2.1 News Translation

應用英文系研究所
應用英文系研究所
碩士學位論文
軟性新聞翻譯之讀者參與中介
The Mediation of Reader Involvement in Soft News
Translation
研究生：
研究生：呂洸輝
指導教授：
指導教授：陳雅玫 博士
中華民國 101 年 8 月
摘
要
論文名稱：軟性新聞翻譯之讀者參與中介
頁數：171
校所別：國立臺北科技大學應用英文系碩士班
畢業時間：一百學年度第二學期
學位：碩士
研究生：呂洸輝
指導教授：陳雅玫
關鍵詞：軟性新聞翻譯、讀者參與、編譯、社群翻譯、文本功能、介入資源
為期能對現今尚缺乏深入研究之軟性新聞翻譯的文本功能與讀者參與提供
較系統性的探討，本論文特進行兩項軟性新聞翻譯個案研究，期能分析與對比
《中國時報》專職譯者所編譯的軟性新聞和 Ecocn.org 網站的業餘社群譯者所翻
譯的軟性新聞。而為剖析兩個案中譯文讀者參與的中介方式，本研究對比了兩
個案的原文與譯文文本功能，並分析譯文文本功能與其讀者參與中介之間的關
聯。研究結果顯示，
《中國時報》譯者編譯自《紐約時報》的軟性新聞譯文，與原
文相較之下，其文本與讀者的距離大大縮短了，而 Ecocn.org 網站之譯者所產製的
《經濟學人》譯文則僅小幅度拉近文本與讀者的距離。此發現符合新聞機構與翻
譯社群兩種形式相異之新聞翻譯各自所具有的溝通目的：前者藉著拉近譯文讀者
與文本的關係，以期能吸引其注意力及好奇心；後者則為了提供讀者原文的其他
語言版本，因而僅在必要時，小幅度調整原文以幫助讀者理解並適時提高原文的
權威。除了進行兩上述兩項個個案研究外，本論文亦針對新聞翻譯教學、品質評
估以及未來研究等層面提供新見解與建議。
i
ABSTRACT
Title: The Mediation of Reader Involvement in Soft News Translation
School: National Taipei University of Technology
Pages: 171
Department: Department of English
Time: August, 2012
Degree: Master
Researcher: Guang-hui Lu
Advisor: Dr. Ya-mei Chen
Keywords: soft news translation; reader involvement; transediting; community
translation; text functions; engagement resources
In an attempt to fill the void of research on soft news translation that looks into
both text functions and reader involvement, this thesis carries out two case studies to
compare and contrast how translators mediate reader involvement differently in
transedited soft news produced by full-time translators working for the China Times and
fully-translated soft news produced by amateur translators involved in the translation
tasks initiated by the translation community Ecocn.org. To analyze how the reader
involvement is adjusted in the target news, the two sets of case study data underwent
thorough analyses on the source and target text functions as well as on the relations
between the target functions and the mediation of reader involvement. The results show
that compared with the source versions in The New York Times, the transedited soft
news stories published in the China Times shortened their text-reader distance
considerably while the soft news items from The Economist, which were
fully-translated by the Eco Team, narrows the distance between the texts and the target
readers by a relatively small margin. Such findings conform to the purposes of these
ii
two forms of news translation from a newspaper and a translation community. The
former aims to appeal to the target readers’ attention and curiosity by pulling them close
to the texts and engaging them in the news stories, whereas the latter intends to provide
an alternative to the source texts for the target readers, adjusting the texts minimally
only when necessary to facilitate reading comprehension and enhance the newspaper’s
authority. Apart from conducting the above two case studies, this thesis also provides
some implications for translation pedagogy and quality assessment as well as possible
avenues for future research.
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Acknowledgements
This thesis could never have been completed without the professional, insightful
and inspiring guidance from my advisor Dr. Ya-mei Chen. She is always more than
willing to share her knowledge and experience with her students. Her tremendous help
and warm encouragement made what would have been an otherwise arduous thesis
writing process a pleasant smooth ride, during which I found confidence in myself and
reaped fruitful achievements as a graduate student. Furthermore, I would like to extend
my gratitude to the members of my thesis committee, Dr. Clair Tsai from NTUT and Dr.
Yu-ling Chung from NTUST, who gave me valuable constructive comments and
detailed suggestions on how to make the thesis a better one.
I also owe a lot to NTUT, especially the Department of English for providing all
kinds of academic resources and assistance throughout the seven years I spent here. The
faculty spares no effort to teach and care for the students. Thank you to my dear
classmates at NTUT: Cate, Catherine, Charlie, Christine, Eva, Genie, Jason, Jeff, Jenny,
Kevin, Kyle, Lisa, Li-ying and Vita, and to other senior and junior students for spending
the unforgettable three years with me.
Many thanks also go to my best friends who have accompanied me this far
through ups and downs during my graduate school life: Alan, Ava, Cathy, Ken, Kiki,
Mike, Perry, Sinnie and Sweetie. Without them, I could not have walked through this
phase of life with so much joy and fulfillment.
Finally, I would like to dedicate this thesis to my family, to whom I am greatly
indebted. They provide unconditional support and love and allow me to pursue my
dreams and whatever I want to do in my life.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT (Chinese) ...................................................................................... i
ABSTRACT (English)....................................................................................... ii
Acknowledgements ........................................................................................... iv
Table of Contents .............................................................................................. v
List of Tables ..................................................................................................... vii
Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................. 1
1.1 Research Background and Motivation .................................................. 1
1.2 Purposes ............................................................................................. 3
1.3 Research Questions ............................................................................. 3
1.4 Definition of Terms ............................................................................. 3
1.5 Organization of the Thesis ................................................................... 4
Chapter 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................... 6
2.1 News Translation ................................................................................ 6
2.2.1 Institutional News Translation .................................................... 7
2.2.2 Community News Translation..................................................... 8
2.2 Nord’s Model of Translation-oriented Text Functions ............................... 11
2.3 The Engagement System under Appraisal Theory ................................. 15
2.4 Review of the Chapter......................................................................... 18
Chapter 3 THE CASE STUDY ON INSTITUTIONAL SOFT NEWS TRANSLATION 19
3.1 Data Collection .................................................................................. 19
3.2 The Text Functions of the Source and Target Texts................................ 20
3.3 Shifts of Engagement Resources .......................................................... 26
3.3.1 The Headline Part ...................................................................... 26
3.3.2 The Main Body Part ................................................................... 28
3.3.2.1 Deny and Counter ............................................................. 29
3.3.2.2 Acknowledge and Endorse ................................................ 32
3.4 Discussion .......................................................................................... 35
3.5 Conclusion ......................................................................................... 38
Chapter 4 THE CASE STUDY ON COMMUNITY SOFT NEWS TRANSLATION 39
4.1 Data Collection .................................................................................. 39
4.2 The Text Functions of the Source and Target Texts................................ 40
4.3 Shifts of Engagement Resources .......................................................... 46
4.3.1 The Headline Part ...................................................................... 47
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4.3.2 The Main Body Part ................................................................... 50
4.3.2.1 Deny and Counter ............................................................. 51
4.3.2.2 Endorse and Acknowledge ................................................. 53
4.3.2.3 Likelihood ........................................................................ 54
4.4 Discussion .......................................................................................... 56
4.5 Conclusion ......................................................................................... 59
Chapter 5 DISCUSSIONS AND CONCLUSION ................................................ 60
5.1 Comparison of Reader Involvement .................................................... 60
5.1.1 Contextual Factors of the Target News ........................................ 60
5.1.2 Mediation of Reader Involvement .............................................. 61
5.1.3 Relations Between Contextual Factors and Mediation of Reader
Involvement .............................................................................. 64
5.2 Conclusion ......................................................................................... 65
5.2.1 Summary of Research ................................................................ 65
5.2.2 Implications ............................................................................... 66
5.2.3 Suggestions for Future Research ................................................. 68
REFERENCES .................................................................................................. 69
APPENDIX
A. Case study data for institutional soft news translation ..............................75
B. Case study data for community soft news translation ...............................78
C. Source and target texts of the first case study ...........................................81
D. Source and target texts of the second case study ......................................142
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List of Tables
Table 2.1 The correspondence between Nord’s text functions and soft news functions ... 14
Table 3.1 Total numbers of heteroglossic and monoglossic headlines ............................ 26
Table 3.2 Total numbers of engagement resources in the headline part .......................... 27
Table 3.3 Total numbers of dialogically contractive and expansive engagement
resources in the main body part .................................................................... 27
Table 3.4 Total numbers of engagement resources in the main body part ....................... 29
Table 4.1 Text functions of the source and target texts .................................................. 46
Table 4.2 Total numbers of heteroglossic and monoglossic headlines ............................ 47
Table 4.3 Total numbers of engagement resources in the headline part .......................... 48
Table 4.4 Total numbers of dialogically contractive and expansive engagement
resources in the main body part .................................................................... 50
Table 4.5 Total numbers of engagement resources in the main body part ....................... 51
Table 5.1 Comparison of the target contextual factors .................................................. 61
Table 5.2 Increase and decrease of the engagement resources in the headline parts ........ 62
Table 5.3 Increase and decrease of the engagement resources in the main body parts ..... 63
vii
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Research Background and Motivation
Soft news stories usually touch upon entertainment or infotainment, including art,
fashion, lifestyle, culture, society, and so forth. They are written in a casual and playful
style and pertain to the reports of events that are less time-sensitive and serious. In
addition to its content, writing style, timeliness and nature, still another distinction of
soft news is its flexible structure, unlike the rigid inverted pyramid of hard news. Soft
news stories tend to recount an anecdote related to the coverage in the first paragraph as
the story opener instead of offering the who, what, when, where, why and how directly
to the readers (Hu, 2004, pp. 15-16; H. Y. Wang, 2008, p. 20). Ever since the 1980s, soft
news has started to grow in prominence with the gradual emergence of audience’s
preference for a more consumable, pleasurable, and human news diet as well as the
phenomenon of tabloidization, which originated in the U.K. and quickly spread across
the globe, whetting readers’ appetite for news of popular human interest stories, with
vivid and graphic representation (B. Chen, 2003; Schönbach, 2000; Scott & Gobetz,
1992; Su, 2001).
Some scholars in the field of news translation have also noticed the significance
of soft news and have done some preliminary studies on the translation of soft news
items from the perspective of Skopos theory (Cao, 2009; W. Chen, 2011; Fang, 2002;
Hu, 2004; H. G. Wang, 2005; Xu & Wang, 2001). These studies are aimed at exploring
the communicative purposes of translated soft news and the methods or strategies used
to achieve the purposes. Specifically, translated soft news stories are intended to appeal
1
to their target readers’ interest in reading and successfully deliver the messages at issue.
In order for the information to effectively get across to another culture and fulfill the
intended communicative purposes, the translator, according to the above-mentioned
research, needs to cater to the following aspects when translating soft news: (1)
embracing the fundamental journalistic features of news coverage, that is, the use of
novel expressions, flexible sentence patterns, special reporting styles, the passive voice
to shift focus, clear structural patterns, and effective rhetoric (Cao, 2009; Xu & Wang,
2001); (2) resorting to social, cultural, or spiritual content that the readers can relate to;
(3) motivating the readers to read with lively, informal manifestations; (4) using
adaptation as a necessary and reasonable technique to achieve intentionality,
acceptability and culture specificity, which are the key factors in deciding the quality of
the target news stories (H. G. Wang, 2005; Xiao, 2011).
However, there is still one important feature of soft news—its communicative
functions—worth investigating. That is to say, only when the soft news functions are
realized can the communicative purposes of news stories be served. Soft news, whether
it is translated or non-translated, normally has the paramount function to entertain or to
persuade its readers as well as the secondary function to inform (Fedler, 1997;
Dominick, 1994; Richard, 1998). In other words, soft news, while providing
information, is dedicated to amusing readers and appealing to their feelings and
emotions. To effectively achieve these communicative functions, soft news should
appropriately involve the readership. Accordingly, when a source news text is rendered
into another language, the reader involvement originally constructed in the source text
needs to be adjusted to accommodate the target readers, whom the writer has not taken
into consideration.
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1.2 Purposes
To bridge the gap not filled by previous research, this thesis, utilizing Nord’s
(1997) translation-oriented model of text functions as a theoretical framework, conducts
two case studies on English-Chinese soft news translation: one on the soft news
translation carried out in a newspaper setting (hereafter referred to as institutional news
translation) and the other on the soft news translation conducted by an online voluntary
community. The two case studies are intended (1) to compare the text functions of the
source and target news texts, and (2) to explore how the reader involvement constructed
in the original texts is mediated in the target versions through various engagement
resources (see Chapter 2) under the guidance of the target text functions. By discussing
the two case studies, this thesis hopes to compare and contrast the arrangement of the
reader involvement in the translated soft news produced in two different settings and
thus provide a comprehensive view on the reader involvement in soft news translation.
1.3 Research Questions
To thoroughly compare the two case studies on different types of translation
practices, the following research questions are raised:
1. How do the two case studies differ from each other in terms of their mediation of
reader involvement?
2. What contextual factors contribute to the possibly different mediation of reader
involvement in the two case studies?
1.4 Definition of Terms
For ease of reference and comprehension, some key terms used in this thesis are
3
listed and defined below:
Translation is adopted as an umbrella term in this thesis to cover all types of translation
practices, for instance, transediting and full translation. Adaptation, on the other hand, is
a translation strategy commonly employed in transediting.
Engagement resources are a variety of linguistic resources proposed in the engagement
system under Appraisal Theory, which are capable of introducing intersubjective
positions (Martin & White, 2005; White, 1998, 2001a, 2001b, 2003).
Monoglossias are utterances made without the use of engagement resources and are
so-called facts (Martin & White, 2005; White, 1998, 2001a, 2001b, 2003).
Heteroglossias are statements made to express one’s opinion or attitude with the use of
engagement resources (Martin & White, 2005; White, 1998, 2001a, 2001b, 2003).
Gatekeepers in this thesis refer to full time translators who choose from the source news
stories the most valuable information, and restructure, edit and translate them to appeal
to the readers’ interest (Fujii, 1988; Vuorinen, 1997; Hursti, 2001).
Gatewatchers in this thesis refer to community translators who share news stories that
suit their own interests and redistribute them in the target language (see Fujii, 1988;
Vuorinen, 1997; Hursti, 2001).
1.5 Organization of the Thesis
This thesis consists of five chapters. Following this introduction chapter, Chapter
4
2 is Literature Review, which first introduces existing research on news translation as
well as distinguishes between institutional and community translation. Second, it
provides a review on Nord’s (1997) translation-oriented model, in which four text
functions, including the referential, appellative, expressive and phatic, are introduced
and applied to soft news translation. Third, an exhaustive account of the engagement
system under Appraisal Theory is given, clarifying the idea of monoglossias and
heteroglossias and that of dialogically contractive and expansive resources, which are
indicative of the reader involvement in text.
Chapters 3 and 4 respectively present the case study on institutional soft news
translation and that on community soft news translation. In each chapter, the text
functions of the source and target soft news will first be specified with evidence drawn
from the data. The shifts of engagement resources identified in the headline and main
body parts will then be elaborated upon respectively. Most importantly, the connections
between text functions and the use of engagement resources will be discussed in detail.
In Chapter 5, based on the features of institutional and community news
translation outlined in Chapter 2, the resultant varying degrees of reader involvement of
the two case studies will be addressed as well as the influence of a variety of contextual
factors. Moreover, after the summary of research is provided, implications for
translation research, pedagogy and quality assessment will be drawn from the two case
studies, followed by suggestions for future research.
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Chapter 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter first attends to the background and existing research of news
translation and further differentiates between institutional and community news
translation. The second part details Nord’s translation-oriented text functions and
associates them with the commonly acknowledged functions of soft news. Lastly, the
engagement system under Appraisal Theory is mapped out with its intricate network and
corresponding examples to help understand the distinction between dialogic contraction
and dialogic expansion, which reveal different degrees of reader involvement initiated
by speakers or writers.
2.1 News Translation
Traditionally, the work of news translation is primarily undertaken either by
full-time translators who collaborate with journalists or by full-time journalists who are
tasked with the translation work in news organizations (Bielsa & Bassnett, 2009, pp.
81-82; Y. Chen, 2011a, p. 120).
However, as the Internet enabled the transmission and circulation of information
beyond the boundaries of time and space and created platforms for individuals to write
and publish their own works, new forms of news translation practices have emerged.
The task of news translation, which is generally known to be fulfilled by mainstream
news organizations, has also been taken by online amateur and voluntary communities
(Y. Chen, 2011b). In the following sections, special features of instituional news
6
translation and community news translation (i.e. amateur news translation) will be
discussed in order to provide some background for the two case studies to be presented
in Chapters 3 and 4.
2.1.1 Institutional News Translation
Studies on institutional news translation began to emerge in the 1980s. So far,
most existing research has centered on the following aspects of hard news translation
(i.e. the translation of serious and timely news such as politics, finances and
international affairs): (1) practical strategies (see Kirk, 1999; Li, 2001; Huang, 2002; M.
Cheng, 2004), (2) gate-keeping functions (see Fujii, 1988; Vuorinen, 1997; Hursti,
2001), (3) contextual factors (see Sidiropoulou, 2004; Kuo & Nakamura, 2005; Orengo,
2005; Kang, 2007; Y. Chen, 2008, 2009; Valdeon, 2008; Bielsa & Bassnett, 2009) and
(4) the translator’s subjectivity (see Y. Chen, 2011a; W. Cheng, 2011). Compared with
hard news translation, soft news has received relatively little attention in translation
studies. Hopefully, the case study to be carried out in Chapter 3 can, to some extent,
contribute to this under-explored area of research.
Institutional news translation is produced by full-time translators (or journalists)
who are likely to have received proper translator training and are hired by traditional
news organizations, that is, newspapers (e.g. The New York Times, The Washington Post
and The Wall Street Journal) and news agencies or wire services (e.g. Agence
France-Presse, Associated Press, Reuters and the Central News Agency) (Bielsa &
Bassnett, 2009, pp. 81-82; Y. Chen, 2011a, p. 120). The role full-time translators play is
gatekeeper. They extract from the source news articles the most valuable information to
impart to the readers. However, full-time translators are not allowed to arbitrarily
choose the topics of source news for translation; instead, they are governed by the news
7
organization and have to adhere to the socio-political or ideological stances and editorial
policies of the news organization. Moreover, their translations have to undergo the
editors’ examination and revision before being approved to be published by the news
agency (Vuorinen, 1997; Li, 2001; Orengo, 2005; Y. Chen, 2011a).
As a result, the products of institutional news translation are usually
market-driven, intended to pursue potential readers to achieve maximum circulation and
economic results for the news organization, and full-time translators thus need to render
the original news stories by means of “transediting” (see Y. Chen 2008). The notion of
news transediting involves both news translation and editing (cf. Stetting 1989), and
includes such strategies as selection, deletion, addition, synthesis, abridgement,
retopicalization and restructuring to adapt the source news to enhance target-language
comprehensibility, perform target text functions, and observe target-culture conventions
(Li, 2001, 2009; M. Cheng, 2004).
Normally the target readers of institutional news translation are confined within
the regions where the printed versions of transedited news are circulated, even though
sometimes the online editions of the transedited texts are also available (Y. Chen,
2011b). Institutional translators are usually from the same regions as their readers and
therefore share the same background and knowledge. They might well understand the
readers’ interest and how to draw their attention to the texts.
2.1.2 Community News Translation
Arising from the Web 2.0 environment, which yields the possibility of online
mass collaboration (O’Reilly, 2005; Perrino, 2009), an online translation community
can be defined as “an aggregation of individuals who interact around the central task of
translation, with interaction at least partly mediated by web technology” (Salzberg,
8
2009, p. 38). Translation conducted by such a virtual community is generally referred to
as community translation, which originated from the concept of user-generated
translation (UGT).
UGT was born in the information era, when these volunteer translators are users
themselves, and therefore the resulting products are “translation that is generated of, by,
and for the people” (DePalma & Kelly, 2008; O’Hagan, 2009, p. 97). O’Hagan (2009)
delineates in her study the evolution of UGT. What started as fan-based translation,
particularly Japanese fansubs in the 1980s, UGT divided into fan translation and
community translation. The former comprises various forms of translations produced by
fans such as fansubbing, scanlation, game localization, and so forth. The latter mainly
occurs on online platforms for the purpose of crowdsourced Web site localization. The
difference between the two forms of UGT is that the act of fan translation is unsolicited,
carried out by voluntary, enthusiastic contributors while that of community translation is
solicited, largely called for by non-profit organizations.
Still growing in numbers, translation communities have embarked on a variety of
fields such as online encyclopedias (e.g. Wikipedia), user-generated dictionaries (e.g.
Word Reference and Wiktionary), online subtitling practices (e.g. TED and YouTube),
social networking sites (e.g. Facebook and LinkedIn) and news translation (e.g. Global
Voices, Yeeyan.org and Ecocn.org) (Perrino, 2009).
As far as community news translation is concerned, existing research is still
scarce and mainly focuses on Global Voices, a nonprofit Web site dedicated to citizen
journalism (Salzberg, 2009; Y. Chen, 2011b). Salzberg (2009) gives a detailed account
of the background, composition and current status of Project Lingua under Global
Voices, a translation community founded in 2007, now with more than one hundred
active volunteers who translate English news articles into over 30 different languages.
9
Insights are given into the challenges faced by the multilingual translation community
and the issue of lost context in news and fan translation, with empirical observations
obtained from interviews and surveys with the members of the community. Using
Chinese soft news translations as her case study data, Y. Chen (2011b) draws upon Van
Dijk’s socio-cognitive approach to context as well as the functionalist approach as her
theoretical framework to account for the translator’s concerns for the target readers at
both the macro and micro levels of the translated news.
As opposed to institutional news translation, community news translation is
conducted by amateur or voluntary translators (i.e. community translators) who
contribute to a virtual translation community without receiving any compensation and
probably have never been officially trained like those working in news organizations.
Using the Internet as a media to communicate, members of a translation community are
likely to be recruited and working simultaneously around the world, unlike full-time
translators, who tend to be located in the same region, in the same country. In addition,
community translators act as gatewatchers, who can freely choose the news stories of
their interest to translate for the community without being confined to any editorial
concerns (Y. Chen, 2011b).
Since the main objective of community translation is to relay foreign information
intact to the target-culture readers, community translators tend to adopt full translation
to render the source news stories without altering their schematic and semantic
organization, rather than the transediting approach taken by full-time translators (cf. Li,
2009, p. 189).
Furthermore, community translators are readers themselves and their readership
consists of the whole target-language community which can be geographically dispersed
around the globe. These readers and the translators are possibly like-minded people who
10
share some interest in learning English as well as studying translation. The readers tend
to search for the news stories from their preferred online sources. Hence, community
translators do not have to try so hard to engage the readers as institutional translators do
by modifying the content and structure of the source texts.
After outlining the special features of institutional and community news
translation, the following section will introduce Nord’s text functions and describe how
they can guide news translators to adopt appropriate strategies in the translation process.
2.2 Nord’s Model of Translation-oriented Text Functions
Based on Bühler’s organon model of language functions (1934), Reiss proposed a
text typology for translation criticism in 1971 (cf. Reiss, 1971/2000, 1976). Her
classification of texts as informative, expressive, operative was further developed by
Nord. Incorporating Jakobson’s (1960) model, Nord (1997), identifies the following
four text functions that translated texts may aim to achieve: the referential, expressive,
appellative and phatic functions.
The referential function aims at referring to something, be it abstract or concrete,
such as an object or a phenomenon, in real or virtual worlds that is unknown to the
receiver (i.e. the reader). To achieve the similar referential function of the source text,
what comes into play in translation is the selection of the information that target readers
can relate to because it is essential to have the message delivered and understood by the
receivers in the target cultures (Nord, 1997, pp. 40-41; Nord, 2006a).
The expressive function involves the attitude that the sender, i.e. the writer, holds
toward the objects or phenomena of the world and is thus sender-oriented. In this regard,
the value system, conditioned by the cultural norms of the source and the target cultures,
needs to be taken into account since the receivers in the target culture may hold different
11
views from the writer and might interpret the messages differently, thus requiring the
translator to make proper adjustments to achieve the effect intended by the original
writer (Nord, 1997, pp. 40-42; Nord, 2006a).
The appellative function is receiver-oriented, intended for the receivers to respond
or react in a certain way. The ways to arouse readers’ response are multiple, depending
on the texts’ sub-functions, whether they be persuasive or educative. Furthermore, the
appellative function can be achieved directly, indirectly or poetically. Indicators of the
direct appellative function may include such features as imperatives or rhetorical
questions, while those of the indirect appellative function are more subtle, comprising
the use of the former two text functions, referential and expressive. The poetic
appellative function works in texts that resort to readers’ aesthetic sensitivity possibly
via allusions or other figurative language. As the source and target readers have
different knowledge backgrounds, to retain the source appellative function in translation,
the translator’s primary goal is to aim at the target readers’ familiarity with the referents.
If the readers are presented with foreign information that is not properly adapted for the
target culture, they might not feel anything, not to mention being convinced or amused
in any way (Nord, 1997, pp. 42-44; Nord, 2006a).
Lastly, the phatic function is directed at “establishing, maintaining or ending
contact between sender and receiver” (Nord, 1997, p. 44). In order for the phatic
function to operate in the target text, the translator needs to make the phatic utterances
as close as possible to the conventional forms of the target language so that the
relationship between the sender and the receivers can be maintained in the target culture
(Nord, 1997, pp. 42-45; Nord, 2006a).
Nevertheless, a translated text may not always retain all the source functions like
those mentioned above. If the functions of the target texts are partially or wholly
12
different from those of the source texts, the translator may employ other strategies such
as literal translation and foreignization to document “source-culture communicative
interaction for target-culture readership” (Nord 1997, p. 48). In this case, the main
function of the target text will be metatextual, intended to reproduce the form, content
and situation of the source text without building relationship between the source-culture
sender and the target-culture audience (Nord 1997, pp. 48-50).
It should be noted that a text can only be functional when the intended effect is
achieved, and this is subject to the receivers. Therefore, whether the target readers can
recognize the functionality of a text constitutes the principal task of the translator. In
other words, the translator should make the target text “work” for the intended readers
(Nord, 2006b). On this account, the source text may need to be adjusted to a certain
degree to make the text function properly in the target culture. Intertextual coherence
between the source and target texts thus becomes subordinate. Nonetheless, it does not
mean the translator can twist the original writer’s communicative intention at will. He or
she needs to be loyal to the writer as well as to the commissioner and the prospective
readers so as to properly fulfill the target functionality (Nord, 2005, pp. 31-34; Nord,
2006a).
As mentioned in Chapter 1, some journalism scholars have already identified
three fundamental functions of soft news (i.e. the entertaining, persuasive and
informative functions). Nord’s model can not only encompass these functions (as
illustrated in Table 2.1) but also lend support to the analysis concerning how the content
and structure of the original soft news should be preserved or adjusted to effectively
achieve the target text functions (Y. Chen, 2011b). The referential function, without a
doubt, corresponds to the informative function, while the appellative function is
two-fold with both the entertaining and persuasive functions being covered in this
13
Table 2.1: The correspondence between Nord’s text functions and soft news functions
Nord’s translation-oriented text functions
Soft news functions
Referential
Informative
Appellative
Entertaining/Persuasive
Expressive
Persuasive
Phatic
category. However, the persuasiveness shared by the appellative and expressive
functions is disparate in that the former aims to trigger an action or response from the
reader, for example, by introducing positive values of a certain product to elicit the
reader’s desire to make a purchase, whereas the latter, by way of expressing subjective
evaluations, guides the reader toward the writer’s points of view. The nuance of the two
can be seen in the following two examples. The appellative function manifests in
example (1), and example (2) shows the expressive function.
(1) In the latest and biggest example of the map’s power and versatility, Google
started a location-aware friend-finding system called Latitude in 27 countries
early this month. [The Cellphone, Navigating Our Lives, New York Times,
February 16, 2009]
(2) Parents, who grew up in a generation more likely to use the handshake, the
low-five or the high-five, are often baffled by the close physical contact. [For
Teenagers, Hello Means ‘How About a Hug?’, New York Times, May 27,
2009]
The first example mentions the positive values of the system such as its power and
versatility so that the readers are likely to be enticed to try it personally. The second
example, on the other hand, reveals the writer’s opinions on how he or she thinks
parents might react to the close physical contact and thus aligns the readers into his or
her own value position.
14
Lastly, the phatic function, though rarely mentioned in journalism studies, is
indeed a common feature of soft news, whose opening paragraph(s) often serves to
converse with readers and thereby establish a relationship with them.
As for the priority of the four functions in soft news, depending on different
communicative purposes, normally the appellative and referential functions are either
equally important or unbalanced with the former outweighing the latter, and the
expressive or phatic functions are the secondary or tertiary function. The four text
functions mentioned above are generally applied to translated or non-translated texts. If
a text is fully translated without changing its form and content, the metatextual function
may result.
As Nord suggests, “[c]ommunicative function is not only the fundamental
constitutive feature of texts but it also determines the strategies of text production”
(2005, p. 19). Nord has explained the relations between text functions and general
translation strategies. This thesis will then concentrate on exploring the relations
between text functions and the translation of engagement resources, which can reveal
the design of reader involvement in the target texts.
2.3 The Engagement System under Appraisal Theory
Situated within the framework of Systemic Functional Linguistics and having
been applied to discourse analysis on various genres, Appraisal Theory is concerned
with how speakers/writers embed their attitudes and stances in discourse and, at the
same time, align or disalign their listeners/readers with the authorial voice. It recognizes
the presence of implied respondents in the communication of both spoken and written
forms and is developed to evaluate how addressees are invited to participate in it and
how speakers/writers engage them in intersubjective positioning (Martin & White, 2005;
15
White, 1998, 2001a, 2001b, 2003). Appraisal Theory consists of three systems:
engagement, attitude and graduation. Among them, the engagement system is developed
from a dialogic perspective, based on the view that all verbal communication, be it
spoken or written, can be seen as dialogic because every statement, in reality, is made to
refer to what has been stated and, at the same time, to elicit responses from its readers or
listeners (Martin & White, 2005, p. 92).
The engagement system acknowledges a dialogistic backdrop where
communication is dichotomized into monoglossias and heteroglossias. Monoglossias
can be characterized as bare assertions, in which no reference is made to other voices.
Without any internal or external points of view being specified, such barely asserted
statements are normally formulated on the ground that the addressees share the same
beliefs or opinions as the speaker or writer. Unlike monoglossias, heteroglossias allow
for other alternative voices or opinions and can either be dialogically contractive or
dialogically expansive, as shown in Figure 2.1 (White, 1998, 2001b, 2003; White &
Motoki, 2006).
Engagement
contractive
Disclaim
Deny
Concur
expansive
Proclaim
Entertain
Counter
Attribute
Acknowledge Distance
Pronounce Endorse Leading
questions
Evidence Likelihood
Figure 2.1: The system of Engagement
16
Hearsay Expository
questions
Dialogic contraction acts to restrict the dialogic space that allows for alternative
positions and lead the listener/reader to the position of the speaker/writer. It is
composed of Disclaim and Proclaim. Disclaim includes Deny and Counter. Deny is, in
effect, negation, so all negative terms like no, not, nothing, and so on are all part of
Deny. Rather than disaligning, resources of Deny align the listener/reader with the
speaker’s/writer’s position against a third party, thereby advancing the sender’s
viewpoint on the subject matter. Counter is used to introduce a proposition that
contradicts the listener’s/reader’s expectation so as to make them follow the
speaker’s/writer’s thoughts. Thus, even though, surprisingly, etc. can be used to achieve
this kind of countering effect. Similarly, even, only, just and still can also deliver the
sense of counter-expectation (Martin & White, 2005, pp. 118-121; White, 2001a).
Proclaim consists of Concur, Pronounce, and Endorse. Concur is conveyed
through such expressions as of course and naturally, which present the sender and the
receiver as sharing the same knowledge or view on something. It can also be achieved
via rhetorical or leading questions that anticipate a presumed answer from the
listener/reader. Pronounce demonstrates the speaker’s/writer’s explicit stance toward a
matter with formulations like I contend…, the facts of the matter are that…, etc.
Endorse construes the speaker/writer as taking or sharing responsibility with the
external voice. In citing a proposition the speaker/writer agrees with, wordings such as
show and demonstrate are used to lead the listener/reader to trust the authorial voice and
the authority it aligns itself with (Martin & White, 2005, pp. 122-130; White, 2003, pp.
268-271).
Dialogic expansion enlarges the room for different opinions and interpretations by
the receiver and further subsumes the categories of Entertain and Attribute. Entertain
covers wordings that allow dialogic space for other possibilities and can be divided into
17
expressions of evidence (it seems that…, the evidence suggests…), likelihood (perhaps,
probably, possible, likely), hearsay (reportedly, it is said that…) as well as expository
questions that are open-ended. They are aimed at building solidarity with those who
might embrace alternative or even contrary positions (Martin & White, 2005, pp.
104-111; White & Motoki, 2006, pp. 195-197).
Attribute constitutes Acknowledge and Distance. Acknowledge is formulated with
reporting verbs like say, believe, according to, in one’s view, and so forth while
Distance can be expressed through disaligning formulations such as claim. Clearly,
unlike Endorse, Acknowledge indicates a neutral stance on the part of the addresser
while Distance detaches the speaker/writer from the cited proposition, therefore
shunning responsibility (Martin & White, 2005, pp. 111-117; White, 2001a; White,
2003, pp. 273-274).
2.4 Review of the Chapter
This chapter first reviews studies on news translation and the features of
institutional news translation and community news translation, the two types of
translation that the two case studies in Chapters 3 and 4 will be revolving around.
Second, Nord’s translation-oriented model is introduced with its correspondence with
the general soft news functions to form the theoretical framework of the research. Last
but not least, the linguistic resources of the engagement system under Appraisal Theory
are reviewed to illuminate the relation between various linguistic resources of
engagement and degrees of reader involvement.
18
Chapter 3
THE CASE STUDY ON INSTITUTIONAL
SOFT NEWS TRANSLATION
This chapter first introduces the corpus of the case study, including the Chinese
transedited news texts and their English source counterparts. The second part identifies
the text functions derived from the source and target texts. The third part presents the
shifts of engagement resources with reference to the headline and main body parts of
the news stories. Discussion on the relation between the target text functions and shifts
of engagement resources will be offered in the fourth part, followed by a conclusion to
summarize this chapter.
3.1 Data Collection
The case study data covers 20 English soft news items from the online New York
Times and their transedited Chinese versions from the online China Times in Taiwan.
The data is illustrated in Appendix A, using the source and target headlines.1 As
linguistic and organizational patterns of soft news may change over time, latest soft
news stories published between the years 2009 and 2010 were selected to reflect the
contemporary writing styles at the time when the present thesis was first drafted and
help shed new light on current translation and teaching practices. These news articles
were randomly chosen so that a wide range of topics can be covered to represent the
general body of soft news. The topics range from Jobs, Science, Business, Style,
1
In Appendices A and B, ST and TT stand, respectively, for the source and target text. Put in parentheses
are the English back translations of the target Chinese headlines.
19
Technology, Education and Arts. The two newspapers are selected in this study because
the China Times is one of the three major Taiwanese broadsheet newspapers, and The
New York Times is one of the elite newspapers in the U.S. In addition, the China Times
has an abundance of transedited news from The New York Times.
3.2 The Text Functions of the Source and Target Texts
The majority of the transedited soft news stories from the China Times have only
one third the lengths of their original counterparts (Y. Chen, 2008, p. 42). Due to space
constraints, the translators employed such transediting strategies as retopicalization,
deletion, restructuring and synthesis to render the original articles. The resulting
differences between the source and target news stories as regards their generic
conventions and content led to dissimilar source and target text functions. This section
will first compare the generic structure and content of the source and target texts and
then identify their respective text functions.
The source and target opening paragraphs reveal different ways of narrating a
news story. Those of the source texts from the New York Times are mostly presented in
the format of a hook (Shie, 2009), starting with an imaginative scenario or a real case
and slowly leading the readers toward the main topic. The target versions, by contrast,
tend to be constructed as nut graphs (or gists), which straightforwardly point out the
main points of the news stories with ensuing statements to fill in the details. See the two
excerpts below for instance:2
2
The numbers of news items referred to as No. 5 and No. 17 in the examples indicate the fifth and
seventeenth sets of source and target texts in Appendix A. The complete news stories of the exapmles in
Chapters 3 and 4 can be reffered to in Appendices C and D. However, not all the source texts in the
appendices were analyized with respepct to the shifts of engagement resources. Only the content that was
translated in the target texts went through analysis in the next section.
20
(1) No. 5
ST: Is Europe bringing back the automat? Claudio Torghele hopes so.
TT: 披薩的發源地義大利，竟然也出現了專賣披薩的自動販賣機！賣的
可不是一般便利商店裡微波加熱的冷凍披薩，而且從和麵、揉餅皮、
加料到烘焙，全部由自動販賣機當場現做的熱騰騰披薩，看來對大
師雙手絕活情有獨鍾的歐洲，也開始擁抱機器了。
(Pizza automats unexpectedly spring up in Italy, where the pizza
originates! What they sell is not the average frozen pizzas from a
convenience store to be heated in a microwave oven, but freshly made
pizzas that the automats make by mixing flour, rolling out dough,
sprinkling toppings and baking. It seems that even Europe, with a soft
spot for the chef’s handicraft, starts to embrace machines.)3
(2) No. 17
ST: One bathroom in Stefanie Mullen’s home in a suburb of San Diego is
stocked with enough products to line an aisle in a drugstore:
TT: 少女愛美愛打扮，似乎天經地義；若十幾歲的少男每天也在瓶瓶罐
罐裡忙東忙西，許多父母大概不解甚至抓狂吧。
(It seems quite normal for teenage girls to be conscious about their
appearance and obsessed with their outfits; but if teenage boys are busy
fumbling with a variety of products every day, many parents would
probably be puzzled or even go crazy.)
3
In the examples, ST and TT refer to the correponding texts in the source and target news stories. Some
TTs may not seem to correspond to the STs as a result of the transediting process, particularly in this
section in which it is the text functions exhibited by the texts that are being compared. Hence, the source
headlines and first paragraphs, which are changed to a certain degree or even rewritten in the target
versions, should not be compared with the source versions at the sentential level, but seen in terms of the
overall effect.
21
The source opening paragraphs in examples (1) and (2) mention some individuals
whose jobs and ages are unknown to the original readers. The information seems to
provide some clues to what the stories are about, yet is generally vague and elusive
without disclosing much. Quite to the contrary, the target versions tell their readers
exactly “what” phenomena have been noticed and at times additionally where, why,
when and how they happened. While the opening paragraphs of the source news stories
introduce anecdotes (i.e. hooks), the transedited ones give brief accounts (i.e. nut graphs)
of the whole news stories, synthesizing the essential information extracted or deduced
from their source texts. Both the source hooks and the target nut graphs are meant to
establish a relationship with their respective readers by preparing them for what the
news stories are about, and thus exhibit the phatic function at the start of news coverage.
Three major differences in the content of the source and target soft news can be
observed. First, the source headlines tend to relate events more objectively, while the
target counterparts are often infused with subjective attitudes and opinions, as the
following headlines demonstrate:
(3) No. 8
ST: Answering Baseball’s What-Ifs
TT: 模擬棒球電玩 讓你圓教練夢
(A simulation baseball game can realize your coach dream)
(4) No. 1
ST: Maternity-Leave Alternative: Bring the Baby to Work
TT: 育嬰假？遜！帶嬰上班正時興
(Maternity leave? Outdated! Bringing the baby to work is in fashion)
The source headline in example (3) does nothing more than put forth the topic of the
22
news story, whereas the target headline involves the translator’s conclusion drawn from
the original text, in which no mention is actually made of any coach dreams, but
exploring what-if scenarios. Example (4) is even more telling. The target headline
contains an evaluative opinion that projects bringing the baby to work as being outdated.
It is clear that the expressive function is missing in the source texts, but present in the
target texts.
Second, entertainment elements, which appeal to the readers’ emotions and
feelings, usually weigh more in the target texts as can be seen in the following
examples:
(5) No. 19
ST: At age 36, Hello Kitty may be running out of product lives.
TT: 卡通玩偶「凱蒂貓」（Hello Kitty）深受全球粉絲熱愛，周邊商品賣
得搶搶滾，然而歲月不饒貓，邁入卅六歲的「凱蒂貓」如今也面臨
中年危機，……
(The cartoon character Hello Kitty is deeply loved by fans all over the
world. Related products sell like hot cakes. However, time and tide wait
for no cat. At age 36, Hello Kitty is now facing her midlife crisis…)
(6) No. 6
ST: Recent articles, free at GlobalPost.com, ...
TT: 網站上除了付費內容外，目前仍是免費的優質新聞也是吸引讀者的
關鍵。
(In addition to the paid content on the site, the quality news that is still
free of charge to date is the key to attracting readers.)
The two transedited texts above are expanded with the translators’ own interpretations.
23
The source text in example (5) merely informs the readers of Hello Kitty’s waning life,
whereas the target text primarily seeks to entertain the readers by tampering with the
saying “time and tide wait for no man” and personifying the canine character as facing a
midlife crisis. Compared with the source text, the target text exerts more effort in
amusing the readers, which shows how the appellative function in the target news
overrides the other text functions. In example (6), the target text emphasizes not only
the “free” content but the “quality” news of GlobalPost. Positive values of the news
Web site are underscored so as to interest the target readers or even entice them to visit
the site in person.
Third, as almost two thirds of the original news stories are subject to deletion in
the transedited versions, a large proportion of information that is trivial or unfamiliar to
the target readers is likely to be omitted in the transedited versions (see the italic parts in
the following examples):
(7) No. 18
ST: In demonstrations, the projector is strapped onto a toy rifle that is
equipped with motion sensors. As the game is projected on the wall,
players can pursue the villains with the rifle, aiming and firing left and
right, up and down. If the bad guys sprint behind the players, they can
swivel around and go after them on the opposite wall, said Matt Nichols,
a Microvision spokesman.
TT: 有一款產品與射擊遊戲槍結合，並內建動作感測器，不僅能在牆壁
或天花板上呈現遊戲場景，而且上下左右瞄準自如，玩家甚至可以
轉身轟掉背後的壞蛋。
(There is a product combining a toy rifle that is equipped with motion
sensors. It can not only project the scene of the game on the wall or
24
ceiling, but allow players to aim left and right, up and down freely and
swivel around to get rid of the villains behind their backs.)
(8) No. 13
ST: Last month, Mr. Lindbergh stirred the pot by creating a series of covers
for French Elle that showed stars like Monica Bellucci, Eva Herzigova
and Sophie Marceau without makeup or retouching.
TT: 為了彰顯訴求，林德伯格幫法國四月號 Elle 雜誌拍出八位歐洲女星
脂粉未施的素顏照，更勁爆的是照片完全未經任何加工或修改，強
調的就是自然、真實。
(To meet the demand, Mr. Lindbergh shot the covers of the April issue
for French Elle, featuring eight European female celebrities without
makeup. What’s even more shocking is that the photos were not at all
processed or altered, emphasizing natural and real.)
In examples (7) and (8), much information is removed from the source texts. Often
omitted in the target texts are the names and job titles of the people who make relevant
statements in the report, or public figures with whom the target readers might not be
familiar. Such omission of details would not jeopardize the understanding of the readers,
but instead facilitate their reading comprehension. Furthermore, without these unknown
or even bewildering names, the target news stories are more likely to bring the readers’
attention to the interesting parts of the soft news and effectively perform the appellative
function.
Judged from the analysis above, the primary function of most of the source news
texts can be defined as both appellative and referential, with the phatic function being
secondary, whereas the primary function of most of the target versions can be described
as appellative alone, with the referential, expressive, and phatic functions being
25
secondary.
3.3 Shifts of Engagement Resources
Soft news stories are less strict with their structure and thus may contain versatile
styles. As the source and target soft news articles have different schematic structures,
the analysis of engagement shifts will be made in terms of the two basic and commonly
shared parts of soft news: the headline and the main body.
3.3.1 The Headline Part
Despite the fact that the original headlines and the transedited headlines vary to a
great extent in their content (see Section 3.2), they are similar in their little use of
heteroglossic engagement resources, as Table 3.1 illustrates:
Table 3.1: Total numbers of heteroglossic and monoglossic headlines
Heteroglossic
Monoglossic
Source headline
4
16
Target headline
5
15
Only four source headlines (those of the news items No. 5, No. 11, No. 13 and No. 16)
and five target headlines (those of the news items No. 1, No. 4, No. 11, No. 12 and
No.13) are heteroglossic. The majority of barely asserted (i.e. monoglossic) headlines
can be characterized as “intersubjectively neutral, objective or factual” (White &
Motoki, 2006, p. 192) and are therefore mostly deprived of interactive features. Table
3.2 presents the respective occurrence of the resources in the engagement system. It is
worth noting that though the use of engagement resources is scarce in the headline part
and those adopted in the source headlines seem to be retained in the target counterparts,
most of the engagement resources actually appear in different headlines. In other words,
26
the target headlines do not correspond to their source versions in terms of both content
and use of engagement resources.
Table 3.2: Total numbers of engagement resources in the headline part
Engagement
Disclaim
Proclaim
Entertain
Attribute
Source texts
Target texts
1. Deny
1
3
2. Counter
1
1
1. Concur
0
0
2. Pronounce
0
0
3. Endorse
0
0
4. Leading questions
0
0
1. Evidence
0
0
2. Likelihood
1
0
3. Hearsay
0
0
4. Expository questions
1
1
1. Acknowledge
0
0
2. Distance
0
0
The following examples can make clear the above-mentioned similarity and
difference between the source headlines and their transedited versions:
(9) No. 17
ST: Masculinity in a Spray Can
TT: 美少年重外貌 從頭到腳勤保養
(American teenagers are conscious about appearance: skin care from
head to toe)
(10) No. 15
ST: Foreign Languages Fade in Class — Except Chinese
TT: 大陸出錢出人 全美學中文正夯
(Mainland [China] offers money and people: learning Chinese is the
trend in the U.S.)
27
The source headline in example (9) conveys a vague idea without giving further details
while the target counterpart directly pinpoints the gist of the coverage, telling its readers
that it is the teenagers that are relying on spray cans to bring out their masculinity.
Example (10) is a similar one without heteroglossic engagement resources, but slightly
different in details. Even though the source headline in the example directly tells the
readers the focus of the news story, the target headline gives even more information,
telling the target readers the reason why learning Chinese is booming and where this
phenomenon is happening.
3.3.2 The Main Body Part
Both the source and target texts teem with heteroglossic engagement resources in
their main body parts, but with some differences (see Table 3.3).
Table 3.3: Total numbers of dialogically contractive and expansive engagement
resources in the main body part
Source texts
Target texts
Dialogic contraction
145
277
Dialogic expansion
151
115
In the source news stories, the proportion of dialogic contraction and dialogic expansion
is balanced, which signifies that the original writers probably place equal emphasis on
guiding the readers’ viewpoints and entertaining external opinions. The target texts, on
the other hand, are more focused on leading the readers with the additional dialogically
contractive resources. It is notable that the number of dialogically contractive resources
leaps from 145 times in the source texts to 277 times in the target texts, by about 91%,
compared with a 24% drop of dialogically expansive resources from 151 times in the
source texts to 115 times in the target texts. The target versions not only keep the
28
original contractive expressions but reinforce them with additional ones. In contrast,
24% of the original expansive formulations are either missing or turned into contractive
ones in the target texts.
As illustrated in Table 3.4, the categories of Deny, Counter, Endorse and
Acknowledge exhibit salient increases and decreases of engagement resources in the
target texts. As the numbers suggest, resources of Deny, Counter and Endorse seem to
have the tendency of being used more often in the transedited texts, while resources of
Attribute exhibit significant reduction in Acknowledge. In what follows, excerpts with
shifts of the above-mentioned engagement expressions will be drawn from the case
study data to elucidate the differences between the source and the target texts.
Table 3.4: Total numbers of engagement resources in the main body part
Engagement
Dialogic
Disclaim
contraction
Proclaim
Dialogic
Entertain
expansion
Attribute
Source texts
Target texts
1. Deny
62
102
2. Counter
66
135
1. Concur
13
15
2. Pronounce
3
7
3. Endorse
1
17
4. Leading questions
0
1
1. Evidence
7
8
2. Likelihood
41
40
3. Hearsay
1
1
4. Expository questions
10
9
1. Acknowledge
92
56
2. Distance
0
0
3.3.2.1 Deny and Counter
The additional resources of Deny in the target texts are mainly used to create a
surprising effect and to draw the readers’ attention. Specifically, more resources of Deny
are usually added in the target texts to couple the subjects of the news stories with
29
related information. On the surface, these additional expressions of Deny are used to
contradict a fact plainly in a negative statement, but actually they introduce a known
brand or product, or a contrary fact, belief or benefit so as to make the real focus of the
news story stand out, as can be exemplified by the following passages:
(11) No. 2
ST: It is … of the Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien, an unfiltered, unpasteurized,
limited-edition ale brewed by Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes in
Switzerland.
TT: 比較特別的是，這款未過濾、限量發行的天然發酵麥酒，並非
並非出自
著名的比利時五大修道院，而是來自瑞士的「弗朗什山釀酒廠」
（Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes）。
(What’s more interesting, this unfiltered, limited-edition natural ale
does not come from any of the five noted Trappist abbeys in Belgium
but from Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes in Switzerland.)
(12) No. 7
ST: ... users of Skype on mobile phones can make calls and send instant
messages to other Skype users free, ...
TT: 透過 Skype 來打電話，再也不
不必透過電話商的行動電話網絡，也就
是不
不必付出較昂貴、按秒計費、讓廠商大撈油水的通話費。
(Via Skype, there is no need to make phone calls through phone
companies’ cellular network. That is to say, there is no need to pay
phone bills that are more expensive and charge per second to let phone
companies knock you back.)
The target text in example (11) with the Deny resource 並非(does not) obviously
30
provides more information (see the italic part) than the source text. The fact that the ale
is of Swiss origin could have been stated without referring to the five Trappist abbeys in
Belgium. However, Trappist beers are probably well-known to the target readers and are
thus mentioned to associate the Swiss beer with the Belgian one. In example (12), the
target text not only negates a statement with 不必(no need), but meanwhile informs the
readers of some good news regarding the benefits Skype can bring. While bringing up
the normal situation in which all readers in Taiwan are obliged to conform to the
cellphone carriers’ data plans and pay rather expensive rates, the target text dismisses
the proposition and at the same time shares the good news that it is no longer necessary
for cellphone users to perform such overcharged obligation. In short, by introducing
alternative opinions, possibly recognized ones that all readers agree with, the target text
then rejects the viewpoints through resources of Deny and thereby highlights the
advantages of the subject matter, taking the readers by surprise in the target soft news.
On top of Deny, extra resources of Counter such as however and but are mainly
added in the target news stories to accentuate the effect of surprise as well. See the
following examples for instance:
(13) No. 7
ST: Apple will limit Skype’s use on the iPhone somewhat, allowing Skype
calls to be made only when the device is connected to local Wi-Fi
networks…
iPhone 手機使用 Skype 服務設限，只
只允許用
TT: 然而，蘋果電腦打算對
然而
戶的手機連接到地區性 Wi-Fi 網絡時，才能打 Skype 電話……。
(However, Apple Computer plans to limit the use of Skype service on
the iPhone, only allowing users to make Skype calls when their
cellphones are connected to local Wi-Fi networks.)
31
(14) No. 1
ST: Borshoff, a communications firm in Indianapolis with 40 employees,
has a Bring Your Baby to Work program for infants ages [sic] 6 weeks
to 6 months. The firm pays 80 percent of an employee’s full salary
when the child is in the office.
