双语调查：是天才就要一辈子忍得孤独？

　　Albert Einstein and Isaac Newton were geniuses but British scientists believe they may have

　　suffered from Asperger syndrome--a form of autism.

　　阿尔伯特·爱因斯坦和伊萨克·牛顿都是天才，但英国科学家们认为他们也可能患有埃斯伯格综合症——孤独症的形式。

　　The condition, first described by Viennese physician Hans Asperger in 1944, is a disorder

　　that causes deficiencies in social and communication skills and obsessive interests.

　　But it does not affect learning or intellect and many people with AS have exceptional

　　talents or skills.

　　1944年，维也纳医生汉斯·埃斯伯格首次发现了种病症，它是一种会导致社交困难及强迫性兴趣的精神异常。但是，这种病不会影响智力和学习，许多还具有特殊的天赋或才能。

　　Although it is impossible to make a definitive diagnosis in people who are dead, Simon

　　Baron Cohen of Cambridge University and Loan James of Oxford University studied the

　　personalities of Einstein and Newton to see if the two scientists had symptoms of AS.

　　"Newton seems a classic case. He hardly spoke, was so engrossed in his work that he often

　　forgot to eat, and was lukewarm or bad-tempered with the few friends he had," New Scientist

　　magazine said.

　　尽管对已故者进行确切诊断是件不可能的事情，但是剑桥大学的西蒙·巴龙·科恩以及牛津大学的伊翁·詹姆斯还是对爱因斯坦和牛顿的个性进行了分析，目的是确定他们是否患有埃斯伯格综合症。《新科学家》杂志说：“牛顿似乎是个典型病例。他几乎不说话，对工作痴迷到了经常忘记吃饭的地步。而对于仅有的几个朋友，他的态度既冷淡又暴戾。”

　　Baron-Cohen said Einstein was also a loner and as a child he repeated sentences obsessively.

　　Although Einstein made friends and spoke out on political issues, Baron-Cohen suspects he

　　showed signs of Asperger syndrome.

　　巴龙·科恩说，爱因斯坦也是一个孤独的人，他小时候总是不由自主地重复一些句子。尽管爱因斯坦交了一些朋友，并在政治问题上畅所欲言，巴龙·科恩仍然怀疑他有埃斯伯格综合症的迹象。

　　"Passion, falling in love and standing up for justice are all perfectly compatible with

　　Asperger syndrome," he told the weekly science magazine.

　　他对前述的科学周刊说：“激情、堕入爱河以及坚持正义与埃斯伯格综合症之间绝无矛盾之处。”

　　"What most people with AS find difficult is casual chatting -- they can't do small talk."

　　But Glen Elliott, a psychiatrist at the University of California at San Francisco, said

　　geniuses can be socially inept and impatient with other people without being autistic.

　　"Impatience with the intellectual slowness of others, narcissism and passion for one's

　　mission in life might combine to make such an individual isolative and difficult," he told

　　the magazine.

　　“大部分患者的问题在于随意地谈天——他们不会闲聊。”但加利福尼亚大学的精神病学家格林·爱略特认为，天才本来就可能欠缺社交能力和对他人的耐性，不一定是因为孤独症。他对杂志说：“对他人智力迟钝的不耐烦、自恋以及对个人终生使命的激情，三者合一就可能使一个人变得孤立和难以相处。”

　　Baron-Cohen said he hopes the research can improve understanding of Asperger syndrome and make life easier for people who suffer from the condition.

　　巴龙·科恩说，他希望自己的研究能增进人们对埃斯伯格综合症的了解，并让罹患此病的人生活更加轻松。