It might have been just another workday for Musk — a multistate jaunt to personally fix a drive-unit production line. But this was no ordinary morning. He was a brief night’s sleep removed from one of his most consequential decisions: scrapping his plan to take Tesla private. 

对于马斯克来说，这可能只是一个寻常的工作日——途经多个州的短途旅行，去亲自修理一条驱动装置生产线。但这并不是一个普通的早晨。就在昨晚的一段短暂睡眠之前，他刚刚做出了自己最为重大的决定之一——放弃特斯拉私有化的计划。

重点笔记

Jaunt：a short trip for pleasure短途旅游[游览]，比如：

A weekend jaunt 周末短途游

近义词excursion: a short journey arranged so that a group of people can visit a place, especially while they are on holiday〔尤指集体度假时的〕短途旅行,比如：

Included in the tour is an excursion to the Grand Canyon.这次旅游包括大峡谷观光。

Consequential：ADJ Something that is consequential is important or significant. 重要的，比如：

From a medical standpoint a week is usually not a consequential delay. 从医学观点看，一周通常不被视为是严重的拖延。

写作中可以跟我们已熟知的表达替换使用：Big/major/important/significant/great decision

Scrap: V-T If you scrap something, you get rid of it or cancel it. 取消; 放弃，比如：

President Hussein called on all countries in the Middle East to scrap nuclear or chemical weapons.侯赛因总统呼吁中东各国放弃核武器或化学武器。

本段难点：He was a brief night’s sleep removed from one of his most consequential decisions.

这句话难在removed的取义：(be removed) Be distant from. 比如：

The problem is that his conclusions are so far removed from reality.问题是他得出的结论跟现实情况相差甚远。

所以本句可以这么理解：

马斯克跟他人生中重大决定之间的距离只有昨晚一段短暂的睡眠。

这里的时间顺序可能是这样的：

马斯克和他此前的决定——短暂的睡眠——放弃之前的决定，由此可得：

在昨晚短暂的睡眠后，马斯克做出了重大决定——放弃特斯拉私有计划。

It was an abrupt about-face, and it capped tumultuous 2 1/2 weeks that began with a single tweet and wound up roiling markets, setting off regulatory alarms and raising questions about his judgment. 

这是一个突然的转变，结束了持续两周半的动荡——这场动荡始于一条推文，之后搅动了市场，引起监管机构的警觉，以及对他的判断力的种种质疑。

重点笔记

about-face：N-COUNT An about-face is a complete change of attitude or opinion. 彻底改变，比如：

Few observers believe the president will do an about-face and start spending more. 没有几个观察家认为总统将做出彻底改变并开始增加支出。

Cap：to have something very good or very bad at the end of an event

以某事结束，以某事告终，比如：

The unrest capped a weekend of right-wing attacks on foreigners. 整个周末右翼分子对外国人的袭击最终发展成为骚乱。

有个很好用的词组：

be capped by sth：to have something very good or very bad at the end of an event以某事结束，以某事告终，比如：

a fabulous weekend, capped by dinner in the Times Square Hotel一个非常美好的周末，以在时代广场酒店用晚餐结束

Tumultuous /tu'mʌltʃuəs/：ADJ A tumultuous event or period of time involves many exciting and confusing events or feelings. 激动的; 混乱的，比如：

the tumultuous years of the Civil War 内战的动荡年代

wind up: to be in an unpleasant situation or place after a lot has happened以〔难堪的境况〕告终，比如：

You know you’re going to wind up in court over this.你要知道你最终会因为这个上法庭。

I wound up wishing I’d never come.我最后真希望自己压根就没有来。

roil：V-T Something that roils a state or situation makes it disturbed and confused. 扰乱; 使混乱，比如：

Times of national turmoil generally roil a country's financial markets.国家动荡不安的时候，通常引起金融市场混乱。

saboteur /,sæbə'tjʊr/：N-COUNT A saboteur is a person who deliberately damages or destroys things such as machines, railway lines, and bridges in order to weaken an enemy or to make a protest. 破坏分子，比如:

The saboteurs had planned to bomb buses and offices.破坏分子已计划在公共汽车和办公室放置炸弹。

这段是个长句子：

It（主语） was（be动词） an abrupt about-face（表语）, and it （主语）capped（谓语动词） tumultuous 2 1/2 weeks（宾语） that（引导定从） began with a single tweet and wound up roiling markets, setting off regulatory alarms and raising questions about his judgment.

主干即为：

It was an abrupt about-face, and it capped tumultuous 2 1/2weeks.