TT: 明尼蘇達州「Borshoff 通信公司」有四十名員工，公司老闆馬修鼓
勵員工帶六周至六月大的嬰幼兒一起上班，但
但必須減薪兩成。
(Borshoff, a communications firm in Indianapolis, has 40 employees.
The boss Mathew encourages his employees to bring infants aged 6
weeks to 6 months to work, but their salary will be reduced by 20
percent.)
After the paragraph preceding the target excerpt in example (13) mentions the low cost
and widespread use of Skype, 然而(however) is inserted to catch the readers’ eyes and
lead them to go on reading until they understand the parameters set by the company,
presented with another Counter resource 只(only). Similarly, the target text of example
(14) is added with a transitional word 但(but) to put emphasis on the reduced salary,
while the source text plainly describes the firm’s policy. The messages presented before
these Counter resources are likely to be acknowledged facts whereas the information
following them is new, novel and surprising to the readers.
3.3.2.2 Acknowledge and Endorse
In the target texts, the resources of Acknowledge used in the source versions tend
to be deleted in the following two situations: (1) as a result of transediting strategies that
curtail repetitive Acknowledge resources ascribed to the same source, and (2) due to the
shifts of resources of Acknowledge into those of Endorse.
32
Example (15) below exhibits the first occasion. The Acknowledge verb said is
used once at the beginning and another time at the end of the paragraph in the source
text. While the source text starts with the quoted statement, then to the cited source, the
TV series, the TV station and back to the unfinished statement made by the source, in
the target text, the order of the information displayed is quite the opposite, beginning
with the TV station, the TV series, the cited source, and finally to the statement. The
two Acknowledge verbs in the source text are synthesized into one in the target text.
(15) No.14
ST: “The vampire is the new James Dean,” said Julie Plec, the writer and
executive producer of “The Vampire Diaries,” a forthcoming series on
the CW network…about high school femmes and hommes fatales.
“There is something so still and sexy about these young erotic
predators,” she said.
TT: 美國 CW 電視台（CW Network）預定九月播映的最新影集《吸血
鬼日記》
（The Vampire Diaries）
，同樣鎖定高中校園為背景，編劇兼
執行製作茱莉．布列克說
說：「吸血鬼是新的詹姆士．狄恩，這些年
輕的情色掠奪者是如此沉靜與性感。」
(The latest TV series “The Vampire Diaries,” slated to air in September
on the CW Network in America, is also set in a high school setting.
Writer and executive producer, Julie Plec said “The vampire is the new
James Dean. These young erotic predators are so still and sexy.”)
The second occasion in which Acknowledge expressions are reduced occurs when
endorsements are found to replace acknowledgements in the target texts especially
when the importance of the cited sources is recognized. The 17 cases of endorsement, as
Table 3.4 indicates, involve the head of a company such as directors, founders, and
33
presidents as well as authorities like experts, professors, and software designers. The
following are such cases in point:
(16) No. 10
ST: Such devices may have considerable appeal for consumers, so long as
the glasses are attractive and lightweight, said Henry Fuchs, a professor
of computer science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
TT: 北卡羅萊納大學電腦科學教授富齊斯表示，未來此種眼鏡重量若能
表示
更輕、外型和功能更具吸引力，市場潛力必無可限量。
(A professor of computer science at the University of North Carolina,
Henry Fuchs points out that if the glasses can be lighter and more
attractive in design and function, their market potential will be beyond
measure.)
(17) No. 2
ST: “There are an increasing number of people who are doing video
searches to supplement and improve what they do in their offline lives,”
said Suranga Chandratillake, the chief executive of Blinkx, a video
search engine.
TT: 影像搜尋引擎 Blinkx 公司執行長蘇蘭加．錢德拉提雷克表示，有愈
表示
來愈多人使用視訊搜尋…
(Suranga Chandratillake, the chief executive of Blinkx, a video search
engine, points out that there are an increasing number of people who
are doing video searches…)
As can be seen from examples (16) and (17), the cited sources are a professor of
computer science and a chief executive, and the reporting verb say used in the source
texts is replaced with 指出(point out) in the target versions. The endorsements in the
34
target texts are capable of signifying the level of the importance or gravity of matters.
The statements made by reliable figures or leaders are credible, thus endorsed in the
transedited texts.
3.4 Discussion
Based on the regular shifts of engagement resources identified in the headline and
main body parts of the target news texts, this section will elaborate on the ways the
reader involvement is mediated in the target texts and on the connection between such
mediation and the target text functions.
The original reader engagement is generally not altered in the headline part of the
target news, but the content of the target headlines is different from that of the source
counterparts. Headlines should provide a reading path, leading the readers to interpret
what follows in the main body part (cf. Reah, 2002). Accordingly, the translators may
have supposed that most of the target headlines, like the majority of the source
headlines, should be presented in the form of the bare assertion, as the monoglossic
headlines can enable the writers to point out the focal points of news stories and lead the
readers toward a specific path to maximize the intended communicative effect (Martin
& White 2005, p. 101). However, in order to successfully enhance communication
efficiency, apart from specifying the reading direction, headlines, which are what make
the first impression on the readers, need to attract the readers’ interest and keep them
eager to read more. Hence, the focus shifts in the headline section can be attributed to
the appellative function which the source and target texts primarily aim to achieve, as
mentioned in Section 3.2. In other words, the source and target headlines are meant to
appeal to the readers’ curiosity and invoke their responses. The only difference is that
the implicit source headlines lead the readers to find “what” happened, while the
35
explicit target headlines lead the readers to find “how” the event at issue happened. The
divergent ways the source and target headlines are presented are not directed toward
different functionality, but rather the same one—to exert the appellative function.
The frequent addition of Deny and Counter resources in the target soft news (see
Table 3.4) serves to make the story-telling by the writers more genuine and intimate, as
opposed to the relatively more formal source news stories. The text-reader distance in
the target versions is shortened with expressions such as it does not come from… and
but… that are used to engage the readers. The additional expressions of Deny and
Counter can initiate a dialogue between the target texts and their readers as if the texts
were telling the readers that the object to be brought to light in the coverage was not like
what they had expected. The text-reader rapport may thus be built in the target texts as
long as the target readers could embrace the particular proposition being advanced to
them.
The close text-reader distance that is stimulated in the target texts by Deny and
Counter are also in harmony with the appellative function of soft news—to make the
receivers respond in a certain way. While the source readers, possessing better
background knowledge, may be more familiar with what is introduced in the source soft
news, it is a different case for the target readers. From this perspective, the target
readers might need assistance in comprehending the news content, so the target texts
inform their readers of relevant information for their reference via the addition of Deny
resources. By delivering useful information contrary to the readers’ previous
assumptions, the target texts can successfully project the writers as being friendly and
caring to their readers and create surprise as well as effective reader involvement. As for
the addition of Counter resources (such as however and but) in the target texts, it may be
caused by the special features of news transediting. The original news stories need to be
36
retold in Chinese within a rather short frame, so it is essential to adopt clear transitions
in the Chinese transedited versions to generate the target readers’ interest. As a result,
the products of soft news transediting tend to be arranged in a way that is loaded with
surprises and packed with resources of Counter, which work together with expressions
of Deny to create the counter-expectational effect in the target texts.
The difference of reader involvement between the source and target texts can also
be ascribed to the fact that the referential function is prioritized in the source soft news
whereas it is considered secondary in the target version. Such distinction between the
source and target news stories can be detected in the relatively economical use of Deny
and Counter resources in the original soft news (as Table 3.4 demonstrates). The
Disclaim resources supplemented in the target texts can turn a piece of information that
might have been solely referential into a discourse that is capable of inviting the readers’
responses or participation.
The shifts of Acknowledge resources into Endorse expressions change the role of
the writer from a distant story-teller into one who is committed and responsible for his
or her own citations. Upon reading the remarks put forward by expressions of Endorse,
the target readers may spontaneously take sides with the original writers as Endorse
resources can focus the readers’ attention on the utterances of external sources and
exclude other alternative viewpoints.
The shift of the writers’ positions from neutral to approving may be mainly due to
the expressive function that is exclusive to the target soft news. These cited statements
are based on facts, common knowledge, or information mentioned by figures who are
influential enough to make these statements. With Endorse resources, which reveal the
writer’s personal judgment on the matter, the transedited texts can in effect align the
target readers into not only the value positions of the cited sources but also into what the
37
readers may believe the original writers regarded as correct and valid.
3.5 Conclusion
Soft news deals with human interest stories that tend to address the readers rather
directly instead of reiterating an event with little human touch. Hence, the ways the
readers are involved should reasonably be worth attention when it comes to soft news
translation. With Nord’s translation-oriented model of text functions as the theoretical
background, this chapter has conducted a case study on English-Chinese news
transediting, contrasting the similarities and differences of texts functions and
engagement resources between 20 pieces of soft news stories and their transedited texts,
with the purpose of examining the interrelation between the target text functions and the
ways the original reader involvement is adjusted.
The results have shown that the interactions between the texts and readers
basically remain the same in the headline part due to the preferred use of bare assertions,
which are monoglossically formulated and are thus lacking in reader involvement.
Nonetheless, regular changes can still be seen with respect to the focus of headline
content as a result of the translators’ conformity to the appellative function by tailoring
the headlines to resort to the target readers’ inquisitiveness. In the main body part, the
commonly spiced Deny and Counter resources in the target texts shorten the distance
between the target texts and their readers. Responsible for such mediation is the
receiver-oriented appellative function, whose effect in soft news includes surprise and
entertainment. Moreover, by replacing Acknowledge resources with Endorse ones
owing to the target expressive function, the target texts can induce the target readers to
side with external sources and thereby commit the original writers to taking part in a
colloquy or, to be precise, a “trialogue” among the writer, speaker, and reader.
38
Chapter 4
THE CASE STUDY ON COMMUNITY SOFT
NEWS TRANSLATION
Applying the translation-oriented model of text functions and the engagement
system, this chapter presents the other case study which looks into community soft news
translation. In Section 4.1, the case study data will first be introduced before the text
functions of the source and target texts are respectively elaborated upon in Section 4.2.
Then, the textual analysis will be carried out in Section 4.3 on the shifts of engagement
resources in the headline and main body parts of the news stories. Lastly, based on the
identified shifts, Section 4.4 will discuss how the reader involvement in the target texts
is mediated and how the target text functions govern such mediation, followed by the
concluding remarks of this chapter.
4.1 Data Collection
The corpus for this case study covers 20 English soft news items from The
Economist and their translated Chinese versions from the Web site of Ecocn.org. To
compare with the first case study in Chapter 3, the news stories chosen for this case
study were, too, published between 2009 and 2010, as illustrated in Appendix B, using
the headlines of the source and target texts. In order to observe the general patterns of
soft news stories, a wide variety of topics were selected to cover as diverse themes as
possible, including Science and Technology, Business, Books and Arts, Obituary, Asia,
39
United States, and Britain. The Economist is a well-known English weekly newspaper4
based in London, U.K., and has a circulation of around 1.5 million copies each issue. It
is chosen as the source data for this case study because it is an authoritative newspaper,
and there is a Chinese translation community dedicated to translating the content of The
Economist. Founded in 2006, Ecocn.org is a voluntary translation community
established in China. The Eco Team, as the volunteer translators call themselves, is
comprised of about 240 The Economist lovers who are in reality the readers of the
weekly newspaper and volunteer to translate the magazine cover-to-cover (Osnos, 2004),
biweekly publishing their own Chinese edition named Eco Weekly (Baio, 2009).
4.2 The Text Functions of the Source and Target Texts
After a thorough comparative analysis, the source and target texts are found to
exhibit great resemblances at the macro level. Both of their content and schematic
structure are similar without showing any degree of abridgement by the translators, but
at the micro level, the source and target texts present slight differences in word order,
word choice, etc. which are worth investigating. In short, despite the above-mentioned
textual similarities in content and organizational features, the source and target readers
are not the same, and therefore the text functions of the original and translated versions
are different to some extent as a result of such a discrepancy.
To begin with, the source and target texts share the same primary text function:
the referential function. Both the source and target soft news are aimed at providing
their readers with informative news coverage as the following example illustrates.
4
Though commonly held as a news magazine, The Economist claimed itself to be a newspaper, as
asserted on its Web site: “Even when The Economist incorporated the Bankers' Gazette and Railway
Monitor from 1845 to 1932, it also described itself as ‘a political, literary and general newspaper’”
(http://www.economist.com/help/about-us#About_Economistcom).
40
(1) No. 4
ST: Buoyed by recession-resistant food, pharmaceutical and shampoo
advertisements, gossip magazines have lost fewer advertising pages in
the past year than business or news magazines, according to a tally by
Mediaweek.
TT: 據《媒體週刊》統計，過去一年裡，由抵制衰退的食糧——藥品和
香波廣告維持著，比起商業或新聞雜誌，八卦雜誌失去的廣告頁較
少。
(According to a tally by Mediaweek, in the past year, buoyed by
recession-resistant food—pharmaceutical and shampoo advertisements,
compared with business or news magazines, gossip magazines have lost
fewer advertising pages.)
In addition to the referential function, the primary function of community-translated
target texts also includes the metatextual function. In fact, the source texts are fully
translated by the community translators for basically two types of target readers. The
first type comprises those who might not understand English and are interested in
absorbing the information provided by The Economist and thus have to rely on the
Chinese translations. The other group consists of readers who understand English to
some degree and are inclined to study both the source and target texts as a way of
improving their English knowledge as well as receiving information from the newspaper.
The community translators also belong to this group of target readers. In other words,
this type of target readers read the Chinese edition of The Economist as a source of
information and/or as a means of self-learning, which can be evidenced by the hyperlink
that is provided beside the target news stories to direct yearning readers to a forum
where the source texts and the translations are put together paragraph by paragraph.
41
Additionally, as it is pointed out on the Web site of The Economist, the objective
of this newspaper is to offer “authoritative insight and opinion on international news,
politics, business, finance, science and technology”. By reading the soft news stories
published by The Economist and their Chinese versions, the source and the target
readers are offered the writers’ ideas and attitudes. Therefore, the expressive function
can be regarded as the secondary text function shared by the source and target texts. See
the excerpts below with strong opinions put forward by the original writers:
(2) No. 2
ST: There is a body of research suggesting that violent games can lead to
aggressive thoughts, if not to violence itself.
TT: 大量的研究結果表明，暴力遊戲即使不會使玩家有暴力的行為，也
會讓他們產生暴力的想法。
(There is a body of research showing that even if violent games do not
lead the players to have violent behavior, they make them have violent
thoughts.)
(3) No. 16
ST: China’s environment, most obviously the air in its cities, has been
deteriorating roughly at the same dizzy pace that its industry has been
expanding.
TT: 中國環境惡化的速度幾乎與其工業令人炫目的擴張速度旗鼓相當，
城市中的空氣狀況尤為明顯。
(China’s environment has been deteriorating roughly at the same dizzy
pace that its industry has been expanding, most obviously the air in its
cities.)
42
Furthermore, the majority of the source texts embrace the appellative function as
the secondary text function owing to the entertaining nature of the soft news stories.
Nevertheless, the source appellative function is weakened in the literally translated
target texts and becomes tertiary or even absent as can be witnessed in the following
examples.
(4) No. 1
ST: Also compulsory is the eating of haggis, a concoction of minced offal, fat
and oatmeal stuffed into a sheep’s stomach (a BBC recipe’s final
instruction is “eat and then belch loudly or throw up”).
TT: 同樣必不可少的還有哈吉斯——把碎羊肉、脂肪油、燕麥塞到羊的
胃袋裡做成的蘇格蘭傳統小吃。
（BBC 在某次介紹這種食物做法的時
候，最後一步是“入口後響亮地打個嗝，或者馬上去嘔吐”。）
(Also compulsory is haggis—a traditional Scottish food made by stuffing
minced offal, fat and oatmeal stuffed into a sheep’s stomach. (BBC once
introduced the recipe with the last step being “eat and then belch loudly
or throw up”.)
(5) No. 9
ST: These are not easy times for booksellers. Borders, a big American one,
ditched its boss in January and has closed stores, but is still at risk of
collapse, some analysts say.
TT: 對書店來說，這是個艱難的時代。美國大型書店博多斯在一月份解
雇了它的總裁，而且此時已經關閉了部分店面，但是分析家說，博
多斯仍然有破產的危險。
(For booksellers, this is a difficult time. Borders, a big American
bookstore, laid off its boss in January and has closed some stores, but
43
analysts say Border is still in the danger of bankruptcy.)
In example (4), the statement in the parenthesis is meant to amuse the source readers,
especially those living in the U.K., who are familiar with this famous or infamous
Scottish dish and know how some people would react after they try it for the first time.
However, for the target readers, the cuisine “haggis” may translate as nothing but a
foreign food. Even though its ingredients and recipe are briefly introduced at the
beginning, the target readers who have not heard or tried haggis may not know how it
tastes and even wonder why BBC would make that kind of statement. As for example
(5), an American chain bookstore is described as facing a difficult time and on the verge
of bankruptcy. Compared with the target readers, the source readers might be much
more familiar with the big bookseller, who operates hundreds of superstores in the
United States. Therefore, for those who have never heard of this bookstore, this piece of
information may not strike them as a surprise but is merely rendered as some foreign
news that has nothing to do with them in the target culture.
Lastly, the phatic function forms a secondary function in most of the source texts
as the headlines and opening paragraphs of those news stories are used to establish the
initial contact with the source readers by mentioning a situation, an anecdote, a scenario
or a study. However, such contact is built with the source readers in mind, excluding
those in a completely different culture. Hence, the source phatic function also degrades
in the target news stories and becomes the tertiary function or nearly disappears as the
target readers may not be familiar with the content that is referenced in the source news
stories as can be exemplified by the following headline:
(6) No. 7
ST: Charity as advertising
Give and take
44
Will Pepsi profit by enlisting the public in its philanthropic efforts?
TT: 慈善之名 廣告之實
欲取之，先予之
爭取公眾參與其慈善活動，百事能從中獲益嗎？
(Advertising in the name of charity
Give before you take
In a charitable activity that enlists the public, will Pepsi profit?)
Example (6) shows the source and target headlines with an expository question. This
open-ended question is not only appellative but also phatic in the source culture. It
intrigues the source readers by revealing the name of the coke manufacturer and
meanwhile builds contact with its readers by stating the information in the form of an
interrogation. The source readers are familiar with the product and might have even
joined the particular cause, thus attracted to read the headline they can relate to.
However, for the target readers who regard the news story as self-learning material or as
foreign information, the appellative and phatic function in the target texts are greatly
reduced and even disappears as the question may only strikes the target readers as a
headline or the title of some reading material.
Although demoted in the target texts, the phatic function is at times present when
the referents are familiar to the target readers. Take, for example, the opening paragraph
of item No. 20:
(7) No. 20
ST: Consume more water and you will become much healthier, goes an old
wives’tale. Drink a glass of water before meals and you will eat less,
goes another. Such prescriptions seem sensible, but they have little
rigorous science to back them up.
45
TT: 有種民間說法廣為流傳：多喝些水會更健康。還有一種版本是：
飯前一杯水，吃飯少一嘴。這些瘦身法聽起來挺合情合理，但
沒有縝密的科學依據。
(There is a widely circulated folk belief: Consume more water and
you will become much healthier. Another version goes: Drink a
glass of water before meals and you will eat less. These weight loss
tips sound reasonable, but do not have a sound scientific base.)
The majority of the opening paragraphs of the twenty soft news stories from The
Economist are the lead containing the nut graph. In other words, the structural pattern of
the soft news stories from The Economist is similar to the inverted pyramid structure of
hard news, which tells the readers the gist in the very first paragraph. The difference is
that the lead in the soft news does not contain all the “what,” “when,” “where,” “why”
and “how” information, but slowly leads the readers into the news coverage like
example (7). The opening paragraph of item No. 20 starts with two old wives’ tales to
build relationship with the readers by referring to some regimes they might have heard
of. The belief of “drinking more water makes you healthy” should be common in both
the source and target cultures. Hence, not only the source but the target readers may feel
intrigued to read the news story.
To sum up, the source and target text functions can be arranged in Table 4.1 below.
Table 4.1: Text functions of the source and target texts
Source text functions
Target text functions
primary
referential
secondary
appellative, expressive & phatic
primary
referential & metatextual
secondary
expressive
tertiary/null
appellative & phatic
The source and target texts shares the referential function as their primary functions
46
with an extra metatextual function affixed to the target texts. The secondary functions of
the source texts are the appellative, expressive and phatic functions with only the
expressive function being retained in the target versions. The appellative and phatic
functions are weakened and become tertiary or even non-existent in most of the target
news stories, with only a few cases preserving the appellative and/or phatic functions if
the content appeals to the target readers’ interests.
4.3 Shifts of Engagement Resources
Similar to the first case study, the soft news structure of the source and target texts
of The Economist does not show a consistent organizational feature. Hence, this section
will follow the form of the previous case study and conduct analyses on respectively the
headline and the main body parts, the common structural pattern of the soft news
stories.
4.3.1 The Headline Part
Different from the transedited soft news of the previous case study, the content of
the source texts is mainly not adjusted in the target texts. On the other hand, the shifts of
engagement resources are similar to those of the first case study. As Table 4.2 shows,
the numbers of engagement resources respectively used in the source and target
headlines are not changed. Around 40% of the source and target headlines are
heteroglossic while the rest are monoglossic.
Table 4.2: Total numbers of heteroglossic and monoglossic headlines
Heteroglossic
Monoglossic
Source headline
7
13
Target headline
8
12
47
The monoglossic headlines are barely asserted without any use of interactive features,
intended to point out general facts, phenomena or information for the readers to know.
The categories to which the engagement resources belong can be seen in the table below.
Concerning the heteroglossic headlines, the engagement resources used in the source
headlines are generally retained in the target versions as Table 4.3 illustrates.
Table 4.3: Total numbers of engagement resources in the headline part
Engagement
Disclaim
Proclaim
Entertain
Attribute
Source texts
Target texts
1. Deny
1
2
2. Counter
1
1
1. Concur
0
0
2. Pronounce
0
0
3. Endorse
0
0
4. Leading questions
0
0
1. Evidence
0
0
2. Likelihood
0
0
3. Hearsay
0
0
4. Expository questions
3
3
1. Acknowledge
2
2
2. Distance
0
0
The following examples will demonstrate how heteroglossic headlines are translated
without removing the engagement resources.
(8) No. 18
ST: Corporate psychology
How to tell when your boss is lying
It's not just that his lips are moving
TT: 公司心理學
如何看出老闆在撒謊
可不只
不只是看他動動嘴唇那麼簡單
不只
(Corporate psychology
48
How to tell when your boss is lying
It’s just not so easy as reading his moving lips)
(9) No. 11
ST: Greeting cards
Message of hope
Card companies believe technology will bring a smile to special
occasions
TT: 賀卡
(充滿)希望的消息
賀卡公司相信
相信：在特別的節慶裡，科技能帶來市場的復蘇
相信
(Greeting cards
(Filled with) message of hope
Card companies believe: on special occasions, technology will bring
revival to the market)
Both the monoglossic and heteroglossic headlines of the news stories collected from
The Economist are typically composed of three lines with the first two ones being noun
phrases and the third one a complete sentence. Except for two cases of expository
questions found located in the second line (items No. 2 and No. 14), the rest
engagement resources all appear in the third line like those in examples (8) and (9).
Such arrangement of the headline can be assumed to lay out the basic information in the
first two lines and then engage the readers with the third, thereby tempting them to read
the whole news story, i.e. the main body. The Deny resource not and Counter resource
just in the source text of example (8) are used to contradict the readers’ expectations and
are capable of arousing their curiosity. Both headlines imply that telling when your boss
is lying could be as easy as reading his lips, but it is not. The Acknowledge resource
49
believe in example (9) introduces the card companies’ statement and leads the readers to
find out why they have this kind of faith in their business. These engagement
formulations in the source headlines are entirely retained in the target versions, through
which the target readers are able to read the headlines as they are in the source texts.
4.3.2 The Main Body Part
Though without obvious restructuring of the content like that in the first case
study, the main body parts of the source and target news stories show noticeable
differences between the numbers of dialogically contractive and expansive engagement
resources as Table 4.4 exhibits.
Table 4.4: Total numbers of dialogically contractive and expansive engagement
resources in the main body part
Source texts
Target texts
Dialogic contraction
255
306
Dialogic expansion
103
81
The source texts are endowed with much more dialogically contractive engagement
resources than dialogically expansive ones. Similarly, the composition of dialogic
contraction and expansion in the target texts remains the same. This indicates that
pointing out a reading path may be more of the main purpose for both the source and
target news stories. The increase of dialogic contraction and decrease of dialogic
expansion are identical to those in the first case study, but the difference of numbers is
not that dramatic. The dialogically contractive resources retain the original ones and
increase from 255 times in the source texts to 306 in the target texts by 20% while the
number of dialogically expansive resources decreases by 21% from 103 times in the
source texts to 81 times in the target versions.
50
Table 4.5 presents the numbers of engagement resources and the categories to
which the engagement resources belong. The engagement resources that increase and
decrease the most are similar to those in the first case study except for Likelihood,
which decreases in this case study. It can be found that Deny and Counter present slight
increases by 13% and 14% while Endorse increases by 130% with the widest margin.
As for dialogically expansive resources, Likelihood and Acknowledge are the two
categories that reduce to the greatest extent with decreases of 26% and 21% respectively.
In the following sections, the differences between the source and the target texts will be
explained in detail with excerpts drawn from the case study data to shed light on the
aforementioned shifts of engagement resources.
Table 4.5: Total numbers of engagement resources in the main body part
Source texts
Target texts
1. Deny
99
112
2. Counter
127
145
1. Concur
12
17
2. Pronounce
5
7
3. Endorse
11
25
4. Leading questions
1
0
1. Evidence
11
10
2. Likelihood
43
32
3. Hearsay
0
0
4. Expository questions
3
3
1. Acknowledge
43
34
2. Distance
3
2
Engagement
Dialogical
contraction
Disclaim
Proclaim
Dialogical
expansion
Entertain
Attribute
4.3.2.1 Deny and Counter
The numbers of Deny and Counter resources do not rise as much as those in the
previous case study, but regular increases can still be noticed. Similarly, the additional
Deny and Counter complement each other and are often used together in the same
51
sentence to create a sudden shift of focus in the target news story as shown in the
following examples.
(10) No. 13
ST: They are raw and energetic, with rubbish-strewn streets, stooped old
men, fat painted ladies and posturing youths in tight jeans.
TT: 這組照片樸實無
無華，卻
卻也充滿活力—在垃圾遍地的街道裡，有身形
佝僂、沮沮獨行的老人；有濃妝豔抹、盛裝打扮的胖女人；還有身
著緊身夾克、搔手弄資的年輕人。
(This set of pictures are plain without luster, but full of energy—on
rubbish-strewn streets are stooped old men walking alone, fat painted
women who are dressed up, and posturing youths in tight jacket.)
(11) No. 15
ST: Even so, these have achieved operating rates of around 22 words per
minute—considerably higher than the 16 an average user can achieve
using predictive texting.
TT: 但即使如此，這些試驗還是取得了每分鐘 22 個單詞的識別速度，
而以往採用預測下文的方法用戶平均只
只能達到每分鐘 16 個單詞的
輸出速度，如此對比就可看出使用“長尾鸚鵡”後文本輸出的速度要
快得多。
(But even so, these experiments achieved recognition rates of 22 words
per minute and users of the method of predictive texting can only
achieve output rates of 16 words per minute. The comparison shows
with “Parakeet”, rates of text output are much faster.)
The source texts of examples (10) and (11) are fully translated with their content
52
unaltered. However, the target texts are rendered with additional Deny and Counter
resources. In example (10) “raw and energetic” are translated into “simple, not glossy,
but full of energy” to imply that the photos could have been glossy, but they are not and
that even though they are simple, they are full of energy. It is apparent that the target
text is infused with more intensity in the narrative rather than just making a plain
statement. In example (11), two supplementary Counter resources but and only are
added to the target text, creating a clear transition in the tone and distinguishing the
rates the particular speech-recognition program could achieve.
4.3.2.2 Endorse and Acknowledge
The increase of Endorse and the decrease of Acknowledge in the target soft news
stories occur as a result of shifts between the two resources. As can be seen in Table 4.5,
resources of Endorse increase by 14 times and those of Acknowledge decrease by 11
times in the target texts. The shifts of Endorse and Acknowledge resources tend to
co-occur; that is, some Acknowledge resources used in the source texts are likely to be
replaced by Endorse resources in the target texts, especially when the addressers are
some studies, research findings, reports, tests and so forth. Take, for instance, the
following excerpts with such co-occurrence.
(12) No. 5
ST: The Pew Research Centre notes in a recent report that enrolment rates
have been rising and participation rates declining for decades now.
表示，在大學註冊率上升的同
TT: 皮尤研究中心在最近的一項報告中表示
表示
時，就業參與率卻連續幾十年下降。
(The Pew Research Centre points out in a recent report that while
enrolment rates have been rising, participation rates have been
53
declining for decades now.)
(13) No. 10
ST: A strong reaction in the brain in response to “near misses” is correlated
with a greater tendency to compulsive gambling, according to new
research.
TT: 據最新研究表明
表明，這種“近距離脫靶”在大腦中產生了很強的反應，
表明
會促使一個人越發情不自禁去賭。
(New research demonstrates, such “near misses” create a strong
reaction in the brain, causing a person to gamble in spite of himself.)
In example (12), the statement made by a research center is simply acknowledged by
the original writer in the source text with a neutral reporting verb “note”, but it is
endorsed in the target text with a resource of Endorse 表示(point out). Similarly, in
example (13) an Acknowledge resource “according to” is employed in the source text to
introduce the research findings while 表明(demonstrate) is used in the target version to
show endorsement on the part of the writer. With Endorse resources, both of the
target-text examples are capable of raising the level of authority of the report and
research cited in the news stories and gaining trust from the target readers.
4.3.2.3 Likelihood
Likelihood displays the largest percentage decline among all the engagement
resources that decrease in the target texts. Likelihood resources are often omitted in the
target texts when the statements in which they occur pertain to research reports,
assumptions, predictions or conclusions drawn by the original writers as the following
extracts illustrate:
54
(14) No. 8
ST: And research presented to the AAAS meeting in San Diego suggests it
may be right to do so. It has already been established that those who
siesta are less likely to die of heart disease.
TT: 一份提交到在聖達戈舉行的 AAAS 科學年會的報告中說：這麼做是
正確的。有午睡習慣的人很少有死於心臟類疾病的——這個已成定
論。
(A report presented to the AAAS meeting in San Diego says: it is right
to do so. Few people who have the habit of siesta die of heart
disease—this has already been established.)
(15) No. 15
ST: With the likes of Google, Nuance and Vlingo now offering mobile
speech-recognition services for phones, and the development of
speech-driven systems for use in vehicles, Parakeet may be flying into
a growing market.
TT: 隨著谷歌、紐安斯和 Vlingo 等公司紛紛給手機增加了語音辨識功
能，以及如福特的 SYNC 這樣的車載多媒體通訊娛樂技術的發展，
語音辨識技術的市場前景無限廣闊，“長尾鸚鵡”必將
必將飛得更高。
必將
(With the likes of Google, Nuance and Vlingo now offering mobile
speech-recognition services for phones, and the development of
multimedia communication and entertainment technology for use in
vehicles such as Ford’s SYNC, the prospects of the speech-recognition
market are indefinite and Parakeet must be flying even higher.)
The Likelihood resource may used in the source text of example (14) presents the
statement as one of the possibilities, namely, “taking a siesta may be right”. This leaves
55
room for negotiation and thus entertains those who may dissent. In contrast, the target
counterpart barely asserts that “it is right to do so” without seeking to accommodate
alternative opinions. The source text of example (15) too employs a Likelihood resource
“may” to signify other possibilities for the future of the speech-recognition application
named Parakeet. By doing so, the original writer does not have to take responsibility for
the prediction should the service fail to succeed in the future. On the contrary, the target
text not only drops the Likelihood resource but replaces it with Concur, a dialogically
contractive formulation which construes the target readers as agreeing with and sharing
the same knowledge of the writer.
4.4 Discussion
Following the analysis on the source and target texts, this section will discuss how
the reader involvement of the target texts is mediated and the interrelation between the
mediation and the target text functions as outlined in Section 4.2 from the perspectives
of respectively the headline and the main body parts.
With regard to the headline part, three fifths of the source and target headlines are
monoglossic because of the headline’s inherent function to draw readers’ attention and
show them a specific direction to read the news story. While no major difference was
found between the engagement resources employed in the source and target headlines,
the reader involvement is slightly changed in the target versions. The original reader
engagement in the source texts becomes weaker in the target counterparts on account of
the different readerships. The target readers are either fans of The Economist or English
learners; the Chinese versions hence are intended to present the information as it is in
the source culture to the target readers. Consequently, the engagement resources’
function to invite the readers to participate in the texts no longer serves in the target
56
news stories as they are not employed to engage the target readers like those in the
source culture. The preservation of the source engagement resources might be due to the
referential as well as the metatextual functions of the target texts. The source headlines
are kept intact in order to provide the target readers with the original information.
Furthermore, such unabridged headlines also allow the avid target readers to refer to the
source texts as English-learning material. In fact, many of them might be proficient in
English and are likely to point out translation errors in the forum for the community
translators to correct.
By means of involving readers in dialogic space, the addition of Deny and
Counter resources in the main body parts of the target texts pulls the target readers
closer to the texts which were originally stiff and distant to them. Resources of Deny
and Counter (such as not and but) are injected where appropriate to not only assist the
target readers with comprehension but add more spice to The Economist without
compromising its originality. The addition of some extra Deny and Counter resources in
the target news stories is in relation to the target referential and metatextual functions.
The target texts therefore generally remain the same and meanwhile become more
readable after being tweaked by the translators with minor changes made to the source
texts. The text-reader distance that is made closer in the target news stories is similar to
that in the first case study except for the fact that it is not changed so ostentatiously in
this one.
As for the shifts of Acknowledge into Endorse in the target news stories, the
newly employed dialogically contractive resources are, too, capable of shortening the
distance between the texts and the readers. While acknowledgements impart a neutral
stance on the part of the authorial voice, Endorsements align the readers into the value
position of the speaker as well as the original writer and thereby engage the target
57
readers in the news stories. The target expressive function can be held responsible for
the occurrence of the shifts. The target readers are interested in the information from
The Economist and might choose to read its Chinese version to learn global issues from
the perspective of the newspaper. The translators are fans of The Economist and may
also acknowledge the authority of the magazine, therefore endorsing the citations in the
publications, believing they are correct and trustworthy. As a result, resources of
Acknowledge are replaced by Endorse expressions to reinforce The Economist’s
authority in the target culture. Another reason for the shift of Acknowledge into Endorse
resources may be the language convention in China. In many cases, the Endorse
expression 表明(demonstrate) is found to be the translation of Acknowledge. While 表
明 seems to be a commonly-used reporting verb for the Chinese translators, it is rare or
nearly non-existent in Taiwanese newspapers as not a single case can be found in the
data of the first case study.
The omission of some of the Likelihood resources in the main body part can be
considered to work in junction with Endorse to lead the target readers to trust the
newspaper and can be attributed to the target referential and metatextual functions. The
target readers are likely to be loyal fans of The Economist and the Chinese news stories
of the magazine may be regarded as authoritative information and self-learning material.
Accordingly, Likelihood formulations, which are dialogically expansive and are meant
bring the addressees’ attention to other possibilities, may no longer be necessary in the
target texts because accommodating different voices and leaving room for negotiation is
not the primary concern of the translators. This may also correspond to the missing
appellative function in the target texts. Instead of interacting with the news stories, the
target readers are expected to fully accept what The Economist has to offer without
suspecting its propositions.
58
4.5 Conclusion
Thanks to the popularity of the Internet, community translation is now ubiquitous
in a variety of fields and should be worth more scholarly attention than it has received.
Drawing upon Nord’s translation-oriented model of text functions and the engagement
system, this chapter has conducted a case study on 20 items of English-Chinese soft
news translation carried out by a translation community based in Mainland China. The
texts functions and engagement resources of the source and target texts are respectively
analyzed in terms of their headline and main body parts.
The results indicate that the engagement resources adopted in the source
headlines remain in the target versions as a result of the referential as well as the
metatextual functions. Nevertheless, the reader involvement substantially diminishes in
the translations because the target readers are not whom the original writers intended to
address. In the main body part, all evidence seems to point to the fact that the translators
employ Deny and Counter, omit Likelihood and replace Acknowledge with Endorse in
an effort to make the target texts more comprehensible and to lead the target readers to
believe in the content of The Economist. With the additional dialogically-contractive
resources and newly constructed bare assertions, the target texts may successfully align
the readers into the value position of the newspaper. To sum up, the shifts of
engagement resources in the main body part conspire to draw the target readers to the
texts in an attempt to fortify their trust in The Economist.
59
Chapter 5
DISCUSSIONS AND CONCLUSION
To answer the research questions posed at the beginning of this thesis, this chapter
will first delve into the differences of the mediation of reader involvement in the target
headline and main body parts shown by the two case studies conducted in Chapters 3
and 4. After the detailed comparison, the conclusion part will offer the summary of
research, implications of this thesis as well as suggestions for further research.
5.1 Comparison of Reader Involvement
In this section, the contextual factors of the two case studies will first be compared,
after which the reader involvement respectively mediated in their headline and main
body parts will be discussed in depth to bring out its connection with a variety of
contextual factors, which is not mentioned in the previous chapters.
5.1.1 Contextual Factors of the Target News
The section on Literature Review in Chapter 2 has introduced two types of news
translation as well as their specific features. Based on those distinguished features,
Table 5.1 below offers a thorough comparison to give a clear picture of the contextual
differences of the two sets of target texts from the first and second case studies. It can be
observed from the table that language and news genre are the only similarities the two
sets of target news share. Apart from the two features, the rest of the contextual
60
Table 5.1: Comparison of the target contextual factors
Target news of the 1st case study
Language
Source texts
English-Chinese
The New York Times
The Economist
News genre
Translators
Target news of the 2nd case study
Soft news
Full-time translators/journalists
Amateur community translators
as readers
Type
Transediting
Full translation
Role of the
Gatekeeper
Gatewatcher
Publication
Print
Online
Readership
Local readers
Geographically-dispersed fans
Purpose(s)
Information-sharing and
Information-sharing
translator
market-driven
factors, namely, translator, translation type, role of translator, publication, readership
and purpose are all different. Accordingly, the ensuing sections will shed light on how
the different contextual factors of the two case studies lead to dissimilar approaches to
mediating reader involvement in the target texts.
5.1.2 Mediation of Reader Involvement
Table 5.2 presents the increase and decrease of engagement resources in the target
headlines from the two case studies by calculating the differences of numbers between
the source and target texts. Judged from the numbers in the table, neither of the two sets
of target headlines show significant changes made in terms of shifts of engagement
61
Table 5.2: Increase and decrease of the engagement resources in the headline parts
Engagement
Disclaim
Proclaim
Entertain
Attribute
Target headlines of
the 1st case study
Target headlines of
the 2nd case study
1. Deny
2
1
2. Counter
0
0
1. Concur
0
0
2. Pronounce
0
0
3. Endorse
0
0
4. Leading questions
0
0
1. Evidence
0
0
2. Likelihood
-1
0
3. Hearsay
0
0
4. Expository questions
0
0
1. Acknowledge
0
0
2. Distance
0
0
resources. While it may seem that the reader involvement of the target texts remains the
same way it was designed in the source versions by the original writers, the reader
involvement of two case study data are in effect far from the same.
First of all, the content of the target headlines of the first case study has been
dramatically modified. The source headlines seem to reveal minimum information to
intrigue the readers while the target counterparts provide as many details as possible to
appeal to the readers’ interests, which means the reader involvement of the target texts is
tailored for the target-culture readers to achieve the maximum communicative effect.
Furthermore, in the first case study, engagement resources used in the source headlines
are generally not retained in the target counterparts, but simply complemented by other
ones adopted in the target headlines. As for the second case study, no change is made
with respect to the content and resource shifts in its target headline part and therefore
there is no sign of mediation of reader involvement.
The main body parts of the two case studies show noticeable shifts of engagement
resources, indicating rearranged reader involvement in the target texts. The differences
62
of numbers between the source and target texts can be seen in Table 5.3 below with the
most obvious increases and decreases marked in bold.
Table 5.3: Increase and decrease of the engagement resources in the main body parts
Engagement
Target texts of the
st
Disclaim
Proclaim
Entertain
Attribute
Target texts of the
1 case study
2nd case study
1. Deny
40
13
2. Counter
69
18
1. Concur
2
5
2. Pronounce
4
2
3. Endorse
16
15
4. Leading questions
1
-1
1. Evidence
1
-1
2. Likelihood
-1
-11
3. Hearsay
0
0
4. Expository questions
-1
0
1. Acknowledge
-36
-9
0
-1
2. Distance
The numbers in Table 5.3 demonstrate that the transedited soft news stories of the
first case study have a much closer reader-text distance than those translated by the
online community as can be exhibited by the major increases of Deny, Counter and
Endorse. The target versions are not only added with new engagement resources but
restructured to suit the target readers’ interest. With such great degree of modification, it
can thus be justifiable to say that the mediated reader involvement of the target texts has
become entirely different from that of the source versions.
Compared with the transedited news, the fully translated news articles in the
second case study present minor mediation of reader involvement by the community
translators. The engagement resources in the source texts are left untouched with only a
few added to and deleted from the target counterparts. However, it should be noted that
the originally established reader involvement, though preserved, no longer operates in
63
the target versions as it is designed for the source readers.
5.1.3 Relations Between Contextual Factors and Mediation of
Reader Involvement
This section will elaborate on how the different arrangements of reader
involvement between the source and target texts of the two case studies are closely
linked to the contextual factors listed in Table 5.1, especially the type of translation,
purpose, readership and role of the translator.
To begin with, the first case study covers target news stories that underwent
transediting, whereas the second case study touch upon fully translated news items.
Such a difference can explain the major shifts of engagement resources in the main
body part of the first case study and the minor change in the news stories of the second
case study.
Second, the target texts of the first case study have not only information-sharing
but also market-driven purposes. They usually seek effective ways to keep the target
readers engaged in the news stories, for instance, by using Disclaim and Endorse
resources. The main purpose of the target texts of the second case study, by contrast, is
merely to share information. Thus, the end products are modified to a minimum degree.
Third, the different readerships of the two sets of target texts also contribute to
their varying treatment of reader involvement. The soft news stories of the first case
study mainly cater to local readers who seek entertaining news; hence, the translators as
gatekeepers usually filter and keep what might interest the target readers most in the
target news stories and even adapt the source texts to appeal to the readers’ curiosity, for
instance, with the help of Deny and Counter resources in the target main body part.
The community-based soft news stories, however, are translated for fans of The
64
Economist and therefore may not require much change of content nor mediation of
reader involvement to arouse the readers’ interest. The readers of community translated
soft news are probably more inclined to receive informative and authoritative
intelligence provided by the source without expecting to be amused by what is possibly
their learning material. As the target readers need to be convinced by the source news
stories, the community translators as gatewatchers tend to leave the source information
intact without altering its content and merely reduce the use of dialogically expansive
expressions such as Likelihood. In brief, full-time and community translators take
different approaches to rendering the source soft news, leading to varying degrees of
reader involvement in the target texts.
5.2 Conclusion
5.2.1 Summary of Research
In this thesis, Nord’s translation-oriented model of text functions and the
engagement system under Appraisal Theory have been drawn upon as the theoretical
framework to conduct research on soft news, which has not received proper scholarly
attention in translation studies. The background and recent development of soft news
studies were introduced in Chapter 1, alone with the organizational structure of the
research. Chapter 2 first elaborated on the two common types of news translation:
transediting in the newspaper setting and full translation conducted by online translation
communities. After the clarification of the concept of news translation, the theoretical
framework of this thesis was introduced, including Nord’s theory and the engagement
system. Nord’s translation-oriented model of text functions was detailed with regard to
how the functions operate in texts and what kind of strategies the translator needs to
adopt to maximize the corresponding text functions. The engagement system under
65
Appraisal Theory was then reviewed, revealing various engagement resources that are
either dialogically contractive or dialogically expansive. Chapters 3 and 4 conducted
two case studies on the two types of translation mentioned in Literature Review.
Chapter 3 centered around soft news translation carried out by full-time translators in a
newspaper setting. The case study data covered 20 items from The New York Times as
well as their translations from the online China Times. The source and target text
functions were first outlined by comparing the English and Chinese news stories. Then,
the source and target texts underwent a thorough analysis on the headline and the main
body parts to illuminate the shifts of engagement resources in translation. Discussions
on the mediation of reader involvement and the connection between the mediation and
the target text functions were offered in the last section. The results indicated that the
numbers of Deny, Counter and Endorse increased considerably while Acknowledge
decreased in the target texts, exhibiting salient reader involvement mediated by the
translators in the target news stories to perform the target appellative and expressive
functions. Similarly, Chapter 4 followed the same analysis procedure with the case
study data collected from The Economist and their translations by Chinese community
translators. The findings of this case study suggested that reader involvement was not
mediated as much as that in the first case study, with only minor increases in Deny,
Counter, Endorse and a decrease in Likelihood owing to the target referential and
metatextual functions. Following the two case studies, the first part of Chapter 5
attempted to delve into the differences of the mediation of reader involvement in the
two sets of target texts, influenced by a variety of contextual factors of transediting and
full translation.
5.2.2 Implications
66
The research conducted in this thesis can provide implications for translation
research, pedagogy and quality assessment in the field of news translation. To begin
with, this thesis can serve as a starting point to research in reader involvement mediated
in different types of news translation. As well, it is anticipated that the research can offer
new insights into the studies of soft news and help better understand the importance of
readers and relevant institutional and contextual factors surrounding soft news
translation.
In terms of pedagogical implications, translation teachers can design courses that
introduce different types of news translation and raise student trainees’ awareness of the
readership as well as mediation of reader involvement in news translation with the help
of engagement resources. Through exercises, students can take the bottom-up approach
to conducting an analysis on existing news translations. Conversely, with the top-down
approach, they can also carry out translation themselves with reader involvement in
mind and create the desirable effects they want the texts to have on their readers. In
short, student trainees can practice on the two types of news translation with concern for
different types of reader bases and learn to organize the articles differently to satisfy
their target readers.
The research can also inspire versatile ways to assess the quality of translated
news items. With the engagement system, assessing reader involvement is not only
feasible but also effective in evaluation. Reader involvement may thus be added to the
requirement of a good translation, especially for soft news translation, which relies, to a
great extent, on the readers for its functions to serve. Furthermore, the theoretical
framework comprising text functions and engagement resources should also help
translation critics, teachers and practitioners assess existing soft news translations and
determine whether their reader involvement is appropriately mediated or not.
67
5.2.3 Suggestions for Future Research
The text functions and reader involvement outlined in the case studies are mainly
based on textual analyses of the end products of translation. In order for the proposed
assumptions to be objective and accurate, empirical evidence can be collected from
interviews with the writers and translators to understand their concern for reader
involvement as well as questionnaires for the readers to see how they actually respond
to the target texts rearranged by the translators.
To investigate reader involvement even more thoroughly, the other two
sub-systems under Appraisal Theory—attitude and graduation can be incorporated into
the analysis. Attitude includes Affect, Judgement and Appreciation, which can be used
to evaluate addressers’ attitudinal positioning by assessing their reference to emotion,
social norms and social value. Graduation, on the other hand, embraces Force and Focus,
which are concerned with gradable values of interpersonal force and non-gradable
sharpening or softening semantics (White, 2001a; White, 2001b; White, 2003).
Furthermore, apart from soft news, other types of news can be considered to be the case
study data such as hard news, columns, and editorials.
In addition, works by other translation communities, for example, Global Voices
and Yeeyan.org, provide abundant resources of translated works and can be used for
research. With different translation communities, there may be differences of purposes
and readerships to take into account for the researcher. Their text functions and reader
involvement might also differ as a result of varied contextual factors.
68
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74
Appendix
A. Case study data for institutional soft news translation
ST
Maternity-Leave Alternative: Bring the Baby to Work, New York Times,
01/03/09
育嬰假？遜！帶嬰上班正時興，中國時報，01/05/09
No. 1
TT
(Maternity leave? Outdated! Bringing the baby to work is in fashion,
China Times)
ST
No. 2
Roll Out the Barrel, Open Your Wallet, New York Times, 01/07/09
一瓶 1150 元 聖好狗啤酒 叫它第一名，中國時報，01/08/09
TT
(1150 dollars for a bottle, the Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien beer: call it No.
