[翻译文章]提简单的问题

Ask a Simple Question
提简单的问题
Deming's preferred approach to teaching was the Socratic method.
戴明的首选教导方法是苏格拉底方法


William E. Conway, one of the first U.S. CEOs to work closely with W. Edwards Deming, once described him as "a riddle wrapped in an enigma." Anyone who had the opportunity to attend one of Deming's legendary four-day seminars can readily attest that Conway's description was correct.
William E.Conway是美国最早接近W.Edwards Deming并一起工作的CEO之一 ，他有一次描述deming为“被谜包围的神秘人物”，任何有幸参加Deming的传说中的四日研讨会的人都会非常同意这个看法。
Deming's preferred approach to teaching was the Socratic method. As a helper at his seminars, I saw how effective this approach was many times. I recall one such instance in 1988. Deming was discussing the importance of knowing what numbers mean before performing any statistical analysis. "It's harder than we might think," he said. Then he asked, "How many people are in this room? There isn't any answer to that question."
Deming的首选的教导方法是苏格拉底方法。作为他的研讨会的助手，我曾许多次看到该方法是多么的有效。我记得1988年有这样的一个实际例子。Deming在讨论进行任何统计分析前先要搞清楚数字的实际意义的重要性时，他说道“这比我们想象的要困难”。然后他问道“房间里有多少人？其实这个问题是没有任何答案的”
After the main session, I facilitated a discussion group trying to determine just what Deming meant. The group was from the same company and had attended together, so they could take back different perspectives on Deming's philosophy. We gathered around a poolside patio table, enjoying the warm Southern California sun.
完成会议的主要内容之后，我设法让一个讨论小组试图去理解Deming说的真正意思。这个小组是来自于同一个公司并一起参加的，因此他们可以针对Deming的哲学take back不同的想法。我们围在一个游泳池边的院子的桌子边，享受着南California温暖的阳光。
"It doesn't make any sense to me," declared Bill, their senior manager. "Of course, there is an answer to that question. And it's easy to determine, too. You just count the people in the room."“这对我来说没有任何意义”
Bill他们的高级经理断言“这个问题当然有一个答案，而且也非常容易获得。你只需要数一下房间里面的人就可以了。”
Heads nodded in agreement. The group seemed about to reach a consensus that Deming simply had misspoken. I was pretty sure he hadn't, but I wanted them to conclude that on their own. Suddenly, I knew how I would do it.
小组的人都点头同意，看来他们已经达成一致意见Deming犯了一个简单的错误。我当然知道不是这样的，但我想让他们自己来得到这个结果。突然，我知道我该怎么做了。
"How many people are here?" I queried them.
“这里有多少人？”我问他们。
They looked at me like deer caught in headlights.
他们看着我就象deer caught in headlights。
"What do you mean?" asked Gaylene.
“什么意思？”Gaylene问。
I decided to excuse myself, lest I succumb to the temptation to lecture. "I have to help another group right now," I lied. "I'll be back in half an hour to hear your answer. It's a simple question, so that should be plenty of time.
"为了避免自己忍不住进行说教的诱惑，我决定找个借口“我现在必须马上去帮助另外一个组”我撒了个谎。“我将在半个小时后来听你们的答案。这是一个简单的问题，所以应该有足够的时间了。”
Thirty minutes later I returned. The group was embroiled in intense discussion and didn't notice me.
30分钟后我回来。这个小组正陷入激烈的讨论中，没有人注意到我。
"So, what's the answer?" I interrupted them. "How many people are here?"“那么答案是多少呢？”我打断了他们“这里有多少人？”
"We don't know the answer yet," Bill retorted angrily. "And you lied to us. It's not a simple question at all. We need a lot more information."
“我们还不知道答案”Bill气愤地反驳“你骗了我们。这根本不是一个简单的问题。我们需要更多的资料。”"Such as?"
“比如说？”
"Such as, when you say 'here,' do you mean this table, the pool area, the patio or what?" prompted Nancy.
“比如，当你说’这里’的时候，你是指桌子，游泳池，院子还是其他？”Nancy问。
"And when you say 'people,' do you mean guests only, or do you include staff, delivery people and cabbies looking for their fares?" asked John.
“当你说’人’的时候，你是仅指客人还是包括职员，送货员和正在找客人的出租车司机？”John问
"And do you mean here now?" asked Beverly. "What about people who left to go to the restroom or get a towel? Do they count?"
“你说的’现在’是什么意思呢？”Beverly问道“那些离开去休息室或者去拿毛巾的人要不要数进去呢？”
"What do you think?" I barked, doing my best imitation of Deming's teaching method. The group pondered for a moment.
“你们说呢？”我大叫，尽量模仿Deming的教导方法。小组沉思了一会。
"I guess that depends on what we will use the number for," ventured Jacob. "If we want to know how many guests use the pool facilities, we wouldn't count staff or delivery people."
“我猜这取决于我们要拿数字来干什么？”Jacob冒险说道“假如我们想知道有多少客人在使用游泳池的设施，我们就不需要数那些管理员和delivery people。”
"Right, and if we want to determine how many outside tables the restaurant needed, we wouldn't count people in the pool," agreed Bill.
“对，假如我们要确定餐馆需要多少外边的桌子，就不需要数在池子里的人”Bill赞同地说道。
"And to really answer the question for a particular purpose, we'd have to repeat the count at different times," observed Beverly. "This place is crowded now, but it was empty this morning."
“如果针对特定的目的来真正回答这个问题，我们还不得不在不同的时间重复记数，”Beverly发现“这个地方现在很拥挤，而早上却很空。”
The group sat silently for a moment, each person mulling over the discovery they'd just made.
小组静静地坐了好一会，每个人都被他们刚刚的发现搞的有些思绪混乱了。
Bill's eyes widened noticeably as a thought occurred to him. "Do you remember that flap we had last year with our No. 1 customer about those ceramic substrates? The customer said our parts had voids, but our quality control people said they didn't. We jumped all over our inspectors after those parts were returned. Remember?" All heads nodded in unison.
Bill的眼睛突然睁大，显然突然想到了什么。“你们还记得去年和我们最大的客户关于那些陶瓷底座的flap吗？那些客户说我们的货有void，但我们的质量控制人员说没有。在货退回来后，我们在所有检验前面跳起来。还记得吗？”所有人都整齐地点头。
"I remember handing the bag of rejects to my inspectors and demanding an explanation," continued Bill. "One of them looked at several substrates and said she didn't see any voids. Another used an eye loop and said he thought he saw some small voids. A third put a sample under a stereo microscope and said the problem wasn't voids but pits."
“我记得拿着退货的包给我的检验要求一个解释”Bill继续说道“一个人看了几个底座然后她说她没有看到任何的void，而另外一个用眼睛看了一圈说她看到几个小void。第三个人把样品放在显微镜下检查，然后说这个不是void而是pit”
Bill looked around the table, his thoughts still focused on that conversation. "I told the inspectors the problem was simple," he recalled. "All they had to do was count the voids."
Bill看着桌子，他的思绪还停在哪个谈话中“我告诉检验们问题很简单”他回忆道“他们要做的就是数void”
"Yeah," said Rachael, "like counting how many people were in the conference room today."
“啊”Rachael叫了起来“就象今天数有多少人在会议室一样。”
"OK, people," said Bill, turning to a fresh page in his notebook. "Let's see if we can operationally define a void tonight."
“好了，伙计们”Bill说，同时把他的笔记本翻到新的一页“让我们看我们今晚是否能定义一个有操作性的的void。”
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