙之中抽出大量时间 投身于这场斗争的遗传学家, 还有来自许多不同领域的代表: 医疗、患者救助、 环保和宗教组织, 以及本案中向法院递交摘要的朋友。
chunks:n.厚块;大块;相当大的量;组块;(chunk的复数) careers:n.职业(career的复数);事业;职业生涯;v.全速前进(career的三单形式); dedicate:vt.致力;献身;题献; representatives:n.代表;众议院(representative的复数形式); diverse:adj.不同的;多种多样的;变化多的; array:n.数组,阵列;排列,列阵;大批,一系列;衣服;v.排列,部署;打扮; religious:adj.宗教的;虔诚的;严谨的;修道的;n.修道士;尼姑;
Also in the room were three leaders of the Human Genome Project, including the co-discoverer of DNA himself, 同时在场的还有三位人类基因组计划的先驱者, 包括 DNA 的发现者之一,
James Watson, who had submitted a brief to the court, where he referred to gene patenting as " lunacy ." 詹姆斯·沃森。 他也向法庭递交了简述, 其中他指出基因专利是“疯子行为”。
referred:v.提到;引用;认为;指示;涉及;(refer的过去式和过去分词) patenting:n.线材的拉丝后的退火处理; v.取得...的专利权(patent的ing形式); lunacy:n.精神失常;愚蠢的行为;
(Laughter) （笑声）
The diversity of the communities represented in this room and the contributions each had made to make this day a reality spoke volumes to what was at stake . 出席法庭的群体背景之广, 以及他们中每一位为实现这一天而做出的贡献, 都为我们岌岌可危的局势打了一剂了强心针。
diversity:n.差异(性):多样性:多样化: communities:n.社区;社会;团体;共有(community的复数) contributions:n.捐款;捐资;定期缴款;贡献;促成作用;(contribution的复数) volumes:n.卷;体积;容积;大量;(volumes是volume的复数) stake:n.桩,棍子;赌注;火刑;奖金;v.资助,支持;系…于桩上;把…押下打赌;
The argument itself was riveting . 辩论本身非常有说服力。
riveting:v.铆接;吸引住;(用铆钉)固定;(rivet的现在分词)adj.引人入胜的;吸引人的
Chris argued brilliantly . 克里斯出色地完成了辩论。
brilliantly:adv.灿烂地;辉煌地;光亮地;
But for me, the most thrilling aspect was watching the Supreme Court justices grapple with isolated DNA, through a series of colorful analogies and feisty exchanges, very much the same way as our legal team had done for the past seven years. 但是对我而言, 最激动人心的一刻是看着最高法院的大法官 为离体 DNA 激烈争论, 换着花样打比方,激烈地交换意见, 就和我们的法律团队 过去七年中所做的一样。
thrilling:adj.惊心动魄的; v.使非常兴奋; (thrill的现在分词) aspect:n.方面;层面;外观;方位; grapple:v.扭打;搏斗;努力设法解决;n.格斗;紧握;抓机; series:n.系列,连续;[电]串联;级数;丛书; analogies:n.类比;类推法; feisty:adj.活跃的;好争吵的;烦躁不安的;坚决而据理力争的; legal:adj.法律的;合法的;法定的;
Justice Kagan likened isolating DNA to extracting a medicinal plant from the Amazon . 大法官卡根把离体 DNA 比作 从亚马孙雨林中提取医疗植物。
likened:vt.比拟;把…比作; medicinal:adj.药的;药用的;治疗的(等于medicinable);有益的; Amazon:亚马逊;古希腊女战士;
Justice Roberts distinguished it from carving a baseball bat from a tree. 大法官罗伯茨把它比作把树木雕成棒球棒。
distinguished:adj.尊贵的; v.区分; carving:n.雕刻品;雕刻图案;雕像;雕刻术;v.雕刻;把(熟肉)切成块;(carve的现在分词)
And in one of my absolutely favorite moments, 以及绝对是我最喜欢的一个瞬间,
Justice Sotomayor proclaimed isolated DNA to be "just nature sitting there." 大法官索托马约尔宣称离体 DNA “就是自然存在的”。
proclaimed:公告;
(Laughter) （笑声）
We felt pretty confident leaving the courtroom that day, but I could never have anticipated the outcome : nine to zero. 我们那天离开法庭时信心满满, 但我从未奢望这样的结局: 九比零。