1, China Times)
ST
No. 3
TT
ST
No.4
TT
ST
No. 5
TT
ST
No.6
TT
ST
No. 7
TT
ST
No. 8
TT
At First, Funny Videos. Now, a Reference Tool, New York Times,
01/17/09
孩子們找資料 愛上 YouTube，中國時報，01/19/09
(Kids searching for information love YouTube, China Times)
The Cellphone, Navigating Our Lives, New York Times, 02/16/09
手機地圖導航 讓你無所遁形，中國時報，02/22/09
(Map navigation on cellphones leaves you nowhere to hide, China Times)
In Italy, a Vending Machine Even Makes the Pizza, New York Times,
03/13/09
熱披薩自動販賣機 義國飄香，中國時報，03/15/09
(Automats sell hot pizza in Italy, China Times)
A Web Site’s For-Profit Approach to World News, New York Times,
03/22/09
GlobalPost 新聞互聯網 掀旋風，中國時報，03/24/09
(GlobalPost online news causes a sensation , China Times)
Skype, the Web Phone Giant, Brings Cheap Calls to Cellular, New York
Times, 03/30/09
Skype 進軍 iPhone、黑莓機，中國時報，03/31/09
(Skype moves onto the iPhone and Blackberry, China Times)
Answering Baseball’s What-Ifs, New York Times, 04/06/09
模擬棒球電玩 讓你圓教練夢，中國時報，04/09/09
(A simulation baseball game can realize your coach dream, China Times)
75
ST
The Funeral: Your Last Chance to Be a Big Spender, New York Times,
04/18/09
婚喪度小月 各有撇步 訂做告別式 送行者打出創意牌，中國時報，
No. 9
TT
04/20/09
(Wedding and funeral industries’ stunts in low season: customized
send-offs are held in creative ways, China Times)
ST
No. 10
Inside These Lenses, a Digital Dimension, New York Times, 04/25/09
數位眼鏡資訊、電子地圖帶著走，中國時報，04/27/09
TT
(Bring information, electronic maps with you on digital glasses, China
Times)
ST
No. 11
TT
ST
A Less Crowded Cannes, and Perhaps a Silver Lining, New York Times,
05/14/09
坎城影展冷 反利藝術電影露臉，中國時報，05/18/09
(A cold Cannes is beneficial for art-house films’ exposure, China Times)
For Teenagers, Hello Means ‘How About a Hug?’, New York Times,
05/27/09
見面不說嗨 美青少年流行抱抱，中國時報，05/30/09
No.12
TT
(Meeting each other without saying hi: hugs are popular among American
teenagers, China Times)
ST
No 13
Smile and Say ‘No Photoshop’, New York Times, 05/27/09
拒修修臉 時尚雜誌封面素顏登場，中國時報，05/31/09
TT
(Refusing to airbrush faces: fashion magazines feature no-makeup
covers, China Times)
ST
No. 14
TT
ST
No. 15
A Trend With Teeth, New York Times, 07/01/09
吸血鬼魅力放電 「愛情」商品熱賣，中國時報，07/06/09
(Vampire charm: “Love” products sell like hot cakes, China Times)
Foreign Languages Fade in Class—Except Chinese, 01/20/10
大陸出錢出人 全美學中文正夯，中國時報，01/23/10
TT
(Mainland [China] offers money and people: learning Chinese is the trend
in the U.S., China Times)
ST
You Saw What in ‘Avatar’? Pass Those Glasses!, New York Times,
01/20/10
不止特效有看頭…《阿凡達》詮釋蜂起 毀譽都吸睛，中國時報，
No. 16
TT
01/21/10
(Not only boasting special effects... “Avatar” arouses interpretations,
drawing both praise and blame, China Times)
No. 17
ST
Masculinity in a Spray Can, New York Times, 01/29/10
76
美少年重外貌 從頭到腳勤保養，中國時報，01/31/10
TT
(American teenagers are conscious about appearance: skin care from
head to toe, China Times)
ST
No. 18
The Ever-Widening World of Tiny Projectors, New York Times, 05/08/10
點餐玩電動 微型投影機展新貌，中國時報，05/10/10
TT
(Ordering meals and playing video games: micro projectors reveal new
application, China Times)
ST
No. 19
TT
ST
No. 20
In Search of Adorable, as Hello Kitty Gets Closer to Goodbye, New York
Times, 05/15/10
Kitty 人氣下滑 可愛教主換人做，中國時報，05/16/10
(Kitty popularity falls; the adorable princess is replaced, China Times)
Students, Meet Your New Teacher, Mr. Robot, New York Times, 07/10/10
機器人當老師 家事、外語一把罩，中國時報，07/12/10
TT
(Robots as teachers: housework and foreign language are a piece of cake,
China Times)
77
B. Case study data for community soft news translation
ST
Robert Burns: Selling Scotland by the verse: Testing the poet’s pulling power,
01/22/09
羅伯特.彭斯 詩詞動人傳百載，吸引遊客尚未足 這是詩人魅力的考驗，
No. 1
TT
02/04/09
(Robert Burns: touching poems passed on for a hundred years fail to attract
enough tourists: This is the test of the poet’s appeal)
ST
The behavioural effects of video games: Good game? Playing video games can
make you a better person, 05/28/09
電動遊戲的行為學影響 遊戲有益？ 電動遊戲幫助玩家成為更好的人，
No. 2
TT
06/09/09
(The behavioural effects of video games: Are games beneficial? Video games
help players become better people)
ST
A web of sound: Talk about that: Websites that use the spoken word will
empower the illiterate, 06/18/09
發聲網頁 網站，說一說 發聲網站，讓文盲也可以上網，01/05/09
No. 3
TT
(A voice web page: Talk to the website: Voice websites allow the illiterate to
surf the Internet)
ST
America's thriving gossip magazines: Rags to riches: One corner of the
print-news industry is relatively healthy, 06/18/09
美國繁榮的八卦雜誌 雜誌致富 新聞印刷業的一隅相對繁榮，07/02/09
No.4
TT
(America's thriving gossip magazines: Magazines make a fortune: One corner
of the print-news industry is relatively prosperous)
ST
College enrolment: Boom times: The recession drives young Americans back
to learning, 11/12/09
大學註冊 雨後春筍般增長 經濟危機促使美國的年輕人重返校園，
No. 5
TT
11/17/09
(College enrolment: Booming like mushrooms after the rain: The economic
crisis drives young Americans back to campus)
ST
No.6
TT
No. 7
ST
TT
Google: Facing the frenemy: Googled: The End of the World as We Know It,
11/12/09
穀歌 面對友敵 Google 一下:我們所能知道的世界盡頭，11/20/09
(Google: Facing the frenemy: Googled: The end of the world as we know it.)
Charity as advertising: Give and take: Will Pepsi profit by enlisting the public
in its philanthropic efforts?, 02/11/10
慈善之名 廣告之實 欲取之，先予之 爭取公眾參與其慈善活動，百事能
78
從中獲益嗎？，02/16/10
(Advertising in the name of charity: Give before you take: In a charitable
activity that enlists the public, will Pepsi profit?)
ST
How siestas help memory: Sleepy heads: Researchers say an afternoon nap
prepares the brain to learn, 02/25/10
午睡怎樣增進記憶力 昏昏欲睡的大腦 研究者認為午睡可以讓頭腦更清
No. 8
TT
醒，學習更高效，02/28/10
(How siestas help memory: Sleepy brains: Researchers believe an afternoon
nap can make the brain clear-headed and learn more effectively)
ST
The endangered bookstore: Edited out: The sickliest part of the books business
is the shops that sell them, 05/31/10
處在危險邊緣的書店 被刪 圖書產業最虛弱的部分是書店，04/11/10
No. 9
TT
(Bookstores on the edge of danger: Edited out: The sickliest part of the books
business is the shops)
ST
Gambling: The almost-winning addiction: Near misses could heighten
gambling addiction, 05/06/10
越差一點，越上癮 賭博 “近距離脫靶”能提高賭癮，05/11/10
No. 10
TT
(The closer to winning, the more addicted: Gambling: Near misses could
heighten gambling addiction)
ST
Greeting cards: Message of hope: Card companies believe technology will
bring a smile to special occasions, 05/06/10
賀卡 (充滿)希望的消息 賀卡公司相信：在特別的節慶裡，科技能帶來市
No. 11
TT
場的復蘇，05/12/10
(Greeting cards: (Filled with) message of hope: Card companies believe: on
special occasions, technology will bring revival to the market)
ST
No.12
TT
ST
Lena Horne: Lena Horne, entertainer, died on May 9th, aged 92, 05/20/10
莉娜•霍恩 莉娜•霍恩，藝術家，2010 年 5 月 9 日逝世，享年 92 歲，06/03/10
(Lena Horne: Lena Horne, artist, died on May 9th, 2010, aged 92)
Leon Levinstein’s New York: Cheap perfume and fried chicken: A new show
of photographs should help to revive a forgotten name, 06/17/10
廉價香水與炸雞塊 雷歐•萊文斯坦鏡頭裡的紐約 一場新近的影展將使人
No 13
TT
們重新記起那枚遺失在歲月裡的名字，06/25/10
(Cheap perfume and fried chicken: New York in Leon Levinstein’s lens: A new
show of photographs will make people recall a name forgotten in time)
ST
No. 14
TT
Fakes and mistakes: Who didn't do it? The National Gallery explores the
complexities of attribution, 07/01/10
贗品和錯認品 不是誰畫的？ 英國國家美術館探索作品歸屬的複雜性，
07/05/09
79
(Fakes and mistakes: Who didn't paint it? The National Gallery, United
Kingdom explores the complexities of attribution)
ST
Technology Monitor: Correct me if I’m wrong... Better speech-recognition
technology, 07/12/10
科技前沿 有錯請糾正 語音辨識技術的新進展，07/16/09
No. 15
TT
(Technology’s leading edge: Correct me if I’m wrong: The new advancement
of speech-recognition technology)
ST
Environmental groups in China: Budding greens: A new generation of
climate-change activists, 07/15/10
中國的環保團體 朝氣蓬勃的環保人士 新一代氣候變化活動人士，
No. 16
TT
07/20/09
(Environmental groups in China: Environmentalists with youthful spirit: A
new generation of climate-change activists)
ST
The da Vinci method: Shadow strokes: Scientists at the Louvre have
discovered the secret to the Mona Lisa’s face, 07/22/10
達·芬奇的繪畫技法 陰影筆法 盧浮宮的科學家發現了蒙娜麗莎面部的秘
密揭開蒙娜麗莎之謎，07/27/09
No. 17
TT
(The da Vinci painting technique: Shadow strokes: Scientists at the Louvre
have discovered the secret to the Mona Lisa’s face, unveiling Mona Lisa’s
secret)
ST
Corporate psychology: How to tell when your boss is lying: It's not just that his
lips are moving, 08/19/10
公司心理學 如何看出老闆在撒謊 可不只是看他動動嘴唇那麼簡單，
No. 18
TT
08/20/10
(Corporate psychology: How to tell when your boss is lying: It’s just not so
easy as reading his moving lips)
ST
Geography of Britain: Take your time, and look: A guidebook with a delightful
difference, 08/19/10
英國地理 花點時間，好好看看 一本帶來驚喜的旅行手冊，08/23/09
No. 19
TT
(Geography of Britain: Take your time, and look: A guidebook that brings
surprise)
ST
Obesity: Drink till you drop: A magic elixir is shown to promote weight loss,
08/24/10
肥胖 喝水也能瘦身 幫你瘦身的靈丹妙藥，10/27/09
No. 20
TT
(Obesity: Drinking water can lose weight: The magic elixir that helps you lose
weight)
80
C. Source and target texts of the first case study
No. 1
Source Text
Target Text
Maternity-Leave Alternative: Bring the Baby to Work
育嬰假？
育嬰假？遜！ 帶嬰上班正時興
By ABBY ELLIN
黃文正 2009/01/05
January 3, 2009
SEVERAL years ago, Joyce DeLucca became pregnant at the same time she was
對許多即將分娩的職業婦女而言，要選擇請
building her new company, Kingsland Capital Management, an investment boutique in
產假與育嬰假，暫時離開職場？抑或找專業
Manhattan. Her employees wondered: Was she going to take a maternity leave during
褓母照料小貝比，繼續工作打拚，好保住飯
this crucial period? (1)
碗？不免有些兩難。為此，若干美國公司提
供了另類選擇：把嬰幼兒帶去公司一起上
班。(一)
幾年前，身懷六甲的德露卡在紐約曼哈頓創
辦 Kingsland 資產管理公司，她的員工都納
悶，在公司草創這重要時期，老闆是否會請
育嬰假，回家看顧剛出生的小嬰兒？(二)
She did not. Instead, Ms. DeLucca decided to bring her newborn to the office with her.
出乎眾人意料，德露卡決定帶小女兒蕾拉一
She set up an enclosed playroom adjacent to her office, where Layla, now 3 1/2, could
同上班。她在辦公室旁設置了一間獨立的嬰
play, along with a baby sitter. (2)
兒遊戲房，如今，小蕾拉已三歲半。德露卡
Layla is still coming to the office. “If I have a break I can stand up and walk into her
說，因一旁有褓母照顧，她可安心工作，而
room,” said Ms. DeLucca, who is 42 and works 12-hour days. “She knows her way
在工作空檔，也可就近陪她玩耍。現在，蕾
around the office, and sometimes she’ll visit me on the trading desk. But it’s not like she
拉七個月大的妹妹亞莉安娜也加入「上班」
comes with me to meetings. If I put my finger to my lips, she knows to be quiet.” Layla’s
行列。(三)
sister Ariana, who is 7 months old, now comes to the office, too. (3)
More companies are allowing women — and some men, too — to bring their babies to
愈來愈多美國公司允許女性員工（甚或男性
work. The advantages are clear: The women don’t lose money by taking maternity leave.
員工）帶嬰兒一同去上班。好處是：女性員
They can breastfeed conveniently. And they can bond with the baby rather than worry
工不需請三個月的無薪育嬰假，可方便哺
that he or she will develop a closer connection with a nanny or a day-care provider. (4)
乳，並且不用擔心小寶貝反而與褓母比較親
Of course, disadvantages are clear, too. The needs and noises of babies have the potential
暱；缺點則是，小嬰兒可能干擾工作，並引
to be highly disruptive and to stir resentment among co-workers. (5)
起其它同事的反感。(四)
Susan Seitel, president of WFC Resources, a workplace consulting firm in Minneapolis,
See(五)
put it this way: “The business of business is business. I think it’s a little distracting to
have children at the office.” (6)
Critics also say that both child and job could lose out because the parent can’t be 100
反對者認為，想要兼顧工作和孩子，最後可
percent devoted to either one. (7)
能適得其反，兩者都落空。職場顧問公司「Ｗ
ＦＣ」董事長賽泰爾指出：「工作就是工作，
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有幼兒在辦公室，多少會令人分心。」曾帶
初生兒子上班的廣告公司「Ｓ３」董事長麥
克薇也說：「妳不可能同時兼顧好工作和媽
咪的角色。」(五)
The Parenting in the Workplace Institute, a nonprofit group that started in June 2006, has
「職場育嬰機構」（The Parenting in the
a database of 117 baby-friendly companies of all sizes, among them retail stores, banks,
Workplace Institute）篩選了全美一一七家對
law firms and state agencies. (9)
嬰兒友善的企業名單，這家非營利組織的創
“This has been going on for 15 years in a limited fashion, but in the last two years it’s
辦人莫昆女士說，鼓勵員工帶嬰兒上班雖已
really taken off,” said Carla Moquin, the founder of the Parenting in the Workplace
有十五年之久，但直至最近兩年才蔚為風
Institute, who lives in Framingham, Mass. (10)
潮。(六)
“It’s partly economic concern,” Ms. Moquin said, because there are many more women
她說，部分原因是經濟考量，此外，美國聯
in the workplace. “Also, the Family and Medical Leave Act requires companies to give
邦政府雖通過《家庭和醫療假法》
（The Family
new mothers three months off. Even though it’s unpaid, it’s hard on businesses for an
and Medical Leave Act）
，女性員工可請三個月
employee to be gone. That, combined with the fact that more people are seeing this as a
無薪育嬰假，但這對企業主或員工皆造成不
viable idea, has inspired companies and mothers to work something out.” (11)
小困擾。為此，越來越多人認為，帶出生嬰
兒一同上班，不失為兩全其美的好方法。(七)
The most successful programs, Ms. Moquin said, are ones in which companies have
written policies — to designate another employee as an alternate caregiver in case the
parent is temporarily unavailable; to specify areas for breastfeeding or changing diapers;
and to spell out the ages when children are allowed in the office. Usually, babies are
allowed up until 6 to 8 months, or before they start to crawl. (12)
Even women who advocate bringing babies to the office say it can be rough. “It’s far
See (五)
better for me to have my child at home. It’s hard to be your best work person and your
best mom because you’re doing both things at one time,” said Denise McVey, president
of S3, a 25-person advertising agency in Boonton, N.J., who brought her son to the
office for his first eight months. (13)
Borshoff, a communications firm in Indianapolis with 40 employees, has a Bring Your
明尼蘇達州「Borshoff 通信公司」有四十名
Baby to Work program for infants ages 6 weeks to 6 months. The firm pays 80 percent
員工，公司老闆馬修鼓勵員工帶六周至六月
of an employee’s full salary when the child is in the office. (14)
大的嬰幼兒一起上班，但必須減薪兩成。(八)
That way, the parent can devote energy to the child without feeling guilty. “It feels very
馬修說，這種減薪方式很公平，父母在上班
fair,” said Susan F. Matthews, principal of the firm. “We keep time sheets so we can
中抽空關心照料孩子，也比較不會有罪惡
monitor productivity, and we see that parents really don’t maintain the same productivity
感。(九)
levels.” (15)
Alison Gopnik, a psychology professor at the University of California, Berkeley, says
she believes that taking children to the office can only enhance their development.
“There’s no reason to believe that children need to have absolute single-minded attention
being paid to them with nothing else in the background,” she said. (16)
Jacqueline Grace, president and chief executive of LifeTime Media, a publishing
82
紐約出版公司「LifeTime Media」執行長葛莉
company in New York with nine employees, has been taking her daughter Alexandra,
絲，自女兒亞莉山卓兩個月大便帶著她一起
now 5 years old, to work since she was 2 months old — all day, every day. (17)
上班，如今女兒已五歲大，她也鼓勵所有員
工仿效，相信孩子可創造更積極的工作環
境，果然，
「大家的笑容變多了，感覺更放鬆、
也更有意思。」 (十)
Initially, Ms. Grace said, it was easy to work with Alexandra in her office. “She slept,
nursed and slept more,” said Ms. Grace, who would hold conference calls while
breastfeeding or while Alexandra was asleep. “As she grew and needed more space to
play, I gave her her own ‘office,’ ” Ms. Grace said. “She loved the idea of having an
office — and a computer — like everyone else. Of course, her office had a bouncy seat
for her — and her dolls and games and balls and markers and bookshelves filled with
colorful books.” (18)
Ms. Grace says that all of her employees can bring their children to the office, in the
See (十)
belief that having children around creates a positive environment. “People smile more;
they’re more relaxed and playful,” she said. “It has been challenging at times, for them
and for me — editing a book and hearing a 3-year-old sing ‘Elmo’ don’t usually mix
well — but we all adapt and learn to be respectful of our office-mates.” (19)
See (十一)
SHE says that the arrangement has enhanced her daughter’s “self-esteem, her sense of
葛莉絲說，儘管帶孩子一同上班，有時不免
security” and that it “has taught her so much about who she is, who she can be, as well as
對工作造成干擾，但大家都學著尊重這些「小
some amazing office skills in the process.” (20)
同事」
，而她也發現，女兒的「自尊心」和「 安
Ms. Grace added that she has been careful to hire “baby-friendly people.” “If you hate
全感」都提升不少，葛莉絲笑說，討厭孩子
children,” she said, “LifeTime Media is not a place for you to work.” (21)
的人，最好別遞履歷表給她。 (十一)
No. 2
Source Text
Target Text
BEERS OF THE TIMES; Roll Out the Barrel, Open Your Wallet
一瓶 1150 元 聖好狗啤酒 叫它第一名
By ERIC ASIMOV
黃文正 2009/01/08
Published: January 7, 2009
I AM about to take your breath away. How do I know this? Because I felt as if the wind
全球經濟慘兮兮，買一瓶要價卅五美元（約台
had been knocked out of me when I realized that in the middle of a deep recession I am
幣一一五○元）的「聖好狗修道院」
（Abbaye de
recommending a beer that costs $35 a bottle. (1)
Saint Bon-Chien）啤酒（右圖，摘自網路）
，
腦袋會不會有問題？《紐約時報》酒評家艾力
克．亞希諾夫（Eric Asimov）掛保證說，別猶
豫，掏出您的錢包吧！(一)
What? Am I insane? (2)
Probably. It would take a rare occasion for me to pay $35 for a bottle, but I'll tell you
最近，亞希諾夫與其他三名品酒專家一同試飲
about this extraordinary beer anyway. It is the 2006 vintage -- for a beer this expensive
廿五種不同品牌和橡木桶陳釀熟成的啤酒，
83
must have a vintage -- of the Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien, an unfiltered, unpasteurized,
「聖好狗修道院」啤酒被評選為第一名。他
limited-edition ale brewed by Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes in Switzerland. In its
說 ，卅五美元的啤酒雖有些昂貴，不過，大
favor, the beer comes in a 25.4-ounce bottle, rather than the more typical 12 ounces.
家可將之視為二○○六年份的紅酒，而它確實
More important, it is superb: brown in color yet bright in the mouth, with a bracing,
也值這個價錢。(二)
spicy, tart, almost woolly complexity reminiscent of a Belgian lambic. (3)
比較特別的是，這款未過濾、限量發行的天然
發酵麥酒，並非出自著名的比利時五大修道
院，而是來自瑞士的「弗朗什山釀酒廠」
（Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes）
。(三)
About the only thing against it is the price. (4)
Aside from that, what makes this beer so unusual? The Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien is
亞希諾夫推崇說，這款修道院啤酒風味絕佳：
one of a growing number of beers that spend some time aging in oak barrels, which
色澤呈棕色、口感豐富、香味濃郁、富辛辣與
may be typical for wine and whiskey but is a rare thing indeed for beer. In a way, the
酸味，幾可與人間佳釀比利時 Lambic（野生
brewers of these barrel-aged beers have reached backward into the future. (5)
酵母啤酒）相媲美。一瓶「聖好狗修道院」啤
酒，容量廿五．四盎司（約七八一．五五毫升）
，
比一般的十二盎司啤酒多出一倍。(四)
Centuries ago, barrels were the only vessels in which to brew and store beers. Most
幾個世紀前，橡木桶只被當作儲存和發酵啤酒
brewers strove to eliminate any flavorings that wood might impart to the beers, soaking
的容器，釀酒人還想盡辦法不讓木頭的氣味混
and scrubbing the wood to make the barrels as neutral as possible. In industrialized
入啤酒中，在啤酒大量出產的商業化年代，釀
times, of course, steel and aluminum serve a brewer's purpose with far less effort and
酒商甚至改以鋼或鋁桶以確保啤酒不被木頭
wear than wood. (6)
氣味破壞。(五)
But in the last decade or so, brewers have given barrels another look. Inspired by
不過，最近數十年，這種傳統觀念卻一百八十
winemakers, whiskey producers and even lambic brewers, who never stopped using
度的大轉變，有愈來愈多啤酒廠師法紅酒與威
barrels, these brewers see oak barrels not as storage vessels but as tools that can make
士忌的釀法，將啤酒長期儲存於橡木桶中釀造
beer more complex and interesting. (7)
熟成，而此一釀法，果然令啤酒更饒富口感與
風味。(六)
Recently the beer panel tasted 25 oak-aged beers. For the tasting, Florence Fabricant
and I were joined by two guests: Richard Scholz, an owner of Bierkraft in Park Slope,
Brooklyn, and Matt Stinton, the bar manager at Hearth in the East Village, which serves
several different barrel-aged beers. (8)
We all agreed that the tasting was fascinating, with many highly refined beers and few
that indulged in extravagance for the sake of extravagance. Most striking was the
number of styles on display in the tasting. (9)
Some of the beers were dry and some were sweet. Some were black as stout and full of
toasty malt flavors. Others were almost golden, with complex fruit flavors. In very few
of the beers were the flavors of hops evident; the barrel aging seems to suppress their
character. (10)
In some beers, brewers had clearly encouraged the effects of different yeasts in the
84
barrel, which, in the style of the lambic beers, produce intense sour flavors that people
love or hate. Personally, I find them fascinating. In others, the barrels were used
primarily to expose the beers to minuscule amounts of oxygen, which when done
carefully can add attractive toffee or sherry-like characters to the beer. In still other
cases, brewers used barrels that had once contained something else, like bourbon,
Scotch, Port or even pinot noir, hoping to impart to the beer trace elements of the past
contents. (11)
The Abbaye de Saint Bon-Chien, which was our No. 1 beer, was in fact aged in barrels
that had previously been used for rum, grappa, Burgundy, cabernet sauvignon and other
wines. None of these flavors were evident in the beer, or perhaps they were so well
integrated that they could not be detected. In fact, in only one of the 25 beers was the
taste of oak obvious, as in a bad vanilla-scented chardonnay: we rejected this bottle.
(12)
Clearly, though, oaky flavors are occasionally the aim. A couple of beers in our tasting
were aged with oak chips rather than in barrels, a practice I generally abhor in wine.
One of these, the Yeti Imperial Stout from Great Divide, even made our top 10. We
thought it was complex and creamy, though with less finesse than the higher-ranked
beers. (13)
Most of these barrel-aged brews are potent, with 14 of the 25 brews at 10 percent
alcohol or more. Yet the ones we liked best were not in any way overbearing or
unbalanced. Our No. 2 brew, the Pozharnik Espresso Russian Imperial Stout from
Pennichuck in New Hampshire, weighed in at a not exactly svelte 10 percent. While it
was rich and full bodied, it was nonetheless balanced and smooth, with flavors of coffee
and toffee. (14)
Sounding lighter notes were our No. 3 and No. 4 beers, the Petrus Aged Pale from
Bavik in Belgium, a tart, refreshing golden ale at 7.3 percent, and La Roja Amber Ale
from Jolly Pumpkin in Michigan, rich, robust and spicy but only 7.2 percent. The Bavik
was also our best value, relatively speaking, at $3.50 for an 11.2-ounce bottle. (15)
So, why are these beers so expensive? Garrett Oliver, the brewmaster at the Brooklyn
Brewery, cites the high cost of labor and storage for these beers, which are made by
hand in small lots. What's more, barrels themselves can be very expensive. Brooklyn
has just issued its own barrel-aged beer, Black Ops, which was not available in time for
our tasting. It costs around $20 for a 25.4-ounce bottle. (16)
Obviously, these are not beers for chugging. They are specialized brews that can go
beautifully with food. The tangy lambic-style beers would go well with seafood or
cheeses. The richer imperial stout-style brews could be just the thing with chocolate. As
for the cost, well, think of them as you would of a bottle of wine for sharing. You
wouldn't mind paying $35 for a bottle of wine, would you? Don't answer that. (17)
85
No. 3
Source Text
Target Text
At First, Funny Videos. Now, a Reference Tool.
孩子們找資料 愛上 YouTube
By MIGUEL HELFT
楊明暐 2009/01/19
January 17, 2009
FACED with writing a school report on an Australian animal, Tyler Kennedy began
現年九歲的泰勒．肯尼迪要寫一篇有關鴨嘴
where many students begin these days: by searching the Internet. But Tyler didn’t use
獸的報告。他和許多學生一樣上網查找資
Google or Yahoo. He searched for information about the platypus on YouTube. (1)
料。但泰勒不用 Google 或雅虎，而是上影音
分享網站 YouTube 搜尋。 (一)
“I found some videos that gave me pretty good information about how it mates, how it
泰勒在 YouTube 找到若干影片，提供鴨嘴獸
survives, what it eats,” Tyler said. Similarly, when Tyler gets stuck on one of his favorite
如何覓食、生存和交配的絕佳資訊。當他玩
games on the Wii, he searches YouTube for tips on how to move forward. And when he
Wii 某項遊戲遇到難關時，也上 YouTube 尋
wants to explore the ins and outs of collecting Bakugan Battle Brawlers cards, which are
找提示。他想了解蒐集「爆丸戰士」
（Bakugan
linked to a Japanese anime television series, he goes to YouTube again. (2)
Battle Brawlers）遊戲卡片有哪些竅門，同樣
是上 YouTube。(二)
While he favors YouTube for searches, he said he also turns to Google from time to time.
儘管泰勒喜歡利用 YouTube 搜尋，他偶而還
(3)
是會使用 Google。這位住在加州阿拉米達郡
“When they don’t have really good results on YouTube, then I use Google,” said Tyler,
的小學生說：
「YouTube 如果找不到好的資
who is 9 and lives in Alameda. Calif. (4)
料，我就用 Google。」(三)
Tyler’s way of experiencing the Web — primarily through video — may not be
像泰勒這種主要透過視訊影片來使用網路的
mainstream, at least not yet. But his use of YouTube as his favorite search engine
方式，也許談不上主流，至少目前還不是，
underscores a shift that is much broader than the quirky habits of children. (5)
但他拿 YouTube 作為最喜愛的搜尋引擎，這
件事凸顯的，已不單單是孩子們的古怪習
慣。(四)
The explosion of all types of video content on YouTube and other sites is quickly
YouTube 和其它網站各類視訊內容呈爆炸性
transforming online video from a medium strictly for entertainment and news into one
增長，使網路影片從原本只限於提供娛樂和
that is also a reference tool. As a result, video search, on YouTube and across other sites,
新聞的媒介，迅速變為參考工具。結果，提
is rapidly morphing into a new entry point into the Web, one that could rival mainstream
供影片搜尋的 YouTube 和其它網站也快速變
search for many types of queries. (6)
成新的入口網站，在許多種類 資料查詢上已
足以挑戰主流搜尋網站。(五)
“There are an increasing number of people who are doing video searches to supplement
影像搜尋引擎 Blinkx 公司執行長蘇蘭加．錢
and improve what they do in their offline lives,” said Suranga Chandratillake, the chief
德拉提雷克表示，有愈來愈多人使用視訊搜
executive of Blinkx, a video search engine. (7)
尋，而同時，由於市場充斥便宜的攝影機，
With inexpensive cameras flooding the market and a proliferation of Web sites hosting
加上儲存視訊影片的網站也不斷增加，製作
seemingly unlimited numbers of clips, it’s never been easier to create and upload video.
和上傳影片遠比過去容易。現在幾乎可以在
You can now find an online video on virtually any topic. Web videos teach how to grout
網路上找到任何主題的視訊資料，如教導人
a tub, offer reviews of the latest touch-screen phones and give you a feel for walking
們安裝浴缸，評論最新觸控螢幕手機，或是
86
帶您前往義大利佛羅倫斯維奇歐橋漫步影
across the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Italy. (8)
片。(六)
The consumption of video has followed a similar trajectory. In November, 146 million
視訊影片的消費量同樣增加迅速。據網路流
Americans watched videos online, streaming a total of 12.6 billion video clips, or nearly
量監測公司 comScore 所作統計，去年十一月
double the number they streamed just 20 months ago, according to comScore. (9)
內有一億四千六百萬美國人在線上觀看了總
共一百廿六億段視訊影片，影片數量為廿個
月前的兩倍。(七)
YouTube itself has grown even faster. Its share of videos streamed soared to 40 percent
YouTube 的成長更快，該網站影片流量在網
in November from 17 percent in March 2007. (10)
路所佔比例已由二○○七年的一七％增加到去
And now YouTube, conceived as a video hosting and sharing site, has become a bona
年十一月的四○％。如今，一直被認為是影片
fide search tool. Searches on it in the United States recently edged out those on Yahoo,
儲存和分享網站的 YouTube 已搖身變成搜尋
which had long been the No. 2 search engine, behind Google. (Google, incidentally,
工具，在美國，網友們在 YouTube 的搜尋次
owns YouTube.) In November, Americans conducted nearly 2.8 billion searches on
數最近已超越第二大搜尋引擎雅虎。
YouTube, about 200 million more than on Yahoo, according to comScore. (11)
（YouTube 的東家是第一大搜尋引擎
Google。） (八)
This startling statistic prompted Alex Iskold, the founder and chief executive of
Adaptiveblue.com, a Web start-up, to ask in a blog post, “Is YouTube the next Google?”
In other words, is YouTube effective as a mainstream search engine, and might it
supplant or rival Google some day? (12)
To test the idea, Mr. Iskold, whose inquiry was inspired partly by a conversation with Ian
Kennedy, Tyler’s father, about his son’s search habits, performed a series of queries on
YouTube and rated the results. Not surprisingly, some searches (vacuuming carpets,
Donkey from Shrek) produced better results than others (George Washington,
astrophysics). (13)
As more video is added to the Web, the proportion of video searches that deliver
satisfactory answers will grow, too. The question is, how far will video go as an
alternative to text? (14)
Mr. Iskold said that two factors would naturally limit video’s potential to supplant text
網路專家艾列克斯．伊斯科德（Alex Iskold）
on the Web. First, much content doesn’t lend itself well to video. And the Internet
表示，網路視訊終究無法取代網路文字資
derives much of its utility from the web of links connecting its sites. But Mr. Iskold said
料，因為許多文字資料無法用影片呈現。隨
that a shift toward video would continue, and that young Internet users, like Tyler, would
著使用影像進行搜尋的人不斷增加，未來視
only accelerate it. (In the comments section of Ms. Iskold’s blog post, two other parents
訊、文字和其它格式資料會以有趣的方式互
said that their sons also used YouTube as their primary search tool.) (15)
相截長補短。(九)
At YouTube, Hunter Walk, a director of product management, said the move toward
video might not necessarily lead to a decline in the consumption of text or other media.
Video, text and other formats, he said, will complement one another in interesting ways.
(16)
Mr. Walk said a good example is provided by an ad for Hillary Rodham Clinton during
87
the Democratic presidential primaries — the one in which a voice asks “Who do you
want answering the phone?” at the White House at 3 a.m. during a crisis. A search for
“Hillary Clinton 3 a.m.” on Google would bring up news stories about the ad and the
controversy surrounding it. On YouTube, the same search brought up the original
commercial, as well a response by the Barack Obama campaign, pundits’ commentaries
and an assortment of spoofs, giving users a much different understanding of how the
story unfolded, Mr. Walk said. (17)
“Video is part of the discovery process,” he said. “Depending on the user and the type of
content, users may want to start with video or text.” (18)
YouTube won’t break out searches by category, but Mr. Chandratillake said that on
Blinkx, some of the fastest-growing searches were in reference categories like money,
travel, health and food. More traditional categories, like entertainment, sports and
user-generated content, remain more popular but are growing at a slower rate, suggesting
a shift. (19)
Tyler’s father, Mr. Kennedy, who is a product manager at Nokia, said he has watched
Tyler and his friends going from the Wii to the computer and back to the Wii enough
times to understand how much the use of online video is changing. “All of us who are a
certain age think of video as a medium associated with television, and not as a
reference,” Mr. Kennedy said. “It’s another method of search that we don’t fully
appreciate.” (20)
No. 4
Source Text
Target Text
The Cellphone, Navigating Our Lives
手機地圖導航 讓你無所遁形
By JOHN MARKOFF
潘勛 2009/02/22
February 16, 2009
The cellphone is the world’s most ubiquitous computer. The four billion cellphones in
行動電話堪稱目前世上最普及的「電腦」
；全
use around the globe carry personal information, provide access to the Web and are
球有四十億支手機在運作，攜載個人資訊，
being used more and more to navigate the real world. And as cellphones change how we
還可以上網，而且愈來愈多人使用手機當真
live, computer scientists say, they are also changing how we think about information. (1)
實世界的「導航」工具。 (一)
It has been 25 years since the desktop, with its files and folders, was introduced as a way
to think about what went on inside a personal computer. The World Wide Web brought
other ways of imagining the flow of data. With the dominance of the cellphone, a new
metaphor is emerging for how we organize, find and use information. New in one sense,
that is. It is also as ancient as humanity itself. That metaphor is the map. (2)
“The map underlies man’s ability to perceive,” said Richard Saul Wurman, a graphic
designer who was a pioneer in the use of maps as a generalized way to search for
information of all kinds before the emergence of the online world. (3)
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As this metaphor takes over, it will change the way we behave, the way we think and the
way we find our way around new neighborhoods. As researchers and businesses learn
how to use all the information about a user’s location that phones can provide, new
privacy issues will emerge. You may use your phone to find friends and restaurants, but
somebody else may be using your phone to find you and find out about you. (4)
Digital map displays on hand-held phones can now show the nearest gas station or
手機螢幕顯示的數位地圖，目前已經可以指
A.T.M., reviews of nearby restaurants posted online by diners, or the location of friends.
引諸如最近的加油站或提款機、食客對某家
In the latest and biggest example of the map’s power and versatility, Google started a
鄰近餐廳的線上評論，甚至顯示朋友所在
location-aware friend-finding system called Latitude in 27 countries early this month. (5)
處。網路搜尋引擎巨擘 Google 二月初推出
「緯
度」
（Latitude）系統，讓使 用者知道各地點
及找朋友，正可見證數位地圖的威力及靈活
多用。 (二)
On its face, Google’s new service — available on dozens of mobile systems — is simply
Google 的緯度系統目前已有數十家行動電話
a way for friends to keep track of one another and meet up, for families to stay in touch
公司採用，表面上只是讓朋友們找尋彼此，
or for parents to find comfort in knowing where their children are. (6)
見面吃飯；讓家人保持連絡，或者讓爸媽了
解子女在哪兒而放下心來。 (三)
But it will generate a gold mine of new information about where millions of people
但是，這套系統也產出新的資訊金礦，了解
travel each day, and there is no doubt that Google and others are planning to dig in that
數百萬人每天的行蹤。Google 等公司無疑正
mine. “Everyone is watching Google, and this will open a floodgate of location-oriented
計畫開挖這座金礦。舉例來說，手機行蹤顯
applications and services,” said Greg Skibiski, the chief executive of Sense Networks, a
示，有人前往多家汽車經銷商，正打算買車，
New York City firm that mines the millions of digital trails left by cellphone users for
行銷人員便可以主動找出他們。(四)
marketing purposes. (7)
It was the arrival of the so-called WIMP interface — for windows, icons, menus,
pointer — in the 1980s on both the Apple Macintosh and computers using Microsoft
Windows that made personal computers personal and moved them beyond the world of
hobbyists and business. Now many of the software designers who created those
interfaces say they see a change of similar magnitude with phones and maps. (8)
“We’re way early on, and we don’t know what the Macintosh of maps will be yet,” said
Paul Mercer, a former Apple Computer software designer who more recently worked on
the development of the Palm Pre smartphone. “But because of their relationship to the
real world, maps will be a metaphor for a huge swath of mobile computing.” (9)
Indeed, a new generation of smartphones like the G1, with Android software developed
新一代的智慧手機如「G1」
，配備 Google 研
by Google, and a range of Japanese phones now “augment” reality by painting a map
發的「安德洛伊」
（Android）軟體，還有日
over a phone-screen image of the user’s surroundings produced by the phone’s camera.
本多款新手機已經可以讓使用者透過手機鏡
(10)
頭 ，把身處的周遭環境變成地圖，顯示在手
機螢幕。 (五)
With this sort of map it is possible to see a three-dimensional view of one’s
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擁有這種數位地圖，使用者有可能瞧見自身
surroundings, including the annotated distance to objects that may be obscured by
周遭的立體光景，包括標明距離目標多遠，
buildings in the foreground. For starters, map-based cellphones simply translate paper
儘管目標可能被四周的高樓擋住。手機用戶
maps into a digital medium, but future systems will probably begin to blur the
可以馬上取得參考地圖，顯示自己的目的
boundaries between the display and the real world. (11)
地、四周景貌，和自己行進的速度。 (六)
“I always said the next interface would be Quake,” said Steve Capps, one of the
designers of the original Macintosh interface, referring to the popular video game. “How
long will it be before you come out of the subway and you hold up your screen to get a
better view of what you’re looking at in the physical world?” (12)
Increasingly, phones will allow users to look at an image of what is around them. You
See (六)
could be surrounded by skyscrapers but have an immediate reference map showing your
destination and features of the landscape, along with your progress in real time. Part of
what drives the emergence of map-based services is the vast marketing potential of
analyzing consumers’ travel patterns. For example, it is now possible for marketers to
identify users who are shopping for cars because they have traveled to multiple car
dealerships. (13)
See (四)
“When I go from point A to point B with my feet, there is something of real value there,”
said Tony Jebara, a Columbia University computer scientist who is a co-founder of
Sense Networks. (14)
A full-blown map-based, location-aware mobile world would entail rethinking basic
手機地圖系統一旦發展完整，會完全掌握使
American notions of privacy. For a generation of older Americans, exposing their precise
用者的位置，可能引發世人對隱私觀念的重
location around the clock to an army of little brothers for marketing and advertising
新思考。老一輩認為個人行蹤廿四小時曝
purposes is a privacy invasion. (15)
光，讓一堆行銷廣告的小兄弟都知道，真是
侵犯隱私。 (七)
On the other hand, there is a generation of smartphone users in their 20s that has grown
但新一代智慧手機使用者，年紀約莫廿多
up sharing the most intimate details of their lives on MySpace and Facebook. They may
歲，他們從小到大，便在網路空間如 MySpace
have a different point of view. (17)
及 Facebook 與人分享生活最私密的細節，對
Recently, for example, Sam Altman, a 23-year-old Stanford University computer science
手機曝露自身行蹤一事，可能會有不同看
graduate and the founder of Loopt, a pioneering friend-finding service, was having
法；他們認為藉此可以呼朋喚友，甚至招徠
dinner in Palo Alto, Calif., when he noticed from the screen on his phone that his
商機，沒什麼不好。 (八)
freshman college roommate was having dinner just two restaurants away. The two met
after dinner at a bar, where they were joined by another former Stanford student who
noticed on his display that they were socializing together. (18)
Mr. Altman said his willingness to display his location was just as valuable in his
business dealings. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last month, he turned
on a feature that broadcasts his location and his name. He had more than a dozen
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business contacts as he traveled around the vast trade show, and he said he was able to
kick off four deals from his random contacts. (19)
The map interface even seems to have a biological basis, as suggested by new brain
地圖介面甚至似乎有生理基礎；最新的大腦
studies showing how the world is represented in brain maps. (20)
研究顯示，世界是以種種地圖的形式呈現於
“Humans evolved with amazing navigational abilities in our brains from an evolutionary
人的大腦中。Google 執行長施密特表示，人
perspective,” said Eric Schmidt, Google’s chief executive. He argues that the correlation
類演化時，腦中存有許多驚人的導航本領，
between the map on the phone and the internal map in your head is a natural way to
因此，讓手機的數位地圖與人腦的內在地圖
navigate all kinds of information. (21)
連結，是再自然不過了。 (九)
For example, neuroscientists have discovered that people who have occupations that
require them to maintain complex mental maps of the world, like London taxi drivers,
have an enlarged hippocampus. What happens when our hand-held computers become
extensions of the way we think? (22)
“I have wondered about the fact that we might as a culture lose the skill of mapping our
environment, relying on the Web to tell us how to navigate,” said Hugo Spiers, a
neurobiologist at University College London. “Thus, it might reduce the growth of cells
in the hippocampus, which we think stores our internal maps.” (23)
Among cellphone makers, the map metaphor has been adopted most aggressively by
Nokia, the world’s largest maker of mobile phones. The company has acquired digital
maps of 69 countries and is now rushing to deliver to developers the tools to create
software for Nokia phones oriented toward maps and navigation. In many ways this is
similar to the tool kit that early computer designers gave programmers to develop
Windows applications. (24)
“This is a new metaphor upon which others can build,” said Michael Halbherr, Nokia’s
vice president for social location services. (25)
No. 5
Source Text
Target Text
In Italy, a Vending Machine Even Makes the Pizza
熱披薩自動販賣機 義國飄香
By JOHN TAGLIABUE
鍾玉玨 2009/03/15
March 13, 2009
ROVERETO, Italy — Is Europe bringing back the automat? Claudio Torghele hopes so.
披薩的發源地義大利，竟然也出現了專賣披
(1)
薩的自動販賣機！賣的可不是一般便利商店
裡微波加熱的冷凍披薩，而且從和麵、揉餅
皮、加料到烘焙，全部由自動販賣機當場現
做的熱騰騰披薩，看來對大師雙手絕活情有
獨鍾的歐洲，也開始擁抱機器了。 (一)
Over the last decade, Mr. Torghele, 56, an entrepreneur in this northern Italian city who
現年五十六歲的托哥爾（Claudio Torghele）
first made money selling pasta in California, has developed a vending machine that
原本在美國加州開餐廳，專賣義大利麵，賺
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cooks pizza. The machine does not just slip a frozen pizza into a microwave. It actually
了錢之後，返鄉回到義北小鎮羅韋雷托，經
whips up flour, water, tomato sauce and fresh ingredients to produce a piping hot pizza
過十年苦心鑽研，以披薩自動販賣機再創事
in about three minutes. (2)
業高峰。 (二)
歷十年研發 現做三分鐘出爐 (三)
這台機器可不只是把冷凍披薩丟到微波爐加
熱而已，而是跟真正的披薩大師傅一樣，先
將麵粉、水做成餅皮，再放上番茄醬與新鮮
食材，接著烘烤。全程只需三分鐘，香噴噴、
熱騰騰、還會牽絲的披薩就呈現在顧客面
前，一整塊披薩只要約四．五美元（約台幣
一百五十五元）
。不過一台機器要價三萬兩千
美元。 (四)
The machine, which Mr. Torghele calls Let’s Pizza, is only the spearhead of a trend.
托哥爾將這台販賣機取名為「來披薩」
（Let’s
Restaurants reminiscent of the old Horn & Hardart chain in the United States, which are
Pizza）
，其實披薩機只是揭開歐洲全自動化餐
fully automatic, are also showing up around the Continent. (3)
廳趨勢的先鋒部隊之一。在米蘭，全自動化
連鎖餐廳 Brekky 生意興隆，所有餐點都是由
自動販賣機進出，顧客可從機器拿出沙拉和
三明治等冷盤，也可從機器裡點購義大利麵
等熱食。(五)
Unlike the old automats (the last Horn & Hardart closed in 1991), which were staffed
曾在紐約風行一時的 Horn ＆ Hardart（最後
with workers who refilled the machines with creamed spinach and baked beans as fast as
一家店於一九九一年走入歷史）也標榜全自
customers pulled them out, these restaurants consist entirely of vending machines. (4)
動化，但仍雇用了大批人力，馬不停蹄地把
食物送入自動販賣機，以免顧客枯等。反觀
Brekky 則完全是機器的天 下。 (六)
In Milan, a two-hour drive west of Rovereto, a franchise chain called Brekky has opened
See (五)
the first three of what is planned to be a large chain of restaurants in which customers
can buy cold dishes like salads and sandwiches, and warm dishes like pasta, from
vending machines. (5)
North of the Alps, the automat never really died out. In the Netherlands, Febo, a chain
自動化餐廳 歐洲市場二六○億 (七)
started in 1941 by a Dutch baker, now has about 60 restaurants. In France, bright green
除了義大利，法國、荷蘭也都有類似的自動
and yellow Yatoo Partoo machines — the name loosely translates as “You can get
化餐廳連鎖店，讓顧客一年三百六十五天、
everything, everywhere” — sell milk, juice, snacks and sandwiches 24 hours a day,
一天廿四小時隨時光顧。 (八)
seven days a week. (6)
The European vending machine industry, which has grown significantly and now has
歐洲自動販賣機市場顯著成長，每年營業額
annual sales of about 26 billion euros, or $33 billion, hopes the trend will catch on. (7)
已突破二六○億歐元，並從餐廳蔓延至工廠與
Much recent growth came with the placing of vending machines in factories and offices,
辦公室，方便員工購買午餐和下午茶點心。
where employees took coffee breaks or lunch from machines. But as recession bit into
不過全球經濟不景氣，工廠與企業一家接著
92
Europe and factories and offices closed, that market has contracted. (8)
一家結束營業，自動販賣機市場也跟著萎
縮。(九)
At the same time, Europeans are looking for less expensive ways to eat out, and the
不可諱言，機器販售的食品畢竟比餐廳便
automat is far less expensive than a white-tablecloth restaurant. (9)
宜，說不定可殺出另外一條生路，拉攏荷包
縮水的外食民眾。此外，餐廳不僅省下許多
人事費用，也讓顧客覺得新鮮。因此業者非
常看好自動販賣機前景。(十)
“These are developments that we are watching,” said Luciano Iannuzzi, chief executive
of Argenta in Carpi, Italy, a large vending operator with about 120,000 machines. (10)
The idea for a pizza robot came to Mr. Torghele after he worked in California in the
mid-1990s creating a fresh pasta manufacturer. “At food courts I saw a trend toward
vending machines,” he said at his office in this mountain town. “In fast food, I saw pizza
everywhere.” (11)
With backing from a Dutch investment fund, his own capital and money from friends, he
set to work. A plan to simply miniaturize industrial technology for producing frozen
pizza failed, but by 2003 Mr. Torghele had produced a machine ready to be tested in
Chicago and shown at a trade fair in Orlando, Fla. (12)
That same year, with the help of Unilever, the British-Dutch food giant, he test-marketed
20 machines in Germany. “We had a bicycle,” he said. “Now we had to pedal.” (13)
The machine Mr. Torghele and his engineers produced is outfitted with little windows so
the customer can watch the pizza being made. As in the Charlie Chaplin film “Modern
Times” (in miniature and without Chaplin) wheels turn and gears grind. The customer
presses a button to choose one of four varieties — margherita (plain cheese and tomato
sauce), bacon, ham or fresh greens. A plastic container dumps flour into a drum
resembling a tiny washing machine; a squirt of water follows, and the drum goes into a
spin cycle, forming a blob of dough that is then pressed flat to form a 12-inch disk. (14)
Tomato paste is squirted onto the dough and cheese is added before it is lifted into a
small infrared oven. The baked pizza then slips onto a cardboard tray and out into the
customer’s waiting hands. Mr. Torghele says the pizza will cost as little $4.50, depending
on the variety. (15)
It is not surprising that the new drive to offer fresh-made food is coming from Italy.
Italians may be legendary for long lunches of pasta and wine, but they also lead Europe
in vending machines, with more than 614,000 installed, compared with 593,000 in
France and 562,000 in Britain, according to the European Vending Association in
Brussels. (16)
Much of Italy’s strength in vending comes from coffee. An Italian coffee vending
machine may offer up to 18 different varieties, including espresso, cappuccino, ristretto,
lungo and macchiato. (17)
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See(四)
But with coffee markets increasingly saturated, machine manufacturers are casting about
for new products to push, like books, DVDs, scarves and handkerchiefs, even model
cars and trains. (18)
Operators are also increasingly offering fresh produce, like apples, and other healthy
food at schools and fitness centers. (19)
“Vending hasn’t arrived at the end of the road,” said Mr. Iannuzzi, 52, of Argenta. “It’s
mature, but it’s growing.” (20)
Argenta reflects the opportunities that vending offered to investors. In 2005, Argenta was
snapped up by Advent International, a British equity fund, which turned around and sold
it in late 2007 to an Italian fund, Cognetas. In that time, Argenta had doubled its annual
revenue, to $260 million, partly through acquisitions and partly through growth. (21)
Now, with the economic crisis spreading across Europe, the industry faces a different
landscape. On the one hand, as factories close, potential vending machine sites
disappear. On the other hand, as consumers find themselves with less cash, the
lower-priced items in vending machines become attractive. (22)
Where does this leave Mr. Torghele and his pizza machine? Initially, he thought the
See(四)
United States would be his primary market, but he learned that market would be hard to
penetrate. Instead, when his machine goes into regular production this summer, he will
be focusing on Italy and its neighbors. But vending machine prices there average about
$2,600, and his machine will sell for $32,000. (23)
Still, experts in the business are not discouraging. “You have to have a location; you
have to understand where to go with that machine,” Mr. Iannuzzi said. “But there is a
future for that.” (24)
No. 6
Source Text
Target Text
A Web Site’s For-Profit Approach to World News
GlobalPost 新聞互聯網 掀旋風
By ELIZABETH JENSEN
簡志翰 2009/03/24
March 22, 2009
Overseas reporters have been a casualty of budget-chopping news organizations, leaving
景氣寒冬長路漫漫，許多電子報仍在思考對
an opening for the online start-up GlobalPost. But at a time when many news executives
策之時，美國一個新成立的新聞網站
are exploring nonprofit business models to keep specialized reporting flowing,
「GlobalPost」異軍突起，不只積極開拓財
GlobalPost, which made its debut on Jan. 12, is intended to be a moneymaking venture.
