The pledge by Mark Zuckerberg, the founder¹ of Facebook, and his wife Priscilla Chan, to give at least $3bn over the next decade for medical research has justifiably² received large numbers of likes, loves and wows on his social media site.

Facebook创始人马克•扎克伯格(Mark Zuckerberg)和妻子普丽西拉•陈(Priscilla Chan)承诺，将在未来10年捐赠至少30亿美元用于医学研究，这理所当然地在这家社交媒体网站上收获了大量的喜欢(like)、大爱(love)和哇(wow)。

It needs just a little nuance³.

只不过，我们需要对这件事看得再仔细一点。

The couple have every right to spend their fortune how they wish.

这对夫妇完全有权按照自己的意愿花掉他们的财富。

Choosing philanthropy over personal luxury is admirable.

选择慈善而不是个人奢侈享受的举动令人钦佩。

It sets a powerful example for others to follow in donating money, expertise⁴ and time — from fellow billionaires, companies and individuals with far more modest means.

这一举动在献出金钱、专业技能和时间方面，为其他人树立了一个强有力的榜样，包括与他一样的亿万富翁、企业以及财力远不如他的个人。

The focus on medical research is also an excellent priority with global impact and high potential benefits.

对医学研究的关注也极好抓住了重点，有着全球影响以及极大的潜在好处。

Ill health causes vast amounts of suffering, while disease and premature⁵ death are brakes on social and economic development around the world.

人们的健康不佳带来了大量痛苦，疾病和早逝阻碍着全球的社会和经济发展。

It is particularly smart to focus on bringing together scientists with engineers, to stress the importance of collaboration⁶ and sharing data, and to call for more science funding.

尤其明智的是，他们关注于把科学家和工程师带到一起，强调合作和数据共享的重要性，并呼吁对科学投入更多资金。

Facebook’s expertise in bringing together disparate groups and individuals online could be a catalyst⁷ for identifying new ideas, partners for research and more efficient recruitment of patients for clinical trials.

Facebook擅长在线上将各种不同群体和个人带到一起，这一优势可能会促进人们发现新创意、找到研究合作伙伴，以及更有效地为临床试验招募患者。

Just as important is the Zuckerbergs’ use of a limited liability partnership⁸ rather than a more rigid⁹ tax exempt¹⁰ foundation as the entity¹¹ through which to give.

同样重要的是，扎克伯格利用有限责任公司作为捐赠的实体，而非更严格的可以减免税收的慈善基金会。

This provides greater flexibility¹² in deciding whether they provide grants or invest for profit in medical programmes.

这让他们可以更加灵活地决定是提供补助，还是对医学项目进行营利性投资。

There are a few caveats¹³, however.

然而，这里有一些提醒。

First, while philanthropy is an excellent way to innovate¹⁴, the fundamental role of the public sector¹⁵ in collecting and democratically distributing funding, including for medical research, is pivotal.

首先，尽管慈善是一种很好的创新方式，但公共部门在收集和民主地分配资金（包括用于医学研究的资金）方面发挥的基础性作用是至关重要的。

Facebook and other companies should resist any aggressive tax avoidance that minimises taxable profits and reduces revenues to governments.

Facebook和其他公司应抵制任何将应税利润降至最低并使政府收入减少的激进避税行为。

Second, they should also set a good example with high levels of transparency and accountability for their donations and the results they generate.

其次，他们还应在捐赠及其结果的高度透明和可问责方面树立良好的榜样。

That will help make future philanthropy more efficient, both for givers and grant-seekers.

这将有助于让未来的慈善对捐赠者和受捐者都更高效。

Third, while they are perfectly¹⁶ entitled to call their programme the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, philanthropy needs donors¹⁷ willing to co-operate.

第三，尽管他们完全有权把这个项目叫作陈-扎克伯格计划(Chan Zuckerberg Initiative)，但慈善需要愿意合作的其他捐赠者。

No one can begrudge¹⁸ them naming rights but there is a balance to be struck between strong personal branding and the need for wider collaboration and participation¹⁹.

没有人能够妒忌他们的命名权，但在高调的个人品牌和更广泛合作、参与的必要性之间，他们需要找到平衡。

Finally, there is a risk of hubris²⁰, which in turn could lead to disillusionment and a loss of momentum²¹.

最后，这里存在自大的风险，进而可能导致理想幻灭和动力丧失。

Bill Gates, who has spent billions of dollars over the past 15 years on global health, has yet to achieve the eradication²² of malaria²³ or polio, let alone either a vaccine²⁴ or a cure for HIV.

过去15年，比尔•盖茨(Bill Gates)在全球健康领域花费了数十亿美元，也未能实现疟疾或小儿麻痹的根除，更别提找到艾滋病疫苗或治愈良方了。

Former US president Jimmy Carter’s 30-year campaign to wipe out Guinea worm disease is still not achieved, a reminder²⁵ that goodwill²⁶ alone cannot provide all the solutions.

美国前总统吉米•卡特(Jimmy Carter)用30年时间致力于扫除几内亚线虫病，迄今这个目标仍未实现——这提醒人们，仅凭良好愿望是无法解决所有问题的。

It would also be wrong to regard medical research as failing.

将医学研究视为失败也是错误的。

Great progress has been made in recent decades in medicine, including new vaccines²⁷ and treatments for cancer.

近数十年，医学领域取得了重大进展，包括找到了一些新的癌症疫苗和治疗方法。

The Zuckerbergs’ ambition to cure, prevent or manage all disease in our children’s lifetime seems grandiose²⁸.

扎克伯格夫妇想要治愈、预防或控制我们的孩子们一生中可能遇到的所有疾病，这个理想似乎相当远大。

To give the gift some perspective each year, the US National Institutes of Health alone spends ten times the Zuckerbergs’ pledged decade-long $3bn.

从每年来看，单单美国国家健康研究院(National Institutes of Health)的支出就超过扎克伯格夫妇承诺在10年间捐赠的30亿美元。

The UK’s Wellcome Trust will spend more than twice their contribution over the next five years.

未来5年，英国的Wellcome Trust将花费两倍于这笔捐赠的资金。

But each new idea is welcome, and with their commitment and convening²⁹ power, they could add a great deal.

然而，我们欢迎所有新的想法，凭借决心和感召力，他们可以做出巨大的贡献。