latched onto = 了解、抓住；得到、取得；依靠（美国俚语大全）。该词典说这是20世纪30年代美国黑人用语。

Catchment area = 汇集区，受水区、汇水面积



--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 06:22:00 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

上面句中用“抓住”可能比较好一些

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 08:40:35 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Kevin, 我想这里可以用抓住。

我抓住那个说法，并要求该项目最初在这样的一些学校实施，即集水区的经济状况使得在这些学校就读的学生处于风险的人数高于平均数的学校。

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 09:55:56 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I thnik Xiaoping Fu\'s 生源区是这里的Catchment area的正确译法。可将上面的集水区改成生源区：

我抓住那个说法，并要求该项目最初在这样的一些学校实施，即生源区的经济状况使得在这些学校就读的学生处于风险的人数高于平均数的学校。

Bin Li, I found it is very difficult to the given translations (了解、抓住；得到、取得；依靠)to fit well in Chinese with the word for "statement". My suggestion is the following:
latch onto = 坚持；抱持；抱着不放；
I saw another dictionary translated it as 倾听。

latch onto (= latch on to) means (1) To attach oneself to; cling to. (2) To get possession of; obtain.

It is not clear if "that statement" mentioned in this sentence meant some words said by the speaker or someone else, or if "that statement" is a document. My suggestion would be:

"I latched onto that statement"
1.我坚持那个陈述
2.我抱着那个说法不放

Another translation for "catchment areas" is 流域. In your case, it would be:
"the socio-economic conditions of the catchment areas" = 该流域的社会经济状况





--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 07:48:56 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

\"transtated\" is very strange here. I do not recognize it. I hope it is \"translated\" as you suggested.

\"I latched onto that statement and requested that the project
should initially be implemented in a number of schools
where the socio-economic conditions of the catchment areas transtated in a higher than average number of children at risk attending the said schools.\"

Here is my translation for your reference only:
我坚持了那个陈述，并且要求过该项目最初应该在一些学校中执行，在这些学校中，该流域的社会经济状况被释为致使比平均数更高的孩子们有危险在所述学校就读。


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 07:49:13 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

\"transtated\" is very strange here. I do not recognize it. I hope it is \"translated\" as you suggested.

\"I latched onto that statement and requested that the project
should initially be implemented in a number of schools
where the socio-economic conditions of the catchment areas transtated in a higher than average number of children at risk attending the said schools.\"

Here is my translation for your reference only:
我坚持了那个陈述，并且要求过该项目最初应该在一些学校中执行，在这些学校中，该流域的社会经济状况被释为致使比平均数更高的孩子们有危险在所述学校就读。


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 07:56:26 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Sorry about the typos in the opening sentence. I meant:

Bin Li, I found it is very difficult to make the given translations (了解、抓住；得到、取得；依靠) fit well in Chinese with the Chinese word for \"statement\". My suggestion is the following:
latch onto = 坚持；抱持；抱着不放；
I saw another dictionary translated it as 倾听。

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 17:46:15 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Xiaoping\'s explanation made sense to me. I also did a search in Google and found many \"catchment area\" usages, among which I also found \"school catchment area\":

http://www.clacksweb.org.uk/dyna/catchment/

Now I want to revise my previous translation as:
catchment area = (学校的)学生来源区域
children at risk = 会出问题的学生

My revised translation is as follows:
\"I latched onto that statement and requested that the project should initially be implemented in a number of schools where the socio-economic conditions of the catchment areas transtated in a higher than average number of children at risk attending the said schools.\"
我坚持过那个陈述，并且要求过应该在一些学校中先执行该项目，在这些学校中学生来源区域的社会经济状况被人们释为导致在所述学校就读的学生中，会出问题的孩子人数会比平均数更高。




--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 18:00:48 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I do not agree to use 学区 for \"catchment area\". This is because there is another popular term \"school district\" is used in America and it is translated as 学区 . I do not believe \"catchment area\" and \"school district\" are the same. I would insist to translate \"catchment area\" as (学校的)学生来源区(域).

"latched onto"

-To my understanding, "latched onto" here carries the same meaning as the cantonese slang 打蛇隨棍上. In this light, the translations 抓住 and 抱著不放 seem out of place.

-The phrases 抓住這個說法 and 抱著那個說法不放 both seem to me too literal a translation. After all, we don't normally say that in Chinese, do we? Therefore I would agree with Mr fu that 針對 is a natural Chinese phrase that is closest to the expression in the source language.

"catchment areas"

-All of you are right to point out that "catchment areas" does mean "the entire area from which drainage is received by a body of water". (Webster's Third New International Dictionary) But in colloquial English, "catchment areas" may simply mean areas. For example, the catchment area of a pizza shop is the area within which they would deliver their pizzas. Or in education, for example, children can attend only the schools in the same catchment area as they live in. Here,as in the pizza shop example, it is very possible that the term "catchment area" does not have anything to do with the drainage or irrigation system.

-Although phrases like 匯流區 and 生源區 are both accurate translations of "catchment areas", they are a bit difficult to comprehend in Chinese. It is important to know who your target audience are. If they are members of the general public, it might be better to opt for an everyday term that carries (just as well) the meaning of the source text, rather than a specialised term that requires a certain amount of specialised knowledge to understand. Provided the colloquial use of the term "catchment area", I would simply translate the term as 區域.

My translation of the entire sentence is:
我針對那一點提出要求﹐這個計劃應先在某幾所學校開始實行。因為那些學校處於一些社會經濟狀況不太理想的區域﹐所以平均來說問題學童的數目較高。

I have adopted the translations 社會經濟狀況不太理想 and 問題學童 becasue they are more precise and easier to comprehand for a Chinese reader than translations holding onto the English expression "the socio-economic conditions of the catchment areas transtated in a higher than average number of children at risk". As far as I am concerned, a literal translation in this case will make the syntax very complicated and the tranlation does seem more English-Chinese translation than Chinese. Although we are dealing with translation here, I always belive it is of utmost importance that a piece of translation is fluent and easily compresenible in the target language. 我想這是翻譯中遇到意譯還是直譯的難題。 學述界中關於這個問題的辯論有很多。我個人是主將意譯的﹐ 因為中﹐英文的用詞及語法很多時十分不同﹐我認為最重要的是譯文通順。 Of coure the translations are done with the assumption that it is becaues the socio-economic conditions in those areas are not desirable that the children attending schools are at a higher risk when compared to children in other areas. The context of the original text should tell you if this is the case.



--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 12:55:19 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I also agree with Mr Fu that 學區 is a very appropriate translation of \"catchment areas\" in this context. 學區 is easy to comprehend and more importanlty it has in itself a touch of specialisaiton, that is education, in the context of the sourse text.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-24 12:56:54 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Sorry about the typing mistake, I mean source text.

"針對那種說法，我要求這個計劃必須先行在那些問題兒童的數目超出一般水平的學校實行。因為學校問題兒童的多寡可推斷出學區的社會經濟狀況。"

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2002-05-30 05:42:44 (GMT) Post-grading
--------------------------------------------------

Sorry, I mean \" 眖厩拜肈ㄠ担硅...\" . I have missed the word \"眖\".