源，還邀請讀者參與新聞決策，
「重新定義數
(1)
位時代的國際新聞」
。 (一)
With 65 correspondents worldwide — drawn from a surfeit of experienced reporters
eager to continue working in their specialties even as potential employers disappear —
GlobalPost has begun offering a mix of news and features that only a handful of other
news organizations can rival. (2)
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Recent articles, free at GlobalPost.com, included reports on Thailand’s Islamic
網站上除了付費內容外，目前仍是免費的優
insurgency and Indian yogis worried about the financial crisis. (3)
質新聞也是吸引讀者的關鍵。近期文章主題
包括，泰國南部的穆斯林暴動以及印度瑜珈
大師也擔心金融危機等等。 (四)
That ad-supported reporting is only one part of the GlobalPost business plan. If it is to
succeed, it will depend in part on how many people sign up for a separate paid section of
the site, which was to have been available in test mode beginning last week but is now
expected to go online in the coming days. (4)
Called Passport, it offers access to GlobalPost correspondents, including exclusive
GlobalPost 標榜一項名為 Passport 的服務，讀
reports on business topics of less interest to general audiences, conference calls and
者年繳一九九美元（約新台幣六千七百元）
，
meetings with reporters, and breaking news e-mail messages from those journalists. (5)
就能閱讀與商業議題相關的獨家報導、收到
Passport subscribers, who pay as much as $199 a year, can suggest article ideas. “If you
記者傳出的即時新聞電郵通知、與全球六十
are a member, you have a voice at the editorial meeting,” although the site will decide
五名駐外記者連絡，還能建議採訪方向。 (二)
which stories to pursue, said Charles Sennott, a GlobalPost founder and its executive
創辦人謝諾特（Charles Sennott）強調 Passport
editor. He said Passport is meant to “create a feeling of community” for subscribers who
的目的是要建立「社群感」
，一改新聞室「層
might otherwise see newsrooms as “impenetrable and fortresslike.” (6)
層阻隔，固若金湯」的形象。估計年底將有
超過兩千人簽訂此項服務。 (三)
GlobalPost correspondents, who include the former Washington Post writer Caryle
月前全球媒體吹起裁員風，正好讓 GlobalPost
Murphy in Saudi Arabia and a Time magazine correspondent turned novelist, Matt
得以從諸多離退的資深記者當中精挑細選，
Beynon Rees, in Jerusalem, are paid extra for Passport work. Their basic compensation
作為新聞與專欄報導的背後寫手。 (五)
is $1,000 a month for four articles, plus shares in the venture. The site had 500 applicants
for the jobs, Mr. Sennott said. (7)
Only a couple of dozen people have signed up for Passport, said Philip Balboni,
GlobalPost’s other founder and the president and chief executive. The site is depending
on marketing partnerships to generate subscriptions, some discounted, and hopes to have
more than 2,000 by year’s end. (8)
Two months in, the Boston-based company says demand for the free site — the
自今年一月十二日正式成立以來，GlobalPost
mainstay of the business — is ahead of expectations. It has logged 250,000 unique users
有效造訪人次就有廿五萬，網頁觀看次數高
who have visited at least once, compared with the 90,000 Mr. Balboni had hoped for by
達一百一十萬，當中過半數是回流訪客。 (六)
now, and 1.1 million page views, more than half from returning visitors. “People have
clearly liked what they’ve seen,” Mr. Balboni said, adding that the site has had visitors
from every country except North Korea, Chad and Eritrea. (9)
Advertising remains slow, he acknowledged. Liberty Mutual Insurance signed on for a
year, and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University has been
advertising on a trial basis. “I think it will just take time,” Mr. Balboni said. “We are in
an incredible down market.” (10)
95
More encouragingly, a third revenue stream has been growing, as the company has
signed up a growing number of news outlets, including The Daily News and The Boise
Weekly of Idaho, to carry its reports and have use of its correspondents. (11)
CBS Radio News recently signed a nonexclusive deal. It will be able to call on
GlobalPost correspondents during breaking news, as a backup to its own reporters, said
Harvey Nagler, CBS News’s vice president of radio. (12)
Public television’s “Worldfocus” weeknight newscast features reports from GlobalPost
correspondents, who carry inexpensive Flip digital video cameras when in the field. (13)
The site was started with $8.5 million from private investors. (14)
Mr. Balboni, who created the New England Cable News network, said he was a
passionate defender of for-profit journalism. “I believe deep in my heart and soul that the
discipline of the marketplace makes for a stronger organization,” he said. “It gives you a
far greater chance to be a self-sustaining enterprise, without having to turn to
government or foundations,” which can be mercurial, he said. (15)
Long before the debate about whether newspapers and magazines should be charging for
Web content, Mr. Balboni envisioned having consumers pay for at least a part of
GlobalPost, he said. It was a lesson he learned after years in the cable TV business,
which is supported by subscribers as well as ads. Having created a hybrid model, he
said, “now we have to prove it in the marketplace.” (16)
Alan D. Mutter, a media investor who analyzes news-business models at the blog
Reflections of a Newsosaur, praised GlobalPost in an interview “for being thoroughly
modern in its approach to revenue, in that it understands it won’t be simply advertising
or subscriptions.” He added, “They’ve identified every conceivable revenue stream I can
think of.” (17)
But questions remain, he said, including how many news organizations still have the
budget to pay to use its articles, and whether GlobalPost’s executives can create
compelling content that will draw enough subscribers. “I’ve seen other publishers who
offered premium content, and the content wasn’t good enough to make you want to
write a check,” he said. (18)
“This is definitely a forward-looking model, but it remains to be seen whether the
audience materializes and whether they can execute,” Mr. Mutter said, adding that “I
think everyone wishes them well because they are pretty close to what the future will be
for news publishing.” (19)
No. 7
Source Text
Target Text
Skype, the Web Phone Giant, Brings Cheap Calls to Cellular
Skype 進軍 iPhone、
、黑莓機
By BRAD STONE
潘勛 2009/03/31
96
March 30, 2009
Skype, the Internet calling service that has more than 400 million users around the world,
See (四)
is aggressively moving onto mobile phones. (1)
The Luxembourg-based company, a division of eBay, plans to announce on Tuesday that
嚇死人的手機帳單，可能即將步入歷史了。
it will make its free software available immediately for Apple's iPhone and iPod Touch
網路電話撥打巨擘 Skype 打算在卅一日宣
and, beginning in May, for various BlackBerry phones, made by Research in Motion. (2)
布，即日起提供免費軟體給蘋果「iPhone」
及「i Pod Touch」兩款手機的使用者，讓他
們可以免費打電話及捎簡訊給其他 Skype 用
戶；供各款黑莓機用戶的軟體則五月推出。
(一)
Other companies have already made software for those phones that works with Skype,
but it does not offer all of the service's features. (3)
As with Skype on the computer, users of Skype on mobile phones can make calls and
行動電話服務商一想到 Skype 可能把服務推
send instant messages to other Skype users free, and they pay lower rates than the phone
廣到行動電話，就感到頭痛。因為人們可以
companies would charge when they use Skype to call landlines or other mobile phones.
用自己的數據器材，透過 Skype 來打電話，
(4)
再也不必透過電話商的行動電話網絡，也就
是不必付出較昂貴、按秒計費、讓廠商大撈
油水的通話費。 (二)
使用 Skype 軟體，手機用戶就算透過地面通
訊線路或其他行動電話來講電話，費用也比
行動電話服務商索取的低得多。 (三)
This year, Skype announced versions of its software for Nokia phones and phones
Skype 的網際網路電話用戶超過四億人。二
running Microsoft's Windows Mobile and Google's Android operating systems. (5)
○○九年以來，Skype 已發表各款軟體，供諾
基亞手機、使用微軟公司「Windows Mobile」
及 使用 Google「Android」操作系統的兩款
手機運用。 (四)
Apple will limit Skype's use on the iPhone somewhat, allowing Skype calls to be made
然而，蘋果電腦打算對 iPhone 手機使用
only when the device is connected to local Wi-Fi networks, and not allowing Skype calls
Skype 服務設限，只允許用戶的手機連接到
over the data networks of its carrier partners like AT&T. Apple imposes the same
地區性 Wi-Fi 網絡時，才能打 Skype 電話，
restrictions on all voice applications in its App Store. (6)
且不能透過蘋果的行動電話服務商如 AT＆T
的網絡來打 Skype 電話。(五)
The idea of bringing Skype to mobile phones has always been viewed by cellular
operators as potentially threatening. It opens up the possibility that people will use their
data plans to make calls using Skype, instead of the more expensive and profitable voice
minutes on the carriers' cellular networks. (7)
''The carriers are in the business of selling voice minutes. For a long time they saw
倫敦市場研究機構「CCS Insight」主任伍德
products like Skype coming along and they were concerned,'' said Ben Wood, director of
指出，看到諸如 Skype 的產品不斷出現，許
Research at the London-based CCS Insight, a market research firm. ''But it turned out a
多行動電話服務商愈來愈感事態嚴重，但實
97
little bit different than they expected.'' (8)
際發展和他們料想的略有不同，因此許多廠
Mr. Wood said many carriers had modified their views about so-called
商已修正自己對「IP 網路語音傳遞技術」
voice-over-Internet-protocol, or VoIP, services. In some cases, Skype has proved to be
(VoIP)的看法，甚至有廠商認為可以借助
appealing to consumers and a competitive advantage for a carrier over its rivals. (9)
Skype 的競爭優勢勝過對手。 (六)
Skype tested its service in London in the last two years with Hutchison 3, a British
mobile network. It said it drew more customers to Hutchison 3 and increased its revenue
for each user, since people were making calls on their cellphones using Skype that high
calling rates would have discouraged otherwise. (10)
Scott Durchslag, Skype's chief operating officer, said he did not think the limitations on
using Skype on the iPhone would be a big drawback for users, since Wi-Fi networks
have become common. (11)
However, he said he hoped Apple and AT&T would relax restrictions and let people
make Skype calls anywhere they roamed. ''We think these things should work on any
device, any network, at any time,'' he said. (12)
No. 8
Source Text
Target Text
Answering Baseball’s What-Ifs
模擬棒球電玩 讓你圓教練夢
By ALAN SCHWARZ
潘勛 2009/04/09
April 6, 2009
You can learn a lot during a major league baseball game. Like Ukrainian, if it is a
particularly slow nine innings. (1)
As for the science of baseball strategy, one game teaches precious little. A well-timed
sacrifice bunt can backfire and lose the game; a foolish steal can appear brilliant. The
vagaries of randomness — the way Sandy Koufax got battered occasionally and a
pipsqueak named Bucky Dent hit one of the most famous home runs ever — camouflage
the game’s inner forces, which for 150 years have operated somewhere between fact and
fable. (2)
One game has little meaning. A thousand seasons can take a while. Thank goodness for
quad-core processors. (3)
“Computer simulations work pretty well in baseball for two reasons,” said Carl Morris, a
professor of statistics at Harvard University who has written several papers that
commingled baseball and formal statistical theory. “In general, they allow you to study
fairly complicated processes that you can’t really get at with pure mathematics. But also,
sports are great for simulations — you can play 10,000 seasons overnight.” (4)
No one can afford to wait less than major league teams, which crave every extra run or
victory they can wring from their $100 million rosters. John Abbamondi, the assistant
general manager for the St. Louis Cardinals, says his team and about 10 others use
98
simulations to evaluate potential trades and how they might affect the pennant race. (5)
“It’s all part of the statistical analysis that complements the more traditional scouting we
do,” he said. (6)
Using computer simulations to explore in-game and other baseball strategies is by no
means new. As early as 1958, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
programmed a behemoth I.B.M. 704 mainframe to investigate whether the sacrifice bunt
was a smart play. (More on that later.) Simulators have since grown so complex that the
most sophisticated one available to the public, called Diamond Mind, not only runs
lickety-split on laptops but even considers minutiae like the effects of wind in individual
ballparks. (7)
Under what conditions is bunting advantageous? When does trying to steal make sense,
and when does it decrease the chances of scoring? Questions like these turn out to be
ideally suited to computer programs through which millions of iterations can smooth out
the peaks and valleys of randomness, and converge toward a reliable approximation. (8)
Known among formal statisticians as the Monte Carlo method, this approach takes
《模擬棒球》使用統計學的「蒙地卡羅法」
spectacularly complex phenomena like weather patterns and stock performance and
來設計軟體，利用亂數取樣，計算許多棒球
allows their behavior to be approximated, if not determined. (9)
戰術難題；設計之精，連球場的風向效果都
考慮到了。 (二)
What are the chances of winning a game of solitaire? Rather than writing an equation
that tries to take into account the trillions of trillions of possible hands and moves, a
statistician can run a computer program that simply plays the game a few million times
in minutes to see how often it wins. Dr. Morris says he has seen the Monte Carlo method
used to improve computer graphics and explore gene sequences. (10)
Like such competitors as Strat-O-Matic — which made its debut in 1961 with at-bats
美國職棒大聯盟比賽可動用的戰術很多，可
determined by cards and dice, and remains popular on the personal computer —
以假設的狀況也不少，球迷碰到緊張場面，
Diamond Mind is designed to allow fans to play fictional games and seasons, exploring
有時心急如焚，恨不得自己當總教練。現在，
what-if scenarios that real life would be too slow and controversial to allow. (11)
美國推出的職棒比賽模擬軟體《模擬棒球》
（Diamond Mind）可以讓球迷一圓指揮球隊
的美夢，而且計算相當準，場面很逼真。 (一)
Take the age-old question of how much difference a team’s lineup order makes. This
issue so vexed the former manager Billy Martin that he once literally picked his Detroit
Tigers batting order out of a hat. (12)
Luke Kraemer of Imagine Sports, which owns Diamond Mind, programmed the
《模擬棒球》的智慧財產權屬「想像運動」
simulator to force the 2008 Yankees to bat their best hitter and cleanup man, Alex
（Imagine Sports）公司所有。該公司專家克
Rodriguez, ninth — to see how scoring was affected. Mr. Kraemer got the run total not
萊默使用該遊戲軟體，強迫紐約洋基隊金童
for just one season, which can fluctuate as much as 80 runs in each direction from simple
強棒 A-Rod 排去打第九棒，看看對洋基隊的
randomness, but for 100 seasons — more than 16,000 Yankees games in all. (13)
得分有什麼影響。克萊默實驗的期限不止一
個球季，而是一百個球季，也就是洋基隊打
99
一萬六千場以上的球賽。 (三)
The result? The Yankees scored 747 runs per season, 40 fewer than their real-life 787.
結果呢，洋基隊平均每球季得七四七分，比
(Diamond Mind was so accurate that 100 seasons with A-Rod batting fourth averaged
現實球季少四十分；而且，如果在《模擬棒
789, almost dead-on.) Most research suggests that those 40 runs would mean only about
球》軟體裡，安排 A-Rod 打第四棒，那麼洋
four fewer victories, for a strategy no manager would ever consider; so the difference
基得分平均為七八七分，實在準得不得了。
with Rodriguez batting third or fifth would be insignificant, and nowhere near worth the
(四)
forests of trees that would give their lives to the ensuing sports-page debate. (14)
Diamond Mind took its cuts at several other baseball knucklers, running 100 full seasons
《模擬棒球》用一百個球季，來切入幾項棒
of games for each: (15)
球比賽最難取捨的戰術，取得的勝戰答案如
下： (五)
The intentional walk. This frequently used defensive strategy avoids dangerous hitters
故意保送：守方最常用這項策略來對付強
and can set up a double play, but it also awards a free base, and even the best hitters
棒，還可以設計雙殺，但故意保送也會免費
usually make an out. So is it smart in the long run? Diamond Mind found that it was not,
送對手上壘，而且，即使再強的打者也常無
though the difference was only about five runs per team per season. (16)
功而返。所以，這算是聰明策略嗎？依《模
擬棒球》計算，答案是：不聰明；要不要故
意保送，每支球隊每一球季付出的代價，差
別只在五分左右。 (六)
The stolen base. Advancing from first to second puts the runner in scoring position, but
盜壘：跑者由一壘盜二壘，如果成功便站上
he — and the rest of your hitters — will have a hard time scoring if he gets thrown out.
得分位置，但如果被捕手截殺，那麼再要得
Mr. Kraemer looked at a recent team that ran wild (the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays) and one
分就很難了。克萊默用《模擬棒球》來分析
that barely stole at all (the 2005 Oakland A’s) and switched their mind-sets to see what
瘋狂盜壘的二○○八年坦帕灣光芒隊，還有幾
happened. The A’s scored 20 runs fewer, which probably says more about their players’
乎不盜壘的二○○五年奧克蘭運動家隊，然後
inability to run in the first place. But when the speedy Rays stole sparingly, they
將兩者對調，看看結果如何。答案是運動家
increased their scoring by 47 runs per season — suggesting that perhaps the Rays were
隊少得廿分，這一點或許能解釋成運動家的
running too often in real life. (17)
球員本來就不太會跑壘。但是，速度快的光
芒隊如果減少盜壘呢？那他們整個球季居然
可以多得四十七分，或許現實世界裡，光芒
隊真是跑太兇了。 (七)
The sacrifice bunt. Is it worth making an out intentionally to move a runner from first to
犧牲打：故意犧牲一個出局數，而讓跑者由
second? Forcing a team that hated that maneuver (the 2005 Boston Red Sox) to do it a
一壘上二壘，這麼做值得嗎？如果強迫一支
lot cost them 19 runs per season. But making a bunting team (the 2008 New York Mets)
最恨這種戰術的球隊─如二○○五年的波士頓
avoid it also cost them — by 15 runs on average — suggesting that the Mets’ managers,
紅襪隊─頻頻做犧牲觸擊，那麼他們將付出
Willie Randolph and Jerry Manuel, used it quite intelligently. (The 1958 M.I.T.
每球季十九分的代價。但如 果叫一支愛觸擊
statisticians found that the sacrifice was rarely a good move; major league managers paid
的球隊─如二○○八年紐約大都會隊─別那麼
little attention.) (18)
做，那麼大都會隊平均每球季會少得十五
分。(八)
One problem with computer simulations is that no matter how realistically they might be
電腦模擬軟體遭遇的一大困難乃是：無論軟
programmed, they can say more about the programmer than baseball itself. A computer,
體多麼寫實，透露出程式撰寫者想法的程
100
after all, cannot feel human emotions like pressure or the will to hit in the clutch. (19)
度，要比真實的棒球來得多。畢竟，電腦無
“We can run the experiment in the simulation environment and think we’re measuring
法感受到人類的情緒如壓力，或者想揮出關
the effect of a great defense on a pitching staff, but it might tell us more about how we
鍵一棒時的渴望。一九八○年代 初期撰寫《模
modeled defense,” said Tom Tippett, who wrote the original Diamond Mind code in the
擬棒球》原始程式碼的提佩特表示，這個軟
early 1980s. “The simulation is real close to real-life baseball, but in the end it isn’t
體真的很接近現實世界的棒球賽了，但說到
real-life baseball.” (20)
底，軟體畢竟不是真正的棒球比賽。 (九)
After developing Diamond Mind into the industry standard, Mr. Tippett was hired a few
years ago by the Boston Red Sox — a sign of how much some teams have come to value
simulation research. While none will discuss exactly what they model and how, Mr.
Abbamondi, of the Cardinals, said they could provide objective insight into how an
offense might be affected by trading for a hitter in midseason; how many games that
might improve the team; and how that hitter might improve or deteriorate as he ages.
Many of these measurements come in the form of scenarios of increasing uncertainty, not
unlike the projection of hurricane paths. (21)
As Mr. Tippett suggested, however, simulations have inherent limits, and probably will
not ever model baseball’s vicissitudes of fate — how scrubs morph into all-stars and
some teams just collapse. (Indeed, fans of the recent New York Mets would be relieved
that some things defy re-creation.) Tony La Russa, the Cardinals’ manager, who is a sure
bet for the Hall of Fame, said the value of computer simulations in baseball tended to
stop at the dugout entrance. (22)
“There’s way too much importance given to what you can produce from a machine,” he
said. “These are human beings, and I don’t think any computer is going to model that
close to what we deal with at this level.” (23)
That can be as true now as it was 25 years ago, when a Tank McNamara cartoon
captured it best. A downtrodden manager peered over his computer. He asked plaintively,
“But will it take the blame?” (24)
No. 9
Source Text
Target Text
The Funeral: Your Last Chance to Be a Big Spender
婚喪度小月 各有撇步 訂做告別式 送行者
By GABRIELLE GLASER
打出創意牌
April 18, 2009
楊明暐 2009/04/20
EVEN in these hard times, Peter Moloney, a funeral director, believes that people should
儘管市道不佳，美國殯葬業經理莫隆尼提醒
have what they want. (1)
大家：往生者仍應得到所想要的，畢竟這是
Although not all of his customers can fully express their wishes, Mr. Moloney and his
他們最後一次花大錢的機會。莫隆尼與兄弟
brothers, who own six funeral homes on Long Island, have worked hard to arrange
在紐約長島開了六家葬儀社，並竭盡所能為
customized send-offs. And the touches are as varied as the customers themselves. (2)
「客戶」量身訂做各式各樣的告別式。 (一)
Bike lovers pay an extra $200 or so to take their last ride in a special hearse towed by a
熱愛機車的人，只要額外支付兩百美元，就
101
Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Gardeners select wildflower seed packets to include with
能躺在一輛由哈雷重型機車拖曳的特製靈車
their funeral programs. One gentleman wanted to be remembered for comforting his
上，享受最後一程馳騁。園藝家可以挑選喪
grandchildren with ice cream, so, after the funeral, mourners were greeted by a man in a
禮用的花卉。有位客戶希望親友記得他拿冰
Good Humor truck, handing out frozen treats. (3)
淇淋寵愛孫兒的快樂景象，因此告別式之
後，一位賣冰淇淋大叔會現身送給每人一份
冰淇淋。 (二)
“You have to give people something special,” says Mr. Moloney, who is 44 and a
fourth-generation funeral director. “If you’re not, someone else will be. That means
adjusting to what people want today.” (4)
A growing willingness to cater to individual tastes is helping the funeral industry hold its
美國殯葬業愈來愈懂得配合客戶品味要求，
own during the recession. While some people spend an extra $1,000 or more on 14-karat
有助於他們在不景氣時，生意照樣興隆。有
gold mementos, others want less expensive or environmentally friendly options. So
些客戶願意花一千美元甚至更多，購買紀念
funeral homes are renting out coffins as well as Harleys, and some minimize the use of
品送給親友，有些不想多花錢，有些崇尚環
chemicals. (5)
保自然，葬儀社悉聽尊便。除了哈雷機車，
他們還提供棺廓出租，有些更強調會把使用
的化學製品降到最低。(三)
Even in a tough economy, of course, people in the funeral business have something that
與其它產業不同，殯葬業即便在經濟環境最
executives in many other industries don’t: a guaranteed, and expanding, pool of
差的時候，客戶仍源源不絕。IBISWorld 市
customers. (6)
場研究公司資深分析師范貝克估計，今年美
國殯葬業的營業額將增長一．二％，達二○
七億美元，較去年的二％略有下降，但在其
它產業衰退率達兩位數的今天，還能維持增
長確屬不易 。(四)
“The honest-to-goodness truth of the matter is that everybody does die,” says Arvin
Starrett, a spokesman for the National Funeral Directors Association and the owner of
Starrett Funeral Home in Paris, Tex. (7)
Revenue in the American funeral industry will grow 1.2 percent this year, to $20.7
See(四)
billion, estimates Toon van Beeck, a senior industry analyst at IBISWorld, the research
firm. That’s down from a 2 percent gain last year — but, hey, it’s still growth when
companies in other industries are reporting double-digit losses. (8)
Americans may be living longer than ever, but the reality of a graying nation is stark. The
美國人也許比過去來得長壽，但人口老化的
annual death rate of about 2.5 million has been rising about 1 percent a year, and is
情勢相當嚴峻。每年有大約二五○萬美國人
expected to spike in the early 2020s as older baby boomers reach their mid-70s. (9)
蒙主寵召。這個數字正以每年一％的速度增
加，預計二○二○年代初，亦即嬰兒潮世代達
到七十五歲上下時，會達到高峰。這對殯葬
業來說，不啻是好消息。 (五)
Nevertheless, the death industry is facing something of an existential crisis. Cremation,
不過，殯葬業也存在一項危機，就是火葬已
which can reduce costs by half or more, is a strong trend. (The average cost of a funeral
形成趨勢，傳統土葬平均花費約八千美元，
102
and traditional burial is about $8,000.) Families are increasingly abandoning traditional
火葬的價格只有一半甚至更低。然而，許多
religious funerals, which are typically organized by funeral directors, in favor of secular
業者為客戶提供新的服務，從而開闢新的財
ceremonies they may arrange themselves. Natural burials, which avoid embalming and
源，如播放追思影片，安排傷痛諮詢人員，
concrete burial vaults, are more commonly considered than they once were, while a
還有提供各類追思物件，如具有紀念意義的
minority of families are bypassing funeral homes altogether to take care of their dead
骨灰甕等。殯葬業者相信，只要懂得求新求
themselves. (10)
變，這一行永遠是夕陽無限好。 (六)
People in the industry believe that they can continue to prosper by adapting and evolving.
See (六)
But some insiders suggest that the business could be headed for a restructuring as radical
as that sweeping through the music or newspaper industries, especially as baby boomers
approach their final act. (11)
The same generation that questioned convention in sex, birth and marriage will probably
do the same in death care, says Char Barrett, 48, a funeral director in Seattle and the
owner of A Sacred Moment, a business that helps families prepare the bodies of loved
ones at home. For a home funeral, she charges $1,450 to $2,595. (12)
“It’s your funeral, your choice — and the industry needs to recognize that,” Ms. Barrett
says. “Or it can stay in the box, and drive itself out of business.” (13)
A PREFERENCE for cremation is already transforming the funeral industry in the
United States. Cremations will account for a projected 38 percent of all deaths this year,
compared with 26 percent in 2000, according to the Cremation Association of North
America, an industry group based in Chicago. (14)
A possible reason for this, says Ron Hast of Tiburon, Calif., a funeral director for 51
years and publisher of Mortuary Management, an industry magazine, is that, in the end,
people want simplicity. “Cremation plays a big part in that,” he says. (15)
As Americans become more mobile, they have moved away from hometowns and from
some traditions. So final goodbyes become secular. “Here in Marin County, the yacht
club is church,” Mr. Hast says. (16)
Even within churches, shifting preferences and guidance have rewritten funeral rites. In
1963, the Vatican lifted a centuries-old prohibition on cremation, and more Catholics are
choosing it. “Few of us die in the same neighborhoods where we were born, so often
when a person dies, there are fewer long-term connections,” Mr. Goodness says. (17)
And if you care a little bit less about ceremony, and are ready to allow your body to go up
in smoke, then all of the trappings of traditional funerals matter less as well — like fancy
caskets, says Jerry Sullivan, a second-generation funeral director in Chicago. (18)
“Back in the day, families might spend $10,000, $12,000 on a solid African mahogany
casket, have an all-out wake and such,” he says. “Those days are over.” (19)
Today, many funeral directors offer hardwood or metal rental coffins for a short period
before cremation, Mr. Sullivan says. He charges roughly $1,000 to rent a hardwood
casket for a daylong viewing; a body is placed in a combustible container of cardboard or
103
soft wood, and inserted into the rental coffin lined with fabric. (20)
“We were early adapters,” says Mr. Sullivan, who has rented coffins since 1976. “You
want to stay alive in this business, you anticipate your customer’s needs.” (21)
For those who are budget-minded, but don’t want to rent, they can buy coffins at Costco,
which offers a selection from $924.99 to $2,999.99. (22)
Many funeral directors are compensating for lost revenue as the Moloneys have, by
offering new services like video tributes, grief counseling referrals and memorial items
including ceremonial urns, keepsake jewelry, wind chimes and sundials that hold a
portion of cremated remains. Some are even selling sterling silver or 14-karat gold
“Thumbies” — earrings, charms, pendants and cufflinks that are fashioned from the
thumbprint of their loved one and can cost $1,000 apiece. (23)
They pull in profits from the rental business, too. Morticians can recoup the cost of an
ornate coffin after a dozen or so rentals, but use it for several years. (24)
Still, the funeral industry faces competition from a growing number of companies,
which, like Costco, are providing goods or services that cater to the cost-saving or
environmental concerns of a new generation. (25)
Consider Paul Firnstein, a retired advertising executive who moved to Ashland, Ore.,
from upstate New York in the early 1990s. Members of his small synagogue lacked
access to the simple coffins required by Jewish law. So Mr. Firnstein, a carpenter, set
about making them himself in kits that families could assemble themselves. Word spread
about his business, Ark Wood Caskets, first locally and then, with Internet advertising,
nationwide. His coffin kits sell for $599, and fit into a slender cardboard box. (26)
“You can stand the box up in the garage, or put it under the pool table for when the time
comes,” he says. (27)
Mr. Firnstein also says he is fielding more calls from families interested in natural burials.
Adherents of the movement wrap bodies in simple shrouds or in biodegradable coffins
and bury them in woodland cemeteries. (28)
Such simple burials are traditional in many faiths, and were long the standard practice in
the United States until the Civil War, when the development of modern embalming and
the expansion of the train system altered the landscape of death and gave rise to the
modern mortuary practice. (29)
No one keeps statistics on natural burials, but interest is growing, says Mark Harris,
author of a 2007 book, “Grave Matters: A Journey Through the Modern Funeral Industry
to a Natural Way of Burial.” (30)
“It’s not just this chic eco-trend for greenies,” he says. “It’s based on simplicity and thrift,
and has broad appeal.” (31)
Since 2005, the Green Burial Council, a nonprofit organization in Santa Fe, N.M., has
certified cemeteries and funeral providers that follow certain environmental guidelines. It
104
See (六)
has a list of 220 funeral homes that identify themselves as willing to handle unembalmed
bodies, 17 cemeteries that, among other practices, avoid chemicals, and 14 coffin
companies that use nontoxic, biodegradable materials. (32)
LAWS vary by state, but it is legal in most states to care for the dead at home. New York
is among the few states that require a licensed funeral director or undertaker to handle
most death care needs. The online Home Funeral Directory, based in Austin, Tex., shows
a list of 41 organizations that help arrange home funerals. Many of these charge fees for
conducting home death-care seminars and workshops. (33)
Char Barrett, the funeral director in Seattle, spent 25 years in corporate sales and
nonprofit management before attending mortuary school. Two years ago, she founded A
Sacred Moment and has since assisted with 54 home funerals. She offers Web seminars
and workshops that help families prepare bodies at home for burial or cremation, and
works closely with others who provide customized merchandise. (34)
One of those merchants is Marian Spadone, an artist in Portland, Ore., who designs and
makes burial shrouds for her four-year-old company, A Fine Farewell. She says she
laughs along when people make wisecracks about her “burial burritos,” and even when
they call her the “Death Shroud Lady.” (35)
“A lot of people think it’s weird at first,” she says. (36)
Her shrouds start at $895, can be made to order, and can be used in coffins or to wrap
bodies before burial or cremation. (37)
“People spend all this time planning how they will decorate their home or have a
wedding,” she says. “Why wouldn’t you do the same when you say goodbye?” (38)
No. 10
Source Text
Target Text
Inside These Lenses, a Digital Dimension
數位眼鏡資訊、
數位眼鏡資訊、電子地圖帶著走
By ANNE EISENBERG
黃文正 2009/04/27
April 25, 2009
EARBUDS can pipe audio directly from a portable player to the ear. But did you ever
從眼鏡甚至隱形眼鏡上，透過智慧型手機的
imagine that eyeglasses or contact lenses could deliver digital images directly from a
媒介，直接看到數位影像畫面，已不再是夢
smartphone to the retina? (1)
事。目前已有多家公司投入研發外型如眼鏡
Several companies are developing prototypes for digital devices that look like stylish
的數位裝置原型，假以時日，此種高科技眼
eyewear but may one day offer such capabilities to consumers. The glasses are called
鏡有望成為市場新寵兒。(一)
heads-up displays because the wearer can always look through them and see the real
這種眼鏡算是一種「抬頭顯示器」
（head-up
world — like the sidewalk just ahead — but can also see, on an overlay image, virtual
displays）
，使用者在行走時，不僅可看清楚前
information like an electronic map or an arrow showing the correct way to a destination.
方馬路，也可透過重疊影像，在鏡片上看到
The glasses may also help the wearer remember the name of a long-lost friend she sees
電子地圖、前往目的地的箭頭指標等虛擬資
on the street. (2)
訊。此外，在街頭遇到許久不見的朋友，這
105
種眼鏡也可幫你記起對方的名字。(二)
SBG Labs, an optical technology company in Sunnyvale, Calif., is among the businesses
加州光學科技公司「ＳＢＧ實驗室」正在研
that are developing the devices. The glasses are only slightly larger than many chic pairs
發的數位影像眼鏡，僅比一般大鏡片的太陽
of wraparounds, but instead of bearing rhinestones or designer initials, they hold a tiny
眼鏡再大一些，鏡框內嵌入微小的投射器和
projector and optics — tucked away in the side of the frame. (3)
光學儀器。北卡羅萊納大學電腦科學教授富
Such devices may have considerable appeal for consumers, so long as the glasses are
齊斯表示，未來此種眼鏡重量若能更輕、外
attractive and lightweight, said Henry Fuchs, a professor of computer science at the
型和功能更具吸引力，市場潛力必無可限
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Professor Fuchs is a pioneer in the creation
量。(三)
of precursors to these glasses: large, head-mounted display systems — worn, for
example, by soldiers who use them to see information like a map reflected on the visor
of a helmet. These displays, though, are typically quite heavy to wear. (4)
“People who work on head-mounted displays are hungering for something that people
would be willing to wear for more than an hour,” he said, “something that would go in
one’s eyeglasses and not be too much clunkier than regular eyeglasses.” (5)
No price has been set for the SBG eyeglasses, which are still in the prototype stage, said
Jonathan Waldern, the company’s founder and chief technology officer. SBG is
concentrating on military and avionics applications, with consumer uses to follow. (6)
The technology uses a process called holographic optics. Light-emitting laser diodes in
這種科技係利用全像光學術（holographic
the projector, stored in the side of the frame, shoot their highly concentrated beams
optics）
，內建發光二極體組成的投射器，儲
forward to the eyeglass surface. There, computerized, transparent devices called
藏於鏡框之內，將高聚光光束投射在鏡片表
holographic gratings diffract light in ways that ordinary optical components like prisms
面，然後，再經由
「全像光柵技術」
（holographic
can’t, steering it to the user’s eyes. (7)
grating）折射光線，將數位影像傳送至使用者
的視網膜。(四)
Contact lenses are also being developed for mobile displays. Babak A. Parviz, an
另一方面，隱形眼鏡也可望成為新穎的行動
associate professor of electrical engineering, with his team at the University of
設備顯示器。華盛頓大學電機系副教授帕維
Washington in Seattle, has created a biocompatible contact lens that has miniaturized
茲領導的團隊，將微電子和光電元件整合於
electronics and optoelectronics integrated into the lens. (8)
鏡片內，成功研發出一種具備生物相容性
（biocompatible）的隱形眼鏡。 (五)
Dr. Parviz says he is moving a step at a time in testing the lenses. Rabbits have worn
them for 20 minutes without ill effects, he said. “The display has not yet been turned on
while the rabbits are wearing the lenses,” he said. “But we have turned on the lenses
while holding them with tweezers, and they work well.” (9)
The light-emitting diodes and other semiconductor components of the display are made
他們將顯示器內的發光二極體和其他半導體
separately, then moved to the lens, which is made of the same plastic used in beverage
元件分開製造，然後將之嵌進鏡片中，此鏡
bottles. Then the entire device gets a biocompatible coating. (10)
片係由與一般飲料瓶相仿的塑膠材質所製，
“We embed everything in polymers similar to those in standard contact lenses,” he said.
因此，整個裝置多了生物相容性的外衣。帕
“The electronics and photonics are inside the plastic, so users won’t come in contact
維茲說：
「我們像一般隱形眼鏡，將所有東西
with them.” (11)
全嵌進聚合物內，所有電子和光學元件都藏
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於塑膠內，讓使用者不會與之接觸。」(六)
So far, the group has been able to light up and control a single pixel. But the team hopes
目前，這個團隊已可顯示並處理單一畫素，
to increase the number of pixels gradually, to make higher resolutions, he said. “We will
他們希望未來可逐步擴增畫素數量，提高解
increase the resolution, and add color eventually,” he said. (12)
析度。微軟內部一個由唐．戴斯尼博士領軍
A group led by Desney S. Tan, a researcher at Microsoft Research in Redmond, Wash.,
的研究小組，現正與帕維茲團隊一同合作。
is working with Dr. Parviz. (13)
(七)
“Our role is to come up with some of the applications for the technology,” Dr. Tan said,
唐博士表示，他們正研發的相關科技應用，
applications that are part of a research field he called augmented reality: the combining
為「擴增實境」
（augmented reality）研究的一
of digital and physical worlds, in which virtual information is layered onto a person’s
部分：可結合數位和物質世界，將虛擬資訊
view of the real world. (14)
置放於人們所見真實世界的圖層之上。他
In one possible application, the eyewear could serve as the wearer’s personal whisperer
說，未來可能的應用之一是，走在路上，遇
at conferences and cocktail parties. “What if every time I passed by a person, I had their
到一個人，顯示器便可立即呈現對方的姓
name come up on the display?” Dr. Tan asked. “We could even add information on the
名。之後也可加入談話內容，下回再碰面時，
last time I saw them and what we chatted about.” (15)
便不愁找不著話題。(八)
No. 11
Source Text
Target Text
A Less Crowded Cannes, and Perhaps a Silver Lining
坎城影展冷 反利藝術電影露臉
By MANOHLA DARGIS
黃文正 2009/05/18
Published: May 14, 2009
'CANNES, France — Economic downturn? What economic downturn? There are no
受金融風暴衝擊，今年坎城影展冷清許多，
hard times on the red carpet at Cannes, where they know how to party like it’s 1788 or at
不少影片映演場次門可羅雀。坎城市場展係
least like the prerecessionary days of 2008. On Wednesday the 62nd Cannes Film
全球最大的電影交易平台，每年皆吸引上千
Festival opened with the customary smiles and patrician waves as the stars and auteurs
各國片商前往買賣影片，今年的市場展可能
promenaded into the world premiere of Pixar’s “Up.” It was all très chic, if very de
不如往年熱絡。儘管如此，但美國獨立片商
rigueur, save for the awe-inspiring moment when the 80-year-old French director Agnès
在烏雲滿布中似已見到一線曙光。(一)
Varda, busy photographing the photographers, nimbly dodged being knocked over by a
posing and blissfully oblivious Tilda Swinton. (1)
Given the throb of bad news preceding the festival (“Economic Woes at Cannes” read a
typical headline), you might even think that Pixar’s latest, a 3-D charmer directed by Pete
Docter (“Monsters, Inc.”), about an old man who takes literal and emotional flight with
the help of a child, had been chosen for its title alone, as a way to buoy the down
attendees. At least for the first few days, there were more empty seats at the press
screenings and breathing room in the hallways. But the mood in the Palais, the festival’s
headquarters, was cautiously optimistic, or perhaps just realistic. You couldn’t help
wondering, Is this thinned population the recession or a sign of a correction — an
indication that there might be fewer movies clogging screens? (2)
107
It’s too early to tell, of course, though the idea that there might be a silver lining to the
本屆影展開幕前，坎城大會特別發出電子郵
dark clouds, particularly for the kinds of nonstudio movies that make their way from
件，徵詢各大獨立片商對藝術電影市場的看
Cannes to American specialty screens, was a theme that emerged from a highly
法。旅美名導李安今年以《胡士托記事》入
unscientific poll I conducted by e-mail before the festival kicked off. James Schamus, the
圍競賽，李安的製老搭檔、Focus Features 執
chief executive of Focus Features, a specialty division of NBC Universal that recently
行長夏慕斯樂觀的說：
「對影迷而言，壞消息
released Jim Jarmusch’s “Limits of Control,” put the larger economic woes into
就是好消息。避險基金的資金抽離後，今秋
pragmatic, film-world perspective. (3)
上檔 藝術電影勢必減少，但這些影片可獲得
更多的注目和票房，這意味藝術電影市場可
望比前幾年更值得期待。」(二)
“In some ways,” Mr. Schamus wrote, “the bad news is good news for film buffs — the
drying up of hedge fund money means that while there will be fewer art-house films
opening every weekend this fall, the ones that do open will have a better shot at gaining
some kind of attention and audience. That means specialized film as a business will
make a lot more sense than it has the past few years.”(4)
Eamonn Bowles, the president of the independent distributor Magnolia Pictures, which is
獨立片商 Magnolia Pictures 總裁鮑爾斯直率
owned by Todd Wagner and Mark Cuban and scored a Cannes hit three years ago with
指出：
「許多發行商倒閉，是因為高估藝術電
the South Korean monster movie “The Host,” was similarly sanguine about the current
影觀眾人口的票價稅率、以及過度投資的製
climate. (That film’s director, Bong Joon-ho, is back at Cannes, this time in the official
作和行銷預算，以致無法血本無歸。有趣的
lineup with a shivery-sounding story hinged to another kind of m-word: “Mother.”) (5)
是，自去年夏天以來，市 場反而節制，不需
花太多錢便可有效行銷影片。」(三)
“If anything,” Mr. Bowles wrote bluntly, “the failure of so many distributors was the
去年，好萊塢大型藝術片商如華納旗下的
result of wildly overestimating the ultimate audience for specialized fare, promoting the
Warner Independent Pictures、New Line
films and spending way more than could ever be recouped. Interestingly, the marketplace
Cinema，以及派拉蒙的 Paramount Vantage，
has gotten more manageable since last summer’s Malthusian fallout, and films are
紛紛遭到整併或裁撤。此外，老字號的 New
having a bit easier time finding their water level without extreme amounts of money
Yorker Films 公司破產歇業，更令影迷不勝唏
being spent.”(6)
噓。在美國，藝術電影市場本不易經營，一
部非商業藝術電影，能搶到戲院上映廳數不
多，必須靠影評或口碑相傳，方可創造話題，
扭轉劣勢，讓戲院同意增加廳數。最近如
Magnolia Pictures 等藝術片商在戲院商要求
下，都建置了隨選視訊系統（Video On
Demand）
，直接提供授權的影片。(四)
No one is gloating over the bad news that has rocked the American movie industry over
the last year or so, including the absorption or elimination of studio divisions like Warner
Independent Pictures, New Line Cinema and Paramount Vantage and the closing of the
legendary New Yorker Films. (7)
Yet it’s also clear that when several dozen new releases are trying to grab the same
art-house audience, as too often happens week after week, something has to give. For
108
some companies that something means an old-fashioned theatrical release, specifically
the kind in which a movie is painstakingly nurtured with critical love, audience word of
mouth and limited engagements, which is how Mr. Jarmusch’s breakout feature,
“Stranger Than Paradise,” made its way into the world in the mid-1980s. (8)
The nonblockbuster business has always been tough; now it’s close to Darwinian. Some
companies, including Magnolia, are grappling with the theatrical question through video
on demand. (9)
One company that appears to have done particularly well with on-demand and the
榮膺前年坎城金棕櫚獎的羅馬尼亞小成本藝
always difficult foreign-language market is IFC Films, which has released some of the
術電影《四個月三個禮拜又兩天》
，在美國上
finest and highest-profile Cannes titles of recent years. It scored a coup by picking up the
映票房不俗，IFC Entertainment 總裁謝荷林
2007 winner of the Palme d’Or, “Four Months, Three Weeks and Two Days,”
開心地說：
「我們對發行外語影片非常樂觀，
colloquially known as the Romanian abortion movie, before it won top honors. Its
去年我們發行的影片數量，就已創下歷年新
director, Cristian Mungiu, is back here — this time with four other Romanian
高。對我們來說，去年不但不難熬，反而是
filmmakers — for what sounds like a self-descriptive omnibus: “Tales From the Golden
關鍵的一年。」(五)
Age.” The American distributor? IFC Films. (10)
The president of IFC Entertainment, Jonathan Sehring, struck a note so optimistic that it
verged on the giddy: “We just love what we are doing and feel quite buoyant about the
business right now.” You certainly can’t blame him, given the quality and quantity of
films that his company has acquired out of Cannes, including Matteo Garrone’s
“Gomorrah,” Gus Van Sant’s “Paranoid Park” and Steve McQueen’s “Hunger.” (11)
“We are very bullish on the distribution of foreign-language films in the U.S.
marketplace, and we released more foreign-language films in 2008 than any other year
before, so from our perspective, it wasn’t a brutal year but rather a watershed one for us,”
Mr. Sehring wrote. “Established auteurs including Hou Hsiao-hsien, Ken Loach and
Shane Meadows have enjoyed their most successful releases at the box office through
our model, and through our partnership with Blockbuster, works by Jacques Rivette,
Christophe Honoré, Claude Chabrol and Johnnie To are on shelves in over 4,000 of their
stores across the country.”(12)
Purists might mourn the waning theatrical experience, but Mr. Sehring’s boosterism
speaks to a larger truth: “If anything, American audiences have access to more
international cinema than at any other time in history — they may not be all playing in
your local art house, but then again, most local art houses around the country could never
accommodate the number of good films that are made globally.”(13)
Whether IFC will go on another shopping spree this year remains to be seen. Though the
first press audience warmed to “Up,” which opens shortly after the festival closes,
reactions to the other early titles have been muted. The British director Andrea Arnold,
who shook up the festival with her 2006 feature debut, “Red Road,” is back with the
competition entry “Fish Tank.” A beautiful-looking slice of British miserabilism, “Fish
109
Tank” traces what happens to a 15-year-old (Katie Jarvis) when her mother’s boyfriend
moves into the family’s cramped flat, a story that can be summed up by the lyrics, sung
by AZ, that portentously bring the accumulated bleak moments to a close: “Life’s a bitch
and then you die.”(14)
Paradoxically, life under oppressive governments seems rather less suffocating than it
does in Ms. Arnold’s narrow worldview. Three years after being banned from
filmmaking by the Chinese government for showing his movie “Summer Palace” at
Cannes without his country’s requisite permission, the director Lou Ye has returned to the
competition with “Spring Fever,” a lovely, meandering, often poignant story about being
young, in love and agonizingly unmoored in modern China. (15)
The contradictions besetting the movie’s three young leads, who are all flailing
somewhere in their mid-to-late 20s, come when they drive over a bridge and look up at
several enormous Socialist Realist monuments looming over them, a vivid snapshot of
the new China passing by the old, for better and sometimes worse. (16)
Despair and melancholy also pervade the Iranian movie “No One Knows About Persian
Cats,” a self-described “documentary-fiction” about young rock musicians in Tehran
from the director Bahman Ghobadi (“A Time for Drunken Horses”). (17)
Hinged to two young musicians trying to obtain passports and visas, the movie is
fundamentally a vision of a parallel world, one whose inhabitants don’t just read Kafka,
they also comprehend it on a level unknown to many of his readers. Despite their
frequent references to the authorities, and with posters for British rock groups like the
Arctic Monkeys hanging on their wall, these musicians could be strumming and
drumming in Anywhere, U.S.A., which is just one reason that this modest and finally
very touching movie deserves to break out of the festival circuit.
(18)
No. 12
Source Text
Target Text
For Teenagers, Hello Means ‘How About a Hug?’
見面不說嗨 美青少年流行抱抱
By SARAH KERSHAW
鍾玉玨 2009/05/30
May 27, 2009
There is so much hugging at Pascack Hills High School in Montvale, N.J., that students
美國青少年近來出現以擁抱互打招呼的新潮
have broken down the hugs by type: (1)
流，擁抱次數之頻繁、抱法之多，甚至可分
There is the basic friend hug, probably the most popular, and the bear hug, of course. But
門別類。 (一)
now there is also the bear claw, when a boy embraces a girl awkwardly with his elbows
在新澤西州的「帕斯克丘中學」
，到處可見學
poking out. (2)
生們在走廊上抱來抱去，最普遍的首推朋友
之間的友好擁抱，再者是「熊抱」
（即緊抱）
，
另外是「熊爪抱」
（亦即男孩擁抱女孩時，因
110
為害羞，雙肘笨拙地外突）
。 (二)
There is the hug that starts with a high-five, then moves into a fist bump, followed by a
還有一種是先擊掌，接著拳碰拳，繼而互相
slap on the back and an embrace. (3)
拍拍背，最後才抱抱（即「拍抱」
）
。也有先
There’s the shake and lean; the hug from behind; and, the newest addition, the triple —
握手再互抱（握抱）
。若從後面抱著對方不
any combination of three girls and boys hugging at once. (4)
放，叫「後抱」
。而最新的抱法是「男女三人
合抱」
。(三)
“We’re not afraid, we just get in and hug,” said Danny Schneider, a junior at the school,
where hallway hugging began shortly after 7 a.m. on a recent morning as students
arrived. “The guy friends, we don’t care. You just get right in there and jump in.” (5)
There are romantic hugs, too, but that is not what these teenagers are talking about. (6)
Girls embracing girls, girls embracing boys, boys embracing each other — the hug has
擁抱已成時下學生們碰面或分手時最夯的打
become the favorite social greeting when teenagers meet or part these days. Teachers
招呼方式，連老師都忍不住戲稱學生彷彿是
joke about “one hour” and “six hour” hugs, saying that students hug one another all day
久別重逢的好友，一天到晚抱個不停。 (四)
as if they were separated for the entire summer. (7)
A measure of how rapidly the ritual is spreading is that some students complain of peer
擁抱固然可拉近距離，但已有學生向校方反
pressure to hug to fit in. And schools from Hillsdale, N.J., to Bend, Ore., wary in a
應，在校受到同儕壓力，若不加入抱抱行列
litigious era about sexual harassment or improper touching — or citing hallway clogging
根本無法和大家打成一片。 (五)
and late arrivals to class — have banned hugging or imposed a three-second rule. (8)
美國各地學校也擔心，貼身擁抱恐會引起性
騷擾或不當身體接觸的官司，遂禁止學生擁
抱或只允許擁抱三秒鐘。其他禁止擁抱的理
由還包括會造成走廊「塞車」
、上課容易遲
到、破壞校內嚴肅的學術風氣等。 (六)
Parents, who grew up in a generation more likely to use the handshake, the low-five or
至於慣以握手或擊掌打招呼的上一代，則對
the high-five, are often baffled by the close physical contact. “It’s a wordless custom,
子女們這種肢體貼身接觸感到困惑。 (七)
from what I’ve observed,” wrote Beth J. Harpaz, the mother of two boys, 11 and 16, and
「美聯社」親子教育專欄作家貝思．哈帕斯
a parenting columnist for The Associated Press, in a new book, “13 Is the New 18.” (9)
在其新著中談到十六歲長子在曼哈頓中學就
“And there doesn’t seem to be any other overt way in which they acknowledge knowing
讀的情況，她寫道：
「他們似乎沒有其他表達
each other,” she continued, describing the scene at her older son’s school in Manhattan.
彼此相識的明顯方式。沒有嗨，沒有微笑，
“No hi, no smile, no wave, no high-five — just the hug. Witnessing this interaction
沒有揮手，沒有擊掌，而只有擁抱。目睹這
always makes me feel like I am a tourist in a country where I do not know the customs
類互動方式，讓我自覺猶如外來遊客，來到
and cannot speak the language.” (10)
一個語言與風俗民情完全陌生的國度。」
(八)
For teenagers, though, hugging is hip. And not hugging? (11)
“If somebody were to not hug someone, to never hug anybody, people might be just a
little wary of them and think they are weird or peculiar,” said Gabrielle Brown, a
freshman at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School in Manhattan. (12)
Comforting as the hug may be, principals across the country have clamped down.