confident:adj.自信的;确信的; anticipated:adj.预期的; v.预期; (anticipate的过去式和过去分词) outcome:n.结果,结局;成果;
'"A naturally occurring DNA segment is a product of nature, and not patent-eligible merely because it has been isolated. “一段自然形成的 DNA 片段是自然界的产物, 并不因为它被分离出体外就可以被授予专利。
naturally:adv.自然地;自然而然地;轻而易举;天生地;大方地; occurring:n.事件;事故;事变; segment:n.段;部分;片;弓形;v.分割;划分; merely:adv.仅仅,只不过;只是;
And furthermore , 另外,
furthermore:adv.此外;而且;
Myriad did not create anything." Myriad 并没有创造任何东西。”
Within 24 hours of the decision, five labs had announced that they would begin to offer testing for the BRCA genes. 判决生效后 24 小时内, 就有五个实验室宣布 他们将开始提供 BRCA 基因的检测服务。
Some of them promised to offer the tests at a lower price than Myriad's. 他们有些承诺检测的价格将比 Myriad 的要低。
Some promised to provide a more comprehensive test than the one Myriad was offering. 有些承诺将提供更全面的检测, 比 Myriad 提供的更多。
comprehensive:adj.综合的;广泛的;有理解力的;n.综合学校;专业综合测验;
But of course the decision goes far beyond Myriad. 不过显然,这个决定远远不止影响 Myriad。
It ends a 25-year practice of allowing patents on human genes in the United States. 它终结了美国境内 25 年来允许授予人类基因专利的行为。
It clears a significant barrier to biomedical discovery and innovation. 它为生物医疗领域的发现和创新扫除了一个重要的障碍。
barrier:n.屏障;障碍;障碍物;关口;v.用栅围住; biomedical:adj.生物医学的;
And it helps to ensure that patients like Abigail, Kathleen and Eileen have access to the tests that they need. 它也有助于保证像阿比盖尔、卡瑟琳和艾琳这样的患者 能够获得她们所需要的检测。
ensure:vt.保证,确保;使安全;
A few weeks after the court issued its decision, 最高法院宣判几周之后,
I received a small package in the mail. 我收到了一个邮件小包。
It was from Bob Cook-Deegan, a professor at Duke University and one the very first people Chris and I went to visit when we started to consider whether to bring this case. 是鲍勃·库克-德根寄来的, 他是杜克大学的教授, 是我和克里斯开始考虑是否要开始准备此案时 最先拜访的人之一。
Duke:n.公爵,(公国的)君主;公爵(种)樱桃;
I opened it up to find a small stuffed animal . 我打开包裹,里面是一个小小的毛绒玩具。
stuffed animal:n.填充玩具动物;(动物造型的)布绒玩具;动物标本;
(Laughter) （笑声）
We took a big risk in taking this case. 为了这个案件,我们冒了很大的风险。
Part of what gave us the courage to take that risk was knowing that we were doing the right thing. 给予我们勇气面对风险的部分原因 是我们知道我们在做正确的事。
The process took nearly eight years from the start to finish, with many twists and turns along the way. 从开始到结束,整个过程将近八年, 经历了许多曲折和反复。
twists:n.[力]扭曲,一扭(twist的复数形式);v.[力]扭曲,拧(twist的三单形式);
A little luck certainly helped, but it was the communities that we bridged, the alliances that we created, that made pigs fly. 当然还借助了一点点运气, 但正是我们牵线拉到一起的群体, 正是我们创造的同盟, 让猪也飞上了天。
alliances:n.联盟,同盟;盟国(alliance的复数形式);联姻;
Thank you. 谢谢。
(Applause) （掌声）