在许多国家，一个人上的哪所大学、拿的什么文凭对职业前景和社会地位都有重要影响，在中国，这种影响尤其重大。长期以来，学历一直是决定许多中国人命运的最重要因素之一。

　　In many countries, where people go to college and what degrees they hold is a serious matter affecting job prospects and social standing. But in China, academic credentials have long been one of the most important factors in determining the fate of many people。

　　在约1000多年的时间里，中国的官僚机构基本上是由在科举考试中上榜的人组成。近代以来，大学、尤其是顶级高等教育学府，依然是培育政府官员的摇篮。

　　For more than 1,000 years, the Chinese bureaucracy was mostly made up of people who succeeded in imperial examinations. In recent times, colleges, especially the top ones, remain the breeding ground for the ruling class。

　　这就是近期中国公众关于前微软中国总裁、畅销书作者唐骏被指篡改学历的讨论背景。这个所谓的 “学历门”丑闻始于6月初。以批判剽窃和学术欺诈而出名的科普作家方舟子称唐骏所称获得的加州理工大学的博士学位是假的。

　　This is the context for recent public debate over unproven allegations a former president of Microsoft China and best-selling author distorted his academic credentials. Since early July, Jun Tang has been mired in the so-called "diploma gate" scandal after Fang Shimin, a science writer known for his criticism of academic fraud, accused Mr. Tang of having falsely claimed to have earned a doctorate from the California Institute of Technology。

　　方舟子说，唐骏在其畅销书《我的成功可以复制》中声称自己毕业于加州理工大学，他试着查证此事，并给这所大学打了电话，但未发现唐骏的毕业记录。

　　Mr. Fang said he had tried to check the claim, which, he said, was made in one edition of Mr. Tang's popular book "My Success Can Be Copied," by calling the university, but he couldn't find records of Mr. Tang having graduated。

　　关于这件事的辩论在中国仍在继续，虽然出版社已经解释了错误的原因，但中国媒体似乎还是在不停地重复方舟子有关唐骏的种种指控，这是因为假学历这个话题在中国显然是触及到了敏感神经。

　　Meanwhile debate continued in China, While the Chinese media seem to be perpetuating Mr. Fang's claim about Mr. Tang despite the fact that the publisher already has explained the error, the issue of fake qualifications clearly touches a nerve here。

　　直到15、20年前，大多数中国人的工作都是靠政府分配的，而且每份工作几乎都是铁饭碗，是要干一辈子的。文凭是政府在分配工作时可以依据的少数几个衡量标准之一。即便是现在，政府机构和国有企业给本科生和博士生的工资标准通常是不一样的，一些职位还只限高学历的人担任。

　　Until 15 to 20 years ago most jobs in China were assigned by the state and lasted for life. A diploma was about the only criterion the state could use to decide what kind of job everybody should get. Even today, government agencies and state-owned enterprises still have different pay scales for people with bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees, and some positions are reserved for those with advance degrees。

　　耶鲁大学管理学院金融学教授陈志武说，这是个供需问题，当社会将文凭看得极重时，就会有人不惜冒险去满足这样的要求，很遗憾，有人看到收益超过风险时会决定走捷径。

　　"It's a matter of supply and demand," says Zhiwu Chen, professor of finance at Yale University's School of Management.When a society values certain credentials so much, there will be people who will take risks to meet that demand, he says. "It's unfortunate that some people choose to make the shortcut because the perceived benefits surpass the risks," he says。

　　欧美高校的文凭受承认程度与中国国内的大学相近，甚至更高。当然，假文凭或虚报学历的情况并非中国独有。美国政府问责局2004年的报告发现，28名联邦政府高级官员的学历来自“文凭工厂”或者其他不具备资质的学校，并认为实际数字应该会更高。

　　Diplomas from universities in the West have similar, if not higher, value. To be sure, fake or unearned education credentials aren't unique to China. The 2004 Government Accountability Office report found that 28 senior-level U.S. federal employees have degrees from diploma mills and other unaccredited schools, and it said the actual number could be higher。

　　据《华尔街日报》