“Touching and physical contact is very dangerous territory,” said Noreen Hajinlian, the
111
principal of George G. White School, a junior high school in Hillsdale, N.J., who banned
hugging two years ago. “It was needless hugging — they are in the hallways before they
go to class. It wasn’t a greeting. It was happening all day.” (13)
Schools that have limited hugging invoked longstanding rules against public displays of
See(六)
affection, meant to maintain an atmosphere of academic seriousness and prevent
unwanted touching, or even groping. (14)
But pro-hugging students say it is not a romantic or sexual gesture, simply the “hello” of
their generation. “We like to get cozy,” said Katie Dea, an eighth grader at Claire
Lilienthal Alternative School in San Francisco. “The high-five is, like, boring.” (15)
Some sociologists said that teenagers who grew up in an era of organized play dates and
社會學家則認為，現代青少年自小被父母過
close parental supervision are more cooperative with one another than previous
度保護，不論是玩樂或是學習，均受到父母
generations — less cynical and individualistic and more loyal to the group. (16)
嚴格把關，因此和上一代相比，心態較不設
防。影響所及，不但樂於與他人合作，也較
能坦然和他人碰觸身體。最讓上一代「不可
思議」的是，連男生也不再裝酷，大方和同
性抱抱，絲毫不畏可能的閒言閒語。 (九)
But Amy L. Best, a sociologist at George Mason University, said the teenage embrace is
more a reflection of the overall evolution of the American greeting, which has become
less formal since the 1970s. “Without question, the boundaries of touch have changed in
American culture,” she said. “We display bodies more readily, there are fewer rules
governing body touch and a lot more permissible access to other people’s bodies.” (17)
Hugging appears to be a grass-roots phenomenon and not an imitation of a character or
custom on TV or in movies. The prevalence of boys’ nonromantic hugging (especially of
other boys) is most striking to adults. Experts say that over the last generation, boys have
become more comfortable expressing emotion, as embodied by the MTV show
“Bromance,” which is now a widely used term for affection between straight male
friends. (18)
But some sociologists pointed out that African-American boys and men have been
hugging as part of their greeting for decades, using the word “dap” to describe a ritual
involving handshakes, slaps on the shoulders and, more recently, a hug, also sometimes
called the gangsta hug among urban youth. (19)
“It’s something you grow up doing,” said Mazi Chiles, a junior at South Gwinnett High
School in Snellville, Ga., who is black. “But you don’t come up to a dude and hug, you
start out with a handshake.” (20)
Some parents find it paradoxical that a generation so steeped in hands-off virtual
communication would be so eager to hug. (21)
“Maybe it’s because all these kids do is text and go on Facebook so they don’t even have
human contact anymore,” said Dona Eichner, the mother of freshman and junior girls at
112
See(九)
the high school in Montvale. (22)
She added: “I hug people I’m close to. But now you’re hugging people you don’t even
know. Hugging used to mean something.” (23)
There are, too, some young critics of hugging. (24)
Amy Heaton, a freshman at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School in Bethesda, Md., said
casual social hugging seemed disingenuous to her. “Hugging is more common in my
opinion in people who act like friends,” she said. “It’s like air-kissing. It’s really
superficial.” (25)
But Carrie Osbourne, a sixth-grade teacher at Claire Lilienthal Alternative School, said
hugging was a powerful and positive sign that children are inclined to nurture one
another, breaking down barriers. “And it gets to that core that every person wants to feel
cared for, regardless of your age or how cool you are or how cool you think you are,” she
said. (26)
As much as hugging is a physical gesture, it has migrated online as well. Facebook
applications allowing friends to send hugs have tens of thousands of fans. Katie Dea, the
San Francisco eighth grader, as well as Olivia Brown, 11, who lives in Manhattan and is
the younger sister of Gabrielle, the LaGuardia High freshman, have a new sign-off for
their text and e-mail messages: *hug.* (27)
No. 13
Source Text
Target Text
Smile and Say ‘No Photoshop’
拒修修臉 時尚雜誌封面素顏登場
By ERIC WILSON
鍾玉玨 2009/05/31
May 27, 2009
MOST readers of fashion magazines are aware that all photographs, at least to some
明星的封面照、宣傳照總是找不出絲毫缺
degree, lie. (1)
點，肌膚上沒斑點、痘痘 、皺紋、傷疤，更
看不到禿頭、缺牙、近視、老花等歲月痕跡，
平滑 無瑕程度有時連毛細孔都難以窺見。
(一)
More often than not, images have been altered — historically with painstaking tricks of
但仔細比對會發現，這些照片和狗仔隊偷拍
lighting and exposure and, more recently, with retouching software that can make
的畫面天差地遠。同一個臉蛋，往往換了雜
celebrities and models look thinner, taller, unblemished, with brighter eyes and whiter
誌，臉也跟著忽胖忽瘦，有時簡直不像是同
teeth. Seemingly perfect. Advances in digital photography have made it so easy to
一人。難道照片會騙人？沒錯！看似完美無
manipulate photographs that cover models often resemble weirdly synthesized creatures
暇的臉蛋與身材，現在多半是經過 Photoshop
or, as the photographer Peter Lindbergh described them this week, “objects from Mars.”
這類電腦修圖軟體加工改造而成。 (二)
(2)
知名時裝攝影師彼得．林德伯格（Peter
Lindbergh）認為，鏡頭下的模特兒要能呈現
鮮明的個性，給人更貼近真實的感受。可惜
113
數位科技問世後，明星照被過度地加工修
飾，他批評這些死板失真的照片猶如「來自
火星的怪物」
。(三)
No one could reasonably argue that Gwyneth Paltrow’s skin is indeed made of Silly
就拿好萊塢紅星瑞絲薇斯朋為例，一年之間
Putty, as it appeared to be on the May 2008 cover of Vogue, or that Jessica Simpson’s
上遍《時尚》
、
《Marrie Claire》
、
《Elle》等知
body comes with only one hip, though her left one was suspiciously missing on last
名時尚雜誌封面，不過臉型、酒渦、乃至眼
September’s cover of Elle, or wonder how the shape of Reese Witherspoon’s chin,
珠顏色，改變之大，讓人一眼就看出數位修
dimples and eye color could change so drastically from her angelic Marie Claire
片的鑿痕。 (四)
appearance in February 2008 to her polished Vogue cover in November to her kittenish
Elle pose this April. (3)
Some popular blogs have made a sport of identifying egregious cases of Photoshop
以林德伯格為首的攝影師決定對數位軟體過
abuse, but the degree to which changes are made is rarely disclosed (and usually only
度修飾影像的失真現象發出反擊。他說：
「我
when a magazine is caught). But as retouching has become more blatant and bizarre,
覺得，今天女性的外觀美醜，太受這些數位
sometimes resulting in bodies that defy the natural boundaries of human anatomy, a
修片的左右。這些毫無感情的加工手法，不
debate over photo manipulation has spilled into public view, with Mr. Lindbergh, one of
該成為本世紀定義女性美的工具。」(五)
the world’s most famous image makers, leading the charge against the practice. (4)
“My feeling is that for years now it has taken a much too big part in how women are
being visually defined today,” Mr. Lindbergh said in an e-mail exchange. “Heartless
retouching,” he wrote, “should not be the chosen tool to represent women in the
beginning of this century.” (5)
Last month, Mr. Lindbergh stirred the pot by creating a series of covers for French Elle
為了彰顯訴求，林德伯格幫法國四月號 Elle
that showed stars like Monica Bellucci, Eva Herzigova and Sophie Marceau without
雜誌拍出八位歐洲女星脂粉未施的素顏照，
makeup or retouching. The issue struck a nerve with readers in France, where health
更勁爆的是照片完全未經任何加工或修改，
officials were already campaigning for a measure to force magazines to note when and
強調的就是自然、真實。雜誌一出，立刻造
how images are altered. But editors of American publications, who last year resisted such
成轟動。(六)
a proposal within their trade group, the American Society of Magazine Editors, have also
noted a backlash against images that appear manipulated to push an idealized standard of
beauty. (6)
It now seems fresh, even exclamation-worthy, when a magazine presents an unvarnished
這股給人耳目一新、驚歎連連的創舉也吹向
image. Last month, for example, an issue of Life & Style took the unusual step of
了美國。
《Life＆Style》上月破天荒宣布，金．
declaring that a cover photograph of Kim Kardashian was “100 percent unretouched,” as
卡戴珊（Kim Kardashian）的封面照「百分之
if it had done a great service to the cause of pseudo-celebrity journalism. And People, in
百未加工」
。
《時人》雜誌五月號也納入了十
its “100 Most Beautiful” issue this month, included images of 11 celebrities “wearing
一位名人的素顏照。(七)
nothing but moisturizer.” (7)
“Fashion magazines are always about some element of fantasy,” said Cindi Leive, the
《Glamour》總編輯利維說：
「時尚雜誌的內
editor of Glamour, “but what I’m hearing from readers lately is that in fashion, as in
容總是帶點夢幻，不過最近可感受到讀者對
every other part of our lives right now, there is a hunger for authenticity. Artifice, in
真實的渴求。我們厭倦了耍心機，那已是五
general, feels very five years ago.” (8)
年前過時的流行。」 (八)
114
Oddly, so does this debate. It was in 2003 that one of the most famous retouching
controversies arose when Kate Winslet asserted that the British edition of GQ had
excessively altered a photograph of her to make her look thin. That episode was followed
by many more: Andy Roddick’s enlarged biceps on the cover of Men’s Fitness, Katie
Couric’s streamlined promotional photos and the slimming of Faith Hill in Redbook, the
latter exposed in a 2007 competition by the fashion Web site Jezebel to uncover
retouching sins. Glamour, too, has faced photo-tampering accusations, including a
charge, which the magazine denied, that it digitally shrank the actress America Ferrera on
the cover of an issue in 2007 dedicated to techniques for readers to flatter their figures.
(9)
And yet a raw-celebrity movement has been slow in coming. That may be because, as
several editors said privately, celebrities’ publicists almost always demand retouching of
wrinkles and visible cellulite. As a result, a celebrity can look different from one
magazine to the next. (10)
“There’s no question that images have been altered so significantly that, at times, it’s so
apparent it’s transparent, actually,” said Dennis Freedman, the creative director of W, a
magazine that intentionally features photographs of both extremes: Juergen Teller’s
patently unretouched portraits on one hand and the digitally stylized work of Mert Alas
and Marcus Piggott on the other. (11)
“These are covers that look like Breck ads,” Mr. Freedman said. “But my question is, did
they intend for them to look like Breck ads? Is there irony? Is there subversion? Because
there is no question they are retouched beyond any possible reflection of what’s actually
in front of the camera.” (12)
The ethical issues of retouching have been discussed at least since the 1930s, when
George Hurrell manipulated characteristics of Hollywood actresses in photographs to
make them into icons of glamour. But technology has changed the scope of the debate,
fueling a long-held criticism that magazines are promoting an unattainable standard of
beauty. (13)
In the early 1990s, as the first programs for digital manipulation came into use, some art
directors began exploring the potential for creating images with a heightened sense of
reality, actually as a reaction against the prevailing images of supermodels that looked
too perfect. They were interested in creating images like those achieved through special
effects in movies. Magazines like The Face championed a style coined by its art director,
Lee Swillingham (now the creative director of Love), as “hyper real,” with photographs
by Norbert Schoener, Inez van Lamsweerde and Mert and Marcus that seemed to share
an affinity with Mannerist paintings. Models were presented as grandes odalisques, with
impossibly long necks, or waists reduced to sizes against nature. They were not
suggesting that the look should be attainable. (14)
115
“We were trying to create a future fashion,” Mr. Swillingham said. “You could do
something that looked gritty and real or something that looked like plastic.” (15)
No one could have predicted how quickly that future would come. Suddenly, images
could be changed even as they were being made, replacing backgrounds and filters with
the touch of a button, turning night into day. It follows, then, that the next logical step in
fashion would be a reaction against all that. For a coming issue of Love, Mr.
Swillingham just commissioned a shoot where the brief to Glen Luchford, the
photographer, was to make images that look like his early work in 35-millimeter film,
using a digital camera to recreate a pre-digital style of photography. Some cutting-edge
photographers now say that they, too, would like to see images that are more real. (16)
“Anybody with a few days’ experience on Photoshop can drop in a new background or
remove a pimple off a girl’s nose,” said Phil Poynter, who shoots campaigns for Tommy
Hilfiger and editorials for Love and Pop. Still, he noted, “the big discussion in the fashion
business has always been about should we retouch girls, should we create a portrait of a
girl that is not achievable by a real girl.” (17)
That issue came up in a revealing moment from the recent “60 Minutes” profile of the
Vogue editor Anna Wintour — actually from an outtake of Morley Safer’s interview with
her that was posted online — when she described an Irving Penn photograph, used to
illustrate an article about the dangers of obesity, as one of the most beautiful ever to
appear in her magazine. The starkly lighted image shows not a model in haute couture
but an obese woman who is naked. (18)
“It’s the kind of picture that really is going to make people stop and pay attention and
have them just be provoked, which was really the point,” Ms. Wintour told Mr. Safer.
(19)
The implication here is that what can be considered a provocative image in a fashion
magazine today is one that shows something real. (20)
Undoubtedly, the most compelling photographs are ones that show real character, said
Mr. Freedman of W. Nevertheless, he questions whether there will be a remarkable
change as a result of the media attention following Mr. Lindbergh’s French Elle covers.
Fashion magazines, to some extent, thrive as an escape from reality, a window to
something that exists outside the ravages of time. (21)
“I wonder how long that’s going to last,” he said. “It raises an interesting point, but that
in and of itself becomes a kind of gimmick. I would not bet my life savings that it is
something they are going to continue.” (22)
No. 14
Source Text
Target Text
吸血鬼魅力放電 「愛情」
愛情」商品熱賣
A Trend With Teeth
116
黃文正 2009/07/06
By RUTH LA FERLA
July 1, 2009
THE symptoms are unnerving: a taste for fresh meat — rare, if you please; an aversion to
想不想，或敢不敢跟吸血鬼談戀愛？由《暮
sunlight; and a passion for spectral-looking, fine-boned rakes. All are indications that the
光之城》系列小說掀起的現代吸血鬼流行文
sufferer has been bitten by the vampire bug. (1)
化風潮，似乎愈燒愈旺，除了相關題材電影、
電視影集和小說持續火紅外，連流行時尚界
也吹起陣陣妖風，而這波現 代吸血鬼熱兜售
的商品，其實就是愛情！(一)
Sookie Stackhouse, the feisty young heroine of “True Blood” on HBO, risks doom
ＨＢＯ自製影集《噬血真愛》堪稱近來最熱
whenever she visits with her otherworldly beau. And Oskar, the adolescent misfit of the
門的美國影集，女星安娜．帕昆在劇中扮演
Swedish art film “Let the Right One In,” a favorite in fashion circles, courts extinction
一名小鎮酒吧服務生蘇琪，擁有讀心術特異
each time he ventures out with Eli, the eerily ageless shape-shifter he befriends. (2)
功能的她，瘋狂愛上已經一百七十三歲的吸
血鬼比爾。至於瑞典電影《血色入侵》
，則是
描述一名內向小男孩奧斯卡，愛上小女吸血
鬼艾莉的故事。(四)
Sookie and Oskar are in the throes of vampire lust, a pop-culture contagion being spread
與過去陰森恐怖、只想吸光人血的噬血狂魔
via television, films and fiction. What began with the Twilight Saga, the luridly romantic
不同，現代吸血鬼不僅深情款款、性感狂野，
young-adult series by Stephenie Meyer, followed by “Twilight,” the movie, has become a
外型更是帥氣英挺，宛若超級男模。史蒂芬
pandemic of unholy proportions. (3)
妮．梅爾創作的《暮光之城》
，便是以高中校
園為背景的現代吸血鬼羅曼史，帥哥吸血鬼
與單親少女的愛情故事，迷倒無數少男少
女。(二)
Is it a wonder? (4)
Rarely have monsters looked so sultry — or so camera-ready. No small part of this latest
See(二)
vampire mania seems to stem from the ethereal cool and youthful sexiness with which
the demons are portrayed. Bela Lugosi they are not. (5)
“The vampire is the new James Dean,” said Julie Plec, the writer and executive producer
浪漫狂野與冷冽驚悚兼具，令現代吸血鬼魅
of “The Vampire Diaries,” a forthcoming series on the CW network based on the popular
力倍增。美國ＣＷ電視台（CW Network）預
L. J. Smith novels about high school femmes and hommes fatales. “There is something
定九月播映的最新影集《吸血鬼日記》
（The
so still and sexy about these young erotic predators,” she said. (6)
Vampire Diaries）
，同樣鎖定高中校園為背
景，編劇兼執行製作茱莉．布列克說：
「吸血
鬼是新的詹姆士．狄恩，這些年輕的情色掠
奪者是如此沉靜與性感。」 (三)
This generation of undead prowls high school hallways and dimly lighted dance clubs as
menacing — and as seductive — as they have ever been. The June premiere of the
second season of “True Blood,” in which Sookie, played by Anna Paquin, is reunited
with her imperious fanged suitor, drew 3.4 million viewers, making it HBO’s
most-watched program since the “Sopranos” finale in 2007. (7)
117
Charlaine Harris has just published “Dead and Gone,” the ninth novel in her Sookie
Stackhouse series, variations on Southern Gothic fiction on which “True Blood” is based.
The publishing world has been intrigued by “The Strain,” a first installment in a planned
trilogy written by the film director Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan, about
bloodthirsty predators run amok in Manhattan. (8)
The style world, too, has come under the vampire’s spell, in the shape of the gorgeous
leather- and lace-clad night crawlers who have crept into the pages of fashion glossies.
(9)
Vampires, of course, are part of a hoary tradition that harks back to Nosferatu and Bram
美國印第安納大學民俗學助理教授佛斯特分
Stoker’s “Dracula” at least. Anne Rice updated the genre, introducing the ghoulishly
析說，吸血鬼風潮再現，與「真實世界焦慮
aristocratic vampire Lestat. But the undead are returning with a vengeance, in part
擬人化」有關，
「特別是後九一一年代，人們
because they “personify real-world anxieties,” said Michael Dylan Foster, an assistant
警戒心提高，
《暮光之城》系列小說便反映出
professor in the department of folklore at Indiana University in Bloomington. (10)
某種陰謀論心態，懼怕我們生活周遭秘密潛
“Especially during these post-9/11 times of increased vigilance, representations like the
藏著某種危險，而且近在眼前。」 (七)
‘Twilight’ series reflect a kind of conspiracy-theory mentality, a fear that there is
something secret and dangerous going on in our own community, right under our noses.”
(11)
Given all that baggage, what keeps vampires so alluring? (12)
One might point to their combination of deathless good looks and decadent sexuality.
Their faces, as described in “Twilight,” “were all devastatingly, inhumanly beautiful.
They were faces you never expected to see except perhaps on the airbrushed pages of a
fashion magazine.” (13)
Vampirelike glamour figures strike come-hither poses in a flurry of recent fashion
publications. Portrayed as androgynous creatures in the June issue of W, they affect killer
glares, their menace accentuated by their chalky pallor. In the magazine’s current issue,
Bruce Willis appears about to be raked by the talons of his new wife, Emma Heming, in
a series of photographs by Steven Klein. (14)
Italian Vogue has also succumbed to the vampire’s cold charms: In the June issue, the
latest to arrive on American newsstands, models pose as willfully spooky night crawlers
like those who once haunted Manhattan clubs; one image captures a female stalker
whose supper, the smear of scarlet on her cheek suggests, has just been interrupted. (15)
The vampire’s attraction is “all about the titillation of imagining the monsters we could
be if we just let ourselves go,” suggested Rick Owens, a fashion bellwether whose
goth-tinged collections sometimes evoke the undead. “We’re all fascinated with
corruption, the more glamorous the better” and, he added, with the idea of “devouring,
consuming, possessing someone we desire.” (16)
That sort of predatory glamour is personified by Catherine Deneuve in “The Hunger.” In
另外，英國名導東尼．史考特目前也在撰寫
that morbidly stylish 1983 cult classic, directed by Tony Scott, Ms. Deneuve is Miriam, a
《血魔》
（The Hunger）第二集的劇本。在一
118
bloodsucking seductress in sharp-shouldered suits married to a pallid David Bowie and
九八三年上映的《血魔》中，法國女星凱薩
drawn to Susan Sarandon, a tomboyish specialist in sleep and longevity. (According to
琳．丹妮芙和英國男星大衛．鮑伊扮演一對
Mr. Scott, a sequel is in the writing stage.) (17)
吸血鬼夫妻。 (六)
The undead of “The Hunger” were blessed — or cursed — with riches, hauteur and the
kind of indestructible good looks aspiring glamazons can only dream of. Their modern
counterparts come from every stratum of society and appeal to an array of psycho-sexual
preferences. (18)
Comely upper-crust demons haunt the corridors of Duchesne, the Upper East Side
《暮光之城》電影第一集《無懼的愛》全球
private school of “Blue Bloods,” a young-adult vampire series by Melissa de la Cruz. In
大賣，吸血鬼題材電影頓時火紅，由韓國女
“The Strain,” Mr. del Toro’s gory tale, which is framed like a police procedural, the
星全智賢主演的《血戰：最後的吸血鬼》將
vampires are lowlifes, unremittingly vile. Saya, the eternal schoolgirl of “Blood: The
於七月十日在美國上映，此外，
《暮光之城》
Last Vampire,” a supernatural action film that will open July 10, is a reluctant monster in
第二集《新月》也預定十一月上映。(五)
a middy blouse, living a Spartan existence. Eli, the bloodsucking waif of “Let the Right
One In,” based on a much-talked-about novel of the same name, is gorgeous but
apparently destitute and needs only the occasional sanguinary fix to keep from
shriveling. (Vampires, too, can be done in by their addictions.) (19)
The most up-to-date — and least menacing — of this nocturnal breed are, well, deathless
romantics who pine like their mortal companions for a love that lasts through eternity.
Stefan, the handsome archfiend of “Vampire Diaries,” which will be broadcast on the
CW network in September, keeps his lust for the human Elena resolutely in check. (20)
In “New Moon,” the “Twilight” sequel that will open in November, the lead vampire
See(五)
Edward is a noble swain, performing feats of valor usually reserved for Superman.
Seductive as he is, he, too, is a model of restraint. More than once in the original film
Edward stops short of draining Bella, his mortal girlfriend. “I don’t want to be a
monster,” he tells her urgently (though it seems she wouldn’t mind). (21)
“Edward has rejected all humanity, but he is struggling to be human,” Ms. Plec said,
adding: “There is always the question, ‘Does this person have it in him to be good, to
make the right decision?’ It’s a theme that works like gangbusters in films and
television.” (22)
Impulse-control is an especially resonant theme in the current era of conflicts and
cutbacks. “Periods of war, economic downturns and cultural turmoil all give rise to the
production of vampire and fantasy fiction,” said Thomas Garza, chair of the department
of Slavic and Eurasian studies at the University of Texas at Austin, and a specialist in
vampire lore. “With a recession and war, the conflict has indeed seemed to turn inward,
as we question our fiscal, political and moral status. ‘Have we been too excessive? Do
we need to be more restrained?’ We seem once again to be questioning these very
fundamental values.” (23)
And, at the same time, renewing a flirtation with the dark side. Emily Rose, a
119
不過，真的有人想和吸血鬼談戀愛。芝加哥
performance poet in Chicago, is a devotee, she said, of “the wantonness, the
表演藝術工作者兼詩人蘿絲笑說，吸血鬼優
gorgeousness that is the vampire.” She went on to catalog its exquisite charms: “eternal
雅迷人、永生不死、晚上還可以不睡覺陪妳，
youth, invulnerability and, of course, the night life — staying up way past your bedtime.”
「比起我們每日生活中所碰到的那些更巨
(24)
大、更真實的怪物，讓某人在妳脖子咬一口，
Surely there are worse things. “There are monsters so much bigger and more realistic in
吸妳的血，似乎也不算太恐怖。」 (八)
our day-to-day lives,” Ms. Rose said. “Having somebody clamp onto your neck and
drain you — that doesn’t seem so scary anymore.” (25)
“It wouldn’t be on my top 10 list of ways not to die,” she added, “especially if that
vampire is at all attractive.” (26)
No. 15
Source Text
Target Text
Foreign Languages Fade in Class — Except Chinese
大陸出錢出人 全美學中文正夯
全美學中文正夯
By SAM DILLON
黃文正 2010/01/23
January 20, 2010
WASHINGTON — Thousands of public schools stopped teaching foreign languages in
過去十年，美國公立中小學的外語課程紛紛
the last decade, according to a government-financed survey — dismal news for a nation
叫停，唯獨中文愈來愈紅。部分公立學校自
that needs more linguists to conduct its global business and diplomacy. (1)
掏腰包開中文課，但也有數百所學校獲得中
But another contrary trend has educators and policy makers abuzz: a rush by schools in
國政府的金援。中國政府除積極選派中文教
all parts of America to offer instruction in Chinese. (2)
師至世界各國外，且願意承擔教師的部分薪
Some schools are paying for Chinese classes on their own, but hundreds are getting some
資，這對許多財力吃緊的美國學校來說，確
help. The Chinese government is sending teachers from China to schools all over the
是難以抗拒的誘因。 (一)
world — and paying part of their salaries. (3)
At a time of tight budgets, many American schools are finding that offer too good to
refuse. (4)
In Massillon, Ohio, south of Cleveland, Jackson High School started its Chinese program
逾千所公私立中小學開課 (二)
in the fall of 2007 with 20 students and now has 80, said Parthena Draggett, who directs
俄亥俄州「傑克遜中學」負責世界語言教學
Jackson’s world languages department. (5)
部門的帕西娜女士說，該校是在二○○七年秋
“We were able to get a free Chinese teacher,” she said. “I’d like to start a Spanish
天設立中文課程，起初只有廿名學生，如今
program for elementary children, but we can’t get a free Spanish teacher.” (6)
已快速增加至八十名。
「我們可以招募到免支
薪的中文教師，我也很希望能針對小學生設
置西班牙文課程，可惜我們無法獲得免費的
西班牙文教師。」 (三)
(Jackson’s Chinese teacher is not free; the Chinese government pays part of his
compensation, with the district paying the rest.) (7)
No one keeps an exact count, but rough calculations based on the government’s survey
據由美國教育部資助成立的研究機構「應用
suggest that perhaps 1,600 American public and private schools are teaching Chinese, up
語言中心」
（Centerf or Applied Linguistics）調
from 300 or so a decade ago. And the numbers are growing exponentially. (8)
查，十年前，全美設立中文課程的公私立中
120
Among America’s approximately 27,500 middle and high schools offering at least one
小學約有三百所，如今已迅速增至一千六百
foreign language, the proportion offering Chinese rose to 4 percent, from 1 percent, from
所。此外，全美至少提供一種外國語言課程
1997 to 2008, according to the survey, which was done by the Center for Applied
的二萬七千百五所中學，選定中文課程的比
Linguistics, a research group in Washington, and paid for by the federal Education
例，已從一九九七年的一％上升至四％。(四)
Department. (9)
“It’s really changing the language education landscape of this country,” said Nancy C.
Rhodes, a director at the center and co-author of the survey. (10)
Other indicators point to the same trend. The number of students taking the Advanced
由「美國大學理事會」
（The College Board）
Placement test in Chinese, introduced in 2007, has grown so fast that it is likely to pass
主持的「大學先修課程考試」
（Advanced
German this year as the third most-tested A.P. language, after Spanish and French, said
Placement Test，簡稱ＡＰ考試）
，也可看出中
Trevor Packer, a vice president at the College Board. (11)
文熱正夯。該理事會副理事長派克說，他們
在二○○七年才設置中文ＡＰ考試，但因參加
者急速增加，今年便可能超越德文，成為繼
西班牙文和法文之後，參加ＡＰ考試人數第
三多的外國語言。 (五)
“We’ve all been surprised that in such a short time Chinese would grow to surpass A.P.
German,” Mr. Packer said. (12)
A decade ago, most of the schools with Chinese programs were on the East and West
中文好有助競爭力成共識 (六)
Coasts. But in recent years, many schools have started Chinese programs in heartland
十年前，有提供中文課程的美國學校多限於
states, including Ohio and Illinois in the Midwest, Texas and Georgia in the South, and
東西兩岸，但近年來這股中文學習熱潮已蔓
Colorado and Utah in the Rocky Mountain West. (13)
延至全美各地。專家表示，全美瘋中文有諸
多因素使然，除了中國快速崛起之外，家長、
學生和教育工作者認同中國將成為重要強
國，相信若能學會流利中文，他日必能增加
許多機會。 (七)
“The mushrooming of interest we’re seeing now is not in the heritage communities, but
in places that don’t have significant Chinese populations,” said Chris Livaccari, an
associate director at the Asia Society. (14)
America has had the study of a foreign language grow before, only to see the bubble
burst. Many schools began teaching Japanese in the 1980s, after Japan emerged as an
economic rival. But thousands have dropped the language, the survey found. (15)
Japanese is not the only language that has declined. Thousands of schools that offered
French, German or Russian have stopped teaching those languages, too, the survey
found. (16)
To prepare the survey, the Center for Applied Linguistics sent a questionnaire to 5,000
American schools, and followed up with phone calls to 3,200 schools, getting a 76
percent response rate. (17)
The results, released last year, confirmed that Spanish was taught almost universally. The
121
survey found that 88 percent of elementary schools and 93 percent of middle and high
schools with language programs offered Spanish in 2008. (18)
The overall decline in language instruction was mostly due to its abrupt decline in public
elementary and middle schools; the number of private schools and public high schools
offering at least one language remained stable from 1997 to 2008. (19)
The survey said that a third of schools reported that the federal No Child Left Behind
law, which since 2001 has required public schools to test students in math and English,
had drawn resources from foreign languages. (20)
Experts said several factors were fueling the surge in Chinese. Parents, students and
See (七)
educators recognize China’s emergence as an important country and believe that fluency
in its language can open opportunities. (21)
Also stoking the interest has been a joint program by the College Board and Hanban, a
當然，中國政府大力推廣也功不可沒。二○○
language council affiliated with the Chinese Education Ministry, that since 2006 has sent
六年，中國教育部下屬單位「國家漢語國際
hundreds of American school superintendents and other educators to visit schools in
推廣領導小組辦公室」
（Hanban，簡稱漢辦）
China, with travel costs subsidized by Hanban. Many have started Chinese programs
與「美國大學理事會」合作，邀請全美數百
upon their return. (22)
名學校主管及教育工作者前往中國訪問當地
學校，旅行費用皆由中國政府埋單。回國之
後，其中許多人便開始籌設中文課程。 (八)
Since 2006, Hanban and the College Board have also sent more than 325 volunteer
二○○六年後，漢辦與「美國大學理事會」已
Chinese “guest teachers” to work in American schools with fledgling programs and
合作選派逾三百廿五名中國志願者，至美國
paying $13,000 to subsidize each teacher’s salary for a year. Teachers can then renew for
學校擔任「客座教師」
，漢辦一年支付一萬三
up to three more years. (23)
千美元薪水給這些教師，一年期滿後，最多
The State Department has paid for a smaller program — the Teachers of Critical
可續約三年。美國國務院也有規模較小的「關
Languages Program — to bring Chinese teachers to schools here, with each staying for a
鍵語言教師計畫」
（Teachers of Critical
year. (24)
Languages Program）
，自中國遴選中文教師至
美國學校授課，每人以一年為期。(九)
In the first two years of its Chinese program, the Jackson District in Ohio said it had
provided its guest teacher housing, a car and gasoline, health insurance and other support
worth about $26,000. This year, the district is paying a more experienced Chinese guest
teacher $49,910 in salary and other support, in addition to the $13,000 in travel expenses
he receives from Hanban, bringing his compensation into rough parity with Ohio
teachers. (25)
Ms. Draggett visited China recently with a Hanban-financed delegation of 400 American
educators from 39 states, and she came back energized about Jackson’s Chinese
program, she said. (26)
“Chinese is really taking root,” she said. Starting this fall, Jackson High will begin
phasing out its German program, she said. (27)
122
Founders of the Yu Ying charter school in Washington, where all classes for 200 students
in prekindergarten through second grade are taught in Chinese and English on alternate
days, did not start with a guest teacher when it opened in the fall of 2008. (28)
“That’s great for many schools, but we want our teachers to stay,” said Mary Shaffner,
the school’s executive director. (29)
Instead, Yu Ying recruited five native Chinese speakers living in the United States by
advertising on the Internet. One is Wang Jue, who immigrated to the United States in
2001 and graduated from the University of Maryland. (30)
After just four months, her prekindergarten students can already say phrases like “I want
lunch” and “I’m angry” in Chinese, Ms. Wang said. (31)
No. 16
Source Text
Target Text
You Saw What in ‘Avatar’? Pass Those Glasses!
不止特效有看頭…
不止特效有看頭 《阿凡達》
阿凡達》詮釋蜂起 毀
By DAVE ITZKOFF
譽都吸睛
Published: January 20, 2010
閻紀宇 2010/01/21
If you thought that “Avatar” was just a high-tech movie about a big-hearted tough guy
saving the beguiling natives of a distant moon, you might want to check the prescription
on your 3-D glasses. (1)
Since its release in December, James Cameron’s science-fiction epic has broken box
好萊塢科幻大片《阿凡達》
（Avatar）自去年
office records and grabbed two Golden Globe awards for best director and best dramatic
十二月上映以來，席捲全球票房，拿下金球
motion picture. But it has also found itself under fire from a growing list of interest
獎最佳劇情類影片與最佳導演兩座大獎，然
groups, schools of thought and entire nations that have protested its message (as they see
譽滿天下，謗亦隨之，各方對《阿凡達》的
it), its morals (as they interpret them) and its philosophy (assuming it has one). (2)
視覺特效或許歎為觀止，對本片的意識形
態、劇情寓意和人物典型卻議論蜂起。(一)
Over the last month, it has been criticized by social and political conservatives who
保守派衛道人士批判《阿凡達》的宗教和軍
bristle at its depictions of religion and the use of military force; feminists who feel that
事情節；女性主義者不滿它對「納美人」性
the male avatar bodies are stronger and more muscular than their female counterparts;
別形象塑造局限於「男強女弱」窠臼；反菸
antismoking advocates who object to a character who lights up cigarettes; not to mention
團體對一名角色的吞雲吐霧很有意見…。(二)
fans of Soviet-era Russian science fiction; the Chinese; and the Vatican. This week the
authorities in China announced that the 2-D version of the film would be pulled from
most theaters there to make way for a biography of Confucius. (3)
That so many groups have projected their issues onto “Avatar” suggests that it has
burrowed into the cultural consciousness in a way that even its immodest director could
not have anticipated. Its detractors agree that it is more than a humans-in-space
odyssey — even if they do not agree on why that is so. (4)
“Some of the ways people are reading it are significant of Cameron’s intent, and some
are just by-products of what people are thinking about,” said Rebecca Keegan, the
123
author of “The Futurist: The Life and Films of James Cameron.” “It’s really become this
Rorschach test for your personal interests and anxieties.”(5)
The “Avatar” camp isn’t endorsing any particular interpretation, but is happy to let
others read the ink blots. “Movies that work are movies that have themes that are bigger
than their genre,” Jon Landau, a producer of the film, said in a telephone interview. “The
theme is what you leave with and you leave the plot at the theater.”(6)
Mr. Cameron might have opened the door to multiple readings with his declaration that
加拿大裔導演卡麥隆向來不怕招惹爭議，但
“Avatar” was an environmental parable. In a news conference in London in December,
是《阿凡達》的詮釋與批判百花齊放，恐怕
he said he saw the movie “as a broader metaphor, not so intensely politicized as some
還是出乎他的意料。(三)
would make it, but rather that’s how we treat the natural world as well.”(7)
In a column for the Christian entertainment Web site movieguide.org, David Outten
基督教電影網站「movieguide.com」影評人歐
wrote that “Avatar” maligned capitalism, promoted animism over monotheism and
騰認為，
《阿凡達》將資本主義汙名化，鼓吹
overdramatized the possibility of environmental catastrophe on earth. At another site that
違背一神論的汎靈信仰（animism）
，過度渲
offers a conservative critique of the entertainment industry, bighollywood.breitbart.com,
染人類對自然環境的危害。天主教梵蒂岡教
John Nolte wrote that the film was “a thinly disguised, heavy-handed and simplistic
廷官方《羅馬觀察報》
，也對《阿凡達》
「沉
sci-fi fantasy/allegory critical of America from our founding straight through to the Iraq
溺於唯靈論（spiritualism）的自然崇拜」頗有
War.”(8)
微辭。(四)
Not surprisingly, the religious overtones of “Avatar” were of interest in Vatican City,
where the film was reviewed by Gaetano Vallini, a cultural critic for L’Osservatore
Romano, the daily newspaper of the Holy See. (9)
In his review, Mr. Vallini wrote that for all of the “stupefying, enchanting technology” in
the film, it “gets bogged down by a spiritualism linked to the worship of nature.”(10)
In a telephone interview, Mr. Vallini said his widely reported review might have been
overemphasized because of the publication it appeared in. His assignment to write about
“Avatar” was not an attempt to advance a particular agenda, he said, but rather “a
compulsory choice” given the anticipation surrounding the film. (11)
Ultimately, Mr. Vallini said, “the movie doesn’t provoke many emotions,” and its
observations about militarism, imperialism and the environment “are just sketched out as
themes.”(12)
“It is Cameron’s narrative choice,” he continued, “as he is aware of the fact that the
visual aspect widely compensates for this lack.”(13)
Other viewers say that issues of imperialism are central to the film. In a post on the
許多人特別注意《阿凡達》對帝國主義的批
science-fiction Web site io9.com, Annalee Newitz, the site’s editor in chief, wrote that
判，科幻網站「i09.c om」總編輯倪薇慈以「白
“Avatar” depicted “the essence of the white guilt fantasy, laid bare,” a dimension she
種人罪惡感」為它定調，認為它與《末代武
said it shared with movies from “The Last Samurai” to “District 9.” (Critics have also
士》
、
《第九禁區》異曲同工。其他批評家則
said that “Avatar” copied story elements from the movies “Dances With Wolves,”
援引《與狼共舞》
、
《風中奇緣》
、
《芬谷林：
“Pocahontas” and “Ferngully: The Last Rainforest”; the Poul Anderson novella “Call
最後的雨林》等電影，指出這類電影的共同
Me Joe”; and the “Noon Universe” book series by the Russian authors Arkady and Boris
元素。(五)
124
Strugatsky.) (14)
In movies like “Avatar,” Ms. Newitz wrote, “humans are the cause of alien oppression
不過白種人的罪惡也要由白種人來救贖，倪
and distress,” until a white man “switches sides at the last minute, assimilating into the
薇慈說這類電影都會讓一位白種人男性英
alien culture and becoming its savior.”(15)
雄：
「在關鍵時刻棄暗投明，認同異類文化，
而且成為他們的救世主。」(六)
Ms. Newitz said in an interview that since publishing that post, she had heard from
批判帝國主義，美國自然首當其衝。保守派
readers around the world who disagreed with her interpretation, which she appreciated.
影評人諾特在「bigho llywood.breitbart.com」
“Just the idea of whiteness is a local phenomenon,” she said. “It’s certainly not in parts
寫道：
「
《阿凡達》是一部過度簡化的科幻寓
of the world where white people are not dominant.”(16)
言，對美國的嚴厲撻伐呼之欲出，從建國歷
程到伊拉克戰爭無一倖免。」(七)
In China, for example, the film’s imperialist themes have upset audiences who believe
that the plight of the aliens, the Na’vi, who are forced from their home by human
industrialists, is a parable for Chinese people whose dwellings have been forcibly razed
by local governments to make way for new construction. As one pseudonymous
commenter quoted on Chinasmack.com wrote: “China’s demolition crews must go sue
Old Cameron, sue him for piracy/copyright infringement.”(17)
There is, at least, consensus among “Avatar” critics that good science fiction operates on
不過大家倒是有一個共識，從小說、電視到
an allegorical level. In novels like “Dune,” films like “Star Wars” or television series like
電影，優秀的科幻藝術作品總是蘊藏豐富的
the recent “Battlestar Galactica,” Ms. Newitz said the fantastical elements of these works
寓意。倪薇慈指出，科幻之「幻」提供一種
offer a place of “narrative safety” to contemplate real-life issues like environmental
「敘事安全地帶」
，讓作者得以從容處理各種
decay, totalitarianism and torture. (18)
在現實生活中極具爭議的主題，從《沙丘魔
堡》
、
《星際大戰》
、
《星際大爭霸》到《阿凡
達》
，莫不如是。(八)
“There’s something very satisfying about being able to think through those issues
without feeling you’re actually taking a political position,” she said. “Because you’re
not – you’re just talking about stories.”(19)
Over the breadth of Mr. Cameron’s career, he has been attracted to outsize themes. Ms.
Keegan said that it was possible to read “The Terminator,” his breakthrough 1984 movie,
as an anti-technology polemic, an anti-war film or a modern gloss on the birth of Jesus.
(20)
“Or,” she said, “ you could just watch it as a movie where Arnold Schwarzenegger
stomps around like a robot.”(21)
Paradoxically, the pileup of arguments surrounding “Avatar” might have made a
sympathetic figure out of the outspoken Mr. Cameron, who now finds himself in the
underdog position of having to account for every possible message in his ostensible
popcorn film. (22)
“Often to his detriment, he says exactly what he thinks,” Ms. Keegan said. “All of that
makes him seem outside the Hollywood bubble, even though on paper he couldn’t be
125
more of an insider.”(23)
Ms. Newitz, however, was not sympathetic to Mr. Cameron, who wanted to make a
singularly ambitious film, and may have gotten his wish. “It’s like, do you feel bad for
Obama?” she said. “He’s the president — he kind of asked for it.”(24)
No. 17
Source Text
Target Text
Masculinity in a Spray Can
美少年重外貌 從頭到腳勤保養
By JAN HOFFMAN
鍾玉玨 2010/01/31
Published: January 29, 2010
ONE bathroom in Stefanie Mullen’s home in a suburb of San Diego is stocked with
少女愛美愛打扮，似乎天經地義；若十幾歲
enough products to line an aisle in a drugstore: (1)
的少男每天也在瓶瓶罐罐裡忙東忙西，許多
Body wash. Face wash. Exfoliator. Exfoliating wash. Body hydrator. Body spray.
父母大概不解甚至抓狂吧。(一)
Deodorant. Shaving cream. Shampoos and conditioner. Hair gel, of course. (2)
在美國聖地牙哥，穆倫女士打開兩個兒子的
A ll told, 18 different containers. (3)
浴室，裡面塞滿了從頭到腳的各種保養品，
They belong to her sons Noah Assaraf, 13, and Keenan Assaraf, 14. They have been
潔顏乳、去角質霜、護膚露，應有盡有，總
dousing themselves for years. (4)
計共十八瓶。年僅十三、十四歲的少年，對
於保養卻已鑽研了數年之久。(二)
“Every day they walk out the door in a cloud of spray-on macho,” Mrs. Mullen said. (5)
When boys pile into her car, that’s her cue to roll down her window, no matter the
weather. “The smell drives me nuts.”(6)
In some respects, there’s nothing new about the allure that grooming products and
colognes hold for young men, promising to heighten their sex appeal and overall
confidence, giving them cover to preen. (7)
But in recent years, the products, ostensibly marketed to older teenagers, have reached
一些男性修容保養品慢慢打入十至十四歲青
into the turbulent, vulnerable world of their little brothers, ages 10 to 14. (8)
少年市場，全新的行銷手法功不可沒。除了
電視廣告，男性保養品牌深入社交及遊戲網
站，以置入性方式取得青少年認同。再加上
知名的嘻哈歌手、運動明星、極限運動高手
加持代言，很快就吸引青少年跟進。(三)
Mike Dwyer, brand development director for Axe, the bane of parental olfactory nerves,
said, “We’re clear that the Axe target is 18-to-24-year-old guys, but we recognize that we
have older and younger users.”(9)
Hard sales figures for tweens are difficult to come by. Marketers don’t have a consensus
for what makes up the tween age bracket. Purchases are often made by mothers, simply
relieved that their sons are thinking about body odor. And nothing would make older
teenager run from a product faster than for its manufacturers to acknowledge that it’s a
must-have among the sixth-grade set. (10)
126
But many psychologists, parents, market researchers and middle-school principals (with
drawers full of confiscated spray cans), report a sharp surge in the last few years of the
use of grooming products by tween boys. In a December 2007 report on teenage and
tween grooming products, Packaged Facts, a market research firm, projected that
worldwide retail sales for boys ages 8 to 19 would be almost $1.9 billion. (11)
Perhaps more telling: Axe and its ilk have even become essential props in the latest tween
novels, like Rosalind Wiseman’s “Boys, Girls and Other Hazardous Materials.”(12)
The surge is certainly due in large measure to new marketing strategies. (13)
While the public’s attention will be on testosterone-infused commercials during the
Super Bowl next Sunday, these brands have long been attracting boys elsewhere, through
muscular, below-the-radar tie-ins — on social networking and Web gaming sites, and
through endorsements by hip-hop stars, pro athletes and extreme-sports daredevils. (14)
Boys themselves, at a younger age, have also become increasingly self-conscious about
此外，少男們也越來越在意外貌與特色，找
their appearance and identity. They are trying to tame their twitching, maturing bodies,
出自己到底適合型男、酷男、痞子男還是花
select from a growing smorgasbord of identities — goth, slacker, jock, emo — and
美男的風格。若再交個匹配的馬子，更可建
position themselves with their texting, titillating, brand-savvy female peers, who are
立在同儕間的崇高地位。(四)
hitting puberty ever earlier. (15)
And armies of researchers note that tween boys have modest disposable incomes, just
fine for products that typically sell for less than $7. (16)
“More insecurity equals more product need, equals more opportunity for marketers,” said
跟女孩一樣，男孩也會嫌自己的身體。金門
Kit Yarrow, a professor of psychology and marketing at Golden Gate University. (17)
大學心理學教授亞羅女士說：
「人越沒安全
感，需要的東西越多，因此給了廠商更多的
行銷機會。」(五)
For “Gen Buy,” a new book she co-authored about marketing to tweens and teenagers,
Ms. Yarrow held focus groups with boys. “The 10-year-olds are copying the
14-year-olds, trying to be cool,” she said. “Everything is moving down the spectrum. It’s
getting younger and more pronounced.”(18)
So boys are turning to hypermasculine guideposts like Instinct from Axe, Swagger by
Old Spice and Magnetic Attraction Enhancing Body Wash by Dial with results that are
poignant, comic, confused — and stinky. (19)
“It’s not necessarily a hygiene thing,” said Paul Begley, a physical education teacher at
Messalonskee Middle School in Oakland, Me. “If they’ve been sweating, they’ll use it as
a mask instead of a shower.”(20)
Like girls, boys criticize their own bodies at earlier ages. Ms. Wiseman, the writer, said,
“As a teacher, I saw boys as young as 7 refusing to take off their shirts at swimming
pools for fear of being teased about being fat.”(21)
During “the talk” about puberty in fifth grade health classes, many schools hand out
sample cans of deodorant to boys. Shortly after receiving one, Lori Swedelson’s son,
127
Eric, now a sixth grader in Mahwah, N.J., began asking for products: (22)
“He said, ‘Can you get me Axe? I need deodorant,’ ” said Ms. Swedelson, who asked
him why. “He said, ‘Ma, I got a hair under my arm!’ And I said, ‘Let me put my glasses
on.’ ”(23)
He too now steeps himself: colognes, shampoos and body washes. And he is very picky
about his choices. (24)
“I got the wrong color can of Axe,” Ms. Swedelson said. “Holy cow.”(25)
Each bottle signifies something to tweens, who are excruciatingly aware of brand image.
George Carey, head of Just Kid Inc., a market research firm, said, “More of the brands
that market to kids are doing so by trying to own a human value or characteristic.”(26)
LIKE the Sorting Hat from the Harry Potter books, the bottles and cans telegraph how a
boy can sort and identify himself. Old Spice advertisements for its Swagger line featured
the rap star LL Cool J as a nerd in school, then being transformed into his fabulousness
by you-know-what. Anthony’s Body Essentials are available in Energy, Strength, Spirit
and Courage. Abercrombie & Fitch’s popular cologne: Fierce. (27)
Why does Jake Guttenberg, a Manhattan seventh grader, use an Axe spray? “I feel
confident when I wear it,” he said. (28)
Lyn Mikel Brown, a psychologist at Colby College and an author of a new book,
“Packaging Boyhood,” said the products gave boys the mere illusion of choice. In fact,
she said, they often preach an extreme, singular definition of masculinity — at a time
developmentally when boys are grappling uneasily with identity. (29)
“These are just one of many products that cultivate anxiety in boys at younger and
younger ages about what it means to man up,” Ms. Brown said, “to be the kind of boy
they’re told girls will want and other boys will respect. They’re playing with the failure to
be that kind of guy, to be heterosexual even.”(30)
Even when advertisements are supposed to be crudely humorous or satiric about
masculinity — approaches recommended by market researchers to reach high school
boys — younger boys take them more literally, Ms. Brown said. (31)
To engage boys, marketers rely less on 30-second TV spots than on interactive Web sites,
creating communities of young fans. Tag has a page on Facebook. Axe has an avatar in
Pain, a PlayStation game. Swagger sponsors Xbox team competitions. Dial for Men
offers advice from “sexperts.” Brands create downloadable apps, have lengthy
“advergames” on their Web sites, and urge fans to text friends with coy messages about
the products. They make commercials just for YouTube, which is, in turn, filled with
commercials made by boys themselves — some of whom are self-anointed reviewers.
(32)
“Girl repellent!” said one boy, holding up a spray can in front of a camera. (33)
Parents, generally, are clueless. (34)
128
“Axe has commercials?” Ms. Swedelson asked. (35)
What further drives the boys’ rush to the products are girls themselves. Marshal Cohen,
女性友人也是背後的推手之一。市場研究專
chief industry analyst for the market research firm NPD Group, said that in a recent
家柯恩說，八歲至十八歲的少男中，高達四
survey, 41 percent of boys ages 8 to 18 said that one of their best friends was a girl. (36)
一％表示，他們會和女孩子一起上街購物，
因此受女性友人的影響頗大，自然而然也跟
著保養以及打理門面。(六)
“They shop with girls, and girls influence them,” Mr. Cohen said, much as the girls in the
hit Nickelodeon tween show “iCarly” hold sway over Freddie, their hapless male buddy.
(37)
“Boys are paying attention to personal brands more than ever because it’s too easy to be
criticized virally by a girl,” said Pat Fiore, a market consultant for body image products
in Morristown, N.J. “The peer pressure is starting from the girls, who are discussing how
much someone smells or what they look like, and it’s being recorded in real time by
e-mail and texting.”(38)
These girls are also becoming sexualized at earlier ages, applying lip gloss and wearing
racier clothes. Boys, a bewildered developmental step or three behind, feel additional
pressure to catch up. (39)
Ms. Wiseman, who also wrote “Queen Bees & Wannabes,” a nonfiction book about the
social pecking order of tween girls, speaks with students around the country. Even in
rural North Dakota, she said, 12-year-old boys were highlighting their hair, a focus on
appearance that was almost nonexistent five years ago. (40)
“We consistently look at boys in a position of privilege and power,” she said. “But if you
ask a 12-year-old boy if they’re in a position of power, they feel out of control of
themselves, their bodies.” She added: “I defy anyone to tell me that an eighth-grade girl
doesn’t look like she has more power and control than a boy.”(41)
SO while men’s colognes have been marketed since at least the last century for their
irresistibility to women — even Joey Bishop was swarmed when he wore Hai Karate
aftershave in a 1960s commercial — Axe’s similar approach offers a jokey safe haven to
a tween boy: you can have power over those frightening, provocative creatures, those
girls. Small wonder that a boy would love to believe those magic powers promised by a
pheromone-infused product are real. (42)
Kristen Gilbert, an assistant principal at Waterville Junior High School, in Waterville,
Me., who has impounded her share of spray cans, wrote in an e-mail message that when
she asked a young student why he wore the product, he replied, “I have to have it, Ms. G.,
because I don’t have the money to dress the right way. This is all I can afford.”(43)
The boy added that the body spray was his “best chance to get a girl.”(44)
With consumer researchers pumping out reports on strategies to attract tween boys —
make them feel accepted by peers, yet make them feel like cool individuals — and the
129
success, over all, of the expanding, multibillion dollar male grooming products industry,
the market is hardly saturated. (45)
A shopper browsing the aisles of a Perfumania, a discount fragrance chain, can find
products that allow boys to start brand attachments and grooming habits even sooner than
the tweens. (46)
SpongeBob SquarePants Eau de Toilette Spray for Boys, anyone? (47)
No. 18
Source Text
Target Text
The Ever-Widening World of Tiny Projectors
點餐玩電動 微型投影機展新貌
By ANNE EISENBERG
閻紀宇 2010/05/10
May 8, 2010
WAVING your hand to get the bartender’s attention may not be the only way to order a
想像一下，你來到一間酒吧，酒保不見蹤影，
martini in crowded bars of the future — even if they’re as busy as the cantina in “Star
但是櫃檯有如放大的 iPhone 觸控式螢幕，映
Wars.” (1)
出店內的飲料清單，你用食指按一下代表馬
Instead, you may be able to peruse a drinks menu beamed onto the counter by a tiny
丁尼的圖示，送出電子指令，幾分鐘後，一
projector, then swipe your index finger over an image of a martini — as if it were
杯馬丁尼送到你的眼前。這不是科幻電影場
displayed on an iPhone touch screen. Off will go your electronic order, the real drink
景，而是「微型投影機」
（pico projector）日
arriving minutes later without anyone ever having to say, “Set ’em up, Joe.” (2)
新月異的用途之一。 (一)
That is just one of many possible uses of miniature projectors as they become more
這種可以隨身攜帶新式投影機功能越來越強
powerful and are integrated with other devices like motion sensors. And the resulting
大，而且可以和多種消費性電子產品結合，
new products will be used not only in the food service industry, but also in video games
未來發展不可限量。市調公司 Insight Media
and robotics. (3)
總裁齊努克說：
「人們將會在許多意想不到的
“The key is that this is going to be an enabling technology,” said Chris Chinnock, the
地方看到微型投影機。」 (二)
president of Insight Media, a marketing research firm in Norwalk, Conn., adding that
tiny projectors “are going to show up in places we haven’t even thought of as designers
start to include them in their products.” (4)
Right now, miniature projection systems, often referred to as pocket or pico models, are
可和電子產品結合 多元發展 (三)
typically hand-held, free-standing units plugged into laptops. They can be used, for
目前市面上的微型投影機多半是手持式、免
example, to show PowerPoint slides during a business trip. (5)
腳架的單機，搭配筆記型電腦之類的裝置，
But projectors now in the prototype stage will be appearing in many new guises. Light
主要用途是放映 PowerPoint 簡報等多媒體內
Blue Optics, based in Cambridge, England, is already offering sample production
容。新一代的微型投影機則蓄勢待發，而且
models of the Light Touch, a small projector with an infrared camera, infrared beam
面貌更為多彩多姿。例如英國劍橋 Light Blue
generator and software to interpret taps and swipes on the image, said Christopher
Optics 公司的 Light Touch，配備紅外線攝影
Harris, the chief executive. (6)
機、紅外線光束產生器與專用軟體，可以將
使用者對投影圖像的觸控解讀為指令，發揮
多種功能。(四)
Microvision of Redmond, Wash., has shown in demonstrations how micro projectors
130
美國華盛頓州雷蒙市的 Microvision 公司，則
could be integrated with video games so the games could be played not only on
是開發電玩遊戲專用的微型投影機，讓玩家
stationary monitors, but also on the walls and ceilings of ordinary rooms. (7)
擺脫電腦或電視螢幕的限制。有一款產品與
In demonstrations, the projector is strapped onto a toy rifle that is equipped with motion
射擊遊戲槍結合，並內建動作感測器，不僅
sensors. As the game is projected on the wall, players can pursue the villains with the
能在牆壁或天花板上呈現遊戲場景，而且上
rifle, aiming and firing left and right, up and down. If the bad guys sprint behind the
下左右瞄準自如，玩家甚至可以轉身轟掉背
players, they can swivel around and go after them on the opposite wall, said Matt
後的壞蛋 。(五)
Nichols, a Microvision spokesman. (8)
The projector from Light Blue Optics uses laser light and techniques based on
holography to cast an image of menus, games or Web pages on a nearby flat surface, Dr.
