As the time and cost of making a chip drop to a few days and a few hundred dollars, engineers may soon be free to let their imaginations soar without being penalized by expensive failures.

【译文】

由于制造一块芯片的时间已缩短至几天，费用也仅有数百美元，因此工程技术人员可能很快就可充分发挥他们的想象力，而不会因失败而造成经济上的重大损失。

【讲解】

as为从属连词，引导原因状语从句，但意为“因为、由于”。

【单词和短语】

penalize：使处于不利地位（subject to a penalty; subject to some comparative disadvantage），妨碍，

例如：

Such a systempenalized the poor. 这种制度妨碍了穷人的利益。

It would be unfair to penalize those without a job.
失业人员待遇低下是不公平的。

soar v. 翱翔，高飞，猛增，高涨

The eagle can soar without flapping their wings. 老鹰无需振翼就能翱翔。

Food prices soar during the cold weather. 这个寒冷的冬季食品价格猛涨。