Musk, a brilliant but erratic billionaire, is the animating force behind Tesla, responsible for everything from its push into renewable energy to the design of the air vents in its newest electric car. His singular role gives him extraordinary influence over the fate of Tesla, its more than 40,000 employees and its investors. 

马斯克是一位才华横溢但性格古怪的亿万富翁，他是特斯拉背后的活力所在，从推进可再生能源到设计最新款电动汽车的通风口，都有马斯克的贡献。他的独特角色，使其对特斯拉公司、4万多名员工及其投资者的命运产生了极大的影响。

重点笔记

erratic /ɪ'rætɪk/: ADJ Something that is erratic does not follow a regular pattern, but happens at unexpected times or moves along in an irregular way. 不规则的; 不稳定的，比如：

Argentina's erratic inflation rate threatens to upset the plans.阿根廷动荡不定的通货膨胀率有打乱这些计划的危险。

animate：V-T To animate something means to make it lively or more cheerful. 使有生气，比如：

There was precious little about the cricket to animate the crowd.这场板球比赛极少有让观众兴奋的地方。

singular:  Single; unique独特的；

难点：Musk, a brilliant but erratic billionaire, is the animating force behind Tesla, responsible for everything from its push into renewable energy to the design of the air vents in its newest electric car.

这句话的难点在于from…to…的翻译

很多外刊文章中都能发现这样的句式，一般我们就照翻，最后一定把句子补齐，比如：从…到…, 无一不…

如果不确定要如何收尾，可以把这个短语先补齐，比如这句补齐即为：Musk is responsible for everything from…to…

那么逻辑就清晰了：从…到…，马斯克都要负责。

Associates, including several people inside the company interviewed over the past week, portray him as a workaholic who zeros in on the smallest details. 

包括在过去一周接受采访的多名公司内部人士在内，同事们把他描绘成一个专注于细节的工作狂。

重点笔记

zero in on sb/sth.: to direct all your attention towards a particular person or thing全力对付，全神贯注于，比如：

She immediately zeroed in on the weak point in his argument.她立即全力攻击他论据中的薄弱环节。

In an interview this month with The New York Times, Musk said he was physically exhausted and emotionally drained, causing some to question his fitness for the job.

在本月接受《纽约时报》采访时，马斯克说他身体疲惫，情绪低落，这让一些人质疑他是否适合这份工作。

重点笔记

从这句话中，我们可以get到一个好用表达：

physically exhausted and emotionally drained 身心俱疲

All the while, he has been confronting an exodus of senior employees, preparing to be interviewed by the Securities and Exchange Commission, and was working with Goldman Sachs and Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund to take Tesla private — until he wasn’t.

与此同时，他还需要面对高级员工的大批离去，同时准备美国证交会的面谈，要跟高盛和沙特的主权财富基金合作，将特斯拉私有化——直到他放弃了这个念头。

重点笔记

Exodus：a situation in which a lot of people leave a particular place at the same time〔大批人同时的〕离开，涌离，比如：

I joined the mass exodus for drinks during the interval.幕间休息时我随着人流出去喝东西。

Exodus这个词出自于《出埃及记》，书中记载，拉美西斯二世统治时期，在埃及逃荒的希伯来人（犹太人的祖先）不甘心被奴役而出走的装具。他们在摩西（当时犹太人的民族领袖）的带领下渡红海，出埃及，去到荒凉的西奈半岛，其后在西奈沙漠里整整流浪了四十年。最后来到西奈山下落脚，耶和华在那里授予摩西四十条戒律，犹太教正式诞生。

出埃及记Maksim Mrvica - 史上最优美的背景音乐 Vol. 2

Some board members have been dismayed at Musk’s behavior, according to people familiar with the directors’ thinking, but no active search is underway for a replacement — although there have been fitful efforts to find a top lieutenant.

据知情人透露，一些董事会成员对马斯克的行为感到失望，但目前没有积极地寻找替代者——虽然一直在时断时续地寻找一位高级副手。

重点笔记

dismayed：worried, disappointed, and upset when something unpleasant happens担心的，失望的，忧虑的（注意这个词不止表达了一种情感~），比如：

Ruth was dismayed to see how thin he had grown.露丝看到他变得如此消瘦很担心。

fitful：not regular, and starting and stopping often断断续续的，间歇的，比如：

The peace talks only seem to be making fitful progress.和平会谈似乎时而前进，时而停滞。

Colin drifted off into a fitful sleep.科林迷迷糊糊地进入断断续续的睡眠中。

insider圈内人、内部人士，也就是知情者，近义词还有source提供消息者，比如：

An insider said, "Katharine has told friends it is time to end her career." 一名知情者说，“凯瑟琳告诉朋友们她该结束自己的职业生涯了。”