Harris said. The company, founded in 2004 by four students studying physics and
engineering at Cambridge University, has raised $43.5 million. Backers include Robert
Bosch Venture Capital. (9)
The market for miniature projectors is poised for strong growth, said Paul Semenza,
相關技術突飛猛進 銷量暴增(六)
senior vice president at DisplaySearch, a market research company in Austin, Tex. (10)
根據另一家市調公司 DisplaySearch 的估計，
In 2009, just under a half-million miniature projectors were shipped, he said, most of
二○○九年全球微型投影機的銷售量還不到
them standalone models — meaning that they aren’t embedded or built into media
五十萬具，但是隨著技術突飛猛進，並且結
players or smartphones. But the technology is improving rapidly, he said. DisplaySearch
合智慧型手機、數位相機等裝置，到二○一一
projects, for example, that companies in the field will ship 5.3 million units in 2011,
年時，銷售量可望突破五百卅萬具。
based on their use in mobile phones and other devices. More than 200 companies are
Microvision 最近就拿到一筆八百五十萬美元
already in the field, he said. (11)
的訂單，要將該公司的 PicoP 投影機改裝成
內建多媒體裝置的模組。 (七)
Microvision has already introduced a standalone laser projector, the ShowWX, that
單機式微型投影機的發展也是一日千里。
connects to iPods, laptops and other devices. (The ShowWX can be bought at
Microvision 的 ShowWX 雷射微型投影機適
Microvision.com for $549.99.) And the company recently received an $8.5 million
用於筆電、蘋果 iPod 等多種裝置，售價約合
purchase order to embed its PicoP projection module in multimedia devices to project
新台幣一萬七千元。３Ｍ新出的 MPro 150 有
videos, photos and other content, said Jacques Lincoln, global product manager for the
自己的作業系統與一ＧＢ記憶體， 讓使用者
PicoP. (12)
不需接筆電也可以播映 PowerPoint 簡報或
Excel 試算表，售價約合新台幣一萬一千元。
(八)
See(七)
Texas Instruments supplies the optical semiconductors inside many new pico projectors,
not only in standalone models from companies like Optoma, but also in the new
Samsung W9600 smartphone now available in South Korea, said Frank Moizio,
manager of digital light processing pico technology at Texas Instruments. The projector
will allow people with W9600 phones to watch videos beamed from it. (13)
Standalone projectors, too, are quickly developing and adding features. The new MPro
150 Pocket Projector from 3M ($356.97 at Amazon.com) comes with its own memory
131
See (八)
and operating system, so road warriors can show spreadsheets without a laptop
connection. (14)
The appeal of such projectors is clear, said Mr. Moizio of Texas Instruments. “When
德州儀器公司（ＴＩ）是製造微型投影機所
people pick up something in the palm of their hand and use it to see a 20- or 40-inch
需光學半導體的主力大廠，部門經理莫齊歐
image,” he said, “they are delighted.” (15)
指出，微型投影機的吸引力顯而易見：
「如果
人們只需拿起一個掌上型裝置，就可以放映
出大螢幕尺寸的影像，他們當然會樂在其
中。(九)
No. 19
Source Text
Target Text
In Search of Adorable, as Hello Kitty Gets Closer to Goodbye
Kitty 人氣下滑 可愛教主換人做
By HIROKO TABUCHI
鍾玉玨 2010/05/16
May 15, 2010
TOKYO -- At age 36, Hello Kitty may be running out of product lives. (1)
卡通玩偶「凱蒂貓」
（Hello Kitty）深受全球
That is the fear of executives at the Sanrio Corporation, the Japanese company that
粉絲熱愛，周邊商品賣得搶搶滾，然而歲月
created the cute, cartoonish white cat in 1974, and groomed her into a global marketing
不饒貓，邁入卅六歲的「凱蒂貓」如今也面
phenomenon worth $5 billion a year. (2)
臨中年危機，市場魅力大不如前，急得製造
商三麗鷗（Sanrio）忙尋對策，甚至讓凱蒂貓
改走貴婦路線，並試圖創造出可媲美凱蒂貓
超級吸金力的新一代可愛玩偶。 (一)
In Japan and around the world, Hello Kitty has been licensed over the years for products
中年危機 改走貴婦路線吸金 (三)
that include dolls, clothes, lunch boxes, stationery, kitchenware, a Macy's parade balloon
無庸置疑，凱蒂貓是三麗鷗最重要的商品，
and even an Airbus owned by Taiwanese airline EVA Airways. But amid signs that Hello
不過近來牠似乎魅力褪色，吸金功力大不如
Kitty's pop-culture appeal is waning, especially at home, where sales have shrunk for a
前，日本市場萎縮幅度更是明顯，急得母公
decade, the company has struggled to find its next-generation version of adorable. (3)
司努力尋找新一代的「可愛教主」
，希望能繼
續淘金。 (四)
Sanrio's other flops include Spottie Dottie, a pink-frocked Dalmatian, and Pandapple, a
三麗鷗已經積極推出新的卡通角色，不過卻
baby panda. Even the moderately successful My Melody (a rabbit) and TuxedoSam
連番槓龜，不論是粉紅大麥町（Spottie
(penguin) show no signs of achieving global Kitty-ness. (4)
Dottie）
、蘋果熊（Pandapple）
、美樂蒂（My M
''We badly need something else,'' said Yuko Yamaguchi, who has been Sanrio's top Hello
elody）
、還是山姆企鵝（TuxedoSam）
，全都
Kitty designer for most of its 36 years. ''Characters take a long time to develop and
成不了氣候，無法和同門的凱蒂師姐一較高
introduce to different markets,'' Ms. Yamaguchi said. ''But Kitty has been so popular it's
下。凱蒂貓的首席設計師山口由子說：
「凱蒂
overshadowed all our other efforts.'' (5)
貓實在太受歡迎，導致其他角色相形失色。」
(五)
One of Sanrio's latest efforts is Jewelpet, a group of 33 sparkly eyed animals each with
為了力挽狂瀾，三麗鷗讓一向走親民路線的
its own look. Diamond the black kitten is ladylike and decks out in pink bows. Sapphire
凱蒂貓變得貴氣逼人，一口氣推出卅三個表
is cool and prefers to wear blue. Sanrio's thinking is that with so many to choose from,
情各異的鑲鑽凱蒂貓，爭取名媛貴婦的青
132
睞。三麗鷗認為，市場玩偶五花八門，一定
one has to stick. (6)
得有特色始能異軍突起。 (六)
A Sanrio savior would arrive not a moment too soon. (7)
In a closely watched ranking of Japan's most popular characters, compiled each year
懶懶熊來勢洶洶 威脅三麗鷗 (七)
using sales data by the Tokyo-based research firm Character Databank, Hello Kitty lost
不過，凱蒂貓自二○○二年失去人氣玩偶冠軍
her long-held spot as Japan's top-grossing character in 2002 and has never recovered. (8)
寶座之後，魅力指數一路下滑，目前遙遙落
In the latest survey, released this month, Kitty ranked a distant third, behind the leader,
後於麵包超人、神奇寶貝之後。(八)
Anpanman, a character that is based on a Japanese jam-filled pastry and is produced by
Nippon Television. The second spot is still held by the venerable game and animation
brand Pokémon, owned by Nintendo. (9)
Sanrio is also being usurped by smaller, nimbler rivals. The formerly little-known
其他同業規模雖不如三麗鷗，但蠶食市場的
stationery maker San-X has scored two huge hits in Japan with its panda character,
實力也不容小覷。原本默默無名的文具公司
Tarepanda, and its bear, Rilakkuma -- which has charged up the Character Databank
San-X 成功在日本打響趴趴熊（Tarepanda）
charts, ranking fifth in the latest survey. (10)
與懶懶熊（Rilakkuma）的知名度，懶懶熊更
是一舉衝上人氣玩偶排行榜第五名，嚴重威
脅三麗鷗的龍頭地位。(九)
''The character business is basically a wide-open field,'' Akira Takayama, chief executive
卡通玩偶市場顧問高山光說：
「卡通人物市場
of Fanworks, an animation and character consultancy here, said at a recent convention of
基本上非常開放，成敗全看管理。小公司敢
the Tokyo Contents Market. ''It all comes down to management.'' (11)
衝、點子新，動作快。卡通人物可以變成漫
''Going forward, perhaps smaller companies will be quicker to come out with new
畫、動畫、甚至是大事業，繼續吸金。」(十)
ideas,'' Mr. Takayama said. ''Characters can develop into manga, anime, potentially a big
business,'' he said, referring to the popular Japanese comic book and animation art forms.
(12)
Sanrio's sales, which come from products as well as licensing, have been shrinking for
10 consecutive years since 1999. The company's overall sales in Japan fell 3.3 percent in
the 12 months ending in March, Sanrio announced Friday, as both licensing and sales of
good slumped. Hello Kitty fatigue is hitting Japan first, and hard, the company indicated.
(13)
But a one-time 28 percent jump in overseas sales -- which Sanrio attributed to an
accounting change, as well as several big contracts overseas tied to Hello Kitty's 35th
birthday celebrations -- helped the company swing back to a net profit of 4.37 billion
yen, in contrast to a loss of 1.50 billion yen the previous year. (14)
Sanrio now relies on overseas sales for 30 percent of its revenue, the company's
executive director, Susumu Emori, said Friday. But Mr. Emori was cautious about
Sanrio's future overseas prospects. ''The last quarter was extraordinary, and we expect
both sales and profit to fall this year,'' he said. (15)
Analysts say part of the problem is that Sanrio has oversold Hello Kitty, which appears
on products as various as T-shirts, toilet paper and toasters. Sanrio was recently forced to
133
write off the 500 million yen in debt held by Harmony Land, one of its two character
theme parks in Japan, after a falloff in visitors, although the park remains open. (16)
''Sanrio was initially very careful in making sure the Hello Kitty phenomenon didn't get
out of hand,'' said Naohiro Shichijo, an associate professor in creative industries at the
Waseda Institute for Advanced Studies in Tokyo. ''That's the unspoken rule of the
character business: you can't let a character get too wildly popular all at once,'' he said.
''You want to go for longevity.'' (17)
Hello Kitty, introduced on a vinyl coin purse in 1974, became an instant phenomenon in
Japan, and sales at Sanrio grew sevenfold in the cat's first three years. But even then
Sanrio's founder and president, Shintaro Tsuji, expressed nervousness that consumers
would burn out on the brand. Sanrio's sales tapered off in the late 1970s, and then again
in the mid-1990s when Japan entered a long economic slump. (18)
But around 2000, Kitty surprised Sanrio by rebounding in a big way, with Hollywood
stars wearing the cat on T-shirts and carrying Hello Kitty bags. (19)
''But when you have a boom, you have a bust,'' said Mr. Shichijo, the professor. ''People
get sick of it.'' (20)
Sanrio has tried to keep Hello Kitty up to the times: sensing a move away from Japan's
love affair with the cute, or ''kawaii'' aesthetic, it has pushed an edgier look for the cat in
the last three years, using as much black as pink. (21)
Still, a sense of crisis is evident at the Tokyo offices of Sanrio, where 30 designers, led
by Ms. Yamaguchi, are charged with developing new characters. At periodic product
meetings, each designer presents as many as 20 characters for consideration by Ms.
Yamaguchi. Of those, perhaps a dozen are chosen for trial sales at a pilot Sanrio store in
Tokyo. (22)
These days, designers are also urged to make sure their characters work across multiple
media -- a lesson Sanrio learned the hard way with Hello Kitty. Because Kitty had no
mouth, it was difficult for the cat to break into television animation, depriving Sanrio of
a lucrative source of revenue. (23)
When the company created a talking Kitty for a pilot cartoon series, it set off a fury
among fans loyal to the cat's mouthless look, Ms. Yamaguchi said. (24)
And though Sanrio goes to great length to create back stories for its characters -- Kitty,
for example, was born in London and likes to eat cookies -- that biography is not
compelling enough to draw many fans, according to analysts, who cite weak
characterization as a drawback in Sanrio's product lines. (25)
Characters developed by Walt Disney, in contrast, typically make their debuts in
blockbuster movies that propel them to fame and provide a springboard for further
storytelling. The hit Disney animated film ''Lilo & Stitch,'' for example, which featured a
Hawaiian girl and an alien friend, made a successful transition to a television series, all
134
the while bringing merchandising and licensing income to Disney. (26)
In fact, ''Lilo & Stitch'' has been so popular even in Japan that the series has been
localized -- with a Japanese girl named Yuna in place of Lilo and Okinawa replacing the
Hawaiian setting. (27)
Sanrio's designers are also told to aim their new characters at children in elementary
school or younger -- even if much of the marketing, especially in Japan, will be aimed at
older consumers. When younger children embrace a character, many tend to remain fans
even later in life, said Miyuki Okumura, the lead designer behind the Jewelpet series. ''If
a character captures the heart of a little girl, she's going to love that character into her
teens, at least,'' Ms. Okumura said. ''Then when she has children, she'll again buy that
character for them,'' she said. ''That's what we're aiming for.'' (28)
No. 20
Source Text
Target Text
Students, Meet Your New Teacher, Mr. Robot
機器人當老師 家事、
家事、外語一把罩
By BENEDICT CAREY and JOHN MARKOFF
閻紀宇 2010/07/12
July 10, 201
LOS ANGELES — The boy, a dark-haired 6-year-old, is playing with a new companion.
在洛杉磯南加州大學的一間實驗室裡，一個
(1)
黑頭髮的六歲男孩第一天見到他的新老師。
The two hit it off quickly -- unusual for the 6-year-old, who has autism -- and the boy is
特別的是，小男孩患有自閉症，只會模仿老
imitating his playmate's every move, now nodding his head, now raising his arms. (2)
師的肢體動作。更特別的是，這位老師身高
只有九十公分，而且是個機器人，名叫「班
迪特」
（Bandit）
。(一)
"Like Simon Says," says the autistic boy's mother, seated next to him on the floor. (3)
Yet soon he begins to withdraw; in a video of the session, he covers his ears and slumps
against the wall. (4)
But the companion, a three-foot-tall robot being tested at the University of Southern
See(一)
California, maintains eye contact and performs another move, raising one arm up high.
(5)
Up goes the boy's arm -- and now he is smiling at the machine. (6)
In a handful of laboratories around the world, computer scientists are developing robots
全球有幾個先進實驗室正在研發像班迪特這
like this one: highly programmed machines that can engage people and teach them
樣的機器人：具備高度的人工智慧，能夠和
simple skills, including household tasks, vocabulary or, as in the case of the boy, playing,
人類（主要是兒童）互動，教導他們簡單的
elementary imitation and taking turns. (7)
技能，例如做家事、學外語，或者像班迪特
一樣，協助自閉症兒童學習基本肢體動作。
(二)
So far, the teaching has been very basic, delivered mostly in experimental settings, and
機器人取代真人當老師？聽起來似乎匪夷所
the robots are still works in progress, a hackers' gallery of moving parts that, like
思。的確，現在機器人能教的都很基礎，場
135
mechanical savants, each do some things well at the expense of others. (8)
所也局限在實驗室，但最先進的幾款已完全
Yet the most advanced models are fully autonomous, guided by artificial intelligence
自動化，配備動作追蹤和語音辨識軟體，不
software like motion tracking and speech recognition, which can make them just
僅能和學生互動，還可從互動過程學習。(三)
engaging enough to rival humans at some teaching tasks. (9)
Researchers say the pace of innovation is such that these machines should begin to learn
as they teach, becoming the sort of infinitely patient, highly informed instructors that
would be effective in subjects like foreign language or in repetitive therapies used to treat
developmental problems like autism. (10)
Several countries have been testing teaching machines in classrooms. South Korea,
See(四)
known for its enthusiasm for technology, is "hiring" hundreds of robots as teacher aides
and classroom playmates and is experimenting with robots that would teach English. (11)
Already, these advances have stirred dystopian visions, along with the sort of ethical
debate usually confined to science fiction. "I worry that if kids grow up being taught by
robots and viewing technology as the instructor," said Mitchel Resnick, head of the
Lifelong Kindergarten group at the Media Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, "they will see it as the master." (12)
Most computer scientists reply that they have neither the intention, nor the ability, to
See(五)
replace human teachers. The great hope for robots, said Patricia Kuhl, co-director of the
Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences at the University of Washington, "is that with
不過華盛頓大學的庫爾博士強調，科學家無
the right kind of technology at a critical period in a child's development, they could
意也不可能讓機器人取代人類老師，未來機
supplement learning in the classroom." (13)
器人最重要的教學角色，仍然是以先進的科
技配合學童的身心發展階段，在教室裡扮演
稱職的助教與玩伴。(五)
Lessons From RUBI
"Kenka," says a childlike voice. "Ken-ka." (14)
Standing on a polka-dot carpet at a preschool on the campus of the University of
加州大學聖地牙哥分校的「路比」
（RUBI）
California, San Diego, a robot named RUBI is teaching Finnish to a 3-year-old boy. (15)
專長是芬蘭語，很受小朋友歡迎，被欺負作
弄時還會發出哭聲。加州山景市本田實驗室
的「阿西莫」
（Asimo）教學生擺設宴會的餐
具，井井有條。美國之外，南韓對機器人的
教學功能也非常熱中，已經有數百位機器人
進駐各級學校，充當教師助理與學童玩伴，
教育當局目前正在實驗讓機器人教英文。
(四)
RUBI looks like a desktop computer come to life: its screen-torso, mounted on a pair of
shoes, sprouts mechanical arms and a lunchbox-size head, fitted with video cameras, a
microphone and voice capability. RUBI wears a bandanna around its neck and a fixed
happy-face smile, below a pair of large, plastic eyes. (16)
136
It picks up a white sneaker and says kenka, the Finnish word for shoe, before returning it
to the floor. "Feel it; I'm a kenka." (17)
In a video of this exchange, the boy picks up the sneaker, says "kenka, kenka" -- and
holds up the shoe for the robot to see. (18)
In person they are not remotely humanlike, most of today's social robots. Some speak
well, others not at all. Some move on two legs, others on wheels. Many look like
escapees from the Island of Misfit Toys. (19)
They make for very curious company. The University of Southern California robot used
with autistic children tracks a person throughout a room, approaching indirectly and
pulling up just short of personal space, like a cautious child hoping to join a playground
game. (20)
The machine's only words are exclamations ("Uh huh" for those drawing near; "Awww"
for those moving away). Still, it's hard to shake the sense that some living thing is close
by. That sensation, however vague, is enough to facilitate a real exchange of information,
researchers say. (21)
In the San Diego classroom where RUBI has taught Finnish, researchers are finding that
the robot enables preschool children to score significantly better on tests, compared with
less interactive learning, as from tapes. (22)
Preliminary results suggest that these students "do about as well as learning from a
human teacher," said Javier Movellan, director of the Machine Perception Laboratory at
the University of California, San Diego. "Social interaction is apparently a very
important component of learning at this age." (23)
Like any new kid in class, RUBI took some time to find a niche. Children swarmed the
robot when it first joined the classroom: instant popularity. But by the end of the day, a
couple of boys had yanked off its arms. (24)
"The problem with autonomous machines is that people are so unpredictable, especially
children," said Corinna E. Lathan, chief executive of AnthroTronix, a Maryland company
that makes a remotely controlled robot, CosmoBot, to assist in therapy with
developmentally delayed children. "It's impossible to anticipate everything that can
happen." (25)
The RUBI team hit upon a solution one part mechanical and two parts psychological.
The engineers programmed RUBI to cry when its arms were pulled. Its young playmates
quickly backed off at the sound. (26)
If the sobbing continued, the children usually shifted gears and came forward -- to deliver
a hug. (27)
Re-armed and newly sensitive, RUBI was ready to test as a teacher. In a paper published
last year, researchers from the University of California, San Diego, the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology and the University of Joensuu in Finland found that the robot
137
See(四)
significantly improved the vocabulary of nine toddlers. (28)
After testing the youngsters' knowledge of 20 words and introducing them to the robot,
the researchers left RUBI to operate on its own. The robot showed images on its screen
and instructed children to associate them with words. (29)
After 12 weeks, the children's knowledge of the 10 words taught by RUBI increased
significantly, while their knowledge of 10 control words did not. "The effect was
relatively large, a reduction in errors of more than 25 percent," the authors concluded.
(30)
Researchers in social robotics -- a branch of computer science devoted to enhancing
See(四)
communication between humans and machines -- at Honda Labs in Mountain View,
Calif., have found a similar result with their robot, a three-foot character called Asimo,
which looks like a miniature astronaut. In one 20-minute session the machine taught
grade-school students how to set a table -- improving their accuracy by about 25 percent,
a recent study found. (31)
At the University of Southern California, researchers have had their robot, Bandit,
interact with children with autism. In a pilot study, four children with the diagnosis spent
about 30 minutes with this robot when it was programmed to be socially engaging and
another half-hour when it behaved randomly, more like a toy. The results are still
preliminary, said David Feil-Seifer, who ran the study, but suggest that the children spoke
more often and spent more time in direct interaction when the robot was responsive,
compared with when it acted randomly. (32)
Making the Connection
In a lab at the University of Washington, Morphy, a pint-size robot, catches the eye of an
infant girl and turns to look at a toy. (33)
No luck; the girl does not follow its gaze, as she would a human's. (34)
In a video the researchers made of the experiment, the girl next sees the robot "waving"
to an adult. Now she's interested; the sight of the machine interacting registers it as a
social being in the young brain. She begins to track what the robot is looking at, to the
right, the left, down. The machine has elicited what scientists call gaze-following, an
essential first step of social exchange. (35)
"Before they have language, infants pay attention to what I call informational hotspots,"
where their mother or father is looking, said Andrew N. Meltzoff, a psychologist who is
co-director of university's Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences. This, he said, is how
learning begins. (36)
This basic finding, to be published later this year, is one of dozens from a field called
affective computing that is helping scientists discover exactly which features of a robot
make it most convincingly "real" as a social partner, a helper, a teacher. (37)
"It turns out that making a robot more closely resemble a human doesn't get you better
138
See(一)
social interactions," said Terrence J. Sejnowski, a neuroscientist at University of
California, San Diego. The more humanlike machines look, the more creepy they can
seem. (38)
The machine's behavior is what matters, Dr. Sejnowski said. And very subtle elements
can make a big difference. (39)
The timing of a robot's responses is one. The San Diego researchers found that if RUBI
reacted to a child's expression or comment too fast, it threw off the interaction; the same
happened if the response was too slow. But if the robot reacted within about a second and
a half, child and machine were smoothly in sync. (40)
Physical rhythm is crucial. In recent experiments at a day care center in Japan,
researchers have shown that having a robot simply bob or shake at the same rhythm a
child is rocking or moving can quickly engage even very fearful children with autism.
(41)
"The child begins to notice something in that synchronous behavior and open up," said
Marek Michalowski of Carnegie Mellon University, who collaborated on the studies.
Once that happens, he said, "you can piggyback social behaviors onto the interaction,
like eye contact, joint attention, turn taking, things these kids have trouble with." (42)
One way to begin this process is to have a child mimic the physical movements of a
robot and vice versa. In a continuing study financed by the National Institutes of Health,
scientists at the University of Connecticut are conducting therapy sessions for children
with autism using a French robot called Nao, a two-foot humanoid that looks like an
elegant Transformer toy. The robot, remotely controlled by a therapist, demonstrates
martial arts kicks and chops and urges the child to follow suit; then it encourages the
child to lead. (43)
"I just love robots, and I know this is therapy, but I don't know -- I think it's just fun," said
Sam, an 8-year-old from New Haven with Asperger's syndrome, who recently engaged
in the therapy. (44)
This simple mimicry seems to build a kind of trust, and increase sociability, said Anjana
Bhat, an assistant professor in the department of education who is directing the
experiment. "Social interactions are so dependent on whether someone is in sync with
you," Dr. Bhat said. "You walk fast, they walk fast; you go slowly, they go slowly -- and
soon you are interacting, and maybe you are learning." (45)
Personality matters, too, on both sides. In their studies with Asimo, the Honda robot,
researchers have found that when the robot teacher is "cooperative" ("I am going to put
the water glass here; do you think you can help me by placing the water glass on the
same place on your side?"), children 4 to 6 did much better than when Asimo lectured
them, or allowed them to direct themselves ("place the cup and saucer anywhere you
like"). The teaching approach made less difference with students ages 7 to 10. (46)
139
"The fact is that children's reactions to a robot may vary widely, by age and by
individual," said Sandra Okita, a Columbia University researcher and co-author of the
study. (47)
If robots are to be truly effective guides, in short, they will have to do what any good
teacher does: learn from students when a lesson is taking hold and when it is falling flat.
(48)
Learning From Humans
"Do you have any questions, Simon?" (49)
On a recent Monday afternoon, Crystal Chao, a graduate student in robotics at the
Georgia Institute of Technology, was teaching a five-foot robot named Simon to put
away toys. She had given some instructions -- the flower goes in the red bin, the block in
the blue bin -- and Simon had correctly put away several of these objects. But now the
robot was stumped, its doughboy head tipped forward, its fawn eyes blinking at a green
toy water sprinkler. (50)
Dr. Chao repeated her query, perhaps the most fundamental in all of education: Do you
have any questions? (51)
"Let me see," said Simon, in a childlike machine voice, reaching to pick up the sprinkler.
"Can you tell me where this goes?" (52)
"In the green bin," came the answer. (53)
Simon nodded, dropping it in that bin. (54)
"Makes sense," the robot said. (55)
In addition to tracking motion and recognizing language, Simon accumulates knowledge
through experience. (56)
Just as humans can learn from machines, machines can learn from humans, said Andrea
Thomaz, an assistant professor of interactive computing at Georgia Tech who directs the
project. For instance, she said, scientists could equip a machine to understand the
nonverbal cues that signal "I'm confused" or "I have a question" -- giving it some ability
to monitor how its lesson is being received. (57)
To ask, as Dr. Chao did: Do you have any questions? (58)
This ability to monitor and learn from experience is the next great frontier for social
robotics -- and it probably depends, in large part, on unraveling the secrets of how the
human brain accumulates information during infancy. (59)
In San Diego, researchers are trying to develop a human-looking robot with sensors that
approximate the complexity of a year-old infant's abilities to feel, see and hear. Babies
learn, seemingly effortlessly, by experimenting, by mimicking, by moving their limbs.
Could a machine with sufficient artificial intelligence do the same? And what kind of
learning systems would be sufficient? (60)
The research group has bought a $70,000 robot, built by a Japanese company, that is
140
controlled by a pneumatic pressure system that will act as its senses, in effect helping it
map out the environment by "feeling" in addition to "seeing" with embedded cameras.
And that is the easy part. (61)
The much steeper challenge is to program the machine to explore, as infants do, and
build on moment-to-moment experience. Ideally its knowledge will be cumulative, not
only recalling the layout of a room or a house, but using that stored knowledge to make
educated guesses about a new room. (62)
The researchers are shooting for nothing less than capturing the foundation of human
learning -- or, at least, its artificial intelligence equivalent. If robots can learn to learn, on
their own and without instruction, they can in principle make the kind of teachers that are
responsive to the needs of a class, even an individual child. (63)
Parents and educators would certainly have questions about robots' effectiveness as
有些家長與教育專家擔心，當機器人上講台
teachers, as well as ethical concerns about potential harm they might do. But if social
授業解惑，可能會造成孩子的觀念錯亂，從
robots take off in the way other computing technologies have, parents may have more
此認定科技至上。不過華盛頓大學的庫爾博
pointed ones: Does this robot really "get" my child? Is its teaching style right for my
士強調，科學家無意也不可能讓機器人取代
son's needs, my daughter's talents? (64)
人類老師，未來機器人最重要的教學角色，
仍然是以先進的科技配合學童的身心發展階
段，在教室裡扮演稱職的助教與玩伴。(五)
That is, the very questions they would ask about any teacher. (65)
141
D. Source and target texts of the second case study
No. 1
Source Text
Target Text
Robert Burns
羅伯特.彭斯
羅伯特 彭斯
Selling Scotland by the verse
詩詞動人傳百載，
詩詞動人傳百載，吸引遊客尚未足
Testing the poet’s pulling power
這是詩人魅力的考驗
January 22, 2009
rhineyuan 2009/02/04
IN THIS especially bleak midwinter, what better excuse to have a drink and a
隆冬已至，目之所及，分外蕭條；若要開懷暢飲，或者
knees-up than commemorating the birth of Robert Burns, the Scottish
熱鬧小聚，最光明正大的理由，莫過慶祝羅伯特.彭斯
ploughman whose demotic verse was perhaps the first dialect version of
誕辰。這位蘇格蘭農夫的詩詞通俗易懂，可能是第一次
English to achieve world literary and popular acclaim? The celebrations on
英格蘭方言韻文得到世界文學的喝彩，大眾的喜愛吧。
January 25th this year will be particularly vigorous for they mark the 250th
今年的 1 月 25 日應該分外歡騰，因為這是羅比（這位
anniversary of the arrival of Rabbie, as Scotland’s bard is known in his
蘇格蘭吟遊詩人在家鄉的昵稱）250 周年誕慶。(一)
homeland. (1)
Even in an off year, Burns suppers require much whisky-quaffing. Also
即使今年收成欠佳，彭斯晚宴上還是要痛飲威士卡。同
compulsory is the eating of haggis, a concoction of minced offal, fat and
樣必不可少的還有哈吉斯——把碎羊肉、脂肪油、燕麥
oatmeal stuffed into a sheep’s stomach (a BBC recipe’s final instruction is
塞到羊的胃袋裡做成的蘇格蘭傳統小吃。
（BBC 在某次
“eat and then belch loudly or throw up”). Haggis-makers report record sales
介紹這種食物做法的時候，最後一步是“入口後響亮地
this year. (2)
打個嗝，或者馬上去嘔吐”。）今年，哈吉斯製造商們
創下了銷售紀錄。(二)
Inspired by the anniversary, VisitScotland, the national tourist agency, has set
受彭斯誕辰的啟發，國家級旅遊機構蘇格蘭觀光局已經
up a website inviting anyone holding a Burns supper to register it.
開設網頁，邀請彭斯晚宴的承辦者在此註冊：在英格蘭
Surprisingly, almost 1,200 are being held in England, more, it seems—as The
有近 1200 彭斯晚宴開辦，如果按照《經濟學人》的統
Economist goes to press—than Scotland’s roughly 1,000. The French,
計，看起來比蘇格蘭還要多——這就讓人吃驚不小。在
prepared to contemplate eating almost anything, report 33 Burns feasts. North
什麼都打算“嘗”試一下的法國，擺出宴席數目已達 33，
Americans claim to be holding about 385 suppers, and there are several
北美地區也登記了 385 席，還有幾百席分佈在俄羅斯
hundred more in countries including Russia, whose folk are no mean quaffers
（俄國人民喝起酒來也毫不含糊）
、約旦和剛果，和一
themselves, Jordan and Congo. The poet’s soppy romanticism, flinty
些其他地區。蘇格蘭詩人傷感的浪漫，堅定地平均思想
egalitarianism and ridicule of pomposity have universal appeal. (3)
和對奢華的嘲弄，在世界各地都產生了共鳴。(三)
This all falls softly on the ears of Scotland’s first minister, Alex Salmond. His
蘇格蘭首席部長亞曆克斯.薩爾蒙德聽此消息，心情不
devolved government has designated 2009 the “Year of Homecoming”, and
免愉快。他的移交政府把 2009 年選定為“回歸故里年”，
is spending £5m ($7m) on events and advertising to lure anyone with
投入五百萬英鎊（七百萬美金）打造各種慶祝活動和宣
Scottish ancestry, or just a vague interest in the country, to pay a visit. He
傳廣告，以吸引有蘇格蘭血統以及喜愛蘇格蘭的所有人
hopes an extra 100,000 tourists will spend some £40m. (4)
來此觀光。薩爾蒙德希望，這 100,000 名新增遊客能夠
消費約 4000 萬英鎊。(四)
Sadly, a survey published on January 20th by the Scottish Chambers of
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可惜了，根據 1 月 20 日蘇格蘭商務部公佈的調查結果，
Commerce found that just 2% of tourist businesses expect an increase in
在旅遊界，認為今年需求會有所增長的只有區區 2%，
demand this year and 76% foresee decline. Rabbie’s lines may move people,
認為會下降的卻達 76%。羅比的詩句是很能打動人，可
but not enough to travel, it seems. (5)
是打動人們去旅行——看起來，還沒到那份兒上。(五)
No. 2
Source Text
Target Text
The behavioural effects of video games
電動遊戲的行為學影響
Good game?
遊戲有益？
遊戲有益？
Playing video games can make you a better person
電動遊戲幫助玩家成為更好的人
May 28, 2009
sarah.L 2009/06/09
VIDEO games get a bad press. Many are unquestionably violent and, as has
大眾對電動遊戲頗有微詞。不可否認，非常多的電動遊
been the way with new media from novels to comic books to television, they
戲都充斥著暴力色彩，因而也就難以逃脫敗壞青少年道
have been accused of corrupting the moral fabric of youth. Nor are such
德觀的指責，重蹈了小說、漫畫、電視等新媒體的覆轍。
accusations without merit. There is a body of research suggesting that violent
不過這些指責並非毫無根據。大量的研究結果表明，暴
games can lead to aggressive thoughts, if not to violence itself. But not all
力遊戲即使不會使玩家有暴力的行為，也會讓他們產生
games are shoot-’em-ups, and what is less examined is whether those that
暴力的想法。然而，並非所有的遊戲都是打打殺殺，有
reward more constructive behaviour also have lingering impacts. That,
些遊戲褒獎積極的行為，他們是否對玩家也有潛移默化
however, is starting to change. Two studies showing that video games have a
的影響？這個問題卻乏人關注。最近有兩項研究表明電
bright side as well as a dark one have been carried out recently. (1)
動遊戲瑕瑜互見，優缺點並存。(一)
One, to be published in June by the Journal of Experimental Social
《實驗社會心理學雜誌》六月份刊發了其中一項研究。
Psychology, was conducted by Douglas Gentile, of Iowa State University’s
這項研究由愛荷華州立大學媒體研究實驗室的 Douglas
media research laboratory. He and his colleagues tested the effects of playing
Gentile 及其同事共同進行。他們針對來自三個國家的孩
so-called “pro-social” games on children and young adults in three countries.
童和青年玩家，檢測所謂的“親社會”遊戲對他們產生的
(2)
影響。(二)
A group of 161 American students played one of six games for 20 minutes.
其中 161 位美國學生為一組，玩六款遊戲其中之一，時
Some were given “Ty2” or “Crash Twinsanity”, both of which involve
間長 20 分鐘。第一小組分派到“Ty2” 或“Crash
cartoonish fighting and destruction. Others were assigned “Chibi-Robo!”,
Twinsanity”遊戲，這兩款涉及卡通人物的對打和破壞行
which involves helping characters in the game by doing their chores, or
為。第二小組分到“Chibi-Robo!”，一款幫助遊戲中的主
“Super Mario Sunshine”, in which players clean up pollution and graffiti. A
人公完成任務的遊戲，或“Super Mario Sunshine”，一款
third group, acting as a control, played “Pure Pinball” or “Super Monkey Ball
由玩家清理汙物和街頭塗鴉的遊戲。第三小組則作為對
Deluxe”, both of which involve guiding a ball through mazes. (3)
照，玩兩部球出迷宮的遊戲——“Pure Pinball” 或“Super
Monkey Ball Deluxe”。(三)
Their games over, the participants were asked to choose 11 of 30 easy,
遊戲結束後，參與者從 30 款難度分別為簡單、中等、
medium or hard shape-based puzzles for a partner to complete, and told that
困難的拼圖遊戲中挑選 11 款，選一位搭檔讓其完成。
their partner would receive a $10 gift voucher if he could complete ten of
同時告知搭檔如果能夠完成其中的 10 款遊戲， 便可獎
them. Those who had been playing pro-social games were significantly more
勵 10 美元的禮券。結果顯示，“親社會”遊戲的玩家明
likely to help their partner by selecting easy puzzles. The opposite was true
顯比暴力遊戲的玩家更可能為其搭檔挑選簡單的拼
for those assigned violent games. (4)
圖。反過來說，暴力遊戲的玩家確實更可能會為其搭檔
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挑選難度高的遊戲。(四)
The other parts of Dr Gentile’s study looked at established behaviour. In one,
Gentile 博士的其他部分研究觀察的是定型行為。第一部
a group of 680 Singaporeans aged 12-14 were asked to list their three
分實驗中，680 位 12 至 14 歲的新加坡玩家為一組，要
favourite games and state the number of hours they played. They were then
求每人列出三部最喜歡的遊戲，且說明玩遊戲持續的時
given questionnaires, the answers to which suggested that those who spent
間，然後再進行問卷調查。從問卷的答案中便可一窺倪
the longest playing games which involved helping others were most likely to
端：進行助人遊戲時間最長的玩家最有可能幫助、同情
help, share, co-operate and empathise with others. They also had lower
他人，與他人分享。在敵意思想和暴力正常化的測試
scores in tests for hostile thoughts and the acceptance of violence as normal.
中，這些玩家得分也較低。第二部分實驗的研究物件是
In the second, Japanese aged 10-17 were asked how much time they spent
10 至 17 歲的日本玩家，他們被要求告知花費在幫助他
playing games in which the main character helps others. When questioned
人的遊戲上的具體時間長短。調查三四個月後，觀察到
three to four months later, those who played these types of games the most
經常玩助人遊戲類型的玩家在現實生活中也是更願意
were also rated as more helpful to those around them in real life. (5)
幫助身邊周圍的人的。(五)
Screened for virtue
瑕不掩瑜
These two, later, parts of Dr Gentile’s study might, of course, just be proving
Gentile 博士的後面兩部分研究只是證明與人為善的人
that nice people prefer pro-social games. But a second controlled experiment,
更喜歡玩“親社會”遊戲。而由英格蘭蘇賽克斯大學的
by Tobias Greitemeyer of the University of Sussex, in England, and Silvia
Tobias Greitemeyer 和慕尼克大學的 Silvia Osswald 進行
Osswald of Ludwig-Maximilian University, in Munich, confirms the gist of
的第二個對照試驗卻確證了 Gentile 博士的實驗結論的
Dr Gentile’s conclusions. In this piece of research (to be published later this
要點。在這次研究（研究結果將於今年下半年同樣刊發
year, also in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology), Dr Greitemeyer
在《實驗社會心理學雜誌》上）中，Greitemeyer 博士和
and Dr Osswald asked 46 German students to play one of two classic games.
Osswald 博士邀請了 46 位德國學生，參與兩部經典遊
In the pro-social one, “Lemmings”, the aim is to protect rodents from various
戲。其中一部“Lemmings”，屬親社會的類型，遊戲主旨
dangers. By contrast “Tetris” acted as a neutral control. In this game players
是保護嚙齒目動物免於各種不同危險。相對拯救自我滅
rotate falling shapes so that they slot neatly together instead of saving
亡的毛皮動物，另外一部遊戲“Tetris”的內容則相反，屬
self-destructive furry animals. (6)
於中性對照試驗，玩家在遊戲中旋轉下降的不同方塊，
使模型排列整齊。(六)
Playtime over, the students were asked to say what happens next in three
遊戲時間結束，參與的學生針對 3 個不完整的故事進行
incomplete stories involving a driver and a cyclist who narrowly miss
故事接龍：第一個故事與一位司機和一位騎自行車的人
colliding; two friends, one of whom is unapologetic despite being repeatedly
在車禍中死裡逃生；第二個故事中，有兩個朋友，其中
late; and a diner speaking to a restaurant manager after waiting for an hour to
一個多次遲到，但至今未曾表示歉意；最後一個故事是
be served and then having food spilt on him. Those who had played
一個用餐者，等了一個小時才上菜，現在因為被食物潑
“Lemmings” suggested endings in which the characters in the stories
濺到而和餐廳經理理論。在“Lemmings”的玩家續講的故
exhibited significantly fewer aggressive thoughts, responses and actions than
事中，故事人物表現出的想法、反應和行為的暴力程度
the ones suggested by the “Tetris” players. (7)
都顯著少於“Tetris”玩家。(七)
The upshot of both studies is that video games are like any other medium.
兩項研究的結論都表明電動遊戲與任何其他媒體無
Feed the user with aggressive thoughts and you risk making him aggressive.
異，都會讓玩家產生暴力的想法，不過暴力與否完全則
Feed him with the milk of human kindness and the opposite will probably
取決於玩家自身。電動遊戲或是美德之源，亦或是暴力
happen. No great surprise, perhaps. But a salutary reminder both that the
邪惡的深淵，這個結論可能並無新意。但是年長的一代
older generation should not rush to judgment on youthful habits it does not
不能理解年青一代的習慣時，並不應該輕率地下結論；
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而且媒體也只是一種資訊媒介，並非總代表資訊本身，
understand, and that the medium is not always the message. (8)
意識到這兩點就是大有裨益了。(八)
No. 3
Source Text
Target Text
A web of sound
發聲網頁
Talk about that
網站，
網站，說一說
Websites that use the spoken word will empower the illiterate
發聲網站，
發聲網站，讓文盲也可以上網
June 18, 2009
Eco Team 2009/06/26
THE internet, wonderful though it is, reinforces one of life’s fundamental
英特網，自是精彩紛呈，同時也加劇了那些受教育的人
divisions: that between the literate and the illiterate. Most websites, even
和文盲之間在人生裡的根本分歧。大多數網站，即便是
those heavy with video content, rely on their users being able to read and—if
那些載入了大量視頻檔的網頁，也需要流覽者具備閱讀
interactive—write. Building your own site certainly does. (1)
的能力，如需進行互動還要求流覽者會打字。要是想建
立個人網站就更是如此了。(一)
Guruduth Banavar, the director of IBM’s India Research Laboratory, wanted
IBM 印度研究實驗室主任古魯都斯•巴納瓦爾希望通過
to allow people who struggle with literacy to create websites. So he and his
他的研究，能讓那些沒有讀寫能力的人也能建立網站。
colleagues have devised a system based on what is known as “voice
為此，他和他的同事們一起開發了一種基於大家熟知的
extensible markup language”, a cousin of the hypertext markup language
“語音拓展標記語言”的系統。語音拓展標記語言可謂是
used on conventional websites, that allows a website to be built and operated
超文字標記語言近親，後者被廣泛應用於傳統網站的建
more or less by voice alone. (2)
設中，但是語音拓展標記語言從某種程度上允許操作者
僅通過語言來架設網站。(二)
The “spoken web” Dr Banavar hopes to conjure into existence will be based
巴納瓦爾博士希望通過神奇的科技，讓對話網頁成為現
on mobile phones, which are already proving an effective alternative to
實。傳統的行動電話在欠發達國家被用於線上獲取資訊
computers for obtaining information online in poor countries. As well as
和資訊溝通，已經成為電腦的不二代替者，而這種對話
making voice calls, people can text one another and, if their phones are up to
網頁正式以行動電話作為媒介的。通過行動電話，人們
the job, get access to the web. Across the developing world there are a
不僅可以撥打語音電話，還可以向對方發送文本，如果
number of successful banking and money-transfer services that rely on
手機功能允許的話，人們甚至可以通過它接入網絡。目
mobile phones rather than computers. (3)
前在發展中國家裡，就有很多銀行和轉帳仲介商是通過
行動電話，而不是電腦來展開業務。(三)
Dr Banavar, however, thinks mobiles could be made to work much harder.
巴納瓦爾博士認為，行動電話還可以被賦予更多的使
His voice sites are hosted on standard computer servers and behave much like
命。他的語言網站放在傳統的電腦伺服器上，運作起來
conventional websites. At their most basic they are designed for local use,
也如同傳統的網站 。人們設計這些網站的初衷，是要
acting as portals through which people can find out such things as when the
服務於當地人民，作為資訊門戶網站供人們找找所需資
mobile hospital will next visit their village, the price of rice in the local
訊，諸如移動醫院什麼時候到自己的村子來，當前市場
market and which wells they should use for irrigation. Instead of typing in a
上大米的價格怎樣以及那一口井是可以用來灌溉作物
web address, the user rings the website up. Then, with a combination of voice
的。所不同的是，人們不需要鍵入網站位元元址，而是
commands and key presses, he navigates through a spoken list of topics and
用電話撥打這個位址。人們通過語音指令和按鍵輸入的
listens to subjects of interest. (4)
聯合操作，電話裡傳出的語音熱點欄目列表會自動為你
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導航，然後你可以根據自己的喜好來收聽。(四)
That is useful, but not startlingly different from the sort of call-centre hell
這聽起來很不錯，但似乎又和那些通過電話為人們提供
familiar to anyone who has tried to get information out of a large company by
資訊服務的呼叫資訊中心沒有特別大的區別。真正讓巴
telephone. What makes Dr Banavar’s approach different is that, by selecting
納瓦爾博士的成果與眾不同的地方在於：人們可通過行
an appropriate option with the handset, the user can add content to a voice
動電話，對需要的選項進行選擇後，可以通過評論錄音
site by recording a comment that is then made available to others. This can
功能向網站添加進內容，這一功能對所有人都是開放
then be accessed as one of the “latest additions” or “most listened to” items in
的。因此，人們就可以在對話網站的自欄目中找到 “最
a spoken sub-menu. More important still, though, is that people can use a
新評論”或是“熱門收聽”等板塊了。除此之外，更令人
mobile phone to build their own voice sites—a process that, in trials
驚奇的是，人們還可以通過行動電話搭建屬於自己的語
conducted by the laboratory, even a non-expert could learn in as little as ten
音網站，當然，目前這一專案正處於實驗室試行階段，
minutes. (5)
如果成功，那麼一個網站外行就能在 10 分鐘內學會搭
建網站。(五)
The voice of the people
人們用語音來上網
To build a site the user first selects a suitable template. The system then talks
要建立一個網站，使用者首先要選擇一個範本。系統會
him through the bells and whistles he might wish to add to that template. A
同操作者通過鈴音和哨音進行互動，以幫助用戶確定哪
carpenter or autorickshaw driver, for example, can advertise his services,
些是要加入範本的內容。比如，一個木匠或一個司機可
receive and confirm offers of work and even undertake basic commercial
以在上面發佈個人的服務資訊，接收並確認作業訂單，
transactions through such a site. And the site can store offers of work when its
甚至可以實現簡單的線上交易。當操作被擱置，系統會
owner is unavailable—as often happens in places where several people share
自動對作業訂單進行儲存，考慮到在有些地方，經常會
a handset. (6)
有幾個人共用一部手機的情況。(六)
Like a more conventional website, a voice site has a mechanism by which
像傳統的網站一樣，語音網站同樣可以實現資訊的連結
information can be linked together and browsed, both backwards and
和流覽，可以前進，可以後退。IBM 實驗室通過超文字
forwards. The system IBM employs to achieve this, the hyperspeech transfer
傳輸協定（HSTP）來實現這一功能，它與傳統的超文
protocol (HSTP), is similar in principle to the hypertext transfer protocol that
字傳輸協定類似，可以提供從過一個網站到另一個網站
provides links from one conventional website to another. The HSTP allows,
的連結。舉例來說，HSTP 能夠讓人們在收聽一個語音
for instance, someone listening to an item on a voice site to hear another
網站的同時連結到另外一個語音網站，然後再回到自己
linked item and then return to the first one and continue listening from where
之前所收聽的內容，繼續收聽。(七)
he left off. (7)
India, one of the world’s fastest-growing mobile-phone markets, is an
印度是全球手機市場快速增長的市場之一，非常適合這
obvious place to try all this out. Although more than a third of its population
一成果的應用。儘管目前有超過國民人口（12 億人口）
of 1.2 billion now have a handset, they are often basic devices shared among
三分之一的人擁有手機，手機對於他們來說是家人和朋
families and friends. IBM is therefore carrying out trials of the spoken web in
友間相互交流的基本通訊工具。因此，印度 IBM 實驗
several parts of India—and, in collaboration with various other groups, in
室將開發出的語音網站在印度的部分地區進行試驗，並
other countries. (8)
與其他國家的其他類似團體進行合作交流。(八)
Users will have to make calls, and those calls will cost money. But, Dr
使用者要使用語音網站就必須撥打電話，這勢必會產生
Banavar thinks, there are many ways of paying for them. Public-service sites
通話費。但是巴納瓦爾博士認為，話費的支付可由多方
such as local portals might be toll-free and subsidised by governments.
來完成。提供公共服務的網站，諸如本地門戶網站可以
Commercial sites could take a small percentage of any transaction carried out
免去部分話費，由政府出資一部分。而商業網站可以從
146
over them. Advertising might also provide revenue. It would, after all, be
產生的交易中獲取一定百分比的利潤，同時，廣告可以
more difficult for the listener to screen out than the visual adverts seen on a
帶來收益，不過對於一個收聽語音網站的使用者來說，
conventional site. (9)
要遮罩其中的廣告，可就比傳統的視覺網站要麻煩多
了。(九)
No. 4
Source Text
Target Text
America's thriving gossip magazines
美國繁榮的八卦雜誌
Rags to riches
雜誌致富
One corner of the print-news industry is relatively healthy
新聞印刷業的一隅相對繁榮
June 18, 2009
Eco Team 2009/07/02
FOR seven of the past eight weeks the front cover of Us Weekly magazine
過去的八周有七周,《美國週刊》封面以 Jon 和 Kate
has featured salacious stories about Jon and Kate Gosselin. The Gosselins,
Gosselin 的粗俗故事為特色專題。Gosselin 一家，有包
who have eight children including sextuplets, are the stars of an obscure
括 6 胞胎在內的 8 個孩子，成了美國現實-TV 節目的明
American reality-TV programme that briefly became the most watched show
星，這個不出名的節目短時間也在有線電視上備受矚
on cable. Sensing a surge of interest, other celebrity magazines have piled in
目。其他名人雜誌發覺公眾興趣激增，便在雜誌中插入
with reports of marital disharmony. Even in a recession, tittle-tattle sells. (1)
關於不和諧婚姻的報導。即使經濟衰退，八卦還是有的
賣。(一)
Buoyed by recession-resistant food, pharmaceutical and shampoo
據《媒體週刊》統計，過去一年裡，由抵制衰退的食
advertisements, gossip magazines have lost fewer advertising pages in the
糧——藥品和香波廣告維持著，比起商業或新聞雜誌，
past year than business or news magazines, according to a tally by
八卦雜誌失去的廣告頁較少。兩家最大的雜誌《人物》
Mediaweek. The two biggest, People and Us Weekly, each sold more copies
和《美國週刊》
，每家去年比 2001 年賣出了更多的雜
last year than they did in 2001. In a world of fragmenting audiences they
誌。擁有大量分散讀者，他們佔據了極大的範圍。足有
boast an enormous reach. Fully 43m Americans, about two-thirds of them
四千三百萬美國人，婦女大約占三分之二，每週流覽一
women, flick through a copy of People each week. (2)
份《人物》雜誌。(二)
This is odd, because the forces blamed for the decline of print news are no
這很奇怪，認為紙質媒體下滑的原因在於名人雜誌依然
less potent in the celebrity sector. Celebrity news has its own online
具有說服力。人物新聞有自己的網路聚合器，有幾個聚
aggregators, several of them linked to web portals, such as omg!, the gossip
合器連結到了網路門戶，像是物件管理集團（omg!）和
arm of Yahoo!. The self-publicising Perez Hilton leads a legion of bloggers.
雅虎（Yahoo!）的八卦部。自我宣傳的 Perez Hilton 帶
Tweets, mobile-phone alerts and gossipy television shows (there are five, up
領了一大隊博客。Tweets，手機提醒和八卦電視節目
from three in 2000) provide much more timely information about the lives of
（2000 年有 3 個，現在升至 5 個）提供名人生活資訊
the beautiful than do magazines. There is more direct competition, too, with
比雜誌更加及時。2002 年開辦的 3 家精品雜誌，也是
three big glossy magazines having launched since 2002. (3)
個更為直接的競爭。(三)
It may be that the new entrants have simply mopped up excess interest in the
也許新加入者挖一下 Paris Hilton 和 Lindsay Lohan 的故
doings of Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan. Larry Hackett, the editor of
事就輕而易舉滿足公眾額外的興趣。
《人物》編輯 Larry
People, reckons that the public appetite for entertainment news was
Hackett 認為，公眾對娛樂新聞的需求至今未得到滿足。
underserved until recently. Far from harming the established publications, the
多媒體八卦的攻勢非但不會波及現有雜誌，也許會驅使
multimedia gossip barrage may be driving readers to check scurrilous
讀者和他們一起核查粗俗的謠言。(四)
147
rumours with them. (4)
The field is probably too crowded. None of the three new publications—In
這個行業或許太過密集。去年 3 家新雜誌《接觸》、《生
Touch, Life & Style and OK!—sold more than a million copies a week on
活&方式》和《OK!》，平均每週沒有一家能賣出一百
average last year. The turbulent economy has shaken lucrative news-stand
萬份。尤其是動盪的經濟動搖了有利可圖的報攤銷售。
sales in particular. As the weaker publications struggle, though, the strongest
愈加衰弱的雜誌還在掙紮，而頂強大的卻在大膽開拓新
ones are expanding boldly into new platforms and products. People has
平臺和新產品。據調查公司 comScore，《人物》已啟
launched an iPhone application and its website receives 13m unique visitors
動了在 iPhone 平臺上的應用，其網站每月接待一千三
per month, according to comScore, a research firm. Its empire includes a
百萬獨立訪客。《人物》帝國包括一個時尚門戶網站、
fashion portal, a Spanish-language magazine, a country issue, puzzle books
一份西語雜誌、一個鄉村版本、幾本智力測驗書和一個
and a pets website, all written in the same reassuring style. (5)
寵物網站，所有的編輯風格都是統一的並且有所保證。
(五)
However far-flung their operations, celebrity publishers know they must
不論名人雜誌出版商的經營多麼廣泛，他們知道必須驅
drive traffic to the weekly magazine, where the real money is still to be made.
使人們買週刊才能真正賺到錢。最棒的網站提供花絮趣
The best websites offer titbits, updates and quotes. When it comes to longer
聞、更新材料和援引。然而一看到較長的文章和獨家報
articles and scoops, though, online readers are firmly steered to the
導，線上讀者會堅定地奔向標有“欲知詳情……”的報
news-stand with notes that begin, “To find out more…”. Janice Min, the
攤。《美國週刊》總編輯 Janice Min 估計，其雜誌與相
editor-in-chief of Us Weekly, reckons the content of her magazine and its
關網站重複的內容不足 15%。她問：“為什麼要把全部
associated website overlap by no more than 15%. “Why would you post your
封面專題放到網上呢？” (六)
entire cover story online?” she asks. (6)
No. 5
Source Text
Target Text
College enrolment
大學註冊
Boom times
雨後春筍般增長
The recession drives young Americans back to learning
經濟危機促使美國的年輕人重返校園
November 12, 2009
shiyi18 2009/11/17
A BUSINESS that jacks up its prices during a recession is usually asking to
通常來說，如果有一樁生意在經濟危機時期提高價格，
lose customers. Not so America’s colleges, which are simultaneously raising
那麼定會喪失其顧客。但是這一法則對美國的大學來說
tuition fees and experiencing record levels of enrolment. The Technical
卻毫不適用，它們在提高學費的同時卻招來了史無前例
College System of Georgia, for instance, whose 28 campuses teach
的眾多報名者。就拿喬治亞技術學院系統來說，其 28
everything from power-line maintenance to dental hygiene, has sharply raised
個校區中從電力維修專業到牙科衛生專業均大幅增加
its fees, yet the number of students is up 24% from a year earlier. Campus
了學費，但學生人數卻比一年前增加了 24%。一位發言
parking lots are so full that “we got them parking in cow pastures,” says a
人說，校園裡的停車位已經滿得“使我們不得不將車停
spokesman. (1)
到養牛的牧場裡”。 (一)
Across the country, college enrolment rates are at an all-time high. In October
全國的大學新生註冊率已經達到了迄今最高水準。在十
41% of 18-to-24-year-olds were enrolled in either two-year colleges (which
月份，18 到 24 歲的青年人中有 41%的人或是在兩年制
specialise in vocational training) or four-year colleges (which grant
的學院（提供職業培訓）註冊，或是向四年制（可以授
undergraduate degrees) or higher, up from 39% a year earlier. Yet tuition fees
予本科學位）或更高級別的大學報名，而在一年前這一
148
數字為 39%。然而與此同時學費卻平均上升了 4%到
have risen by an average of 4-7%.(2)
7%。(二)
The economy is the most immediate culprit. The unemployment rate hit
當前的經濟狀況是引起這一現象的首要原因。至 10 月
10.2% in October, up sharply from 9.8% in September, the first time it has
份失業率已經從 9 月的 9.8%一路飆升到了 10.2%，這是
reached double digits since 1983. Among 16-to-24-year-olds, it was a dismal
自 1983 年以來第一次突破兩位數。更為悲慘的是，在
19.1%. Faced with the worst job prospects in a generation, many young
16 到 24 歲的人中，失業率高達 19.1%。面對如此慘澹
people are deciding to go to college instead. (3)
的就業前景，許多年輕人紛紛選擇上大學。(三)
That, however, is only part of the story. The Pew Research Centre notes in a
然而，以上不僅僅是故事的全部。皮尤研究中心在最近
recent report that enrolment rates have been rising and participation rates
的一項報告中表示，在大學註冊率上升的同時，就業參
declining for decades now. One reason is that as the number of well-paid
與率卻連續幾十年下降。其中的一個原因就是，從 20
unskilled jobs began to shrink in the 1980s, the “college premium”—the
世紀80年代開始，技術含量低的高薪職業開始縮水，“大
difference in salaries between college and high-school graduates—rose. The
學生優勢”（即大學畢業生和高中畢業生之間的工資差
college premium stopped growing earlier this decade, but it remains high
距）現象日益顯現。這種現象在近十年中已不再出現，
enough to affect the calculus for any 18-year-old weighing whether to look
但是卻對那些正值 18 歲並且正踟躕於就業和學業間的
for work or stay in education. (4)
年輕人產生了相當大的影響。(四)
Another reason is that the pool of potential college-goers has grown. The
另一個原因是，潛在的大學入學者有所增加。皮尤中心
Pew report notes that the proportion of 18-to-24-year-olds who have dropped
的報告顯示，18 至 24 歲人群中，高中輟學的人的比例
out of high school fell steadily to 9.3% in 2008 from 15.7% in 1973. With
從 1973 年的 15.7%穩步下降到了 2008 年的 9.3%。隨著
more students finishing high school, more are eligible to go to college. (5)
越來越多的學生完成高中學業，也就意味著越來越多的
人擁有了上大學的資格。(五)
The problem for colleges is that enrolment is surging just as funding is
大學面臨的問題是註冊學生猛增資金猛降。受到經濟危
shrinking. Private colleges have seen their endowments and investment
機的影響，私立大學的捐贈和投資收入縮水嚴重，而各
income shrivel because of the financial crisis, while public colleges have had
地政府因為財政危機，也紛紛減少了公立大學的資金。
funding cut by cash-strapped state governments. The Technical College
Technical College System of Georgia60%的的財政預算
System of Georgia gets 60% of its budget from the state, and that has been
都來自於政府，但如今政府為了緩解其財政問題凍結了
frozen as the state attempts to sort out its finances. It has eliminated Friday
這筆資金。因此該學院不得不減少週五的課程來節省開
classes to save money; some classes on other days go on past 10pm. Tuition
支，週五以外的課程也在上午 10 點後才進行。每季度
charges have risen by $600 a quarter, to between $2,100 and $2,400. But that
的學費上漲了 600 美元之後在 2100—2400 美元之間。
has failed to serve as a big deterrent, thanks in part to more generous state and
但是以上情況並沒有阻礙學校的運行，這一部分歸功於
federal “Pell grants”, which Barack Obama increased this year. (6)
國家和聯邦的“佩爾助學金”，奧巴馬今年還增加了這一
計畫的援助金額。(六)
No. 6
Source Text
Target Text
Google
穀歌
Facing the frenemy
面對友敵
Googled: The End of the World as We Know It. By Ken Auletta.
Google 一下:我們所能知道的世界盡頭
一下 我們所能知道的世界盡頭
Penguin Press; 384 pages; $27.95. Buy from Amazon.com
shiyi18 2009/11/20
149
November 12, 2009
SOMETIMES it seems as if Google has never come across an industry it
有時候看起來 Google 好像對任何行業都想插上一腳。
doesn’t want to disrupt. Best known for its hugely popular search engine, the
因其廣受歡迎的搜尋引擎而廣為人知，這家網路巨頭把
internet giant has spread its tentacles into an ever-growing array of
觸角伸向了越來越多領域，包括廣告、電信以及最近涉
businesses, including advertising, telecoms and, most recently,
及的電子導航軟體。該公司一慣的低價甚至免費服務的
digital-navigation software. The company’s habit of selling services cheaply
做法深得客戶歡心。但這種戰略惹惱了競爭者，他們抱
or giving them away for free has endeared it to consumers. But its tactics
怨這個新來的對手根本就是存心來搞垮整個行業。(一)
have enraged competitors, who complain their new rival is out to destroy the
economics of entire industries. (1)
Such griping has been loudest in the worlds of publishing and entertainment.
這種牢騷在出版業和娛樂行業尤甚。雖然媒體公司貪戀
Although media companies are hooked on the money they mint via adverts
其通過在 Google 及其 YouTube 流媒體業務上投放廣告
that run on Google and its YouTube video-streaming business, many of them
獲得收益，他們中大多數還是指責 Google 使他們的內
also accuse the search firm of commoditising their content and of
容變得商品化，以及降低了他們的利潤空間，因為市場
undermining their profits by making it easy for marketers to track the
行銷人員能輕易的瞭解網路廣告效率。“你在玷污這種
effectiveness of online ad spend. “You’re fucking with the magic,” says the
魔力”一家大媒體公司的老闆對 Google 的聯合創始人如
boss of one big media company to Google’s founders in a memorable scene
是說。Ken Auletta 在其新書的開頭記錄了這一幕印象深
recounted at the start of Ken Auletta’s new book. (2)
刻的情景。(二)
Mr Auletta, an American journalist and long-time commentator on the media
Auletta 是一位元美國記者，同時也是一位元媒體行業的
industry, dismisses claims that Google’s programming wizards are to blame
資深評論人，他駁斥了 Google 的謀劃專長將會給媒體
for putting a jinx on the media world. Instead, he places the blame squarely,
業帶來災難的傳言。事實上他把責難公、正確的指向了
and correctly, on the publishing and movie executives who failed to
那些未能正確意識到互聯網帶來的高速將榨幹他們公
appreciate the speed with which the internet would sap their companies’
司的未來的出版和電影從業者們。他們同樣後知後覺，
fortunes. They were also slow to spot that, although Google presented itself
雖然 Google 把自己塑造成一個友好形象，它有一個強
as a friend, it had all the hallmarks of a powerful enemy too. Now the
有力敵人所有的全部標誌。現在這位友敵成為行業內許
frenemy has become a scapegoat for many of the industry’s self-inflicted
多自作自受者的替罪羊。(三)
wounds. (3)
Mr Auletta does a respectable job of reviewing the media companies’
Mr Auletta 做了一項令人稱道的工作：回顧了媒體公司
predicaments. He also rehearses some of the well-known elements of
的困境。他同樣推演了一些幫助 Google 從 11 年前在小
Google’s culture that have helped transform it from a start-up launched in a
車庫發家到現在成為一家有志于成為全球媒 體老大，
garage 11 years ago to a colossus with ambitions to become the world’s first
年營業額 1000 億美金巨物的著名的企業文化。其中尤
media company with revenues of $100 billion. Among other things, these
其引人注目的是慷慨的股權激勵，免費午餐和按摩這樣
include lavish stock options, perks such as free meals and massages, and a
的福利，嚴謹但有時怪誕的招聘程式。
（本書中，Google
rigorous and sometimes quirky recruitment process. (In one passage in the
聯合創始人之一 Sergey Brin 要一位高級法務職位的候
book, Sergey Brin, one of Google’s co-founders, asks a candidate for a senior
選人起早一份把 Brin 的靈魂出售給魔鬼的契約）(四)
legal position to draw up a contract for the sale of Mr Brin’s soul to the
devil.) (4)
More compelling are the book’s insights into the relationship between the
最引人入勝的是本書探究了 Google 三巨頭—Brin，另一
members of the triumvirate that runs Google—Mr Brin, Larry Page, his
位創始人 Larry Page 和 CEO, 在 Google 組建幾年後才
150
co-founder, and Eric Schmidt, the chief executive, who arrived at Google
加入的 Erci Schmidt 之間的關係。帶著風投的命令而
several years after its launch. Brought in at the behest of venture capitalists
來，Schmidt 發現他要小心翼翼的維護才華洋溢卻缺乏
that have backed the firm, Mr Schmidt found himself treading a delicate path
社會經驗的開創者與急迫的投資人之間的敏感關係。在
between the sensibilities of the brilliant but socially awkward founders and
一位老資格的矽穀人的指導下，三人最終找到了一種有
the demands of the impatient financiers. With the help of a veteran Silicon
效地合作關係。(五)
Valley executive who acts as a coach, the three men ultimately developed an
effective working relationship. (5)
Which is just as well, for Google now faces some formidable challenges.
Google 同時也面臨一些艱巨的挑戰。快速發展的社交網
Fast-growing social networks such as Facebook are after a much bigger
例如 facebook 正在追尋更大的線上廣告資金。Google
chunk of online ad dollars. And Google’s size has begun to attract the
的規模在一些領域，如其有很大野心的電子書掃描，開
attention of anti-trust watchdogs in areas such as digital book scanning,
始引起了一些反壟斷衛士的注意。就我們所知這不會導
where it has ambitious plans. This hardly amounts to the end of Google’s
致 Google 統治地位的終結。但如果下錯了注，也有可
dominance as we know it. But if the company misplays its hand, it could turn
能成為覆滅的導火索。(六)
out to be the beginning of the end. (6)
No. 7
Source Text
Target Text
Charity as advertising
慈善之名 廣告之實
Give and take
欲取之，
欲取之，先予之
Will Pepsi profit by enlisting the public in its philanthropic efforts?
爭取公眾參與其慈善活動，
爭取公眾參與其慈善活動，百事能從中獲益嗎？
百事能從中獲益嗎？
February 11, 2010
dreamslink 2010/02/16
THE 107m Americans who tuned in to watch the Super Bowl on February
二月七日，有 1.07 億美國人收看了橄欖球超級大賽。
7th did not see any advertisements for Pepsi. Instead of spending $20m on a
但他們沒有看到百事可樂的任何廣告。百事可樂公司決
handful of 30-second spots, the firm decided to give that amount away. Under
定與其投資 2000 萬美元用於插播 30 秒的廣告，不如把
the slogan “Refresh Everything”, the Pepsi Refresh campaign asks the public
這筆資金捐贈出去。打著“刷新一切”的口號，百事換新
to vote online for charities and community groups to receive grants ranging
專案鼓勵民眾在網上投票，以決定哪些慈善機構和社區
from $5,000 to $250,000. A few days before the game its arch-rival,
團體能接收 5000 美元至 250000 美元的慈善基金。大賽
Coca-Cola, was also bitten by a charitable bug. It promised to give $1 to the
前幾天百事可樂的主要競爭對手，可口可樂也積極進行
Boys & Girls Clubs of America every time someone watched its Super Bowl
慈善活動。可口可樂承諾，人們在 Facebook 網頁上每
ads on its Facebook page, up to a maximum of $250,000. (1)
觀看一次其橄欖球超級大賽的廣告，就捐 1 美元給美國
男孩女孩俱樂部（25 萬美元封頂）
。(一)
Pepsi Refresh is probably the most prominent example so far of “cause
百事換新活動也許是目前為止最著名的“公益行銷”例
marketing”—trying to win customers by ostentatiously doing good. Other
子——旨在通過行善而爭取顧客。最近的另外幾個例子
recent examples include Chase Community Giving, in which small charities
還有，大通社區競捐大賽（小型慈善機構相互競爭以贏
competed to win $5m in donations from JPMorgan Chase, and American
取摩根大通捐贈的 500 萬美元資金）和美國運通以及
Express and NBC Universal’s “Shine A Light” programme, which awarded a
NBC 環球聯手舉行的“亮光”項目（該項目獎勵其網站
grant of $100,000 to a small business chosen through its website. (2)
上選出的小型企業 10 萬美元）
。(二)
Marketing people say consumers are increasingly trying to do good as they
行銷人員指出，消費者花錢的同時越來越願意行善。品
151
spend. Research in 2008 by Cone, a brand consultancy, found that 79% of
牌評估公司，康恩的調查顯示，2008 年 79%的顧客轉
consumers would switch to a brand associated with a good cause, up from
向消費與公益相關的品牌，1993 年只為 66%，38%的
66% in 1993, and that 38% have bought a product associated with a cause,
顧客購買過與公益相關的產品，1993 年僅為 20%。不
compared with 20% in 1993. Rather than try to make products that can be
象之前的“公平貿易”產品那樣——公司以自己的方式
marketed as ethical in their own right, such as “fair trade” goods, firms are
把產品標榜成道德之物。這次公司紛紛推出普通的產
increasingly trying to take an ordinary product and boost its moral credentials
品，以行銷專家稱之為“嵌入式慷慨”的方式來增加它們
with what one marketing guru calls “embedded generosity”. The fad for
的道德內涵。網上競爭進行慈善的風尚有賴於另外一種
online competitions to award the handouts also appeals to another trend,
潮流”懶惰主義”，即人們通過互聯網不需勞神，只需點
so-called “slacktivism”, whereby people are turning to the internet to give
幾下滑鼠，就可以“大發良心”。(三)
their consciences a boost without doing anything more onerous than clicking
a mouse a few times. (3)
The strategy seems to be working, judging by the proliferation of articles
針對百事可樂此項活動的大量報導相繼出現（比如這
(such as this one) noting Pepsi’s campaign. JPMorgan Chase claims its
篇）
，據此可知，這項活動效果不錯。摩根大通集團聲
campaign was not marketing, but simply an attempt to manage its existing
稱公司參加此次活動並不是行銷策略，只是開展形式多
corporate philanthropy more imaginatively. If so, its marketing staff are
樣的公司慈善事業。如果事實真的如公司所說，那行銷
missing a trick, given that around 2m people signed up to vote on Facebook,
部工作人員不免錯失良機，因為約有 200 萬人在
many of whom were not existing Chase customers. Moreover, the favourable
Facebook 上投票，這些人大部分不是公司現有的顧客。
headlines generated by Chase’s $5m outlay contrasted strikingly with the
另外，旨在幫助小型企業的 5 億美元籌集活動中，摩根
grudging reaction to Goldman Sachs’s launch around the same time of a
大通積極回應，捐資 500 萬美元，引來各大頭條報導的
$500m campaign to support small businesses. (4)
贊許之聲，而高盛集團卻遲遲不願捐資，二者形成鮮明
對比。(四)
Although the public likes online popularity contests, they can have
儘管民眾喜歡網上這種投票活動，但卻會產生一些意想
unintended consequences. Chase, for example, caused a fuss by excluding a
不到的後果。比如說，大通銀行將一家反墮胎團體和一
pro-life group and an outfit that wants to legalise cannabis from its
個提倡大麻合法化的團隊排除比賽，此事引起軒然大
competition. Moreover, many firms see virtue in tying themselves to a
波。另外，許多公司認為從事某項公益活動益處多多。
particular cause. Ten firms, including Gap, Apple and most recently Nike,
包括 Gap，蘋果以及新近加入的耐克等十家公司與搖滾
have deals with (RED), a scheme fronted by Bono, a rock star, to raise
歌手波諾發起的（RED）計畫聯合起來為抗擊愛滋病籌
money to fight AIDS. It has raised $140m so far, despite fears that, as Susan
集資金。儘管曾有擔心，但目前已籌集 1.4 億美元。正
Smith Ellis, its boss, puts it, “it would be just a big launch on Oprah then
如 RED 計畫首席執行官 Susan Smith Ellis 所言，“像是
never heard of again.” Equally, Pepsi’s efforts to promote healthy lifestyles
在奧普拉節目上宣揚了一番，然後卻不了了之”。百事
while selling healthier products and Coca-Cola’s various initiatives to protect
可樂銷售更健康的產品以努力提倡健康的生活方式，可
water supplies in developing countries are critical to the pair’s future.
口可樂也採取不同行動保護發展中國家的供水系統，這
Refreshing everything, in contrast, is a more nebulous goal. (5)
些對於兩大公司的未來發展至關重要。與此相比，刷新
一些不過是個朦朧的目標。(五)
No. 8
Source Text
Target Text
午睡怎樣增進記憶力
How siestas help memory
152
Sleepy heads
昏昏欲睡的大腦
Researchers say an afternoon nap prepares the brain to learn
研究者認為午睡可以讓頭腦更清醒，
研究者認為午睡可以讓頭腦更清醒，學習更高效
February 25, 2010
eastx 2010/02/28
MAD dogs and Englishmen, so the song has it, go out in the midday sun. And
瘋狗和英國人——正如這首歌唱到的那樣——正午時
the business practices of England’s lineal descendant, America, will have you
分頂著太陽外出。而英國人的直系後裔——美國公司的
in the office from nine in the morning to five in the evening, if not longer.
慣例會讓你朝九晚五地呆在辦公室裡，甚至更長時間。
Much of the world, though, prefers to take a siesta. And research presented to
但是世界上大部分人還是更喜歡來個午覺。一份提交到
the AAAS meeting in San Diego suggests it may be right to do so. It has
在聖達戈舉行的 AAAS 科學年會的報告中說：這麼做
already been established that those who siesta are less likely to die of heart
是正確的。有午睡習慣的人很少有死於心臟類疾病
disease. Now, Matthew Walker and his colleagues at the University of
的——這個已成定論。現在，馬修·沃克和他在加利福
California, Berkeley, have found that they probably have better memory, too.
尼亞大學伯克利分校的同事發現這些人很可能記憶力
A post-prandial snooze, Dr Walker has discovered, sets the brain up for
也會比其他人好。沃克博士發現，午餐之後打個小盹會
learning. (1)
讓頭腦更清醒，學習更高效。(一)
The role of sleep in consolidating memories that have already been created
人們早已知道睡眠能夠鞏固已建立的記憶。沃克正在試
has been understood for some time. Dr Walker has been trying to extend this
圖擴展這一認識，他的辦法是觀察睡眠在大腦記憶形成
understanding by looking at sleep’s role in preparing the brain for the
的初始階段扮演的角色。他的興趣點在一種叫做 “事件
formation of memories in the first place. He was particularly interested in a
記憶”的記憶上，這種記憶與時間、地點和次數相關聯。
type of memory called episodic memory, which relates to specific events,
和這種記憶相反的是“程式記憶”，是記住那種完成機械
places and times. This contrasts with procedural memory, of the skills
任務所需的技能，例如開車。他和他的團隊想驗證的理
required to perform some sort of mechanical task, such as driving. The theory
論是：一個人隨著清醒狀態的加深，其形成新的“事件
he and his team wanted to test was that the ability to form new episodic
記憶”的能力就會減弱；還有，睡覺因此就能恢復大腦
memories deteriorates with accrued wakefulness, and that sleep thus restores
高效學習的能力。(二)
the brain’s capacity for efficient learning. (2)
They asked a group of 39 people to take part in two learning sessions, one at
他們找來 39 個人來參加兩個時間段的學習——一個在
noon and one at 6pm. On each occasion the participants tried to memorise
中午，一個在晚上 6 點。在每段時間的學習中，參與者
and recall 100 combinations of pictures and names. After the first session they
都要努力去記住並且回憶 100 組圖片和名字的組合。在
were assigned randomly to either a control group, which remained awake, or
第一個時間段的學習過後，參與者被任意安排到兩組：
a nap group, which had 100 minutes of monitored sleep. (3)
一組是“受控制組”——必須一直保持清醒；一組是“打
盹兒組”——有 100 分鐘的睡覺時間，期間全程監控。
(三)
Those who remained awake throughout the day became worse at learning.
從頭到尾一直保持清醒的那群人的學習效果變差了。而
Those who napped, by contrast, actually improved their capacity to learn,
那些小睡的人則相反——他們提高了學習能力，在晚上
doing better in the evening than they had at noon. These findings suggest that
的表現要優於中午。這些發現表明睡覺加強了短期記
sleep is clearing the brain’s short-term memory and making way for new
憶，而且為吸收新資訊鋪平了道路。(四)
information. (4)
It is already well known that fact-based memories are stored temporarily in an
人們都知道知識性的記憶會被存在一個叫作“海馬”的
area called the hippocampus, a structure in the centre of the brain. But they do
區域，該結構位於大腦中心。但是這些記憶並不會在那
not stay there long. Instead, they are sent to the prefrontal cortex for
裡停留很長時間，而是會被發送到前額皮質以備長期儲
153
longer-term storage. Electroencephalograms, which measure electrical
存。測量腦電活動的腦電圖顯示，這種記憶轉移的能力
activity in the brain, have shown that this memory-refreshing capacity is
和一種叫作“第二階段非 REM 睡眠”的特定狀態的睡眠
related to a specific type of sleep called Stage 2 non-REM sleep. (5)
有關。(五)
The ideal nap, then, follows a cycle of between 90 and 100 minutes. The first
理想的小睡遵循一個 90-100 分鐘的週期。頭 30 分鐘是
30 minutes is a light sleep that helps improve motor performance. Then
淺睡，幫助改善運動功能。然後是 30 分鐘的第二階段
comes 30 minutes of stage 2 sleep, which refreshes the hippocampus. After
睡眠，在此期間，“海馬”得到喚起。之後，小睡的 60
this, between 60 and 90 minutes into the nap, comes rapid-eye-movement, or
到 90 分鐘之間是“快速眼動睡眠”，或被叫作 REM，期
REM, sleep, during which dreaming happens. This, research suggests, is the
間會有夢境發生。研究表明，在這段時間，大腦將剛剛
time when the brain makes connections between the new memories that have
從海馬裡“下載”來的新記憶和那些已存記憶建立了聯
just been “downloaded” from the hippocampus and those that already
繫——從而使新體驗與更廣闊的背景相關聯。(六)
exist—thus making new experiences relevant in a wider context. (6)
The benefits to memory of a nap, says Dr Walker, are so great that they can
沃克博士說，小睡的好處非常大，甚至抵得過一整夜的
equal an entire night’s sleep. He warns, however, that napping must not be
睡眠。但是他也建議白天的小睡不應睡得太晚，否則會
done too late in the day or it will interfere with night-time sleep. Moreover,
影響夜間的睡眠。除此之外，也並不是所有人都能在午
not everyone awakens refreshed from a siesta. (7)
睡之後精神充沛的。(七)
The grogginess that results from an unrefreshing siesta is termed “sleep
因午睡而引起的不清醒狀態被稱作“睡眠惰性”，發生在
inertia”. This happens when the brain is woken from a deep sleep with its
大腦從深睡中醒來之時，這個時候，腦細胞仍然在慢節
cells still firing at a slow rhythm and its temperature and blood flow
奏律動，大腦溫度低，血流速度緩慢。位於聖 迭戈的
decreased. Sara Mednick, from the University of California, San Diego,
加利福尼亞大學的薩拉·麥德尼克說，沒有午睡習慣的
suggests that non-habitual nappers suffer from this more often than those who
人和有規律午睡的人比起來更容易發生這種情形。這可
siesta regularly. It may be that those who have a tendency to wake up groggy
能是因為那些醒來容易頭腦暈沉的人平時很少午睡的
are choosing not to siesta in the first place. Perhaps, though, as in so many
原因。但是，也許只有多多午睡，才能少少頭暈。熟能
things, it is practice that makes perfect. (8)
生巧嘛！萬事同理。(八)
No. 9
Source Text
Target Text
The endangered bookstore
處在危險邊緣的書店
Edited out
被刪
The sickliest part of the books business is the shops that sell them
圖書產業最虛弱的部分是書店
May 31, 2010
eastx 2009/04/11
THESE are not easy times for booksellers. Borders, a big American one,
對書店來說，這是個艱難的時代。美國大型書店博多斯
ditched its boss in January and has closed stores, but is still at risk of collapse,
在一月份解雇了它的總裁，而且此時已經關閉了部分店
some analysts say. The British chain of the same name, which it once owned,
面，但是分析家說，博多斯仍然有破產的危險。曾屬博
failed last year. Barnes & Noble, the world’s biggest bookseller, appointed a
多斯旗下且同叫此名的英國連鎖書店已於去年倒閉。世
new boss last month to help it confront the triple threat of the recession,
界上最大的書店巴恩斯-諾博在上月任命了一個新總
increased competition and e-books. (1)
裁，來幫助自己面對經濟蕭條、不斷增加的競爭和電子
圖書這三重威脅。(一)
書店的掙紮可以部分解釋為競爭的急劇劇烈。美國有超
The struggles of booksellers can be explained in part by a surge in
154
competition. More than half of book sales in America take place not in
過半數的圖書銷售不是發生在書店，而是在大的零售賣
bookshops but at big retailers such as Wal-Mart and Target, which compete to
場，像沃爾瑪和塔吉特超市，這些商家競相以不斷加大
peddle bestsellers at ever steeper discounts. Online retailers, too, are
的折扣來兜售暢銷書。網上的零售商同樣在製造大破
wreaking havoc. In 2009 Amazon sold 19% of printed books in North
壞。據瑞士信貸估計，亞馬遜在 2009 年賣掉了北美 19%
America, reckons Credit Suisse, compared with Barnes & Noble’s 17% and
的紙質圖書，相比巴恩斯-諾博的 17%和博多斯的
Borders’ 10%. By 2015, the bank estimates, Amazon will sell 28%. (2)
10%。該銀行預計，到 2015 年，亞馬遜的紙質圖書銷
售將占 28%。(二)
Booksellers are labouring to raise their profile online and win back the
為了贏回失去的顧客，各大書店正在提升自己在網上的
customers they have lost. Barnes & Noble’s online sales rose by 32% to
認知度。截至到一月的一個季度之內，巴恩斯-諾博的
$210m in the quarter ending in January, compared with a year earlier. It has
網上銷售量和一年前同比提升了 32%，達到 2.1 億美
started selling its own e-reader, called the “Nook”, and digital books to go
元，並且開始銷售自己的電子閱讀器“努克”和與之配套
with it. (3)
的電子書。(三)
Will bookshops disappear completely, as music shops seem to be doing?
書店會完全消失嗎，就像唱片店正在面臨的處境那樣？
Most are pinning their hopes on giving people more reasons to come inside.
許多書店都寄希望於更多地給出讓人們走進書店的理
“Consumers will need some entity to help them make sense of the morass,”
由。“消費者得需要一些實在的東西才能不讓自己在這
says William Lynch, the new boss of Barnes & Noble, which plans to put a
片混亂中迷失”，巴恩斯-諾博的新總裁威廉·林奇說。這
renewed emphasis on service, including advice on e-books. Many shops have
家書店計畫把重心放到更新的服務上，其中包括關於電
started to offer free internet access to keep customers there longer and to
子書的建議。為了讓顧客能更久地待在書店，很多書店
enable them to download e-books. Other survival strategies include hosting
已經開始提供免費的上網服務，並且允許他們下載電子
book clubs or other community groups and selling a wider variety of goods,
書。其它的生存策略包括主辦圖書俱樂部或是其它的社
such as wrapping paper, jewellery, cards and toys. (4)
區群體，賣更多種類的物品，像包裝紙、珠 寶、卡片
和玩具。(四)
Independent bookshops face a particularly grave threat, because they are
獨立書店面臨的威脅尤其嚴重，因為它們無法與更大的
unable to match bigger rivals’ prices. Many are branching out by offering
競爭對手拼價格。許多獨立書店正在擴大服務範圍，比
new services, such as creative-writing classes. BookPeople, a bookshop in
如開辦創意寫作班。德克薩斯州奧斯丁市的“書·人”書店
Austin, Texas, runs a literary summer camp for around 450 children. Steve
舉辦了一個有 450 個左右的孩子參加的文學夏令營。書
Bercu, the shop’s co-owner, says that independent booksellers can still thrive,
店的合有者之一史蒂夫·博蘇說，獨立書店仍然能活得
provided they “reinvent themselves”. (5)
很好，只要它們“重新改造自己”。 (五)
No. 10
Source Text
Target Text
Gambling
越差一點，
越差一點，越上癮
The almost-winning addiction
賭博
Near misses could heighten gambling addiction
“近距離脫靶
近距離脫靶”能提高賭癮
近距離脫靶 能提高賭癮
By ABBY ELLIN
greetinglove 2010/05/11
May 6, 2010
IT IS not the thrill of winning, but the thrill of almost winning that sets a
要區別賭徒與愛好小賭博的人並不是靠他贏錢時候的
problem gambler apart from those who just fancy a flutter. A strong reaction
激動，而是靠他差一點就能贏的激動心情判斷。據最新
155
in the brain in response to “near misses” is correlated with a greater tendency
研究表明，這種“近距離脫靶”在大腦中產生了很強的反
to compulsive gambling, according to new research. (1)
應，會促使一個人越發情不自禁去賭。(一)
Gambling touches almost everyone, from friends playing online poker to
賭博幾乎發生在每個人身上，無論是朋友之間線上打撲
grannies buying lotto tickets. For many it is just good fun, but for some it
克，還是老奶奶們購買號碼獎券。對很多人來說，這只
becomes a debilitating addiction which wrecks lives: they need bigger wins
是娛樂，但某些人則會上癮。這種賭癮會消磨人的意
to satisfy their craving, and when forced to stop they suffer withdrawal
志，毀掉他們的生活——他們需要大贏才能得到滿足，
symptoms. (2)
一旦被迫停止，他們就會患上戒斷症。(二)
Henry Chase of the University of Nottingham and Luke Clark of the
來自諾丁漢大學的 Henry Chase 博士和劍橋大學的
University of Cambridge, are interested in the cognitive complexities of
Luke Clark 博士對於賭徒們的認知複雜性很感興趣。比
gamblers. For instance, gamblers often believe that games like roulette, or
方說，即便像輪盤擲骰子，選擇獎票號碼這樣的遊戲根
picking lottery numbers, involve some degree of skill, even though they do
本不需要某種程度的技巧，賭徒們卻深信這種技巧的存
not. In games where skill does matter, such as football, a near miss like
在。像是在賭球遊戲中，技術很有用，把球打在門柱上
kicking a ball into the goalpost can rightly be associated with almost scoring
這種就要命中情況很正常就讓人聯想到就要得一分
a goal. So assigning value to an almost-goal makes some sense. But in games
了。所以對於下注的人來說確實起點作用。但是在碰運
of chance, near misses are meaningless. They say nothing about the future
氣的遊戲中，這種近距離脫靶可幫不上什麼忙，因為這
likelihood of winning. (3)
種遊戲沒有辦法看到未來贏錢的可能性。(三)
Yet that is not the way many people think about it. Dr Chase and Dr Clark
然而，大多數人並不是這麼想的。Henry Chase 博士和
have found that in normal healthy volunteers, near misses that won
Luke Clark 發現身體健康的志願者中，參與遊戲的志願
participants not a penny still activated parts of the brain associated with
者即使由於近距離脫靶分文未贏，他們的大腦部分區域
monetary wins. In a new study in the Journal of Neuroscience they set out to
仍然與贏錢聯繫，表現活躍。兩位博士在《神經系統科
discover just how that brain activation was related to gambling “severity”. (4)
學期刊》發表的一項最新研究就是用來探尋大腦活動如
何與賭博“激烈性”聯繫的。(四)
They invited 20 volunteers, two of whom were women, to play a kind of slot
兩位博士請來 20 名志願者來玩老虎機，其中有兩位女
machine while a functional magnetic-resonance imaging scanner examined
士，同時用一台磁共振成像掃描器來檢測大腦活動。掃
their brain activity. These machines show certain parts of the brain “lighting
描器顯示隨著他們活躍程度，大腦中的特定區域血流量
up” with increased blood flow as they become active. (5)
增強，異常活躍。(五)
The volunteers all enjoyed some gambling, ranging from off-course betting
這些志願者都有各自喜歡的賭博遊戲，從場外賭馬、賭
on race horses and football matches to playing slot machines, scratch cards
球到玩老虎機，刮刮樂和樂透。但是只有一名曾經戒賭
and lotteries. All but one volunteer—who had been abstinent for a
一年的志願者，一個星期至少賭了一次。他門花在賭博
year—gambled at least once a week. Bets ranged from five people who
上的錢數也不一樣，有五個人每人每天花 10 歐到 100
routinely spent £10-100 ($15-150) a day on gambling and two who were
歐，有兩個人更願意一擲 10000 歐。在常規的測試中，
willing to drop over £10,000. Perhaps not surprisingly, 13 of the volunteers
13 人被認為會有賭癮。(六)
would have been considered to have an excessive gambling habit on
conventional tests. (6)
The game was simple: when an icon on the left-hand reel lined up with the
遊戲很簡單：只要左手邊卷輪的圖像與右手卷輪的圖像
same icon on a right-hand one, the volunteer won a cash prize of 50 pence
排列成行，這名志願者就能獲得現金 50 便士（75 分）
。
(75 cents). Sometimes the volunteers could pick the left-hand icon. At other
有時候志願者能挑到左手圖像，有時候沒得選由機器
times it was selected for them. A near miss came with the agonising
定。由於右手卷滑輪的惱人速度，導致右手一次出現一
156
deceleration of the right-hand reel so that something like a cowboy boot, an
個或者兩個牛仔靴，錨或是香蕉這樣的圖像與左手的圖
anchor or a banana eventually stopped within a space or two of lining up with
像匹配，無法改變。這種眼看就要得手的失敗就這麼出
a matching icon on the left. In fact, the results were rigged and all participants
現的。事實上，結果都是人為操作的，所有的參與者都
got 30 wins, 60 near misses and 90 clear misses. (7)
是贏 30 次，差一點就贏 60 次，徹底失敗 90 次。(七)
The researchers found that those who scored highest in gambling severity
研究人員發現，那些在激烈賭博中得分最高的人，他們
also showed the most activity in the midbrain area in response to near misses.
的中腦區域對於“近距離脫靶”做出的反應也最活躍（但
(They did not differ in their response to real wins, however.) This area of the
是與其他人相比，在贏得遊戲時候此處反映卻沒有區
brain is of interest to researchers because it is where dopamine, a
別）
。大腦中的這部分區域引起了研究人員的興趣，因
neurotransmitter, is produced. Dopamine has been implicated in other
為這裡是神經傳遞素多巴胺產生的地方。在其他的成癮
addiction studies. It could be the near misses that enhance dopamine
研究中偶發現多巴胺的存在。研究表明正是這種“近距
transmission in gamblers who suffer the most severe problems, the study
離脫靶”增強了賭癮最嚴重的那些人腦中多巴胺的傳
suggests. Which means it might be possible to find treatments that reduce
輸。這也就意味著，或許能夠找出減少多巴胺在大腦中
dopamine transmission in the brain to take some of the compulsion out of
傳輸的辦法，從而減少賭博中的強迫性衝動的發生。(八)
gambling. (8)
No. 11
Source Text
Target Text
Greeting cards
賀卡
Message of hope
(充滿
充滿)希望的消息
充滿 希望的消息
Card companies believe technology will bring a smile to special
賀卡公司相信：
賀卡公司相信：在特別的節慶裡，
在特別的節慶裡，科技能帶來市場的復
occasions
蘇。
May 6, 2010
Kislover 2010/05/12
MOTHER’S DAY, which this year falls on May 9th in many countries, is a
許多國家，今年 5 月 9 號是母親節。在這一天，大家都
time to give thanks and count blessings—not least for greeting-card
會互相祝福，對於賀卡公司也尤為特別。據美國零售業
companies. Americans alone will spend $671m on cards for this Sunday,
聯盟統計，僅美國人這個週末在賀卡上的消費將會達到
according to the National Retail Federation. John Beeder of American
$671m。賀卡公司 American Greetings 的 John Beeder 稱
Greetings, a card company, claims that his industry is “somewhat
賀卡行業已現“一些衰退的跡象”。這種想法認為只有人
recession-proof”. The thinking is that people spend more on cards when they
們在沒有錢購買禮物時才會發送賀卡。(一)
don’t have much cash to splash on gifts. (1)
Maybe. Card companies have fared better than some other makers of
也許如此。和其它消費品企業相比，賀卡公司在經濟下
consumer products in the downturn, but they have not been unscathed.
滑中的表現要更好一些，但並未獨善其身。美賀
American Greetings’ revenue fell by 3% in the year to February, to $1.6
(American Greeting)從去年到今年 2 月份的收益為 16 億
billion. Hallmark, America’s largest greeting-card company, saw sales tumble
美元，下降了 3%。美國最大的賀卡公司賀曼(Hallmark)
by 8% last year, to $4 billion. Crane & Co, a privately held firm that sells
去年銷售額達到 40 億美元，暴降 8%。銷售時尚信紙的
classy stationery, suffered a double-digit decline in sales in the recession. Its
私營公司 Crane & Co，在這次衰退中銷量減少了兩位
second-bestselling item in 2009 (after notecards) was, unusually, high-quality
數。不同尋常的是，它在 2009 年銷量第二高(僅次於留
paper for résumés. (2)
言卡)的是用於簡歷的高檔紙。(二)
The ailing economy has not been the cardmakers’ only problem. People can
賀卡公司的問題不僅僅是糟糕的經濟形勢。人們無需郵
157
send greetings by e-mail or via online social networks speedily without
票就可以通過電子郵件或線上社區網路快速發送祝
buying a stamp. If they want something fancy, they can send “e-cards”,
福。他們如果想來點創意，就可以通過 123greeting.com
jazzed up with animations and songs, through free websites such as
這樣的免費網站發送”電子賀卡”，隨著動畫和歌聲，搞
123greetings.com. (3)
活氣氛。(三)
Card companies insist that e-cards do not pose a grave threat, because people
賀卡公司堅持認為”電子賀卡”的威脅不算嚴重，理由是
use them as a supplement to physical cards or for less important dates (eg,
人們在不想麻煩郵局的時候，將電子賀卡作為紙質賀卡
Groundhog Day) when they would not bother putting a card in the post.
的補充或是在不重要的節日(土撥鼠日)裡使用它。根據
Americans buy 7 billion physical cards but send only 500m e-cards a year,
賀卡行業協會統計，美國人在一年間購買了 70 億紙質
according to the Greeting Card Association, a trade group. Even so,
賀卡，卻只發送了 5 億張電子賀卡。即便如此，賀曼、
Hallmark, American Greetings and others are trying to deal with the threat of
美賀和其它的賀卡公司都嘗試提供自己的電子賀卡來
e-cards by offering their own. They allow people to send free e-cards from
應對這種威脅。他們允許從他們的網站發送免費的賀
their websites, but encourage them to buy annual subscriptions for access to
卡，卻鼓勵他們每年支付一定的費用，這樣就可以得到
the most elaborate designs. (4)
設計更加精美的產品。(四)
The cardmakers hope that novelty will not only keep people buying physical
賀卡公司希望此舉不僅使人們依然購買紙質賀卡，而且
cards but also entice them to pay higher prices. Musical cards, which play a
誘惑他們花更多的錢。打開就會播放樂曲的音樂賀卡已
tune when opened, have become popular. Some cards allow the sender to
流行起來。還有些賀卡可以錄下髮卡人的問候，並在一
record a message that is played on opening. A new Hallmark card, when held
打開的時候就播放。賀曼的賀卡在對著網路視頻時，會
up to a web-camera, shows a 3-D cartoon character that speaks a greeting. (5)
出現送祝福的立體卡通形象。(五)
Some ideas are intended to turn a card into a gift in itself. One card from
還有將賀卡本身作為禮品的想法。美賀出品售價 20 美
American Greetings, on sale for around $20, has an LCD screen and can
元的賀卡，附帶 LCD 還能儲存 50 張照片，可以伴隨著
store 50 photos, which it plays as a slideshow, with music. But George van
音樂以幻燈片方式播放。但研究機構 IbisWorld 的
Horn of IbisWorld, a research group, warns that although such features may
George van Horn 提醒：儘管這些特色可能會推動銷售
boost sales, they will cut into margins because they are expensive to make.
額，但由於造價昂貴削減了利潤，而且競爭對手可以很
He adds that rivals can copy them pretty quickly. That’s not a message any
快的模仿他們。任何賀卡公司都不願意聽到這樣的消
cardmaker will want to receive. (6)
息。(六)
No. 12
Source Text
Target Text
Lena Horne
莉娜•霍恩
莉娜 霍恩
Lena Horne, entertainer, died on May 9th, aged 92
莉娜•霍恩
莉娜 霍恩，
藝術家，2010 年 5 月 9 日逝世，
日逝世，享年 92
霍恩，藝術家，
May 20, 2010
歲。
麥子 vicky 2010/06/03
TO THOSE few Americans in the 1950s who did not care about race—who
生活在 20 世紀 50 年代的少數幾個美國人，他們不在乎
did not quibble about one-thirty-seconds or one-sixty-fourths, and who were
種族差異，不為 1/32 還是 1/64 而絮叨，樂於與其他膚
happy to share washroom or soda fountain with people of another
色的人共用盥洗室和飲水器，Lena Horne 對於他們而言
shade—Lena Horne was simply one of the most beautiful women in the
也不過是這世上最美貌的女子之一。她有著 Audrey
world. There was something of Audrey Hepburn in her large brown eyes, and
Hepburn 式大大的棕色眼睛，Hedy Lamarr 式高高的額
of Hedy Lamarr in her tall forehead; her nose was bobbed and cute. But to
頭和一個可愛的小瑤鼻。但對於其他人而言，撇開她的
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everyone else Ms Horne, before her beauty was even considered, was black.
美貌，Horne 首先是個黑人。(一)
(1)
There were ways of saying this gently, of course. She was not coal or
當然，也有比較委婉的表達方式。她不是黢黑或者墨黑
piccaninny black; she was “dusky”, “sepia”, “milk-chocolate”, café au lait. At
那種黑，而是黝黑，亮黑，巧克力牛奶或咖啡牛奶式的
Harlem’s Cotton Club, where she started her career at 16 as a dancer, she was
黑。在哈萊姆的 Cotton Club，16 歲的她開始了自己的
“tan and terrific”, like the others. The MGM Studios in Hollywood, where
舞蹈生涯。跟俱樂部裡的其他人一樣，她有著小麥色的
she went at 24 in 1941, tried to pass her off as a Latina on her contract. A
肌膚和驚人的才能。1941 年，24 歲的她來到好萊塢米
special make-up, called Light Egyptian, would be rubbed on her skin to make
高梅公司，對方在合約裡曾試圖把她打造成拉丁女郎，
her look more coloured: a better match for the ink-black mammies and
為她的肌膚化上名為“Light Egyptian” 的妝容，讓她看
funny-men around her. (2)
起來更像黑人，使她和身邊那些黑人配角們更相稱。(二)
Her race-blind fans would have been prepared to see her star in any show, as
也許她的那些沒有種族偏見的粉絲們早就準備好看她
elegant, satin-clad and triumphant as she eventually appeared in 1981 in “The
星光熠熠的表演，正如 1981 年在紐約出演“The Lady
Lady and her Music” in New York. But to casting directors during
and her Music”時一樣，她身披羽衣，優雅從容，儀態萬
segregation she could only be a lady’s maid or a jungle girl. At best she could
方。但在種族隔離時期，對導演們來說她只能演個僕人
star in all-black comedies, as a devil-sent temptress in “Cabin in the Sky”
或者叢林女孩。至多，她也只能在諸如“Cabin in the Sky”
(1943), or as the lead in the Broadway musical “Jamaica” (1957). She
之類全是黑人演員的喜劇裡領銜，演個惡毒的狐狸精，
belonged in the piny woods or under the palms. (3)
或者在百老匯音樂劇“Jamaica” 裡當主角。她總是走在
松樹林裡，或者站在棕櫚樹下。(三)
Because she was lovely, and could sing bewitchingly, she was also allowed a
得益於美貌和歌喉，她也得以間或在一些白人電影裡演
few solo scenes in “white” films. There, like “a butterfly pinned to a column”,
出，比如在“a butterfly pinned to a column”中，她唱了幾
she would deliver a number which could be seamlessly cut when the picture
首歌，電影在南方上映時能方便導演天衣無縫地剪掉的
was shown in southern cinemas. Her greatest hope was to be allowed to play
幾首歌。她最大的願望就是能在“Show Boat”劇中出演
Julie, a mulatto, in “Show Boat”. But Julie had to fall in love with a white
Julie 一角。可是 Julie 是個黑白人混血兒，卻必須和一
man; so Ava Gardner played her, initially lip-synching to Miss Horne’s
個白人男子相愛。於是 Ava Gardner 出演了 Julie, 起初
recordings and even made browner with her Light Egyptian. Lena and Ava
她是跟著 Horne 的錄音做口型假唱，甚至還化了 Light
were friends. But it hurt to the end of her days. (4)
Egyptian 式妝容變黑。Lena 和 Ava 是朋友，但這樣的傷
害卻讓她終身難忘。(四)
It hurt all the more because the young Lena did not think of herself as black
更令她神傷的是，年輕的 Lena 未曾覺得自己是“黑人”。
particularly. Her blood was mixed up on both sides with white European and
她的身體裡同時流著歐洲白種人和美國土著人的血
native American, so that in her black school she was “yellow” to her
液。在黑人學校，夥伴們將她視為“黃種人”，有傳言說
playmates, and was whispered to have a white Daddy. Both blacks and
她有個白人老爸。白人和黑人都將她視為異類。她的家
whites felt she was not one of them. Her family’s social models were the
族崇尚白人中產階級。她的父親，穿著筆挺的西裝，戴
white bourgeoisie; her father, resplendent in a suit with a diamond stick-pin,
著鑽石的領帶夾，曾當著 Louis B. Mayer 的面說他不願
had told Louis B. Mayer to his face that he didn’t want his daughter playing
意自己的女兒在好萊塢飾演女僕，因為她可以有自己的
maids in Hollywood, because she could have maids of her own. Not that it
僕人。她老爸的話也沒有什麼用處，在 Horne 最低谷的
did any good. At one of her lowest points Miss Horne went to tea with Hattie
時候她曾和出演“Gone with the Wind”中Mammy一角的
McDaniel, who had played Mammy in “Gone with the Wind”. They ate tiny
Hattie McDaniel 一起喝茶。他們在她偌大的起居室裡一
sandwiches and cakes in her grand drawing room, while Hattie explained that
起吃小小的三明治和蛋糕，Hattie 告訴她說她在銀幕上
159
a maid’s role was her only realistic future on the screen. Pretty soon
唯一的前途就是出演女僕。不久之後，她投身到了演藝
afterwards, she threw in the acting life. (5)
事業。(五)
A tiger inside
錚錚鐵骨
Singing, though she made her career in it, proved no simpler. She toured with
雖然她決定做個歌手，但也並非星途坦蕩。她曾在 1940
Charlie Barnet’s all-white band in 1940, sleeping in the band bus when hotels
跟隨 Charlie Barnet 的白人樂隊巡迴演出,晚上就睡在樂
would not take her in, but counted in her repertoire songs like “Sleepy Time
隊的車上。酒店拒絕她入住，卻放著她拿手的曲目——
Down South”, which blacks were expected to sing. She felt forced into jazz,
比如“Sleepy Time Down South”之類世人認為應該由黑
and not much good at it. Although she covered songs by Billie Holiday and
人演唱的歌曲。她覺得自己為形勢所逼，爵士非她所
Ethel Waters, her neat enunciation, expressiveness and clarity made her
長。她擅長所有 Billie Holiday 和 Ethel Waters 的歌，但
sound more like Judy Garland. Waters’s “Stormy Weather” became her
她清晰的吐字，有力的表現和清脆的嗓音無不在彰顯她
theme, but when she sang it—especially in the film of 1943, against
和 Judy Garland 的相似處。Waters 的“Stormy Weather”
rain-soaked city streets—she looked, and sounded, somewhere over the
成了她的主題曲，但她演繹這首歌的時候，尤其是在
rainbow, and closer to Kansas. (6)
1943 年的電影裡，站在大雨滂沱的街頭，她的樣子，
她的聲音，都神似那個唱“over the rainbow”的女子。(六)
The insults she suffered, therefore—debarred from lodging houses, spat at in
她從未覺得自己代表某個種族，她僅僅是她自己，因而
the street, forbidden from mixing with white customers—were all the worse
生平所受的種種屈辱——被公寓拒住，在街頭被吐口
because she did not feel she represented a race, only herself. And conversely,
水，被禁止與白人顧客來往，她都覺得尤為不堪忍受。
the barriers she broke—first black star on a long-term contract with a studio,
與此相反，面對她打破的那些禁錮——首位與電影公司
first black on the cover of Motion Picture magazine, first star whose picture
長期簽約的黑人明星，Motion Picture 雜誌的首位黑人
could be pinned up by black GIs in their lockers—gave her neither pride nor
封面影星，海報第一個被允許貼上黑人士兵衣櫃的明
joy, because she thought only of the label that had been stuck on her. She was
星，她都波瀾不驚，因為在她看來，那些不過是強加給
not a symbol, not a credit, not a first this and that, as she cried bitterly in her
她的稱謂。她不是一個標志，不是一種榮譽，不是第一
old age. “I’m me, and I’m like nobody else.” (7)
個任何人。正如她晚年時慨歎的那樣，“我就是我，我
不像其他任何人。” (七)
In the 1950s she was blacklisted for her friendship with Paul Robeson, a
20 世紀 50 年代，因為跟同情共產黨人士 Paul Robeson
communist sympathiser; it hampered her career in her best years, though the
的交情，她被列入黑名單。她的影響力與日俱增，但她
voice soared on. In the 1960s she campaigned for civil rights, drawn as much
的事業卻在她最好的年華裡遭受重創。60 年代，她投
to the militancy of Malcolm X as to Martin Luther King’s non-violence.
身民權運動，既支持 Malcolm X 的主戰論也支援 Martin
When a man called her “nigger” in a Beverly Hills restaurant she hurled an
Luther King 的非暴力主張。比弗利山的餐館裡，有個男
ashtray, a lamp and several glasses at him, until he bled. She used her white
人叫她“黑鬼”，她朝這人扔了一個煙灰缸，一盞燈外加
husband, Lennie Hayton, as a whipping boy for her frustration. “Never hope
幾個玻璃杯，直到他流血才肯罷手。她把自己的白人老
too hard,” she said. “Never pans out.” (8)
公，Lennie Hayton，也當成了出氣筒。她說“別指望太
多，從來都不會有結果。” (八)
Miss Horne’s producers once complained that she opened her mouth too
Horne 的製片人們曾經抱怨她唱歌時嘴巴張得太大，拐
wide to sing. They meant it was a Negro thing. Certainly Miss Horne had a
彎抹角說她是個黑人。的確，Horne 有著寬厚而放肆的
wide, extravagant smile, a real show-stopper. But it was on the face of a tiger.
笑容，名副其實的表演殺手。但笑容之下是她的錚錚鐵
It hid a lifetime of ferocious resentment and regret. (9)
骨，笑容之下隱藏的是終其一生都洶湧澎湃的憎恨和後
悔。(九)
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No. 13
Source Text
Target Text
Leon Levinstein's New York
廉價香水與炸雞塊
Cheap perfume and fried chicken
雷歐•
雷歐•萊文斯坦鏡頭裡的紐約
A new show of photographs should help to revive a forgotten name
一場新近的影展將使人們重新記起那枚遺失在歲月裡
June 17, 2010
的名字
chenhuimin 2010/06/25
AMID the fussy grandeur of the Metropolitan Museum of Art sits an
富麗堂皇的大都會藝術博物館正在籌辦一場出人意料
unexpected show of photographs. “Hipsters, Hustlers, and Handball Players”
的攝影秀—-名為“潮人、妓女和手 球運動員”的藏品展
is a collection of Leon Levinstein’s black-and-white pictures of New York
是雷歐•萊文斯坦於 1950 至 1980 年間拍攝的、一組以
City from 1950 to 1980. They are raw and energetic, with rubbish-strewn
紐約為主題的黑白照片。這組照片樸實無華，卻也充滿
streets, stooped old men, fat painted ladies and posturing youths in tight
活力—-在垃圾遍地的街道裡，有身形佝僂﹑沮沮獨行
jeans. One photograph features a woman in a white party dress curled up on
的老人；有濃妝豔抹、盛裝打扮的胖女人；還有身著緊
the beach, asleep and mysterious. Another sees two handball players snapped
身夾克﹑搔手弄資的年輕人。其中一幅照片刻畫了一位
from behind, aloft and balletic. (1)
身著白禮服、在沙灘上蜷曲而眠的神秘女子；而另一幅
則從背面捕捉到兩名手球運動員彈跳的身影，頗有點跳
芭蕾的架勢。(一)
These 44 images chronicle life as it is lived in the city: kinetic and rough,
這 44 幅照片按年代順序記載著紐約市里真實而特有的
with little beauty but plenty of pride. Levinstein, who died in 1988, often shot
生活場景：它活力四射卻放蕩不羈，缺乏美感卻自命不
his subjects up close and at odd angles. The result is often unflattering but
凡。於 1988 年辭世的萊文斯坦常常用相機，以獨特的
affectionate, full of the small pleasures of the day-to-day. The gallery seems
視角近距離捕捉畫面。這種攝影手法一方面使照片顯得
fragrant with cigarette smoke, cheap perfume and fried chicken. (2)
突兀直接，另一方面又使照片裡充斥著日常中瑣碎的趣
事，流露出對生活的愛意。於是乎，仿佛有一縷縷混合
了煙草、廉價香水以及炸雞味的芳香縈繞於整個展覽廳
內。(二)
Levinstein is a photographer’s photographer. Beyond a core of devotees, his
萊文斯坦的作品為攝影師所欣賞，可他的名號在圈外卻
name rings few bells. He earned attention in the 1950s when Edward
不響亮。不過上世紀 50 十年代，當時的現代藝術博物
Steichen, as head of the photography department at the Museum of Modern
館攝影分館的負責人—-愛德華•斯泰肯曾將他的作品與
Art, included him in a few shows alongside such peers as Diane Arbus and
當時的大師級人物—-黛安·阿勃絲、羅伯特.弗蘭克的，
Robert Frank. But then he fell off the map. (3)
一同在幾場攝影秀中展出，這倒為為萊文斯坦贏得了一
點名氣，但那之後他很快急流勇退，被人遺忘。(三)
This could be because he stuck to a career in advertising, taking photographs
個中緣故，也許是源於他對廣告事業孜孜不倦的追求，
(thousands in all, over several decades) only in his spare time. Or maybe it
故而只能在業餘時間拍攝照片（幾十年間共拍攝了數千
was because he was an unpretentious loner. He gruffly complained that being
幅作品）
；又或許是他本身就是一位謙虛的宅男—-他曾
a street photographer meant that “you’re always on the outside”. Yet he
毫不避諱的抱怨過：成為街頭攝影師就意味著“不斷地
seemed unwilling to have it any other way. (4)
外出”。然而，他似乎也沒想過另闢蹊徑。(四)
The photographs are now part of the Met’s permanent collection, thanks to a
現在，多虧了收藏家加里-大衛斯的捐贈，這些照片已
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big recent gift from a collector named Gary Davis. Jeff Rosenheim, the
成為大都會藝術博物館的永久藏品。主辦人傑夫•羅森
show’s curator, hopes this new trove, which is on show until October 17th,
海姆則希望這些稀世珍品能借由將於 10 月 17 日開始的
will revive Levinstein’s place among 20th-century photographers. The man
攝影展，為雷歐•萊文斯坦在 20 世紀的攝影界找回一席
himself may not have cared for such attention, but his work demands it. (5)
之地—-他本人可能對此不屑一顧，可他的作品卻實至
名歸，理應重視。(五)
No. 14
Source Text
Target Text
Fakes and mistakes
贗品和錯認品
Who didn't do it?
不是誰畫的？
不是誰畫的？
The National Gallery explores the complexities of attribution
英國國家美術館探索作品歸屬的複雜性
July 1, 2010
eastx 2010/07/05
SLEUTHS are stalking the corridors of London’s National Gallery.
偵探們正在倫敦國家美術館的走廊裡盤查。該美術館的
Identifying and preserving paintings is one of the gallery’s essential tasks. Is a
一個主要任務是識別並且保存畫作。一件作品是否是贗
painting a fake, created to deceive? Was it altered years after it was made in
品，是否是為欺騙而作？一件作品是否在創作多年之後
order to conform to later fashions and make it easier to sell? Is it a genuine
被改動？——為了迎合後來的潮流，為了更容易賣出。
work later mistaken for that of a more highly valued contemporary? If a
一件真品是否會被後人錯當作一件更受青睞的當代真
picture is a copy, was it made at the same time as the original, perhaps by the
品？假如一幅畫是複製品，那麼是否與原作是同期畫
same hand? Multiples were not an Andy Warhol invention, although earlier
作，可不可能是同一個人的創作？複製並不是安迪沃霍
on they took longer to produce. (1)
爾的首創，但是早期的複製品製作需要更長時間。(一)
The results of some of this sleuthing (clues uncovered and conclusions
這次偵查的部分結果（發現線索，得出結論）已經彙集
reached) have been brought together into a new exhibition at the National
一起，放在國家美術館的一次新近展覽中展出，展覽將
Gallery that is on until September 30th. The evidence is lucidly presented, in
持續到 9 月 30 日。偵查得到的證據被很清晰地呈現出
both words and images. Most of the works, whether by Sandro Botticelli,
來，既有文字，又有圖像。作品大多是美術館的自藏品，
Dosso Dossi, Paolo Uccello, Rembrandt’s studio or Giorgione, are from its
不論是桑德羅·波提切利、多索·多西，還是保羅烏切羅、
own collection. (2)
倫勃朗工作室，亦或是喬爾喬涅。(二)
The rooms concentrate, in turn, on Deception and Deceit, Transformations
各展室的主題依次是：謊言與欺騙，大改變與小改動，
and Modifications, Mistakes, Secrets and Conundrums, Being Botticelli and
張冠李戴，秘密和難題，成為波提切利，救贖與復原。
Redemption and Recovery. The result is a lively, educational and occasionally
結果這是一次生動、富有啟發性的展覽，偶爾還頗具趣
amusing show. A blown-up photograph of carefully painted crackle marks
味性。有一幅放大了的照片很能引人會心一笑，照片
that cunningly mimic the look of centuries-old paint elicits a smile. Fakers
裡，被仔細畫上的裂紋狡猾地模仿了古老畫作的外表。
can seem such attractive rascals if you aren’t their victim. (3)
這些製造贗品的混帳可以顯得如此地有魅力，前提是你
不是他們的受害者。(三)
For centuries art detectives had to rely mainly on connoisseurship. For that a
幾個世紀以來，藝術偵探必須主要依賴其鑒賞功力。說
good eye was essential. Knowledge of the wider world was useful, too. Now
到鑒賞功力，一雙好眼睛很關鍵，廣泛的知識面也很重
there is sophisticated technology. A painting thought to be by Francesco
要。而現在有了先進的科技。有一幅畫作在其 1924 年
Francia, a Renaissance artist, when it entered the gallery’s collection in 1924
入館之時被認為是文藝復興時期的藝術家法蘭西斯科·
was found to be a 19th-century fake after recent analysis by infra-red
弗朗西亞的作品，但最近用紅外線反射成像法分析之
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reflectography, which in effect sees through layers of paint. Not all
後，發現是一件 19 世紀的偽作。這種鑒定法實際上是
technological revelations bring bad news: a 15th-century portrait of the then
穿透了層層的塗料，看到了裡面。並非所有的科學揭秘
popular murdered Saint Peter Martyr (complete with cleaver in his head)
帶來的都是壞消息：一幅 15 世紀的肖像畫——畫的是
turned out, when it was x-rayed, to be an earlier image of a friar by Giovanni
當時被謀殺的殉道者聖徒彼得（死時頭上插著劈刀）
，
Bellini. When the alterations were made the market for images of this saint
X 光照過之後，結果是一幅更早的男修道士畫像，作者
was stronger than for Bellinis. (4)
是喬凡尼貝利尼。在做出改動之時，這位聖徒的肖像畫
市場比貝利尼畫的市場要好。(四)
Connoisseurship sometimes overrides scientific evidence. Analysis of the
鑒賞功力有時會壓倒科學證據。讓-巴蒂斯特-卡米爾·
green paint in a small Roman landscape painted by Jean-Baptiste-Camille
柯羅在 1826 年畫的一幅小幅羅馬風景畫，上面的綠色
Corot and dated to 1826 showed it to be viridian. Artists were thought not to
顏料經過科學分析被證明是鉻綠色。而藝術家被認為在
have had access to that pigment until a decade later. Did that make the Corot
10 年之後才有機會接觸到這種顏料。據此，這幅柯羅
a fake? Not at all. Further research showed that artists worked with viridian
畫作是偽作嗎？根本不是。進一步的研究表明，藝術家
years earlier than had been thought. The Corot remains a Corot. (5)
使用鉻綠色的時間要比認為的早許多年。這件柯羅 作
品仍然是一件柯羅作品。(五)
Ashok Roy, the National Gallery’s director of scientific research and
國家美術館科學研究部主任、本次展覽的聯合策展人阿
co-curator of this exhibition, believes that while technology can determine
肖克羅伊認為，儘管科技能夠認定一幅畫不是誰畫的，
who did not paint a picture, it cannot prove who did. Connoisseurship
但是不能證明是誰畫的。鑒賞功力仍然是一件強大的工
remains a powerful tool. Nicholas Penny, now the National Gallery’s director,
具。國家美術館現任館長尼古拉斯·潘尼認定兩幅義大
believed that two Italian paintings were by Paolo Veronese and Raphael.
利畫作的作者是保羅維洛奈斯塞和拉斐爾。經研究證
Research proved him right. (6)
明，他是對的。(六)
Among the mistakes included in the show is a Dürer portrait that later
這次展出的誤認作品包括一幅杜勒的肖像畫，後經研究
research determined was not by his hand; a Botticelli, too. The gallery’s most
判定並非出自其手；還有一幅波提切利的作品也是如
famous reattribution is “The Madonna of the Pinks”, now identified as being
此。美術館中最有名的經重新確定作品歸屬的作品是
by Raphael. The museum bought the reattributed work for £22m in 2004. (7)
《粉紅聖母》
，現在被鑒定是拉斐爾的作品。該館在 2004
年花 2200 萬美元買下這幅作者被重新認定的作品。(七)
Among the lessons to be learned at this exhibition is that not all attributions
此次展覽會教給我們的其中一課是，並非所有的作品歸
are necessarily for ever. Technology, however sophisticated, may be
屬都必然會永久不變。科技無論多麼先進，都可能隨時
supplanted by better methods with the passing of time. This is not detective
間流逝而被更好的方法所取代。這不是偵探小說；歇洛
fiction; Sherlock Holmes can get it wrong. Attributions can often be
克·福爾摩斯也可能會弄錯。作品的歸屬通常是一種假
hypotheses rather than unshakable facts. It is to the National Gallery’s credit
定，而非不可動搖的事實。國家美術館能夠將它一些昂
that it has included some of its expensive misjudgments. Learning about the
貴的錯誤判斷納入展覽的一部分，這是值得欽佩的。了
process is one of the pleasures of this show. (8)
解這個過程是這次展出的樂趣之一。(八)
No. 15
Source Text
Target Text
Monitor
科技前沿
Correct me if I'm wrong...
有錯請糾正
Better speech-recognition technology
語音辨識技術的新進展
163
Software: A new approach to speech recognition gives users the chance
dqzxf 2010/07/16
to fix misunderstandings without having to repeat themselves
By ABBY ELLIN
July 12, 2010
THERE is often something sweet, intimate even, about couples who finish
情侶間品味對方未說完的話語時經常有種甜絲絲的感
each other’s sentences. But it can also be a source of irritation, especially
覺，甚至會感到親切。但這種半截話也可能惹惱對方，
when they get it wrong. A similar irritation (minus the sweetness) is often felt
尤其是產生了錯誤解讀的情況下更是如此。語音辨識軟
by users of speech-recognition software, which still manages to garble and
體仍然在千方百計地竄改和歪曲甚至是用戶最清晰的
twist even the most clearly spoken words. Might the solution lie in a more
吐詞，這同樣會使人感到惱火（使用者對軟體當然不會
intimate relationship between the user and the software? (1)
有什麼甜蜜的感覺）
。解決這個問題的辦法或許就只能
是使用者和軟體進行更加密切的交流。(一)
Modern speech-recognition programs do not merely try to identify individual
現代語音辨識程式不只是要識別單詞，相反，它們通過
words as they are spoken; rather, they attempt to match whole chunks of
統計用戶使用句子和短語的模式試圖能夠識別成段的
speech with statistical models of phrases and sentences. The rationale is that
話語。其基本原理是通過運用統計學上的經驗公式歸納
by knowing statistical rules of thumb for the way in which words are usually
出單詞組合的方式，這是一個抽象的運用在語法學上的
put together—an abstract probabilistic approximation of grammar, if you
概率型逼近問題，當軟體需要識別使用者吐出的單詞
will—it is possible to narrow the search when attempting to identify
時，運用這種方法可以縮小搜索範圍。當然這一切需要
individual words. For example, a noun-phrase will typically consist of a noun
使用者的配合。例如，名詞短語通常由一個名詞和前面
preceded by a modifier, such as an article and possibly also an adjective. So if
的一個冠詞構成，如一篇文章（an article）等，也可以
part of a speech pattern sounds like “ball”, the odds of it actually being “ball”
是由一個名詞加一個形容片語成。因此，如果一個聲譜
will increase if the utterances preceding it sound like “the” and “bouncy”. (2)
上語音的一部分聽起來像是“ball”（球）
，而在這個發音
前面有聽起來像是定冠詞 “the”和“bouncy”（跳躍的）
這樣的聲音，這個發音確實是“球”的可能性就增加了。
(二)
Although this “continuous speech recognition” technique has indeed
這種所謂的連續語音辨識方法雖然確實能夠提高語音
improved accuracy, it is by no means infallible. Moreover, when it gets things
辨識的正確率，但還做不到萬無一失。此外，它一旦識
wrong, it often does so spectacularly. The problem is that, as a direct
別錯誤，展現在面前的文字往往令人啼笑皆非。採用這
consequence of this technique, the misidentification of even a single word
種語音辨識技術，只要有一個單詞被識別錯了，程式就
can take the program off on the wrong path as it tries to predict what the rest
會根據這個單詞去猜測句子的剩餘部分，因而就會沿著
of the phrase is likely to be. (3)
一條完全錯誤的路徑走下去，結果也就可想而知了。(三)
Though such errors are inevitable, there may be a way to let
雖然這樣的錯誤無法避免，但要讓語音辨識程式去改
speech-recognition programs take the pain out of making corrections. Per Ola
錯，則難度太大。現在有一種方法可能有助於解決這一
Kristensson and Keith Vertanen, at the University of Cambridge’s Computer
難題。劍橋大學電腦實驗室的珀•歐萊•克裡斯特森（Per
Laboratory, have developed a method of allowing speech-recognition
Ola Kristensson） 和基斯•維特尼（Keith Vertanen）研究
programs to share their thoughts, as it were, with the user in order to speed up
出一種方法,這種方法在以往版本的軟體上已經採用過,
the correction process. Their solution, called Parakeet, is a
就是讓語音辨識程式和使用者進行人機對話以加強瞭
touch-screen-based interface for phones and other mobile devices, which not
解，使改錯的進程得以加快。他 們用這種方法開發的
only displays the words, phrases or sentences that scored highest in the
軟體被稱作“長尾鸚鵡”，使用了用於手機和其他移動通
164
program’s statistical model, but also any close contenders. This allows the
訊設備的觸屏介面，顯示在螢幕上的不僅有程式根據統
user to select alternatives easily, with a quick tap of the finger. More subtly, if
計模型篩選出的單詞、短語或句子，而且還包括了所有
none of the predicted sentences is entirely correct, yet collectively they
與它們近似的成份。這使得用戶選擇起來更加方便，手
contain the words that were spoken, the user can simply slide his finger
指輕輕一點，需要的詞就選出來了。更精妙的是，如果
across the appropriate words to link them up. (4)
程式先前猜測的句子不正確，而這些句子包含了用戶所
吐出的單詞，用戶就只需用手指在螢幕上滑過適當的單
詞將它們排列起來就可以了。(四)
In a sense, all Parakeet is doing is allowing the user to see which alternative
在某種意義上，“長尾鸚鵡”就是將程式預測的備選單詞
words or sentences the program would have predicted. The difference is that
與句子直觀地展示在用戶面前。過去類似的程式需要使
existing programs require the user to correct each word individually from a
用者從一系列下拉式功能表中選詞來逐個糾正每個單
drop-down list of alternatives, or else to retype or reutter the words. What is
詞，要麼就是重新打字或重新再說一遍。克裡斯特森
frustrating about this, says Dr Kristensson, is that more often than not the
說，很多情況下是正確的單詞串被識別出來，卻被語音
correct strings of words were recognised, but rejected by the
辨識程式基於統計規則而捨棄了，這才令人沮喪。而“長
speech-recognition program on statistical grounds. Parakeet makes them all
尾鸚鵡”把所有的備選項都列出來由使用者來做出選
available to the user. (5)
擇。(五)
The prototype uses an open-source speech-recognition program called Pocket
匹茲堡的卡耐基梅隆大學曾開發了一種叫做“袖珍斯芬
Sphinx, developed at Carnegie Mellon University, in Pittsburgh, but Dr
克斯”的開源語音辨識軟體，“長尾鸚鵡”就是在此基礎
Kristensson reckons it would be easy to apply the same approach to
上進行研製的。克裡斯特森博士估計將這種方法用於如
commercially available programs like Nuance’s Dragon. So far Dr
紐安斯公司的“龍”這類商務軟體的開發上並不難。迄今
Kristensson and Dr Vertanen have carried out only limited trials on a handful
為止，克裡斯特森和維特尼兩位博士僅僅用十幾個人對
of people. Even so, these have achieved operating rates of around 22 words
這套軟體進行了有限的試驗。但即使如此，這些試驗還
per minute—considerably higher than the 16 an average user can achieve
是取得了每分鐘 22 個單詞的識別速度，而以往採用預
using predictive texting. With the likes of Google, Nuance and Vlingo now
測下文的方法用戶平均只能達到每分鐘 16 個單詞的輸
offering mobile speech-recognition services for phones, and the development
出速度，如此對比就可看出使用“長尾鸚鵡”後文 本輸
of speech-driven systems for use in vehicles, Parakeet may be flying into a
出的速度要快得多。隨著谷歌、紐安斯和 Vlingo 等公
growing market. (6)
司紛紛給手機增加了語音辨識功能，以及如福特的
SYNC 這樣的車載多媒體通訊娛樂技術的發展，語音辨
識技術的市場前景無限廣闊，“長尾鸚鵡”必將飛得更
高。(六)
No. 16
Source Text
Target Text
Environmental groups in China
中國的環保團體
Budding greens
朝氣蓬勃的環保人士
A new generation of climate-change activists
新一代氣候變化活動人士。
新一代氣候變化活動人士。
July 15, 2010
sailor 2010/07/20
CHINA’S environment, most obviously the air in its cities, has been
中國環境惡化的速度幾乎與其工業令人炫目的擴張速
deteriorating roughly at the same dizzy pace that its industry has been
度旗鼓相當，城市中的空氣狀況尤為明顯。眼下，部分
165
expanding. Now some young activists, notably in university environmental
青年活動家以大學環保俱樂部為陣地，正在努力提高人
clubs, are campaigning to raise awareness of pollution. In the process, they
們的環保意識。在這個過程中，他們是這代人中首批涉
are among the first of their generation to dabble with political participation.
足政治活動的人。(一)
(1)
The China Youth Climate Action Network, formed in Beijing in August
2007 年 8 月，中國青年應對氣候變化網路在北京成立，
2007, began as a group of seven organisations which shared a desire to tackle
起初是由都旨在解決全球變暖問題的七個組織組成的
global warming. This week it co-hosted a big summit on youth, energy and
一個團體。本周，它在上海世博會的聯合國館共同主持
climate change at the United Nations pavilion in the Shanghai World Expo.
了一次有關青春、能源和氣候變化的大型峰會。該團體
“China has 400m young people and they need to make their voices heard, to
的成員趙祥宇說：“中國擁有 4 億年輕人，他們需要讓
express their views on climate change,” says Zhao Xiangyu, a board member.
人們聽到他們的聲音，發表他們在氣候變化問題上的看
(2)
法。” (二)
The group’s main project is to encourage energy efficiency at 52 Chinese
該團體的主要工程是在中國的 52 所大學鼓勵有效利用
universities. It does so through surveys, on-campus training and producing a
能源。它通過對應對氣候變化的調查、在校培訓和製作
guide book on responding to climate change. Its goal, since inception, has
指導書來完成任務。一開始，它就致力於實現到 2012
been to get a 20% cut in greenhouse-gas emissions at the universities by
年大學的溫室氣體排放減少 20%的目標。迄今為止，進
2012. Evidence of progress, so far, has been mixed. (3)
步的證據喜憂參半。(三)
This is not for want of enthusiasm. Students at Peking University have set up
並不是缺乏熱情。北大的學生用京都協議的一部分來命
a Clean Development Mechanism club, named after a part of the Kyoto
名，成立了清潔發展機制俱樂部。最近，它利用從世界
protocol. With some funding from the World Wide Fund for Nature, it
自然生態基金會獲得的一些資助，實施了一項在全國採
recently ran a project to interview and train “low-carbon leaders” around the
訪和培訓“低碳帶頭人”的專案。該俱樂部成員方傑（音）
country. “Our parents, their generation, are not aware of these issues,” says
說：“我們的父母親那一代並沒有意識到這些問題。因
Fan Jie, a member of the club. “So it is our generation who should take
此，我們這一代應該採取行動。” (四)
action.” (4)
Yet it is an awkward time for NGOs in China. Since March officials have
然而，對中國的非政府組織來說，這是一段令人尷尬的
required small non-profit organisations to get restrictive notarised agreements
時期。3 月後，官方要求小型非盈利組織獲得公證人簽
before they can accept foreign funding. This gives the government still more
字的限制性協議才能接受國外資助。這又為政府在業已
control in a field already dominated by groups that are closely guided by
由官方密切指導的團體主導的領域提供了更多的控制
officialdom. (5)
權。(五)
Such control may be one reason why even the greenest activists do not
這種控制或許是為何最具環保意識的活動人士在解決
contradict the government’s stance on tackling climate change. But Mr Fan,
氣候變化問題方面不與政府立場衝突的一個原因。但是
and most of his peers, also agree that economic growth and the environment
方傑以及大多數他的同齡人還贊同，經濟增長和環境問
are both pressing concerns, especially with countless Chinese still living in
題都是當務之急，尤其是在還有無數中國人還生活在貧
poverty. (6)
困中的情況下。(六)
The activists are also sensitive about foreign criticism of China’s
這些活動人士對國外對中國在環保方面拉後腿的批評
foot-dragging on greenery. At talks over a new climate treaty in Copenhagen,
也很敏感。在有關 12 月份哥本哈根一項新的氣候條約
in December, young Chinese delegates were not alone in doubting that a
的交談中，並非只有年輕的中國代表對將敲定一項有意
meaningful agreement would be struck. But they were fearful of being
義的協議表示懷疑。但是他們擔心捲入西方對其政府的
dragged into Western criticism of their government, and so pulled out of a
批評中，因此退出了一份原計劃由中美年輕代表發表的
166
planned joint declaration by young Chinese and American delegates. That
聯合聲明。這份聲明本是呼籲兩國政府加大環境保護的
would have called on governments of both countries to step up
力度。但是他們認為，這項聲明可能會被用於給中國施
environmental efforts. But the statement, they felt, might have been used to
加過多的壓力。這新一代環保人士首先考慮的是中國，
put undue pressure on China. This new breed of environmentalist is Chinese
其次才是是全球公民。(七)
first, global citizen second. (7)
No. 17
Source Text
Target Text
The da Vinci method
達·芬奇的繪畫技法
芬奇的繪畫技法
Shadow strokes
陰影筆法
Scientists at the Louvre have discovered the secret to the Mona Lisa’s face
盧浮宮的科學家發現了蒙娜麗莎面部的秘密
Shedding light on the Mona Lisa’s secrets
揭開蒙娜麗莎之謎
July 22, 2010
qwerab 2010/07/27
THE Mona Lisa’s lure is so strong that Louvre Museum officials find it wise
蒙娜麗莎散發著強烈的誘惑，盧浮宮博物館的官員只好
to keep her safely stowed behind bulletproof glass. She is let out of her
明智地將她置於防彈玻璃罩中。她每年能從保護罩中出
protective cage once a year, for a whiff of fresh air. And this is when many a
來一次，呼吸一下新鮮空氣。這個時候，很多研究人員
researcher would love to get their hands on Leonardo da Vinci’s most famous
希望能近距離接觸一下這幅列奧納多·達·芬奇最著名的
muse, in order to find out more about how she was painted. (1)
神作，以便瞭解她究竟是如何繪製的。(一)
For a long time, scientists and curators have wondered how da Vinci created
一直以來，科學家和管理人員都對達·芬奇陰影的描繪
shadows on her face with seemingly no brushstrokes or contours. Art experts
方法十分好奇，因為她臉上幾乎沒有筆法和輪廓線的痕
call this shadowing technique sfumato—like the Italian word for smoke,
跡。藝術專家稱這種陰影技術為 sfumato——類似義大
fumo. Experts have long suspected sfumato shadowing has something to do
利語中的“煙”，fumo。專家認為 sfumato 陰影與達·芬奇
with the glazes that da Vinci used above the paint layer. But proving this has
塗在塗料層上的油彩有關。這種假設的取證很困難，因
been difficult because snatching a sample of the Mona Lisa’s face for
為顯然，從蒙娜麗莎臉上撕下一塊進行化學分析無疑是
chemical analysis is, unsurprisingly, frowned upon. (2)
要被譴責的。(二)
Instead, Louvre scientists led by Philippe Walter tried to solve the mystery
以菲力浦·沃爾特為首的盧浮宮科學家們另闢蹊徑，試
using a hands-off technique called X-ray fluorescence, which can divulge
圖用一種不接觸的技術，X 射線螢光，來解開這個謎，
details about the thickness and chemical composition of a painter’s individual
這種技術可以不用損壞作品就能分析筆法的細節，包括
brush strokes without damaging artwork. Focusing X-rays on faces in seven
畫家每一筆的厚薄和化學成分。用 X 射線照射包括蒙娜
of da Vinci’s masterpieces, including the Mona Lisa, Dr Walter’s team found
麗莎在內的七幅達·芬奇傑作的人臉，沃爾特的小組發
that the artist would first paint in the basic flesh tones. Then da Vinci applied
現，達·芬奇會先畫出基本的膚色。然後達·芬奇會在 膚
up to 30 incredibly thin strokes of glaze above the flesh tone—many just a
色上塗上多達 30 筆極薄的油彩——很多只有幾微米
few micrometres thick. (3)
厚。(三)
Glaze is mostly translucent, but da Vinci would also slip in small amounts of
油彩幾乎透明，但達·芬奇還會加入少許乾粉顏料，比
pigments, such as manganese and lead oxides. By applying many thin coats
如錳或鉛的氧化物。上了許多薄層這種改良的油彩後，
of this adapted glaze, he achieved the smoky shadowing he became famous
這種令他享譽古今的煙霧狀陰影畫法就完成了。(四)
for. (4)
A paper describing da Vinci’s shadow science, published in Angewandte
167
一篇發表於《應用化學國際版》，闡述達·芬奇陰影技法
Chemie International Edition, also suggests that the artist was picky about his
的論文也指出，達·芬奇的油彩配方十分考究。例如，畫
glaze recipes. For example, in the painting “The Virgin and Child with St
作《聖母子與聖安娜》中，聖母臉上的陰影油彩與聖子
Anne”, the virgin’s face is shadowed by glaze that contains different
臉上的油彩中的顏料有所不同。達·芬奇可能有意選用了
pigments to those in the shadowing glaze on the child. Da Vinci might have
不同的油彩配方——或者他有可能在幾年後對作品進
selected different glaze recipes on purpose—or he may have tweaked the
行了微調，而他所喜愛的油彩成分發生了變化。(五)
painting over years during which time his taste in glaze ingredients could
have changed. (5)
Few of the tourists strolling around the museum grounds realise that beneath
逛博物館的遊客中沒人知道，在他們腳下有著 60 名科
them are 60 scientists, a particle accelerator and a battery of research
學家，一個粒子加速器和一套研究設備，致力於研究法
equipment dedicated to soliciting secrets from the vast collections of French
國所有博物館中誘人的秘密。那些因為工作有幸得以與
museums. The scientists who were lucky enough to get close to the Mona
蒙娜麗莎近距離接觸的科學家並不需要走多遠，因為他
Lisa for this work did not have far to travel, as they work in the Centre for
們工作的法國博物館研究與修復中心是一座坐落於盧
Research and Restoration of Museums of France—a subterranean laboratory
浮宮地下的實驗室。(六)
that lies beneath the Louvre. (6)
All, however, is not happy underground. The French Ministry of Culture
然而，並不是所有人都喜歡他們呆在地下。法國文化部
wants to relocate this laboratory, as well as the Louvre’s storerooms, to a site
長希望能將這個博物館以及盧浮宮的儲藏室遷至巴黎
about 50km (30 miles) outside Paris in a new facility to be built in
50 公里（30 英里）以外，塞日-蓬圖瓦茲的一座即將建
Cergy-Pontoise. To judge from the blog started by some of the centre’s
成的設施內。從研究中心裡一些十分不滿的員工的博客
disgruntled staff, their mood is decidedly sfumato. (7)
上可以看出，他們的心情無疑是 sfumato 的。(七)
No. 18
Source Text
Target Text
Corporate psychology
公司心理學
How to tell when your boss is lying
如何看出老闆在撒謊
It's not just that his lips are moving
可不只是看他動動嘴唇那麼簡單
August 19, 2010
A.Little.Boat 2010/08/20
“ASSHOLE!” That was what Jeff Skilling, the boss of Enron, called an
“狗屁！”Enron 公司老闆 Jeff Skilling 對一名投資者叫
investor who challenged his rosy account of his firm’s financial health. Other
道，這位投資者對老闆有關其公司財務健康狀況的美好
bosses usually give less obvious clues that they are lying. Happily, a new
描述提出了質疑。別的老闆撒謊時，通常不會給人很多
study reveals what those clues are. (1)
明顯線索。幸運的是，一項新的研究告訴我們這些明顯
和不明顯的線索都是什麼。(一)
David Larcker and Anastasia Zakolyukina of Stanford’s Graduate School of
斯 坦福商學院研究生院的 David Larcker 和 Anastasia
Business analysed the transcripts of nearly 30,000 conference calls by
Zakolyukina 分析了2003 年至 2007 年間美國首席執行官
American chief executives and chief financial officers between 2003 and
和首席財務官的近 30,000 份電話會議紀錄，記錄每位元
2007. They noted each boss’s choice of words, and how he delivered them.
老闆的措辭及說話方式。通過測試老闆在電話中討論盈
They drew on psychological studies that show how people speak differently
利狀況時，“具體的，等隨後再說”這類委婉語“表達”模
when they are fibbing, testing whether these “tells” were more common
式是否更為常見，結合心理學研究，他們想要揭示，在
during calls to discuss profits that were later “materially restated”, as the
撒些無傷大雅的小謊時，人們的說話方式有何不同。該
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euphemism goes. They published their findings in a paper called “Detecting
項研究成果在論文“找出電話會議中的欺騙”中發佈。
Deceptive Discussions in Conference Calls”. (2)
(二)
Deceptive bosses, it transpires, tend to make more references to general
該論文透露，欺騙性的老闆總是更多的提及大家都知道
knowledge (“as you know…”), and refer less to shareholder value (perhaps
的（“你知道……”）
，較少提及股東的價值（也許是要
to minimise the risk of a lawsuit, the authors hypothesise). They also use
把法律訴訟的風險降到最低，據作者揣測）
。他們還幾
fewer “non-extreme positive emotion words”. That is, instead of describing
乎不使用“非極端積極情感詞彙”，即，不說“好”，而說“棒
something as “good”, they call it “fantastic”. The aim is to “sound more
極了”，這樣做的目的，是要讓他們的胡說八道“聽起來
persuasive” while talking horsefeathers. (3)
會更有說服力”。(三)
When they are lying, bosses avoid the word “I”, opting instead for the third
撒謊時，老闆們會避免使用“我”這個詞，相反，他們會
person. They use fewer “hesitation words”, such as “um” and “er”,
使用第三人稱。他們較少使用像“嗯”、“哦”之類的“躊躇
suggesting that they may have been coached in their deception. As with Mr
不決詞彙”，這表明他們的行騙已經訓練有素。像 Skilling
Skilling’s “asshole”, more frequent use of swear words indicates deception.
先生的“狗屁”一樣，高頻度使用罵人詞彙也表明是在欺
These results were significant, and arguably would have been even stronger
騙。這些發現結果很有意義，要是作者能夠區分故意為
had the authors been able to distinguish between executives who knowingly
之的欺詐老闆與那些笨而不自知的欺詐老闆的話，就會
misled and those who did so unwittingly. They had to assume that every
更有意義。兩位作者只能推斷，所有的“事後再說”都是
restatement was the result of deliberate deception; but the psychological traits
在故意欺騙；但是，他們所進行的測試中，符合欺騙的
they tested for would only appear in a person who knew he was lying. (4)
心理學特徵的老闆中，只有一人知道自己在欺騙。(四)
This study should help investors glean valuable new insights from
該研究有助於幫助投資者從電話會議中找出有價值的
conference calls. Alas, this benefit may diminish over time. The real winners
新思路。哎呀，這個好處會隨著時間的推移而消失。真
will be public-relations firms, which now know to coach the boss to hesitate
正的贏家會是公共關係公司，他們現在就知道了該訓練
more, swear less and avoid excessive expressions of positive emotion.
老闆說話時要經常表現得猶豫不決、要少罵人、要避免
Expect “fantastic” results to become a thing of the past. (5)
積極情感的過度表達等。期望該研究那些“棒極了”的好
處能夠很快成為過去時。(五)
No. 19
Source Text
Target Text
Geography of Britain
英國地理
Take your time, and look
花點時間，
花點時間，好好看看
A guidebook with a delightful difference
一本帶來驚喜的旅行手冊
Never Eat Shredded Wheat: The Geography We’ve Lost and How to Find it
東西南北：找回丟失的地理。Christopher Somerville 著。
Again. By Christopher Somerville. Hodder & Stoughton; 240 pages; £12.99.
霍德&斯托頓出版社；240 頁，12.99 歐。
Buy from Amazon.co.uk
upwind 2010/08/23
August 19, 2010
FOR Christopher Somerville, the age of Sat Nav and GPS is one of paradox.
對於 Christopher Somerville 來說，一個有衛星導航系統
We are better than ever before at finding our way from A to B, but we know
和全球定位儀的時代本身就是一個矛盾。我們比以往任
less and less about what’s in between. As we get better at navigating, we
何時候都善於找到從 A 點到 B 點的路線，但是我們對
become lost in our own countries. The soothing screen of a Sat Nav system
於 A 點和 B 點之間的一切都一無所知。我們越來越善
shows roads as thin, abstract strips striding through a featureless grey
於利用導航儀，但是我們也逐漸在自己的國土中迷失。
169
emptiness. Real life—the rivers, towns, caves, cliffs, bridges, battlefields,
在衛星導航系統的螢幕上顯示的線路是一條自平淡無
towers, cairns, factories and palaces that make up the world—is nowhere to
奇的灰色虛無中延伸出的抽象細長的線條。但是真實的
be seen, and so the memory of it fades slowly from our collective
景象——那些組成世界的河流、城鎮、山谷、懸崖、橋
consciousness. (1)
樑、戰場、塔臺、石塚、工廠和平原——卻無從可見，
事實上，在我們繁雜的意識世界中，關於這些東西的記
憶在也逐漸消退。(一)
To redress the balance—and to rescue geography for all those who didn’t pay
為了找回平衡——也為了挽救那些在學校對地理漠不
attention in school—Mr Somerville has written a short natural history of his
關心的人——Somerville 先生編寫了這本短小精悍的關
home country of Britain. On the surface, it takes the form of a jaunty
於他的故鄉英國的自然歷史書。作為一本旅行手冊，它
guidebook, full of jokes, obscure facts and the kind of helpful impressionism
的封面美觀時髦，充滿趣味，耐人回想，有印象派的風
that more formal travel guides lack (the “psychic smell” of Edinburgh, we
格——這是很多正規的旅行手冊所不具備的（例如它告
are told, is “Gothic”). It contains a shortlist of landmarks, lighthearted
訴我們，愛丁伯格的“精神氣味”是“哥特味”）
，這本書也
sketches of regions and a fascinating discussion of British rivers, among
羅列了一小串地標，一些小地區的隨手素描。除此之
much else. (2)
外，它還對英國的河流進行了一番精彩的討論。(二)
But sit down and read the lightly written book from cover to cover and it
但是如果你能坐下來，將這本輕描淡寫的書從頭讀至尾
becomes clear that it is also a prose paean to the accumulated detritus of an
的話，你就會清晰地發現它也是一首對舊社會點滴敘述
old society with a well-recorded history and a keen interest (some would say
的散文頌歌，歷史記載完好，熱衷（有人說這是沉迷）
an obsession) in preserving its past. Many of the landmarks he lists hint at
於保存過去。很多他所提到的地標都能映射出更大的事
bigger stories, such as the Derbyshire church with a wonky spire that leans
件，例如它指出德比郡教堂的尖頂位置不正，偏離了中
almost three metres (ten feet) out of true thanks to the inexperience of its
心三米之遠，而這時因為當時建造教堂的工匠全部都是
greenhorn builders—all the experienced builders having died a few years
新手，在建德比郡教堂的幾年前爆發了黑死病，所有有
previously during the Black Death. This is geography not as a dry academic
經驗的工匠都得病死掉了。它也不再是一本只乾巴巴地
subject full of jargon and terminology, but as the natural history of a living,
描述術語行話的學術主題書，而是一本自然歷史書，它
evolving landscape. (3)
記載了活生生、正在進化著的地理面貌。(三)
Nor is it all backward-looking nostalgia: modern icons jostle with ancient
它也不只是一本回顧過去的懷舊書：它不僅記載了很多
attractions, and the writing is heavily salted with popular culture. Physical
歷史古跡，還記錄了很多現代地標，其間用流行文化作
geography is treated just as respectfully as its human counterpart. For Mr
為書寫作料。硬邦邦的地理學被其所相對應的人文性而
Somerville the flatlands of Cambridgeshire are just as beautiful, in their own
禮待。對於 Somerville 先生來說，不論是劍橋郡大平原，
way, as the looming, mist-cloaked isles that dot the western seas off Scotland
還是散落在蘇格蘭西海岸的那些如海市蜃樓般的煙霧
or the moody moors of northern Yorkshire. That he can conjure such delights
繚繞的小島嶼，亦或者是北約克郡的陰沉荒野，它們都
from the decidedly non-epic scale of the British landscape is a welcome
用自己的方式散發著一樣的美麗。他從一個非史詩的角
reminder that there is a great deal of beauty and fascination in small things,
度——英國地貌中找出了如此多的樂趣。這也提醒我
providing one takes the time to look, instead of hurrying past on the way to a
們，如果我們不再急匆匆地追趕漫長路途，而是花點時
distant destination. (4)
間仔細尋找，我們也能在很多細小的事情中發現美麗和
魅力。(四)
No. 20
Source Text
Target Text
170
Obesity
肥胖
Drink till you drop
喝水也能瘦身
A magic elixir is shown to promote weight loss
幫你瘦身的靈丹妙藥
August 24, 2010
tinnciy 2010/10/27
CONSUME more water and you will become much healthier, goes an old
有種民間說法廣為流傳：多喝些水會更健康。還有一
wives’ tale. Drink a glass of water before meals and you will eat less, goes
種版本是：飯前一杯水，吃飯少一嘴。這些瘦身法聽
another. Such prescriptions seem sensible, but they have little rigorous science to
起來挺合情合理，但沒有縝密的科學依據。(一)
back them up. (1)
Until now, that is. A team led by Brenda Davy of Virginia Tech has run the first
但是現在，這些說法有理有據了。佛吉尼亞科技大學
randomised controlled trial studying the link between water consumption and
Brenda Davy 帶領的研究小組率先就飲水與瘦身之間
weight loss. A report on the 12-week trial, published earlier this year, suggested
的聯繫開展了隨機對照實驗。今年早些時候發表了一
that drinking water before meals does lead to weight loss. At a meeting of the
份為期 12 周的實驗報告，該實驗顯示：飯前喝水確
American Chemical Society in Boston this week, Dr Davy unveiled the results
實可以減輕體重。在美國化學協會本周於波士頓召開
of a year-long follow-up study that confirms and expands that finding. (2)
的會議上，Davy 博士指出，長達一年的跟蹤調查結
果支持並拓寬了這個發現。(二)
The researchers divided 48 inactive Americans, aged 55 to 75, into two groups.
研究員將 48 位年齡介於 55 到 75 歲之間，不愛運動
Members of one were told to drink half a litre of water (a bit more than an
的美國人分為甲乙兩組。他們要求甲組成員每日三餐
American pint) shortly before each of three daily meals. The others were given
飯前不久喝半升水（500ml）,對乙組成員則沒有這方
no instructions on what to drink. Before the trial, all participants had been
面的要求。實驗前，所有的志願者每天的攝入的熱量
consuming between 1,800 and 2,200 calories a day. When it began, the
一直都在 1800 卡到 2200 卡之間。實驗開始後，女性
women’s daily rations were slashed to 1,200 calories, while the men were
成員的日常熱量攝入量被控制在 1200 卡，男性成員
allowed 1,500. After three months the group that drank water before meals had
則被控制在 1500 卡。三個月後甲組組員每人瘦了
lost about 7kg (15½lb) each, while those in the thirsty group lost only 5kg. (3)
7kg，而乙組組員每人只瘦 5kg。(三)
Dr Davy confidently bats away some obvious doubts about the results. There is
Davy 博士信心滿滿地掃除了對實驗結果的一些明顯
no selection bias, she observes, since this is a randomised trial. It is possible that
質疑。她指出，這個實驗不存在選擇性偏差，因為這
the water displaced sugary drinks in the hydrated group, but this does not
是一個隨機試驗。可能甲組組員因為喝了水，就沒有
explain the weight loss because the calories associated with any fizzy drinks
再喝加糖飲料了，但這不能解釋他們為什麼瘦得更
consumed by the other group had to fall within the daily limits. Moreover, the
多。因為即使乙組組員喝了碳酸飲料，他們每天攝入
effect seems to be long-lasting. In the subsequent 12 months the participants
的卡路里量也是在控制範圍內的。況且喝水瘦身的效
have been allowed to eat and drink what they like. Those told to drink water
果似乎是不反彈的。隨後的 12 個月裡，志願者的飲
during the trial have, however, stuck with the habit—apparently they like it.
食不再受到限制。然而那些在實驗中天天飯前喝水的
Strikingly, they have continued to lose weight (around 700g over the year),
組員保持了這個習慣，很顯然大家喜歡這個習慣。令
whereas the others have put it back on. (4)
人吃驚的是，他們的體重還在減輕，一年大約瘦
700g，而沒喝水的乙組組員的體重卻反彈了。(四)
Why this works is obscure. But work it does. It’s cheap. It’s simple. And unlike
這個方法為什麼如此有效實在令人費解。但它確實有
so much dietary advice, it seems to be enjoyable too. (5)
效，而且便宜、簡單，不像其它飲食建議那麼繁雜，
看起來還那麼令人愉快。(五)
171